Application of tangent-arc technology for deep inspiration breath-hold radiotherapy in left-sided breast cancer.

Objective: To explore the advantages of dosimetry and the treatment efficiency of tangent-arc technology in deep inspiration breath-hold radiotherapy for breast cancer. Methods: Forty patients with left-sided breast cancer who were treated in our hospital from May 2020 to June 2021 were randomly selected and divided into two groups. The first group's plan was a continuous semi-arc that started at 145° ( ± 5°) and stopped at 325° ( ± 5°). The other group's plan, defined as the tangent-arc plan, had two arcs: the first arc started at 145° ( ± 5°) and stopped at 85° ( ± 5°), and the second arc started at 25° ( ± 5°) and stopped at 325° ( ± 5°). We compared the target dose, dose in organs at risk (OARs), and treatment time between the two groups. Results: The target dose was similar between the continuous semiarc and tangent-arc groups. The V5 of the right lung was significantly different between the two groups (Dif 5.52, 95% confidence interval 1.92-9.13, t=3.10, P=0.004), with the patients in the continuous semi-arc and tangent-arc groups having lung V5 values of (9.16 ± 1.62)%, and (3.64 ± 0.73)%, respectively. The maximum dose to the spinal cord was (1835.88 ± 222.17) cGy in the continuous semi-arc group and (599.42 ± 153.91) cGy in the tangent-arc group, yielding a significant difference between the two groups (Dif 1236.46, 95% confidence interval 689.32-1783.6, t=4.57, P<0.001). The treatment times was (311.70 ± 60.45) s for patients in the continuous semi-arc group and (254.66 ± 40.73) s for patients in the tangent-arc group, and there was a significant difference in the mean number of treatment times between the two groups (Dif 57.04, 95% confidence interval 24.05-90.03, t=3.5, P=0.001). Conclusion: Both the continuous semi-arc and tangent-arc plans met the clinical prescription dose requirements. The OARs received less radiation with the tangent-arc plan than the continuous semi-arc plan, especially for the lung (measured as V5) and the spinal cord (measured as the maximum dose). Tangent-arc plan took significantly less time than the continuous semi-arc, which can greatly improve treatment efficiency. Therefore, tangent-arc plans are superior continuous semi-arc plans for all cases.

Non-line-of-sight imaging with arbitrary illumination and detection pattern.

Non-line-of-sight (NLOS) imaging aims at reconstructing targets obscured from the direct line of sight. Existing NLOS imaging algorithms require dense measurements at regular grid points in a large area of the relay surface, which severely hinders their availability to variable relay scenarios in practical applications such as robotic vision, autonomous driving, rescue operations and remote sensing. In this work, we propose a Bayesian framework for NLOS imaging without specific requirements on the spatial pattern of illumination and detection points. By introducing virtual confocal signals, we design a confocal complemented signal-object collaborative regularization (CC-SOCR) algorithm for high-quality reconstructions. Our approach is capable of reconstructing both the albedo and surface normal of the hidden objects with fine details under general relay settings. Moreover, with a regular relay surface, coarse rather than dense measurements are enough for our approach such that the acquisition time can be reduced significantly. As demonstrated in multiple experiments, the proposed framework substantially extends the application range of NLOS imaging.

Single-pixel imaging of a randomly moving object.

Single-pixel imaging enjoys advantages of low budget, broad spectrum, and high imaging speed. However, existing methods cannot clearly reconstruct the object that is fast rotating or randomly moving. In this work, we put forward an effective method to image a randomly moving object based on geometric moment analysis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first work that reconstructs the shape and motion state of the target without prior knowledge of the speed or position. By using the cake-cutting order Hadamard illumination patterns and low-order geometric moment patterns, we obtain a high-quality video stream of the target which moves at high and varying translational and rotational speeds. The efficient method as verified by simulation and experimental results has great potential for practical applications such as Brownian motion microscopy and remote sensing.

Fast non-line-of-sight imaging based on first photon event stamping.

