A Comparison of Fentanyl and Flurbiprofen Axetil on Serum VEGF-C, TNF-α, and IL-1ß Concentrations in Women Undergoing Surgery for Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-1ß(IL-1ß) have been shown to be associated with the recurrence and metastasis of breast cancer after surgery. This study tested the hypothesis that patients undergoing surgery for breast cancer, who received postoperative analgesia with flurbiprofen axetil combined with small doses of fentanyl (FA), exhibited reduced levels of VEGF-C, TNF-α, and IL-1ß compared with those patients receiving fentanyl alone (F). METHOD: Forty-women with primary breast cancer undergoing a modified radical mastectomy were randomized to receive postoperative analgesia with flurbiprofen axetil combined with fentanyl or fentanyl alone. Venous blood was sampled before anesthesia, at the end of surgery, and at 48 hours after surgery, and the serum was analyzed. The primary endpoint was changes in the VEGF-C concentrations in serum. RESULTS: Group FA patients reported similar analgesic effects as group F patients at 2, 24, and 48 hours. At 48 hours, mean postoperative concentrations of VEGF-C in group F patients were higher than in group FA patients, 730.9 versus. 354.1 pg/mL (P = 0.003), respectively. The mean postoperative concentrations of TNF-α in group F patients were also higher compared with group FA patients 27.1 vs. 15.8 pg/mL (P = 0.005). Finally, the mean postoperative concentrations of IL-1ß in group F were also significantly higher than in group FA 497.5 vs. 197.7 pg/mL (P = 0.001). CONCLUSION: In patients undergoing a mastectomy, postoperative analgesia with flurbiprofen axetil, combined with fentanyl, were associated with decreases in serum concentrations of VEGF-C, TNF-α, and IL-1ß compared with patients receiving doses of only fentanyl.

MnFe2O4/MoS2 catalyst used for ozonation: optimization and mechanism analysis of phenolic wastewater treatment.

The performance of catalytic ability of MFe2O4/MoS2 in the ozonation process was investigated in this work. The synthesized MnFe2O4/MoS2 was optimize prepared and then characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photo-electron spectroscopy, and magnetic saturation strength. The results showed that when Cphenol = 200 mg/L, initial pH = 9.0, Q = 0.10 L/min, and CMnFe2O4/MoS2 = 0.10 g/L, MnFe2O4/MoS2 addition improved the degradation efficiency of phenol by 20.0%. The effects of pH, catalyst dosage, and inorganic ions on the phenol removal by the MnFe2O4/MoS2 catalytic ozonation were investigated. Five cycle experiments proved that MnFe2O4/MoS2 had good recyclability and stability. MnFe2O4/MoS2 also showed good catalytic performance in the treatment of coal chemical wastewater pesticide wastewater. The MnFe2O4 doped with MoS2 could provide abundant surface active sites for ozone and promote the stable cycle of Mn2+/Mn3+and Fe2+/Fe3+, thus generating large amounts of •OH and improving the degradation of phenol by ozonation. The MnFe2O4/MoS2/ozonation treatment system provides a technical reference and theoretical basis for industrial wastewater treatment.

Effect of MoS2 on phenol decomposition in water after high-voltage pulse discharge treatment.

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) was added to the system after being treated with high-voltage pulse discharge plasma to improve the degradation efficiency of pollutants and reduce energy consumption. The discharge plasma-treated solution contains hydrogen peroxide and metal iron ions, and MoS2 addition can cause co-catalytic Fenton reaction. The effects of discharge time, initial pH, phenol concentration, MoS2 dosage, discharge voltage, and gas type on phenol removal and aqueous H2O2 concentration were mainly investigated. Results showed that the addition of MoS2 after plasma treatment can reduce the plasma treatment time by 70% and maintain or even increase the degradation efficiency of phenol from 40% (after 20 min of discharge plasma) to 92% (after turning off the discharge and dosing with MoS2 for 30 min). Acidic conditions (pH = 3-4) and oxygen were beneficial to phenol removal. MoS2 addition greatly improved the catalytic oxidation of discharge plasma. This study provides a promising direction for water treatment based on plasma technology.

