[The effect of WT1 expression on the prognosis of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in acute leukemia].

Objective: To study the effect of WT1 expression on the prognosis of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) in acute leukemia (AL) and its significance as molecular marker to dynamically monitor minimal residual disease (MRD) . Methods: Retrospectively analyzed those AL patients who underwent allo-HSCT in the First Hospital Affiliated to Zhejiang University School of Medicine during Jan 2016 to Dec 2017, a total number of 314 cases, 163 males and 151 females, median age was 30 (9-64) years old. Comparing the difference of WT1 expression at diagnosed, pre-HSCT and after HSCT. Using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to determine the WT1 threshold at different time so as to predict relapse. The threshold of WT1 expression before transplantation was 1.010%, within 3 months after HSCT was 0.079% and 6 months after HSCT was 0.375%. According to these thresholds, WT1 positive patients were divided into low expression groups and high expression groups. Analyzed the relationship between overall survival (OS) , disease-free survival (DFS) , cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR) and WT1 expression. Results: The OS and DFS of high expression group pre-HSCT were lower than low expression group [69.2% (9/13) vs 89.1% (57/64) , χ(2)=4.086, P=0.043; 53.8% (7/13) vs 87.5% (56/64) , χ(2)=9.766, P=0.002], CIR was higher than low expression group [30.8% (4/13) vs 7.8% (5/64) , P=0.017]. There was no significant difference of OS and DFS between high expression and low expression group of 3 months after HSCT (P=0.558, P=0.269) . The OS and DFS of high expression group of 6 months after transplantation were both lower than low expression group (P=0.049, P=0.035) . Multivariate analysis showed that WT1>0.375% when 6 months after transplantation was the only independent prognostic factor for shorter DFS (P=0.022) . There was no statistically significant difference in CIR between the high-expression group and the low-expression group 3 months after transplantation and 6 months after transplantation (P=0.114, P=0.306) . Conclusion: High expression of WT1 before and after HSCT was an adverse prognosis factor. It is of clinical practical value to use WT1 as a transplant recommendation index for patients with acute leukemia and as a marker to monitor MRD dynamically.

Hsa-miR-206 represses the proliferation and invasion of breast cancer cells by targeting Cx43.

OBJECTIVE: Hsa-miR-206, a microRNA, was found to be able to switch subtypes by targeting ER-α in breast cancer. However, there are few studies addressing the role of miR-206 in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the metastatic-regulatory ability of miR-206 in TNBC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We treated two TNBC lines (MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-436) with miR-206 mimics, inhibitors and paired controls and examined the in vitro and in vivo functions of miR-206 via the degradation of Connexin43 (Cx43). A luciferase reporter assay was used to identify the binding site of GJA1 (gap junctional intercellular communication) (Cx43) and miR-206. Furthermore, quantitative RT-PCR was used to evaluate miR-206 expression in 77 breast cancer samples to determine the association with lymph node status and Cx43 expression. RESULTS: Up-regulation of miR-206 in TNBC contributed to a decreasing metastatic potential, as demonstrated by a reduction of cell viability and proliferation, decreased cell migration and invasion, lower expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, MMP-9 and a higher expression level of breast cancer metastatic suppressor (BRMS)-1. In vitro dual luciferase assays showed GJA1 (Cx43) is a target of miR-206. Quantitative RT-PCR was conducted to evaluate miR-206 expression in 77 breast cancer samples to determine the associations between miR-206 levels and both lymph node status and Cx43 expression. Restoring Cx43 expression positively regulated cell adhesion and GJA1, which may facilitate metastasis. MiR-206 significantly attenuated the proliferation and metastatic potential of cancer cells but did not inhibit tumor onset in a mouse xenograft model because of the dual function of Cx43. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest hsa-miR-206 may repress the tumor proliferation and invasion in breast cancer by targeting Cx43.

A clinical study on the effectiveness of implant supported dental restoration in patients with chronic periodontal diseases.

