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Xiao-Yu Xu,1,* Yang Gao,2,* Chuang-Shi Yue,3,* Yu-Jia Tang,4,* Zhao-Jin Zhang,5 Feng-Jie Xie,6 Hong Zhang,6 Yu-Cheng Zhu,7 Yan Zhang,7 Qi-Qi Lai,4 Xin-Tong Wang,4 Jia-Xi Xu,4 Jia-Ning Zhang,4 Bo-Wen Liu,4 Jian-Nan Zhang,4 Kai Kang4 1Department of Critical Care Medicine, The Second People’s Hospital of Beihai, Beihai, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Critical Care Medicine, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Critical Care Medicine, Henan Provincial People’s Hospital, Zhengzhou, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Critical Care Medicine, The Yichun Central Hospital, Yichun, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Critical Care Medicine, The Hongqi Hospital Affiliated to Mudanjiang Medical University, Mudanjiang, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Critical Care Medicine, The Hongxinglong Hospital of Beidahuang Group, Shuangyashan, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jian-Nan Zhang; Kai Kang, Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, 23 Youzheng Street, Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang, 150001, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-13836119816 ; +86-13904618016, Email zhangjiannan@hrbmu.edu.cn; janekk79@126.comPurpose: In this study, our objective was to investigate the potential utility of lymphocyte-C-reactive protein ratio (LCR) as a predictor of disease progression and a screening tool for intensive care unit (ICU) admission in adult patients with acute pancreatitis (AP).Methods: We included a total of 217 adult patients with AP who were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University between July 2019 and June 2022. These patients were categorized into three groups: mild AP (MAP), moderately severe AP (MSAP), and severe AP (SAP), based on the presence and duration of organ dysfunction. Various demographic and clinical data were collected and compared among different disease severity groups.Results: Height, diabetes, lymphocyte count (LYMPH), lymphocyte percentage (LYM%), platelet count (PLT), D-Dimer, albumin (ALB), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum creatinine (SCr), glucose (GLU), calcium ion (Ca2+), C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), hospitalization duration, ICU admission, need for BP, LCR, sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score, bedside index for severity in AP (BISAP) score, and modified Marshall score showed significant differences across different disease severity groups upon hospitalization. Notably, there were significant differences in LCR between the MAP group and the MSAP and SAP combined group, and the MAP and MSAP combined group and the SAP group, and adult AP patients with ICU admission and those without ICU admission upon hospitalization.Conclusion: In summary, LCR upon hospitalization can be utilized as a simple and reliable predictor of disease progression and a screening tool for ICU admission in adult patients with AP.Keywords: lymphocyte-C-reactive protein ratio, acute pancreatitis, lymphocyte count, C-reaction protein, disease progression, ICU admission, screening tool

Based on the LEAP model framework, a LEAP-X sub-sector calculation model suitable for X City was constructed in this study. Four scenarios including a baseline scenario, low-carbon scenario, enhanced low-carbon scenario, and peak in 2023 scenario were set up to predict and analyze the carbon emission situation. The calculation and analysis results showed that it could achieve the carbon peak before 2030 only under the enhanced low-carbon scenario and peak in 2023 scenario. The peak year of the enhanced low-carbon scenario was around 2025 with a peak carbon emission of approximately 170 million tons, but the peak time may actually be delayed. Industry was the largest sector of carbon emissions, and the petrochemical industry was the largest portion of industry, the proportion of which was always maintained at approximately 30% under different scenarios. However, the proportion of power generation and steel industry decreased annually, whereas the proportion of the net imported power gradually increased. Industrial structure optimization and energy structure adjustment were the main driving factors of carbon peak in X City. Carbon emissions per unit of GDP will fall by approximately 41% in 2030 compared with that in 2020 under the enhanced low-carbon scenario.

This study applied a de-weather method based on a machine learning technique to quantify the contribution of meteorology and emission changes to air quality from 2015 to 2021 in four cities in the Yangtze River Delta Region. The results showed that the significant reductions in PM 2.5 , NO 2 , and SO 2 emissions(57.2%-68.2%, 80.7%-94.6%, and 81.6%-96.1%, respectively) offset the adverse effects of meteorological conditions, resulting in lower pollutant concentrations. The meteorological contribution of maximum daily 8-h average O 3 (MDA8_O 3 ) showed a stronger effect than that of others(23.5%-42.1%), and meteorological factors promoted the increase in MDA8_O 3 concentrations(4.7%); however, emission changes overall resulted in a decrease in MDA8_O 3 concentrations(-3.2%). NO 2 and MDA8_O 3 decreased more rapidly from 2019 to 2021, mainly because the emissions played a stronger role in reducing pollutant concentrations than from 2015 to 2018. However, emissions changes had weaker reduction effects on PM 2.5 and SO 2 from 2019 to 2021 than from 2015 to 2018. De-weather methods could effectively seperate the effects of meteorology and emission changes on pollutant trends, which helps to evaluate the real effects of emission control policies on pollutant concentrations.

