Downregulation of orosomucoid 2 acts as a prognostic factor associated with cancer-promoting pathways in liver cancer.

BACKGROUND: Liver cancer has a high mortality and morbidity rate throughout the world. In clinical practice, the prognosis of liver cancer patients is poor, and the complex reasons contribute to treatment failures, including fibrosis, hepatitis viral infection, drug resistance and metastasis. Thus, screening novel prognostic biomarkers is of great importance for guiding liver cancer therapy. Orosomucoid genes (ORMs) encode acute phase plasma proteins, including orosomucoid 1 (ORM1) and ORM2. Previous studies showed their upregulation upon inflammation, but the specific function of ORMs has not yet been determined, especially in the development of liver cancer. AIM: To determine the expression of ORMs and their potential function in liver cancer. METHODS: Analysis of the expression of ORMs in different human tissues was performed on data from the HPA RNA-seq normal tissues project. The expression ratio of ORMs was determined using the HCCDB database, including the ratio between liver cancer and other cancers, normal liver and other normal tissues, liver cancer and adjacent normal liver tissues. Analysis of ORM expression in different cancer types was performed using The Cancer Genome Atlas and TIMER database. The expression of ORMs in liver tumor tissues and adjacent normal tissues were further confirmed using Gene Expression Omnibus data, including GSE36376 and GSE14520. The 10-year overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and relapse-free survival (RFS) rates between high and low ORM expression groups in liver cancer patients were determined using the Kaplan-Meier plotter tool. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) was employed to explore the ORM2-associated signaling network. Correlations between ORM2 expression and tumor purity or the infiltration level of macrophages in liver tumor tissues were determined using the TIMER database. The correlation between ORM2 gene levels, tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) markers (including CD68 and TGFß1) and T cell immunosuppression (including CTLA4 and PD-1) in liver tumor tissues and liver GTEx was determined using the GEPIA database. RESULTS: ORM1 and ORM2 were highly expressed in normal liver and liver tumor tissues. ORM1 and ORM2 expression was significantly decreased in liver tumor tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues, and similar results were also noted in cholangiocarcinoma, esophageal carcinoma, and lung squamous cell carcinoma. Further analysis of the Gene Expression Omnibus Database also confirmed the downregulation of ORM1 and ORM2 in liver tumors. Survival analysis showed that the high ORM2 group had better survival rates in OS, PFS and RFS. ORM1 only represented better performance in PFS, but not in OS or RFS. GSEA analysis of ORM2 from The Cancer Genome Atlas liver cancer data identified that ORM2 positively associated with the G2/M checkpoint, E2F target signaling, as well as Wnt/ß-catenin and Hedgehog signaling. Moreover, apoptosis, IFN-α responses, IFN-γ responses and humoral immune responses were upregulated in the ORM2 high group. ORM2 expression was negatively correlated with the macrophage infiltration level, CD68, TGFß1, CTLA4 and PD-1 levels. CONCLUSION: The results showed that ORM1 and ORM2 were highly expressed specifically in liver tissues, whereas ORM1 and ORM2 were downregulated in liver tumor tissues. ORM2 is a better prognostic factor for liver cancer. Furthermore, ORM2 is closely associated with cancer-promoting pathways.

Segmented Pt/Ru, Pt/Ni, and Pt/RuNi nanorods as model bifunctional catalysts for methanol oxidation.

Five-segment (Pt-Ru-Pt-Ru-Pt, Pt-Ni-Pt-Ni-Pt, and Pt-RuNi-Pt-RuNi-Pt) nanorods with the same overall rod length and the same total Pt segment length were prepared by sequential electrodeposition of the metals into the pores of commercially available anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) showed that the nanorods were about 210 nm in diameter and about 1.5 microm in length. The alternating Pt and oxophilic metal(s) segments could be easily differentiated in backscattered-electron images. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of the nanorods indicated that Pt and Ni were polycrystalline with fcc structures, Ru was hcp, and the co-deposited RuNi adopted the nickel fcc structure with some negative shifts in the Bragg angles. The chemical states of Pt, Ru, and Ni on the nanorod surface were assayed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and the presence of Pt(0), Pt(II), Pt(IV), Ru(0), Ru(VI), Ni(0), and Ni(II) was observed. The nanorods were catalytically active for the room-temperature electrooxidation of methanol in acidic solutions. The relative rates of reaction showed the Pt-RuNi pair sites as having the lowest overpotential to dissociate water, the highest catalytic activity in methanol oxidation, and the strongest CO-tolerance in the potential window employed. The use of segmented nanorods with identifiable Pt-oxophilic metal(s) interfaces removes many of the ambiguities in the interpretation of experimental data from conventional alloy catalysts, thereby enabling a direct comparison of the activities of various types of pair sites in methanol oxidation.

Proximal humeral fractures treated with arthroplasty.

OBJECTIVE: To explore arthroplasty in treating 3- and 4-part fractures of the proximal humerus. METHODS: A total of 132 patients with proximal humeral fractures were treated in our hospital from July 1997 to February 2003. According to Neer's classification, the fractures of 45 patients (14 males and 31 females, aged 31-78 years, 56.1 years+/-7.8 years on an average) belonged to 3- or 4-part fractures (10 patients with 4-part fracture and 35 with 3-part comminuted fracture) and they were treated with shoulder joint arthroplasty. Unipolar prosthesis replacement of the head of humerus was made in 28 cases, while bipolar prosthesis replacement in 2 cases and total shoulder joint replacement in 15 cases. RESULTS: During the follow-up period (range: 12-72 months, mean: 37.3 months+/-4.1 months), among the 45 patients who suffered from fractures of the proximal humerus and underwent arthroplasty surgery, 44 patients (97.8%) had no postoperative pain and were satisfied with the active range of motion and with the whole treatment results. And radiography showed that the prostheses were at their good position. One patient had postoperative pain because he had so narrow medullary cavity that the humeral prosthesis could not be put deeply enough and the prosthesis head was a little higher over the anatomic level. He did not have good postoperative active range of motion, either. Then he received a review surgery and got satisfied results. Temporary shoulder stiffness was observed in one patient. Manual release of these adhesions improved the shoulder function. No evidence of nonunion of the fracture segments around the humeral prosthesis stem was found. CONCLUSIONS: Shoulder arthroplasty is a dependable method to restore the comfort and function of the shoulder joints of the patients with 3- or 4-part fractures of the proximal humerus.