The free neurovascular transverse wrist crease flap for repairing soft tissue defects of the fingers: clinical outcomes of multiple centers.

Background: Flap transplantation is often needed for soft tissue defects of the fingers that cannot be closed directly. Sensory reconstruction of the fingers is important for patients to recover feelings. In this study, we report clinical outcomes of using free neurovascular transverse wrist crease flap for repairing finger defects from multiple centers.

FOXO3 gene polymorphisms influence the risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Chinese children.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in children and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in certain genes influence risk of ALL. Although FOXO3 had been demonstrated to be involved leukemia, the role of FOXO3 polymorphisms was still not clear. In the present study, we explored the association of FOXO3 SNPs with ALL risk in Chinese children.

NOD1 modulates decidual stromal cell function to maintain pregnancy in the early trimester.

We sought to explore the functions and modulated factors of NOD1 in normal decidual stromal cells (DSCs) derived from the first trimester pregnancy and whether existed different expression of NOD1 between normal and unexplained recurrent pregnancy loss (URPL) in DSCs. Twenty-six patients with normal pregnancies that required abortion and 12 URPL patients at first trimester were enrolled for the study. As a result, we found lower levels of NOD1 in the DSCs derived from URPL compared with those from normal early trimester pregnancy.

Characteristics and Workload of Pediatricians in China.

Objectives: Although it is widely believed that China is facing a major shortage of pediatricians, the real situation of the current national status of pediatric human resources and their working conditions has not been evaluated to date.

Methods: We administered a survey to 54 214 hospitals from all 31 provinces in mainland China from 2015 to 2016. Hospital directors of all secondary and tertiary hospitals with pediatric services and a random sample (10%) of primary hospitals provided information on number of pediatricians and their educational levels, specialties, workloads, dropout rates, and other hospital characteristics.

Association of miR-197-5p, a Circulating Biomarker for Heart Failure, with Myocardial Fibrosis and Adverse Cardiovascular Events among Patients with Stage C or D Heart Failure.

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify heart failure (HF)-specific circulating micro-RNAs (miRNA), and examine whether the selected miRNAs correlate with myocardial fibrosis and are reflective of the incidence of adverse cardiovascular events in patients with stage C or D HF.

Methods: Circulating miRNAs which were expressed in end-stage HF patients and matched healthy controls were detected by microarray analysis and validated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Multivariate Cox regression analysis was performed to determine whether the selected circulating miRNAs could be prognostic factors in HF patients.

Syndecan-1 as an independent risk factor for the incidence of adverse cardiovascular events in patients having stage C and D heart failure with non-ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy.

Background: Patients with heart failure (HF) having non-ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) have high mortality rates. Syndecan-1 is reportedly associated with cardiac fibrosis and inflammation. This study explored the role of syndecan-1 in patients with non-ischemic DCM.

Decreased Thyroid Peroxidase Antibody Titer in Response to Selenium Supplementation in Autoimmune Thyroiditis and the Influence of a Selenoprotein P Gene Polymorphism: A Prospective, Multicenter Study in China.

Recent intervention studies have suggested that selenium (Se) is an effective treatment for autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT). However, the exact effect of Se on AIT is unclear as well as the mechanism of action. The aim of the present study was to explore the effect of Se on thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb) titers in patients with AIT and to analyze the potential impact of the genetic background on the effect of Se supplementation.

Anticancer effect of salidroside reduces viability through autophagy/PI3K/Akt and MMP-9 signaling pathways in human bladder cancer cells.

Salidroside has a wide range of pharmacological activities, including antitumor, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antibacterial, antiviral and anti-fertility abilities. In the present study, the effects of salidroside on the viability and apoptosis of bladder cancer cells, and the potential underlying mechanisms, were examined. In the present study, treatment with salidroside reduced cell viability, and induced apoptosis and caspase-9/3 activation in the T24 human bladder carcinoma cell line.

Pioglitazone Improved Insulin Sensitivity and First Phase Insulin Secretion Among Obese and Lean People with Diabetes: A Multicenter Clamp Study.

Introduction: To investigate the effects of pioglitazone (PIO) on insulin resistance and first phase insulin secretion among obese and lean Chinese people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods: Sixty-eight drug-naïve patients with T2DM were treated with PIO for 16 weeks. Before and after the treatment, insulin sensitivity was evaluated by the euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp test.

The suppressing role of miR-622 in renal cell carcinoma progression by down-regulation of CCL18/MAPK signal pathway.

Background: MicroRNAs have emerged as critical modulators of carcinogenesis and tumor progression including renal cell carcinoma (RCC). MiR-622 plays as a tumor inhibitor in some types of cancer, however, its role in kidney cancer is unknown. The purpose of the present work is to investigate the functional behaviors and regulatory mechanism of miR-622 in RCC.

Safety assessment of sorafenib in Chinese patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma: subgroup analysis of the GIDEON study.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the safety of sorafenib for the treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma in Chinese patients.

Methods: A subgroup of 345 Chinese patients from the international database of the Global Investigation of therapeutic DEcisions in hepatocellular carcinoma and Of its treatment with sorafeNib (GIDEON) study was included in this analysis. Safety assessment measures were adverse events (AEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs) graded using the National Cancer Institute Common Terminology Criteria version 3.

Protective effect of vascular endothelial growth factor against cardiopulmonary bypass-associated acute kidney injury in beagles.

The present study aimed to examine the hypothesis that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has a protective effect against cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB)-associated acute kidney injury (AKI). Eighteen male beagles were randomly allocated to three groups (n=6 per group): Sham group, animals received sternotomy without going through CPB; CPB group, animals received CPB only; VEGF group, animals received CPB and VEGF. VEGF infusion was completed 1 h prior to the initiation of CPB.

