Preliminary Study on the Application of Nanochitosan Film and Petrolatum Gauze in the Modified Devine Operation.

Although the use of sterile petroleum jelly gauze combined with nanochitosan film to wrap wounds has been proven to have good results, it has not been applied for modified Devine surgery. The use of sterile petroleum jelly gauze alone in the modified Devine surgery to treat concealed penis in children has different effects. In this study, the systematic evaluation of the effect of the modified Devine technique (Vaseline gauze bandaging the wound) in the treatment of concealed penis in children is conducted. Furthermore, the application of nanochitosan film and Vaseline gauze in the modified Devine technique is proposed. By analytical search in PubMed, China Knowledge Network (CKN), and other Chinese and foreign literature databases, there are 13 studies describing the development of the penis during the follow-up period with high satisfaction of patients and their family members. In addition, systematic evaluations have shown that the complete removal of the fibrotic penile sarcoid tissue is an important reason for the remarkable curative effect of the modified Devine surgery in the treatment of concealed penis in children.

A Modified Scrotoplasty for Treating Severe Penoscrotal Webbing in Children.

To compare a novel modified W-incision scrotoplasty (MWS) operation method with the conventional V-Y scrotoplasty for treatment of severe penoscrotal webbing (PSW) in children a retrospective study was conducted on 26 children. Circumcision combined with modified scrotoplasty was used to repair the webbed penis and phimosis of children and another 32 patients undergoing V-Y scrotoplasty served as the control group. There was a statistically significant difference of angle improvements of penis and scrotum in a horizontal position (-66 ± 10; -57 ± 6, P < 0.001) and the parent satisfaction score (Five Likert Scale) (4.7 ± 0.56; 3.8 ± 0.47, P < 0.001) between the two groups. All 26 children who underwent MWS presented with no serious postoperative complications, and there was no significant difference in surgical complications compared to children treated with V-Y scrotoplasty.

Minimally invasive open nephrectomy on children with multicystic dysplastic kidney.

The aim of the study was to summarize the preliminary experience of minimally invasive open nephrectomy operation on children with multicystic dysplastic kidney (MCDK). A retrospective review was performed on the clinical materials of the 15 children that had accepted consecutive minimally invasive open nephrectomies during the previous 2 years. The enrolled children were diagnosed with unilateral MCDK under computed tomography, emission computerized tomography and ultrasound and no anomaly in the contralateral functioning kidney was found. Of the 15 children, 12 were boys and 3 were girls, with 5 cases on the right and 10 cases on the left. Operations were completed at the retroperitoneal space in order to open an incision on the waists and ribs of the children, the length of which ranged from 1.5 to 2.0 cm (average 1.7 cm). The age of the children at operation ranged from 3 months to 5.6 years old, with an average of 2.4 years old. Surgery lasted for 30-50 min, with an average of 34.6 min. The estimated blood loss of each child was <5 ml. After operation, prophylactic intravenous antibiotics were administered for 2-4 days to prevent infection. All of the operations proved very successful. Following surgery the children were hospitalized for 2-4 days for observation, with an average of 2.8 days. No complications occurred during the follow-up period. In conclusion, minimally invasive open nephrectomy is effective for children with MCDK. The procedure is superior with regard to operative time, cosmesis, and length of stay. It is a safe and effective treatment choice for patietns with MCDK and can be easily performed on children.

Oncolytic adenovirus-mediated short hairpin RNA targeting MYCN gene induces apoptosis by upregulating RKIP in neuroblastoma.

The amplification of MYCN is a typical characteristic of aggressive neuroblastomas, whereas acquired mutations of p53 lead to refractory and relapsed cases. We had previously examined the applicability of the replication-competent oncolytic adenovirus, ZD55-shMYCN, to deliver a short hairpin RNA targeting MYCN gene for p53-null and MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cell line LA1-55N. Our data have shown that ZD55-shMYCN has an additive tumor growth inhibitory response through shRNA-mediated MYCN knockdown and ZD55-mediated cancer cell lysis. In this regard, ZD55-shMYCN can downregulate MYCN and perform anticancer effects, thereby acquiring significance in the administration of MYCN-amplified and p53-null neuroblastomas. Hence, we further investigated the anticancer properties of ZD55-shMYCN in neuroblastomas. Our data showed that ZD55-shMYCN induced G2/M arrest via decreasing the levels of cyclin D1 and cyclin B1 irrespective of p53 status. ZD55-shMYCN effectively induced apoptosis in neuroblastomas through activation of caspase-3 and enhancing PARP cleavage. Furthermore, ZD55-shMYCN could downregulate phosphoinositide 3-kinase and pAkt and upregulate RKIP levels. Similarly, pro-apoptosis was revealed by the histopathologic examination of paraffin-embedded section of resected tumors of mice xenograft. In vitro and in vivo studies, we elucidate the apoptosis properties and mechanisms of action of ZD55-shMYCN, which provide a promising approach for further clinical development.

Interleukin-24 induces neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell differentiation, growth inhibition, and apoptosis by promoting ROS production.

Neuroblastoma is among the most aggressive tumors that occur in childhood and infancy. The clinical prognosis of children with advanced-stage neuroblastoma is still poor. Interleukin-24 (IL-24) is emerging as a new cytokine involved in tumor cellular proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis and has been widely studied as a tumor inhibitor. However, little is known about this cytokine's role in neuroblastoma. In this study, we investigated the possible effects of IL-24 on inducing neuroblastoma cell differentiation, growth inhibition, and apoptosis in vitro. Our data show that IL-24 promotes neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell differentiation, growth inhibition, and apoptosis. Furthermore, we found that the differentiation- and apoptosis-inducing action of IL-24 depends on the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). These results suggest that IL-24 can induce neuroblastoma cell differentiation and apoptosis and may be a potential therapeutic agent for neuroblastoma.

