ANXA2 (annexin A2) is crucial to ATG7-mediated autophagy, leading to tumor aggressiveness in triple-negative breast cancer cells.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is associated with a poor prognosis and metastatic growth. TNBC cells frequently undergo macroautophagy/autophagy, contributing to tumor progression and chemotherapeutic resistance. ANXA2 (annexin A2), a potential therapeutic target for TNBC, has been reported to stimulate autophagy. In this study, we investigated the role of ANXA2 in autophagic processes in TNBC cells. TNBC patients exhibited high levels of ANXA2, which correlated with poor outcomes. ANXA2 increased LC3B-II levels following bafilomycin A1 treatment and enhanced autophagic flux in TNBC cells. Notably, ANXA2 upregulated the phosphorylation of HSF1 (heat shock transcription factor 1), resulting in the transcriptional activation of ATG7 (autophagy related 7). The mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase complex 2 (MTORC2) played an important role in ANXA2-mediated ATG7 transcription by HSF1. MTORC2 did not affect the mRNA level of ANXA2, but it was involved in the protein stability of ANXA2. HSPA (heat shock protein family A (Hsp70)) was a potential interacting protein with ANXA2, which may protect ANXA2 from lysosomal proteolysis. ANXA2 knockdown significantly increased sensitivity to doxorubicin, the first-line chemotherapeutic regimen for TNBC treatment, suggesting that the inhibition of autophagy by ANXA2 knockdown may overcome doxorubicin resistance. In a TNBC xenograft mouse model, we demonstrated that ANXA2 knockdown combined with doxorubicin administration significantly inhibited tumor growth compared to doxorubicin treatment alone, offering a promising avenue to enhance the effectiveness of chemotherapy. In summary, our study elucidated the molecular mechanism by which ANXA2 modulates autophagy, suggesting a potential therapeutic approach for TNBC treatment.Abbreviation: ATG: autophagy related; ChIP: chromatin-immunoprecipitation; HBSS: Hanks' balanced salt solution; HSF1: heat shock transcription factor 1; MTOR: mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase; TNBC: triple-negative breast cancer; TFEB: transcription factor EB; TFE3: transcription factor binding to IGHM enhancer 3.

Reducing contrast-agent volume and radiation dose in CT with 90-kVp tube voltage, high tube current modulation, and advanced iteration algorithm.

Increasing utilization of computed tomography (CT) has raised concerns regarding CT radiation dose and technology has been developed to achieve an appropriate balance between image quality, radiation dose, and the amount of contrast material. This study was planned to evaluate the image quality and radiation dose in pancreatic dynamic computed tomography (PDCT) with 90-kVp tube voltage and reduction of the standard amount of contrast agent, compared with 100-kVp PDCT of the research hospital's convention. Total of 51 patients with both CT protocols were included. The average Hounsfield units (HU) values of the abdominal organs and image noise were measured for objective image quality analysis. Two radiologists evaluated five categories of image qualities such as subjective image noise, visibility of small structure, beam hardening or streak artifact, lesion conspicuity and overall diagnostic performance for subjective image quality analysis. The total amount of contrast agent, radiation dose, and image noise decreased in the low-kVp group, by 24.4%, 31.7%, and 20.6%, respectively (p < 0.001). The intraobserver and interobserver agreements were moderate to substantial (k = 0.4-0.8). The contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and figure of merit of the almost organs except psoas muscle in the low-kVp group were significantly higher (p < 0.001). Except for lesion conspicuity, both reviewers judged that subjective image quality of the 90-kVp group was better (p < 0.001). With 90-kVp tube voltage, 25% reduced contrast agent volume with advanced iteration algorithm and high tube current modulation achieved radiation dose reduction of 31.7%, as well as better image quality and diagnostic confidence.

The Preventive Effect of Specific Collagen Peptides against Dexamethasone-Induced Muscle Atrophy in Mice.

