Significance of IL28RA in diagnosis of early pancreatic cancer and its regulation to pancreatic cancer cells by JAK/STAT signaling pathway - effects of IL28RA on pancreatic cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the significance of IL28RA in diagnosis of early pancreatic cancer and its regulation to pancreatic cancer cells by the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK/STAT) signaling pathway. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 81 patients with early pancreatic cancer were enrolled as a pancreatic cancer group, and 81 patients with benign pancreatic diseases were enrolled as a benign disease group. Western blot was adopted to analyze the serum IL28RA expression of the two groups and its diagnostic value in early pancreatic cancer. A pancreatic cancer cell model was constructed, and the IL28RA expression in pancreatic cancer cells, PANC-1 and BXPC-3, was up-regulated to explore the biological function of pancreatic cancer cells after up-regulation of IL28RA and the effects on JAK-STAT signaling pathway. RESULTS: Lowly expressed in serum of patients with pancreatic cancer, IL28RA showed a sensitivity of 80.25%, specificity of 75.31%, and area under the curve (AUC) of 0.846 in diagnosis of early pancreatic cancer. It was found that up-regulation of IL28RA expression in pancreatic cancer cells inhibited proliferation and invasion abilities of pancreatic cancer cells, increased apoptosis rate and expression of pro-apoptotic protein bax, decreased expression of anti-apoptosis protein bcl-2, and significantly inhibited phosphorylation level of JAK2 and STAT3 proteins. CONCLUSIONS: IL28RA is lowly expressed in pancreatic cancer patients, and has certain diagnostic value for early pancreatic cancer. Its up-regulated expression can inhibit the proliferation and invasion of pancreatic cancer cells, and promote their apoptosis by inhibiting the activation of JAK-STAT signaling pathway.

Endovascular Stent Graft Repair is an Effective and Safe Alternative Therapy for Arteriovenous Graft Pseudoaneurysms.

OBJECTIVE/BACKGROUND: Pseudoaneurysm formation occurs in 2-10% of hemodialysis arteriovenous grafts (AVGs). Surgical repair often requires pseudoaneurysm resection, interposition graft placement, and insertion of a catheter as a bridge. Endovascular stent graft repair is a controversial alternative therapy. This study was performed to examine the effectiveness and mid-term outcomes of stent graft repair for AVG pseudoaneurysms. METHODS: All patients who had undergone stent graft repair for AVG pseudoaneurysms between December 2012 and July 2015 were identified from hospital medical records for retrospective analysis. Outcome measures were technical success, early and late complications, and primary and secondary patency rates. RESULTS: A total of 37 stent graft repairs of AVG pseudoaneurysms were performed in 35 patients (42.9% men; mean age 66.9 years). The mean time from AVG creation to pseudoaneurysm repair was 69 months. The indications of treatment (as per the institutional policy) were large pseudoaneurysm (56.7%), impending rupture (27.1%), and bleeding (16.2%). Mean pseudoaneurysm diameter was 23.0 mm. The most common diameter and length of stent graft used were 7 mm (67.6%) and 50 mm (48.6%), respectively. Technical success was 100%. Only one early complication occurred after stent graft repair, which was due to recurrence of the pseudoaneurysm as a result of a short landing zone. Late complications included infection (17.1%) and thrombosis (37.1%). The 1, 6, and 12 month primary patency rates were 89.2%, 55.5%, and 22.0%, respectively. The 1, 6, and 12 month secondary patency rates were 100%, 88.6%, and 78.6%, respectively. The median follow up was 12.3 months. CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrates that endovascular stent graft repair is an effective and safe alternative therapy for AVG pseudoaneurysms. However, the rate of thrombosis and infection was high and needs to be balanced against open surgery in future studies.

Immunomagnetic Reduction Assay on Des-Gamma-Carboxy Prothrombin for Screening of Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

The accredited biomarker alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) offers limited sensitivity and specificity in the early detection of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). To improve the screening performance, des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin (DCP) has been identified as another promising biomarker of HCC, combined with AFP biomarkers. The results of the commercial optical enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit easily have the interference problem due to the optical methodology. The immunomagnetic reduction (IMR) assay based on the magnetic measurement was utilized to assay DCP biomarkers without the excellent antiinterference performances. A DCP magnetic reagent, composed of iron-oxide (Fe3O4 ) magnetic nanoparticles coated with anti-DCP antibodies solved in phosphoryl-buffer solution, was synthesized and characterized. In the test of standard DCP antigens, superior antiinterference and sensitivity than optical ELISA were proved. In the animal test, the results indicate good agreement between the IMR assay findings and the tumor sizes of HCC rats at all time points after the HCC implantation. The feasibility of the developed DCP magnetic reagent with the IMR for the detection of DCP is verified, and demonstrates the high potential for future clinical applications.

Determination of phosphorus and arsenic in trichlorosilane by electrothermal vaporization-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry with prior concentration by cuprous chloride.

A method for the determination of trace impurities of phosphorus and arsenic in trichlorosilane with prior separation followed by electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ETV-ICP-MS) has been developed. The preconcentration of the analytes from the sample matrix was made by adding cuprous chloride to a 10 mL trichlorosilane sample for the formation of non-volatile compounds with the elements of interest. Upon evaporation of trichlorosilane, the analytes retained in the residue were then determined in the presence of copper as modifier by ETV-ICP-MS. The dual role of cuprous chloride both in the preconcentration and instrumental determination was investigated and discussed. By meticulous control of experimental conditions, limits of detection for these two elements as low as sub-ng/g can be achieved. The method was applied to the determination of phosphorus and arsenic in a commercially available trichlorosilane sample.

Cranial nerve damage in patients after alpha (heavy)-particle radiation to the pituitary.

The records of 161 patients were reviewed to determine if radiation damage had occurred following cranial irradiation. All of these patients had received alpha-particle radiation to their pituitary glands during the period when this form of therapy was given for diabetic retinopathy. Extraocular muscle palsy developed in 11 of these patients, iridoplegia in six, and fifth nerve damage in six. All of the palsies developed within a short period following their irradiation, and a definite dose relationship was present. The dose rate was approximately 100 rads/min for all cases. Fractionation varied but it is known for all cases. The estimated doses to the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth cranial nerves was calculated at a saggital plane 13 to 15 mm from the pituitary by using computer-drawn dosimetry charts for the respective aperture size. The energetic alpha particles were produced by the 184-in synchrocyclotron at Berkeley, Calif. A dose relationship for radiation palsies was apparent.