Redox proteomics of PANC-1 cells reveals the significance of HIF-1 signaling protein oxidation in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma pathogenesis.

BACKGROUND: Protein cysteine oxidation is substantially involved in various biological and pathogenic processes, but its implications in pancreatic cancer development remains poorly understood. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this study, we performed a global characterization of protein oxidation targets in PDAC cells through iodoTMT-based quantitative proteomics, which identified over 4300 oxidized cysteine sites in more than 2100 proteins in HPDE6c7 and PANC-1 cells. Among them, 1715 cysteine residues were shown to be differentially oxidized between HPDE6c7 and PANC-1 cells. Also, charged amino acids including aspartate, glutamate and lysine were significantly overrepresented in flanking sequences of oxidized cysteines. Differentially oxidized proteins in PANC-1 cells were enriched in multiple cancer-related biological processes and signaling pathways. Specifically, the HIF-1 signaling proteins exhibited significant oxidation alterations in PANC-1 cells, and the reduced PHD2 oxidation in human PDAC tissues was correlated with lower survival time in pancreatic cancer patients. CONCLUSION: These investigations provided new insights into protein oxidation-regulated signaling and biological processes during PDAC pathogenesis, which might be further explored for pancreatic cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Spatial Heterogeneity of b Values in Northeastern Tibetan Plateau and Its Interpretation.

The northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau (NE Tibetan Plateau) exhibits active geological structures and has experienced multiple strong earthquakes, with M ≥ 7, throughout history. Particularly noteworthy is the 1920 M81/2 earthquake in the Haiyuan region that occurred a century ago and is documented as one of the deadliest earthquakes. Consequently, analyzing seismic risks in the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau holds significant importance. The b value, a crucial parameter for seismic activity, plays a pivotal role in seismic hazard analyses. This study calculates the spatial b values in this region based on earthquake catalogs since 1970. The study area encompasses several major active faults, and due to variations in b values across different fault types, traditional grid-search methods may introduce significant errors in calculating the spatial b value within complex fault systems. To address this, we employed the hierarchical space-time point-process (HIST-PPM) method proposed by Ogata. This method avoids partitioning earthquake samples, optimizes parameters using Akaike's Bayesian Information Criterion (ABIC) with entropy maximization, and theoretically allows for a higher spatial resolution and more accurate b value calculations. The results indicate a high spatial heterogeneity in b values within the study area. The northwestern and southeastern regions exhibit higher b values. Along the Haiyuan fault zone, the central rupture zone of the Haiyuan earthquake has relatively higher b values than other regions of this fault zone, which is possibly related to the sufficient release of stress during the main rupture of the Haiyuan earthquake. The b values vary from high in the west to low in the east along the Zhongwei fault. On the West Qinling fault zone, the epicenter of the recent Minxian-Zhangxian earthquake is associated with a low b value. In general, regions with low b values correspond well to areas with moderate-strong seismic events in the past 50 years. The spatial differences in b values may reflect variances in seismic hazards among fault zones and regions within the same fault zone.

Clinical characteristics of mirror syndrome: a retrospective study of 16 cases.

The exact prevalence of mirror syndrome remains unclear, and the precise clinical features need to be disclosed. We retrospectively reviewed 85 cases of foetal hydrops from a total of 98,484 deliveries. Of these 16 showed mirror syndrome, while 69 did not. The incidence of mirror syndrome among all deliveries was 0.0162%, while that among patients with foetal hydrops was 23.2%. Maternal symptoms of mirror syndrome included anaemia (n = 15), hypertension (n = 7), proteinuria (n = 8), pulmonary oedema (n = 3), cardiac failure (n = 2) and HELLP syndrome (n = 2). Placental thickness, placental weight and amniotic fluid index were significantly different between the groups. In the mirror syndrome group, uric acid, lactate dehydrogenase, creatinine and D-dimer levels were significantly higher (p < .05), whereas haemoglobin, serum albumin levels, haematocrit value and platelet count were significantly lower (p < .05). Elevated uric acid, lactate dehydrogenase and D-dimer levels may be useful as predictors of mirror syndrome.Impact statementWhat is already known on this subject? As mirror syndrome is uncommon and under-diagnosed, its exact incidence is not yet clear, and most publications are case reports or reviews of case reports.What the results of this study add? The incidence of mirror syndrome among all deliveries was 0.0162%, while that among patients with foetal hydrops was 23.2%. Pregnant women who develop mirror syndrome may show severe complications of pregnancy. Attention should be paid to the further progress of the condition. Placental thickness, placental weight and amniotic fluid index were significantly different between those with mirror syndrome and those without. In the mirror syndrome group, the uric acid, lactate dehydrogenase, creatinine and D-dimer levels were significantly higher (p < .05), whereas haemoglobin level, haematocrit value, platelet count and serum albumin level were significantly lower (p < .05).What the implications are of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? Mirror syndrome is not rare among patients with foetal hydrops. Elevated uric acid, lactate dehydrogenase and D-dimer levels may be useful as predictors of mirror syndrome.