Muscle atrophy, also known as muscle wasting, is the thinning of muscle mass due to muscle disuse, aging, or diseases such as cancer or neurological problems. Muscle atrophy is closely related to the quality of life and has high morbidity and mortality. However, therapeutic options for muscle atrophy are limited, so studies to develop therapeutic agents for muscle loss are always required. For this study, we investigated how orally administered specific collagen peptides (CP) affect muscle atrophy and elucidated its molecular mechanism using an in vivo model. We treated mice with dexamethasone (DEX) to induce a muscular atrophy phenotype and then administered CP (0.25 and 0.5 g/kg) for four weeks. In a microcomputed tomography analysis, CP (0.5 g/kg) intake significantly increased the volume of calf muscles in mice with DEX-induced muscle atrophy. In addition, the administration of CP (0.25 and 0.5 g/kg) restored the weight of the gluteus maximus and the fiber cross-sectional area (CSA) of the pectoralis major and calf muscles, which were reduced by DEX. CP significantly inhibited the mRNA expression of myostatin and the phosphorylation of Smad2, but it did not affect TGF-ß, BDNF, or FNDC5 gene expression. In addition, AKT/mTOR, a central pathway for muscle protein synthesis and related to myostatin signaling, was enhanced in the groups that were administered CP. Finally, CP decreased serum albumin levels and increased TNF-α gene expression. Collectively, our in vivo results demonstrate that CP can alleviate muscle wasting through a multitude of mechanisms. Therefore, we propose CP as a supplement or treatment to prevent muscle atrophy.

Lipid Profiles Obtained from MALDI Mass Spectrometric Imaging in Liver Cancer Metastasis Model.

Liver cancer metastasis is known to be a poor prognosis and a leading cause of mortality. To overcome low therapeutic efficacy, understanding the physiological properties of liver cancer metastasis is required. However, the metastatic lesion is heterogeneous and complex. We investigate the distribution of lipids using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI) in an experimental metastasis model. We obtained the differentially expressed mass peaks in comparison between normal sites and metastatic lesions. The relationship of mass to charge ratio (m/z) and intensity were measured, m/z-indicated species were analyzed by MALDI-MS/MS analysis, and identification of these mass species was confirmed using the METASPACEannotation platform and Lipid Maps®. MALDI-MSI at m/z 725.6, 734.6, 735.6, 741.6, 742.6, 744.6, 756.6, and 772.6 showed significantly higher intensity, consistent with the metastatic lesions in hematoxylin-stained tissues. Sphingomyelin SM [d18:0/16:1], phosphatidylcholine (PC) [32:0], PC [31:0], PC [31:1], and PE [36:2] were highly expressed in metastatic lesions. Our results could provide information for understanding metastatic lesions. It suggests that the found lipids could be a biomarker for the diagnosis of metastatic lesions.

Chrysin-Induced G Protein-Coupled Estrogen Receptor Activation Suppresses Pancreatic Cancer.

Pancreatic cancer (PC) has a high mortality rate due to its poor prognosis and the possibility of surgical resection in patients with the disease. Importantly, adjuvant chemotherapy is necessary to improve PC prognosis. Chrysin, a natural product with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anticancer properties, has been studied for several years. Our previous study demonstrated that chrysin induced G protein-coupled estrogen receptor (GPER) expression and regulated its activity in breast cancer. Herein, we investigated whether chrysin-induced GPER activation suppresses PC progression in MIA PaCa-2 cells and a xenograft model. To determine its mechanism of action, cytotoxicity and clonogenic assays, a FACS analysis, and Western blotting were performed. Furthermore, the delay in tumor growth was evaluated in the MIA PaCa-2-derived xenograft model. Tumor tissues were investigated by Western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and a proteomic analysis. Chrysin caused cell cycle arrest and significantly decreased cell viability. Following co-treatment with chrysin and 17ß-estradiol, the inhibitory effect of chrysin on cell proliferation was enhanced. In the xenograft model, chrysin and G1 (a GPER agonist) significantly delayed tumor growth and reduced both Ki-67 (a proliferation marker) and c-Myc expressions in tumor tissues. The proteomic analysis of tumor tissues identified that rho-associated coiled-coil containing protein kinase 1 (ROCK1), transgelin 2 (TAGLN2), and FCH and Mu domain containing endocytic adaptor 2 (FCHO2) levels were significantly reduced in chrysin-treated tumor tissues. High ROCK1, TAGLN2, and FCHO2 expressions were indicative of low overall PC survival as found using the Kaplan-Meier plotter. In conclusion, our results suggest that chrysin suppresses PC progression through the activation of GPER and reductions in ROCK1, TAGLN2, and FCHO2 expressions.

