Comparisons of the Fusion Point of Orbital Septum and Levator Aponeurosis in Patients with and Without Mild Ptosis.

OBJECTIVE: By comparing the position of the fusion point between the oriental orbital septum and the levator aponeurosis of the upper eyelid in Asian without and with mild ptosis, this study explores the relationship between the fusion point and mild ptosis, providing scientific basis for better utilizing the orbital septum to correct mild ptosis. METHODS: In this study, the outpatients who underwent double eyelid blepharoplasty with incision method in the plastic laser cosmetology department of Hunan Provincial People's Hospital from October 2018 to April 2019 were divided into the normal group and the mild ptosis group. The position of the fusion part of the orbital septum and the aponeurosis of the levator palpebrae superioris was observed in the two groups. There are three types of this position: the height of the fusion part is greater than the width of the tarsal plate, the height of the fusion part is equal to the width of the tarsal plate, and the height of the fusion part is less than the width of the tarsal plate. After the fusion part was exposed during the operation, the width of tarsal plate and the height of fusion part were measured with a scale. The difference of the location of fusion part between the two groups was analyzed. RESULTS: The tarsal plate width was 11.061 ± 0.635 mm in the normal group and 11.062 ± 0.675 mm in the mild ptosis group. There was no significant difference in tarsal plate width between normal group and mild ptosis group (t = 0.645, p = 0.16). The height of the fusion part was 11.032 ± 0.646 mm in the normal group and 11.645 ± 0.429 mm in the mild ptosis group. The fusion position of mild ptosis group was higher than that of normal group (t = 3.769, P < 0.05). There was significant difference in the distribution of fusion site between the two groups (x2 =38.00, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: The height of aponeurosis fusion of orbital septum and levator palpebrae superioris in mild ptosis group was higher than that in normal group, which may be the cause of mild ptosis. It is suggested that the appropriate treatment of orbital septum in clinical operation may be effective in the treatment of mild blepharoptosis. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors https://www.springer.com/00266 .

Synergy of Oxygen Vacancy and Surface Modulation Endows Hollow Hydrangea-like MnCo2O4.5 with Enhanced Capacitive Performance.

Surface chemistry and bulk structure jointly play crucial roles in achieving high-performance supercapacitors. Here, the synergistic effect of surface chemistry properties (vacancy and phosphorization) and structure-derived properties (hollow hydrangea-like structure) on energy storage is explored by the surface treatment and architecture design of the nanostructures. The theoretical calculations and experiments prove that surface chemistry modulation is capable of improving electronic conductivity and electrolyte wettability. The structural engineering of both hollow and nanosheets produces a high specific surface area and an abundant pore structure, which is favorable in exposing more active sites and shortens the ion diffusion distance. Benefiting from its admirable physicochemical properties, the surface phosphorylated MnCo2O4.5 hollow hydrangea-like structure (P-MnCoO) delivers a high capacitance of 425 F g-1 at 1 A g-1, a superior capability rate of 63.9%, capacitance retention at 10 A g-1, and extremely long cyclic stability (91.1% after 10,000 cycles). The fabricated P-MnCoO/AC asymmetric supercapacitor achieved superior energy and power density. This work opens a new avenue to further improve the electrochemical performance of metal oxides for supercapacitors.

lncRNA ELFN1-AS1 upregulates TRIM29 by suppressing miR-211-3p to promote gastric cancer progression.

Long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) extracellular leucine rich repeat and fibronectin type III domain containing 1-antisense RNA 1 (ELFN1-AS1) has been found to be upregulated in various tumors. However, the biological functions of ELFN1-AS1 in gastric cancer (GC) are not entirely understood. In the present study, the expression levels of ELFN1-AS1, miR-211-3p, and TRIM29 are determined using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. Subsequently, CCK8, EdU, and colony formation assays are performed to determine GC cell vitality. The migratory and invasive capabilities of GC cells are further evaluated using transwell invasion and cell scratch assays. Western blot analysis is performed to quantify the levels of proteins associated with GC cell apoptosis and epithelialmesenchymal transition (EMT). The competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) activity of ELFN1-AS1 on TRIM29 through miR-211-3p is confirmed by pull-down, RIP, and luciferase reporter assays. Our study proves that ELFN1-AS1 and TRIM29 are highly expressed in GC tissues. ELFN1-AS1 silencing inhibits GC cell proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT, and induces cell apoptosis. Rescue experiments reveal that the oncogenicity of ELFN1-AS1 is modulated by acting as a sponge for miR-211-3p, thereby increasing the expression of the target gene of miR-211-3p, TRIM29. In summary, ELFN1-AS1 maintains GC cell tumorigenicity via the ELFN1-AS1/miR-211-3p/TRIM29 axis, indicating that this axis can be directed for GC treatment in the future.

