Conformal thyroidectomy is a feasible option in papillary thyroid microcarcinoma: a retrospective cohort study with 10-year follow-up results.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, there has been an increasing prevalence of patients with papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) without lymph node involvement in medical centers worldwide. For patients who are unable to undergo active surveillance (AS) and are afraid of postoperative complications, conformal thyroidectomy may be a suitable option to ensure both preservation of function and complete removal of the tumor. METHODS: The patients in the cohort during 2010 to 2015 were retrospectively enrolled strictly following the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The observation and control groups were defined based on the surgical approach, with patients in the observation group undergoing conformal thyroidectomy and patients in the control group undergoing lobectomy. Event-free survival (EFS), the interval from initial surgery to the detection of recurrent or metastatic disease, was defined as the primary observation endpoint. RESULTS: A total of 319 patients were included in the study, with 124 patients undergoing conformal thyroidectomy and 195 patients undergoing lobectomy. When compared to lobectomy, conformal thyroidectomy demonstrated reduced hospital stays, shorter operative times, and lower rates of vocal cord paralysis and hypoparathyroidism. Furthermore, the mean bleeding volume during the operation and the rate of permanent hypothyroidism were also lower in the conformal thyroidectomy group than in the lobectomy group. However, there was no statistically significant difference observed in the 5- and 10-year EFS between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Conformal thyroidectomy had advantages in perioperative management and short-term complication rates, with an EFS that was not inferior to that of lobectomy. Thus, conformal thyroidectomy is a feasible option for low-risk PTMC patients.

MiR-1294 suppresses ROS-dependent inflammatory response in atopic dermatitis via restraining STAT3/NF-κB pathway.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin disorder that affects children and adults. Despite the pathology of AD involves in immune dysfunction and epidermal barrier function destruction has been found, the mechanism of immune activation and barrier damage remain largely unknown. In the present study, The TNF-α/IFN-γ-stimulated HaCaTs, organotypic AD-like 3D skin equivalents and AD-like mouse model were constructed. The mRNA, histological morphology, protein levels, cytokines were detected by real-time quantitative polymerasechain reaction (RT-qPCR), hematoxylin and eosin (H & E) staining, Immunohistochemistry (IHC), immunoblotting, immunofluorescence (IF) staining, and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), respectively. Cell viability, cell cycle, and apoptosis were respectively calculated using a Methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and flow cytometry. A dual-luciferase reporter gene system was used to investigate the relationship between miR-1294 and STAT3. Compared with the control group, the expression of miR-1294 decreased in TNF-α/IFN-γ-stimulated HaCaTs (P < 0.001), AD-like skin model, and AD-like mouse model (P < 0.001). Moreover, STAT3 was documented as a direct target of miR-1294. Inflammation (P < 0.05) and epidermal barrier function destruction (P < 0.05) in AD was suppressed by overexpression of miR-1294 but enhanced by STAT3 upregulation and its downstream NF-κB pathway. We also found miR-1294 upregulation inhibited inflammation and epidermal barrier function destruction via targeting STAT3 to suppress NF-κB pathway activation in AD.

Clinical features and management strategy of symptomatic spontaneous isolated celiac artery dissection.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical features and management strategy for patients with symptomatic spontaneous isolated celiac artery dissection (SICAD). METHODS: In this retrospective study, consecutive patients with symptomatic SICAD from two institutions were included. The demographics, clinical manifestations, comorbidities, imaging findings and treatment strategy selection were obtained from the medical records. The general epidemiological data, treatment regimens and clinical and follow-up outcomes were analysed. RESULTS: Patients were divided into the conservative treatment group (group A, n = 26) and endovascular treatment group (group B, n = 11). Of these 37 patients, extent of dissection in both groups included only celiac trunk (61.54%% vs. 18.18%, p = 0.03), common hepatic artery (CHA) and splenic artery (SA) (3.85%% vs. 54.55%, p = 0.001), CHA (7.69% vs. 18.18%, p = 0.57), SA (23.08% vs. 9.09, p = 0.65) and left gastric artery (LGA) (3.85% vs. 54.55%, p = 0.99). Of note, the extension of the lesion in group A was shorter than that in group B. In addition, there were significantly more type IIb in group A than in group B (42.31% vs. 9.09%, p = 0.06) and the mean length of dissection in group A was 42.3 ± 54.71 mm which was significantly shorter than that in the group B 58.45 ± 3.71 mm (p =0.04). During a median follow-up of 11.5 months, the 1, 3, 6 and 12 month follow-ups were completed in 100% (37/37), 100% (37/37), 94.59% (35/37) and 91.19% (34/37) of patients, respectively. The cumulative rate of persistent disease stability in patients with endovascular treatment group was higher than in that conservative treatment group at the 3, 6, 9 and 12 months (50% vs. 16.67%, p = 0.001; 80% vs. 37.5%, p =0.03; 100% vs. 62.5%, p = 0.012;100% vs. 91.67%, p = 0.02 respectively). CONCLUSION: Most symptomatic SICAD have a tendency to persistent disease stability after conservative treatment. Risk factors for failed conservative treatment were length of dissection and branch involvement. Furthermore, endovascular treatment was associated with a high technical success and persistent disease stability rate, which might be reserved for patients with failed conservative treatment.

