Light-Chain Cardiac Amyloidosis: Cardiac Magnetic Resonance for Assessing Response to Chemotherapy

Guo Yubo,Li Xiao,Gao Yajuan,Shen Kaini,Lin Lu,Wang Jian,Cao Jian,Zhang Zhuoli,Wan Ke,Zhou Xi Yang,Chen Yucheng,Zhang Long Jiang,Li Jian,Wang Yining 대한영상의학회 2024 Korean Journal of Radiology Vol.25 No.5

Objective: Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is a diagnostic tool that provides precise and reproducible information about cardiac structure, function, and tissue characterization, aiding in the monitoring of chemotherapy response in patients with lightchain cardiac amyloidosis (AL-CA). This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of CMR in monitoring responses to chemotherapy in patients with AL-CA. Materials and Methods: In this prospective study, we enrolled 111 patients with AL-CA (50.5% male; median age, 54 [interquartile range, 49–63] years). Patients underwent longitudinal monitoring using biomarkers and CMR imaging. At followup after chemotherapy, patients were categorized into superior and inferior response groups based on their hematological and cardiac laboratory responses to chemotherapy. Changes in CMR findings across therapies and differences between response groups were analyzed. Results: Following chemotherapy (before vs. after), there were significant increases in myocardial T2 (43.6 ± 3.5 ms vs. 44.6 ± 4.1 ms; P = 0.008), recovery in right ventricular (RV) longitudinal strain (median of -9.6% vs. -11.7%; P = 0.031), and decrease in RV extracellular volume fraction (ECV) (median of 53.9% vs. 51.6%; P = 0.048). These changes were more pronounced in the superior-response group. Patients with superior cardiac laboratory response showed significantly greater reductions in RV ECV (-2.9% [interquartile range, -8.7%–1.1%] vs. 1.7% [-5.5%–7.1%]; P = 0.017) and left ventricular ECV (-2.0% [-6.0%–1.3%] vs. 2.0% [-3.0%–5.0%]; P = 0.01) compared with those with inferior response. Conclusion: Cardiac amyloid deposition can regress following chemotherapy in patients with AL-CA, particularly showing more prominent regression, possibly earlier, in the RV. CMR emerges as an effective tool for monitoring associated tissue characteristics and ventricular functional recovery in patients with AL-CA undergoing chemotherapy, thereby supporting its utility in treatment response assessment.

ROOM-TEMPERATURE FERROMAGNETISM IN SnO 2 NANOFIBERS AND NANOTUBES PREPARED BY ELECTROSPINNING

JIAN-GUO ZHAO,WEI-YING ZHANG,ZHAO-JUN LIU,ZHONG-LI LIU,YA-JUAN ZHANG,ER-QING XIE,XIU-YUN AN,YONG-FENG CHEN,CHANG-YOU ZHANG 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2014 NANO Vol.9 No.2

SnO 2 nano¯bers and nanotubes were synthesized by electrospinning method. Magnetizationmeasurement indicates that the SnO 2 nano¯bers and nanotubes annealed in air at 500?C exhibitthe room-temperature ferromagnetism and the ferromagnetism of nanotubes is stronger than thenano¯bers. Selected area electron di®raction, X-ray di®raction and Raman measurements showthat all the samples possess a typical rutile structure and no other impurity phases are observed. The results of the Raman spectra also indicate that there are lots of defects existing in thefabricated samples. The observed room-temperature ferromagnetism in SnO 2 nano¯bers andnanotubes possibly originates from oxygen vacancies. The ¯eld cooled (FC) and zero-¯eld-cooled(ZFC) magnetization curves indicate that the Curie temperature T C is above 300 K.

Prognostic Evaluation of Categorical Platelet-based Indices Using Clustering Methods Based on the Monte Carlo Comparison for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Guo, Pi,Shen, Shun-Li,Zhang, Qin,Zeng, Fang-Fang,Zhang, Wang-Jian,Hu, Xiao-Min,Zhang, Ding-Mei,Peng, Bao-Gang,Hao, Yuan-Tao Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.14

Objectives: To evaluate the performance of clustering methods used in the prognostic assessment of categorical clinical data for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients in China, and establish a predictable prognostic nomogram for clinical decisions. Materials and Methods: A total of 332 newly diagnosed HCC patients treated with hepatic resection during 2006-2009 were enrolled. Patients were regularly followed up at outpatient clinics. Clustering methods including the Average linkage, k-modes, fuzzy k-modes, PAM, CLARA, protocluster, and ROCK were compared by Monte Carlo simulation, and the optimal method was applied to investigate the clustering pattern of the indices including platelet count, platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and serum aspartate aminotransferase activity/platelet count ratio index (APRI). Then the clustering variable, age group, tumor size, number of tumor and vascular invasion were studied in a multivariable Cox regression model. A prognostic nomogram was constructed for clinical decisions. Results: The ROCK was best in both the overlapping and non-overlapping cases performed to assess the prognostic value of platelet-based indices. Patients with categorical platelet-based indices significantly split across two clusters, and those with high values, had a high risk of HCC recurrence (hazard ratio [HR] 1.42, 95% CI 1.09-1.86; p<0.01). Tumor size, number of tumor and blood vessel invasion were also associated with high risk of HCC recurrence (all p< 0.01). The nomogram well predicted HCC patient survival at 3 and 5 years. Conclusions: A cluster of platelet-based indices combined with other clinical covariates could be used for prognosis evaluation in HCC.

