Influence of Core Oligosaccharide of Lipopolysaccharide to Outer Membrane Behavior of Escherichia coli.

Lipopolysaccharides, major molecules in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, play important roles on membrane integrity of the cell. However, how the core oligosaccharide of lipopolysaccharide affect the membrane behavior is not well understood. In this study, the relationship between the core oligosaccharide of lipopolysaccharide and the membrane behavior was investigated using a series of Escherichia coli mutants defective in genes to affect the biosynthesis of core oligosaccharide of lipopolysaccharide.

Postoperative Radiotherapy Improves Survival in Stage pT2N0M0 Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma with High Risk of Poor Prognosis.

Purpose: Clinically, some patients with stage pT2N0M0 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) might have poor survival outcomes after Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy. We explored whether adjuvant radiotherapy could improve the prognosis for the patients with high risk of poor clinical outcomes.

Methods: We screened 326 pT2N0M0 ESCC patients who had complete resection with Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy.

Efficacy and safety of dendritic cells co-cultured with cytokine-induced killer cells immunotherapy for non-small-cell lung cancer.

Dendritic cells co-cultured with cytokine-induced killer cells (DC-CIK) immunotherapy has been widely studied and might be a new therapeutic strategy for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We aimed to comprehensively and quantitatively evaluate the efficacy and safety of DC-CIK immunotherapy in NSCLC. Pubmed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched for randomized controlled trials comparing DC-CIK immunotherapy with control therapies in NSCLC.

High dynamic range image compression by optimizing tone mapped image quality index.

Tone mapping operators (TMOs) aim to compress high dynamic range (HDR) images to low dynamic range (LDR) ones so as to visualize HDR images on standard displays. Most existing TMOs were demonstrated on specific examples without being thoroughly evaluated using well-designed and subject-validated image quality assessment models. A recently proposed tone mapped image quality index (TMQI) made one of the first attempts on objective quality assessment of tone mapped images.

Inflammasomes are important mediators of prostatic inflammation associated with BPH.

Background: There is mounting evidence to support the role of inflammation in benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH), and a recent study reported expression of inflammasome derived cytokine IL-18 in prostate biopsy of BPH patients. Here we examined the expression of inflammasome-derived cytokines and activation of nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor with pyrin domain protein 1 (NLRP) 1 inflammasome in a rat model of prostatic inflammation relevant to BPH.

Methods: Prostatic inflammation was experimentally induced in three-month-old male Sprague-Dawley rats by intraprostatic injection (50 μL) of either 5 % formalin or saline (sham) into the ventral lobes of prostate.

Wnt signaling through Snail1 and Zeb1 regulates bone metastasis in lung cancer.

Wnt-β-catenin signaling participates in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in a variety of cancers; however, its role in lung cancer induced bone metastasis and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that β-catenin, Snail1 and Zeb1 were significantly upregulated in bone metastasis tissues from human and mouse compared with the normal controls. E-cadherin expression is negatively regulated by Zeb1, Snail1 and β-catenin during bone metastasis tissues induced by lung cancer.

Negative expression of PTEN identifies high risk for lymphatic-related metastasis in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

The poor prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is mainly attributed to higher lymphatic-related metastatic ability. Whether the loss of expression of the phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN) is associated with lymphatic-related metastasis needs elucidation. In the present study, we assessed the mRNA and protein level of PTEN in ESCC by qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry.

Minimally invasive Ivor-Lewis oesophagectomy is a feasible and safe approach for patients with oesophageal cancer.

Background: Minimally invasive approaches are increasingly being used in oesophagectomy. The aim of this study was to compare the short-term clinical outcomes of the minimally invasive Ivor-Lewis oesophagectomy (MIILE) technique with those of the open Ivor-Lewis oesophagectomy (OILE) technique.

Methods: We identified 131 patients who underwent MIILE combined with thoracoscopy and laparoscopy.

5-Fluoruracil blocked giant cell tumor progression by suppressing osteoclastogenesis through NF-kappaB signals and blocking angiogenesis.

Giant cell tumor of bone (GCTB) is a bone destroying tumor comprised of spindle-like stromal cells and monocytes of myeloid lineage that are differentiated into osteoclast-like multinucleated giant cells. Nuclear factor-Kappa B (NF-κB) has been identified to be essential for GCT progression. Herein, we found that 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU), a widely used chemotherapeutics, is a promising anticancer agent for GCT both targeting spindle-like stromal cells and osteoclast giant cells through NF-κB pathway.

En bloc resection for treatment of tumor-induced osteomalacia: a case presentation and a systematic review.

Background: Tumor-induced osteomalacia (TIO) is a rare disorder, which is commonly found in craniofacial locations and in the extremities. To the best of our knowledge, only 16 cases have been described in the spine, and this is the first report to describe a case of patient with TIO in the thoracic spine combined with a mesenchymal hamartoma which had confused the therapeutic strategies to date.

Case Description: We report the case of a 60-year-old patient with hypophosphatemia and presented with limb weakness.

Copper-catalyzed aerobic oxidative C-C bond cleavage of unstrained ketones with air and amines.

A unique copper-catalyzed aerobic oxidative C-C bond cleavage of simple unstrained ketones with air and amines has been developed. In this chemistry, amides and oxo amides are easily synthesized through the selective C-C bond cleavage of simple ketones or unstrained cycloketones. The broad substrate scopes and use of an inexpensive copper catalyst and green molecular oxygen as an oxidant as well as an O-source make this protocol very attractive for potential synthetic applications.

