Prussian blue nanoparticles coated with tumor cell membranes for precise photothermal therapy and subsequent inflammation reduction.

The utilization of photothermal agents (PTAs) in photothermal therapy (PTT) is faced with challenges such as immune clearance and inadequate concentration, which consequently result in residual tumors and an increased risk of recurrence and metastasis. Conversely, excessive treatment can lead to heightened inflammation and inevitable harm to adjacent healthy tissues. To address these issues, we developed a nanosystem (M@PB) consisting of Prussian blue coated with tumor cell membrane for precise photothermal therapy (PTT) and subsequent reduction of inflammation. This system not only evades immune attack due to the homologous biological characteristics of the encapsulating cell membrane but also exhibits active targeting capabilities towards homologous tumors. Furthermore, it effectively reduces excessive phototoxicity by leveraging the distinctive photothermal and anti-inflammatory characteristics of PB nanoparticles. The resulting M@PB nanosystem demonstrates effective photothermal ablation under 808 nm laser irradiation while mitigating the inflammatory response through inhibiting of local production of inflammatory mediators. Our study provides valuable insights into achieving targeted PTT with high efficiency while minimizing post-treatment inflammatory responses.

Evaluation of endometrial receptivity in women with unexplained infertility by shear wave elastography.

OBJECTIVES: The endometrium of most unexplained infertility (UI) patients has been altered histologically. Shear wave elastography (SWE) is utilized to assess the signature of living tissue. This study aimed to explore the value of SWE in evaluating endometrial receptivity (ER) in UI patients. METHODS: In total, 59 UI patients (UI group) and 52 normal control women (NC group) who received fertility consultation in our hospital were included between January 2022 and June 2023. We divided them into the late-proliferative phase of UI group (LPUI; n = 59), mid-secretory phase of UI group (MPUI; n = 41), late-proliferative phase of NC group (LPNC; n = 52), and mid-secretory phase of NC group (MPNC; n = 45). Transvaginal ultrasonography and SWE were performed during the LP and MP. Endometrial thickness (EMT), uterine artery pulsatility index (UA-PI), endometrial mean elasticity (E-mean), and mean shear wave velocities (SWV-mean) were measured. RESULTS: There were significant differences in E-mean, SWV-mean, EMT, and UA-PI between the UI group and the NC group during both the LP and MP (p MPNC vs MPUI < 0.05, p LPNC vs LPUI < 0.05). E-mean and SWV-mean decreased with increasing EMT but increased with increasing UA-PI (p < 0.05). The most effective parameter for evaluating ER in UI patients is the E-mean (AUC = 0.89). CONCLUSIONS: UI patients exhibited thinner endometrium, increased endometrial stiffness, and poor endometrial blood perfusion. E-mean was the most effective parameter to evaluate ER in UI patients. The study preliminarily proved that SWE is a promising non-invasive tool for evaluating the condition of endometrium. CRITICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: This study aimed to explore the significance of endometrial elasticity measured by SWE in evaluating patients with UI. The findings revealed a correlation between EMT, UA-PI, and E-mean. Endometrial elasticity can serve as an effective indicator for predicting ER. KEY POINTS: 1. To explore the significance of endometrial elasticity in assessing patients with UI. 2. The endometrium of UI patient exhibited thinness, stiffness, and poor blood perfusion. 3. Endometrial elasticity serves as a valuable indicator for evaluating endometrial receptivity.

[Difficulties and Countermeasures for Ortho Process Optimization in DR System].

Making an Ortho image is an important method to diagnose spinal and leg lesions in clinic. As the whole process requires multiple exposures in different positions, and it is very complicated and time consuming, it leads to low efficiency and it's hard to obtain ideal stitching result from image quality. The optimization of the workflow can not only reduce the workload of the operator, improve the work efficiency, but also improve the comfort of the patient in the process, finally to ensure the quality of the stitching image. This paper firstly introduces the background and workflow of making an Ortho image. Then, each optimization solutions are elaborated, including the encountered difficulties and the countermeasures. It provides a detailed reference about how to realize the Ortho function in DR system.

