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BACKGROUND Primary intracranial alveolar soft-part sarcoma (PIASPS) is a rare malignancy. We aimed to investigate the clinical profiles and outcomes for PIASPS. CASE SUMMARY We firstly reported five consecutive cases from our institute. Then, the cases from previous studies were pooled and analyzed to delineate the characteristics of this disease. Our cohort included two males and three females. The median age was 21-years-old (range: 8-54-years-old). All the patients received surgical treatment. Gross total resection (GTR), radiotherapy, and chemotherapy were administered in 3 patients, 4 patients, and 1 patient, respectively. After a median follow-up of 36 mo, tumor progression was noticed in 4 patients; and 3 patients died of the disease. Pooled data (n = 14) contained 5 males and 9 females with a median age of 19 years. The log-rank tests showed that GTR (P = 0.011) could prolong progression-free survival, and radiotherapy (P < 0.001) resulted in longer overall survival. CONCLUSION Patients with PIASPS suffer from poor outcomes. Surgical treatment is the first choice, and GTR should be achieved when the tumor is feasible. Patients with PIASPS benefit from radiotherapy, which should be considered as a part of treatment therapies.

Understanding tumor metabolism holds the promise of new insights into cancer biology, diagnosis and treatment. To assess human cancer metabolism, here we report a method to collect intra-operative samples of blood from an artery directly upstream and a vein directly downstream of a brain tumor, as well as samples from dorsal pedal veins of the same patients. After performing targeted metabolomic analysis, we characterize the metabolites consumed and produced by gliomas in vivo by comparing the arterial supply and venous drainage. N-acetylornithine, D-glucose, putrescine, and L-acetylcarnitine are consumed in relatively large amounts by gliomas. Conversely, L-glutamine, agmatine, and uridine 5-monophosphate are produced in relatively large amounts by gliomas. Further we verify that D-2-hydroxyglutarate (D-2HG) is high in venous plasma from patients with isocitrate dehydrogenases1 (IDH1) mutations. Through these paired comparisons, we can exclude the interpatient variation that is present in plasma samples usually taken from the cubital vein., Cellular metabolism is altered in many cancer types and the advent of metabolomics has allowed us to understand more about how this is dysregulated. Here, the authors report a method named CARVE to analyse the arterial supply and venous drainage of glioma patients during surgery and identify the metabolites that may be consumed and produced by the cancer.

Total resection of meningiomas involving the major dural sinuses (MIMDS) is still challenging for neurosurgeons. Gamma knife radiosurgery (GKRS) was shown to have a high probability of tumor control. The current study evaluated the clinical outcomes of patients who underwent subtotal resection alone or in combination with postoperative GKRS for the treatment of WHO grade I MIMDS.From January 2006 to December 2016, 204 patients with MIMDS underwent Simpson IV subtotal resection in Wuhan Union Hospital. In 151 patients, no additional treatment was performed, while the tumor remnant was treated with GKRS in 53 patients. All patients were monitored with regular MR follow-ups. We retrospectively reviewed the clinical data, radiological characteristics, and outcomes of these 204 patients. Progression-free survival (PFS) was determined by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Related factors were determined by univariate Cox regression analyses.The mean follow-up period was 75.5 months. The tumor recurrence/progression rates were 13.9% in the microsurgery group and 3.8% in the combined therapy group (p = 0.045). The 5- and 10- year progression-free survival (PFS) rates were 92.3 and 80.7%, respectively, in the microsurgery group and 100.0 and 88.5% in the combined therapy group. Treatment approach was found to be an independent prognostic factor for tumor recurrence/progression in the univariable analyses (p=0.04).Compared with microsurgery alone, targeted Simpson grade IV resection combined with early gamma knife treatment resulted in longer progression-free survival without increased complications for WHO grade I MIMDS.

Objective To investigate the importance and types of peritumoral draining veins in parasagittal and falcine meningiomas and administer corresponding protective strategies during surgery according to these different types to improve tumor resection rate and maximize the protection of neurologic functions. Methods The clinical information of 156 patients with parasagittal and falcine meningiomas who were admitted at the Neurosurgery Department of our hospital was collected and retrospectively analyzed. All patients underwent pathologic classification, magnetic resonance imaging scanning and enhancement, and magnetic resonance venography examinations. Results Among these patients, 113 (72.4%) had Simpson grade I and II resection, whereas 43 patients (27.6%) had Simpson grade III and IV resection and underwent postoperative adjuvant gamma knife surgery. Karnofsky Performance Status evaluation was carried out at 1 week after surgery. In total, 69 patients (44.3%) improved, 66 patients (42.3%) had no changes, and 21 patients (13.4%) had worsened conditions (7 patients had hemiplegia, 5 patients had aphasia, 4 patients had decreased vision, and 5 patients had ataxia). There were no deaths. According to the 2016 World Health Organization pathologic grading, 131 patients (84%) were grade I, 22 patients (14%) were grade II, and 3 patients were grade III (2%). Furthermore, 105 patients were followed up for 1–4 years. There were 11 cases of recurrence. Conclusions The classification and evaluation of peritumoral draining veins through preoperative-combined magnetic resonance venography can be used as a guide in determining the corresponding protective strategy during surgery. This can significantly improve the tumor resection rate and decrease the postoperative disability rate.

