Prognostic value of preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in histological variants of non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer

Deng-xiong Li,Xiao-ming Wang,Yin Tang,Yu-bo Yang,Dechao Feng,Ao Li,Fa-cai Zhang,Yun-jin Bai,Ping Han 대한비뇨의학회 2021 Investigative and Clinical Urology Vol.62 No.6

Purpose: Many studies identified that the preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (PNLR) was associated with patient prognosis in non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). We hypothesized that PNLR could be prognostic in patients with histological variants of NMIBC (VH-NMIBC). Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included patients with VH-NMIBC admitted at our center between January 2009 and May 2019. The best cut-off value of NLR was measured by the receiver operating characteristic curve and Youden index. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazard regression models were employed to evaluate the association between PNLR and disease prognosis, including recurrence-free survival (RFS), progression-free survival (PFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and overall survival (OS). Results: A total of 243 patients with VH-NMIBC were enrolled in our study. According to the Kaplan-Meier method results, patients with PNLR ≥2.2 were associated with poor RFS (p<0.001), PFS (p<0.001), CSS (p<0.001), and OS (p<0.001). Multivariable analyses indicated that PNLR ≥ 2.2 was an independent prognostic factor of RFS (hazard ratio [HR], 2.11; 95% confidence interval [CI, 1.57–1.83; p<0.001), PFS (HR, 2.34; 95% CI, 1.70–3.21; p<0.001), CCS (HR, 2.87; 95% CI, 1.96–4.18; p< 0.001), and OS (HR, 2.83; 95% CI, 1.96–4.07; p<0.001). Conclusions: This study identified that PNLR ≥2.2 was usually associated with a poor prognosis for patients with VH-NMIBC.

Value of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography in microwave ablation treatment of symptomatic focal uterine adenomyosis

Xiao-Long Li,Jia-Xin Li,Song-Yuan Yu,Pei-Li Fan,Yun-Jie Jin,Er-Jiao Xu,Sai-Nan Guan,Er-Ya Deng,Qiu-Yan Li,Zheng-Biao Ji,Jiu-Ling Qi,Hui-Xiong Xu,China Alliance of Multi-Center Clinical Study for Ultra 대한초음파의학회 2024 ULTRASONOGRAPHY Vol.43 No.1

Purpose: This study evaluated the value of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) in the ultrasound-guided microwave ablation (MWA) treatment of symptomatic focal uterine adenomyosis.Methods: This retrospective study was conducted between March 2020 and January 2023, enrolling 52 patients with symptomatic focal uterine adenomyosis who had undergone MWA. All patients were examined with CEUS before and after MWA. The non-perfused volume (NPV) was compared between CEUS and dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCEMRI) following ablation. Therapeutic efficacy and safety were evaluated at 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-ups. Additionally, this study explored the correlations between pre-treatment CEUS features and a volume reduction ratio indicating sufficient ablation, defined as 50% or more at the 3-month follow-up.Results: No significant differences in NPV were noted between CEUS and DCE-MRI immediately after MWA and during follow-up (all P>0.05). At the 3-month follow-up, the median VRRs for the uterus and adenomyosis were 33.2% and 63.9%, respectively. Sufficient ablation was achieved in 69.2% (36/52) of adenomyosis cases, while partial ablation was observed in the remaining 30.8% (16/52). The identification of non-enhancing areas on pre-treatment CEUS was associated with sufficient ablation (P=0.016). At the 12-month follow-up, significant decreases were observed in both the uterine and adenomyosis volumes (all P<0.001). Dysmenorrhea and menorrhagia were significantly alleviated at 12 months, and no major complications were encountered.Conclusion: CEUS can be used to evaluate the ablation zone of focal adenomyosis that has been treated with MWA, similarly to DCE-MRI. The identification of non-enhancing areas on pretreatment CEUS indicates satisfactory treatment outcomes. Purpose: This study evaluated the value of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) in the ultrasound-guided microwave ablation (MWA) treatment of symptomatic focal uterine adenomyosis. Methods: This retrospective study was conducted between March 2020 and January 2023, enrolling 52 patients with symptomatic focal uterine adenomyosis who had undergone MWA. All patients were examined with CEUS before and after MWA. The non-perfused volume (NPV) was compared between CEUS and dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE- MRI) following ablation. Therapeutic efficacy and safety were evaluated at 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-ups. Additionally, this study explored the correlations between pre-treatment CEUS features and a volume reduction ratio indicating sufficient ablation, defined as 50% or more at the 3-month follow-up. Results: No significant differences in NPV were noted between CEUS and DCE-MRI immediately after MWA and during follow-up (all P>0.05). At the 3-month follow-up, the median VRRs for the uterus and adenomyosis were 33.2% and 63.9%, respectively. Sufficient ablation was achieved in 69.2% (36/52) of adenomyosis cases, while partial ablation was observed in the remaining 30.8% (16/52). The identification of non-enhancing areas on pre-treatment CEUS was associated with sufficient ablation (P=0.016). At the 12-month follow-up, significant decreases were observed in both the uterine and adenomyosis volumes (all P<0.001). Dysmenorrhea and menorrhagia were significantly alleviated at 12 months, and no major complications were encountered. Conclusion: CEUS can be used to evaluate the ablation zone of focal adenomyosis that has been treated with MWA, similarly to DCE-MRI. The identification of non-enhancing areas on pre- treatment CEUS indicates satisfactory treatment outcomes.

