Exploration into Plasma Hsa_circ_0052184 as a New Biomarker of Colorectal Cancer Prognosis.

Background: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are strong modulators of tumor pathology. Herein, our goal was to examine the plasma hsa_circ_0052184 content among colorectal cancer (CRC) patients, and assess its association with patient clinicopathological profile and diagnostic values. Methods: Overall, we collected 228 presurgical CRC and 146 normal plasma samples from The First People's Hospital of Wenling. Circulating hsa_circ_0052184 levels were assessed via qRT-PCR, and the diagnostic prediction was conducted with the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Results: Relative to healthy controls, CRC patients exhibited markedly enhanced circulating hsa_circ_0052184 levels, which were closely correlated with advanced stage of disease and worse outcome. Based on our uni- (UA) and multivariate assessments (MA), elevated hsa_circ_0052184 levels were a stand-alone predictor of poor prognosis. The ROC curve depicted an area under the curve (AUC) for CRC diagnosis to be 0.9072. Conclusion: Circulating hsa_circ_0052184 is a potential bioindicator of CRC outcome.

Clinical Efficacy of Interventional Therapy on Lower Extremity Arteriosclerosis Obliterans and Prognostic Factors.

Objective: This study was designed to analyse the clinical efficacy of interventional therapy on lower extremity arteriosclerosis obliterans (LEASO) and prognostic factors. Methods: A total of 122 patients with LEASO diagnosed in our hospital from March 2017 to March 2019 were retrospectively analysed. Among them, 72 patients who received conservative therapy were assigned to a conservative group, and 50 patients who received interventional therapy additionally based on conservative therapy were assigned to an intervention group. The short-term (12 weeks after therapy) and long-term (3 years after therapy) clinical efficacies on the two groups were compared. Death, amputation, and vascular restenosis (vascular stenosis > 50% in computed tomography reexamination) were defined as unfavourable outcomes, and Cox regression was conducted to analyze the factors influencing the prognosis of patients. The incidence of adverse events in the two groups within 3 years was compared and statistically analyzed. Additionally, the hospital stay, therapy cost, claudication distance, and ankle brachial index were compared between the two groups. Results: After therapy, the conservative group showed a notably lower total effective rate than the intervention group (P < 0.05), but the clinical efficacy after 3 years was similar between the two groups (P > 0.05). Additionally, the conservative group experienced notably longer hospital stay than the intervention group (P < 0.05), and cost less in treatment than the intervention group (P < 0.05). However, the conservative group experienced a notably shorter claudication distance and showed a notably lower ankle brachial index than the intervention group (P < 0.05). The two groups were not significantly different in mortality, amputation rate, and vascular restenosis rate (P > 0.05). Moreover, Cox regression analysis revealed that age and conservative therapy were independent risk factors for the prognosis of patients (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Interventional therapy can substantially improve the short-term efficacy and prognosis of patients with LEASO, but the cost is high, so the therapeutic regimen should be selected according to the patient's economic condition.

Aberrant brain-expressed X-linked 4 (BEX4) expression is a novel prognostic biomarker in gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate the expression level of X-linked 4 (BEX4) in patients with gastric cancer (GC) and to investigate the prognostic significance of BEX4. METHODS: The mRNA expression of BEX4 was analyzed using the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) datasets. The relationship between the expression of BEX4 and GC patient survival was assessed using a Kaplan-Meier plot and Log Rank test. Multivariate cox regression analysis was used to evaluate prognostic factor. The diagnostic value of BEX4 expression in GC tissue was determined through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was used to explore BEX-4 related signaling pathways in GC. Furthermore, the Human Protein Atlas (HPA) database and GSE62254 dataset were used for further validation. RESULTS: BEX4 was expressed at lower level in GC tissues than normal gastric tissues. The lower expression of BEX4 was also validated at protein level in HPA database. The area under the ROC curve for BEX4 expression in normal gastric tissue and GC was 0.791, which presented modest diagnostic value. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that patients in low BEX4 expression group had a worse prognosis than those with high BEX4 expression (P = .009). Multivariate analysis showed that BEX4 is an independent risk factor for overall survival both in TCGA and GSE62254 (P = .0142, .013, respectively). GSEA identified that the expression of BEX4 was related to DNA replication, RNA polymerase, cell cycle, and P53 signaling pathway. CONCLUSION: BEX4 is expressed at low levels in GC. BEX4 expression independently predicted poor OS for GC. It is a promising independent molecular predictor for the diagnosis and prognosis of GC.