Comparison of diagnostic accuracy of 2D and 3D measurements to determine opportunistic screening of osteoporosis using the proximal femur on abdomen-pelvic CT.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the osteoporosis-predicting ability of computed tomography (CT) indexes in abdomen-pelvic CT using the proximal femur and the reliability of measurements in two- and three-dimensional analyses. METHODS: Four hundred thirty female patients (age range, 50-96 years) who underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and abdominal-pelvic CT within 1 month were retrospectively selected. The volumes of interest (VOIs) from the femoral head to the lesser trochanter and the femoral neck were expressed as 3DFemur. Round regions of interest (ROIs) of image plane drawn over the femoral neck touching the outer cortex were determined as 2Dcoronal. In HU histogram analysis (HUHA), the percentages of HU histogram ranges related to the ROI or VOI were classified as HUHAFat (<0 HU) and HUHABone (126 HU≤). Diagnostic performance, correlation analysis and measurement reliability were analyzed by receiver operating characteristic curves, correlation coefficient and interobserver correlation coefficient (ICC), respectively. RESULTS: AUCs of each HUHA and mean-HU measurement on 2D-ROI and 3D-VOI were 0.94 or higher (P < 0.001). Both 3DFemur-Mean-HU and 3DFemur-HUHABone showed the highest AUC (0.96). The cut-off value of 3DFemur-Mean-HU was 231HU or less, (sensitivity: 94.8%; specificity: 85.0%; correlation coefficient: -0.65; P <0.001) for diagnosis of osteoporosis. There was no superiority between AUCs in 2D-ROI and 3D-VOI measurements (P > 0.05). Reliability of the 3D-VOI measurement showed perfect agreement (ICC ≥ 0.94), and 2D-ROI showed moderate to good agreement (ICC range: 0.63~0.84). CONCLUSIONS: CT indexes on 3D-VOI for predicting femoral osteoporosis showed similar diagnostic accuracy with better reproducibility of measurement, compared with 2D-ROI.

Comparison of HU histogram analysis and BMD for proximal femoral fragility fracture assessment: a retrospective single-center case-control study.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the feasibility of HU histogram analysis (HUHA) to assess proximal femoral fragility fractures with respect to BMD. METHODS: This retrospective study included 137 patients with femoral fragility fractures who underwent hip CT and 137 control patients without fractures who underwent abdominal CT between January 2018 and February 2019. HUHA was calculated with the 3D volume of interest from the femoral head to the lesser trochanter. HUHAfat (percentage of negative HU values) and HUHAbone (percentage of HU values ≥ 125 HU) were assumed to be fat and bone components, respectively. Statistical significance was assessed using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), Spearman correlation (ρ), and odds ratio. RESULTS: HUHAfat was strongly positively correlated (ρ = 0.56) and BMD was moderately negatively correlated with fragility fractures (ρ = - 0.37). AUC of HUHAfat (0.82, 95% CI [0.77, 0.87]) significantly differed from that of BMD (0.69, 95% CI [0.63, 0.75]) (p < .001). The cutoff value was 15.8% for HUHAfat (sensitivity: 90.4%; specificity: 67.7%) and 0.709 g/cm2 for BMD (sensitivity: 87.5%; specificity: 51.5%), with higher HUHAfat and lower BMD values indicating fragility fractures. The odds ratio of HUHAfat was 19.5 (95% CI [9.9, 38.2], p < .001), which was higher than that of BMD, 7.4 (95% CI [4.0, 13.6], p < .001). CONCLUSION: HUHAfat revealed better performance than BMD and demonstrated feasibility in assessing proximal femoral fragility fractures. KEY POINTS: • HUHAfat showed a strong positive correlation (Spearman ρ = 0.56, p < .001), and BMD showed a moderate negative correlation (Spearman ρ = - 0.37, p < .001) with proximal femoral fragility fractures. • HUHAfat (AUC = 0.82) performed significantly better than BMD in assessing proximal femoral fragility fractures (AUC = 0.69) (p < .001). • The odds ratio of HUHAfat for proximal femoral fragility fractures was higher than that of BMD (19.5 and 7.4, respectively; p < .001).