Surgery is the primary curative treatment of solid cancers. However, its safety has been compromised by the outbreak of COVID-19. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the safety of digestive tract cancer surgery in the context of COVID-19. We used the Review Manager software (v.5.4) and Stata software (version 16.0) for meta-analysis and statistical analysis. Sixteen retrospective studies involving 17,077 patients met the inclusion criteria. The data indicates that performing digestive tract cancer surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic led to increased blood loss(MD = -11.31, 95%CI:-21.43 to -1.20, P = 0.03), but did not increase postoperative complications(OR = 1.03, 95%CI:0.78 to1.35, P = 0 0.86), anastomotic leakage (OR = 0.96, 95%CI:0.52 to1.77, P = 0 0.89), postoperative mortality (OR = 0.65, 95%CI:0.40 to1.07, P = 0 0.09), number of transfusions (OR = 0.74, 95%CI:0.30 to 1.80, P = 0.51), number of patients requiring ICU care(OR = 1.37, 95%CI:0.90 to 2.07, P = 0.14), postoperative 30-d readmission (OR = 0.94, 95%CI:0.82 to 1.07, P = 0 0.33), total hospital stay (MD = 0.11, 95%CI:-2.37 to 2.59, P = 0.93), preoperative waiting time(MD = - 0.78, 95%CI:-2.34 to 0.79, P = 0.33), postoperative hospital stay(MD = - 0.44, 95%CI:-1.61 to 0.74, P = 0.47), total operation time(MD = -12.99, 95%CI:-28.00 to 2.02, P = 0.09) and postoperative ICU stay (MD = - 0.02, 95%CI:-0.62 to 0.57, P = 0.94). Digestive tract cancer surgery can be safely performed during the COVID-19., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2023 Asian Surgical Association and Taiwan Robotic Surgery Association. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

As one of the most important city clusters in China, surface ozone (O 3 ) pollution in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) Region has become a prominent air quality problem in recent years. Online observations of ambient O 3 , nitrogen oxides (NO x ), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were conducted in southern Nanjing from July-September 2020 and April-May 2021. On this basis, the pollution characteristics of O 3 were analyzed. The O 3 -VOCs-NO x sensitivity and the transport influence of its precursors were further discussed using models. The frequency statistics of the daily maximum 8-hour moving average (DMA-8h O 3 ) and hourly concentration (O 3 -1h) showed that O 3 pollution in southern Nanjing was more serious than that in urban areas. Three typical O 3 pollution episodes were selected during the whole observation period, which included August 16 th -27 th , 2020; September 3 rd -11 th , 2020; and May 17 th -25 th , 2021. The O 3 -VOCs-NO x sensitivities in these three pollution episodes were analyzed using the observation-based model (OBM). The results of the relative incremental reactivity (RIR) and empirical kinetics modeling approach (EKMA) showed that the sensitivities of O 3 formation in the three pollution episodes were in the NO x -limited regime, the transition regime, and the VOCs-limited regime, respectively. This difference in O 3 -VOCs-NO x sensitivity reflects that the site may have been influenced by transport. Therefore, the potential source contribution function (PSCF) and the concentration weighted trajectory (CWT) method were further used to analyze the potential source areas of NO x , VOCs, and O 3 in these three pollution episodes. The results showed that there were obvious regional transport effects of NO x , VOCs, and O 3 in these three pollution episodes. The location of potential sources differed in these three pollution episodes, which were affected by the eastern cities of the Lishui site; the urban area of Nanjing and eastern area of Anhui Province; and the urban area of Nanjing and the middle of the YRD Region, respectively. The impact of transport on O 3 and its precursors also indicated the necessity of regional joint prevention and control of O 3 pollution in the YRD Region.

In this study, 24-hour backward trajectories of the air mass in Nanjing were calculated by using the HYSPLIT model with the NCEP global reanalysis data from March 2019 to February 2020. The backward trajectories combined with the hourly concentration data of PM 2.5 were then utilized in the trajectory clustering analysis and potential pollution source analysis. The results showed that the average concentration of PM 2.5 in Nanjing was(36±20) μg·m -3 during the study period, with 17 days exceeding the grade Ⅱ national ambient air quality standards (75 μg·m -3 ). PM 2.5 concentration exhibited clear seasonal variation, with winter (49 μg·m -3 )>spring (42 μg·m -3 )>autumn (31 μg·m -3 )>summer (24 μg·m -3 ). PM 2.5 concentration was significantly positively correlated with surface air pressure but significantly negatively correlated with air temperature, relative humidity, precipitation, and wind speed. Based on the trajectories, seven transport routes were identified in spring, and six routes for the other seasons. The northwest and south-southeast routes in spring, southeast route in autumn, and southwest route in winter were the main pollution transport routes in each season, with the characteristics of short transport distance and slow air mass movement, indicating that local accumulation was one of the main reasons for the high value of PM 2.5 in quiet and stable weather. The distance of the northwest route in winter was large, and the PM 2.5 concentration was 58 μg·m -3 , which was the 2 nd highest concentration in all routes, indicating that the cities in the northeast of Anhui had a great transport influence on Nanjing PM 2.5 . The distribution of PSCF and CWT was relatively consistent, and the main potential source areas were mainly local and adjacent areas of Nanjing, indicating that PM 2.5 control is needed to strengthen local control and carry out joint prevention and control with adjacent areas. Winter was most affected by transport, its main potential source area was located at the junction of northwest Nanjing and Chuzhou, and the main source origin was in Chuzhou; therefore joint prevention and control should be expanded to Anhui.

