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OBJECTIVE: The clinical work of ICU doctors is characterized by high intensity and medical risks, which lead to a highly stressful state for a long time and the occurrence of resignation due to long-term burnout. This study analyzes the correlation between the personal life, hospital work, social opinion, and psychological assessment of ICU physicians and their resignation intention. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This study is a multicenter questionnaire on the factors influencing resignation intention among ICU physicians. The study was completed through Critical Care E Institute (CCEI) and China Calm Therapy Research Group Academic Organization (CNCSG) by contacting critical care physicians in 3-A hospitals in 34 provinces in China. The questionnaire was in electronic format, and the results were filled in using the WeChat scan code. The survey included 22 indicators which included basic information about physicians (including gender, marriage, children, and income, etc.), hospital work (weekly working hours, on night duty, hospital environment, the evaluation of hospital’s emphasis on medical staff, etc.), and SCL-90 psychological assessment. RESULTS: A total of 1,749 ICU physicians completed the questionnaire. The results showed that 1,208 physicians (69.1%) intended to resign. There were statistical differences between the group’s resignation intention and without resignation intention on 13 indicators. These indicators include professional title, night shift every few days, hospital hours/week, income satisfaction, work environment satisfaction, career prospect, and SCL-90 score, etc. (all p<0.05, respectively). The remaining nine indicators were not statistically different between the two groups (all p>0.05, respectively). Logistics analysis showed that working years, hospital hours (h/week), income satisfaction, work environment satisfaction, pride in hospital work, career prospects, and total SCL-90 score were all independent influences on physicians’ choice of resignation intention (all p<0.05, respectively). The ROC curves’ results showed that all seven indicators’ predictive diagnostic value was low, with AUC areas ranging from 0.567 to 0.660. However, the combined diagnostic model of seven indicators has moderate diagnostic value. The AUC area of the model was 0.740 (95% CI: 0.718-0.760), with a sensitivity of 75.99% and specificity of 60.07%. CONCLUSIONS: Physicians’ income, working years, work environment satisfaction, career prospects, and psychological well-being can influence the choice of physicians’ resignation intention in Chinese intensive care units. Government administration and hospitals can develop appropriate policies to enhance doctors working in hospital, thus reducing physicians’ resignation choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) is the main cause of death from ischemic heart diseases. Stanniocalcin 1 (STC1) has a potential therapeutic effect on MIRI. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of STC1 on inflammation and apoptosis of myocardium in MIRI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used rats to make ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) models and determined the efficiency of modeling by 2, 3, 5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining, echocardiography, and lactate dehydrogenase detection. We injected subcutaneously recombinant human STC1 (2.5 µg/kg, 5 µg/kg) into rats daily one week before modeling to detect the effect of STC1 pretreatment on inflammation and apoptosis of rat myocardial cells. In addition, we cultured rat myocardial cell lines (H9c2 cells) to investigate the effect of STC1 on myocardial cells. RESULTS: The cardiac function and structure of I/R rats were obviously destroyed. After treating rats with STC1, we found that the cardiac function and structure of the rats were significantly improved. In addition, STC1 reduced the expression of inflammatory factors and apoptosis levels in rat myocardium. Stimulation of STC1 also improved the viability of H9c2 cells in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, S TC1 can a lleviate MIRI by inhibiting inflammation and apoptosis. It indicated that STC1 may have a potential therapeutic effect on MIRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resistance test is a classical method used to study ship performance. In this study, the uncertainty of large-scale ship model resistance test in actual seas is analyzed. Considering the difference between these trials and traditional test in towing tanks, this study first uses the ITTC 2014 procedure based on GUM to calculate the systematic error in the test. The parameters that affect the test accuracy are also estimated. Then, the program based on the Monte Carlo method is verified, and the differences between the two methods are compared. In this study, the uncertainty sources in the test are quantitatively analyzed, and the results will be helpful for improving the ship model test scheme in actual seas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To explore the curative effects of vancomycin and cefotaxime combined with gamma globulin respectively in neonatal septicemia