Treatment response evaluation with three-dimensional contrast-enhanced ultrasound for liver cancer after local therapies.

Objective: To investigate the potential usefulness of three-dimensional contrast-enhanced ultrasound (3D-CEUS) in evaluating the treatment response for liver cancer after local therapies.

Methods: A total of 107 lesions in 95 consecutive patients with liver cancer underwent local therapies and thereafter received low acoustic power 3D-CEUS examination. The LOGIQ 9 ultrasound scanner and a volume transducer were used and the ultrasound contrast agent was SonoVue.

Enhancement pattern of hilar cholangiocarcinoma: contrast-enhanced ultrasound versus contrast-enhanced computed tomography.

Objective: To compare the enhancement pattern of hilar cholangiocarcinoma on contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) with that on contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT).

Methods: Thirty-two consecutive patients with pathologically proven hilar cholangiocarcinomas were evaluated by both low mechanical index CEUS and CECT. The enhancement feature of the tumor, portal vein infiltration, and lesion conspicuity on them was investigated.

[Expression of human VIGILIN N terminus and observation of subcellular localization].

Objective: To express human VIGILIN N terminus gene in E. coli, prepare the polyclonal antibody and study the subcell localization of human VIGILIN.

Methods: The N-terminal sequence of human VIGILIN was amplified by PCR and cloned into the polyclonal site of pGEX-4T-2 expression vector.

[Contrast-enhanced ultrasound findings of breast cancer].

Objective: To study the manifestation of breast cancers of different sizes in contrast-enhanced sonography.

Methods: Eighty-four patients with breast cancers were examined by contrast-enhanced ultrasound. Among them, the tumor diameter was beyond 2.

[Cloning and identification of human vigilin full-length coding region].

Objective: The full-length of human vigilin encodes 1289 amino acids, containing 14 KH domains. We adopted a five step PCR technique to clone the full-length vigilin coding regions to investigate the functions of full-length vigilin, N-terminal of vigilin, C-terminal of vigilin and different KH.

Methods: Vigilin was dissected into five fragments according to the restrictive endounclease enzymes site of vigilin.

Percutaneous thermal ablation of medium and large hepatocellular carcinoma: long-term outcome and prognostic factors.

Background: : Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and microwave ablation (MWA) were found to be effective in treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) smaller than 3 cm; however, to the authors' knowledge, the usefulness of thermal ablation in treating larger HCC, especially those >5 cm, has not been well documented. The present study evaluated the therapeutic efficacy of percutaneous thermal ablation with curative intention for HCC measuring between 3.0 cm and 7.

Cardiac differentiation of embryonic stem cells with point-source electrical stimulation.

The use of pluripotent stem cells as a means to repair damaged heart tissue has recently emerged as a promising, yet controversial therapy. Despite the different approaches and the variety of cell types used, many of these procedures have been met with mixed success. The lack of understanding of the differentiation and integration process, notably with respect to electrical signaling, significantly hampers the development of these therapies.

Does the echogenicity of focal liver lesions on baseline gray-scale ultrasound interfere with the diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound?

The objective was to evaluate whether the echogenicity of focal liver lesions (FLLs) on baseline gray-scale ultrasound (US) interferes with the diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced US (CEUS) for small FLLs. Three-hundred and eighty-eight patients were examined by real-time CEUS using a sulfur hexafluoride-filled microbubble contrast agent. The images of 114 hyperechoic lesions, 30 isoechoic lesions and 244 hypoechoic lesions were reviewed by two blinded independent readers.

Three-dimensional contrast-enhanced ultrasound of the liver: experience of 92 cases.

Three-dimensional contrast-enhanced ultrasound (3D-CEUS) is a combination of three-dimensional ultrasound (3DUS) and contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS). To evaluate the feasibility of 3D-CEUS in liver imaging, investigate possible influencing factors to its image quality, and evaluate the influence of 3D-CEUS to clinical outcome, low acoustic power (mechanical index, 0.08-0.