This current study intends to investigate the effect of microRNA-128 (miR-128) on cisplatin (DDP) resistance in glioma SHG-44 cells. SHG-44/DDP cells were transfected with miR-128 antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) and assigned into blank, resistance, NC, anti-miR-128, miR-128 mimic, si-JAG1, and anti-miR-128 + si-JAG1 groups. qRT-PCR and Western blotting were employed for determining expression of miR-128, JAG1, Bax and Bcl-2. MTT assay, Giemsa staining, and flow cytometry were applied to detect DDP resistance, cellular morphology, and cell cycle, respectively. JAG1 is targeted and negatively regulated by miR-128. In in vitro experiments, compared with the blank group, the rest groups exhibited declined miR-28 and Bax expression, lowered cell inhibition rate and apoptosis rate, but elevated JAG1 and Bcl-2 expression with cells arrested in the S phase. Compared with the resistance group, the anti-miR-128 group showed decreasedBax expression along with a lowered cell inhibition rate and apoptosis rate, but increased JAG1 and Bcl-2 expression with reduced cells arrested in the S phase; while the miR-128 mimic group showed an opposite trend; the si-JAG1 group showed decreased Bcl-2 expression and reduced cells in the S phase. In in vivo experiments, compared with the resistance group, the tumor growth rate, tumor volume, and weight as well as JAG1 expression accelerated in the anti-miR-128 group; whereas the miR-128 mimic and si-JAG1 groups exhibited an opposite trend. Our findings demonstrated that miR-128 ASO transfection might down-regulate the expression of miR-128 in SHG-44/DDP and up-regulate the DDP resistance in SHG-44/DDP cells, providing a potential treatment target for glioma.

The key point of digestive cancer surgery is reconstruction and anastomosis of the digestive tract. Traditional anastomoses involve double-layer interrupted suturing, manually or using a surgical stapler. In special anatomical locations, however, suturing may become increasingly difficult and the complication rate increases accordingly. In this study, we aimed to investigate the feasibility and safety of a new manual suturing method, the single-layer continuous suture in the posterior wall of the anastomosis. Between January, 2007 and August, 2012, 101 patients with digestive cancer underwent surgery in Xi’an Gaoxin Hospital. Of those patients, 27 underwent surgery with the new manual method and the remaining 74 underwent surgery using traditional methods of anastomosis of the digestive tract. Surgical time, intraoperative blood loss, drainage duration, complications, blood tests, postoperative quality of life (QOL) and overall expenditure were recorded and analyzed. No significant differences were observed in surgical time, intraoperative blood loss, temperature, blood tests and postoperative QOL between the two groups. However, compared with the control group, the new manual suture group exhibited a lower surgical complication rate (7.40 vs. 31.08%; P=0.018), lower blood transfusion volume (274.07±419.33 vs. 646.67±1,146.06 ml; P=0.053), shorter postoperative hospital stay (14.60±4.19 vs. 17.60±6.29 days; P=0.038) and lower overall expenditure (3,509.85±768.68 vs. 6,141.83±308.90 renminbi; P=0.001). Our results suggested that single-layer continuous suturing for the anastomosis of the digestive tract is feasible and safe and may contribute to the reduction of surgical complications and overall expenditure.

The integral theory for electromagnetic theory of gratings, which has complex mathematical tool and long computation cost, is needed to improve computing speed of the algorithm. A very shot-cut equation, which is called symmetrical equation of diffracted wavevectors by us, is presented. It makes the number of Green’s function expansion terms shorter and simplifies the integral kernel by taking into account its symmetry. Take the grating in Littrow mount for computing example, because of applying this equation, the computation cost of integral theory which has good convergence, is shorten to 1/2 to 2/5. This work modifies the integral theory and improves its computing speed.

The process of wear design on chisel-edge ruling tool of diffraction gratings is very complex because of following two reasons that one is the load distribution on minute edge area when grating ruling, and the other is the anisotropic character of natural diamond. The former is the first step when wear design on chisel-edge ruling tool of diffraction grating, In order to predicate the load distribution on minute edge area of tool, this paper simulated the load distribution on minute edge area of tool by software when ruling on Aluminum-1100 with tabular data format flow stress and Aluminum-1100 with Power law flow stress respectively, and through comparative analysis determined the approximate load distribution on minute edge area of chisel-edge ruling tool that the high load mainly focused on the edge area close to the tip of ruling tool and amount to 200MPa while about to 100MPa on the face of tool.