Super-rational aspiration induced strategy updating with exit rights has been considered in some previous studies, in which the players adjust strategies in line with their payoffs and aspirations, and they have access to exit the game. However, exit payoffs for exiting players are automatically allocated, which is clearly contrary to reality. In this study, evolutionary cooperation dynamics with super-rational aspiration and asymmetry in the Prisoner's Dilemma game is investigated, where exit payoffs are implemented by local peers. The results show that for different population structures, the asymmetry of the system is always contributive to the participation of the players. Furthermore, we show that under different exit payoffs, super-rationality and asymmetry are conductive to the evolution of cooperation., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Sepsis is the major culprit of death among critically ill patients who are hospitalized in intensive care units (ICUs). Although sepsis-related mortality is steadily declining year-by-year due to the continuous understanding of the pathophysiological mechanism on sepsis and improvement of the bundle treatment, sepsis-associated hospitalization is rising worldwide. Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) guidelines are continuously updating, while their content is extremely complex and comprehensive for a precisely implementation in clinical practice. As a consequence, a standardized step-by-step approach for the diagnosis and treatment of sepsis is particularly important. In the present study, we proposed a standardized step-by-step approach for the diagnosis and treatment of sepsis using our daily clinical experience and the latest researches, which is close to clinical practice and is easy to implement. The proposed approach may assist clinicians to more effectively diagnose and treat septic patients and avoid the emergence of adverse clinical outcomes.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been far more devastating than expected, showing no signs of slowing down at present. Heilongjiang Province is the most northeastern province of China, and has cold weather for nearly half a year and an annual temperature difference of more than 60ºC, which increases the underlying morbidity associated with pulmonary diseases, and thus leads to lung dysfunction. The demographic features and laboratory parameters of COVID-19 deceased patients in Heilongjiang Province, China with such climatic characteristics are still not clearly illustrated., Aim: To illustrate the demographic features and laboratory parameters of COVID-19 deceased patients in Heilongjiang Province by comparing with those of surviving severe and critically ill cases., Methods: COVID-19 deceased patients from different hospitals in Heilongjiang Province were included in this retrospective study and compared their characteristics with those of surviving severe and critically ill cases in the COVID-19 treatment center of the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University. The surviving patients were divided into severe group and critically ill group according to the Diagnosis and Treatment of New Coronavirus Pneumonia (the seventh edition). Demographic data were collected and recorded upon admission. Laboratory parameters were obtained from the medical records, and then compared among the groups., Results: Twelve COVID-19 deceased patients, 27 severe cases and 26 critically ill cases were enrolled in this retrospective study. No differences in age, gender, and number of comorbidities between groups were found. Neutrophil percentage (NEUT%), platelet (PLT), C-reactive protein (CRP), creatine kinase isoenzyme (CK-MB), serum troponin I (TNI) and brain natriuretic peptides (BNP) showed significant differences among the groups ( P = 0.020, P = 0.001, P < 0.001, P = 0.001, P < 0.001, P < 0.001, respectively). The increase of CRP, D-dimer and NEUT% levels, as well as the decrease of lymphocyte count (LYMPH) and PLT counts, showed significant correlation with death of COVID-19 patients ( P = 0.023, P = 0.008, P = 0.045, P = 0.020, P = 0.015, respectively)., Conclusion: Compared with surviving severe and critically ill cases, no special demographic features of COVID-19 deceased patients were observed, while some laboratory parameters including NEUT%, PLT, CRP, CK-MB, TNI and BNP showed significant differences. COVID-19 deceased patients had higher CRP, D-dimer and NEUT% levels and lower LYMPH and PLT counts., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.)

Differentiating tumor tissue from dense breast tissue can be difficult. Dual-energy CT (DECT) could be suitable for making diagnoses at breast cancer follow-ups. This study investigated the contrast in DECT images and iodine maps for patients with breast cancer being followed-up. Chest CT images captured in 2019 were collected. Five cases of metastatic breast cancer in the lungs were analyzed; the contrast-to-noise ratio (for breast tissue and muscle: CNRb and CNRm, respectively), tumor-to-breast mammary gland ratio (T/B), and tumor-to-muscle ratio (T/M) were calculated. For 84 cases of no metastasis, monochromatic spectral and iodine maps were obtained to compare differences under various breast densities using the K-means algorithm. The optimal T/B, T/M, and CNRb (related to mammary glands) were achieved for the 40-keV image. Conversely, CNRm (related to lungs) was better for higher energy. The optimal balance was achieved at 80 keV. T/B, T/M, and CNR were excellent for iodine maps, particularly for density > 25%. In conclusion, energy of 80 keV is the parameter most suitable for observing the breast and lungs simultaneously by using monochromatic spectral images. Adding iodine mapping can be appropriate when a patient’s breast density is greater than 25%.

