Inhibition of TNBS-induced intestinal inflammation in crucian carp (Carassius carassius) by oral administration of bioactive Bioactive food derived peptides.

Intestinal enteritis is a main issue in crucian carp production which results in massive economic loss. Traditional antibiotics used for disease prevention of crucian carp (Carassius carassius) have been banned, thus an alternative approach needs to be identified. In this study, the bioactive peptide was evaluated as a diet supplement for preventing intestinal inflammation in crucian carp. Intestinal inflammation was induced by intrarectal administration of a 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS) solution. The fish samples were fed with different diets for 14 days. The disease activity index (DAI), which included, fish swimming, food intake, anal inflammation, body surface, and ascites was determined daily. Intestine segments were stained with haematoxylin and eosin (H.E.) for histopathological analysis. The expression of cytokines, including interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), interleukin-8 (IL-8), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), and myeloperoxidase (MPO) in crucian carp were determined. In TNBS-induced groups, the DAI scores were dramatically increased compared to the control group. The histopathological analysis showed that the damage of the fish intestine after the injection of TNBS. The relative expression levels of pro-inflammation cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-8, MPO) were significantly increased compared to the control group on day 1. In the TNBS-induced group feed with a diet supplemented with bioactive peptide, the symptoms of intestinal inflammation were relieved on day 3 and the mRNA expression levels of pro-inflammation cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-8, MPO) were reduced compared to day 1. On day 7, the fish samples enrofloxacin group and bioactive peptide group were recovered from TNBS-induced intestinal inflammation. This study showed that the fish diet supplemented with bioactive peptide could help to prevent and recover from intestinal inflammation. Thus, the bioactive peptide can be used as a replacement for antibiotics to prevent disease in aquaculture production.

Cortical neuron activation induced by electromagnetic stimulation: a quantitative analysis via modelling and simulation.

Previous simulation works concerned with the mechanism of non-invasive neuromodulation has isolated many of the factors that can influence stimulation potency, but an inclusive account of the interplay between these factors on realistic neurons is still lacking. To give a comprehensive investigation on the stimulation-evoked neuronal activation, we developed a simulation scheme which incorporates highly detailed physiological and morphological properties of pyramidal cells. The model was implemented on a multitude of neurons; their thresholds and corresponding activation points with respect to various field directions and pulse waveforms were recorded. The results showed that the simulated thresholds had a minor anisotropy and reached minimum when the field direction was parallel to the dendritic-somatic axis; the layer 5 pyramidal cells always had lower thresholds but substantial variances were also observed within layers; reducing pulse length could magnify the threshold values as well as the variance; tortuosity and arborization of axonal segments could obstruct action potential initiation. The dependence of the initiation sites on both the orientation and the duration of the stimulus implies that the cellular excitability might represent the result of the competition between various firing-capable axonal components, each with a unique susceptibility determined by the local geometry. Moreover, the measurements obtained in simulation intimately resemble recordings in physiological and clinical studies, which seems to suggest that, with minimum simplification of the neuron model, the cable theory-based simulation approach can have sufficient verisimilitude to give quantitatively accurate evaluation of cell activities in response to the externally applied field.

[Analysis of influencing factors to metastasis in sentinel lymph nodes and non-sentinel lymph nodes in breast cancer].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the relevant factors influencing sentinel and non-sentinel lymph node (SLNM, NSLNM) metastases in breast cancer. METHODS: The clinicopathological data of 283 women with breast cancer who underwent sentinel lymph node biopsy from July 2010 to August 2011 in the Cancer Institute and Hospital at Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences were reviewed retrospectively, and the relevant factors affecting sentinel and non-sentinel lymph node metastases were analyzed. RESULTS: Univariate analysis showed that age, menopause status, tumor size, pathological type and intravascular tumor thrombus were associated with SLNM metastasis (all P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that age, tumor size and intravascular tumor thrombus were associated with SLNM (all P < 0.05) . No risk factors were found in either univariate or multivariate analysis of NSLNM. CONCLUSIONS: Age, tumor size and intravascular tumor thrombus are independent influencing factors associated with SLNM, and age is a protective factor. Whether ER, pathological type and pathological grade are associated with SLNM or not is still controversial.