Integrated analysis of gene expression and DNA methylation datasets identified key genes and a 6-gene prognostic signature for primary lung adenocarcinoma.

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is the main subtype of non-small cell lung cancer with a poor survival prognosis. In our study, gene expression, DNA methylation, and clinicopathological data of primary LUAD were utilized to identify potential prognostic markers for LUAD, which were recruited from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Univariate regression analysis showed that there were 21 methylation-associated DEGs related to overall survival (OS), including 9 down- and 12 up-regulated genes. The 12 up-regulated genes with hypomethylation may be risky genes, whereas the other 9 down-regulated genes with hypermethylation might be protective genes. By using the Step-wise multivariate Cox analysis, a methylation-associated 6-gene (consisting of CCL20, F2, GNPNAT1, NT5E, B3GALT2, and VSIG2) prognostic signature was constructed and the risk score based on this gene signature classified patients into high- or low-risk groups. Patients of the high-risk group had shorter OS than those of the low-risk group in both the training and validation cohort. Multivariate Cox analysis and the stratified analysis revealed that the risk score was an independent prognostic factor for LUAD patients. The methylation-associated gene signature may serve as a prognostic factor for LUAD patients and the represent hypermethylated or hypomethylated genes might be potential targets for LUAD therapy.

Effects of cytomegalovirus infection on extravillous trophoblast cells invasion and immune function of NK cells at the maternal-fetal interface.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is one of the most common intrauterine infection virus, which can cause intrauterine transmission through the placenta, resulting in abortion, stillbirth and congenital malformations. In this study, the co-culture extravillous trophoblast (EVT) HTR8/SVneo cell model of CMV infection was established in vitro. The toxicity of CMV infected EVT was determined, and then, the cell invasion experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect on the invasion ability of EVT cell lines. Western blot and real-time PCR were used to detect the related cytokines in the PI3K/AKT signalling pathway in cells. Flow cytometry was used to detect the immune function related factors of the supernatant of CMV culture on decidual NK cells. The TCID50 of CMV virus was 10-5.4 . The results of immunofluorescence showed that a large number of fluorescent green of CMV pp65 antigen signals appeared in the cytoplasm of CMV infection group. CMV could infect and replicate EVT cells and inhibited cell proliferation. The expression of proteins PDK1, AKT-S473 and AKT-S308 was significantly increased in CMV infection group. The levels of IL-17, IL-4 and IFN-γ were 8.7 ± 0.48%, 12.17 ± 0.61% and 6.66 ± 0.25%, respectively, in CMV infection group. The above results indicated that CMV infection inhibited EVT cells proliferation, weakened the invasion ability and inhibited the immune function of NK cells at the maternal-fetal interface, resulting in the abnormal maternal-fetal crosstalk.

Exploring Changes in Land Surface Temperature Possibly Associated with Earthquake: Case of the April 2015 Nepal Mw 7.9 Earthquake.

Satellite thermal infrared remote sensing has received worldwide attention in the exploration for earthquake precursors; however, this method faces great controversy. Obtaining repeatable phenomena related to earthquakes is helpful to reduce this controversy. In this paper, a total of 15 or 17 years of Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)/Aqua and MODIS/Terra satellite remote sensing land surface temperature (LST) products is selected to analyze the temperature changes before and after the Mw 7.9 earthquake in Nepal on 25 April 2015 and to explore possible thermal information associated with this earthquake. Major findings are given as follows: (1) from the time course, the temperature slowly cooled before the earthquake, reached a minimum at the time of the earthquake, and returned to normal after the earthquake. Since these changes were initiated before the earthquake, they may even have been precursors to the Nepal earthquake. (2) From the space distribution, the cooling areas correspond to the seismogenic structure during the earthquake. These cooling areas are distributed along the Himalayas and are approximately 1300 km long. The widths of the East and West sides are slightly different, with an average temperature decrease of 5.6 °C. For these cooling areas, the Western section is approximately 90 km wide and 500 km long; the East side is approximately 190 km wide and 800 km long. The Western side of the cooling strips appeared before the earthquake. In short, these kinds of spatial and temporal changes are tectonically related to the earthquake and may have been caused by the tectonic activity associated with the Nepal earthquake. This process began before the earthquake and therefore might even be potentially premonitory information associated with the Nepal earthquake.

