[Clinical outcomes of gastric cancer patients received capecitabine based adjuvant chemotherapy and the corresponding pharmacogenomics analysis].

Objective: To investigate the association between Thymidine phosphorylase(TYMP)genetic variation and clinical outcomes of postoperative gastric cancer (GC) patients received capecitabine based regimens. Methods: A total of 198 GC patients underwent surgical treatment and received capecitabine based adjuvant chemotherapy were included in this retrospective study. Peripheral blood and the postoperative tissue specimen of the GC patients were collected for the genotyping of polymorphism and TYMP mRNA expression, respectively. The correlation between polymorphism and clinical outcomes and safety of postoperative GC patients were analysed. Results: Located in the upstream, rs11479 was of clinical significance. The prevalence of rs11479 in TYMP among the GC patients were as follows: CC genotype 125 cases (63.13%), CT genotype 65 cases (32.83%), TT genotype 8 cases (4.04%), minor allele frequency of rs11479 is 0.20. The distribution of three genotypes were in accordance with Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (P=0.901). The analysis results of patients with different genotypes found that the 3-year disease free survival rate of the patients with CT/TT genotype and CC genotype were 73.97% and 65.60%, respectively, which was statistically significant (P=0.003). In terms of overall survival, the 3-year overall survival rate of the two genotypes were 83.56% and 72.80% (P=0.012), respectively. Adjusted in multivariate Cox regression analysis, CT/TT genotype was an independent favorable factor for disease free survival (OR=0.55, P=0.011). Safety analysis indicated that there was no significant association between genotypes and grade 2 adverse reaction. Additionally, of the 79 postoperative tissue specimens, the results showed that the expression of TYMP in cancer tissues of the patients with CT/TT genotypes were significantly higher than those of the wild type CC genotype patients (P<0.001). Conclusion: The polymorphism rs11479 of TYMP have favorable influence on the clinical outcomes of gastric cancer patients received capecitabine based adjuvant chemotherapy treatment through changing the mRNA expression of TYMP.

[Clinical analysis of 50 patients with abnormal pulsatile tinnitus in sigmoid sinus].

Objective: To analyze the disease characteristics, diagnosis and treatment methods of venous pulsatile tinnitus treated by intervention of sigmoid sinus. Methods: Fifty patients (from Shandong Provincial ENT Hospital, Shandong University between February 2014 and July 2020) with venous pulsatile tinnitus treated by sigmoid sinus surgery were analyzed retrospectively. The tinnitus characteristics, imaging findings, surgical methods, intraoperative findings and postoperative tinnitus changes were recorded. The patients were followed up for 6-12 months. The sign rank sum test was used to analyze the difference in tinnitus grading before and after surgery. There were 50 patients with unilateral venous pulsatile tinnitus, including 49 females and 1 male. The age ranged from 17 to 67 years, with a median age of 44 years. There were 45 cases of right tinnitus and 5 cases of left tinnitus. The degree of tinnitus before operation was grade Ⅱ or above, including 4 cases of gradeⅡ, 11 cases of grade Ⅲ, 22 cases of grade Ⅳ and 13 cases of grade Ⅴ. Results: Thirty-seven cases were cured, 8 cases were ineffective (no change in tinnitus), 3 cases were markedly effective (tinnitus grade decreased by 3 in 2 cases, 4 in 1 case), and 2 cases were effective (tinnitus grade decreased by 1). The difference of tinnitus grade before and after operation was statistically significant (Z=-5.70,P<0.05). Temporal bone CT showed 36 cases of sigmoid diverticulum (including 17 cases with sigmoid sinus dehiscence), 12 cases of sigmoid sinus dehiscence and 2 cases of absence of the temporal bone cortex abutting to sigmoid sinus. Thirty-five cases were performed with closure of sigmoid sinus diverticulum, 4 cases were performed with resurfacing of the sigmoid plate, 5 cases were performed with narrowing of sigmoid sinus, 4 cases were performed with simple opening of pre sigmoid mastoid air chamber, 1 case of opening was performed with pre sigmoid mastoid air chamber combined with narrowing of sigmoid sinus, and 1 case was performed with opening of pre sigmoid mastoid air chamber combined with closure of sigmoid sinus diverticulum. Conclusions: Venous pulsatile tinnitus is common in women. The common causes may be sigmoid sinus wall abnormalities such as sigmoid sinus diverticulum and perisigmoid bone defect. Imaging examinations are helpful for diagnosis. Venous pulsatile tinnitus can be treated with surgery.