2021 Korean Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System and Imaging-Based Management of Thyroid Nodules: Korean Society of Thyroid Radiology Consensus Statement and Recommendations.

Incidental thyroid nodules are commonly detected on ultrasonography (US). This has contributed to the rapidly rising incidence of low-risk papillary thyroid carcinoma over the last 20 years. The appropriate diagnosis and management of these patients is based on the risk factors related to the patients as well as the thyroid nodules. The Korean Society of Thyroid Radiology (KSThR) published consensus recommendations for US-based management of thyroid nodules in 2011 and revised them in 2016. These guidelines have been used as the standard guidelines in Korea. However, recent advances in the diagnosis and management of thyroid nodules have necessitated the revision of the original recommendations. The task force of the KSThR has revised the Korean Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System and recommendations for US lexicon, biopsy criteria, US criteria of extrathyroidal extension, optimal thyroid computed tomography protocol, and US follow-up of thyroid nodules before and after biopsy. The biopsy criteria were revised to reduce unnecessary biopsies for benign nodules while maintaining an appropriate sensitivity for the detection of malignant tumors in small (1-2 cm) thyroid nodules. The goal of these recommendations is to provide the optimal scientific evidence and expert opinion consensus regarding US-based diagnosis and management of thyroid nodules.

CCL8 mediates crosstalk between endothelial colony forming cells and triple-negative breast cancer cells through IL-8, aggravating invasion and tumorigenicity.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive type of breast cancer with a poor prognosis for which no effective therapeutic measures are currently available. The present study aimed to investigate whether interactions with endothelial colony-forming cells (ECFCs) promote aggressive progression of TNBC cells. Herein, using an indirect co-culture system, we showed that co-culture increased the invasive and migratory phenotypes of both MDA-MB-231 TNBC cells and ECFCs. Through a cytokine antibody array and RT-PCR analysis, we revealed that co-culture markedly induced secretion of the chemokine C-C motif ligand (CCL)8 from ECFCs and that of interleukin (IL)-8 from MDA-MB-231 cells. CCL8 was crucial for ECFC-induced IL-8 secretion and invasion of MDA-MB-231 cells as well as for MDA-MB-231-enhanced MMP-2 secretion and angiogenesis of ECFCs. We suggest c-Jun as a transcription factor for CCL8-induced IL-8 expression in MDA-MB-231 cells. IL-8 was important for co-culture-induced CCL8 and MMP-2 upregulation and invasion of ECFCs. Notably, our findings reveal a positive feedback loop between CCL8 and IL-8, which contributes to the aggressive phenotypes of both ECFC and TNBC cells. Using an MDA-MB-231 cell-based xenograft model, we show that tumor growth and metastasis are increased by co-injected ECFCs in vivo. Increased expression of IL-8 was observed in tissues with bone metastases in mice injected with conditioned media from co-cultured cells. High IL-8 levels are correlated with poor recurrence-free survival in TNBC patients. Together, these results suggest that CCL8 and IL-8 mediate the crosstalk between ECFCs and TNBC, leading to aggravation of tumorigenicity in TNBC.

Prediction of femoral osteoporosis using machine-learning analysis with radiomics features and abdomen-pelvic CT: A retrospective single center preliminary study.

