Objective To detect the expression of Id1 and p53 in human breast cancer and study their relationship. Methods To choose 80 cases of breast cancer from the surgical department of Tangshan people's hospital. All patients didn't get radiotherapy and chemotherapy before surgery. The expression of Idl and p53 of breast cancer were studied by using SABC immunohistochemistry. Results The expressions of Id1 were found in cytoplasm, while the expression of p53 was found in cell nucleus. The positive rates of Id1 and p53 were 87.5 %(70/80)and 90.0%(72/80) respectively in breast cancer tissues. The expression of Id1 and p53 were significantly higher in breast cancer tissue than those in adjacent non-tumor breast tissues,benign tumor tissues and normal breast tissues(P ＜0.05). The positive rates and expression intensity of Id1 in breast cancer had significant correlation with lymph node metastasis and pTNM stage of the tumor, but had no significant correlation with age, histological differentiation and tumor size. The positive rates and expression intensity of p53 in breast cancer had significant correlation with lymph node metastasis of the tumor, but had no significant correlation with age, histological differentiation,tumor size and pTNM stage. Conclusion Expression of Id1 in human breast cancer is up-regulated. Its expression is associated with lymph node metastasis and TNM stage and represents an independent marker for prognosis of breast cancer. To reduce the expression of Id1 will become the strategy of curing breast cancer. Expression of Id1 and p53 in human breast cancer have the same clinic significance. Each of them can represent an independent marker for prognosis of breast cancer.

Objective To study the clinical and prognostic value of CK19 mRNA-positive circulating tumor cells in early breast cancer patients. Methods We analyzed the peripheral blood in 50 patients with early breast cancer after surgery and before the initiation of any adjuvant treatment for the presence of CK19 mRNA-positive circulating tumor cells using a nest reverse polymerase chain reaction assay. All patients were followed up. Results CK19 mRNA-positive cells were detected in 40.0 %(20/50) of patients with early breast cancer, 12.5 %(3/24) of patients with breast benign lesions, but 5 %(1/20) in healthy individuals (P =0.017,P =0.004); 11 to 20 of them relapsed during the follow-up period (P =0.002). There was no significant association between the detection of CK19 mRNA-positive cell and the patients' menstrual status, tumor stage, tumor size, etc (P ＞0.05). Detection of peripheral-blood CK19 mRNA-positive cells was associated with reduced median relapse-free interval in early breast cancer patients (P =0.007). Conclusion CK19 mRNA is one of the molecular markers for the detection of circulating tumor cells in early breast cancer. Detection of peripheral blood CK19 mRNA-positive cells might be an important predictive value as a marker of relapse in early breast cancer patients.

Objective To investigate the expression of ER and PR in hyperplasia of mammary glands and breast cancer. Methods The expression of ER and PR in 68 hyperplasia of mammary glands cases and 168 breast cancer cases were quantified by immunohistochemical method. Results The expression of ER in breast cancer(30%) was significantly higher than that in hyperplasia of mammary glands(10 %)(P ＜0.05) and there was no significant difference in PR between them. The expression of ER in postmenopausal breast cancer was significantly higher than that in postmenopausal hyperplasia of mammary glands (P ＜0.05) and there was no significant difference in ER between two premenopausal groups. The expression of PR in invasive lobular carcinoma was significantly higher than that in invasive ductal carcinoma and other types (P=0.005).Conclusion The expression of ER and PR may identify the characteristics of patholobiology in breast disease.

Objective To assess the diagnostic value of multiple-slice spiral CT (MSCT) perfusion imaging technique in pancreatic cancer by measuring and comparing the dynamical characteristics of blood flow between normal pancreas and pancreatic cancer. Methods The CT perfusion imaging were obtained using Siemens Somatoma MSCT scanner in 44 patients with normal pancreas tissue and 18 patients with pancreatic cancer. The mean blood flow (BF),blood volume (BV), time to start (Trs), time to peak (TIP), permeability and patlak blood volume (pBV) were measured and statistically analyzed by using Siemens Body peHusion software package. Results The mean BF, BV, Trs, TIP, permeability and pBV of normal pancreas were: (90.60±29.25) ml·100 ml-1·min-1, (190.35±43.8) ml/L, (205.3±160.2) s, (1403.5±334.0)s, (99.47±49.9) 0.5 ml·100 ml-1·min-1, (157.8±52.5) ml/L, respectively. The mean BF, BV, TTS, TrP, per-meability and pBV of pancreatic cancer were (22.9±10. 63) ml·100 ml-1·min-1, (52.38±18.08) ml/L, (194.3±76.0) s, (1549.5± 308.5)s, (115.25±33.55) 0.5 ml·100 ml-1·min-1, (83.16±41.45) ml/L respectively. The mean BF, BV, pBV and permeability between normal pancreas and pancreatic carcinoma were statistically significant (P<0.01). However the mean TTS and TIP between normal pancreas and pancreatic carcinoma were not statistically significant (P>0.05). Conclusion There are significant differences between perfusion values of pancreatic carcinoma and normal pancreatic tissue, and MSCT perfusion imaging is helpful in diagnosing pancreatic carcinoma.

