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Aim: This study aimed to develop an effective risk predictor for patients with stage II and III colorectal cancer (CRC). Materials & methods: The prognostic value of p-mTOR (Ser2448) levels was analyzed using Kaplan–Meier survival analysis and Cox regression analysis. Results: The levels of p-mTOR were increased in CRC specimens and significantly correlated with poor prognosis in patients with stage II and III CRC. Notably, the p-mTOR level was an independent poor prognostic factor for disease-free survival and overall survival in stage II CRC. Conclusion: Aberrant mTOR activation was significantly associated with the risk of recurrence or death in patients with stage II and III CRC, thus this activated proteins that may serve as a potential biomarker for high-risk CRC.

Zhi-Hui Xie, Jing Yu, Li Shang, Yi-Qing Zhu, Jia-Jie Hao, Yan Cai, Xin Xu, Yu Zhang, Ming-Rong Wang State Key Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, National Cancer Center/Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China Abstract: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a highly malignant tumor associated with a poor prognosis, and the molecular mechanisms underlying its formation and progression remain poorly understood. KIAA1522 is upregulated in various tumor tissues, but its function is unknown. Alterations in KIAA1522 expression and its implication in ESCC are currently unclear. In this study, an immunohistochemical analysis of ESCC tissues showed that KIAA1522 was highly expressed in 46% (157/342) of ESCC specimens and that its expression was inversely correlated with the degree of differentiation (P=0.03). Furthermore, small interfering RNA-mediated silencing of KIAA1522 revealed that overexpression of this protein reinforced malignant cell proliferation and anoikis resistance of ESCC cells invitro. More importantly, KIAA1522 depletion significantly suppressed the growth of ESCC xenograft tumors and lung metastasis of ESCC cells in nude mice. At the molecular level, inhibition of KIAA1522 expression markedly reduced the phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) levels in both suspended and adherent ESCC cells, suggesting that KIAA1522 might promote cell proliferation and survival via the ERK cascade. Taken together, these data suggest that upregulation of KIAA1522 might enhance tumorigenicity and metastasis of ESCC cells through potentiating the ERK activity. Thus, aberrant expression of KIAA1522 plays oncogenic roles in ESCC and might serve as a novel molecular target in ESCC treatment. Keywords: esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, KIAA1522, tumor growth, anoikis, metastasis, extracellular signal-regulated kinase

The 25 April 2015 Nepal earthquake (Mw 7.8) ruptured a segment of the Himalayan front fault zone. Four absolute gravimetric stations in southern Tibet, surveyed from 2010/2011 to 2013 and corrected for secular variations, recorded up to 22.40 ± 1.11 μGal/yr of gravity increase during this period. The gravity increase is distinct from the long-wavelength secular trends of gravity decrease over the Tibetan Plateau and may be related to interseismic mass change around the locked plate interface under the Himalayan-Tibetan Plateau. We modeled the source region as a disk of 580 km in diameter, which is consistent with the notion that much of the southern Tibetan crust is involved in storing strain energy that drives the Himalayan earthquakes. If validated in other regions, high-precision ground measurements of absolute gravity may provide a useful method for monitoring mass changes in the source regions of potential large earthquakes.

This paper introduces relative and absolute gravity change observations in the eastern portion of the Tibetan Plateau. We analyze and discuss a change that occurred in 2010 in the gravity along the eastern margin of the plateau and the relationship between this change and the 2013 Lushan MS7.0 earthquake. Our results show that: (1) before the Lushan MS7.0 earthquake, gravity anomalies along the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau changed drastically. The Lushan earthquake occurred at the bend of the high gradient zone of gravity variation along the southern edge of the Longmenshan fault zone. (2) The 2013 Lushan earthquake occurred less than 100 km away from the epicenter of the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. Lushan and Wenchuan are located at the center of a four-quadrant section with different gravity anomalies, which may suggest that restoration after the Wenchuan earthquake may have played a role in causing the Lushan earthquake. (3) A medium-term prediction based on changes in gravity anomalies was made before the Lushan MS7.0 earthquake, in particular, a prediction of epicenter location.