Moringa oleifera leaf ethanolic extract benefits cashmere goat semen quality via improving rumen microbiota and metabolome.

Background: Artificial insemination (AI) is an effective reproductive technique to improve the performance of cashmere goats and prevent the spread of diseases, and the quality of the semen determines the success of AI. The potential of Moringa oleifera leaf powder (MOLP) and Moringa oleifera leaf ethanolic extract (MOLE) to improve semen quality has been reported, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. For the purpose, 18 mature male cashmere goats were randomly assigned into three groups: the control (CON), MOLP, and MOLE groups. The CON group received distilled water orally; the MOLP group was orally treated with 200 mg/kg body weight (BW) MOLP; and the MOLE group was orally treated with 40 mg/kg BW MOLE. Results: Results showed that MOLE contained long-chain fatty acids and flavonoids. Treatment with MOLP and MOLE increased the activities of the serum catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase (P < 0.05), enhanced the total antioxidant capacity (P < 0.05), and reduced the serum malondialdehyde level (P < 0.05). At the same time, MOLE increased the contents of serum gonadotropin releasing hormone and testosterone (P < 0.05). Moreover, MOLE significantly increased sperm concentration, motility, and viability (P < 0.05). Meanwhile, MOLE raised the Chao1 index (P < 0.05) and altered the composition of the rumen microbiota; it also raised the relative abundance of Treponema (P < 0.05) and Fibrobacter (P < 0.05) and reduced the relative abundance of Prevotella (P < 0.1). Correlation analysis revealed the genus Prevotella was significantly negatively correlated with sperm concentration, as well as sperm motility and viability. Furthermore, MOLE significantly increased the rumen levels of the steroid hormones testosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone (P < 0.05), as well as the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) alpha-Linolenic acid, gamma-Linolenic acid, docosapentaenoic acid, and 9-S-Hydroperoxylinoleicacid (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Oral MOLE supplementation can improve semen quality by increasing the antioxidant capacity and altering the rumen microbiota and metabolites of cashmere goats. Moreover, the MOLP supplementation could enhance the antioxidant capacity of cashmere goats.

Transcriptomes reveal microRNAs and mRNAs in different photoperiods influencing cashmere growth in goat.

Cashmere goat has a typical characteristic in seasonal growth of cashmere. Studies have shown that one of the main factors affecting the cyclical growth of the cashmere is the photoperiod, however, its molecular mechanism remains unclear. Inner Mongolia Arbas cashmere goat was used to reveal the mRNA-microRNA regulatory mechanisms of cashmere growth in different photoperiod. Skin samples from cashmere goats under light control (short photoperiod) and normal conditions (long photoperiod) were collected. Sequencing was performed after RNA extraction. The differentially expressed miRNA and mRNA expression profiles were successfully constructed. We found 56 significantly differentially expressed known mRNAs (P<0.01) and 14 microRNAs (P<0.05). The association analysis of the microRNAs and mRNAs showed that two differentially expressed miRNAs might be targeted by six differentially expressed genes. Targeting relationships of these genes and miRNAs are revealed and verified. In all, the light control technology provides a new way to promote cashmere growth. Our results provide some references in the cashmere growth and development.

Modulation of entorhinal cortex-hippocampus connectivity and recognition memory following electroacupuncture on 3×Tg-AD model: Evidence from multimodal MRI and electrophysiological recordings.

