Interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization assisting in prenatal counseling for amniocentesis karyotyping-detected fetal mosaicism.

Objective: To evaluate how interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) played a role in genetic counseling when encountering prenatally detected fetal mosaicism cases.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 17 cases of amniotic fluid specimens diagnosed with Level III chromosome mosaicism using in situ coverslip culture method. Among them, seven received additional interphase FISH tests; five were related to autosomal mosaicism and two others were due to sex chromosomes.

Effect of Blood Cadmium Level on Mortality in Patients Undergoing Maintenance Hemodialysis.

Previous studies of general populations indicated environmental exposure to low-level cadmium increases mortality. However, the effect of cadmium exposure on maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients is unclear.A total of 937 MHD patients from 3 centers in Taiwan were enrolled in this 36-month observational study.

Indigo naturalis and its component tryptanthrin exert anti-angiogenic effect by arresting cell cycle and inhibiting Akt and FAK signaling in human vascular endothelial cells.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Indigo naturalis has been used to treat inflammatory diseases and dermatosis, including psoriasis, since thousands of years in China. It has been proven effective in our previous clinical studies on treating psoriasis, but the active component and the mechanism of how indigo naturalis working still needs to be clarified. Since the dysregulated angiogenesis is known to play an important role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis, the anti-angiogenic effect of indigo naturalis and tryptanthrin, a pure component of indigo naturalis, was investigated.

Isolation of Human Neural Stem Cells from the Amniotic Fluid with Diagnosed Neural Tube Defects.

Human neural stem cells (NSCs) are particularly valuable for the study of neurogenesis process and have a therapeutic potential in treating neurodegenerative disorders. However, current progress in the use of human NSCs is limited due to the available NSC sources and the complicated isolation and culture techniques. In this study, we describe an efficient method to isolate and propagate human NSCs from the amniotic fluid with diagnosed neural tube defects (NTDs), specifically, anencephaly.

Knockdown of c-MET induced apoptosis in ABCB1-overexpressed multidrug-resistance cancer cell lines.

Inappropriate c-MET signaling in cancer can enhance tumor cell proliferation, survival, motility, and invasion. Inhibition of c-MET signaling induces apoptosis in a variety of cancers. It has also been recognized as a novel anticancer therapy approach.

Wnt5A regulates ABCB1 expression in multidrug-resistant cancer cells through activation of the non-canonical PKA/β-catenin pathway.

Multidrug resistance in cancer cells arises from altered drug permeability of the cell. We previously reported activation of the Wnt pathway in ABCB1-overexpressed human uterus sarcoma drug-resistant MES-SA/Dx5 cells through active β-catenin and associated transactivation activities, and upregulation of Wnt-targeting genes. In this study, Wnt5A was found to be significantly upregulated in MES-SA/Dx5 and MCF7/ADR2 cells, suggesting an important role for the Wnt5A signaling pathway in cancer drug resistance.

Performance assessment of the Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, and the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score in predicting the outcomes of adult patients with hepatic portal venous gas in the ED.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the performance of Simplified Acute Physiology Score II (SAPS II), the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE II) score, and the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score for predicting illness severity and the mortality of adult hepatic portal venous gas (HPVG) patients presenting to the emergency department (ED). This will assist emergency physicians in risk stratification.

Methods: Data for 48 adult HPVG patients who visited our ED between December 2009 and December 2013 were analyzed.

The prognostic factors of adult patients with hepatic portal venous gas in the ED.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the prognostic factors of adult patients with hepatic portal venous gas (HPVG) in the emergency department (ED) to facilitate clinical decision making by emergency physicians.

Methods: Data from adult patients with HPVG who visited our ED between December 2009 and December 2013 were analyzed. The computed tomographic scan images were reviewed, and the presence of HPVG with or without pneumatosis intestinalis (PI) was confirmed by a certified radiologist.

Rectal cancer level significantly affects rates and patterns of distant metastases among rectal cancer patients post curative-intent surgery without neoadjuvant therapy.

Background: Rectal cancer patients have a higher incidence of pulmonary metastases than those with colon cancer. This study aimed to examine the effects of rectal cancer level on recurrence patterns in rectal cancer patients.

Methods: Patients with T3/T4 rectal cancers who underwent surgery between 2002 and 2006 were recruited in this study.

Relationship between personality traits and choosing a medical specialty.

Background/purpose: The recent imbalance in the labor market structure of medical specialists can cause problems in access to care, and result in lower quality and increased costs of medical care. The labor market structure of medical specialists requires discussion in relation to specialty selection and personality traits. This study examined the relationship between personality traits and specialist selection among medical students.

Identification of aurora kinase A as an unfavorable prognostic factor and potential treatment target for metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

Although imatinib mesylate (IM) has revolutionized the management of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs), drug resistance remains a challenge. Previous studies have shown that the expression of aurora kinase A (AURKA) predicts recurrence in patients with primary, surgically resected GISTs. The current study aimed to evaluate the significance of AURKA expression as an unfavorable prognostic marker for advanced GISTs, and provide evidence that AURKA could be a potential therapeutic target in GISTs.

