Succinylation of 14-3-3 theta by CPT1A promotes survival and paclitaxel resistance in nasal type extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma.

BACKGROUND: The aggressive and refractory extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type (ENKTL-NT) is a subtype of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Succinylation promotes progression in a variety of tumors, but its mechanism in ENKTL-NT is unclear. METHODS: Bioinformatic analysis was performed to screen differentially expressed genes in the ENKTL dataset. Cell transfection techniques were used for knockdown and overexpression of genes. The mRNA and protein expression were detected using RT-qPCR and western blot, respectively. Immunohistochemical staining was used to assess protein expression in situ. For the detection of cell proliferation activity, CCK-8, clonal formation, and EDU staining assays were used. Flow cytometry was employed to detect apoptosis. Co-immunoprecipitation was utilized for the identification of protein interactions and succinylation modifications. RESULTS: Succinyltransferase CPT1A was highly elevated in ENKTL-NT and was associated with a dismal prognosis. CPT1A knockdown suppressed SNK-6 cells' proliferation and induced apoptosis, while these effects were reversed by the overexpression of 14-3-3theta. Co-immunoprecipitation results showed that CPT1A caused succinylation of 14-3-3theta at site of K85, thereby enhancing the protein stability. Suppression of CPT1A-induced succinylation of 14-3-3theta by ST1326 resulted in the inhibition of SNK-6 cell proliferation and increased apoptosis. Paclitaxel combined with knockdown of CPT1A significantly inhibited the proliferation of ENKTL-NT compared to paclitaxel alone. CONCLUSION: CPT1A induces succinylation of 14-3-3theta at the K85 site, promoting ENKTL-NT proliferation. The anti-ENKTL activity of paclitaxel was improved when combined with CPT1A knockdown.

Characteristics of the complete mitochondrial genome of Douhua chicken (Gallus gallus) and phylogenetic considerations.

Douhua chicken is a unique local breed from Anhui Province, China. This study aimed to illustrate the Douhua chicken mitogenome and clarify its phylogenetic status by sequencing and annotating the complete mitochondrial genome using high-throughput sequencing and primer walking. Phylogenetic analysis through the Kimura 2-parameter model indicated the maternal origin of Douhua chicken. The results revealed that the mitochondrial genome is a closed circular molecule (16,785 bp) that consists of 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) coding genes, two ribosomal RNA (rRNA) coding genes, and a control region. The base composition of the Douhua chicken mitogenome contains 30.3% A, 23.7% T, 32.5% C, and 13.5% G, and the haplotype and nucleotide diversity values are 0.829 (Hd) and 0.00441 (Pi), respectively. Furthermore, 10 haplotypes of D-loop sequences among 60 Douhua chickens were identified and distributed into four haplogroups (A, C, D, and E). Overall, the result of the present study indicates that Douhua chicken may have originated from Gallus gallus, and this process was influenced by Gallus gallus spadiceus, Gallus gallus murghi, and Gallus gallus bankiva. This study provides novel mitogenome data to support further phylogenetic and taxonomic studies on Douhua chicken. Additionally, the findings of this study will provide deeper insights for identifying the genetic relationships among populations and tracing maternal origins based on phylogenetic considerations for use in studies on the geographic conservation, utilization, and molecular genetics of poultry species.

In the modern poultry industry, resources of native varieties have become major aspects. Douhua chicken is a medium-sized, slow-growing, and white-feathered local breed that represents a popular local chicken breed in Anhui Province, China. This breed is adaptable and exhibits important production traits and a stable inheritable characteristics, such as delicious meat and stable egg-laying performance. The present study aimed to provide a better understanding of the germplasm characteristics and phylogenetic relationships of Douhua chicken by analyzing its complete mitochondrial genome sequence and a describing its genomic composition, nucleotide composition, and gene structure. The present study provides theoretical support for the protection, development, and utilization of Douhua chicken resources. Additionally, this study provides new mitochondrial genome data to support further phylogenetic and taxonomic studies conducted on Douhua chicken.

