Expression of TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 is associated with lymph node metastasis in papillary thyroid carcinoma.

TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 are implicated in tumor invasion and metastasis. The purpose of this study was to examine TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 expression in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), and to assess association of TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 expression with several clinicopathological indicators of PTC. TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 protein expression in 83 PTCs and their matched normal thyroid specimens were analyzed using immunohistochemistry. The mRNA expression levels of TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 in 12 fresh PTC specimens with lymph node metastasis (LNM), 12 fresh PTC specimens without LNM and their matched normal thyroid specimens were assessed by real-time RT-PCR. The results showed that the mRNA and protein expression levels of TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 were significantly higher in PTCs than in their matched normal thyroid tissues. There were not significant differences in TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 protein expression relative to age, gender, tumor size and TNM stage, except for MMP-9 whose protein expression correlated with tumor size. However, high mRNA and protein expression levels of TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 were significantly correlated with LNM. Furthermore, TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 protein expression were significantly correlated with one another. Concomitant expression of any two or all of the three molecules had stronger correlation with LNM than did each alone. Collectively, the present results indicate that immunohistochemical and real-time RT-PCR evaluation of TGF-ß1, SNAI1 and MMP-9 expression in PTC may be useful to predict the risk of LNM in PTC patients.

Overexpression of HIF-1α, metallothionein and SLUG is associated with high TNM stage and lymph node metastasis in papillary thyroid carcinoma.

Hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) is upregulated by hypoxia, and involved in tumor growth and metastasis in many malignant tumors including papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Metallothionein (MT) is a group of small molecular weight cysteine-rich proteins with a broad variety of functions. SLUG is a member of SNAIL superfamily of zinc finger transcriptional factors implicated in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). The purpose of this study was to examine HIF-1α, MT and SLUG expression in PTC and assess association of their expression with clinicopathological indicators. HIF-1α, MT and SLUG protein expression in 129 PTCs, 61 nodular hyperplasia and 118 normal thyroid tissue specimens were analyzed using immunohistochemistry. The protein expression levels of these three molecules were up-regulated in PTCs. High protein expression of HIF-1α, MT and SLUG was significantly correlated with high TNM stage (P=0.003, 0.002, 0.024, respectively) and lymph node metastasis (LNM) (P<0.001 for all three molecules). Furthermore, HIF-1α, MT and SLUG protein expression were correlated with one another. Concomitant high expression of any two of these three molecules had stronger correlation with high TNM stage (P≤0.001 for HIF-1α/MT, MT/SLUG and HIF-1α/SLUG) and LNM (P=0.008, 0.002, 0.019 for HIF-1α/MT, MT/SLUG and HIF-1α/SLUG, respectively) than did each alone, and concomitant high expression of all these three molecules is significantly associated with high TNM stage and LNM as compared with cases not showing such expression (P<0.001). These results demonstrated that the evaluation of HIF-1α, MT and SLUG expression in PTC may be useful in predicting the risk of LNM and high TNM stage.

17ß-estradiol promotes the invasion and migration of nuclear estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer cells through cross-talk between GPER1 and CXCR1.

G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 (GPER1) is widely expressed in human breast cancers correlating with increased tumor size and malignancy. Although estrogen signaling via GPER1 was extensively studied in recent years, the underlying molecular mechanism of GPER1-associated metastasis of breast cancer still remains unclear. In this study, the main aims were focused on the potential role of GPER1 in regulating migration and invasion of nuclear estrogen receptor (ER)-negative breast cancer cells upon 17ß-estradiol (E2) stimulation and the involved signaling pathway. Key events in estrogen signaling were chosen for our studies, such as the activation of ERK and AKT, nuclear translocation of NF-κB and secretion of Interleukin-8 (IL-8). The migration and invasion activities upon E2 stimulation were also examined in ER-negative SKBR3 and BT-20 breast cancer cells. Compared with ER-positive MCF-7 breast cancer cells, both SKBR3 and BT-20 cells had very similar expression of GPER1, but relatively high expression of CXC receptor-1 (CXCR1), which is considered as an active regulator for cancer metastasis upon binding IL-8. Results showed that E2 facilitated the activation of ERK, AKT and NF-κB, which could be significantly attenuated by GPER1 blockage or knock-down in both SKBR3 and BT-20 cells. Moreover, increased secretion of IL-8 induced by E2 was also inhibited either by specific inhibitors for GPER1, ERK, AKT, and NF-κB, or by knock-down for GPER1. Furthermore, E2 could activate the migration and invasion of both SKBR3 and BT-20 cells, which in turn could also be inhibited by blocking GPER1, ERK, AKT, NF-κB, and CXCR1, respectively, or knock-down for GPER1 and CXCR1. In conclusion, we demonstrated that estrogen signaling via GPER1 associated with the metastasis of breast cancer, which might be through GPER1/ERK&AKT/NF-κB/IL-8/CXCR1 cascade. The cross-talk between GPER1 and CXCR1 could be another potential target for the therapy of metastatic breast cancer.

