Outcome comparison of radical prostatectomy versus seed brachytherapy for clinically localized prostate cancer using two biochemical recurrence definitions.

OBJECTIVE: We compared the outcome of radical prostatectomy (RP) with seed brachytherapy (BT) in clinically localized prostate cancer (LPCa) using two different biochemical recurrence (BCR) definitions. METHODS: Clinical data of 1117 patients with non-metastatic prostate cancer (PCa) treated with either RP or BT as the basis of the multimodal therapy from a single tertiary hospital between 2007 and 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. 843 LPCa patients (RP = 737, BT = 106) with at least one prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test after treatment were finally included. The BCR survival was evaluated by direct comparison and one-to-one propensity score matching (PSM) analysis using surgical definition (PSA ≥ 0.2ng/ml) for RP and surgical/Phoenix definition (PSA nadir + 2ng/ml ) for BT. The propensity score (PS) was calculated by multivariable logistic regression based on the clinicopathological parameters. RESULTS: Median follow-up was 43 months for RP patients and 45 months for BT patients. Kaplan-Meier analysis did not show any statistically significant differences in terms of BCR-free survival (BFS) between the two groups when using Phoenix definition for BT (P > 0.05). Similar results were obtained in all D'Amico risk groups when stratified analyses were conducted. However, RP achieved improved BFS compared to BT in the whole cohort and all risk groups with the surgical definition for BT(P < 0.05). After adjusting PS, 192 patients were divided into RP and BT groups (96 each). RP presented a better BFS than BT when using the surgical definition (P < 0.001), but no significant difference was found when using the Phoenix definition (P = 0.609). CONCLUSION: Inconsistent BCR-free survival outcomes were acquired using two different BCR definitions for BT patients. RP provided comparable BFS with BT using the Phoenix definition but better BFS using the surgical definition, regardless of whether the PSM was performed. Our findings indicated that an exact BCR definition was critical for prognostic assessment. The corresponding results will assist physicians in pretreatment consultation and treatment selection.

Bis(µ-di-2-pyridyl disulfide-κN,S:N')di-µ(3)-iodido-di-µ(2)-iodido-tetra-copper(I).

In the centrosymmetric tetra-nuclear title compound, [Cu(4)I(4)(C(10)H(8)N(2)S(2))(2)], there are two different Cu(I) atoms with tetra-hedral coordination geometries. One is chelated by a pyridine N atom and an S-donor from one di-2-pyridyl disulfide ligand and coordinated by two I atoms, while the second Cu(I) atom is coordinated by a pyridine-N and three I atoms. Iodine bridges between the Cu(I) atoms form a tetra-nuclear structure.

Dichlorido[methyl 2-(quinolin-8-yl-oxy-κ(2)N,O)acetate-κO]mercury(II).

In the neutral title complex, [HgCl(2)(C(12)H(11)NO(3))], the Hg(II) ion is penta-coordinated by two Cl atoms, one N atom and two weakly coordinating O atoms from the methyl 2-(quinolin-8-yl-oxy)acetate ligand. The coordination around the Hg(II) ion may be described as highly distorted trigonal-bipyramidal. Centrosymmetric dimers are formed by an additional weak Hg⋯Cl inter-action, leading to a distorted octa-hedral coordination geometry around the Hg(II) ion.

Dibromido[methyl 2-(quinolin-8-yl-oxy-κ(2)N,O)acetic acid-κO]mercury(II).

In the title complex, [HgBr(2)(C(12)H(11)NO(3))], the Hg(II) ion has a distorted core trigonal-planar geometry comprising two Br atoms and one quinoline N atom of the methyl 2-(quinolin-8-yl-oxy)acetic acid ligand. The angles around the Hg atom vary from 100.31 (15) to 152.65 (4)°. Two additional Hg⋯O inter-actions [2.739 (1) and 2.905 (1) Å] complete the coordination sphere about the Hg(II) atom.

catena-Poly[[dibromidomercury(II)]-µ-3,6-bis-(2-pyridyl-sulfan-yl)pyridazine-κN:N].

In the title coordination polymer, [HgBr(2)(C(14)H(10)N(4)S(2))](n), the Hg(II) atom is four-coordinated in a distorted tetra-hedral geometry by the two N atoms of the pyridyl groups of different 3,6-bis-(2-pyridyl-sulfan-yl)pyridazine ligands and two Br atoms. The bridging function of the cis ligands leads to a helical chain structure along [100].

A novel nomogram provides improved accuracy for predicting biochemical recurrence after radical prostatectomy.

