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Due to the thermal effects, the airflow disturbance and the platform vibration, the random jitters of laser axis are caused, which have a serious impact on the laser coherent combining. If the conventional PID controller is used to reject the disturbance, the control bandwidth will be lager, but the high frequency noise of the system will be significantly amplified, so that the control error increases. The open-loop disturbance data spectrum is analyzed to add a lag compensator. The results show that the system has a good effect on rejecting the jitters of the middle-and-low frequency optical axis, while the high frequency noise has on amplification effect, which decreases the control error of the system.

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have great potential as seed cells for tissue engineering applications. Previous studies have shown that iPSCs could be induced to differentiate into bone forming cells. However, in a tissue engineering approach, seeding cells in biomaterials is required, and the effect of biomaterials on cell growth and differentiation is critical for the success of the formation of engineered tissues. In this study, we investigated the effect of akermanite, a bioactive ceramic, on the osteogenic differentiation of embryoid body (EB) cells derived from human iPSCs. The results showed that, in the presence of osteogenic factors (ascorbic acid, dexamethasone, and β-glycerophosphate), ionic extracts of akermanite enhanced the osteogenic differentiation of EB cells as compared with normal osteogenic medium. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and the expression of osteogenic marker genes such as osteocalcin (OCN), collagen (COL-1), RUNX2, and BMP2 are significantly increased by the stimulation of akermanite ceramic extracts at certain concentration ranges. More interesting is that the medium containing extracts of akermanite but without osteogenic factors also showed stimulatory effects on the osteogenic differentiation of EB cells as compared to normal growth medium without osteogenic factors, such as ascorbic acid, dexamethasone, and β-glycerophosphate, not at the early stage of culture, but only at the later stage of the culture period (21 days). These results suggest that akermanite as a bioactive material together with human iPSCs might be used for bone tissue engineering applications.

Puerarin has properties of anti-oxidation and anti-inflammation, which has been demonstrated protective effects in atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular diseases. However, the detail molecular mechanism still remains unclear. Here, we determined whether the atheroprotective effect of puerarin was by reducing monocyte adhesion and explored the underlying mechanism. The results showed that puerarin dose- and time-dependently reduced oxLDL-induced monocyte THP-1 adhesion to HUVECs and the expression of adhesion-related genes such as VCAM-1, ICAM-1, MCP-1 and IL-8 in HUVECs. Puerarin activated ERK5 phosphorylation and up-regulated expressions of downstream KLF2 and its targeted genes endothelial nitric oxide synthase and thrombomodulin. However, the protective effects were reversed by ERK5/KLF2 pathway inhibitor XDM8-92, BIX02189 or KLF2 siRNA suggesting the pathway involved in the function. The ex vivo assay, in which THP-1 adhesion to endothelium isolated from apoE-/- mice received various treatments further confirmed the results from HUVECs. Finally, we found that the atherosclerotic lesions in both cross sections at aortic root and whole aorta were significantly reduced in high fat-diet (HFD) mice with puerarin treatment compared with the HFD-only mice, but were increased respectively by 76% and 71% in XMD8-92 group, and 82% and 73% in BIX02189 group. Altogether, the data revealed that puerarin inhibited the monocyte adhesion in vitro and in vivo and thus reduced atherosclerotic lesions in apoE-/- mice; the protective effects were mediated by activation of ERK5/KLF2 signaling pathway. Our findings advance the understanding of puerarin function in atherosclerosis and point out a way to prevent the disease.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) serve important functions in many crucial biological processes; however, the effects of lncRNAs in early gastric cancer (EGC) are not entirely clear. The present study aimed to demonstrate the potential of lncRNAs to be used as biomarkers in EGC. Reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to measure the expression levels of lncRNAs, including X inactive‑specific transcript (XIST), Yiya, brain cytoplasmic RNA 1 (BCYRN1), ribosomal RNA processing 1B (RRP1B), KCNQ1 opposite transcript 1 (KCNQ1OT1) and testes development related 1 (TDRG1), in EGC tissues compared with normal adjacent tissues (NATs). XIST, BCYRN1, RRP1B and TDRG1 were identified as differentially expressed in EGC tissues compared with NATs. The specificity and sensitivity of XIST, BCYRN1, RRP1B and TDRG1 were determined by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. In addition, RRP1B expression was revealed to be significantly correlated with distal metastasis (P=0.020) and tumor‑node‑metastasis staging (P=0.018), and TDRG1 expression was significantly correlated with lymph node metastasis (P=0.001). Furthermore, BCYRN1, RRP1B and TDRG1 expression levels were compared between EGC tissues and plasma, and the results indicated that there were significant positive correlations of XIST, BCYRN1, RRP1B and TDRG1 expression levels between the EGC tissues and plasma. Therefore, the present study suggested that XIST, BCYRN1, RRP1B and TDRG1 may be served as potential diagnostic biomarkers for EGC.

