Transhiatal lower mediastinal lymph node dissection for esophagogastric junction carcinoma by interconnecting four body cavities

BackgroundDue to the limited number of landmark structures, it is difficult to standardize the surgical procedures for advanced esophagogastric junction cancer such as Ivor Lewis esophagectomy that require transhiatal lower mediastinal lymph node dissection (TH-LMND). We demonstrate an easily reproducible procedure for TH-LMND, wherein four body cavities, namely, the abdominal cavity, infracardiac bursa (ICB), and left and right thoracic cavities are interconnected.MethodsFirst, the dissection between the right crus and the esophagus was used to connect the abdominal cavity to the ICB — a lower mediastinal cavity separated from the omental bursa during embryonic development [1,2]. Second, the right thoracic cavity was opened with the shortest distance by dissecting the cranial side of the ICB. The right pulmonary ligament was dissected from the right lung. Third, the dissection to the contralateral side while exposing the aorta and the pericardium connected the left and right thoracic cavities. Then, the left pulmonary ligament was dissected from the left lung. The dissected tissues, including the lymph nodes, were subsequently peeled from the esophagus.ResultsBetween April 2018 and August 2021, 14 patients underwent laparoscopic or robotic TH-LMND via the procedure above. The median time required to complete the dissection was 75 min. None of the procedures were converted to open surgery, and none of the patients experienced intraoperative complications such as pericardial injury, lung injury, or massive bleeding.ConclusionThe surgical concept of interconnecting four body cavities made the procedure more accessible and reproducible while achieving en bloc TH-LMND.     

Biofilm-formation capability depends on environmental oxygen concentrations in Candida species

BackgroundAlthough oxygen concentrations inside of the human body vary depending on organs or tissues, few reports describe the relationships between biofilm formation of Candida species and oxygen concentrations. In this study, we investigated the biofilm-forming capabilities of Candida species under various oxygen conditions.MethodsWe evaluated the adhesion and biofilm formation of Candida albicans and C. tropicalis under aerobic, microaerobic (oxygen concentration 5%), or anaerobic conditions. We also examined how oxygen concentration affects adhesion/maturation by changing adhesion/maturation phase conditions. We used crystal violet assay to estimate the approximate biofilm size, performed microscopic observation of biofilm morphology, and evaluated adhesion-associated gene expression.ResultsThe adhered amount was relatively small except for a clinical strain of C. tropicalis. Our biofilm-formation analysis showed that C. albicans formed a higher-size biofilm under aerobic conditions, while C. tropicalis favored microaerobic conditions to form mature biofilms. Our microscopic observations were consistent with these biofilm-formation analysis results. In particular, C. tropicalis exhibited more hyphal formation under microaerobic conditions. By changing the adhesion/maturation phase conditions, we represented that C. albicans had favorable biofilm-formation capability under aerobic conditions, while C. tropicalis showed enhanced biofilm formation under microaerobic adhesion conditions. In good agreement with these results, the C. tropicalis adhesion-associated gene expression tended to be higher under microaerobic or anaerobic conditions.ConclusionsC. albicans favored aerobic conditions to form biofilms, whereas C. tropicalis showed higher biofilm-formation ability and promoted hyphal growth under microaerobic conditions. These results indicate that favorable oxygen conditions significantly differ for each Candida species.     

近端胃切除人工三角瓣成形抗反流术的力学机理仿真分析

目的:对食管胃结合部腺癌近端胃切除术（PG）人工三角瓣成形后残胃食糜进行流体动力学数值模拟，并计算不同性质胃内食糜的流动特征。方法:构建常规PG和人工三角瓣成形术术后胃仿真模型，运用Fluent软件对不同粘度胃内食糜反流问题进行数值模拟。结果:站立位姿态时，相对常规PG方案，人工三角瓣成形手术方案表现出较好的抗反流作用；卧位姿态时，当胃内食糜粘度大于0.145 2 Pa[?s，且胃内食糜不超过人工三角瓣情况下，人工三角瓣成形抗反流手术表现出较好的抗反流效果；人工三角瓣抗反流成形手术方案数值模拟结果与临床上患者表现一致。结论:本研究仿真分析为人工三角瓣成形抗反流手术方案的有效性机理分析、临床患者术后饮食及手术方案的进一步改进提供理论及数值依据。 【关键词】食管胃结合部腺癌；抗反流；人工三角瓣；计算流体力学     

靶向沉默髓鞘转录因子MyT1对脑胶质瘤细胞恶性生物学行为的影响

目的 探讨靶向沉默髓鞘转录因子1（MyT1）对人脑胶质瘤细胞迁移、侵袭和黏附的影响和相关分子机制。方法 设计特异性靶向沉默MyT1基因的shRNA，包装慢病毒后感染人脑胶质瘤U-118MG和U-87MG细胞，qPCR和Western blot检测两种细胞中MyT1的表达水平，BrdU实验、细胞划痕实验、Transwell实验和细胞黏附实验分别检测两种细胞的迁移、侵袭和黏附能力的变化，qPCR检测细胞黏附和肿瘤转移相关基因的表达水平。结果 在HEK293T细胞中包装了特异性靶向MyT1基因的shRNA慢病毒，并成功感染了U-118MG和U-87MG细胞；两种细胞中MyT1 mRNA和蛋白表达水平均显著下调（均P<0.05），细胞的迁移、侵袭和黏附能力均有一定程度的降低（均P<0.05），细胞黏附相关基因表达水平显著下降，肿瘤转移相关基因表达水平显著上升（均P<0.05）。结论 靶向沉默MyT1基因对人脑胶质瘤U-118MG和U-87MG细胞的迁移、侵袭和黏附能力有抑制作用，其机制可能与调控细胞黏附和肿瘤转移相关基因的表达有关。MyT1基因的表达，可能是脑胶质瘤诊疗的一个潜在靶标。