[The clinical value of high frequency ultrasound in diagnosis of peripheral nerve diseases].

Objective: To evaluate the clinical value of high frequency ultrasound in diagnosing peripheral nerve diseases (PNDs).

Methods: From January 2003 to December 2006, 64 cases of PNDs were analyzed retrospectively. The ultrasound diagnosis was compared with the operative and pathological diagnosis.

Transcriptional and functional profiling of human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) can serve as a potentially limitless source of cells that may enable regeneration of diseased tissue and organs. Here we investigate the use of human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hESC-CMs) in promoting recovery from cardiac ischemia reperfusion injury in a mouse model. Using microarrays, we have described the hESC-CM transcriptome within the spectrum of changes that occur between undifferentiated hESCs and fetal heart cells.

Short hairpin RNA interference therapy for ischemic heart disease.

Background: During hypoxia, upregulation of hypoxia inducible factor-1 alpha transcriptional factor can activate several downstream angiogenic genes. However, hypoxia inducible factor-1 alpha is naturally degraded by prolyl hydroxylase-2 (PHD2) protein. Here we hypothesize that short hairpin RNA (shRNA) interference therapy targeting PHD2 can be used for treatment of myocardial ischemia and this process can be followed noninvasively by molecular imaging.

[Construction of shRNA eucharyotic expression plasmid targeted human VIGILIN and the investigation of VIGILIN's effect on hepatocarcinoma cell cycle].

Objective: To construct a shRNA eucharyotic expression plasmid against human VIGILIN and explore possible relation between human VIGILIN and HepG2 cell cycle.

Methods: We constructed the shRNA eucharyotic expression plasmid targeted human VIGILIN, and transfected HepG2 cells with shRNA expression plasmid pSIREN-VIG, then determined the expression of VIGILIN mRNA and protein in HepG2 cells by RT-PCR and Western-blot, analysed alteration of cell cycle using FACS.

Results: The plasmid pSIREN-VIG can effectively and specifically inhibit the expression of human VIGILIN.

Diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound for complex cystic focal liver lesions: blinded reader study.

The study was aimed at evaluating the diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in characterizing complex cystic focal liver lesions (FLLs). Sixty-seven complex cystic FLLs in 65 patients were examined with conventional ultrasound (US) and real-time CEUS. The US and CEUS images were reviewed by a resident radiologist and a staff radiologist independently.

Legume lectin FRIL preserves neural progenitor cells in suspension culture in vitro.

In vitro maintenance of stem cells is crucial for many clinical applications. Stem cell preservation factor FRIL (Flt3 receptor-interacting lectin) is a plant lectin extracted from Dolichos Lablab and has been found preserve hematopoietic stem cells in vitro for a month in our previous studies. To investigate whether FRIL can preserve neural progenitor cells (NPCs), it was supplemented into serum-free suspension culture media.

Imaging of STAT3 signaling pathway during mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation.

Signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3) is a pleiotropic transcription factor involved in a variety of physiological processes. STAT3 acts as a key transcriptional determinant of mouse embryonic stem (ES) cell self-renewal and plays a pivotal function in early mammalian embryogenesis because the development of many organs requires STAT3 activation. However, little is known about the role of STAT3 function during ES cell differentiation.

In vivo imaging of embryonic stem cells reveals patterns of survival and immune rejection following transplantation.

Embryonic stem cell (ESC)-based transplantation is considered a promising novel therapy for a variety of diseases. This is bolstered by the suggested immune-privileged properties of ESCs. In this study, we used in vivo bioluminescent imaging (BLI) to non-invasively track the fate of transplanted murine ESCs (mESCs), which are stably transduced with a double fusion reporter gene consisting of firefly luciferase (FLuc) and enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP).

[The cytogenetic features of Burkitt leukemia].

Objective: To evaluate the incidence of chromosomal abnormalities in Burkitt leukemia (BL).