Comparison of Total and Nontotal Endoscopic Transaxillary Breast Augmentation Techniques: A Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the clinical outcomes of total endoscopic transaxillary (TET) breast augmentation with those of non-TET (NTET) breast augmentation. For the purposes of this study, the term NTET refers to the combination of blunt dissection and endoscopic techniques, whereas TET did not involve blunt dissection. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective review of 119 consecutive cases of primary breast augmentation from May 1, 2020, to August 31, 2020. The primary outcomes were the number of drainage days and pain scores as assessed using the visual analog scale on the first postoperative day. The secondary outcomes were the daily drainage volume recorded during the postoperative drainage days, the presence of postoperative daily pain that required the administration of tramadol for relief, reoperation rate, and operative time. RESULTS: The number of drainage days was significantly lower in the TET group than in the NTET group (TET vs NTET: 2.56 ± 0.57 vs 3.78 ± 1.30 days, P = 0.000). The visual analog scale score on the first postoperative day was significantly lower in the TET group than in the NTET group (TET vs NTET: 4.96 ± 0.63 vs 5.93 ± 0.93, P = 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: We observed that the major outcomes of the TET group were more favorable than those of the NTET group. Based on our results, we recommend the avoidance of blunt dissection during endoscopic transaxillary breast augmentation. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Comparison of the Clinical Effect of Double Eyelid Blepharoplasty with the Orbital Septum Method and the Classical Method.

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical effect between orbital septum incision and classical incision of double eyelid plasty. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 381 patients who underwent double eyelid blepharoplasty in the Department of Plastic and Laser Cosmetology of Hunan Provincial People's Hospital from January 2019 to December 2019. The patients were divided into two groups according to different surgical methods: group A (n = 146) received the classical method and group B (n = 235) received the orbital septum method. The incidence of early postoperative complications, scar depression from 6 months to 1 year after the operation, the condition of 'meat strip' (the accumulation of soft tissue in front of the tarsal plate after double eyelid surgery, including skin, muscle, and fascia fat, results in a hypertrophic appearance of the upper eyelid) below the double eyelid line, and the symmetry of double eyelids were analyzed and evaluated. RESULTS: The total number of early postoperative complications in group A was seven cases (incidence rate: approximately 4.80%), and the total number of early postoperative complications in group B was two cases (incidence rate: approximately 0.85%), with a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05). The degree of scar depression in group B was significantly lighter than that in group A from 6 months to 1 year after the operation (P < 0.05). The score of 'meat strip' below the double eyelid line in group B was significantly lighter than that in group A (P < 0.05). The symmetry of double eyelids in group B was better than that in group A (P < 0.05) CONCLUSION: Compared to the classical double eyelid method, the orbital septum method has the advantages of reducing early postoperative complications, reducing the severity of the scar, slighting the 'meat strip,' and improving symmetry, which results in higher postoperative satisfaction LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors https://www.springer.com/00266 .

NiMoO4 Nanosheets Embedded in Microflake-Assembled CuCo2O4 Island-like Structure on Ni Foam for High-Performance Asymmetrical Solid-State Supercapacitors.

