Objective To investigate the relationship between sICAM-1 and colorectal carcinoma metastasis. Methods ELISA was used to detect sICAM-1 level in specimens from 50 cases colorectal cancer patients' serum and 30 cases controls. Results Serum sICAM-1 level in colorectal cancer was significantly higher than that in controls (P 0.05), that in patients with metastasis was significantly higher than that in control(P

Objective To evaluate the reliability and clinical application of measuring blood glucose and urea with electrodes and end reaction methods. Method Using the electrodes and end reaction methods, blood glucose and urea were measured respectively. The results and the relativity between the two methods were compared. Result Comparing the two methods for GLU and UREA, the correlative factors were 0.990 1 and 0.989 1 respectively. They had fairly good comparability. The linear ranges of their regression equations met the clinical needs. With favorable accuracy, the correlative factors were above 0.997 9. Conclusion The electrodes method was rapid and accurate, which was suitable for emergency tests. The ending reaction methods was fairly stable and has less interfering factors, which was fit for the routine use.

Many of early findings regarding intestinal stem cells (ISCs) and their niche in the human intestine have relied on colorectal cancer cell lines and labor-intensive and time-consuming mouse models. However, these models cannot accurately recapitulate the physiologically relevant aspects of human ISCs. In this study, we demonstrate a reliable and robust culture method for 3D expanding intestinal spheroids (InSexp ) mainly comprising ISCs and progenitors, which can be derived from 3D human intestinal organoids (HIOs). We did functional chararcterization of InSexp derived from 3D HIOs, differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells, and optimization culture methods. Our results indicate that InSexp can be rapidly expanded and easily passaged, and show enhanced growth rates via WNT pathway activation. InSexp are capable of exponential cell expansion and cryopreservation. Furthermore, in vitro-matured HIO-derived InSexp proliferate faster than immature HIO-derived InSexp with preservation of the parental HIO characteristics. These findings may facilitate the development of scalable culture systems for the long-term maintenance of human ISCs and provide an alternative platform for studying ISC biology.

PURPOSE: Current treatment of glioblastoma after surgery consists of a combination of fractionated radiotherapy and temozolomide. However, it is difficult to completely remove glioblastoma because it has uncertain boundaries with surrounding tissues. Moreover, combination therapy is not always successful because glioblastoma has diverse resistances. To overcome these limitations, we examined the combined effects of chemotherapy and knockdown of mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatase-1 (MKP-1). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used ten different anti-cancer drugs (cisplatin, cyclophosphoamide, doxorubicin, epirubicin, etoposide, 5-fluorouracil, gemcitabine, irinotecan, mitomycin C, and vincristine) to treat glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cells. Knockdown of MKP-1 was performed using siRNA and lipofectamine. The basal level of MKP-1 in GBM was analyzed based on cDNA microarray data obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases. RESULTS: Anti-cancer drug-induced cell death was significantly enhanced by knockdown of MKP-1, and this effect was most prominent in cells treated with irinotecan and etoposide. Treatment with these two drugs led to significantly increased phosphorylation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) in a time-dependent manner, while pharmacological inhibition of JNK partially inhibited drug-induced cell death. Knockdown of MKP-1 also enhanced drug-induced phosphorylation of JNK. CONCLUSION: Increased MKP-1 expression levels could be the cause of the high resistance to conventional chemotherapeutics in human GBM. Therefore, MKP-1 is an attractive target for overcoming drug resistance in this highly refractory malignancy.
Apoptosis ; Camptothecin ; Cell Death ; Dacarbazine ; Deoxycytidine ; Doxorubicin ; Drug Resistance ; Drug Resistance, Multiple ; Dual Specificity Phosphatase 1 ; Epirubicin ; Etoposide ; Fluorouracil ; Gene Expression ; Glioblastoma ; Humans ; JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases ; Lipids ; Mitomycin ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Phosphorylation ; Phosphotransferases ; Protein Kinases ; RNA, Small Interfering

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is the most common prostate disease in middle aged and elderly men. Therefore, identifying risk factors for BPH is crucial for understanding the etiology and for undertaking interventions or targeting strategies. The survey was carried out in two steps: first, pilot study was conducted prior to the main study in order to estimate baseline characteristics. Second, main study investigated prevalence and risk factors of BPH by clinical diagnostic tests and questionnaire. A total of 641 male aged 50-79 years participated in this community-based crosssectional study. Using 24 hour recall of food consumption, we found that animal fat intakes increased the risk of BPH with adjusted for age, chronic bronchitis, PSA level, drinking frequency, and excercise frequency (odds ratio 1.84, 95% confidence interval 1.10-3.06). Although BPH has been considered as unavoidable disease with advancing age, if these dietary risk factors are clearly identified, it can be prevented effectively by laying special emphasis on those at risk.
Aged ; Animals ; Bronchitis, Chronic ; Diagnostic Tests, Routine ; Diet ; Drinking ; Humans ; Hyperplasia* ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mortuary Practice ; Pilot Projects ; Prevalence ; Prostate* ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; Risk Factors ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: The purpose of our study was to validate diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI) before and after superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) injection for assessment of hepatic metastases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighty-six hepatic metastases (size range, 0.3-4.7 cm; mean, 1.5 cm) verified pathologically or by follow-up imaging studies in 22 consecutive patients (17 men and 5 women; 44-83 years; mean age, 60 years) during a 13-month period were enrolled. Hepatic MRI, including DWI (b-factors=50, 400, 800 s/mm2) with breath-holding technique of single-shot spin-echo echo-planar imaging (TR/TE=1000/69 ms, average=2) before and after SPIO administration, were retrospectively reviewed by two independent radiologists with a 5-point scale confidence score for each hepatic lesion on pre-contrast DWI (pre-DWI), SPIO-enhanced DWI (SPIO-DWI), and SPIO-enhanced T2*-weighted imaging (SPIO-T2*wI). RESULTS: For all lesions, SPIO-T2*wI showed significantly higher confidence score in the diagnosis of hepatic metastases than pre-contrast or SPIO-DWI regardless of the size of b-factors (p<0.05) with only one exception; using b-factor=50 s/mm2, the score of SPIO-T2*wI was still higher than SPIO-DWI but there was no statistical significance given by observer 1 (p=0.730). For the subcentimeter lesions (n=37), SPIO-T2*wI showed the highest score, and using b-factor=50 or 400 s/mm2 SPIO-DWI showed similar confidence scores to SPIO-T2*wI by both observers (p>0.05). Pre-DWI using b-factor=50 sec/mm2 was also comparable with SPIO-T2*wI by observer 1 (p=0.060). CONCLUSION: Pre-DWI has a limited value for the assessment of hepatic metastases, however, the repetition of DWI after SPIO injection using small b-factors could complement SPIO-T2*wI, especially for subcentimeter lesions.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Contrast Media/chemistry/*diagnostic use ; Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging/*methods ; Female ; Ferric Compounds/chemistry/*diagnostic use ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/*diagnosis ; Male ; Neoplasm Metastasis/*diagnosis