Background: Microvascular decompression (MVD) and rhizotomy are all selected for treating vagoglossopharyngeal neuralgia (VGPN). Nonetheless, controversies still exist about their curative effect on VGPN. Here we evaluate the effectiveness of MVD together with rhizotomy of the glossopharyngeal nerve for the treatment of VGPN. Methods: This study was carried out on 21 patients who were diagnosed with VGPN between the years 2005 and 2010. Patients underwent MVD and glossopharyngeal rhizotomy through a retromastoid keyhole approach. Surgical technique, operation results and complications were our particular concern. Results: Eighteen (85.7%) of 21 patients experienced immediate and complete relief of pain after surgery. In the remaining 3 patients (14.3%), the pain faded away within the following week. No patient complained of dysphonia or dysphagia. All 21 patients reported no change in their outcome at follow-up. Conclusions: Intracranial vagoglossopharyngeal nerve MVD with glossopharyngeal rhizotomy is an effective and safe procedure to treat VGPN.

Purpose: The interleukin-13 receptor α2 (IL-13Rα2) is a glioma-restricted cell-surface epitope not otherwise detected within the central nervous system. Here, we report a novel approach for targeting malignant glioma with IL-13Rα2–specific CTLs.Experimental Design: Artificial antigen-presenting cells (aAPC) were made by coating human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A2/pIL-13Rα2345-354 tetrameric complexes, anti-CD28 antibody, and CD83 molecules to cell-sized latex beads, and used to stimulate IL-13Rα2–specific CTLs from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of HLA-A2+ healthy donors. After multiple stimulations, the induced CTLs were analyzed for tetramer staining, IFN-γ production, and CTL reactivity.Results: Tetramer staining assay showed that the induced CTLs specifically bound HLA-A2/pIL-13Rα2345-354 tetramers. The CTLs specifically produced IFN-γ in response to the HLA-A2/pIL-13Rα2345-354-aAPCs and exhibited specific lysis against T2 cells pulsed with the peptide pIL-13Rα2345-354 and HLA-A2+ glioma cells expressing IL-13Rα2345-354, whereas HLA-A2− glioma cell lines that express IL-13Rα2345-354 could not be recognized by the CTLs. The peptide-specific activity was inhibited by anti–HLA class I monoclonal antibody.Conclusion: The induced CTLs specific for IL-13Rα2345-354 peptide could be a potential target of specific immunotherapy for HLA-A2+ patients with malignant glioma.

Sirtuin 6 (SIRT6) is a member of the mammalian NAD+‑dependent deacetylase sirtuin family that acts to maintain genomic stability and to repress genes. SIRT6 has recently been reported to be a tumor suppressor that controls cancer metabolism, although this effect of SIRT6 is still in dispute. Moreover, the role of SIRT6 in glioma is largely unknown. In the present study, we found that overexpression of SIRT6 using an adenovirus inhibited glioma cell growth and induced marked cell injury in two glioma cell lines (U87‑MG and T98G). Fluorescent terminal deoxyribonucleotidyl transferase (TdT)‑mediated biotin‑16‑dUTP nick‑end labelling (TUNEL) assay showed that SIRT6 overexpression induced obvious apoptosis in the T98G glioma cells. Immunoblotting and immunofluorescent staining demonstrated that SIRT6 overexpression promoted the mitochondrial-to‑nuclear translocation of apoptosis‑inducing factor (AIF), a potent apoptosis inducer. Moreover, we found that SIRT6 overexpression largely reduced oxidative stress and suppressed the activation of the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway in glioma cells. Finally, we showed that SIRT6 mRNA and protein levels in human glioblastoma multiforme tissues were significantly lower than the levels in peritumor tissues. In summary, our data suggest that SIRT6 suppresses glioma cell growth via induction of apoptosis, inhibition of oxidative stress and inhibition of the activation of the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway. These results indicate that SIRT6 may be a promising therapeutic target for glioma treatment.

