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Background: Chronic pruritus (CP) is a poorly characterized condition associated with intense pruritus without a primary skin eruption. This condition tends to emerge more commonly in older adults, and there is limited research on triggering factors. Objective: To explore the clinical characteristics and pathophysiology of CP following exposure to an immune stimulus. Methods: Clinical characteristics and plasma samples were collected from 15 patients who developed CP following an immune stimulus such as checkpoint inhibitors or vaccination. A multiplex panel was used to analyze plasma cytokine concentrations within these patients. Results: Most immunotherapy-treated patients experienced CP during treatment or after 21 to 60 days of receiving treatment, while vaccine-stimulated patients developed pruritus within a week of vaccination. Plasma cytokine analysis revealed elevated levels of 12 cytokines in patients with immune-stimulated CP compared to healthy controls. Notably, T helper 2 (Th2) related cytokines interleukin (IL)-5 (fold change 2.65; q

With a significant increase in the obesity epidemic in China, addressing adolescent obesity should be highlighted as a priority. The current qualitative study aims to explore the perspectives of key stakeholders regarding adolescent obesity, providing guidance for developing effective obesity interventions for Chinese adolescents. A total of 12 focus group discussions were convened with a range of representative stakeholders including adolescents (n = 37), parents (n = 28), and school staff (n = 21) from sample schools. Semi-structured topic guides were used for data collection. All data were transcribed verbatim and analyzed thematically. From multiple stakeholder perspectives, we finally identified 3 overarching themes ( Understanding adolescent obesity, Key healthy lifestyles, and Barriers to obesity prevention practices ) and 8 sub-themes. While participants had mixed perceptions of status and prevalence of adolescent obesity, all acknowledged the serious health consequences associated with it. As significant modifiable risk factors, unhealthy diet and physical activity were identified to be prevalent among Chinese teenagers and lead to excessive weight gain. However, a variety of individual, environmental and sociocultural factors hindered the implementation of healthy lifestyles, affecting adolescent obesity prevention and control. Given adolescent obesity is a complex, multifactorial and multilevel public issue, comprehensive lifestyle interventions are recommended that synergistically engage multiple stakeholders across key communities to fight the ongoing obesity epidemic.

Background Gastric cancer (GC) is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of GC metastasis is crucial for improving patient survival outcomes. Methods RNA sequencing and analysis were performed on tissue samples from primary and lymph node metastatic lesions of gastric cancer. Differential gene analysis and functional pathway analysis were conducted. Immune infiltrating environment and protein expression levels were evaluated using immunohistochemistry. Cell experiments were conducted to investigate the role of CCL21 in GC metastasis. Results ACTG2, CNN1, DES, MUC6, and PGC were significantly upregulated in primary tumor cells, while CCL21, MS4A1, CR2, CLDN11, and FDCSP were significantly upregulated in metastatic tumor cells. Functional pathway analysis revealed enrichment in pathways related to immune response. CLDN11 and CCL21 were found to play important roles in promoting gastric cancer metastasis. Cell experiments confirmed the role of CCL21 in promoting GC cell growth and metastasis. CCL21 is highly expressed in GC tissues and binds to CCR7, leading to upregulation of CLDN11. This results in GC-lymph node metastasis and abnormal activation of immune cells (B cells and CD4 + T cells). Conclusion Inhibition of CCL21 and CLDN11 proteins may be a promising strategy for treating GC and preventing lymph node metastasis. These findings provide specific molecular markers for early lymph node metastases of GC, which can aid in developing treatment strategies and predicting patient prognosis.

Background:. Global facial rejuvenation using injectables (neuromodulators and fillers) has reported patient satisfaction after 2 treatments: an initial and touch-up treatment at 2–4 weeks afterward. In practice, patients typically receive only 1 treatment and do not return for a touch-up treatment within a month. Objective:. The purpose of this study was to assess patient-reported satisfaction after only 1 treatment, thus mimicking real-world scenarios. Methods:. Patients with facial photoaging (Glogau facial aging scale ≥2) were treated with calcium hydroxyapatite, hyaluronic acid 22.5 mg/mL, and incobotulinumtoxinA injections for full facial rejuvenation, with no touch-up treatments. Patients completed the FACE-Q Satisfaction with Facial Appearance survey at baseline and 1- and 3-month post-treatment. The treating physician completed the Global Aesthetic Improvement Scale at 1- and 3-month post-treatment. Results:. Twenty-two patients were enrolled in the study, with 1 patient lost to follow-up. There was a significant improvement in mean FACE-Q scores at 1-month (80.1, P = .01) and 3-month (77.9, P = .02) compared to baseline (71.4). Mean Global Aesthetic Improvement Scale scores at 1-month (2.1) and 3-month (2.2) were not statistically significant, indicating sustained improvement at 3 months. The product amount used per patient varied and was not correlated with either score. Limitations included a lack of a control group and follow-up ending at 3 months. Strengths included assessment of patient satisfaction after only 1 treatment, compared to other studies allowing 2 treatments. Limitations:. Limitations include a small sample size and lack of a control group. Conclusion:. Global full facial rejuvenation using 1 treatment of calcium hydroxyapatite, hyaluronic acid 22.5 mg/mL, and incobotulinumtoxinA provides sustained patient-reported satisfaction at 3 months.

Background: Neurologic injury is a rare and potentially devastating complication of shoulder arthroplasty. Patients typically present with a mixed plexopathy or mononeuropathy, most commonly affecting the axillary and radial nerves. Given the paucity of studies available on the topic, our goal was to elucidate the prevalence of nerve injury after shoulder arthroplasty and to describe the treatment course and outcomes of neurologic injuries. Methods: This is a retrospective case-control study performed at a single, urban, academic institution. Consecutive patients who underwent anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) or reverse shoulder arthroplasty (RSA) by a single surgeon from 2014 to 2020 were reviewed, and patients with a documented nerve injury were identified. A control group of patients without nerve injury were selected in a 2:1 ratio controlling for age and procedure type (TSA vs. RSA; primary vs. revision). Data collected included demographics, comorbidities as per the Charlson Comorbidity Index, radiographic evaluations, surgical and implant details, patient-reported outcome measures, and perioperative complications. Results: Of 923 patients, 33 (3.6%) sustained an iatrogenic nerve injury: 10 (2.1%) after TSA, 23 (5.0%) after RSA, and 3 (7.8%) after revision arthroplasty. Axillary mononeuropathy was most common (42%), followed by brachial plexopathies (18%). There was no significant difference in age, sex, race, body mass index, and preoperative diagnoses between groups. Patients with nerve injury had fewer comorbidities (Charlson Comorbidity Index

