Objective:To investigate the value of intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion weighted imaging (IVIM-DWI) parameters combined with T 2WI texture analysis of primary lesions of rectal adenocarcinoma in preoperative prediction of lymph node metastasis with short diameter ≤9 mm. Methods:Retrospective analysis was performed on 115 cases of rectal adenocarcinoma confirmed by surgical pathology in Affiliated Provincial Hospital of Anhui Medical University from June 2015 to October 2020. All patients underwent total mesorectal resection and received conventional rectal MRI and IVIM-DWI scan before surgery. According to the pathological results of lymph node, the patients were divided into lymph node metastatic group ( n=44) and non-metastatic group ( n=71). IVIM-DWI parameters of primary rectal adenocarcinoma were measured including apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), diffusion coefficient (D), pseudo diffusion coefficient (D *) and perfusion fraction (f). The region of interest (ROI) of the whole lesion of rectal adenocarcinoma was delineated on axial T 2WI; then the ROIs were imported into GE Analysis Kit software to extract 3D texture feature. The differences of IVIM-DWI parameters and texture feature parameters were compared between two groups using independent sample t test or Mann-Whitney U test. The optimal texture feature parameters with independent predictive function were screened by multivariate logistic regression. Then the texture feature model and combined model based IVIM-DWI and texture feature parameters were established. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the performances of IVIM-DWI, texture feature parameters, texture feature model and combined model in predicting lymph node metastasis in patients with rectal adenocarcinoma. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) were compared with DeLong test. Results:Among all the IVIM-DWI parameters, the D * and f values of primary rectal adenocarcinoma were significantly different between the lymph node metastasis group and the non-lymph node metastasis group ( Z=3.39, P=0.001, Z=-3.06, P=0.002); no statistical significance was found in the ADC and D values between two groups (both P>0.05). A total of 828 texture feature parameters were obtained based on T 2WI of primary lesion of rectal adenocarcinoma, among which 3 optimal texture feature parameters were selected, including firstorder_Skewness, shape_Sphericity and glcm_Idn. The ROC curve results showed that the AUC of D * and f were 0.689 and 0.670, respectively. The AUC of 3 texture feature parameters were 0.651, 0.628, 0.631, respectively. The AUC of texture feature model and the combined model were 0.775 and 0.803. The AUC of combined model was larger than D *, f and the three texture feature parameters (all P<0.05). Conclusion:IVIM-DWI parameters combined with T 2WI texture feature parameters in primary lesion of rectal adenocarcinoma show good diagnostic efficacy in preoperative prediction of lymph node metastasis with short diameter≤9 mm.

Objective:Percutaneous coronary intervention(PCI)is one of the most important treatments for coronary artery disease(CAD).However,in-stent restenosis(ISR)after PCI is a serious complication without effective measures for prevention and treatment.This study aims to investigate the Ras-related protein 1A(Rap1A)level in ISR patients and in the tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)-induced inflammatory injury model of human umbilical vein endothelial cells(HUVECs),to explore the role of Rap1A in regulating TNF-α-induced inflammation in HUVECs and to provide a new potential target for ISR prevention and treatment. Methods:A total of 60 CAD patients,who underwent PCI between December 2020 and July 2022 from the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine of Xiangya Hospital,Central South University,and re-examined coronary angiography(CAG)1 year after the operation,were included.After admission,27 patients were diagnosed with ISR and 33 patients were diagnosed with non-in-stent restenosis(non-ISR)according to the CAG.Clinical data were collected,and the plasma Rap1A level was determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).In cell experiments,an inflammatory injury model was established with TNF-α treatment(10 ng/mL,24 h)in HUVECs.The mRNA and protein expression levels of Rap1A,interlukin-6(IL-6),and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1(VCAM-1)were measured by real-time reverse transcription PCR and Western blotting.Small interfering RNA(siRNA)was used to explore the role of Rap1A in regulating TNF-α-induced inflammation in HUVECs. Results:Compared with the non-ISR patients,a higher proportion of ISR patients had a history of smoking(P=0.005)and diabetes(P=0.028),and higher levels of glycosylated hemoglobin(HbA1c)(P=0.012),low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-c)(P=0.014),and hypersensitive C-reactive protein(hs-CRP)(P=0.027).The remaining projects did not show significant differences(all P＞0.05).The plasma level of Rap1A in the ISR group was significantly higher than that in the non-ISR group[942.14(873.28 to 1 133.81)μg/mL vs 886.93(812.61 to 930.98)μg/mL;P=0.004].Diabetes,LDL-c,and Rap1A were risk factors for ISR by univariate logistic regression analysis(all P＜0.05).The mRNA and protein expression levels of inflammatory factors IL-6 and VCAM-1 were increased in HUVECs after 10 ng/mL TNF-α treatment for 24 h compared with the control group(all P＜0.05),while the mRNA and protein levels of Rap1A were increased(both P＜0.05).After inhibition of Rap1A in HUVECs,the mRNA and protein expression levels of IL-6 and VCAM-1 were significantly decreased(all P＜0.05). Conclusion:The plasma Rap1A level was significantly elevated in patients with ISR,suggesting that Rap1A may be a potential biomarker for predicting ISR.In the TNF-α-induced HUVECs inflammatory injury model,the expression level of Rap1A was increased.The level of TNF-α-induced endothelial cell inflammation was decreased after inhibition of Rap1A expression,suggesting that Rap1A may be a potential target for the treatment of endothelial cell inflammation in ISR.