Comparison of the effect of mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, transabdominal preperitoneal, and totally extraperitoneal hernia repair: A network meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE To compare Mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP), and totally extraperitoneal (TEP) repairs in regards to operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence of inguinal hernia repair. METHODS Relevant literature was searched in the Cochrane Library, Pubmed, and Embase. Furthermore, the analysis of randomized controlled studies (RCTs) was performed using methods recommended by the Cochrane Collaboration. The main outcomes including operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence were evaluated. RESULTS A total of 38 RCTs with 3255 patients were included in the meta-analysis. In addition, the comparison between Mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, TAPP, and TEP showed the differences were not significant regarding operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence. CONCLUSIONS Meta-analysis suggests that Mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, TAPP, and TEP are comparable in the outcomes of hernia repair, such as operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence.

Predicting miRNA targets for hepatocellular carcinoma with an integrated method.

BACKGROUND: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) were aberrantly regulated in cancers, showing their roles as novel classes of oncogenes and tumor suppressors. Hence, an integrated method was introduced in this study to explore miRNA targets for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: The Borda count election algorithm was applied to combine a correlation method (Pearson's correlation coefficient, PCC), a causal inference method (IDA), and a regression method (Lasso) to generate an integrated method. Subsequently, to confirm the performance of the integrated method, the predicted miRNA targets results were compared with the confirmed database. Finally, pathway enrichment analysis was applied to evaluate the target genes in the top 1,000 miRNA-messenger RNA (mRNA) interactions. RESULTS: The method was confirmed to be an approach to predict miRNA targets. Moreover, 50 highly confident miRNA-mRNA interactions were obtained, including 6 miRNA targets with predicted times ≥10 (for instance, MEG3). The 860 target genes of the top 1,000 miRNA-mRNA interactions were enriched in 26 pathways, of which complement and coagulation cascades were most significant. CONCLUSIONS: The results might supply great insights for revealing the pathological mechanism underlying HCC and explore potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of this tumor. However, these biomarkers have not been confirmed, and the related validations should be performed in future studies.

The epithelial cadherin -160C/A polymorphism is associated with decreased risk of colorectal cancer: a case-control study.

The epithelial cadherin (CDH1) is an important determinant of tumor progression. Previous studies have indicated that the CDH1 -160C/A polymorphism was associated with the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC). However, they yielded conflicting results. Thus, we conducted this case-control study to evaluate the association between the CDH1 -160C/A polymorphism and susceptibility to CRC in a Chinese population. We recruited 351 cases and 411 controls in this case-control study. The genotype of the CDH1 -160C/A polymorphism was performed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS). This study found that the CDH1 -160C/A polymorphism was associated with decreased risk of CRC in this Chinese Han population. Subgroup analyses showed that the CDH1 -160C/A polymorphism decreased the risk of CRC among the males and non-drinkers. In addition, a significantly decreased risk was observed in CRC patients with tumor size ≤ 5 cm, and AA genotype showed a protective role in the CRC patients with no lymph node metastasis. In conclusion, this study shows that CDH1 -160C/A polymorphism is associated with decreased risk of CRC in a Chinese Han population.

