14-3-3σ downregulation sensitizes pancreatic cancer to carbon ions by suppressing the homologous recombination repair pathway.

This study explored the role of 14-3-3σ in carbon ion-irradiated pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD) cells and xenografts and clarified the underlying mechanism. The clinical significance of 14-3-3σ in patients with PAAD was explored using publicly available databases. 14-3-3σ was silenced or overexpressed and combined with carbon ions to measure cell proliferation, cell cycle, and DNA damage repair. Immunoblotting and immunofluorescence (IF) assays were used to determine the underlying mechanisms of 14-3-3σ toward carbon ion radioresistance. We used the BALB/c mice to evaluate the biological behavior of 14-3-3σ in combination with carbon ions. Bioinformatic analysis revealed that PAAD expressed higher 14-3-3σ than normal pancreatic tissues; its overexpression was related to invasive clinicopathological features and a worse prognosis. Knockdown or overexpression of 14-3-3σ demonstrated that 14-3-3σ promoted the survival of PAAD cells after carbon ion irradiation. And 14-3-3σ was upregulated in PAAD cells during DNA damage (carbon ion irradiation, DNA damaging agent) and promotes cell recovery. We found that 14-3-3σ resulted in carbon ion radioresistance by promoting RPA2 and RAD51 accumulation in the nucleus in PAAD cells, thereby increasing homologous recombination repair (HRR) efficiency. Blocking the HR pathway consistently reduced 14-3-3σ overexpression-induced carbon ion radioresistance in PAAD cells. The enhanced radiosensitivity of 14-3-3σ depletion on carbon ion irradiation was also demonstrated in vivo. Altogether, 14-3-3σ functions in tumor progression and can be a potential target for developing biomarkers and treatment strategies for PAAD along with incorporating carbon ion irradiation.

Assessing the Impact of Charged Particle Radiation Therapy for Head and Neck Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Purpose: Head and neck adenoid cystic carcinoma (HNACC) is a radioresistant tumor. Particle therapy, primarily proton beam therapy and carbon-ion radiation, is a potential radiotherapy treatment for radioresistant malignancies. This study aims to conduct a meta-analysis to evaluate the impact of charged particle radiation therapy on HNACC. Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted in Pubmed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Embase, and Medline until December 31, 2022. The primary endpoints were overall survival (OS), local control (LC), and progression-free survival (PFS), while secondary outcomes included treatment-related toxicity. Version 17.0 of STATA was used for all analyses. Results: A total of 14 studies, involving 1297 patients, were included in the analysis. The pooled 5-year OS and PFS rates for primary HNACC were 78% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 66-91%) and 62% (95% CI = 47-77%), respectively. For all patients included, the pooled 2-year and 5-year OS, LC, and PFS rates were as follows: 86.1% (95% CI = 95-100%) and 77% (95% CI = 73-82%), 92% (95% CI = 84-100%) and 73% (95% CI = 61-85%), and 76% (95% CI = 68-84%) and 55% (95% CI = 48-62%), respectively. The rates of grade 3 and above acute toxicity were 22% (95% CI = 13-32%), while late toxicity rates were 8% (95% CI = 3-13%). Conclusions: Particle therapy has the potential to improve treatment outcomes and raise the quality of life for HNACC patients. However, further research and optimization are needed due to the limited availability and cost considerations associated with this treatment modality.

Synthesis and fabrication of segregative and durable MnO2@chitosan composite aerogel beads for uranium(VI) removal from wastewater.

To address the imperative need for efficient removal of uranium-containing wastewater and mitigate radioactive contamination risks associated with nuclear energy, the development of materials with high removal efficiency and facile separation is crucial. This study designed and synthesised MnO2@chitosan (CTS) composite aerogel beads by in-situ growing δ-MnO2 on porous CTS aerogel beads. This approach not only mitigates the agglomeration of MnO2 nanospheres but also significantly enhances the porous structure and surface area of MnO2@CTS. These cost-effective and eco-friendly millimeter-scale spherical aerogels exhibited convenient separation properties after adsorption. These characteristics help mitigate the risk of equipment seam blockage and secondary pollution that are often associated with powdered adsorbents. Additionally, MnO2@CTS exhibited remarkable mechanical strength (stress approximately 0.55 MPa at 60 % strain), enabling rapid separation and easy regeneration while maintaining high adsorption performance even after five cycles. Significantly, MnO2@CTS exhibited a maximum adsorption capacity of 410.7 mg/g at pH 6 and 298 K, surpassing reported values for most CTS/MnO2-based adsorbents. The chemisorption process of U(VI) on MnO2@CTS followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic and Dubinin-Radushkevish models. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis further confirmed the reduction of U(VI) to U(V/IV). These findings highlight the substantial potential of MnO2@CTS aerogel beads for U(VI) removal from aqueous solutions, positioning them as a promising solution for addressing U(VI) contamination in wastewater.