Pre-clinical study of a TNFR1-targeted 18F probe for PET imaging of breast cancer.

Tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 (TNFR1) is overexpressed in several varieties of carcinoma, including breast cancer. WH701 (Ala-Thr-Ala-Gln-Ser-Ala-Tyr-Gly), which was identified by phage display, can specifically bind to TNFR1. In this study, we labeled WH701 with 18F and investigated its tumor diagnostic value. WH701 was synthesized by standard Fmoc-solid phase synthetic protocols and conjugated by NOTA-NHS. NOTA-WH701 was radiolabeled with 18F using NOTA-AlF chelation reaction. The tumor target properties were evaluated in vitro and in vivo using MCF-7 xenografts and inflammation models. [18F]AlF-NOTA-WH701 was labeled in 25 min with a decay-corrected yield of 38.1 ± 4.8% (n = 5) and a specific activity of 10.4-13.0 GBq/µmol. WH701 had relatively high affinity for MCF-7 cells in vitro and [18F]AlF-NOTA-WH701 displayed relatively high tumor uptake in vivo. The tumor to muscle ratio was 4.25 ± 0.56 at 30 min post-injection (p.i.); further, there was a significant difference between the tumor/muscle and inflammation/muscle (3.22 ± 0.56) ratio, which could differentiate the tumor and inflammation. The tumor uptake of [18F]AlF-NOTA-WH701 could be inhibited by 71.1% by unlabeled WH701 at 30 min p.i. We have developed a promising PET tracer [18F]AlF-NOTA-WH701 for the noninvasive detection of breast cancer in vivo.

Vesicle formation by proton transfer driven short-tailed fatty acids of C4-C8 chain length in water.

Ultrashort single-chain fatty acids self-assemble to form vesicles under certain proton-driven conditions. The protonation provides a larger charge area around the hydrophilic carbonyl headgroups, and proton shift as the key driving parameter was studied. The ultrashort fatty acids (C4-C8) formed stable unilamellar vesicles predominantly through out the whole range of tested pH levels (6.5-9.5). A proton-driven self-assembly process and effects on the phase transition were characterized by dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy and cryo-transmission electron microscopy. In particular, we studied in greater detail the molecular packing characteristics of FA vesicles for geometric reasons and the protonation effect changes the molecular surface charge and further carboxylic acid headgroup motion. This study enhances the understanding of the physicochemical specificity of these membrane vesicles, and may facilitate the alteration of membrane function caused by FAs.

Swelling and penetration of fatty acid vesicles under ion-competitive environment.

The physicochemical characteristics of fatty acid (FA) vesicles and their ion sensitivity as drug delivery vehicles in an ion-competitive environment have received much attention. Here, we show that in a Na+/K+ competitive ionic environment, FA vesicles undergo a cascade of periodic expansion and selective ion retention in response to osmotic attack. When the Na+/K+ ratio is altered, the expansion and volume of vesicles are affected and the ions in vesicles mix with the hyperosmotic fluid to produce a stable transmembrane potential, consistent with the Donnan effect and iontophoresis theory. Furthermore, osmotic swelling experiments suggest that FA vesicles are more easily maintained in a single Na+ or K+ solution than in a multicomponent ion competition system. As a theoretical basis for the utilization of FA vesicles in multicomponent ionic environments, we developed a core theoretical model to characterize the basic features of the volume fluctuations of FA vesicles in ion-competing environments.

Preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio after chemoradiotherapy for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma associates with postoperative pulmonary complications following radical esophagectomy.