Background: The recently published hybrid transtibial technique (HTT) using the Pathfinder Guide with a flexible transtibial technique (TT) guide wire may represent a beneficial combination of both the anteromedial portal and TT technique. The HTT has been described as especially suitable for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction in adolescents or ACL revision. However, we also found that the HTT worked for primary ACL reconstruction in adults also using the Ligament Advanced Reinforcement System (LARS). Indications: Acute ACL rupture in active patients who are eager to return to sports quickly. Technique Description: The HTT combined with the conventional LARS reconstruction procedure improves the placement of the femoral tunnel, which involves a guiding vessel clamp through the anteromedial portal combined with a 2.0 mm Kirschner wire via the tibial tunnel. Finally, we used a metal screw for fixation of the ligament. Results: The patient experienced satisfactory reconstruction of his ACL and regained active range of motion in 1 month and a full return to sports in 6 months. Discussion/Conclusion: The HTT using the LARS for primary ACL reconstruction is easy, safe, and reproducible. This combined technique has not yet been published and it may provide good functional results that allow patients to recover quickly and return to sports as soon as possible. Patient Consent Disclosure Statement: The author(s) attests that consent has been obtained from any patient(s) appearing in this publication. If the individual may be identifiable, the author(s) has included a statement of release or other written form of approval from the patient(s) with this submission for publication.

Background:. For over 100 years, autologous skin grafts have remained the gold standard for the reconstruction of wounds but are limited in availability. Acellular tissue-engineered skin constructs (acellular TCs) and cellular tissue-engineered skin constructs (cellular TCs) may address these limitations. This systematic review and meta-analysis compare outcomes between them. Methods:. A systematic review was conducted using PRISMA guidelines, querying MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane to assess graft incorporation, failure, and wound healing. Case reports/series, reviews, in vitro/in vivo work, non-English articles or articles without full text were excluded. Results:. Sixty-six articles encompassing 4076 patients were included. No significant differences were found between graft failure rates (P = 0.07) and mean difference of percent reepithelialization (p = 0.92) when split-thickness skin grafts were applied alone versus co-grafted with acellular TCs. Similar mean Vancouver Scar Scale was found for these two groups (p = 0.09). Twenty-one studies used at least one cellular TC. Weighted averages from pooled results did not reveal statistically significant differences in mean reepithelialization or failure rates for epidermal cellular TCs compared with split-thickness skin grafts (p = 0.55). Conclusions:. This systematic review is the first to illustrate comparable functional and wound healing outcomes between split-thickness skin grafts alone and those co-grafted with acellular TCs. The use of cellular TCs seems promising from preliminary findings. However, these results are limited in clinical applicability due to the heterogeneity of study data, and further level 1 evidence is required to determine the safety and efficacy of these constructs.

Purpose: A deep learning model was developed to detect nonexudative macular neovascularization (neMNV) using OCT B-scans. Design: Retrospective review of a prospective, observational study. Participants: Normal control eyes and patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) with and without neMNV. Methods: Swept-source OCT angiography (SS-OCTA) imaging (PLEX Elite 9000, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc) was performed using the 6 × 6-mm scan pattern. Individual B-scans were annotated to distinguish between drusen and the double-layer sign (DLS) associated with the neMNV. The machine learning model was tested on a dataset graded by humans, and model performance was compared with the human graders. Main Outcome Measures: Intersection over Union (IoU) score was measured to evaluate segmentation network performance. Area under the receiver operating characteristic curve values, sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were measured to assess the performance of the final classification performance. Chance-corrected agreement between the algorithm and the human grader determinations was measured with Cohen’s kappa. Results: A total of 251 eyes from 210 patients, including 182 eyes with DLS and 115 eyes with drusen, were used for model training. Of 125 500 B-scans, 6879 B-scans were manually annotated. A vision transformer segmentation model was built to extract DLS and drusen from B-scans. The extracted prediction masks from all B-scans in a volume were projected to an en face image, and an eye-level projection map was obtained for each eye. A binary classification algorithm was established to identify eyes with neMNV from the projection map. The algorithm achieved 82%, 90%, 79%, and 91% sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV, respectively, on a separate test set of 100 eyes that were evaluated by human graders in a previous study. The area under the curve value was calculated as 0.91 (95% confidence interval, 0.85–0.98). The results of the algorithm showed excellent agreement with the senior human grader (kappa = 0.83, P < 0.001) and moderate agreement with the junior grader consensus (kappa = 0.54, P < 0.001). Conclusions: Our network (code is available at https://github.com/uw-biomedical-ml/double_layer_vit) was able to detect the presence of neMNV from structural B-scans alone by applying a purely transformer-based model.

Summary:. Wound healing problems are a major cause of morbidity for gender-affirming surgery (GAS) patients. Prior studies have shown sex differences in wound healing may exist. We hypothesized exogenous testosterone supplementation may impair post-GAS wound healing and developed a model to investigate this phenomenon. Mice were randomized by hormone regimen and gonadectomy (OVX). Gonadectomy or sham occurred on day 0 and mice were assigned to no testosterone (-T), mono- or bi-weekly (T/2T) testosterone groups. Dorsal splinted wounding occurred on day 14 and harvest on day 21. Serum testosterone levels were quantified with mass spectrometry. Tissue underwent analysis with planimetry, qPCR, ELISA, and immunofluorescence. Mean testosterone trough levels for bi-weekly regimen were higher compared to mono-weekly (397 versus 272 ng/dL; P = 0.027). At POD5, 2T injections led to 24.9% and 24.7% increases in mean wound size relative to SHAM and OVX/-T, respectively (P = 0.004; 0.001). Wounds in OVX/+2T mice demonstrated increased gene expression for inflammatory cytokines and macrophage marker F4/80 (P < 0.05). ELISA confirmed elevated wound TNFα levels (P < 0.05). Quantitative multiplex immunofluorescence with F4/80/NOS2/ARG1 showed significant increases in macrophage prevalence in OVX/+2T (P < 0.05). We developed a novel model of GAS hormonal milieu to study effects of exogenous testosterone on wound healing. Optimized twice-weekly dosing yielded serum levels comparable to clinical therapy. We showed exogenous testosterone administered to XX/OVX mice significantly impairs wound healing. A hyperinflammatory wound environment results in increased macrophage proliferation and elevated cytokines. Future efforts are directed toward mechanistic investigation and clinical validation.

