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Nickel smelting produces a large amount of nickel slag which contains a lot of Fe in the form of FeO. The effect of FeO content on the melting properties and structure of nickel slag is investigated by thermodynamic calculations and experiments, using the nickel slag of water quenching furnace as raw material, which is simplified to CaO-SiO2-FeO-MgO slag system. The results are as follows: with increasing FeO content, the precipitated primary phase changes from melilite to olivine. The liquidus temperature, softening temperature, hemispherical temperature, flow temperature, viscosity, and critical viscosity temperature of the slag system tend to decrease gradually, but the solid phase temperature tends to decrease first and then increase. The centre of the symmetric stretching vibration band of the [SiO4]4 tetrahedron -in the slag system shifts to the low wavenumber region. The mole fraction of O0 in the slag continuously decreases, and the mole fraction of O- and O2- increases. The complex silicon-oxygen tetrahedron structure gradually disintegrates and the structural unit tends to be simple.

Andrews, Lewis, and Lovejoy introduced the partition function PD(n) as the number of partitions of n with designated summands. A bipartition of n is an ordered pair of partitions $$(\pi _1, \pi _2)$$ with the sum of all of the parts being n. In this paper, we introduce a generalized crank named the pd-crank for bipartitions with designated summands and give some inequalities for the pd-crank of bipartitions with designated summands modulo 2 and 3. We also define the pd-crank moments weighted by the parity of pd-cranks $$\mu _{2k,bd}(-1,n)$$ and show the positivity of $$(-1)^n\mu _{2k,bd}(-1,n)$$ . Let $$M_{bd}(m,n)$$ denote the number of bipartitions of n with designated summands with pd-crank m. We prove a monotonicity property of pd-cranks of bipartitions with designated summands and find that the sequence $$\{M_{bd}(m,n)\}_{|m|\le n}$$ is unimodal for $$n\not = 1,5,7$$ .

An [Formula: see text]-regular overpartition of [Formula: see text] is an overpartition of [Formula: see text] into parts not divisible by [Formula: see text]. Let [Formula: see text] be the number of [Formula: see text]-regular overpartitions of [Formula: see text]. Andrews defined singular overpartitions counted by the partition function [Formula: see text]. It denotes the number of overpartitions of [Formula: see text] in which no part is divisible by [Formula: see text] and only parts[Formula: see text] may be overlined. He proved that [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] are divisible by [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we aim to introduce a crank of [Formula: see text]-regular overpartitions for [Formula: see text] to investigate the partition function [Formula: see text]. We give combinatorial interpretations for some congruences of [Formula: see text] including infinite families of congruences for [Formula: see text] modulo [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] as well as the congruences of Andrews for [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text].

Andrews, Lewis and Lovejoy introduced the partition function $PD(n)$ as the number of partitions of $n$ with designated summands. In a recent work, Lin studied a partition function $PD_{t}(n)$ which counts the number of tagged parts over all the partitions of $n$ with designated summands. He proved that $PD_{t}(3n+2)$ is divisible by $3$. In this paper, we first introduce a structure named partitions with overline designated summands, which is counted by $PD_t(n)$. We then define a generalized rank of partitions with overline designated summands and give a combinatorial interpretation of the congruence for $PD_t(3n+2)$., 14 pages

In a recent work, Andrews introduced the new combinatorial objects called singular overpartitions. He proved that these singular overpartitions can be enumerated by the partition function [Formula: see text] which denotes the number of overpartitions of [Formula: see text] in which no part is divisible by [Formula: see text] and only parts [Formula: see text] may be overlined. In this paper, we consider the function [Formula: see text] from an arithmetical point of view. We establish a number of Ramanujan-like congruences and a congruence relation modulo [Formula: see text] for [Formula: see text] by employing some generating function dissection techniques. With the aid of these congruences and the relation, we obtain two new infinite families of congruences modulo [Formula: see text] satisfied by [Formula: see text].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of thoracic epidural administration of lidocaine on hemodynamic and arousal responses of double lumen tracheal intubation during induction of anesthesia. ME-THODS: In the study, 40 patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical statuses Ⅰ-Ⅱ,aged 19-66 years,scheduled for elective thoracic surgeries under general anesthesia requiring orotracheal intubation were allocated to either the double-lumen endobronchial intubation (T group) or double-lumen endobronchial intubation after epidural administration of lidocaine (E group). After an intravenous anesthetic induction, the orotracheal double-lumen intubation was performed using a Macintosh direct laryngoscopy (MDLS),respectively. Invasive blood pressure (BP),heart rate (HR) and bispectral index (BIS) were recorded before and after anesthetic induction,immediately after intubation and 5 minutes after intubation with 1-minute interval and the intubation time also noted. The rate pressure pro-duct (RPP) was calculated. RESULTS: After anesthetic induction,BP and RPP in the two groups decreased significantly compared with their preinduction values. In comparison with their postinduction values, the orotracheal intubation in the two groups caused significant increases in BPs, HRs and RPP. In comparison with their preinduction values, BPs decreased significantly in E group, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) increased significantly and lasted for 1 min in T group. The HRs of both groups after intubation were significantly higher than their baseline values,and increased in HR and lasted for 1 min and 4 min in E group and T group, respectively. SBP, DBP, MAP, HR and RPP after intubation in T group were significantly higher than those of E group during the observation period. The values of BIS were similar between both the groups. In T group, the incidences of SBP percent increased>30% of the baseline value and RPP more than 22 000 were significantly higher than in E group. None of the patients in group E had SBP more than 130% of the baseline value and RPP more than 22 000. CONCLUSION: During double-lumen endobronchial intubation, epidural administration of lidocaine can provide less hemodynamic response and similar arousal response.

