Less Is More: Exploring Neoadjuvant Immunotherapy as a De-escalation Strategy in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Treatment.

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) constitutes a significant global cancer burden, given its high prevalence and associated mortality. Despite substantial progress in survival rates due to the enhanced multidisciplinary approach to treatment, these methods often lead to severe tissue damage, compromised function, and potential toxicity. Thus, there is an imperative need for novel, effective, and minimally damaging treatment modalities. Neoadjuvant treatment, an emerging therapeutic strategy, is designed to reduce tumor size and curtail distant metastasis prior to definitive intervention. Currently, neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) has fine-tuned the treatment approach for a subset of HNSCC patients, yet it has not produced a noticeable enhancement in overall survival (OS). In the contemporary cancer therapeutics landscape, immunotherapy is gaining traction at an accelerated pace. Notably, neoadjuvant immunotherapy (NAIT) has shown promising radiological and pathological responses, coupled with an encouraging efficacy in several clinical trials. This potentially paves the way for a myriad of possibilities in treatment de-escalation of HNSCC, which warrants further exploration. This paper reviews the existing strategies and efficacy of neoadjuvant immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), along with potential de-escalation strategy. Furthermore, the challenges encountered in the context of the de-escalation strategies of NAIT are explored. The aim is to inform future research directions that strive to improve the quality of life (QoL) for patients battling HNSCC.

LCGNet: Local Sequential Feature Coupling Global Representation Learning for Functional Connectivity Network Analysis with fMRI.

Analysis of functional connectivity networks (FCNs) derived from resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) has greatly advanced our understanding of brain diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Advanced machine learning techniques, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), have been used to learn high-level feature representations of FCNs for automated brain disease classification. Even though convolution operations in CNNs are good at extracting local properties of FCNs, they generally cannot well capture global temporal representations of FCNs. Recently, the transformer technique has demonstrated remarkable performance in various tasks, which is attributed to its effective self-attention mechanism in capturing the global temporal feature representations. However, it cannot effectively model the local network characteristics of FCNs. To this end, in this paper, we propose a novel network structure for Local sequential feature Coupling Global representation learning (LCGNet) to take advantage of convolutional operations and self-attention mechanisms for enhanced FCN representation learning. Specifically, we first build a dynamic FCN for each subject using an overlapped sliding window approach. We then construct three sequential components (i.e., edge-to-vertex layer, vertex-to-network layer, and network-to-temporality layer) with a dual backbone branch of CNN and transformer to extract and couple from local to global topological information of brain networks. Experimental results on two real datasets (i.e., ADNI and ADHD-200) with rs-fMRI data show the superiority of our LCGNet.

Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among students aged 12 to 24 after the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions in China: prevalence and associated factors.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence and associated factors of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among adolescent and young adults in China from December 14, 2022 to February 28, 2023, when COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Methods: Students in middle and high schools and colleges and universities in the province of Sichuan, China were asked to complete on-line cross-sectional surveys. Information was collected about sociodemographics, experiences related to the COVID-19 pandemic, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts. Participants also filled out the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 and the Social Support Rate Scale surveys. Factors associated with suicidal ideation or suicide attempts were explored using logistic regression. Results: Of the 82,873 respondents (aged 12 to 24 years), 21,292 (25.7%) reported having thought of suicide at least once in their lifetime, 10,382 (12.5%) reported having thought about suicide within the previous 12 months, and 1,123 (1.4%) reported having attempted it within the previous 12 months. Risk of lifetime suicidal ideation was higher among middle school students than among older students. Risk of suicidal ideation and risk of suicide attempts correlated directly with severity of symptoms of depression and anxiety, and inversely with level of social support. Greater risk of suicidal ideation and suicidal attempts was associated with: being female, living in an urban environment, attending a boarding school, currently being in love, having parents who divorced or remarried, having parents who exhibit non-authoritative parenting behavior, having higher family income, having been COVID-19 infected, having been quarantined for a long time, and being dissatisfied with one's education. Conclusions: Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts remain prevalent among young people in China. The potential associated factors identified in our study may be useful for targeting appropriate psychosocial interventions and developing mental health policies.

Causal relationship between gut microbiota and Behçet's disease: a Mendelian randomization study.

