A new classification of periampullary diverticulum: cannulation of papilla on the inner margins of the diverticulum (Type IIa) is more challenging.

Background: Periampullary diverticulum (PAD) may make the performance of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) in patients with choledocholithiasis more difficult and may increase complication rates. The present study evaluated the effects of PAD on first-time ERCP in patients with choledocholithiasis.

Methods: Outcomes were compared in patients with and without PAD and in those with four types of PAD: papilla located completely inside the diverticulum (type I), papilla located in the inner (type II a) and outer (type II b) margins of the diverticulum; and papilla located outside the diverticulum (type III).

Short-term outcomes of robotic versus open hepatectomy among overweight patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a propensity score-matched study.

Background: Robotic hepatectomy (RH) has gradually been accepted as it has overcome some of the limitations of open hepatectomy (OH). This study was to compare short-term outcomes in RH and OH for overweight (preoperative body mass index ≥ 25 kg/m²) patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: Perioperative and postoperative data from these patients who underwent RH or OH between January 2010 and December 2020 were retrospectively analyzed.

Short- and long-term outcomes after robotic and open liver resection for elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a propensity score-matched study.

Background: Robotic liver resection (RLR) has increasingly been accepted as it has overcome some of the limitations of open liver resection (OLR), while the outcomes following RLR in elderly patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are still uncertain. This study aimed to evaluate the short and long-term outcomes of RLR vs. OLR in elderly HCC patients.

Reconsidering treatment guidelines for acute myocardial infarction during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: COVID-19 affects healthcare resource allocation, which could lead to treatment delay and poor outcomes in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). We assessed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on AMI outcomes.

Methods: We compared outcomes of patients admitted for acute ST-elevation MI (STEMI) and non-STEMI (NSTEMI) during a non-COVID-19 pandemic period (January-February 2019; Group 1, n = 254) and a COVID-19 pandemic period (January-February 2020; Group 2, n = 124).

Increased circulating level of interleukin-6 and CD8 T cell exhaustion are associated with progression of COVID-19.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is pandemic. It is critical to identify COVID-19 patients who are most likely to develop a severe disease. This study was designed to determine the clinical and epidemiological features of COVID-19 patients associated with the development of pneumonia and factors associated with disease progression.

Cytosine methylations in the promoter regions of genes involved in the cellular oxidation equilibrium pathways affect rice heat tolerance.

Background: High temperatures, particularly at night, decrease rice yield and quality. As high nighttime temperatures (HNTs) become increasingly frequent due to climate change, it is imperative to develop rice crops that tolerate HNTs. DNA methylation may represent a potential avenue for HNT-tolerant rice strain development, as this mechanism regulates gene activity and cellular phenotype in response to adverse environmental conditions without changing the nucleotide sequence.

MRI-based radiomics model for preoperative prediction of 5-year survival in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: Recurrence is the major cause of mortality in patients with resected HCC. However, without a standard approach to evaluate prognosis, it is difficult to select candidates for additional therapy.

Methods: A total of 201 patients with HCC who were followed up for at least 5 years after curative hepatectomy were enrolled in this retrospective, multicentre study.

Downregulation of BRAF-activated non-protein coding RNA in patients with hepatitis B virus-associated hepatocellular carcinoma.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been investigated as a novel class of regulators of cellular processes, including cell growth, apoptosis and carcinogenesis. lncRNA BRAF-activated non-protein coding RNA (BANCR) has recently been revealed to be involved in tumorigenesis of numerous types of cancer, including papillary thyroid carcinoma, melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer and colorectal cancer. However, the expression profiles and biological relevance of lncRNA BANCR in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not yet been reported.

Transgenic Rice Expressing Ictb and FBP/Sbpase Derived from Cyanobacteria Exhibits Enhanced Photosynthesis and Mesophyll Conductance to CO2.

To find a way to promote the rate of carbon flux and further improve the photosynthetic rate in rice, two CO2-transporting and fixing relevant genes, Ictb and FBP/Sbpase, which were derived from cyanobacteria with the 35SCaMV promotor in the respective constructs, were transformed into rice. Three homologous transgenic groups with Ictb, FBP/Sbpase and the two genes combined were constructed in parallel, and the functional effects of these two genes were investigated by physiological, biochemical and leaf anatomy analyses. The results indicated that the mesophyll conductance and net photosynthetic rate were higher at approximately 10.

Increased level of nucleolin confers to aggressive tumor progression and poor prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma after hepatectomy.

Background: Nucleolin, as a multifunctional protein, has been demonstrated to play an oncogenic role in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The aim of this study was to investigate the expression pattern of nucleolin in HCC and determine its correlation with tumor progression and prognosis.

Methods: Nucleolin expression at both mRNA and protein levels in HCC and adjacent nonneoplastic tissues were respectively detected by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR), immunohistochemistry and western blotting.

Ex-situ liver surgery without veno-venous bypass.

Aim: To evaluate the results of hepatic resection with ex-situ hypothermic perfusion and without veno-venous bypass.

Methods: In 3 patients with liver tumor, the degree of the inferior vena cava and/or main hepatic vein involvement was verified when the liver was dissociated in the operation. It was impossible to resect the tumors by the routine hepatectomy, so the patients underwent ex-situ liver surgery, vein cava replacement and hepatic autotransplantation without veno-venous bypass.

Sublocalization of Rab23, a mediator of Sonic hedgehog signaling pathway, in hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines.

The novel member of the Rab family of GTPases, Rab23, is an essential negative regulator of the Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling pathway. Loss of function mutation of the Rab23 gene causes abnormal development of the neural tube in mice and in certain human congenital diseases. The aberrant overexpression of Rab23 has been associated with various diseases, such as gastric, hepatocellular and lung cancer.

Changes in 18F-FDG uptake within minutes after chemotherapy in a rabbit VX2 tumor model.

Unlabelled: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether (18)F-FDG PET/CT can be used for in vivo chemosensitivity testing and to determine the optimal time point for observation.

Methods: Forty-two rabbits with 84 implanted VX2 squamous cell tumors were randomized into a control group (n = 10) and a treatment group (n = 32). (18)F-FDG PET/CT was performed the day before intravenous administration of cisplatin (4 mg/kg) and at 95-100 min (day 0), day 1, day 7, and day 14 afterward.