Characterization of Global Research Trends and Prospects on Single-Cell Sequencing Technology: Bibliometric Analysis.

BACKGROUND: As single-cell sequencing technology has been gradually introduced, it is essential to characterize global collaboration networks and map development trends over the past 20 years. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this paper was to illustrate collaboration in the field of single-cell sequencing methods and explore key topics and future directions. METHODS: Bibliometric analyses were conducted with CiteSpace and VOSviewer software on publications prior to November 2019 from the Web of Science Core Collection about single-cell sequencing methods. RESULTS: Ultimately, we identified 2489 records, which were published in 495 journals by 14,202 authors from 1970 institutes in 61 countries. There was a noticeable increase in publications in 2014. The United States and high-income countries in Europe contributed to most of the records included. Harvard University, Stanford University, Karolinska Institutes, Peking University, and the University of Washington were the biggest nodes in every cluster of the collaboration network, and SA Teichmann, JC Marioni, A Regev, and FC Tang were the top-producing authors. Keywords co-occurrence analysis suggested applications in immunology as a developing research trend. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that the global collaboration network was unformed and that high-income countries contributed more to the rapidly growth of publications of single-cell sequencing technology. Furthermore, the application in immunology might be the next research hotspot and developmental direction.

Terahertz broadband spoof surface plasmon polaritons using high-order mode developed from ultra-compact split-ring grooves.

Terahertz (THz) broadband spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) using new structure of ultra-compact split-ring grooves are proposed. The high-order mode propagation is highly concentrated around the proposed structure with lower radiation loss implying improved operating bandwidth. More importantly, a size reduction of 83.5% can be realized as compared to the traditional grounded SSPP structure with the same high-order asymptotic frequency. To further verify the proposed idea, a similar structure in microwave regime is designed and measured, where the excitation is easily achieved by directly connecting the microstrip line to the proposed SSPP waveguide. The gradient transition section, such as flaring ground, can be avoided, which decreases the waveguide's longitudinal and transversal lengths and simplifies the design procedure. The measured results of the microwave prototype illustrate that it has good lowpass filtering performance, in which the reflection coefficient is better than -10 dB up to 13 GHz, with the smallest and worst insertion losses of 0.5 dB and 4.5 dB, respectively. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this work presents THz high-order broadband SSPP propagation for the first time, having significant potential for plasmonic integrated circuits application at microwave/THz frequencies.

Spoof plasmonic waveguide developed from coplanar stripline for strongly confined terahertz propagation and its application in microwave filters.

A novel planar terahertz (THz) plasmonic waveguide developed from coplanar stripline (CPS) is proposed for the first time to achieve strongly confined THz propagation performance based on the concept of spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPP). Guided-wave characteristics of the proposed plasmonic waveguide are theoretically investigated by eigen-mode simulation technique and finite-difference time-domain solutions. It is found that the waveguide propagation characteristics can be directly manipulated by designing the SSPP unit cells, which exhibit flexible tuning ability of the asymptotic frequency and strong THz field confinement. The idea has been validated through fabricated filter experiments in microwave frequency regime by scaling up the geometry size of the proposed structure. The measured results illustrate high performance of the ultra-wideband filter, in which the reflection coefficient is better than -10 dB from 3 to 13.1 GHz with the smallest and worst insertion losses of 2.2 dB and 5.6 dB, respectively. This work presents a new SSPP waveguide developed from CPS to realize the THz-wave propagation with strong field confinement, which may have promising potential applications in various integrated THz plasmonic devices.