Next-Generation Sequencing of the Complete Huaibei Grey Donkey Mitogenome and Mitogenomic Phylogeny of the Equidae Family.

The Huaibei grey donkey (HGD) is an endangered species and a vital native breed in Anhui Province, China. However, its complete mitogenome, phylogeny, and maternal origin remain unclear. The objectives of this study were to detect the genetic diversity of the HGD and investigate its phylogenetic relationship with other breeds to inform conservation management. The complete mitogenome of the HGD was sequenced through next-generation sequencing, and the most variable region in the mitochondrial DNA displacement-loop (D-loop) was amplified via a polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Next, we used the median-joining network (MJN) to calculate the genetic relationships among populations and the neighbor-jointing method to build a phylogenetic tree and speculate as to its origin. The results showed that the mitogenome contains 22 tRNAs, 2 rRNAs, 13 PCGs, and 1 D-loop region. Analyzing the D-loop region of the HGDs, we identified 23 polymorphic sites and 11 haplotypes. The haplotype and nucleotide diversity were 0.87000 (Hd) and 0.02115 (Pi), respectively. The MJN analysis indicated that the HGD potentially has two maternal lineages, and phylogenetic analysis indicated that the Somali lineage could be the most probable domestication center for this breed. Therefore, our mitogenome analysis highlights the high genetic diversity of the HGD, which may have originated from the Somali wild ass, as opposed to the Asian wild ass. This study will provide a useful resource for HGD conservation and breeding.

The Expression of HPV E6/E7 mRNA In Situ Hybridization in HPV Typing-negative Cervical Cancer.

High-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) persistent infection is the major tumorigenesis factor for cervical cancer (CC). However, the incidence of HPV-negative CC is 5% to 30% with different HPV detection methods. High-risk HPV E6/E7 mRNA in situ hybridization (RISH) can detect HPV-driven tumors. Our study aimed to explore whether HPV typing-negative CC was caused by HPV infection. The tissues of CC patients with HPV typing results, collected from cervical biopsies, conization, or hysterectomies, were submitted to RISH using RNAscope chromogenicin. Immunohistochemistry was performed to evaluate the expression of p16INK4a and Ki-67. A total of 308 women with HPV typing results were enrolled, and 30 (9.74%) cases of HPV typing were negative. In HPV typing-negative CCs, 28/30 (93.3%) were positive for RISH, which contained 22/22 (100%) squamous cell carcinomas and 6/8 (75%) adenocarcinomas. RISH was positive in 278/278 (100%) HPV typing-positive CCs, which included 232/232 (100%) squamous cell carcinomas and 46/46 (100%) adenocarcinomas. Positive RISH in HPV typing-negative CC was significantly lower than in the HPV typing-positive group ( P =0.002, 95% confidence interval: 0.848-1.027). However, this significant difference only existed in adenocarcinoma. No significant differences were seen in the expression of p16INK4a and Ki-67 (all P >0.05). HPV typing may cause misdiagnosis in 9.74% of CC patients, and HPV E6/E7 mRNA can detect HPV in CC with HPV typing-negative patients. This approach could provide a novel option to accurately detect high-risk HPVs in cervical tumors and help to eliminate the percentage of misdiagnosed HPV-related cases.

A deep learning-based method for cervical transformation zone classification in colposcopy images.

BACKGROUND: Colposcopy is one of the common methods of cervical cancer screening. The type of cervical transformation zone is considered one of the important factors for grading colposcopic findings and choosing treatment. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to develop a deep learning-based method for automatic classification of cervical transformation zone from colposcopy images. METHODS: We proposed a multiscale feature fusion classification network to classify cervical transformation zone, which can extract features from images and fuse them at multiple scales. Cervical regions were first detected from original colposcopy images and then fed into our multiscale feature fusion classification network. RESULTS: The results on the test dataset showed that, compared with the state-of-the-art image classification models, the proposed classification network had the highest classification accuracy, reaching 88.49%, and the sensitivity to type 1, type 2 and type 3 were 90.12%, 85.95% and 89.45%, respectively, higher than the comparison methods. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed method can automatically classify cervical transformation zone in colposcopy images, and can be used as an auxiliary tool in cervical cancer screening.