This study aimed at exploring the role and mechanism of Krüppel-like factor 5 (KLF5) in the migration, invasion, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) induction and proliferation in laryngeal cancer human epithelial type 2 (Hep-2) cells, and to provide a new sight for the treatment of laryngeal carcinoma.Hep-2 cells were randomly divided into three groups: control group (Control), KLF5 siRNA group (siKLF5) and control-siRNA group (NC). The effects of KLF5 inhibition on cell proliferation and apoptosis were assessed by 3-(4,5-dimethyl thiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and flow cytometer, respectively. Wound healing assay and transwell invasion experiments were used to determine cell migration and invasion. Quantitative Real Time-Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blot were used to compare the levels of KLF5, EMT-related genes E-cadherin, N-cadherin, Vimentin and Zinc finger transcription factors (Snail, Slug) expressions. The levels of nuclear transcription factor-κB (NF-κB-p65) and IκBα were also detected by Western blot.Compared with the Control group, the proliferation rate of Hep-2 cells in the siKLF5 group was significantly decreased while the apoptosis rate was increased (p0.05). Meanwhile, the migration and invasion ability of Hep-2 cells were markedly decreased (p0.05). E-cadherin protein expression was up-regulated while Vimentin, N-cadherin, Snail, and Slug protein expression levels were downregulated in siKLF5 group (p0.05). Silencing KLF5 could inhibit the expression of NF-κB phosphorylation at p65 and the IκBα degradation (p0.05).These results revealed that silencing KLF5 expression reduced the proliferation, migration and invasion and EMT abilities by inhibiting the NF-κB pathway in Hep-2 cells. Our results suggest that KLF5 may be a potential therapeutic target in laryngeal carcinoma.

Recently, Andrews introduced the partition function [Formula: see text] as the number of overpartitions of [Formula: see text] in which no part is divisible by [Formula: see text] and only parts [Formula: see text] may be overlined. He proved that [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] are divisible by [Formula: see text]. Let [Formula: see text] be the number of overpartitions of [Formula: see text] into parts not divisible by [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we call the overpartitions enumerated by the function [Formula: see text] [Formula: see text]-regular overpartitions. For [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], we obtain some explicit results on the generating function dissections. We also derive some congruences for [Formula: see text] modulo [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] which imply the congruences for [Formula: see text] proved by Andrews. By introducing a rank of vector partitions, we give a combinatorial interpretation of the congruences of Andrews for [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text].

Based on the established bond moduli of surface atoms ys and interior ones yi in a nanostructure, surface modulus Ys(D) and interior modulus Yi(D) are modeled with D being size. And then the Young's modulus Y(D) is determined through considering the volume fraction of Ys(D) and Yi(D). It is found that the variations of Ys(D), Yi(D) and Y(D) are evident, where cubooctahedron is taken as the shape of nanoparticles. In Cu and diamond nanoparticles, although their Ys(D) and Yi(D) present the decrease trend with D dropping, the increase in Y(D) of Cu nanoparticles but the decrease of Y(D) for diamond nanoparticles are existing. As expected, the contribution of Ys(D) is important, since it is Ys(D) > Y0 mainly leading to Y(D) > Y0 for Cu nanoparticles, and the similar case happens for diamond nanoparticles when D Y0 but Y(D) 2.8 nm. All this implies that the reason why Y(D) greatly rely on size and have different change trend for different materials can be clarified by considering Ys(D) and Yi(D).

