Objective: Autologous lymph nodes fragmentary transplantation combined with vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C) on athymic nude mice to explore the association between regeneration of lymphatic vessel and tumor cell migration. Methods: A total of 45 nude mice were randomly divided into 3 groups: Group A, simple autologous lymph nodes fragmentary transplantation, n=15; Group B, autologous lymph nodes fragmentary transplantation together with VEGF-C, n=15; Group C, without any intervention, n=15. At 1 month, 2 months and 6months after surgeries, the axillary lymph nodes of 5 mice in each group were dynamically examined by in vivo indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence imaging respectively. The regenerated lymph nodes and relevant skin were evaluated using hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining and the skin was quantitatively analyzed via immunofluorescence staining for lymphatic vessel endothelial hyaluronan receptor 1(LYVE-1) as well. Results: One month after surgery, the right regenerated axillary lymph nodes in group B (5/5) were visible by in vivo ICG fluorescence imaging, whereas the same signals were not detected in group A (0/5). The results were the same at 2 and 6 months after surgery. HE staining showed that the cortical, paracortical, and medullary regions of the right axillary lymph nodes of the experimental group B were clear, and the lymphatic vessel structure was present, accompanied by lymphocyte infiltration. Immunofluorescence staining of the right upper limb showed that the expression of LYVE-1 in the lymphatic endothelium of the B group was significantly higher than that in group A (P<0.001) and the control group (both P<0.001). Conclusions Due to the promising consequence of regenerated lymph nodes, the procedure of autologous lymph nodes fragmentary transplantation combined with VEGF-C in athymic nude mice provides a reliable animal model for the next stage research.

As emerging digital technologies, virtual reality and augmented reality technology have been widely and deeply applied in the medical field, especially in plastic surgery. This paper reviewed the development of virtual reality and augmented reality technology, indispensable components in realization process of virtual reality and augmented reality technology in plastic surgery as well as applications in preoperative planning, intraoperative navigation, surgical training of plastic surgery. At last, there is a summary of the applications, deficiencies and the future direction of virtual reality and augmented reality technology in plastic surgery.