Numerous ethical issues surged the moment acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was discovered. As advocates of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), health professionals encounter many ethical dilemmas in clinical practice. However, it remains unclear how health professionals solve these issues. The descriptive qualitative research was conducted through semi-structured interviews with 22 health professionals from May to August 2018. Three themes emerged from data analyses of the interviews: (1) real ethical dilemma experienced by health professionals, (2) factors influencing ethical judgment, (3) ethical motivations. About two-thirds of participants failed to recall ethical dilemmas experienced in their clinical practice. Emotions, gender, occupation, and difficulty balancing different roles may influence the ethical judgments of health professionals. In the ethical decision-making (EDM) process, most participants took other people’s interests into consideration and conformed to law and professional codes of conduct. However, the fear of medical disputes (conflicts with families and others) was experienced by many participants, influencing their ethical behaviors.

MicroRNA-378a (miR-378a), including miR-378a-3p and miR-378a-5p, are encoded in PPARGC1B gene. miR-378a is essential for tumorigenesis and is an independent prognostic biomarker for various malignant tumors. Aberrant expression of miR-378a affects several physiological and pathological processes, including proliferation, apoptosis, tumorigenesis, cancer invasion, metastasis, and therapeutic resistance. Interestingly, miR-378a has a dual functional role in either promoting or inhibiting tumorigenesis, independent of the cancer type. In this review, we comprehensively summarized the role and regulatory mechanisms of miR-378a in cancer development, hoping to provide a direction for its potential use in cancer therapy.

Introduction: Critical shoulder angle (CSA) has been shown to influence rates of rotator cuff tears and glenohumeral arthritis with a larger CSA associated with rotator cuff tears and a smaller CSA associated with glenohumeral arthritis. There has been no study to determine whether such radiographic measurement influences the function of patients with demonstrated cuff tear arthropathy (CTA). The purpose of this study was to examine whether smaller CSAs were associated with greater range of motion (ROM) in patients diagnosed with CTA. Materials and methods: Ninety-three patients with a diagnosis of CTA with adequate anteroposterior shoulder radiographs were included in the study. Patient demographics were recorded. The presence of a rotator cuff tear was confirmed via advanced imaging or when applicable via the operative report. Patients' ROM was evaluated through the physician's office note. Shoulder radiographs were used to measure CSA, glenoid inclination, acromial index (AI), and acromiohumeral interval. Patient ROM was measured and grouped into 2 different tiered cohorts: cohort 1 had 4 subgroups of forward elevation (FE) (ie, ≤45°, 45°-90°, 91°-135°, and 136°-180°) and cohort 2 had 2 subgroups of FE (ie, ≤90° and >90°). We then analyzed FE between these groups in the context of their radiographic measurements. Results: The average patient age was 73.8 ± 8.0 years. There was no significant difference in acromiohumeral interval. AI was found to be significantly different between patients presenting with ≤90° in FE compared with those >90° (P = .02). Average CSA was significantly lower in patients with FE greater than 90° at 33.7° ± 3.9° compared with patients with FE less than 90° at 37.1° ± 6.3° (P = .002). There was also a significant difference with regard to CSAs, with those patients with FE ≤ 45° having a mean CSA of 38.2° ± 8.3° compared with those patients with FE ≥ 135° having a mean CSA of 33.3° ± 4.3° (P = .02). Conclusion: Patients diagnosed with CTA can significantly vary in their shoulder function and ability to forward elevate. Lower CSA was found to be associated with higher FE in patients with CTA preoperatively. In addition, patients with a smaller AI were also found to have better overhead function. Analyzing CSA on plain radiographs may help manage functional expectations in patients with CTA.

This report presents the case of a 59-year-old man with the anal abscess caused by fragments of chicken bones. Transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) was performed first to evaluate the anal and perianal region for detection of the lesion and then CT scan was used to show the entire region of the pelvis and anal structures. CT first identified the foreign body within the abscess and then TRUS was able to show hyperechoic foci with acoustic shadowing in the abscess indicated foreign bodies. Diagnosed of abscess with chicken bones was made based on both TRUS and CT and confirmed during the open surgery. CT scan can have a global view of the lesion and surrounding structures while TRUS can provide detail information of the perianal lesion and guide the clinical management.

The aim of this study is to explore the timing and method of endovascular intervention for iliac vein compression syndrome (IVCS) with thrombus. Data from 111 patients with IVCS, complicated acute deep vein thrombosis (DVT), or post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS) who underwent endovascular interventions were analyzed retrospectively. Patients were divided into Group A (DVT group), including 56 patients with IVCS and iliofemoral DVT, with or without femoropopliteal DVT, with sudden lower limb swelling, and Group B (PTS group) included 55 patients with IVCS and PTS, including 18 with lower extremity wet ulcers and 32 with lower limb infections. Interventional therapies were used to treat the thrombus and eliminate stenosis and occlusion of the iliac vein. In both groups, clinical symptoms in the lower limbs after surgery were reduced significantly, and PTS incidence was low during long-term follow-up. The cumulative patency rate was 75.2% in the DVT group and 88.6% in the PTS group. Comprehensive interventional therapies are safe and effective in patients with IVCS and thrombi. Long-term efficacy in the PTS group tended to be better than that in the DVT group.