In this study, the 24-hour backward trajectories of air mass at ground level(10 m)in Nanjing were calculated by using the HYSPLIT model with the NCEP global reanalysis data from April 1st to October 31st, 2017. The backward trajectories were then combined with the hourly concentration data of O 3 in Nanjing for trajectories clustering analysis and potential pollution sources analysis. The results show that in 2017, the maximum daily 8 h running average O 3 level in Nanjing was around 12-261 μg·m -3 with 58 days of O 3 pollution in Nanjing, mainly in the spring and summer. The monthly variation of O 3 showed a single peak, with the highest O 3 concentration, as well as the most days exceeding the standard, occurring in June; the diurnal variation of O 3 was unimodal and reached its peak around 14:00. A total number of 5136 trajectories were obtained by simulation, among which the exceeded trajectories accounted for approximately 10%. The exceedance trajectories in May and June were significantly higher, accounting for 60% of the total exceedance trajectories. Six ground-level air mass transporting pathways were identified through clustering analysis, from the NNE, NW, SW, SSE, SE, and NE directions. The SE and SSE directions with higher O 3 levels were the dominant transport routes of O 3 pollution, contributing to 23.33% and 20.76% of backward trajectories, respectively. As for the potential pollution source analysis, the area with high WCWT value distribution matched the WPSCF result, indicating that the potential sources of O 3 pollution were mainly distributed in Changzhou, Wuxi, Suzhou, Huzhou, and other cities around Taihu Lake. Additionally, cities located around Nanjing, such as Taizhou, Ma'anshan, Wuhu, Chuzhou, Nantong, and Lianyungang, were considered the secondary potential sources. The results indicate that O 3 pollution in Nanjing is a regional issue and its control requires joint prevention and control strategies in the Yangtze River Delta.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a leading cause of infections in human being and is usually associated with a multidrug-resistant profile, represents a significant health threat and public burden globally. The limited options of effective antibiotics motivate the search for novel anti-MRSA agents. Aminoglycoside antibiotics have been extensively applied in the medical field due to their desirable broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, especially for systemic infections caused by Gram-negative organisms. Recent studies demonstrated that aminoglycosides also possessed potential activity against MRSA, so aminoglycosides may be useful weapons to fight against MRSA. The present work aims to summarize the current scenario of aminoglycosides with anti- MRSA potential, covering articles published between 2010 and 2020. The structure-activity relationship and the mechanism of action are also discussed for the further rational design of novel potential drug candidates., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

MicroRNA-361-5p (miR-361-5p) is a tumor suppressor miRNA that is dysregulated in several types of human cancer. However, the functional significance of miR-361-5p in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unclear. This study explored the biological function of miR-361-5p in regulating the progression of HCC and the underlying molecular mechanism. RT-qPCR analysis showed that miR-361-5p was downregulated in HCC tissues and cell lines. Functional analysis revealed that miR-361-5p acted as a tumor suppressor, inhibiting cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in HCC cell lines. Bioinformatics analyses identified Twist1 as a direct target of miR-361-5p, which was validated by dual-luciferase reporter assays, RT-qPCR, and western blotting. Rescue experiments indicated that Twist1 may mediate the tumor-suppressive effect of miR-361-5p in HCC cells, and this was supported by the effect of miR-361-5p on inhibiting the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) by targeting Twist1. This study is the first to suggest that miR-361-5p inhibits tumorigenesis and EMT in HCC by targeting Twist1. These findings are valuable for the diagnosis and clinical management of HCC., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2020 Liang-Chun Yin et al.)

Gastric cancer is one of the most common malignancies worldwide, with high morbidity and poor survival rate. Its prognosis remains unsatisfactory, with a 5-year survival rate of <30%. Studies have indicated that Huaier granules have good antitumor efficacy and safety in several solid malignant tumors. Recent studies have also found that Huaier polysaccharides can promote apoptosis in numerous tumor cells, although only few studies have focused on the effects of Huaier granules on gastric cancers and the mechanisms underlying their antitumor role. We retrospectively evaluated stage IIb gastric cancer patients at Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, through our outpatient system from January 2013 to December 2015. Fifty-four patients were in the Huaier+Tegafur Gimeracil Oteracil Potassium (TGOP) group and 72 in the TGOP group. Further, we conducted CCK8, colony formation, Annexin V-FITC/PI, Western blot, RT-PCR, and plasmid transfection assays to analyze the mechanism by which Huaier polysaccharides play an antitumor role. We confirmed that Huaier granules combined with Tegafur Gimeracil Oteracil Potassium could promote patient prognosis, with a better disease-free survival rate (51.32 ± 2.23 vs. 44.19 ± 2.26, p = 0.034) and overall survival rate (56.81 ± 1.32 vs. 51.32 ± 1.69, p = 0.020). Moreover, through cell proliferation assays, Western blot, RT-PCR, and detection of Livin expression at the mRNA and protein levels, we found that Huaier polysaccharides could promote gastric cancer cell apoptosis and inhibit gastric cancer cell proliferation in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Finally, we demonstrated that Huaier polysaccharides promote gastric cancer cell apoptosis through the regulation of Livin expression. Overexpression of Livin reversed the gastric cell apoptosis induced by Huaier polysaccharides. Huaier granules combined with Tegafur Gimeracil Oteracil Potassium ameliorated stage IIb gastric cancer prognosis and induced gastric cancer cell apoptosis by regulating Livin., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (Copyright © 2020 Jing Qi et al.)

The aim of the current study was to investigate luteolin-induced apoptosis and the molecular mechanisms underlying it in HT29 cells. A 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay was used to assess the cytotoxicity of luteolin on HT29 cells, and a dichloro-dihydro-fluorescein diacetate assay was used to measure cellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The effects of luteolin on the mitochondrial membrane potential were also evaluated. Bax and Bcl-2 mRNA expression were determined using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. Additionally, western blot analysis was performed to assess changes in cytochrome c and caspase-3 protein expression. Localization of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) in the nucleus was also assessed using immunofluorescence. Luteolin exhibited cytotoxicity on HT29 cells in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. Additionally, ROS production was indicated to be increased and ROS scavenging was decreased, which resulted in a significant increase in the levels of ROS in the cells. The mitochondrial membrane potential was indicated to decrease following luteolin treatment. At the molecular level, luteolin significantly increased the mRNA expression of Bax and the protein expression of cytochrome c, caspase-3, p47 phox and p22 phox . The results revealed that luteolin decreased Bcl-2 protein expression and inhibited the nuclear localization of Nrf2. In conclusion, the current study indicated that luteolin inhibited HT29 cell proliferation and induced apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway., (Copyright: © Yang et al.)