To explore the role of miR-451a in the migration and invasion of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells.Quantitative Real time-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blot were performed to detect the levels of miR-451a and activating transcription factor 2 (ATF2) in NSCLC. Transwell assay was employed to analyze the migratory and invasive abilities in NSCLC cells. Dual-luciferase reporter assay was applied to confirm the binding condition of miR-451 and its target gene in NSCLC cells.MiR-451a was downregulated in NSCLC tissues and lung cancer cell lines A549 and NCI-H460, while ATF2 was upregulated. The mRNA level of miR-451a was negatively correlated to ATF2. Additionally, miR-451a regulated cell migration and invasion through targeting ATF2. Furthermore, ATF2 could reverse the inhibitory migration and invasion of A549 cells induced by miR-451a.MiR-451a inhibits the migratory and invasive abilities of NSCLC cells through ATF2 regulation. The newly identified miR-451a/ATF2 axis provides a novel insight into the pathogenesis ofNSCLC.

To explore the expression and function of insulin-like growth factor II (IGFII) mRNA binding protein (IMP3) in the Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC).According to previously reported gene expression array, we found that IMP3 had significantly higher expression in the CD44+CD24-ESA+ cell cluster, tumor initiating cell or cancer stem cell (CSCs), compared to other tumor cells. Based on the GEO database (GEO accession No. GSE6883), we detected the mRNA levels of IMP 1,2 and 3 by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (q-PCR) in CD44+CD24-ESA+ cell cluster and other breast tumor cell clusters. Besides, we measured IMP3 expression in microsphere of breast cancer, which exerted more significant tumor stem cell properties. The effects of IMP3 on breast cancer cell stem cell properties were studied by RNA interference and overexpression approaches in vitro. Furthermore, we predicted and identified microRNA, which could target and regulate IMP3 from bioinformatics analysis, and verified the interaction by luciferase assays and rescue experiments.Previously reported data showed that IMP3 expression was significantly upregulated in CD44+CD24-ESA+ cell cluster from breast cancer tissues. Besides, we found IMP3 had higher expression in mesenchymal cells rather than epithelial cells, which was also significantly elevated in SUM159 and T49D cell lines cultured as microsphere rather than adherent cells or differentiated cells. CD44+CD24-ESA+ cell cluster proportion was significantly decreased after silencing IMP3 in SUM1315, and its ability to develop into microsphere was significantly inhibited. By re-expressing IMP3 in SUM315, we restored the self-renewal capacity and tumorigenesis potential of SUM315. Through relative predicting website, we found several miRNAs which could regulate IMP3. miR-34a with highest score was chosen for further analysis. Mimicking miR-34a significantly downregulated IMP3 expression and inhibited its ability to develop into microsphere, while overexpressing IMP3 could rescue this process.IMP3 plays a vital role in maintaining stem cell properties of breast cancer cells, which could be regulated by mir-34a.

Low night temperatures seriously affect plant growth and fruit quality. To investigate the effect of low night temperatures on the expression of galactinol synthase genes (GOLS) and phloem loading of raffinose family oligosaccharides, particular stachyose and raffinose (RFO represents stachyose and raffinose in this paper) and to gain a better understanding of the relationship between the phloem loading of RFO and fruit development, melon (Cucumis melo L.) plants at the fruit development stage were treated with temperatures of 28/12°C or 28/9°C (day/night) with 28/15°C as the control. Both the CmGOLS1 and CmGOLS2 gene expression and the activity of galactinol synthase were clearly repressed after treatments with 9 and 12°C at night, and the effect of 9°C was more obvious. Furthermore, low night temperatures inhibited photosynthesis and caused the lower amounts of sucrose to supply the RFO synthesis. However, the total soluble sugar, RFO, and sucrose contents were increased in leaves subjected to low night temperatures. It is supposed that low night temperature blocked symplastic phloem loading, which led to the accumulation of RFO in the leaf cells. With increasing content of RFO in the leaves, the expression of GOLS genes was inhibited according to the principle of feedback, and therefore the decreased expression of GOLS limited RFO synthesis and was indirectly harmful to phloem loading, thereby affecting fruit development.

The site discrimination and the size effect on the formation energy Ef of the B atoms in B-doped Si nanocrystals (SiNCs) were studied by introducing a new parameter, the adjusted coordination number (ACN), which includes second-nearest neighbor atoms. A series of Ef values were obtained by using the first-principle calculation. It was found that the B-doping sites in the SiNCs can be well discriminated by ACN, and the change trends of Ef with either size or site become clear if one uses ACN as a describer. When the site is given, Ef has a decreasing trend when the size increases. However, when considering the sites with the same coordination number in a given Si nanocrystal, their Ef values increase with increasing ACN. Moreover, it was observed that sites with ACN = 3.375 are the usually preferred B-doping sites in these SiNCs when they exist.

