Reduced nontarget embolization and increased targeted delivery with a reflux-control microcatheter in a swine model

PurposeTo evaluate the potential differences in non-target embolization and vessel microsphere filling of a reflux-control microcatheter (RCM) compared to a standard end-hole microcatheter (SEHM) in a swine model.Materials and methodsRadiopaque microspheres were injected with both RCM and SEHM (2.4-Fr and 2.7-Fr) in the kidneys of a preclinical swine model. Transarterial renal embolization procedures with RCM or SEHM were performed in both kidneys of 14 pigs. Renal arteries were selectively embolized with an automated injection protocol of radio-opaque microspheres. Ex-vivo X-ray microtomography images of the kidneys were utilized to evaluate the embolization by quantification of the deposition of injected microspheres in the target vs. the non-target area of injection. X-ray microtomography images were blindly analyzed by five interventional radiologists. The degree of vessel filling and the non-target embolization were quantified using a scale from 1 to 5 for each parameter. An analysis of variance was used to compare the paired scores.ResultsTotal volumes of radio-opaque microspheres injected were similar for RCM (11.5 ± 3.6 [SD] mL; range: 6–17 mL) and SEHM (10.6 ± 5.2 [SD] mL; range: 4–19 mL) (P = 0.38). The voxels enhanced ratio in the target (T) vs. non-target (NT) areas was greater with RCM (T = 98.3% vs. NT = 1.7%) than with SEHM (T = 89% vs. NT = 11%) but the difference was not significant (P = 0.30). The total score blindly given by the five interventional radiologists was significantly different between RCM (12.3 ± 2.1 [SD]; range: 6–15) and the standard catheter (11.3 ± 2.5 [SD]; range: 4–15) (P = 0.0073), with a significant decrease of non-target embolization for RCM (3.8 ± 1.3 [SD]; range: 3.5–4.2) compared to SEHM (3.2 ± 1.5 [SD]; range: 2.9–3.5) (P = 0.014).ConclusionIn an animal model, RCM microcatheters reduce the risk of non-target embolization from 11% to 1.7%, increasing the delivery of microspheres of 98% to the target vessels, compared to SEHM microcatheters.     

盆筋膜解剖及其与直肠固有筋膜关系研究

目的 探讨盆筋膜的结构、范围及其与直肠固有筋膜的层次关系。方法 2020年12月至2021年3月对由广东药科大学生命与生物制药学院人体解剖与胚胎学系及中山大学中山医学院人体解剖学教研室提供的12具（男性5具、女性7具）骨盆标本进行大体观察，并对Denonvilliers筋膜进行组织学观察。结合2019年12月至2021年3月中山大学附属第三医院胃肠外科收治的20例直肠癌病人（男性10例、女性10例）的盆腔磁共振图像和手术视频进行解剖学印证。结果 12具骨盆大体标本显示，盆筋膜与Gerota筋膜相延续，部分纤维于S4水平构成直肠骶骨筋膜，向下与直肠固有筋膜融合终止于联合纵肌；部分纤维与后方骶前筋膜融合构成肛提肌上筋膜及肌间纤维。Denonvilliers筋膜在盆腔前外侧约2点、10点处与盆筋膜相延续构成完整筒状结构，包绕内层由直肠固有筋膜封套的直肠系膜；除“侧韧带”处有盆腔自主神经直肠支、淋巴管、直肠中动脉相连外，两层筋膜形成完整的双筒状结构，横断面呈同心圆状。除直肠支进入直肠固有筋膜外，盆腔自主神经主要分支均位于盆筋膜内层及Denonvilliers筋膜以外，沿直肠固有筋膜轮廓游离能够避免损伤盆腔自主神经。在7具女性骨盆标本中均能见到菲薄的Denonvilliers筋膜结构。直肠癌病人的横断面磁共振图像能够看到直肠固有筋膜与外侧盆筋膜、Denonvilliers筋膜的轮廓和间隙，手术视频资料也可见到完整盆壁筋膜和Denonvilliers筋膜的轮廓。结论 直肠癌手术中，在盆筋膜、Denonvilliers筋膜与直肠固有筋膜两层结构的间隙进行分离，并保持两层筋膜的完整性，对于保证肿瘤根治性和保护排尿及性功能至关重要。     

