Circulating tumour cells predict recurrences and survival in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients.

Patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) are at a high risk of developing recurrence and secondary cancers. This study evaluates the prognostic and surveillance utilities of circulating tumour cells (CTCs) in HNSCC. A total of 154 HNSCC patients were recruited and followed up for 4.

Rapid screening of point mutations by mismatch amplification mutation assay PCR.

Metabolic engineering frequently makes use of point mutation and saturation mutation library creation. At present, sequencing is the only reliable and direct technique to detect point mutation and screen saturation mutation library. In this study, mismatch amplification mutation assay (MAMA) PCR was used to detect point mutation and screen saturation mutation library.

Navigating the post-operative nose as a primary care physician.

Background: Rhinology procedures represent a wide and diverse category of procedures, which, on the surface, can appear very similar. Thus, it is difficult to navigate postoperative presentations in the general practice setting.

Objective: This article provides a comprehensive guide to managing acute presentations that might arise in primary care settings following common rhinology surgeries.

Post-viral olfactory loss and parosmia.

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has brought olfactory dysfunction to the forefront of public awareness, because up to half of infected individuals could develop olfactory dysfunction. Loss of smell-which can be partial or total-in itself is debilitating, but the distortion of sense of smell (parosmia) that can occur as a consequence of a viral upper respiratory tract infection (either alongside a reduction in sense of smell or as a solo symptom) can be very distressing for patients. Incidence of olfactory loss after SARS-CoV-2 infection has been estimated by meta-analysis to be around 50%, with more than one in three who will subsequently report parosmia.

Post-treatment 18F-fludeoxyglocuse-positron emission tomography in human papillomavirus-associated oropharyngeal cancer.

Background: Human papillomavirus association has changed the landscape of treatment for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma; it remains to be seen whether current post-treatment surveillance schedules are effective.

Objective: Evaluate whether post-treatment surveillance of oropharyngeal cancer through FDG-PET imaging is modified by human papillomavirus association.

Methods: A prospective cohort analysis of retrospective data was conducted for patients undergoing treatment of oropharyngeal cancer between 2016 and 2018.

Application of circulating tumour cells to predict response to treatment in head and neck cancer.

Background: Local recurrence and metastasis remain the major causes of death in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients. Circulating tumour cells (CTCs) are shed from primary and metastatic sites into the circulation system and have been reported to play critical roles in the metastasis and recurrence of HNC. Here, we explored the use of CTCs to predict the response to treatment and disease progression in HNC patients.

The effect of retaining intact posterior capsule in congenital cataract surgery in children aged 4-8 years.

Background: The present study sought to observe the effect of retaining intact posterior capsule in congenital cataract surgery in children aged 4-8 years.

Methods: This is a retrospective case control study. Seventy-seven children (130 eyes) aged from 4 to 8 years who underwent cataract surgery were divided into two groups.

Effect of lens capsular tension ring on preventing capsular contraction syndrome in the surgery of retinitis pigmentosa combined with cataract: Retrospective case series.

Purpose: To observe the effect of phacoemulsification and intraocular lens (IOL) implantation with or without lens capsular tension ring (CTR) on retinitis pigmentosa (RP) combined with cataract patients.

Design: Retrospective cases series study.

Methods: Sixty-three cases (84 eyes) of RP with cataract were collected, including 30 males and 33 females.

Implementation of electronic health records systems in surgical units and its impact on performance.

Background: Electronic health records (EHR) systems have been utilized in New South Wales for more than a decade; however, there is no agreement as to what clinical benefits they provide. This study aims at determining whether the introduction of EHR systems resulted in changes in documentation quality and other markers of clinical performance such as post-operative length of stay (PO LOS), use of imaging modality, rates of readmission and morbidity.

Methods: A before and after study was conducted utilizing both written and electronic patient documentation in a single surgical ward.

[Response of seed reproduction of two dominant lakeside species to experimental warming in a typical plateau wetland in Northwestern Yunnan Plateau, China].

