Circular RNA circSPATA6 Inhibits the Progression of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Cells by Regulating TRAF6 via miR-182.

BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) has become a widely concerned social problem. Circular RNA spermatogenesis-associated protein 6 (circSPATA6) exhibited low expression in OSCC tissues, yet the regulatory mechanism of circSPATA6 remains vague. METHODS: Levels of circSPATA6, linear SPATA6, microRNA-182 (miR-182), and tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6) were detected by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Migration, invasion, cell cycle arrest, and apoptosis were assessed by Wound-healing, Matrigel invasion, and Flow cytometry assays. The binding relationship between miR-182 and circSPATA6 or TRAF6 was predicted by circRNA interactome or DIANA TOOL and then proved by the dual-luciferase reporter and RNA Immunoprecipitation (RIP) assays. TRAF6 protein level was measured by Western blot assay. The biological role of circSPATA6 on OSCC tumor growth was analyzed by xenograft tumor model in vivo. Exosomes were isolated and detected by differential centrifugation and a transmission electron microscope. RESULTS: CircSPATA6 and TRAF6 were declined, and miR-182 was elevated in OSCC cells. Functionally, circSPATA6 impeded migration and invasion, and facilitated cell cycle arrest and apoptosis of OSCC cells. Mechanistically, circSPATA6 could modulate TRAF6 expression through sponging miR-182. Moreover, circSPATA6 blocked tumor growth in the OSCC mice model. Exosomal circSPATA6 retarded the growth of OSCC cells. CONCLUSION: CircSPATA6 curbed migration and invasion, and expedited cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in OSCC cells partly through regulating the miR-182/TRAF6 axis. These findings hinted at an underlying circRNA-targeted therapy for OSCC.

Expression of miR-93-5p in patients with esophageal carcinoma and its relationship with the curative effect and prognosis of radiotherapy.

This study aimed to investigate the expression of miR-93-5p in esophageal carcinoma-patients and its relationship with the curative effect and prognosis of radiotherapy. 102 patients with esophageal carcinoma treated in Yiwu Central Hospital from May 2013 to July 2015 were considered as the experimental group, and 89 healthy people for physical examination during the same period were selected as the control group. The expression of miR-93-5p in the serum of the two groups was compared. Based on the mean expression of miR-93-5p in serum, esophageal carcinoma patients were divided into high expression and low expression groups. Then the relationship between clinical-pathological characteristics and the expression of miR-93-5p was analyzed. The curative effect of radiotherapy in patients with esophageal carcinoma was evaluated, and the relationship between the expression of miR-93-5p, the curative effect of radiotherapy and the 3-year survival rate in patients with esophageal carcinoma was analyzed. The expression of miR-93-5p in the serum of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group (P< 0.05); there was a significant correlation between the expression of miR-93-5p and pathological stage (P< 0.05). The expression of miR-93-5p in the effective radiotherapy group was significantly lower than that in the ineffective radiotherapy group (P< 0.05). ROC curve showed that the sensitivity and specificity of miR-93-5p in predicting radiotherapy response of esophageal carcinoma were 88.57 and 64.69% respectively, AUC was 0.864 (95%CI:0.791~0.936), P< 0.001; the 3-year survival rate of low expression group was significantly higher than that of high expression group (P< 0.05). In Conclusion, the expression of miR-93-5p was high in esophageal carcinoma patients, and the higher the expression, the worse the curative effect of radiotherapy and the worse the prognosis, which may be a new predictor of radiotherapy effect and prognosis in patients with esophageal carcinoma.

Piezoluminescence from ferroelectric Ca3Ti2O7:Pr3+ long-persistent phosphor.

A variety of up-and-coming applications of piezoluminescence in artificial skins, structural health diagnosis, and mechano-driven lightings and displays recently have triggered an intense research effort to design and develop new piezoluminescent materials. In this work, we deduced and verified an efficient piezoluminescence in ferroelectric Ca3Ti2O7:Pr3+ long-persistent phosphor, in view of three fundamental elements forming piezoluminescence - piezoelectricity, luminescent centers and carrier traps. Under the stimulation of mechanical actions including compression and friction, Ca3Ti2O7:Pr3+ shows an intense red emission from 1D2-3H4 transition of Pr3+. On the basis of investigations on structural and optical characteristics especially photoluminescence, persistent luminescence and thermoluminescence, we finally proposed a possible piezoluminescent mechanism in Ca3Ti2O7:Pr3+. Our research is expected to expand the horizon of existing piezoluminescent materials, accelerating the development and application of new materials.

Role of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in differentiating malignancies from benign ovarian tumors.

OBJECTIVE: We conducted a case-control study to evaluate the diagnostic values of computed tomography (CT) and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) in differentiating malignancies from benign ovarian tumors and a meta-analysis to further confirm our results on DW-MRI. METHODS: Totally 64 patients pathologically confirmed as ovarian cancer were included in this study. CT scan and DWI-MRI were performed and analyzed to get compared with pathological results, thereby assessing their accuracy, sensitivity and specificity. Meta-analysis was conducted by database searching and strict eligibility criteria, using STATA 12.0 (Stata Corp, College Station, TX, USA) software. RESULTS: The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value for diagnosis of ovarian cancer in CT were 81.82%, 84.48%, 76.67%, 87.50% and 71.88%, respectively; those in DW-MRI were 89.77%, 93.10%, 83.33%, 91.53% and 86.21%, respectively. The Kappa coefficient of DW-MRI (K = 0.771) compared with pathological results was higher than CT (K = 0.602). The average apparent diffusion coefficient values of DW-MRI in diagnosis of benign and malignant ovarian tumors suggested statistically significant difference (1.325 ± 0.269×10(-3) mm(2)/s vs. 0.878 ± 0.246×10(-3) mm(2)/s, P < 0.001). Meta-analysis results showed that the combined sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio and diagnostic odds ratio of DW-MRI in discriminating benign versus malignant ovarian tumors were 0.93, 0.88, 7.70, 0.08 and 101.24, respectively. The area under the summary receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.95. CONCLUSIONS: Both CT and DW-MRI were of great diagnostic value in differentiating malignancies from benign ovarian tumors, while DW-MRI was superior to CT with higher accuracy, sensitivity and specificity.

[Comparative observation on acupuncture-moxibustion and western medication for treatment of sudden deafness].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the therapeutic effect on sudden deafness between acupuncture and moxibustion therapy of excitation-focus transfer and routine medication. METHODS: Eighty cases of sudden deafness were randomly divided into two groups, 40 cases in each one. Acupuncture and moxibustion therapy of excitation-focus transfer was adopted in observation group on Yongquan (KI 1) (with reducing and slightly heavy manipulation), Tinggong (SI 19), Tinghui (GB 2) and Ermen (TE 21), and associated with suspending moxibustion for thermal sensitization on Yongquan (KI 1). In control group, the routine medications were given. The therapeutic effects of two groups were compared with each other. RESULTS: After three sessions of treatment, dB value of hearing loss in two groups decreased (P<0.05, P<0.01), but the improvement of hearing in observation group was superior to that in control group (P<0.05). The total effective rate was 80.0% (32/40) in observation group, which was better than that 55.0% (22/40) in control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Acupuncture and moxibustion therapy of excitation-focus transfer presents superior therapeutic effect on sudden deafness as compared with the routine western therapy.