SIAH2 regulates DNA end resection and replication fork recovery by promoting CtIP ubiquitination.

Human CtIP maintains genomic integrity primarily by promoting 5' DNA end resection, an initial step of the homologous recombination (HR). A few mechanisms have been suggested as to how CtIP recruitment to damage sites is controlled, but it is likely that we do not yet have full understanding of the process. Here, we provide evidence that CtIP recruitment and functioning are controlled by the SIAH2 E3 ubiquitin ligase. We found that SIAH2 interacts and ubiquitinates CtIP at its N-terminal lysine residues. Mutating the key CtIP lysine residues impaired CtIP recruitment to DSBs and stalled replication forks, DSB end resection, overall HR repair capacity of cells, and recovery of stalled replication forks, suggesting that the SIAH2-induced ubiquitination is important for relocating CtIP to sites of damage. Depleting SIAH2 consistently phenocopied these results. Overall, our work suggests that SIAH2 is a new regulator of CtIP and HR repair, and emphasizes that SIAH2-mediated recruitment of the CtIP is an important step for CtIP's function during HR repair.

TOPORS-mediated RAD51 SUMOylation facilitates homologous recombination repair.

Homologous recombination (HR) is critical for error-free repair of DNA double-strand breaks. Chromatin loading of RAD51, a key protein that mediates the recombination, is a crucial step in the execution of the HR repair. Here, we present evidence that SUMOylation of RAD51 is crucial for the RAD51 recruitment to chromatin and HR repair. We found that topoisomerase 1-binding arginine/serine-rich protein (TOPORS) induces the SUMOylation of RAD51 at lysine residues 57 and 70 in response to DNA damaging agents. The SUMOylation was facilitated by an ATM-induced phosphorylation of TOPORS at threonine 515 upon DNA damage. Knockdown of TOPORS or expression of SUMOylation-deficient RAD51 mutants caused reduction in supporting normal RAD51 functions during the HR repair, suggesting the physiological importance of the modification. We found that the SUMOylation-deficient RAD51 reduces the association with its crucial binding partner BRCA2, explaining its deficiency in supporting the HR repair. These findings altogether demonstrate a crucial role for TOPORS-mediated RAD51 SUMOylation in promoting HR repair and genomic maintenance.

Robot-assisted Nipple-sparing Mastectomy With Immediate Breast Reconstruction: An initial Experience of the Korea Robot-endoscopy Minimal Access Breast Surgery Study Group (KoREa-BSG).

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to present the results of early experience of robot-assisted nipple sparing mastectomy (RANSM). BACKGROUND: RANSM improves cosmetic outcomes over conventional nipple-sparing mastectomy. However, data on the feasibility and safety of the RANSM are limited. METHODS: Patients who underwent RANSM with immediate breast reconstruction as part of the Korea Robot-endoscopy Minimal Access Breast Surgery Study Group (KoREa-BSG) from November 2016 to January 2020 were enrolled. clinicopathologic characteristics, perioperative complications, and operation time were collected. RESULTS: Overall, 73 women underwent 82 RANSM procedures conducted by 11 breast surgeons at 8 institutions. The median patient age was 45.5 years old (20-66 years), and 52 (63.4%) patients were premenopausal. Invasive breast cancer was noted in 55 cases (40 cases were stage i, 11 cases were stage ii, and 4 cases were stage iii, respectively) and ductal carcinoma in-situ was recorded in 20 cases. Of those, 3 patients with BRCA1/2 mutation carriers underwent contralateral risk-reducing RANSM. The median length of hospitalization was 12.0 days (5.0-24.0 days). The incision location was the mid-axillary line and the median incision length was 50.0 mm (30.0-60.0 mm). Median total operation time, median total mastectomy time, and median reconstruction time was 307.0 minutes (163.0-796.0 minutes), 189.5 minutes (97.5-325.0 minutes), and 119.5 minutes (45.0-689.0 minutes). Only 2 cases (2.5%) required reoperation. Nipple ischemia was found in 9 cases (10.9%) but only 1 case (1.2%) required nipple excision given that 8 cases (9.7%) resolved spontaneously. Skin ischemia was observed in 5 cases (6.1%) and only 2 (2.4%) cases needed skin excision whereas 3 cases (3.6%) resolved spontaneously. There was no conversion to open surgery orcases of mortality. The mean time for mastectomy among surgeons who performed more than 10 cases was 182.3 minutes (± 53.7, minutes) and 195.4 minutes (± 50.4, minutes). CONCLUSION: This was the first report of RANSM conducted in the KoREa-BSG. RANSM is technically feasible and acceptable with a short learning curve. Further prospective research to evaluate surgical and oncologic outcomes is needed.

