[Porphyromonas gingivalis promotes the occurrence of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma via an inflammatory microenvironment].

Objective: To investigate the role of an inflammatory microenvironment induced by Porphyromonasgingivalis (P. gingivalis) in the occurrence of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in mice. Methods: A total of 180 C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into 6 groups, i.e. control group, P. gingivalis group, 4NQO group, 4NQO + P. gingivalis group, 4NQO + P. gingivalis + celecoxib group, and 4NQO + P. gingivalis + antibiotic cocktail (ABC, including metronidazole, neomycin, ampicillin, and vancomycin) group, with 30 mice in each group, using the random number table. All mice were normalized by treatment with ABC in drinking water for 2 weeks. In the following 2 weeks, the mice in the control group and the P. gingivalis group were given drinking water, while the other 4 groups were treated with 30 µg/ml 4NQO in the drinking water. In weeks 11-12, the mice in the P. gingivalis group, the 4NQO + P. gingivalis group, the 4NQO + P. gingivalis + celecoxib group, and the 4NQO + P. gingivalis + ABC group were subjected to ligation of the second molar in oral cavity followed by oral P. gingivalis infection thrice weekly for 24 weeks in weeks 11-34. In weeks 13-34, the mice in 4NQO + P. gingivalis+celecoxib group and 4NQO + P. gingivalis + ABC group were administered with celecoxib and ABC for 22 weeks, respectively. At the end of 34 weeks, gross and microscopic alterations were examined followed by RT-qPCR and immunohistochemistry to examine the expression profiles of inflammatory- and tumor-molecules in esophagi of mice. Results: At 34 weeks, 4NQO treatment alone did not affect the foci of papillary hyperproliferation, diseased area, and the thickness of the esophageal wall, but significantly enhanced the foci of hyperproliferation (median 1.00, P＜0.05) and mild/moderate dysplasia (median 2.00, P＜0.01). In addition, the expression levels of IL-6 [8.35(3.45,8.99)], IL-1ß [6.90(2.01,9.72)], TNF-α [12.04(3.31,14.08)], c-myc [2.21(1.80,3.04)], pSTAT3, Ki-67, and pH2AX were higher than those in the control group. The pathological changes of the esophageal mucosa were significantly more overt in the 4NQO + P. gingivalis group in terms of the foci of papillary hyperproliferation (median 2.00), diseased area (median 2.51 mm2), the thickness of the esophageal wall (median 172.52 µm), the foci of hyperproliferation (median 1.00, P＜0.05), and mild/moderate dysplasia (median 1.00, P＜0.01). In mice of the 4NQO + P. gingivalis group, the expression levels of IL-6 [12.27(5.35,22.08)], IL-1ß [13.89(10.04,15.96)], TNF-α [19.56(6.07,20.36)], IFN-γ [11.37(8.23,20.07)], c-myc [2.62(1.51,4.25)], cyclin D1 [4.52(2.68,7.83)], nuclear pSTAT3, COX-2, Ki-67, and pH2AX were significantly increased compared with the mice in the control group. In mice of the 4NQO + P. gingivalis group, the diseased area, invasive malignant foci as well as pSTAT3 and pH2AX expression were significantly blunted by celecoxib. Treatment with ABC markedly reduced the papillary hyperproliferative foci, invasive malignant foci, and pSTAT3 expression but not pH2AX. Conclusions: P. gingivalis promotes the occurrence of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in mice by inducing an inflammatory microenvironment primed with 4NQO induced DNA damage. Clearance of P. gingivalis with ABC or anti-inflammatory intervention holds promise for prevention of esophageal squamous cell malignant pathogenesis via blockage of IL-6/STAT3 signaling and amelioration of inflammation.

MiR-466 as a poor prognostic predictor suppresses cell proliferation and EMT in breast cancer cells by targeting PSMA7.

The article "MiR-466 as a poor prognostic predictor suppresses cell proliferation and EMT in breast cancer cells by targeting PSMA7, by Y. Xiao, S.-J. Zhang, X. Yan, C. Wu, Q.-W. Liu, H.-X. Dong, L.-J. Wang, Y. Hu, published in Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2021; 25 (18): 5625-5635-DOI: 10.26355/eurrev_202109_26782-PMID: 34604955" has been retracted by the authors as they state that some data cannot be repeated by further experiments. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. https://www.europeanreview.org/article/26782.

