Precutting Endoscopic Band Ligation-Assisted Resection Is Safe and Effective for Treating Gastric Submucosal Tumors from the Muscularis Propria.

BACKGROUND: We previously treated small gastric submucosal tumors originating from the muscularis propria layer by precutting endoscopic band ligation but lacked precise pathological results. Then, precutting endoscopic band ligation was modified by additional snare resection after ligation to obtain tumor specimens, termed precutting endoscopic band ligation-assisted resection. AIMS: In this study, we aimed to explore the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of precutting endoscopic band ligation-assisted resection. METHODS: From 2021 to 2022, a total of 16 consecutive patients underwent precutting endoscopic band ligation-assisted resection to treat small gastric submucosal tumors originating from the muscularis propria. The clinical demography, perioperative data, and follow-up outcomes were retrospectively collected. RESULTS: With a mean operative time of 21.3 min, all lesions were successfully and completely resected, and no severe adverse events or local recurrences occurred postoperatively. More importantly, en bloc and R0 resection were achieved in all 16 patients. CONCLUSION: Precutting endoscopic band ligation-assisted resection is a safe, effective, and time-saving endoscopic technique for managing gastric small gastric submucosal tumors originating from the muscularis propria for both diagnosis and eradication.

In Situ Construction of Heterostructured Co3O4/CoP Nanoflake Arrays on Carbon Cloth as Binder-Free Anode for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Cobalt oxide (Co3O4) is regarded as the anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with great research value owing to its environmental friendliness and exceptional theoretical capacity. However, the low intrinsic conductivity, poor electrochemical kinetics, and unsatisfactory cycling performance severely limit its practical applications in LIBs. The construction of a self-standing electrode with heterostructure by introducing a highly conductive cobalt-based compound is an effective strategy to solve the above issues. Herein, Co3O4/CoP nanoflake arrays (NFAs) with heterostructure are constructed skillfully directly grown on carbon cloth (CC) by in situ phosphorization as an anode for LIBs. Density functional theory simulation results demonstrate that the construction of heterostructure greatly increases the electronic conductivity and Li ion adsorption energy. The Co3O4/CoP NFAs/CC exhibited an extraordinary capacity (1490.7 mA h g-l at 0.1 A g-l) and excellent performance at high current density (769.1 mA h g-l at 2.0 A g-l), as well as remarkable cyclic stability (451.3 mA h g-l after 300 cycles with a 58.7% capacity retention rate). The reasonable construction of heterostructure can promote the interfacial ion transport, significantly enhance the adsorption energy of lithium ions, improve the conductivity of Co3O4 electrode material, promote the partial charge transfer throughout the charge and discharge cycles, and enhance the overall electrochemical performance of the material.

ZEB1 promotes tumorigenesis and metastasis in hepatocellular carcinoma by regulating the expression of vimentin.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide and its prognosis remains poor. Epithelial­to­mesenchymal transition (EMT)­induced markers have emerged as key regulators of tumor development and progression in HCC. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of zinc finger E­box­binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1) in the tumorigenesis of HCC and to elucidate the mechanism underlying the correlation between ZEB1 and vimentin (VIM). The expression levels of ZEB1 and VIM were assessed by immunohistochemistry, western blotting and reverse transcription­quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis in HCC tissues and cell lines. The biological significance of ZEB1 was examined by downregulating the expression of ZEB1 in Huh­7 cells. A luciferase reporter assay was used to investigate the association between ZEB1 and VIM. The expression levels of ZEB1 and VIM were higher in tumor tissues compared with those in adjacent normal tissues, and they were significantly associated with a poor prognosis in patients with HCC, whereas ZEB1 silencing led to the attenuation of HCC cell proliferation, invasion and migration. Furthermore, it was observed that ZEB1 was able to bind to a certain site in the VIM promoter and regulate the transcriptional activity of VIM. Therefore, the present study demonstrated that ZEB1 is a potential biomarker of the tumorigenesis and progression of HCC, and it may regulate transcription of the VIM gene.