Mitochondrial genome and phylogenetic analysis of Chaohu duck.

A complete mitochondrial genome sequence is important for the accurate determination of phylogenetic relationships. Chaohu duck is a dominant native breed in Anhui Province, China. We aimed to ascertain the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Chaohu duck via high-throughput sequencing and primer walking. Phylogenetic analysis of Chaohu duck was performed following Kimura 2-parameter model. The total length of the mitogenome was 16,597 bp, and comprised 29.2 %A, 22.2 % T, 32.8 % C, and 15.8 % G. It included 2 ribosomal RNA genes, 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes and a control region (D-loop). Furthermore, the haplotype diversity and nucleotide diversity values were 0.9028(Hd) and 0.01162(Pi) respectively. This indicates that Chaohu duck has high population diversity. Twenty-two haplotypes were identified in sixty Chaohu ducks which were divided into two haplogroups. Therefore, we inferred that Chaohu duck may originate from Anas platyrhynchos, and was influenced by Anas poecilorhyncha during evolution. Our results provide mitochondrial genome information for further studies on Chaohu ducks and lays a foundation for germplasm resources conservation.

Segmentation of the cervical lesion region in colposcopic images based on deep learning.

Background: Colposcopy is an important method in the diagnosis of cervical lesions. However, experienced colposcopists are lacking at present, and the training cycle is long. Therefore, the artificial intelligence-based colposcopy-assisted examination has great prospects. In this paper, a cervical lesion segmentation model (CLS-Model) was proposed for cervical lesion region segmentation from colposcopic post-acetic-acid images and accurate segmentation results could provide a good foundation for further research on the classification of the lesion and the selection of biopsy site. Methods: First, the improved Faster Region-convolutional neural network (R-CNN) was used to obtain the cervical region without interference from other tissues or instruments. Afterward, a deep convolutional neural network (CLS-Net) was proposed, which used EfficientNet-B3 to extract the features of the cervical region and used the redesigned atrous spatial pyramid pooling (ASPP) module according to the size of the lesion region and the feature map after subsampling to capture multiscale features. We also used cross-layer feature fusion to achieve fine segmentation of the lesion region. Finally, the segmentation result was mapped to the original image. Results: Experiments showed that on 5455 LSIL+ (including cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical cancer) colposcopic post-acetic-acid images, the accuracy, specificity, sensitivity, and dice coefficient of the proposed model were 93.04%, 96.00%, 74.78%, and 73.71%, respectively, which were all higher than those of the mainstream segmentation model. Conclusion: The CLS-Model proposed in this paper has good performance in the segmentation of cervical lesions in colposcopic post-acetic-acid images and can better assist colposcopists in improving the diagnostic level.

Microwave-assisted pyrolysis derived biochar for volatile organic compounds treatment: Characteristics and adsorption performance.

Biochar derived from corn stalk doping with activated carbon was produced by microwave-assisted pyrolysis and applied to sorb volatile organic compounds (VOCs: benzene and o-xylene). Specific surface area (SSA), total pore volume (TPV) and micropore volume (MV) of microwave biochar increased with increasing microwave power with the maximum values 325.2 m2·g-1, 0.181 mL·g-1 and 0.1420 mL·g-1, respectively. Adsorption capacities of benzene and o-xylene on microwave biochar ranged 6.82-54.75 mg·g-1 and 7.43-48.73 mg·g-1, which were separate positively related with SSA, TPV, and MV. Benzene adsorption was mainly dominated by surface interaction and partition mechanisms, while o-xylene adsorption was governed by pore filling. The adsorption capacities of microwave biochar for benzene and o-xylene decreased by only 0.30% and 0.99% on the 5th cycle that illustrated the reasonably good reusability of microwave biochar. The results of this research demonstrate that microwave biochar is a promising adsorbent for VOCs removal.

