Rapid cycling bipolar disorder is associated with antithyroid antibodies, instead of thyroid dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: Conclusions regarding the association between antithyroid antibodies or thyroid dysfunction and rapid cycling bipolar disorder (RCBD) have been conflicting. Previous studies suggest that the impact of antithyroid antibodies on mental wellbeing seems to be independent of thyroid function. Here, we investigated their independent association with RCBD in a large, well-defined population of bipolar disorder (BD). METHODS: Fast serum levels of free thyroxine (FT4), free triiodothyronine (FT3), thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH), TPO-abs and Tg-abs were simultaneously measured in 352 patients with BD. Clinical features of BD were collected through semi-structural interview conducted by trained interviewers with background of psychiatric education. RESULTS: Neither hypothyroidism nor hyperthyroidism was significantly associated with RCBD. Both TPO-abs and Tg-abs were significantly related to RCBD, even after controlling for gender, age, marriage status, education, antidepressants treatment, comorbidity of thyroid diseases, and thyroid function (serum levels of FT3, FT4 and TSH). Although TPO-abs and Tg-abs were highly correlated with each other, binary logistic regression with forward LR selected TPO-abs, instead of Tg-abs, to be associated with RCBD. TPO-abs was significantly, independently of Tg-abs, associated with hyperthyroidism, while Tg-abs was marginally significantly related to hypothyroidism at the presence of TPO-abs. CONCLUSION: TPO-abs might be treated as a biomarker of RCBD. Further exploring the underlying mechanism might help understand the nature of RCBD and find out new treatment target for it.

Are serum levels of inflammatory markers associated with the severity of symptoms of bipolar disorder?

Background: To explore the relationship between serum levels of inflammatory markers and symptomatic severity of bipolar disorder (BD). Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 126 BD patients with current depressive episode (BDD), 102 BD patients with current mixed or (hypo)manic episode (BDM) and 94 healthy controls (HC). All participants were drug-naïve and had no current active physical illness associated with inflammatory response or history of substance abuse. Fasting serum levels of CRP, leptin (LEP), adiponectin (ADP), visfatin (VIS), TNF-α, IL-2, IL-6, IL-10, IL-17), and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Symptomatic severity of BD was assessed with HAMD-17 and YMRS. Generalized linear model was used to determine the association between the serum levels of inflammatory markers and symptomatic severity of BD. Results: The serum levels of IL-6, IL-10 and IL-17, and the IL-6/IL-10 ratio were significantly lower in mild BDD than in HC. In moderate BDD, the serum levels of MCP, IL-6 and IL-17 were significantly lower than in HC. In severe BDD, the serum level of ADP, MCP-1, IL-10 and IL-17and the IL-17/IL-10 ratio were significantly lower than in HC. The serum levels of TNF-α and the IL-6/IL-10 ratio were significantly higher in mild BDM than in HC. In moderate BDM, the serum level of VIS, IL-2, and IL-17 were significantly higher than in HC, but the IL-6/IL-10 ratio was significantly lower than in control. In severe BDM, the serum levels of IL-6 and IL-17 and the ratios of IL-6/IL-10 and IL-17/IL-10 were significantly lower than in HC, but the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio was significantly higher than in HC. Conclusion: In BDD, immune-inhibition is persistently predominant, while in mild-to-moderate BDM, immune system is activated but inhibited in severe BDM. The dynamic change of serum inflammatory markers suggests that alteration of peripheral inflammatory markers in BD is state-dependent instead of trait-marked.

The Relationships of Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, Erectile Function and General Psychological Health.

INTRODUCTION: Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) has been reported to be associated with sexual function and general psychological health respectively, however, no one has ever examined their mutual relationships in a single study. AIM: The aim of the present study was to find out whether DHEAS, general psychological health, and erectile function were all associated with each other. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 34 patients with erectile dysfunction (ED) and 32 healthy controls (HC). The levels of serum DHEAS were assessed by chemiluminescence method. Erectile function and general psychological health were measured by International Index for Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) and General Health Questionnaire 20(GHQ-20) respectively. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: The primary outcome measure of this study was the mutual correlations of serum DHEAS levels, general psychological health and erectile function. RESULTS: Compared to HC, patients with ED had a significant lower serum levels of DHEAS (6.43 ± 2.70 µmol/L vs 9.48 ± 2.82 µmol/L, P < .001) and higher scores on GHQ-20 (35.06 ± 8.56 vs 24.97 ± 2.55, P < .001). Multivariate binary logistic regression showed that both serum levels of DHEAS (OR = 0.667, 95% CI = 0.512-0.869, P = .003) and psychological distress (scores of GHQ-20 > 28) (OR = 6.921, 95% CI = 1.821-26.305, P = .005) were significantly associated with ED. However, no significant association between psychological distress and serum levels of DHEAS was found (OR = 0.798, 95% CI = 0.623-1.021, P = .072) after controlling for ED. Partial correlation analysis revealed that both scores of GHQ-20 (r = -0.595, P < .001) and DHEAS (r = 0.450, P < .001) were significantly correlated with scores of IIEF-5, while no significant relationship was found between scores of GHQ-20 and DHEAS (r = 0.116, P = .363) after controlling for scores of IIEF-5 and age. CONCLUSION: Both serum levels of DHEAS and general psychological health are significantly associated with erectile dysfunction in sexually active adult men but the relationship between general psychological health and erectile function seems to be independent of DHEAS. Li K, Liang S, Shi Y, et al. The Relationships of Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, Erectile Function and General Psychological Health. Sex Med 2021;9:100386.

NCAPG Is a Promising Therapeutic Target Across Different Tumor Types.

