Fully Automatic Fine-Grained Grading of Lumbar Intervertebral Disc Degeneration Using Regional Feature Recalibration Network.

Accurate fine-grained grading of lumbar intervertebral disc (LIVD) degeneration is essential for the diagnosis and treatment design of high-incidence low back pain. However, the grading accuracy is still challenged by lacking the fine-grained degenerative details, which is mainly due to the existing grading methods are easily dominated by the salient nucleus pulposus regions in LIVD, overlooking the inconspicuous degeneration changes of the surrounding structures. In this study, a novel regional feature recalibration network (RFRecNet) is proposed to achieve accurate and reliable LIVD degeneration grading. Detection transformer (DETR) is first utilized to detect all LIVDs and then input to the proposed RFRecNet for the fine-grained grading. To obtain sufficient features from both the salient nucleus pulposus and the surrounding regions, a regional cube-based feature boosting and suppression (RC-FBS) module is designed to adaptively recalibrate the feature extraction and utilization from the various regions in LIVD, and a feature diversification (FD) module is proposed to capture the complementary semantic information from the multi-scale features for the comprehensive fine-grained degeneration grading. Extensive experiments were conducted on a clinically collected dataset, which consists of 500 MR scans with a total of 10225 LIVDs. An average grading accuracy of 90.5%, specificity of 97.5%, sensitivity of 90.8%, and Cohen's kappa correlation coefficient of 0.876 are obtained, which indicate that the proposed framework is promising to provide doctors with reliable and consistent fine-grained quantitative evaluation results of the LIVD degeneration conditions for the optimal surgical plan design.

Child inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor of the kidney misdiagnosed as Wilms' tumor: case report.

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is a rare mesenchymal tumor with recurrent potential, most commonly occurring in the lung but rarely in the kidney with nonspecific clinical symptoms and radiographic features, thus may be misdiagnosed as primary malignant lesions. We described a 6-year-old boy with renal IMT misdiagnosed as Wilms' tumor and then treated with right nephrectomy. It should be emphasized that in addition to the most common renal tumors in children, IMT should also be taken as a differential diagnosis. It is therefore mandatory to carry out clinical interpretation, careful histologic examination, and immunohistochemical studies collectively to make solid diagnosis.

Asymptomatic adult Wilms' tumor: A case report.

Wilms' tumor, also called nephroblastoma, is an extremely uncommon kidney tumor of adulthood. We reported a adult man with a left kidney mass diagnosed as Wilms' tumor. Case presentation: A 25-year-old man was hospitalized due to injury of the anterior cruciate ligament of the right knee. Preoperative imaging accidentally revealed a mass measuring 53 × 46 mm involving the middle and lower segments of the left kidney without evidence supporting the invasion of the surrounding structures or metastasis. The patient didn't show any symptom commonly occurred in Wilms' tumor, such as flank pain or hematuria. After nephrectomy, the diagnosis of adult Wilms' tumor was confirmed based on the tumor morphology and immunohistochemical findings. Conclusion: In adult patients without any clinical manifestations or favorable imaging findings for low-stage renal cell carcinoma, the diagnosis of Wilms' tumor should be taken into consideration.

Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Appearances of Abdomen and Pelvis Gossypibomas at the Varied Durations After Cesarean Section.