The present study aimed to examine the association of p53 expression levels with clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients with colon cancer following surgery. The present study included 484 patients with colon cancer that underwent colon resection between December 2003 and December 2011. All follow-ups were censored in December 2013 with a median follow-up time of 43 months. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox regression analysis were used to determine predictors for overall survival rate. p53 expression status (positive or negative) was significantly different between patient groups when categorized by age distribution, disease course, tumor location, maximum tumor diameter, depth of tumor invasion, Dukes' stage, distant metastasis and lymph node (LN) metastasis (P

With the deepening population aging process in China, the medical expenses of older adults has become a widespread concerned. Medical insurance is a major source of Chinese medical financing and payment. The study aims to understand the current status of medical expenses for older adults and explore the effect of different types of health insurance on medical expenses in China. The data came from the Chinese Longitudinal Health Longevity Survey (CLHLS) in 2014. The Kruskal–Wallis test and general multivariate linear regression model were applied to analyze the current situation and to explore how medical insurance as the main payment impacts medical expenses. A total of 4376 older participants were included in this study. The median of medical expenses of a total was 1500 Yuan per year. The proportions of participants who had the urban employee-based basic medical insurance (UE-BMI), the urban residents basic medical insurance (UR-BMI), the new rural cooperative medical insurance scheme (NCMS), and the commercial medical insurance were 10.8%, 8.4%, 72.7%, and 0.9%, respectively. 34.8% of older adults paid the health care service via the NCMS and 11.9% paid via the UE-BMI. Participating in the NCMS and UR-BMI are significantly related to the level of the medical fees of older adults. UE-BMI, UR-BMI, and NCMS as main payment eased the pressure of medical expenses. The influence of different types of medical insurances as main payments on the medical expenses of older adults is varied. Implementation of medical insurance should be taken to further relieve the medical expenses of older adults.

Background CD4+ T cells are critical effectors of anti-tumor immunity, but how tumor cells influence CD4+ T cell effector function is not fully understood. Tumor cell-released autophagosomes (TRAPs) are being recognized as critical modulators of host anti-tumor immunity during tumor progression. Here, we explored the mechanistic aspects of TRAPs in the modulation of CD4+ T cells in the tumor microenvironment. Methods TRAPs isolated from tumor cell lines and pleural effusions or ascites of cancer patients were incubated with CD4+ T cells to examine the function and mechanism of TRAPs in CD4+ T cell differentiation and function. TRAPs-elicited CD4+ T cells were tested for their suppression of effector T cell function, induction of regulatory B cells, and promotion of tumorigenesis and metastasis in a mouse model. Results Heat shock protein 90α (HSP90α) on the surface of TRAPs from malignant effusions of cancer patients and tumor cell lines stimulated CD4+ T cell production of IL-6 via a TLR2–MyD88–NF-κB signal cascade. TRAPs-induced autocrine IL-6 further promoted CD4+ T cells secretion of IL-10 and IL-21 via STAT3. Notably, TRAPs-elicited CD4+ T cells inhibited CD4+ and CD8+ effector T cell function in an IL-6- and IL-10-dependent manner and induced IL-10-producing regulatory B cells (Bregs) via IL-6, IL-10 and IL-21, thereby promoting tumor growth and metastasis. Consistently, inhibition of tumor autophagosome formation or IL-6 secretion by CD4+ T cells markedly retarded tumor growth. Furthermore, B cell or CD4+ T cell depletion impeded tumor growth by increasing effector T cell function. Conclusions HSP90α on the surface of TRAPs programs the immunosuppressive functions of CD4+ T cells to promote tumor growth and metastasis. TRAPs or their membrane-bound HSP90α represent important therapeutic targets to reverse cancer-associated immunosuppression and improve immunotherapy. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s40425-019-0646-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