and their influences on PCT, CRP, and hs-CRP, so as to provide references for clinical treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 181 patients with neonatal septicemia admitted to Huangshi Maternity and Child Health Hospital from April 2012 to August 2014 were selected as the study subjects. Patients treated with vancomycin combined with gamma globulin were selected as group A (96 cases) and those treated with cefotaxime combined with gamma globulin were selected as group B (85 cases). The improvement time of clinical symptoms (milk rejection, nervous system symptoms, body temperature), hospital stays, mortality, medicine curative effects, adverse reactions, complications, and levels of serum CRP, PCT, and hs-CRP of patients before and after treatment were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The improvement time of clinical symptoms like body temperature, milk rejection, and neurological symptoms, as well as hospital stays in group A were lower than those in group B (p<0.05); the total effective rate of medicine curative effects in group B was better than that in group A (p<0.05); there was no significant difference in levels of serum CRP, PCT, and hs- CRP between the two groups before treatment (p>0.05); after treatment, levels of serum CRP, PCT, and hs-CRP in both groups decreased significantly, and levels of serum CRP, PCT, and hs-CRP in group B decreased more significantly than those in group A (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Cefotaxime combined with gamma globulin in the treatment of patients with neonatal septicemia has short improvement time in clinical symptoms, high total effective rate of drugs, low mortality, fewer adverse reactions and complications, and can significantly reduce levels of serum CRP, PCT, and hs- CRP, which is worthy of further promotion and application in clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: This clinical study aimed to explore the expression of miR-195-5p and Yes-associated protein (YAP) in gastric cancer (GC) and their relevant apoptosis mechanism. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Thirty GC patients treated in our hospital were enrolled as a patient group and 30 normal people who underwent physical examination during the same period were enrolled as a normal group. The purchased GC cells and human gastric mucous membrane cells were used to transfect miR-195-5p-mimics, miR-NC, si-YAP, and si-RNA into MKN45 and SGC7901 cells. qRT-PCR was used to detect the expression of miR-195-5p and YAP in samples, and WB was used to detect the expression of YAP, Caspase-3, Caspase-9, β-catenin, c-myc, and cyclin Dl. CCK-8, the transwell, and the flow cytometry were used to detect cell proliferation, invasion, and apoptosis. The dual fluorescent enzyme reporter was used to determine the relationship between miR-195-5p and YAP. RESULTS: MiR-195-5p was lowly expressed in the tissues and serum of patients, but YAP was highly expressed, and the area under the miR-195-5p and YAP curves was more than 0.9. MiR-195-5p and YAP were associated with tumor diameter, TNM stage, lymph node metastasis, and differentiation in GC patients. The overexpression of miR-195-5p and the inhibition of YAP expression can inhibit cell proliferation and invasion and promote apoptosis. WB assay showed that the overexpression of miR-195-5p and the inhibition of YAP could inhibit the expression of β-catenin, c-myc, and cyclin D1 protein and promote the expression of Caspase-3, Caspase-9 protein. The dual fluorescent enzyme reporter revealed that there was a targeting relationship between miR-195-5p and YAP. CONCLUSIONS: The overexpression of miR-195-5p can inhibit YAP-mediated Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and promote cell apoptosis, so it may be a potential therapeutic target for GC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate expressions of lncRNA FOXCUT in gastric adenocarcinoma patients and its effects on the cell biological function. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Expressions and survival of lncRNA FOXCUT in gastric adenocarcinoma patients (GA) in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database were collected. Fifty patients with GA treated in our hospital (patient group) and another 50 contemporaneous normal people (normal group) were collected. Expressions of lncRNA FOXCUT in GES1, SNU-5, HGC-27, SGC-7901, and AGS cells were detected. Also, si-lncRNA FOXCUT and si-NC sequences were transfected to SGC-7901. Si-RNA and si-NC groups were constructed in AGS cells. QRT-PCR was used to detect expressions of lncRNA FOXCUT in samples. MTT, transwell, and flow cytometry were used to detect the proliferation, invasion, and apoptosis of transfected cells. Patients were followed up for 5 years to observe their survival. RESULTS: Expressions of lncRNA FOXCUT in cancer tissues of GA patients in TCGA database were significantly increased (p<0.001). The survival rate of patients with low expressions of lncRNA FOXCUT was significantly increased (p=0.017, p=0.047). LncRNA FOXCUT is closely related to patients' tumor diameter, lymph node metastasis, TNM staging, and differentiation degree (p<0.05). LncRNA FOXCUT has high clinical value in disease