BACKGROUND: Osteoporosis has increased and developed into a serious public health concern worldwide. Despite the high prevalence, osteoporosis is silent before major fragility fracture and the osteoporosis screening rate is low. Abdomen-pelvic CT (APCT) is one of the most widely conducted medical tests. Artificial intelligence and radiomics analysis have recently been spotlighted. This is the first study to evaluate the prediction performance of femoral osteoporosis using machine-learning analysis with radiomics features and APCT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 500 patients (M: F = 70:430; mean age, 66.5 ± 11.8yrs; range, 50-96 years) underwent both dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and APCT within 1 month. The volume of interest of the left proximal femur was extracted and 41 radiomics features were calculated using 3D volume of interest analysis. Top 10 importance radiomic features were selected by the intraclass correlation coefficient and random forest feature selection. Study cohort was randomly divided into 70% of the samples as the training cohort and the remaining 30% of the sample as the validation cohort. Prediction performance of machine-learning analysis was calculated using diagnostic test and comparison of area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed between training and validation cohorts. RESULTS: The osteoporosis prevalence of this study cohort was 20.8%. The prediction performance of the machine-learning analysis to diagnose osteoporosis in the training and validation cohorts were as follows; accuracy, 92.9% vs. 92.7%; sensitivity, 86.6% vs. 80.0%; specificity, 94.5% vs. 95.8%; positive predictive value, 78.4% vs. 82.8%; and negative predictive value, 96.7% vs. 95.0%. The AUC to predict osteoporosis in the training and validation cohorts were 95.9% [95% confidence interval (CI), 93.7%-98.1%] and 96.0% [95% CI, 93.2%-98.8%], respectively, without significant differences (P = 0.962). CONCLUSION: Prediction performance of femoral osteoporosis using machine-learning analysis with radiomics features and APCT showed high validity with more than 93% accuracy, specificity, and negative predictive value.

Reliability of 3D image analysis and influence of contrast medium administration on measurement of Hounsfield unit values of the proximal femur.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the reliability of 3D image analysis and the effect of an iodine contrast agent on the computed tomography (CT) Hounsfield unit (HU) values of the proximal femur. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty female patients (mean age, 61.3 years; age range, 50-79 years) who underwent both pre- and post-enhancement abdominopelvic CT scans were included in this retrospective study. Whole 3D volumes of the left proximal femur from the head to the lesser trochanter were extracted using the regional growth technique with commercial 3D software. Total volume, mean HU, and HU histogram analysis (HUHA) values of the extracted femur were calculated. HUHA distribution was classified into HUHAfat for the assumed fatty marrow (percentage of negative HU values) and HUHAdense-bone (percentage of HU values ≥ 126 HU). Reliability was assessed by calculating intra- and interobserver correlation coefficients (ICCs) and by drawing Bland-Altman plots. The effect of contrast medium administration was evaluated by the paired t-test. RESULTS: All intra- and interobserver ICCs of 3D volume measurements showed excellent reproducibility (all ICCs > 0.90). On Bland-Altman analysis of two observers' 3D volume measurements, the differences in the mean total volume, HUHAfat, HUHAdense-bone, and mean HU were 2.4 cm3, 0.17%, 0.6%, and 1.9 HU, respectively. The mean difference in HU after contrast agent administration (-2.2 HU) was not significant (P = 0.27). The mean difference in HUHAfat and HUHAdense-bone after contrast agent administration were -1.1% and -2.2%, respectively, on the Bland-Altman plot. HUHAfat and HUHAdense-bone showed significant differences (P < 0.05). The 95% limits of agreement for HUHAfat, HUHAdense-bone, and mean HU were -3.6% to 1.3%, -6.5% to 2.1%, and -30.0 to 25.5 HU, respectively. CONCLUSION: Image analysis based on 3D volume measurement of the proximal femur showed excellent reliability, with the contrast agent administration showing negligible influence on the mean HU.

Long-Term Follow-Up Results of Ultrasound-Guided Radiofrequency Ablation for Low-Risk Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma: More Than 5-Year Follow-Up for 84 Tumors.

