Survival nomogram for patients with bone metastatic renal cell carcinoma: A population-based study

ABSTRACT Purpose: Increased attention has been focused on the survival of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) patients with bone metastasis. This study proposed to establish and evaluate a nomogram for predicting the overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) of RCC patients with bone metastasis. Materials and Methods: RCC patients with bone metastasis between 2010 and 2015 were captured from the surveillance, epidemiology and end results (SEER) database. Univariate and multivariate cox regressions were performed to assess the effects of clinical variables on OS and CSS. The nomogram based on the Cox hazards regression model was developed. Concordance index (C-index) and calibration curve were performed to evaluate the accuracy of nomogram models, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and decision curve analysis (DCA) were conducted to assess the predict performance. Results: A total of 2.471 eligible patients were enrolled in this study. The patients were assigned to primary (n=1.672) and validation (n=799) cohorts randomly. The 1-, 2-, and 3-year OS and CSS nomogram models were constructed based on age at diagnosis, sex, marital status, pathological grade, T-stage, N-stage, brain/liver/lung metastasis, surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The c for OS and CSS prediction was 0.730 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.719-0.741) and 0.714 (95%CI:0.702-0.726). The calibration curves showed significant agreement between nomogram models and actual observations. ROC and DCA indicated nomograms had better predict performance. Conclusions: The nomograms for predicting prognosis provided an accurate prediction of OS and CSS in RCC patients with bone metastasis, and contributed clinicians to optimize individualized treatment plans.

LncRNA XIST interacts with miR-454 to inhibit cells proliferation, epithelial mesenchymal transition and induces apoptosis in triple-negative breast cancer

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a one of the subtypes of breast cancer which accounts for approximately 10–20% of all breast cancers. LncRNA XIST (XIST) is reported to be dysfunctional in numerous tumortypes and is involved in the key pathways of cancer initiation, progression and metastasis. Thus, in the presentstudy, we explored the detailed molecular mechanism of XIST in TNBC. XIST was down-regulated in TNBCtissues and cell lines. Overexpressed XIST inhibited cell proliferation, epithelial mesenchymal transition(EMT) and induced apoptosis in vitro as well as suppressed TNBC tumor growth in vivo. MicroRNA (miR)-454 was up-regulated in TNBC tissues and cell lines. Knockdown of miR-454 inhibited TNBC progression bysuppressing cell proliferation, EMT and inducing cell apoptosis. Moreover, miR-454 was predicted andconfirmed to be a target of XIST, and rescue assay indicated that overexpressed miR-454 could reverse XISTrestoration mediated-anti-tumor effects on TNBC cells. In conclusion, XIST interacts with miR-454 to inhibitcells proliferation, EMT and induce apoptosis in TNBC, indicating a promising treatment strategy for TNBCpatients.

Analgesic effect of combined therapy of medication and acupuncture in PVP for osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture: a randomized controlled trial / 中国针灸

OBJECTIVE@#To evaluate the analgesic effect and application advantage of acupuncture combined with local anesthesia of lidocaine in percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) for the patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (OVCF).@*METHODS@#A total of 60 patients with OVCF and receiving PVP at single vertebra under local anesthesia were selected and randomized into an acupuncture plus medication group and a simple medication group, 30 cases in each one. In the simple medication group, the local laying infiltration anesthesia with 1% lidocaine 30 mL was used. In the acupuncture plus medication group, firstly, filiform needles were used to stimulate Hegu (LI 4), Neiguan (PC 6), Jinmen (BL 63) and Yintang (GV 29) with reducing technique, and then the epidermal infiltration anesthesia was followed with 1% lidocaine 4 mL. The needles were retained till the end of operation. Successively, before operation (T@*RESULTS@#In the acupuncture plus medication group, MAP and HR were lower than those in the simple medication group at T@*CONCLUSION@#Acupuncture combined with medication reduces the dose and adverse reactions of anesthetics, alleviates pain degree of patients, shortens the duration of operation and improves patients' subjective satisfaction in PVP for OVCF.

