[Suggestions for thoracic surgery clinical practice in non-epidemic area of 2019 coronavirus disease].

In this paper, the mechanism of destroying human alveolar epithelial cells and pulmonary tissue by 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) was discussed firstly. There may be multiple mechanisms including killing directly the target cells and hyperinflammatory responses. Secondly, the clinical features, CT imaging, short-term and long-term pulmonary function damage of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was analyzed. Finally, some suggestions for thoracic surgery clinical practice in non-epidemic area during and after the epidemic of COVID-19 were provided, to help all the thoracic surgery patients receive active and effective treatment.

Analysis of differentially expressed genes in malignant biliary strictures.

Microarray data were collected from bile duct samples from subjects with malignant biliary strictures by endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography to screen for key genes associated with this disease. A predicted interaction network was constructed for these genes to interpret their functions. The gene expression dataset GSE34166 (10 samples: 6 malignant and 4 benign control samples) was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. R package scripts were used to process the data and screen for differentially expressed genes. Genes identified were uploaded to the analysis tool String 8.3 to generate a gene interaction network. A hub gene was identified by calculating the node degree. The interaction network of the hub gene with other genes in the human genome was constructed and screened (score >0.9), and pathway-enrichment analysis was performed to elucidate the hub gene function. In total, 377 differentially expressed genes were identified and a network comprising 209 pairs of interactions was constructed. The most critical hub gene was identified as GSTA1, and a GSTA1-based interaction network was constructed consisting of 25 genes (containing the differentially expressed gene GSTA3). The cytochrome P450 (CYP450)-metabolic pathway displayed the most significant enrichment. Additionally, 4 transcription factors and their binding sites were also identified. In conclusion, we have identified the differentially expressed genes GSTA1 (a hub gene) and GSTA3, which may cause abnormal gene expression and tumorigenesis through CYP450-metabolic pathways. The transcription factors and their binding sites in the promoter of the hub gene provide potential directions for future drug design.

Subretinal implantation of electrospun, short nanowire, and smooth poly(ε-caprolactone) scaffolds to the subretinal space of porcine eyes.

Biodegradable scaffolds play an important adjunct role in transplantation of retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) to the subretinal space. Poly(ε-Caprolactone) (PCL) scaffolds with different modifications were subretinally implanted in 28 porcine eyes and evaluated by multifocal electroretinography (mfERG) and histology after 6 weeks of observation. PCL Short Nanowire, PCL Electrospun, and PCL Smooth scaffolds were well tolerated in the subretinal space in pigs and caused no inflammation and limited tissue disruption. PCL Short Nanowire had an average rate of preserved overlying outer retina 17% higher than PCL Electrospun and 25% higher than PCL Smooth. Furthermore, PCL Short Nanowire was found to have the most suitable degree of stiffness for surgical delivery to the subretinal space. The membrane-induced photoreceptor damage could be shown on mfERG, but the reductions in P1 amplitude were only significant for the PCL Smooth. We conclude that of the tested scaffolds, PCL Short Nanowire is the best candidate for subretinal implantation.