diagnosis. Multivariate Cox regression analysis found that tumor diameter, lymph node metastasis, and lncRNA FOXCUT were independent prognostic factors. Compared with GES1, expressions of lncRNA FOXCUT in GA cells increased significantly (p<0.05), the proliferation and invasion ability of si-RNA group decreased significantly (p<0.05) compared with si-NC group, and the apoptosis rate of si-RNA group was significantly lower than that of si-NC group (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: We showed that the inhibition of the expressions of lncRNA FOXCUT can reduce the proliferation and invasion of GA cells and increase apoptosis, which can be used as a potential therapeutic target for GA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the correlation between endometrial receptivity with expressions of interleukin-1 (IL-1) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in rats with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 24 female Sprague-Dawley (SD) 21 days old were randomly divided into control group (n=12) and PCOS group (n=12). Rats in the control group were normally raised, and PCOS model was established in rats of the PCOS group. All the rats were sacrificed when they grew to 80 days old. Immunohistochemistry was applied to detect the expressions of IL-1 and VEGF. Western blotting was performed to measure the relative expressions of IL-1 and VEGF proteins. Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) was utilized to determine the relative messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) expressions of IL-1 and VEGF. Data related to endometrial receptivity were detected. RESULTS: The expression levels of IL-1 and VEGF in the PCOS group declined markedly compared with those in the control group, and the differences were statistically significant (p<0.05). PCOS group had notably lower protein expressions of IL-1 and VEGF than the control group, with statistically significant differences (p<0.05). The mRNA expressions of IL-1 and VEGF in PCOS group were significantly lower than those in the control group, displaying statistically significant differences (p<0.05). Compared with that in the control group, the endometrial receptivity of rats in the PCOS group was reduced evidently, and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.05). Both IL-1 and VEGF had positive correlations with the endometrial receptivity. CONCLUSIONS: Both IL-1 and VEGF are positively correlated with the endometrial receptivity in the case of PCOS, which can serve as therapeutic targets for PCOS and improve endometrial receptivity in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) remains a leading health threat worldwide due to its high mortality. MicroRNA (miR- 30c) is an important tumor suppressor in various cancers. B cell lymphoma 9 (BCL9) is one of the candidate genes for cancers. The synergistic effects of miR-30c and BCL9 in CRC progression remain to be carefully elucidated. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty pairs of CRC samples and matched adjacent non-tumor tissues were collected from Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital between 2015 and 2017. MiR-30c and BCL9 expression levels were measured by quantitative Real- time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) in CRC tissues and cell lines. The 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol- 2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was performed to determine the influence of miR-30c on the proliferation ability of CRC cells. Target Scan was used to predict the potential target of miR-30c. Then, luciferase assay was performed to confirm the prediction. In addition, we also investigated the biological influence of BCL9 on miR-30c-mediated functions in CRC. RESULTS: We found that miR-30c was significantly decreased in CRC tissues and cell lines while the BCL9 expression level was prominently increased in CRC tissues and cells. Additionally, the miR-30c expression was negatively correlated with BCL9 expressions in CRC tissues. Furthermore, the findings of this study also showed that BCL9 was a direct target of miR-30c in CRC and miR-30c could inhibit the CRC proliferation by binding to its 3'-UTR. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that miR- 30c overexpression inhibited CRC proliferation via the regulation of BCL9, suggesting that miR- 30c may be a new molecular therapeutic target for CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Micro ribonucleic acids (miRNAs) and Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway play key roles in the proliferation, migration and invasion of tumor cells. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of miR- 132 and Hh signaling pathway in the proliferation and apoptosis of pancreatic cancer cells, and to investigate the possible underlying mechanism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The expressions of miR-132 and Shh (a ligand of Hh) in clinical pancreatic cancer specimens and pancreatic cancer cell lines were determined by qRTPCR. Meanwhile, the correlation between the two molecules was analyzed. Pancreatic cancer cell line (MiaPaCe-2a) was transfected with miR- 132 mimics and inhibitor. The effects of miR-132 up- and down-regulation on the expressions of miR-132, Shh, Cyclin-D1, cleaved Caspase-3 and cleaved Caspase-9 were detected. In addition, the exact role of miR-132 in the proliferation, apoptosis and distribution of MiaPaCe-2a cells were investigated. RESULTS: The expression level of miR-132 in pancreatic cancer specimens and pancreatic cancer cell lines was significantly elevated when compared with that of control group. Meanwhile, miR-132 expression was negatively correlated with the expression level of Shh. Moreover, transfection with miR-132 mimics evidently up-regulated miR-132 expression. Moreover, miR-132 up-regulation significantly decreased the mRNA and protein expressions of Shh, facilitated the proliferation of MiaPaCe-2a cells, reduced the protein expressions of Cyclin-D1, cleaved Caspase-3 and cleaved Caspase-9, and suppressed cell apoptosis. On the contrary, miR-132 inhibitor transfection significantly inhibited the proliferative activity of MiaPaCe-2a cells, decreased the proportion of cells in G1 phase, and increased the proportion of cells in G2/M phase. CONCLUSIONS: MiR-132 promotes proliferation and inhibits apoptosis of pancreatic cancer cells through Hh signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the role of integrin-linked kinase (ILK) in invasion and metastasis of the laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas (LSCC) and to evaluate the effects of antisense oligonucleotide sequence (ASONs) targeting the ILK gene on the proliferation, epithelial- mesenchymal transition (EMT), migration and invasion of LSCC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 116 patients who had previously undergone complete resection of the tumor for LSCC were studied retrospectively. The ILK expression level in tumor tissues and adjacent normal tissues were determined by immunohistochemistry. The changes of ILK expression from each group were assessed and correlated to the clinical parameters of the patients. Secondly, ILK antisense oligonucleotide (ILK-ASONS) was used to silence the ILK gene of LSCC cell from Hep-2 cell line. The expression of ILK, epithelial marker E-cadherin and mesenchymal marker Vimentin were evaluated by Western blotting. The proliferation of cells after transfection was measured by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol- 2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT). The apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry. The migration and invasion activity of Hep-2 cells was detected by Matrigel invasion and cell migration assays. RESULTS: The expression of the ILK protein was significantly associated with tumor differentiation (p=0.046), lymph node metastasis (p=0.020) and pTNM stage (p=0.019). ILK ASONS-transfected cells showed a significant decrease in cell proliferation, cell migration and invasive activity compared to mock-transfected cells. ILK ASONS-transfected cells increased the expression of E-cadherin, whereas the expression of ILK and Vimentin decreased, compared with mock-transfected cells. CONCLUSIONS: The expression of ILK was significantly correlated with differentiation and metastasis of the laryngeal carcinomas. The inhibition of the ILK gene could downregulate the proliferation, migration and invasion of Hep-2 cells. These findings suggest that the ILK gene could be a potential target for the treatment of laryngeal cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), we aimed to explore the association between Egl nine homolog 1 (EGLN1/PHD2) expression and survival outcomes in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC), respectively. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted based on the level-3 data in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)-LUAD and TCGA-LUSC and data from the Human Protein Atlas (HPA). RESULTS: Both LUAD and LUSC had elevated PHD2 expression compared to their respective adjacent normal tissues. However, Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that the high PHD2 expression LUAD patients had a significantly shorter overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) (p=0.001 and p<0.001) compared to the low expression group. However, these differences were not observed in LUSC patients. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that high PHD2 expression was an independent indicator of unfavorable OS (HR: 1.685, 95%CI: 1.251-2.269, p=0.001) and unfavorable RFS (HR: 2.008, 95%CI: 1.430-2.818, p<0.001) in LUAD patients. The methylation status of two CpG sites (cg07040244 and cg21875980) in PHD2 was at least moderately and negatively correlated with PHD2 expression. High methylation level of these two CpG sites was associated with better OS in LUAD patients. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated PHD2 expression might only serve as a valuable biomarker of poor prognosis in LUAD, but no in LUSC. Cg07040244 and cg21875980 might be two CpG sites modulating PHD2 expression in LUAD.OBJECTIVE: Using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), we aimed to explore the association between Egl nine homolog 1 (EGLN1/PHD2) expression and survival outcomes in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC), respectively. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted based on the level-3 data in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)-LUAD and TCGA-LUSC and data from the Human Protein Atlas (HPA). RESULTS: Both LUAD and LUSC had elevated PHD2 expression compared to their respective adjacent normal tissues. However, Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that the high PHD2 expression LUAD patients had a significantly shorter overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) (p=0.001 and p<0.001) compared to the low expression group. However, these differences were not observed in LUSC patients. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that high PHD2 expression was an independent indicator of unfavorable OS (HR: 1.685, 95%CI: 1.251-2.269, p=0.001) and unfavorable RFS (HR: 2.008, 95%CI: 1.430-2.818, p<0.001) in LUAD patients. The methylation status of two CpG sites (cg07040244 and cg21875980) in PHD2 was at least moderately and negatively correlated with PHD2 expression. High methylation level of these two CpG sites was associated with better OS in LUAD patients. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated PHD2 expression might only serve as a valuable biomarker of poor prognosis in LUAD, but no in LUSC. Cg07040244 and cg21875980 might be two CpG sites modulating PHD2 expression in LUAD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Bladder cancer is the most prevalent genitourinary malignant disorder worldwide. We aimed to observe effects of high-glucose on bladder cancer proliferation and explore the associated mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Human bladder cancer cell line, T24, was divided into Blank, Control (Ctrl), 10 mmol/l, 20 mmol/l and 30 mmol/l group. T24 cell proliferation was evaluated by using multiple table tournament (MTT) assay and colony formation analysis, respectively. Quantitative Real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) assay was employed to examine mRNA expression of Wnt-5a and β-catenin. Meanwhile, Western blot assay was used to evaluate expression of Wnt-5a and β-catenin protein. The linear regression analysis was utilized to analyze correlation between Wnt-5a/β-catenin expression and T24 cell proliferation. RESULTS: High-glucose significantly enhanced proliferation of T24 cells compared to that of Blank and Ctrl group (p < 0.05). High-glucose significantly promoted colony formation of T24 cells compared to that of Blank and Ctrl group (p < 0.05). High-glucose significantly up-regulated Wnt-5a mRNA and protein expression compared to that of Blank and Ctrl group (p < 0.01). High-glucose significantly increased β-catenin mRNA and protein expression compared to that of Blank and Ctrl group (p < 0.01). Effects of high-glucose on T24 cell proliferation were increased following with the enhanced glucose concentration. Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway molecules were correlated with colony formation of T24 cells (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: High-glucose promoted the proliferation of T24 cells by activating the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. This study would provide the novel targets for bladder cancer therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To elucidate the role of microRNA-31 (miR-31) in osteosarcoma and the molecular mechanism of miR-31 in the proliferation, migration, and invasion of osteosarcoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Real Time-quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR) was used to examine the expression of microRNA- 31 in human osteosarcoma tissues. Pearson's chi-squared test was used to analyze the correlation between microRNA-31 and clinicopathological features. Proliferation, migration, invasion, and PI3K3C2A protein in treated osteosarcoma cells were detected by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, transwell assay without Matrigel, transwell assay with Matrigel, and Western blot analysis, respectively. RESULTS: qRT-PCR showed that miR-31 was down-regulated in osteosarcoma tissues compared with paired para-tumor bone tissues. The lower level of miR-31 was closely associated with high-grade osteosarcoma, metastasis, and poor overall survival. CCK-8 and transwell assay showed that miR-31 inhibited osteosarcoma cells proliferation, migration, and invasion. According to luciferase assay, miR-31 inhibits osteosarcoma cell proliferation, migration, and invasion through inhibiting PIK3C2A. Reversely, overexpression of PIK3C2A inhibited partial effect of miR-31 on proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: MiR-31 inhibits osteosarcoma cell proliferation, migration, and invasion by targeting PICK3C2A. MiR-31 can thus be used as a therapeutic target in osteosarcoma treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed at exploring and contrasting the clinical significances and values of MRI, CT and contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in FIGO staging of cervical carcinoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The contrast-enhanced ultrasonography, CT and MRI imaging data of 348 patients with cervical carcinoma confirmed by clinical pathology were analyzed retrospectively and contrasted with pathological findings. RESULTS: The