Memory loss and aberrant neuronal network activity are part of the earliest hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Electroacupuncture (EA) has been recognized as a cognitive stimulation for its effects on memory disorder, but whether different brain regions or neural circuits contribute to memory recovery in AD remains unknown. Here, we found that memory deficit was ameliorated in 3×Tg-AD mice with EA-treatment, as shown by the increased number of exploring and time spent in the novel object. In addition, reduced locomotor activity was observed in 3×Tg-AD mice, but no significant alteration was seen in the EA-treated mice. Based on the functional magnetic resonance imaging, the regional spontaneous activity alterations of 3×Tg-AD were mainly concentrated in the accumbens nucleus, auditory cortex, caudate putamen, entorhinal cortex (EC), hippocampus, insular cortex, subiculum, temporal cortex, visual cortex, and so on. While EA-treatment prevented the chaos of brain activity in parts of the above regions, such as the auditory cortex, EC, hippocampus, subiculum, and temporal cortex. And then we used the whole-cell voltage-clamp recording to reveal the neurotransmission in the hippocampus, and found that EA-treatment reversed the synaptic spontaneous release. Since the hippocampus receives most of the projections of the EC, the hippocampus-EC circuit is one of the neural circuits related to memory impairment. We further applied diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tracking and functional connectivity, and found that hypo-connected between the hippocampus and EC with EA-treatment. These data indicate that the hippocampus-EC connectivity is responsible for the recognition memory deficit in the AD mice with EA-treatment, and provide novel insight into potential therapies for memory loss in AD.

Cysteamine-supplemented diet for cashmere goats: A potential strategy to inhibit rumen biohydrogenation and enhance plasma antioxidant capacity.

Cysteamine (CS), as a feed supplement, can increase the level of growth hormone (GH) in the blood, promote animal growth. However, little attention has been paid to the effects of CS on the rumen microbiome and metabolic profile in cashmere goats. This study aimed to assess the effects of rumen microbiota, metabolites, and plasma antioxidative capacity induced by CS supplementation in cashmere goats. We selected 30 Inner Mongolia white cashmere goat ewes (aged 18 months), and randomly separate the goats into three groups (n = 10 per group) to experiment for 40 days. Oral 0 (control group, CON), 60 (low CS, LCS), or 120 mg/kg BW-1 (high CS, HCS) coated CS hydrochloride every day. Using 16S and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, we identified 12 bacterial and 3 fungal genera with significant changes among the groups, respectively. We found a significant increase in rumen NH3-N and total volatile fatty acid (TVFA) concentrations in the LCS and HCS groups compared with the CON. With untargeted LC-MS/MS metabolomics, we screened 59 rumen differential metabolites. Among the screened metabolites, many unsaturated and saturated fatty acids increased and decreased with CS treatment, respectively. CS supplementation increased the levels of plasma total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD), GH, and insulin-like growth factor-1(IGF-1). Spearman correlation analysis revealed that the abundance of U29-B03, Lactococcus, and Brochothrix were positively associated with the levels of δ2-THA, TVFA and antioxidant capacity. In conclusion, CS significantly affected rumen microbiota and fermentation parameters, and ultimately inhibited the biohydrogenation of rumen metabolites, enhanced plasma antioxidant capacity, and regulated some hormones of the GH-IGF-1 axis. This study provides an overall view into the CS application as a strategy to improve health production in cashmere goats.

Automated assessment of balance: A neural network approach based on large-scale balance function data.

Balance impairment (BI) is an important cause of falls in the elderly. However, the existing balance estimation system needs to measure a large number of items to obtain the balance score and balance level, which is less efficient and redundant. In this context, we aim at building a model to automatically predict the balance ability, so that the early screening of large-scale physical examination data can be carried out quickly and accurately. We collected and sorted out 17,541 samples, each with 61-dimensional features and two labels. Moreover, using this data a lightweight artificial neural network model was trained to accurately predict the balance score and balance level. On the premise of ensuring high prediction accuracy, we reduced the input feature dimension of the model from 61 to 13 dimensions through the recursive feature elimination (RFE) algorithm, which makes the evaluation process more streamlined with fewer measurement items. The proposed balance prediction method was evaluated on the test set, in which the determination coefficient (R2) of balance score reaches 92.2%. In the classification task of balance level, the metrics of accuracy, area under the curve (AUC), and F1 score reached 90.5, 97.0, and 90.6%, respectively. Compared with other competitive machine learning models, our method performed best in predicting balance capabilities, which is especially suitable for large-scale physical examination.