Micro/nano-heterostructure with subtle structural design is an effective strategy to reduce the self-aggregation of 2D structure and maintain a large specific surface area to achieve high-performance supercapacitors. Herein, we report a rationally designed micro/nano-heterostructure of complex ternary transition metal oxides (TMOs) by a two-step hydrothermal method. Microflake-assembled island-like CuCo2O4 frameworks and secondary inserted units of NiMoO4 nanosheets endow CuCo2O4/NiMoO4 composites with desired micro/nanostructure features. Three-dimensional architectures constructed from CuCo2O4 microflakes offer a robust skeleton to endure structural change during cycling and provide efficient and rapid pathways for ion and electron transport. Two-dimensional NiMoO4 nanosheets possess numerous active sites and multi-access ion paths. Benefiting from above-mentioned advantages, the CuCo2O4/NiMoO4 heterostructures exhibit superior pseudocapacitive performance with a high specific capacitance of 2350 F/g at 1 A/g as well as an excellent cycling stability of 91.5% over 5000 cycles. A solid-state asymmetric supercapacitor based on the CuCo2O4/NiMoO4 electrode as a positive electrode and activated carbon as a negative electrode achieves a high energy density of 51.7 Wh/kg at a power density of 853.7 W/kg. These results indicate that the hybrid micro/nanostructured TMOs will be promising for high-performance supercapacitors.

Proguanil synergistically sensitizes ovarian cancer cells to olaparib by increasing DNA damage and inducing apoptosis.

Ovarian cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women, with low five-year survival rates. Therefore, it is essential to seek new treatment options. Olaparib, a PARP inhibitor, has benefited many ovarian cancer patients, but olaparib is much less effective as a single agent in 50% of patients with high grade severe tumors. Proguanil, which was originally developed as an anti-malarial drug, has gained attention due to its anti-tumor effects. Here, we evaluated the anti-tumor effect of the combination of olaparib and proguanil on ovarian cancer cells, aimed to develop a potential medical option for treating ovarian cancer patients. We examined the effect on proliferation by MTT and colony formation assays, while cell migration was measured by the transwell assay. The effect on apoptosis was measured by flow cytometry and AO/EB staining assays. Western blotting was used to detect protein expression levels in cells treated with olaparib and/or proguanil. In addition, the synergistic effect of these two drugs is calculated by CompuSyn software. The combination of olaparib and proguanil significantly increased growth suppression and apoptosis in ovarian cancer cells, compared to either single agent alone. Furthermore, results showed that the combination of olaparib and proguanil synergistically increased olaparib-induced apoptosis and DNA damage and reduced the efficiency of DNA homologous recombination repair. Our findings indicate that combination of olaparib with proguanil will be a novel potential administration route for treating ovarian cancer patients.

Upregulation of CENPM facilitates lung adenocarcinoma progression via PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.

Centromere protein M (CENPM) is essential for chromosome separation during mitosis. However, its roles in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) progression and metastasis remain unknown. In this study, we aimed to explore the effects of CENPM on LUAD progression as well as the underlying mechanisms. We analyzed the expression of CENPM and its correlation with clinicopathological characteristics using GEO LUAD chip datasets and TCGA dataset. We further investigated the impact of CENPM on LUAD and . In silico analysis and qRT-PCR revealed that CENPM is upregulated in LUAD compared with that in normal lung tissues. Via gain/loss-of-function assays, we further found that CENPM promotes the LUAD cell cycle, cell proliferation, migration and invasion, and inhibits cell apoptosis. The study showed that loss of CENPM inhibits the growth of A549 xenografts. Furthermore, we found that CENPM can promote the phosphorylation of mTOR rather than directly affect the mTOR content. Inhibition of mTOR activity abrogates the promoting effects of CENPM on cell cycle progression, cell proliferation, migration and invasion. Taken together, these results show that CENPM plays an important role in the growth and metastasis of LUAD and may be a promising therapeutic target in LUAD.

Clinical practice and outcome of radiotherapy for advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma between 2002 and 2018 in China: the multi-center 3JECROG Survey.