The incidence of gossypiboma is considerably higher in open cavity surgeries, among which cesarean section ranks number one. However, it is difficult to diagnose abdomen or pelvic gossypibomas after cesarean section. We retrospectively analyzed the clinical and imaging data of three pathologically confirmed gossypiboma patients at varied durations after cesarean section. In case one, at four months after cesarean section, a gossypiboma near the small intestine caused fistula and intestinal obstruction. Soft tissue density lesion along the intestinal canal made the "segmental honeycomb sign" and "truncation" with metal markings on the edge on computed tomography (CT). Magnetic sensitivity artifacts were demonstrated as hypointensity on T1 weighted image (T1WI) and T2 weighted image (T2WI), while hyperintensity was seen on the diffusion weighted image (DWI). In case two, a gossypiboma in the peritoneal and intestinal space was revealed with MRI at 18 months after cesarean section. It was featured as a cystic and solid lesion, with "vortex like sign" and obvious ring enhancement on contrast-enhanced MRI scan. In case three, five years after cesarean section, a mass was palpated in the right middle and lower abdomen. MRI revealed a round mass of T1 hypointensity with mixed T2 signal, as well as swirling hypointensity in T2WI, T2WI-fat suppression (FS), and DWI. In CT and MRI examinations for suspected gossypiboma after cesarean section, "honeycomb sign" and "vortex like sign" are the characteristic appearances; gauze translocated into the intestine may show the "truncation sign". Accurate diagnosis is based on the surgery history, symptoms, and imaging features.

Fabrication of actiniae-like atomically thin hydroxylation boron nitride@polyaniline hierarchical composites with adjustable high thermal conductivity and electrical conductivity.

Polyaniline (PANI) has been studied as soft electronic materials, which is still subject to performance obstacles such as low thermal conductivity and undesirable electrical conductivity. Herein, we report thein situpreparation of an atomically thin hydroxylated boron nitride (HO-BNNS)@PANI actiniae-like layered composite. HO-BNNS@PANI composite obtains brilliant electrical and thermal conductivity without destroying the pH sensitivity of PANI. In this case, the test results show that when the HO-BNNS content is 15 wt%, the conductivity of the HO-BNNS@PANI composite is 10.8 S cm-1, and the thermal conductivity is 1.21 W m-1·K-1(≈520% that of pure PANI). More strikingly, the HO-BNNS@PANI composite maintains the pH responsiveness of the intrinsic PANI. This greatly improves the application range of composite materials. Meanwhile, since actiniae-like structural factors simultaneously improve ion diffusion capability and optimize reaction area, after five times of doping and dedoping, the conductivity of the HO-BNNS@PANI composite can still be maintained above 60%.

The effects of soil freeze-thaw processes on water and salt migrations in the western Songnen Plain, China.

Seasonally freeze-thaw (FT) processes affect soil salinisation in cold and arid regions. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms behind soil salinisation during winter and spring is crucial for management strategies effectively alleviating this. This study aimed to explore the soil FT characteristics and their influences on soil water and salt migrations to clarify the underlying mechanism of the springtime soil salinisation in the western Songnen Plain, China. The spatiotemporal distributions of soil water and salt, frozen depths and soil temperatures were examined at depths of 0-200 cm in three typical landscapes (farmland, Leymus chinensis (Trin.) Tzvel (LT) grassland and alkali-spot (AS) land) from October 2015 to June 2016. Results indicated that the strongest freezing process occurred in AS land, which was characterised by the deepest frost depth (165 cm) and highest freezing rate (3.58 cm/d), followed by LT grassland, and then farmland. The freeze-induced upward redistribution and enrichment of soil water and salt caused the rise and expansion of the soil salification layer, which was the main source of explosive accumulations of surface salt in springtime. Therefore, the FT processes contributed to the surface soil salinisation and alkalisation. Landscapes also affected soil water and salt migrations during FT processes, with the trend being AS land > LT grassland > farmland.

CREB1 protects against the renal injury in a rat model of kidney stone disease and calcium oxalate monohydrate crystals-induced injury in NRK-52E cells.

