Autophagy in 5-Fluorouracil Therapy in Gastrointestinal Cancer: Trends and Challenges.

Objective: 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU)-based combination therapies are standard treatments for gastrointestinal cancer, where the modulation of autophagy is becoming increasingly important in offering effective treatment for patients in clinical practice. This review focuses on the role of autophagy in 5-FU-induced tumor suppression and cancer therapy in the digestive system.

Data Sources: All articles published in English from 1996 to date those assess the synergistic effect of autophagy and 5-FU in gastrointestinal cancer therapy were identified through a systematic online search by use of PubMed.

Is Laparoscopic Hepatectomy a Safe, Feasible Procedure in Patients with a Previous Upper Abdominal Surgery?

Background: Laparoscopic liver resection has become an accepted treatment for liver tumors or intrahepatic bile duct stones, but its application in patients with previous upper abdominal surgery is controversial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and safety of laparoscopic hepatectomy in these patients.

Methods: Three hundred and thirty-six patients who underwent laparoscopic hepatectomy at our hospital from March 2012 to June 2015 were enrolled in the retrospective study.

Effectiveness and safety of continuous wound infiltration for postoperative pain management after open gastrectomy.

Aim: To prospectively evaluate the effectiveness and safety of continuous wound infiltration (CWI) for pain management after open gastrectomy.

Methods: Seventy-five adult patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Physical Status Classification System (ASA) grade 1-3 undergoing open gastrectomy were randomized to three groups. Group 1 patients received CWI with 0.

Cisplatin enhances NK cells immunotherapy efficacy to suppress HCC progression via altering the androgen receptor (AR)-ULBP2 signals.

The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of cisplatin on the efficacy of natural killer (NK) cells immunotherapy to suppress HCC progression, and provide valuable information on better application of cisplatin in clinical settings. By using in vitro cell cytotoxicity test and in vivo liver orthotopic xenograft mice model, we identified the role of cisplatin in modulating NK cells cytotoxicity. Luciferase report assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation assay were applied for mechanism dissection.

The clinical risk factors associated with postoperative bile leakage after hepatectomy: a meta-analysis.

Introduction: The occurrence of bile leakage (BL) is one of the major contributors to the morbidity after hepatectomy. However, the clinical risk factors associated with postoperative BL remains controversial. This study aims to further assess the risk factors for BL.

A Left-Sided, Purely Laparoscopic Approach for Anatomic Caudate Hepatectomy: A Single-Center Experience.

Background: Laparoscopic caudate hepatectomy, which is a challenging procedure, has been reported sporadically. However, there is no standardized surgical technique, and the safety and feasibility of this procedure remain controversial.

Materials And Methods: A left-sided, purely laparoscopic approach for anatomic caudate hepatectomy was used for 11 selected patients in our institution.

Liver cirrhosis grading Child-Pugh class B: a Goliath to challenge in laparoscopic liver resection?-prior experience and matched comparisons.

Background: Laparoscopic hepatectomy (LH) is highly difficult in the background of liver cirrhosis. In this case series, we aimed to summarize our prior experience of LH in liver cirrhosis grading Child-Pugh class B.

Methods: In the LH database of Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital in Zhejiang, China, patients who were pathologically diagnosed with cirrhosis and graded as Child-Pugh class B or C were reviewed.

Blunt Dissection: A Solution to Prevent Bile Duct Injury in Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy.

Background: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) has been a standard operation and replaced the open cholecystectomy (OC) rapidly because the technique resulted in less pain, smaller incision, and faster recovery. This study was to evaluate the value of blunt dissection in preventing bile duct injury (BDI) in laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC).

Methods: From 2003 to 2015, LC was performed on 21,497 patients, 7470 males and 14,027 females, age 50.

The Clinicopathologic Significance of BAF250a (ARID1A) Expression in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common and lethal human cancers. Recently, exome sequencing has revealed that mutation of ARID1A is frequent in HCC. Herein, we determined the clinicopathologic significance of ARID1A expression in HCC.

