Objective: To prepare self micro-emulsifying drug delivery system (SMEDDS) of tectorigenin (TG), and investigate its dissolution. Methods: The formulation was optimized using Design Expert based on D-optimal design. The microemulsion's physicochemical and in vitro dissolution were evaluated after self-microemulsification. Results: The particle size and Zeta potential of the final formulation were (14.95 ± 0.31) nm and (-12.53 ± 0.80) mV after it was diluted by 10 times with pure water. The microemulsion appeared to be spheres with homogeneous size, which can be observed through a transmission electron microscope. The drug loading capacity was 20 mg/g, and the average content was (99.03 ± 0.70)%. The results of in vitro dissolution study showed that the accumulative dissolution could be close to 100% after 10 min in both hydrochloric acid solution (pH 1.2) and PBS (pH 6.8). Conclusion: D-optimal design could be used to optimize the formulations of TG-SMEDDS successfully. The TG-SMEDDS exhibits a larger accumulation dissolution than TG. This formulation would be easier absorbed through gastrointestinal tract compared to TG. The results of this study are expected to offer data support and reference for the TG's formulation design and clinical application.

Objective： To observe the effect of Qingkailing (QKL) on brain damage induced by glutamate, in order to seek for effective drugs for antagonizing neurotoxicity of glutamate. Methods：The number and morphological metrology of neurocytes in cerebral cortex and hippocampus were detected by MIAS-300 image analyser, electron microscope and immunohistochemical methods. Results：QKL could alleviate the glutamate induced accumulation of water and sodium in brain tissue，relieve the metrological and structural damage of cerebral cells in cortex and hippocampus, reduce the percentage of c-fos positive cell in brain. Conclusion： QKL could protect brain damage induced by glutamate, which might be related to the inhibition of QKL on the enhancement of c-fos gene expression induced by glutamate.

OBJECTIVETo study the changes of minimal residual disease (MRD) in children with B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) of different genetic abnormalities.

METHODSBetween February 2004 and April 2013, 271 newly diagnosed B-ALL pediatric patients who had finished the induction chemotherapy were enrolled in the study. The characteristics of changes in MRD in patients with different genetic abnormalities on the 15th day and at the end of the induction therapy were analyzed.

RESULTSOn the 15th day of the induction chemotherapy, the MRD positive proportion in patients with hyperdiploid was higher on all the three cut-off levels of MRD≥0.1%, 1% and 10% compared to patients without hyperdiploid (P<0.05), but there was no significant difference in the MRD positive proportion on the three levels of MRD between the TEL-AML1-positive and TEL-AML1-negative groups (P>0.05). On the end of induction chemotherapy, there was no significant difference in the MRD positive proportion on the three levels of MRD between the patients with and without hyperdiploid (P>0.05), neither between the BCR-ABL-positive and negative groups. The MRD positive proportion in TEL-AML1-negative patients was significantly higher than in TEL-AML1-positive patients on all three levels of MRD (P<0.05). The MRD positive proportion on two levels of MRD≥0.01% and 0.1% in E2A-PBX1-negative patients was significantly higher than in E2A-PBX1-positive patients (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSChildren with B-ALL of different genetic abnormalities have different MRD levels during, and at the end of, induction therapy. The prognostic significance of MRD may be related to the genetic abnormalities.

Adolescent ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Induction Chemotherapy ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Neoplasm, Residual ; genetics ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma ; drug therapy ; genetics