Background: While observational epidemiological studies have suggested an association between gut microbiota and Behçet's disease (BD), the causal relationship between the two remains uncertain. Methods: Statistical data were obtained from gut microbiome Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) published by the MiBioGen consortium, and genetic variation points were screened as instrumental variables (IV). Mendelian randomization (MR) study was performed using inverse variance weighted (IVW), weighted median, MR-Egger regression, simple mode, and weighted mode methods to evaluate the causal relationship between gut microbiota (18,340 individuals) and BD (317,252 individuals). IVW was the main method of analysis. The stability and reliability of the results were verified using the leave-one-out method, heterogeneity test, and horizontal genetic pleiotropy test. Finally, a reverse MR analysis was performed to explore reverse causality. Results: Inverse variance weighted (IVW) results showed that the genus Parasutterella (OR = 0.203, 95%CI 0.055-0.747, p = 0.016), Lachnospiraceae NC2004 group (OR = 0.101, 95%CI 0.015-0.666, p = 0.017), Turicibacter (OR = 0.043, 95%CI 0.007-0.273, p = 0.001), and Erysipelatoclostridium (OR = 0.194, 95%CI 0.040-0.926, p = 0.040) were protective factors against BD, while Intestinibacter (OR = 7.589, 95%CI 1.340-42.978, p = 0.022) might be a risk factor for BD. Conclusion: Our study revealed the causal relationship between gut microbiota and BD. The microbiota that related to BD may become new biomarkers; provide new potential indicators and targets for the prevention and treatment of BD.

Nanoparticles as Drug Delivery Systems for the Targeted Treatment of Atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis continues to be a leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally. The precise evaluation of the extent of an atherosclerotic plaque is essential for forecasting its likelihood of causing health concerns and tracking treatment outcomes. When compared to conventional methods used, nanoparticles offer clear benefits and excellent development opportunities for the detection and characterisation of susceptible atherosclerotic plaques. In this review, we analyse the recent advancements of nanoparticles as theranostics in the management of atherosclerosis, with an emphasis on applications in drug delivery. Furthermore, the main issues that must be resolved in order to advance clinical utility and future developments of NP research are discussed. It is anticipated that medical NPs will develop into complex and advanced next-generation nanobotics that can carry out a variety of functions in the bloodstream.

Silk Sericin and Its Composite Materials with Antibacterial Properties to Enhance Wound Healing: A Review.

Wound infections may disrupt the normal wound-healing process. Large amounts of antibiotics are frequently used to prevent pathogenic infections; however, this can lead to resistance development. Biomaterials possessing antimicrobial properties have promising applications for reducing antibiotic usage and promoting wound healing. Silk sericin (SS) has been increasingly explored for skin wound healing applications owing to its excellent biocompatibility and antioxidant, antimicrobial, and ultraviolet-resistant properties. In recent years, SS-based composite biomaterials with a broader antimicrobial spectrum have been extensively investigated and demonstrated favorable efficacy in promoting wound healing. This review summarizes various antimicrobial agents, including metal nanoparticles, natural extracts, and antibiotics, that have been incorporated into SS composites for wound healing and elucidates their mechanisms of action. It has been revealed that SS-based biomaterials can achieve sustained antimicrobial activity by slow-release-loaded antimicrobial agents. The antimicrobial-loaded SS composites may promote wound healing through anti-infection, anti-inflammation, hemostasis, angiogenesis, and collagen deposition. The manufacturing methods, benefits, and limitations of antimicrobial-loaded SS materials are briefly discussed. This review aims to enhance the understanding of new advances and directions in SS-based antimicrobial composites and guide future biomedical research.

Age was a protective factor for unexpected malignant diagnoses in patients with vertebral compression fracture.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose was to investigate the risk factors for unexpected malignant diagnoses in patients with vertebral compression fractures (VCF). METHODS: The clinical data were retrospectively collected from 1396 patients who underwent vertebral augmentation and biopsy between 2012 and 2022. According to the imaging results, the preoperative diagnoses were benign VCF (BVCF) in all these cases. Based on the histological findings, the patients were divided into two groups. In group A, unexpected malignant VCF (MVCF) was identified, while benign VCF (BVCF) was verified in group B. Logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze the risk and protective factors for unexpected malignant diagnoses. RESULTS: There were 44 patients in group A and 1352 in group B. The incidence of unexpected MVCF was 3.2 %. Age was significantly lower in group A compared to group B. Additionally, none of the patients in group A were older than 75. Age was associated with unexpected malignant diagnoses, according to the univariate logistic analysis. The multivariate logistic analysis showed that age was a protective factor for unexpected malignant diagnoses (odds ratio = 0.849, 95 % confidence interval: 0.809-0.891, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Age was a protective factor for unexpected malignant diagnoses in patients with preoperative diagnosis of BVCF. A routine biopsy is recommended to be performed during vertebral augmentation in young patients without preoperative imaging evidence of MVCF.