Frequencies, Inheritance of Porcine FSH-${\beta}$ Retroposon and its Association with Reproductive Traits

Li, Feng'e,Xiong, Yuanzhu,Deng, Changyan,Jiang, Siwen,Zheng, Rong Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2002 Animal Bioscience Vol.15 No.2

The fragment in intron I of FSH-${\beta}$ gene was amplified by PCR. According to the polymorphism, we analyzed the distribution of FSH-${\beta}$ retroposon in different pig breeds; its inheritance pattern in Large White${\times}$Meishan reference family; and the association of FSH-${\beta}$ retroposon with litter size, female reproductive organs measurement, ultrasonic backfat and other traits. The results showed that almost each Chinese indigenous pig had the retroposon, while foreign pig breeds rarely had; the frequencies of porcine FSH-${\beta}$ retroposon were strongly associated with breeds (p<0.01); the pattern of inheritance was consistent with Mendelian fashion; total number born (TNB) and number born alive (NBA) were increased per FSH-${\beta}$ retroposon (p<0.01) with additive effects of 1.2-1.8 and 1.4-1.8 pigs/litter, respectively; between the FSH-${\beta}$ retroposon carriers and non-carriers, there was an insignificant difference in the measurement of female reproductive organs, body weight at birth, backfat thickness, loin meat height, lean meat percentage, teat number, days to 100 kg, and average daily gain.

Associations of Polymorphisms in the Mx1 Gene with Immunity Traits in Large WhitexMeishan F₂ Offspring

Li, X.L.,He, W.L.,Deng, C.Y.,Xiong, Y.Z. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2007 Animal Bioscience Vol.20 No.11

The mouse myxovirus resistance protein 1 (Mx1) is known to be sufficient to confer resistance to influenza viruses, and the gene encoding Mx1 is, therefore, an interesting candidate gene for disease resistance in farm animals. The porcine Mx1 gene has already been identified and characterized based on its homology with mouse Mx1; the full-length coding region of the pig Mx1 gene spans 2,545 bp (M65087) and is organized into 17 exons compared with the human ortholog mRNA. In this study, the exons 9, 10 and 11 and introns 6 and 9 of the porcine Mx1 gene were cloned and sequenced. Two SNPs were identified in exons 9, 10 and 11 but none of the SNPs led to an amino acid exchange, and the other eleven variants were detected in introns 6 and 9, respectively. Differences in allele frequency between Meishan and other pig breeds were observed within intron 6, of which an $A{\rightarrow}G$ substitution at position 371 was detected as an SnaBI PCR-RFLP. The association analysis using the Large White${\times}$Meishan $F_2$ offspring suggested that the Mx1 genotype was associated with variation in several immunity traits that are of interest in pig breeding. However, further investigations in more populations are needed to confirm the above result.

The Effects of Estrogen Receptor Locus on Reproductive Tracts Components and Performance Traits in Large White×Meishan F2 Offspring

Li, Fenge,Lei, Minggang,Zheng, Rong,Zuo, Bo,Jiang, Siwen,Deng, Changyan,Xiong, Yuanzhu Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2004 Animal Bioscience Vol.17 No.9

