[Evaluation of the effect of the water-saving irrigation project on Oncomelania hupensis control in hilly regions of Yixing City, Jiangsu Province].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of the water-saving irrigation project on Oncomelania hupensis snail control in hilly regions of Yixing City, Jiangsu Province. METHODS: A retrospective survey combined with cross-sectional investigation was employed. The implementation of the water-saving irrigation development project in Yixing City from 2005 to 2007 was retrospectively collected, and the snail status was collected in regions where the water-saving irrigation project was located and the project-affected regions from 2003 to 2018, to examine the effect of the project on snail control. In addition, a cross-sectional survey was performed to investigate the destruction of the water-saving irrigation project in 2018. RESULTS: A total of 22 water-saving irrigation projects were implemented in 5 townships in hilly regions of Yixing City from 2005 to 2007, where snail habitats were treated covering 266.97 hm2. Before the implementation of the project from 2003 to 2006, cumulative 47.87 hm2 snail habitats were detected in regions where the project was located, and no snails were found in regions where the project was located from the implementation of the project in 2006 to 2018. However, a few snails were found in the project-affected regions in 2017 and 2018. In addition, there were problems found in the later-stage maintenance and management of the project. CONCLUSIONS: The water-saving irrigation projects shows a high efficiency on snail control in hilly regions of Yixing City. The later-stage maintenance of the project and monitoring of snails remain to be intensified to enhance the snail control efficiency of the water-saving irrigation project.

[Surveillance of echinococcosis in Yixing City from 2011 to 2018].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the results of echinococcosis surveillance in Yixing City from 2011 to 2018, so as to provide insights into echinococcosis control in the city. METHODS: All echinococcosis cases reported in Yixing City since 2007 that were captured from the China National Notifiable Infectious Disease Reporting Information System of Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention received a case study, and serological test and transabdominal B-mode ultrasound screening were performed among permanent residents and mutton market workers in Fangdong and Fangzhuang villages of Yixing City from 2011 to 2018. The cyst, mass and tubercle were detected in the liver and lung of the sheep from the mutton markets, and the Echinococcus coproantigen was detected in the canine stool samples from Fangdong and Fangzhuang villages. In addition, the awareness of echinococcosis prevention and control knowledge was investigated in the two villages using a questionnaire survey from 2011 to 2018. RESULTS: A total of 7 cases with echinococcosis had been reported in Yixing City since 2007, with prevalence of 0.56/100 000, and all cases were E. granulosus-infected patients, including 2 cases with a history to travel to echinococcosis-endemic areas and 5 cases with a history of working in local mutton markets or dog contacts. From 2011 to 2018, a total of 1 861 residents received serological tests, with 0.54% seropositivity, and no seropositives were detected since 2016. Among the 1 807 individuals receiving transabdominal B-mode ultrasound screening, suspected cysts were found in 143 individuals (7.91%), and 1.40% (2/143) seropositivity was detected in these individuals. The mean positive rate of the Echinococcus coproantigen was 0.67% (3 /446) in the canine stool samples. Among the 4 010 sheep liver and lung specimens sampled from the mutton markets, 7 specimens (0.17%) were detected with cysts or tubercles. In addition, the mean awareness rate of echinococcosis prevention and control knowledge was 76.95% among the 538 subjects receiving questionnaire surveys from 2011 to 2018, and the overall awareness appeared a tendency towards a rise year after year. CONCLUSIONS: Although the prevalence of echinococcosis and the seropositivity of anti-Echinococcus antibodies are low, there is still a risk of transmission of echinococcosis in Yixing City. The surveillance of echinococcosis should continue to be intensified and related control interventions are required.

Down-regulation of lncRNA MIR31HG correlated with aggressive clinicopathological features and unfavorable prognosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: Long non-coding RNA MIR31HG (MIR31HG) has been shown to affect numerous tumorigenesis. However, the function of MIR31HG in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the levels of MIR31HG could be served as a prognostic factor in patients with ESCC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: MIR31HG expression was detected in 185 samples of surgically resected ESCC and matched normal tumor-adjacent tissues by qRT-PCR. The association between MIR31HG expression levels in tissue and characteristics was examined. Overall survival (OS) curves were conducted to compare MIR31HG level and clinical characteristics. Cox regression analysis was conducted to determine the prognostic value of MIR31HG. RESULTS: The levels of MIR31HG were decreased in the ESCC tissues from patients with ESCC compared with the control (p < 0.01). In malignant cases, lower expression MIR31HG levels were significantly associated with poor differentiation (p < 0.001), advanced lymph node metastasis (p = 0.006), positive distant metastasis (p = 0.005) and TNM stage (p = 0.004). Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated that patients presenting with reduced MIR31HG expression exhibited poorer OS (p = 0.0002). Univariate and multivariate analysis suggested that MIR31HG expression was an independent prognostic marker for survival in patients with ESCC. CONCLUSIONS: We observed that down-regulated MIR31HG in ESCC patients was associated with malignant clinical characteristics. MIR31HG might be considered as a potential prognostic indicator and a potential target for therapeutic targets in ESCC.

miR-377 inhibited tumorous behaviors of non-small cell lung cancer through directly targeting CDK6.

