To compare prospectively the effects of radiofrequency (RF) ablation after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) with those of RF ablation alone in the treatment of recurrent hepatocellular ...carcinoma (HCC).
This study was approved by the institutional ethics committee, and all patients gave written informed consent. From January 2002 to December 2006, 139 patients with recurrent HCC measuring 5 cm in diameter or smaller were randomized to receive either sequential TACE and RF ablation (sequential treatment group, n=69) or RF ablation alone (RF ablation group, n=70). The survival curves were constructed with the Kaplan-Meier method and compared by using the log-rank test. Bonferroni correction was applied when multiple comparisons were performed. P<.0083 (.05÷6) was considered indicative of a statistically significant difference.
The 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival rates were 94%, 69%, and 46%, respectively, for the sequential treatment group and 82%, 47%, and 36% for the RF ablation group (P=.037). The corresponding recurrence-free survival rates were 80%, 45%, and 40% for the sequential treatment group and 64%, 18%, and 18% for the ablation group (P=.005). At subgroup analyses, the overall survival for the sequential treatment group was better than that for the RF ablation group for patients with tumor recurrence 1 year or less after initial treatment (P=.004) and those with tumors measuring 3.1-5.0 cm (P=.002) but not for those with tumor recurrence more than 1 year after initial treatment (P=.421) and those with tumors 3.0 cm or smaller (P=.478). The recurrence-free survival in the sequential treatment group was better than that in the RF ablation group for patients with tumors measuring 3.1-5.0 cm (P<.001) but not for those with tumors 3.0 cm or smaller (P=.204). For recurrence-free survival, there was no significant difference between the two groups for patients with tumor recurrence 1 year or less or more than 1 year after initial treatment (P=.020 and P=.111, respectively). Logistic regression analysis showed that treatment allocation and the interval between initial treatment and tumor recurrence were significant prognostic factors for overall survival, whereas the interval between initial treatment and tumor recurrence, treatment allocation, and tumor size were significant prognostic factors for recurrence-free survival.
The efficacy of sequential TACE-RF ablation is better than that of RF ablation alone for recurrent HCC.
Pyrosequencing-based analysis was used to characterize and compare bacterial communities in manure samples of piglets (GSPM) and adult pigs (GBPM) bred with green feeds without additives, and piglets ...(ASPM) and adult pigs (ABPM) bred with synthetic feeds containing additives. For each sample, 5,010 effective sequences were selected and utilized to do the bacterial composition analysis, respectively. In total, 1,489, 1,327, 941, and 883 operational taxonomic units were obtained at 5 % distance cutoff in GBPM, GSPM, ABPM, and ASPM, respectively. Bacterial phylotype richness in GBPM was higher than the other samples, and ASPM had the least richness. The most dominant class in the four samples is Bacteroidia. Approximately 41 % sequences in GBPM were affiliated with the Clostridiales order. Campylobacter, Clostridium and Streptococcus genera containing pathogenic bacteria were detected in the four samples. Bacterial diversity and abundance in swine manures varied with piglets, adult pigs, and feeds. In the four samples, higher bacterial diversity but less potentially pathogenic bacterial genera in manures of adult pigs bred with green feeds were found, which indicated that those manures were more suitable for resource utilization. This study also provides evidence for the reasonableness of pig farming with green feeds.
