Prognostic Implications for High Expression of MiR-25 in Lung Adenocarcinomas of Female Non-smokers

Xu, Fang-Xiu,Su, Yu-Liang,Zhang, Huan,Kong, Jin-Yu,Yu, Herbert,Qian, Bi-Yun Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.3

Background: Adenocarcinoma (ADC) is the most common histological type of lung cancer and its proportion is rising, especially in Asian non-smoking women. Recent studies suggest miR-25 may have diverse effects on the pathogenesis of different types of cancer. However, the role of miR-25 in lung cancer is still unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential clinical value of miR-25 in non-smoking women with lung ADC. Patients and Methods: Quantitative RT-PCR was performed to evaluate the expression of miR-25 in 100 lung ADC tumor tissues and matched plasma samples and Pearson correlation tests were used to analyze the relationship between values. Associations of miR-25 expression with clinicopathological features were determined using the Student's t-test. To determine prognostic value, overall survival (OS) was evaluated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed using the Cox proportional hazard model. Results: Expression of miR-25 in tissue was found to be associated with lymph node metastasis (P=0.021) and disease stage (P=0.012). Moreover, high miR-25 expression was also associated with poorer overall survival of women with lung ADC (P=0.008). Conclusion: Tissue miR-25 expression may be associated with tumor progression and have prognostic implications in female lung ADC patients.

Numerical Simulation of Seismic Waves with Peak Arrival Time and Amplitude-Frequency Correlation

Xu Han,Zhitao Wang,Ling-yun Peng,Jingyu Su,Lihua Wang 대한토목학회 2019 KSCE JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING Vol.23 No.10

To improve the accuracy with which the non-stationary intensity characteristics of artificial acceleration-time-history curves are determined, a method of adjusting the frequency correlation between the artificial peak arrival time and amplitude spectrum is proposed. A calculation method for determining the peak arrival time to reflect the physical meaning of the phase-differenc espectrum was first deduced. Subsequently, the amplitude-distribution characteristics corresponding to the peak arrival times for different durations of natural earthquakes were analyzed. In accordance with the distribution characteristics of the reference amplitude, the frequency distribution of the artificial peak arrival time was divided into four parts: the beginning, strong-earthquake, attenuation, and tail sections. By adjusting the arrival frequency of peak points for the different earthquake durations considered, the corresponding relationship between the artificial peak arrival time and amplitude spectrum was determined to be more consistent with the general law of natural earthquakes. The sample calculation described in this paper demonstrates that adjusting the frequency correspondence between the artificial peak arrival time and amplitude spectrum greatly improves the accuracy of the non-stationary intensity characteristics of artificial acceleration-time-history curves.

Dark-Blood Computed Tomography Angiography Combined With Deep Learning Reconstruction for Cervical Artery Wall Imaging in Takayasu Arteritis

Su Tong,Zhang Zhe,Chen Yu,Wang Yun,Li Yumei,Xu Min,Wang Jian,Li Jing,Tian Xinping,Jin Zhengyu 대한영상의학회 2024 Korean Journal of Radiology Vol.25 No.4

Objective: To evaluate the image quality of novel dark-blood computed tomography angiography (CTA) imaging combined with deep learning reconstruction (DLR) compared to delayed-phase CTA images with hybrid iterative reconstruction (HIR), to visualize the cervical artery wall in patients with Takayasu arteritis (TAK). Materials and Methods: This prospective study continuously recruited 53 patients with TAK (mean age: 33.8 ± 10.2 years; 49 females) between January and July 2022 who underwent head-neck CTA scans. The arterial- and delayed-phase images were reconstructed using HIR and DLR. Subtracted images of the arterial-phase from the delayed-phase were then added to the original delayed-phase using a denoising filter to generate the final-dark-blood images. Qualitative image quality scores and quantitative parameters were obtained and compared among the three groups of images: Delayed-HIR, Dark-blood-HIR, and Dark-blood-DLR. Results: Compared to Delayed-HIR, Dark-blood-HIR images demonstrated higher qualitative scores in terms of vascular wall visualization and diagnostic confidence index (all P < 0.001). These qualitative scores further improved after applying DLR (Dark-blood-DLR compared to Dark-blood-HIR, all P < 0.001). Dark-blood DLR also showed higher scores for overall image noise than Dark-blood-HIR (P < 0.001). In the quantitative analysis, the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) values between the vessel wall and lumen for the bilateral common carotid arteries and brachiocephalic trunk were significantly higher on Darkblood- HIR images than on Delayed-HIR images (all P < 0.05). The CNR values were significantly higher for Dark-blood-DLR than for Dark-blood-HIR in all cervical arteries (all P < 0.001). Conclusion: Compared with Delayed-HIR CTA, the dark-blood method combined with DLR improved CTA image quality and enhanced visualization of the cervical artery wall in patients with TAK.