OBJECTIVE: This study is aimed to investigate the cellular role of miR-377 and demonstrate that miR-377 negatively regulated cyclin-dependent kinase 6(CDK6) in human non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS: qRT-PCR was performed to identify the miR-377 expression level in 45 paired NSCLC and adjacent normal lung tissues. Cell proliferation was measured by MTT. Apoptosis was detected by flow cytometric analysis. Luciferase reporter assays were employed to validate regulation of a putative target of miR-377. The effect of miR-377 on endogenous levels of this target was subsequently confirmed via Western blot. RESULTS: We found that the expression level of miR-377 was significantly reduced in NSCLC tissues and cell lines. On the contrary, CDK6 expression level was up-regulated in NSCLC tissues and cell lines. Based on Luciferase reporter assays, we confirmed that CDK6 was a direct target gene of miR-377. In vitro studies demonstrated that miR-377 overexpression reduced NSCLC cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis. CONCLUSIONS: Our discovery suggested that miR-377 might be used as a therapeutic reagent for the treatment of NSCLC in the future.

[Analysis of tissue-specific differentially methylated genes with differential gene expression in non-small cell lung cancer].

Adenocarcinoma (ADC) and squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) are two subtypes of non-small cell lung carcinomas which are regarded as the leading cause of cancer-related malignancy worldwide. The aim of this study is to detect the differentially methylated loci (DMLs) and differentially methylated genes (DMGs) of these two tumor sets, and then to illustrate the different expression level of specific methylated genes. Using TCGA database and Illumina HumanMethylation 27 arrays, we first screened the DMGs and DMLs in tumor samples. Then, we explored the BiologicalProcess terms of hypermethylated and hypomethylated genes using Functional Gene Ontology (GO) catalogues. Hypermethylation intensively occurred in CpG-island, whereas hypomethylation was located in non-CpG-island. Most SCC and ADC hypermethylated genes involved GO function of DNA dependenit regulation of transcription, and hypomethylated genes mainly 'enriched in the term of immune responses. Additionally, the expression level of specific differentially methylated genesis distinctbetween ADC and SCC. It is concluded that ADC and SCC have different methylated status that might play an important role in carcinogenesis.

An age-related axon terminal pathology around the first olfactory relay that involves amyloidogenic protein overexpression without plaque formation.

The glomeruli are the first synaptic relay on the olfactory pathway and play a basic role in smell perception. Glomerular degeneration occurs in humans with age and in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The glomeruli heavily express ß-amyloid precursor protein (APP), ß-secretase (BACE1) and γ-secretase complex. However, extracellular ß-amyloid peptide (Aß) deposition occurs fairly rarely at this location in postmortem pathological studies. We sought to explore age-related glomerular changes that might link to alteration in amyloidogenic proteins and/or plaque pathogenesis in transgenic models of AD and humans. Focally increased BACE1 immunoreactivity (IR) in the glomerular layer was identified in several transgenic models, and characterized systematically in transgenic mice harboring five familiar AD-related mutations (5XFAD). These elements were co-labeled with antibodies against APP N-terminal (22C11) and Aß N-terminal (3D6, 6E10) and mid-sequence (4G8). They were not co-labeled with two Aß C-terminal antibodies (Ter40, Ter42), nor associated with extracellular amyloidosis. These profiles were further characterized to be most likely abnormal olfactory nerve terminals. Reduced glomerular area was detected in 6-12-month-old 5XFAD mice relative to non-transgenic controls, and in aged humans relative to young/adult controls, more robust in AD than aged subjects without cerebral amyloid and tau pathologies. The results suggest that olfactory nerve terminals may undergo age-related dystrophic and degenerative changes in AD model mice and humans, which are associated with increased labeling for amyloidogenic proteins but not local extracellular Aß deposition. The identified axon terminal pathology might affect neuronal signal transmission and integration at the first olfactory synaptic relay.

Kimura disease: review of the literature.

Kimura disease (KD) is a rare, chronic inflammatory disease of unknown cause and is characterized by painless s.c. swellings and lymphadenopathy commonly affecting the head and neck region. Much therapeutics has been used to treat KD, but is not satisfactory because of frequent relapse. Imatinib has been reported previously to be useful for treatment of hypereosinophilic syndrome and may work by selectively blocking protein-tyrosine kinases, such as platelet-derived growth factor receptor, and c-Kit. We carried out immunohistochemical examination of platelet-derived growth factor receptor-alpha and c-Kit in tissues from patients with KD. The results were positive and suggested that Imatinib might be an effective drug for the treatment of the disease. We have also briefly reviewed the epidemiology, aetiology, clinical manifestations, laboratory and pathological examinations, differential diagnoses, treatment and prognosis of KD in this manuscript.

Positive electron affinity of fullerenes: Its effect and origin.

The universal variation pattern of the total energy of various fullerenes including single-walled carbon nanotubes with respect to their extra charge is revealed by the density-functional-theory calculations. The parabolic energy-charge curve with its lowest energy value corresponding to a negatively charged fullerene indicates that these carbon materials have positive electron affinity and are not in the most stable state. The positive electron affinity seems to originate from the pi-electrons and is found to be related to the aggregation property of fullerenes.