Background: Despite reports describing favorable short-term results for thermal ablation of thyroid cancer, there remains a need to evaluate long-term results because of its indolent characteristics. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of ultrasound (US)-guided radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for low-risk papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) over a follow-up period of more than five years. Methods: From a cohort of patients under surveillance after US-guided RFA for primary low-risk PTMC, those with a record of follow-up data of more than five years were selected for this study. Before RFA, all patients underwent US and computed tomography to evaluate the PTMC and the presence of neck metastasis. RFA was performed using thyroid-dedicated electrodes. Follow-up US was performed 6 and 12 months after initial RFA, and then every 12 months. The status of ablated tumors was evaluated according to volume reduction, local tumor progression, newly developed cancers, lymph node (LN) or distant metastasis, and delayed surgery during follow-up. Complications during the procedure and follow-up period were evaluated. Results: A total of 84 nodules from 74 patients were included in this study. All patients tolerated RFA, and the mean follow-up duration was 72 months. After RFA, complete disappearance rates of 98.8% and 100% were achieved at 24 and 60-month follow-up, respectively. Additional ablations were performed in 13 of 84 tumors. The mean number of RFA sessions was 1.2. There were four newly developed cancers in three patients, and these were also treated with RFA and completely disappeared. During the follow-up period, there was no local tumor progression, no LN or distant metastasis, and no patients underwent delayed surgery. The major complication rate was 1.4% (1/74), and there was no delayed complication or procedure-related death. Conclusions: RFA is effective for treating low-risk PTMC patients, without occurrence of local tumor progression, LN or distant metastasis, delayed complications, procedure-related death, or delayed surgery over more than five years of follow-up.

Erratum: US-Guided Radiofrequency Ablation for Low-Risk Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma: Efficacy and Safety in a Large Population.

This corrects the article on p. 1653 in vol. 20, PMID: 31854153.

US-Guided Radiofrequency Ablation for Low-Risk Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinoma: Efficacy and Safety in a Large Population.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for low-risk papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) in a large population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cases of 152 biopsy-proven PTMCs from 133 patients who had undergone RFA for PTMC between May 2008 and January 2017 were included in this study. All patients were either of high surgical risk or refused to undergo surgery. They were followed up for at least 6 months after initial RFA. Ultrasonography (US) and computed tomography were performed to evaluate the PTMC and the presence of neck metastasis before treatment. RFA was conducted using an internally cooled thyroid-dedicated electrode system. Follow-up US was performed at 1 week, and 2, 6, and 12 months, after the initial RFA, and then at every 6-12 months. We evaluated serial changes of ablated tumors, newly developed cancers, lymph node (LN) or distant metastasis and complications. RESULTS: Complete disappearance was found in 91.4% (139/152) of ablated tumors. Among the 13 tumors in patients who did not show complete disappearance, no tumor displayed any regrowth of the residual ablated lesion during the follow-up period. The mean follow-up period was 39 months. During the follow-up period, there were no local recurrence, no LN or distant metastasis, and no newly developed thyroid cancers. No patients were referred to surgery. The overall complication rate was 3% (4/133) of patients, including one voice change. There were no life-threatening complications or procedure-related deaths. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that RFA is an effective and safe option for treating low-risk PTMC patients who are of high surgical risk or refuse surgery.

Ethanol Ablation of the Thyroid Nodules: 2018 Consensus Statement by the Korean Society of Thyroid Radiology.

Minimally invasive treatment of symptomatic thyroid nodules is now commonplace. Ethanol ablation (EA) of thyroid cystic nodules has been performed since the 1990s, but there is no global consensus or guideline. Although various limitations of EA have been described, recommendations for practical application are necessary. Therefore, the Task Force Committee of the Korean Society of Thyroid Radiology initiated the present consensus statement and here we provide recommendations for the role of EA in the management of symptomatic thyroid nodules. These recommendations are based on evidence to date from the literature and expert opinion.

High-pitch, 120 kVp/30 mAs, low-dose dual-source chest CT with iterative reconstruction: Prospective evaluation of radiation dose reduction and image quality compared with those of standard-pitch low-dose chest CT in healthy adult volunteers.