Summary: Alterations in cardiac energy metabolism after a myocardial infarction contribute to the severity of heart failure (HF). Although fatty acid oxidation can be impaired in HF, it is unclear if stimulating fatty acid oxidation is a desirable approach to treat HF. Both immediate and chronic malonyl coenzyme A decarboxylase inhibition, which decreases fatty acid oxidation, improved cardiac function through enhancing cardiac efficiency in a post–myocardial infarction rat that underwent permanent left anterior descending coronary artery ligation. The beneficial effects of MCD inhibition were attributed to a decrease in proton production due to an improved coupling between glycolysis and glucose oxidation. Key Words: fatty acid oxidation, heart failure, glucose oxidation, uncoupling of glycolysis

Total joint arthroplasty (TJA) in a homeless patient is generally considered contraindicated. Here, we report our known medical and social (housing and employment) results of homeless veterans who had TJA. Thirty-seven TJAs were performed on 33 homeless patients (31 men) at our hospital between November 2000 and March 2014. This was 1.2% of all TJAs. Average age was 54 years. Average hospital stay was 4.1 days. There were no major inpatient complications. Thirty-four cases had at least 1-year follow-up in any clinic within the Veterans Affairs health care system. There were no known surgery-related reoperations or readmissions. At final follow-up, 24 patients had stable housing and 9 were employed. The extensive and coordinated medical and social services that were provided to veterans from the Department of Veterans Affairs contributed to our positive results. Keywords: Homeless, Veteran, Joint replacement, Total hip, Total knee, Employment

Summary:. Vasopressors used to treat patients with septic shock can cause ischemic necrosis of appendages such as the ears and nose, as well as the extremities. Cases of quadruple-extremity necrosis have high morbidity and mortality, and a profound negative impact on quality of life. This case report details the successful limb salvage and return to function using free tissue transfer as a means to salvage bilateral lower extremities in a patient who suffered vasopressor-induced ischemia of upper and lower extremities after prostate biopsy–induced septic shock. Septic shock following transrectal ultrasound–guided prostate biopsy is a rare, yet life-threatening complication. Successful treatment included thorough planning and staging of therapies such as awaiting tissue demarcation and serial surgical debridement to adequately prepare the tissue bed for free tissue transfer. Adjunctive treatments such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, negative-pressure wound therapy, and meticulous wound care played a crucial role in wound healing. This vigilant planning and coordinated care resulted in the successful lower extremity salvage, consisting of bilateral transmetatarsal amputations and free tissue transfer to both limbs. We present our long-term follow-up of a functional ambulatory patient after catastrophic, life-threatening infection and appropriate multidisciplinary care.

There are various etiologies of dilated cardiomyopathy. However, in young patients without a strong family history of cardiovascular disease, alcohol or drug abuse, viral infections, and absence of endocrine and metabolic abnormalities, ischemia is an unlikely cause. We present an interesting case of a young female without traditional risk factors who developed dilated cardiomyopathy following administration of a weight loss supplement xenadrine and had resolution of symptoms after discontinuation of the supplement.

Tolosa-Hunt syndrome is a rare disease with a limited number of cases reported in the literature. It typically presents with orbital pain associated with palsy of the third, fourth, or sixth cranial nerve. We present an interesting case of Tolosa-Hunt syndrome in a young male who responded well to high-dose steroids and in a few days had significant improvement in his retro-orbital pain and ocular movements.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Chronic allograft rejection is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality for long-term survivors of lung transplantation. Previous studies have implicated only isolated genes in the development of chronic rejection and have not examined multiple pathways in an individual concurrently. Using microarray technology, we identified and compared gene expression profiling in lung transplant recipients with and without chronic rejection, and follow sequential expression of genes differentially expressed between the two groups. DESIGN: Prospective, cohort study. SETTING: Single lung transplant center. Patients or participants: Eleven transplant recipients with chronic rejection were matched with 9 control transplant recipients. INTERVENTIONS: All recipients underwent surveillance bronchoscopies at predetermined times to rule out infection and/or acute rejection. Gene expression profiling was obtained from hybridizing BAL fluid cell RNA to a 96-gene microarray. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Fifteen genes were found to be significantly differentially expressed between the two patient groups, and they are involved in inflammatory, fibrotic, and apoptotic pathways. Temporal expression of the significant genes demonstrated a change in their levels at the onset of chronic rejection, with normalization to prerejection levels as rejection continued. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that microarray technology is valuable in studying the mechanism of chronic lung rejection, and the expression of genes in multiple pathways is elevated in patients with chronic lung rejection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The c-ETS-1 (ETS1) expression is high in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) tissues; however, how it impacts ccRCC is currently unknown., Methods: The online STRING web source was used to construct a protein network interacting with ETS1. The Cell Counting Kit-8 was used to detect the cell viability. A clonogenic assay, a wound-healing assay, and a Transwell assay were used to detect cell proliferation, invasion and migration abilities. Western blot was used to detect the expression of proteins., Results: The data showed the expression of ETS1 in ccRCC tissues to be significantly increased compared to adjacent tissues (p<0.05). The positive expression of ETS1 in ccRCC patients aged 20-100 was statistically significant compared to adjacent normal tissues (p<0.05). The grade of ETS1 positive expression (1-4) and lymph node metastasis (N1) in ccRCC were significantly higher than those in adjacent normal tissues (p<0.05). The tumour stage (stages 1-4) in ccRCC patients with positive ETS1 expression was significantly higher than that in adjacent normal tissues (p<0.05). Knockdown of ETS1 and PERK inhibitors significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of ccRCC cells. Knockdown of ETS1 inhibited MMP-2 expression, and an extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) inhibitor inhibited both ETS1 and MMP-2 expression., Conclusion: A high expression of ETS1 is associated with the progression of ccRCC. This study suggests that ETS1 promotes proliferation by increasing MMP2 expression in ccRCC, and combined knockdown of ETS1 and inhibition of ERK can significantly inhibit the proliferation, migration and invasion of ccRCC. ETS1 may be a therapeutic and prognostic target for renal cell carcinoma., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Objective: We previously reported that mutations in inner mitochondrial membrane peptidase 2-like (Immp2l) increase infarct volume, enhance superoxide production, and suppress mitochondrial respiration after transient cerebral focal ischemia and reperfusion injury. The present study investigated the impact of heterozygous Immp2l mutation on mitochondria function after ischemia and reperfusion injury in mice., Methods: Mice were subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion for 1 h followed by 0, 1, 5, and 24 h of reperfusion. The effects of Immp2l +/- on mitochondrial membrane potential, mitochondrial respiratory complex III activity, caspase-3, and apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) translocation were examined., Results: Immp2l +/- increased ischemic brain damage and the number of TUNEL-positive cells compared with wild-type mice. Immp2l +/- led to mitochondrial damage, mitochondrial membrane potential depolarization, mitochondrial respiratory complex III activity suppression, caspase-3 activation, and AIF nuclear translocation., Conclusion: The adverse impact of Immp2l +/- on the brain after ischemia and reperfusion might be related to mitochondrial damage that involves depolarization of the mitochondrial membrane potential, inhibition of the mitochondrial respiratory complex III, and activation of mitochondria-mediated cell death pathways. These results suggest that patients with stroke carrying Immp2l +/- might have worse and more severe infarcts, followed by a worse prognosis than those without Immp2l mutations., (© 2023. Huazhong University of Science and Technology.)