Non-line-of-sight (NLOS) imaging enables people to see a hidden scene based on multiple interaction information between the object and the carrier. There have been numerous studies focusing on the physical modeling of photon scattering, but few have explored the detection process, which also plays a vital role. In this paper, we put forward a novel, to the best of our knowledge, detection methodology for NLOS imaging based on time-sequential first photon (TSFP) data. We verify the method with both synthetic and experimental data, showing a dramatic reduction in acquisition time cost compared with traditional methods for the same reconstruction quality. This work may contribute to real-time and photon-starved NLOS imaging for practical applications.

A comparative study of auto-contouring softwares in delineation of organs at risk in lung cancer and rectal cancer.

Radiotherapy requires the target area and the organs at risk to be contoured on the CT image of the patient. During the process of organs-at-Risk (OAR) of the chest and abdomen, the doctor needs to contour at each CT image. The delineations of large and varied shapes are time-consuming and laborious. This study aims to evaluate the results of two automatic contouring softwares on OARs definition of CT images of lung cancer and rectal cancer patients. The CT images of 15 patients with rectal cancer and 15 patients with lung cancer were selected separately, and the organs at risk were manually contoured by experienced physicians as reference structures. And then the same datasets were automatically contoured based on AiContour (version 3.1.8.0, Manufactured by Linking MED, Beijing, China) and Raystation (version 4.7.5.4, Manufactured by Raysearch, Stockholm, Sweden) respectively. Deep learning auto-segmentations and Atlas were respectively performed with AiContour and Raystation. Overlap index (OI), Dice similarity index (DSC) and Volume difference (Dv) were evaluated based on the auto-contours, and independent-sample t-test analysis is applied to the results. The results of deep learning auto-segmentations on OI and DSC were better than that of Atlas with statistical difference. There was no significant difference in Dv between the results of two software. With deep learning auto-segmentations, auto-contouring results of most organs in the chest and abdomen are good, and with slight modification, it can meet the clinical requirements for planning. With Atlas, auto-contouring results in most OAR is not as good as deep learning auto-segmentations, and only the auto-contouring results of some organs can be used clinically after modification.

Non-line-of-sight reconstruction with signal-object collaborative regularization.

Non-line-of-sight imaging aims at recovering obscured objects from multiple scattered lights. It has recently received widespread attention due to its potential applications, such as autonomous driving, rescue operations, and remote sensing. However, in cases with high measurement noise, obtaining high-quality reconstructions remains a challenging task. In this work, we establish a unified regularization framework, which can be tailored for different scenarios, including indoor and outdoor scenes with substantial background noise under both confocal and non-confocal settings. The proposed regularization framework incorporates sparseness and non-local self-similarity of the hidden objects as well as the smoothness of the signals. We show that the estimated signals, albedo, and surface normal of the hidden objects can be reconstructed robustly even with high measurement noise under the proposed framework. Reconstruction results on synthetic and experimental data show that our approach recovers the hidden objects faithfully and outperforms state-of-the-art reconstruction algorithms in terms of both quantitative criteria and visual quality.

Heparin-binding growth factor (HDGF) drives radioresistance in breast cancer by activating the STAT3 signaling pathway.

Although reports implicate radioresistance as an important obstacle for the management of breast cancer, its molecular mechanism is elusive. Herein, we found that high HDGF levels are expressed significantly in breast cancer and exhibit a positive association with poor survival prognosis. Heparin-binding growth factor (HDGF) was upregulated in radioresistant breast cancer cells, however, its knockdown could reduce breast cancer radioresistant both in vitro and in vivo. Additionally, the binding of RXRα to HDGF promoter blocked HDGF transcriptional activity, consequently inhibiting breast cancer radioresistance. The enhanced radioresistant activity of HDGF is induced by TKT and STAT3, impacting the STAT3-Tyr705 and STAT3-Ser727 phosphorylation and STAT3 transcriptional activity. Notably, HDGF depletion renders radioresistant hypersensitive to the drug that targets STAT3 phosphorylation. This article demonstrates the novel function of HDGF as a promising molecular target for predicting radioresistance in breast cancer.