Adaptation of murine anaplastic thyroid cancer cell line from hybrid to inbred C57BL/6 mice

Zhen Xu,Seong Yun Ha,Hyo Shik Shin,Minjun Kim,Su-jin Kim,Jae-Kyung Won,Seong-Hyeon Kim,Sun Wook Cho,Kyu Eun Lee 한국실험동물학회 2021 한국실험동물학회 학술발표대회 논문집 Vol.2021 No.7

Background: Immuno-competent mouse model is indispensable for the study of tumor immune microenvironment. TBP-3743 cell line is derived from anaplastic thyroid cancer arising in immune-competent B6129SF1 mouse with thyroid-specific BrafV600E/WT and deletion of Trp53. Aim of this study is to adapt TBP-3743 cell line to C57BL/6 stain, widely used mouse strain which has same MHC haplotype with that of B6129SF1. Methods: TBP-3743 cell line was subcutaneously injected into C57BL/6 mice. The mouse with the rapidest tumor growth was sacrificed for primary culture and the cultured cells were injected into naive C57BL/6 mice. This serial of processes, called adaptation, has been performed three times. The concentration-dependent growth analysis is performed by comparing the tumor growth of 1x107-injected and 5x106-injected group. Furthermore, Original TBP-3743 cells and adapted TBP-3743 cells were treated with BRAFV600E inhibitor(PLX-4032, 1uM) in vitro and cell proliferation was measured by luminometric detection. For Immunotherapy, mice were treated 10mg/kg of PLX-4032 on daily basis, 15mg/kg of anti-CD47 every other day, 10mg/kg of anti-PD-L1 every other day Results: In the course of adaptation, the lag phage of tumor growth shortened and tumor growth rate had dramatically increased. In vitro growth of Both TBP-3743 and adapted TBP-3743(TBP-3743B6) were effectively BRAFV600E-selective inhibitor (PLX-4032). In vivo treatment of PLX-4032 with anti-CD47 and/or anti-PD-L1 reduced tumor volume in mice injected with TBP-3743B6 and prolonged their survival compared to control Conclusions: We established a novel immunocompetent murine anaplastic thyroid cancer model available in C57BL/6 inbred mice. TBP-3743B6 grows rapidly and stably in immunocompetent C57BL/6 mice. This mouse model can save unnecessary time, cost and labor for the research of tumor immune microenvironment. Also, this newly established cell line will be a useful resource to expand the feasibility of basic research as well as drug screening for potential therapeutic effects on anaplastic thyroid cancer.

Diffusion Weighted Imaging for Differentiating Benign from Malignant Orbital Tumors: Diagnostic Performance of the Apparent Diffusion Coefficient Based on Region of Interest Selection Method

Xiao-Quan Xu,Hao Hu,Guo-Yi Su,Hu Liu,Hai-Bin Shi,Fei-Yun Wu 대한영상의학회 2016 Korean Journal of Radiology Vol.17 No.5

Objective: To evaluate the differences in the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements based on three different region of interest (ROI) selection methods, and compare their diagnostic performance in differentiating benign from malignant orbital tumors. Materials and Methods: Diffusion-weighted imaging data of sixty-four patients with orbital tumors (33 benign and 31 malignant) were retrospectively analyzed. Two readers independently measured the ADC values using three different ROIs selection methods including whole-tumor (WT), single-slice (SS), and reader-defined small sample (RDSS). The differences of ADC values (ADC-ROIWT, ADC-ROISS, and ADC-ROIRDSS) between benign and malignant group were compared using unpaired t test. Receiver operating characteristic curve was used to determine and compare their diagnostic ability. The ADC measurement time was compared using ANOVA analysis and the measurement reproducibility was assessed using Bland-Altman method and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: Malignant group showed significantly lower ADC-ROIWT, ADC-ROISS, and ADC-ROIRDSS than benign group (all p < 0.05). The areas under the curve showed no significant difference when using ADC-ROIWT, ADC-ROISS, and ADC-ROIRDSS as differentiating index, respectively (all p > 0.05). The ROISS and ROIRDSS required comparable measurement time (p > 0.05), while significantly shorter than ROIWT (p < 0.05). The ROISS showed the best reproducibility (mean difference ± limits of agreement between two readers were 0.022 [-0.080–0.123] x 10-3 mm2/s; ICC, 0.997) among three ROI methods. Conclusion: Apparent diffusion coefficient values based on the three different ROI selection methods can help to differentiate benign from malignant orbital tumors. The results of measurement time, reproducibility and diagnostic ability suggest that the ROISS method are potentially useful for clinical practice.