Sudden Cardiac Death in Patients With Type 1 Versus Type 2 Diabetes

ObjectiveTo investigate the association between type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) with risk of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).MethodsIn a prospective community-based study of SCA from February 1, 2002, through November 30, 2019, we ascertained 2771 cases age 18 years of age or older and matched them to 8313 controls based on geography, age, sex, and race/ethnicity. We used logistic regression to evaluate the independent association between diabetes, T1D, T2D, and SCA.ResultsPatients had a mean age of 64.5±15.9 years, were 33.3% female and 23.9% non-White race. Overall, 36.7% (n=1016) of cases and 23.8% (n=1981) of controls had diabetes. Among individuals with diabetes, the proportion of T1D was 6.5% (n=66) among cases and 2.0% among controls (n=40). Diabetes was associated with 1.5-times higher odds of SCA. Compared with those without diabetes, the odds ratio and 95% CI for SCA was 4.36 (95% CI, 2.81 to 6.75; P<.001) in T1D and 1.45 (95% CI, 1.30 to 1.63; P<.001) in T2D after multivariable adjustment. Among those with diabetes, the odds of having SCA were 2.41 times higher in T1D than in T2D (95% CI, 1.53 to 3.80; P<.001). Cases of SCA with T1D were more likely to have an unwitnessed arrest, less likely to receive resuscitation, and less likely to survive compared with those with T2D.ConclusionType 1 diabetes was more strongly associated with SCA compared with T2D and had less favorable outcomes following resuscitation. Diabetes type could influence the approach to risk stratification and prevention of SCA.     

肝细胞癌中miR-942-5p的表达及其与患者恶性特征及不良预后的关系

目的:探讨微小RNA-942-5p(miR-942-5p)在肝细胞癌(HCC)组织中的表达及其功能。方法:用实时定量PCR检测西安交通大学第一附属医院样本库保存的73例HCC组织和对应癌旁组织中miR-942-5p的表达。分析miR-942-5p表达与HCC患者临床病理资料的关系,同时分析TCGA数据库中miR-942-5p表达与HCC患者总生存率的关系。Transwell小室检测干扰miR-942-5p表达后HCC细胞迁移和侵袭能力的变化,StarBase V3.0网站和荧光素酶报告基因质粒预测分析miR-942-5p的下游靶点,并用Western blot验证。结果:miR-942-5p表达量在HCC组织中明显高于对应癌旁组织(2.390 vs. 1.764,P0.05)。miR-942-5p表达量与HCC患者肿瘤数目、血管浸润和临床分期明显有关(均P0.05)。miR-942-5p高表达HCC患者总生存率明显低于miR-942-5p低表达HCC患者(19.535%vs. 53.873%,P0.05)。沉默miR-942-5p表达后,肝癌HCCLM3和MHCC97H细胞迁移和侵袭能力明显减弱(均P0.05)。预测与分析结果显示,扣针蛋白5(FBLN5)是miR-942-5p的直接下游靶点(P0.05),沉默miR-942-5p表达导致HCCLM3和MHCC97H细胞中FBLN5表达增加。结论:miR-942-5p在HCC组织中表达异常升高并与恶性临床特征和不良预后密切相关,机制可能与miR-942-5p抑制FBLN5表达促进HCC细胞迁移和侵袭有关。     

A Very Long-term Longitudinal Study on the Evolution and Clinical Outcomes of Persistent Iatrogenic Atrial Septal Defect After Cryoballoon Ablation

Background

Persistent iatrogenic atrial septal defect (iASD) is a common but poorly characterized complication after cryoballoon (CB) pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) procedures. We therefore investigate its prevalence, evolution, risk factors, and clinical outcomes in a prospective longitudinal study.

Proteases and their inhibitors as prognostic factors for high-grade serous ovarian cancer

Ovarian carcinoma is one of the most lethal malignancies, but only very few prognostic biomarkers are known. The degradome, comprising proteases, protease non-proteolytic homologues and inhibitors, have been involved in the prognosis of many cancer types, including ovarian carcinoma. The prognostic significance of the whole degradome family has not been specifically studied in high-grade serous ovarian cancer. A targeted DNA microarray known as the CLIP-CHIP microarray was used to identify potential prognostic factors in ten high-grade serous ovarian cancer women who had early recurrence (<1.6 years) or late/no recurrence after first line surgery and chemotherapy. In women with early recurrence, we identified seven upregulated genes (TMPRSS4, MASP1/3, SPC18, PSMB1, IGFBP2, CFI – encoding Complement Factor I – and MMP9) and one down-regulated gene (ADAM-10). Using immunohistochemistry, we evaluated the prognostic effect of these 8 candidate genes in an independent cohort of 112 high-grade serous ovarian cancer women. Outcomes were progression, defined according to CA-125 criteria, and death. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression models were done to estimate the associations between each protein and each outcome. High ADAM-10 expression (intensity of 2–3) was associated with a lower risk of progression (adjusted hazard ratio (HR): 0.51; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.29-0.87). High complement factor I expression (intensity 2–3) was associated with a higher risk of progression (adjusted HR: 2.30, 95% CI: 1.17–4.53) and death (adjusted HR: 3.42; 95% CI: 1.72–6.79). Overall, we identified the prognostic value of two proteases, ADAM-10 and complement factor I, for high-grade serous ovarian cancer which could have clinical significance.     