Kidney stone disease (KSD) is a common urinary disease with increasing prevalence worldwide. In this study, we investigated the effect of cyclic AMP responsive element binding protein (CREB) 1 in a KSD model of rat and calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) crystals-treated NRK-52E cells. Rats were pretreated with lentivirus (LV)-CREB1 vector or LV-control vector and administrated with ethylene glycol + ammonium chloride to induce KSD. It was found that CREB1 was activated in the renal tissue of non-treated KSD rats. Pretreating with LV-CREB1 vector significantly enhanced CREB1 expression in KSD rats. Biochemical analysis for serum and urine showed that upregulation of CREB1 could improve the renal function of KSD rats. Histological analysis confirmed that upregulation of CREB1 alleviated the renal injury in KSD rats. Moreover, the upregulation of CREB1 suppressed the apoptosis in renal tissue of KSD rats through regulating apoptosis-associated proteins. Further study showed that the upregulation of CREB1 could attenuate the oxidative stress in KSD rats as well. More interestingly, the upregulation of CREB1 enhanced the activity of complex I and complex III and the expression of mitochondrial cytochrome c, implicating the effect of CREB1 on improving mitochondrial function in KSD rats. In vitro study confirmed that upregulation of CREB1 inhibited the apoptosis and oxidative stress, while improved the mitochondrial function of NRK-52E cells treated with COM crystals, demonstrating the protective effect of CREB1 on COM crystals-induced renal epithelial cell injury. Therefore, CREB1 might be served as a promising target in the prophylaxis and treatment of KSD.

Fractal dimension of particle-size distribution and their relationships with alkalinity properties of soils in the western Songnen Plain, China.

The purpose of this study was to identify the fractal dimension and their relationships with alkalinity properties of soils, and to evaluate the potential of fractal dimension as an indicator of alkalinity properties of soil. Six soils with an increasing salinity (electrical conductivity was 0.09, 0.18, 0.62, 0.78, 1.57 and 1.99 dS m-1, respectively) were selected from the western part of the Songnen Plain (China). Salt content, exchangeable sodium percentage, sodium adsorption ratio and other properties of the soils were determined and the soil particle-size distribution (0-2000 µm) was measured using a laser diffraction particle size analyser. Our results show that the overall fractal dimension of the selected soils ranged from 2.35 to 2.60. A linear regression analysis showed a significant negative correlation between fractal dimension and the amount of coarse sand and fine sand (r = - 0.5452, P < 0.05 and r = - 0.8641, P < 0.01, respectively), and a significant positive correlation with silt and clay (r = 0.9726, P < 0.01 and r = 0.9526, P < 0.01, respectively). Thus, soils with higher silt and clay content have higher fractal dimension values. Strong linear relationships between fractal dimension and salt content (P < 0.05), in particular a very significant positive relationship with HCO3- (P < 0.01), also exist. It is therefore possible to conclude that a soil's fractal dimension could serve as a potential indicator of soil alkalization and the variability in alkaline soil texture.

Accuracy enhancement of laser induced breakdown spectroscopy by safely low-power discharge.

Improvement in detection accuracy is an important and hot topic for laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). Discharged-pulse assisted (DPA) plasma has been investigated as an effective way to enhance analytical capabilities and accuracy of LIBS. Most of reported DPA experiments have been performed using high voltage and power to comprehend spectrum enhancement. For safety concerns and maneuverability of LIBS equipment; low power and small current discharge are viable for industrial application. In this paper, the enhanced spectra with many extra peaks and higher line intensities were also detected, realized by a low-power discharge assisted LIBS (Max. 2.8 kV and ~1 mA), which are much lower than reported in literature ~MW discharge. The number of atomic peaks of the sample increases, on the other hand, and gradual peaks become stronger with the increase of discharged HV from 1 kV to 1.5 kV, 1.75 kV, 2 kV, 2.5 kV and 2.8 kV. The discharge current increases from 0.2 mA to 1.5 mA, which is almost threshold discharge voltage. After processing, the original spectra, including the peak shift and peak correction by statistics and physics, resulted in achievement of better line stability in terms of relative standard deviation (RSD) of ash, carbon, and volatile coal samples with root mean square error prediction (RMSEP) of 0.4864, 0.3682, 0.3374 and the linear regression coefficient R2 = 0.99, 0.99,0.98, respectively. The result proposes a promising method to improve detection accuracy of LIBS with simple setup, high safety and low-cost.

