[Hydrochemical Characteristics and Its Origin of Surface Water and Groundwater in Dianbu River Basin].

Chaohu lake is a key water body for water pollution prevention and treatment in our country. However， it has been at a higher eutrophication level recently. Here， the surface water and groundwater in the Dianbu River Basin， a secondary tributary of Chaohu Lake， were taken as the research object. In order to test the hydrochemical composition and hydrogen and oxygen isotope values of different water bodies， 30 groups of surface water samples， 36 groups of groundwater samples， 16 groups of hydrogen and oxygen stable isotope samples， and 18 groups of groundwater hydrogen and oxygen stable isotope samples were collected in August 2021 （wet season）， November 2021 （normal season）， and February 2022 （dry season）. The seasonal and spatial variation characteristics were analyzed to explore the hydrochemical characteristics and formation mechanism of water bodies by means of mathematical statistics， Piper triangular diagram， Gibbs figures， and ion ratios. The following results were obtained： ① precipitation was the main source of surface water and groundwater in Dianbu River Basin， and the evaporation fractionation effect of surface water was more significant than that of groundwater. At different periods， the surface water was more enriched with stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen than groundwater. The stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen in water showed seasonal variation， relative enrichment in the wet season， and depletion in the dry season. ② Both surface water and groundwater in the Dianbu River Basin were weakly alkaline， and the concentration of ions in surface water was significantly lower than that in groundwater. Ca2+ and Na+ were the main cations in surface water， Ca2+ was the main cation in groundwater， and the dominant anion in all water was HCO3-. The hydrochemical typology of surface water was mainly HCO3·Cl-Na·Ca， and that of groundwater was mainly HCO3-Na·Ca. ③ The concentrations of the main hydrochemical indexes of surface water and groundwater showed certain seasonal and spatial differences. From the wet season to the dry season， the concentrations of TDS， K+， Na+， Ca2+， Mg2+， Cl-， and SO42- in surface water showed an increasing trend on the whole. The concentrations of Na+， Ca2+， and Mg2+ in groundwater showed little change but increased slightly， whereas the concentrations of Cl-， SO42-， and NO3- showed an increasing trend on the whole. The concentrations of Cl-， SO42-， and NO3- in the water showed relatively large seasonal fluctuations. From upstream to downstream， the concentrations of the main hydrochemical indexes in surface water first decreased and then increased， among which the concentration of NO3- increased the most. The concentrations of the main hydrochemical indexes of groundwater in the direction of runoff changed little overall， but the concentration in the discharge area was higher than that in the recharge area. ④ The formation of hydrochemical characteristics of the water was mainly controlled by water-rock interaction but was also influenced by human factors. The water-rock action was mainly the weathering dissolution of silicate rock， salt rock， and carbonate rock. Man-made pollutants such as sewage from a sewage treatment plant， domestic sewage， and feces had obviously changed the hydrochemical characteristics of the local water. ⑤ Compared with that in 2016， the concentration of NO3- in surface water showed a certain degree of reduction. The nitrogen pollution control work carried out by the local government had achieved certain results， but it was still necessary to strengthen the pollution prevention and control of sewage and feces in the downstream of the Dianbu River， some tributaries （such as the Dingguang River and Maqiao River）， and some residential areas.

High spindle and kinetochore-associated complex subunit-3 expression predicts poor prognosis and correlates with adverse immune infiltration in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Spindle and kinetochore-associated complex subunit 3 (SKA3) is a malignancy-associated gene that plays a critical role in the regulation of chromosome separation and cell division. However, the molecular mechanism through which SKA3 regulates tumor cell proliferation in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not been fully elucidated. AIM: To investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the role of SKA3 in HCC. METHODS: SKA3 expression, clinicopathological, and survival analyses were performed using multiple public database platforms, and the results were verified by Western blot and immunohistochemistry staining using collected clinical samples. Functional enrichment analyses were performed to evaluate the biological functions and molecular mechanisms of SKA3 in HCC. Furthermore, the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource and single-sample Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (ssGSEA) algorithms were utilized to investigate the abundance of tumor-infiltrating immune cells in HCC. The response to chemotherapeutic drugs was evaluated by the R package "pRRophetic". RESULTS: We found that upregulated SKA3 expression was significantly correlated with poor prognosis in patients with HCC. Multivariable Cox regression analysis indicated that SKA3 was an independent risk factor for survival. GSEA revealed that SKA3 expression may facilitate proliferation and migratory processes by regulating the cell cycle and DNA repair. Moreover, patients with high SKA3 expression had significantly decreased ratios of CD8+ T cells, natural killer cells, and dendritic cells. Drug sensitivity analysis showed that the high SKA3 group was more sensitive to sorafenib, sunitinib, paclitaxel, doxorubicin, gemcitabine, and vx-680. CONCLUSION: High SKA3 expression led to poor prognosis in patients with HCC by enhancing HCC proliferation and repressing immune cell infiltration surrounding HCC. SKA3 may be used as a biomarker for poor prognosis and as a therapeutic target in HCC.