Dietary 25-hydroxyvitamin D improves intestinal health and microbiota of laying hens under high stocking density.

The high stocking density is a major stress factor that adversely affects the health and performance of poultry. Therefore, the object of this study was conducted to explore whether dietary 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-D3) could improve gut health of laying hens reared under high stocking density. A 2 × 2 factorial design was used in this 16-week study, in which 800 45-week-old Lohmann laying hens were allocated into two levels of dietary 25-OH-D3 levels (0 and 69 µg/kg) and two rates of stocking densities [506 (low density, LD) and 338 (high density, HD) cm2/hen]. Compared with the layers with LD, the layers with HD had lower crypt depth in duodenum (P(Density) < 0.05), lower short chain fatty acid (propionic and butyric acid) contents in cecum (P(Density) < 0.05), and lower mRNA expression of intestinal barrier associated protein (claudin-1, mucin-1 and mucin-2). Exposed layer to HD also led to lower intestinal antioxidative capacity [superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), and higher malondialdehyde (MDA) content] in small intestine (P(Density) < 0.05), lower bacterial abundance of Bacteroidetes (phylum), Spirochaetes (phylum) and Bacteroides (genus; P(Density) < 0.05), higher bacterial enrichment of Lactobacillaceae (genus) and Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio (P(Density) < 0.05) in cecum. Dietary 25-OH-D3 increased the villus height in duodenum and jejunum (P(25-OH-D3) < 0.05), decreased Chao 1 and ACE indexes in cecum (P(25-OH-D3) < 0.05), and it also up-regulated the mRNA expression of claudin-1, mucin-1 and mucin-2 (P(25-OH-D3) < 0.05). Layers treated with 25-OH-D3 led to an enhanced antioxidative enzyme activity of CAT (P(25-OH-D3) < 0.05). Additionally, the effect of 25-OH-D3 reversed the effect of HD on T-AOC and MDA content (P(Interaction) < 0.05). In HD layers, 25-OH-D3 administration decreased the enrichment of Bacteroidetes (phylum), increased Firmicutes (phylum), and Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio (P(Interaction) < 0.05). These results suggest that supplementing 25-OH-D3 in diets may elevate gut health through the improvement of intestinal barrier function, antioxidant capacity and cecal microbiota composition in laying hens with high stocking density.

Effect of dietary 25-hydroxycholecalciferol supplementation and high stocking density on performance, egg quality, and tibia quality in laying hens.

This study was conducted to determine the effects of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25-OH-D3) on performance, egg quality, tibia quality, and serum hormones concentration in laying hens reared under high stocking density. A total of 800 45-week-old Lohmann laying hens were randomly allotted into a 2 × 2 factorial design with 2 levels of dietary 25-OH-D3 levels (0 and 69 µg/kg) and 2 rates of stocking densities [506 (low density) and 338 (high density) cm2/hen]. Laying hens were monitored for 16 wk. High stocking density decreased laying rate, egg weight, and feed intake compared with low stocking density (P < 0.01) during 1 to 8 wk and 1 to 16 wk. Overall, high stocking density increased eggshell lightness value and decreased shell redness and yellowness value, strength, thickness, and relative weight compared with low stocking density (P < 0.05). Dietary supplementation with 25-OH-D3 reduced the value of the eggshell lightness and increased its yellowness and eggshells weight (P ≤ 0.05). The increase in eggshell thickness was more pronounced when 25-OH-D3 was supplemented to layers under high stocking density (interaction, P < 0.05). Layers under high stocking density had lower ash content and calcium content in the tibia than layers under low stocking density (P = 0.04); dietary 25-OH-D3 increased tibia strength compared with no addition (P = 0.05). Layers under high stocking density had higher serum concentrations of 25-OH-D3, corticosterone (CORT), lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and osteocalcin (OC; P < 0.05), lower content of parathyroid hormone (PTH) compared with layers under low stocking density (P < 0.01). Dietary 25-OH-D3 increased serum concentration of 25-OH-D3, carbonic anhydrase (CA), and calcitonin (CT) (P < 0.01) and reduced corticosterone, lipopolysaccharide and osteocalcin concentration (P ≤ 0.05). The increase effect in PTH was more pronounced when 25-OH-D3 was supplemented to layers under high stocking density (interaction, P = 0.05). Overall, the results gathered in this study indicate that high stocking density result in reducing production performance, shell color and quality, and tibia health, whereas dietary 25-OH-D3 was able to maintain tibia health and to mitigate the negative impact of high stocking density on productive performance.