Characterization of the pH-dependent protein stability of 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase/carbonyl reductase by differential scanning fluorimetry.

The characterization of protein stability is essential for understanding the functions of proteins. Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase is involved in the biosynthesis of steroid hormones and the detoxification of xenobiotic carbonyl compounds. However, the stability of hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases has not yet been characterized in detail. Here, we determined the changes in Gibbs free energy, enthalpy, entropy, and heat capacity of unfolding for 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase/carbonyl reductase (3α-HSD/CR) by varying the pH and urea concentration through differential scanning fluorimetry and presented pH-dependent protein stability as a function of temperature. 3α-HSD/CR shows the maximum stability of 30.79 kJ mol-1 at 26.4°C, pH 7.6 and decreases to 7.74 kJ mol-1 at 25.7°C, pH 4.5. The change of heat capacity of 30.25 ± 1.38 kJ mol-1 K-1 is obtained from the enthalpy of denaturation as a function of melting temperature at varied pH. Two proton uptakes are linked to protein unfolding from residues with differential pKa of 4.0 and 6.5 in the native and denatured states, respectively. The large positive heat capacity change indicated that hydrophobic interactions played an important role in the folding of 3α-HSD/CR. These studies reveal the mechanism of protein unfolding in HSD and provide a convenient method to extract thermodynamic parameters for characterizing protein stability using differential scanning fluorimetry.

Efficacy and safety of particle therapy for inoperable stage II-III non-small cell lung cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Particle therapy, mainly including carbon-ion radiotherapy (CIRT) and proton beam therapy (PBT), has dose distribution advantages compared to photon radiotherapy. It has been widely reported as a promising treatment method for early non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, its application in locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC) is relatively rare, and its efficacy and safety are inconclusive. This study aimed to provide systematic evidence for evaluating the efficacy and safety of particle therapy for inoperable LA-NSCLC. METHODS: To retrieve published literature, a systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library until September 4, 2022. The primary endpoints were local control (LC) rate, overall survival (OS) rate, and progression-free survival (PFS) rate at 2 and 5 years. The secondary endpoint was treatment-related toxicity. The pooled clinical outcomes and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by using STATA 15.1. RESULTS: Nineteen eligible studies with a total sample size of 851 patients were included. The pooled data demonstrated that the OS, PFS, and LC rates at 2 years of LA-NSCLC treated by particle therapy were 61.3% (95% CI = 54.7-68.7%), 37.9% (95% CI = 33.8-42.6%) and 82.2% (95% CI = 78.7-85.9%), respectively. The pooled 5-year OS, PFS, and LC rates were 41.3% (95% CI = 27.1-63.1%), 25.3% (95% CI = 16.3-39.4%), and 61.5% (95% CI = 50.7-74.6%), respectively. Subgroup analysis stratified by treatment type showed that the concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT, PBT combined with concurrent chemotherapy) group had better survival benefits than the PBT and CIRT groups. The incidence rates of grade 3/4 esophagitis, dermatitis, and pneumonia in LA-NSCLC patients after particle therapy were 2.6% (95% CI = 0.4-6.0%), 2.6% (95% CI = 0.5-5.7%) and 3.4% (95% CI = 1.4-6.0%), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Particle therapy demonstrated promising efficacy and acceptable toxicity in LA-NSCLC patients.

Biological effects of cancer stem cells irradiated by charged particle: a systematic review of in vitro studies.