With the constraint that all six major pollutants in Nanjing must meet the air quality standards by 2030, on the basis of the 2015 emission inventory, the CMAQ air quality model was used to conduct PM 2.5 sensitivity tests, and scenario analysis was used to predict the emission inventory and the air quality of four emission reduction scenarios were simulated. Finally, the total control index under the constraint of meeting the standards was obtained. The results show that primary particulate matter (PPM) reduction is the most effective at reducing the concentration of PM 2.5 in the atmosphere, on the basis of emission reduction in surrounding areas, PPM emission reduction accounts for 88% of the total reduction of the annual average concentration of PM 2.5 , followed by NH 3 , NO x , SO 2 , and VOCs, which contribute to 10.3%, 5.5%, 3.2%, and 0.5%, respectively. Compared to 2015, the reduction ratios of the major pollutants are between 22% and 53%. Controlling the activity level is more effective for SO 2 , NH 3 and CO emissions reduction, while there is still more opportunity for NO x and VOCs end treatment. When the emissions of SO 2 , NO x , PM 10 , PM 2.5 , BC, OC, CO, VOCs, and NH 3 are controlled to 2.43×10 4 , 8.47×10 4 , 9.42×10 4 , 3.74×10 4 , 0.19×10 4 , 0.30×10 4 , 26.56×10 4 , 13.08×10 4 , and 1.50×10 4 t, respectively, it is expected that the levels of the six pollutants in Nanjing can meet the national ambient air quality level 2 standards.

Fasudil has been proven to be a promising chemotherapeutic drug for various malignancies. However, the potential anticancer effects of fasudil in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remain to be established. We confirmed the RhoA activity is inhibited by fasudil in ESCC cells. Then measured the effects of fasudil on apoptosis and autophagy in ESCC. Our study showed fasudil could both induce ESCCs apoptosis and autophagy, and when fasudil-induced autophagy was inhibited by knockdown of the essential autophagy genes (Beclin 1 or ATG7), and pharmacologic agent (chloroquine) treatment, both treatments also significantly sensitized ESCC to fasudil-induced apoptosis, reducing cell viability in vitro. Our study showed autophagy inhibitors combined with fasudil could significantly induce ESCC apoptosis, which may provide a novel therapeutic strategy for ESCC., Competing Interests: Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interest exists.

Salusin-α and salusin-β are newly identified bioactive peptides of 28 and 20 amino acids, respectively, that were initially predicted using in silico analyses and are widely distributed in the endocrine system, hematopoietic system, and central nervous system. The goal of our study was to investigate the cardiovascular effect of salusin-β microinjections into the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) in anesthetized rats and study their mechanism of action. Microinjection of the artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) into the RVLM did not affect the blood pressure (BP) or heart rate (HR) in anesthetized rats. Topical application of salusin-β into the RVLM produced a dose-dependently increase of BP in anesthetized rats. Microinjection of higher dose salusin-β produced significant tachycardia. Prior application of the L-NAME into the RVLM of rats did not alter the hypertension and tachycardia induced by intra-RVLM salusin-β. Notable, the cardiovascular functions elicited by intra-RVLM salusin-β were significantly decreased by pretreatment with Nic, KYN and atropine. In conclusion, the present study shows that the hypertension and tachycardia induced by intra-RVLM salusin-β might be partly mediated, at least in our opinion, by muscarinic receptors, glutamate receptors or L-type calcium channels., (© 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Objective: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common human malignancy and is the second leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide with a dismal prognosis. Previous investigations have shown that miR-340 can modulate the metabolism of CRC cells. The aim of this report is to study the role of miR-340 in the development and progression of CRC., Patients and Methods: The level of miR-340 in CRC cells was determined by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blotting. CRC cell lines were used as model cell lines and the anti-tumor effect of miR-340 in vitro was examined. The luciferase reporter assay was performed. The level of miR-340 was restored in CRC cells by the usage of the miR-340 mimic. Re-expression of RLIP76 in CRC cells was then constructed. Moreover, the target gene of miR-340 was identified through the experiment of in vivo xenograft model., Results: The aberrant downregulation of miR-340 is correlated with advanced stage of CRC. Furthermore, the ectopic overexpression of miR-340 in CRC cell lines resulted in growth inhibition, apoptosis and enhanced chemosensitivity in vitro and in vivo, which was mediated by directly targeting RLIP76., Conclusions: miR-340 acts as a tumor suppressor in CRC and is involved in the chemoresistance of CRC.