A preliminary study on the postoperative survival of patients given aspirin after resection for squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus or adenocarcinoma of the cardia.

BACKGROUND: We examined the effect of aspirin on survival following resection for squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the esophagus or adenocarcinoma of the gastric cardia. METHODS: Patients who underwent esophagectomy for these cancers between May 2000 and December 2002 were allocated to one of three groups and given daily either a low dose of aspirin, placebo, or no tablets. RESULTS: The 5-year survival for all patients on aspirin (445) was 51.2%, placebo (658) 41%, and no tablet (495) 42.3% (P = 0.04 for difference between treatments). The 5-year survival for all SCC patients on aspirin (267) was 49.8%, placebo (433) 42.2%, and no tablet (343) 41.2% (P = 0.26). There was a significant improvement in survival for patients with adenocarcinoma of the cardia on aspirin compared with the two control groups combined (P = 0.029). Survival for T2N0M0 SCC patients was significantly improved with aspirin (71) compared with placebo (167) or no tablet (134) (P = 0.0004). However, there was no significant difference between the survival curves for T2N0M0 adenocarcinoma patients on aspirin (21) and the two control groups combined (65) (P = 0.29). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this preliminary study support further investigation of aspirin as adjuvant therapy to improve survival in subsets of postesophagectomy patients.

Experimental-numerical analysis of added resistance to container ships under presence of wind-wave loads.

Experimental and numerical analyses performed on a scaled-down model of a 1900TEU container-ship are reported herein. Wind-tunnel and towing-tank experiments along with computational-fluid-dynamic simulations were performed to obtain (1) wind-load coefficients for superstructure of container ship at different wind angles under full-load operating conditions; (2) wave resistance of the model sans the superstructure under different wave conditions; and (3) combined wind-wave resistance of the model in the head waves coupled with a fluctuating wind. Wind-tunnel experiments were first performed to determine wind-load coefficients concerning of the superstructure at different wind angles. Subsequently, the obtained wind-load coefficients from the wind tunnel test were compared against numerical and empirically obtained results to validate the applicability of the applied numerical methods. Next, the wave-induced resistance to ship motion was investigated via a series of towing-tank experiments and numerical simulations to analyze the resistance and motion of ship under wavy conditions. Finally, characteristics of the added resistance to ship motion under conditions of combined wind-wave load were analyzed, and the coupling between ship motion and combined wind-wave load was used to investigate the changes in added resistance under different load scenarios. The results reveal that combined wind-wave load causes the resistance to ship motion to exceed the algebraic sum of the corresponding resistances under standalone wind- and wave-load conditions. The additional resistance was observed to be a combined manifestation of resistances induced by ship motion and wave-parameter alterations.

The effects of a COX-2 inhibitor meloxicam on squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus in vivo.

Our previous study showed that aspirin induced apoptosis of esophageal cancer cells in vitro by inhibiting the pathway of NF-kappaB downstream regulation of cyclooxygenase-2. The purpose of this study was to determine if similar changes occurred in vivo in the tumors of patients with SCC of the esophagus who were given a preferential COX-2 inhibitor, meloxicam. Fifty-three patients who had an esophagectomy for SCC were allocated randomly to either a Treatment group (n = 25) or a control group (n = 28). Patients in the Treatment group were given 7.5 mg/day of meloxicam, for between 10 and 14 days before surgery. Patients in the control group did not take any type of NSAID during this time interval. Samples of the tumor taken from the resected specimens were collected. Proliferation and apoptosis were measured by flow cytometry. The concentration of 6-keto-prostaglandin F(1)alpha in cancer tissue was determined by radio-immuno-assay. Expression of COX-2 mRNA was measured with RT-PCR and COX-2 protein levels with Western blot analysis. Nuclear NF-kappaB and cytoplasmic I kappaB protein levels were determined by electrophoretic mobility shift assay and Western blot, respectively. There were significantly more apoptotic cells in the tumors of patients who were using meloxicam. It also decreased the levels of COX-2 mRNA, COX-2 protein and nuclear NF-kappaB protein and increased the cytoplasmic I kappaB protein in the cancer. We conclude that meloxicam induces apoptosis in SCC of the esophagus in vivo by inhibiting the pathway of NF-kappaB downstream regulation of COX-2.