Previously candidate gene approach revealed estrogen receptor (ESR) locus was associated with increased litter size. In this study, PvuII polymorphisms of ESR gene was detected by PCR-RFLP, and ESR locus was evaluated for its association with reproductive tracts components in the Large $White{\times}Meishan$ ($LW{\times}M$) F2 offspring. Ninety seven gilts with reproductive tracts components records and 136 offspring with performance traits records were genotyped and the results were used to estimate allele substitution effects. The results showed that two alleles (A and B) were identified, and 121 bp fragments were observed for the AA genotype and 65 bp and 56 bp fragments for the BB genotype; the length of uterine body (LUB) of BB gilts were significantly shorter than AA gilts', the additive effect was -1.762 cm; the uterine weight (UW) of AB gilts were significantly lighter than AA gilts' with the additive effect -18.058 g; no significant associations of ESR alleles with ovulation rate (OR), length of uterine horn (LUH), length of uterine cervix (LUC), weight of two ovaries (OW), volume of uterine lumen (VUL), length of oviduct (LO) were observed. BB genotypes gilts need significantly less days to 100 kg ($D_{100kg}$) than AA genotypes (p<0.01), the additive effect was per copy of B allele. Allele B is also favorable for average daily gain (ADG), with additive effect 0.015 kg/d (p<0.05). There was no difference between genotypes for backfat thickness at the 13th rib (SF13), loin meat height (ELMH), and loin meat percentage was estimated (ELMP), individual birth weight (IBW) and teat number (TN).

Cloning and characterization of the cardiac-specific Lrrc10 promoter

( Xiong Wei Fan ),( Qing Yang ),( You Liang Wang ),( Yan Zhang ),( Jian Wang ),( Jia Jia Yuan ),( Yong Qing Li ),( Yue Qun Wang ),( Yun Deng ),( Wu Zhou Yuan ),( Xiao Yang Mo ),( Yong Qi Wan ),( Karen 생화학분자생물학회 2011 BMB Reports Vol.44 No.2

Leucine-rich repeat containing protein 10 (LRRC10) is characterized as a cardiac-specific gene, suggesting a role in heart development and disease. A severe cardiac morphogenic defect in zebrafish morphants was recently reported but a contradictory result was found in mice, suggesting a more complicated molecular mechanism exists during mouse embryonic development. To elucidate how LRRC10 is regulated, we analyzed the 5`enhancer region approximately 3 kilo bases (kb) upstream of the Lrrc10 start site using luciferase reporter gene assays. Our characterization of the Lrrc10 promoter indicates it possesses complicated cis-and trans-acting elements. We show that GATA4 and MEF2C could both increase transcriptional activity of Lrrc10 promoter individually but that they do not act synergistically, suggesting that there exists a more complex regulation pattern. Surprisingly, knockout of Gata4 and Mef2c binding sites in the 5`enhancer region (-2,894/-2,889) didn`t change the transcriptional activity of the Lrrc10 promoter and the likely GATA4 binding site identified was located in a region only 100 base pair (bp) upstream of the promoter. Our data provides insight into the molecular regulation of Lrrc10 expression, which probably also contributes to its tissue-specific expression. [BMB reports 2011; 44(2): 123-128]

Intramuscular Administration of Zinc Metallothionein to Preslaughter Stressed Pigs Improves Anti-oxidative Status and Pork Quality

Li, L.L.,Hou, Z.P.,Yin, Y.L.,Liu, Y.H.,Hou, D.X.,Zhang, B.,Wu, G.Y.,Kim, S.W.,Fan, M.Z.,Yang, C.B.,Kong, X.F.,Tang, Z.R.,Peng, H.Z.,Deng, D.,Deng, Z.Y.,Xie, M.Y.,Xiong, H.,Kang, P.,Wang, S.X. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2007 Animal Bioscience Vol.20 No.5

This study was conducted to determine the effects of exogenous zinc-metallothionein (Zn-MT) on anti-oxidative function and pork quality. After feeding a corn-soybean meal-based diet for two weeks, 48 pigs ($Duroc{\times}Landrace{\times}Chinese\;Black Pig$) were assigned randomly to four groups. Pigs in Group 1 were maintained under non-stress conditions, whereas pigs in Groups 2, 3 and 4 were aggressively handled for 25 min to produce stress. Pigs in Groups 1, 2, 3, and 4 received intramuscular administration of saline (control group; CON), 0 (negative control group; NCON), 0.8 (low dose group; LOW), and 1.6 (high dose group; HIGH) mg rabbit liver Zn-MT per kg body weight, respectively. Pigs were slaughtered at 3 and 6 h post-injection. Zn-MT treatment increased (p<0.05) the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione-peroxidase (GSH-PX) while decreasing the concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) in liver. These responses were greater (p<0.05) at 6 h than at 3 h post Zn-MT injection. Zn-MT treatment increased (p<0.05) hepatic SOD mRNA levels in a time and dose-dependent manner and decreased (p<0.05) serum glutamate-pyruvate transaminase and lactate dehydrogenase activities (indicators of tissue integrity). Zn-MT administration decreased (p<0.05) lactate concentration and increased (p<0.05) pH and water-holding capacity in the longissimus thorasis meat. Collectively, our results indicate that intramuscular administration of Zn-MT to pre-slaughter stressed pigs improved tissue anti-oxidative ability and meat quality.

