OBJECTIVETo evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of the combined therapy with oxaliplatin and capecitabine (XELOX) in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer.

METHODSForty-one patients with previously untreated advanced or recurrent gastric cancer received intravenous infusion of oxaliplatin at the dose of 130 mg/m(2) on day 1 and oral administration of capecitabine at 1000 mg/m(2) twice a day on days 1-14. The chemotherapy was repeated every 2 weeks for a median of 4 cycles.

RESULTSTwo of 41 patients achieved a complete response, and 15 had partial responses, with an overall response rate of 41.5%. Stable disease was observed in 11 patients and progressive disease in 9. The median time to progression and overall survival was 6.2 months and 11.8 months. All the 41 patients were evaluated for toxicity according to NCI criteria, 4 showed grade 3-4 neural toxicity, 4 had hematological toxicity and 3 had hand-foot syndrome.

CONCLUSIONThe XELOX regimen shows good efficacy with an acceptable toxicity profile in advanced or recurrent gastric cancer patient.

Adult ; Aged ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; therapeutic use ; Deoxycytidine ; analogs & derivatives ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Fluorouracil ; analogs & derivatives ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; drug therapy ; Stomach Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; pathology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the killing effect of ZD6474 combined with adriamycin (ADM) on MCF-7 human breast cancer cells.

METHODSThe inhibitory effects of ZD6474 and ADM alone and in combination on the proliferation of MCF-7 cells were assessed by MTT assay. The cell cycle and cell apoptosis were detected by flow cytometry.

RESULTSZD6474 and ADM both significantly inhibited the proliferation of MCF-7 cells, showing a synergistic effect of their reactions in combined use (P<0.05). ZD6474 or ADM alone caused cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 and S phases, respectively. Combined use of the two drugs resulted in significant reduction of the M-phase cell percentage and cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 and S phases. The coadministration of the drugs significantly increased the apoptosis rate of the cells as compared with ZD6474 or ADM treatment alone (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSZD6474 and ADM show a synergistic effect in inhibiting the proliferation and inducing apoptosis of MCF-7 cells.

Antibiotics, Antineoplastic ; pharmacology ; Antineoplastic Agents ; pharmacology ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Breast Neoplasms ; pathology ; Cell Cycle ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Doxorubicin ; pharmacology ; Drug Synergism ; Female ; Humans ; Piperidines ; pharmacology ; Quinazolines ; pharmacology

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the inhibitory effect of recombinant adenovirus carrying human endostatin gene (Ad-endo) on the growth of human pancreatic carcinoma xenograft in nude mice.

METHODSThe expression of endostatin in human pancreatic carcinoma Capan-2 cells was examined by RT-PCR after infection with Ad-endo. The supernatants of Capan-2 cells were collected after 48 h of infection with Ad-endo as the conditioned medium for human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), whose proliferation in vitro was assayed. Capan-2 cell xenografts were established to determine the antitumoral effects of Ad-endo in vivo. The intratumoral microvessel density (MVD) was evaluated using CD31 staining.

RESULTSThe expression of endostatin gene was detected by PT-PCR in infected Capan-2 cells. The conditioned medium from Ad-endo-infected cells significantly inhibited HUVEC proliferation (P<0.05). Ad-endo significantly suppressed the growth of Capan-2 tumor xenografts in nude mice (P<0.05), and the MVD decreased significantly in the treated tumor (P<0.05) as compared with that in the control group.

CONCLUSIONAdenovirus carrying human endostatin gene produces inhibitory effects on the growth of human pancreatic carcinoma tumors in nude mice.

Adenoviridae ; genetics ; metabolism ; Angiogenesis Inhibitors ; metabolism ; pharmacology ; Animals ; Endostatins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Humans ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Mice, Nude ; Neoplasm Transplantation ; Neovascularization, Pathologic ; genetics ; Pancreatic Neoplasms ; blood supply ; pathology ; therapy ; Recombinant Proteins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; pharmacology