Optimization for extraction of an oil recipe consisting of white pepper, long pepper, cinnamon, saffron, and myrrh by supercritical carbon dioxide and the protective effects against oxygen-glucose deprivation in PC12 cells

ABSTRACT This study is to investigate the most efficient extractives of extracting oil recipe for stroke treatment and the protective effects on an oxygen and glucose deprivation model in PC12 cells. An orthogonal experimental design L9 (34) was carried out for oil recipe's optimization with supercritical CO2 fluid extraction. 2-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay were conducted to evaluate cell activity and indexes in the cell lysate. The result showed that the optimum extraction condition was 30 Mpa, 50 ºC, 100 min, the extracts were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and among forty detected compounds 27 were identified, representing 80.86% of the total oil content. trans-Cinnamaldehyde (14.14%), piperine (9.32%), β-amyrin (6.79%), lupenone (6.28%), longifolene (6.07%), β-caryophyllene (5.21%), α-bisabolol (4.11%), and β-bisabolene (2.56%) were high mass fraction. Oil recipe could significantly attenuate PC12 cell damage, the lactate dehydrogenase release and decreased the malondialdehyde levels, glutathione peroxidase and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase activity, glutathione and nitric oxide content (p < 0.01) and increased the level of superoxide dismutase after oxygen and glucose deprivation. The protective mechanism may be related to oil recipe's antioxidant effect by scavenging free radicals.

S100A8 inhibits PDGF-induced proliferation of airway smooth muscle cells dependent on the receptor for advanced glycation end-products

BACKGROUND: Airway remodeling is a key feature of asthma, characterized by increased proliferation of airway smooth muscle cells (ASMCs). S100A8 is a calcium-binding protein with a potential to regulate cell proliferation. Here, the effect of exogenous S100A8 protein on the proliferation of ASMCs induced by platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and the underlying molecular mechanism was investigated. METHODS: Rat ASMCs were cultured with or without a neutralizing antibody to the receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE), a potential receptor for S100A8 protein. Purified recombinant rat S100A8 protein was then added into the cultured cells, and the proliferation of ASMCs induced by PDGF was detected by colorimetric-based WST-8 assay and ampedance-based xCELLigence proliferation assay. The expression levels of RAGE in ASMCs were analyzed using western blotting assay. RESULTS: Results showed that exogenous S100A8 inhibited the PDGF-induced proliferation of rat ASMCs in a dose- dependent manner with the maximal effect at 1 µg/ml in vitro. Furthermore, when ASMCs was pre-treated with anti-RAGE neutralizing antibody, the inhibitory effect of S100A8 on PDGF-induced proliferation was significantly suppressed. In addition, neither the treatment with S100A8 or PDGF alone nor the pre-treatment with rS100A8 followed by PDGF stimulation affected the expression levels of RAGE. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrated that S100A8 inhibits PDGF-induced ASMCs proliferation in a manner dependent on membrane receptor RAGE.

A subchronic toxicity study of ethanol root extract of baked Aconitum flavum in rats

ABSTRACT The genus Aconitum has strong toxicity, but the acute toxicity of baked Aconitum flavum Hand.-Mazz., Ranunculaceae, was reduced significantly on the premise of keeping anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive activities. However, the risk associated with long-term use is unknown. In a sub-chronic toxicity study, rats were orally administered A. flavum at doses of 0.76–3.03 g/kg for 90 days and further recovered for 14 days. Our results showed that oral treatment with A. flavum for 90 days caused significant changes in some hematological indicators at doses of 3.03 and 1.52 g/kg, such as red blood cell, hemoglobin, mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular hemoglobin and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration. These results indicated that the A. flavum affects the structure and function of red blood cell. Furthermore, significant changes were observed in the white blood cell at dose of 3.03 g/kg in male rats, which confirmed tissue damage or toxicity. The liver function tests exhibited non-significant alterations in aspertate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase and avenin-like storage proteinsgene. But other parameters, such as total protein and albumin were obviously decreased at all doses. A. flavum also caused a significant decrease in glucose, cholesterol and triacylglyceride at all doses. For kidney function, there were significant elevations in urea and creatinine at doses of 3.03 and 1.52 g/kg. The levels of certain electrolytes (Na+, K+ and Cl-) were significantly different after 90 days of treatment with A. flavum (3.03 and 1.52 g/kg). Organs were observed by light microscopy after hematoxylin-eosin staining. Hemosiderin depositions in the spleen were observed in the A. flavum group. These data demonstrated that the subtoxicity of A. flavum was reduced considerably by baked, but the subchronic toxicity effects on the liver, kidney and spleen should not be ignored.

