Boryl Radical Activation of Benzylic C-OH Bond: Cross-Electrophile Coupling of Free Alcohols and CO2 via Photoredox Catalysis.

A new strategy for the direct cleavage of the C(sp3)-OH bond has been developed via activation of free alcohols with neutral diphenyl boryl radical generated from sodium tetraphenylborate under mild visible light photoredox conditions. This strategy has been verified by cross-electrophile coupling of free alcohols and carbon dioxide for the synthesis of carboxylic acids. Direct transformation of a range of primary, secondary, and tertiary benzyl alcohols to acids has been achieved. Control experiments and computational studies indicate that activation of alcohols with neutral boryl radical undergoes homolysis of the C(sp3)-OH bond, generating alkyl radicals. After reducing the alkyl radical into carbon anion under photoredox conditions, the following carboxylation with CO2 affords the coupling product.

Evaluation of therapeutic effect of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation on bone metastasis pain and its influence on immune function of patients.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to observe the effect of transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) on bone metastasis pain, anxiety and immune function in cancer patients. METHODS: A total of 127 patients with bone metastasis pain from malignant tumors were treated with TEAS or drugs. The TEAS group comprised of 62 patients, while the drug control group comprised of 65 patients. The differences in general indexes, baseline pain and anxiety between these two groups were not statistically significant. RESULTS: Compared with those before treatment, the visual analog scale (VAS) scores of patients in the TEAS group and drug control group decreased after treatment, and the differences were statistically significant. The degrees of pain relief after treatment were similar between the two groups. Anxiety improved in both the TEAS group and drug control group, and the difference between these two groups was not statistically significant. The differences in immune indexes, B cell and CD8 between the TEAS group and drug control group were statistically significant. TEAS treatment could improve the declining trend of CD8 in patients. CONCLUSIONS: TEAS treatment and drug treatment can effectively alleviate mild to moderate pain in patients, and the efficacy of these two groups is similar. The treatment for moderate and severe pain needs to be combined with drug treatment to achieve a control effect. TEAS can improve the anxiety and immune function of patients, and prevent the decrease in B cells and CD8 in patients treated with drugs alone.

[Influence of FOLFOX regimen on the immunologic function in patients with advanced colorectal cancer].

OBJECTIVE: To examine the influence of chemotherapy with FOLFOX protocol (CT-F) on the immunologic function in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. METHODS: A total of 43 patients with advanced colorectal cancer were included. Patients who received FOLFOX chemotherapy (Group A, n=22) were compared to those who did not(Group B, n=21). Blood was obtained from peripheral vein before chemotherapy (T0), at the time of completion of chemotherapy (T1), and 3 months after completion of chemotherapy (T2) to detect the percentage of regulatory T lymphocytes (CD4+CD25+Foxp3+T cells) in total T lymphocytes using fluorescence activated cell sorter (FACS). The level of Th1/Th2 cytokines in the serum including interleukin-2 (IL-2), interleukin-4 (IL-4), interleukin-10 (IL-10) and interferon-γ (IFN-γ) were detected by enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay(ELISA). RESULTS: The percentage of regulative T lymphocyte was significantly lower at T1, which increased after chemotherapy but was still lower than that at T0 and that in Group B [(4.15±0.56)%, (5.60±0.88)%, and(5.38±0.92)%, all P<0.01]. The levels of IL-4, IL-10 decreased at T1, and increased to the normal level at T2 compared with those at T0 or those in the control group (all P<0.01). In contrast, the levels of IL-2 and IFN-γ increased significantly at T1 and decreased to the normal level at T2 during the entire observation period. CONCLUSION: For patients with advanced colorectal cancer, FOLFOX chemotherapy can decrease the proportion of regulatory T lymphocytes and results in Th1/Th2 cytokine drift to Th1 type. Therefore, FOLFOX may help the release from the anticancer immune inhibition.