Unlocking Rapid Charging and Extended Lifetimes for Li-Ion Batteries Using Freestanding Quantum Conversion-Type Aerofilm Anode.

Batteries capable of quick charging as fast as fossil fuel vehicles are becoming a vital issue in the electric vehicle market. However, conversion-type materials promising as a next-generation anode have many problems to satisfy fast charging and long-term cycles due to their low conductivity and large irreversibility despite a high theoretical capacity. Here, we report effective strategies for a SnO2-based anode to enable rapid-charging, long-cycle, and high reversible capacity. The quantum size of SnO2 nanoparticles uniformly embedded within a 3D conductive carbon matrix as a prerequisite for high reversible capacity increases the interdiffusion layer and facilitates a highly reversible conversion reaction between Li2O/Sn and SnO2. In particular, the Sn-C chemical bond achieves ion-site control and direct electron transfer, enabling boost charging. Further, the robust and porous structure of the binder-free three-dimensional electrode buffers the massive volume expansion during Li insertion/desertion and allows for multidimensional rapid-ion diffusion. As a result, our quantum SnO2 anode delivers a high reversible capacity of about 753 mAh g-1 with a 468% capacity increase after 4000 cycles at 10 C. It also presents a gradually increasing capacity up to 548 mAh g-1 even at 20 C and superior cyclability over 20 000 cycles in capacity stabilization. This study will contribute to designing aerofilm-based conversion-type electrodes for fast charging devices.

Bottom-Up Synthesized All-Thermal-Catalyst Aerogels for Heat-Regenerative Air Filtration.

Airborne particular matter (PM) pollution is an increasing global issue and alternative sources of filter fibers are now an area of significant focus. Compared with relatively mature hazardous gas treatments, state of the art high-efficiency PM filters still lack thermal decomposition ability for organic PM pollutants, such as soot from coal-fired power plants and waste-combustion incinerators, resulting in frequent replacement, high cost, and second-hand pollution. In this manuscript, we propose a bottom-up synthesis method to make the first all-thermal-catalyst air filter (ATCAF). Self-assembled from ∼50 nm diameter TiO2 fibers, ATCAF could not only capture the combustion-generated PM pollutants with >99.999% efficiency but also catalyze the complete decomposition of the as-captured hydrocarbon pollutants at high temperature. It has the potential of in situ eliminating the PM pollutants from burning of hydrocarbon materials leveraging the burning heat.

A serotonin voltammetric biosensor composed of carbon nanocomposites and DNA aptamer.

A sensitive and selective voltammetric biosensor composed of layer-by-layer (LbL) self-assembly of positively charged poly(diallyldimethylammonium)-wrapped oxidized single-walled carbon nanotubes (PDDA-oSWCNTs), negatively charged serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT)-specific aptamer, and tyrosinase on Au nanoparticles deposited screen printed carbon electrode was developed for measurement of 5-HT. Surface characteristics of 5-HT biosensor were explored using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The respective effects of 5-HT-specific aptamer and oSWCNTs on the detection of 5-HT were investigated by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The peak current at the potential of 0.29 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) increased with respect to 5-HT concentration resulting in two dynamic ranges from 0.05 to 0.5 and 1 to 20 µM with a limit of detection of 2 nM from the LbL biosensor in buffer solution, which were better than those without the LbL of aptamer and oSWCNTs. The developed biosensor was applied to the direct determination of 5-HT concentrations in undiluted healthy control and Internet gaming disorder serum samples. The results were verified by comparison with those from liquid chromatography-mass spectrometric analyses.