ZNF552, a novel human KRAB/C2H2 zinc finger protein, inhibits AP-1- and SRE-mediated transcriptional activity

( Yun Deng ),( Bi Sheng Liu ),( Xiong Wei Fan ),( Yue Qun Wang ),( Ming Tang ),( Xiao Yang Mo ),( Yong Qing Li ),( Zao Chu Ying ),( Yong Qi Wan ),( Na Luo ),( Jun Mei Zhou ),( Xiu Shan Wu ),( Wu Zhou 생화학분자생물학회 2010 BMB Reports Vol.43 No.3

In this study, we report the identification and characterization of a novel C2H2 zinc finger protein, ZNF552, from a human embryonic heart cDNA library. ZNF552 is composed of three exons and two introns and maps to chromosome 19q13.43. The cDNA of ZNF552 is 2.3 kb, encoding 407 amino acids with an amino-terminal KRAB domain and seven carboxyl-terminal C2H2 zinc finger motifs in the nucleus and cytoplasm. Northern blotting analysis indicated that a 2.3 kb transcript specific for ZNF552 was expressed in liver, lung, spleen, testis and kidney, especially with a higher level in the lung and testis in human adult tissues. Reporter gene assays showed that ZNF552 was a transcriptional repressor, and overexpression of ZNF552 in the COS-7 cells inhibited the transcriptional activities of AP-1 and SRE, which could be relieved through RNAi analysis. Deletion studies showed that the KRAB domain of ZNF552 may be involved in this inhibition. [BMB reports 2010; 43(3): 193-198]

Score for the Survival Probability in Metastasis Breast Cancer: A Nomogram-Based Risk Assessment Model

Zhenchong Xiong,Guangzheng Deng,Xinjian Huang,Xing Li,Xinhua Xie,Jin Wang,Zeyu Shuang,Xi Wang 대한암학회 2018 Cancer Research and Treatment Vol.50 No.4

Purpose Survival of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patient remains unknown and varies greatly from person to person. Thus, we aimed to construct a nomogram to quantify the survival probability of patients with MBC. Materials and Methods We had included 793 MBC patients and calculated trends of case fatality rate by Kaplan- Meier method and joinpoint regression. Six hundred thirty-four patients with MBC between January 2004 and July 2011 and 159 patients with MBC between August 2011 and July 2013 were assigned to training cohort and internal validation cohort, respectively. We constructed the nomogram based on the results of univariable and multivariable Cox regression analyses in the training cohort and validated the nomogram in the validation cohort. Concordance index and calibration curves were used to assess the effectiveness of nomogram. Results Case fatality rate of MBC was increasing (annual percentage change [APC], 21.6; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.0 to 46.3; p < 0.05) in the first 18 months and then decreased (APC, 4.5; 95% CI, 8.2 to 0.7; p < 0.05). Metastasis-free interval, age, metastasis location, and hormone receptor status were independent prognostic factors and were included in the nomogram, which had a concordance index of 0.69 in the training cohort and 0.67 in the validation cohort. Calibration curves indicated good consistency between the two cohorts at 1 and 3 years. Conclusion In conclusion, the fatality risk of MBC was increasing and reached the summit between 13th and 18th month after the detection of MBC. We have developed and validated a nomogram to predict the 1- and 3-year survival probability in MBC.

Magneto-rheological variable damping and variable stiffness torsional vibration control of powertrain transmission

Wenfeng Li,Xinfeng Ge,Manying Liang,Xiong Deng 대한기계학회 2023 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.37 No.8

Torsional vibration is prevalent in rotating mechanical systems such as powertrain transmission. It is a hot spot in current torsional vibration control research to effectively suppress torsional vibration of the system by implementing adaptive torsional dampers with adjustable parameters. The current research focuses on the variable damping torsional vibration absorber, while the investigation on variable stiffness torsional vibration absorber remains at the theoretical stage. With this premise, a transmission system with a novel magnetorheological variable stiffness and damping torsional vibration absorber (MR-VSDTVB) is proposed. MR-VSDTVB with sequential adjustment of torsional damping and stiffness parameters is developed. Its aggregate dynamic output characteristics of stiffness and damping are tested. To describe the nonlinear output characteristics with coupled multiple control parameters of MR-VSDTVB and the subsequent control, a GA-BP neural network model and a hierarchical inverse model are adopted. To validate the feasibility of the transmission system with MRVSDTVB, a dynamic model of the transmission system with MR-VSDTVB is constructed and simplified, and then the numerical simulation analysis and experimental tests are carried out. The output performances of the MR semi-active system with various traditional semi-active control strategies show that the transmission system with the proposed MR-VSDTVB can suppress torsional vibration effectively.