MiR-466 as a poor prognostic predictor suppresses cell proliferation and EMT in breast cancer cells by targeting PSMA7.

OBJECTIVE: MiR-466 has been reported to exert a tumor-suppressive role in several cancers, including colorectal cancer and osteosarcoma, but its clinical significance and functional mechanisms in breast cancer (BC) pathogenesis still remain elusive. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The expression of miR-466 was determined using reverse transcription quantitative PCR. The clinical significance of miR-466 in BC patients was assessed by Chi-square test, Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression analyses. Functional experiments, including CCK-8 and transwell assays, were performed to analyze cell proliferation, migration and invasion ability. The association between miR-466 and proteasome subunit α7 (PSMA7) was confirmed by Luciferase reporter assay. RESULTS: Here, we first observed that the expression of miR-466 was significantly downregulated in BC tissues and cell lines. The decreased miR-466 expression was significantly associated with tumor size (p = 0.003), lymph node metastasis (p = 0.008), TNM stage (p = 0.032) and poor survival rate. In addition, miR-466 was identified as an independent prognostic factor for BC patients. We further found that the overexpression of miR-466 significantly inhibited cell proliferation, migration and invasion. Mechanistically, PSMA7 was a potential target gene of miR-466 and negatively regulated miR-466 in BC cells. Oncomine database and Kaplan-Meier overall survival analysis indicated that upregulation of PSMA7 was associated with poor prognosis of BC patients. The rescue experiments demonstrated that PSMA7 overexpression reversed the effects of miR-466 on cell proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT transcription factors (E-cadherin, N-cadherin, and vimentin). CONCLUSIONS: Collectively, these results suggest that the miR-466/PSMA7 axis might have potential as a therapeutic target for BC treatment.

Study of the Structure and Properties of ZnS Utilized in a Fluorescence Biosensor.

ZnS materials have been widely used in fluorescence biosensors to characterize different types of stem cells due to their excellent fluorescence effect. In this study, ZnS was prepared by vulcanizing nano-Zn particles synthesized using a DC arc plasma. The composition and structure of the ZnS materials were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD), and their functional group information and optical properties were investigated by using IR spectrophotometry and UV-vis spectrophotometry. It has been found that the synthesized materials consist of Zn, cubic ZnS, and hexagonal ZnS according to the vulcanization parameters. Crystalline ZnS was gradually transformed from a cubic to a hexagonal structure, and the cycling properties first increase, then decrease with increasing sulfurization temperature. There is an optimal curing temperature giving the best cycling performance and specific capacity: the material sulfurized thereat mainly consists of cubic ß-ZnS phase with a small quantity of Zn and hexagonal α-ZnS. The cubic phase ZnS has better conductivity than hexagonal ZnS, as evinced by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The ZnS (as prepared) shows board absorption, which can be used in fluorescence biosensors in cell imaging systems.

[Effect and mechanism of PRDX1 in epithelial mesenchymal transformationin of gastric cancer cells].

Objective: To explore the effect and mechanism of peroxiredoxin1 (PRDX1) in epithelial mesenchymal transformation (EMT) of gastric cancer cells. Methods: The expression of PRDX1 protein was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 70 paraffin specimens of cancer and normal mucosa adjacent to gastric cancer, and the relationship between PRDX1 protein and clinicopathological characteristics was analyzed. Then PRDX1-small interfering RNA (siRNA) was synthetized and transfected into human gastric cancer cell line AGS, and 3-(4, 5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2, 5-diphenyl-2H tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was used to test cell proliferation. Transwell chamber assay was employed to test invasion of cells. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and western blot were utilized to test the expressions of PRDX1, E-cadherin, N-cadherin, vimentin, and claudin-1. Results: The positive rate of PRDX1 protein expression in gastric cancer was 81.4%, higher than that in normal mucosa (27.1%, P<0.05). The expression of PRDX1 protein was related to invasive depth and lymph node metastasis of gastric cancer (P<0.05). The expressions of PRDX1 mRNA and protein in AGS cells (2.216±0.445, 1.212±0.136), were higher than those in GES-1 cells (0.342±0.041, 0.328±0.038) (P<0.05). When PRDX1-siRNA was transfected into AGS cells, the proliferation of AGS cells was significantly inhibited (all P<0.05). The invasion and migration rate of AGS cells in the transfection group [(112.00±17.98), (50.87±9.79)%] were significantly lower than those of the negative control group [(192.50±22.02), (83.03±8.67)%] and blank control group [(193.83±22.40), (82.40±7.21)%] (all P<0.05). The expressions of mRNA and protein of N-cadherin, vimentin and claudin-1 decreased, while the expression of E-cadherin increased when PRDX1-siRNA was transfected into AGS cells (P<0.05). Conclusion: PRDX1 may promote the development of gastric cancer by regulating the EMT of gastric cancer cells.