BACKGROUND: Various prediction tools have been developed to predict biochemical recurrence (BCR) after radical prostatectomy (RP); however, few of the previous prediction tools used serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) nadir after RP and maximum tumor diameter (MTD) at the same time. In this study, a nomogram incorporating MTD and PSA nadir was developed to predict BCR-free survival (BCRFS). METHODS: A total of 337 patients who underwent RP between January 2010 and March 2017 were retrospectively enrolled in this study. The maximum diameter of the index lesion was measured on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Cox regression analysis was performed to evaluate independent predictors of BCR. A nomogram was subsequently developed for the prediction of BCRFS at 3 and 5 years after RP. Time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and decision curve analyses were performed to identify the advantage of the new nomogram in comparison with the cancer of the prostate risk assessment post-surgical (CAPRA-S) score. RESULTS: A novel nomogram was developed to predict BCR by including PSA nadir, MTD, Gleason score, surgical margin (SM), and seminal vesicle invasion (SVI), considering these variables were significantly associated with BCR in both univariate and multivariate analyses (P < 0.05). In addition, a basic model including Gleason score, SM, and SVI was developed and used as a control to assess the incremental predictive power of the new model. The concordance index of our model was slightly higher than CAPRA-S model (0.76 vs. 0.70, P = 0.02) and it was significantly higher than that of the basic model (0.76 vs. 0.66, P = 0.001). Time-dependent ROC curve and decision curve analyses also demonstrated the advantages of the new nomogram. CONCLUSIONS: PSA nadir after RP and MTD based on MRI before surgery are independent predictors of BCR. By incorporating PSA nadir and MTD into the conventional predictive model, our newly developed nomogram significantly improved the accuracy in predicting BCRFS after RP.

[Visceral leishmaniasis in China during 2004-2007].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the trend of visceral leishmaniasis incidence in China from 2004 to 2007. METHODS: Data of leishmaniasis in 2004-2007 were collected from the National Web-Based Infectious Diseases Report System, and statistically analyzed by using SPSS 12.0 software. RESULTS: A total of 1,334 leishmaniasis cases was reported in the 4 years. The three provinces (autonomous region) with higher incidence were Xinjiang (occupying 47.5% of the total, 633/1,334), Gansu (33.2%, 443/1,334) and Sichuan (16.9%, 226/1,334). Cases distributed in all age groups, with the highest incidence in the group of under 10-year-old (51.3%). More cases occurred from March to August. Male to female ratio was 1.65:1. The number of counties with leishmaniasis cases increased from 43 in 2004 to 64 in 2007. CONCLUSION: The endemic area of visceral leishmaniasis shows an increasing trend.

[Transcriptional regulation of BHLHB2 induced by PML-RARα].

Objective of this study was to investigate the transcriptional regulation of BHLHB2 gene by the PML-RARα fusion protein in APL cells and reveal the pathogenesis of APL. RT-PCR was performed to detect the expression change of BHLHB2 before and after the induction of PML-RARα in PR9 cells, and its expression level after the treatment of ATRA in PR9 and APL patient derived NB4 cells. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP)-based PCR was used to analyze whether the BHLHB2 promoter could be bound by PML-RARα in vivo. A large-scale gene expression profile dataset was used to observe the expression pattern of BHLHB2 in AML. The results showed that the expression level of BHLHB2 was significantly reduced with the induction of PML-RARα and ATRA could reverse this inhibition in both PR9 and NB4 cells and increase the expression of BHLHB2. However, the expression of BHLHB2 could not be induced by ATRA in U937 cells which do not express PML-RARα. Mechanism study revealed that PML-RARα could bound to the promoter of BHLHB2 in vivo to regulate the the expression of BHLHB2. It was found that the expression of BHLHB2 was relatively lower in APL as compared with other subtypes of AML and normal bone marrow cells. It is concluded that BHLHB2 is the target of PML-RARα, and the expression of BHLHB2 is inhibited by PML-RARα through binding to its promoter in APL.

[Genomic distribution of AML1-ETO fusion protein binding sites].

This study was purposed to characterize the genomic distribution of the binding sites for AML1-ETO fusion protein on chromosome 2, 9 and 19, and to further gain insights into the characteristics of transcriptional regulation by AML1-ETO in acute myeloid leukemia so as to provide theoretical basis for the development of targeted therapy and optimization for treatment. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) coupled with high density tiling arrays (chip), also known as ChIP-chip, was utilized in this study. ChIP-DNA enriched by an anti-ETO antibody and total genomic DNA of Kasumi cells were hybridized to tiling arrays, tiled through chromosome 2, 9 and 19. The ChIP enriched regions were identified using a model based analytical tool (MAT). Genomic distribution of the ChIP regions was analyzed using publicly available CEAS web server. The Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis was performed to excavated the biological significance. The results indicated that a total of 588 enriched regions were identified on chromosome 2, 9 and 19 by the anti-ETO antibody. A number of the identified regions were located within enhancers (48.86%) or introns (37.35%), much smaller fractions were within proximal promoters (5.96%) or exons (5.49%). Functional enrichment analysis showed that cell proliferation and signal transduction biological pathways were enriched in potential genes of AML-ETO. It is concluded that half of the AML1-ETO binding sites are located within known transcriptional regulatory regions (promoter, 5' UTR and enhancer), while almost another half were within the sequences which were not previously reported as regulatory regions. The potential target molecular network of AML1-ETO is involved in several essential biological processes.

An outbreak of the desert sub-type of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis in Jiashi, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China.

Few outbreaks of the desert sub-type of zoonotic visceral leishmaniasis (VL) have been described worldwide. In 2008, the incidence rate of VL in Jiashi County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in the western part of the People's Republic of China, increased more than twenty-folds compared to the average annual incidence rate. The majority of the cases (96.6%) occurred among <2 year-old infants. For the first time in the desert area of Xinjiang, the parasites were isolated from bone marrow aspirates, using the NNN medium culture approach. The genetic analysis of the ITS-1 nucleotide sequence indicated that three isolates from eastern Jiashi County were genetically closely related and belonged to the Leishmaniainfantum group. However, they differed from an isolate from Kashi city which was classified as a member of the Leishmaniadonovani group.