Low- Versus High-Risk Rectal Cancer Based on MRI Features: Outcomes in Patients Treated Without Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to compare the prognoses of patients with low- and high-risk rectal cancer detected by MRI who were treated without neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) and to determine independent risk factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study included 185 patients with pathologically proven rectal adenocarcinoma who were treated without NCRT. Cancer was defined as high risk if one or more of the following factors were present: extramural depth of tumor invasion greater than 5 mm or stage T4a or T4b for tumor in the mid or high rectum; involvement of intersphincteric space, levators, or adjacent organs for tumor in the low rectum; extramural venous invasion (EMVI); or circumferential resection margin (CRM) involvement. Patients without any of those risk factors were placed in the low-risk group. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards regression model were used to compare the survival outcomes between the two groups and to investigate the univariate and multivariate influences of the risk factors. RESULTS: Cancer was deemed to be low risk in 65 (35.1%) patients and high risk in 120 (64.9%) patients. The two patient groups had statistically significant differences in 3-year actuarial overall survival (OS; 100% vs 88.3%, p = 0.0044), disease-free survival (DFS; 92.3% vs 60.0%, p < 0.0001), and local recurrence (LR; 1.5% vs 10.0%, p = 0.0297). CRM involvement was identified as an independent risk factor for OS (hazard ratio [HR], 4.78; 95% CI, 1.24-18.45), DFS (HR, 2.44; 95% CI, 1.24-4.81), and LR (HR, 3.92; 95% CI, 1.07-14.41). Moreover, EMVI was identified as an independent risk factor for DFS (HR, 2.46; 95% CI, 1.28-4.74). CONCLUSION: The LR and long-term survival of patients in the low-risk group were more favorable than those of patients in the high-risk group. EMVI and CRM status were independent risk factors.

Pathological outcomes of transanal versus laparoscopic total mesorectal excision for rectal cancer: a systematic review with meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Since 2010, comparative studies on transanal and laparoscopic total mesorectal excision (TME) have been published and it remains unclear about the oncological benefit from transanal total mesorectal excision (taTME). METHODS: We have searched English databases to identify all taTME studies published between January 2010 and August 2017. Pathological outcomes included circumferential resection margin (CRM), positive CRM (< 1 M), length of distal resection margin (DRM), positive DRM, quality of mesorectum (complete mesorectum), harvested lymph node, and length of the specimen. Odds ratios (ORs) were calculated for dichotomous outcomes and weighted mean differences (WMDs) for continuous outcomes. RESULTS: We have included ten studies comprising of 762 patients. Compared with laparoscopic TME, taTME had a longer CRM (WMD, 0.833; 95% CI 0.366-1.299; P < 0.001), a lower positive rate of CRM (OR, 0.505; 95% CI 0.258-0.991; P = 0.047), and a longer DRM (WMD, 6.261; 95% CI 1.049-11.472; P = 0.019). There were no significant differences in other pathological outcomes. Both cumulative meta-analysis and sensitivity analysis were unable to detect potential sources of the heterogeneity in DRM. There was no evidence of publication bias. CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis revealed that taTME had more advantages on positive CRM, CRM, and DRM compared with laparoscopic TME. Compared with laparoscopic TME, more benefits of taTME on pathological outcomes remained undetected. The current findings are all based on observational studies, RCTs with adequate power are required.