Prognostic role of long noncoding RNA ZFAS1 in cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Long noncoding RNA ZFAS1 has been identified as a crucial role in the tumorigenesis of malignant tumors. Numerous studies reported that the expression levels of ZFAS1 in tumor tissues were dramatically higher than that in adjacent normal tissues. We conducted a meta-analysis to investigate the correlation between ZFAS1 expression and clinical outcomes of cancer patients. The databases of PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, CNKI and WanFang were retrieved for eligible studies. A total of 841 patients from 9 studies were eventually included. Our results demonstrated that increased ZFAS1 expression was significantly associated with poor OS in cancer patients (HR = 2.13, 95% CI = 1.71-2.65, P < 0.001). Patients with high ZFAS1 expression presented shorter RFS than those with low ZFAS1 expression (HR = 2.00, 95% CI = 1.45-2.77, P < 0.001). The clinicopathological parameters analysis demonstrated that increased ZFAS1 expression was significantly associated with vascular invasion (OR = 2.26, 95% CI = 1.36-3.78, P = 0.002), lymph node metastasis (OR = 2.98, 95% CI = 2.12-4.19, P < 0.001) and advanced TNM stage (OR = 3.00, 95% CI = 2.18-4.12, P < 0.001). In conclusion, lncRNA ZFAS1 might serve as a prognostic biomarker for cancer patients and increased ZFAS1 expression may be closely related to advanced characteristics of cancer.

Small nucleolar RNA 47 promotes tumorigenesis by regulating EMT markers in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is third leading cause of cancer-related death globally. Evidence suggest that small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) have emerged as key regulators of tumor development and progression in HCC. However, the biological significance of snoRNAs in HCC remains unclear. METHODS: We investigated the role of snoRA47 in a total of 60 paired HCC samples and six different human HCC cell lines by using qRT-PCR. Besides, snoRA47 was silenced through the siRNA transfection to determine whether snoRA47-siRNA is able to affect cell proliferation, invasion and metastasis by regulating the expressions of "epithelial-mesenchymal transition'' (EMT) markers. RESULTS: The expression of snoRA47 in HCC tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent normal tissues (non-diseased tissues) and it was remarkably associated with intrahepatic metastasis, lymphatic invasion, and TNM stage. The Kaplan-Meier survival curves suggested that HCC patients with high snoRA47 expression experienced significantly shorter overall survival and statistically higher recurrence rate than those with low expression of snoRA47. In addition, it was proved that the knockdown of snoRA47 inhibited cell proliferation by inducing cell apoptosis and suppressed cell invasion and migration by regulating the expressions of EMT markers. CONCLUSIONS: SnoRA47 may serve as a valuable biomarker and a potential therapeutic target for HCC.

A new antibacterial chromone derivative from mangrove-derived fungus Penicillium aculeatum (No. 9EB).

One new chromone derivative, (2'S*)-2-(2'-hydroxypropyl)-5-methyl-7, 8-dihydroxy-chromone (1), together with three known compounds, bacillisporin A (2), bacillisporin B (3) and 5-carboxyphthalide (4) were obtained from the mangrove-derived fungus Penicillium aculeatum (No. 9EB). Their structures were elucidated by the detailed analysis of comprehensive spectroscopic data. Compounds 2 and 3 exhibited potent inhibitory activity against Bacillus subtilis with the same MIC values of 0.13 ± 0.02 µM, whereas compound 1 showed antibacterial activity against Salmonell with an MIC value of 2.00 ± 0.02 µM. Compound 2 and 3 possessed significant inhibitory activity against α-glucosidase with IC50 values of 33.55 ± 0.63 and 95.81 ± 1.12 µM, respectively.

