Objective To investigate the expression and significance of MMP-9 and Ki67 for predicting the progres-sion and prognosis of pancreatic cancer. Methods S-P immunohistochemical method was used to detect the expressions of MMP-9 and Ki67 in 100 pancreatic cancer tissue specimens. The relationship between the expressions of MMP-9 and Ki67 and patient age, tumor size, lymph node metastasis, tumor differentiation, clinical stages and prognosis were analyzed. Re-sults There were higher expressions of MMP-9 protein 46%(46/100) and Ki67 protein 53%(53/100) in 100 samples of pancreatic adenocarcinoma. And the expressions of MMP-9 and Ki67 were inversely associated with tumor differentiation, clinical stages, and lymph node metastasis of pancreatic cancer (P＜0.05). There were no significant differences in the ex-pressions of MMP-9 and Ki67 between patient age and tumor size. The expressions of MMP-9 and Ki67 were positive corre-lated (rs=0.405,P＜0.05). Moreover, the overall survival rates were correlated with patient age, lymph node metastasis, tumor differentiation and the expression of MMP-9, but no correlation with tumor size, clinical stages, and the expression of Ki67. Conclusion The expressions of MMP-9 and Ki67 were associated with pancreatic cancer progression. And the detection of expression of MMP-9 may have practical value in prognosis in patients with pancreatic cancer.

BACKGROUND:In recent years, endoplasmic reticulum stress-caused apoptosis plays a crucial role in ischemia impairment and has become the hotspot of studies addressing myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. The lower limb ischemic preconditioning (LIP) has the obvious protective effect on the immature myocardium, but until now, no study reports whether LIP effects on endoplasmic reticulum stress apoptosis in immature myocardial cells. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the effect of LIP on endoplasmic reticulum stress and apoptosis.
METHODS:Langendorff-perfused isolated rabbit hearts were used in this study. Twenty-four immature rabbits were randomized into three groups. Control group:Isolated rabbit heart was only perfused with Krebs-Henseleit for 180 minutes. I/R group:Isolated rabbit heart was perfused 20 minutes, and then ischemia for 60 minutes fol owed by reperfusion 100 minutes. LIP group:Limbs were repeatedly obstructed 5 minutes and relaxed 5 minutes for three times, to establish Langendorff models, and then repeated the method of ischemia/reperfusion in I/R group. The myocardial apoptosis was assayed with TUNEL method. The expression of glucose-regulated protein 78, Bcl-2, Bax and Fas was detected with western blot analysis.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with I/R group, apoptosis rate was significantly lower, the expression of Bcl-2 was significantly higher, and the expression of glucose-regulated protein 78, Bax and Fas was significantly lower in LIP group. This study demonstrated that LIP regulates myocardial cellapoptosis through reducing the expression of endopasmic reticulum stress GRP78, Bax and Fas and increasing the expression of Bcl-2.

It is important to reduce blood loss and protect the function of reserved liver during hepatectomy.Selective hepatic vascular occlusion can keep the blood supply of reserved liver and make blood loss less than other methods of blood occlusion, so it helps more to the recovery of liver function.In summary, promotion and application of this technology is worth while.This article reviews the developing progress and the latest studies of selective hepatic blood occlusion to introduce the latest advancement in this area.

AIM:To investigate the correlation between matrix metalloproteinase-9(MMP-9),tissue metalloproteinase inhibitor-1(TIMP-1),MMP-9/TIMP-1 and carotid atheromatous plaque stability in cerebral infarction patients.METHODS:80 patients with cerebral infarction were categorized as microemboli-negative group(n=70)and microemboli-positive group(n=10),20 normal human were served as control group.The MMP-9 and TIMP-1 levels in plasma were determined by mean of ELISA in 3 groups.RESULTS:The levels of MMP-9 and TIMP-1 in plasma were significantly higher in cerebral infarction patients than those in control group(P

Objective　To study the similarities and differences on in vitro replication and expression of hepatitis C virus (HCV) between human fetal hepatocytes (HFH) and 7721 cell line. Methods　Human fetal hepatocytes and a hepatoma cell line 7721 were incubated with a serum from hepatitis C patient. After incubation, the presence of HCV RNA, the expression of HCV NS3 antigens in cells and/or supernatant were examined by RT-PCR, in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry, respectively. Results　It was found that: ①The intracellular HCV RNA was first detected on d 2～3 post-incubation and then could be intermittently detected in cells and/or supernatant subsequently (HCV RNA could be detected in 7721 cells during a period of at least 66 days. In HFH, HCV RNA could be detected up to 25 days after incubation); ②HCV-NS3 antigen could be expressed in infected cells; ③Minus-strand RNA of HCV was mainly located within cytoplasm by in situ hybridization. Conclusion　The results suggest that both the fetal hpatocytes and the hepatoma cell line 7721 are susceptible to HCV, and especially 7721 cell line can stably support HCV replication in vitro and may be used as the target cell for long-term cultures of HCV.