Pharmacokinetics of dexmedetomidine administered to patients with end-stage renal failure and secondary hyperparathyroidism undergoing general anaesthesia.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: The primary objective of this study was to compare the pharmacokinetics of dexmedetomidine in patients with end-stage renal failure and secondary hyperparathyroidism with those in normal individuals. METHOD: Fifteen patients with end-stage renal failure and secondary hyperparathyroidism (Renal-failure Group) and 8 patients with normal renal and parathyroid gland function (Control Group) received intravenous 0.6 µg/kg dexmedetomidine for 10 minutes before anaesthesia induction. Arterial blood samples for plasma dexmedetomidine concentration analysis were drawn at regular intervals after the infusion was stopped. The pharmacokinetics were analysed using a nonlinear mixed-effect model with NONMEM software. The statistical significance of covariates was examined using the objective function (-2 log likelihood). In the forward inclusion and backward deletion, covariates (age, weight, sex, height, lean body mass [LBM], body surface area [BSA], body mass index [BMI], plasma albumin and grouping factor [renal failure or not]) were tested for significant effects on pharmacokinetic parameters. The validity of our population model was also evaluated using bootstrap simulations. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The dexmedetomidine concentration-time curves fitted best with the principles of a two-compartmental pharmacokinetic model. No covariate of systemic clearance further improved the model. The final pharmacokinetic parameter values were as follows: V1  = 60.6 L, V2  = 222 L, Cl1  = 0.825 L/min and Cl2  = 4.48 L/min. There was no influence of age, weight, sex, height, LBM, BSA, BMI, plasma albumin and grouping factor (renal failure or not) on pharmacokinetic parameters. Although the plasma albumin concentrations (35.46 ± 4.13 vs 44.10 ± 1.12 mmol/L, respectively, P < .05) and dosage of propofol were significantly lower in the Renal-failure Group than in the Control Group (81.68 ± 18.08 vs 63.07 ± 13.45 µg/kg/min, respectively, P < .05), there were no differences in the context-sensitive half-life and the revival time of anaesthesia between the 2 groups. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: The pharmacokinetics of dexmedetomidine were best described by a two-compartment model in our study. The pharmacokinetic parameters of dexmedetomidine in patients with end-stage renal failure and hyperparathyroidism were similar to those in patients with normal renal function. Further studies of dexmedetomidine pharmacokinetics are recommended to optimize its clinical use.

Hox genes reveal genomic DNA variation in tetraploid hybrids derived from Carassius auratus red var. (female) × Megalobrama amblycephala (male).

BACKGROUND: Allotetraploid F1 hybrids (4nF1) (AABB, 4n = 148) were generated from the distant hybridization of Carassius auratus red var. (RCC) (AA, 2n = 100) (♀) × Megalobrama amblycephala (BSB) (BB, 2n = 48) (♂). It has been reported that Hox gene clusters are highly conserved among plants and vertebrates. In this study, we investigated the genomic organization of Hox gene clusters in the allotetraploid F1 hybrids and their parents to investigate the polyploidization process. RESULTS: There were three copies of Hox genes in the 4nF1 hybrids, two copies in RCC and one copy in BSB. In addition, obvious variation and pseudogenization were observed in some Hox genes from 4nF1. CONCLUSION: Our results reveal the influence of polyploidization on the organization and evolution of Hox gene clusters in fish and also clarify some aspects of vertebrate genome evolution.