A design of optical axis closed-loop control system for multi beam lasers coherent combining based on FPGA was introduced. The system uses piezoelectric ceramics Fast Steering Mirrors (FSM) as actuator, the Fairfield spot detection of multi beam lasers by the high speed CMOS camera for optical detecting, a control system based on FPGA for real-time optical axis jitter suppression. The algorithm for optical axis centroid detecting and PID of anti-Integral saturation were realized by FPGA. Optimize the structure of logic circuit by reuse resource and pipeline, as a result of reducing logic resource but reduced the delay time, and the closed-loop bandwidth increases to 100Hz. The jitter of laser less than 40Hz was reduced 40dB. The cost of the system is low but it works stably.

Peripheral venous blood markers may reflect the systematic inflammatory response condition. Various indices have been used to evaluate Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), however, there is no ideal maker to assess the IBD activity and severity. We aim to investigate the potential value of Systemic Inflammation Response Index (SIRI) in IBD patients, and use it to predict the disease activity and severity. We designed a retrospective study to evaluate the SIRI in estimating disease severity in patients with IBD. We enrolled 210 patients with IBD, included 110 cases of Ulcerative Colitis (UC) and 100 cases of Crohn’s Disease (CD) in our hospital, between May 2011 and October 2014. The blood samples were collected from the IBD patients before any treatment of antibiotics, steroids and surgery. The categorical variables were provided with frequencies and percentages (%), and using the Chi-square test. The univariate and multivariate logistic regression model analysis were used to determine the demographic and clinicopathological features with active IBD. The optimal cut-off value of SIRI by Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (ROC) was 0.86 × 109/L, and patients were stratified into 2 groups: a low SIRI group (SIRI

Objective To investigate the influence of age and preoperative complications on occurrence of postoperative complications in elderly patients with oral cancer. Methods The clinical data of 106 patients with oral cancer who had undergone surgical treatment in the General Hospital of PLA from Jan. to Jul. 2014 were retrospcetively analysed. Among them, 66 patients were over 60 years old, and 40 patients were under 60 years old. The relationship between age, preoperative complications and postoperative complications was analyzed. Results Complications including hypertension, heart disease, lung disease, anemia, etc. were significantly higher in patients of elderly group than in non-elderly group (P

According to the requirements of smart substation metering system, a digital interface based on IEC 61850 specification is given, then the functional model of the merging unit is discussed. Meanwhile, according to the actual situation, the author proposes an analog output interface, in order to fit with traditional substation secondary equipment. Then the solution based on TMS320F28335 digital control platform is described, for which the voltage control module of the software and hardware circuits are discussed in detail. The experimental data shows that the proposed merging unit and analog voltage output interface can meet the accuracy standard of electronic transformer in the smart substation.

This paper presents a power consumption model with harmonics existing in power system, the influence of harmonic linear load and the influence of nonlinear load energy metering is discussed, then the analysis of the impact of the harmonic of induction watt-hour meter and electronic watt-hour meter measurement features is given. In the next part, the measurement principle of harmonic watt-hour meter is introduced, and a new type of electric energy metering scheme based on harmonic watt-hour meter is given, so that the electric energy metering fairness problem caused by power grid harmonic will be solved effectively.

The degradation behavior and mechanism of biologically pretreated coking wastewater (BPCW) were investigated by means of a lab-scale electro-coagulation (EC) in static methods. The results showed that the percent COD and color removal can reach 80.5 % and 95.4 % respectively under the optimal conditions (initial pH of 8.0; reaction time of 30 min; current density of 14.0 mA/cm2 and NaCl dosage 1.6 g/L).