Objective: To investigate the clinical application of modified percutaneous rotating dilative tracheostomy with fiberoptic bronchoscope (MPRDT-FOB) in critical patients of intensive care unit (ICU) by comparing it with percutaneous dilative tracheostomy (PDT), modified percutaneous dilative tracheostomy (MPDT), and percutaneous dilative tracheostomy with fiberoptic bronchoscope (PDT-FOB)., Methods: A prospective control study was conducted. 240 critical patients underwent tracheotomy admitted to ICU of Mudanjiang Medical University Hongqi Hospital from February 2011 to November 2016 were enrolled, and they were randomly divided into four groups with 60 patients in each group. The patients in PDT group received traditional Portex method for tracheotomy. The patients in MPDT group received PDT method first, in the process of puncture and expansion, the trachea catheter was always retained in situ, and then retreated to the puncture site about 16-18 cm from incisor after withdrawal of the dilator. The patients in PDT-FOB group received PDT with fiberoptic bronchoscope. The patients in MPRDT-FOB group received PDT-FOB combined with MPDT, in bronchoscope expansion incision, and was replaced with rotary expander to the anterior wall of the trachea. The duration of operation, the size of incision, blood loss during operation, and the rate of disposable success, as well as the incidence of perioperative and long-term complications among four kinds of tracheostomy were compared., Results: Compared with PDT and PDT-FOB, the duration of operation in MPDT and MPRDT-FOB was significantly shortened (minutes: 6.57±3.59, 7.09±2.55 vs. 12.20±2.01, 10.13±2.37), the size of incision was significantly diminished (cm: 1.20±1.00, 1.20±0.90 vs. 1.59±1.18, 1.32±1.24), and the amount of blood loss during operation was significantly decreased (mL: 6.81±2.19, 6.60±1.99 vs. 10.28±3.68, 8.11±2.96, all P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in above parameters between MPDT and MPRDT-FOB, but those in MPRDT-FOB were better than MPDT, and the rate of disposable success in MPRDT-FOB was significantly higher than that of MPDT [100.00% (60/60) vs. 91.67% (55/60), P < 0.05]. The perioperative complications of four methods, such as postoperative bleeding, arrhythmia and bronchospasm, were recorded, but the incidences in MPRDT-FOB were lower than those of PDT, MPDT, and PDT-FOB. Patients in PDT and MPDT had more posterior wall injury or perforation, aspiration and intubation difficulties, while PDT-FOB and MPRDT-FOB had no above complications. The most common long-term complication of PDT was tracheal fistula, and the incidence was significantly higher than that of MPDT (25.00% vs. 13.33%, P < 0.05). However, there was no tracheoesophageal fistula report in PDT-FOB and MPRDT-FOB. Incision swallowing dysfunction, excessive phlegm, incision infection, tube collapse, airway stenosis, delayed healing, granulation or scar, and other complications of the four methods group were rare, and the differences was not statistically significant (all P > 0.05)., Conclusions: It was proved that MPRDT-FOB to be a time-saving, easy-to-operate way with few complication. Moreover, it was able to deal with the problems of the tracheal wall injury or perforation, tracheoesophageal fistula, and hypoxia. Hence, it was better than PDT, MPDT, and PDT-FOB.

Blood-tumor barrier (BTB) reduce the permeability for drugs into tumor tissues. We found that histamine might serve as an essential regulator of BTB function. Further, we aim to determine the role of H2 receptor expression in BTB permeability, and elucidate the underlying mechanisms thereof. Transmission electron microscopy showed that histamine disrupted the integrity of tight junctions (TJ) and increased the number of pinosomes in the cytoplasm. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and trans-endothelial resistance detection (TEER) assays revealed that histamine could open BTB and this action was inhibited by cimetidine. Western blot and immunofluorescence assays showed that histamine decreased the expression of tight junction proteins zonula occluden-1(ZO-1), occludin, and claudin-5. Further, quantitative RT-PCR assay showed that the expression of H2 receptor could represent and predicted histamine-induced BTB permeability. In conclusion, histamine opened BTB by down-regulating the TJ-associated proteins. The levels of H2 receptor expression was correlated with the histamine-induced BTB permeability., Competing Interests: The authors have no potential conflicts of interest.

We report a case of hypereosinophilic syndrome in a 47-year-old man who had acute pneumothorax as the initial presentation. Peripheral blood eosinophil count increased continuously over a period of 1 month and was associated with pulmonary changes and appearance of skin lesions on the right chest wall. Idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome was confirmed by bone marrow aspiration biopsy and skin lesion biopsy after exclusion of all possible secondary etiologies. The clinical status and chest radiographs showed marked improvement after treatment with corticosteroids., (Copyright © 2014 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Soils around a new oil well (2011- ) and an old oil well (1966-2003) were sampled to investigate the characteristics of petroleum pollution in the oilfield. The structure of soil microbial community was analyzed by PCR-DGGE and clone sequencing techniques. Results showed that the soils around the two oil wells were generally contaminated with petroleum, and the concentrations of total petroleum hydrocarbons mostly exceeded the threshold of the environmental quality standards of soil (500 mg x kg(-1)). The total petroleum hydrocarbons concentration of the polluted soil was significantly positively correlated with the contents of organic carbon, total nitrogen and available potassium, respectively. The microbial diversity index in the soil around the old oil well decreased with the increasing total petroleum hydrocarbons concentration, however, it was reversed for the soil around the new oil well. Sequence analysis of the prominent bands in DGGE profiles showed that some dominant species existed in the petroleum-contaminated soils around the oil wells and mostly were oil-associated and hydrocarbon degrading bacteria, including Microbacterium, Streptomyces, Dietzia, Flavobacterium, alpha-Proteobacteria, and gamma-Proteobacteria.