The relationship between temporal-spatial evolution of gravity and earthquake activity during 1992–2001 has been analyzed systematically by integrally adjusting the gravity observation data of the northeastern edge of Qinghai-Xizang (Qingzang) block. The result shows that the gravity observation data of the northeastern edge of Qingzang block obtained by using the uniform starting datum can completely reflect the precursory gravity information appearing during the seismogenic process. In the genesis stage of an earthquake, regional gravity anomaly appears in a large area, resulting in related local gravity anomaly. The dynamic image of gravity field can clearly reflect the orderly evolution and earthquake activity.

The relation between the gravity variation features and MS=8.1 earthquake in Qinghai-Xizang monitoring area is analyzed preliminarily, by using spatial dynamic variation results of regional gravity field from absolute gravity and relative gravity observation in 1998 and 2000. The results show that: 1) MS=8.1 earthquake in Kulun mountain pass western occurred in the gravity variation high gradient near gravity’s high negative variation; 2) The main tectonic deformation and energy accumulation before MS=8.1 earthquake are distributed at south side of the epicenter; 3) The range of gravity’s high negative variation at east of the MS=8.1 earthquake epicenter relatively coincides with that rupture region according to field geology investigation; 4) Gravity variation distribution in high negative value region is just consistent with the second shear strain’s high value region of strain field obtained from GPS observation.

In this paper, the fault deformation abnormality, dynamic evolution features of gravity and vertical deformation field in the seismogenic process of the Yongdeng, Gansu Province earthquake on July 22, 1995 are studied primarily. There appeared α-β-γ tri-stage anomaly at three sites near the epicenter, and there appeared anomalies of step and sudden jump at more than 10 sites in outer region since 1993. The high value area before shock, coseismic effect and process of recovery aftershock were monitored by portable gravity data. Data reflects the changing process of fault movement from the quasi-linear to the nonlinear in the near source region during seismogenic development of the Yongdeng earthquake and evolution of gravity field from heterogeneity of seismogenic term to quasi-homogeneity of postseismic term. There exists close relationship between strong earthquake and dynamic evolution of regional stress-strain field. Considering all above, the experience and lessons in this medium-short term prediction test are summarized.

The postseismic vertical deformation rates of the 1990 Gonghe M S=7.0 earthquake appears to have decreased exponentially. Based on Okada’s coseismic surface displacement solution caused by a uniform fault slip in an elastic homogeneous half space, we derived its postseismic surface displacement by using a single-layer standard linear solid model, and further derived a simplified formula for determining the effective relaxation time and viscosity of the earth, which is independent of the dislocation parameters of the causative fault. From the postseismic vertical deformation of the 1990 Gonghe earthquake, we inferred that the effective relaxation time defined by τ=η/μ is 2.6 years, and the effective viscosity η is about 1018 Pa · s.

Based on the analyses of geodetic deformation datum, the concepts of real datum and relative datum of displacements associated with an earthquake are put foward. Introducting a deformation datum parameter into model parameter vector can enable the reference station to be set in the epicentral areas. Two improved inversion methods, the deformation datum parameter (DDP) method and deformation difference (DD) method, are advanced in this paper. They are further applied to dislocation model inversion of the 1990 GongheM s7.0 earthquake. The inversion results inferred by using the two methods are well consistent with each other, which basically reflect the source geometry and the slip of the causative fault.

The sol–gel process has been applied successfully to the preparation of small-sized CuCl-doped silica glass with a significant quantum-sized effect. Gel synthesized by the hydrolysis of a complex solution of Si(OC2H5)4 and CuCl with an HCl catalyst is heated to 900°C to form fine, cubic CuCl crystals. Above 700°C, absorption peaks observed at ∼370 and ∼380 nm are attributed to the excitation of confined Z1,2 and Z3 excitons, respectively, in the CuCl microcrystals. As the size of the CuCl crystals decreases, exciton energy shifts to the higher-energy side. The resonant third-order nonlinear susceptibility at 77 K is 1.1 × 10−8 esu, which originates from the enhancement by the quantum-sized effect of the exciton.