An HPLC method has been developed to determine polydatin in giant knotweed rhizome. In order to systematically validate the method, specificity, precision, linearity of reference solution and test solution, repeatability, reproducibility, accuracy, stability and robustness were measured. In the robustness test, a one-variable-at-a-time procedure was applied to evaluate the influence of slight variations in method factors, including the flow rate, the column temperature, the extraction time, and etc., on the assay result of polydatin. No significant differences were found when the process parameters changed during the experimental domain. And system suitability test limits were defined based on the robustness test. Results showed that the developed method was accurate, reproducible and robust.

Objective:To compare the survival outcomes in patients of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) with brain-single metastasis and brain with organs-multiple metastasis.Methods:Using the US surveillance, epidemiology and final results database, 5 520 SCLC patients with complete clinical information from 2004 to 2015 were selected. SCLC patients were adjusted, stratified or matched according to the metastasis site after the stratification or matching of the propensity scores, and the lung cancer-specific survival (CSS) rate and overall survival (OS) rate were compared between brain-single metastasis group and brain with organs-multiple metastasis group. In addition, the effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in CSS between brain-single metastasis group and brain with organs-multiple metastasis group were compared.Results:Of the 5 520 SCLC patients, 2 658 cases was in the brain-single metastasis group, and 2 862 cases was in brain with organs-multiple metastasis group. After the stratification or matching of the propensity scores, the median survival time in brain-single metastasis group was significantly longer than that in brain with organs-multiple metastasis group (6 months vs. 4 months), and there was statistical difference ( P<0.05). The fatality rate in brain-single metastasis group was significantly lower than that in brain with organs-multiple metastasis group (80.66% vs. 85.96%), and there was statistical difference ( P<0.01). Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis result showed that the OS rate and CSS rate in brain-single metastasis group were significantly higher than those in brain with organs-multiple metastasis group (14.72% vs. 9.50% and 19.34% vs. 14.04%), and there were statistical differences ( P<0.05). Cox analysis result showed that age, race, T stage, gender, N stage, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, tumor diameter, marriage and metastasis were the influencing factors of CSS rate in SCLC patients with brain metastasis ( P<0.01 or <0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis result showed that radiotherapy and chemotherapy can significantly improve the CSS rate ( HR = 0.668 and 0.671, 95% CI 0.570 to 0.783 and 0.573 to 0.786, P < 0.01). Conclusions:The survival rate in SCLC patients with brain-single metastasis is higher than that of SCLC patients with brain with organs-multiple metastasis; chemotherapy and radiotherapy can improve the survival rate in SCLC patients with brain metastasis.

Objective To evaluate the survival and prognostic factors of esophageal cancer treated with definitive ( chemo ) radiotherapy by applying novel radiation techniques including three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3DCRT) or intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). Methods Clinical data of 2762 patients with non-operated esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who underwent definitive ( chemo ) radiotherapy from 2002 to 2016 in 10 hospitals were retrospectively analyzed.The prognostic factors were also identified and analyzed. Results The median follow-up time was 60. 8 months. The 1-, 2-, 3-and 5-year overall survival (OS) of all patients was 71. 4％,48. 9％,39. 3％,and 30. 9％,respectively.The 1-,2-,3-and 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) was 59.5％,41.5％,35.2％,and 30％,respectively.The median survival was 23 months.The median time to progression was 17. 2 months.Multivariate analysis demonstrated that age, primary tumor location, clinical stage, tumor target volume, EQD2 and treatment mode were the independent prognostic factors for OS.Primary tumor location,clinical stage,tumor target volume and EQD2 were the independent prognostic factors for PFS. Conclusions In this first large-scale multi-center retrospective analysis of definitive ( chemo) radiotherapy for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in China, the 5-year OS of patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma is significantly improved by 3DCRT, IMRT combined with chemotherapy drugs. However, the findings remain to be validated by prospective clinical trials with high-level medical evidence.

Gorham-Stout disease (GSD) is a sporadic chronic disease characterized by progressive bone dissolution, absorption, and disappearance along with lymphatic vessel infiltration in bone-marrow cavities. Although the osteolytic mechanism of GSD has been widely studied, the cause of lymphatic hyperplasia in GSD is rarely investigated. In this study, by comparing the RNA expression profile of osteoclasts (OCs) with that of OC precursors (OCPs) by RNA sequencing, we identified a new factor, semaphorin 3A (Sema3A), which is an osteoprotective factor involved in the lymphatic expansion of GSD. Compared to OCPs, OCs enhanced the growth, migration, and tube formation of lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs), in which the expression of Sema3A is low compared to that in OCPs. In the presence of recombinant Sema3A, the growth, migration, and tube formation of LECs were inhibited, further confirming the inhibitory effect of Sema3A on LECs in vitro. Using an LEC-induced GSD mouse model, the effect of Sema3A was examined by injecting lentivirus-expressing Sema3A into the tibiae in vivo. We found that the overexpression of Sema3A in tibiae suppressed the expansion of LECs and alleviated bone loss, whereas the injection of lentivirus expressing Sema3A short hairpin RNA (shRNA) into the tibiae caused GSD-like phenotypes. Histological staining further demonstrated that OCs decreased and osteocalcin increased after Sema3A lentiviral treatment, compared with the control. Based on the above results, we propose that reduced Sema3A in OCs is one of the mechanisms contributing to the pathogeneses of GSD and that expressing Sema3A represents a new approach for the treatment of GSD.
Animals ; Mice ; Endothelial Cells/metabolism* ; Lymphatic Vessels ; Osteoclasts/pathology* ; Osteolysis, Essential/pathology* ; Semaphorin-3A/metabolism*