[The surgical management of benign tumors of the lateral skull base with intracranial invasion: experience from a single centre over ten years].

Objective: To investigate the clinical features, pathological types, imaging features, and surgical strategies of lateral skull base benign tumors with intracranial invasion. Methods: From January 2011 to March 2021, 36 patients of lateral skull base benign tumors with intracranial invasion were included in this retrospective study. Among the 36 patients, 14 cases were male, 22 cases were female, the aged range from 20-67, with the median age of 48. The clinical manifestations, characteristic imaging findings, pathological types, surgical approach selection, and prognosis were analyzed. Results: 36 cases of lateral skull base tumors with intracranial invasion were all accepted surgeries. 23 cases were neurogenic tumors, facial nerve tumors (n=8), neurogenic tumors in jugular foramen with unknown origin(n=6), hypoglossal schwannoma (n=3), transotic intralabyrinthine schwannoma (n=3), vestibular schwannoma involving the middle ear(n=2), vagal nerve schwannoma(n=1). Other types of tumors included meningioma (n=10) and paraganglioma (Di 1 or 2,n=3). Different pathological types of tumors had different clinical manifestations and imaging manifestations. Sixteen cases were subjected to primary resection, while, other 20 cases underwent staged operation. Among the patients with staged operation, 10 patients had completed the second stage operation, five patients were waiting for the second stage operation, the other five patient's residual intracranial tumor were significantly reduced and the space between tumor and brain tissues widened after the first stage operation, so, the following up with "wait and scan"policy was suggested. The total resection rate of tumors was related to the pathological nature, in which neurogenic tumors were 15/17, and meningiomas were 5/8. The main postoperative complications were cerebrospinal fluid leakage and infection in the operation area. There were two cases of postoperative intracranial infection, and three cases of cerebrospinal fluid leakage occurred in non staged operation cases. Conclusions: Lateral skull base tumors with intracranial invasion are rare. The most common pathological type is schwannoma, followed by meningioma and paraganglioma. For this type of tumor, if there is infection in the operation area and neck invasion is large, it is suggested to choose staged surgery, which can reduce the risk of intracranial infection and the incidence of cerebrospinal fluid leakage. Staged surgery strategy can also reduce the difficulty of second stage surgery, so the operation is much safer than non staged surgery.

[Application of 3D-CT simulation image in the description of gastric artery variation to guide laparoscopic total gastrectomy].