Tert-Butylhydroquinone Protects Liver Against Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Rats Through Nrf2-Activating Anti-Oxidative Activity.

BACKGROUND: Hepatic ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is a serious complication that occurs in surgical operations such as hepatectomy and liver transplantation. NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a transcription factor that has been proven against inflammatory and oxidative injury. Tert-butylhydroquinone (tBHQ), a widely used Nrf2 activator, is a common food preservative. In this study, we attempt to investigate the potential protective role of tBHQ in hepatic I/R injury. METHODS: Twenty adult male rats were randomly divided into four groups: (1) sham+vehicle group; (2) I/R+vehicle group; (3) sham+tBHQ group; and (4) I/R+tBHQ group. The vehicle or tBHQ was divided into three injections at intervals of 12 hours in a model of hepatic I/R injury. Fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis were used to examine Nrf2 mRNA and protein expression. The concentrations of malondialdehyde and superoxide dismutase activity were accessed, respectively. RESULTS: Compared with the sham+vehicle group, Nrf2 expression, malondialdehyde, content and serum alanine aminotransferase were significantly increased in the I/R+vehicle group, whereas superoxide dismutase activity was significantly decreased. However, in the I/R+tBHQ group, tBHQ ameliorated tissue damage; promoted glutathione-S-transferase, quinine oxidoreductase 1, and glutamate cysteine ligase inductions; and regained redox homeostasis in comparison with the I/R+vehicle group. Furthermore, the present study indicated that preconditioning with tBHQ suppressed the I/R-induced increase in the apoptotic protein levels of caspase-3, as well as the I/R-induced decrease in the levels of anti-apoptotic protein bcl-2. CONCLUSIONS: t-BHQ exerted potent anti-inflammatory effects in I/R-induced liver injury, and tBHQ would be a new effectively therapeutic measure for preventing hepatic I/R injury during liver surgery.

The influences of ambient temperature and crude protein levels on performance and serum biochemical parameters in broilers.

This study was undertaken to investigate the effects of ambient temperature, crude protein levels and their interaction on performance and serum biochemical parameters of broiler chickens. A total of 216 Arbor Acre broiler chickens (108 males and 108 females) were used in a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement and randomly reared at two temperatures (normal temperature: 23 °C; daily cyclic high temperature: 28-32 °C) and fed on three diets with different crude protein levels (153.3, 183.3 or 213.3 g/kg, with constant essential amino acids) from 28 to 42 days of age. Daily cyclic high ambient temperature decreased final body weight, average daily weight gain, average daily feed intake and serum total protein contents (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p = 0.008 respectively), but increased feed/gain, mortality, respiratory rate, rectal temperature, serum uric acid contents and serum creatine kinase activity (p = 0.008, p = 0.003, p < 0.0001, p < 0.0001, p < 0.0001, p = 0.003 respectively), irrespective of crude protein levels. At the ambient temperature, reducing crude protein levels resulted in an increase in feed/gain (p < 0.001), but a decrease in serum total protein and uric acid contents. Only serum creatine kinase activity in broiler chickens was interacted by daily cyclic high ambient temperature and dietary crude protein levels (p = 0.003). These results indicated that daily cyclic high ambient temperature had a great effect on performance and serum biochemical parameters in broiler chickens, whereas dietary crude protein levels affected them partially.

Association between positive murine double minute 2 expression and clinicopathological characteristics of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a meta-analysis.

The correlations of murine double minute 2 (MDM2) T309G and esophageal cancer were elucidated because the association between MDM2 expression states and clinicopathological parameters of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is controversial. We conducted a meta-analysis on studies screened from PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and the Chinese Biomedical Literature Databases that were published before October 2014. All studies describing the association between MDM2 and ESCC were traced. Meta-analysis was performed using the STATA software (Stata Corp., College Station, TX, USA). A total of 9 studies with 707 cases and 324 controls were included. MDM2 expression was higher in ESCC than in normal esophageal epithelium (odds ratio [OR] 10.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] 6.42-16.78, P < 0.001). High MDM2 expression was associated with early primary tumor stage (T1/T2 vs. T3/T4, OR 0.59, 95% CI 0.38-0.92, P = 0.018) and increased risk of regional lymph node metastasis (N0 vs. N1, OR 1.66, 95% CI 1.03-2.67, P = 0.039). However, no relationship was observed between MDM2 expression and the risk of distant metastasis (OR = 2.09, 95% CI 1.00-4.36, P = 0.050), and MDM2 was not significantly correlated with TP53 expression (OR 1.22, 95% CI 0.53-2.77, P = 0.643). Our analysis suggests that MDM2 acts as a potent marker of early primary tumor stage but higher risk of regional lymph node metastasis in ESCC. However, because of the limited number of studies included, the result should be further clarified by well-designed prospective studies.