Microwave biochars produced with activated carbon catalyst: Characterization and sorption of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

A series of microwave biochars derived from wheat straw in the presence of a granulated activated carbon (GAC) catalyst, using a range of microwave conditions, were produced, characterized and tested as sorbents of three benzene series volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The microwave biochar with the greatest specific surface area (SSA), total pore volume (TPV), and micropore volume (312.62 m2 g-1, 0.2218 cm3 g-1, and 0.1380 cm3 g-1, respectively), were produced with 1:3 biomass:GAC catalyst mass ratio, 10 min microwave irradiation time, and at 500 W power level (WB500). Maximum adsorption capacities of WB500 to benzene, toluene and o-xylene were 53.9 mg g-1, 75.8 mg g-1 and 63.0 mg g-1, respectively, and were directly correlated to microwave biochar properties such as SSA, TPV or micropore volume, but were also influenced by VOC properties such as molecular polarity and boiling point. Kinetic modeling suggested that adsorption was governed by both physical partitioning and chemisorption mechanisms. In addition, microwave biochars maintained 79% to 92% of their initial adsorption capacity after ten adsorption/desorption cycles. These results suggest that microwave biochars produced with an GAC catalyst have excellent potential for efficient use in the removal of VOCs from waste gas.

Using bimetallic Au/Cu nanoplatelets for construction of facile and label-free inner filter effect-based photoluminescence sensing platform for sarcosine detection.

Herein, we report a facile and label-free method for sensitive and specific determination of prostate cancer biomarker sarcosine via using photoluminescent bimetallic Au/Cu nanoplatelets (AuCu NPs) to construct an inner filter effect (IFE)-based photoluminescence (PL) sensing platform. The AuCu NPs were formed by the cysteine-induced co-reduction reaction, which displayed bright PL with an emission peak at 560 nm. Meanwhile, the Cu(I) doping caused a maximum 25-fold enhancement of quantum yield (QY), compared with the native Au(I) complexes, i.e., from 0.85 to 21.5%. By integrating the AuCu NPs with p-phenylenediamine (PPD) oxidation reaction, an IFE-based sensor for sarcosine detection was constructed. In this method, sarcosine is oxidized under the catalysis of sarcosine oxidase (SOx) to yield H2O2. The latter further oxidizes PPD to form 2,5-diamino-N,N'-bis(p-aminophenyl)-l,4-benzoquinone di-imine (PPDox) in the presence of horseradish peroxidase (HRP). The UV-vis absorption spectrum of the PPDox can overlap well with the excitation and emission spectra of the AuCu NPs, resulting in the efficient quenching of the AuCu NPs via the IFE effect. Therefore, this IFE-based AuCu NPs/SOx/PPD/HRP sensing platform can be used for highly sensitive and specific sensing of sarcosine. The sensing platform showed two linear regions of the PL intensity of the AuCu NPs versus the concentration of sarcosine in the range of 0.5-5 µM and 5-100 µM with a detection limit (LOD) of 0.12 µM (S/N = 3). Furthermore, this IFE-based sensing platform could be developed into a paper-based biosensor for simple, instrument-free, and visual detection of sarcosine.

Strongly phosphorescent and water-soluble gold(I)-silver(I)-cysteine nanoplatelets via versatile small biomolecule cysteine-assisted synthesis for intracellular hypochlorite detection.