Objective To provide evidence for effective implementation of influenza and pneumonia immune strategies, we investigated the awareness of influenza and pneumonia and the willingness of vaccination among chronic disease patients.Methods A stratified multistage cluster sampling method was used to investigate 720 patients less than 75 years of age.Results Overall, 717 completed responses were received.The awareness rates of influenza and pneumonia diseases were 59.83% and 59.55%, respectively.However, the awareness rates of influenza and pneumonia vaccine were 17.71% and 6.00%, respectively.The vaccination rate of influenza vaccine was 1.26% while no patients received pneumonia vaccination.Among those not vaccinated the most frequent reasons for not receiving the vaccine included "Believed oneself unlikely to be infected with influenza/pneumonia" and "No recommendation has been received for influenza/pneumonia vaccination".The influence on recommendations by doctors at vaccine clinic and by general practitioner had no significant statistical difference (P>0.05).Conclusion The main reasons for such low awareness and willingness may be due to their poorly knowledge on the risk of influenza/pneumonia diseases, and related vaccines.Health education and intervention should be taken to heighten the vaccination rates of influenza/pneumonia vaccines.

Objective To evaluate the epidemiological effects of vaccine immunization program related to A(H1N1)influenza in the middle school students.Methods Non-randomized clinical trial was designed to assess the A(H1N1)influenza vaccine on its efficacy.14883 students from 8 middle schools in Zhejiang province were recruited and classified into vaccinated or control groups,based on the status of immunization with A(H1N1)influenza vaccine.All subjects were followed up through one epidemic period(6 months)and the incidence rates of influenza-like illnesses,A(H1N1)influenza,and seasonal influenza in these two groups were compared to evaluate the efficacy of the vaccine.Results There were 6334 subjects in the vaccinated group and 8549 in the control group.7441.75 person-years were followed from these two groups.The incidence rate of A (H1N1)influenza in vaccinated group was 1.64‰ per person-year,lower than that of the control group.The rate difference(RD)was-1.64‰ per person-year(95% confidence interval value from-3.04‰ to-0.23‰ per person-year),and the difference was significant(P=0.010).The incidence rate of influenza-like illnesses in vaccinated group was 21.47‰ per person-year,lower than that of the control group(22.69‰ per person-year)and the diffefence was not significant(P>0.05).The incidence rate of B influenza in vaccinated group was 6.63‰ per person-year,higher than that of control group(7.02‰ per person-year)but the difference was not significant(P>0.05).Conclusion This vaccine demonstrated a good epidemiological effect against the A(H1N1)influenza virus infection,observed through a student-immunization program.The cross-protection effect against the influenza-like illnesses and other seasonal influenzas was not noticed in this study.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the role and application of flow cytometry in the diagnosis of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL).

METHODSFresh cell samples from 40 cases of lymphoproliferative disorders were obtained by fine needle aspiration or excisional biopsies. Multiparameter flow cytometry was used to study the surface antigens of lymphoid cells. The immunophenotyping results were also correlated with morphologic features seen in the cytology preparations.

RESULTSOf the 40 cases with histologic diagnosis of NHL, 37 cases (92.5%) had the lymphoma diagnosis confirmed by this method. The concordance rate for the 20 cases of B-cell NHL was 100%. As for the 17 cases with histologic diagnosis of T-cell NHL, 12 cases (66.7%) were correctly diagnosed as T-cell NHL using flow cytometry, while 2 cases (11.8%) were interpreted as B-cell NHL and the remaining 3 cases (17.6%) were undiagnosed.

CONCLUSIONImmunophenotyping by flow cytometry can serve as an ancillary technique in diagnosis and subclassification of NHL.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Female ; Flow Cytometry ; methods ; Humans ; Immunophenotyping ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; diagnosis ; immunology ; pathology ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin ; diagnosis ; immunology ; pathology ; Lymphoma, T-Cell ; diagnosis ; immunology ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Reproducibility of Results ; Sensitivity and Specificity

OBJECTIVETo study the radiosensitizing effect of gefitinib on nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line CNE2 in vitro.

METHODSNasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line CNE2 was cultured in RP2MI 1640. MTT assay was performed to evaluate the cell proliferation changes in response to gefitinib treatment and the radiosensitizing effect of gefitinib. The cell survival curves and sensitive enhancement ratio (SERs) were obtained with a clonogenic assay. Flow cytometry analysis was applied to detect the cell cycle changes and cell apoptosis.

RESULTSMTT assay showed that cells exposed to gefitinib and radiation had a significantly lower survival ratio compared to the cells with radiation exposure only (0.582∓0.012 vs 0.398∓0.016, P=0.002), with a SER of 1.535∓0.134. The S phase cell percentage was significantly decreased and G(2)-M phase cells increased in gefitinib plus radiation group (P=0.000), suggesting a synergistic effect of gefitinib and radiation.

