Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) can be used to manage post-stroke spasticity, but a meta-analysis of the recent ...randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) is lacking. Our aim is to perform a meta-analysis of the RCTs that investigated the efficacy of rTMS in patients with post-stroke spasticity. PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases were searched for eligible papers published up to February 2020. The primary outcome was the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), measured as the effect of rTMS compared with controls and after rTMS (using a change score calculated separately in the active and sham treatment groups). Finally, five papers and eight data sets were included. rTMS had no significant benefit on MAS in patients with post-stroke spasticity compared to sham treatment (WMD = − 0.29, 95% CI − 0.58, 0.00;
P
= 0.051). When analyzing the change score in the treatment groups, a significant effect of rTMS was observed (WMD = − 0.27, 95% CI − 0.51, − 0.04;
P
= 0.024). When analyzing the change score in the sham treatment groups, no significant effect of sham treatment was observed, indicating no placebo effect (WMD = 0.32, 95% CI: − 0.40, 1.04;
P
= 0.387). We included the sample size, year of publication, percentage of male patients, and age difference in each study as covariates, and performed a meta-regression. The results showed no association between these variables and the MAS. Compared with sham stimulation, rTMS did not show a significant reduction in MAS for the patients who experienced post-stroke spasticity, but the patients reported a better outcome in MAS on a before-after scenario.
IntroductionGallbladder cancer (GBC), the sixth most common gastrointestinal tract cancer, poses a significant disease burden in China. However, no national representative data are available on the ...clinical characteristics, treatment and prognosis of GBC in the Chinese population.Methods and analysisThe Chinese Research Group of Gallbladder Cancer (CRGGC) study is a multicentre retrospective registry cohort study. Clinically diagnosed patient with GBC will be identified from 1 January 2008 to December, 2019, by reviewing the electronic medical records from 76 tertiary and secondary hospitals across 28 provinces in China. Patients with pathological and radiological diagnoses of malignancy, including cancer in situ, from the gallbladder and cystic duct are eligible, according to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network 2019 guidelines. Patients will be excluded if GBC is the secondary diagnosis in the discharge summary. The demographic characteristics, medical history, physical examination results, surgery information, pathological data, laboratory examination results and radiology reports will be collected in a standardised case report form. By May 2021, approximately 6000 patient with GBC will be included. The clinical follow-up data will be updated until 5 years after the last admission for GBC of each patient. The study aimed (1) to depict the clinical characteristics, including demographics, pathology, treatment and prognosis of patient with GBC in China; (2) to evaluate the adherence to clinical guidelines of GBC and (3) to improve clinical practice for diagnosing and treating GBC and provide references for policy-makers.Ethics and disseminationThe protocol of the CRGGC has been approved by the Committee for Ethics of Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (SHEC-C-2019–085). All results of this study will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at relevant conferences.Trial registration numberNCT04140552, Pre-results.
The flavonoids in Ginkgo biloba L. (ginkgo) have important medicinal uses due to their antioxidant, antitumor, and blood circulation-promoting effects. However, the genetic mechanisms underlying ...flavonoid biosynthesis in ginkgo remain elusive. Flavonoid 3′, 5′-hydroxylase (F3′5′H) is an important enzyme in flavonoid synthesis. We detected a novel differentially expressed GbF3′5′H1 gene homologous to the F3′5′H enzyme involved in the flavonoid synthesis pathway through transcriptome sequencing. In this study, we characterized this gene, performed an expression analysis, and heterologously overexpressed GbF3′5′H1 in Populus. Our results showed that GbF3′5′H1 is abundant in the leaf and highly expressed during April. We also found four metabolites closely related to flavonoid biosynthesis. Importantly, the contents of 4′,5-dihydroxy-7-glucosyloxyflavanone, epicatechin, and gallocatechin were significantly higher in transgenic plants than in nontransgenic plants. Our findings revealed that the GbF3′5′H1 gene functions in the biosynthesis of flavonoid-related metabolites, suggesting that GbF3′5′H1 represents a prime candidate for future studies (e.g., gene-editing) aiming to optimize ginkgo flavonoid production, especially that of flavan-3-ols.