OBJECTIVES: Esophagectomy after chemoradiotherapy is associated with an increased risk of surgical complications. The significance of preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio after chemoradiotherapy in predicting pulmonary complications following radical esophagectomy in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients receiving preoperative chemoradiotherapy remains unknown. We aimed to investigate the utility of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio in predicting the pulmonary complications of esophagectomy after preoperative chemoradiotherapy. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 111 consecutive patients with stage III esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who received preoperative chemoradiotherapy followed by esophagectomy between January 2009 and December 2017. Laboratory data were collected before the operation and surgical outcomes and complications were recorded. We calculated neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and correlated them with the clinical parameters, postoperative complications, overall survival, and disease-free survival. RESULTS: Postoperative complications were observed in 75 (68%) patients, including 32 (29%) with pulmonary complications. The preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio of ≥ 3 (P = 0.008), clinical T4 classification (P = 0.007), and advanced stage IIIC (P = 0.012) were significantly associated with pulmonary complications. Pulmonary complication rates were 15% and 38% in patients with preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio of < 3 and ≥ 3, respectively. Preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio was not associated with the oncological stratification such as pathological T classification, pathological N classification, and pathological AJCC stage. The 3-year overall survival rates were 70% and 34% in patients with preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio of < 3 and ≥ 3, respectively (P = 0.0026). The 3-year disease-free survival rates were 57% and 29% in patients with preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio of < 3 and ≥ 3, respectively (P = 0.0055). The preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio of ≥ 3 was independently associated with more pulmonary complications, inferior overall survival, and worse disease-free survival. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio after chemoradiotherapy is independently associated with higher pulmonary complication rate following radical esophagectomy and poor prognosis in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma receiving preoperative chemoradiotherapy. Preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is routinely available in clinical practice and our findings suggest it can be used as a predictor for pulmonary complications after esophagectomy in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma receiving preoperative chemoradiotherapy.

Maximum standardised uptake value of positron emission tomography as a predictor of oesophageal cancer outcomes.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to analyse the value of pre-operative 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (PET)-computed tomography that can predict tumour pathological complete response, tumour histology grade, overall survival, and recurrence-free survival in patients with locally advanced oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma who underwent neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) followed by surgery. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the cases of patients with locally advanced oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma undergoing NCRT followed by surgery. Patients who did not undergo PET within 3 months of surgery were excluded. We set a pre-operative PET maximum standardised uptake value (SUVmax) of > 5 as the threshold and classified the patients into two groups. We analysed the tumour response and histology grade, and compared the overall survival and recurrence-free survival between the two groups. RESULTS: This cohort included 92 patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma who underwent NCRT followed by surgery; 49 patients had a pre-operative PET SUVmax < 5, and 43 patients had a pre-operative PET SUVmax > 5. The patients' pre-operative PET SUVmax correlated with tumour histology, ypT stage, and tumour response. Patients with a pre-operative SUVmax < 5 had better 2-year-overall survival (78% vs. 62%, P < 0.05) and 2-year recurrence-free survival (62% vs. 34%, P < 0.05) than those with a pre-operative SUV > 5. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-operative SUVmax may be useful to predict tumour response, survival, and recurrence in patients with locally advanced oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma who undergo NCRT followed by surgery.

Number of Retrieved Lymph Nodes during Esophagectomy Affects the Outcome of Stage III Esophageal Cancer in Patients Having Had Pre-Operative Chemo-Radiation Therapy.

Background: Lymphadenectomy plays a crucial role in the surgical management of early- stage esophageal cancer. However, few studies have examined lymphadenectomy outcomes in advanced stages, particularly in patients who initially underwent concurrent chemoradiation therapy. This retrospective study investigates the effect of lymphadenectomy in patients diagnosed with AJCC 8th-edition clinical stage III esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who received concurrent preoperative chemoradiation. Methods: Data from 1994 to 2023 were retrieved from our retrospective database. All patients underwent a uniform evaluation and treatment protocol, including preoperative concurrent chemoradiation therapy comprising cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil, followed by esophagectomy. The analysis encompassed clinical T and N stages, tumor location, tumor grade, pathological T and N stages, pathological stage, and the extent of lymph node dissection. Overall survival, "Free-To-Recurrence", and disease-free survival were assessed via Kaplan-Meier survival curves and the Cox regression model for multivariate analysis. Results: The dataset was stratified into two groups according to extent of lymph node dissection, with one group having <15 dissected nodes and the other having ≥15 dissected nodes. The group with <15 nodes exhibited a shorter "Free-To-Recurrence", worse disease-free survival, and lower overall survival. In multiple-variate analysis (Cox regression model), the number of dissected lymph nodes emerged as a significant factor influencing overall survival and freedom from recurrence. Conclusions: The quantity of lymphadenectomy is a crucial determinant for patients with AJCC 8th-edition clinical stage III esophageal squamous cell carcinoma receiving preoperative concurrent chemoradiation.