This study was aimed to detect the expression level of cmtm 5 (CKLF-like MARVEL transmembrane domain containing member 5) gene in the bone marrow cells from patients with multiple myeloma (MM), and to investigate the correlation between the expression level of cmtm5 and various clinical characteristics. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RQ-RT-PCR) was used to measure the expression levels of cmtm5 gene in the bone marrow cells collected from MM patients, and the MM cell lines, namely, RPMI8226 and CZ1 cells. The normal donor marrow specimens were used as the reference. The ratio of cmtm5 copy number to abl (Abelson murine leukemia viral oncogene homolog) gene copy number was used for indicating the expression level. The results showed that the expression level of cmtm5 gene was significantly down-regulated in bone marrow cells of 51 untreated or relapsed/refractory MM patient as compared to those of normal donor marrow cells (0.047+/-0.062 for the untreated or relapsed/refractory MM patients versus 0.255+/-0.333 for the normal, p<0.01). According to the International Staging System (ISS), the cmtm5 expression level in marrow cells of patients in ISS III stage was significantly lower than that in patients in ISS I stage (0.034+/-0.034 for the ISS III stage versus 0.103+/-0.109 for ISSI stage, p<0.01). Similarly, lower expression levels of cmtm5 gene were also found in two human MM cell lines (0.014+/-0.009 for RPMI8226 cells and 0.004+/-0.006 for CZ1 cells). After the MM patients were effectively treated, their expression levels of cmtm5 gene significantly increased (0.020+/-0.005 for the untreated patients versus 0.227+/-0.038 for the effectively treated patients, p<0.01). A significant negative correlation was observed between the expression level of cmtm5 gene and the number of bone marrow plasma cells (r=-0.307, p<0.05). However, the correlation was not found between the expression level of cmtm5 gene and the clinical characteristics, such as gender, age, hemoglobin level, or M-protein level, etc. It is concluded that the expression level of cmtm5 gene is abnormally lower in the bone marrow cells from the MM patients, and are associated with ISS stages. Furthermore, the expression level of cmtm5 gene is negatively correlated with the number of bone marrow abnormal plasma cells in MM patients, which suggests that the abnormally lower expression of cmtm5 may be involved in the pathogenesis of the MM patients.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bone Marrow Cells ; metabolism ; pathology ; Case-Control Studies ; Chemokines ; genetics ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; MARVEL Domain-Containing Proteins ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multiple Myeloma ; metabolism ; pathology ; Neoplasm Staging ; Tumor Suppressor Proteins ; genetics ; metabolism ; Young Adult

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to subdivide M1 stage nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients with bone-only metastases for prognosis prediction while identifying the treatment effect of locoregional radiotherapy (LRRT) and metastasis radiotherapy (MRT) among patients with different risk. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From November 2006 to October 2016, a total of 226 patients with bone-only metastasic NPC were retrospectively enrolled. All patients developed distant lesions before receiving treatment. All potential prognostic factors were considered and the correlation of the M1 subdivisions with overall survival (OS) was determined by Cox regression hazards model. Kaplan–Meier curves were used to appraise survival condition and log-rank testing was used to compare the differences. RESULTS: The median follow-up time was 33.9 months (range, 3 to 126 months). According to multivariate Cox proportional hazard analysis, the number of metastatic lesions and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA status after palliative chemotherapy (PCT) were independent prognostic factors for OS. Thus, we subdivided patients into three risk groups according to these two factors. Systemic chemotherapy combined with LRRT may benefit patients in low- and intermediate-risk groups but not in the high-risk group. Further aggressive MRT based on systemic chemotherapy showed no survival benefit in any risk group. CONCLUSION: The stratification of NPC patients with bone-only metastasis based on EBV DNA after PCT and the number of metastatic lesions provided promising prognostic value and could aid clinicians in person-specific treatment.
Diagnosis ; DNA ; Drug Therapy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Herpesvirus 4, Human ; Humans ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Radiotherapy ; Retrospective Studies

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the survival trends and patterns of failure in patients with stage II nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) treated with radiotherapy (RT) and chemotherapy over the last 20 years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-eight hundred and eight patients diagnosed with stage II NPC between January 1990 and December 2012 were involved in this retrospective cohort study. All patients were treated with RT. According to the main imaging techniques and RT technology, we categorized these patients into four calendar periods: 1990-1996, 1997-2002, 2003-2007, and 2008-2012. Overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), locoregional relapse-free survival (LRFS), and distant metastasis–free survival (DMFS) were served as the clinical outcome. RESULTS: After a median follow-up period of 84.7 months, we observed increasing trends in survival and disease control. The 3- and 5-year OS rates increased from 87.1% and 78.7% in the first calendar period to 97.4% and 94.5% in the last calendar period, respectively (p<0.001). Additionally, significant increasing trends could be seen in the PFS and LRFS during the four calendar periods. In the subgroup analysis, the LRFS in patients older than 50 years at diagnosis showed greater improvement than younger patients. However, the rate of distant metastasis was stable and relatively low, as the 5-year DMFS ranged from 90.5% to 94.7% among the four calendar periods. CONCLUSION: The survival rates in patients with stage II NPC showed increasing trends from 1990 to 2012. The advance of RT provided excellent locoregional control and enhanced OS.
Cohort Studies ; Diagnosis ; Disease-Free Survival ; Drug Therapy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; Radiotherapy ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate

Objective:Central nervous system leukemia(CNSL)is one of the main causes of recurrence and death in patients with acute leukemia.This study aims to dynamically monitor minimal residual disease(MRD)in cerebrospinal fluid and bone marrow of patients with different types of acute leukemia by flow cytometry(FCM),and to compare the timeliness and consistency of MRD detection between the 2 methods to further explore the application value of monitoring MRD in cerebrospinal fluid. Methods:A total of 199 patients with acute leukemia admitted to the Guangdong Provincial people's Hospital between October 2018 and January 2022 were retrospectively analyzed,and multiparametric FCM method was adopted to summarize and analyze MRD in cerebrospinal fluid of patients with different types of leukemia and MRD in cerebrospinal fluid and bone marrow specimens of the same patients,and its role in assessing the prognostic value of patients was discussed. Results:Among the 199 acute leukemia cases,a total of 31 cases(15.58%)were positive MRD in the cerebrospinal fluid,of which 18 cases(58%)were detected earlier than the corresponding bone marrow specimens.Among the 19 patients with acute T lymphoblastic leukemia,134 patients with acute B lymphoblastic leukemia,and 46 patients with acute myeloid leukemia counted,there were 4,18,and 9 patients with positive MRD in the cerebrospinal fluid.The Kappa value of the concordance test between the results of cerebrospinal fluid MRD and bone marrow MRD in different types of acute leukemia was only 0.156,demonstrating a low concordance between them. Conclusion:Dynamic monitoring of cerebrospinal fluid MRD by FCM can be used as a monitoring index for central nervous system leukemia,and monitoring cerebrospinal fluid can detect MRD earlier compared with bone marrow,which complements each other as a sensitive index for evaluating prognosis with significant guidance in clinic.

Ellagitannins is a kind of phenolic compounds with many biological activities. Recent studies have found that the effective ingredients of these compounds have close relationship with their colon-derived bacteria metabolites, that is urolithins. The objective of this study was to review the structure characteristics, types and distribution of urolithins, improvement in diseases related to prostate, breast and colon, as well as anti-cancer, anti-oxidation, anti-inflammation and other biological activities. The present review will lay the foundation for development and utilization of urolithins.

OBJECTIVE： To investigate the characteristics and regularity of gestational （including perinatal period） adverse drug reactions （ADR） in Sichuan province， and to provide evidence for ensuring the safety and effectiveness of drug use in clinic. METHODS： Gestational ADR reported to Sichuan provincial ADR monitoring center from Nov. 2016 to Nov. 2017 were statistically analyzed in respects of report source， personnel distribution， general information of patients， route of administration， drug types and main drugs， involved system/organ， grading and outcome， etc. RESULTS： A total of 1 309 gestational ADR cases   （1 340 case time） were collected， in which 1 305 were from medical institutions， 3 from enterprises and 1 from manufacturer. There were 986 physicians， 188 nurses， 133 pharmacists and 2 commissioners for drug safety. 859 cases （65.62％） were 21-30 years old， accounting for the largest proportion. 867 case time were caused by intravenous administration （64.70％）. ADR-inducing drug types mainly included reproductive system drugs （491 case time， 36.64％）， antimicrobial drugs （479 case time， 35.75％） and blood system drugs （110 case time， 8.21％）. Main of them were Carboprost tromethamine injection （187 case time， 13.96％）， Cefazolin sodium for injection （122 case time， 9.10％） and Oxytocin injection （105 case time， 7.84％）. ADR mainly involved skin and its appendants （517 case time， 33.95％）， gastrointestinal system （387 case time， 25.41％）， whole body （175 case time， 11.49％）.  In 1 309 gestational ADR， 1 251 cases （95.57％） were general ADR； 58 cases （4.43％） were severe ADR， including 14 life-threatening cases， 7 extended hospital stay and 37 others； 592 （45.22％） patients improved， 716 （54.70％） recovered and 1 （0.08％） did not improve. CONCLUSIONS： In clinical practice， it is necessary to strengthen the monitoring of drug use in patients during gestational， especially monitor ADR of uterine contraction drugs and antimicrobial drugs during gestational， use drug cautiously and promote clinical medication safety in gestational patients.