Comparison of the effect of mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, transabdominal preperitoneal, and totally extraperitoneal hernia repair: A network meta-analysis

SUMMARY OBJECTIVE To compare Mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP), and totally extraperitoneal (TEP) repairs in regards to operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence of inguinal hernia repair. METHODS Relevant literature was searched in the Cochrane Library, Pubmed, and Embase. Furthermore, the analysis of randomized controlled studies (RCTs) was performed using methods recommended by the Cochrane Collaboration. The main outcomes including operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence were evaluated. RESULTS A total of 38 RCTs with 3255 patients were included in the meta-analysis. In addition, the comparison between Mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, TAPP, and TEP showed the differences were not significant regarding operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence. CONCLUSIONS Meta-analysis suggests that Mesh-plug, Lichtenstein, TAPP, and TEP are comparable in the outcomes of hernia repair, such as operation time, seroma, infection, and recurrence.

RESUMO OBJETIVO Comparar as abordagens de tampão com tela (mesh plug), Lichtenstein, transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) e totalmente extraperitoneal (TEP) em relação ao tempo de operação, seroma, infecção e recorrência no reparo de hérnias inguinais. MÉTODOS Estudos relevantes na literatura foram pesquisados nos bancos de dados Cochrane, PubMed e Embase. Além disso, a análise dos estudos clínicos controlados randomizados (RCTs) foi feita utilizando métodos recomendados pela Cochrane Collaboration. Os principais resultados, incluindo tempo de operação, seroma, infecção e recorrência, foram avaliados. RESULTADOS Um total de 38 RCTs com 3.255 pacientes foram incluídos na meta-análise. Além disso, a comparação entre mesh plug, Lichtenstein, TAPP e TEP mostrou que não havia diferenças significativas nos aspectos de tempo de operação, seroma, infecção e recorrência. CONCLUSÕES A meta-análise sugere que mesh plug, Lichtenstein, TAPP e TEP oferecem resultados comparáveis no reparo das hérnia inguinais em relação a tempo de operação, seroma, infecção e recorrência.

The hypnotic effect of propofol involves inhibition of GABAergic neurons in the lateral hypothalamus.

Propofol is widely used for induction and maintenance of anaesthesia, which causes a rapid loss of consciousness. So far the mechanisms underlying the effect of propofol are still largely unknown. Here, we found that microinjection of propofol in the lateral hypothalamus caused a significant decrease in wakefulness and an increase in the amount of non-rapid eye movement sleep and rapid eye movement sleep. Application of propofol in the lateral hypothalamus affected the electroencephalogram power spectra with a decrease in theta oscillations and an increase in the delta oscillations. Additionally, using whole-cell patch clamp recording, we found propofol inhibited the excitability of the GABAergic neurons in the lateral hypothalamus, which plays a critical role in controlling wakefulness. Altogether, these findings indicate that propofol targets lateral hypothalamus and generates a hypnotic state, which might involve the inhibition of GABAergic neurons. These results provide a novel mechanism to explain propofol-elicited anaesthesia.

Laparoscopic spleen retains the body and tail of the pancreas resection.

Pancreatic serous cystic neoplasm (SCN) is a benign tumor of the pancreas, about two-thirds situated in the tail of the pancreas. The small sized ones usually require only routine follow-ups, and is advised for surgical treatment when clinical symptoms, and mass growth are occurring rapidly, and the traditional treatment is splenectomy. Here, we have finished a laparoscopy resection of the spleen-preserving pancreatic body. A 46-year-old female presents for a follow-up after a physical examination found a tumor mass in the body and tail of the pancreas two years ago. After the tumor had become fast-growing and appeared to have other clinical symptoms, a final laparoscopy surgery was performed to retain the spleen of the pancreas. After the treatment, and a smooth recovery, the patient had been discharged. Spleen preserving laparoscopy, with distal pancreatectomy, in the treatment of benign tumors of the pancreatic body and tail, not only can reflect a minimally invasive treatment of postoperative pain, it provides a light and quick recovery advantage. The preservation of the spleen to avoid the long-term anticoagulation treatment, and the technology being relatively easily available, did not significantly increase the incidence of postoperative complications. It is worth using the clinic.