[Prognostic implication of common bile duct infiltration in adenocarcinoma of the ampulla of Vater after pancreaticoduodenectomy].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prognostic implication of common bile duct infiltration in the adenocarcinoma of the ampulla of Vater after panreaticoduodenectomy. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on clinical manifestation, pathological behavior and survival data in 102 patients with Vater's ampulla adenocarcinoma, who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy from Jan 1980 to Dec 2003. The result of patients with the common bile duct infiltration were compared with that of those without. RESULTS: There were 42 cases in stage I (41.2%), 32 in stage II (31.3%), 27 in stage III (26.5%), and 1 in stage IV (1.0%). As for T stage: 9 cases in stage T1 (8.8%), 40 in T2 (39.2%), 25 in T3 (24.5%), and 28 in T4 (27.5%). As regarding to N stage: 76 cases in stage N0 (74.5%) and 26 in N1 (25.5%). Of these 102 cases, microscopic infiltration in the common bile duct (25.0%) was identified in 26 cases. A significant difference was observed between the patients with bile duct infiltration and those without, in the proportion of pancreatic medullae infiltration: 84.6% (infiltration group) versus 34.2% (non-infiltration group, P < 0.001). Twenty-five cases (24.5%) had recurrence and/or metastases postoperatively, with a median survival of 20 months (range, 2 to 93 months). The overall median survival of the whole group was 46.0 months (2 approximately 192 months), with a significant difference between the common bile duct infiltration group (36 months) and the non-infiltration group (49 months, P = 0.0061). The median non-recurrence survival of the whole group was 43 months (2 approximately 192 months), and a significant difference was observed between the common bile duct infiltration group (35 months) and non-infiltration group (47 months, P = 0.0002). CONCLUSION: If the adenocarcinoma of the Vater's ampulla infiltrated the common bile duct, the invasion to the pancreatic medulla is likely developed, and usually with a poor non-recurrence and overall survival. Therefore, postoperative chemotherapy/radiotherapy is suggested.

[Surgical effect of malignant tumor of body and tail of the pancreas: compare with pancreatic head cancer].

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the clinical-pathological characteristics and surgical prognosis of malignant tumor of pancreatic body and tail. METHODS: A retrospective study was accomplished on clinical manifestation, pathological behavior and postoperative survival in 106 patients with malignant tumor of pancreatic body and tail in single institution from Jan 1980 to Dec 2003, and compared these with 451 patients with malignant pancreatic cancer. RESULTS: There were significant differences in the following parameters (malignant tumor of the body and tail vs those of the head) between the two tumors: (1) the complaints of pain (0.74:41, chi(2) = 37.035, P < 0.01) and jaundice (0.04:0.75, chi(2) = 155.509, P < 0.01); (2) serum SGPT [(27.33 +/- 3.98) U/L: (118.60 +/- 4.59) U/L, F = 89.351, P < 0.01], total bilirubin [(1.46 +/- 0.46) mg/dl: (14.11 +/- 0.60) mg/dl, F = 105.341, P < 0.01] and albumin [(4.20 +/- 0.45) g/L: (3.91 +/- 0.03) g/L, F = 26.642, P < 0.001]; (3) CEA (0.40:0.24, chi(2) = 6.148, P = 0.046) and CA-19-9 positive rate (0.57:0.86, chi(2) = 24.132, P < 0.01); (4) the concomitant total metastasis (0.38:0.20, chi(2) = 14.266, P < 0.01), including liver metastasis (0.30:0.17, chi(2) = 9.003, P < 0.01). Postoperative median survival, resection of non-metastatic pancreatic body and tail cancer was longer than resection of metastatic disease significantly (15 vs 7 months,chi(2) = 21.63, P < 0.01), which the latter was the same as those who didn't remove (6 months,chi(2) = 0.22, P = 0.64). CONCLUSIONS: The predominant problem is distant metastasis (especially liver metastasis) in the malignant tumor of the body and tail of the pancreas in comparison with pancreatic head cancer. Resection of the body and tail could not increase postoperative survival if metastasis exists. The major way to improve the prognosis is to prevent and manage the distant metastasis.