Clinical Features of Breast Cancer in South Korean Patients with Germline TP53 Gene Mutations.

PURPOSE: Li-Fraumeni syndrome (LFS) is a rare autosomal cancer syndrome caused by a germline mutation in the TP53 gene. Breast cancer in LFS patients is of various subtypes; however, limited data are available on the clinicopathological features of these subtypes and their appropriate treatments. This study aimed to review the clinical features and treatments for breast cancer in South Korean patients with germline TP53 mutations. METHODS: Data on the clinicopathological features and treatment of all breast cancer patients with LFS were collected retrospectively from the available database of 4 tertiary hospitals in the Republic of Korea. RESULTS: Twenty-one breast cancer cases in 12 unrelated women with confirmed germline TP53 mutations were included in the study. The median age at diagnosis was 33.5 years. The histopathological diagnosis included invasive ductal carcinoma (n = 16), ductal carcinoma in situ (n = 3), and malignant phyllodes tumor (n = 2). While 42% and 31% of the cases were positive for estrogen and progesterone receptors, respectively, 52.6% were human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) positive, and 21% were triple-negative. The treatments included mastectomy (52%) and breast-conserving surgery (38%). Five patients underwent radiotherapy (RT). The median follow-up period was 87.5 (8-222) months. There were 3 ipsilateral and 4 contralateral breast recurrences during the follow-up, and 8 patients developed new primary cancers. In the post-RT subgroup, there were 2 ipsilateral and 2 contralateral breast recurrences in 1 patient, and 4 patients had a new primary cancer. CONCLUSION: As reported in other countries, breast cancer in LFS patients in South Korea had an early onset and were predominantly but not exclusively positive for HER2. A multidisciplinary approach with adherence to the treatment guidelines, considering mastectomy, and avoiding RT is encouraged to prevent RT-associated sequelae in LFS patients.

Relation Between Tumor Size and Lymph Node Metastasis According to Subtypes of Breast Cancer.

PURPOSE: Tumor size and lymph node metastasis are important factors that contribute to the progression of breast cancer. We aimed to analyze the relationship between tumor size and lymph node metastasis molecular subtype and examine the effects of nodal metastasis on overall survival (OS). METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the data of 16,552 patients who underwent breast surgery in Samsung Medical Center between 2000 and 2015. Information on tumor size (largest diameter of the invasive component), number of positive lymph nodes, and molecular subtype were obtained. We constructed a linear regression model to evaluate the relationship between tumor size and lymph node metastasis. To determine the effect of nodal metastasis on OS, we performed a Cox proportional regression analysis with Np/T (number of metastatic lymph nodes [n]/tumor size [cm]). RESULTS: This study included 12,007 patients with a median follow-up of 62 months. The linear regression coefficients were 1.043 for luminal A, 1.024 for luminal B, 0.656 for HER2, and 0.435 for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) subtypes. No significant difference was observed in the coefficients between the luminal A and B subtypes (p =0.797), while all other coefficients showed significant difference. After adjusting for other risk factors, the hazard ratio (HR) of Np/T for each subtype was significant for OS: luminal A (HR, 1.134; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.097-1.171; p < 0.001), luminal B (HR, 1.049; 95% CI, 1.013-1.086; p =0.007), HER2 (HR, 1.069; 95% CI, 1.014-1.126; p =0.013), and TNBC (HR, 1.038; 95% CI, 1.01-1.067; p =0.008). CONCLUSION: The incidence of lymph node metastasis differed according to molecular subtype. Luminal types have higher incidence of nodal metastasis than HER2 and TNBC. The HR of Np/T was highest in luminal A subtypes and lowest in TNBC subtypes.