The essential oil of Artemisia capillaris protects against CCl4-induced liver injury in vivo

Abstract To study the hepatoprotective effect of the essential oil of Artemisia capillaris Thunb., Asteraceae, on CCl4-induced liver injury in mice, the levels of serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase, hepatic levels of reduced glutathione, activity of glutathione peroxidase, and the activities of superoxide dismutase and malondialdehyde were assayed. Administration of the essential oil of A. capillaris at 100 and 50 mg/kg to mice prior to CCl4 injection was shown to confer stronger in vivo protective effects and could observably antagonize the CCl4-induced increase in the serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase activities and malondialdehyde levels as well as prevent CCl4-induced decrease in the antioxidant superoxide dismutase activity, glutathione level and glutathione peroxidase activity (p < 0.01). The oil mainly contained β-citronellol, 1,8-cineole, camphor, linalool, α-pinene, β-pinene, thymol and myrcene. This finding demonstrates that the essential oil of A. capillaris can protect hepatic function against CCl4-induced liver injury in mice.

The relationship between the neuromyelitis optica astrocyte damage and the patients with functional defect / 实用医学杂志

Objective To explore the relationship between the damage of neuromyelitis optica (NMO) astrocytes (AS) and the onset of NMO, and investigate the relevance of AS damage with the severity of the patients with functional defect. Methods The levels of aquaprin4-antibody (AQP4 -Ab), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), apolipoprotein(ApoE),interleukins-6(IL-6), interleukins-10(IL-10), tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF ) and serum of 30 acute NMO patients were tested by means of ELISA. The results were later compared with control group. And analysis of the relevance of the various index of the levels in CSF with the CSF AQP4-Ab level, the acute phase expanded disability status scale(EDSS) score of the NMO group were made. Results (1)The NMO group in CSF and serum AQP4-Ab, GFAP, IL-6 levels were higher than the control group (P < 0.05), and ApoE, IL-10 levels were lower than the control group (P < 0.05). (2)The CSF GFAP, ApoE, IL-6 in NMO group is higher than the serum (P < 0.05), and CSF AQP4-Ab, IL-10 levels were lower than the serum ( P < 0 . 05 ) . ( 3 ) The CSF GFAP , IL-6 levels and the CSF AQP4-Ab level were positively correlated (r=0.749, r=0.526, P<0.05), and the CSF ApoE, IL-10 levels were negatively correlated with CSF AQP4-Ab level(r = -0.571, r = -0.676, P < 0.05). (4)The CSF AQP4-Ab, GFAP, IL-6 levels and the acute phase EDSS score were positively correlated (P < 0.05), the CSF ApoE, IL-10 levels were negatively correlated with the acute phase EDSS score (P < 0.05). Conclusion The AS damage exists in the NMO and the damage severity may correlate with patient function defect. AQP4-Ab, GFAP, IL-6 may play important roles in the onset of NMO and the disease aggravating. The decrease of the ApoE and IL-10 may exacerbate NMO damage.

Finite element modeling of proximal femur and element size analysis based on CT images / 医用生物力学