Comparing post-operative analgesic effects of varying doses of dexmedetomidine as an adjuvant to ropivacaine for ultrasound-guided dual transversus abdominis plane block following laparotomy for gynecologic malignancies.

The aim of the present study was to determine the analgesic effects of ropivacaine combined with different doses of dexmedetomidine for ultrasound-guided transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block immediately following laparotomy in patients with gynecologic malignancies. A further aim was to determine the appropriate clinical dose of dexmedetomidine as an adjuvant for ropivacaine. Patients with gynecologic malignancies scheduled for laparotomy were randomly assigned to group R (TAP block with 0.3% ropivacaine), group RD1 (TAP block with ropivacaine and 0.5 µg/kg dexmedetomidine), group RD2 (TAP block with ropivacaine and 1 µg/kg dexmedetomidine) and group RD3 (TAP block with ropivacaine and 2 µg/kg dexmedetomidine). TAP blocks were performed post-operatively. The four groups all received patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) after the operation. The numerical rating scale (NRS) as well as the Ramsay sedation scale (RSS) scores, the first request time for PCIA bolus, oxycodone hydrochloride consumption, the plasma concentration of ropivacaine, the incidence of post-operative complications and adverse events, and patient satisfaction were recorded. Post-operative NRS scores at rest exhibited significant differences between the R group and all the RD groups at 24 h after surgery (P<0.05). Compared with the other groups, the NRS score in the RD3 group was decreased (P<0.05). The RSS scores were higher in all of the RD groups compared with those in the R group at 2 h (P<0.05) and were highest in the RD3 group compared with those in all other groups at 4 h (P<0.05). The first request time for PCIA was significantly longer in the RD3 group compared with that in the RD2, RD1 and R groups (510.47±102.67, 595.47±100.11, 682.43±104.46 and 776.42±143.91 min, respectively; P<0.05). Cumulative opioid consumption based on the number of PCIA bolus requested at 24 and 48 h post-operatively indicated that the total number of PCIA boluses was significantly lower in the RD groups compared with those in the R group at 24 and 48 h (P<0.05). The ropivacaine concentration did not differ among the four groups. There was no significant difference between groups with respect to post-operative nausea and vomiting, bradycardia and hypotension; however, all RD groups had a higher patient satisfaction than group R (P<0.05). Compared with that in the other groups, the duration of post-anesthesia care unit stay in group RD3 was relatively longer due to excessive sedation (P<0.05). In conclusion, TAP blockade using 0.5-2 µg/kg dexmedetomidine combined with 0.3% ropivacaine is a safe and effective treatment for analgesia in laparotomy procedures for gynecologic malignancies. The study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (CHICTR; www.chictr.org.cn) on January 15th, 2019 (registration no. ChiCTR1900020995).

Octreotide Attenuates Acute Kidney Injury after Hepatic Ischemia and Reperfusion by Enhancing Autophagy.

Octreotide exerts a protective effect in hepatic ischemia-reperfusion (HIR) injury. However, whether octreotide preconditioning could also reduce acute kidney injury (AKI) after HIR is unknown. This study was designed to investigate the role of octreotide in AKI after HIR. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were pretreated with octreotide or octreotide combined with 3-methyladenine (autophagy inhibitor, 3MA). Plasma creatinine, inflammation markers (e.g., TNF-α and IL-6 etc.), apoptosis, autophagy and phosphorylation of protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin/p70 ribosomal S6 kinase (Akt/mTOR/p70S6K) in the kidney were measured after 60 minutes of liver ischemia and 24 hours of reperfusion for each rat. Octreotide pretreatment significantly preserved renal function and reduced the severity of renal injury. Moreover, octreotide alleviated inflammation and apoptosis in the kidney after HIR. Additionally, octreotide induced autophagy and autophagy inhibition with 3MA markedly reversed the renoprotective, anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic effects of octreotide after HIR. Finally, octreotide abrogated the activation of phosphorylation of Akt, mTOR and p70S6K in the kidney after HIR. Our results indicate that octreotide reduced renal injury after HIR due to its induction of autophagy. The enhancement of autophagy may be potentially linked to the octreotide mediated Akt/mTOR/p70S6K pathway deactivation and reduction of kidney inflammation and apoptosis after HIR.