Does chemotherapy or radiotherapy affect the postoperative complication in breast cancer patients who underwent immediate breast reconstruction with tissue expander?

BACKGROUND: Immediate breast reconstruction with tissue expander in breast cancer patients who were expected to receive adjuvant therapy, such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy, has been a topic of debate. Postoperative complications from tissue expander procedures can delay the timing of adjuvant treatment and subsequently increase the probability of recurrence. The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of chemotherapy and radiotherapy on postoperative complications in patients who underwent immediate reconstruction (IR) using tissue expander. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of 1081 breast cancer patients who underwent mastectomy and IR using tissue expander insertion between 2012 and 2017 in Samsung Medical Center. The patients were divided into two groups based on complications (complication group vs. no complication group). Complication group was regarded to have surgical removal or conservative treatment based on clinical findings such as infection, capsular contracture, seroma, hematoma, rupture, malposition, tissue viability, or cosmetic problem. The complication group had 59 patients (5.5%) and the no complication group had 1022 patients (94.5%). RESULTS: In univariate analysis, adjuvant radiotherapy and adjuvant chemotherapy were significantly associated with postoperative complications. In multivariate analysis, however, only higher pathologic N stage was significantly associated with postoperative complications (p < 0.001). Chemotherapy (p = 0.775) or radiotherapy (p = 0.825) were not risk factors for postoperative complications. CONCLUSIONS: IR with tissue expander after mastectomy may be a treatment option even when the patients are expected to receive adjuvant chemotherapy or radiotherapy. These results will aid patients who are concerned about the complications of IR caused by chemotherapy or radiotherapy determine whether or not to have IR. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Patients were selected and registered retrospectively, and medical records were evaluated.

Understanding Excess Li Storage beyond LiC6 in Reduced Dimensional Scale Graphene.

A phenomenon is observed in which the electrochemical performances of porous graphene electrodes show unexpectedly increasing capacities in the Li storage devices. However, despite many studies, the cause is still unclear. Here, we systematically present the reason for the capacity enhancements of the pristine graphene anode under functional group exclusion through morphological control and crystal structure transformation. The electrochemical synergy of both the edge effect and surface effect of the reduced dimensional scale graphene in an open-porous structure facilitates significantly enhanced capacity through multidimensional Li-ion accessibility and accumulation of Li atoms. Furthermore, the Stone-Wales defects boosted during Li insertion and extraction promote a capacity elevation beyond the theoretical capacity of the carbon electrode even after long-term cycles at high C-rates. As a result, the morphologically controlled graphene anode delivers the highest reversible capacity of 3074 mA h g-1 with a 163% capacity increase after 2000 cycles at 5 C. It also presents a gradually increasing capacity up to 1102 mA h g-1 even at 50 C without an evident capacity fading tendency. This study provides valuable information into the practical design of ultralight and high-rate energy storage devices.

Breast radiologic complete response is associated with favorable survival outcomes after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to examine the accuracy of radiologic complete response (rCR) in predicting pathologic complete response (pCR), and determine whether rCR is a predictor of favorable survival outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed breast cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) followed by surgery from September 2007 to June 2016. Breast lesions and axillary nodes were measured by MRI and categorized into either disappeared (breast rCR) or residual disease (breast non-rCR) and either normalized (axillary rCR) or abnormal findings (axillary non-rCR) in the axillary nodes. Correlation between rCR and pCR were compared using Cohen's Kappa statistics, and the recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: Out of the 1017 eligible patients, 287 (28.2%) achieved breast pCR, 165 (16.2%) achieved breast rCR, 529 (52.0%) had axillary pCR, and 274 (26.9%) achieved axillary rCR. The correlation between a breast rCR and pCR showed a Cohen's Kappa value of 0.459, and between axillary rCR and pCR, the value was 0.384. During a median follow-up time of 48.0 months, the 5-year RFS rates were 90.6% for breast rCR, and 69.2% for breast non-rCR. The 5-year RFS rates were 82.3% for axillary rCR, and 68.8% for axillary non-rCR. Patients without breast rCR had a 2.4-fold significant increase in the risk of recurrence (p = 0.004) compared to patients with breast rCR. CONCLUSION: Although rCR correlated with pCR by only moderate to fair degrees, breast rCR was a strong predictor for a favorable RFS outcome.