Methods: Conventional cytogenetics (CC) was carried out to detect the karyotypes. Meanwhile, three color interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) was used to detect the t(8;14)(q24;q32) in 17 newly diagnosed BL.

[Role of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in the differentiation of solid focal lesions of pancreas].

Objective: To investigate the value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in the differential diagnosis of solid focal lesions of pancreas (s-FLPs).

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 56 s-FLPs examined with contrast agent combined with low mechanical indicators contrast-enhanced ultrasound.

Results: The surrounding pancreas parenchyma enhancement time, lesion enhancement time, and peak enhancement time between different groups of s-FLPs had no significant differences (P > 0.

Real-time contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging of infected focal liver lesions.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the features of infected focal liver lesions on contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) imaging.

Methods: Thirty-two hepatic abscesses, 15 infected granulomas, and 6 inflammatory pseudotumors in 53 patients were evaluated with real-time CEUS before awareness of the definitive diagnosis. A 2.

Comparison of reporter gene and iron particle labeling for tracking fate of human embryonic stem cells and differentiated endothelial cells in living subjects.

Human embryonic stem (hES) cells are pluripotent stem cells capable of self-renewal and differentiation into virtually all cell types. Thus, they hold tremendous potential as cell sources for regenerative therapies. The concurrent development of accurate, sensitive, and noninvasive technologies capable of monitoring hES cells engraftment in vivo can greatly expedite basic research prior to future clinical translation.

Unusual benign focal liver lesions: findings on real-time contrast-enhanced sonography.

Objective: This presentation aims to provide an overview of the manifestations of some unusual benign focal liver lesions (FLLs) on low-acoustic power contrast-enhanced sonography (CES) with a sulfur hexafluoride contrast agent.

Methods: The patients were selected retrospectively from 2209 cases with FLLs who had undergone CES examinations for characterization during the past 3 years. The pathologic examinations proved that they were intrahepatic biliary cystadenoma (n = 1), angiomyolipoma (AML; n = 4), lipoma (n = 1), biliary epithelial dysplasia (n = 1), a fungal inflammatory mass (n = 1), tuberculoma (n = 2), an inflammatory pseudotumor (n = 7), sarcoidosis (n = 1), solitary necrotic nodules (n = 2), peliosis hepatis (n = 2), and focal fibrosis after surgery (n = 4).

Genetic modification of embryonic stem cells with VEGF enhances cell survival and improves cardiac function.

Cardiac stem cell therapy remains hampered by acute donor cell death posttransplantation and the lack of reliable methods for tracking cell survival in vivo. We hypothesize that cells transfected with inducible vascular endothelial growth factor 165 (VEGF(165)) can improve their survival as monitored by novel molecular imaging techniques. Mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells were transfected with an inducible, bidirectional tetracycline (Bi-Tet) promoter driving VEGF(165) and renilla luciferase (Rluc).

Contrast-enhanced sonography in the diagnosis of small hepatocellular carcinoma < or =2 cm.

Purpose: To evaluate the usefulness of contrast-enhanced sonography (CEUS) in the diagnosis of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) measuring < or =2 cm in diameter.

Methods: We identified 104 focal liver lesions measuring < or =2 cm in 104 consecutive patients who were enrolled for baseline sonography (BUS) and CEUS examination (49 HCCs, 55 non-HCCs). A real-time, contrast-specific mode of contrast pulse sequencing and a sulphur hexafluoride-filled microbubble contrast agent were used for CEUS.

Analysis of hTERT expression in exfoliated cells from patients with bladder transitional cell carcinomas using SYBR green real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR.

Aims: To investigate whether hTERT mRNA expression could be used as a diagnostic and prognostic marker of bladder transitional cell carcinoma.

Methods: SYBR green I real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR method was used to quantify hTERT mRNA expression in exfoliated cells from patients with bladder transitional cell carcinomas.

Results: A significant correlation was observed between the level of hTERT mRNA expression in exfoliated cells collected in urine with pathological grade and clinical stage.