Prediction of early recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after liver transplantation based on computed tomography radiomics nomogram.

BACKGROUND: Early recurrence results in poor prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after liver transplantation (LT). This study aimed to explore the value of computed tomography (CT)-based radiomics nomogram in predicting early recurrence of patients with HCC after LT. METHODS: A cohort of 151 patients with HCC who underwent LT between December 2013 and July 2019 were retrospectively enrolled. A total of 1218 features were extracted from enhanced CT images. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator algorithm (LASSO) logistic regression was used for dimension reduction and radiomics signature building. The clinical model was constructed after the analysis of clinical factors, and the nomogram was constructed by introducing the radiomics signature into the clinical model. The predictive performance and clinical usefulness of the three models were evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis and decision curve analysis (DCA), respectively. Calibration curves were plotted to assess the calibration of the nomogram. RESULTS: There were significant differences in radiomics signature among early recurrence patients and non-early recurrence patients in the training cohort (P < 0.001) and validation cohort (P < 0.001). The nomogram showed the best predictive performance, with the largest area under the ROC curve in the training (0.882) and validation (0.917) cohorts. Hosmer-Lemeshow testing confirmed that the nomogram showed good calibration in the training (P = 0.138) and validation (P = 0.396) cohorts. DCA showed if the threshold probability is within 0.06-1, the nomogram had better clinical usefulness than the clinical model. CONCLUSIONS: Our CT-based radiomics nomogram can preoperatively predict the risk of early recurrence in patients with HCC after LT.

Diversity of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus in Shandong, China.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is one of the most economically significant pathogens in swine industry of China. To study infection and genetic variation of PRRSV, 637 tissue samples were collected from diseased pigs in Shandong, and then subjected to detection of PRRSV. The nsp2 and ORF5 genes were sequenced for investigation of variations and phylogenetic analysis. The results showed that positive rate of PRRSV was 9.58% in the collected samples. Phylogenetic analysis of GP5 showed that these strains were clustered into two lineages (1 and 8) indicating different genotypes of PRRSV were circulating in Shandong province. Meanwhile, sequence analysis Of nsp2 showed that the PRRSV strains with 30 amino acids deletions were dominant. Moreover, novel pattern of recombination/deletion and insertion in nsp2 was observed in these strains, indicating that novel PRRSV strains with different patterns of deletions or insertions in nsp2 are emerging in China. All the results suggested that continuous surveillance of PRRSV in China is warranted. Keywords: PRRSV; GP5; nsp2; genetic analysis; Shandong.

Vaccine resistant pseudorabies virus causes mink infection in China.

BACKGROUND: Pseudorabies, a highly contagious infectious disease of swine is caused by pseudorabies virus (PRV). PRV can cause fatal infection in other animal species. RESULTS: We report a deadly outbreak of pseudorabies that killed 87.2% (3522/4028) minks in a farm in 2014 in Shandong Province, China. PRV was isolated by using Vero cell culture and detected in mink samples by PCR from minks died during the outbreak. Epidemiological analysis indicated that 5.8% of minks (33/566) were PCR positive to PRV in Shandong Province. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the PRV strains isolated from minks in this study were in the same clade with the Chinese porcine PRV isolates, which are resistant to the PRV vaccine. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that pseudorabies virus caused an outbreak of minks in a farm in Shandong Province of China and the virus has a very high infection rate in minks in Shandong Province, which is a challenge for the fur industry in China.

Genetic analysis of porcine circovirus type 2 from dead minks.

Circovirus infection is a growing problem in the field of veterinary and public health. It is associated with enteric diseases in both mammalian and avian hosts. In this study, we detected and isolated porcine circovirus strains in the tissue samples of minks that died from diarrhoea in Shandong Province, China. We sequenced the whole genome of two porcine strains of Circovirus, designated as MiSD-1 and MiSD-2， which had a 97.34% similarity on nucleotide sequence and were closely related to porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2), but distantly related to mink circoviral species. Phylogenetically MiSD-1 and MiSD-2 are a part of the PCV2b genotype cluster, which is a highly prevalent genotype worldwide. The closer relationship of MiSD-1 and MiSD-2 to PCV2 from pigs than to other mink circoviral species may be evidence of cross-species transmission and considerable zoonotic potential.

The technology of artificial pneumoperitoneum CT and its application in diagnosis of abdominal adhesion.

To retrospectively analyze the use of artificial pneumoperitoneum in CT scans, to explore its operation methods and technical points, and to lay the foundation for the widespread application of artificial pneumoperitoneum in CT. A total of 331 patients who underwent artificial pneumoperitoneum with CT angiography from January 1, 2013, to November 1, 2019, were recruited. All patients underwent standardized artificial pneumoperitoneum in the horizontal, left and right lateral, and prone positions during CT thin-layer scans of the abdomen and 3D reconstruction. Taking the surgical results as the gold standard, and using kappa test to verify the consistency of surgical results and imaging results. In all 331 patients, 43 patients had a normal peritoneal space, and 288 patients had an abnormal peritoneal space. And only 22 patients developed complications of subcutaneous emphysema, accounting for 6.6% of all 331 patients. In terms of the postoperative results, 28 were normal, and 303 were abnormal. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of CT diagnosis of abdominal adhesions using artificial pneumoperitoneum were 100%, 95.04%, and 95.46%, respectively. According to the Kappa consistency test, the imaging diagnosis from the CT scan with artificial pneumoperitoneum had a high consistency with the surgical results (kappa = 0.796, P < 0.05). The technique of artificial pneumoperitoneum CT is safe, reliable, highly practical, and proficient for obtaining good imaging results. It provides a good imaging basis for the diagnosis of intra-abdominal diseases, especially intra-abdominal adhesions.

Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome Virus Infection in Minks in China.

We analyzed the seroprevalence of tick-borne severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) in farm-raised minks using double antigen ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) kit and indicated that 8.4% (15/178) of the minks had antibodies to the nucleoprotein of SFTSV and 72.7% (8/11) of mink farms had minks positive to SFTSV. The ELISA results were further confirmed by presence of neutralization to SFTSV in the mink sera. Our results suggested that minks were widely infected with SFTSV in China.

Identification of Wohlfahrtiimonas chitiniclastica isolated from an infected cow with hoof fetlow, China.

Wohlfahrtiimonas chitiniclastica is a rare but an emerging zoonotic pathogen. Here, we report the isolation and identification of W. chitiniclastica strain DZ2015 from hoof pus of an infected cow with hoof fetlow in Shandong, China by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing and mouse infection experiments showed that the strain of W. chitiniclastica had broad susceptibility and was pathogenic to mice. This is the first report of the W. chitiniclastica isolated from an infected domestic animal in China.

Detection and characterization of avastrovirus associated with diarrhea isolated from minks in China.

Astroviruses are becoming a growing concern in veterinary and public health. Many astrovirus species are associated with enteric diseases have been described in both mammalian and avian hosts. In the present study, 23 fecal samples from diarrheic minks were collected in Liaoning and Shandong Province, and an investigation of astrovirus was performed using biochemical methods and RT-PCR assay with specific primers. A total of four mink astroviral isolates were detected from sick minks with diarrhea problems. Further sequencing and characterization of the partial ORF1b gene and ORF2 gene segments revealed low sequence identities (20.0-85.3 and 31.8-87.2%) with known astroviral strains, indicating the emergence of a novel clade of astroviruses. Some new features of the astroviral genome have also been discovered. The phylogenetic tree revealed that all samples were distantly related to mink astrovirus and were closely related to chicken astroviruses and turkey astroviruses. MK/DL-1, MK/DL-2, MK/SD-1, and MK/SD-2 formed a new clade and were found to be more closely related to astroviruses from birds than to other mink strains, indicating past cross-species transmission and considerable zoonotic potential.

The effect of long-range order on the elastic properties of Cu3Au.

Ab initio calculations, based on the exact muffin-tin orbitals method are used to determine the elastic properties of Cu-Au alloys with Au/Cu ratio 1/3. The compositional disorder is treated within the coherent potential approximation. The lattice parameters and single-crystal elastic constants are calculated for different partially ordered structures ranging from the fully ordered L1(2) to the random face centered cubic lattice. It is shown that the theoretical elastic constants follow a clear trend with the degree of chemical order: namely, C(11) and C(12) decrease, whereas C(44) remains nearly constant with increasing disorder. The present results are in line with the experimental findings that the impact of the chemical ordering on the fundamental elastic parameters is close to the resolution of the available experimental and theoretical tools.

[Effect of urokinase on cerebral perfusion in rabbits after cardiopulmonary resuscitation].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of urokinase on cerebral microcirculatory perfusion after cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in rabbits after cardiac arrest (CA). METHODS: Twenty New Zealand rabbits were assorted into drug thrombolysis group and routine CPR group by randomized digital method with 10 in each group. Potassium chloride injection combined with asphyxia was employed to establish the CA model, CPR and basic life-support were performed in routine CPR group. Following the above treatments, 20 kU/kg urokinase was given in thrombolysis group. The relative cerebral blood flow (rCBF), cerebral blood volume (rCBV) and top teep time (rTTP) were observed by dual-slice spiral CT cerebral perfusion imaging in order to investigate the effect of urokinase on cerebral microcirculatory perfusion in rabbits. RESULTS: rCBF and rCBV in thrombolysis group were significantly higher than those in routine CPR group (rCBF: 1.248±0.139 vs 0.900±0.070, t=6.870, P=0.000; rCBV: 1.206±0.117 vs. 0.969±0.067, t=6.156, P=0.000), and rTTP in thrombolysis group was significantly shorter than that in routine CPR group (0.950±0.037 vs. 1.015±0.026, t=3.777, P=0.004). The cerebral perfusion in thrombolysis group was obviously better than routine CPR group. There were no significant differences in the time for restoration of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), the time for restoration of spontaneous breathing or mean arterial pressure (MAP between routine CPR group and thrombolysis group [ time of ROSC (s): 307.9±96.4 vs. 242.0±71.0, t=-1.741, P=0.099; time of restoration of spontaneous breathing (minutes): 20.6±12.5 vs. 19.3±10.1, t= -0.256, P=0.801; MAP (mm Hg, 1 mm Hg=0.133 kPa): 65.5 = 6.2 vs 69.0±6.7, t=1.217, P=0.239]. CONCLUSION: Thrombolytic therapy with urokinase in CPR could improve the cerebral microcirculatory perfusion in CA rabbits.