Is the intraoperative frozen section analysis of sentinel lymph nodes necessary in clinically negative node breast cancer?

PURPOSE: Although metastasis occurs in 1 or 2 sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs), axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) has been widely not performed. For axillary staging and management, the necessity of intraoperative frozen section analysis of SLN has been controversial. The aim of this study is to evaluate the validity and benefit of SLN analysis by permanent section alone in clinically negative lymph node breast cancer patients. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of 283 cases with negative node clinical findings between July 2018 and August 2019 in Samsung Medical Center. Clinical nodal stage was evaluated by physical examination, breast ultrasonography, breast magnetic resonance imaging, and chest computerized tomography. The cases were divided into 2 groups; the permanent group had 151 cases (53.4%) and the frozen group had 132 cases (46.6%). We retrospectively analyzed the differences in the number of metastatic lymph nodes and rates of performed ALND between the 2 groups. RESULTS: Baseline and clinicopathologic characteristics between the 2 groups were well balanced. Three cases in the permanent group and 6 cases in the frozen group underwent additional or immediate ALND. The rates of ALND between the 2 groups were not significantly different (P = 0.312). The cased of 78.9% and 89.5% with metastatic lymph nodes in permanent and frozen groups were in the pathologic N1 stage, respectively. CONCLUSION: SLNs analysis by permanent section alone may be performed in clinically negative axillary node breast cancer patients. Our findings can help to avoid unnecessary intraoperative frozen section analysis.

Impact of Serum Lipid on Breast Cancer Recurrence.

The association between serum lipid level and prognosis of breast cancer is controversial. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of serum lipid level in breast cancer recurrence. We analyzed a total of 4190 patients with operable breast cancer who had baseline serum lipid profiles; total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), apolipoprotein A-1, and apolipoprotein B. Recurrence-free survival is defined as the elapsed time from the date of curative surgery to the detection of any recurrence, and recurrence includes locoregional recurrence, distant metastasis, or both local and distant metastasis. Cox-proportional hazard analysis was used to estimate hazard ratios with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for study outcomes comparing the three lowest quartiles of each lipid parameter to the highest quartile adjusting for age, body mass index (BMI), and pathologic stage, estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), comorbidities (hypertension, diabetes, or vascular event) at time of breast cancer diagnosis. Patients with dyslipidemia (high bad cholesterol and low good cholesterol level) had worse prognostic factors (i.e., negative hormone receptor status, positive human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression, higher nuclear grade). After adjusting for these poor prognostic factors, the patients with dyslipidemia showed good prognosis for breast cancer recurrence. Our study showed that baseline high lipid level could be a good prognostic factor of breast cancer. This study indicates that desirable changes in lipid profile for cardiovascular disease risk are not always beneficial for patients with breast cancer. However, as proper control of lipid level has advantages for cardiovascular disease, these findings require careful interpretation.

Multifunctional Inorganic Nanomaterial Aerogel Assembled into fSWNT Hydrogel Platform for Ultraselective NO2 Sensing.