Anti-STMN1 therapy improves sensitivity to antimicrotubule drugs in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Stathmin (STMN1) regulates microtubule dynamics by promoting depolymerization of microtubules and/or preventing polymerization of tubulin heterodimers. Several studies have shown that overexpression of STMN1 has been linked to chemoresistance of paclitaxel and vinblastine in tumor cells. This study aimed to investigate the effects of STMN1 silencing on chemosensitivities of paclitaxel or vinblastine in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

Objective quality assessment for multiexposure multifocus image fusion.

There has been a growing interest in image fusion technologies, but how to objectively evaluate the quality of fused images has not been fully understood. Here, we propose a method for objective quality assessment of multiexposure multifocus image fusion based on the evaluation of three key factors of fused image quality: 1) contrast preservation; 2) sharpness; and 3) structure preservation. Subjective experiments are conducted to create an image fusion database, based on which, performance evaluation shows that the proposed fusion quality index correlates well with subjective scores, and gives a significant improvement over the existing fusion quality measures.

Urine chemokines indicate pathogenic association of obesity with BPH/LUTS.

Objectives: High prevalence of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) consistent with benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) is associated with obesity and prostatic inflammation. Here, we investigated whether chemokines associated with obesity and prostatic inflammation can be measured in normally voided urine of BPH/LUTS patients to demonstrate the mechanistic association between obesity and BPH/LUTS.

Methods: Frozen urine specimens of BPH/LUTS patients enrolled in the Nashville Men's Health Study were sent for blinded analysis to University of Pittsburgh.

Preparation and photocatalytic properties of core-shell nano-TiO2 @ α-Al2O3 microspheres.

Core-shell nano-TiO2@a-Al2O3 microspheres of 5-20 μm were prepared by the heterogeneous precipitation method combined with the hydro-thermal and calcination process using α-Al2O3 microspheres as substrate. Their morphologies, microstructure and crystalline phase were characterized by SEM and XRD respectively. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by degradation of methyl orange.

Esophagectomy for a rapidly progressing esophageal duplication cyst.

Esophageal duplication cysts are rare and frequently asymptomatic anomalies of the adult gastrointestinal tract that are often misdiagnosed in clinical practice. Identifying the unique features of esophageal duplication cysts is therefore important. We report a unique case of esophageal duplication cyst in a 52-year-old woman with rapidly progressing chest pain and dysphagia.

Surgery and survival outcomes of 30 patients with neurological deficit due to clear cell renal cell carcinoma spinal metastases.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to provide some useful insights into the clinical and imaging presentations, treatment and prognostic factors in patients with neurological deficit caused by clear cell renal cell carcinoma (CCRCC) spinal metastases for the sake of designing individualized therapeutic plans for such patients.

Methods: A total of 30 patients with neurological deficit due to CCRCC spinal metastases who received surgery in our department were identified during an 8-year period from 2003 to 2012 and used for discussion of treatment options for CCRCC spinal metastases on the basis of literature review and our own experience.

Results: Univariate analysis showed that age (≤45 years/>45 years), visceral metastasis, Tomita score (3-5/6-8), Tokuhashi score (4-9/10-12) and radiotherapy were suggested as the potential prognostic factors.

[Correlation of daily living activities with location and severity of traumatic brain injury].

Objective: To study the correlation of daily living activities with location and severity of trau- matic brain injury (TBI) and to provide a theoretical basis for improving the accuracy of expert opinion.

Methods: Five hundred and one cases of patients with TBI were selected. Detailed records included following: pre-injury situation, location and severity of injury, treatment and education.

FOXA1 modulates EAF2 regulation of AR transcriptional activity, cell proliferation, and migration in prostate cancer cells.

Background: ELL-associated factor 2 (EAF2) is an androgen-regulated tumor suppressor in the prostate. However, the mechanisms underlying tumor suppressive function of EAF2 are still largely unknown. Identification of factors capable of modulating EAF2 function will help elucidate the mechanisms underlying EAF2 tumor suppressive function.

Surface reconstruction in gradient-field domain using compressed sensing.

Surface reconstruction from measurements of spatial gradient is an important computer vision problem with applications in photometric stereo and shape-from-shading. In the case of morphologically complex surfaces observed in the presence of shadowing and transparency artifacts, a relatively large dense gradient measurements may be required for accurate surface reconstruction. Consequently, due to hardware limitations of image acquisition devices, situations are possible in which the available sampling density might not be sufficiently high to allow for recovery of essential surface details.

Prognostic significance of Ku80 in pT2N0M0 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma after Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy.

Recent studies have shown that Ku80, a DNA repair protein, was involved in progression of malignant tumors. This study aimed to clarify the clinicopathological significance and prognostic value of Ku80 in pT2N0M0 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). We enrolled 217 patients with pT2N0M0 midthoracic ESCC who had undergone Ivor-Lewis esophagectomy.

Prognostic value of long noncoding RNA HOTAIR in digestive system malignancies.

Background And Aim: HOX transcript antisense intergenic RNA (HOTAIR), a well-known long noncoding RNA, has been found to play significant roles in several tumors. However, the clinical application value of HOTAIR in digestive system malignancies remains to be clarified. We aimed to explore comprehensively the potential role of HOTAIR as a prognostic indicator in digestive system malignancies.

Activated STAT3 correlates with prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer and indicates new anticancer strategies.

Purpose: Aberrant activation of the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) occurs in many human tumors. Many studies have provided compelling evidence for the critical role of aberrant STAT3 activity in malignant transformation and tumor progression. But few of them provided data on whether activated STAT3 overexpression correlated with patients' prognosis.