Objective: Anatomic variations in the perigastric vessels during laparoscopic radical gastrectomy often affect the operator's judgment and prolong the operation time, and even cause accidental injury and surgical complications, and hence the safety and quality of the operation cannot be ensured. In this study, multiple slice CT was reconstructed by 3-dimensional CT simulation software (3D-CT), and 3D-CT images were used to describe the variation of celiac trunk and splenic artery before surgery. The guiding role of the different variation of vessels was analyzed for laparoscopic total gastrectomy+D2 lymph node dissection (LTG+D2LD). Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted. Case inclusion criteria: (1) Gastric cancer was at an advanced stage. All the patients were preoperatively examined by digestive endoscopy and 64-row enhanced CT scan, and were histopathologically diagnosed with gastric adenocarcinoma. (2) 3D-CT simulation images were reconstructed to guide the operation. (3) LTG+D2LD surgery was performed by the same surgical team. (4) Clinical data were complete, and all the patients had signed the informed consent. From 2014 to 2018, 98 patients with gastric cancer at the Gastrointestinal Surgery Department of Henan Provincial People's Hospital were enrolled. According to the Adachi classification, celiac trunk variation was divided into common type (Adachi type I) and rare type (Adachi type II-VI). According to the Natsume classification, splenic artery was classified into "flat type" and "curved type". Based on 3D-CT simulation images, variation of celiac trunk and splenic artery was described, and the differences in operation time, intraoperative blood loss and the number of postoperative retrieved lymph nodes were compared between groups with different types of arterial variation. Results: For celiac trunk, common type was found in 84 cases (86%) and rare type was found in 14 cases, including 6 cases (6%) of type II, 2 cases (2%) of type III, 2 cases (2%) of type IV, 3 cases (3%) of type V, 1 case (1%) of type VI. No other types were found. There were no statistically significant differences in clinical characteristics and number of retrieved lymph nodes between patients of the common type group and rare type group (all P>0.05). Compared with common type patients, those of rare type had longer operative time [(321.1±29.0) minutes vs. (295.1±46.5) minutes, t=2.081, P=0.040] and more intraoperative blood loss (median: 66.0 ml vs. 32.0 ml, Z=-4.974, P=0.001). For splenic artery, 41 patients (42%) were flat type and 57 patients (58%) were curved type. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of clinical characteristics, intraoperative blood loss, operative time and number of retrieved lymph nodes (all P>0.05). Conclusions: The method of describing the variation in the perigastric vessels by 3D-CT simulation has certain clinical value in laparoscopic radical gastrectomy. The duration of LTG+D2LD is prolonged and the intraoperative blood loss is increased with the variation of celiac trunk, while the variation of splenic artery has no effect on LTG+D2LD.

[Changes of insulin secretion and its signal transduction mechanism at early stage of severe scald in rats].