To observe the changes of endotoxin levels after different teeth with periodontitis were treated with different methods. METHODS： Six healthy premolars extracted for orthodontic reasons and 36 posterior teeth extracted due to severe periodontitis were selected. Each tooth was processed from two 4 mm×4 mm×1 mm cementum pieces 2 mm under the cementum-enamel junction, each tooth with periodontitis was numbered. Healthy teeth served as negative control group, one of the two tablets from each tooth with periodontitis was selected in the periodontitis group, which was not treated with root surface treatment. The remaining 36 teeth with periodontitis were randomly divided into 6 groups: SRP group, SRP + antimicrobial peptide A group , SRP + antimicrobial peptide B group, SRP + EDTA group, SRP + Er:YAG laser group and SRP + Nd:YAG laser group. Endotoxin concentration in each tooth was determined by chromogenic substrate limulus reagent. The endotoxin concentration in each tooth was recorded according to the serial number, and the changes of endotoxin concentration were calculated before and after treatment. SPSS17.0 software package was used to analyze the data.Compared with the teeth with periodontitis, endotoxin concentration decreased to varying degrees, there were significant differences in each treatment group(P0.01). Compared with SRP group, endotoxin levels in SRP + antimicrobial peptide A group, SRP + antimicrobial peptide B group, SRP + Er:YAG laser group were significantly decreased(P0.01). No significant difference decreased was from between SRP + EDTA group and SRP + Nd:YAG laser group(P0.05).Treatment of teeth with periodontitis using different methods can decrease the level of endotoxin, and the treatment of periodontitis root surface with antimicrobial peptide A + SRP may be more effective.

TNF 308 gene polymorphism and IL-10 polymorphism provided evidence in diagnosing some types of cancer. We aimed to explore the relation of gene polymorphism with gastric cancer. A total of 360 cases of gastric cancer patients were included in the study. The genotypes GG, GA, and AA of the interleukin-10-1082 gene (IL-10-1082) and the tumor necrosis factor-alpha gene (TNF-α) 308 polymorphism were examined by chromogenic detection. Three hundred healthy individuals' gene as control group were also examined. The GA 308 genotype of TNF-α differed significantly between the control group and the gastric cancer group (c 2 = 9.32, P < 0.05). Genotype frequencies of A/A (17.2%), A/G (26.2%), and G/G (9.1%) of the IL-10-1082 gene polymorphism in the gastric cancer group differed significantly compared to those of the control group ( c 2 = 20.32, P < 0.05). The IL-10-1082 gene and the GA 308 genotype of the TNF-α gene were found to be susceptibility genes for gastric cancer.

We have demonstrated several MZIs based on two spaced 3-dB LPFGs with different interference lengths in conventional SMFs fabricated in air by femtosecond laser pulses with the duration of 200 fs and the repetition rate of 250 kHz. Experimental results show that the average fringe spatial period increases with the resonance wavelength, while decreases with the interference length in approximately inverse proportion. The dominant cladding mode interfering with core mode has been calculated. The MZI sensitivity on temperature, refractive index and strain with a length of 16mm has also been investigated.

Mach-Zehnder interferometer formed by a pair of long period fiber gratings on single mode fiber is investigated as surrounding refractive index sensors. Interference fringes with bandwidth of 1.68 nm are induced by core mode and the excited cladding mode. High SRI sensitivity of 280.74 nm/RIU at 1437.74 nm in the range of 1.333 to 1.360 is achieved. Whilst the strain sensitivity (~0.33 nm/mε) and temperature response (~20.7 pm/°C) at 1428.64 nm are relatively low, which is superior in avoiding cross sensitivity in refractive index measurement.

This paper presents a method of a new system of heating vulcanizing machine by heat transfer oil, it is a system that based on neural network of fuzzy temperature control. One one hand, compared with the traditional PI control of relative ratio, we can make a conclusion that in the heating system of fuzzy control, the heating system robustness could be enhanced. One the other hand, through the analysis of the simulation results, this programme guarantees the stability of heating system and emission the temperature fluctuation which is caused by heating plate. The last but not the least, we can take these advantages and control the system easier.

Recognizing message digest algorithm 5 (MD5 algorithm) from binary files plays an important role in finding malicious code and protecting computer system. Based on analysis result of the basic concept of MD5 algorithm, this paper researches their software reversing characters, and gives analysis of typical examples in detail. Researching conclusion of this paper can provide important information in recognizing MD5 algorithm from binary files.

We demonstrate a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) architecture based on Yb:YAG amplifiers and adaptive optics (AO) systems with a high power and high beam quality laser output. With two conduction cooled, dual-end-pumped Yb:YAG zigzag-slab amplifiers at room temperature, the fiber laser of 300 W was scaled to 11.9 kW. Moreover, AO system positioned downstream was utilized to correct wavefront of amplified laser. The beam quality β at maximum output power was 2.8 times diffraction limited with closed-loop AO system.