Research progress on mental health of school age children under major public health emergencies / 中国学校卫生

Abstract@#Children were vulnerable groups in major public health emergencies. In 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic was widespread in the world. The mental health of school age children has become a worldwide concern. Herein, we conducted this review to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of general children and special children with a high risk of psychological problems, focusing on the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and post traumatic stress disorder among school age children in different countries and regions during the COVID-19 epidemic. Considering the susceptibility between individuals and the accessibility of social resources, we further explored the child, family, and social related factors affecting the mental health of school age children. Finally, some suggestions on the construction of children s mental health service system in major public health emergencies were put forward at the national, school family community, and individual levels. Building a safe and reliable child mental health protection network required the joint efforts of all sectors of society.

A follow up study depressive and anxiety symptoms of children in Wuhan City, Hubei Province / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To investigate the progression of depressive and anxiety symptoms of children, especially whose parents were frontline workers in the combat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and to provide evidence for children s mental health promotion.@*Methods@#In June and December 2020, two surveys were conducted among the children in a primary school in Qiaokou District, Wuhan. The questionnaire included demographic information, student learning conditions, and depressive/anxiety symptoms.@*Results@#A total of 963 children completed both surveys. The detection rate of depressive and anxiety symptoms at follow up was significantly higher than that at the baseline survey (depressive symptoms: OR=1.45, 95%CI =1.16-1.83; anxiety symptoms: OR=1.79, 95%CI =1.41-2.28, P <0.01). There was no statistically significant change in depressive/anxiety symptoms among children whose parents were frontline workers compared with those whose parents were not( P >0.05). Girls, lower learning efficiency, and less interaction with teachers in class were risk factors for depressive or anxiety symptoms of children( P < 0.05 ).@*Conclusion@#Mental health status of children requires continuous attention. Moreover, timely psychological protection should be given to prevent the occurrence of psychological problems and the further deterioration of psychological problems.

Correlation between physical fitness and reading ability among school aged children / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To determine the association between physical health fitness with Chinese reading ability of schoolaged children, so as to provide evidence for improving children s reading ability.@*Methods@#A questionnaire survey was conducted among 1 923 school aged children in grades 2-6 in a primary school in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. The questionnaire included basic demographic information and Dyslexia Checklist for Chinese Children and the Pupil Rating Scale Revised Screening. At the same time, participants underwent physical fitness tests which included an assessment of height, weight, and lung capacity, as well as a 50 meter run, sit forward bend, one minute skipping rope task, sit ups, and a 50 × 8 round trip.@*Results@#A total of 59 children were identified with dyslexia. Normal children achieved higher scores than children with dyslexia in the total physical health score, as well as the one minute skipping rope score, one minute sit up score, and sitting forward score ( P <0.05). Multiple linear regression analyses showed that the reading ability of girls was higher than that of boys ( β =-3.04, P <0.01), and the children who regularly participated in more intense physical activity and who had higher fitness scores had a higher reading ability ( β =-1.68, -0.08, P <0.01). Children s reading ability increased significantly with parental educational level( P <0.05).@*Conclusion@#Gender, parents education level, physical exercise intensity, and children s physical fitness were identified as influencing factors of school age children s reading ability. A positive correlation was found between children s physical health level and reading ability.