Expression of glucose-regulated stress protein GRP78 is related to progression of melanoma

Aims:  Glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) is a protein translated in response to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress that has been implicated in the pathogenesis and resistance to therapy of a variety of cancers. The aim of this study was to investigate its expression and role in the development and progression of human melanoma.
Methods and results:  The immunohistochemical expression of GRP78 in naevi, primary melanoma and melanoma metastases from 171 patients was correlated with clinicopathological factors and patient survival. The GRP78 immunoreactivity score (IRS) was 0.2 in compound naevi, 0.65 in dysplastic naevi, 4.65 in naevi adjacent to primary melanoma, 2.4 in melanoma in situ , 11.2 in thin (≤1.0 mm) and 18.1 in thick (>1.0 mm) primary melanoma. It was 18 and 17.3 in subcutaneous and lymph node metastases, respectively ( P  < 0.0001). GRP78 expression was positively correlated with increasing tumour thickness ( P  = 0.001) and with increasing dermal tumour mitotic index ( P  = 0.0004). Disease-free survival (χ² = 8.0703, P  = 0.0045) and overall survival (χ² = 6.2633, P  = 0.0123) in melanoma patients with IRS >25 were significantly lower than in melanoma patients with IRS <25.
Conclusions:  GRP78 expression appears to correlate with known correlates of melanoma progression and survival and requires further evaluation as a prognostic biomarker in melanoma.     

Extra-hepatic biliary injury secondary to blunt abdominal trauma: A successful management strategy

Extra-hepatic bile duct injury from blunt abdominal trauma is uncommon. Complete traumatic transection of the common bile duct (CBD) with subsequent complication of a choledochoduodenal fistula is extremely rare and only a handful of reports are found in the medical literature. We describe a 20-year-old male patient who presented with a complete transection of the CBD following blunt abdominal trauma and his subsequent planned staged management.     

Behavioral risk factors among Arizonans with epilepsy: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 2005/2006

Modifiable risk factors to help improve health outcomes for people with epilepsy in Arizona were identified using the 2005–2006 Arizona Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). Of 9524 adults who participated in this survey, 125 reported ever being diagnosed with epilepsy (lifetime prevalence = 1.3%, 95% CI = 1.1–1.6%). Individuals with active epilepsy (those who had seizures in the prior 3 months and/or were taking anticonvulsants) had an overall lower quality of life. This likely resulted from a large number of medical comorbidities and poor mental and physical health days. Regression models suggested that for individuals with active epilepsy, physical activity was associated with fewer activity-limited days, whereas for individuals with inactive epilepsy, medical comorbidity was positively associated with activity-limited days. Further research is needed to increase the reliability of the findings.     

The common exon 3 polymorphism of the growth hormone receptor gene and the effect of growth hormone therapy on growth in Korean patients with Turner syndrome

Objective Recombinant human growth hormone (GH) can achieve final adult height gain in girls with Turner syndrome (TS), but its efficacy varies widely across individuals. The exon 3‐deleted polymorphism of growth hormone receptor (d3‐GHR) has been reported to be associated with responsiveness to GH therapy. The short‐term growth response of Turner patients to GH therapy was analysed according to their GHR‐exon 3 polymorphism genotype. Design and patients This was a retrospective study of 175 TS patients. Auxological and endocrine parameters were measured, and the GHR‐exon 3 genotype was analysed. Allelic frequencies of GHR‐exon 3 genotype were compared between patients with TS and control individuals. GH had been administered to 147 patients, 115 of which remained pre‐pubertal after the first follow‐up year. Changes in height standard deviation score (SDS), height velocity (HV), body mass index (BMI), IGF‐1 and IGF binding protein‐3 (IGFBP‐3) concentrations were compared between these patients, grouped according to genotype, after the first follow‐up year. Results There was no difference in GHR‐exon 3 genotype frequency between the TS and control groups of Koreans. According to the GHR‐exon 3 genotype (fl/fl group vs. d3/fl and d3/d3 group), HV gain and height SDS gain did not differ significantly at the first year of GH therapy. Moreover, changes in IGF‐1, IGFBP‐3 concentration and BMI showed no significant difference between the groups with and without d3‐GHR after 1 year of GH therapy. Conclusion The distribution of the GHR‐exon 3 genotype was similar in the TS and control groups in a Korean population. The growth promotion efficacy of GH therapy did not differ significantly between TS patients with and without the d3‐GHR allele. These findings indicate that the GHR‐exon 3 genotype may not be a major factor to affect the GH response in Korean Turner patients.     

Peptide-mediated shape- and size-tunable synthesis of gold nanostructures

While several biological processes have been shown to be useful for the production of well-designed, inorganic nanostructures, the mechanism(s) controlling the size and shape of nano and micron size particles remains elusive. Here we report on the controlled size- and shape-specific production of gold nanostructures under ambient reaction conditions using a dodecapeptide, Midas-2, originally selected from a phage-displayed combinatorial peptide library. Single amino acid changes in Midas-2 greatly influence the size (a few nanometers to ～100 μm) and shape (nanoparticles, nanoribbons, nanowires and nanoplatelets) of the gold nanostructures produced, and these are controllable by adjusting the solution pH and gold ion concentration. The ability to control the shape and size of the gold nanostructures by changing the peptide structure and reaction conditions will lead to many potential applications, including nanoelectronics, sensors and optoelectronics, because of their unique size- and shape-dependent optical and electrical properties.     

Primary Paravertebral Low-Grade Fibromyxoid Sarcoma

The authors report a 58-year-old woman with low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma primarily located in the right paravertebral area with extension to L4 neural foramen. The patient complained lower back pain with radiating pain along the posterolateral aspect of the right lower leg. She underwent subtotal surgical removal and Cyber Knife therapy. Diagnosis was made by strikingly characteristic microscopic appearance of a bland spindle cell sarcoma which contained numerous giant collagen rosettes and was also supported by immunohistological findings. The diagnostic image findings and literatures are reviewed and discussed.     

OH-BBN诱导不同鼠类膀胱肿瘤的研究现状

通过建立胱肿瘤动物模型进一步研究其发生、发展、转移等变化的思路早已被研究者们所熟悉,而使用N-丁基-N-(4-羟丁基)亚硝胺是目前诱导膀胱肿瘤的最常用方法之一,采用的实验动物也不尽相同.本文介绍OH-BBN在不同鼠类中研究现状.