CONCLUSIONGefitinib can enhance the radiosensitivity of nasopharyngeal carcinoma CNE2 cells in vitro possibly by inhibiting cell proliferation, inducing cell apoptosis, and causing changes in the cell cycle distribution.

Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Carcinoma ; Cell Cycle ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms ; pathology ; Quinazolines ; pharmacology ; Radiation Tolerance ; drug effects

Aim To study the effects of high-fat diet on testicular germ cell apoptosis in mice through endoplasmic reticulum stress. Methods C57BL/6J male mice were assigned into normal group and high-fat diet group randomly, with six mice in each group. The mice in normal group or high-fat diet group were fed with regular or high-fat diet continuously for five months. The mice were weighed, anesthetized, and euthanized to collect testicular and epididymal tissue for analysis. The testicular tissue was weighed and their indices were calculated. Epididymal tissue was collected for semen analysis. The morphological alterations of testicular tissue were observed using hematoxylin-eosin ( HE ) staining. The apoptosis of germ cells was detected by TUNEL staining and the apoptotic indices were calculated. The expression levels of apoptosis and endoplasmic reticulum stress-related proteins in testicular tissue were detected by Western blot. The protein expression and localization of GRP78 in testicular tissue were further detected by immunofluorescence. Results The results showed that compared to the normal group, the high-fat diet group had a significant increase in body weight, a significant decrease in testicular index, sperm concentration, and sperm vability, loose arrangement of germ cells, significant thinning of the seminiferous epithelium, no significant change in the diameter of seminiferous tubules, a significant increase in germ cell apoptosis , with an increased apoptosis index, and significant increase in expression of Bax and cleaved-caspase-12,and a significant decrease in Bcl-2 protein expression. The expression levels of GRP78 , p-IREl, XBP1, and ATF6a proteins were significantly up-regulated, while p-PERK, p-eIF2a, ATF4 protein expression showed no significant changes. Immunofluorescence results further showed a significant increase in the expression of GRP78 protein in the testicular tissue,with no significant changes in the expression location. Conclusions High-fat diet can induce the apoptosis of mouse testicular germ cells, and the mechanism may be related to the activation of endoplasmic reticulum stress IRE1 and ATF6 signaling pathway.

BACKGROUNDFirst generation drug-eluting stents (DES) were associated with a high incidence of late stent thrombosis (ST), mainly due to delayed healing and re-endothelization by the durable polymer coating. This study sought to assess the safety and efficacy of the Nano polymer-free sirolimus-eluting stent (SES) in the treatment of patients with de novo coronary artery lesions.

METHODSThe Nano trial is the first randomized trial designed to compare the safety and efficacy of the Nano polymer-free SES and Partner durable-polymer SES (Lepu Medical Technology, Beijing, China) in the treatment of patients with de novo native coronary lesions. The primary endpoint was in-stent late lumen loss (LLL) at 9-month follow-up. The secondary endpoint was major adverse cardiac events (MACE), a composite of cardiac death, myocardial infarction or target lesion revascularization.

RESULTSA total of 291 patients (Nano group: n = 143, Partner group: n = 148) were enrolled in this trial from 19 Chinese centers. The Nano polymer-free SES was non-inferior to the Partner durable-polymer DES at the primary endpoint of 9 months (P < 0.001). The 9-month in-segment LLL of the polymer-free Nano SES was comparable to the Partner SES (0.34 ± 0.42) mm vs. (0.30 ± 0.48) mm, P = 0.21). The incidence of MACE in the Nano group were 7.6% compared to the Partner group of 5.9% (P = 0.75) at 2 years follow-up. The frequency of cardiac death and stent thrombosis was low for both Nano and Partner SES (0.8% vs. 0.7%, 0.8% vs. 1.5%, both P = 1.00).

CONCLUSIONSIn this multicenter randomized Nano trial, the Nano polymer-free SES showed similar safety and efficacy compared with the Partner SES in the treatment of patients with de novo coronary artery lesions. Trials in patients with complex lesions and longer term follow-up are necessary to confirm the clinical performance of this novel Nano polymer-free SES.

Aged ; Coronary Artery Disease ; drug therapy ; surgery ; Drug-Eluting Stents ; Female ; Humans ; Immunosuppressive Agents ; therapeutic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Sirolimus ; therapeutic use