Effect of CDKN2A/B rs4977756 polymorphism on glioma risk: a meta-analysis of 16 studies including 24077 participants.

So far, epidemiological studies have been performed to investigate the association of CDKN2A/B rs4977756 polymorphism and glioma risk. However, the results from different studies remain inconsistent. To clarify these conflicts and to quantitatively evaluate the effect of rs4977756 polymorphism on glioma risk, a meta-analysis was conducted using relevant published clinical studies about rs4977756 polymorphisms and glioma risk.

Evaluation of thyroid isthmusectomy as a potential treatment for papillary thyroid carcinoma limited to the isthmus: A clinical study of 73 patients.

Background: There are no specific therapeutic guidelines for thyroid cancers confined to the isthmus. To determine whether isthmic papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) can be treated with thyroid isthmusectomy and limited neck dissection, we analyzed factors related to central lymph node (CLN) metastasis in patients with clinically node-negative (cN0), solitary, isthmic PTC.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 73 consecutive patients who underwent surgery for solitary isthmic, PTC.

Oncogenic Ras suppresses ING4-TDG-Fas axis to promote apoptosis resistance.

Ras is aberrantly activated in many cancers and active DNA demethylation plays a fundamental role to establish DNA methylation pattern which is of importance to cancer development. However, it was unknown whether and how Ras regulate DNA demethylation during carcinogenesis. Here we found that Ras downregulated thymine-DNA glycosylase (TDG), a DNA demethylation enzyme, by inhibiting the interaction of transcription activator ING4 with TDG promoter.

Adenoviral delivery of truncated MMP-8 fused with the hepatocyte growth factor mutant 1K1 ameliorates liver cirrhosis and promotes hepatocyte proliferation.

Liver cirrhosis is a chronic liver disease caused by chronic liver injury, which activates hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and the secretion of extracellular matrix (ECM). Cirrhosis accounts for an extensive level of morbidity and mortality worldwide, largely due to lack of effective treatment options. In this study, we have constructed a fusion protein containing matrix metal-loproteinase 8 (MMP-8) and the human growth factor mutant 1K1 (designated cMMP8-1K1) and delivered it into hepatocytes and in vivo and in cell culture via intravenous injection of fusion protein-harboring adenovirus.

Total laparoscopic left hepatectomy for primary hepatolithiasis: Eight-year experience in a single center.

Background: Primary hepatolithiasis is prevalent in some Asian countries. Hepatectomy is a definitive treatment for this disease. Whether laparoscopic left hepatectomy (LLH) is suitable for primary hepatolithiasis remains controversial, because LLH is more challenging technically.

Effect of fibulin-5 on adhesion, migration and invasion of hepatocellular carcinoma cells via an integrin-dependent mechanism.

Aim: To elucidate the role of fibulin-5 (FBLN-5) as a suppressor of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell metastasis via integrin.

Methods: The expression of FBLN-5 was determined by immunohistochemistry in 140 HCC samples and matched normal tissues, and was further confirmed by RT-PCR and Western blot analyses in various cell lines. Recombinant FBLN-5 was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3), purified and used in cell attachment assays.

Laparoscopic hepatectomy by curettage and aspiration: a report of 855 cases.

Background: In 1998, the technique of laparoscopic hepatectomy by curettage and aspiration was developed and a special instrument, laparoscopic multifunctional operative dissector (LPMOD), was designed for this procedure. In the past 17 years, this procedure was developed gradually and had become the routine procedure for laparoscopic hepatectomy in local area. This paper is to report results of 17-year practice of this procedure.

Potential molecular, cellular and microenvironmental mechanism of sorafenib resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Sorafenib, an orally-available kinase inhibitor, is the only standard clinical treatment against advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. However, development of resistance to sorafenib has raised concern in recent years due to the high-level heterogeneity of individual response to sorafenib treatment. The resistance mechanism underlying the impaired sensitivity to sorafenib is still elusive though some researchers have made great efforts.