Double lung transplantation is better than single lung transplantation for end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Lung transplantation is one of the most common treatment options for patients with end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. However, the choice between single and double lung transplantation for these patients remains a matter of debate. Therefore, we performed a systematic search of medical databases for studies on single lung transplantation, double lung transplantation, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. METHODS: The rate ratio and hazard ratio of survival were analyzed. The meta-analysis included 15 case-control and retrospective registry studies. RESULTS: The rate ratios of the 3-year survival (0.937 and P = 0.041) and 5-year survival (0.775 and P = 0.000) were lower for single lung transplantation than for double lung transplantation. However, the hazard ratio did not differ significantly between the two. CONCLUSIONS: Double lung transplantation was found to provide better benefits than single lung transplantation in terms of the long-term survival in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Effect of steam explosion pretreatment on the fermentation characteristics of polysaccharides from tea residue.

Green tea residues are the by-product of tea processing and they contain a large number of bioactive ingredients. Steam explosion has been recognized as one of the most innovative pretreatments for modifying the physicochemical characteristic of polysaccharides from lignocellulosic materials. However, the comparison of biological activity of steam exploded (SE-GTR) and unexploded (UN-GTR) green tea residue polysaccharides was still unclear, which prompted the determination of the efficacy of steam explosion in tea residue resource utilization. In this study, the effects of two extracted polysaccharides UN-GTR and SE-GTR on human gut microbiota in vitro fermentation were conducted. The results showed that after steam explosion pretreatment, SE-GTR displayed more loose and porous structures, resulting in higher polysaccharide content (2483.44±0.5 µg/mg) compared to UN-GTR (1903.56±2.6 µg/mg). In addition, after 24 h fermentation, gut microbiota produced more beneficial metabolites by SE-GTR. The largest SCFAs produced among samples was acetic acid, propionic acid and butyric acid. Furthermore, SE-GTR could regulate the composition and diversity of microbial community, increasing the abundance of beneficial bacteria, such as Bifidobacterium. These results revealed that steam explosion pretreatment could be a promising and efficient approach to enhance the antioxidant activity and bioavailability of polysaccharides isolated from tea residues.

In vitro fermentation characteristics of polysaccharides from coix seed and its effects on the gut microbiota.

Coix seed polysaccharides had received increasing attention due to their diverse biological activities. In this study, a homogeneous polysaccharide (CSPW) was extracted and purified from coix seed. Furthermore, the saliva-gastrointestinal digestion and fecal fermentation behavior of CSPW were simulated in vitro. The results showed that CSPW was mainly composed of glucose. It cannot be degraded by the simulated salivary and intestinal digestive system, but can be degraded by the simulated gastric digestive system. After fermentation for 24 h, CSPW promoted the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), with acetic acid, propionic acid and n-butyric acid being the main metabolites. In addition, CSPW could significantly regulate the composition and microbial diversity of gut microbiota by increasing the relative abundance of beneficial bacteria, such as Limosilicactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Collinsella. Finally, further analysis of functional prediction revealed that amino acid metabolism, nucleotide metabolism and carbohydrate metabolism were the most important pathways for CSPW to promote health. In summary, our findings suggested that CSPW could potentially be used as a good source of prebiotics because it can be used by gut microbiota to produce SCFAs and regulate the gut microbiota.

Similar survival after endoscopic submucosal dissection and esophagectomy in early esophageal cancer and synchronous or metachronous head and neck cancer.

BACKGROUND: Early-stage esophageal cancer is treated using endoscopic submucosal dissection and esophagectomy. Field cancerization in patients with early-stage esophageal cancer affects treatment outcomes and causes synchronous or metachronous head and neck cancers. We hypothesized that esophagectomy could provide better overall and relapse-free survivals in patients with esophageal cancer and synchronous or metachronous head and neck cancer. METHODS: We retrospectively identified patients with early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and synchronous or metachronous head and neck cancers. We separated the patients into endoscopic submucosal dissection and esophagectomy groups to compare overall and relapse-free survivals. RESULTS: The study included 106 patients, 25 of whom underwent endoscopic submucosal dissection and 81 underwent esophagectomy. Overall and relapse-free survivals did not show significant differences between the two groups for both synchronous and metachronous head and neck cancers. CONCLUSIONS: Endoscopic submucosal dissection could provide similar overall and relapse-free survivals in patients with esophageal cancer and synchronous or metachronous head and neck cancer.

Characterization of polyhydroxyalkanoate-producing bacteria isolated from sludge of commercial pig farms for producing methyl esters.