Based on the forecasted warming scenarios by IPCC, we studied the impacts of warming (increased by 2.0 and 3.5 ℃) on seed reproduction of two lakeside dominant species (Schoeno-plectus tabernaemontani and Sparganium stoloniferum) in a typical plateau wetland (Napahai) in Northwestern Yunnan, by using "open-top chamber" technique.

[The relative contributions of plant quality, simulated rising temperature, and habitat to litter decomposition.].

With litter bag methods, we examined mass loss rates and different chemical fractions of litters from two wetland plant species, Zizania caduciflora and Hippuris vulgaris. Those two species examined here varied significantly in their initial litter chemical traits. Experiment was performed under simulated rising temperature (1.

Mutational landscape of metastatic cancer revealed from prospective clinical sequencing of 10,000 patients.

Tumor molecular profiling is a fundamental component of precision oncology, enabling the identification of genomic alterations in genes and pathways that can be targeted therapeutically. The existence of recurrent targetable alterations across distinct histologically defined tumor types, coupled with an expanding portfolio of molecularly targeted therapies, demands flexible and comprehensive approaches to profile clinically relevant genes across the full spectrum of cancers. We established a large-scale, prospective clinical sequencing initiative using a comprehensive assay, MSK-IMPACT, through which we have compiled tumor and matched normal sequence data from a unique cohort of more than 10,000 patients with advanced cancer and available pathological and clinical annotations.

Memorial Sloan Kettering-Integrated Mutation Profiling of Actionable Cancer Targets (MSK-IMPACT): A Hybridization Capture-Based Next-Generation Sequencing Clinical Assay for Solid Tumor Molecular Oncology.

The identification of specific genetic alterations as key oncogenic drivers and the development of targeted therapies are together transforming clinical oncology and creating a pressing need for increased breadth and throughput of clinical genotyping. Next-generation sequencing assays allow the efficient and unbiased detection of clinically actionable mutations. To enable precision oncology in patients with solid tumors, we developed Memorial Sloan Kettering-Integrated Mutation Profiling of Actionable Cancer Targets (MSK-IMPACT), a hybridization capture-based next-generation sequencing assay for targeted deep sequencing of all exons and selected introns of 341 key cancer genes in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumors.

Knockdown of cyclin D1 inhibits proliferation, induces apoptosis, and attenuates the invasive capacity of human glioblastoma cells.

Elevated cyclin D1 (CCND1) in human glioblastoma correlates with poor clinical prognosis. In this study, the human glioblastoma cell lines SHG-44 and U251 were stably transfected with short hairpin RNA (shRNA) targeting cyclin D1 or with ectogenic cyclin D1 by lentivirus-mediated transfection. Glioblastoma cells overexpressing or underexpressing cyclin D1 were then examined by in vitro growth assays, apoptosis assays, cell cycle analysis, and invasion assays.

Liquid alkanes with targeted molecular weights from biomass-derived carbohydrates.

Liquid transportation fuels must burn cleanly and have high energy densities, criteria that are currently fulfilled by petroleum, a non-renewable resource, the combustion of which leads to increasing levels of atmospheric CO(2). An attractive approach for the production of transportation fuels from renewable biomass resources is to convert carbohydrates into alkanes with targeted molecular weights, such as C(8)-C(15) for jet-fuel applications. Targeted n-alkanes can be produced directly from fructose by an integrated process involving first the dehydration of this C(6) sugar to form 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, followed by controlled formation of C-C bonds with acetone to form C(9) and C(15) compounds, and completed by hydrogenation and hydrodeoxygenation reactions to form the corresponding n-alkanes.

Production of dimethylfuran for liquid fuels from biomass-derived carbohydrates.

Diminishing fossil fuel reserves and growing concerns about global warming indicate that sustainable sources of energy are needed in the near future. For fuels to be useful in the transportation sector, they must have specific physical properties that allow for efficient distribution, storage and combustion; these properties are currently fulfilled by non-renewable petroleum-derived liquid fuels. Ethanol, the only renewable liquid fuel currently produced in large quantities, suffers from several limitations, including low energy density, high volatility, and contamination by the absorption of water from the atmosphere.