STAT3 signaling drives EZH2 transcriptional activation and mediates poor prognosis in gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: STAT3 signaling plays the pivotal role in tumorigenesis through EZH2 epigenetic modification, which enhanced STAT3 activity by increased tyrosine phosphorylation of STAT3. Here, another possible feedback mechanism and clinical significance of EZH2 and STAT3 were investigated in gastric cancer (GC). METHODS: STAT3, p-STAT3 (Tyr 705) and EZH2 expression were examined in 63 GC specimens with matched normal tissues by IHC staining. EZH2 and STAT3 were also identified in five GC cell lines using RT-PCR and western blot analyses. p-STAT3 protein was detected by western blotting. In order to investigate whether EZH2 expression was directly regulated by STAT3, EZH2 expression was further detected using siRNA for STAT3 or IL-6 stimulation, with dual luciferase reporter analyses, electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays. The clinical significance of STAT3, p-STAT3 and EZH2 expression was evaluated by multi-factor COX regression and Kaplan-Meier analyses. RESULTS: Hyper-activation of STAT3, p-STAT3 and EZH2 expression were observed in GC cells and tissues. STAT3 signaling was correlated with EZH2 expression in GC (R = 0.373, P = 0.003), which was consistent with our data showing that STAT3 as the transcriptional factor enhanced EZH2 transcriptional activity by binding the relative promoter region (-214 ~ -206). STAT3 was an independent signature for poor survival (P = 0.002). Patients with STAT3+/EZH2+ or p-STAT3+/EZH2+ had a worse outcome than others (P < 0.001); Besides, high levels of STAT3 and EZH2 was associated with advanced TNM staging (P = 0.017). Moreover, treatment with a combination of siSTAT3 and EZH2-specific inhibitor, 3-deazaneplanocin A (DZNEP), increased the apoptotic ratio of cells. It is benefit for targeting STAT3-EZH2 interplay in GC treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that STAT3 status mediated EZH2 upregulation, associated with advanced TNM stage and poor prognosis, suggesting that combination with knockdown of STAT3 and EZH2 inhibitor might be a novel therapy in GC treatment. Collectively, STAT3, p-STAT3 and EZH2 expression were provided for the precision medicine in GC patients.

Clinical study of lung-supplementing and stasis-dissolving decoction (Bufei Huayu Tang) combined with gefitnib for treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

To investigate the clinical efficacy and drug safety of Lung-Supplementing and Stasis-Dissolving Decoction (Bufei Huayu Tang) combined with gefitnib for treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Then, 80 patients with advanced NSCLC hospitalized in Ruikang Hospital Affiliated to Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine were included, and were double-blindly randomized into 4 groups: control group (gefitinib alone 250mg, once daily), low-dose group (100mL/day), middle-dose group (150mL/day) and high-dose group (200mL/day) treated with different doses of Bufei Huayu Tang besides gefitinib. Clinical efficacy, life quality change before and after treatment, ECOG score, survival time and incidence of adverse drug reaction were compared. ECOG score in middle-dose group after treatment was significantly higher than other groups (P<0.05). Total efficiency of 4 groups was respectively 15%, 20%, 55% and 25%, and total efficiency in middle-dose group was significantly higher than that in other groups (P<0.05). According to TCM syndrome score, the improvement in middle-dose group was significantly better than that in other groups (P<0.05). Incidence of adverse drug reaction in high-dose group was significantly higher than that in other 3 groups (P<0.05). Self-designed Bufei Huayu Tang combined with gefitinib for NSCLC has a satisfactory clinical efficacy and high drug safety. Decoction dose needs more attention.

MicroRNA-217 functions as a prognosis predictor and inhibits colorectal cancer cell proliferation and invasion via an AEG-1 dependent mechanism.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have indicated the possible function of miR-217 in tumorigenesis. However, the roles of miR-217 in colorectal cancer (CRC) are still largely unknown. METHODS: We examined the expression of miR-217 and AEG-1 in 50 CRC tissues and the corresponding noncancerous tissues by qRT-PCR. The clinical significance of miR-217 was analyzed. CRC cell lines with miR-217 upregulation and AEG-1 silencing were established and the effects on tumor growth in vitro and in vivo were assessed. Dual-luciferase reporter gene assays were also performed to investigate the interaction between miR-217 and AEG-1. RESULTS: Our data demonstrated that miR-217 was significantly downregulated in 50 pairs of colorectal cancer tissues. MiR-217 expression levels were closely correlated with tumor differentiation. Moreover, decreased miR-217 expression was also associated with shorter overall survival of CRC patients. MiR-217 overexpression significantly inhibited proliferation, colony formation and invasiveness of CRC cells by promoting apoptosis and G0/G1 phase arrest. Interestingly, ectopic miR-217 expression decreased AEG-1 expression and repressed luciferase reporter activity associated with the AEG-1 3'-untranslated region (UTR). AEG-1 silencing resulted in similar biological behavior changes to those associated with miR-217 overexpression. Finally, in a nude mouse xenografted tumor model, miR-217 overexpression significantly suppressed CRC cell growth. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that miR-217 has considerable value as a prognostic marker and potential therapeutic target in CRC.