Effects of Stellate Ganglion Block on the Peri-operative Vasomotor Cytokine Content and Intrapulmonary Shunt in Patients with Esophagus Cancer

Guo, Wei,Jin, Xiao-Ju,Yu, Jun,Liu, Yang,Zhang, Jian-Ping,Yang, Da-Wei,Zhang, Lei,Guo, Jiang-Rong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.21

Objective: To investigate the effects of stellate ganglion block (SGB) on the peri-operative vasomotor cytokine content and intrapulmonary shunt in patients with esophagus cancer who underwent thoracotomy. Materials and Methods: Forty patients undergoing elective resection of esophageal cancer patients who had I~II American Society of Anesthesiologist (ASA) were randomly divided into total intravenous anesthesia group (group N, n=20) and total intravenous anesthesia combined with SGB group (group S, n=20, 0.12 mL/kg 1% lidocaine was used for SGB 10 min before induction). Heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP), central venous pressure (CVP), mean pulmonary arterial pressure (MPAP) and continuous cardiac output (CCO) were continuously monitored. The blood from internal jugular vein was drawn respectively before induction ($T_0$), and 30 min ($T_1$), 60 min ($T_2$) and 120 min ($T_3$) after one-lung ventilation (OLV), and 30 min (T4) after two-lung ventilation. The contents of plasma endothelin (ET), nitric oxide (NO) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) were detected with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Meanwhile, arterial and mixed venous blood samples were collected for determination of blood gas and calculation of intrapulmonary shunt fraction (Qs/Qt). Results: During OLV, ET contents were increased significantly in two groups (P<0.05), and no significant difference was presented (P>0.05). NO content in group S was obviously higher than in group N at T3 (P<0.05), whereas CGRP content in group N was markedly lower than in group S at each time point (P<0.05). Qs/Qt was significantly increased in both groups after OLV, but there was no statistical significant regarding the Qs/Qt at each time point between two groups. Conclusions: Total intravenous anesthesia combined with SGB is conducive to regulation of perioperative vasomotor cytokines in thoracotomy, and has little effect on intrapulmonary shunt at the time of OLV.

An Overlooked Effect of Glycine Betaine on Fermentation: Prevents Caramelization and Increases the L-Lysine Production

( Jian Zhong Xu ),( Xiu Hua Xia ),( Jun Lan Zhang ),( Yan Feng Guo ),( Wei Guo Zhang ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2014 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.24 No.10

This article focuses on the effects of glycine betaine on preventing caramelization, and increasing DCW and L-lysine production. The additional glycine betaine not only decreased the browning intensity (decreased 4 times), and the concentrations of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (decreased 7.8 times) and furfural (decreased 12 times), but also increased the availability of glucose (increased 17.5%) for L-lysine production. The DCW and L-lysine production were increased by adding no more than 20 mM glycine betaine, whereas the DCW and L-lysine production were decreased with the reduction of pH values, although pH had a better response to prevent caramelization than did glycine betaine. For L-lysine production, the highest increase (40%) was observed on the media with 20 mM glycine betaine. The crucial enzymes in glycolysis and L-lysine biosynthesis pathway were investigated. The results indicated that additional glycine betaine increases the activity of enzymes in glycolysis, in contrast to the effect of pH. All the results indicated that glycine betaine can be used to prevent caramelization and increase the L-lysine production. By applying this strategy, glucose would not be have to be separated from the culture media during autoclaving so that factories can save production costs and shorten the fermentation period.

Preparation, self-assembly and performance modulation of gold nanoparticles decorated ferrocene-containing hybrid block copolymer multifunctional materials

Jian-Guo Zhang,Xue-Yin Zhang,Hua Yu,Yan-Ling Luo,Feng Xu,Ya-Shao Chen 한국공업화학회 2018 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.65 No.-

Gold nanoparticles decorated stimuli-responsive copolymer hybrids, poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl ferrocenecarboxylate)-block-poly(N-isopropylacryamide) decorated with gold nanoparticles, were synthesized through two-step successive RAFT and ensuing in-situ reduction. The hybrids could self-assemble into interesting micelle structures from globular, wormlike to rodlike shapes by altering the quality and compositions of solvents and ionic strength, and exhibited multifunctionality including quasi-reversible electrochemical behavior, redox-stress responsiveness and temperature sensitivity. The physicochemical and electrochemical properties were modulated by tailor-making the system compositions and redox reaction. The copolymer hybrids were expected to broaden their applications in nanobiomedicine including targeted drug carriers and magnetic resonance imaging, optical, electrochemical catalyst, optoelectronics and sensors etc.