Although inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) or activation of peroxisome proliferators-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-gamma) leads to growth inhibition in malignancies, the synergistic anti-tumor effects of combination of COX-2 inhibitor (NS-398) and PPAR-gamma agonist (rosiglitazone) on the human pancreatic cancer cells remains unknown. Here, we evaluated the effects of NS-398 and/or rosiglitazone on the cell proliferation and apoptosis in a pancreatic cancer cell line, SW1990. NS-398 and rosiglitazone decreased cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) labeling index significantly decreased in the cells treated with either NS-398 or rosiglitazone. Both NS-398 and rosiglitazone alone induced apoptotic cell death of SW1990. The combination of NS-398 and rosiglitazone exerted synergistic effects on proliferation inhibition, and apoptosis induction in SW1990 cells. with down-regulation of Bcl-2 and up-regulation of Bax expression. Our results indicate that simultaneous targeting of COX-2 and PPAR-gamma inhibits pancreatic cancer development more effectively than targeting each molecule alone. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

There is an association between sedentary behavior and the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC), but the underlying mechanism is unclear. CRC is characterized by the changes in the expression levels of biomarkers, including voltage-gated proton channel Hv1, matrix-remodeling associated 5 (MXRA5), DEK (inducing positive supercoils into circular DNA) and protein inhibitor of activated signal transducer and activators of transcription 3 (PIAS3). Thus, sedentary behavior may affect the expression levels of these biomarkers in the colorectal tissue. Here, we recruited 228 CRC patients (128 males, 57.8 ± 7.8 years; 100 females, 57.7 ± 7.5 years) and 80 healthy subjects (48 males, 57.5 ± 6.8 years; 32 females, 56.9 ± 6.5 years) from March 7th, 2010 to May 6th, 2012. All the subjects were unrelated Han Chinese with the similar cultural and economic background. All the subjects were interviewed concerning sedentary time (sitting time categories: less than 1, 1-3, 4-6, and more than 6 h/day). The daily sedentary time of most CRC patients was more than 4 h/day, while the sedentary time of most healthy subjects was less than 3 h/day. The expression levels of Hv1, MXRA5 and DEK mRNAs and proteins were higher in CRC tissues and the levels of PIAS3 mRNA and protein were lower when the daily sedentary time was longer in CRC patients (p < 0.05). The daily sedentary time was correlated with the protein levels of CRC biomarkers. Furthermore, the sedentary time was positively related with body mass index but not daily calorie intake.

A long period fiber grating (LPFG) with resonance wavelength of 1335.76 nm was investigated, a twist sensitivity of 43.33 pm/(rad/m) against wavelength was obtained and its twist direction can be detected as well.

Periodontal disease is closely related to type 2 diabetes and is an important complication of diabetes. This study aimed to investigate the effect of periodontal treatment on levels of blood glucose (Glu) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) among elderly patients with type 2 diabetes and periodontal disease.A total of 107 elderly patients with type 2 diabetes and periodontal disease were selected and divided into two groups according to their HbA1c levels. Group A was a well-controlled diabetic group and group B was uncontrolled. Their probing depth (PD), attachment loss (AL), the value of Glu and HbA1c were analyzed before periodontal treatment and 4 months later.There was a significant difference in periodontal condition between groups A and B (P0.01). The periodontal condition for both groups was significantly (P0.01) improved after periodontal therapy. The effect of treatment in group A was more pronounced than group B, and the difference was significant (P0.01). After the periodontal treatment, Glu and HbA1c were reduced significantly in both groups (P0.05).Periodontal condition is related to the control of Glu level among elderly patients with type 2 diabetes and periodontal disease. Periodontal treatment can effectively reduce the level of Glu and HbA1c as well as improve the periodontal condition in elderly type-2 diabetes patients with periodontal disease.