Intravoxel Incoherent Motion Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Assessing Parotid Gland Tumors: Correlation and Comparison with Arterial Spin Labeling Imaging

Ma Gao,Xu Xiao-Quan,Zhu Liu-Ning,Jiang Jia-Suo,Su Guo-Yi,Hu Hao,Bu Shou-Shan,Wu Fei-Yun 대한영상의학회 2021 Korean Journal of Radiology Vol.22 No.2

Objective: To compare and correlate the findings of intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and arterial spin labeling (ASL) imaging in characterizing parotid gland tumors. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 56 patients with parotid gland tumors evaluated by MR imaging. The true diffusion coefficient (D), pseudo-diffusion coefficient (D*), and fraction of perfusion (f) values of IVIM imaging and tumor-to-parotid gland signal intensity ratio (SIR) on ASL imaging were calculated. Spearman rank correlation coefficient, chi-squared, Mann-Whitney U, and Kruskal-Wallis tests with the post-hoc Dunn-Bonferroni method and receiver operating characteristic curve assessments were used for statistical analysis. Results: Malignant parotid gland tumors showed significantly lower D than benign tumors (p = 0.019). Within subgroup analyses, pleomorphic adenomas (PAs) showed significantly higher D than malignant tumors (MTs) and Warthin’s tumors (WTs) (p < 0.001). The D* of WTs was significantly higher than that of PAs (p = 0.031). The f and SIR on ASL imaging of WTs were significantly higher than those of MTs and PAs (p < 0.05). Significantly positive correlation was found between SIR on ASL imaging and f (r = 0.446, p = 0.001). In comparison with f, SIR on ASL imaging showed a higher area under curve (0.853 vs. 0.891) in discriminating MTs from WTs, although the difference was not significant (p = 0.720). Conclusion: IVIM and ASL imaging could help differentiate parotid gland tumors. SIR on ASL imaging showed a significantly positive correlation with f. ASL imaging might hold potential to improve the ability to discriminate MTs from WTs.

Novel DNAH1 Mutation Loci Lead to Multiple Morphological Abnormalities of the Sperm Flagella and Literature Review

Zhuang Bao-Jun,Xu Su-Yun,Dong Liang,Zhang Pei-Hai,Zhuang Bao-Lin,Huang Xiao-Peng,Li Guang-Sen,You Yao-Dong,Chen Di'Ang,Yu Xu-Jun,Chang De-Gui 대한남성과학회 2022 The World Journal of Men's Health Vol.40 No.4

The protein encoded by dynein axonemal heavy chain 1 (DNAH1) is a part of dynein, which regulates the function of cilia and sperm flagella. The mutant of DNAH1 causes the deletion of inner dynein arm 3 in the flagellum, leading to multiple morphological abnormalities of the sperm flagella (MMAF) and severe asthenozoospermia. However, instead of asthenozoospermia and MMAF, the result caused by the mutation of DNAH1 remains unknown. Here we report a male infertility patient with severe asthenozoospermia and teratozoospermia. We found two heterozygous mutations in DNAH1 (c.6912C>A and c.7076G>T) and which were reported to be associated with MMAF for the first time. We next collected and analyzed 65 cases of DNAH1 mutation and found that the proportion of short flagella is the largest, while the bent flagella account for the smallest, and the incidence of head deformity is not high in the sperm of these patients. Finally, we also analyzed 31 DNAH1 mutation patients who were treated with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and achieved beneficial outcomes. We hope our research will be helpful in the diagnosis and treatment of male infertility caused by DNAH1 mutation.

Relationship between Fractional Exhaled Nitric Oxide Level and Efficacy of Inhaled Corticosteroid in Asthma-COPD Overlap Syndrome Patients with Different Disease Severity

Jia-Xi Feng,Yun Lin,Jian Lin,Su-Su He,Mei-Fang Chen,Xiao-Mai Wu,You-Zu Xu 대한의학회 2017 Journal of Korean medical science Vol.32 No.3

This study explored the relationship between the fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) level and the efficacy of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) in asthma-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap syndrome (ACOS) patients with different disease severity. A total of 127 ACOS patients with ACOS (case group) and 131 healthy people (control group) were enrolled in this study. Based on the severity of COPD, the ACOS patients were divided into: mild ACOS; moderate ACOS; severe ACOS; and extremely severe ACOS groups. We compared FeNO levels, pulmonary function parameters including percentage of forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) to predicted value (FEV1%pred), ratio of FEV1 to forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC), inspiratory capacity to total lung capacity (IC/TLC) and residual volume to total lung capacity (RV/TLC), arterial blood gas parameters, including PH, arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2) and arterial partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PaCO2), total serum immunoglobulin E (IgE), induced sputum eosinophil (EOS), plasma surfactant protein A (SP-A), plasma soluble receptor for advanced glycation end products (sRAGE), sputum myeloperoxidase (MPO), sputum neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) and Asthma Control Test (ACT) scores, and COPD Assessment Test (CAT) scores. Compared with pre-treatment parameters, the FeNO levels, RV/TLC, PaCO2, total serum IgE, induced sputum EOS, plasma SP-A, sputum MPO, sputum NGAL, and CAT scores were significantly decreased after 6 months of ICS treatment, while FEV1%pred, FEV1/FVC, IC/TLC, PH, PaO2, plasma sRAGE, and ACT scores were significantly increased in ACOS patients with different disease severity after 6 months of ICS treatment. This finding suggests that the FeNO level may accurately predict the efficacy of ICS in the treatment of ACOS patients.