Surgery for digestive tract disease predominantly consists of reconstruction and anastomosis. Due to the difficult location, anastomosis is extremely challenging and the risk of complication increases accordingly. Traditional manual anastomosis and the application of a stapling device are insufficient. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility and safety of a novel manual method in a difficult anastomotic location, consisting of a single-layer continuous suture in the posterior wall. In total, 15 beagle dogs were included in the study; eight underwent surgery with the novel manual method for reconstruction and anastomosis of the digestive tract, while seven underwent surgery with the stapler device as a control. The subsequent postoperative complications were observed and, three months later, the anastomotic ports were excised, and the pathological formation and morphological changes were evaluated. No statistically significant differences were identified between the total (50.0 vs. 57.1%; P=0.782) and anastomotic (0.0 vs. 28.6%; P=0.200) complication rates in the manual suture and staple suture groups, respectively. Compared with the control group, the operative expenditure was lower in the manual group (1726.7±33.5 vs. 2135.7±43.1 renminbi; P=0.001), the diameter of the anastomotic port was larger in the manual group (3.04±0.07 vs. 2.24±0.25 cm; P=0.004) and the thickness of the anastomotic port (in cm) was thinner in the manual group (2.94±0.06 vs. 5.07±0.85; P=0.002). Furthermore, the pathological formation of the anastomositic port in the manual group was improved. The results of the current study suggest single-layer continuous suture of the posterior wall in anastomosis of the digestive tract to be a novel method with feasibility and safety, particularly in difficult anastomotic locations.

Reticulon proteins, which are localized in the endoplasmic reticulum, have recently been shown to be involved in hormone secretion, in particular RTN1 and RTN3. The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of Nogo-A gene expression knockdown by RNA interference (RNAi) on dopamine release in PC12 cells.A small hairpin RNA (shRNA) eukaryotic expression vector, targeting the Nogo-A gene, was constructed and transfected into cultured PC12 cells by lipofecamine2000. Inhibition of Nogo-A gene expression was detected by semi-quantitative reverse transcription PCR and Western blot analysis. Following transfection, dopamine release was detected by high performance liquid chromatography.The pGenesil-1-Nogo-A-2 plasmid was identified by gene sequencing. After transfection of the recombinant vector in PC12 cells, Nogo-A gene expression was significantly inhibited (p0.01). Compared with the empty vector control group, dopamine release significantly decreased within 48 hours after transfection.Results from this study suggest that Nogo-A might be involved in the mechanism of DA release in PC12 cells.

To investigate the inhibitory effects of RNA silencing via plasmid-mediated vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) shRNA on proliferation of glioma cells in vitro and in vivo.pEGFP-H1/VEGF vector plasmid containing enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) gene and expressing VEGF shRNA was constructed. The EGFP expression was detected by fluorescent microscopy and flow cytometry. Glioma cells of the line U251 were cultured and divided into 3 groups to be transfected with blank vector, pEGFP/H1plasmid, and pEGFP-H1/VEGF respectively. RT-PCR was used to detect the mRNA expression of VEGF in the supernatants of the culture media. The protein expression of VEGF in the supernatant was detected by ELISA. The cell growth was observed with MTT method. Fifteen nude rats were randomly divided into 3 equal groups to be transplanted with U251 cells and pEGFP-H1, U251 cells and pEGFP-H1/VEGF, and U251 cells only as blank control group. The growth of glioma was observed every day. 30 days after the rats were killed and the tumors were taken out to be examined.Twenty-four hours after transplantation, fluorescence microscopy showed great numbers of U251 cells that expressed green fluorescence in both the pEGFP-H1 group and pEGFP-H1/VEGF group. Flow cytometry showed that the rates of green fluorescent protein positive cells were 68.37% and 65.29% in these 2 groups (P0.05). MTT method showed no significant difference in the effect on cell growth among the 3 groups (all P0.05). PCR showed that the VEGF mRNA expression was significantly inhibited in the pEGFP-H1/VEGF group in comparison with those in the blank control group and the group transfected with pEGFP-H1 (both P0.05). The concentration of VEGF protein of the U251 cells transfected with pEGFP-H1/VEGF was 530 ng/L +/- 118 ng/L, significantly lower than those of the control group (2571 ng/L +/- 572 ng/L) and the group transfected with pEGFP-H1 (2402 ng/L +/- 310 ng/L, by 77.9%) (both P0.01). Tumor could be touched 13 days after transplantation in the rats of pEGFP-H1/VEGF group, markedly later than in the other 2 groups. Thirty days after, the weight and volume of tumor were 0.5 g +/- 0.4 g and 401 mm(3) +/- 272 mm(3) respectively in the rats of pEGFP-H1/VEGF group, both significantly lower than those of the control group and pEGFP-H1 group (1.7 g +/- 0.4 g and 1573 mm(3) +/- 330 mm(3); and 1.5 g +/- 0.7 g and 1430 mm(3) +/- 382 mm(3)) (all P0.01).The successfully constructed shRNA targeting at VEGF efficiently decreases the VEGF expression of the glioma cells in vitro and suppresses the growth of glioma cells in vivo.