Prophylactic thoracic duct ligation has unfavorable impact on overall survival in patients with resectable oesophageal cancer.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the impact of prophylactic thoracic duct ligation on overall survival in resectable oesophageal cancer patients. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 1804 patients with oesophageal cancers who underwent complete resection between December 1996 and December 2008. Based on the management of the thoracic duct during surgery, patients were classified into the following two groups: no prophylactic thoracic duct ligation group (NPLG, n = 815) and prophylactic thoracic duct ligation group (PLG, n = 989). Log-rank test was used to assess the survival differences between groups. Subgroup analysis and the Cox proportional hazards model were used to further determine the impact of thoracic duct ligation on overall survival. RESULTS: The occurrence rate of postoperative chylothorax was comparable between NPLG and PLG (0.9% vs. 1.0%, p = 0.739). The median survival times for patients in the NPLG and PLG were 54.4 months (95% interval confidence, CI: 46.9-61.9) and 42.9 months (95% CI: 36.1-49.7), respectively (p = 0.002). The 2-year, 3-year, 5-year, and 10-year survival rates were 75.1%, 64.1%, 46.1%, and 35.1%, respectively, in the NPLG and 65.3%, 54.7%, 43.3%, and 30.9%, respectively, in the PLG, with a statistically significant difference between the groups (p = 0.002). Multivariate Cox regression analysis and subgroup analyses also demonstrated that thoracic duct ligation during oesophagectomy unfavorably impacted the overall survival of oesophageal cancer patients. CONCLUSIONS: Prophylactic thoracic ligation reduces the overall survival, but doesn't reduce the occurrence of chylothorax of resectable oesophageal cancer patients. We suggest more data from other institutions to validate our results.

Preoperative level of serum amyloid A is superior to C-reactive protein in the prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Preoperative elevations in the levels of serum amyloid A (SAA) or C-reactive protein (CRP) have been reported to be prognostic indicators in several malignancies. The aim of this study is to evaluate the serum levels of SAA and CRP in the prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). In total, 252 patients with ESCC who had undergone surgery with curative-intent were retrospectively recruited. The specificity, sensitivity, and prognostic value of SAA or CRP levels were measured as the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC). The clinical value of SAA and CRP levels as prognostic indicators was evaluated using Cox's proportional hazards model. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival (OS) rates for the entire cohort of patients with ESCC were 71.0%, 61.0%, and 43.0%, respectively. The correlation between the levels of SAA and CRP was significant (r(2) = 0. 685, P < 0.001). The ROC analysis showed that the levels of CRP were associated with a significantly lower overall accuracy than were the SAA levels (AUC, 0.615 vs. 0.880; P < 0.001). For the complete cohort, the median OS was 52.0 months longer in patients with low preoperative serum levels of SAA (72.0 months) compared with patients who had high SAA levels (20.0 months, P < 0.001). The median OS among patients with low CRP levels was also longer compared with the patients who had high CRP levels (72.0 vs. 51.0 months, respectively; P < 0.001). Subgroup analyses showed that the preoperative elevated levels of SAA could find significant differences in OS for stage I, stage II, and stage III (P < 0.001, P = 0.001, and P < 0.001, respectively), whereas the increased levels of CRP could only find a difference in OS for stage II cancers. After a multivariate analysis, preoperative elevated level of SAA was found to be an independently and significant prognostic factor (P < 0.001). Our study indicates that the preoperative levels of SAA and CRP can act as prognostic factors, and that elevated levels of these proteins are associated with negative effects on the survival of patients with ESCC. SAA showed a higher prognostic value than CRP in both cohort and subgroup analysis.