Mesenchymal phenotype of circulating tumor cells is associated with distant metastasis in breast cancer patients.

In this study, we investigated the relationship between the epithelial-mesenchymal transition phenotype of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and distant metastasis in breast cancer patients. We analyzed the expression of epithelial (epithelial cell adhesion molecule, cytokeratin [CK]8, CK18 and CK19) and mesenchymal (vimentin and TWIST1) markers in CTCs from a large cohort of Chinese breast cancer patients (N=1083) using Canpatrol™ CTC assays. We identified CTCs in 84.9% (920/1083) of the breast cancer patients enrolled in this study. Among these 920 patients, 547 showed epithelial CTCs, 793 showed biphenotypic CTCs and 516 showed mesenchymal CTCs. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves demonstrated circulation of both biphenotypic and mesenchymal CTCs (area under ROC curve value: 0.728; sensitivity: 68.7% and specificity: 71.6%) in patients was associated with distant metastasis. These findings demonstrate that the epithelial-mesenchymal transition phenotype of CTCs is a potential biomarker predictive of distant metastasis in breast cancer.

A novel technique for micro-hole forming on skull with the assistance of ultrasonic vibration.

Micro-hole opening on skull is technically challenging and is hard to realize by micro-drilling. Low-stiffness of the drill bit is a serious drawback in micro-drilling. To deal with this problem, a novel ultrasonic vibration assisted micro-hole forming technique has been developed. Tip geometry and vibration amplitude are two key factors affecting the performance of this hole forming technique. To investigate their effects, experiment was carried out with 300µm diameter tools of three different tip geometries at three different vibration amplitudes. Hole forming performance was evaluated by the required thrust force, dimensional accuracy, exit burr and micro-structure of bone tissue around the generated hole. Based on the findings from current study, the 60° conically tipped tool helps generate a micro-hole of better quality at a smaller thrust force, and it is more suitable for hole forming than the 120° conically tipped tool and the blunt tipped tool. As for the vibration amplitude, when a larger amplitude is used, a micro-hole of better quality and higher dimensional accuracy can be formed at a smaller thrust force. Findings from this study would lay a technical foundation for accurately generating a high-quality micro-hole on skull, which enables minimally invasive insertion of a microelectrode into brain for neural activity measuring.

[Therapeutic options and prognosis of synchronous multiple primary colorectal carcinomas].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the therapeutic principles and prognosis of synchronous primary colorectal carcinomas (SCC). METHODS: The data of 66 SCC patients surgically treated from 1984 to 2003 were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: The synchronous primary colorectal carcinomas were diagnosed and resected simultaneously in 65 patients except one that was misdiagnosed. Thirty patients underwent combined resection, 35 patients segmental resection. Sixty-two patients received radical resection, while three patients had palliative resection due to hepatic metastasis. The overall postoperative 3-, 5-, 10-year survival rates were 70.3%, 60.0%, 40.6%, respectively. In the patients who had simultaneous radical resection, the 3-, 5-, 10-year survival rates were 76.0%, 65.9%, 46.4% respectively. CONCLUSION: The extent of resection should be individually determined by the lesion location, extent and distance between the lesions, as well as the patient's general condition. More extensive bowel resection, such as total or subtotal colectomy are suggested for those patients with hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal carcinoma syndrome in order to reduce or avoid the risk of metachronous colorectal carcinoma. The postoperative survival in patients with synchronous primary colorectal carcinoma is similar to those with solitary lesion.