PURPOSE: To determine the survival and prognostic factors of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients undergoing radical (chemo)radiotherapy in the era of three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) and intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in China. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The Jing-Jin-Ji Esophageal and Esophagogastric Cancer Radiotherapy Oncology Group (3JECROG) conducted the first nationwide survey of nine institutions. Detailed information was accumulated on 5185 patients with ESCC who received definitive 3DCRT/IMRT between 2002 and 2018. Relevant prognostic factors were evaluated to assess their influence on overall and progression-free survivals. RESULTS: After a median follow-up time of 47.0 (0.9-157.4) months, the 1-year, 2-year, 3-year and 5-year overall survival rates of the whole group were 69.8%, 46.6%, 37.9% and 30.1%. The 1-year, 2-year, 3-year, and 5-year progression-free survival rates were 54.1%, 36.6%, 30.5% and 24.9%. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that sex, clinical stage, treatment modality and radiation dose were prognostic factors for OS. The survival of patients who received concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) was better than that of patients who received radiotherapy alone or sequential chemoradiotherapy. Patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy after CCRT had a better OS than patients receiving CCRT alone. Patients receiving higher radiation dose had a better OS than those patients receiving low-dose radiotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: The survival of ESCC patients undergoing radical (chemo)radiotherapy was relatively satisfactory in the era of 3DCRTand IMRT. As the largest-scale multicenter research on esophageal cancer radiotherapy conducted in China, this study establishes national benchmarks and helps to provide references for subsequent related researches.

Exploration of the methods of establishing the minimum clinical important difference based on anchor and its application in the quality of life measurement scale QLICP-ES (V2.0) for esophageal cancer.

BACKGROUND: The development of the minimum clinical important difference (MCID) can make it easier for researchers or doctors to judge the significance of research results and the effect of intervention measures, and improve the evaluation system of efficacy. This paper is aimed to calculate the MCID based on anchor and to develop MCID for esophageal cancer scale (QLICP-ES). METHODS: The item Q29 (How do you evaluate your overall health in the past week with 7 grades answers from 1 very poor to 7 excellent)of EORTC QLQ-C30 was used as the subjective anchor to calculate the score difference between each domain at discharge and admission. MCID was established according to two standards, "one grade difference"(A) and "at least one grade difference"(B), and developed by three methods: anchor-based method, ROC curve method and multiple linear regression models. In terms of anchor-based method, the mean of the absolute value of the difference before and after treatments is MCID. The point with the best sensitivity and specificity-Yorden index at the ROC curve is MCID for ROC curve method. In contrast, the predicted mean value based on a multiple linear regression model and the parameters of each factor is MCID. RESULTS: Most of the correlation coefficients of Q29 and various domains of the QLICP-ES were higher than 0.30. The rank of MCID values determined by different methods and standards were as follows: standard B > standard A, anchor-based method > ROC curve method > multiple linear regression models. The recommended MCID values of physical domain, psychological domain, social domain, common symptom and side-effects domain, the specific domain and the overall of the QLICP-ES were 7.8, 9.7, 4.7, 3.6, 4.3, 2.3 and 2.9, respectively. CONCLUSION: Different methods have their own advantages and disadvantages, and also different definitions and standards can be adopted according to research purposes and methods. A lot of different MCID values were presented in this paper so that it can be easy and convenient to select by users.

Does chemoradiotherapy benefit elderly patients with esophageal squamous cell cancer? A propensity-score matched analysis on multicenter data (3JECROG R-03A).

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to assess the efficacy of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT) or radiotherapy alone (RT-alone) in elderly patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). METHODS: The clinical data of patients with ESCC treated with RT-alone or CRT were collected and retrospectively reviewed. The 1-, 3- and 5-year overall survival (OS) rates and the clinical characteristics correlated with survival were analyzed statistically. Propensity score matching (PSM) analyses were used to compensate for differences in baseline characteristics between the CRT and RT-alone groups to confirm the survival difference. RESULTS: A total of 729 patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria were reviewed. Diabetes, primary tumor volume (pTV), primary tumor location (pTLo), clinical T stage,(cT) clinical N stage (cN), clinical M stage (cM) and short-term response to RT were independent factors influencing OS (P = 0.002-0.044). The 5-year OS rate was 26.6, 26.0 and 30.1% in the whole cohort, RT-alone and CRT groups, respectively. The survival difference between RT alone and CRT was not significant before or following PSM. Compared with the corresponding subgroups treated with RT alone, CRT significantly benefited patients with diabetes (P = 0.003), cT4 (P = 0.030) and cN0 (P = 0.049), whereas no benefit was identified between CRT and RT alone in the other subgroups, including cT1-3, cN1, cM, pTLo, pTV, age and gender. CONCLUSIONS: CRT with the current chemotherapy regimens may not improve the survival of elderly ESCC patients compared to RT-alone, except in patients with cT4 stage, cN0 stage or diabetes. However, due to the limitation of the retrospective nature of the current study, further clinical trials are required for confirmation.