[Analysis of follow-up outcomes of endoscopic modified Lothrop procedure].

OBJECTIVE: To sum up the follow-up outcomes of endoscopic modified Lothrop procedure (EMLP) and retrospectively analyze the indications, methods and prognostic factors of EMLP. METHODS: The collected data of 73 cases who received EMLP with frontal sinus diseases were analyzed in this paper. The mean age was 45.6 (ranging from 14 to 72 years). There were 52 males and 21 females. Only patients with follow-up time greater or equal to 6 months were included. Paranasal sinus CT scan was adopted for all cases and MRI for tumor patients. All patients were followed under endoscope. RESULTS: There were 21 inverted papilloma in the frontal sinus, 16 chronic sinusitis with asthma, 12 frontal sinusitis, 9 chronic sinusitis with or without polyps, 7 osteoma of the frontal sinus, 4 frontal mucocele, 3 allergic fungal sinusitis and 1 congenital encephalocele. Sixty-one cases had prior surgical history (1.8 times on the average). Their mean follow-up was 25.0 months, (ranging from 6 to 122 months). At the end of follow-up, 44 cases (60.3%) had well opened frontal drainage pathway. Twenty-five (34.2%) was re-stenosed and 4 (5.5%) closed. Seven cases (9.6%) underwent revision surgeries. There were no surgical complications. CONCLUSIONS: EMLP is an effective and salvage procedure in dealing with tumor of frontal sinus and recurrent frontal sinusitis. Combined with medical treatment, EMLP will have a better results for chronic sinusitis with or without polyps and asthma. The degree of diseases, mucosal loss, anatomic variability and prior surgeries are important prognostic factors.

[Clinical application of Draf IIb frontal sinusotomy and it's modified procedures].

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the follow-up outcomes of Draf IIb frontal sinusotomy and it's modified procedures, and to discuss the surgical indications and prognostic factors. METHODS: Thirty-two patients treated between 2004 and 2010 were enrolled in this study. There were 15 patients for recurrent frontal inverted papilloma (IP), 6 for mucocele, 4 for recurrent frontal sinusitis, 3 for osteoma, 2 for meningoencephalocele with cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea, 1 for meningoencephalocele alone and 1 for acute frontal sinusitis. All patients underwent preoperative paranasal sinus computed tomography (CT) scans. Patients with tumor accepted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The patients with meningoencephalocele and cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea received magnetic resonance cisternography (MRC). The Draf IIb frontal sinusotomy and it's modified Draf IIb-1-3 procedures were applied endoscopically under general anesthesia mainly by high speed bur and power system. The postoperative CT scan was obtained as a base line for follow-up 1 week after the operation. Postoperative follow-up was performed under endoscope. RESULTS: Among 19 cases of Draf IIb, 12 were recurrent IP of frontal sinus, 4 were mucocele, 2 were recurrent frontal sinusitis and 1 were osteoma. Five cases received Draf IIb-1, 2 for each recurrent IP of frontal sinus and recurrent frontal sinusitis and 1 for osteoma. Six cases received Draf IIb-2, 3 for meningoencephalocele, 1 for each IP, acute frontal sinusitis and osteoma. Two cases received Draf IIb-3 were mucocele. The follow-up ranged from 8 to 73 months. Twenty-two cases of the frontal nepostium were widely opened, 7 were stenosis and 3 were closed. Revision surgery was seen in 2 cases with IP. All of them had no complications. CONCLUSIONS: The Draf IIb frontal sinusotomy and it's modified procedures are suitable for complex frontal sinus disease, which can be selected according to pathological and anatomical features, and have a good prospect for clinical application.

[Molecular evolution and correlation of HN and P gene among the field Newcastle disease viruses].

The goal of this study is to research the genetic characteristics and relationship between HN and P genes of NDV. The nucleotide sequence and deduced amino acid sequence were analyzed for the Hemagglutinin-neuramindase (HN) and Phosphoprotein (P) gene of twelve field isolates of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) during 1997-2005 in China. The HN and P gene sequences of fifteen NDV reference strains from GenBank were also used in this study. The molecular evolution distance of nucleotides and amino acids were calculated by MEGA 4.0 software, and analysis of variance and correlations were analyzed by SPSS11.0 software among different length sequences of the HN gene or P gene. The nucleotide and amino acids correlation of HN and P gene were analyzed respectively. The correlation of evolution distance and isolation year were also calculated. The results indicated that there were difference and good correlation of nucleotide and amino acid among different length sequences of the HN gene or P gene. These results revealed that the HN and P gene of NDV have the different response to selective pressure to adopt to landscape and closely relationship on heredity mutations. Nucleotide variations of HN and P gene have relationship with isolation year of strains.