In biological systems, abnormal levels of hypochlorite (ClO-) could result in cell dysfunctions. Herein, we report a facile, one-step and green approach based on the versatile small biomolecule cysteine both serving as reducing agent and ligand for synthesizing the strongly photoluminencent and water-soluble Au(I)-Ag(I)-cysteine complexes nanoplatelets (Au(I)-Ag(I)-Cys nanoplatelets) for intracellular hypochlorite detection. Multiple spectroscopic and microscopical tools have been used to characterize the resultant Au(I)-Ag(I)-Cys nanoplatelets. It was found that with the cysteine-assisted synthesis approach, the Ag(I) doping to the Au(I) complexes could form the supramolecular organometallic nanoplatelets. Inside, the Au(I)-Ag(I) metallophilic interactions showing an Au to Ag charge transfer property were formed, thereby enhancing the photoluminescence (PL) intensity via the charge transfer from the bioligand's S to the metal-metal center. The quantum yield (QY) was measured to show a maximum 16-fold enhancement (i.e., from 0.85 to 13.8%). Interestingly, in the presence of ClO-, the metal-thiolate ligand structure of the as-synthesized Au(I)-Ag(I)-Cys nanoplatelets could be oxidatively damaged, causing the PL quenching, thereby producing the effect of biorecognition towards ClO- anions. The ClO--induced PL quenching produced two linear regions at ClO- concentrations of 0.01-5.0 µM and 5.0-1000 µM with a limit of detection (LOD) of 8.0 nM (S/N = 3). The ClO--induced PL quenching was specific over the other typical reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the potential interfering substances in biological samples. In addition, the Au(I)-Ag(I)-Cys nanoplatelets had good biocompatibility. Thus, they could be further developed as a biosensor for detecting endogenous ClO- anions in living cells.

Prenatal diagnosis of megaduodenum using ultrasound: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Congenital megaduodenum is a rare disorder; however, its prenatal diagnosis has not been reported previously. We report the case of an abdominal cystic mass in a fetus that was later diagnosed as megaduodenum. CASE PRESENTATION: An abdominal cystic mass was found during ultrasonography of a fetus at 11 weeks of gestation. The mass progressively enlarged with gestation. The amniotic fluid volume decreased and then returned to normal. During the last prenatal ultrasound examination, the mass was observed communicating with the stomach; therefore, duodenal dilation was suspected. Finally, the patient was diagnosed with megaduodenum caused by a developmental defect in the nerve plexus. CONCLUSIONS: Congenital megaduodenum is a differential diagnosis of massive fetal abdominal cystic masses. Ultrasound examinations of such masses communicating with the stomach may help determine the diagnosis.

Ball milling biochar with ammonia hydroxide or hydrogen peroxide enhances its adsorption of phenyl volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Pristine biochar (CN600), ball-milled biochar (CN600-BM), H2O2 modified BM-biochar (CN600-O), and NH4OH modified BM-biochar (CN600-N) derived from corn stalk were applied to adsorb phenyl volatile organic compounds (VOCs). H2O2 and NH4OH modification of BM-biochar significantly improved its physicochemical characteristics and adsorption abilities. The specific surface area of CN600-O increased 2.05 and 1.23 times compared to CN600 and CN600-BM, respectively; while CN600-N increased 2.41 and 1.45 times, respectively. In addition, the ball milled biochars, especially CN600-O, showed higher acidity and polarity than CN600. The VOC adsorption amount onto biochars was 10.96-130.21 mg/g. CN600-O and CN600-N had high uptake of the VOCs and reached 100.07-111.79 mg/g and 110.49-130.21 mg/g, respectively. CN600-N showed the best performance with P-xylene adsorption up to 130.21 mg/g. VOC adsorption onto the CN600-O and CN600-N were mainly governed by surface adsorption and associated with morphology characteristics of the biochars as well as VOC properties such as boiling point and molecular size. Five cycles of adsorption-desorption experiments showed that CN600-O and CN600-N had good reusability with the reuse efficiencies of 88.01 %-92.21 % and 92.19 %-95.39 %, respectively. The results indicate that O- and N-doped ball-milled biochars are promising in adsorption for effective and sustainable VOC removal.

The Prevalence, Associated Factors for Lung Metastases Development and Prognosis in Ovarian Serous Cancer Based on SEER Database.

