Diagnosis of benign and malignant nodules with a radiomics model integrating features from nodules and mammary regions on DCE-MRI.

Objectives: To establish a radiomics model for distinguishing between the benign and malignant mammary gland nodules via combining the features from nodule and mammary regions on DCE-MRI. Methods: In this retrospective study, a total of 103 cases with mammary gland nodules (malignant/benign = 80/23) underwent DCE-MRI, and was confirmed by biopsy pathology. Features were extracted from both nodule region and mammary region on DCE-MRI. Three SVM classifiers were built for diagnosis of benign and malignant nodules as follows: the model with the features only from nodule region (N model), with the features only from mammary region (M model) and the model combining the features from nodule region and mammary region (NM model). The performance of models was evaluated with the area under the curve of receiver operating characteristic (AUC). Results: One radiomic features is selected from nodule region and 3 radiomic features is selected from mammary region. Compared with N or M model, NM model exhibited the best performance with an AUC of 0.756. Conclusions: Compared with the model only using the features from nodule or mammary region, the radiomics-based model combining the features from nodule and mammary region outperformed in the diagnosis of benign and malignant nodules.

Fabrication of food grade zein-dispersed selenium dual-nanoparticles with controllable size, cell friendliness and oral bioavailability.

In this study, novel bioavailable selenium nanoparticles with controllable particle size and low toxicity were developed. With selenium modified zein nanoparticles (zein NPs) in-situ, dispersed nano-selenium particles with different structure were formed simultaneously. The particle size, zeta potential, morphology and binding mechanism of synthesized zein-selenium nanoparticles (zein-Se NPs) were systematically discussed. Selenium was considered to be combined with OH and -CO-NH- groups of zein. The selenium in the complex particles presented an amorphous structure with zero valence. The cytotoxicity of zein-Se NPs was significantly lower than that of sodium selenite, even exhibited a growth-promoting effect on normal liver cells (L-02), and were proven to be orally absorbed by organisms in vivo experiments. The difference in particle structure had certain effects on cytotoxicity and oral targeting. The complex particles obtained by this method were anticipated be further used as food fortifiers or medicines.

MicroRNA-27a alleviates IL-1ß-induced inflammatory response and articular cartilage degradation via TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway in articular chondrocytes.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common disease of the articular cartilage, and inflammatory response and articular cartilage degradation have been implicated in the pathogenesis of OA. In recent years, microRNAs (miRNAs) have been potentially involved in the pathogenesis of OA. However, little is known about the role of miRNAs in the inflammatory response and articular cartilage degradation in OA and the underlying molecular mechanism. In the present study, we analyze miRNA profiles in the articular tissues from OA patients using microarray. miR-27a has attracted considerable interest for its suppressive effects on inflammation. Subsequently, the expression levels of miR-27a were validated in the articular tissues of OA patients and IL-1ß-stimulated chondrocytes. Using this IL-1ß-induced chondrocyte injury model, we found that upregulation of miR-27a suppressed articular cartilage degradation, the reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and inflammatory response as reflected by reductions in pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α. Moreover, toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), one upstream molecule of NF-κB signaling pathway, was identified as a direct target of miR-27a in chondrocytes. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that overexpression of TLR4 by pcDNA-TLR4 markedly abrogated the inhibitory effects of miR-27a on the inflammatory response and the degeneration of articular cartilage induced by IL-1ß. Our findings suggest that miR-27a may be considered as a potential therapeutic target in the treatment of OA.

The formation of zein-chitosan complex coacervated particles: Relationship to encapsulation and controlled release properties.

The complex coacervation between zein and chitosan (CS) as well as the relationship with the controlled release properties of their complex nanoparticles were studied. The factors influencing the nanoparticle formation between zein and CS, including solid to liquid ratio, zein to CS ratio and pH, were systematically investigated. The isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) showed that zein-CS interaction was spontaneous exothermic process. The pH the higher was, the stronger the interaction between zein and CS. The mean particle sizes of ZCNPs were increased by enhanced turbidity between zein and CS (from 90.89 nm to 1368.77 nm). The morphology study showed that spherical particles and coacervate were obtained with the increased interaction between zein and CS. The release profiles of curcumin in vitro indicated that slight burst effect followed by slow release was observed after interacting CS. The ZCNPs at pH 4.0 exhibited smaller particle size (162.07 nm), more stable ζ-potential (49.7 mV), higher encapsulation efficiency (94.67%) and slower release rate. In conclusion, the stronger the interaction was, the lower the curcumin released from the nanoparticles in vitro, and the ZCNPs at pH 4.0 had better potential in oral delivery application.