BACKGROUND:Previous studies of our research group have confirmed that the texture of porcine reticular dermis at lateral ventral part is softer and has more extensibility than other parts. Therefore, it may serve as the raw material of xenogenic aceluar dermal matrix. However, its comparison with human and rat reticular dermis has not been reported systematicaly in aspects of histomorphology and material characterization. OBJECTIVE:To compare the reticular dermis from the lateral region of porcine abdomen and rat dorsal part with the reticular dermis from human in histology, biomechanics, molecular structure, thermal stability and other properties. METHODS:The reticular dermis samples were taken from adult human, the lateral region of porcine abdomen, the back of rats, for gross observation. Paraffin sections were observed by hematoxylin and eosin staining and sirius red staining under a light microscopy. The relevant data of micrograph were measured by imagine analysis software. These samples were also vacuum-freezing dried and rehydrated, and then their mechanical properties were tested with a electronic tensile machine to calculate the Young’s modulus. Some vacuum-freezing dried samples were powdered and detected by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer and simultaneous thermal analyzer. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:There were no differences in colagen fiber bundle diameter of the reticular dermis from adult human and the lateral region of porcine abdomen, but the reticular dermis from the back of rats was thinner than that from adult human (P < 0.01). The gap between the reticular layer of the dermis of the lateral region of porcine abdomen was lower than that from adult human (P < 0.0.1); however, there was no difference in the gap between the reticular layers of the dermis of the rat back and adult human (P=0.17). Colagen fibers of porcine reticular dermis were arranged tightly in disorder; the content of type I colagen and ratio of type I/III colagen were higher than those in the reticular dermis from adult human (P < 0.05), but the content of type III colagen was less than that in the reticular dermis from adult human (P < 0.05). Contents of type I and III colagen and their ratio were similar between the reticular dermis of rats and adult human (P > 0.05). There was no significant difference in the Young’s modulus of the three kinds of reticular dermises. Hydrogen bonds involved in the reticular dermal colagen molecules ranged as folows: rats > swine > human. Rat reticular dermis has better thermal stability than that of swine and adult human.

Objective:To compare the clinical efficacy between our first generation and second generation dynamic anterior plate-screw system for quadrilateral area (DAPSQ) in the treatment of T-shaped acetabular fractures.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted of the 28 patients with T-shaped acetabular fractures who had been treated at Department of Orthopaedics, General Hospital of Central Theater Command from January 2008 to December 2019. They were divided into 2 groups according to fixation methods. Group A [15 patients, 11 males and 4 females, an age of (43.5±9.1) years] were treated with the first generation DAPSQ while Group B [13 patients, 8 males and 5 females, an age of (42.5±7.0) years] with the second generation DAPSQ. Operation time, intraoperative bleeding, fracture reduction, function of the affected hip and postoperative complications were recorded and compared between the 2 groups.Results:The 2 groups were comparable because there was no significant difference between them in the preoperative general data ( P>0.05). The 28 patients were followed up for 12 to 60 months (average, 35.0 months). The operation time [(193.9±33.3) min] and intraoperative bleeding [(830.8±177.4) mL] for Group B were significantly less than those for Group A [(231.3±40.0) min and (1,043.3±190.7) mL] ( P<0.05). In Group A, according to the Matta scoring, the fracture reduction was rated as excellent in 8 cases, good in 5 and poor in 2; in Group B, the fracture reduction was rated as excellent in 8 cases, good in 4 and poor in one. According to the modified Merle d'Aubigné & Postel scoring at the final follow-up, the function of the affected hip was rated as excellent in 9 cases, as good in 3, as fair in 2 and as poor in one in Group A while as excellent in 9 cases, as good in 2 and as fair in 2 in Group B. There were no statistically significant differences between the 2 groups in reduction quality or in the function of the affected hip ( P>0.05). Follow-up observed hip traumatic arthritis in 2 cases in Group A and in one in Group B. Conclusion:In the treatment of T-shaped acetabular fractures, compared with the first generation DAPSQ, the second generation DAPSQ can shorten operation time and decrease intraoperative bleeding significantly, though both achieve comparable functional outcomes.

