ARV-7: A biomarker for the treatment of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer / 中华男科学杂志

As more and more patients with metastatic prostate cancer develop resistance to androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) and consequently castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), reasonable selection of therapies is becoming increasingly important for the prediction of the therapeutic results. Many studies show that androgen receptor splice variant 7 (AR-V7) is involved in the development and progression of CRPC and that the expression of AR-V7, absolutely higher in CRPC than in hormone-nave prostate cancer, plays a significant role in the mechanisms of resistance to abiraterone, enzalutamide and taxane chemotherapies. Further more, some clinical trials have revealed that the AR-V7 level may indicate the prognosis of different therapeutic options: AR-V7 negative in circulating tumor cells suggesting the effectiveness of a new hormonal therapy and taxane chemotherapy while AR-V7 positive indicating the poor result of a new hormonal therapy. These findings show that AR-V7 could be a biomarker for therapeutic options and the prognostic evaluation of CRPC.

Preparation of new protein carrier of vaccine against pneumococcal otitis media with genetic engineering technology / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To prepare pneumolysin as a new protein carrier of vaccine against otitis media with genetic engineering technology and establish the base of the study on pneumococcal conjugative vaccines.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Genomic DNA was isolated from streptococcus pneumoniae. A pair of primers which included two restriction sites was designed based on the published pneumolysin gene sequence. The pneumolysin gene was amplified from pneumococcal DNA with PCR technology. The restriction enzyme digested fragment was linked into the cloning vector PET-28a and the recombinant plasmid DNA containing pneumolysin was then transfected into host cell E. coli JM109 (DE3).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>DNA fragments were subcloned to construct the complete pneumolysin gene by a conventional coning and PCR. The inserted pneumolysin gene sequence was confirmed by DNA sequencing and the pneumolysin protein was successfully expressed. The relative molecular mass of the expressed product was 52 000. The expressed product amounted to 8% of the total host cell protein.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The pneumolysin gene was successfully cloned into host cell using genetic engineering technology. The recombinant pneumolysin was expressed and purified for preparation. This work laid a foundation of the preparation of pneumococcal conjugative vaccines.</p>

Diagnosis and management of facial nerve neuromas / 中华耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To provide the experience for early diagnosis and management of facial nerve neuromas, and to discuss the clinic and imaging feature of facial nerve schwannoma and facial nerve fibroma in 22 cases.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Twenty cases facial nerve schwannoma and two cases of facial nerve neurofibroma were diagnosed and reviewed retrospectively. Surgical removal were performed through the middle cranial fossa in 2 cases, through intratemporal approach in 8 cases, through intraparotid approach in 2 cases, and combined intra-temporal with out-temporal approaches in 10 cases. Seventeen cases underwent facial nerve graft for repairing a facial nerve defect. Great auricular nerve was used in 3 cases with intratemporal approach and 1 case with intratemporal combined intraparotid approach. Sural nerve graft was used in 5 cases with intratemporal approach and 8 cases with intra-temporal combined intraparotid approach. Two cases were employed two-stage facial muscle flap-plasty.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Facial nerve neuromas were totally removed in 21 cases and subtotal neuroma removed in 1 case. In these cases, 20 patients were no recurrence and 1 patient was lost follow-up. One patient with subtotal neuroma removal received Gamma Knife treatment before and after surgery, and this case was no recurrence. The CT imaging of the temporal bone showed that schwannoma was separated "white mass" with smooth margin along the region of facial nerve without intact canal. But neurofibroma locate in enlarge fallopian with intact canal. Magnetic resonance imaging had the advantage of evaluating all segments of the facial nerve and showed continuity of intratemporal and intraparotid mass with the facial nerve. Pathological results indicated that 20 cases were diagnosed as facial nerve schwannoma and 2 cases were neurofibroma.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Although tumors originating from the facial nerve are extremely rare, it is possible to make early diagnosis through finding clinical feature and imaging methods. Generally, systematic surgical approach for tumor removal and facial nerve reconstruction should be considered in the cases with facial neurinoma.</p>