Cidan Capsule in Combination with Adjuvant Transarterial Chemoembolization Reduces Recurrence Rate after Curative Resection of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Multicenter, Randomized Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Cidan Capsule combined with adjuvant transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in patients with a high risk of early recurrence after curative resection of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: A multicenter, randomized controlled trial was conducted in patients with high-risk recurrence factors after curative resection of HCC from 9 medical centers between July 2014 and July 2018. Totally 249 patients were randomly assigned to TACE with or without Cidan Capsule administration groups by stratified block in a 1:1 ratio. Postoperative adjuvant TACE was given 4-5 weeks after hepatic resection in both groups. Additionally, 125 patients in the TACE plus Cidan group were administrated Cidan Capsule (0.27 g/capsule, 5 capsules every time, 4 times a day) for 6 months with a 24-month follow-up. Primary endpoints included disease-free survival (DFS) and tumor recurrence rate (TRR). Secondary endpoint was overall survival (OS). Any drug-related adverse events (AEs) were observed and recorded. RESULTS: As the data cutoff in July 9th, 2018, the median DFS was not reached in the TACE plus Cidan group and 234.0 days in the TACE group (hazard ratio, 0.420, 95% confidence interval, 0.290-0.608; P<0.01). The 1- and 2-year TRR in the TACE plus Cidan and TACE groups were 31.5%, 37.1%, and 60.8%, 63.4%, respectively (P<0.01). Median OS was not reached in both groups. The 1- and 2-year OS rates in TACE plus Cidan and TACE groups were 98.4%, 98.4%, and 89.5%, 87.9%, respectively (P<0.05). The most common grade 3-4 AEs included fatigue, abdominal pain, lumbar pain, and nausea. One serious AE was reported in 1 patient in the TACE plus Cidan group, the death was due to retroperitoneal mass hemorrhage and hemorrhagic shock, and was not related to study drug. CONCLUSIONS: Cidan Capsule in combination with TACE can reduce the incidence of early recurrence in HCC patients at high-risk of recurrence after radical hepatectomy and may be an appropriate option in postoperative anti-recurrence treatment. (Registration No. NCT02253511).

Long-Term Outcome of Centrally Located Hepatocellular Carcinomas Treated by Radical Resection Combined With Intraoperative Electron Radiotherapy (IOERT).

PURPOSE: To explore the feasibility and safety of centrally located hepatocellular carcinoma (CL-HCC) treated by narrow-margin resection combined with intraoperative electron radiotherapy (IOERT). METHODS AND MATERIALS: From November 2009 to November 2016, 37 consecutive patients were treated with IOERT as adjuvant treatment during narrow-margin resection for CL-HCC. Long-term outcomes, adverse events for surgery, and acute and chronic toxicities were analyzed. RESULTS: The median follow-up was 57.82 months (range, 3.75-111.41 months). A total dose of 15 Gy (range 12 to 17Gy) (prescribed at the 90% isodose) was delivered with a 0.9cm (range 0.8-1.2 cm) median treatment depth targeting the narrow-margin. The 1-year, 3-year and 5-year OS rates were 91.39%, 88.34% and 88.34%, respectively. The 1-year, 3-year and 5-year DFS rates were 80.81%, 68.59% and 54.17%, respectively. In the univariate analysis, none of the treatment characteristics were predictive of overall survival. Fifteen (40.5%) patients suffered from a recurrence event. No patient had marginal recurrence. The 1-year, 3-year and 5-year intrahepatic recurrence rates were 19.75%, 25.92% and 39.58%, respectively. The 1-year, 3-year and 5-year extrahepatic recurrence rates were 2.7%, 5.95% and 9.87%, respectively. There was no 30-day surgical-related death. Three patients had grade 4, and 28 patients had grade 3 alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels, and seven patients had grade 4, and 30 patients had grade 3 aspartate transaminase (AST) levels. All of them returned to normal within four months. There was no acute radiation-induced liver injury during follow-up. There were no acute or chronic toxicities associated with IOERT. CONCLUSION: IOERT for narrow-margin CL-HCC may achieve good long-term survival outcomes, without significantly increasing acute and chronic toxicities. An IOERT dose of 15Gy may be the safest and most feasible. IOERT might be considered as an adjuvant therapy for CL-HCC patients with a narrow-margin.

