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OBJECTIVE: Increasing evidence has suggested that dysregulation of microRNAs (miRNAs) could contribute to tumor progression. The aim of present study was to evaluate the feasibility of using miR-146b-5p as a prognostic biomarker in gallbladder cancer (GBC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: We collected 150 pairs of tissue specimens from patients with GBC and adjacent normal specimens. The expression level of miR-146b-5p was measured in 150 GBC tissues and adjacent normal tissues RT-qPCR. Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze the overall survival. The univariate and multivariable Cox regression analyses were performed to identify whether miR-146b-5p could serve as an independent prognostic factor for GBC patients. RESULTS: miR-146b-5p expression was decreased in GBC tissues compared with that in adjacent normal tissues (p < 0.01). In addition, miR-146b-5p expression was correlated with TNM stage (p = 0.009), liver metastasis (p = 0.001) and differentiated degree (p = 0.022). Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that GBC patients with high miR-146b-5p expression showed better overall survival than those with low miR-146b-5p expression (p = 0.0005). At last, univariate and multivariate analyses confirmed that increased miR-146b-5p expression was an independent predictive factor of good prognosis for GBC patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed that miR- 146b-5p was a potential prognostic biomarker and higher expression of miR-146b-5p is associated with a poor prognosis in GBC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sewage sludge is a considerable source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission in the field of organic solid waste treatment and disposal. In this case study, total GHG emissions from sludge anaerobic digestion, including direct and indirect emissions as well as replaceable emission reduction due to biogas being reused instead of natural gas, were quantified respectively. The results indicated that no GHG generation needed to be considered during the anaerobic digestion process. Indirect emissions were mainly from electricity and fossil fuel consumption on-site and sludge transportation. Overall, the total GHG emission owing to relative subtraction from anaerobic digestion rather than landfill, and replaceable GHG reduction caused by reuse of its product of biogas, were quantified to be 0.7214 (northern China) or 0.7384 (southern China) MgCO2 MgWS-1 (wet sludge). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is an essential task to remove the residual organic pollutants (ROP) from secondary effluent of a Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) in wastewater reclamation and reuse processes. Four different compared flow schemes would be achieved for further purification of the secondary effluent by switching of different valves. In order to mainly remove non-biodegradable residual organic pollutants under various operating conditions, the optimum technology and economic process was obtained in the advanced purification flow scheme at a flow of 3200 m³/d in Harbin Wenchang WWTP. Conclusions under a lot of experiments show that: choosing the coagulation-settler plus biofilm filter for advanced purification process is reasonable; during the stable operation phase, this process showed good performance in removing the COD, BOD5, TP, NH3-N and SS; the removal rates are 50%, 39%, 67%, 50%, 80% respectively. The effluent is able to excel the requirements for wastewater reuse standards. The unit cost of the water is 0.542 yuan/m³, which is far below the fee paid for supply water, long-distance transfer water or seawater desalination through economic analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To analyze the contrast echocardiography for detecting right to left shunt in adults with patent foramen ovale(PFO), and study the relationship between PFO and cryptogenic stroke. Methods: Clinical data of forty-six adults patients with PFO diagnosed by transesophageal echocardiography(TEE)from March, 2012 to March, 2017 were retrospectively collected, and the patients were divided to 3 groups according to the direction and brightness of the color Doppler shunts: obvious left-to-right shunt (OLRS, group A), weak left-to-right shunt(WLRS, group B), bi-directional shunt(BDS, group C). A right-to-left shunt (RLS) scale was calculated using the method of 10 ml hand-operated saline for contrast echocardiography. Results: There were seventeen cases in group A, four cases (23.5%) showed RLS at level 1, and thirteen cases (76.5%) showed no RLS; there were twenty cases in group B, and all cases (100%) showed RLS, with five cases (25%) at level 1 and fifteen cases (75%) at level 2-3; there were nine cases in group C, and all cases (100%) showed RLS, with two cases (22.2%) at level 1 and seven cases (77.8%) at level 2-3. Anteroposterior diameter of left atrium of patients with no RLS (4.8 cm±0.6 cm) was significantly larger than that of patients with RLS in contrast echocardiography (3.6 cm±0.5 cm)( P =0.000). Conclusions: OLRS of adults with patent foramen ovale and with larger left atrium have less RLS than WLRS and DLRS with normal left atrium in contrast echocardiography.The possibility of paradoxical embolism in WLRS and DLRS is higher than that in OLRS, which should be taken seriously in clinical practice.