ALDH2(E487K) mutation increases protein turnover and promotes murine hepatocarcinogenesis.

Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) in the liver removes toxic aldehydes including acetaldehyde, an intermediate of ethanol metabolism. Nearly 40% of East Asians inherit an inactive ALDH2*2 variant, which has a lysine-for-glutamate substitution at position 487 (E487K), and show a characteristic alcohol flush reaction after drinking and a higher risk for gastrointestinal cancers. Here we report the characterization of knockin mice in which the ALDH2(E487K) mutation is inserted into the endogenous murine Aldh2 locus.

1-o-acetylbritannilactone (ABL) inhibits angiogenesis and lung cancer cell growth through regulating VEGF-Src-FAK signaling.

The search for safe, effective and affordable therapeutics against non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and other lung cancers is important. Here we explored the potential effect of 1-o-acetylbritannilactone (ABL), a novel extract from Inula britannica-F, on angiogenesis and lung cancer cell growth. We demonstrated that ABL dose-dependently inhibited vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced proliferation, migration, and capillary structure formation of cultured human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVECs).

Cyclin b1 suppresses colorectal cancer invasion and metastasis by regulating e-cadherin.

Cyclin B1, a mitotic cyclin, has been implicated in malignances. However, its contribution to colorectal cancer invasion and metastasis are still not well understood. Here, we demonstrated that the invasion and metastasis of colorectal cancer is regulated by Cyclin B1.

Mechanisms involved in breast cancer liver metastasis.

Liver metastasis is a frequent occurrence in patients with breast cancer; however, the available treatments are limited and ineffective. While liver-specific homing of breast cancer cells is an important feature of metastasis, the formation of liver metastases is not random. Indeed, breast cancer cell factors contribute to the liver microenvironment.

A CD52 antibody impairs mouse-transplanted intestinal tight junctions.

Background: Induction immunosuppression strategies using a CD52 monoclonal antibody (mAb) have been introduced for small bowel transplantation, resulting in improved outcomes. However, little information is known about the effects of the antibody on the microstructure of the intestinal barrier, which functions to prevent bacterial translocation. In this study, we used a murine orthotopic small bowel transplantation model to investigate the impact of a CD52 mAb on tight junctions (TJs), which are considered a central part of the intestinal barrier, of the transplanted intestine.

Recommendations for laparoscopic liver resection: a report from the second international consensus conference held in Morioka.

The use of laparoscopy for liver surgery is increasing rapidly. The Second International Consensus Conference on Laparoscopic Liver Resections (LLR) was held in Morioka, Japan, from October 4 to 6, 2014 to evaluate the current status of laparoscopic liver surgery and to provide recommendations to aid its future development. Seventeen questions were addressed.

Acute hypervolemic hemodilution effect on oxygen metabolism and blood pharmacokinetics in patients undergoing acute laparotomy during induction of general anesthesia.

Background/aims: To investigate acute hypervolemic hemodilution effect on oxygen metabolism and blood pharmacokinetics in patients undergoing acute laparotomy during Induction of general anesthesia.

Methodology: Forty ASA I-II patients undergoing acute laparotomy were randomly divided into 2 groups (n=20 each): Patients of group A received Voluven 7 ml/kg in 20 mins before induction and 8 ml/kg after induction. Patients of group B received 6 ml/kg/h Plasmalyte A.

[Progress of laparoscopic technique in treatment of gallbladder cancer].

Gallbladder cancer is a common malignant tumor in the bile duct system with high malignant degree and poor prognosis. Although it is still controversial, important progress has been made in clinical application of laparoscopic technique for diagnosis and staging of gallbladder cancer, treatment of early stage and laparoscopic unexpected gallbladder cancer in recent years. In this article we review the current status of application of laparoscopic technique and its value in diagnosis and treatment of gallbladder cancer.