Screening of potential α-glucosidase inhibitors from astragalus membranaceus by affinity ultrafiltration screening coupled with UPLC-ESI-Orbitrap-MS method.

Astragalus membranaceus is a traditional Chinese medicine with multiple pharmacological activities. Modern pharmacological research has found that Astragalus membranaceus extract has an inhibitory effect on α-glucosidase, however, which component can inhibit the activity of α-glucosidase and its degree of inhibition are unknown. To address this issue, this study used affinity ultrafiltration screening combined with UPLC-ESI-Orbitrap-MS technology to screen α-glucosidase inhibitors in Astragalus membranaceus. Using affinity ultrafiltration technology, we obtained the active components, and using UPLC-ESI-Orbitrap-MS technology, we quickly analyzed and identified them. As a result, a total of 8 ingredients were selected as α-glucosidase inhibitors.

Toxicity comparison and risk assessment of two chlorinated organophosphate flame retardants (TCEP and TCPP) on Polypedates megacephalus tadpoles.

Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) and tris(1­chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP) are widely used as chlorinated organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) due to their fire-resistance capabilities. However, their extensive use has led to their permeation and pollution in aquatic environments. Using amphibians, which are non-model organisms, to test the toxic effects of OPFRs is relatively uncommon. This study examined the acute and chronic toxicity differences between TCEP and TCPP on Polypedates megacephalus tadpoles and evaluated the potential ecological risks to tadpoles in different aquatic environments using the risk quotient (RQ). In acute toxicity assay, the tadpole survival rates decreased with increased exposure time and concentrations, with TCEP exhibiting higher LC50 values than TCPP, at 305.5 mg/L and 70 mg/L, respectively. In the chronic assay, prolonged exposure to 300 µg/L of both substances resulted in similar adverse effects on tadpole growth, metamorphosis, and hepatic antioxidant function. Based on RQ values, most aquatic environments did not pose an ecological risk to tadpoles. However, the analysis showed that wastewater presented higher risks than rivers and drinking water, and TCPP posed a higher potential risk than TCEP in all examined aquatic environments. These findings provide empirical evidence to comprehend the toxicological effects of OPFRs on aquatic organisms and to assess the safety of aquatic environments.

Enhancing the performance of mode-pairing quantum key distribution by wavelength division multiplexing.

Mode-pairing quantum key distribution (MP-QKD) holds great promise for the practical implementation of QKD in the near future. It combines the security advantages of measurement device independence while still being capable of breaking the Pirandola-Laurenza-Ottaviani-Banchi bound without the need for highly demanding phase-locking and phase-tracking technologies for deployment. In this work, we explore optimization strategies for MP-QKD in a wavelength-division multiplexing scenario. The simulation results reveal that incorporation of multiple wavelengths not only leads to a direct increase in key rate but also enhances the pairing efficiency by employing our novel pairing strategies among different wavelengths. As a result, our work provides a new avenue for the future application and development of MP-QKD.

Enantioselective copper-catalyzed azidation/click cascade reaction for access to chiral 1,2,3-triazoles.

Chiral 1,2,3-triazoles are highly attractive motifs in various fields. However, achieving catalytic asymmetric click reactions of azides and alkynes for chiral triazole synthesis remains a significant challenge, mainly due to the limited catalytic systems and substrate scope. Herein, we report an enantioselective azidation/click cascade reaction of N-propargyl-ß-ketoamides with a readily available and potent azido transfer reagent via copper catalysis, which affords a variety of chiral 1,2,3-triazoles with up to 99% yield and 95% ee under mild conditions. Notably, chiral 1,5-disubstituted triazoles that have not been accessed by previous asymmetric click reactions are also prepared with good functional group tolerance.