PURPOSE: The existence of cancer stem cells (CSCs) is closely related to tumor recurrence, metastasis, and resistance to chemoradiotherapy. In addition, given the unique physical and biological advantages of charged particle, we hypothesized that charged particle irradiation would produce strong killing effects on CSCs. The purpose of our systematic review is to evaluate the biological effects of CSCs irradiated by charged particle, including proliferation, invasion, migration, and changes in the molecular level. METHODS: We searched PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science until 17 march 2022 according to the key words. Included studies have to be vitro studies of CSCs irradiated by charged particle. Outcomes included one or more of radiation sensitivity, proliferation, metastasis, invasion, and molecular level changes, like DNA damage after been irradiated. RESULTS: Eighteen studies were included in the final analysis. The 18 articles include 12-carbon ion irradiation, 4-proton irradiation, 1 α-particle irradiation, 1-carbon ion combine proton irradiation. CONCLUSION: Through the extraction and analysis of data, we came to this conclusion: CSCs have obvious radio-resistance compared with non-CSCs, and charged particle irradiation or in combination with drugs could overcome this resistance, specifically manifested in inhibiting CSCs' proliferation, invasion, migration, and causing more and harder to repair DNA double-stranded breaks (DSB) of CSCs.

Does particle radiation have superior radiobiological advantages for prostate cancer cells? A systematic review of in vitro studies.

BACKGROUND: Charged particle beams from protons to carbon ions provide many significant physical benefits in radiation therapy. However, preclinical studies of charged particle therapy for prostate cancer are extremely limited. The aim of this study was to comprehensively investigate the biological effects of charged particles on prostate cancer from the perspective of in vitro studies. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review by searching EMBASE (OVID), Medline (OVID), and Web of Science databases to identify the publications assessing the radiobiological effects of charged particle irradiation on prostate cancer cells. The data of relative biological effectiveness (RBE), surviving fraction (SF), standard enhancement ratio (SER) and oxygen enhancement ratio (OER) were extracted. RESULTS: We found 12 studies met the eligible criteria. The relative biological effectiveness values of proton and carbon ion irradiation ranged from 0.94 to 1.52, and 1.67 to 3.7, respectively. Surviving fraction of 2 Gy were 0.17 ± 0.12, 0.55 ± 0.20 and 0.53 ± 0.16 in carbon ion, proton, and photon irradiation, respectively. PNKP inhibitor and gold nanoparticles were favorable sensitizing agents, while it was presented poorer performance in GANT61. The oxygen enhancement ratio values of photon and carbon ion irradiation were 2.32 ± 0.04, and 1.77 ± 0.13, respectively. Charged particle irradiation induced more G0-/G1- or G2-/M-phase arrest, more expression of γ-H2AX, more apoptosis, and lower motility and/or migration ability than photon irradiation. CONCLUSIONS: Both carbon ion and proton irradiation have advantages over photon irradiation in radiobiological effects on prostate cancer cell lines. Carbon ion irradiation seems to have further advantages over proton irradiation.

[Structural Design and Finite Element Analysis of New Type Posterior Integral Glaucoma Valve].

The treatment of refractory Glaucoma is a difficult problem in clinical ophthalmology. For refractory glaucoma patients with hyphema, shallow anterior chamber, anterior conglutination of peripheral chamber angle, corneal endothelium dystrophy or decompensated, at present, there is no effective treatment. In order to solve this problem, a new type posterior integral glaucoma valve with IOP control device was designed using medical titanium alloy, and the valve model was established by Abaqus software, and the stiffness and preload of the valve were analyzed by finite element method. The results showed that the opening and closing of the valve were controlled automatically by the pressure difference between the front and back of the valve, and the opening and flow rate of the valve increase dynamically with the increase of intraocular pressure, and finally reached the set ideal IOP value of steady state.

A compact elastocaloric refrigerator.

Elastocaloric cooling is regarded as one of the most promising cutting-edge alternatives to conventional vapor compression refrigeration systems. This technology is based on the temperature change of materials when being subjected to uniaxial stress, which has been observed in polymers, alloys, and ceramics. However, the existing elastocaloric prototypes have a bottleneck problem of an excessive mass ratio between the actuator and the solid-state refrigerant. To overcome this challenge, this study proposes an elastocaloric refrigerator using a single actuator with an inclined angle to produce a vertical tensile force to nickel-titanium (NiTi) shape-memory wires and a lateral motion to translate the NiTi wires between the hot and cold sides. The refrigerator can achieve a 90% improvement in the mass ratio between the solid-state refrigerant and actuator compared to the currently best-reported elastocaloric cooling prototype. The NiTi wires exhibit an adiabatic temperature change of 6.6 K during unloading at the strain of 4.8%. The proposed refrigerator can achieve a 9.2-K temperature span when the heat source and sink are insulated from ambient and has a cooling power up to 3.1 W under zero-temperature-span condition. By using thinner NiTi wires or NiTi plates, the developed elastocaloric refrigerator could be a starting point to promote applications of this technology in the future.