Background: Abnormal expression of splicing factor 3A subunit 3 (SF3A3), a component of the spliceosome, has been confirmed to be related to the occurrence and development of various cancers. However, the expression and function of SF3A3 in bladder cancer (BC) remains unclear., Methods: The SF3A3 mRNA and protein level were measured in clinical samples and cell lines by quantitative real-time PCR, Western blot and immunofluorescence staining. Evaluate the clinical correlation between SF3A3 expression and clinicopathological characteristics through statistical analysis in BC patients. The function of SF3A3 in BC cells was determined in vitro using MTT and colony analysis. Co-immunoprecipitation (CoIP) assay was used to detected E2F6 and KDM5C interaction. Luciferase reporter and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) were used to examine the relationship between E2F6/KDM5C and SF3A3 expression., Results: In the present study, we demonstrated that expression of SF3A3 was elevated in BC tissue compared to the normal bladder tissue. Importantly, the upregulation of SF3A3 in patients was correlated with poor prognosis. Additionally, overexpression of SF3A3 promoted while depletion of SF3A3 reduced the growth of BC cells in vivo and in vitro. Data from the TCGA database and clinical samples revealed that hypomethylation of the DNA promoter leads to high expression of SF3A3 in BC tissue. We found that upregulation of lysine-specific demethylase 5C (KDM5C) promotes SF3A3 expression via hypomethylation of the DNA promoter. The transcription factor E2F6 interacts with KDM5C, recruits KDM5C to the SF3A3 promoter, and demethylates the GpC island of H3K4me2, leading to high SF3A3 expression and BC progression., Conclusions: The results demonstrated that depletion of the KDM5C/SF3A3 prevents the growth of BC in vivo and in vitro. The E2F6/KDM5C/SF3A3 pathway may be a potential therapeutic target for BC treatment., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

RNA-binding motif protein 24 (RBM24) acts as a multifunctional determinant of cell fate, proliferation, apoptosis, and differentiation during development by regulating premRNA splicing and mRNA stability. It is also implicated in carcinogenesis, but the functions of RBM24 in bladder cancer (BC) remain unclear. In the present study, we revealed that RBM24 was upregulated in BC tissues. Importantly, we found that a higher level of RBM24 was correlated with poor prognosis in BC patients. Overexpression of RBM24 promoted BC cell proliferation, while depletion of RBM24 inhibited BC cell proliferation in vivo and in vitro. Mechanistically, RBM24 positively regulated Runx1t1 expression in BC cells by binding to and enhancing Runx1t1 mRNA stability. Furthermore, Runx1t1 in turn promoted RBM24 expression by interacting with the transcription factor TCF4 and suppressing the transcription of miR-625-5p, which directly targets RBM24 and suppresses RBM24 expression. RBM24-regulated BC cell proliferation was moderated via the Runx1t1/TCF4/miR-625-5p feedback loop. These results indicate that the RBM24/Runx1t1/TCF4/miR-625-5p positive feedback loop participates in BC progression. Disruption of this pathway may be a potential therapeutic strategy for BC treatment.

The transcription factor E2F1 regulates the expression of the miR-20b-5p precursor and is involved in epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) induces EMT in prostate cancer (PCa) by binding to TGF-beta receptor 2 (TGFBR2) to activate TGF-β signaling. However, the relationship between TGFBR2, E2F1, and miR-20b-5p in the modulation of EMT in PCa cells remains unknown. In this study, we found that the level of miR-20b-5p expression was significantly lower in PC3 and DU145 cells than that in prostate epithelial (RWPE-1) cells, and TGF-β1 treatment further down-regulated miR-20b-5p expression in these two cell lines. Functional studies showed that miR-20b-5p suppressed TGF-β1-induced migration and invasion of PC3 and DU145 cells by up-regulating E-cadherin and down-regulating vimentin, leading to TGF-β1-induced inhibition of EMT. Using gain and loss of function experiments, it was shown that E2F1 mediated TGF-β1 regulation of miR-20b-5p expression. Further, a luciferase activity assay showed that TGFBR2 was a direct target of miR-20b-5p in PCa cells. These results suggest that miR-20b-5p, TGFBR2, and E2F1 form a regulatory loop to modulate EMT induced by TGF-β1. A novel regulatory mechanism underlying the miR-20b-5p/TGFBR2/E2F1 axis is involved in TGF-β1-induced EMT of PCa cells, and miR-20b-5p may be a potential therapeutic target for PCa., (Copyright © 2020 Qi, Yang, Zhang, Lu, Yin, Liu, Xue, Qu and Li.)

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subunit α5 (α5‑nAChR) is involved in tumor cell proliferation, inhibition of apoptosis, progression of metastasis, and induction of angiogenesis in certain solid tumors. However, the role of α5‑nAChR in prostate cancer cell growth and metastasis is unclear. In the present study, the role of α5‑nAChR in cell proliferation, migration, invasion and apoptosis was investigated by silencing the expression levels of α5‑nAChR in the prostate cancer cell lines DU145 and PC3. A siRNA oligonucleotide targeting α5‑nAChR was designed. The cell proliferation of DU145 and PC3 cell lines was analyzed by the Cell Counting Kit‑8 (CCK‑8) assay. Cell migratory and invasive activities were determined using wound healing and Transwell assays, respectively. Western blot analysis was used to quantify α5‑nAChR, p‑AKT and p‑ERK1/2 levels in DU145 and PC3 cells. Knockdown of α5‑nAChR was associated with decreased cell proliferation, migration, invasion and increased apoptosis. In addition, decreased phosphorylation levels of AKT and ERK1/2 were revealed following α5‑nAChR knockdown in DU145 and PC3 cells compared with those observed in the scramble control samples. The expression levels of the apoptosis‑related proteins were altered following silencing of α5‑nAChR. In summary, the data indicated that α5‑nAChR was involved in the proliferation and invasion of human prostate cancer cells.