Identification of potential key genes and high-frequency mutant genes in prostate cancer by using RNA-Seq data.

The aim of the present study was to identify potential key genes and single nucleotide variations (SNVs) in prostate cancer. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) data, GSE22260, were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database, including 4 prostate cancer samples and 4 normal tissues samples. RNA-Seq reads were processed using Tophat and differentially-expressed genes (DEGs) were identified using the Cufflinks package. Gene Ontology enrichment analysis of DEGs was performed. Subsequently, Seqpos was used to identify the potential upstream regulatory elements of DEGs. SNV was analyzed using Genome Analysis Toolkit. In addition, the frequency and risk-level of mutant genes were calculated using VarioWatch. A total of 150 upregulated and 211 downregulated DEGs were selected and 25 upregulated and 17 downregulated potential upstream regulatory elements were identified, respectively. The SNV annotations of somatic mutations revealed that 65% were base transition and 35% were base transversion. At frequencies ≥2, a total of 17 mutation sites were identified. The mutation site with the highest frequency was located in the folate hydrolase 1B (FOLH1B) gene. Furthermore, 20 high-risk mutant genes with high frequency were identified using VarioWatch, including ribosomal protein S4 Y-linked 2 (RPS4Y2), polycystin 1 transient receptor potential channel interacting (PKD1) and FOLH1B. In addition, kallikrein 1 (KLK1) and PKD1 are known tumor suppressor genes. The potential regulatory elements and high-frequency mutant genes (RPS4Y2, KLK1, PKD1 and FOLH1B) may have key functions in prostate cancer. The results of the present study may provide novel information for the understanding of prostate cancer development.

Cytosine 5-hydroxymethylation regulates VHL gene expression in renal clear cell carcinoma.

Cytosine5-hyxymethylation (5hmC)which is a new epigenetic modification form plays important roles in the development and progression of tumors. In the present study, we observed that levels of 5hmC in the promoter region of Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) were lower in 97 samples of renal clear cell carcinoma tissue than in matched adjacent benign tissues. Moreover, when the cancer tissue samples were divided based on pathological staging, VHL expression and the level of 5hmC in the VHL promoter were both lower in pathological grade III tumors than in grades I or II. Correspondingly, expression of TET1, which catalyzes the formation of 5hmC, was also lower in grade III renal clear cell carcinomas than in grade I or II disease. These findings suggest the 5hmC level on VHL is a key determinant of the gene's expression and may participate in the occurrence and development of renal clear cell carcinoma. Thus the 5hmC level may be a useful indicator for early diagnosis and appropriate treatment of renal clear cell carcinoma.

Resveratrol and sildenafil synergistically improve diabetes-associated erectile dysfunction in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

AIMS: Despite effective control of blood glucose levels in diabetic patients, complaints of diabetes-associated erectile dysfunction (ED) persist. Resveratrol has been indicated to possess anti-diabetic effects and therapeutic potential for ED. This study was conducted to observe the effect of resveratrol alone or in combination with sildenafil on ED in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. MAIN METHOD: Among 58 adult male STZ-induced (60 mg/kg) diabetic Sprague-Dawley rats, 48 STZ-induced diabetic rats were randomized equally to four groups: untreated diabetic rats, resveratrol (25mg/kg), sildenafil (5mg/kg) or resveratrol (25mg/kg) plus sildenafil (5mg/kg) through oral gavage for 8 weeks. Additionally, 12 age-matched rats were chosen as controls. Intracavernous pressure (ICP) and mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) were used to measure erectile function. The cavernous level of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP), protein and mRNA of endothelial NO synthase (eNOS), neuronal NOS (nNOS), and phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) was measured. KEY FINDINGS: Treatment with either resveratrol or sildenafil improved ICP/MAP compared to the untreated diabetic rats (P<0.05). Treatment with resveratrol increased nNOS and eNOS expression, inhibited PDE5 expression, and increased the cavernous cGMP level compared to the untreated diabetic rats. Resveratrol significantly decreased superoxide anion and ROS production. Two-way ANOVA indicated that resveratrol in combination with sildenafil therapy had a significant synergistic effect in improving ICP/MAP and cavernous cGMP levels. SIGNIFICANCE: Resveratrol improves diabetes-associated ED in rats. Combination therapies with resveratrol and sildenafil have a synergistic effect in improving ED. The mechanisms might be attributed to its anti-oxidative properties and NO-cGMP signaling pathway upregulation.