Layered ammonium vanadate nanobelt as efficient adsorbents for removal of Sr2+ and Cs+ from contaminated water.

In this study, a layered ammonium vanadate (NH4V4O10) nanobelt adsorbent was synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method to remove Sr2+ and Cs+ from contaminated water. The NH4V4O10 nanobelt was texturally and morphologically characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman, thermogravimetric differential thermal analyzer (TG-DSC), Brunauer- Emmett-Teller (BET), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) both before and after adsorbing Sr2+ and Cs+. The results showed that the NH4V4O10 nanobelt exhibited the optimal morphological structure with a 2:1 ratio of NH4VO3:dipropylamine. In the lattice of the adsorbent, the horizontal distance between oxygen atoms was 0.55 nm, the vertical distance between vanadium was 0.35 nm, and the layer distance of the adsorbent was 0.931 nm. The structure characterization indicated the VO6 octahedron formed a basic framework through sharing connected vertices. Adsorption mechanism studies indicated that ion exchange was the main adsorption mechanism for removing Sr2+ and Cs+. Batch experiments revealed that the adsorption capacity for Sr2+ was 192.52 mg/g under a pH of 2. Similarly, the adsorption capacity for Cs+ was 251.09 mg/g when the pH was 5. The adsorption kinetics and adsorption isotherms data were in accordance with the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Langmuir model, respectively. Adsorption isotherms results also indicated that the adsorption of Sr2+ and Cs+ was endothermic (ΔHSr0 = 3.6 kJ/mol, ΔHCs0 = 29.1 kJ/mol) and increased entropy (ΔSSr0 = 29.15 J/molK, ΔSCs0 = 160.38 J/molK). Finally, the structure of the adsorbent, the adsorption performance and mechanism, and the interpretation of selective adsorption were also calculated by DFT method at the molecular level and the results were consistent with the experimental data.

An anion exchange pretreatment method for the determination of low-level uranium in the environmental water samples.

Uranium in environmental water is usually at trace or ultra-trace levels with high concentrations of background ions so that the detection of uranium often couples with pretreatment processes to lower the detection limit, and improve the selectivity and accuracy of instruments. A simple, green, effective and efficient anion exchange pretreatment method was proposed to favor the determination of low-level uranium in natural environmental water samples. To determine the applicability and obtain the optimum operating parameters, the effects of coprecipitation, pH, contact time, uranium concentration, background ions, eluent and the flow speed on the uranium recovery were investigated. The experimental results showed that the proper addition of saturated Na2CO3 solution for pH adjustment did not lead to uranium loss in natural water samples, and the optimum pH value for adsorption was determined from 6 to 8. The adsorption speed was improved a lot with the employment of a novel silica-supported anion exchange resin, which also showed good linear dependence in the concentration range from <0.5 µg/L to 1000 µg/L with high tolerance limits towards common background ions. The optimum eluent was determined as 1 M HNO3, and the optimum flow speeds for adsorption and desorption were about 4.0 and 1.0 mL/min, respectively. Based on these results, a pretreatment process was finally established, which realized the quantitative recovery of uranium from six different natural water samples with the chemical yields exceeding 95% and the enrichment factors about 100 times.

A comparative study of immobilizing ammonium molybdophosphate onto cellulose microsphere by radiation post-grafting and hybrid grafting for cesium removal.