WITHDRAWN: Corrigendum to "Ring chromosome 21 presenting with sacrococcygeal teratoma: Prenatal diagnosis, molecular cytogenetic characterization and literature review" [Gene 522 (2013) 111-116].

This article has been withdrawn at the request of the author(s) and/or editor. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. The full Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal can be found at http://www.

Detection of recurrent transmission of 17q12 microdeletion by array comparative genomic hybridization in a fetus with prenatally diagnosed hydronephrosis, hydroureter, and multicystic kidney, and variable clinical spectrum in the family.

Objective: This study was aimed at detection of recurrent transmission of the 17q12 microdeletion in a fetus with congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract.

Materials And Methods: A 35-year-old woman was referred to the hospital at 20 weeks' gestation because of hydronephrosis in the fetus. The mother was normal and healthy.

Impact of living environment on 2-year mortality in elderly maintenance hemodialysis patients.

Background: Studies on risk factors of mortality in elderly patients with hemodialysis usually focus on comorbidities, nutrition, and inflammation. Discussion on the correlation between living environment and mortality of these patients is limited.

Methods: A total of 256 elderly hemodialysis patients participated in this 2-year prospective observational study.

Estradiol and tamoxifen induce cell migration through GPR30 and activation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) in endometrial cancers with low or without nuclear estrogen receptor α (ERα).

Estrogens and tamoxifen (an antiestrogen) exert their actions by activation of estrogen receptor (ER) through genomic and non-genomic mechanisms and are implicated in the development of endometrial cancer. Previous reports have demonstrated that estradiol and tamoxifen induce proliferation of human endometrial cancer cells through GPR30 (non-genomic ER) signaling pathway. Herein, we demonstrate that phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is involved in cell migration induced by estradiol, tamoxifen and G1 (a GPR30 agonist) through the transmembrane ER (GPR30) in endometrial cancer cell lines with or without ERα (Ishikawa and RL95-2).

Education level is associated with mortality in male patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis.

Background: Studies of the correlation between education levels and mortality in hemodialysis (HD) patients are rare. The aim of this multi-center study was to investigate the relationship between education levels and 3-year mortality rates in HD patients.

Methods: A total of 935 HD patients from 3 HD centers participated in this 3-year prospective observational study.

Isolation of motile spermatozoa with a microfluidic chip having a surface-modified microchannel.

Conventional methods to prepare sperm have been amenable to the investigation of outcomes such as rates of recovery and conventional semen parameters. The standard preparation of sperm for assisted reproduction is criticized for its centrifugation steps, which might either recover motile sperm in variable proportions or increase the probability of damage to sperm DNA. An microfluidic system was designed to separate motile sperm according to a design whereby nonmotile spermatozoa and debris flow along their initial streamlines and exit through one outlet-up, whereas motile spermatozoa have an opportunity to swim into a parallel stream and to exit through a separate outlet-down.

Early hemoperfusion may improve survival of severely paraquat-poisoned patients.

Background: Thousands of paraquat (PQ)-poisoned patients continue to die, particularly in developing countries. Although animal studies indicate that hemoperfusion (HP) within 2-4 h after intoxication effectively reduces mortality, the effect of early HP in humans remains unknown.

Methods: We analyzed the records of all PQ-poisoned patients admitted to 2 hospitals between 2000 and 2009.

Functional analyses of endometriosis-related polymorphisms in the estrogen synthesis and metabolism-related genes.

Endometriosis is determined by genetic factors, and the prevalence of genetic polymorphisms varies greatly depending on the ethnic group studied. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of 9 genes involved in estrogen biosynthesis and metabolism and the risks of endometriosis. Three hundred patients with endometriosis and 337 non-endometriotic controls were recruited.

Effect of chelation therapy on progressive diabetic nephropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes and high-normal body lead burdens.

Background: A previous study in type 2 diabetic patients with high-normal body lead burdens showed that EDTA chelation therapy for 3 months slows progressive diabetic nephropathy during a 12-month follow-up. The effect of a longer course of therapy on kidney function decrease over a longer follow-up is not known.

Study Design: A 12-month run-in phase, then a randomized single-blind study with a 27-month intervention.

Arterial stiffness is not increased in teens with early uncomplicated type 1 diabetes mellitus.

People with type 1 diabetes mellitus are at an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality. Studies comparing arterial stiffness between subjects with type 1 diabetes and nondiabetic controls have provided controversial findings.We investigated brachial–ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) in 87 teenagers with type 1 diabetes mellitus and in 21 matched healthy controls.

Analyses of placental gene expression in pregnancy-related hypertensive disorders.

Objective: To explore the changes in placental gene expression between women with preeclampsia and those with superimposed preeclampsia on chronic hypertension.

Materials And Methods: In Taiwanese population, we compared gene expression between the placentas from preeclamptic patients and those with superimposed preeclampsia on chronic hypertension.

Results: Although top-ranked activated genes between preeclampsia and superimposed preeclampsia on chronic hypertension were different, functional network analyses indicate that these genes are mainly involved in the regulation of cell death and apoptosis.

Six cases of tubal stump pregnancy: complication of assisted reproductive technology?

Objective: To present six cases of tubal stump pregnancy and discuss possible etiologies.

Design: Case series.

Setting: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at a tertiary referring medical center.