Objective To improve the establishment of rabbit model with VX2 liver tumor and assess sonographical value in monitoring the tumor growth.Methods Fifteen New Zealand white rabbits were implanted with VX2 tumor in two liver lobes under ultrasound guidance percutaneously.Ultrasound examinations were performed at twenty days and thirty-six days after implantation.At the same time exploratory laparotomy was performed.Results Among 30 implanted tumors of 15 rabbits,16(53%) tumors were successfully implanted with few complications.It took 15 to 40 minutes to implant tumors in one rabbit.Implantation rates of left lobe and right lobe were 53% and 50% respectively,and there was no significant difference.Ultrasound examination could monitor tumor growth well.Conclusions After the improvement,the establishment of model was easier,less time-consuming,minimally invasive and caused few complications than other implantation methods.Serial ultrasound examinations should be performed in monitoring the tumor growth.

To investigate the effect of ultrasound-guided percutaneous injection of cinobufotalin or anhydrous ethanol in the treatment of portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT) through a comparative analysis. MethodsA total of 56 patients with PVTT after liver cancer surgery, who were admitted to the 94th Hospital of PLA from October 2009 to December 2011, were enrolled. Among these patients, 27 underwent ultrasound-guided percutaneous injection of cinobufotalin (cinobufotalin group) and 29 underwent ultrasound-guided percutaneous injection of anhydrous ethanol (anhydrous ethanol group). The clinical outcome and survival time were compared between the two groups after treatment, and the levels of total bilirubin (TBil), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) before and after treatment were compared. The t-test was used for comparison of continuous data between groups, the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups, the rank sum test was used for comparison of ranked data, and the Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis. ResultsThe response rate showed no significant difference between the cinobufotalin group and the anhydrous ethanol group (63.0% vs 58.6%, χ2=0.111, P＞0.05). After treatment, the cinobufotalin group had significantly lower levels of TBil, ALT, and AST than the anhydrous ethanol group (t=2.24, 2.40, and 2.39, all P＜0.05). The 6-month, 1-year, and 2-year survival rates showed no significant differences between the cinobufotalin group and the anhydrous ethanol group (81.5%/63.0%/29.6% vs 82.8%/586%/31.0%, χ2=0.016, 0.111, and 0.013, all P＞0.05). ConclusionUltrasound-guided percutaneous injection of cinobufagin or anhydrous ethanol has similar short- and long-term effects in the treatment of PVTT and can inhibit the growth of tumor thrombus and prolong survival time, but cinobufagin is superior to anhydrous ethanol in the aspect of protecting liver function.

To study the anti-tumor activity of Scurrula parasitica polysaccharides (SP). Water extraction and ethanol precipitation were used to isolate SP from S. parasitica leaf. S180, K562 and HL-60 cell lines proliferation inhibition by SP were detected by MTT assay. The expressions of Ki-67, Cyclin D1, Bax and Bcl-2 protein in the sarcoma S180 tissues were detected by immunohistochemistry technique to approach the anti-tumor mechanism of SP+ SP could not inhibit cancer cell proliferation. SP ip could inhibit the growth of sarcoma S180 in mice, 100 mg x kg(-1) x d(-1). SP ip was the optimal dose on inhibiting S180 growth, with the tumor inhibition rate of 54%. The expression of Ki-67, Cyclin D1, Bax and Bcl-2 protein in the sarcoma S180 tissues were detected by immunohistochemistry technique to approach the anti-tumor mechanism of SP. The result showed that SP could down-regulate the expression of Ki-67, CyclinD1 and Bcl-2 protein, and up-regulate the expression of Bax protein. It indicted that inhibiting cancer cell proliferation and promoting cancer cell apoptosis in vivo maybe one of the anti-cancer mechanisms of SP.
Animals ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cyclin D1 ; metabolism ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; therapeutic use ; Female ; HL-60 Cells ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; K562 Cells ; Loranthaceae ; chemistry ; Male ; Mice ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Polysaccharides ; therapeutic use ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 ; metabolism ; Sarcoma 180 ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; bcl-2-Associated X Protein ; metabolism