RNA-binding motif protein 5 (RBM5) acts as a tumor suppressor in various human cancers and presents with several important characteristics, such as the potentiation of apoptosis, inhibition of the cell cycle, and alternative splicing of Fas and caspase-2 precursor mRNA. However, its role in bladder urothelial carcinoma (BUC) remains unknown. In this study, we found that RBM5 expression was significantly down-regulated in BUC tissues when compared with the adjacent nontumor tissues. The down-regulation of RBM5 activates β-catenin, which binds to the T-cell factor/lymphocyte enhancer factor element of the miR-432-5p promoter and elevates the expression of miR-432-5p in bladder cancer cells. The up-regulated miR-432-5p directly targets 3'-UTR and depresses RBM5 expression. Thus, RBM5-miR-432-5p-β-catenin forms a feedback loop in regulating bladder cancer cell apoptosis. Our findings provide evidence that the regulatory feedback loop among RBM5, miR-432-5p, and Wnt-β-catenin is responsible for the progress of bladder cancer cells.-Zhang, Y.-P., Liu, K.-L., Wang, Y.-X., Yang, Z., Han, Z.-W., Lu, B.-S., Qi, J.-C., Yin, Y.-W., Teng, Z.-H., Chang, X.-L., Li, J.-D., Xin, H., Li, W. Down-regulated RBM5 inhibits bladder cancer cell apoptosis by initiating an miR-432-5p/β-catenin feedback loop.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is a frequently occurring malignancy in males, and epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays a critical role in PCa metastasis. Thus, developing biomarkers inhibiting EMT may provide significance for treatment of PCa. Hence, the aim of the current study was to investigate the mechanism by which FBP1 gene silencing influences PCa cell EMT, invasion and metastasis by mediating the MAPK pathway. PCa cell lines exhibiting the highest FBP1 expression were selected and treated with plasmids of siRNA-FBP1 sequence 1 and 2, pcDNA3.1-Flag-FBP1 (over-expression plasmid of FBP1), U0126 (an inhibitor of the ERK signaling pathway) and PD98059 (an inhibitor of the MEK signaling pathway). Cell proliferation, migration and invasion were detected by MTT assay, wound healing assay and Transwell assay, respectively. The mRNA and protein expression of related factors of EMT and MAPK signaling were determined by RT-qPCR and western blot analysis, respectively. Xenograft tumor growth after inoculation of DU145 cells was regularly analyzed in the nude mice. The positive expression of EMT markers was determined by immunohistochemistry. DU-145 and PC-3 cells displaying the highest FBP1 expression were selected for further analysis. The PCa cells treated with siRNA-FBP1 exhibited increased proliferation, migration rate and invasion, in addition to facilitated xenograft tumor growth. Notably, siRNA-FBP1 was identified to accelerate PCa cell EMT by elevating the expression of Vimentin and N-cadherin while diminishing E-cadherin expression via activation of the MAPK signaling pathway. The aforementioned results were reversed in PCa cells treated by pcDNA3.1-Flag-FBP1. Evidence has been provided in this study that FBP1 gene silencing activates the MAPK pathway, which ultimately promotes cell EMT, invasion and metastasis in PCa.

Mood states in bipolar disorder appear to be closely linked to changes in sleep and circadian function. It has been suggested that hypersensitivity of the circadian system to light may be a trait vulnerability for bipolar disorder. Healthy persons with emotional-behavioural traits associated with bipolar disorder also appear to exhibit problems with circadian rhythms, which may be associated with individual differences in light sensitivity. This study investigated the melanopsin-driven post-illumination pupil response (PIPR) in relation to emotional-behavioural traits associated with bipolar disorder (measured with the General Behavior Inventory) in a non-clinical group (n = 61). An increased PIPR was associated with increased bipolar disorder-related traits. Specifically, the hypomania scale of the General Behavior Inventory was associated with an increased post-blue PIPR. Further, both the full hypomania and shortened '7 Up' scales were significantly predicted by PIPR, after age, sex and depressive traits were controlled. These findings suggest that increased sensitivity to light may be a risk factor for mood problems in the general population, and support the idea that hypersensitivity to light is a trait vulnerability for, rather than symptom of, bipolar disorder., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: NPL4 is an important cofactor of the valosin-containing protein (VCP)-NPL4-UFD1 complex. The VCP-NPL4-UFD1 has been considered as a ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) regulator and response to protein degradation. While NPL4 plays important roles in various diseases, little is known about its functions in bladder cancer (BC)., Methods: MTT assays and colony forming test were performed to evaluate cell proliferation ability and Western blotting was used to detect protein expression. Cyclin D1 mRNA expression was detected using qRT-PCR, and coimmunoprecipitation (CoIP) was used to detect protein-protein interactions., Results: NPL4 was upregulated in BC tissue and correlated with poor prognosis. Upregulation of NPL4 promoted cell proliferation while suppression of NPL4 reduced BC cell proliferation. Upregulation of NPL4 led to overexpression of cyclin D1 by enhancing its mRNA stability. Moreover, NPL4 was found to bind directly to DXO and induce its degradation. DXO was downregulated in BC tissue and regulated BC cell proliferation by destabilizing cyclin D1 mRNA. DXO-mediated NPL4 regulated BC cell proliferation by stabilizing cyclin D1 expression., Conclusions: The NPL4/DXO/cyclin D1 axis exert crucial role in BC cell growth and is associated with prognosis and may represent a potential therapeutic target for BC., Competing Interests: Competing interestsThe authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Background: Pistachio (Pistacia vera), one of the most important commercial nut crops worldwide, is highly adaptable to abiotic stresses and is tolerant to drought and salt stresses., Results: Here, we provide a draft de novo genome of pistachio as well as large-scale genome resequencing. Comparative genomic analyses reveal stress adaptation of pistachio is likely attributable to the expanded cytochrome P450 and chitinase gene families. Particularly, a comparative transcriptomic analysis shows that the jasmonic acid (JA) biosynthetic pathway plays an important role in salt tolerance in pistachio. Moreover, we resequence 93 cultivars and 14 wild P. vera genomes and 35 closely related wild Pistacia genomes, to provide insights into population structure, genetic diversity, and domestication. We find that frequent genetic admixture occurred among the different wild Pistacia species. Comparative population genomic analyses reveal that pistachio was domesticated about 8000 years ago and suggest that key genes for domestication related to tree and seed size experienced artificial selection., Conclusions: Our study provides insight into genetic underpinning of local adaptation and domestication of pistachio. The Pistacia genome sequences should facilitate future studies to understand the genetic basis of agronomically and environmentally related traits of desert crops.