Objective To establish 5 different finite element models of the proximal femur based on CT images, and analyze the influences of element size on materials distribution and biomechanical behavior of the proximal femur model. Methods The proximal femur was scanned by spiral CT. The images, stored as DICOM format, were extracted by Mimics to obtain 3D geometric data, and then meshed separately by Mimics, 3-Matic and ICEM software to establa voxel element model, a tetrahedral element model and 3 hexahedral element model (with element size of 2, 1, 0.5 mm). These meshed models were assigned materials by Mimics, and their mechanical behavior was analyzed by Abaqus eventually. Results For the proximal femur model with material assignment based on CT images, the influence of element size on the total mass of all the 5 models was not significant. The nodal Mises stress and nodal displacement along the same path in 5 models showed a similar tendency, while the Mises stress at each node displayed an obvious deviation. The nodal Mises stress in the hexahedral element model with the element size of 0.5 mm showed accordance with the voxel element model. Conclusions The element size has a small influence on the total mass and nodal displacement when the material assignment is attributed to the model based on CT gray values, while decrease in the element size will affect the materials distributions and stress distributions of the model. When the element size of the proximal femur model is close to its voxel size, the mass distributions and mechanical behavior of the femur can be preferably reflected.

Anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities of non-alkaloids fractions from Aconitum flavum in vivo

Aconitum flavum Hand.-Mazz., Ranunculaceae, has been used for the treatment of rheumatism, traumatic injury in folk and clinical medicine, but the alkaloids has high toxicity. This study was designed to investigate the acute toxicity, anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities of non-alkaloids fractions from A. flavum in rodents. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by inflammatory models of dimethylbenzene-induced ear vasodilatation and acetic acid-induced capillary permeability enhancement test in mice and carrageenan-induced paw edema in rats whereas the antinociceptive activity was evaluated using acetic acid-induced writhes, hot plate test and formalin test in mice. The result showed that the LD50 value of BtOH and EtOAc fractions could not be determined as no lethality was observed up to 40 g/kg (p.o.) in mice. BtOH fraction significantly decreased the dimethylbenzene-induced ear vasodilatation, carrageenan-induced paw edema and acetic acid-induced capillary permeability. EtOAc fraction only significantly attenuated paw edema and capillary permeability at the dose of 500 mg/kg. In antinociceptive test, BtOH and EtOAc fractions significantly reduced the writhing number evoked by acetic acid injection and the licking time in both phases of the formalin test. Meanwhile BtOH and EtOAc fractions had significant effect on hot plate test after 90 min. Our data indicate that the BtOH and EtOAc fractions of NAF are no toxicity. BtOH and EtOAc fractions not only inhibit inflammatory and peripheral inflammatory pain but also have central antinociceptive effect.

Finite element analysis on anterior and posterior internal fixation for treating type ⅡHangman’s fracture / 医用生物力学

Objective To evaluate biomechanical differences between anterior titanium plate internal fixation and posterior pedicle screw internal fixation for treating type Ⅱ unstable Hangman’s fracture by finite element analysis. Methods An intact finite element model of the upper cervical spine (C0-3) was established and validated, and an unstable model was also established. Two different internal fixation models, i.e. anterior titanium plate+Cage with bone graft (Plate+Cage) and C2 pedicle screws+C3 lateral mass screws (C2PS+C3LMS) were established, respectively, based on the unstable model. The vertical load of 40 N was applied on the occiput to simulate head weight and 1.5 N•m torque was applied on the occiput to simulate loading conditions of flexion, extension, lateral bending and rotation. Range of motion (ROM) of C2-3, force pathway and strain at the fractured line were calculated and analyzed. ResultsCompared with the unstable model, the Plate+Cage model could decrease the ROM by 92.4%, 97.1%, 96.5% and 90.0%, while the C2PS+C3LMS model could decrease the ROM by 88.6%, 90.2%, 95.7% and 90.3%, in flexion, extension, lateral bending and axial rotation, respectively. The maximum stress of the Plate+Cage model was smaller than that of the C2PS+C3LMS model under 4 loading conditions. Conclusions The anterior Plate+Cage fixation possesses better stability than the posterior C2PS+C3LMS fixation in flexion and extension, while both fixation methods show similar stability in lateral bending and axial rotation. The anterior Plate+Cage fixation is more reasonable in structure and stress distributions, and can achieve reduction, decompression, fixation and fusion in one step, thus it is an effective operative procedure for treating typeⅡ Hangman’s fracture.