PURPOSE: Objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the iterative reconstruction of high-pitch dual-source chest CT (IR-HP-CT) scanned with low radiation exposure compared with low dose chest CT (LDCT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was approved by the institutional review board. Thirty healthy adult volunteers (mean age 44 years) were enrolled in this study. All volunteers underwent both IR-HP-CT and LDCT. IR-HP-CT was scanned with 120 kVp tube voltage, 30 mAs tube current and pitch 3.2 and reconstructed with sinogram affirmed iterative reconstruction. LDCT was scanned with 120 kVp tube voltage, 40 mAs tube current and pitch 0.8 and reconstructed with B50 filtered back projection. Image noise, and signal to noise ratio (SNR) of the infraspinatus muscle, subcutaneous fat and lung parenchyma were calculated. Cardiac motion artifact, overall image quality and artifacts was rated by two blinded readers using 4-point scale. The dose-length product (DLP) (mGy∙cm) were obtained from each CT dosimetry table. Scan length was calculated from the DLP results. The DLP parameter was a metric of radiation output, not of patient dose. Size-specific dose estimation (SSDE, mGy) was calculated using the sum of the anteroposterior and lateral dimensions and effective radiation dose (ED, mSv) were calculated using CT dosimetry index. RESULTS: Approximately, mean 40% of SSDE (2.1 ± 0.2 mGy vs. 3.5 ± 0.3 mGy) and 34% of ED (1.0 ± 0.1 mSv vs. 1.5 ± 0.1 mSv) was reduced in IR-HP-CT compared to LDCT (P < 0.0001). Image noise was reduced in the IR-HP-CT (16.8 ± 2.8 vs. 19.8 ± 3.4, P = 0.0001). SNR of lung and aorta of IR-HP-CT showed better results compared with that of LDCT (22.2 ± 5.9 vs. 33.0 ± 7.8, 1.9 ± 0.4 vs 1.1 ± 0.3, P < 0.0001). The score of cardiac pulsation artifacts were significantly reduced on IR-HP-CT (3.8 ± 0.4, 95% confidence interval, 3.7‒4.0) compared with LDCT (1.6 ± 0.6, 95% confidence interval, 1.3‒1.8) (P < 0.0001). SNR of muscle and fat, beam hardening artifact and overall subjective image quality of the mediastinum, lung and chest wall were comparable on both scans (P ≥ 0.05). CONCLUSION: IR-HP-CT with 120 kVp and 30 mAs tube setting in addition to an iterative reconstruction reduced cardiac motion artifact and radiation exposure while representing similar image quality compared with LDCT.

Summary of the 2017 thyroid radiofrequency ablation guideline and comparison with the 2012 guideline.

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a new, minimally invasive modality that serves as an alternative to surgery in patients with thyroid tumors. The Task Force Committee of the Korean Society of Thyroid Radiology developed recommendations for the optimal use of RFA for thyroid tumors in 2012 and revised them in 2017. Herein, we review and summarize the 2017 thyroid RFA guideline and compare it with the 2012 thyroid RFA guideline.