Interleukin-10 promoter polymorphism and susceptibility to lung cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Interleukin-10 (IL-10) is a multifunctional cytokine with both immunosuppressive and anti-angiogenic properties and it plays an important role in the pathogenesis of cancer. A number of studies have examined the association between its promoter -1082/-819/-592 polymorphism and risk of lung cancer. However, the results are inconsistent and inconclusive. The aim of this study was to explore whether the IL-10 gene polymorphism contribute to the susceptibility of lung cancer. METHOD: We searched in PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library as well as Chinese databases including China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and Wan Fang database for all the relevant studies up to May 15, 2015. The data were extracted by two independent authors. The pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) under co-dominant model, dominant model and recessive model were estimated. RESULTS: A total of 8 studies involving 2033 cases and 3100 controls were included in the meta-analysis. The results revealed that the IL-10 -592C/A polymorphism was related to lung cancer susceptibility under all models (C allele vs. A allele: OR=1.195, 95% CI=1.075-1.329; CC vs. AA: OR=1.651, 95%=1.290-2.113; CA vs. AA: OR=1.229, 95%=1.029-1.468; CA+AA vs. CC: OR=0.832, 95%=0.704-0.984; CC+CA vs. AA: OR=1.301, 95%=1.100-1.538) and IL-10 -819C/T polymorphism was associated with lung cancer susceptibility under three models (C allele vs. T allele: OR=1.441, 95% CI=1.228-1.691; CC vs. TT: OR=2.444, 95%=1.732-3.449; CC+CT vs. TT: OR=1.496, 95%=1.172-1.908). For IL-10 -1082G/A, there was no significant association between its polymorphism and lung cancer risk. CONCLUSIONS: This meta-analysis demonstrated that two polymorphisms (-592C/A and -819C/T) in the promoter region of IL-10 gene were significantly associated with the risk of lung cancer in general population, while -1082G/A polymorphism did not affect susceptibility to lung cancer.

Clinical efficacy of Yangxueqingnao granule improve cerebral small vessel disease cognitive impairment / 中国基层医药

Objective To explore the effect of Yangxueqingnao granule in treatment of cerebral small vessel disease (SVD)patients with mild cognitive dysfunction (MCI).Methods 52 patients with SVD related MCI were selected.They were treated with Yangxueqingnao granule,each 4.0 g,3 times a day,3 months for a course of treat-ment.Montreal cognitive scale (MoCA),simple mental state scale (MMSE)and event related potential (P300)were detected before and after treatment,and the clinical effect was observed.Results After a course of treatment by Yan-gxueqingnao granule,the cognitive function and memory of 52 patients were improved to some extent.In addition to the attention of an MoCA meter to a foreign project[Visual space:before taking the medicine (2.92 ±0.26)points,after taking the medicine (3.25 ±0.66)points;Named:before taking the medicine (2.26 ±0.70)points,after taking the medicine(2.92 ±0.49)points;Language:before taking the medicine (1.47 ±0.70)points,after taking the medicine (2.17 ±0.98)points;Abstraction:before taking the medicine (0.45 ±0.38)points,after taking the medicine (0.68 ±0.63)points;Delayed recall:before taking the medicine (1.67 ±0.74)points,after taking the medicine (2.52 ±1.50)points;Directional:before taking the medicine (4.73 ±0.35 )points,after taking the medicine (5.52 ±0.57)points ]and total score[Before taking the medicine (18.75 ±0.66)points,after taking the medicine (19.12 ±1.45)points],the differences were statistically significant (the total score:t =7.56,P =0.000;Visual space:t =5.86,P =0.002;Named:t =5.42,P =0.000;Be careful:t =1.23,P =0.121;Language:t =4.52,P =0.000;Abstraction:t =2.65,P =0.001;Delayed memory:t =7.96,P =0.000).While the total score of MMSE scale [before taking the medicine (25.36 ±1.89)points,after taking the medicine (28.53 ±2.91 )points],memory [before taking the medicine (2.64 ±0.42)points,after taking the medicine (2.75 ±0.53)points]and recall [before taking the medicine (1.52 ±0.48)points,after taking the medicine (1.98 ±0.78)points ],the differences were statistically significant(the total score:t =2.78,Memory:t =1.95,Recall:t =3.43,all P <0.05).P300 before and after treatment[before taking the medicine P300 latency of (389 ±21)ms,after taking the medicine P300 latency of (341 ±18)ms)],the difference was significant (t =12.514,P <0.001).Conclusion Yangxueqingnao granule had therapeutic effect in patients with SVD -MCI.