Investigation on lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in elderly patients with prostate cancer (PC) received endocrine therapy.

This study was designed to investigate the LUTS after endocrine therapy and their effects on the quality of life in elderly patients with PC. The elderly patients with PC who had no progression after receiving endocrine therapy and had data of total prostate volume (TPV) before receiving endocrine therapy were asked to complete the questionnaire of International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) questionnaire with quality-of-life (QOL) assessment. Transrectal ultrasound assessment was performed in all patients to measure prospectively the TPV, maximum flow rate (Qmax) and residual urine volume (RUV) after endocrine therapy. A total of 42 patients aged 76-98 (87.8 ± 5.6) years finished the investigation, with duration of endocrine therapy ranged 1-17 (6.5 ± 4.2) years, including orchidectomy in 18 patients, medical castration with luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analog in 24 patients. The TPV [28-53 (34.9 ± 14.7)ml] after endocrine therapy was significantly decreased compared to that before endocrine therapy [28-53 (34.9 ± 14.7)ml]. The Qmax was 8.7 ± 3.8 ml/s, RUV measured by B-Ultrasound was 37.5 ± 14.9 ml. However, all patients presented LUTS with various severities, and had an IPSS score of 23.7 ± 4 that was consisted by a score of 15.5 ± 2.8 for storage symptoms, 8.2 ± 2.2 for voiding symptoms, and had QOL score of 4.2 ± 1.8. The Spearman rank correlation test showed a positive correlation between IPSS score, score of storage symptoms and QOL (r1=0.83, P<0.01 and r2=0.81, P<0.01); but no such correlation was detected between score of voiding symptoms and QOL (r3=0.43, P=0.49). The more important is that the storage symptoms contribute significantly more effects on QOL than the voiding symptoms (P=0.0032). Based on these results, it was proposed in our study that aging bladder associated with the storage symptoms might be the key reason for the LUTS sustained during the endocrine therapy in elderly patients with PC, especially in LUTS patients who mainly present as storage symptoms and could not be controlled by repeated treatments.

TGF-beta1 reverses inhibition of COX-2 with NS398 and increases invasion in prostate cancer cells.

Bone-derived transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1 leads to tumor growth, osteoblastic lesions and more invasion. Degradation of basement membranes caused by cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 is known as a distinctive feature of invasive cells. We investigated inhibition of COX-2 with NS398 in PC-3 and LNCaP cell lines. TGF-beta1 and dmPGE2 were added in NS398 treated or untreated cells. COX-2 did not express in PC-3, after treatment with TGF-beta1, COX-2 appeared and accompanied with enhanced invasion. COX-2 expressed in LNCaP, undetectable after addition of NS398 along with decreased invasion. Addition of TGF-beta1 reversed inhibition of NS398 in both cell lines. DmPGE2 augmented invasion in both cell lines without alteration of COX-2. These results suggest that TGF-beta1 can increase invasion and reverse inhibition of COX-2 induced by NS398. We indicate that bone-derived TGF-beta1 might contribute to clinical unsatisfied effect of NSAIDs or COX-2 specific inhibitors adjuvant therapies. Our data provide a new potential therapy for fighting against prostate cancer.