We propose an approach to a multiscale problem in the theory of thermotropic uniaxial nematics based on the method of statistical field theory. This approach enables us to relate the coefficients A, B, C, L&#95;{1}, and L&#95;{2} of the Landau-de Gennes free energy for the isotropic-nematic phase transition to the parameters of a molecular model of uniaxial nematics, which we take to be a lattice gas model of nematogenic molecules interacting via a short-ranged potential. We obtain general constraints on the temperature and volume fraction of nematogens for the Landau-de Gennes theory to be stable against molecular orientation fluctuations at quartic order. In particular, for the case of a fully occupied lattice, we compute the values of the isotropic-nematic transition temperature and the order parameter discontinuity predicted by (i) a continuum approximation of the nearest-neighbor Lebwohl-Lasher model and (ii) a Lebwohl-Lasher-type model with a nematogenic interaction of finite range. We find that the predictions of (i) are in reasonably good agreement with known results of Monte Carlo simulation.

We have studied the electrostatic screening effect of NaCl solutions on the interactions between anionic lipid bilayers in the fluid lamellar phase using a Poisson-Boltzmann-based mean-field approach with constant charge and constant potential limiting charge regulation boundary conditions. The full DLVO potential, including the electrostatic, hydration and van der Waals interactions, was coupled to thermal bending fluctuations of the membranes via a variational Gaussian Ansatz. This allowed us to analyze the coupling between the osmotic pressure and the fluctuation amplitudes and compare them both simultaneously with their measured dependence on the bilayer separation, determined by the small-angle X-ray scattering experiments. High-structural resolution analysis of the scattering data revealed no significant changes of membrane structure as a function of salt concentration. Parsimonious description of our results is consistent with the constant charge limit of the general charge regulation phenomenology, with fully dissociated lipid charge groups, together with a 6-fold reduction of the membranes' bending rigidity upon increasing NaCl concentration.

Self-consistent field theory (SCFT) is used to study the mean potential near a charged plate inside a m:-n electrolyte. A perturbation series is developed in terms of g=4πκb, where band1/κ are Bjerrum length and bare Debye length, respectively. To the zeroth order, we obtain the nonlinear Poisson-Boltzmann theory. For asymmetric electrolytes (m≠n), the first order (one-loop) correction to mean potential contains a secular term, which indicates the breakdown of the regular perturbation method. Using a renormalizaton group transformation, we remove the secular term and obtain a globally well-behaved one-loop approximation with a renormalized Debye length and a renormalized surface charge density. Furthermore, we find that if the counterions are multivalent, the surface charge density is renormalized substantially downwards and may undergo a change of sign, if the bare surface charge density is sufficiently large. Our results agrees with large MC simulation even when the density of electrolytes is relatively high.

Objective: To compare the clinical effect of transumbilical single-port laparoscopy combined with improved double hernia needles with that of traditional open surgery in the treatment of hydrocele in children., Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 35 cases (54 sides) of pediatric hydrocele treated by transumbilical single-port laparoscopy combined with improved double hernia needles (laparoscopy group). We recorded the operation time, intraoperative blood loss, hospital stay, scrotal edema, and postoperative complications and compared them with those of another 46 cases (58 sides) treated by traditional open surgery (open surgery group) during the same period., Results: The laparoscopy group showed a significantly shorter operation time, less intraoperative blood loss, milder scrotal edema, and fewer hospital days than the open surgery group (all P<0.05). However, no statistically significant difference was found in the incidence of postoperative complications between the two groups (P>0.05). Subcutaneous emphysema developed in 2 patients in the laparoscopy group, which disappeared after 1－3 days of oxygen inhalation and other symptomatic treatment, while scrotal hematoma occurred in 1 and incision fat liquefaction in 2 patients in the open surgery group 3 days postoperatively, which healed after debridement suture and daily dressing, respectively. The patients were followed up for 3－6 months, which revealed no late complications in the laparoscopy group but 1 case of unilateral recurrence and 2 cases of offside recurrence in the open surgery group, all cured by laparoscopic internal ring ligation., Conclusions: Transumbilical single-port laparoscopy combined with improved double hernia needles is superior to traditional open surgery for the treatment of pediatric hydrocele and therefore deserves clinical generalization.

We analyse van der Waals interactions between a pair of dielectrically anisotropic plane-layered media interacting across a dielectrically isotropic solvent medium. We develop a general formalism based on transfer matrices to investigate the van der Waals torque and force in the limit of weak birefringence and dielectric matching between the ordinary axes of the anisotropic layers and the solvent. We apply this formalism to study the following systems: (i) a pair of single anisotropic layers, (ii) a single anisotropic layer interacting with a multilayered slab consisting of alternating anisotropic and isotropic layers, and (iii) a pair of multilayered slabs each consisting of alternating anisotropic and isotropic layers, looking at the cases where the optic axes lie parallel and/or perpendicular to the plane of the layers. For the first case, the optic axes of the oppositely facing anisotropic layers of the two interacting slabs generally possess an angular mismatch, and within each multilayered slab the optic axes may either be the same or undergo constant angular increments across the anisotropic layers. In particular, we examine how the behaviors of the van der Waals torque and force can be "tuned" by adjusting the layer thicknesses, the relative angular increment within each slab, and the angular mismatch between the slabs.

In net-neutral systems correlations between charge fluctuations generate strong attractive thermal Casimir forces and engineering these forces to optimize nanodevice performance is an important challenge. We show how the normal and lateral thermal Casimir forces between two plates containing Brownian charges can be modulated by decorrelating the system through the application of an electric field, which generates a nonequilibrium steady state with a constant current in one or both plates, reducing the ensuing fluctuation-generated normal force while at the same time generating a lateral drag force. This hypothesis is confirmed by detailed numerical simulations as well as an analytical approach based on stochastic density functional theory.

Investigations of the elastic behavior of bulk elastomers have traditionally proceeded on the basis of classical rubber elasticity, which regards chains as thermally fluctuating but disregards the thermal fluctuations of the cross-links. Herein, we consider an incompressible and flat elastomer film of an axisymmetric shape confined between two large hard co-planar substrates, with the axis of the film perpendicular to the substrates. We address the impact that thermal fluctuations of the cross-links have on the free energy of elastic deformation of the system, subject to the requirement that the fluctuating elastomer cannot detach from the substrates. We examine the behavior of the deformation free energy for one case where a rigid pinning boundary condition is applied to a class of elastic fluctuations at the confining surfaces, and another case where the same elastic fluctuations are subjected to soft "gluing" potentials. We find that there can be significant departures (both quantitative and qualitative) from the prediction of classical rubber elasticity theory when elastic fluctuations are included. Finally, we compare the character of the attractive part of the elastic fluctuation-induced, or pseudo-Casimir, stress with the standard thermal Casimir stress in confined but non-elastomeric systems, finding the same power law decay behavior when a rigid pinning boundary condition is applied; for the case of the gluing potential, we find that the leading order correction to the attractive part of the fluctuation stress decays inversely with the inter-substrate separation.