The objectives of this work were to isolate and characterize the polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) producing bacteria in enriched piggery sludge and make methyl esters from PHA for industrial applications. The strain ECAe24 isolated from piggery sludge with the highest PHA production was selected to produce PHA and then methyl ester by trans-esterification using glucose as substrate under mesophilic conditions. The final product after trans-esterification consisted of approximately 75.39% of fatty acid methyl ester and was identified as decanoic acid-3-hydroxy-methyl ester, octanoic acid-3-hydroxy-methyl ester, and some other contents. The novelty of this study is to use PHA-producing bacteria from piggery sludge to make fatty acid methyl esters which can be used as materials for producing biodiesel from piggery wastes.

Spontaneous hemoperitoneum during pregnancy: three case reports and literature review.

OBJECTIVES: This case report presented cases with spontaneous hemoperitoneum during pregnancy. CASE REPORT: Case 1 presented with acute abdominal pain with signs of shock. Cases 2 and 3 both presented with stable vital signs and the sudden decline of fetal heart rate. Cesarean section was performed at 27, 36+4, and 34 gestational weeks, respectively. Bleeding sites were founded on the surface of the uterus or the parametrium. The perinatal outcome was stillbirth, live birth, and neonatal severe asphyxia. CONCLUSION: Careful physical examination, strict monitoring of vital signs, and timely surgical intervention are critical for improving the prognosis.

OBJETIVO: Este caso clínico presentó casos con hemoperitoneo espontáneo durante el embarazo. REPORTE DEL CASO: El caso 1 presentó dolor abdominal agudo con signos de shock, los casos 2 y 3 se presentaron ambos con signos vitales estables y la disminución repentina de la frecuencia cardíaca fetal. La cesárea se realizó a las 27, 36 + 4 y 34 semanas de gestación, respectivamente. Los sitios de sangrado se encontraron en la superficie del útero o el parametrio. CONCLUSIÓN: Un control estricto de los signos vitales y una intervención quirúrgica oportuna son fundamentales para mejorar el pronóstico.

Sucrose Osmotic Self-Oscillation Drives Membrane Permeability.

Molecular permeation through phospholipid membranes is a fundamental biological process for small molecules. Sucrose is one of the most widely used sweeteners and a key factor in the pathogenesis of obesity and diabetes, yet a detailed understanding of its mechanism involved in permeability into phospholipid membranes is still lacking. Here, using giant unimolecular vesicles (GUVs) reconstituting membrane properties, we compared the osmotic behavior of sucrose in GUVs and HepG2 cells to explore the effect of sucrose on membrane stability in the absence of protein enhancers. The results suggested that the particle size and potential of GUVs and the cellular membrane potential changed significantly with increasing the sucrose concentration (p < 0.05). In microscopic images of cells containing GUVs and sucrose, the fluorescence intensity of vesicles was 537 ± 17.69 after 15 min, and the value was significantly higher than that of microscopic images of cells without sucrose addition (p < 0.05). These changes suggested that the permeability of the phospholipid membrane became larger under a sucrose environment. This study provides a theoretical basis for better insight on the role of sucrose in the physiological environment.

Comparison of two methods for CT-guided pulmonary nodule location before thoracoscopic surgery.

Introduction: Preoperative computed tomography (CT)-guided localization can shorten the time of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) and accurately aid in pulmonary nodule removal. Aim: To discuss the application value and safety of 2 kinds of breast localization needles and anchor localization needles in clinical practice for pulmonary nodules under CT guidance before VATS. Material and methods: We retrospectively studied 215 patients with 247 pulmonary nodules, who underwent CT-guided pulmonary nodule location before VATS. The 2 kinds of localization needles were randomly used, and we collected and analysed the clinical data. Results: We used breast and anchor localization needles in 27.9% and 72.1% of cases, respectively. Differences were observed in puncture localization time, detachment rate, and visual analogue scale (VAS). The detachment rate (0%) and positioning time (median: 12 min) were less in the anchor than in the breast localization needle group (8.7% and median: 13 min, respectively). The median VAS was approximately 2 and 5 in the anchor and breast localization needle groups, respectively. Surgical pathology revealed that 155 (62.8%) pulmonary nodules were malignant while 92 (37.2%) were benign. The primary distinction in surgical procedures is the higher proportion of segmental resections in the middle and inner band group (19.3%) compared to the periphery band group (4.2%). Conclusions: Unlike breast localization needles, anchor localization needles can reduce pain and discomfort after positioning, and they are not easy to decouple. These 2 needles are safe for CT-guided localization, which can shorten the time of VATS and accurately aid in pulmonary nodule removal.