Experimental study on calcium carbonate precipitation using electromagnetic field treatment.

The present study investigated the effectiveness of electromagnetic fields in preventing calcium carbonate (CaCO3) fouling in cooling water. Four different frequencies and two different voltages were adopted to induce electromagnetic fields directly in water with constant water temperature and constant flow velocity. Artificial hard water was used. The solution conductivities decreased by 17-25% from their initial values in the electromagnetic anti-fouling treatment (EAT) cases, depending on different frequencies of electric pulses, whereas the untreated case dropped by 31%. The particle size became small and the crystal structure changed into loose style after EAT. The EAT device independently developed by the State Key Laboratory had been validated as an effective apparatus in preventing CaCO3 fouling in cooling water.

Protective effects of 3'-methoxy-puerarin on rat brain suffering from ischemia / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To research on the protective effect of 3'-methoxy-puerarin (3'-mo-pue) on rat brain suffering from ischemia and to offer the experimental basis for widening the applied areas of Radix Puerariae.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>All rats were randomly divided into sham operation group, control group, Pue group and 3'-mo-pue group. The influence of different dosage on relevant indexes were measured through cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model rat covered by Fecl3, and cerebral ischemia-reperfusion model rat after 2VO.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>The result showed that 3'-mo-Pue could reduce the scores of neurological deficit, cerebral infarcted zone to varying degrees and the water content of brain tissue in MCAO model. It could obviously increase the activity of CAT and GPx in the hippocampus and also increase the activity of CAT and GPx in the cortex in the ischemia field. Moreover, 3'-mo-Pue could decrease the content of LPO, LD in the brain tissue of cerebral ischemia-reperfusion model rat.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>3'-mo-Pue has favorable protective effect on brain suffering from ischemia. The mechanism is possibly related to its effect of anti-oxidation.</p>

Effect of steep pulsed electric fields on the immune response of tumor-bearing Wistar mice / 生物医学工程学杂志

This study sought to evaluate the effect of steep pulsed electric fields (SPEFs) on the immune response of Wistar mice inoculated with Walker256 sarcoma. Thirty mice were randomly divided into three groups: control group (group A, inoculated with Walker256 sarcoma, not treated), treatment group (group B, inoculated with Walker256 sarcoma, treated by SPEFs), and normal control group (group C, inoculated with normal saline, not treated). Tumor size was measured before and every 3 days after treatment by vernier caliper. MTT methods were used to assess the lymphocytes proliferation and the natural killer (NK) cells activity. TNF-a activity was measured by ELISA. Statistical analysis was performed utilizing the SPSS10.0 software package. The experiment results revealed that tumor growth was significantly inhibited in group B as compared with group A (P < 0.01), and that lymphocytes proliferation, NK cells activity and TNF-a activity in group B were not significantly different from those in group C (P = 0.953, P = 0.130, P = 0.080, respectively) but markedly higher than those in group A (P < 0.05). The results also showed that SPEFs could not only kill tumor cells but also induce antitumor immune response and improve the immune function of the host efficiently.

An experimental study of energy controllable steep pulse in the treatment of rat with subcutaneous transplantive tumor / 生物医学工程学杂志

This experimental study was designed to investigate the effects and the expressions of microvessel density (MVD), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) on the transplanted tumor in the rat model with Walker-256 after energy controllable steep pulse(ECSP). The experiment revealed that the steep pulse electrical field has better effect on tumor, compared with the control. The positive cell staining intensity of VEGF in the control group was significantly higher than that in ECSP group (P < 0.05). The number of MVD in the tumor tissues of ECSP group was significantly lower than that of tumor control group (P < 0.05). These results showed that ECSP could inhibit the growth and angiogenesis of tumor and its pathway is to down-regulate the expression of VEGF possibly.