We study thermal, fluctuation-induced hydrodynamic interaction forces in a classical, compressible, viscous fluid confined between two rigid, planar walls with no-slip boundary conditions. We calculate hydrodynamic fluctuations using the linearized, stochastic Navier-Stokes formalism of Landau and Lifshitz. The mean fluctuation-induced force acting on the fluid boundaries vanishes in this system, so we evaluate the two-point, time-dependent force correlations. The equal-time correlation function of the forces acting on a single wall gives the force variance, which we show to be finite and independent of the plate separation at large inter-plate distances. The equal-time, cross-plate force correlation, on the other hand, decays with the inverse inter-plate distance and is independent of the fluid viscosity at large distances; it turns out to be negative over the whole range of plate separations, indicating that the two bounding plates are subjected to counter-phase correlations. We show that the time-dependent force correlations exhibit damped temporal oscillations for small plate separations and a more irregular oscillatory behavior at large separations. The long-range hydrodynamic correlations reported here represent a "secondary Casimir effect", because the mean fluctuation-induced force, which represents the primary Casimir effect, is absent.

In order to exploit the salt-tolerance ability and mechanism of Gleditsia microphylla, the plant growth, cell membrane permeability, the activities of cell protective enzymes, and the distri- butions of Na+ and K+ in different tissues were investigated under various NaCl stress (0.053%, 0.15%, 0.3%, 0.45% and 0.6%) with potted two-year seedlings. The results were as follows: With the increase of NaCl concentration, the seedling growth decreased while the salt injured index in- creased, and the salt-tolerance thresholds of seedling was 0.42% NaCl. With the NaCl concentration increasing, the membrane permeability, superoxide anion radical generating rate and MDA content increased grandly, while the activities of SOD, POD and CAT demonstrated an increase-decrease curve which reached the peak at 0.3% or 0.45%. Under the high salt stress condition, the supero- xide anion could be consumed timely by increasing the activities of SOD, POD and CAT enzymes, which was useful to avoid cell injure. Under salt stress condition, the Na+ content in different tissues increased gradually, following the order of root > leaf > stem, and the K+ content and K+/Na+ in different tissues decreased, following the order of leaf > root > stem. The K+-Na+ selective transpor- tation coefficients (S(K+) · Na+) of stem and leaf tissues under the soil NaCl stress condition were both increased, following the order of leaf > stem. In conclusion, the findings suggested that the salt- adaptation mechanisms of G. microphylla were root salt-rejection by Na+ accumulation and restriction in root tissue and leaf salt-tolerance by a remarkably increased ability of K+ selective absorption and accumulation in leaf tissue.

A self-consistent theory is proposed for the general problem of interacting undulating fluid membranes subject to the constraint that they do not interpenetrate. We implement the steric constraint via an exact functional integral representation and, through the use of a saddle-point approximation, transform it into a novel effective steric potential. The steric potential is found to consist of two contributions: one generated by zero-mode fluctuations of the membranes and the other by thermal bending fluctuations. For membranes of cross-sectional area S, we find that the bending fluctuation part scales with the intermembrane separation d as d-2 for d≪√S but crosses over to d-4 scaling for d≫√S, whereas the zero-mode part of the steric potential always scales as d-2. For membranes interacting exclusively via the steric potential, we obtain closed-form expressions for the effective interaction potential and for the rms undulation amplitude σ, which becomes small at low temperatures T and/or large bending stiffnesses κ. Moreover, σ scales as d for d≪√S but saturates at √kBTS/κ for d≫√S. In addition, using variational Gaussian theory, we apply our self-consistent treatment to study intermembrane interactions subject to different types of potentials: (i) the Moreira-Netz potential for a pair of strongly charged membranes with an intervening solution of multivalent counterions, (ii) an attractive square well, (iii) the Morse potential, and (iv) a combination of hydration and van der Waals interactions.

We analyze van der Waals interactions between two rigid polymers with sequence-specific, anisotropic polarizabilities along the polymer backbones, so that the dipole moments fluctuate parallel to the polymer backbones. Assuming that each polymer has a quenched-in polarizability sequence which reflects, for example, the polynucleotide sequence of a double-stranded DNA molecule, we study the van der Waals interaction energy between a pair of such polymers with rod-like structure for the cases where their respective polarizability sequences are (i) distinct and (ii) identical, with both zero and non-zero correlation length of the polarizability correlator along the polymer backbones in the latter case. For identical polymers, we find a novel r(-5) scaling behavior of the van der Waals interaction energy for small inter-polymer separation r, in contradistinction to the r(-4) scaling behavior of distinct polymers, with furthermore a pronounced angular dependence favoring attraction between sufficiently aligned identical polymers. Such behavior can assist the molecular recognition between polymers.

Aim: To determine the optimal type of surgery for late-stage gastric cancer with hepatic metastases., Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 49 gastrectomies for late-stage gastric cancer conducted in the First Hospital Affiliated to Henan University of Science and Technology between September 2003 and September 2010. All gastrectomy operations were divided into two groups: radical resection (gastrectomy and simultaneous resection of hepatic metastases, n = 31), and palliative resection (gastrectomy without hepatic resection, n = 18). All 49 patients had chemotherapy catheter implantation in the hepatic artery via the gastroduodenal artery. Postoperative complications and cumulative survival rates of the two groups were compared and analyzed., Results: There was no significant difference in the number of perioperative complications between the radical and palliative resection groups (6 and 3 cases, respectively, P > 0.05). The incidence of long-term complications including ileus (3 in the radical resection and 2 in the palliative resection groups) and anastomosis (2 cases in each group) was not significantly different (P > 0.05). The cumulative survival rate was significantly lower in the palliative resection group (P < 0.05)., Conclusion: Radical gastrectomy with resection of hepatic metastases and hepatoarterial catheter implantation is the recommended surgery for late-stage gastric cancer patients with hepatic metastases.