Differential impacts of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on lifespan and healthspan in aged Caenorhabditis elegans.

Aging and age-related diseases are intricately associated with oxidative stress and inflammation. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have shown their promise in mitigating age-related conditions and potentially extending lifespan in various model organisms. However, the efficacy of NSAIDs in older individuals may be influenced by age-related changes in drug metabolism and tolerance, which could result in age-dependent toxicities. This study aimed to evaluate the potential risks of toxicities associated with commonly used NSAIDs (aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, and indomethacin) on lifespan, healthspan, and oxidative stress levels in both young and old Caenorhabditis elegans. The results revealed that aspirin and ibuprofen were able to extend lifespan in both young and old worms by suppressing ROS generation and enhancing the expression of antioxidant SOD genes. In contrast, acetaminophen and indomeacin accelerated aging process in old worms, leading to oxidative stress damage and reduced resistance to heat stress through the pmk-1/skn-1 pathway. Notably, the harmful effects of acetaminophen and indomeacin were mitigated when pmk-1 was knocked out in the pmk-1(km25) strain. These results underscore the potential lack of benefit from acetaminophen and indomeacin in elderly individuals due to their increased susceptibility to toxicity. Further research is essential to elucidate the underlying mechanisms driving these age-dependent responses and to evaluate the potential risks associated with NSAID use in the elderly population.

Overall Survival of Primary Single Intracranial Atypical Meningioma with Different Surgical and Postoperative Treatment Options: Evidence from the SEER Database.

Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of different surgical and postoperative treatment options on the long-term overall survival (OS) in patients with primary single intracranial atypical meningioma. Methods: In this retrospective study, participants were drawn from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Inclusion criteria comprised patients who underwent either gross total resection (GTR) or subtotal resection (STR). The inverse probability weighting (IPW) method using generalized boosted models was used to achieve balance in variables across various treatment groups. Subsequent to IPW, multivariate Cox analysis and Kaplan-Meier analysis were conducted, with OS as the endpoint. Results: GTR was conducted on 1650 patients, while STR was conducted on 1109 patients. Among these, 432 patients who underwent GTR and 401 patients who underwent STR received postoperative radiotherapy (PORT). In the case of patients who were under 60 years old, PORT emerged as a significant protective factor for OS in those who underwent STR (HR 0.44; 95% CI 0.23-0.84; p = 0.013). Survival curves demonstrated that patients who underwent STR with PORT exhibited comparable OS to those who underwent GTR without PORT (p = 0.546). Conversely, for patients aged 60 years or older, PORT emerged as an independent risk factor for both GTR (HR 1.42; 95% CI 1.00-2.00; p = 0.048) and STR (HR 1.81; 95% CI 1.26-2.60; p = 0.001). Conclusion: PORT may contribute to improving OS in primary single atypical meningioma patients under 60 years old who receive STR. However, in older patients who underwent either GTR or STR, the administration of PORT may be associated with a potential risk of OS. Therefore, age should be taken into account in applying PORT therapy, and the optimal treatment strategy for PORT in patients with atypical meningiomas needs to be further explored and validated.

IFDlong: an isoform and fusion detector for accurate annotation and quantification of long-read RNA-seq data.

Advancements in long-read transcriptome sequencing (long-RNA-seq) technology have revolutionized the study of isoform diversity. These full-length transcripts enhance the detection of various transcriptome structural variations, including novel isoforms, alternative splicing events, and fusion transcripts. By shifting the open reading frame or altering gene expressions, studies have proved that these transcript alterations can serve as crucial biomarkers for disease diagnosis and therapeutic targets. In this project, we proposed IFDlong, a bioinformatics and biostatistics tool to detect isoform and fusion transcripts using bulk or single-cell long-RNA-seq data. Specifically, the software performed gene and isoform annotation for each long-read, defined novel isoforms, quantified isoform expression by a novel expectation-maximization algorithm, and profiled the fusion transcripts. For evaluation, IFDlong pipeline achieved overall the best performance when compared with several existing tools in large-scale simulation studies. In both isoform and fusion transcript quantification, IFDlong is able to reach more than 0.8 Spearman's correlation with the truth, and more than 0.9 cosine similarity when distinguishing multiple alternative splicing events. In novel isoform simulation, IFDlong can successfully balance the sensitivity (higher than 90%) and specificity (higher than 90%). Furthermore, IFDlong has proved its accuracy and robustness in diverse in-house and public datasets on healthy tissues, cell lines and multiple types of diseases. Besides bulk long-RNA-seq, IFDlong pipeline has proved its compatibility to single-cell long-RNA-seq data. This new software may hold promise for significant impact on long-read transcriptome analysis. The IFDlong software is available at https://github.com/wenjiaking/IFDlong.