Overexpression of NDRG2 Can Inhibit Neuroblastoma Cell Proliferation through Negative Regulation by CYR61

Zhang, Zhi-Guo,Li, Gang,Feng, Da-Yun,Zhang, Jian,Zhang, Jing,Qin, Huai-Zhou,Ma, Lian-Ting,Gao, Guo-Dong,Wu, Lin Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.1

Several recent studies have showed that the n-myc downstream regulated gene 2 (NDRG2) is a new tumor suppressor gene, and that it plays an important role in tumor suppression in several cancers or cancer cell lines. However, few studies focused on its function in neuroblastoma cells. In the present investigation, we demonstrated that NDRG2 overexpression inhibited their proliferation. Using a cDNA microarray, we found that overexpression of NDRG2 inhibited the expression of cysteine-rich protein 61 (CYR61), a proliferation related gene. From our research, CYR61 may partially hinder NDRG2-mediated inhibition of cell proliferation. Overexpression of NDRG2 resulted in accumulation of cells in the G1 phase, which was accompanied by upregulation of p21 and p27 and downregulation of CDK4 and cyclin D1. Taken together, these data indicate that NDRG2 inhibits the proliferation of neuroblastoma cells partially through suppression of CYR61. Our findings offer novel insights into the physiological roles of NDRG2 in neuroblastoma cell proliferation, and NDRG2 may prove to be effective candidate for the treatment of children with neuroblastoma.

Plasma Post-operative miR-21 Expression in the Prognosis of Gastric Cancers

Ma, Guo-Jian,Gu, Rong-Min,Zhu, Ming,Wen, Xu,Li, Jin-Tian,Zhang, Yuan-Ying,Zhang, Xiao-Mei,Chen, Sen-Qing Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.12

Tumor-associated microRNAs have been detected in serum or plasma, but whether plasma microRNA-21 (miR-21) could be a potential circulating biomarker for gastric cancer (GC) prognosis in Chinese is still uncertain. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) was employed in this study to compare the relative expression of miR-21 between pre-operative and post-operative paired plasmas from 42 patients with primary GCs. The results showed that the expression levels of miR-21 in the post-operative plasmas were significantly reduced by an average of 18.2 times in all patients when compared to the pre-operative plasmas, and by 22.1 times in the subgroup of patients without family history, while only 1.76 times in the subgroup of patients with a family history. With respect of clinicopathological characteristics, the plasma miR-21 expression was highly associated with differentiation degree and lymph node metastasis rate. The results suggested plasma miR-21 could be a novel potential biomarker for GC prognosis and evaluation of surgery outcomes, especially in patients without a family history.

漢文帝 시기 형법의 개혁과 그 전개 재검토

張建國(Zhang, Jian-guo),임대희(번역자),김민지(번역자) 한국법사학회 1998 法史學硏究 Vol.19 No.-

Metabolic Pathways of Hydrogen Production in Fermentative Acidogenic Microflora

( Li Guo Zhang ),( Jian Zheng Li ),( Qiao Ying Ban ),( Jun Guo He ),( Ajay Kumar Jha ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2012 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.22 No.5

Biohydrogen production from organic wastewater by anaerobically activated sludge fermentation has already been extensively investigated, and it is known that hydrogen can be produced by glucose fermentation through three metabolic pathways, including the oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvic acid to acetyl-CoA, oxidation of NADH to NAD+, and acetogenesis by hydrogen-producing acetogens. However, the exact or dominant pathways of hydrogen production in the anaerobically activated sludge fermentation process have not yet been identified. Thus, a continuous stirred-tank reactor (CSTR) was introduced and a specifically acclimated acidogenic fermentative microflora obtained under certain operation conditions. The hydrogen production activity and potential hydrogen-producing pathways in the acidogenic fermentative microflora were then investigated using batch cultures in Erlenmeyer flasks with a working volume of 500 ml. Based on an initial glucose concentration of 10 g/l, pH 6.0, and a biomass of 1.01 g/l of a mixed liquid volatile suspended solid (MLVSS), 247.7 ml of hydrogen was obtained after a 68 h cultivation period at 35±1oC. Further tests indicated that 69% of the hydrogen was produced from the oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvic acid, whereas the remaining 31% was from the oxidation of NADH to NAD+. There were no hydrogen-producing acetogens or they were unable to work effectively in the anaerobically activated sludge with a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of less than 8 h.