Polymorphisms in the Egl nine homolog 3 (EGLN3) and Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-alpha (PPARα) genes and their correlation with hypoxia adaptation in Tibetan chickens.

Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-alpha (PPARα) and Egl nine homolog 3 (EGLN3) play critical roles in facilitating the adaptation to a hypoxic environment. However, the relationship between EGLN3 and PPARα variants and hypoxic adaptation remains poorly understood in Tibetan chickens. To better understand the effects of genetic variation, we sequenced exons of PPARα and EGLN3 in 138 Lowland chickens (LC) from 7 breeds that were located in Emei, Miyi, Shimian, Wanyuan, Pengxian, and Muchuan in the Sichuan province, and Wenchang in the Hainan province (altitudes for these locations are below 1800 meters). Total 166 Tibetan chickens (TC) from 7 subpopulations that were located in Shigatse, Lhoka, Lhasa, Garze, Aba, Diqing and Yushu in the Tibetan area were also sequenced (altitudes greater than 2700 meters). One single-nucleotide polymorphism (rs316017491, C > T) was identified in EGLN3 and was shared by TC and LC with no significant difference for allele frequencies between them (P > 0.05). Six single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP1, A29410G; SNP2, rs13886097; SNP3, T29467C; SNP4, rs735915170; SNP5, rs736599044; and SNP6, rs740077421) including one non-synonymous mutation (SNP2, T > C) were identified in PPARα. This is the first report of SNP1 and SNP3. There was a difference between TC and LC for allele frequencies (P <0.01), except for SNP1, SNP4, and SNP5) The fix index statistic test indicated that there was population differentiation between TC and LC for SNP2, SNP3, and SNP6 in PPARα (P < 0.05). Phylogenetic analysis showed that the genetic distance among chickens, finch and great tit were close for both EGLN3 and PPARα. Bioinformatics analysis of PPARα showed that SNP2 leads to an amino acid substitution of Ile for Met, which results in the protein being more likely to be hydrolyzed. Thus, genetic variation in PPARα may play a role in the ability of TC to adapt to a high altitude environment; however we were unable to identify a relationship between polymorphisms in EGLN3 and environmental adaptability.

Changes of CD4(+) CD25 (+) regulatory T cells in peripheral blood in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma before and after TACE.

This study investigated the changes of CD4(+) CD25(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) in peripheral blood of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma before and after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). The proportion of CD4(+) CD25(+) Tregs among CD4(+) T lymphocytes in peripheral blood of 33 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma was determined by flow cytometry before, 1 week and 1 month after TACE. And 25 healthy volunteers served as control. One month after TACE, the patients were divided into two groups: 22 in group A, who were in stable condition or getting better; and 10 in group B, who were deteriorating. One patient died and was excluded. The results showed that the percentage of CD4(+)CD25(+) Tregs among CD4(+) T lymphocytes did not significantly change in the 33 patients 1 week after TACE as compared with that before TACE, however, the difference was significant (P<0.01) between the patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and the healthy subjects. The percentage of CD4(+) CD25(+) Tregs among CD4(+) T lymphocytes in group A 1 month after TACE was decreased significantly in comparison with that before and 1 week after TACE (P<0.01), whereas, that in group B was increased significantly 1 month after TACE (P<0.01). It was concluded that patients with hepatocellular carcinoma had a higher proportion of CD4(+)CD25(+) Tregs in peripheral blood. TACE did not significantly affect the level of CD4(+) CD25(+) Tregs within short time (such as 1 week). The proportion of CD4(+)CD25(+) Tregs in peripheral blood 1 month after TACE was related to the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.