Effect of MTHFR A1298C and MTRR A66G Genetic Mutations on Homocysteine Levels in the Chinese Population: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background And Objectives: The Chinese population typically has inadequate folate intake and no mandatory folic acid fortification. Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) and methionine synthase reductase (MTRR) are the two key regulatory enzymes in the folate/homocysteine (Hcy) metabolism. Hcy has been implicated in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease.

Prognostic role of the pre-treatment platelet-lymphocyte ratio in pancreatic cancer: a meta-analysis.

Background And Aims: Recently, the pre-treatment platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), which is based on blood parameters, was accepted as a prognostic factor for patients with various cancers. Numerous studies have investigated the prognostic role of the PLR in pancreatic cancer; however, it remains unclear. Therefore, we conducted this meta-analysis to evaluate the relationship between the pre-treatment PLR and overall survival (OS) in pancreatic cancer.

Genetic or pharmacologic inhibition of EGFR ameliorates sepsis-induced AKI.

Despite recent studies have demonstrated that the EGF receptor (EGFR) activation provided a renoprotective role during ischemic and folic acid-induced AKI, the role and regulation mechanism of EGFR in septic AKI remains unclear. Here, gefitinib, a highly selective EGFR inhibitor, abrogated LPS-induced phosphorylation of EGFR, ERK1/2, and STAT3 as well as expression of COX, eNOS, and proinflammatory cytokines in HK-2 cells. In addition, c-Src is an upstream of EGFR signaling pathway and mediates LPS-induced EGFR transactivation.

[Value of the endoscopic diagnosis on the lesions of the skull base in postradiotherapeutic patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma].

To evaluate the diagnostic value of the endoscopic biopsy operation to the lesions of the skull base in the patients with nasopharyngealcarcinoma after radiotherapy. From February 2006 to February 2010, 84 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma suffered from the lesions of the skull base after radiotherapy were included in this study. The relationship between the pathologic results of endoscopic biopsies from the skull base and the imaging results by Magnetic Resonance Imaging(MRI) was compared and discussed.

ITD mutation in FLT3 tyrosine kinase promotes Warburg effect and renders therapeutic sensitivity to glycolytic inhibition.

Internal tandem duplication (ITD) mutation in Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 gene (FLT3/ITD) represents an unfavorable genetic change in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and is associated with poor prognosis. Metabolic alterations have been involved in tumor progression and attracted interest as a target for therapeutic intervention. However, few studies analyzed the adaptations of cellular metabolism in the context of FLT3/ITD mutation.

Mitophagy is increased during erythroid differentiation in β-thalassemia.

Mitophagy is a selective degradation of mitochondria, which also plays a critical role in hematopoiesis. However, it is unclear what role, if any, this process plays in the pathogenesis of β-thalassemia. To determine the role of mitophagy in β-thalassemia, CD34 hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) were isolated from peripheral blood of β-thalassemia patients and healthy controls and differentiated into erythrocytes.

Clinical presentation and outcome of pediatric patients with hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis in China: A retrospective multicenter study.

Background: Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a heterogeneous disease with major diagnostic and therapeutic difficulties. A large-scale multicenter study of pediatric HLH is still lacking in China.

Procedure: The Histiocytosis Study Group of the Chinese Pediatric Society conducted this retrospective study in 2014.

Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Thirty-Four Pediatric Cases of Mucopolysaccharidosis-A Ten-Year Report from the China Children Transplant Group.

We investigated the efficacy of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloHSCT) in pediatric patients with mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS). A retrospective analysis of transplantation data from 34 cases of MPS from the China Children Transplant Group, treated between December 2004 and September 2015, was conducted. Among the 34 cases, 12 cases were type I, 12 were type II, 4 were type IV, 4 were type VI, and 2 were of an unknown type.

Poor sleep quality is responsible for the nondipper pattern in hypertensive but not in normotensive chronic kidney disease patients.

Aim: This study was designed to evaluate the relationship between sleep quality and hypertension and to determine if there was an association between nondipper blood pressure (BP) and sleep quality in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients.

Methods: A total of 775 pre-dialysis CKD patients (314 normal BP patients, 461 hypertension patients) defined as dippers or nondippers by ambulatory BP monitoring were recruited for this study. Demographics and clinical correlates were collected, including body mass index, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and other measures.

The application of the fibroblast activation protein α-targeted immunotherapy strategy.

Cancer immunotherapy has primarily been focused on attacking tumor cells. However, given the close interaction between tumor cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in the tumor microenvironment (TME), CAF-targeted strategies could also contribute to an integrated cancer immunotherapy. Fibroblast activation protein α (FAP α) is not detectible in normal tissues, but is overexpressed by CAFs and is the predominant component of the stroma in most types of cancer.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase protein expression predicts micrometastases and prognosis for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

The present study aimed to investigate anaplastic lymphoma kinase () status in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to evaluate whether abnormalities in expression were associated with patient prognosis. status was investigated using immunohistochemistry (IHC), reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and fluorescence hybridization (FISH) assays in 342 HCC patients. In addition, rapid amplification of complementary DNA ends-coupled PCR sequencing was performed, in order to confirm the presence of abnormalities in patients exhibiting messenger RNA (mRNA) overexpression.

Pathological Assessment of the AJCC Tumor Regression Grading System After Preoperative Chemoradiotherapy for Chinese Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer.

We used American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) Staging Manual system to assess the prognostic significance of tumor regression grading (TRG) for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) (T3/4 or N+) patients who were treated with preoperative chemoradiotherapy (CRT).The 4 AJCC-TRG classifications were evaluated on surgical specimens from 295 LARC patients receiving CRT. Overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), local recurrence-free survival (LRFS), and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) were estimated using Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model.