Research progress regarding programmed cell death 1/programmed cell death ligand 1 inhibitors combined with targeted therapy for treating hepatocellular carcinoma.

In recent years, a number of targeted therapeutic agents have achieved success in phase III trials in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), including sorafenib, lenvatinib, and regorafenib. Immunotherapy is considered to be an effective treatment for advanced HCC. Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting programmed cell death 1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) are important antitumor immunotherapy agents that represent breakthroughs in the treatment of advanced HCC. However, treating advanced HCC is still a great challenge, and the need for new treatments remains urgent. This review briefly summarizes the research progress in the use of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors combined with targeted therapy for treating HCC.

Phase 2 Study of Adjuvant Radiotherapy Following Narrow-Margin Hepatectomy in Patients With HCC.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Surgical resection is the primary treatment for HCC; however, it is associated with a high rate of recurrence and death. We conducted this phase 2 study to investigate the efficacy and safety of postoperative intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) for HCC after narrow-margin hepatectomy. APPROACH AND RESULTS: We designed a single-arm, prospective phase 2 trial to evaluate overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), recurrence patterns, and toxicity in patients receiving adjuvant radiotherapy. The eligibility criteria included the following: pathological diagnosis of HCC after hepatectomy, with narrow pathological margins (< 1 cm); age > 18 years; and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status score of 0 or 1. Patients received IMRT within 4-6 weeks after surgical resection. This trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01456156). Between 2008 and 2016, a total of 76 eligible patients who underwent narrow-margin resection were enrolled. The median follow-up duration was 70 months; the 3-year OS and DFS rates were 88.2% and 68.1%, respectively; and the 5-year OS and DFS rates were 72.2% and 51.6%, respectively. Intrahepatic recurrence was the primary recurrence pattern. No marginal recurrence was found. Intrahepatic, extrahepatic, and combined recurrences at the first relapse were found in 33, 5, and 1 patient, respectively. The most common radiation-related grade-3 toxicities were leukopenia (7.9%), elevated alanine aminotransferase (3.9%) and aspartate aminotransferase (2.6%) levels, and thrombocytopenia (1.3%). Classical or nonclassical radiation-induced liver disease was not noted. CONCLUSIONS: Adjuvant radiotherapy is an effective, well-tolerated, and promising adjuvant regimen in patients with HCC who have undergone narrow-margin hepatectomy. Our trial provides evidence and a rationale for planning a future phase 3 trial.

Determination of Residence Time Distribution in a Continuous Powder Mixing Process With Supervised and Unsupervised Modeling of In-line Near Infrared (NIR) Spectroscopic Data.

Successful implementation of continuous manufacturing processes requires robust methods to assess and control product quality in a real-time mode. In this study, the residence time distribution of a continuous powder mixing process was investigated via pulse tracer experiments using near infrared spectroscopy for tracer detection in an in-line mode. The residence time distribution was modeled by applying the continuous stirred tank reactor in series model for achieving the tracer (paracetamol) concentration profiles. Partial least squares discriminant analysis and principal component analysis of the near infrared spectroscopy data were applied to investigate both supervised and unsupervised chemometric modeling approaches. Additionally, the mean residence time for three powder systems was measured with different process settings. It was found that a significant change in the mean residence time occurred when comparing powder systems with different flowability and mixing process settings. This study also confirmed that the partial least squares discriminant analysis applied as a supervised chemometric model enabled an efficient and fast estimate of the mean residence time based on pulse tracer experiments.

[HPLC fingerprint of famous traditional formula Sanpian Decoction and quality value transmitting of Chuanxiong Rhizoma].