Due to the contamination and biological toxicity of some fragrance compounds, the environmental and ecological problems of such compounds have attracted more and more attention. However, studies of ...the toxicity of fragrance compounds for insects have been limited. The toxicity of 48 fragrance compounds for the silkworm Bombyx mori were investigated in this study. All of the fragrance compounds examined had no acute toxicity for B. mori larvae, but eight of them (menthol, maltol, musk xylene, musk tibeten, dibutyl sulfide, nerolidol, ethyl vanillin, and alpha-amylcinnamaldehyde) exhibited chronic and lethal toxicity with LC.sub.50 values from 20 to 120 microM. In a long-term feeding study, musk tibeten, nerolidol, and musk xylene showed significant growth regulatory activity. They were also extremely harmful to the cocooning of B. mori, resulting in small, thin, and loose cocoons. Two important insect hormones, namely, juvenile hormone (JH) and 20-hydroxyecdysone (20-E), were quantified in hemolymph following chronic exposure to musk tibeten, nerolidol, and musk xylene, respectively. Musk tibeten significantly increased JH titer and decreased the 20-E titer in hemolymph, and musk xylene had a significant inhibitory effect on JH titer and increased 20-E titer. Although nerolidol had no effect on hormone levels, exogenous JH mimic nerolidol increased the physiological effects of JH and significantly slowed the growth rate of B. mori larvae. The results showed that these fragrance compounds could interfere with the insect endocrine system, leading to death and abnormal growth. The risk to insects of residual fragrance compounds in the environment is worthy of attention.
•A vp-MPM is proposed for weakly compressible problems.•A slope limiter is employed to suppress spurious pressure oscillations.•The vp formulation is incorporated into the ICFEMP to suppress pressure ...oscillation.•The vp-MPM has much less extra variables than a Hu-Washizu principle based method.
The weakly compressible material point method (WCMPM) suffers from volumetric-locking and numerical oscillation in modeling fluid flow and fluid-structure interaction problems. In this paper, a v-pformulation of the material point method (vp-MPM) is proposed for weakly compressible problems based on a two-field variational principle. As only the velocity v and the pressure p are the independent variables, the v-p formulation has much less extra variables than those based on the Hu-Washizu multi-field variational principle which takes the velocity, strain and stress as independent variables. The pressure is assumed independently in the control volume of each gird node. Spurious pressure oscillation reduces but still occurs at the interface of discontinuity due to large pressure gradient difference across the interface. Therefore, a slope limiter is employed to suppress the oscillation and the general interpolation functions are used to eliminate the cell-crossing error. In order to extend the method to the fluid-structure interaction problems, the v-p formulation is incorporated into the improved coupled finite element material point method. Several numerical examples are presented to validate the vp-MPM.
Objective
Sleeping habits may greatly impact the prevalence of functional dyspepsia (FD). This study examined relationships between aspects of sleep impairment and FD.
Methods
This prospective study ...included university student volunteers. Following enrolment, FD was diagnosed based on the Rome IV criteria, dividing participants into an FD group or controls. The FD group was further subdivided into long-term (disease course >6 months) and short-term (disease course 3–6 months) FD groups. Participants completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Rome IV Diagnostic Questionnaire for Gastrointestinal Disorders in Adults, and a visual analogue scale (VAS).
Results
Out of 418 participants in total, sleep quality, latency, and duration, habitual sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances, sleep medication use, daytime dysfunction, and PSQI scores were higher in the FD groups versus controls. Components of PSQI scores emerged as risk factors, and were higher in the long-term versus short-term dyspepsia group. Moreover, these components were positively correlated with frequency/severity of postprandial distress syndrome and early satiation. Total PSQI scores were positively correlated with VAS scores.
Conclusion
Several PSQI components are associated with FD occurrence, symptom frequency, and symptom severity.
Three novel MOFs were synthesized as Fenton-like catalysts to degrade Rhodamine B with high efficiency, stability and recyclability.
Display omitted
•Three novel MOFs were synthesized with good ...stability and recyclability as Fenton-like catalysts.•1–3 can photocatalytic degrade Rhodamine B with high efficiency.•The Fenton-like photocatalytic degradation mechanism of 1–3 was explored.