Ammonium molybdophosphate (AMP) exhibits high selectivity towards Cs but it cannot be directly applied in column packing, so it is necessary to prepare AMP-based adsorbents into an available form to improve its practicality. This work provided two AMP immobilized cellulose microspheres (MCC@AMP and MCC-g-AMP) as adsorbents for Cs removal by radiation grafting technique. MCC-g-AMP was prepared by radiation graft polymerization of GMA on microcrystalline cellulose microspheres (MCC) followed by reaction with AMP suspension, and MCC@AMP was synthesized by radiation hybrid grafting of AMP and GMA onto MCC through one step. The different structures and morphologies of two adsorbents were characterized by FTIR and SEM. The adsorption properties of two adsorbents against Cs were investigated and compared in batch and column experiments under different conditions. Both adsorbents were better obeyed pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Langmuir model. MCC-g-AMP presented faster adsorption kinetic and more stable structure, whereas MCC@AMP presented more facile synthesis and higher adsorption capacity. MCC@AMP was pH independent in the range of pH 1-12 but MCC-g-AMP was sensitive to pH for Cs removal. The saturated column adsorption capacities of MCC@AMP and MCC-g-AMP were 5.4 g-Cs/L-ad and 0.75 g-Cs/L-ad in column adsorption experiments at SV 10 h-1. Both adsorbents exhibited very high radiation stability and can maintain an adsorption capacity of >85% even after 1000 kGy γ-irradiation. On the basis, two AMP-loaded adsorbents possessed promising application in removal of Cs from actual contaminated groundwater. These findings provided two efficient adsorbents for treatment of Cs in radioactive waste disposal.

Patterns and risk factors of peripherally inserted central venous catheter-related symptomatic thrombosis events in patients with malignant tumors receiving chemotherapy.

OBJECTIVE: Peripherally inserted central venous catheter (PICC)-related thrombosis (PRT) is a serious complication that can lead to interruptions in chemotherapy and other supportive care, as well as increased hospital stay and costs. We conducted a retrospective study to evaluate the patterns of symptomatic PRT in patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy and their risk factors. METHODS: A retrospective study of 938 PICC patients from our institution between November 2014 and July 2017 was performed. Symptomatic PRT events were confirmed by color Doppler ultrasonography or computed tomography pulmonary angiography in the presence of clinical symptoms. The variables of interest were extracted from the electronic medical record system. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the risk factors for PRT. RESULTS: Of the 938 patients who were followed up for more than 120,000 patient-days, 63 patients (6.7%; 0.51 per 1000 catheter-days) had symptomatic PRT. Sixty-one patients were diagnosed with upper extremity venous thrombosis (UEVT), of which 18 were isolated superficial vein thrombosis (SVT), 19 were isolated deep vein thrombosis (DVT), and 24 were extensive venous thrombosis (EVT). Two patients were diagnosed with pulmonary embolism, and two patients were diagnosed with UEVT with pulmonary embolism. The symptomatic SVT occurred in 42 of 938 patients with cancer (4.5%), which accounted for 68.9% of all UEVT events. The median time to PRT was 21 days, and the median time to catheter removal in the PRT group was 66 days as compared with 117 days in the no PRT group. Predictors associated with increased risk of PRT were age >60 years (odds ratio [OR], 2.142; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.118-4.103) and a chemotherapy regimen containing fluorouracil (OR, 2.429; 95% CI, 1.013-5.825). Hypertension with medication was a protective factor for PRT (OR, 0.306; 95% CI, 0.113-0.828). Among the 28 patients who did not remove their PICCs immediately after PRT was diagnosed, patients with SVT, DVT, and EVT had similar success rates of retaining catheters in situ after anticoagulant therapy (SVT, 83.3%; DVT, 62.5%; EVT, 75.0%; P = .667). CONCLUSIONS: Age >60 years and chemotherapy regimens containing fluorouracil were independent risk factors for PRT and hypertension with medication was associated with a lower risk of PRT in patients with cancer with PICCs receiving chemotherapy. PICCs-related SVT was a frequent type of PRT, which might need a better understanding and anticoagulant therapy in patients with cancer with PICCs.

Clinical efficacy of irinotecan plus raltitrexed chemotherapy in refractory esophageal squamous cell cancer.

Our retrospective study assessed the efficacy and safety of irinotecan plus raltitrexed in esophageal squamous cell cancer (ESCC) patients who were previously treated with multiple systemic therapies. Between January 2016 and December 2018, records of 38 ESCC patients who underwent irinotecan plus raltitrexed chemotherapy after at least one line of chemotherapy were reviewed. Efficacy assessment was performed every two cycles according to the RECIST version 1.1. A total of 95 cycles of chemotherapy were administered, and the median course was 3 (range 2-6). There was no treatment-related death. Nine patients had partial response, 21 had stable disease and eight had progressive disease. The overall objective response rate was 23.68% (9/38) and the disease control rate was78.94% (30/38). After a median follow-up of 18.5 months, the median progression-free survival and overall survival were 105 and 221 days, respectively. There were five patients (13.15%) with grade 3/4 leukopenia, three patients (7.89%) with grade 3/4 neutropenia and one patient (2.63%) with grade 3/4 diarrhea. The combination of irinotecan plus raltitrexed was effective for pretreated ESCC patients. Further studies are needed to determine the optimal dose of the two drugs.