The efficacy and toxicity of immune checkpoint inhibitors in a real-world older patient population

ImportanceImmunotherapy has emerged as an effective treatment option for the management of advanced cancers. The effects of these immune checkpoint inhibitors in the older patient population has not been adequately assessed.ObjectiveTo understand the impact of aging on CTLA-4 and PDL-1 inhibitors efficacy and immune-related adverse events (irAE) in the context of real-world management of advanced solid cancers.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis retrospective study involved all non-study patients with histologically-confirmed metastatic or inoperable solid cancers receiving immunotherapy at Kingston Health Sciences Centre. We defined ‘older patient’ as age ≥ 75. All statistical analyses were conducted under SPSS IBM for Windows version 24.0.Main Outcomes and MeasuresStudy outcomes included immunotherapy treatment response, survival, as well as number, type, and severity of irAEs.ResultsOur study (N = 78) had 29 (37%) patients age <65, 26 (33%) patients age 65–74, and 23 (30%) patients age ≥75. Melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer, and renal cell carcinoma accounted for 70%, 22%, and 8% of the study population, respectively. Distributions of ipilimumab (32%), nivolumab (33%), and pembrolizumab (35%) were similar in the study. The response rates were 28%, 27%, and 39% in the age <65, age 64–74, age ≥75 groups, respectively (P = 0.585). Kaplan-Meier curve showed a median survival of 28 months (12.28–43.9, 95% CI) and 17 months (0–36.9, 95% CI) in the age <65 and age 64–74 groups, respectively; the estimated survival probability did not reach 50% in the age ≥75 group (P = 0.319). There were no statistically significant differences found in terms of irAEs, multiple irAEs, severity of grade 3 or higher, types of irAEs, and irAEs resolution status when comparing between different age groups.Conclusion and RelevanceOur results suggest that patients age ≥75 are able to gain as much benefit from immunotherapy as younger patients, without excess toxicity. Our findings suggest that single agent immunotherapy is generally well-tolerated across different age groups with no significant difference in the type, frequency or severity of irAEs. Future studies evaluating aging and combination immunotherapy are warranted.     

Development of an IgG-Fc fusion COVID-19 subunit vaccine,AKS-452

AKS-452 is a biologically-engineered vaccine comprising an Fc fusion protein of the SARS-CoV-2 viral spike protein receptor binding domain antigen (Ag) and human IgG1 Fc (SP/RBD-Fc) in clinical development for the induction and augmentation of neutralizing IgG titers against SARS-CoV-2 viral infection to address the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fc moiety is designed to enhance immunogenicity by increasing uptake via Fc-receptors (FcγR) on Ag-presenting cells (APCs) and prolonging exposure due to neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn) recycling. AKS-452 induced approximately 20-fold greater neutralizing IgG titers in mice relative to those induced by SP/RBD without the Fc moiety and induced comparable long-term neutralizing titers with a single dose vs. two doses. To further enhance immunogenicity, AKS-452 was evaluated in formulations containing a panel of adjuvants in which the water-in-oil adjuvant, Montanide™ ISA 720, enhanced neutralizing IgG titers by approximately 7-fold after one and two doses in mice, including the neutralization of live SARS-CoV-2 virus infection of VERO-E6 cells. Furthermore, ISA 720-adjuvanted AKS-452 was immunogenic in rabbits and non-human primates (NHPs) and protected from infection and clinical symptoms with live SARS-CoV-2 virus in NHPs (USA-WA1/2020 viral strain) and the K18 human ACE2-trangenic (K18-huACE2-Tg) mouse (South African B.1.351 viral variant). These preclinical studies support the initiation of Phase I clinical studies with adjuvanted AKS-452 with the expectation that this room-temperature stable, Fc-fusion subunit vaccine can be rapidly and inexpensively manufactured to provide billions of doses per year especially in regions where the cold-chain is difficult to maintain.