Search

PurposeTo assess predictive value of clinical and pathological characteristics for metastatic radioactive iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid carcinoma (RAIR-DTC) in early stage retrospectively.MethodsWe studied 199 metastatic DTC patients who were divided into two groups (TgAb negative and TgAb positive). The stimulated Tg (Sti-Tg) at the first and second radioiodine therapy (RIT) were defined as Sti-Tg1 and Sti-Tg2, the suppressed Tg (Sup-Tg) were designated as Sup-Tg1 and Sup-Tg2, while the TgAb were defined as TgAb1 and TgAb2, respectively. Univariate analysis and Logistic regression were used to investigate the effects of 13 observed factors to predict RAIR-DTC.ResultsIn TgAb negative group, ROC curve analysis showed that cut-off values of age, Sti-Tg2/Sti-Tg1 and Sup-Tg2/Sup-Tg1 to predict RAIR-DTC were 40 years old, 57.0% and 81.0%, respectively. Age, extrathyroid invasion, Sti-Tg2/Sti-Tg1, Sup-Tg2/Sup-Tg1 and BRAF gene mutation were proved to be independent factors predicting RAIR-DTC. In TgAb-positive group, ROC curve analysis showed that cut-off values of age, TgAb1 and TgAb2/TgAb1 to predict RAIR-DTC were 55 years old, 297 IU/ml (14.8 times higher than the upper limit) and 53.6%, respectively.ConclusionsFor TgAb-negative DTC, age over 40, extraglandular invasion, mutated BRAF gene, Sti-Tg decreased less than 43%, and Sup-Tg decreased less than 19% after the first two courses of RIT were independent predictors for RAIR-DTC. For TgAb-positive DTC, age over 55, extraglandular invasion, mutated BRAF gene, distant metastasis before RIT, TgAb level 14.8 times higher than the upper limit, TgAb dropped less than 46.4% after two courses of RIT were influencing factors.

Boll weight (BW) is a key determinant of yield component traits in cotton, and understanding the genetic mechanism of BW could contribute to the progress of cotton fiber yield. Although many yield-related quantitative trait loci (QTLs) responsible for BW have been determined, knowledge of the genes controlling cotton yield remains limited. Here, association mapping based on 25,169 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 2,315 insertions/deletions (InDels) was conducted to identify high-quality QTLs responsible for BW in a global collection of 290 diverse accessions, and BW was measured in nine different environments. A total of 19 significant markers were detected, and 225 candidate genes within a 400 kb region (± 200 kb surrounding each locus) were predicted. Of them, two major QTLs with highly phenotypic variation explanation on chromosomes A08 and D13 were identified among multiple environments. Furthermore, we found that two novel candidate genes (Ghir_A08G009110 and Ghir_D13G023010) were associated with BW and that Ghir_D13G023010 was involved in artificial selection during cotton breeding by population genetic analysis. The transcription level analyses showed that these two genes were significantly differentially expressed between high-BW accession and low-BW accession during the ovule development stage. Thus, these results reveal valuable information for clarifying the genetic basics of the control of BW, which are useful for increasing yield by molecular marker-assisted selection (MAS) breeding in cotton.

BackgroundThere are no definite recommendations on the optimal time of initiating radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy for differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) patients in current relevant guidelines. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the timing of initiating radioiodine adjuvant therapy (RAT) and the clinical outcomes based on dynamic follow-ups and assessments in intermediate- to high-risk DTC patients.MethodsA total of 206 patients with intermediate- to high-risk DTC receiving RAT of 150 mCi were retrospectively reviewed. According to the time interval (TI: between thyroidectomy and initial RAT), the patients were divided into 2 groups: Group 1: TI < 3 months (n=148), and Group 2: TI ≥ 3 months (n=58). The RAT therapy response was evaluated as excellent response (ER), indeterminate response (IDR), biochemical incomplete response (BIR), structural incomplete response (SIR). The univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to screen out factors associated with incomplete response (IR= BIR+SIR). Finally, the prognostic nomogram was used to explain IR rates as a valuable tool in clinical practice.ResultsResponse to initial RAT was significantly different between 2 groups during dynamic follow-ups (all P

BackgroundSerum thyroglobulin (Tg) serves as a sensitive and easily available tumor marker for patients with metastatic differentiated thyroid carcinoma (m-DTC). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the predictive value of suppressed Tg changes (Δsup-Tg) and/or stimulated Tg changes (Δsti-Tg) to evaluate the efficacy of radioiodine therapy (RT).MethodsWe studied 117 patients with m-DTC who received RT. Δsup-Tg and Δsti-Tg were compared after the first RT in different therapeutic response groups and a receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine the cut-off values to predict non-remission. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to investigate the effects of 17 observed factors on the efficacy of RT.ResultsA total of 218 RT events in 117 patients with m-DTC were analyzed. After the last RT, the remission rate was 70.94% (83/117), and the proportion of remission events accounted for 74.77% (163/218). ROC curve analysis showed that the cut-off values for Δsup-Tg and Δsti-Tg after the first RT to predict the non-remission of RT were 21.54% and 27.63%, respectively. Age, the size of the metastasis, the maximum count of target metastatic lesions and the average count of contralateral non-target tissue on tomographic imaging (Tmax/NTmean) of the first RT, and Δsup-Tg after the first RT were identified as independent factors associated with RT efficacy.ConclusionsTg response was valuable to predict RT efficacy for patients with m-DTC. Age, the size of the metastasis, Tmax/NTmean, and Δsup-Tg after the first RT were verified as independent predictive factors of RT efficacy.

Structure elucidations of giant fullerenes composed of 100 or more carbon atoms are severely hampered by their extremely low yield, poor solubility and huge numbers of possible cage isomers. High-temperature exohedral chlorination followed by X-ray single crystal diffraction studies of the chloro derivatives offers a practical solution for structure elucidations of giant fullerenes. Various isomers of giant fullerenes have been determined by this method, specially, non-classical giant fullerenes containing heptagons generated by the skeletal transformations of carbon cages. Alternatively, giant fullerenes can be also stabilized by encapsulating metal atoms or clusters through intramolecular electron transfer from the encapsulated species to the outer fullerene cage. In this review, we present a comprehensive overview on synthesis, separation and structural elucidation of giant fullerenes. The isomer structures, chlorination patterns of a series of giant fullerenes C2n (2n = 100-108) and heptagon-containing non-classical fullerenes derived from giant fullerenes are summarized. On the other hand, giant endohedral fullerenes bearing different endohedral species are also discussed. At the end, we propose an outlook on the future development of giant fullerenes.