Wedge osteotomy combined with internal fixation in the treatment of Mayo IIB olecranon fractures.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to present the clinical outcomes and establish a safe range for olecranon wedge osteotomy combined with internal fixation in treating Mayo IIB-type olecranon fractures. METHODS: Ten consecutive patients (10 elbows) underwent treatment involving wedge osteotomy combined with internal fixation. Primary outcome measures included the evaluation of the Oxford Elbow Score (OES), Mayo Elbow Performance Score (MEPS), pain severity assessed via a visual analogue scale (VAS), elbow mobility, and the extent of osteotomy at the final follow-up. RESULTS: At the last follow-up, the median OES was 45 (range 38-48), and the median MEPS was 90 (range 75-100). Six out of 10 patients reported no pain based on the VAS. No significant differences were observed between the healthy and affected sides regarding flexion-extension and rotation activities. The mean horizontal lengths of the olecranon articular surface and base osteotomy were 6.2 mm (range 5.5-7.4 mm) and 14.4 mm (range 10.2-16.5 mm), respectively. The mean olecranon shortening was 4.2 mm (range 2.2-5.4 mm), resulting in a shortening rate of 7.3% to 18.9%. Fracture union was achieved in all patients, with a mean time to union of 11.2 weeks (range 8-16 weeks). Early mild (grade 1) degenerative changes were observed in 3 cases. CONCLUSION: Wedge osteotomy combined with internal fixation represents a reliable treatment option for Mayo IIB olecranon fractures, particularly in cases of severe comminuted fractures that are challenging to restore anatomically. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level IV, Therapeutic Study.

MicroRNA-206 has a bright application prospect in the diagnosis of cases with oral cancer.

Previous studies have shown that microRNA-206 (miR-206) exhibits anti-tumour properties in various tumours. Nevertheless, diagnostic significance of miR-206 in oral cancer is still poorly known. Our research was carried out to explore the performance of miR-206 in the diagnosis of oral cancer. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) method was adopted to measure the level of miR-206 in serum specimens from oral cancer cases and control individuals. Chi-square test was performed to analyse the correlation between miR-206 level and clinicopathological parameters of the cases. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was constituted to assess diagnostic accuracy of miR-206 in oral cancer. Serum miR-206 level in oral cancer patients was significantly lower than that in control individuals (P < .001). miR-206 expression was obviously related to T classification (P = .033), TNM stage (P = .008) and lymph node metastasis (P = .028). The area under the curve (AUC) of the ROC curve was 0.846 (95% CI = 0.797-0.896, P < .001) with a specificity of 72.7% and a sensitivity of 81.2%. It revealed that miR-206 might be a non-invasive indicator in differentiating oral cancer cases from control individuals. Down-regulation of miR-206 is related to the development of oral cancer. Serum miR-206 might be an effective indicator for early detection of oral cancer.

MiR-29a inhibits the progression of oral squamous cell carcinoma by targeting Wnt/ß-catenin signalling pathway.

Aim: The study aimed to investigate the role of miR-29a in the progression of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), as well as its molecular mechanism. Methods: Tissue samples were collected from 103 OSCC patients. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the relative expression of miR-29a in OSCC tissues and cell line. Cell proliferation, motility and apoptosis were detected using MTT, transwell and flow cytometry methods, respectively. Western blot was used to measure the protein expression. Results: The expression of miR-29a was decreased in OSCC tissue and cells (p < .05 for both), and its down-regulation was negatively associated with the lymph node metastasis (p = .017) and TNM stage (p = .007). Enforcing miR-29a expression in OSCC cells using mimic transfection could significantly inhibit the proliferation, migration and invasion, and promote cells apoptosis. Furthermore, miR-29a over-expression could suppress Wnt/ß-catenin pathway activity. Meanwhile, LiCl, the activator of Wnt/ß-catenin pathway, could reverse the anti-tumour action induced by miR-29a over-expression. Conclusions: MiR-29a may inhibit the malignant progression of OSCC by suppressing Wnt/ß-catenin signalling pathway.

Interactive effects of AURKA polymorphisms with smoking on the susceptibility of oral cancer.

Objective: The objective of this study was aimed to investigate the interactions between Aurora kinase A (AURKA) gene polymorphisms (T91A and G169A) and smoking and their effects on the susceptibility of oral cancer. Methods: One hundred five healthy controls were frequency-matched with 91 oral cancer patients by age, sex and nationality. Detection of AURKA T91A and G169A polymorphisms was performed using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. Differences in genotypes and alleles between case and control groups were compared using χ2 test. Relative risk of oral cancer was presented as odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs). Results: AA genotypes respectively of AURKA T91A and G169A polymorphisms had higher frequencies in case group than in control group (p = .023; p = .038). However, only 91AA genotype was significantly associated with the occurrence of oral cancer risk (OR = 3.113, 95% CI = 1.176-8.236). A alleles of the two polymorphisms respectively increased the risk of oral cancer (OR = 1.700, 95% CI = 1.113-2.596; OR = 1.978, 95% CI = 1.132-3.454). Interactions between smoking and AURKA polymorphisms significantly associated with the onset of oral cancer (p < .05). Conclusions: AURKA polymorphisms are susceptible factors for oral cancer. Interactions between AURKA polymorphisms and smoking increase the risk of oral cancer.

Large-deformation and high-strength amorphous porous carbon nanospheres.

Carbon is one of the most important materials extensively used in industry and our daily life. Crystalline carbon materials such as carbon nanotubes and graphene possess ultrahigh strength and toughness. In contrast, amorphous carbon is known to be very brittle and can sustain little compressive deformation. Inspired by biological shells and honeycomb-like cellular structures in nature, we introduce a class of hybrid structural designs and demonstrate that amorphous porous carbon nanospheres with a thin outer shell can simultaneously achieve high strength and sustain large deformation. The amorphous carbon nanospheres were synthesized via a low-cost, scalable and structure-controllable ultrasonic spray pyrolysis approach using energetic carbon precursors. In situ compression experiments on individual nanospheres show that the amorphous carbon nanospheres with an optimized structure can sustain beyond 50% compressive strain. Both experiments and finite element analyses reveal that the buckling deformation of the outer spherical shell dominates the improvement of strength while the collapse of inner nanoscale pores driven by twisting, rotation, buckling and bending of pore walls contributes to the large deformation.

4-(4-Chloro-phen-yl)-5-(4-nitro-phen-yl)-3-phenyl-4H-1,2,4-triazole.

The title compound, C(20)H(13)ClN(4)O(2), was synthesized by the condensation of 4-nitro-benzohydrazide and N-(4-chlorophen-yl)-benzimidoyl chloride in N,N-dimethyl-acetamide. The asymmetric unit contains two independent mol-ecules. In one molecule, the triazole ring is oriented at dihedral angles of 23.1 (5), 85.4 (1) and 10.5 (1)° with respect to the phenyl, chlorophenyl and nitrophenyl rings, respectively. In the other molecule, the corresponding dihedral angles are 29.8 (9), 73.4 (7) and 16.4 (3)°.