Metastasis is the primary mediator of prostate cancer (PCA) lethality and poses a significant clinical obstacle. The identification of factors involved in the metastasis of PCA is imperative. We demonstrate herein that trefoil factor 1 (TFF1) promotes PCA cell migration and invasion in vitro and metastasis in vivo. The capacity of TFF1 to enhance cell migration/invasion is mediated by transcriptional repression of E-CADHERIN. Consideration of targeted inhibition of TFF1 to prevent metastasis of prostate carcinoma is warranted., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

To quantify angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) mRNA, we have developed a reverse transcription (RT)-coupled competitive PCR (RT-PCR) assay with a deletion mutant internal standard. The RT-PCR detects ACE mRNA from both human and bovine sources. ACE mRNA was detected in total RNA from cultured human saphenous vein smooth muscle cells (HuSV-SMCs) and from bovine pulmonary artery (BPA) SMCs. BPA-SMC expressed ninefold less ACE mRNA than BPA endothelial cells, and threefold less than HuSV-SMCs. Apparent amounts of ACE mRNA were 118,350 +/- 2,300 copies in HuSV-SMCs and 42,200 +/- 11,300 copies in BPA-SMCs per microgram of total cell RNA. The accuracy of the absolute values is subject to the limitations of the assumptions used to calculate them. These data support the hypothesis that components of the renin-angiotensin system are transcribed by SMCs.

To evaluate the regulation of endothelial cell Cu,Zn-SOD, we have exposed bovine pulmonary artery endothelial cells in culture to hyperoxia and hypoxia, second messengers or related agonists, hormones, free radical generating systems, endotoxin, and cytokines and have measured Cu,Zn-SOD protein of these cells by an ELISA developed in our laboratory. Control preconfluent and confluent cells in room air contained 196 +/- 18 ng Cu,Zn-SOD/10(6) cells. A23187 (0.33 microM), forskolin (10 microM), isobutylmethylxanthine (0.1 mM), dexamethasone (1 microM), triiodothyronine (1 microM) and retinoic acid (1 microM) failed to alter this level of Cu,Zn-SOD. Exposure to anoxia and hyperoxia both elevated the level approximately 1.5-2.0-fold over 20% oxygen-exposed controls at 48-72 hr. Similarly, exposures to glucose oxidase (0.0075 units/ml), menadione (12.5 microM), xanthine-xanthine oxidase (10 microM, 0.03 units/ml) and H2O2 (0.0005%) increased the level up to two-threefold over controls at 24-48 hr. Lipopolysaccharide, TGF beta 1, TNF alpha, and Il-1 also increased levels of cellular Cu,Zn-SOD, but only in proliferating cells. Il-2, Il-4, interferon-gamma, and GM-CSF had no effect on Cu,Zn-SOD. All treatments that elevated SOD resulted in inhibition of cellular growth, but decreased growth of cells at confluence alone was not associated with increased Cu,Zn-SOD. We propose from these studies that Cu,Zn-SOD of endothelial cells is not under conventional second messenger or hormonal regulation, but that up-regulation of the enzyme is associated with (and perhaps stimulated by) free-radical or oxidant production that also may be influenced by availability of certain cytokines under replicating conditions.

Matrine (MT) is an alkaloid isolated from Sophra alopecuroids L. The LD50 of MT iv to mice was 72.1 mg/kg (95% CL 68.2-76.5 mg/kg). MT had significant effects on different experimental models of arrhythmias induced by aconitine, barium chloride or coronary ligation. The ECG of anesthetized rats was significantly changed after iv of MT. The HR was retarded and the PR and QTc intervals were prolonged.