Prevention of biofilm colonization by Gram-negative bacteria on minocycline-rifampin-impregnated catheters sequentially coated with chlorhexidine.

Resistant Gram-negative bacteria are increasing central-line-associated bloodstream infection threats. To better combat this, chlorhexidine (CHX) was added to minocycline-rifampin (M/R) catheters. The in vitro antimicrobial activity of CHX-M/R catheters against multidrug resistant, Gram-negative Acinetobacter baumannii, Enterobacter cloacae, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia was tested. M/R and CHX-silver sulfadiazine (CHX/SS) catheters were used as comparators. The novel CHX-M/R catheters were significantly more effective (P < 0.0001) than CHX/SS or M/R catheters in preventing biofilm colonization and showed better antimicrobial durability.

Analysis of changes in high-mobility group box 1, receptor for advanced glycation endproducts, and T helper 17/regulatory T balance in severe preeclampsia with acute heart failure.

We measured the levels of High-Mobility Group Box 1 (HMGB1), Receptor for Advanced Glycation Endproducts (RAGE), T Helper 17 cells (Th17), Regulatory T cells (Treg), and related cytokines in the peripheral blood of patients with severe preeclampsia (SPE) complicated with acute heart failure (AHF) to explore the expression changes in these indicators. In total, 96 patients with SPE admitted to Gansu Provincial Maternity and Child-care Hospital between June 2020 and June 2022 were included in the study. The patients were divided into SPE+AHF (40 patients) and SPE (56 patients) groups based on whether they suffered from AHF. Additionally, 56 healthy pregnant women who either received prenatal examinations or were admitted to our hospital for delivery during the same period were selected as the healthy control group. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed to detect the expression levels of HMGB1, RAGE, interleukin (IL)-17, IL-6, transforming growth factor ß (TGF-ß), IL-10, and NT-proBNP in plasma. Flow cytometry was employed to determine the percentages of Th17 and Treg cells. Compared to the healthy control group, the SPE+AHF and SPE groups had higher plasma levels of HMGB1 and RAGE expression, higher Th17 percentage and Th17/Treg ratio, and lower Treg percentage. Compared to the SPE group, the SPE+AHF group had higher plasma levels of HMGB1 and RAGE expression, higher Th17 percentage and Th17/Treg ratio, and lower Treg percentage (P < .05). In patients with SPE with AHF, plasma HMGB1 was positively correlated with RAGE, Th17, Th17/Treg, IL-17, and IL-6 and was negatively correlated with TGF-ß and IL-10 (P < .05). Our findings revealed that patients with SPE with AHF had elevated levels of HMGB1 and RAGE while exhibiting Th17/Treg immune imbalance, suggesting that the abnormal expression of these indicators may be involved in the pathogenesis of SPE with AHF.

Transcriptomic and genomic profiling of multiple primary colorectal cancers reveals intratumor heterogeneity and a distinct immune microenvironment.

This study reported on the intratumor genomic and immunological heterogeneity of different tumor lesions from a single patient with multiple primary colorectal cancer (MPCC). The goal of this study was to explore the molecular and microenvironment characteristics of tumor lesions from different primary sites in a patient with MPCC. A total of three tumor lesions located in the hepatic flexure of the transverse colon, sigmoid colon, and rectum were collected from a 72-year-old male patient with MPCC. All three tumor samples were examined by using whole-exome sequencing (WES) and single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). The transcriptome data of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) colon cancer (COAD) dataset were explored to characterize the biological impacts of certain immune cells. Only three nonsynonymous mutations were shared by all of the tumor lesions, whereas a number of single nucleotide variant (SNV) and copy number variation (CNV) mutations were shared by tumor samples from the sigmoid colon and rectum. Transcriptomic analysis showed that tumor lesions derived from the transverse colon had decreased levels of RTK, ERK, and AKT pathway activity, thus suggesting lower oncogenic properties in the transverse lesion compared to the other two samples. Further immune landscape evaluation by using single-cell transcriptomic analysis displayed significant intratumor heterogeneity in MPCC. Specifically, more abundant mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cell infiltration was found in transverse colon tumor lesions. Afterwards, we found that higher MAIT cell infiltration may correlate with a better prognosis of patients with colon cancer (immunohistochemical status was MSI-L/pMMR) by using a publicly available TCGA dataset.