Objective: To observe the changes of insulin secretion in the early stage of severe scald in rats, and to explore its signal transduction mechanism. Methods: Twenty-four male Wistar rats aged 7 weeks were divided into sham injury alone (SIA) group, sham injury+ BPV (HOpic) (SIB) group, scald alone (SA) group, and scald+ BPV (HOpic) (SB) group using the random number table, with 6 rats in each group. Full-thickness scald of 50% total body surface area was inflicted in rats of SA and SB groups by a 6-s immersion of the abdomen and a 12-s immersion of the back in 94 ℃ hot water. Rats in SIA and SIB groups received sham injuries through immersion of the back and abdomen in 37 ℃ warm water for 6 and 12 seconds respectively. From 0 (immediately) to 2 day (s) after injury, the rats in groups SB and SIB were intraperitoneally injected with the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt) signaling pathway enhancer BPV (HOpic) solution (0.5 mg/mL) at the dosage of 0.6 mg/kg once a day, and the rats in groups SA and SIA were intraperitoneally injected with the same volume of dimethyl sulfoxide once a day. At post injury hour (PIH) 72, the tail blood of rats was sampled for measuring fasting blood glucose (FBG) with a glucometer, and the pancreatic tissue samples of rats was harvested for observing the pathological manifestations of islets by hematoxylin-eosin staining, counting the docked granules per 10 µm membrane of islet beta cells and calculating the proportion of insulin vesicles through the observation of the ultrastructure of islet beta cells by transmission electron microscope, and detecting the phosphorylation level of Akt in the pancreatic PI3K/Akt signaling pathway by Western blotting. Data were statistically analyzed with one-way analysis of variance and least significant difference test. Results: (1) At PIH 72, the rat FBG levels in SIA and SIB groups were normal and similar (P>0.05). Compared with the levels of those two groups, the rat FBG level in SA group was increased significantly (P<0.01), while the level in SB group showed no obvious change (P>0.05). Compared with that in SA group, the rat FBG level in SB group was decreased significantly (P<0.01). (2) At PIH 72, the morphology of rat islets was complete and the islet cells distributed regularly in SIA and SIB groups. Compared with those in SIA and SIB groups, the morphology of rat islets was incomplete, the insulin vesicles in islets were common, the islet cells distributed irregularly, and the cytoplasm of some islet beta cells was lightly stained or translucent in SA group; the morphology of islets in SB group did not change obviously. Compared with those in SA group, the morphology of islets was comparatively complete, the insulin vesicles in islets were less common, the islet cells distributed comparatively regularly, and the lightly stained or translucent cytoplasm of islet beta cells was less in SB group. (3) At PIH 72, the number of docked granules per 10 µm membrane of rat islet beta cells and the proportion of insulin vesicles in SIA and SIB groups were similar (P>0.05). Compared with those in SIA and SIB groups, the number of docked granules per 10 µm membrane of rat islet beta cells in SA group was decreased significantly (P<0.01), while the proportion of insulin vesicles was increased significantly (P<0.01); the number of docked granules per 10 µm membrane of rat islet beta cells in SB group was obviously decreased (P<0.05), while the proportion of insulin vesicles did not change obviously (P>0.05). Compared with those in SA group, the number of docked granules per 10 µm membrane of rat islet beta cells in SB group was significantly increased (P<0.01), while the proportion of insulin vesicles was significantly decreased (P<0.01). (4) At PIH 72, the phosphorylation levels of Akt in SIA, SIB, SA, and SB groups were 0.91±0.03, 0.98±0.03, 0.78±0.08, and 0.87±0.08, respectively. Compared with that in SIA group, the phosphorylation level of Akt was increased obviously in SIB group (P<0.05) but was decreased significantly in SA group (P<0.01), while the level in SB group did not change obviously (P>0.05). Compared with the level in SIB group, the phosphorylation levels of Akt in SA and SB groups were decreased significantly (P<0.01). Compared with that in SA group, the phosphorylation level of Akt in SB group was increased significantly (P<0.05). Conclusions: At the early stage post severe scald in rats, the activity of the pancreatic PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and the function of insulin secretion are reduced. Improving the activity of the pancreatic PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in rats can ameliorate the function of insulin secretion and recover the physiological level of blood glucose.

Thermoregulatory sudomotor dysfunction and diabetic neuropathy develop in parallel in at-risk feet.

AIMS: To establish the longitudinal relationship of foot complications to neuropathy based on a 4-year follow-up of diabetic patients stratified by sudomotor dysfunctions. METHODS: One hundred and nineteen Type 2 diabetic patients and 36 non-diabetic subjects were initially registered in the prospective cohort study. Plantar skin temperature and sympathetic skin response (SSR) were used to monitor sympathetic mediated thermoregulation and sudomotor function. Peripheral somatic and central autonomic functions were studied using clinical, nerve conduction and cardiovascular reflex tests. At enrolment, the diabetic patients were classified into one of three groups by the progressive stages of sudomotor dysfunction: SSR+ (SSR present; 49 patients), SSR- (SSR absent; 41 patients) and at-risk group (SSR absent but with cracked skin involving partial thickness of the dermis; 29 patients). RESULTS: The at-risk group had 13.4 times (95% confidence interval 1.4-125.7) higher plantar ulceration rates than the other two patient groups during the 4 years. Skin temperature elevation occurred in parallel with development of foot sweating problems. There were no significant differences between the three patient groups in the ratios of abnormal heart rate variation, orthostatic test and clinical neuropathy score at follow-up. After 4 years of follow-up, nerve conduction abnormalities were more frequent in the at-risk and SSR- groups than in the SSR+ group. CONCLUSIONS: Early deterioration of small sympathetic fibres could not be quantified accurately by the clinical, somatic and autonomic tests. Assessing skin integrity and sudomotor function in at-risk individuals identifies early peripheral sympathetic neuropathy, even if the patients have no overt clinical symptoms.

[Diagnosis and treatment of labyrinthine fistula caused by chronic otitis media].