[Analysis of prosthesis survival after primary hip arthroplasty in elderly patients with Parkinson's syndrome].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of Parkinson's syndrome on the survival of prosthesis after primary hip arthroplasty in elderly patients with femoral neck fracture.
 Methods: A total of 81 elderly patients (81 hips) with femoral neck fracture and primary hip replacement surgery, who came from the Department of Orthopaedics, Central Hospital of Xiangtan City from January 1, 2009 to December 30, 2010, were retrospectively analyzed, including 36 males and 45 females. Sixteen patients with Parkinson's syndrome were selected as a Parkinson's syndrome group, and the other 65 patients were served as a control group. The survival status of the prosthesis was followed up to December 30, 2017 and it was compared between the 2 groups (average follow-up was 7.5 years).
 Results: During the follow-up period, 5 patients in the Parkinson's group underwent revision of the hip joint, and the reasons for revision were periprosthetic fracture in 4 patients and aseptic loosening in 1 patient, but there was no dislocation or infection. There were 7 cases of revision in the control group, including 1 case of infection, 4 cases of aseptic loosening, 1 case of periprosthetic fracture, and 1 case of dislocation. In the follow-up period, the revision rate was 31.2% in the Parkinson's group and 10.8% in the control group (P<0.05). Parkinsonism was a risk factor for hip revision (OR=3.77, 95% CI 1.12 to 3.15). The incidence of periprosthetic fractures in the Parkinson's group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.05). There was no statistical difference in the revision of the hip joint because of aseptic loosening, infection, and dislocation between the 2 groups (P>0.05).
 Conclusion: During an average of 7.5 years of follow-up, the older patients in the Parkinson's syndrome group have higher prosthetic failure rates after primary hip arthroplasty than those in the control group. The periprosthetic fractures are the most common causes. The development of individualized surgical procedures, the implementation of step-by-step rehabilitative exercises, and the suitable protective measures, and the enhancement of drug management and anti-osteoporosis treatment for Parkinson's syndrome may have positive implications for improving the survival of prosthesis in such patients.

The benefit of taxane-based therapies over fluoropyrimidine plus platinum (FP) in the treatment of esophageal cancer: a meta-analysis of clinical studies.

PURPOSE: Fluoropyrimidine plus platinum (FP) is currently the standard treatment for esophageal cancer (EC). In recent years, taxane-based chemotherapy has also been used and has shown good efficacy in EC. This study aims to investigate the advantages of taxane-based over FP chemotherapy, as well as discuss its drawbacks, in the treatment of EC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A literature search was done for studies comparing clinical outcomes between taxane-based and FP chemotherapy in EC. Pooled analyses were performed to compare the efficacy and grade 3/4 adverse events in patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT), neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NACRT), or definitive chemoradiotherapy (dCRT). Subgroup analyses were also conducted in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). RESULTS: Thirty-one studies with a total of 3,912 patients were included in the analysis. Better long-term survival was found in patients who received taxane-based NACT (progression-free survival (PFS): pooled HR=0.58, P=0.0008; and overall survival (OS): pooled HR=0.50, P<0.00001) and dCRT (PFS: pooled HR=0.75, P<0.0001). In NACRT, taxane-based treatment and FP showed similar efficacy. In ESCC patients, taxane-based treatment showed better OS (NACT: pooled HR=0.57, P=0.02; NACRT: pooled HR=0.51, P=0.03; and dCRT: pooled HR=0.73, P<0.0001) than FP chemotherapy. Furthermore, taxane-based therapy also showed a better short-term response (complete response (CR), objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), or pathologic complete response (pCR). However, taxane-based therapy was significantly correlated with a higher incidence of grade 3/4 leukopenia, neutropenia, and diarrhea. CONCLUSION: Compared to FP, taxane-based therapy produced better clinical response and outcomes in EC patients receiving NACT or dCRT, and in all types of therapy in patients with ESCC. Taxane-based treatment is associated with more frequent toxicity.

A New Method of Biostorage and Biopreservation for Human Amputated Extremities.