Treatment when prognostic factors do not match St. Gallen recommendations: profiling of prognostic factors among HR(+) and HER2(-) breast cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: The St. Gallen consensus provides treatment recommendations for breast cancer based on prognostic factors. Although many patients' prognostic patterns are not easily matched with the prognostic patterns listed in the St. Gallen consensus, there has been no systematic investigation reporting the gap between treatment recommendations and actual postoperative treatment choices in clinical practice. METHODS: Four hundred seventy-one patients with hormone receptor-positive [HR(+)] and human epidermal growth factor receptor type 2-negative [HER2(-)] breast cancer were analyzed. These patients were classified into either the "crisp treatment group" or "fuzzy treatment group" based on the definitiveness of postoperative treatment selection based on St. Gallen treatment recommendations. The patients in the fuzzy treatment group were further classified into strata in which patients within each stratum shared the same prognostic factor patterns with similar recurrence rates. RESULTS: A total of 87.3% of HR(+)HER2(-) patients were designated to the fuzzy treatment group. Four prognostic strata were constructed according to the survival tree model, and revealed that patients with poor prognostic profiles tended to receive endocrine therapy with chemotherapy. This suggests that postoperative chemotherapy is useful, although there was no statistical significance. CONCLUSIONS: We constructed prognostic profiles of patients in the fuzzy treatment group and examined the recurrence rates associated with two treatment regimens within each prognostic profile. These findings are exploratory, but they may be useful for planning prospective studies of the effectiveness of postoperative treatment regimens among patients with a heterogeneous combination of prognostic factors.

[Expression of Eag1 K(+) channel in prostate cancer and its significance].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expression of the Eag1 K( +) channel in the prostate cancer (PCa) tissue, its correlation with the development and progression of PCa, and whether it could be a target for the diagnosis and treatment of PCa. METHODS: We used RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry to determine the mRNA and protein expressions of the Eag1 K(+) channel in the normal peritumoral tissue of androgen-dependent PCa (ADPCa) (group A) and androgen-independent PCa (AIPCa) (group B) as well as in the tumorous tissue of ADPCa (group C) and AIPCa (group D). RESULTS: The relative coefficients of the mRNA expression of the Eag1 K(+) channel were 0.265 +/- 0.413, 0.167 +/- 0.511, 2.673 +/- 2.988 and 2.815 +/- 2.901 in groups A, B, C and D, respectively, increased significantly in the latter two groups (P < 0.05). The positive rates of the protein expression of the Eag1 K (+) channel were significantly higher in groups C (88.9%) and D (86.7%) than in A (7.4%) and B (6.7%) (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The Eag1 K(+) channel might be involved in the pathophysiological processes of PCa, and is expected to be a valuable target for the diagnosis and treatment of PCa.

[Surveillance of bacterial distribution and drug resistance in inpatients with surgical infections: a single center study].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the bacterial distribution and drug resistance in patients with surgical infections, and provide the basis for the standardization treatment of the surgical infection. METHODS: Retrospectively analyzed from January 2008 to December 2011 surgical infection in our samples bacteria identification and drug sensitivity test results. RESULTS: A total of 3829 nonduplicate isolates from 3257 samples, Gram-negative bacteria accounted for 62.4% (the main microbes were P.aeruginosa, K. pneumonia and E.coli etc) and Gram-positive bacteria accounted for 37.6% (the main microbes were Enterococcus, Staphylococcus and coagulase negative Staphylococcus). Incidence of Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis were on an obvious increase. For the performance of the high level of sensitive to Imipenem, Amikacin, Piperacillin and Tazobactam by E. coli and K. pneumonia. The Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii to cephalosporins, Carbapenems and Fluoroqinolones were higher resistant with Multidrug resistance. No vancomycin and teicoplanin resistant Enterococcus faecium were found. The prevalence of ESBL E.coli was 45.6%-61.5% and ESBL K.pneumoniae isolates were fluctuated. The methicillin-resistant S.aureus (MRSA) isolates were relatively high (21.1%-55.8%), and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis was higher than the other Gram-positive cocci. Vancomycin for Staphylococcus performance was highly sensitive. CONCLUSIONS: The main composition of surgical clinical infection pathogens are Gram-negative bacillus, and the emergency of resistance of bacteria to antibacterial drugs is a common phenomenon. The resistant rate shows ascendant trend; Drug resistance is significantly higher in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii. Antimicrobial resistance is a serious and challenging issue.