The effect of gel pads on the measurement of breast superficial lesions by shear wave elastography.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to compare the repeatability and diagnostic efficiency of shear wave elastography (SWE) while using coupling gel and gel pads in the diagnosis of superficial breast lesions. METHODS: Two experienced sonographers, trained in SWE, used different methods to perform the maximum Young's modulus (Emax) measurement of the lesion while using coupling gel SWE and gel pad SWE at different time points. All 80 lesions were in the superficial layer of the breast. The interclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was calculated to evaluate the intraobserver and interobserver repeatability. Meanwhile, the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC curve) was used to calculate the sensitivity, specificity and area under the curve of the two methods. RESULTS: In the 80 breast lesions, the intraobserver and interobserver reproducibility of SWE measurements using coupling gel were considered good, and the ICCs were 0.728 (95% CI: 0.509-0.813) and 0.702 (95% CI: 0.492-0.795), respectively. The intraobserver and interobserver reproducibility of the SWE measured by the gel pad were also considered good, and the ICCs were 0.745 (95% CI: 0.501-0.801) and 0.713 (95% CI: 0.498-0.802), respectively. The sensitivity, specificity and area under the curve were 0.711 and 0.737, 0.929 and 0.905, and 0.873 and 0.878, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In the SWE measurement of superficial breast lesions, the use of a gel pad does not affect the repeatability and diagnostic efficiency of the measurement.

The use of gel pads does not affect repeatability and diagnostic efficiency but also improves the near-field resolution of images.The gel pad has certain advantages in the observation of superficial lesions.

Immersion ultrasonography improves the repeatability of cephalic vein diameter measurements for inexperienced operators.

OBJECTIVE: To reduce the empirical dependence of ultrasound measurement of the cephalic vein diameter, improve the repeatability of measurements for inexperienced operators, and provide a new method for inexperienced operators. METHODS: Operators without ultrasound experience used contact ultrasound and immersion ultrasound to measure the diameter of the cephalic vein. The intraobserver and interobserver repeatability of measurements obtained via the two methods were analyzed. RESULTS: The intraobserver and interobserver repeatability of the cephalic vein diameter measured via contact ultrasound by inexperienced operators were average, with intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) of 0.572 (95% CI: 0.239-0.759) and 0.405 (95% CI: -0.057-0.666), respectively. The intraobserver and interobserver reproducibility of the cephalic vein diameter measured by immersion ultrasound were very good, with ICCs of 0.955 (95% CI: 0.922-0.975) and 0.943 (95% CI: 0.900-0.967), respectively. In the Bland-Altman diagram of the intraobserver and interobserver agreement of the immersion ultrasound measurements of the cephalic vein diameter, 96% of the points fell within the 95% limits of agreement. CONCLUSION: Immersion ultrasonography can be used to measure the cephalic vein diameter while reducing the dependence of the results on operator experience; inexperienced operators can achieve very good repeatability.

[Effect of low-dose focused ultrasound pre-irradiation versus microbubbles for enhancing high-intensity focused ultrasound ablation of VX2 hepatic tumor in rabbits].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effect of low-dose focused ultrasound pre-irradiation and microbubbles for enhancing the ablation effect of high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) on VX2 hepatic tumor in rabbits. METHODS: Fifty-five rabbits bearing VX2 hepatic tumor were randomly divided into low-dose pre-irradiation + HIFU ablation group, microbubbles+HIFU ablation group, and HIFU ablation group for corresponding treatments. The pathological changes in the tumors after low-dose irradiation, time for HIFU ablation, tumor volume with coagulative necrosis, energy efficiency factor (EEF), pathological changes in the ablated tumor, and sound channel of HIFU ablation were observed. RESULTS: Tumor cell edema, vacuolar changes in the cytoplasm and tumor interstitial vascular congestion were observed 24 h after low-dose pre-irradiation. The ablation time were significantly shorter, coagulative necrosis volume was larger, and EEF was lower in low-dose irradiation + HIFU ablation group and microbubbles+HIFU ablation group than in simple HIFU ablation group (P<0.05), but the differences between the former two groups were not significant. The effectiveness and stability of the synergistic effect of low-dose pre-irradiation were inferior to microbubbles, but the former ensured a better safety of the sound channel. CONCLUSION: Low-dose irradiation has comparable synergistic effect in HIFU with microbubbles with such advantages as non-invasiveness, high concentration and good safety, and can be a potentially new method to enhance the efficiency of HIFU.