Facile fabrication of multifunctional porous inorganic aerogels remains an outstanding challenge despite the considerable demand for extensive applications. Here, we present the production of a multifunctional porous inorganic nanomaterial aerogel by controllable surface chemistry of a functionalized SWNT (fSWNT) hydrogel platform for the first time. The versatile functional inorganic nanoparticles can be incorporated uniformly on the porous 3D fSWNT hydrogel platform through a facile dip coating method at ambient conditions. The morphology of the multifunctional inorganic aerogel is manipulated by designing the fSWNT hydrogel platform for different requirements of applications. In particular, Pt-SnO2@fSWNT aerogels exhibit high porosity and uniformly distributed ultrafine Pt and SnO2 on the fSWNT platform with controllable particle size (1.5-3.5 nm), which result in significantly high surface area (393 m2 g-1). The ultrafine Pt-SnO2@fSWNT aerogels exhibit highly sensitive (14.77% at 5 ppm) and selective NO2 sensing performance even at room temperature due to the increased active surface area and controllable porous structure of the ultrafine aerogel, which can provide fast transport and penetration of a target gas into the sensing layers. The newly designed multifunctional inorganic aerogel with ultrahigh surface area and high open porosity is a prospective materials platform of high performance gas sensors, which could be also broadly expanded to widespread applications including catalysis and energy storages.

Trends in Risk-Reducing Mastectomy and Risk-Reducing Salpingo-Oophorectomy in Korean Carriers of the BRCA1/2 Mutation.

PURPOSE: BRCA1/2 mutations are associated with risks of breast and ovarian cancer. In Korea, incidences of BRCA1/2 genetic testing and risk-reducing surgery (RRS) have increased with insurance coverage and the Angelina Jolie effect. The aim of this study was to identify trends in RRS performed in Korean women with the BRCA1/2 mutation. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of BRCA1/2 mutation carriers with (affected carriers) and without (unaffected carriers) breast cancer until August 2018 from 25 Korean Hereditary Breast Cancer (KOHBRA)-affiliated hospitals. RESULTS: The numbers of contralateral risk-reducing mastectomy (RRM) and risk-reducing bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (RRBSO) in affected carriers have increased 5.8- and 3.6-fold, respectively, since 2013. The numbers of RRBSO in unaffected carriers has increased 8-fold since 2013. The number of institutions that perform RRS has increased gradually. The number of hospitals that perform contralateral RRM on affected carriers increased from 3 in 2012 to 11 in 2018, and that of those that perform RRBSO increased from 7 to 17. The number of hospitals that perform bilateral RRM on unaffected carriers increased from 1 in 2012 to 2 in 2018, and that of those that perform RRBSO increased from 1 to 8. However, the hospitals showed differences in the rates of RRM or RRBSO performed. CONCLUSION: The incidence of RRS increased each year throughout the study period. However, in Korea, the rate of RRS procedures depended on the hospital.

Which is the most effective pristine graphene electrode for energy storage devices: aerogel or xerogel?

The morphological design of graphene materials is definitely important since their electrochemical properties as an electrode in energy storage devices are mainly dominated by their charge accessibility and active area. In this work, we present a systematic investigation on the prospects of a pristine graphene aerogel and a pristine graphene xerogel as electrode materials for both supercapacitors and lithium-ion batteries. We confirm that the graphene aerogel has a significantly higher surface area, needed for effective charge storage, than the xerogel, which offers a clear advantage for supercapacitors. In terms of battery performance, the quality of the pristine graphene raw materials is a more critical factor than their shape owing to the lithium intercalation mechanism. As a result, the graphene aerogel supercapacitors exhibited a specific capacitance of about 700 F g-1 at 10 mV s-1 in 1 M LiPF6 electrolyte, which is 3.6 times higher than the values for the xerogel devices. On the other hand, the electrochemical battery performances of the graphene aerogel and xerogel show no significant difference considering their high specific capacity of about 380 mA h g-1 at 1C. Further, the surface control kinetics of the graphene aerogel are much more dominant in the supercapacitor and battery applications than those of the xerogel. This study provides more practical approaches in order to design electrodes using lightweight, high-performance, and low-cost materials for the effective use of energy storage systems.