Famous traditional formula Sanpian Decoction(SPD)comes from Dialectical Records of Chen Shiduo of the Qing Dynasty,and ranks among 100 classic prescriptions of Classic Famous Traditional Formula catalogue(the First Batch). SPD was prepared according to Management Standards for Traditional Chinese Medicine Decoction Room in Medical Institutions. According to the polarity of different components in SPD,two HPLC fingerprints were established, in which six herbs, namely Chuanxiong Rhizoma, Paeoniae Randix Alba, Sinapis Semen, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, Pruni Semen, Angelicae Dahuricae Radix,are all reflected in the fingerprints; The dry extract rate, transfer rate and similarities of fingerprints were used as indicators to study the relationship between the quality value transmitting of medicinal herbs-decoction pieces-whole decoction of Chuanxiong Rhizoma. Experiment result shows that,the transfer rate of ferulic acid from medicinal herbs to decoction pieces is between 72.00% and 108.36%; the transfer rate of ferulic acid from decoction pieces to SPD is between 31.76% and 64.09%; the dry extract rate of the whole decoction is between 14.69% and 20.16%;The similarity range of fingerprint 1 of 15 batches of SPD is between 0.971 and 0.998, and the similarity range of fingerprint 2 is between 0.980 and 0.996. The established fingerprint has rich information,and the established quality evaluation method is suitable for the quality control of medicinal herbs-decoction pieces-whole decoction of Chuanxiong Rhizoma, which can provide a certain reference for developing the quality control evaluation method for formulated granules, famous formulae and other terminal products derived from traditional Chinese medicine decoction.

Diuretic Effect and Metabolomics Analysis of Crude and Salt-Processed Plantaginis Semen.

Plantaginis Semen (PS) is well recognized in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and health products. Crude PS (CPS) and salt-processed CPS (SPS) are the two most commonly used decoction pieces of PS, and are included in the 2020 edition of Chinese Pharmacopoeia. Although they all have multiple effects, the mechanisms for treating diseases are different and remain unclear, the processing mechanism of SPS is also indeterminate, which hinders their clinical application to a certain extent. In order to solve these problems and further develop PS in the clinical application. Here, we used saline-loaded model rats for experiments, and utilized an integrated approach consisting of pharmacological methods and metabolomics, which could assess the diuretic impact of CPS and SPS ethanol extracts on saline-loaded rats and elucidate the underlying mechanism. The results showed that CPS and SPS both produced increased urine volume excretion and urine electrolyte excretion, but the levels of aldosterone (ALD) and aquaporin 2 (AQP2) were decreased. And 30 differential metabolites such as linoleic acid, lysoPC(O-18:0), sphingosine-1-phosphate, lysoPC(18:0) were found, mainly involving three metabolic pathways. In conclusion, CPS and SPS both have a diuretic effect, and that of SPS is better. This work investigated the possible diuretic mechanisms of CPS and SPS which may also be the mechanism of PS for anti-hypertension. In addition, a holistic approach provided novel and helpful insights into the underlying processing mechanisms of TCM.

Survey and analysis of the nutritional status in hospitalized patients with malignant gastric tumors and its influence on the quality of life.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The assessment of nutritional status and the quality of life in patients with gastric cancer has become one of the important goals of current clinical treatment. The purpose of this study was to assess the nutritional status in hospitalized gastric cancer patients by using patient-generated subjective global assessment (PG-SGA) and to analyze the influence of nutritional status on the patients' quality of life (QOL). METHODS: We reviewed the pathological diagnosis of gastric cancer for 2322 hospitalized patients using PG-SGA to assess their nutritional status and collected data on clinical symptoms, the anthropometric parameters (height, weight, body mass index (BMI), mid-arm circumference (MAC), triceps skin-fold thickness (TSF), and hand-grip strength (HGS). We also collected laboratory data (prealbumin, albumin, hemoglobin) within 48 h after the patient was admitted to the hospital. The 30-item European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) was used for QOL assessment in all patients. RESULTS: By using PG-SGA, we found 80.4% of the patients were malnourished (score ≥ 4) and 45.1% of the patients required urgent nutritional support (score ≥ 9). In univariate analysis, old age (> 65 years, p < 0.001), female (p = 0.007), residence in a village (p = 0.004), a lower level of education (p < 0.001), and self-paying (p < 0.001) were indicated as risk factors of patients with gastric cancer to be suffering from severe malnutrition. There was a negative correlation between PG-SGA and various nutritional parameters (p < 0.05). The quality of life was significantly different in gastric cancer patients with different nutritional status (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Malnutrition of hospitalized patients with gastric cancer in China is common and seriously affects the patients' quality of life. The nutritional status should be evaluated in a timely manner and reasonable nutritional intervention should be provided as soon as possible. The PG-SGA was fit for using as a clinical nutrition assessment method, being worthy of clinical application.