A model for the size-dependent Young's modulus Y(D) of nanomaterials is established in this work through introducing their single bond characteristics, with D being size. The size effect on single bond energy e(D) is evident, while bond length h(D) is directly related with both size and materials index (m) of nanomaterials, resulting in single bond modulus y(D) always not smaller than that in bulk. Based on y(D) and coordination number consideration, Y(D) ≥ Y0 is found for some metallic materials with m = 1, and Y(D) ≤ Y0 is observed for some other materials when their m values are respectively 2.56, 4, and 4.88. Moreover, a good agreement between model predictions and other experimental or simulation results is obtained.

In the past, single bond energy of nanomaterials did not attract much attention, since many of their properties show a direct relation to cohesive energy. However, it is the single bond energy that determines the interaction between two atoms and even their bond lengths. Through introducing the bond number and the size-dependent cohesive energy model, the size-related single bond energy ɛ(N) of Cu clusters is resolved in this work, with the support of a thermodynamic method combined with first-principle calculation. It is found that the single bond is gradually strengthened as the size drops when compared with the bulk. Moreover, this enhanced bond strength is greatly important, especially in analyzing the Raman shift of semiconductor nanoparticles.

Andrews, Lewis and Lovejoy introduced the partition function PD ( n ) as the number of partitions of n with designated summands, where we assume that among parts with equal size, exactly one is designated. They proved that PD ( 3 n + 2 ) is divisible by 3 and showed that the generating function of PD ( 3 n ) can be expressed as an infinite product of powers of ( 1 − q 2 n + 1 ) times a function F ( q 2 ) . We obtain a Ramanujan type identity which implies the congruence for PD ( 3 n + 2 ) . We also find an explicit formula for F ( q 2 ) , which leads to a formula for the generating function of PD ( 3 n ) . A formula for the generating function of PD ( 3 n + 1 ) is also obtained. Our proofs rely on Chanʼs identity on Ramanujanʼs cubic continued fraction and identities on cubic theta functions. By introducing a rank for partitions with designated summands, we give a combinatorial interpretation of the congruence for PD ( 3 n + 2 ) .

The shear wave propagation speed is related to the elasticity and viscosity of the tissue, and can be estimated from phase changes over a short distance traveled. A novel method is proposed to estimate the shear wave velocity using pulse echo ultrasound and adaptive sinusoidal filter. In this work, we deduced the phase information representation of the harmonic motion of the tissue from the ultrasound echoes, the new method was studied using Field-II simulations and the experiment results agree well with the theory.

Cancer screening is a major healthcare issue. Screening modalities are constantly changing due to improvements in technology. Whole body positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluoro-2 deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) and the additional help of the serum levels of tumor markers have been considered as non-invasive methods for cancer screening in asymptomatic subjects. A total of 1283 subjects underwent whole-body FDG PET studies with the additional help of the serum levels of tumor markers in our center for cancer screening. The final diagnoses were confirmed by other imaging modalities or pathological findings in subjects with positive FDG-PET findings, and follow-up for at least 6 months were held in subjects with negative FDG-PET findings. Among a total of 18 (1.4%) subjects with cancers, FDG-PET detected cancers in 15 (1.2%) subjects but with false negative studies in 3 subjects with hepatoma (AFP = 129.6 ng/ml), prostate cancer (PSA = 25.1 ng/ml), and breast cancer (CEA and CA-153 were normal). False-positive FDG-PET studies were found in 24 (1.9%) subjects. However, none had abnormal serum levels of tumor markers. Whole body FDG-PET with the additional help of tumor markers could reduce the false negative and false positive results of FDG-PET only.

BACKGROUND: Vaginal agenesis is a rare condition and treatment methods are varied. The difference between most of the surgical techniques is the graft material used. The purpose of this study was to describe the procedure and outcome of creating a neovaginal pouch lined with autologous buccal mucosa. METHODS AND RESULTS: Between August 2000 and February 2002, eight patients with Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser syndrome were admitted to our hospital. All of the patients successfully underwent neovaginoplasty with autologous buccal mucosa as graft material. The buccal mucosal wound completely healed 2 weeks after the operation and the neovaginal length and calibre were well formed. Follow-up ranged from 0.5 to 1.5 years. One patient encountered post-operative vaginal bleeding and another patient suffered from urinary bladder injury. CONCLUSION: This is the first reported procedure of vaginoplasty with autologous buccal mucosa as graft material. Our method is ideal in its simplicity, provides good cosmetic results, and improves the vaginal length of the patient.