Objective:To evaluate the clinical features diagnostic experience and the surgical management of labyrinthine fistula in chronic suppurative otitismedia.Method:Twenty-four cases(24 ears)of labyrinthine fistula caused by chronic suppurative otitis media that were treated from 2006 to 2013 were reviewed.The fistula test and temporal bone CT scan were performed before the operation, then compare the positive rates between them.In all of these cases, the lesion tissue of fistula is cleaned. Then the fistula was repair of through fascia sealing by temporal myofascial or mastoid periosteum in type Ⅰ and Ⅱ fistula.Semicircular canal occlusion was used in type Ⅲ fistula.Comparison of the effect of fistula typing on preoperative and postoperative hearing.Result:The fistulae were located at the lateral semicircular canal in 23 ears, at the lateral semicircular canal in 1 ears.Temporal bones was positive in 10 cases(41.66％) while fistula test was positive in 9 cases(37.5％). There was no statistically significant difference between the diagnosis of the labyrinthine fistula(P=0.50).The effect of fistula typing on postoperative auditory changes was not statistically significant (P=0.73).Conclusion:In the preoperative diagnosis of the fistula,the use of fistula test and CT scan simultaneously may increase the accuracy of the diagnostic. However the test results are not reliable when is negative results,intraoperative exploration is the most important method for the diagnosis of labyrinth fistula.Surgery should be based on the type of fistula,size,hearing levels and operation experience.

Characterizing Ni(II) hydration in aqueous solution using DFT and EXAFS.

In the present work, a detailed investigation of Ni(II) hydration in water solutions was carried out using density functional theory (DFT) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy. The hydrated characteristics of [Ni(H2O)n](2+) clusters, such as energy parameters, atomic charge distributions, and bond parameters, were explored using DFT with Becke's three-parameter exchange potential and the Lee-Yang-Parr correlation functional (B3LYP). DFT calculations indicated that the preferred structure of the first hydration shell of Ni(II) generally has a coordination number of six and is almost unaffected by the water molecules in the outer solvation shell, whereas the structure of the second solvation shell varies as the hydration proceeds. EXAFS measurements are reported for aqueous NiSO4 and Ni(NO3)2 solutions and the Ni(NO3)2·6H2O crystal. Analysis of the EXAFS spectra of these three systems using a multiparameter fitting procedure showed that, in each case, the first coordination shell consists of six water molecules with a Ni-O coordination distance of 2.04 Å, and that there is no Ni-S or Ni-N coordination in the first shell. There was no evidence of outer-shell SO4(2-) or NO3(-) ions substituting inner-sphere water molecules in NiSO4 and Ni(NO3)2. The characteristics of Ni(II) hydration obtained from DFT calculations agreed well with those obtained experimentally using EXAFS.

Localization of a putative tumor suppressor gene in the sub-telomeric region of chromosome 8p.

Several regions of chromosome arm 8p are frequently deleted in a variety of human malignancies including those of the prostate, head and neck, lung, and colon, suggesting that there is more than one tumor suppressor gene on this chromosome arm. Both laryngeal and oral squamous cell carcinomas exhibit three distinct and nonoverlapping regions of deletion on 8p. We have further refined the localization of the putative suppressor in 8p23 by using eight microsatellite loci to create a high resolution deletion map of 150 squamous cell carcinomas of the larynx and oral cavity. These new data demonstrate that there are two distinct classes of deletion within this relatively small region of the chromosome and suggest two possible locations for the gene within the D8S264 to D8S1788 interval. We also determined that there is little difference between the allelic loss frequencies of microsatellites mapping near the telomeric ends of other chromosome arms and loci mapping to more centromere proximal regions of the same arm. These data suggest that the high allelic loss frequencies seen at 8p23 loci are not the result of a generalized instability of chromosome ends and are instead consistent with the activation of a specific suppressor gene.