Benefit of adjuvant radiotherapy following narrow-margin hepatectomy in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma that adhere to major vessels.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of adjuvant radiotherapy after narrow-margin (<1.0 cm) resection in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) adherent to major vessels. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This retrospective study included 70 ICC patients. Forty-nine patients received narrow-margin (<1.0 cm) hepatectomy and 21 patients underwent wide-margin (≥1.0 cm) hepatectomy (Group C). Twenty-six of 49 were treated with postoperative radiotherapy (Group A), while the remaining 23 did not receive radiotherapy (Group B). Clinical outcomes were compared in the 3 groups. Toxicities of radiotherapy were evaluated. RESULTS: With a median follow-up time of 42 months, the 3-year overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival rates were 55% and 44% for Group A, 20% and 10% for Group B, and 65% and 33% for Group C, respectively. The OS and disease-free survival in Groups A and C were comparable and improved compared to Group B (Group A vs B, P=0.011 and P=0.031; and Group C vs B, P=0.031 and P=0.105). Multivariate analysis showed that receiving narrow-margin resection only (adjusted hazard ratio: 3.73; 95% CI: 1.36-10.25; P=0.001) was a significant poor prognostic risk factor of OS. Group B experienced more intrahepatic recurrence and extrahepatic recurrence than Groups A and C. For Groups A and B, the 3-year intrahepatic recurrence rates were 36% vs 67% (P=0.133) and extrahepatic recurrence rates were 43% vs 65% (P=0.007). Only 2 patients in Group A suffered from grade 3 toxicities. No patient developed classic or nonclassic radiation-induced liver disease. CONCLUSION: Postoperative radiotherapy following narrow-margin hepatectomy seems to be efficacious and well-tolerated in patients with ICC adjacent to major vessels.

The Effectiveness and Safety of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. F Extracts in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objective: To conduct a meta-analysis of the effectiveness and safety of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. F (TwHF) extracts for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted in PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane, Medline, CNKI, SinoMed and WanFang Library till 12 July 2017. All included studies were analyzed with the use of the Review Manager 5.2 software according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Statement protocol. Results: Fourteen randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were identified. TwHF extracts provided a statistically significant improvement in grip strength (GS), swelling joint count (SJC) and morning stiffness (MS) compared with placebo (P < 0.001). The meta-analysis showed significant differences between TwHF extract-treated group and the DMARDs group in GS, MS, C-reactive protein (CRP), and tender joint count (TJC) (P < 0.05), aside from ESR and SJC (P > 0.05). The pooled results also displayed significant differences between the combination of TwHF extracts with DMARDs and the DMARDs alone group in ESR, CRP, SJC, and TJC (P ≤ 0.05). For the safety analysis, two trials favored TwHF extract-treatment and one trial favored non-TWHF extract-treatment in AEs (P < 0.05). Eleven trials showed no statistically significant differences between TwHF extract-treated group and the DMARDs group (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The findings of this systematic review with meta-analysis indicate that TwHF extracts provides statistically significant and clinically important improvement in RA symptoms and has an acceptable safety profile.

Management of centrally located hepatocellular carcinoma: Update 2016.

Centrally located hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is sited in the central part of the liver and adjacent to main hepatic vascular structures. This special location is associated with an increase in the difficulty of surgery, aggregation of the recurrence disease, and greater challenge in disease management. This review summarizes the evolution of our understanding for centrally located HCC and discusses the development of treatment strategies, surgical approaches and recurrence prevention methods. To improve patient survival, a multi-disciplinary modality is greatly needed throughout the whole treatment period.

[Optimization of ultrasonic extraction process for Xiaoqinglong granules by Box-Behnken in condition of medium scale].