[Cigarette smoking affects cyclogeny of spermatogenic cells in rats].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of cigarette smoking on the cyclogeny of spermatogenic cells in rats. METHODS: Rat models of passive smoking were established using a self-made smoking device, and then allocated randomly into two passive smoking groups (A and B, n = 10) and two corresponding control groups (C and D, n = 10). Groups A and B were exposed to cigarette smoke for 8 weeks, followed by the sacrifice of the rats in Groups A and C. And the animals in Groups B and D were killed 48 days after the cessation of passive smoking. The spermatogenesis cycle of each group of rats was detected by flow cytometry, the levels of testosterone (T) and luteinizing hormone (LH) measured by radio-immunity method, and the testis histopathology analyzed by HE staining and transmission electron microscopy. RESULTS: Compared with Group C, Group A showed a significant decrease in the number of spermatids, spermatozoa ([18.76 +/- 3.58]%) and primary spermatocytes ([5.71 +/- 1.18]%) (P < 0.01), but an obvious increase in the spermatogonias ([55.98 +/- 5.35]%, P < 0.01), with a markedly decreased proliferation index ( P < 0.01). The rats of Group A also exhibited pycnosis of spermatocytes, nucleus aberration of Leydig cells, expansion and degranulation of the endoplasmic reticulum, decreased Golgi apparatus, increased lysosomes and fat drops of Sertoli cells, as well as a reduction in the thickness of the wall and the layers of seminiferous tubules and the number of spermatogonia. The T and LH levels were significantly lower in Group A than in C (P < 0.01). After the cessation of passive smoking, a remarkable increase was observed in the percentage of spermatozoa and primary spermatocytes and the levels of serum T and LH in Group B, although the latter were still lower than those of Group D. CONCLUSION: Smoking damages spermatogenic epithelia, Leydig cells and Sertoli cells, reduces the T and LH levels, and block the proliferation of spermatogenetic cells. These changes can be partially reversed after cessation of smoking.

Expressions of voltage-gated K+ channel 2.1 and 2.2 in rat bladder with detrusor hyperreflexia.

BACKGROUND: Voltage-gated K+ channel (Kv) plays a critical role in the modulation of detrusor contraction. This study was conducted to investigate the expressions of Kv2.1 and Kv2.2 in rat bladder with detrusor hyperreflexia (DH). METHODS: Thirty adult female Sprague-Dawley rats (200-220 g) were randomly divided into the control group and the experimental group. The experimental group was subjected to spinal cord injury (SCI). In the controls, the surgical procedure was identical with the exception that dura and spinal cord were transected. Four weeks after SCI, in vivo cystometry and mechanical pulling tests of isolated detrusor strips were performed. mRNA was extracted from the detrusors of normal and DH rats for the detection of expression of Kv2.1 and Kv2.2 by RT-PCR. Differences in expression between normal and overactive detrusors were identified by gel imaging. RESULTS: Fourteen rats in the experimental group exhibited uninhibited bladder contraction (>8 cmH2O) before voiding after SCI. One rat died from infection. The frequency of DH in the experimental group was significantly different from that in the control group with or without treatment with 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) (P < 0.05), while the amplitude of DH did not change markedly. The rates of variation of the automatic contractile frequency and amplitude were (66.8 +/- 12.4)% and (42.6 +/- 12.6)% respectively in the control group, and (38.4 +/- 9.8)% and (28.0 +/- 4.6)% respectively in the DH group. 4-AP increased the automatic contractile frequency apart from the automatic contractile amplitude in both the control and DH groups (P < 0.05). 4-AP increased the rate of variation of the automatic contractile frequency more markedly in the control group than in the DH group (P < 0.05). Significant expression of Kv2.2 was not detected in bladders in the control group. Compared to the mRNA levels of beta-actin, the mRNA level of Kv2.1 was 1.26 +/- 0.12 in the control group and 0.66 +/- 0.08 in the DH group. SCI significantly reduced the mRNA level of Kv2.1 in rat bladders with DH (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed that the mRNA level of Kv2.1 decreased significantly in rat bladder with DH, which was one of the important pathogenetic mechanisms for DH, and suggested that Kv2.1 might be one of the therapeutic targets for bladder overactivity.