BACKGROUND: With the advent of CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing tool in gene therapy, identification of aberrantly expressed genes is of great value across various cancer types. Since a large number of patients may benefit from molecular targeted gene therapy. The purpose of this study was to identify aberrantly expressed genes across various cancer types, analyze prospective mechanisms and their correlation with survival outcomes. RESULTS: NCAPG was highly expressed in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, which includes the transcriptomes of 6,647 cancer and 647 normal tissue samples from 16 cancer types. Furthermore, a predicted NCAPG overexpression rate was also observed at the protein level in 16 tumor types. Importantly, high NCAPG level was significantly associated with unfavorable survival in various cancer types such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), breast, lung or ovarian cancer. The multivariate analyses demonstrated that NCAPG, TNM, and Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) staging were independent risk factors for mortality of patients with HCC. Moreover, functional and pathway enrichment analysis suggested that NCAPG was closely correlated with the pathways of cell cycle, cellular senescence, and mismatch repair. By weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), we identified NCAPG as a hub gene in the turquoise module mostly related to the survival time of HCC samples. CONCLUSION: To our knowledge, this study represents a comprehensive RNA-Seq analysis of several tumor types, revealing NCAPG as a promising molecular target. NCAPG overexpression may play important roles in carcinogenesis and progression of tumors via regulating tumor-related pathways, thereby broadening the understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms and highlighting the possibility of developing novel targeted therapeutics.

Wnt5a Promotes Cortical Neuron Survival by Inhibiting Cell-Cycle Activation.

ß-Amyloid protein (Aß) is thought to cause neuronal loss in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Aß treatment promotes the re-activation of a mitotic cycle and induces rapid apoptotic death of neurons. However, the signaling pathways mediating cell-cycle activation during neuron apoptosis have not been determined. We find that Wnt5a acts as a mediator of cortical neuron survival, and Aß42 promotes cortical neuron apoptosis by downregulating the expression of Wnt5a. Cell-cycle activation is mediated by the reduced inhibitory effect of Wnt5a in Aß42 treated cortical neurons. Furthermore, Wnt5a signals through the non-canonical Wnt/Ca2+ pathway to suppress cyclin D1 expression and negatively regulate neuronal cell-cycle activation in a cell-autonomous manner. Together, aberrant downregulation of Wnt5a signaling is a crucial step during Aß42 induced cortical neuron apoptosis and might contribute to AD-related neurodegeneration.

[CT Guided Radiofrequency Ablation Followed Intratumoral Chemotherapy 
in the Treatment of Early Stage Non-small Cell Lung Cancer].

BACKGROUND: Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has become one of the local treatment for inoperable early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This study observes effectiveness and safety of computed tomography (CT) guided RFA followed intratumoral chemotherapy (RFA-ITC). METHODS: From 2005 to 2015, our group perspectively enrolled inoperable early stage NSCLC underwent RFA-ITC duo to poor cardiopulmonary function or with other diseases or patient can't tolerate or reject surgery. RFA was performed by a directive apparatus assisted CT guided semi real-time and step-by-step puncture method, conformal umbrella-shaped electrode and single or multiple targets ablation. While the plan finished and CT showed normal lung tissue around the tumor present ground-glass opacity (GGO), the procedure ended, then 200 mg of carboplatinum were injected into the tumor via the electrode needle. Safety and effectiveness were evaluated by follow-up. RESULTS: Technical success rates of 125 RFA-ITC treatments of 110 patients were 100%. The median survival was 48.0 months, overall survival (OS) was 55.4 months, progression-free survival was 55.1 months, 1, 2, 3, 5-year OS rates were 100%, 90.7%, 62.7%, 21.9%, respectively. Survival of GGO presence or not was 68.3 months and 40.1 months, respectively (P=0.001). The survival rates of the N1 staging and tumor size was no significant difference. No perioperative deaths occurred, the main complications i.e. pneumothorax, pulmonary hemorrhage, pleural effusion, fever, intraoperative chest pain, subcutaneous emphysema, intraoperative cough were slight and tolerable. CONCLUSIONS: CT guided RFA-ITC provides a good method for treatment of inoperable early stage NSCLC with better survival, less complication and small damage.
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[Surgical treatment for liver metastasis of colorectal cancer: a report of 59 cases].

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: Liver metastasis is the major cause of treatment failure of colorectal cancer. The median survival time of patients with untreated liver metastases is only about 6 months. Surgical resection is the major treatment to prolong survival time of the patients. This study was to assess surgical treatment efficacy on these patients and their prognosis. METHODS: Records of 59 colorectal cancer patients with liver metastases, treated with hepatectomy (including 14 cases of anatomical segmentectomy and 45 cases of wedge resection) from Jan. 1987 to Dec. 1998 in Cancer Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences were reviewed. Postoperative complications occurred in 4 (6.8%) patients, without surgical death. Survival rate was estimated by Kaplan-Meier method, and compared by log-rank test. Prognostic factors were analyzed by multivariate Cox regression model. RESULTS: The overall 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were 91.4%, 34.8%, and 21.9%. Survival rate was significantly lower in patients with heterochronia metastasis than in patients with synchronal metastasis (P < 0.05), and lower in patients with metastasis size of > 5 cm than in patients with metastasis size of < or = 5 cm. Univariate analysis showed that time of liver metastasis and metastasis size of > 5 cm were prognostic factors (P < 0.05); while node status of primary tumor, number of liver tumors, and carcinoembryonic antigen level had no significant relations with prognosis (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Hepatectomy may prolong survival time of colorectal cancer patients with liver metastases. Early diagnosis with intensive follow-up is crucial to increase the resectability of liver metastasis.