Risk-based, response-adapted therapy for early-stage extranodal nasal-type NK/T-cell lymphoma in the modern chemotherapy era: A China Lymphoma Collaborative Group study.

We aimed to determine the survival benefits of chemotherapy (CT) added to radiotherapy (RT) in different risk groups of patients with early-stage extranodal nasal-type NK/T-cell lymphoma (ENKTCL), and to investigate the risk of postponing RT based on induction CT responses. A total of 1360 patients who received RT with or without new-regimen CT from 20 institutions were retrospectively reviewed. The patients had received RT alone, RT followed by CT (RT + CT), or CT followed by RT (CT + RT). The patients were stratified into different risk groups using the nomogram-revised risk index (NRI). A comparative study was performed using propensity score-matched (PSM) analysis. Adding new-regimen CT to RT (vs RT alone) significantly improved overall survival (OS, 73.2% vs 60.9%, P < .001) and progression-free survival (PFS, 63.5% vs 54.2%, P < .001) for intermediate-risk/high-risk patients, but not for low-risk patients. For intermediate-risk/high-risk patients, RT + CT and CT + RT resulted in non-significantly different OS (77.7% vs 72.4%; P = .290) and PFS (67.1% vs 63.1%; P = .592). For patients with complete response (CR) after induction CT, initiation of RT within or beyond three cycles of CT resulted in similar OS (78.2% vs 81.7%, P = .915) and PFS (68.2% vs 69.9%, P = .519). For patients without CR, early RT resulted in better PFS (63.4% vs 47.6%, P = .019) than late RT. Risk-based, response-adapted therapy involving early RT combined with CT is a viable, effective strategy for intermediate-risk/high-risk early-stage patients with ENKTCL in the modern treatment era.

Plasma cfDNA as a potential treatment monitoring and prognostic index in patients withnon-small cell lung cancer.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) as a prognostic factor for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).   Patients with NSCLC (n = 154) treated with gefitinib were recruited over a 5-year period for this study, and served as the observation group (79 males and 75 females, mean age = 53.74 ± 10.86 years). The control group (normal healthy individuals) consisted of 30 males and 22 females, aged 44 - 64 years (mean age = 54.12 ± 9.83 years). The follow-up lasted 5 years, or until the patient relapsed and died. The plasma level of cfDNA was determined in patients 1 day before treatment, 3 days after treatment, and on the 28th day of treatment.Based on the cfDNA expression level, NSCLC patients were subdivided into high-expression and low-expression groups, and differences in survival were compared. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed on factors affecting patients survival using COX. Total effectiveness was significantly higher in observation group (49.35%) than in control group (13.95 %) (p<0.05). The extent of disease control wasalso significantly higher in the observation group (93.51 %) than in control group (p<0.05). Plasma cfDNA level of NSCLCpatients was significantly higher than that of control group before treatment, but was significantly and time-dependently reduced after gefitinib treatment (p<0.05). Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) level increased with severity of disease (p<0.05). Patients in cfDNA low-expression group had significantly higher chances of survival than those in the high-expression group (p<0.05). The results of Cox multivariate analysis showed that pathological severity and cfDNA concentration were independent factors affecting prognosis of NSCLC (p<0.05). Plasma cfDNA is a potential prognostic index in patients with NSCLC.