Aim: To clarify the association between Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and the risk of esophageal carcinoma through a meta-analysis of published data., Methods: Studies which reported the association between H. pylori infection and esophageal cancer published up to June 2013 were included. The odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding 95%CIs of H. pylori infection on esophageal cancer with respect to health control groups were evaluated. Data were extracted independently by two investigators and discrepancies were resolved by discussion with a third investigator. The statistical software, STATA (version 12.0), was applied to investigate heterogeneity among individual studies and to summarize the studies. A meta-analysis was performed using a fixed-effect or random-effect method, depending on the absence or presence of significant heterogeneity., Results: No significant association between H. pylori infection and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) risk was found in the pooled overall population (OR = 0.97, 95%CI: 0.76-1.24). However, significant associations between H. pylori infection and ESCC risk were found in Eastern subjects (OR = 0.66, 95%CI: 0.43-0.89). Similarly, cytotoxin-associated gene-A (CagA) positive strains of infection may decrease the risk of ESCC in Eastern subjects (OR = 0.77, 95%CI: 0.65-0.92), however, these associations were not statistically significant in Western subjects (OR = 1.26, 95%CI: 0.97-1.63). For esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) the summary OR for H. pylori infection and CagA positive strains of infection were 0.59 (95%CI: 0.51-0.68) and 0.56 (95%CI: 0.45-0.70), respectively., Conclusion: H. pylori infection is associated with a decreased risk of ESCC in Eastern populations and a decreased risk of EAC in the overall population.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal human malignancies with a very low 5-year survival rate, which highlights urgent needs for more effective therapeutic strategies. In this study, we examined the potential therapeutic effects of an adenovirus encoding human interferon gamma (Ad-IFNγ) on pancreatic carcinoma cells Capan-2 in vitro and in vivo. The results indicated that Ad-IFNγ could significantly inhibit tumor cell growth via inducing cell apoptosis. After infection, IFNγ expressed durably and stably in xenografts, predominantly in tumor tissue, while much less in blood and liver. Thus, adenovirus-mediated intratumoral injection of human IFNγ gene could be an effective gene therapeutic system for the treatment of pancreatic carcinoma., (Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T excision repair cross-complementation group 1 (ERCC1) genetic polymorphisms and the clinical efficacy of gemcitabine-based chemotherapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)., Methods: A total of 135 chemonaive patients with unresectable advanced NSCLC were treated with gemcitabine/platinum regimens. The polymorphisms of MTHFR C677T, ERCC1 C8092A, and ERCC1 C118T were genotyped using the TaqMan methods., Results: The overall response rate was 28.9%. Patients with MTHFR CC genotype had a higher rate of objective response than patients with variant genotype (TT or CT) (41.2% versus 19.1%, P=0.01). Median time to progression (TTP) of patients with MTHFR CC genotype was longer than that of patients with variant genotype (7.6 months versus 5.0 months, P=0.003). No significant associations were obtained between ERCC1 C118T and C8092A polymorphisms and both response and survival., Conclusions: Our data suggest the value of MTHFR C677T polymorphism as a possible predictive marker of response and TTP in advanced NSCLC patients treated with gemcitabine/platinum.

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a highly aggressive and lethal type of cancer in humans. SCLC is sensitive to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, but long-term survival is low and the majority of patients eventually develop progressive disease. With the success of imatinib mesylate in the treatment of gastrointestinal stromal tumors expressing c-kit, its use in SCLC serves as a novel molecular therapeutic approach. The activity of imatinib mesylate is correlated with the mutation of c-kit gene exons 9 and 11 in gastrointestinal stromal tumors. The incidence of epidermal growth factor receptor mutation in non-small cell lung cancer is higher in China than in the United States of America and European countries. There may be also differences in the incidence of c-kit mutation between China and European countries. At present, no study examining imatinib mesylate treatment for SCLC in China is available. To investigate the expression and mutation of c-kit and the correlation with prognosis of SCLC in China, immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of c-kit, and a pyrosequencing assay was used to detect mutations in c-kit exons 9 and 11 of 36 SCLC patients who received surgical treatment at the Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou, China, between 1998 and 2010. All 36 patients were followed up to analyze the correlation between prognosis and expression and mutation of c-kit. The incidence of c-kit-positive expression was 83.3%, including 25.0% weak staining, 22.2% moderate staining and 36.1% strong staining. The overall survival of patients with c-kit strong staining was shorter compared to patients with c-kit not strong staining. No mutation in c-kit exons 9 and 11 was detected. In conclusion, the findings showed that the expression of c-kit is high, and strong staining is a prognostic factor for worse survival.

Purpose: The GNAS1 gene is linked to proapoptotic signaling and correlates closely with clinical outcomes in many human cancers. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the T393C polymorphism of the GNAS1 gene could be used as a chemotherapy sensitivity and prognosis predictive marker of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with gemcitabine plus platinum (GP)., Methods: In this study, we performed the PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism assay to examine the genotypes of the GNAS1 T393C polymorphism in 131 peripheral blood DNA specimens from advanced NSCLC patients with GP treatment., Results: The frequencies of the CC, CT, and TT genotypes in 131 advanced NSCLC cases were 25.2, 47.4, and 26.7%, respectively. The favorable TT genotype was significantly correlated with better overall survival (OS; P < 0.05) and longer progress-free survival (PFS; P < 0.05) compared with the CT or CC genotype. In the multivariate Cox proportional hazards model, the GNAS1 T393C polymorphism was independently associated with overall survival after adjusting the clinicopathological factors (P < 0.05)., Conclusions: This study suggests that the TT genotype of the GNAS1 T393C polymorphism could be an independent prognostic marker to predict chemotherapy sensitivity, favorable OS and PFS in advanced NSCLC patients with GP treatment.

