Objective To estimate the gene mutation and the protein expression of v-Raf murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B1 (BRAF) in esophageal cancer.Methods From February 2014 to September 2015,75 patients with esophageal cancer who received operation were enrolled.Tissues of cancer,adjacent to cancer and far from cancer were taken.The mutation and protein expression of BRAF were detected.The relationship between BRAF protein positive expression and clinical characteristics of patients with esophageal cancer was analyzed.The enumeration data was compared by chi-square test.Results The mutation of exon 11 and exon 15 of gene BRAF was not found in the tissues of esophageal cancer.Among 75 esophageal cancer,a base C or T inserted in the exon 11 was found in five Ⅲb TNM stage cases,and the expression of BRAF at protein level was positive in 46 cases (61.3％).Among 57 tissues adjacent to cancer,nine cases (15.8 ％) was BRAF positive at protein level.Among 75 tissues far from cancer,five(6.7％) was BRAF positive at protein level.The difference among three groups was statistically significant (x2 =61.098,P＜0.05).The positive rates of BRAF expression at protein level in patients with esophageal cancer at Ⅰ,Ⅱ and Ⅲ TNM stage were 21.7％ (5/23),70.8％ (17/24) and 85.7 ％ (24/28),respectively.The positive rates of BRAF expression at protein level in patients with and without lymph node metastasis were 81.6％ (31/38) and 40.5％ (15/37).The positive expression of BRAF at protein level was related with TNM stage and lymph node metastasis (x2 =23.136 and 13.313,both P＜0.01),however it was not related with gender,age and the degree of tumor differentiation (all P＞0.05).Conclusions There is base insertion in the exon 11 of gene BRAF in esophageal cancer,but gene mutation is not found.BRAF is highly expressed in esophageal cancer,which is related with TNM stage and lymph node metastasis,and BRAF could be an indicator of assessment of degree of malignancy and prognosis of esophageal cancer.

Cell culture is one of the usual methods for studying living cell and tissue, the method presented in this paper is based on image processing and analyzing technology for activity estimation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). The existing activity estimation methods are costly, complex and invasive. In this method, thresholding is used to preprocess image and to separate out the growth hallow. Then the area is calculated by counting the pixels of the growth hallow. The changes of the activity estimated by this method are similar to those by corresponding cellular experiments. Compared with the existing methods in biology, medicine or medical cellular science, this method is easier, faster, cost-effective and non-invasive. The proposed method has been proved to be efficient by primary experiments of MSCs.
Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Femur ; cytology ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted ; methods ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; cytology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Objective To investigate the mandibular incisive canal (MIC)with cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT).Methods Fifty adults were selected and CBCT was taken.The CBCT data were reconstructed to evaluate the visibility,shape,diameter,length of the MIC and its relationship with mandible.Results MIC could be identified in 100％(100/100) of CBCT with good clarity in 71％ (71/100).The diameters (horizontal diameter versus vertical diameter) of MIC became smaller from origin to end (left origin of MIC was 2.17 mm×2.22 mm,left end was 0.82 mm×0.92 mm;right origin of MIC was 2.14 mm× 2.08 mm,right end was 0.87 mm×0.86 mm).The left and right mean length of MIC was 17.84 mm and 17.73 mm respectively.In bucca-lingual direction,MIC was close to buccal cortical border,and in vertical direction,MIC was close to lower margin of mandible.The distance from MIC to apex of root was shortest in canine.Conclusions CBCT can identify MIC with high visibility and prominent clarity.In the interforaminal region of mandible,MIC was close to buccal and lower margin of mandible.

Objective To investigate associations between three-dimensional(3D)morphology of cervical vertebrae and skeletal mat-uration by cone-beam computed tomography(CBCT)and establish corresponding regression models for quantitatively evaluating cervical vertebral maturation(CVM).Methods The analyzed sample consisted of 358 CBCT images(175 male,183 female),of which 277 images were randomly selected as the model development group and 81 as the performance test group.Twenty-one 3D morphological pa-rameters were defined and measured,incorporating all parts of the cervical vertebrae,including the cervical vertebral bodies,transverse processes,spinous processes,pedicles,lamina,and articular processes.The cervical vertebral maturation index(CVMI)was determined by experienced orthodontists as reference standard.Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and multivariable stepwise regression analysis were used to identify the associations and build regression models.The performance test group was employed to ex-amine each model's reliability.Paired-samples Wilcoxon signed-rank test compared the CVMI of the model prediction with the reference standard.Results Three-dimensional morphological changes in various parts of the cervical vertebrae correlated with CVMI(P＜0.05).Six 3D morphometric parameters were each recognized for male and female models,three of which were identical.The adjusted R2 was 0.899 for males and 0.902 for females,with corresponding accuracies of 85.0%and 85.4%,respectively.These models showed no difference as compared with the reference standard(P＞0.05).Con-clusion New associations were found between 3D morphology of cer-vical vertebrae and skeletal maturation.The 3D-driven morphometric CVM assessment method and corresponding regression models exhibited good credibility and high consistency with experts.

With advancements in radiology,endoscopic techniques,surgical treatments,cell biology and molecular biology,the un-derstanding of temporomandibular disorders(TMD)has increased.The temporomandibular joint(TMJ)is a complex structure comprising both soft and hard tissues.Within the TMJ,the temporomandibular disc is a soft tissue structure that connects the mandible to the skull,providing cushioning and stability during joint movement.Different imaging techniques have their own advantages and limi-tations in the diagnosis and treatment of TMD.Therefore,using image registration technology to assess the condition and position of the articular disc provides new research perspectives for evaluating TMD,which may contribute to the diagnosis and treatment.This article reviews the latest advancements in TMJ imaging,explores the applications of various image registration techniques,particularly in the context of TMD diagnosis and treatment,and discusses future prospects.Combining the research results of some scholars at home and a-broad with the author’s clinical experience,the article aims to provide valuable insights for clinicians.