Growth of compound single- and multi-walled carbon nanotubes.

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are complement to each other in many of their physical properties. We report the synthesis of carbon nanotube cables-a form of compound single- and multi-walled carbon nanotubes which could have the superior properties of both the SWCNTs and MWCNTs. This compound form of carbon nanotubes consists of a bundle of SWCNTs formed into a MWCNT, and the diameter of the inner most shell of the MWCNT ranges from a few to tens nanometers. The growth of these compound carbon nanotubes cannot be explained readily via existing modes of carbon nanotube growth, but promises a new way for improving and controlling the physical properties of either single- or multi-walled carbon nanotubes.

Stability of carbon nanotubes: how small can they be?

Experimental evidence has been found for the existence of small single wall carbon nanotubes with diameters of 0.5 and 0.33 nm by high resolution transmission electron microscopy, and their mechanical stability was investigated using tight-binding molecular dynamics simulations. It is shown that, while the carbon tubes with diameters smaller than 0.4 nm are energetically less favorable than a graphene sheet, some of them are indeed mechanically stable at temperatures as high as 1100 degrees C. The 0.33 nm carbon tube observed is likely a (4, 0) tube and is indeed part of a compound nanotube system that forms perhaps the smallest metal-semiconductor-metal tubular junction yet synthesized.

[Bilateral primary breast cancer. An analysis of 64 cases].

64 cases of bilateral primary breast cancer were confirmed pathologically and treated in our hospital from 1973 to 1990. There were seven synchronous cases and 57 cases of sequential type. The patients were treated by surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, separately or in combination. 2-, 5-, and 10-year survival rate were 81%, 46.7% and 20%, respectively. The incidence, diagnosis, clinical features, and therapeutic indications for bilateral breast cancer were discussed.

[Primary gastrointestinal malignant lymphoma. An analysis of 63 cases].

Sixty-three patients with primary gastrointestinal malignant lymphoma confirmed by pathology and treated in our hospital from 1973 to 1989 were reported. There were 30 males and 33 females, four suffering hodgkin's diseases and 59 non-hodgkin's lymphoma, with 17 at stage I, 17 at stage II, 9 at stage III, and 20 at stage IV. Patients were treated by surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy separately or combined. Forty-seven patients underwent tumor extirpation. Five-year's postoperative survival at stage I, II, and III were 84.6%, 33.3%, and 14.2%, respectively. Surgery combined with postoperative radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy gave better results. The incidence, diagnosis, clinical staging and the therapeutic indications were discussed with a review of literature.

[Clinical observations on the treatment of hookworm, Ascaris and Trichuris infection with oxibendazole].

340 cases of hookworm infection, 196 cases of ascariasis and 178 cases of trichuriasis were treated with an anthelmintic, oxibendazole, 15mg/kg.d x 3d; 102, 70 and 66 cases of respective infections were treated with pyrantel 10mg/kg.d x 3d and 108, 74 and 63 cases took placebo for comparison and as control under double-blind observations. Re-examinations of the stool were performed after the treatment. Among the cases treated with oxibendazole, the egg negative conversion rates of hookworm, Ascaris and Trichuris were 70.3-80.6%, 92.5-97.8 and 67.0-71.0% respectively. The egg reduction rates of hookworm were 98.1-98.6%. The larval negative conversion rates of Ancylostoma duodenale and Necator americanus were 77.7 and 83.2% respectively. Among the cases treated with pyrantel, the egg negative conversion rates of the three above mentioned parasites were 73.5, 90.0 and 28.8% respectively. The egg reduction rate of hookworm was 98.8%. Among the cases treated with placebo, the egg negative conversion rates of the three above mentioned parasites were 6.5, 29.7 and 7.9%. No marked adverse reactions were observed by clinical and laboratory examinations.

[Primary gastric malignant lymphoma--analysis of 32 cases].

Thirty-two patients with primary gastric malignant lymphoma confirmed by pathology and treated in our hospital from 1973 to 1986 are reported. There were 10 males and 22 females (3 Hodgkin's diseases and 29 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma). There were 12 Stage I, 6 Stage II, and 14 Stage IV lesions. The patients were treated by surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy separately or combined. Twenty-three patients underwent surgery. Surgery combined with postoperative radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy gave better results. The incidence, diagnosis, clinical staging and the therapeutic indications are discussed with a review of literature.

[Multifactorial analysis of survival in breast cancer].

Eleven clinical and pathological factors were eligible for study in relation to the survival of 617 female patients with breast cancer treated by radical mastectomy. All the patients have been followed for more than five years. The data were analyzed by the Cox's proportional hazards regression model. A final set of five independent significant prognostic factors was obtained. In order of importance, they were clinical stage, age at diagnosis, axillary lymph node status, histologic type and size of the primary. To test the time-dependency of these factors using Cox's model, all except age reduced their prognostic impact significantly after five years, however, age was a powerful prognostic factor for long-term survival. A prognostic index based on the regression coefficients was constructed. This index can give a better prediction for our patients' survival and be taken as reference when formulating treatment protocols for breast cancer.