Ovarian carcinoma (OC) is one of the 3 most common gynecological malignancies, and the prognosis of patients with lung metastasis was the worst. SEER documented OC patients, diagnosed between 2010 and 2016, were included in the study. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify associated factors for lung metastases (LM) development. Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to estimate the overall survival for OC patients with LM. A total of 10146 eligible serous ovarian cancer (SOC) patients were included, the prevalence of LM was 3.77% (N = 378). Patients with T4 stage (χ2 = 128.515; P = 0.000), N1 stage (χ2 = 49.536; P = 0.000), right laterality (χ2 = 18.756; P = 0.000) (compared with left side), undifferentiated grade (χ2 = 36.174; P = 0.000), bone metastasis (χ2 = 183.529); P = 0.000), brain metastasis (χ2 = 117.539; P = 0.000), liver metastasis (χ2 = 442.472; P = 0.000) had a larger probability of LM than other groups. Results showed that T3/N1 stage, bone metastases, liver metastases, chemotherapy, surgery were positively correlated with LM. Multivariable cox analysis showed that age, bone metastasis, no chemotherapy, no surgery were independent risk factors in SOC-LM patients. This study provided new research insights on the prevalent LM in patients with SOC. The factors associated with LM development and prognosis can be potentially used for LM early screening and professional care.

Biological Characteristics of Cervical Precancerous Cell Proliferation.

High-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSILs) are regarded as precancerous lesions that can progress to cervical carcinoma; however, it is very difficult to effectively differentiate these precancerous cells from cancerous cells based on morphology alone. Additionally, the difference between precancerous cells and cancerous cells in regard to biological behaviour remains unclear. We previously cultured primary normal uterine cervical keratinocytes from human normal cervical tissue and cervical precancerous cells that were naturally infected with human papillomavirus from small-sized neoplastic cervical tissues. Here, we extended our study to further observe the in vitro proliferative characteristics of cervical precancerous cells at the cellular and molecular levels. In this study, we found that the growth rate of precancerous cells was significantly faster than that of normal cervical cells and slower than that of Caski cells. However, the proliferative capacity of such precancerous cells was similar to that of cancerous cells of the cervix at the molecular level. These results suggest that the surrounding environment of the cells may play an important role in the development of cervical cancer, which provides an important basis for the further study of precancerous and cancerous lesions of the cervix.

Chemically activated hydrochar as an effective adsorbent for volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Hydrochars derived from hickory wood and peanut hull through hydrothermal carbonization were activated with H3PO4 and KOH to improve their performance as a volatile organic compound (VOC) adsorbent. Polar acetone and nonpolar cyclohexane were used as representative VOCs. The VOC adsorptive capacities of the activated hydrochars (50.57-159.66 mg⋅g-1) were greater than that of the nonactivated hydrochars (15.98-25.36 mg⋅g-1), which was mainly caused by the enlargement of surface area. The significant linear correlation (R2 = 0.984 on acetone, and R2 = 0.869 on cyclohexane) between BET surface areas of hydrochars and their VOC adsorption capacities, together with the obvious adsorption exothermal peak of differential scanning calorimetry curve confirmed physical adsorption as the dominating mechanism. Finally, the reusability of activated hydrochar was tested on H3PO4 activated hickory hydrochar (HHP), which had higher acetone and cyclohexane adsorption capacities. After five continuous adsorption desorption cycles, the adsorptive capacities of acetone and cyclohexane on HHP decreased by 6.2% and 7.8%, respectively. The slight decline in adsorption capacity confirmed the reusability of activated hydrochar as a VOC sorbent.

Adsorption of VOCs onto engineered carbon materials: A review.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) severely threaten human health and the ecological environment because most of them are toxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic. The persistent increase of VOCs together with the stringent regulations make the reduction of VOC emissions more imperative. Up to now, numerous VOC treatment technologies have emerged, such as incineration, condensation, biological degradation, absorption, adsorption, and catalysis oxidation et al. Among them, the adsorption technology has been recognized as an efficient and economical control strategy because it has the potential to recover and reuse both adsorbent and adsorbate. Due to their large specific surface area, rich porous structure, and high adsorption capacity, carbonaceous adsorbents are widely used in gas purification, especially with respect to VOC treatment and recovery. This review discusses recent research developments of VOC adsorption onto a variety of engineered carbonaceous adsorbents, including activated carbon, biochar, activated carbon fiber, carbon nanotube, graphene and its derivatives, carbon-silica composites, ordered mesoporous carbon, etc. The key factors influence the VOC adsorption are analyzed with focuses on the physiochemical characters of adsorbents, properties of adsorbates as well as the adsorption conditions. In addition, the sources, health effect, and abatement methods of VOCs are also described.