Oncolytic adenovirus armed with shRNA targeting MYCN gene inhibits neuroblastoma cell proliferation and in vivo xenograft tumor growth.

PURPOSE: MYCN amplification and p53 inactivation are two typical characteristics of aggressive neuroblastomas and are strongly associated with cancer progression and treatment failure. In an effort to develop new therapeutic agents to treat the aggressive neuroblastomas, we constructed ZD55-shMYCN, an oncolytic adenovirus ZD55 carrying short hairpin RNA (shRNA) targeting MYCN gene, and investigated the effects on proliferation of the p53-null and MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cell line LA1-55N in vitro and in vivo by ZD55-shMYCN. METHODS: In this study, we used ZD55-shMYCN to treat p53-null and MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cells. To confirm the ability of selective replication of the ZD55-shMYCN, we examined the expression of E1A protein by western blotting. We used quantitative real-time PCR analysis and western blotting analysis to determine the inhibitory effect of ZD55-shMYCN on MYCN expression. MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] cell proliferation assay and xenograft mouse model were used to test the antigrowth efficacy of ZD55-shMYCN. RESULTS: The results showed that ZD55-shMYCN selectively replicated and significantly downregulated the MYCN expression in LA1-55N cells. ZD55-shMYCN effectively inhibited the proliferation in LA1-55N cells in vitro and significantly inhibited tumor growth in vivo xenograft tumor in nude mice. CONCLUSIONS: ZD55-shMYCN provides a novel agent for treating MYCN-amplified and p53-inactive aggressive neuroblastoma, representing a promising approach for further clinical development.

Diagnosis and treatment of melamine-associated urinary calculus complicated with acute renal failure in infants and young children.

BACKGROUND: Infants in some areas of China developed urinary lithiasis after being fed with powdered milk that was tainted with melamine in 2008 and very small proportion of the infants developed acute renal failure caused by urinary tract calculus obstruction. The aim of this article was to summarize clinical characteristics, diagnosis and treatment of infants with urinary calculus and acute renal failure developed after being fed with melamine tainted formula milk. METHODS: Data of infant patients with urinary calculus and acute renal failure due to melamine tainted formula milk admitted to the Beijing Children's Hospital Affiliated to the Capital Medical University and the Xuzhou Children's Hospital in 2008 were used to analyze the epidemiological characteristics, clinical manifestations, imaging features as well as effects of 4 types of therapies. RESULTS: All the 34 infants with urinary calculus were complicated with acute renal failure, their blood urea nitrogen (BUN) was (24.1+/-8.2) mmol/L and creatinine (Cr) was (384.2+/-201.2) micromol/L. The chemical analysis on the urinary calculus sampled from 15 of the infants showed that the calculus contained melamine and acidum uricum. The time needed for the four types of therapies for returning Cr to normal was (3.5+/-1.9) days for cystoscopy group, (2.7+/-1.1) days for lithotomy group, (3.8+/-2.3) days for dialysis group, and (2.7+/-1.6) days for medical treatment group, which had no statistically significant difference (P=0.508). Renal failure of all the 34 infants was relieved within 1 to 7 days, averaging (3.00+/-1.78) days. CONCLUSIONS: Melamine tainted formula milk may cause urinary calculus and obstructive acute renal failure. It is suggested that firstly the patients with urinary calculus complicated with acute renal failure should be treated with dialysis or medication to correct electrolyte disturbance, in particular hyperkalemia, and then relieve the obstruction with available medical and surgical methods as soon as possible. It was observed that the short-term prognosis was satisfactory.

[Melamine related urinary calculus and acute renal failure in infants].

OBJECTIVE: To summarize clinical characteristics, diagnosis and treatment of infants with urinary calculus and acute renal failure developed after being fed with melamine tainted formula milk. METHODS: Data of infant patients with urinary calculus and acute renal failure due to melamine tainted formula milk admitted to the Beijing Children's Hospital affiliated to the Capital Medical University and the Xuzhou Children's Hospital in 2008 were used to analyze the epidemiological characteristics, clinical manifestations, image features as well as effects of 4 types of therapies. RESULTS: All the 34 infants with urinary calculus were complicated with acute renal failure, their blood urea nitrogen (BUN) was (24.1 +/- 8.2) mmol/L and creatinine (Cr) was (384.2 +/- 201.2) micromol/L. The chemical analysis on the urinary calculus sampled from 14 of the infants showed that the calculus contained melamine and acidum uricum. The time needed for the four types of therapies for returning Cr to normal was (3.5 +/- 1.9) d for cystoscopy group, (2.7 +/- 1.1) d for lithotomy group, (3.8 +/- 2.3) d for dialysis group, and (2.7 +/- 1.6) d for medical treatment group, which had no statistically significant difference (P = 0.508). Renal failure of all the 34 infants was relieved within 1 to 7 days, averaging (3.0 +/- 1.8) d. CONCLUSION: Melamine tainted formula milk may cause urinary calculus and obstructive acute renal failure. It is suggested that firstly the patients with urinary calculus complicated with acute renal failure should be treated with dialysis or medication to correct electrolyte disturbances, in particular hyperkalemia, and then relieve the obstruction with available medical and surgical methods as soon as possible. It is observed that the short term prognosis is satisfactory.