This paper is to investigate the optimization conditions of ultrasonic technique for extraction process of Xiaoqinglong granules in medium scale. First of all, single factor experiment was used to determine the overall impact tendency and range of each factor； secondly, Box-Behnken method was used for optimization and detecting the content of paeoniflorin, ephedrine hydrochloride, glycyrrhizic acid of the liquid medicine. Their respective extraction rate was calculated and the comprehensive evaluation was carried out. The results were used as the evaluation basis for the efficacy of Xiaoqinglong granules ultrasonic extraction. The test results showed that the optimum extraction process of Xiaoqinglong granules by ultrasonic extraction was under the following conditions: ultrasonic power 600 W, liquid-solid ratio 10∶1, extraction for 31 min. Under this condition, the predicted value of extraction rate for Xiaoqinglong granules was 85.90%, and the test value was 85.87%. The mathematical model(P<0.01) established in this paper was significant, and can be used for the analysis and prediction of the ultrasonic extraction process of Xiaoqinglong granules.

Acousto-optic tunable filter near-infrared spectroscopy for in-line monitoring liquid-liquid extraction of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis based on statistical analysis.

This study aimed to monitor liquid-liquid extraction of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis (Zhizi in Chinese) using in-line near-infrared spectroscopy. Shanzhiside (SZS), deacetyl asperulosidic acid methyl ester (DAAME), genipin-1-ß-D-gentiobioside (GG), geniposide (GS), total acids (TA) and soluble solid content (SSC) were selected as quality control indicators, and measured by reference methods. Both partial least-squares regression (PLSR) and back propagation artificial neural networks (BP-ANN) were applied to create models to predict the content of above indicators. Paired-samples t-test and nonparametric test were used to compare differences in predictive values between two models of each indicator. Relative standard error of prediction (RSEP) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) were used to evaluate the predictive accuracy of the established models. The results showed that there was no significant difference in predicting DAAME, GS and TA between two models. However, PLSR model gave better accuracy in predicting GG and SZS than BP-ANN model. The BP-ANN model of SSC was better than PLSR model. This study shows that NIR spectroscopy can be used for rapid and accurate analysis of quality control indicators in the liquid-liquid extraction of Zhizi. Simultaneously, this study can serve as technical support for the application of NIR spectroscopy in the industrial production process.

[Fingerprint analysis of Resina Draconis from different manufactuers by UPLC coupled with chemometrics].

This study is to establish an UPLC fingerprint of Resina Draconis from different manufacturers, which can provide a comprehensive evaluation for its quality control. The analysis was performed on a Phenomenex Kinetex 2.6 µ C18 100A column by agradientelution program with acetonitrile-water as mobile phase at a flow rate of 1.7 mL x min(-1). The column temperature was 40 degrees C and the detection wavelengthwas 280 nm. The fingerprints of 18 batches of Draconis Resina were further evaluated by chemometrics methods including similarity analysis (SA), hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA). As a result, there were 15 common peaks, 13 of which had been identified by LC-Q-TOF MS, and the similarity degrees of 15 batches of the samples was more than 0.9, and the samples were divided into 4 clusters by their quality difference. The method is reproducible, simple and reliablethat it can be used for quality control and evaluation of Resina Draconis from different manufacturers.

Prognostic Factors and Clinical Characteristics for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients with Benign Enlarged Perihepatic Lymph Nodes: a Single-Center Experience from China.

BACKGROUND: The clinical and prognostic significance of benign perihepatic lymph nodes enlargement (PLNE) from patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear. The objective of this study is to evaluate the relative frequency, incidence and locations of benign PLNE, and the impact on long-term survival of the patients. METHODS: A total of 219 consecutive patients who underwent curative resection of HCC between July 2006 and March 2012 in our single institution were divided into two groups according to the presence of PLNE: PLNE group (n = 76), and control group (n = 143). The long-term outcomes were evaluated and compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The 1-, 3-, and 5-year recurrence-free survival rates were 77.2, 60.0, and 38.1 % in the PLNE group and 71.3, 42.5, and 25.0 % in the control group (p = 0.080). Corresponding overall survival rates were 96.0, 84.8, 67.1 % and 93.5, 72.4, 46.9 % respectively (p = 0.041). Patients with benign PLNE were associated with a higher rate of centrally located HCCs or tumors adjacent to the major branch of vascular vessels. Multivariate analysis revealed that benign PLNE was an independent positive prognostic factor affecting the overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: According to our analysis, patients of HCC with benign PLNE after curative resection can be expected to have better long-term survival. It is also associated with a lower risk of tumor recurrence, but not significant. This finding may provide new insights into daily clinical practice and the pathophysiological characteristics of HCC development.