A Novel Submicron Emulsion System Loaded with Doxorubicin Overcome Multi-Drug Resistance in MCF-7/ADR Cells.

The purpose of the present study was to develop the Solutol HS15-based doxorubicin submicron emulsion with good stability and overcoming multi-drug resistance. In this study, we prepared doxorubicin submicron emulsion, and examined the stability after autoclaving, the in vitro cytotoxic activity, the intracellular accumulation and apoptpsis of doxorubicin submicron emulsion in MCF-7/ADR cells. The physicochemical properties of doxorubicin submicron emulsion were not significantly affected after autoclaving. The doxorubicin submicron emulsion significantly increased the intracellular accumulation of doxorubicin submicron emulsion and enhanced cytotoxic activity and apoptotic effects of doxorubicin. These results may be correlated to doxorubicin submicron emulsion inhibitory effects on efflux pumps through the progressive release of intracellular free Solutol HS15 from doxorubicin submicron emulsion. Furthermore, these in vitro results suggest that the Solutol HS15-based submicron emulsion may be a potentially useful drug delivery system to circumvent multi-drug resistance of tumor cells.

Near-field localization of ultrashort optical pulses in transverse 1-D periodic nanostructures.

We present a transverse 1-D periodic nanostructure which exhibits lateral internal Thorneld localization for normally incident ultrashort pulses, and which may be applied to the enhancement of nonlinear optical phenomena. The peak intensity of an optical pulse propagating in the nanostructure is approximately 12 times that of an identical incident pulse propagating in a bulk material of the same refractive index. For second harmonic generation, an overall enhancement factor of approximately 10.8 is predicted. Modeling of pulse propagation is performed using Fourier spectrum decomposition and Rigorous Coupled-Wave Analysis (RCWA).

Retinal imaging with a low-cost micromachined membrane deformable mirror.

PURPOSE: To study the retina in normal subjects with a high-resolution imaging system using adaptive optics for wave front aberration correction. METHODS: We used a low-cost 37-element micromachined membrane deformable mirror (MMDM) with a continuous membrane as the reflective surface. A Hartmann-Shack wave front sensor with cooled charge coupled device camera was used to measure the wave front aberration. Zernike polynomials were used to describe the wave front shape. We developed a mirror control system to compensate for wave aberrations. We tested this instrument in normal subjects. RESULTS: We were able to image the retina in monochromatic laser light and document the increase in resolution. While it is hard to estimate the exact size of the smallest structures in the image, we were able to subjectively grade the image quality. The system is able to compensate for higher order aberrations present in the human eye. CONCLUSION: The capabilities of correcting ocular aberrations are limited by the number of adjustable elements in the mirror and the deflection range of the surface. The advantage of the MMDM system is its low cost when compared with other adaptive optics solutions such as piezodriven mirrors and spatial light modulators. This technique may allow for improved resolution for clinical fundus photography.

Cytomegalovirus vasculitis and colon perforation in a patient with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

We describe a patient with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome who suffered a colon perforation which we believe was directly attributable to disseminated cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. Thrombosed vessels within the submucosa and muscle wall contained evidence of CMV vasculitis, while adjacent vessels without viral inclusions were fully patent. This report supports other evidence that CMV may act as a primary etiologic agent of gastrointestinal disease, particularly in the immunocompromised host. The increased recognition of CMV as a cause of significant morbidity in certain gastrointestinal lesions becomes especially important with the advent of newer antiviral therapy specifically directed against CMV infection.

Clinical correlations with allelotype in supraglottic squamous cancer.