Three novel metal organic frameworks (MOFs) including {Zn3(nip)3(TPPA)3·3 DMF·H2O}n (1), Co(NH2-bdc)(TPPA)(H2O)n (2) and Cd2(NH2-bdc)2(TPPA)2n (3) (TPPA = tri(4-pyridylphenyl)amine, H2-nip = 5-Nitroisophthalic acid, NH2-bdc = 2-Aminoterephthalic acid) were successfully prepared under hydrothermal conditions. X-ray single crystal analyses revealed that MOFs 1–3 possess 3D architecture. Impressively, all of them can function as a highly photocatalyst for degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) dye under low-energy irradiation of a 150 W Xenon lamp. Moreover, the photocatalytic performance is significantly improved after the addition of H2O2, which could be attributed to their high efficiencies in generating OH and O2− radicals. In addition, MOFs 1–3 showed very stable activity in the degradation of RhB, and showed no significant loss of activity after three consecutive uses.
The purpose of this study was to develop a promising burns dressing. Chiosan (CS) has been widely used as biomaterials, in combination with marine peptides (MPs) extracted from seawater cultured ...Tilapia, the newly developed material Chitosan-Marine Peptides hydrogels (CSMP) in this study showed antibacterial activity, pro-cell proliferation and migration, well burning healing. Pathological examinations by HE staining demonstrated that CSMP had pronounced wound healing efficiencies. In burn wounds treated with CSMP, reepithelialization and collagen fiber deposition were observed on day 7, the epithelium was completely regenerated by day 14, and the wounds were completely healed by day 21. Furthermore, CSMP can up-regulate the expression of FGF2 and VEGF. Collectively, these results suggest that CSMP may enhance cell migration and promote the skin regeneration, which demonstrates the potential application of CSMP in burning healing.
The structures of lipids are diverse, and thus, lipids show various biological functions. Systematic determination of lipids in organisms has always been a concern. In this paper, a methodology on ...the matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI MS), with titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO
NPs) as the matrix, was studied for lipid determination. The results showed that the following conditions were preferable in the determination of small-molecule lipids (such as hypoxanthine, guanosine, uridine, and cytidine), lipid standards (such as GC, GM, TG, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine, and ceramide), and mixed lipids (extracted from brain homogenate with methanol alone and with the B&D method): TiO
NPs as the matrix, absolute ethanol as the solvent, 1 mg of TiO
NPs dispersed in 1 mL of absolute ethanol as the matrix solution, NaCl as the ionization reagent, and positive mass spectrometry (MS) as the mode. Modified TiO
NP as a new matrix for MALDI MS will be a future research direction; in addition, the characteristics of TiO
NPs make it a potential matrix for imaging MS.
Objective
To investigate the effect of autophagy expression levels of different weight‐bearing states and different stages of osteoarthritis in animal models, as well as the corresponding mechanisms.
...Methods
We used the male Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats (12‐week‐old, SPF) to establish the OA animal models by modified Hulth method, and grouped animal models according to the length of time after surgery and different weight‐bearing areas. RT‐qPCR was carried out for detection of autophagy‐related genes such as Atg7, Atg12, P62, etc. Western blot analysis was used to detect the expression levels of corresponding autophagy‐related proteins such as LC3B, P62, etc. T test was performed for statistical analysis to compare different groups, while the differences were deemed statistically significant with P < 0.05. Transmission electron microscopy was used to observe the autophagosome to demonstrate the level of autophagy expression and the status of the chondrocytes.
Results
The results of the RT‐qPCR testing showed that when the weight‐bearing cartilage of the 4‐week group (relatively mild) was compared with that of the 10‐week group (relatively severe), there were statistically significant differences in all the genes tested, in detail: Atg3 (P < 0.01), Atg7 (P < 0.01), Atg12 (P < 0.01), P62 (P < 0.0001). The expression of autophagy‐related mRNA in the 4‐week group is increased compared with that of the 10‐week group. As for the expression of proteins, Western blotting showed that in the comparison between the 4‐ and the 10‐week groups, statistically significant results include Atg12 (P < 0.01) in the non‐weight‐bearing area, with decreased autophagy in the 10‐week group compared with that of the 4‐week group, while expression of LC3B (P < 0.05) protein was significantly higher in the 4‐week group than in the control in the non‐weight‐bearing area. The expression of LC3B (P < 0.0001) and P62 (P < 0.05) in the 10‐week group were higher than that of the control. Transmission electron microscope showed that autophagy in the weight‐bearing area is stronger than that in the non‐weight‐bearing area, and autophagy in the 4‐week group is stronger than in the 10‐week group for the weight‐bearing area.