[Clinico-pathological characteristics of surgical effect on periampullary cancers: report of 631 cases].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the differences and relationships among periampullary cancers. METHODS: A retrospective study was accomplished on the clinical manifestation, pathological behavior and postoperative survival of 631 patients with periampullary cancer hospitalized from Jan 1980 to Dec 2003. RESULTS: The characteristics of different periampullary cancers, in the order of carcinoma of head of pancreas (n = 352), carcinoma of common bile duct (n = 42), carcinoma of Vater's ampulla (n = 189), and duodenal cancer (n = 48) were as follows: (1) the mean duration of symptoms were 11.9 +/- 1.3, 5.8 +/- 0.9, 6.3 +/- 0.6, and 18.3 +/- 4.0 weeks (F = 6.18, P < 0.01); (2) the serum total bilirubin was 225 +/- 10, 345 +/- 35, 235 +/- 13, and 50 +/- 13 micromol/L(chi(2) = 68.49, P < 0.01); (3) the mean tumor size was 6.0 +/- 2.2, 3.0 +/- 1.3, 3.0 +/- 1.9, and 4.8 +/- 3.9 cm respectively (chi(2) = 255.7, P < 0.01); (4) adenocarcinoma accounted for 88%. Distant metastasis occurred in 98 cases, mostly to liver, abdominal cavity, and omentum. Local invasion mainly occurred in duodenum (chi(2) = 10.76, P < 0.01), common bile duct (chi(2) = 15.16, P < 0.01), and periampullary tissues (chi(2) = 22.49, P < 0.01), and great vessels (chi(2) = 51.25, P < 0.01). (5) the T staging (chi(2) = 11.68, P < 0.01) and lymph node status (chi(2) = 8.33, P < 0.05) of the removed tumor specimens were different among different kinds of carcinomas; (6) local invasion of duodenum (chi(2) = 10.76, P < 0.01), common bile duct (chi(2) = 15.16, P < 0.001), periampullary tissues (chi(2) = 22.49, P < 0.01), and great vessel (chi(2) = 51.25, P < 0.01) occurred in unresectable carcinomas; (7) the resection rates were 13% (n = 46), 50% (n = 21), 74% (n = 139), and 56% (n = 27) respectively (chi(2) = 205.6, P < 0.01); (8) the postoperative median survival periods were 6.0 +/- 0.3, 13.0 +/- 1.2, 22.0 +/- 1.6, and 13.0 +/- 2.5 months respectively (chi(2) = 173.47, P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Different tumor has its predominant clinical manifestation, pathological character, the probability of resection, and postoperative median survival. The prognosis after surgical treatment may be decided by biological behavior of tumor itself.

An electroencephalography network and connectivity analysis for deception in instructed lying tasks.