phiC31 integrase, a site-specific recombinase, can effectively mediate foreign genes bearing an attB sequence integrated into pseudo attP sites. We have previously identified two pseudo attP sites, BpsF1 and BpsM1 from the bovine genome. In this study, two new pseudo attP sites, BF4 and BF10, were discovered using half-nested inverse PCR from cow fibroblasts. The genomic locations of these two pseudo attP sites were identified by direct sequencing and a BLAST search, and it was confirmed that they reside at positions 4q31 and 10q35 by fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis. Subsequently, the distinct integration frequencies of the four pseudo attP sites were examined. The BF4 site was identified as a hotspot where site-specific integration occurred in most of the cell clones examined, accounting for 74% (42/57) of the integration; much more than the integration frequency for BF10 (7%; 4/57), BpsF1 (7%; 4/57) and BpsM1 (0/57). Interestingly, similar to other hotspots identified in the human and mouse genomes, in which transgenes integrated at hotspots result in high expression, the GFP gene integrated at hotspot BF4 was expressed at high levels in cow fibroblasts, as confirmed by fluorescence microscopy and FACS analysis. Furthermore, ELISA showed that the expression level of the GFP gene integrated at the BF4 site averaged approximately 328 microg x mg(-1), which is more than twofold higher than that integrated at the BF10 site. This study suggests that somatic cells carrying a desired gene integrated at the BF4 site can be used as nuclear donors to generate valuable transgenic animals by nuclear transfer.

To explore the clinical value of endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) on early gastrointestinal cancer and precancerous lesion.The EMR data of 42 lesions from 28 patients, collected from Apr. 2001 to Dec. 2005, were retrospectively analyzed. All the lesions were confirmed histologically before and after operation.Forty-two lesions were removed by the EMR from 28 patients. Lesion types observed under endoscopy were as follows: type I 9 lesions (type Isp 2 lesions, type Is 7 lesions), type II 33 lesions (type IIa 23 lesions, type IIa + IIc 4 lesions, type IIb 6 lesions). Thirty-eight EMRs were performed by using snare resection techniques and 4 EMRs by using suction cap-assisted techniques. The size of lesions changed from 0.6 cm x 0.6 cm to 3.0 cm x 3.5 cm. Complete resections were achieved in 36 of 40, among them, 2 lesions were divided into 2 pieces and 1 lesion was divided into 3 pieces. Post-EMR histopathologic evaluation revealed the followingcarcinoma in 4 lesions, high-grade dysplasia (HGD) in 11 lesions, middle-grade dysplasia (MGD) in 17 lesions, adenoma in 6 lesions, non-adenoma in 2 lesions. The pathology match rate between local biopsy and EMR was 60.0%. The detection rates of cancer, HGD and MGD by EMR were higher than that by routine biopsy. No serious complications were seen in this study.Endoscopic mucosal resection has significant impact on the endoscopic intervention treatment of early cancer and precancerous lesion in digestive tract.

To investigate the expression of GST-pi and Topo II-alpha, and their relationships with clinicopathological parameters in colorectal carcinoma.The expression of GST-pi and Topo II-alpha were detected by avidin-biotin-peroxide complex (ABC) method in tumor specimens, matched paratumor tissues from 60 cases with colorectal carcinoma and normal colonic tissues from 15 cases.The expression rates of GST-pi and Topo II-alpha were 90.0% and 86.7% respectively in tumor tissues, significantly higher than those in matched paratumor tissues and normal tissues (P0.01). The expressions of GST-pi and Topo II-alpha were associated with cellular differentiation, Dukes stage and lymph node metastasis (all P0.01), but not with tumor size and histological type (all P0.05). The expression level of GST-pi was significantly higher in poorly differentiated tumors than that in well differentiated tumors. The expression level of Topo II-alpha in well-differentiated tumors were stronger than that in poorly differentiated tumors.The detection of GST-pi and Topo II-alpha expressions may be helpful to judge the malignant behavior, metastasis and prognosis in human colorectal carcinoma.

To investigate COX-2 expression in patients with gastric cancer and its relationship with angiogenesis and clinicopathologic features of gastric cancer.COX-2 expression and CD34-stained microvessel density (MVD) were detected by immunohistochemical methods in specimens from 96 patients with gastric cancer. The correlations among COX-2 expression, MVD and clinicopathologic features were analyzed.The COX-2 positive rate and MVD in gastric cancer were significantly higher than those in the normal gastric mucosa (80.2% vs. 13.3%; 32.5+/- 8.3 vs. 13.1+/- 2.4, all P0.01). The COX-2 positive rate and MVD in the patients with stage III and IV were significantly higher (91.4% and 34.9+/- 8.7 respectively, P0.01), than that in the patients with stage I and II. The COX-2 positive rate and MVD in the cases with lymph node metastasis were 87.9% and (35.0+/- 8.5) respectively, higher than those in the cases without lymph node metastasis (P0.05). The Spearman rank correlation test showed a significant correlation between COX-2 expression and tumor MVD (r=0.311, P0.01).COX-2 plays an important role in gastric cancer angiogenesis. COX-2 and angiogenesis induced by COX-2 contribute to tumor invasion and lymph node metastasis.