Allogeneic natural killer (NK) cell therapy is a potential therapeutic approach for a variety of solid tumors. We established an expansion method for large-scale production of highly purified and functionally active NK cells, as well as a freezing medium for the expanded NK cells. In the present study, we assessed the effect of cryopreservation on the expanded NK cells in regards to viability, phenotype, and anti-tumor activity. NK cells were enormously expanded (about 15,000-fold expansion) with high viability and purity by stimulating CD³⁺ T cell-depleted peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) with irradiated autologous PBMCs in the presence of IL-2 and OKT3 for 3 weeks. Cell viability was slightly reduced after freezing and thawing, but cytotoxicity and cytokine secretion were not significantly different. In a xenograft mouse model of hepatocellular carcinoma cells, cryopreserved NK cells had slightly lower anti-tumor efficacy than freshly expanded NK cells, but this was overcome by a 2-fold increased dose of cryopreserved NK cells. In vivo antibody-dependent cell cytotoxicity (ADCC) activity of cryopreserved NK cells was also demonstrated in a SCID mouse model injected with Raji cells with rituximab co-administration. Therefore, we demonstrated that expanded/frozen NK cells maintain viability, phenotype, and anti-tumor activity immediately after thawing, indicating that expanded/frozen NK cells can provide ‘ready-to-use’ cell therapy for cancer patients.
Animals ; Antibody-Dependent Cell Cytotoxicity ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Cell Survival ; Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy ; Cryopreservation* ; Freezing ; Heterografts ; Humans* ; Interleukin-2 ; Killer Cells, Natural* ; Methods ; Mice ; Mice, SCID ; Muromonab-CD3 ; Phenotype ; Rituximab

Background/Aims: This study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) in Korean patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to investigate the risk factors associated with HCC recurrence. Methods: A total of 100 patients with HCV-related HCC, who were treated with DAAs between May 2015 and December 2016, were recruited from seven university hospitals in Korea. Claim data of 526 patients with HCC obtained from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service in South Korea were used for external validation of the results. Results: Among the 100 patients, 88% achieved a sustained virological response (SVR) 12weeks after the end of DAA therapy (SVR12), and 37% experienced HCC recurrence after DAA therapy. Short last HCC treatment durability (<12 months) before DAA commencement was independently associated with HCC recurrence (hazard ratio [HR], 2.89; p=0.011). In the nationwide validation cohort, 20.3% of the patients experienced HCC recurrence. The last HCC treatment with a noncurative method, a short last HCC treatment durability (<12 months), and a longer total duration of HCC treatment (≥18 months) were independently related with HCC recurrence (HR3.73, p<0.001; HR 3.34, p<0.001; and HR 1.74, p=0.006; respectively). Conclusions DAA therapy showed an acceptable SVR12 rate in patients with HCV-related HCC. Short last HCC treatment durability (<12 months) was associated with HCC recurrence after DAA therapy. This finding suggests that the last HCC treatment durability is an important predictor of HCC recurrence after DAA therapy.

Background/Aims: This study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) in Korean patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to investigate the risk factors associated with HCC recurrence. Methods: A total of 100 patients with HCV-related HCC, who were treated with DAAs between May 2015 and December 2016, were recruited from seven university hospitals in Korea. Claim data of 526 patients with HCC obtained from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service in South Korea were used for external validation of the results. Results: Among the 100 patients, 88% achieved a sustained virological response (SVR) 12weeks after the end of DAA therapy (SVR12), and 37% experienced HCC recurrence after DAA therapy. Short last HCC treatment durability (<12 months) before DAA commencement was independently associated with HCC recurrence (hazard ratio [HR], 2.89; p=0.011). In the nationwide validation cohort, 20.3% of the patients experienced HCC recurrence. The last HCC treatment with a noncurative method, a short last HCC treatment durability (<12 months), and a longer total duration of HCC treatment (≥18 months) were independently related with HCC recurrence (HR3.73, p<0.001; HR 3.34, p<0.001; and HR 1.74, p=0.006; respectively). Conclusions DAA therapy showed an acceptable SVR12 rate in patients with HCV-related HCC. Short last HCC treatment durability (<12 months) was associated with HCC recurrence after DAA therapy. This finding suggests that the last HCC treatment durability is an important predictor of HCC recurrence after DAA therapy.