total accuracy of MRI in cervical carcinoma staging was 79.89% (278/348), and the diagnostic accuracy of MRI in stage IB, stage II, stage III and stage IV of cervical carcinoma was 74.29% (26/35), 75.74% (153/202), 85.25% (52/61), 94.00% (47/50), respectively. The total accuracy of CT in cervical carcinoma staging was 73.28% (255/348), and the diagnostic accuracy of CT in stage IB, stage II, stage III and stage IV of cervical carcinoma was 60.00% (21/35), 69.80% (141/202), 78.69% (48/61), 94.00% (45/50), respectively. The total accuracy of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in cervical carcinoma staging was 57.47% (200/348), and the diagnostic accuracy of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in stage IB, stage II, stage III and stage IV of cervical carcinoma was 37.14% (13/35), 50.99% (103/202), 70.49% (43/61), 82.00% (41/50), respectively. The accuracy of MRI in the diagnosis of stage IB, stage II of cervical carcinoma was higher than that of CT and contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (p<0.05), and the diagnostic accuracy of CT was higher than that of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (p<0.05). The differences among the three methods were statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: According to the results of pathological sections, there were statistically significant differences among the sensitivity and specificity of MRI, CT and contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in the diagnosis of stage IB and stage II (p<0.05). MRI has high diagnostic values in the differentiation and diagnosis of cervical carcinoma staging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing concern to design intelligent controllers for autopiloting unmanned surface vehicles as solution for many naval and civilian requirements. Traditional autopilot's performance declines due to the uncertainties in hydrodynamics as a result of harsh sailing conditions and sea states. This paper reports the design of a novel nonlinear model predictive controller (NMPC) based on convolutional neural network (CNN) and ant colony optimizer (ACO) which is superior to a linear proportional integral-derivative counterpart. This combination helps the control system to deal with model uncertainties with robustness. The results of simulation and experiment demonstrate the proposed method is more efficient and more capable to guide the vehicle through LOS waypoints particularly in the presence of large disturbances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect and clinical significance of long non-coding RNA 00673 (lncRNA00673) in the occurrence and development of colorectal cancer (CRC) through the research on the expression level, biological effect and clinical significance of lncRNA00673 in CRC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The relative expression of lncRNA00673 in 71 pairs of CRC tissues and cells was detected by quantitative Real- time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The correlation of the relative expression of lncRNA00673 with the clinicopathological features of CRC patients was analyzed. The lncRNA00673 interference sequence was designed and synthesized, and its transfection efficiency was detected by qRT-PCR assays. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol- 2-yl)-2,5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and clone formation experiments were performed to investigate the effect of lncRNA00673 on the proliferation ability of CRC cells. RESULTS: In CRC tissues of 71 patients, there were 51 patients whose lncRNA00673 level was up-regulated compared with that of cancer-adjacent tissues. The highly expressed lncRNA00673 was positively correlated with tumor, node and metastasis (TNM) staging, regional lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis and tumor size in CRC patients. Cox proportional-hazards regression model showed that the highly expressed lncRNA00673 was an independent risk factor for the overall survival of CRC patients. Kaplan-Meier curve analysis showed that highly expressed lncRNA00673 was significantly associated with the relatively lower overall survival (OS). MTT and clone formation experiments showed that knockdown of lncRNA0673 could inhibit the proliferation of CRC cells. CONCLUSIONS: The expression level of lncRNA00673 is up-regulated in CRC tissues and cells, which is related to the degree of malignancy and poor prognosis. LncRNA00673 can be used as a potential molecular marker for the prognosis of CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this project was to study the imaging characteristics of multi-detector CT (MDCT) in different types of malignant tumor in the common bile duct ampulla. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We examined 30 cases of pancreatic head cancer, 35 of terminal cholangiocarcinoma, 26 of ampullary carcinoma, and 40 of benign lesions, all confirmed by pathology. We used 64-slice spiral CT plain scan and multi-phase enhanced scan with multi-planar reconstruction (MPR) and curved planar reconstruction (CPR) post-processing to obtain three-dimensional images. From these images, we analyzed intrahepatic and extrahepatic bile ducts, gallbladder and common bile duct dilation, and morphology and enhancement pattern of lesions and surrounding tissue. RESULTS: The dilatation rate of intrahepatic, extrahepatic bile duct and gallbladder in terminal cholangiocarcinoma was the highest. The double duct sign was most evident in pancreatic head cancer. Ampullary carcinoma fell in between, and the benign lesions had no intrahepatic or extrahepatic bile duct and pancreatic duct dilation. Pancreatic cancer had a larger diameter, a higher internal rate of necrosis, and the surrounding tissues had a higher vulnerability to invasion. Terminal cholangiocarcinoma had a smaller diameter and a thicker wall. Benign lesions showed isodensity and hyperdensity shadow in the lumen, but no other significant changes were observed. Pancreatic head carcinoma had lower enhancement degree than normal pancreatic tissue, no enhancement in the internal necrotic area, and the borderline was unclear. Thickened ductal wall of the terminal cholangiocarcinoma showed equal density, enhancement and commonly delayed enhancement. The enhancement degree was higher than in the cancer of the pancreatic head and slightly lower than in ampullary cancer. Ampullary cancer had a regular margin and a significant enhancement, with enhancement degree higher than in pancreatic cancer and lower than in common bile duct cancer. Arterial and venous phases showed enhancement, but benign lesions did not show enhancement. CONCLUSIONS: MDCT imaging and post-processing techniques have significant application in the diagnosis of benign and malignant lesions, as well as a malignant tumor of the common bile duct ampulla. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: We assessed the efficacy and safety of duloxetine (60 mg, once daily), compared with placebo, during a 13-week treatment period in Chinese patients with chronic pain due to osteoarthritis (OA).Design: Patients were at least 40 years old (male or female) who met American College of Rheumatology clinical and radiographic criteria for the diagnosis of OA of the knee or hip. The primary efficacy measure in this phase 3, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was assessment of pain severity by the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) 24-h Average Pain rating. The clinical trial was conducted at 17 study centers. Statistical approaches included mixed-effects model repeated measures and analysis of covariance. A Fisher exact test was applied to categorical variables.Results: Of 407 patients randomized (duloxetine: N = 205; placebo: N = 202), 166 (81.0%) patients from the duloxetine group and 176 (87.1%) patients from the placebo group completed the 13-week treatment phase. The majority (76.4%) of patients was female; mean age was 60.5 years. Duloxetine-treated patients reported significant pain reduction, compared with placebo treatment, on the BPI 24-h Average Pain rating (least-squares mean (LS Mean) change from baseline to endpoint [95% confidence interval (CI)], duloxetine: -2.23; placebo: -1.73; difference = -0.50 [-0.80, -0.20]; P = 0.001). The incidence of discontinuations due to adverse events was 9.0% in duloxetine-treated patients and 4.5% in placebo-treated patients (P = 0.109).Conclusions: This study demonstrated the efficacy of duloxetine in Chinese patients with chronic pain due to OA. The safety profile of duloxetine observed in this study was consistent with that in previous duloxetine trials. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01931475). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The field-emission (FE) characteristics of 200 nm-thick Si-doped AlN films with different concentration of Si-dopant is investigated. It is found that the AlN film with lower concentration of Si-dopant has a smaller turn-on voltage, larger maximum current density and more stable FE current. Accompanying with atomic force surface micro-images, it is suggested that the stable current is attributed to a uniform surface, which is related a uniform local field enhancement factors and thus a stable FE current without discontinuous fluctuations. Furthermore, the analysis of scanning electron microscopy indicates that a smaller turn-on voltage and larger maximum current density may result from the electron transport channel of V-defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the role of TGF-β1 in autophagy and invasion ability in human gastric carcinoma cell line SGC7901. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cultured SGC7901 cells were treated with different concentrations of TGF-β1 for 24 h. The protein expression levels of autophagy relative marker LC3 and Beclin1 were detected by Western blot. The effect of TGF-β1 on invasion ability of SGC7901 cells was detected with transwell method. RESULTS: The results demonstrated that TGF-β1 was able to induced autophagy of SGC7901 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Autophagy inhibitor 3-MA could inhibit TGF-β1 upregulated autophagy. Furthermore, TGF-β1 significantly enhances the invasion ability of SGC7901 cells. However, autophagy inhibitor 3-MA could effectively reverse this process. CONCLUSIONS: TGF-β1 enhances SGC7901 cells migration by inducing autophagy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]