Potential prognostic value of delta-like protein 3 in small cell lung cancer: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Current researches have revealed that delta-like protein 3 (DLL3) may be related with prognosis in patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC). However, this finding remains controversial in small cell lung cancer. This meta-analysis was systematically performed to evaluate the prognostic value of DLL3 in SCLC. METHODS: The PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science databases were retrieved to collect the eligible references. Through Stata 15.0 software, we pooled hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) by using random or fixed-effects models to evaluate the association between DLL3 and SCLC survival results. RESULTS: A total of 6 inter-related studies including 645 patients were qualified. After we removed 1 study, the remaining 5 studies including 601 patients were pooled to testify that high expression of DLL3 was an inferior prognostic for patients with SCLC in Asian populations (HR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.05, 1.69; I2 = 0.0%, p = 0.000). The pooled results showed that DLL3 might be higher expression in advanced metastasis SCLC in Asian populations (RR = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.71, 0.99; I2 = 44.7%, p = 0.039). But the expression of DLL3 was not correlated with sex (RR = 1.33, 95% CI = 0.98, 1.80; I2 = 0.0%, p = 0.064), smoking history (RR = 1.01, 95% CI = 0.58, 1.75; I2 = 72.1%, p = 0.967) and tumour stage (RR = 0.68, 95% CI = 0.44, 1.05; I2 = 66.6%, p = 0.081). CONCLUSIONS: Our meta-analysis confirms that in Asian populations, high expression of DLL3 was a potential poor prognostic biomarker for SCLC and DLL3 highly expressed in advanced stage SCLC in Asian populations.

An Accurate and Comprehensive Clinical Sequencing Assay for Cancer Targeted and Immunotherapies.

BACKGROUND: Incorporation of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology into clinical utility in targeted and immunotherapies requires stringent validation, including the assessment of tumor mutational burden (TMB) and microsatellite instability (MSI) status by NGS as important biomarkers for response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We designed an NGS assay, Cancer Sequencing YS panel (CSYS), and applied algorithms to detect five classes of genomic alterations and two genomic features of TMB and MSI. RESULTS: By stringent validation, CSYS exhibited high sensitivity and predictive positive value of 99.7% and 99.9%, respectively, for single nucleotide variation; 100% and 99.9%, respectively, for short insertion and deletion (indel); and 95.5% and 100%, respectively, for copy number alteration (CNA). Moreover, CSYS achieved 100% specificity for both long indel (50-3,000 bp insertion and deletion) and gene rearrangement. Overall, we used 33 cell lines and 208 clinical samples to validate CSYS's NGS performance, and genomic alterations in clinical samples were also confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Importantly, the landscape of TMB across different cancers of Chinese patients (n = 3,309) was studied. TMB by CSYS exhibited a high correlation (Pearson correlation coefficient r = 0.98) with TMB by whole exome sequencing (WES). MSI measurement showed 98% accuracy and was confirmed by PCR. Application of CSYS in a clinical setting showed an unexpectedly high occurrence of long indel (6.3%) in a cohort of tumors from Chinese patients with cancer (n = 3,309), including TP53, RB1, FLT3, BRCA2, and other cancer driver genes with clinical impact. CONCLUSION: CSYS proves to be clinically applicable and useful in disclosing genomic alterations relevant to cancer target therapies and revealing biomarkers for immune checkpoint inhibitors. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: The study describes a specially designed sequencing panel assay to detect genomic alterations and features of 450 cancer genes, including its overall workflow and rigorous clinical and analytical validations. The distribution of pan-cancer tumor mutational burden, microsatellite instability, gene rearrangement, and long insertion and deletion mutations was assessed for the first time by this assay in a broad array of Chinese patients with cancer. The Cancer Sequencing YS panel and its validation study could serve as a blueprint for developing next-generation sequencing-based assays, particularly for the purpose of clinical application.

A New Method for Double-Eyelid Blepharoplasty Using Orbital Septum.

BACKGROUND: This article presents a new method using orbital septum for double-eyelid blepharoplasty. METHODS: During double-eyelid blepharoplasty, we incised the orbital septum horizontally. Using the attachment site of the levator aponeurosis as a pedicle, the lower part of the dissected orbital septum was turned downward and then sutured to the upper border of the lower orbicularis oculi muscle and posterior pretarsal fascia. We evaluated the efficacy of this double-eyelid surgical procedure in patients undergoing the procedure from December 2015 to October 2017. RESULTS: We included 462 eyes of 231 patients in the final analysis. Sutures were removed 7 days after surgery. All double-eyelid creases were well formed, and the eyelids closed well. Six-month follow-up results revealed that the double-eyelid shape was natural looking, and no patients experienced upper eyelid retraction or incomplete eye closure. Notched scars did not occur, and patient satisfaction was achieved in all cases. Two hundred eleven patients were fully satisfied with the surgical results, and 20 were basically satisfied with the surgical results. CONCLUSIONS: Using the orbital septum is a good approach for double-eyelid blepharoplasty.