OBJECTIVES: We have explored a better method to preserve and store human medically amputated large size samples. The approach involved developing a special embalming solution and procedures for biopreservation and biostorage of a large-sized sample as a whole specimen rather than dissected small parts. Evaluation of the effect of our special embalming solution and procedures on whole human amputated extremities compared with excised small tissues was conducted. Histological and morphological techniques and elemental analyses were utilized to assess the effects of our new method using the special embalming solution. METHODS: Whole remains and excised tissues (skin, muscle, saphenous nerve, and femoral artery) were immersed in a special embalming solution for 6, 12, and 24 months, respectively. Then samples from whole remains and excised tissues were paraffin embedded and Hematoxylin-Eosin staining was performed. Transmission electron microscopy was performed to detect the microstructure of the samples. At the same time, concentrations of chemical elements in the embalming solution from whole remains and excised tissues were separately determined by using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. RESULTS: The morphological structure of tissues was well preserved at 6 and 12 months, and few chemical elements, especially trace elements, leached into the embalming fluid. The macroelements leached into the fluid earlier than the trace elements, but there were some differences in the ultrastructure after preservation for 24 months between tissues excised before and after embalming. Over time, the types and concentrations of chemical elements in the embalming fluid increased. The trace elements in the whole remains were preserved better than those in the removed tissues, and trace elements in muscles and femoral artery were better preserved than those in the skin and saphenous nerve. CONCLUSION: The special embalming fluid can preserve fresh amputated remains well for a short time (less than 24 months), and performs better for the whole remains than excised tissues. This specific embalming fluid should be further studied to achieve higher quality preservation of different tissues for a longer period of time.

Separation of thorium and uranium in nitric acid solution using silica based anion exchange resin.

To separate thorium and uranium in nitric acid solution using anion exchange process, a strong base silica-based anion exchange resin (SiPyR-N4) was synthesized. Batch experiments were conducted and the separation factor of thorium and uranium in 9M nitric acid was about 10. Ion exchange chromatography was applied to separate thorium and uranium in different ratios. Uranium could be eluted by 9M nitric acid and thorium was eluted by 0.1M nitric acid. It was proved that thorium and uranium can be separated and recovered successfully by this method.

Preparation of Antispermidine/Spermine-N1-Acetyltransferase Monoclonal Antibodies.

Spermidine/spermine N1-acetyltransferase (SSAT) is a catabolic regulator of polyamines, ubiquitous molecules essential for cell proliferation and differentiation. Anti-SSAT antibodies (monoclonal antibodies [mAbs]) of high titer were prepared by immunizing BALB/c mice with multifocal intradermal injections and by fusing high-titer antibody-producing spleen cells with myeloma cells of SP2/0 origin. Four mAbs were selected for further characterization as classes and subclasses. Antibodies were produced by these three clones with high affinities ranging from 10(9) to 10(11) M(-1). These clones were found to be of the immunoglobulin IgG1 subclass with kappa light chain. They could recognize SSAT as determined by Western blot and immunohistochemistry. The specificity of one clone, 4H6, was studied by using the small interfering RNA (siRNA) on SSAT. 4H6 was also compared with the commercial antibody. The produced mAbs will be a useful tool for further investigation of SSAT functions in organisms.

Basic fibroblast growth factor attenuates the degeneration of injured spinal cord motor endplates.

The distal end of the spinal cord and neuromuscular junction may develop secondary degeneration and damage following spinal cord injury because of the loss of neural connections. In this study, a rat model of spinal cord injury, established using a modified Allen's method, was injected with basic fibroblast growth factor solution via subarachnoid catheter. After injection, rats with spinal cord injury displayed higher scores on the Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan locomotor scale. Motor function was also well recovered and hematoxylin-eosin staining showed that spinal glial scar hyperplasia was not apparent. Additionally, anterior tibial muscle fibers slowly, but progressively, atrophied. nohistochemical staining showed that the absorbance values of calcitonin gene related peptide and acetylcholinesterase in anterior tibial muscle and spinal cord were similar, and injection of basic broblast growth factor increased this absorbance. Results showed that after spinal cord injury, the distal motor neurons and motor endplate degenerated. Changes in calcitonin gene related peptide and acetylcholinesterase in the spinal cord anterior horn motor neurons and motor endplate then occurred that were consistent with this regeneration. Our findings indicate that basic fibroblast growth factor can protect the endplate through attenuating the decreased expression of calcitonin gene related peptide and acetylcholinesterase in anterior horn motor neurons of the injured spinal cord.