Conclusions
The expression of autophagy varies during different stages of osteoarthritis, in which the autophagy is stronger in the early stage of osteoarthritis, and gradually decreases with the progression of the disease. Autophagy in different weight‐bearing areas may also be different.
The state of the cells in the weight‐bearing area was not as good as in the non‐weight‐bearing area, with abnormal cell shape, nuclear shrinkage, more lipid vacuoles, and more autophagosomes. The autophagosomes in the non‐weight‐bearing area were only occasionally seen or not found in the field of vision. The number of autophagosomes in chondrocytes in the weight‐bearing zone at 4 weeks postoperative was more than at 10 weeks postoperative. Therefore, the autophagy in the weight‐bearing zone was stronger than that in the non‐weight‐bearing zone. The autophagy level in the 4‐week weight‐bearing area was stronger than that in the 10‐week weight‐bearing area, but the non‐weight‐bearing area was similar to that in the 10‐week group, and the difference could not be identified by the naked eye. Autophagy in the weight‐bearing area is stronger than that in the non‐weight‐bearing area, and autophagy in the 4‐week group is stronger than in the 10‐week group for the weight‐bearing area. Yet autophage of chondercyte from the non‐weight‐bearing area of 4‐week models is similar to 10‐week ones, which can be hardly distinguished.
Background
Induction chemotherapy (IC) comprising docetaxel, cisplatin, and fluorouracil (TPF), combined with concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) effectively improves the survival rate of locally ...advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA‐NPC). Selecting patients whose risk of tumor recurrence and metastasis is high and the appropriate chemotherapy intensity is a concern. We combined tumor‐node‐metastasis staging with the load of Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) after IC to select the individualized chemotherapy strength.
Methods
The clinical data and prognostic factors of patients with stage III–IV LA‐NPC treated with TPF IC combined with CCRT were analyzed retrospectively. The conventional treatment group received the standard three cycles TPF IC combined with CCRT. For the new treatment group, the cycles of IC were determined according to whether the EBV‐DNA disappeared completely after a certain course of IC, if so, subsequent IC was stopped and the chemoradiotherapy stage was entered. Propensity score matching (PSM) was performed at a ratio of 1:1 to balance baseline characteristics. Survival outcomes and adverse events between the conventional treatment group and the new method treatment group were compared.
Results
The study included 256 patients, among whom 192 were matched successfully into 96 pairs. The patients were followed up for a median of 51 months. The proportions of patients receiving three, two, and one cycle of IC after PSM in the routine and new treatment cohorts were 93.8%, 3.1%, 3.1% versus 21.9%, 49.0%, 24.0%, respectively. However, their 3‐year distant metastasis‐free survival, local recurrence‐free survival, progression‐free survival, and overall survival did not differ significantly. The incidence of grade 3–4 neutropenia toxicity in CCRT decreased significantly in patients receiving the new treatment method compared with that in the conventional treatment group (p = 0.026).
Conclusion
Combining TNM stage and EBV‐DNA load after IC to determine the courses of IC in patients with LA‐NPC did not alter the curative effect but decreased toxicity.
The cycles of induction chemotherapy IC were determined according to whether the EBV‐DNA disappeared completely after a certain course of IC. In the new method group, the cycles of induction chemotherapy were reduced by 28%, and the serious neutropenia toxicity was decreased by 10% during concurrent chemoradiotherapy, comparted with the routine strategy. However, their 3‐year distant metastasis free survival, local recurrence free survival, progression free survival, and overall survival did not differ significantly.
PDF