Prognostic Significance of Preoperative Serum Alpha- fetoprotein in Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Correlation with Clinicopathological Factors: a Single-center Experience from China.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the prognosis significance of preoperative serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and the correlation with clinicopathological factors of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients who underwent hepatectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clinicopathological data of retrospective analysis were collected for 251 HCC patients undergoing hepatectomy in this study. According to preoperative AFP level, patients were categorized into AFP-negative (0-20 ng/mL) and AFP-positive (>20 ng/mL) groups for Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox proportional hazard regression modeling. RESULTS: The results demonstrated that increased AFP was associated with longer prothrombin time (PTs), liver capsule invasion, low grade differentiation, and late Barcelona Clinic Liver Center (BCLC) stage. Moreover, the female patients had a greater prevalence of increased preoperative AFP than male patients [284.8 (3.975-3167.5) vs (3.653-140.65); Z-2.895, p=0.004]. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year recurrence-free survival (RFS) rates were 78.1, 57.5, and 40.6 % in the AFP-negative group and 61.8, 37.7, and 31.4 %, respectively, in the AFP-positive group (log-rank test 8.312, p=0.004). The 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival (OS) rates were 94.4, 83.8, and 62.3% in the AFP-negative group and 87.2, 60.0, and 36.7%, respectively, in the AFP-positive group. The difference was statistically significant (log-rank test, 16.884, p=0.000). Cox proportional-hazards model identified preoperative AFP to be an independent prognostic predictor of overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative serum AFP is an independent predictor of prognosis among HCC patients following surgical resection. Female patients have a higher preoperative AFP than their male counterparts.

[Quality control in liquid-liquid extraction of Reduning injection using near-infrared spectroscopy technology].

Quantitative models were established to analyze the content of chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content in the liquid-liquid extraction of Reduning injection by near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Seven batches of extraction solution from the liquid-liquid extraction of Lonicerae Japonicae Flos and Artemisiae Annuae Herba were collected and NIR off-line spectra were acquired. The content of chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content were determined by the reference methods. The partial least square (PLS) and artificial neural networks (ANN) were used to build models to predict the content of chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content in the unknown samples. For PLS models, the R2 of calibration set were 0.9872, 0.9812, RMSEC were 0.1533, 0.7943, the R2 of prediction set were 0.9837, 0.9733, RMSEP were 0.2464, 1.2594, RSEP were 3.25%, 3.31%, for chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content, respectively. For ANN models, the R2 of calibration set were 0.9903, 0.9882, RMSEC were 0.0974, 0.4543, the R2 of prediction set were 0.9868, 0.9699, RMSEP were 0.1920, 0.9427, RSEP were 2.61%, 2.75%, for chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content, respectively. Both the RSEP values of chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content were lower than 6%, which can satisfy the quality control standard in the traditional Chinese medicine production process. The RSEP values of ANN models were lower than PLS models, which indicated the ANN models had better predictive performance for chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content. The established method can rapidly measure the content of chlorogenic acid and soluble solid content. The method is simple, accurate anc reliable, thus can be used for quality control of the liquid-liquid extraction of Reduning injection.

Primary lymphoepithelioma-like hepatocellular carcinoma: report of a locally advanced case and review of literature.

Lymphoepithelioma-like hepatocellular carcinoma is rare, which has been recognized as a variant of hepatocellular carcinoma. Here we report a locally advanced case of lymphoepithelioma-like hepatocellular carcinoma. A 50-year-old man with chronic hepatitis B virus infection presented with a single mass in the liver and two enlarged lymph nodes in retroperitoneum suspected to be hepatocellular carcinoma with lymph node metastasis. After discussion by multidisciplinary team, the patient underwent hepatectomy of VIII segment and dissection of two enlarged lymph nodes. One month after the operation, pre-chemotherapy abdominal computed tomography (CT) showed retroperitoneal enlarged lymph nodes, considered as local recurrence. Therefore, 3 cycles of oxaliplatin and tegafur gimeracil oteracil potassium capsule and 3 cycles of paclitaxel and cisplatin were offered, and post-chemotherapy abdominal CT revealed disease remained stable. The patient has been alive for 6 months since performance of surgery. Our report suggests that even locally advanced lymphoepithelioma-like hepatocellular carcinoma may have a good prognosis and operation and postoperative chemotherapy may benefit the patient.