OBJECTIVES: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is one of the important methods for the treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD). In-sent restenosis (ISR) after PCI for patients suffered from CAD is considered to be an essential factor affecting long-term outcomes and prognosis of this disease. This study aims to investigate the correlation between plasma Quaking (QKI) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) levels and ISR in patients with CAD. METHODS: A total of 218 consecutive CAD patients who underwent coronary angiography and coronary arterial stenting from September 2019 to September 2020 in the Department of Cardiology of Xiangya Hospital of Central South University were enrolled in this study, and 35 matched individuals from the physical examination center were served as a control group. After admission, clinical data of these 2 groups were collected. Plasma QKI and COX-2 levels were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Follow-up angiography was performed 12 months after PCI. CAD patients were divided into a NISR group (n=160) and an ISR group (n=58) according to the occurrence of ISR based on the coronary angiography. The clinical data, coronary angiography, and stent features between the NISR group and the ISR group were compared, and multivariate logistic regression was used to explore the factors influencing ISR. The occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) 1 year after operation was recorded. Fifty-eight patients with ISR were divided into an MACE group (n=24) and a non-MACE group (n=34), classified according to the occurrence of MACE, and the plasma levels of QKI and COX-2 were compared between the 2 groups. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were utilized to analyze the diagnostic value of plamsa levels of QKI and COX-2 for ISR and MACE occurrences in patients after PCI. RESULTS: Compared with control group, plasma levels of QKI and COX-2 in the CAD group decreased significantly (all P<0.001). Compared with the NISR group, the plasma levels of QKI and COX-2 also decreased obviously in the ISR group (all P<0.001), while the levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbAlc) significantly increased (all P<0.001). The level of COX-2 was negatively correlated with hs-CRP (r=-0.385, P=0.003). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that high level of plasma QKI and COX-2 were protective factors for in-stent restenosis after PCI, while hs-CRP was a risk factor. ROC curve analysis showed that the sensitivity and specificity of plasma QKI for evaluating the predictive value of ISR were 77.5% and 66.5%, respectively, and the sensitivity and specificity of plasma COX-2 for evaluating the predictive value of ISR were 80.0% and 70.7%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of plasma QKI combined with COX-2 for evaluating the predictive value of ISR were 81.3% and 74.1%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of plasma QKI for evaluating the prognosis of ISR were 75.0% and 64.7%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of plasma COX-2 for evaluating the prognosis of ISR were 75.0% and 70.6%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of plasma QKI combined with COX-2 for prognostic evaluation of ISR were 81.7% and 79.4%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of plasma COX-2 combined with QKI for evaluating ISR and MACE occurrences in patients after PCI were better than those of COX-2 or QKI alone (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS High level of plasma QKI and COX-2 might be a protective factor for ISR, which can also predict ISR patient's prognosis.
C-Reactive Protein/analysis* ; Constriction, Pathologic/etiology* ; Coronary Angiography/adverse effects* ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Coronary Restenosis/therapy* ; Cyclooxygenase 2 ; Humans ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention/adverse effects* ; Risk Factors ; Stents/adverse effects*

Objective:To analyze the incidence and epidemiological characteristics of traumatic spinal cord injury in China in 2018.Methods:Multi-stage stratified cluster sampling was used to randomly select hospitals capable of treating patients with spinal cord injury from 3 regions，9 provinces and 27 cities in China to retrospectively investigate eligible patients with traumatic spinal cord injury admitted in 2018. National and regional incidence rates were calculated. The data of cause of injury，injury level，severity of injury，segment and type of fracture，complications，death and other data were collected by medical record questionnaire，and analyzed according to geographical region，age and gender.Results:Medical records of 4，134 patients were included in this study，with a male-to-female ratio of 2.99∶1. The incidence of traumatic spinal cord injury in China in 2018 was 50.484 / 1 million （95% CI 50.122-50.846）. The highest incidence in the Eastern region was 53.791 / 1 million （95% CI 53.217-54.365）. In the whole country，the main causes of injury were high falls （29.58%），as well as in the Western region （40.68%），while the main causes of injury in the Eastern and Central regions were traffic injuries （31.22%，30.10%）. The main injury level was cervical spinal cord in the whole country （64.49%），and the proportion of cervical spinal cord injury in the Central region was the highest （74.68%），and the proportion of lumbosacral spinal cord injury in the Western region was the highest （32.30%）. The highest proportion of degree of injury was incomplete quadriplegia （55.20%），and the distribution pattern was the same in each region. A total of 65.87% of the patients were complicated with fracture or dislocation，77.95% in the Western region and only 54.77% in the Central region. In the whole country，the head was the main combined injury （37.87%），as well as in the Eastern and Central regions，while the proportion of chest combined injury in the Western region was the highest （38.57%）. A total of 32.90% of the patients were complicated with respiratory complications. There were 23 patients （0.56%） died in hospital，of which 17（73.91%） died of respiratory dysfunction. Conclusions:The Eastern region of China has a high incidence of traumatic spinal cord injury. Other epidemiological features include high fall as the main cause of injury cervical spinal cord injury as the main injury level，incomplete quadriplegia as the main degree of injury，head as the main combined injury，and respiratory complications as the main complication.