Objective To study the effect of positive lymph node number on the survival of patients with esophageal carcinoma. Methods From July 1995 to July 2005, a total of 11,447 resected lymph nodes were obtained from 1140 patients who underwent curative resection of the primary tumor with systematic lymphadenectomy at Shanxi cancer hospital. The survivals were analysed by life tables and Kaplan-Meier methods, the related factors of lymph node metastasis were assessed by Chi-square test. Results The number of positive lymph nodes was negatively related to survival rates of esophageal carcinoma. According to the number of lymph nodes resected (≥8 nodes versus <8 nodes), there was significant difference in metastatic lymph node ratio. Conclusion The number of positive lymph node can reflect the prognosis of patients better. The authors suggest that the modification of the tumor-lymphnode-metastasis (TNM) staging classification (TNM) to include the number of positive lymph nodes in the N1 category.

Objective To analyze the alterations of serum protein in ESCC,compare alterations of serum protein with and without LM. Methods Serum samples were collected from 64 ESCC patients before operation and 60 cases with gender and age-matched healthy controls,special serum protein or peptide spectra was determined by SELDI-TOF-MS measurement after treating the sample onto weak cation exchange (WCX2) protein chip for each case. The serum protein profiles were compared by Biomarker Wizard Software between the ESCC patients and healthy controls, and among ESCC patients stratified according to gender, age, location of tumor, size of tumor, infiltration and with or without LM. Results (1)120 protein peaks were detected at the molecular range of 0 to 50000 in comparing of ESCC patients and healthy controls. 31 significantly different peaks were found between ESCC patients and healthy controls (P <0.05), 10 peaks were selected(P<0.01). (2) One significantly different protein peak (m/z 4174) was detected between T1 and T3, T4 (P<0.05). (3) There were three significantly different protein peaks (m/z 3970,4174 and 4277) between with LM and without LM (P<0.05).The peak (m/z 4174) was shared by two groups above. (4) No significant different protein was found when patients stratified according to gender, age, location of tumor and size of tumor. Conclusion Significant difference exists in serum proteins between ESCC patients and healthy controls. There are statistical difference exists in serum proteins between T1 and T3, T4, with LM and without LM. This difference is less than between ESCC patients and healthy controls. Some commonness is existed in serum protein fingerprint for patients with serious infiltration and with LM.

Objective To investigate the apoptosis inducing effects of oridonin on leukemic THP-1 cells and its mechanisms of action. Methods THP-1 cells in culture medium in vitro were given different concentrations of oridonin (16～56 μmol/L) for 24, 48 and 72 h. The inhibitory rate of the cells were measured by MTT assay, apoptotic morphology was observed by Hoechst 33258 staining, and Annexin V/PI staining was used to detect cell apoptosis by flow cytometry (FCM). Caspase-3 and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) expression were detected by Western blotting. Results Oridonin (over 32 μmol/L) could inhibit the growth of THP-1 cells and cause apoptosis remarkably, the suppression was both in time-and dose-dependentmanner. Marked morphological changes of cell apoptosis such as condensation of chromatin was clearly observed by Hoechst 33258 staining, and Annexin V/PI staining showed that apoptotic cells gradually increased after the cells treated with oridinon. Western blotting showed cleavage of the caspase-3 zymogen protein (32×103), with the appearance of its 20×103 subunit, and a cleaved 89×103 fragment of 116×103 PARP was also found. Conclusion Oridonin can inhibit cell growth and induce apoptosis in THP-1 cells via activation of caspase-3. The results indicated that oridonin might be an important potential anti-leukemia reagent.

Oridonin is a deterpenoid isolated from Rabdosia rubescences. It has excellent antitumor effect, whose mechanism is to induce apoptosis of tumor cells by mitochondrial pathway. Signal transduction pathway play an important part in cell proliferation,differentiation,apoptosis and so on. Recent studies suggested that Oridonin may trigger mitochondrial apoptosis pathway by four signal transduction pathways,which were p53, Ras/Raf/ERK, PI3K/Akt and NF-κB pathway. Further investigation on mitochondrial signal transduction pathway would be helpful to clarify the intracellular target and the antitumor molecular mechanism of ORI.

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) are a heterogeneous population of cells of myeloid origin that comprises myeloid progenitor cells and immature macrophages, which expand in tumorbearing mice and patients' bone marrow, spleen and peripheral blood and recruit to the tumor site. MDSC express high levels of arginase 1 (ARG1), inducible-nitric oxide syntheses (iNOS), reactive oxygen species (ROS) and peroxynitrite. They could suppress T-cell functions by cell contact or not, and induce regulatory T cells (Treg), all of the above are its weapons to defend individuals' immune system. Anti-tumor strategies targeted at MDSC develop rapidly now. In this review, we briefly introduce the strategies that targeted at MDSC and their mechanisms.

Objective To observe caesalpinia sappan aqueous extract's growth inhibiting and apoptosis inducing effects on human ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3. Methods Cell growth inhibiting effect was detected by cytometry; Examined were by trypan blue staining under a light microscope; Electronic microscopy was used to observe ultrastructure of SKOV3 cell affected by caesalpinia sappan aqueous extract's;With different concentration of caesalpinia sappan aqueous extract's acting on cells, cells cycle and apoptosis rate were analyzed by flow cytometry (FCM). Results The growth of SKOV3 was inhibited effectively by caesalpinia sappan aqueous extract's; typical morphology of apoptosis (cell shrinkage, chromatin condensation and apoptotic body formation) were observed and in a concentration-dependent manner. Flow cytometry detection showed: the experiment in vitro revealed growth of SKOV3 after treatment by caesalpinia sappan aqueous extract's at the different concentration. Apoptosis rate was increased with the increasing of the concentration of caesalpinia sappan aqueous extract's. Conclusion Caesalpinia sappan aqueous extract's can obviously inhibit growth of human ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3 and induce its apoptosis.