Deep learning system for malignancy risk prediction in cystic renal lesions: a multicenter study.

OBJECTIVES: To develop an interactive, non-invasive artificial intelligence (AI) system for malignancy risk prediction in cystic renal lesions (CRLs). METHODS: In this retrospective, multicenter diagnostic study, we evaluated 715 patients. An interactive geodesic-based 3D segmentation model was created for CRLs segmentation. A CRLs classification model was developed using spatial encoder temporal decoder (SETD) architecture. The classification model combines a 3D-ResNet50 network for extracting spatial features and a gated recurrent unit (GRU) network for decoding temporal features from multi-phase CT images. We assessed the segmentation model using sensitivity (SEN), specificity (SPE), intersection over union (IOU), and dice similarity (Dice) metrics. The classification model's performance was evaluated using the area under the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUC), accuracy score (ACC), and decision curve analysis (DCA). RESULTS: From 2012 to 2023, we included 477 CRLs (median age, 57 [IQR: 48-65]; 173 men) in the training cohort, 226 CRLs (median age, 60 [IQR: 52-69]; 77 men) in the validation cohort, and 239 CRLs (median age, 59 [IQR: 53-69]; 95 men) in the testing cohort (external validation cohort 1, cohort 2, and cohort 3). The segmentation model and SETD classifier exhibited excellent performance in both validation (AUC = 0.973, ACC = 0.916, Dice = 0.847, IOU = 0.743, SEN = 0.840, SPE = 1.000) and testing datasets (AUC = 0.998, ACC = 0.988, Dice = 0.861, IOU = 0.762, SEN = 0.876, SPE = 1.000). CONCLUSION: The AI system demonstrated excellent benign-malignant discriminatory ability across both validation and testing datasets and illustrated improved clinical decision-making utility. CRITICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: In this era when incidental CRLs are prevalent, this interactive, non-invasive AI system will facilitate accurate diagnosis of CRLs, reducing excessive follow-up and overtreatment. KEY POINTS: The rising prevalence of CRLs necessitates better malignancy prediction strategies. The AI system demonstrated excellent diagnostic performance in identifying malignant CRL. The AI system illustrated improved clinical decision-making utility.

Performance on adsorption of toluene by ionic liquid-modified AC in high-humidity exhaust gas.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) frequently pose a threat to the biosphere, impacting ecosystems, flora, fauna, and the surrounding environment. Industrial emissions of VOCs often include the presence of water vapor, which, in turn, diminishes the adsorption capacity and efficacy of adsorbents. This occurs due to the competitive adsorption of water vapor, which competes with target pollutants for adsorption sites on the adsorbent material. In this study, hydrophobic activated carbons (BMIMPF6-AC (L), BMIMPF6-AC (g), and BMIMPF6-AC-H) were successfully prepared using 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMIMPF6) to adsorb toluene under humidity environment. The adsorption performance and mechanism of the resulting ionic liquid-modified activated carbon for toluene in a high-humidity environment were evaluated to explore the potential application of ionic liquids as hydrophobic modifiers. The results indicated that BMIMPF6-AC-H exhibited superior hydrophobicity. The toluene adsorption capacity of BMIMPF6-AC-H was 1.53 times higher than that of original activated carbon, while the adsorption capacity for water vapor was only 37.30% of it at 27 °C and 77% RH. The Y-N model well-fitted the dynamic adsorption experiments. To elucidate the microscopic mechanism of hydrophobic modification, the Independent Gradient Model (IGM) method was employed to characterize the intermolecular interactions between BMIMPF6 and toluene. Overall, this study introduces a new modifier for hydrophobic modification of activated carbon, which could enhance the efficiency of activated carbon in treating industrial VOCs.

Tetraborated Intrinsically Axial Chiral Multi-resonance Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence Materials.