Deception is an impactful social event that has been the focus of an abundance of researches over recent decades. In this paper, an electroencephalography (EEG) study is presented regarding the cognitive processes of an instructed liar/truth-teller during the time window of stimulus (question) delivery period (SDP) prior to their deceptive/truthful responses towards questions related to authentic (WE: with prior experience) and fictional experience (NE: no prior experience). To investigate deception in non-experienced events, the subjects were given stimuli in a mock interview scenario that induced them to fabricate lies. To analyze the data, frequency domain network and connectivity analysis was performed in the source space in order to provide a more systematic level understanding of deception during SDP. This study reveals several groups of neuronal generators underlying both the instructed lying (IL) and the instructed truth-telling (IT) conditions for both tasks during the SDP. Despite the similarities existed in these group components, significant differences were found in the intra- and inter-group connectivity between the IL and IT conditions in either task. Additionally, the response time was found to be positively correlated with the clustering coefficient of the inferior frontal gyrus (44R) in the WE-IL condition and positively correlated with the clustering coefficient of the precuneus (7L) and the angular gyrus (39R) in the WE-IT condition. However, the response time was found to be marginally negatively correlated with the clustering coefficient of the secondary auditory cortex (42L) in the NE-IL condition and negatively correlated with the clustering coefficient of the somatosensory association cortex (5L, R) in the NE-IT condition. Therefore, these results provide complementary and intuitive evidence for the differences between the IL and IT conditions in SDP for two types of deception tasks, thus elucidating the electrophysiological mechanisms underlying SDP of deception from regional, inter-regional, network, and inter-network scale analyses.

[Diagnosis and treatment of 178 patients with carcinoma of the head of pancreas].

OBJECTIVE: To improve the diagnosis and treatment of carcinoma of head of pancreas. METHODS: A retrospective study was carried out to evaluate 178 patients suffering from carcinoma of head of pancreas. RESULTS: Pain in the epigastrium and obstructive jaundice were observed in 70% and 74.2% of these 178 patients, both of which were of significance (P < 0.001) between stage I, II and stage III, IV disease. Only 18% of patients had pain in the back, 81.3% of whom belonged to the stage IV category. The detection rate of the tumor by B-ultrasound, CT and MRI were 74.2%, 87.3% and 85.5%, respectively. The success rate of pancreatoduodenectomy was 10.1%. The postoperative 1-, 3- and 5-year survival rates were 67.5%, 36% and 5.6%. Internal drainage was performed in 115 patients. The median survival time was 7 months in patients with unresectable tumor who received radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy. CONCLUSION: Pain in the epigastrium and obstructive jaundice are the most common symptoms. Hyperglycemia is the most common complication. Pain in the back implies an advanced lesion. CT is the most important way of diagnosis and the combination of B-ultrasound, CT and MRI may improve the rate of diagnosis up to 96.6%. By now, pancreaticoduodenectomy is still the only effective treatment for the carcinoma of head of pancreas and internal drainage is an important palliative measure.

Magnetically induced deep brain stimulation of neuronal firing for pain relief.

Pain, either acute pain or chronic pain, is usually treated/relieved by chemical means, in which nociceptive signals are blocked from transmitting into the pain registration sites in the brain. However, besides their side effects, chemical means of pain relief are not always effective, causing some serious clinical incidents like anesthesia awareness and chronic pains that are not treatable. A physical means of pain relief that physically modifies pain perception at the brain sites responsible for pain registration could be more effective, for both acute pain and chronic pain. In this paper a novel approach of magnetically induced deep brain modulation of neuronal firing is proposed for pain treatment/relief, in which pain treatment/relief is bioelectronics based and is non-invasive and free of side effects. A novel pulse magnetic field projector has been developed for pain relief through modulation of neuronal firing at the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). It is based on the neuroscience findings that pain registration in the brain is closely related to the excitation of nociceptive neurons at the ACC, in which the nociceptive neuronal firing rate increases as pain gets more intense. The mechanism of pain relief in the proposed approach is to modify the nociceptive neuronal firing rate at the ACC by magnetically inducing a pulse electric field applying on the neurons in the ACC, hyperpolarizing the neurons that are firing at high frequency during pain perception, resulting in a low level firing rate associated to no pain. A parametric study has been carried out to determine the physical and technical parameters of the proposed approach. The feasibility of the approach has been verified by simulation with the modulation implemented on a reconstructed ACC LV pyramidal cell using Hodgkin-Huxley style model. Action potentials recorded in the soma indicated that the firing frequency can be modulated by the applied pulse electric field.