Hallmarks and novel insights for gastrointestinal stromal tumors: A bibliometric analysis.

BACKGROUND: Due to the increasing recognition of gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), novel insights have appeared in both preclinical and clinical research and begun to reshape the field. This study aims to map the research landscape through bibliometric analysis and provide a brief overview for the future of the GIST field. METHODS: We searched the Web of Science Core Collection without publication data restrictions for GISTs and performed a bibliometric analysis with CiteSpace and VOSviewer software. RESULTS: In sum, 5,911 of 13,776 records were included, and these studies were published in 948 journals and written by 24,965 authors from 4,633 institutions in 100 countries. Referring to published reviews and bibliometric analysis, we classified the future trends in four groups. In epidemiological study, precise incidence and clinicopathological features in different regions and races might become potential hotspots. Novel therapy, such as drugs, modified strategies, radioligand therapy, was persistent hotspots in GIST fields, and ctDNA-guided diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment might meet future clinical needs. The debate over serosa surgery vs. mucosa surgery will remain active for a long time in GIST surgery, and function reserve surgery, biology-based surgery will play an important role in future. Moreover, rare GIST type, like NF-1-associated GIST, Carney triads and SDH mutant GIST, need more studies in pathogenesis and genetic mutation to provide appropriate treatment for this orphan GIST patients. CONCLUSIONS: Potential hotspots in future GIST trends might involve epidemiology, agents, resection therapy and rare type GIST, moreover, researchers could pay more attention in these four fields.

Cytokine and chemokine modification by Toll-like receptor polymorphisms is associated with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Toll-like receptors (TLR) play a pivotal role in sensing a wide range of pathogens, including bacteria, fungi and viruses. A dysregulation of TLR signaling may increase the risk of developing chronic inflammatory diseases and cancers. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of TLR2 R753Q, TLR4 D299G, and T399I polymorphisms with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and to explore the effects of these polymorphisms on cytokine and chemokine expression in NPC biopsies. The genotypes of the three loci among 236 patients with NPC and 287 healthy controls were determined by PCR-RFLP. Cytokines and chemokines mRNA and protein in NPC biopsies were measured by real-time quantitative PCR and ELISA, respectively. Results showed that the combined CT/TT genotype of T399I was associated with increased NPC risk, with an odds ratio of 1.853 (95% confidence interval: 1.184-2.961). Also, individuals with the T allele of T399I showed a 1.842-fold increase in NPC risk compared to those with the T399I C allele (95% confidence interval: 1.213-3.015). Messenger RNA levels of interleukin (IL)-1α, tumor necrosis factor-α and IL-10 were significantly elevated in patients with T399I combined CT/TT genotype; IL-1α and IL-10 protein concentration significantly increased in NPC patients with T399I combined CT/TT genotype compared to those with the T399I CC genotype. Our data suggest that TLR4 T399I modify cytokines and chemokines patterns and play a role in the development of NPC.

Antioxidant status of bilirubin and uric acid in patients with myasthenia gravis.

Oxidative stress and changes in antioxidant status have been implicated in the pathogenesis of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, and free radicals can cause considerable damage to the acetylcholine receptors. 388 individuals, including 97 patients with myasthenia gravis (MG), 135 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and 156 healthy controls, were assessed for serum levels of bilirubin and uric acid (UA), in order to determine the levels of these natural antioxidants in the serum. We found that serum UA levels in patients with MG were significantly lower (266.03 ± 93.09 µmol/l) compared with those of the healthy control group (338.87 ± 107.10 µmol/l, p = 0.001). However, there was no significant difference of serum UA levels between patients with MG and those with MS (p = 0.071). We also found that serum levels of total, direct and indirect bilirubin in patients with MG were significantly lower, compared with those in the healthy control group, whether male or female. From this study, we conclude that serum levels of bilirubin and UA are lower in MG patients.