Relationship between plasma cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and prognosis of TACE for primary hepatocellular carcinoma

BackgroundOur study aims to investigate changes in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) concentration and integrity in primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) patients before and after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) treatment and their influence on the evaluation of prognosis of the disease.MethodsA total of 84 PHC patients admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine from December 2016 to December 2017 were included as the study group, while 55 healthy people served as the control group. Plasma cfDNA concentration and integrity were determined using qRT-PCR. The correlation between cfDNA concentration/integrity and clinical characteristics of PHC patients were analyzed. A ROC curve was used to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of cfDNA as detection indices. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to analyze factors affecting recurrence in PHC patients and compare recurrence-free survival (RFS) of PHC patients with high cfDNA expression and low cfDNA expression.ResultsPlasma cfDNA concentration and integrity were significantly higher in PHC patients before TACE treatment than in healthy people and significantly lower after treatment than before (P<0.05). The cfDNA concentration was significantly correlated with tumor size, lymph node metastasis, TNM stage, and BCLC stage, while cfDNA integrity was significantly correlated with tumor size, TNM stage, and BCLC stage (P<0.05). ROC results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) value of cfDNA concentration was the largest, with an optimal cut-off of 10.51 ng/mL. Multivariate regression analysis for COX showed that the TNM stage, cfDNA concentration, and AFP were independent risk factors that affected PHC patients’ survival.ConclusionsPlasma cfDNA concentration in PHC patients is more sensitive and specific than any other tumor marker. It is an independent risk factor for PHC patients treated with TACE. Therefore, it is hypothesized cfDNA is a potential biomarker for prognostic evaluation of PHC patients treated with TACE.     

Cardiovascular effects and mechanisms of sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors

Sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2 inhibitors) are a new type of drug for the treatment of diabetes, and they have been proven to have a good hypoglycemic effect. Several lines of clinical evidence have shown that SGLT2 inhibitors can significantly reduce the risks of atherosclerosis, hospitalization for heart failure, cardiovascular death, and all-cause mortality and delay the progression of chronic kidney disease. Because of the protective effects of SGLT2 inhibitors on the heart and kidney, they are being studied for the treatment of heart failure and chronic kidney disease in patients without diabetes. Therefore, it is necessary for cardiologists, patients with diabetes, and nephrologists to fully understand this type of drug. In this review, we summarize the following three aspects of SGLT2 inhibitors: the recent clinical evidence of their cardiovascular benefits, their mechanisms of action, and their safety.     

Celastrol inhibits microglial pyroptosis and attenuates inflammatory reaction in acute spinal cord injury rats

Pyroptosis pathway is closely related to inflammation. However, Celastrol effect on pyroptosis pathway after spinal cord injury (SCI) are poorly understood. We studied the anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects of Celastrol on acute spinal cord injury in rats, and its anti-inflammatory effects on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/ATP-induced microgliosis. Our results show that Celastrol can improve the recovery of hindlimb motor function after SCI in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats, and reduce the cavity area of spinal cord injury along with the neuronal loss. Celastrol simultaneously reduced the activation of microglia (especially M1 microglia) in the spinal cord, inhibited the pyroptosis-related proteins (NLRP3 ASC Caspase-1 GSDMD), reduced the release of TNF-α IL-1β and IL-18 inflammatory factors, and increased the release of IL10 cytokines. In vitro studies showed that Celastrol reduced the toxicity resulting from the administration of LPS with ATP to BV-2 cells, inhibited the pyroptosis-related proteins (NLRP3 Caspase-1 GSDMD), and inhibited the release of corresponding inflammatory factors. Finally, Celastrol can inhibit the expression of NFκB/p-p65 in vitro and in vivo. Our results show that Celastrol can attenuate the inflammatory response of the spinal cord after SCI, which is associated with inhibition of microglial activation and pyroptosis pathway. Further study to explore the use of Celastrol to treat SCI is warranted.     

肝移植术后糖尿病危险因素分析

目的 探讨肝移植术后糖尿病（PTDM）的发生及发展的危险因素。方法 回顾性分析98例肝移植受者的临床资料。根据其肝移植术后是否发生糖尿病，分为糖尿病组（36例）和非糖尿病组（62例）。以术前和术后可能的9个危险因素作为分析指标，进行这些指标的单因素分析和χ^2检验。结果 在对两组患者的年龄、乙型肝炎病毒（HBV）感染情况、有无肝硬化及肝硬化的程度、术前糖耐量情况、免疫抑制剂的选择及其血药浓度、激素的使用时间的比较分析中发现：术前肝硬化患者PTDM的发生率明显高于无肝硬化者；肝硬化失代偿期患者PTDM的发生率高于代偿期。术前糖耐量异常的患者PTDM的发生率明显高于糖耐量正常者。激素半年内撤离的患者PTDM的发生率明显低于半年内未撤离者。而两组患者的年龄、HBV的感染情况、免疫抑制剂的选择及其血药浓度相比较，差异均无统计学差异。结论 肝硬化、尤其是肝硬化失代偿期，糖耐量异常，长期使用激素是PTDM发生的危险因素。     

乳腺良恶性病变的磁共振T2*W首过灌注成像与血管生成相关性研究

Objective： To study the diagnostic value of T2^＊-weighted first-pass perfusion imaging in breast tumors. Methods： We analyzed the magnetic resonance imaging （MRI） information along with the pathological and immunohistochemistry results. Magnetic resonance imaging was performed in 28 patients with breast tumor. The time to signal intensity curves were generated according to the T2^＊-weighted first-pass perfusion imaging. The curve＇s maximal signal intensity drop rate and maximal signal intensity decrease time were analyzed and compared with the pathological diagnoses after surgery. Results： Malignant breast lesions showed higher maximal signal intensity drop rate （44.69% ± 17.07 vs. 17.22% ±7.49, P 〈 0.001） than benign lesions, but there was no significant difference of maximal signal decrease time between those two lesions （23.94 s ± 4.92 vs. 20.02 s ± 6.83, P 〉 0.05）. Conclusion： The T2^＊-weighted first-pass perfusion imaging has enough sensitivity and specificity in breast tumor diagnosis.     

铅防护服的性能检测与分析

铅防护服用于放射诊断与治疗中医护人员和患者的X射线防护。透视和拍片可以用于检查铅防护服裂缝、开线和破洞等破损状况。通过建立铅防护服的淘汰标准，定期检测、科学更新，保证最佳的放射安全。