Chiral multi-resonance thermally activated delayed fluorescence (CP-MR-TADF) materials hold promise for circularly polarized organic light-emitting diodes (CP-OLEDs) and 3D displays. Herein, we present two pairs of tetraborated intrinsically axial CP-MR-TADF materials, R/S-BDBF-BOH and R/S-BDBT-BOH, with conjugation-extended bidibenzo[b,d]furan and bidibenzo[b,d]thiophene as chiral sources, which effectively participate in the distribution of the frontier molecular orbitals. Due to the heavy-atom effect, sulfur atoms are introduced to accelerate the reverse intersystem crossing process and increase the efficiency of molecules. R/S-BDBF-BOH and R/S-BDBT-BOH manifest ultra-pure blue emission with a maximum at 458/459 nm with a full width at half maximum of 27 nm, photoluminescence quantum yields of 90 %/91 %, and dissymmetry factors (|gPL|) of 6.8×10-4/8.5×10-4, respectively. Correspondingly, the CP-OLEDs exhibit good performances with an external quantum efficiency of 30.1 % and |gEL| factors of 1.2×10-3.

Total Synthesis of (±)-Simonsol C.

Total synthesis of simonsol C has been achieved, focusing on the postdearomatization transformations. Our methodology integrates an efficient combination of dearomatization and Zn/AcOH reduction to introduce an allyl group, followed by oxo-Michael addition, to construct the 6/5/6 benzofuran skeleton. It offers a novel method for synthesizing allyl-containing quaternary carbon atoms in a straightforward manner.

Utility Analyses of AVITI Sequencing Chemistry.

Background: DNA sequencing is a critical tool in modern biology. Over the last two decades, it has been revolutionized by the advent of massively parallel sequencing, leading to significant advances in the genome and transcriptome sequencing of various organisms. Nevertheless, challenges with accuracy, lack of competitive options and prohibitive costs associated with high throughput parallel short-read sequencing persist. Results: Here, we conduct a comparative analysis using matched DNA and RNA short-reads assays between Element Biosciences' AVITI and Illumina's NextSeq 550 chemistries. Similar comparisons were evaluated for synthetic long-read sequencing for RNA and targeted single-cell transcripts between the AVITI and Illumina's NovaSeq 6000. For both DNA and RNA short-read applications, the study found that the AVITI produced significantly higher per sequence quality scores. For PCR-free DNA libraries, we observed an average 89.7% lower experimentally determined error rate when using the AVITI chemistry, compared to the NextSeq 550. For short-read RNA quantification, AVITI platform had an average of 32.5% lower error rate than that for NextSeq 550. With regards to synthetic long-read mRNA and targeted synthetic long read single cell mRNA sequencing, both platforms' respective chemistries performed comparably in quantification of genes and isoforms. The AVITI displayed a marginally lower error rate for long reads, with fewer chemistry-specific errors and a higher mutation detection rate. Conclusion: These results point to the potential of the AVITI platform as a competitive candidate in high-throughput short read sequencing analyses when juxtaposed with the Illumina NextSeq 550.

Reconstructive strategies following surgical resection of malignant sublingual gland tumors: A single institution experience.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the characteristics and treatment modalities of malignant tumors originating from the sublingual gland, as well as evaluate the therapeutic outcomes following free flap reconstruction. METHODS: A retrospective statistical analysis was conducted on the clinical data of nine patients diagnosed with malignant neoplasms tumor of the sublingual gland. RESULTS: Nine case of malignant tumors originated from the sublingual glandular tissue, encompassing eight adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) and a single case of bipartite differentiated carcinoma-a hybrid of epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma and adenoid cystic carcinoma. Among the nine patients, four anterolateral thigh flaps were used (three of which were thin flaps), and five forearm flaps were also empoyed. The size of flaps varied, with the lengths ranging from 4 cm to 9 cm, and the widths ranging from 2.5 cm to 6 cm. The vessels chosen for anastomosis were the superior thyroid artery in seven cases, the facial artery in one case, and the lingual artery in one case. Among the eight patients who underwent dissection of cervical lymph nodes, metastasis were found in one case. Two patients underwent adjuvant radiotherapy. Upon postoperative follow-up, there was no recurrence in any of the nine patients . CONCLUSION: The anterolateral thigh perforator flap thinning technique can be employed for postoperative reconstruction of malignant sublingual gland tumors.