The aim of this study was to evaluate practice usefulness of whole body positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) to detect recurrent ovarian cancer based on asymptomatically elevated tumor marker (CA-125) serum levels. Whole-body FDG-PET was performed in 28 patients with suspected recurrent ovarian cancers and asymptomatically increased serum levels of tumor marker (CA-125 antigen) but negative or equivocal other imaging modality results. All of these 28 asymptomatic patients had serum levels of CA-125 antigen35 U/ml. The final diagnosis of recurrent ovarian cancer was established by operation/biopsy histopathological findings or clinical follow-up longer than 1 year by additional morphologic imaging techniques. Among the 28 patients, the final diagnoses of recurrent ovarian cancers and benign lesions were established in 20 and 8 patients, respectively. FDG-PET accurately diagnosed recurrent ovarian cancers in 19 patients and benign lesions in 7 patients. When asymptomatically elevated serum levels of CA-125 antigen, the diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of FDG-PET to detect recurrent ovarian cancers were 95.0%, 87.5%, and 92.9%, respectively. FDG-PET is a useful technique to detect recurrent ovarian cancers for patients suspected of recurrent ovarian cancers due to asymptomatically elevated serum levels of CA-125 antigen.

Despite advances in morphological imaging, some patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are found to have non-resectable disease at surgery or die of recurrence within a year of surgery. At present, metastatic bone involvement is usually assessed using conventional technetium-99m methylene diophosphate (Tc-99m MDP) whole body bone scan (bone scan), which has a high sensitivity but a poor specificity. We have attempted to evaluate the usefulness of whole body positron emission tomography with 18F-2-deoxyglucose (FDG-PET) for the detection of malignant bone metastases of NSCLC, and to compare FDG-PET results with Bone Scan findings. Forty-eight patients with biopsy-proven NSCLC and suspected to have stage IV disease underwent whole body bone scan and FDG-PET to detect bone metastases. The final diagnoses of bone metastases were established by operative, histopathological findings or clinical follow-up longer than 1 year by additional radiographs or following FDG-PET/Tc-99m MDP bone scan findings showing progressively and extensively widespread bone lesions. A total of 138 bone lesions found on either FDG-PET or Tc-99m MDP bone scan were evaluated. Among the 106 metastatic and 32 benign bone lesions, FDG-PET and Tc-99m MDP bone scan could accurately diagnose 99 and 98, as well as 30 and 2 metastatic and benign bone lesions, respectively. Diagnostic sensitivity and accuracy of FDG-PET and Tc-99m MDP bone scan were 93.4% and 92.5%, as well as 93.5% and 72.5%, respectively. In conclusion, our data suggest that FDG-PET with the same sensitivity and a better accuracy than those of Tc-99m MDP bone scan to detect metastatic bone lesions in patients with biopsy-proven NSCLC and suspected to have stage IV disease.

The purpose of this retrospective study was to evaluate the efficacy of positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) to differentiate benign from malignant pulmonary lesions. Fifty-five patients, suspected of having primary pulmonary neoplasm based on chest radiographic findings, underwent FDG-PET scanning. Pathological diagnoses were obtained in 41 patients with a total of 43 pulmonary lesions. The other 14 patients (14 lesions) were followed-up clinically for at least four months. The standard uptake value (SUV) was determined in each patient. The SUV of the 15 benign and 40 malignant pulmonary lesions were 1.60+/-0.42 and 6.14+/-2.67, respectively. If SUV was2.50, the pulmonary lesion was considered as a malignant pulmonary lesion. FDG-PET could correctly detect 34 true-positive and 15 true-negative pulmonary lesions. However, 6 false-positive and one-false negative pulmonary lesions were misdiagnosed by FDG-PET. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of FDG-PET to differentiate between benign and malignant pulmonary lesions were 94%, 71% and 86%, respectively. FDG-PET can accurately detect malignant pulmonary lesions with a high sensitivity. However, false-positive FDG-PET findings caused by some inflammatory processes may decrease its specificity.