Comparison of the diagnostic performance of CT Hounsfield unit histogram analysis and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in predicting osteoporosis of the femur.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the diagnostic performance of Hounsfield unit histogram analysis (HUHA) of precontrast abdominal-pelvic CT scans for predicting osteoporosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included 271 patients who had undergone dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and abdominal-pelvic CT within 1 month. HUHA was measured using commercial 3D analysis software (Aquarius iNtuition v4.4.12Ⓡ, TeraRecon) and expressed as a percentage of seven HU range categories related to the ROI: A < 0, 0 ≤ B < 25, 25 ≤ C < 50, 50 ≤ D < 75, 75 ≤ E < 100, 100 ≤ F < 130, and 130 ≤ G. A coronal reformatted precontrast CT image containing the largest Ward's triangle was selected and then the ROI was drawn over the femoral neck. Correlation (r) and ROC curve analyses were used to assess diagnostic performance in predicting osteoporosis using the femur T-score as the reference standard. RESULTS: When the femur T-score was used as the reference, the rs of HUHA-A and HUHA-G were 0.74 and -0.57, respectively. Other HUHA values had moderate to weak correlations (r = -0.33 to 0.27). The correlation of HUHA-A was significantly higher than that of HUHA-G (p = 0.03). The area under the curve (0.95) of HUHA-A differed significantly from that of HUHA-G (0.90; p < 0.01). A HUHA-A threshold ≥ 27.7% was shown to predict osteoporosis based on a sensitivity and specificity of 95.6% and 81.7%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The HUHA-A value of the femoral neck is closely related to osteoporosis and may help predict osteoporosis. KEY POINTS: • HUHA correlated strongly with the DXA femur T-score (HUHA-A, r = 0.74). • The diagnostic performance of HUHA for predicting osteoporosis (AUC = 0.95) was better than that of the average CT HU value (AUC = 0.91; p < 0.05). • HUHA may help predict osteoporosis and enable semi-quantitative measurement of changes in bone mineral density.

Diagnostic accuracy of computed tomography for differentiating diffuse thyroid disease from normal thyroid parenchyma: A multicenter study.

This study aimed to assess the diagnostic performance of computed tomography (CT) for differentiating diffuse thyroid disease (DTD) from normal thyroid parenchyma (NTP) using multicenter data. Between January 2016 and June 2016, 229 patients underwent preoperative neck CT and subsequent thyroid surgery at five participating institutions. The neck CT images of each patient were retrospectively reviewed and classified into the following four categories: no DTD, indeterminate, suspicious for DTD, and DTD. The results of the CT image evaluations were compared with the histopathological results to determine the diagnostic accuracy of CT at each institution. According to the histopathological results, there were NTP (n = 151), Hashimoto thyroiditis (n = 24), non-Hashimoto lymphocytic thyroiditis (n = 47), and diffuse hyperplasia (n = 7). The CT categories of the 229 patients were "no DTD" in 89 patients, "indeterminate" in 40 patients, "suspicious for DTD" in 42 patients, and "DTD" in 58 patients. The presence of two or more CT features of DTD, which was classified as "suspicious for DTD" by all radiologists, had the largest area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve (Az = 0.820; 95% confidence interval: 0.764, 0.868), with sensitivity of 85.9% and specificity of 78.2%. However, no statistical significance between readers' experience and their diagnostic accuracy was found. In conclusion, evaluations of CT images are helpful for differentiating DTD from NTP.

Tumor-associated macrophages secrete CCL2 and induce the invasive phenotype of human breast epithelial cells through upregulation of ERO1-α and MMP-9.

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are major components of tumor microenvironment that promote invasion and metastasis of cancer cells. In this study, we investigated the effect of TAMs on phenotypic conversion of non-neoplastic MCF10A human breast epithelial cells using an indirect co-culture system. Co-culture with TAMs induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, invasive phenotype, and MMP-9 upregulation in MCF10A cells. Comparative proteomic analysis revealed that endoplasmic reticulum oxidoreductase (ERO)1-α was increased in MCF10A cells co-cultured with TAMs compared to that in mono-cultured cells. ERO1-α was crucial for TAMs-induced invasive phenotype and MMP-9 upregulation involving transcription factors c-fos and c-Jun. Cytokine array analysis showed that levels of interleukin (IL)-6, C-X-C motif ligand (CXCL)1, C-C motif ligand (CCL)2, growth-regulated protein (GRO), IL-8, and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) were increased in conditioned media of co-cultured cells. Among these cytokines increased in conditioned media of co-cultured cells, CCL2 was secreted from TAMs, leading to induction of ERO1-α, MMP-9 upregulation, and invasiveness in MCF10A cells. Our findings elucidated a molecular mechanism underlying the aggressive phenotypic change of non-neoplastic breast cells by co-culture with TAMs, providing useful information for prevention or treatment of recurrent breast cancer.