Objective To evaluate the impact of preoperative prognostic nutritional index (PNI) on surgical outcomes and long-term survival of elderly patients with gastric cancer.Methods From Jan 2007 to Dec 2012,the clinicopathological data of 165 elderly patients (age ＞ 65 years old) with gastric cancer undergoing radical gastrectomy in the Second Hospital of Tianjin Medical University were analyzed retrospectively.PNI value was calculated by serum albumin (g/L) + 5 × lymphocyte count (× 109/L).The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and Youden index was used to determine the cut-off value of PNI.Patients were then divided into low PNI group and high PNI group based on the cut-off value.The two groups were compared according to clinicopathological characteristics,postoperative complication and longterm survival.Results The mean PNI value was 46.1-± 5.3,When the PN1 was 46.4,the Youden index was maximal,with a sensitivity of 78％ and specificity of 59％.There were 79 patients in the low PNI group and 86 patients in high PNI group.No significant correlations between PNI and gender,age,BMI,pathological type,tumor diameter,extranodal metastasis and postoperative morbidity were observed.There were significant difference in the depth of invasion (x2 =6.732,P =0.009),N stage(x2 =13.191,P =0.004),TNM stage(x2 =12.137,P =0.000) and postoperative hospital stay (t =4.595,P =0.000).By Kaplan-Meier method,PNI (P =0.000),depth of invasion (P =0.002),N stage (P =0.000),TNM stage(P =0.000) and extranodal metastasis (P =0.031) had significant impacts on overall survival.PNI (P =0.016)and N stage (P =0.018) were independent factors for predicting overall survival rate.Conclusions PNI helps in evaluating preoperative nutritional status and postoperative prognosis for elderly patients with gastric cancer.

Objective To detect the level of serum fragmented cytokeratin 18 (CK-18 M30) in patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), to explore the relationship between the expression of CK-18 M30 and NASH. Methods 33 healthy people as control group, 24 nonalcoholic simple fatty liver (NAFL) patients, and 21 NASH patients were included in this study. CK-18 M30, ALT, AST and GGT were detected in all patients’ vein blood. NAFLD activity points (NAS) was examined in biopsy specimens of NAFL patients and NASH patients. Pearson correlation was applied to analyze the correlations between serum CK-18 M30, ALT, AST, GGT and the NAS of liver tissue in NASH group. Results Serum CK-18 M30 level of healthy control, NAFL and NASH group were (96.557 2 ± 41.226 8)U/L, (104.321 7 ± 45.167 3)U/L, (263.125 5 ± 61.578 1)U/L respectively. Serum CK-18 M30 level in NASH patients positively correlated with both NAS of liver tissue and serum ALT, which correlation coefficient r values were 0.601 5 and 0.420 6. Conclusion The concentration of serum CK-18 M30 could be used as a marker in the diagnosis of NASH.

Objective To investigate the expression of astrocyte elevated gene -1( AEG-1) and matrix metallopeptidase 9(MMP-9)in colorectal tissues and evaluate its correlation with clinical pathologic factors of colorectal cancer.Methods AEG-1 and MMP-9 expression in normal colorectal mucous (n=45),low-grade adenoma(n=31),high-grade adenoma(n=15)and colorectal carcinoma(n=146)were examined by immuno-histochemistry .Statistical analyses were applied to test the significance of its expression .Results AEG-1 ex-pression levels were gradually elevated in normal tissues ,low-grade adenoma ,high-grade adenoma and colorec-tal carcinoma respectively .Furthermore ,there was a similar trend for MMP -9from normal mucous to adenoma and carcinoma .Statistical analysis revealed that AEG -1 expression was markedly correlated with the UICC stage,T classification,N classification,M classification,and histological differentiation in the colorectal cancer pa-tients,but not with age,gender,tumor location and tumor size.In addition,AEG-1 expression was positively cor-related with the MMP-9 expression in colorectal cancer .Besides,those patients with high AEG-1 and MMP-9 levels had shorter survival time ( P<0 .05 ) .Conclusion AEG-1 may be involved in carcinogenesis and pro-gression of colorectal carcinoma and can be a novel prognostic biomarker in patients with colorectal carcinoma .