The mutation status of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is correlated with the response of tumors to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), suggesting its usefulness as a biomarker in NSCLC. The incidence of EGFR mutation in NSCLC is higher in China than in the United States and European countries. There have been some case reports concerning cases of gefitinib-responsive small cell lung cancer (SCLC) with EGFR mutations. However, few large studies concerning the mutation status of SCLC patients have been performed. We detected EGFR mutations in exons 19 and 21 of 40 SCLC patients, three of whom had combined SCLC, from the Zhejiang Cancer Hospital using xTAG technology. Only two patients with combined SCLC had an EGFR mutation in exon 19. To determine the EGFR mutation status and clinical features of combined SCLC, we retrospectively analyzed the clinical features of seven patients with combined SCLC who had undergone surgical treatment in Zhejiang Cancer Hospital between 2007 and 2010. EGFR mutations in exons 19 and 21 were detected using the pyrosequencing assay. Of the seven patients with combined SCLCs, 71.4% were male, 71.4% were heavy smokers, most were over 60 years old and 71.4% of the cases were combined adenocarcinoma. Chemotherapy treatment and tumor stage were correlated with survival time. Of the seven cases, one had a mutation in exon 19 of EGFR in both the conventional SCLC and SCLC combined adenocarcinoma components. Combined SCLC commonly occurs in patients who are heavy smokers, male and over 60 years old, and most of the combined type cases are adenocarcinoma. The treatment of combined SCLC may be applied to cases of conventional SCLC. EGFR mutations may therefore occur in combined SCLCs, especially in SCLC combined adenocarcinoma in China.

In this article, we used a modified ACP system (mACP) developed in our laboratory to analyze differentially expressed genes in the liver of large yellow croaker, Pseudosciaena crocea (Richardson). By using 20 pairs of mACPs, 7 differentially expressed genes were obtained. One of the genes we identified encodes for a fibrinogen beta chain (FGB). The full-length cDNA of FGB was 1645 bp, including 5 bp of 5' untranslated region (5'-UTR), 1479 bp of open reading frame (ORF), and 161 bp of 3'-UTR. The ORF was capable of encoding 492 amino acids with an estimated molecular mass of 55.6 kDa, giving it a predicted pI of 5.94. The deduced amino acid sequence included an FGB profile (V(238)-Y(488)) and an FGB family signature (WWYNRCHSANPNG). Multiple sequence alignments indicated that the large yellow croaker FGB showed homology with FGB sequences of other species (45-77% identity). Real time PCR analysis demonstrated that the expression of FGB in the liver of large yellow croaker injected with Vibrio parahaemolyticus was significantly (P < 0.05) lower than that of the control group at 8 d, which confirmed the expression patterns of the results of mACP differential display.

Interferon gamma (IFNgamma) is regarded as a potent antitumor agent, but therapy with IFNgamma is hampered by its short half-life and significant side effects. We developed a replication defective adenovirus carrying the human IFNgamma gene and evaluated the effects of adenovirus-mediated IFNgamma (Ad-IFNgamma) gene transfer on human prostate cancer cell lines in vitro and on xenografts in vivo. Our results showed infection of prostate cancer cells with Ad-IFNgamma led to production of an active cytokine and resulted in an antiproliferative effect on the prostate cancer cells. Intratumoral injection of Ad-IFNgamma significantly inhibited the growth of DU-145 cell xenografts in vivo, while no significant toxicity effect was observed. RT-PCR analysis indicated transgene expression mainly enriched in tumors in vivo, and slightly distributed in livers. These findings suggest adenovirus-mediated IFNgamma gene transfer is a promising approach in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer.

Gynogenesis was induced in two groups of Pseudosciaena crocea by the cool-shock and hydrostatic pressure method. The 24 fry in the gynogenetic families G1 and G2, 20 fry in their contrast groups and their parents were PCR amplified using 6 pairs of microsatellite marker primers LYC0002, LYC0003, LYC0013, LYC0012, LYC0004 and LYC0006 and analyzed. The results showed that the effect of cool-shock method, obtained a hatching rate of 35.3%, and a survival rate of 9.9% at 45 days, was obviously better than hydrostatic pressure method. Four pairs of primers could amplify clearly distinct parental bands. The results of primers LYC0012 and LYC0006 revealed no male gene in G1, suggesting they all derived from gynogenesis. Amplification using primers LYC0013 and LYC0004 in G2 revealed the presence of male genes in 3 individuals, suggesting they came from normal fertilization. The homozygosity ratio of the offspring from the two families was 87.5% and 76.2% and the average was 81.9%. They were 0 respectively in their contrast groups. The homozygous ratio of gene improved for 81.9% by gynogenesis. This study shows that gynogenesis is an effective method to promote gene purification In addition, microsatellite marker technique is an effective method of gynogenesis verification and genetic analysis.

Effects of recombinant human epidermal growth factor (hEGF) on short-term potentiation (STP) of evoked potential were investigated in Schaffer/commissural-CA1 pyramidal cell synapses of rat hippocampal slices. Perfusion of hEGF (6-60 ng/ml) significantly enhanced the STP induced by shorter tetanus (11 impulses at 100 Hz) in a concentration-dependent manner and the effect resulted in generation of long-term potentiation (LTP). The results suggest that hEGF can activate the mechanisms related to induction of LTP.

Effects of glycine were investigated in Schaffer/commissural-CA1 pyramidal cell synapses of the rat hippocampal slices. Perfusion of glycine (0.05 mM) did not change baseline population spikes evoked by test stimulation but significantly enhanced short-term potentiation induced by a single shorter tetanus (100 Hz, 11 impulses); the effects resulted in production of long-term potentiation (LTP). LTP produced by a longer tetanus (100 Hz, 100 impulses, 2 trains) was not significantly influenced. Higher concentration (0.5 mM) of glycine increased the baseline spike amplitude. All these effects of glycine were not observed in the presence of 10(-5) M 2-amino-5-phosphonovalerate, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) antagonist. These results demonstrate that glycine can facilitate induction of LTP probably by activating NMDA receptor.