Although many cancers can be detected by whole-body positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG), there has been limited clinical experience with FDG-PET for the detection of recurrent ovarian cancers. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical value of FDG-PET in the detection of recurrent ovarian cancer. Whole body FDG-PET scans were performed on 24 women who had previous histories of ovarian cancer and treatment with surgery and chemotherapy. All patients also underwent physical examination, laboratory testing of serum CA-125 level and pelvic-abdominal-chest computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The results of FDG-PET scans were correlated with serum CA-125 level, CT/MRI and operative pathology results. The diagnostic sensitivity was 90.9%, 90.9% and 90.9%, specificity was 92.3%, 76.9% and 46.2% and accuracy was 91.7%, 83.3% and 66.7% for FDG-PET, serum tumor marker of CA-125 level and CT/MRI in detecting recurrent ovarian cancer, respectively. FDG-PET is a useful diagnostic tool in detecting recurrent ovarian cancers with high specificity as compared with the serum tumor marker CA-125 level and the conventional CT/MRI morphological imaging methods.

To evaluate the clinical value of whole body positron emission tomography (PET) with 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG) in recurrent cervical cancer, the records of 20 patients who underwent FDG-PET scans were reviewed to detect local recurrence, pelvic/para-aortic lymph node metastases and distal metastases. The final diagnosis was based on operative, histopathological findings or clinical follow-up for longer than one year. FDG-PET accurately detected 18 patients with recurrent diseases (12 patients with local recurrences, 16 patients with pelvic lymph node metastases, 14 patients with para-aortic lymph node metastases and 4 patients with distal metastases of other sites). However, 2 patients with local recurrences had false- negative FDG-PET results as well as 1 patient without local recurrence and 1 patient without pelvic lymph node metastases who had false-positive FDG-PET results. The overall sensitivity and specificity of FDG-PET for patients were 90% and 100%, for local recurrence were 86% and 92%, for pelvic lymph node metastases were 100% and 94%, for para-aortic lymph node metastases were 100% and 100% and for distal metastases were 100% and 100%, respectively. In conclusion, whole body FDG-PET is a useful diagnostic tool in the evaluation of recurrent cervical cancer. It appears to be promising for detecting recurrent cervical cancer, lymph node metastases and distal metastases.

Radionuclide esophageal emptying test using a solid meal is a simple, noninvasive, and physiologic test of esophageal function.In this study, we evaluated esophageal emptying using an isotope-labeled solid meal (an egg salad sandwich labeled with 99mTc-MAA) in the assessment of pneumatic dilatation treatment in achalasia. Twenty achalasic patients (12 males, 8 females, age: 51.4 +/- 13.0 years) underwent esophageal emptying measurement before and after pneumatic dilatation. After treatment, the dysphagic symptoms of all patients improved.In comparison with the pretreatment test, the posttreatment retention fraction at 1, 5, 10, and 15 min were significantly lower (P0.001).The results suggest that radionuclide esophageal emptying test using a solid meal remains a useful objective study of esophageal function and may have an important future role in the follow-up evaluation of treatment for achalasia.

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between Technetium-99m (Tc-99m) tetrofosmin accumulation in tumors which may represent the expression of multidrug resistance (MDR)--mediated P-glycoprotein (Pgp) and multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP) as well as response to chemotherapy in patients with untreated small cell lung cancers (SCLC). Twenty patients with SCLC were studied with Tc-99m tetrofosmin lung scintigraphy before chemotherapeutic induction. Tc-99m tetrofosmin lung scans were interpreted both visually and quantitatively. Response was evaluated upon completion of chemotherapy. Patients with good chemotherapy response had a significantly higher incidence (93%) of positive Tc-99m tetrofosmin lung single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) findings than patients with poor response (33%) (p value0.05). The tumor/background ratios (T/B) were 1.8 +/- 0.4 and 1.2 +/- 0.3, for patients with good response and poor response, respectively (p0.05). However, other prognostic factors (tumor size and stage) were not significantly related to Tc-99m tetrofosmin lung scan findings and chemotherapy responses. Tc-99m tetrofosmin lung scintigraphy can predict chemotherapy response in patients with SCLC.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is usually a hypervascular tumor. Factor VIII-related antigens, including von Willebrand factor, are known to be expressed in HCC, which cause capillarization of the sinusoids of HCC. Capillarization of hepatic sinusoids may play a role in hepatocarcinogenesis and its metastasis. The aim of this study is to clarify the expression of Factor VIII in patients with hepatitis B or C (n = 18) and HCC (n = 16).All specimens were sufficient for immunohistochemical study of the neo-angiogenesis with regard to clinical results. Microvessel count per square millimeter (MVC) and hot spot of microvessel per square millimeter (HSV) were measured from the histochemical study.In the patients with hepatitis group, the positive staining on the vessels of the portal triad was 11.1% (2/18) but in the non-neoplastic tissue of HCC patients the positive rate was 68.7% (11/16) showing a significant difference from the hepatitis group. The amount of vasculatures was easily found in the surrounding capsule of resected HCC. The MVC of the capsule was 10.17 +/- 2.78 and 13.66 +/- 5.42 for the HCC with non-direct invasion and direct invasion during operation, respectively. The HSV of capsules were 7.51 +/- 2.09 and 9.14 +/- 4.02 for the non-invasion and invasion, respectively. Therefore, in our study, it is clear that the high MVC or HSV scores were found in patients of direct invasion. However, there was no relation between hepatitis B or hepatitis C to the tumor invasiveness. The median survival times were 21.5 months for the non-invasive group and 14.5 months for the invasive group (p0.05). The positive rate of Factor VIII in the vessels of the portal triad were 60% and 83.3% for the non-invasive and invasive groups, respectively. However, the lower values of MVC and HSV showed a trend toward a longer recurrence time.It is pertinent to prove that the high score of neo-angiogenesis has a high risk of recurrence. In addition, it is wise to pay more attention to the interval of the follow-up study to detect the recurrent lesion earlier, where possible, in the patient with a high score of microvascularity.