Reconstruction of Tragus and External Auditory Meatus using Remnant Auricle during Microtia Reconstruction.

This article investigates an effective method with which to reconstruct the tragus and external auditory meatus for microtia reconstruction. The external ear was reconstructed using a delayed postauricular skin flap in patients with congenital microtia. After the first stage of delaying the postauricular skin flap and the second stage of otoplasty with ear framework fabricated from autogenous rib cartilage draping with the delayed skin flap, the third stage involved tragus and external auditory meatus canaloplasty. After designing the remnant auricle flap, the lower part was trimmed and the tragus was reconstructed. The upper part was trimmed into a thin skin flap, which was rotated and used to cover the hollowed wound posterosuperior to the tragus so as to mimic the external auditory meatus. If remnant wounds were present, skin grafting was conducted. In total, 121 patients with congenital microtia were treated from March 2010 to March 2016. The reconstructed tragus and external auditory meatus were well formed, and all wounds healed well. No severe complications such as flap necrosis occurred. Six months postoperatively, the morphology of the reconstructed tragus and external auditory meatus was good. Overall, the patients and their families were satisfied. The use of remnant auricle to reconstruct the tragus and external auditory meatus is an effective auricular reconstruction technique.

MicroRNA-30e-5p promotes cell growth by targeting PTPN13 and indicates poor survival and recurrence in lung adenocarcinoma.

Aberrant microRNA expression is involved in the regulation of various cellular processes, such as proliferation and metastasis in multiple diseases including cancers. MicroRNA-30e-5p (miR-30e) was previously reported as an oncogenic or tumour suppressing miRNA in some malignancies, but its function in lung adenocarcinoma (LAC) remains largely undefined. In this study, we found that the expression of miR-30e was increased in LAC tissues and cell lines, associated with tumour size and represented an independent prognostic factor for overall survival and recurrence of LAC patients. Further functional experiments showed that knockdown of miR-30e suppressed cell growth while its overexpression promoted growth of LAC cells and xenografts in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, PTPN13 was identified as the direct target of miR-30e in LAC, in which PTPN13 expression was down-regulated in LAC tissues and showed the inverse correlation with miR-30e expression. Overexpression of PTPN13 inhibited cell growth and rescued the proliferation-promoting effect of miR-30e through inhibition of the EGFR signalling. Altogether, our findings suggest that miR-30e could function as an oncogene in LAC via targeting PTPN13 and act as a potential therapeutic target for treating LAC.

MiR-424 Promotes Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Progression and Metastasis through Regulating the Tumor Suppressor Gene TNFAIP1.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: This study aimed to investigate the potential roles of miR-424 expression in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) metastasis and growth and its underlying mechanism. METHODS: The expression of miR-424 in two NSCLC cell lines (A549 and H1975) was altered by transfection with miR-424 mimic and inhibitor. Effects of miR-424 overexpression and suppression on cells migration, invasion and colony formation were analyzed. Target genes for miR-424 were predicted using bioinformatics method and then verified using luciferase assay. Effects of miR-424 expression on cell migration, invasion and proliferation were reanalyzed on the condition of TNFAIP1 was silenced. Moreover, TNFAIP1 silencing and miR-424 modified A549 cells were subcutaneous injected into node BALB/c mice to confirm the regulation of miR-424 on TNFAIP1 in regulating tumor growth. RESULTS: Compared with the control, miR-424 overexpression significantly increased the migrated and invaded cells, as well as the proliferated colonies. TNFAIP1 was a predicted target gene for miR-424, and was negatively regulated by miR-424. TNFAIP1 silence significantly increased the migrated and invaded cells compared to that in control, while these increases were abolished by miR-424 suppression. Animal experiment further evidenced miR-424 affected tumor growth by regulating TNFAIP1. CONCLUSIONS: These data demonstrate that miR-424 may be a contributor for NSCLC progression and metastasis through involving in cell migration, invasion and proliferation via inhibiting TNFAIP1. This study may provide theoretical basis for miR-424 in NSCLC target therapeutic treatment.