Development of near infrared (NIR) light-responsive nanomaterials for high performance multimodal phototherapy within a single nanoplatform is still challenging in technology and biomedicine. Herein, ...a new phototherapeutic nanoagent based on FDA-approved Prussian blue (PB) functionalized oxygen-deficient molybdenum oxide nanoparticles (MoO3−x NPs) is strategically designed and synthesized by a facile one-pot size/morphology-controlled process. The as-prepared PB-MoO3−x nanocomposites (NCs) with a uniform particle size of ∼90 nm and high water dispersibility exhibited strong optical absorption in the first biological window, which is induced by plasmon resonance in an oxygen-deficient MoO3−x semiconductor. More importantly, PB-MoO3−x NCs not only exhibited a high photothermal conversion efficiency of ∼63.7% and photostability but also offered a further approach for the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) upon singular NIR light irradiation which significantly improved the therapeutic efficiency of the PB agent. Furthermore, PB-MoO3−x NCs showed a negligible cytotoxic effect in the dark, but an excellent therapeutic effect toward two triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cell lines at a low concentration (20 μg mL−1) of NCs and a moderate NIR laser power density. Additionally, efficient tumor ablation and metastasis inhibition in a 4T1 TNBC mouse tumor model can also be realized by synergistic photothermal/photodynamic therapy (PTT/PDT) under a single continuous NIR wave laser. Taken together, this study paved the way for the use of a single nanosystem for multifunctional therapy.
In the United States (US), the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program is the only comprehensive source of population-based information that includes stage of cancer at the time of ...diagnosis and patient survival data. This program aims to provide a database about cancer incidence and survival for studies of surveillance and the development of analytical and methodological tools in the cancer field. Currently, the SEER program covers approximately half of the total cancer patients in the US. A growing number of clinical studies have applied the SEER database in various aspects. However, the intrinsic features of the SEER database, such as the huge data volume and complexity of data types, have hindered its application. In this review, we provided a systematic overview of the commonly used methodologies and study designs for retrospective epidemiological research in order to illustrate the application of the SEER database. Therefore, the goal of this review is to assist researchers in the selection of appropriate methods and study designs for enhancing the robustness and reliability of clinical studies by mining the SEER database.
Highlights • The upregulation of Nectin-4 promotes GBC cell proliferation and metastasis. • Nectin-4 facilitates GBC progression via PI3K/AKT pathway activation of Rac1. • Nectin-4 is potential ...prognostic factor and therapeutic target in GBC.
Ultrathin freestanding bismuth film is theoretically predicted to be one kind of two-dimensional topological insulators. Experimentally, the topological nature of bismuth strongly depends on the ...situations of the Bi films. Film thickness and interaction with the substrate often change the topological properties of Bi films. Using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, scanning tunneling microscopy or spectroscopy and first-principle calculation, the properties of Bi(111) ultrathin film grown on the NbSe2 superconducting substrate have been studied. We find the band structures of the ultrathin film is quasi-freestanding, and one-dimensional edge state exists on Bi(111) film as thin as three bilayers. Superconductivity is also detected on different layers of the film and the pairing potential exhibits an exponential decay with the layer thicknesses. Thus, the topological edge state can coexist with superconductivity, which makes the system a promising platform for exploring Majorana Fermions.
Metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1), a long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), is associated with metastasis and is an independent prognostic factor for lung cancer. Recent studies ...have demonstrated that MALAT1 plays an important role in other malignancies. However, little is known about the role of MALAT1 in gallbladder carcinoma (GBC), which is the most common cancer of the biliary tract and has an extremely poor prognosis. In this study, we focused on the expression, biological functions and mechanism of MALAT1 in GBC and found that MALAT1 was significantly upregulated in GBC tissues compared with corresponding non-cancerous tissues. Knockdown of MALAT1 in GBC cell lines using lentivirus-mediated RNA interference significantly inhibited the proliferation and metastasis of the GBC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, ERK/MAPK pathway was found to be inactivated in the GBC cell lines after MALAT1 knockdown. These results indicated that MALAT1 might serve as an oncogenic lncRNA that promotes proliferation and metastasis of GBC and activates the ERK/MAPK pathway
Auxin response factors (
s) are important transcription factors (TFs) that are differentially expressed in response to various abiotic stresses. The important roles of
s and small RNA-
pathways in ...mediating plant growth and stress responses have emerged in several recent studies. However, no studies on the involvement of
s in tamarisk trees, which are resistant to salinity, have been conducted. In this study, systematic analysis revealed 12
genes belonging to five different groups in
. The microRNA response elements of miR160, which belongs to group I and miR167, which belongs to group III, were conserved in terms of their location and sequence. Moreover, digital gene expression profiles suggested that a potential miR167 target gene,
, was rapidly expressed in response to salt stress. Cloning of
revealed that
could be an activation TF with a glutamine-rich region and expression pattern analysis revealed that the expression of
was significantly downregulated specifically in the roots. A significant negative correlation in the expression pattern of tch-miR167/
indicated that this module may play a key role in the response to salt stress. Overall, these results provide basic information on the posttranscriptional regulation of
for future investigations of the
salt-stress response.
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