Levodopa Challenge Test Predicts STN-DBS Outcomes in Various Parkinson's Disease Motor Subtypes: A More Accurate Judgment.

Background: The relationship between the levodopa challenge test (LDCT) and postoperative subthalamic nucleus-deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS) benefits is controversial in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). We aim to evaluate the value of total levodopa response (TLR) and symptom levodopa response (SLR) in predicting postoperative improvement in different PD motor subtypes.

Methods: Studies were split into a training set (147 patients) and a validation set (304 patients).

Changes and Clinical Significance of Detailed Peripheral Lymphocyte Subsets in Evaluating the Immunity for Cancer Patients.

Objective: The evaluation of lymphocyte subsets is widely regarded as an important factor for monitoring tumor progression and response to therapy. This study was designed to establish a comprehensive and detailed assessment of peripheral lymphocyte subsets with a multi-parametric flow cytometry assay for response prediction and prognosis evaluation of cancer patients.

Methods: Peripheral blood samples collected from 40 cancer patients and 23 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers were tested for 29 lymphocyte subsets by flow cytometry.

The influence of different blood samples treatment methods on pro-gastrin-releasing peptide.

Pro-gastrin-releasing peptide (ProGRP) is the promising molecular tumor marker of small cell lung cancer (SCLC). Here we study the influence of different blood samples treatment methods on ProGRP.Serum with and without separation gel and heparin plasma from 10 SCLC patients and 5 healthy individuals were assayed for ProGRP immediately and 2, 4, 6, 8, 24, and 48 hours after collection.

Engineered CAR T cells targeting mesothelin by piggyBac transposon system for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Patients with pancreatic cancer have a poor prognosis largely due to the poor efficacy of the available treatment modalities. In this study, we engineered mesothelin-targeting chimeric antigen receptor T cells (mesoCAR T) using the piggyBac transposon based plasmid electroporation technique for specific targeting of pancreatic cancer cells expressing mesothelin. In vitro, mesoCAR T cells exhibited rapid and robust killing effect against ASPC1 cells with high expression levels of mesothelin with high production of IFN-γ; the cytotoxic effect on PANC1 cells with low expressions of mesothelin was relatively attenuated.

Mesothelin-targeting chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells by piggyBac transposon system suppress the growth of bile duct carcinoma.

Chimeric antigen receptor modified T cell-based immunotherapy is revolutionizing the field of cancer treatment. However, its potential in treating bile duct carcinoma has not been fully explored. Herein, we developed the second-generation mesothelin-targeting chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells with the 4-1BB co-stimulatory module by the piggyBac transposon system.

Activation or suppression of the immune response mediators in biliary tract cancer (BTC) patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Infiltration of immune cells and immune microenvironment determine the proliferative activity of the tumor and metastasis. The aim of this study was to analyze the influence of activation or suppression of the immune response mediators on the prognosis of biliary tract cancer (BTC). We searched Pubmed, Web of Science, Embase and The Cochrane Library for relevant literatures until June 2016.

Microwave ablation is as effective as radiofrequency ablation for very-early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: Percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a first-line treatment for very-early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), whereas the efficacy of percutaneous microwave ablation (MWA) for very-early-stage HCC remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to clarify this issue by comparing the safety and efficacy of percutaneous MWA with percutaneous RFA in treating very-early-stage HCC.

Methods: Clinical data of 460 patients who were diagnosed with very-early-stage HCC and treated with percutaneous MWA or RFA between January 2007 and July 2012 at the Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, The Second Military Medical University, in Shanghai, China were retrospectively analyzed.

Is Adjuvant Cellular Immunotherapy Essential after TACE-Predominant Minimally-Invasive Treatment for Hepatocellular Carcinoma? A Systematic Meta-Analysis of Studies Including 1774 Patients.

Purpose: Cellular immunotherapy has appeared to be a promising modality for the treatment of malignant tumor. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of cellular immunotherapy combined with minimally invasive therapy.

Methods: We searched PubMed, Web of Science and The Cochrane Library through March 2016 for relevant studies.

The combination of dendritic cells-cytotoxic T lymphocytes/cytokine-induced killer (DC-CTL/CIK) therapy exerts immune and clinical responses in patients with malignant tumors.

Background: The clinical trials using immunotherapy have been performed for the treatment of variety of malignant tumors. However, large-scale meta-analysis of combined DC-CTL/CIK therapy on immune and clinical response in patients has not been well studied yet. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of DC-CTL/CIK therapy and evaluate the changes of immune indicators and tumor serological markers both at an individual level and at a system level, which is an important basis for immunotherapy as well as prognosis estimation.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor inhibits glucose intolerance after cerebral ischemia.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor is associated with the insulin signaling pathway and glucose tabolism. We hypothesized that expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor and its receptor may be involved in glucose intolerance following ischemic stress. To verify this hypothesis, this study aimed to observe the changes in brain-derived neurotrophic factor and tyrosine kinase B receptor expression in glucose metabolism-associated regions following cerebral ischemic stress in mice.

Joint analysis of three genome-wide association studies of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in Chinese populations.

We conducted a joint (pooled) analysis of three genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in individuals of Chinese ancestry (5,337 ESCC cases and 5,787 controls) with 9,654 ESCC cases and 10,058 controls for follow-up. In a logistic regression model adjusted for age, sex, study and two eigenvectors, two new loci achieved genome-wide significance, marked by rs7447927 at 5q31.2 (per-allele odds ratio (OR) = 0.

Five-year follow-up of 23 asymmetrical Parkinson's disease patients treated with unilateral subthalamic nucleus stimulation.

In this study, 23 asymmetrical Parkinson's disease patients were treated with unilateral deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus and followed up for 5 years. At 5 years after stimulation treatment, Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale II, III and axial symptom scores in the off-drug condition were significantly increased compared those at baseline. However, total Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale II, III and axial symptom scores were significantly lower with stimulation-on compared with the synchronous stimulation-off state in off-drug condition, and the motor symptoms of contralateral side limbs were effectively controlled.