Utility of Readout-Segmented Echo-Planar Imaging-Based Diffusion Kurtosis Imaging for Differentiating Malignant from Benign Masses in Head and Neck Region

Gao Ma,Xiao-Quan Xu,Hao Hu,Guo-Yi Su,Jie Shen,Hai-Bin Shi,Fei-Yun Wu 대한영상의학회 2018 Korean Journal of Radiology Vol.19 No.3

Objective: To compare the diagnostic performance of readout-segmented echo-planar imaging (RS-EPI)-based diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) and that of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) for differentiating malignant from benign masses in head and neck region. Materials and Methods: Between December 2014 and April 2016, we retrospectively enrolled 72 consecutive patients with head and neck masses who had undergone RS-EPI-based DKI scan (b value of 0, 500, 1000, and 1500 s/mm2) for pretreatment evaluation. Imaging data were post-processed by using monoexponential and diffusion kurtosis (DK) model for quantitation of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), apparent diffusion for Gaussian distribution (Dapp), and apparent kurtosis coefficient (Kapp). Unpaired t test and Mann-Whitney U test were used to compare differences of quantitative parameters between malignant and benign groups. Receiver operating characteristic curve analyses were performed to determine and compare the diagnostic ability of quantitative parameters in predicting malignancy. Results: Malignant group demonstrated significantly lower ADC (0.754 ± 0.167 vs. 1.222 ± 0.420, p < 0.001) and Dapp (1.029 ± 0.226 vs. 1.640 ± 0.445, p < 0.001) while higher Kapp (1.344 ± 0.309 vs. 0.715 ± 0.249, p < 0.001) than benign group. Using a combination of Dapp and Kapp as diagnostic index, significantly better differentiating performance was achieved than using ADC alone (area under curve: 0.956 vs. 0.876, p = 0.042). Conclusion: Compared to DWI, DKI could provide additional data related to tumor heterogeneity with significantly better differentiating performance. Its derived quantitative metrics could serve as a promising imaging biomarker for differentiating malignant from benign masses in head and neck region.

Synthesis and Characterization of Poly(ester amide)s Consisting of Poly(L-lactic acid) and Poly(butylene succinate) Segments with 2,2'-Bis(2-oxazoline) Chain Extending

Jun Zou,Yingzhen Qi,Lele Su,Yun Wei,Zhaolei Li,Haiqing Xu 한국고분자학회 2018 Macromolecular Research Vol.26 No.13

An aliphatic polyester based poly(ester amide)s (PEA) consisting of poly (L-lactic acid) and poly(butylene succinate) was successfully prepared via chain extension reaction of poly(L-lactic acid)-dicarboxylic acid (PLLA-COOH) and poly(butylene succinate)-dicarboxylic acid (PBS-COOH) using 2,2'-bis(2-oxazoline) as a chain extender. PLLA-COOH was obtained by direct polycondensation of L-lactic acid in the presence of 1, 4-succinic acid. PBS-COOH was synthesized by condensation polymerization of 1,4-butylene glycol with excessive succinic acid. The structures of PLLA-COOH, PBS-COOH, and PEAs were characterized by fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR). The molar masses were determined by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The thermal properties of PLLACOOH, PBS-COOH, and PEAs were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The lattice parameters of PLLACOOH, PBS-COOH, and PEAs were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Furthermore, The mechanical properties were characterized by tensile testing and notch Izod impact testing. The FTIR and 1H NMR results demonstrated the formation of PLLA-COOH, PBS-COOH, and PEAs. The GPC measurements showed that the molar masses of copolymer PEAs decreased with increasing PBS-COOH content. The TGA analysis confirmed that the introduction of PBS improved the thermal properties. DSC data indicated that the melting temperatures of the PEAs were lower than that of the prepolymers. The results of XRD suggested that the PLLA crystal structures was destroyed by the PBS units, and the crystallization of the PEAs mainly attributed to the PBS chain segments.The introduction of PBS units into the polymer structure improved the toughness of PLLA, which was detected in mechanical properties.