This study evaluated the efficacy of implant supported dental restorations in patients with chronic periodontal diseases at various stages within 2 years of completing treatment. 30 patients with periodontal diseases and 30 patients without periodontal diseases were studied. Total counts of 276 implant bodies were divided into group A (patients with periodontal diseases; a total of 149 implants) and group B (patients with healthy periodontium; a total of 127 implants). In group A subjects, periodontitis was treated prior to implant placement. The study focused on patients' modified sulcus bleeding index, modified plaque index, implant mobility index, periodontal probing depth and implant success rate 12 and 24 months after the completion of the treatment. The result show: there were no significant differences in implant success rate between groups A and B; modified sulcus bleeding index scores showed differences between the groups 24 months after treatment; there were no significant differences in other clinical indexes during the study between the groups; there were no significant differences in periodontal probing depth between the groups; modified plaque index and modified sulcus bleeding index were positively correlated in implant supported dental restoration patients with chronic periodontal diseases.

The effects and mechanism of xenogeneic adipocyte vaccine for the prevention of obesity in rats.

The objectives of this study were to observe the effects of immunization with mouse mature adipocytes for the prevention of obesity in rats and to investigate their mechanism of action. Mouse mature adipocytes (3T3-L1) were injected as a vaccine into the abdominal cavity of rats. Control rats were injected with fibroblast cell lines (MRC-5 or NIH/3T3) or with 0.9% saline. Rats were fed a high calorie diet and body weight changes were used to evaluate obesity prevention. Immunohistochemical and immunofluorescence assays were used to investigate the mechanism of action. Results showed that obesity in rats can be prevented by immunization with xenogeneic mature mouse adipocytes. Body weight gain was inhibited in rats in the treatment group but not in the control groups and was statistically significant between the groups over the 19-week observation period. The assays demonstrated the presence of autoantibodies in rat adipocytes. It was concluded that vaccines of xenogeneic adipocytes can effectively prevent obesity in rats.

Percutaneous transluminal excimer laser coronary angioplasty. Clinical report of six cases.

Six patients with 95% to 100% occluded atherosclerotic lesions underwent percutaneous transluminal excimer laser coronary angioplasty (PTELCA). Among them, 5 were male and 1 was female; their age ranged from 28 to 66 years. Four patients had LAD stenosis and 2 LCX lesions. Acute angiographic and clinical success was achieved in all patients but one, with a success rate of 83.3%. It was demonstrated that PTELCA is a safe and effective therapy for selected patients with coronary artery disease.

[Interval division, forecasting and decline tendency estimation model of malaria incidence in Xuzhou City].

This paper uses Grey Model to divide the malaria incidence of 1956-1986 into interval in Xuzhou City. The Grey forecasting GM (1,1) model is used to calculate the malaria incidence in 1987 and 1988. The accuracy of forecasting is 94.83% and 82.44% respectively. Furthermore, the Grey Verhulst model is used to fit the malaria incidence for the study of the declining tendency of vivax malaria incidence. Based on the fitting models, the decline tendency estimation models of vivax malaria are worked out.

Therapeutic actions of alpha-human atrial natriuretic polypeptide in 16 clinical cases.

Alpha-human atrial natriuretic polypeptide (alpha-hANP) was applied to 16 clinical patients, 6 patients with essential hypertension, 7 patients with congestive heart failure and 3 patients with cirrhosis. Following intravenous bolus injection of 400 micrograms of synthetic alpha-hANP, a hypotensive effect of very rapid onset was found, which was more potent in the hypertensive patients than in the normotensive cases. Cardiac functions were improved significantly with a similar time course as the depressor response in the cases of heart failure or hypertension. Hemodynamic observations showed a marked increase in cardiac output, cardiac index, stroke volume, ejection fraction and ejection rate, and a concomitant decrease of the pressure in the right side of the heart and pulmonary circulation in these subjects. In addition, the renal response to alpha-hANP induced obvious increases in urine volume, electrolytes and creatinine excretions in all the subjects. Finally, plasma levels of aldosterone, Arg-vasopressin and noradrenaline were also altered by alpha-hANP. No significant side effects were registered. The above result confirms the therapeutic actions of alpha-hANP in human subjects and opens the possibility to research alpha-hANP as a powerful pharmacological tool as well as potential new medicine for human disorders.