Frequent allelic loss at a genetically polymorphic locus in tumors is an established marker for the presence of a tumor suppressor gene in the neighboring chromosomal region. This technique can be used to identify novel tumor suppressor genes and to monitor their status before the cloning of the gene itself. We have used the polymerase chain reaction and microsatellite loci on all 39 nonacrocentric autosomal chromosomal arms to identify sites of frequent allelic loss in squamous cell carcinomas of the supraglottic larynx. Our allelotype identified seven chromosomal arms (3p, 5q, 8p, 9p, 9q, 13q, and 17p) likely to contain tumor suppressor genes frequently inactivated during squamous tumorigenesis in the larynx. We tested for associations between allelic losses on these chromosomal arms and the clinical and histopathologic features of these tumors. There were no correlations with either T or N classifications. Allelic loss on chromosomal arm 13q is significantly associated with a number of histopathologic features characteristic of poorly differentiated or histologically aggressive tumors. Allelic loss on this arm also exhibits statistical trends toward association with early tumor recurrence and poor survival. The association with survival was substantiated by a multivariate Cox proportional hazards model.

Herpes zoster in infancy after intrauterine exposure to varicella zoster virus: report of two cases.

Herpes zoster occurs very rarely in infancy. We report two infants who developed zoster-like lesions at three and seven months of age. They had no history of chickenpox after birth. Both mothers acquired varicella infection during their sixth month of pregnancy. The crops of vesicular rashes appeared in right L1-3 dermatomes in one patient and left V3, C2 dermatomes in the other. Laboratory findings demonstrated a four-fold rise in varicella zoster virus (VZV) IgG antibody in one patient and positive VZV IgM antibody in the other. Both infants received acyclovir treatment and the skin lesions healed rapidly without sequela. In infancy, herpes zoster may be the primary clinical manifestation of reactivation of latent VZV infection acquired transplacentally during intrauterine life.

Meta-analysis of the differentially expressed colorectal cancer-related microRNA expression profiles.

OBJECTIVES: Unique microRNAs (miRNAs) have been identified in colorectal cancer in recent studies which can be used to accurately diagnose the presence of colorectal cancer and help predict disease recurrence. Differential expression of specific miRNAs in tissues or blood offers the prospect of their use in early detection and screening for colorectal cancer. However, the experiments under different environments would produce different results. The purpose of this study was to get a reliable result on differentially expressed miRNAs related to colorectal cancer by integrating different studies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A meta-analysis was performed to review three miRNA microarray datasets from three published literatures that compared the microRNAs expression profiles in colorectal cancer tissues with those in normal colorectal tissues. The R VennDiagram package was applied to identify the overlapping miRNAs with differential expression among these three studies. RESULTS: A total of 175 differentially expressed miRNAs were reported in the three miRNA expression profiling studies that compared colorectal cancer tissues with normal tissues, of which 25 miRNAs were reported at least by two studies including 15 up-regulated miRNAs and 10 down-regulated miRNAs. Among the 25 miRNAs, 15 ones were differentially expressed between early stage colorectal cancer and normal tissues including 11 up-regulated miRNAs and 4 down-regulated miRNAs, of which hsa-miR-195 (down-regulated) and hsa-miR-20a (up-regulated) were shared by these three studies. CONCLUSIONS: The 15 differentially expressed miRNAs, especially hsa-miR-195 and hsa-miR-20a may be used as potential biomarkers for early detection and screening of colorectal cancer.

Room temperature electrical and thermal switching CNT/hexadecane composites.

A large contrast in the electrical and thermal conductivities via a first order phase transition in surface-functionalized carbon nanotube(CNT)/hexadecane composites is reported. Surface modification of the CNTs improves the electrical conductivity contrast and the stability of the composites. We demonstrate that, with these composites, the electrical conductivity changes above 10(5) times and the thermal conductivity varies up to 3 times at 18 °C.

Mutual-intensity lensless imaging system.

I describe a lensless imaging system in which the image is formed by the mutual-intensity function instead of by a conventional intensity distribution. Both theoretical and experimental results are given.

Broad-source image plane holography as a confocal imaging process.

The process of image plane holography with incoherent illumination has many significant properties. The process can produce extremely high-quality, low-noise images, section slicing, image formation through inhomogeneities, and high-resolution image formation through small apertures. The process of confocal imaging has similar properties. We describe the similarities and differences between the two processes.