The impact of body mass index on complication and survival in resected oesophageal cancer: a clinical-based cohort and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Body mass index (BMI) has been associated with the risk of oesophageal cancer. But the influence of BMI on postoperative complication and prognosis has always been controversial. METHODS: In total, 2031 consecutive patients who underwent oesophagectomy between 1998 and 2008 were classified according to Asian-specific BMI (kg m(-2)) cutoff values. The impact of BMI on overall survival (OS) was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazard models. We performed a meta-analysis to examine the association of BMI with OS and postoperative complication. RESULTS: Patients with higher BMI had more postoperative complication (P=0.002), such as anastomotic leakage (P=0.016) and cardiovascular diseases (P<0.001), but less incidence of chylous leakage (P=0.010). Logistic regression analysis showed that BMI (P=0.005) was a confounding factor associated with postoperative complication. Multivariate analysis showed that overweight and obese patients had a more favourable survival than normal weight patients (HR (hazard ratio) = 0.80, 95% CI (confidence interval): 0.70-0.92, P=0.001). Subgroup analysis showed that the association with higher BMI and increased OS was observed in patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) (P<0.001), oesophageal adenocarcinoma (EA) (P=0.034), never-smoking (P=0.035), ever-smoking (P=0.035), never alcohol consumption (P=0.005), weight loss (P=0.003) and advanced pathological stage (P<0.001). The meta-analysis further corroborated that higher BMI was associated with increased complication of anastomotic leakage (RR (risk ratio)=1.04, 95% CI: 1.02-1.06, P=0.001), wound infection (RR=1.03, 95% CI: 1.00-1.05, P=0.031) and cardiovascular diseases (RR=1.02, 95% CI: 1.00-1.05, P=0.039), but decreased incidence of chylous leakage (RR=0.98, 95% CI: 0.96-0.99, P<0.001). In addition, high BMI could significantly improved OS (HR=0.78, 95% CI: 0.71-0.85, P<0.001). CONCLUSION: Preoperative BMI was an independent prognostic factor for survival, and strongly associated with postoperative complications in oesophageal cancer.

Identification of EGFR and KRAS mutations in Chinese patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

The prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is poor. It is urgent to improve this situation. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-targeted therapy possesses a promising clinical efficacy. Mutations of EGFR and V-Ki-ras2 Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS) have been identified in esophageal carcinoma, but corresponding Chinese data are limited. So we investigated the mutation status of EGFR and KRAS in Chinese patients with ESCC, and explored their correlations with clinicopathological features. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded surgically resected tumor samples were obtained from 50 randomly selected Chinese patients with ESCC. EGFR mutations in exons 18-21 were detected by Scorpions amplification refractory mutation system technology. KRAS mutations in codons 12, 13 were detected by direct sequencing of polymerase chain reaction products. The correlations between clinicopathological features and the mutation status of EGFR and KRAS were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. In the present study, EGFR mutations were found in 7 (14%) out of 50 patients, including G719X missense mutation (n= 1), in-frame deletion (n= 2), and L858R missense mutation (n= 5). Six (12%) out of 50 patients had KRAS mutations in codon 12. Concurrent EGFR and KRAS mutations were detected in one sample. The presences of EGFR and KRAS mutations were not associated with gender, age, smoking history, cell differentiation, or cancer stage. In conclusion, the incidence of EGFR mutations in Chinese patients with ESCC was higher than that of previous reports, and the incidence of KRAS mutations was not low. EGFR and KRAS mutations were mainly located in exons 19 and 21 and codon 12, respectively. Unlike in NSCLC, concurrent EGFR and KRAS mutations existed.

Urceolatol, a tetracyclic bromobenzaldehyde dimer from Polysiphonia urceolata.

Urceolatol (1), a novel bromobenzaldehyde dimer, together with one known bromophenol, 3-bromo-4,5-dihydroxy-benzaldehyde (2), were isolated from the red alga Polysiphonia urceolata. The structure and absolute stereochemistry of 1 were elucidated to be (5R,10R)-2,7-dibromo-3,8-dihydroxy-5,10-dimethoxyl-5,10-dihydrochromeno[5,4,3-cde]chromene, on the basis of spectroscopic techniques and X-ray diffraction analysis.