Characteristics of Early Recurrence After Curative Liver Resection for Solitary Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Early recurrence after liver resection of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has a great effect on the survival of patients. The aims of this study were to identify risk factors for early recurrence and to clarify whether early recurrence is related to patient survival rate. METHODS: We identified a total of 1010 patients with HCC recurrence after hepatic resection between 2009 and 2014 in Samsung Medical Center and Seoul National University Hospital. Inclusion criteria were preoperative solitary tumor Child-Pugh class A and curative hepatectomy. Early recurrence was defined as HCC recurrence < 1 year after surgery. RESULTS: A total of 628 patients were included in this study: 302 with early recurrence and 326 with late recurrence. Multivariate analysis showed that HCC grade 3 or 4, tumor size > 3 cm, and microvascular invasion were closely associated with early recurrence after liver resection for solitary HCC. When HCC recurred, the early recurrence group had large tumor size, increased tumor numbers and AFP levels, and high incidence of diffuse intrahepatic recurrence compared with the late recurrence group. The overall survival curve for the early recurrence group was lower than that for the late recurrence group (P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis demonstrated early recurrence was closely associated with patient survival. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with early recurrence had different characteristics compared to patients with late recurrence after hepatic resection in solitary HCC. Early detection of recurrence is necessary through active postoperative surveillance in hepatectomy patients with poor prognostic factors.

Author Correction: ID3 regulates the MDC1-mediated DNA damage response in order to maintain genome stability.

This Article contains errors in Fig. 3, Fig. 4 and Fig. 7, for which we apologize. In Fig. 3, panel 'b', the 0.5 hour time point after Ku55933 treatment images were inadvertently replaced with duplicates of the 3 hour time point after Ku55933 treatment images in Fig. 3b. Additionally, in panel 'b', the 0.5 hour time point after Nu7026 treatment images were inadvertently replaced with duplicates of the 180 min time point after siMDC1 treatment images in Fig. 3d. In Fig. 4, panel 'g', RNF168 foci in U2OS cell images were inadvertently replaced with duplicates of RNF168 foci in HeLa cell images in Fig. 4f. In Fig. 7, panel 'b', the DAPI images 0.5 hours after IR under siID3 treatment were inadvertently replaced with DAPI images of a different field of view from the same experiment. Additionally, in panel 'i', the shID3 mock-treated GFP-ID3 cells image was inadvertently replace with duplications of the shID3 mock-treated GFP-ID3 cells image in Fig. 7g.

Reversible Redox Activity by Ion-pH Dually Modulated Duplex Formation of i-Motif DNA with Complementary G-DNA.

The unique biological features of supramolecular DNA have led to an increasing interest in biomedical applications such as biosensors. We have developed an i-motif and G-rich DNA conjugated single-walled carbon nanotube hybrid materials, which shows reversible conformational switching upon external stimuli such as pH (5 and 8) and presence of ions (Li⁺ and K⁺). We observed reversible electrochemical redox activity upon external stimuli in a quick and robust manner. Given the ease and the robustness of this method, we believe that pH- and ion-driven reversible DNA structure transformations will be utilized for future applications for developing novel biosensors.

Catalytic synthesis of few-layer graphene on titania nanowires.

Growth mechanisms of graphitic nanostructures on metal oxides by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) are observed at 750 °C, using titania nanowire aerogel (NWAG) as a three-dimensional substrate and without metal catalysts. We temporally observed catalytic transformation of amorphous carbon into few-layer graphene on the surface of 5-10 nm diameter titania nanowires. The graphitization spontaneously terminates when the titania nanowires are encapsulated by a shell of approximately three graphene layers. Extended CVD time beyond the termination point (>1125 seconds) yields only additional amorphous carbon deposits on top of the few-layer graphene. Furthermore, it was discovered that the islands of amorphous carbon do not graphitize unless they catalytically grow beyond a threshold size of 5-7 nm along the nanowire length, even after an extended thermal treatment. The electrical conductivity of the NWAG increased by four orders of magnitude, indicating that the graphene shell mediated by titania nanowires yielded a network of graphene throughout the three-dimensional nanostructure of the aerogel. Our results help us understand the growth mechanisms of few-layer graphene on nanostructured metal oxides, and inspire facile and controllable processing of metal oxide-nanocarbon fiber-shell composites.