Pathological studies of tissue damage in experimental rabbit liver cancer induced by energy controllable steep pulses / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the efficacy of energy controllable steep pulses (ECSP) in the treatment of rabbit VX2 cancer implanted in livers.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A tumor model was successfully established using 30 rabbits. ECSP were applied to liver cancer in half of these rabbits and the rest were used as controls. After exposure to ECSP, tissues were obtained and subjected by routine HE and transmission electron microscopic (TEM) observation. The survival time of the animals and the statuses of each group were recorded.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>From pathological observations, ECSP showed effectively destructive action compared with that of the unexposed group. A clear borderline can be seen between necrotic cancer and its surrounding normal tissue. Irreversible cell changes were present under TEM. The survival periods of the experimental and control group were 83.1 days and 39.0 days respectively, and there was a significant difference between the two groups (Z = -2.943, P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>ECSP can effectively treat rabbit VX2 cancer implanted in the liver; also it is safe for its surrounding normal tissues. ECSP can be a useful method for local treatment of liver cancer.</p>

Experimental study of the lethal effects of steep pulsed electric field on cancer cells in BALB/c mice / 生物医学工程学杂志

This study was conducted to observe the lethal effects of steep pulsed electric field(SPEF) on the cancerous squamous cells in BALB/c mice. Female mice were inoculated with the solution of cervical cancer cells line. The tumor-bearing mice of the experiment group were exposed to SPEF. Then, the histomorphological changes were examined and compared between experiment group and control group. The histological and antitumor assay showed that SPEF could selectively injure tumor cells and inhibit cell proliferation. After treatment, pyknosis, karyoclasis and karyolysis of cancer cells were observed under light and electron mircroscope. More serious changes appeared some days later. These results indicate that SPEF have lethal effects on cervical cancer. It may prolong the survival period of tumor-bearing mice.

A qualitative study of in vivo pulsed electric field distribution model in rabbit liver tissues / 生物医学工程学杂志

Pulsed electric fields (PEFs) with fixed frequency, width and gradually increased peak value of voltage was applied to 30 healthy rabbit liver tissues. The specific aims were to explore the feasibility of establishing a model of in vivo PEFs distribution in healthy rabbit liver tissues and to provide important references for clinical electrochemotherapy and for electrotransfer. Repeated experiment and self-comparison statistics design were implemented. The rabbit underwent the experiment under intravenous anesthesia and their liver tissues, after exposure to PEFs, were sent for HE staining. Necrotic borderline was visible 3 days after PEFs application, the necrotic shape of concentric circle was evident around the electrodes under optical microscope at lower voltage, as voltage increasing, two necroses in the shape of concentric circle gradually enlarged; nuclei with chromatin condensation, fragmentation and lysis alterations were seen in the middle region between the needles; concentric circles changed into ellipse fusiform and finally overlaped each other forming irregular necrosis contours. Cell cavitation and tissues ischemia were also observed within electric field. The shape of tissue necrosis from the experiment was noted to correlate with theoretic simulation of electric field distribution. Therefore, rabbit liver tissues can be a good carrier for in vivo modeling of electric field distribution when the lethal effects of PEFs in tissues are investigated. PEFs also show safety for the surrounding normal tissue while causing damage or injury to the target area therapeutically.

Effect of steep pulsed electric fields on survival of tumour-bearing mice / 生物医学工程学杂志

To investigate the lethal effect of steep pulsed electric fields (SPEFs) on cancer cells and the life-prolonging effect of SPEFs on the survival of tumour-bearing mice, this study was carried out with the use of SPEFs to treat 40 BALB/C mice inoculated by cervical cancer. The lethal effect on cancer cells and the life-prolonging effect on tumour-bearing mice were examined and compared between the experiment group and control group. The survival periods of the experiment group and control group were 52.05 days and 33.03 days, respectively. There was a significant difference in survival curve between the two groups. The results confirmed the inhibitiory effect and lethal effect of SPEFs on cancer cells. SPEFs can prolong the survival period of tumour-bearing mice.