Technetium-99m-tetrofosmin has emerged as a new radiopharmaceutical for myocardial imaging, in competition with 201Tl and 99mTc-MIBI. In this study, 99mTc-tetrofosmin was evaluated for its ability to detect malignant and benign lesions from single solid lung masses.Forty-nine patients with a single solid lung mass based on chest radiograph findings received 99mTc-tetrofosmin SPECT of the chest to evaluate the value of 99mTc-tetrofosmin SPECT for detecting malignant and benign lesions.Only 61% of the lung malignancies were detected by 99mTc-tetrofosmin SPECT of the chest, including 53% of epidermoid carcinoma (ca), 67% of adeno ca, 75% of small-cell ca, 0% of undifferentiated large-cell ca and 100% of other lung malignancies. In addition, 50% of the benign lesions were detected by chest 99mTc-tetrofosmin SPECT. The probability of tetrofosmin uptake in the mass was not related to mass size. The diagnostic sensitivity, specificity and accuracy were 61%, 50% and 59%, respectively, for differentiating malignant and benign lesions when diagnosing a single solid lung mass.Technetium-99m-tetrofosmin SPECT of the chest is of little or no value for the detection of lung ca from single solid lung masses.

Technetium Tc-99m disofenin cholescintigraphy (CS) and ultrasonography (US) are two major clinical methods used in differentiating biliary atresia (BA) from neonatal jaundice. To compare the diagnostic utility of these two modalities, 66 patients with neonatal cholestasis (15 BA, 3 choledochal cyst (CC), 32 neonatal hepatitis, 13 prolonged jaundice, 2 total parenteral nutrition, and 1 sepsis) underwent Tc-99m disofenin CS and US. The diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of CS in differentiating BA from other forms of neonatal jaundice was 100%, 87.5%, and 90.5%, respectively, and for US 86.7%, 77.1%, and 79.4%, respectively. Tc-99m disofenin CS after premedication with phenobarbital and cholestyramine is a convenient and reliable method of differentiating BA from neonatal hepatitis, with a diagnostic accuracy superior to that of US. However, US is the initial imaging procedure of choice in patients presenting with jaundice to rule out anatomic anomalies such as CC.

Lung damage after radiation therapy in 39 female patients diagnosed with right breast cancer was measured by Tc-99m DTPA radioaerosol inhalation lung scintigraphy (DTPA). The clearance rate of Tc-99m DTPA in the lungs was presented as the clearance rate (k; %/min) of the time-activity curve of the dynamic lung images. All patients underwent simple mastectomy, and postoperative radiation of approximately 50 Gy. We divided the patients into three groups according to the interval of time between the date of irradiation and the lung scintigraphy: group 1 included 12 patients who were examined within three months after irradiation, group 2 included 16 patients who were examined 3 to 9 months after irradiation, and group 3 included 11 patients who were examined more than 9 months after irradiation. In addition, 10 age matched normal women were included as the control. The clearance of the right lung was 0.73 +/- 0.13 for normal controls, 0.94 +/- 0.24 for group 1, 1.11 +/- 0.39 for group 2, and 0.69 +/- 0.21 for group 3. In this small series of patients with breast cancer, the results suggest that lung damage may occur within the first three months after irradiation. After three months, lung damage becomes more significant and the clearance of Tc-99m DTPA in the lungs becomes faster. However, the clearance rate declines markedly after 9 months, which is assumed to result from the recovery of lung tissue from acute irradiation damage or from pulmonary fibrotic change after radiation therapy, or from a combination of both.

Mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy with lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes (MELAS) syndrome is one of the mitochondrial encephalomyopathies that has distinct clinical features including stroke-like episodes with migraine-like headache, nausea, vomiting, encephalopathy and lactic acidosis. We report a 27-year-old woman who presented with partial seizure, stroke-like episodes including hemiparesis, hemianopia and hemihypethesia, sensorineural hearing loss, migraine-like headache, and lactic acidosis. Brain computed tomographic scan showed encephalomalacia in the right parieto-occipital area and recent hypodensity in the left temporoparieto-occipital area with cortical atrophy. Muscle biopsy revealed ragged-red fibers and paracrystaline inclusions in the mitochondria. Genetic study revealed an A to G point mutation at nucleotide position (np) 3243 of mitochondrial DNA. External ophthalmoplegia and ptosis were also found during two exaggerated episodes in this patient. Therefore, the overlapping syndrome of chronic progressive external ophthalmoplegia in the MELAS syndrome is considered in this case. Furthermore, we also found carnitine deficiency in this patient and she was responsive well to steroid therapy. Muscle biopsy also revealed excessive lipid droplets deposits. Therefore, the carnitine deficiency may occur in MELAS syndrome with the A to G point mutation at np 3243. We recommend the steroid or carnitine supplement therapy be applied to the MELAS syndrome with carnitine deficiency.

Secretory breast carcinoma is a very rare tumor of the breast and has distinctive pathological characteristics such as (1) the presence of large amounts of intracellular and extracellular secretion and (2) granular eosinophilic cytoplasma of the cells. It usually occurs in children or adolescents and is known to have a better prognosis than the usual ductal carcinoma. The preoperative aspiration cytology is also distinctive and it could permit planning the optimal surgical therapy such as breast conservation surgery for young patients. We report a case of secretory breast carcinoma in a 35 year-old female and her preoperative aspiration cytology in Liu's stain. To our knowledge, Secretory breast carcinoma has not been reported previously in Taiwan.

Serum interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) level activities of natural killer cell (NK) and lymphokine activated killer cell (LAK) cells were determined in 60 patients with advanced carcinoma (AC) before and after treatment with Shenmai injection (SMI), 40 healthy persons were taken as non-carcinoma control (NC). The results showed that: Serum sIL-2R level in AC were much higher than those in NC (P0.05) and activities of NK and LAK cells in AC were much lower than those in NC (P0.05) before treatment. There was no significant difference among gastric cancer, colonic carcinoma and lung cancer (P0.05). After treatment with SMI we also found that the level of sIL-2R in all patients were obviously lower (P0.05) while the activity of NK and LAK cells were significantly higher than that prior treatment (P0.05). Linear correlation was not found between sIL-2R and NK, LAK cells. These data suggested that the immune function was compromised in AC. The mechanism of the inhibitory effect of SMI on carcinoma might be related to the activity of biological response modifier.

The hole confinement due to the valence band offset of the Si/SiGe/Si quantum well causes the shrinkage of depletion region for the n-type Si/Si0.2Ge0.8/Si Schottky barrier diodes with Pt gates. The capacitance of Si/Si0.2Ge0.8/Si Schottky diodes has approximately two times the capacitance of the control Si device. Moreover, the high electrical field leads to a high thermionic-field emission current and a large image-force lowering at both reverse and forward biases. The conventional capacitor-voltage method cannot be used to accurately measure the barrier height of Si/SiGe/Si quantum well Schottky diodes due to the shrinkage of depletion region.

Varicocoeles could be classified into stop-type and shunt-type. In stop-type varicocoeles, only the internal spermatic (testicular) vein is dilated and needs to be ligated. In shunt-type, both internal spermatic vein and external spermatic (cremasteric) vein are dilated due to incompetence of the cremasteric system and both venous systems require ligation. Two-phase (flow and static) scrotal scintigraphy was performed on 92 patients preoperatively. Forty-three patients in whom the testicular and cremasteric veins could be verified during operation were included in this study. All 43 patients had unilateral varicocoeles and had abnormal blood pooling in the affected spermatic cord and hemiscrotum. In the blood flow study, 22 of 27 shunt-type varicocoeles had abnormal flow in the spermatic cord whereas only one out of 16 stop-type varicocoeles had increased blood flow. No difference in the results of semen analysis was found between the two groups of patients. Two-phase scrotal scintigraphy provides a noninvasive evaluation of shunting of the retrograde venous flow from the internal spermatic to the external spermatic vein. Understanding this pathophysiological change would be of benefit in the decision making about a surgical approach to varicocoeles.