AIM: Cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 is over expressed in gastrointestinal neoplasm. Helicobacter pylori (H pylori) infection is causally linked to gastric cancer. However, the expression of COX-2 in various stages of H pylori-associated gastric carcinogenesis pathway has not been elucidated. Therefore, the aim of this study was to clarify the role of H pylori induced COX-2 expression during carcinogenesis in the stomach. METHODS: Gastric biopsies from 138 subjects [30 cases of chronic superficial gastritis (CSG), 28 cases of gastric glandular atrophy (GA), 45 cases of gastric mucosal intestinal metaplasia (IM), 12 cases of moderate gastric epithelial dysplasia and 23 cases of gastric cancer] were enrolled. H pylori infection was assessed by a rapid urease test and histological examination (modified Giemsa staining). The expression of COX-1 and COX-2 in human gastric mucosa was detected by immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: H pylori infection rate was 64.3% in GA and 69.5% in gastric cancer, which was significantly higher than that (36.7%) in CSG (P < 0.05). The positive expression rates of COX-2 were 10.0%, 35.7%, 37.8%, 41.7% and 69.5% in CSG, GA, IM, dysplasia and gastric cancer, respectively. From CSG to GA, IM, dysplasia and finally to gastric cancer, expression of COX-2 showed an ascending tendency, whereas COX-1 expression did not change significantly in the gastric mucosa. The level of COX-2 expression in IM and dysplasia was significantly higher in H pylori-positive than in H pylori-negative subjects (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: COX-2 expression induced by H pylori infection is a relatively early event during carcinogenesis in the stomach.

AIM: To evaluate spiral computed tomography (CT) including virtual gastroscopy for diagnosis of gastric carcinoma in comparison with upper gastrointestinal series (UGI), fiberoptic gastroscopy (FG) and histopathology. METHODS: Sixty patients with histologically proven gastric carcinoma (54 advanced and 6 early) were included in this study. The results of spiral CT were compared with those of UGI and FG. Two observers blindly evaluated images of spiral CT and UGI and video recording of FG with consensus in terms of diagnostic confidence with a five-point scale. Sensitivities of lesion detection, Borrmann's classification of spiral CT, UGI and FG, as well as the accuracy of TNM staging of spiral CT were determined by comparing them to surgical and histological findings. RESULTS: The lesion detection rate was 98% (59/60), 95% (57/60) and 98% (59/60) for spiral CT, UGI and FG, respectively. There were no statistical differences in the detection sensitivity among the three techniques (P > 0.05). For the sensitivity in Borrmann's classification, spiral CT was higher than that of UGI (P = 0.025) and similar to that of FG (P > 0.05). The accuracy of spiral CT in staging the gastric carcinoma was 76.7%. Six cases of early gastric carcinoma were all detected by spiral CT as well as FG. CONCLUSION: Spiral CT is equivalent to UGI and FG in the detection of gastric carcinoma, and superior to UGI but similar to FG in the Borrmann's classification of advanced gastric carcinoma. Spiral CT is more valuable than FG in the staging of gastric carcinoma.

To evaluate the effect of calcification of autogenous bone marrow stem cell transplantation in periodontal tissue regeneration.Bone marrow stem cells derived from the same dog were cultured with alpha-MEM. 1 x 10(7) cells of first passage were allowed to attach to the collagen membrane for 24 hours. The membrane-cells were transplanted into periodontal defect in the same dog. Then the defects were covered with e-pTFE membranes. The defects covered only with e-pTFE without membrane-cells were served as control. Eighteen teeth of 6 dogs for every group were studied. The dogs were sacrificed after 6 weeks.The results showed that new bone formation in test group was significantly higher than that of control group. The calcification of new bone in test group was better than control group.The results suggested that autogenous bone marrow stem cell transplantation with guided tissue regeneration technique could enhance periodontal tissue regeneration and could form new bone tissue fast and could shorten times of periodontal tissue regeneration in dogs.