Stability analysis of the pelvis and fracture fixation in standing position / 医用生物力学

Objective To develop the three-dimensional (3D) finite element (FE) models of pelvis and fracture fixation, and test their validity. Methods Based on CT scan images, the 3D FE model of the pelvis was built by software of Mimics, ANSYS ICEM, Hypermesh and ABAQUS. A uniformly distributed load of 600 N was applied in vertical direction on the upper lamina of S1 vertebrae to simulate the stresses on the pelvis in standing position and to verify the validity of the pelvis model. T-shaped acetabular fracture models with 3 types of fixation were also established to verify the validity of internal fixation. ResultsBoth the stress and displacement distributions were found to be bilaterally symmetrical on the pelvis in standing position, with the Von Mises stresses mainly distributed in the beginning of arcuate line, pubic branch and posterior-superior area of acetabulum. The largest displacement occurred in the center of the sacral crest, and became relatively smaller in iliac fossa and femur, which was reduced gradually to the femur. Each of the three fixation types in acetabulum showed good biomechanical stability. Conclusions The established hexahedral grid-3D FE model can accurately simulate mechanical properties of the femur in standing position, which would provide an intuitive basis for clinical study.

Simultaneous application of BrdU and WST-1 measurements for detection of the proliferation and viability of airway smooth muscle cells

BACKGROUND: BrdU is a commonly used reagent in cell proliferation assays, and WST-1 measurement is widely used to detect cell viability. However, no previous study has formally reported the combination of the two assays, which may be used to detect the proliferation and viability simultaneously. In this study, we examined the effect of adding BrdU 2 h prior to the WST-1 assay and tried to test the possibility of the combined detection using rat airway smooth muscle cells. RESULTS: The WST-1 measurements obtained from the combined detection were consistent with those obtained from the separate detection, which suggested that the addition of BrdU 2 h prior to the WST-1 analysis did not affect the WST-1 results. The BrdU measurements obtained from the combined detection also demonstrated the same trend as that obtained from the separate detection, and dosages of 200, 400 and 800 ng/ml testing reagent significantly inhibited the proliferation of rat airway smooth muscle cells. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the BrdU and WST-1 measurements can be applied simultaneously without mutual interference, which may increase the efficacy and consistency of these measurements to a certain extent.

Analysis on the frequency of urinary iodine in a population-based intervention study / 中华流行病学杂志

Objective Through a two-year follow up program,this study was to analyze the urinary iodine frequency of a cohort in the intervention trial,concerning different doses of salt iodization,so as to explore the selection of appropriate concentration of salt iodization.Methods A multistage cluster sampling method was used to select three townships in two countries for community intervention with different doses [ ( 15 ± 5 ) mg/kg,(25 ± 5 ) mg/kg,( 35 ± 5 ) mg/kg ] of salt iodization.Results After intervention,the median of urinary iodine was reduced among the population.The urinary iodine frequencies of (15 ± 5) mg/kg and (25 ± 5) mg/kg among groups of children were mainly concentrated in 100-200 μg/L and 200-300 μg/L paragraphs in A county.While the 300 μg/Lparagraph had an overall decline in B county,the 100 μtg/L and 200 μg/L paragraph ratio increased but the trend seemed to be slow.The 100-300 μg/L paragraph of the four treatment groups took a larger proportion and kept smooth in a more ideal state.However,the control group still maintained at above 250 μg/L level.Conclusion The iodine supplementation should be gradually implemented in Chongqing.The doses of salt iodization should be reduced from the current (35 ± 15)mg/kg to (25 ± 5) mg/kg in the economically developed areas.At the same time,we need to continuously follow the changes of the condition.

Exploration for building PACS and RIS / 中国医疗器械杂志

This article elaborates key points of the PACS and RIS project: its overall planning, implementation step by step, integration of PACS and HIS based on IHE, and the prudent selection of partners and so on.

The treatment of bladder neck obstruction (Areport of 39 cases) / 中国微创外科杂志

Objective To study the treatment of bladder neck obstruction. Methods Thirty nine cases of bladder neck obstruction were reviewed from 1990 to 1999. There were 25 males and 14 females. 39 cases were treated with Transurethral resection of the bladder neck. Results Symptoms were disappeared in 37 cases. Conclusions Transurethral resection is effective for bladder neck obstruction.