Overexpression of tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated protein 1 (TRAP1) are associated with poor prognosis of epithelial ovarian cancer.

Tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated protein 1 (TRAP1 or Hsp75) is a member of the mitochondrial heat shock proteins. TRAP1 expression is associated with drug and apoptosis resistance in various human cancers. This study assessed TRAP1 expression in tissue specimens of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and its association with clinicopathological features and survival of EOC patients. Tissue samples from 356 patients were collected for immunohistochemical analysis of TRAP1 expression. TRAP1 levels in EOC tissues were significantly higher than that in noncancerous tissues. TRAP1 expression was associated with poor EOC differentiation, advanced pT stages, lymph node and distant metastasis, and advanced FIGO stages (p < 0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that TRAP1 expression was associated with poor prognosis of EOC patients and multivariate analysis revealed that TRAP1 expression (relative risk 6.720, CI 4.100-11.015, p < 0.001), tumor grade (p = 0.001), pathology stages (p = 0.001), and FIGO stage (p = 0.017) were all independent predictors of patients' overall survival. These data demonstrate for the first time that increased TRAP1 expression was significantly associated with EOC stages and poor prognosis. Future studies are needed to confirm the role of TRAP1 as a prognostic tumor marker in EOC.

[Expression and significance of p-AKT, p-GSK3ß and ß-catenin in epithelial carcinoma of ovary].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expressions of phosphorylated protein kinase B (p-AKT), phosphorylated glycogen synthase kinase 3ß (p-GSK3ß) and ß-catenin proteins and to evaluate their relationship with the clinical pathological characteristics in epithelial tumors of the ovary. METHODS: The expression of p-AKT, p-GSK3ß, and ß-catenin was detected with immunohistochemical staining (EnVision method) in 10 cases of benign epithelial neoplasia, 10 cases of borderline epithelial neoplasia and 70 cases of ovarian carcinoma. The relationship of the expression of p-AKT, p-GSK3ß and ß-catenin with the clinical pathological features was analyzed. RESULTS: The positive expression rates of p-AKT, p-GSK3ß and ß-catenin in epithelial ovarian carcinoma were 67.1% (47/70), 60.0% (42/70) and 71.4% (50/70), respectively. Compared to the results of benign and borderline epithelial neoplasia, the expression of the three proteins in carcinoma of the ovary was significantly different (all P < 0.05).Positive correlation was found between p-AKT and p-GSK3ß, p-GSK3ß and ß-catenin, and p-AKT and ß-catenin in epithelial ovarian carcinoma (r = 0.546, 0.581, 0.500, respectively; all P < 0.05). Compared to the results of benign and borderline epithelial neoplasia, the expression of p-AKT protein in epithelial ovarian carcinoma was significantly different (all P < 0.05). The expression of p-AKT was correlated with the differentiation of epithelial ovarian carcinoma (P < 0.05), but no relationship was found between its expression and histological classification and FIGO staging (P > 0.05). The expression of p-GSK3ß and ß-catenin in epithelial ovarian carcinoma were both higher than that in benign and borderline epithelial neoplasia (P < 0.05), and correlated with tumor differentiation and FIGO staging (P < 0.05), but no relationship were found between their expression with histological classification (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Positive correlations are found between p-AKT, p-GSK3ß and ß-catenin in epithelial ovarian carcinoma. The activation of ß-catenin is possibly correlated with inactivation of p-GSK3ß that binds to p-AKT.