Investigation of cullin-3 gene expression changes in people with colorectal cancer and polyps in China.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common fatal malignancies caused by environmental and genetic factors. Considering the increasing frequency of CRC worldwide, especially in China, the importance of research on CRC is more widely defined. A recent study focused on molecular pathways involved in colon cancer carcinogenesis to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment to identify new biomarkers. Colon cancer is the result of dysplasia in primary growths of the intestine, known as polyps. These early growths are unknown and different in terms of morphology, molecular mechanisms, and the ability to cause colon cancer. This study aims to investigate the expression level of the CUL3 gene in polyps and colorectal cancer. This cross-sectional study collected 300 colorectal tissue biopsy samples, including 40 tumor tissue samples, 73 precancerous lesions with their adjacent tissue, and 31 normal tissue samples. The expression of the CUL3 gene was investigated by the Real-time PCR method. There was no significant difference in CUL3 mRNA expression between polyp tissues and their adjacent samples (p = 0.41). Our results showed no statistically significant difference in CUL3 gene expression between tumor tissues and their adjacent thermal samples (p = 0.78) and between tumor and polyp groups (p = 0.53). CUL3 may play an essential role in regulating cancer and CRC progression by stimulating the proteasomal degradation of various tumor suppressors or oncogenes. Studies on the effective substrates of CUL3 in colorectal cancer are essential.

The efficacy and safety of different bismuth agents in Helicobacter pylori first-line eradication: A multicenter, randomized, controlled clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bismuth pectin capsules and bismuth pectin granules in the first-line quadruple treatment of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). METHODS: This study was a multicenter, randomized, open-labelled controlled clinical trial. Patients with a H. pylori infection were randomized into 4 groups (1:1:1:1) and treated with a 14-day bismuth-containing quadruple therapy. The 4 groups received either bismuth potassium citrate capsules (220 mg), colloidal bismuth pectin capsules (200 mg), bismuth pectin granules (150 mg), or bismuth pectin granules (300 mg). The primary outcome was the eradication rate of H. pylori. The secondary outcomes included symptom improvement, patient compliance, and incidence of adverse events. This study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04209933). RESULTS: A total of 240 patients were included in this study, and 211 patients completed the follow-up. An intention-to-treat analysis showed that the H. pylori eradication rates of the 4 groups were 73.3%, 76.7%, 75.0%, and 71.7%, respectively. The per-protocol analysis showed that the H. pylori eradication rates of the 4 groups were 86.3%, 82.1%, 83.3%, and 86.0%. There was no significant difference among the 4 groups in the H. pylori eradication rate (P > .05). There were also no significant differences in the symptom improvement rate, overall adverse reaction rate, or patient compliance among the 4 groups. CONCLUSIONS: Bismuth pectin capsules and bismuth pectin granules had similar efficacy and safety for H. pylori eradication compared to bismuth potassium citrate. These data suggest that bismuth pectin can be an alternative to bismuth potassium citrate to eradicate H. pylori when using bismuth-containing quadruple therapy.