Effects of steep pulsed electric fields on cancer cell proliferation and cell cycle / 生物医学工程学杂志

To assess study the cytocidal and inhibitory effects of steep pulsed electric fields (SPEFs) on ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3, the cancer cell suspension was treated by SPEFs with different parameters (frequency, pulse duration, peak value of voltage). Viability rate and growth curves of two test groups (high dosage and low dosage of SPEFs) and one control group were also measured. The DNA contents and cell cycle were analyzed by flow cytometry (FCM). Different dosing levels of SPEFs exerted obviously different effects on cancer cell viability. With the enhancement of each pulse parameter, the viability rate was promoted and the inhibitory effect on the proliferation of treated cells was more evident. The cells exposed to SPEFs grew slower than the control. The ratio of S+G2/M phase cells was decreased, which restrained the DNA synthesis and division, but the ratio of G0/G1 phase cells was increased in the treated groups. It was also indicated that the SPEFs blocked the cell transition from G0/G1 phase to S+G2/M phase. There was a significant difference in cell cycle between treated group and control group (P<0.01). Lethal effects of SPEFs were represented by inhibiting the cancer cell proliferation at the cell level and by influencing the cell cycle at the DNA level.

Pharmacodynamical research of Jingu Tongxiao granule / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study functions of Jingu Tongxiao granule (JGTXG, treatmenting ache of bones and muscles) in antiphlogistic and antalgic aspect, invigorating the circulation of blood and absorbing clots and antitraumatic soft tissue.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>Animal models of inflammation, ache, gore and traumatic soft tissue were adopted, and pharmacodynamic actions of Jingu Tongxiao granule were observed.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>JGTXG could conspicuously restrain inflammatory reactions of mouse ear tumid model treated by croton oil tumid and rat foot metatarsus tumid model treated by carrageenan, and restrain pain responses of mouse caused with whipping back end method by heat stimulating and of mouse caused with wriggling body method by acetic acid being injected in its abdominal cavity. It could significantly improve petechia degree in traumatic rat blood stasis model, and prominently improve raumatized limb's tumefaction degree and alleviate blood stasis, swelling and phlogistic cell soakage in traumatic rat soft tissue model. At the same time, it could prominently restrain platelet aggregation and improve whole blood viscosity.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Jingu Tongxiao granule has antiphlogistic and antalgic functions, invigorating the circulation of blood and absorbing clots and antitraumatic soft tissue, and it could keep curative effect of original dosage form.</p>

A comparison of the protective activity of liver injury induced by D-galact-osamine between huangqin-tang and their metabolites by human intestinal bacteria / 中国中药杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To compare the protective activity of liver injury induced by D-galactosamine (GalN) between Huangqin-Tang and their metabolites by human intestinal bacteria(HIB).</p><p><b>METHOD</b>The liver injuries in conventional and pseudo-germfree mice were induced by GalN. After oral administration of Huangqin-Tang and their metabolites mixtures by HIB, the serum transaminase (ALT and AST) activities were detected.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>In conventional mice, large and medium doses (20 and 10 g.kg-1) of Huangqin-Tang decoction significantly reduced the increase of serum ALT activity after 18 h GalN treatment. In pseudo-germfree mice, metabolites significantly reduced the ALT levels. However, Huangqing-Tang didn't affect the ALT levels in this kind of mice. To all of the animals, AST levels remained the same after oral Huangqin-tang or their metabolites.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The metabolism by intestinal bacteria plays a role in pharmacological effects of constituents of Chinese herbal medicine. The metabolites of the constituents by intestinal bacteria were the real active components in vivo.</p>