ObjectiveTo investigate the association of the single nucleotide polymorphism （SNP） of the insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 （IGFBP3） gene at rs10225396 （A>G） locus with the susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma， as well as its potential molecular regulatory mechanisms， and to provide novel genetic biomarkers and a theoretical basis for early screening and precise targeted therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma. MethodsA total of 192 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who were admitted to The Affiliated Hospital of Yanbian University and Yanbian Cancer Hospital from January 2009 to August 2016 were enrolled as experimental group， and 190 healthy individuals who underwent physical examination in Physical Examination Center of Yanbian Hospital during the same period of time were enrolled as control group. Peripheral blood samples were collected from all subjects， and after DNA was extracted from whole blood， the DNA samples meeting quality standards were sent to Beijing Genomics Institute Research Center Co.， Ltd.， for Mass ARRAY mass spectrometry， while genotyping was completed. The independent-samples t test was used for comparison of continuous data between two groups， and the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between two groups. A binary Logistic regression model was used to analyze the association of the SNP of the IGFBP3 gene at rs10225396 locus with the susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma， and odds ratio （OR） and 95% confidence interval （CI） were calculated to assess the risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma in individuals carrying different genotypes. ResultsThere were two alleles （G and A） at the rs10225396 locus of the IGFBP3 gene， yielding the three genotypes of AA， AG， and GG， and its genotype distribution was consistent with the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium （χ²=0.072， P=0.789）. The stratified genetic analysis showed that carriers of the IGFBP3 rs10225396 AA genotype had a significant increased risk of hepatocellular carcinoma among individuals of age <63 years， male sex， smoking history， drinking history， and the Chinese Korean population （all P<0.001）. The binary Logistic regression analysis showed that after adjustment for related risk factors in the codominant model， the population with genotype AG and GG had a significant reduction in the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma compared with the population with genotype AA （P<0.001）， and in the dominant model， the population with genotype AG+GG had a significant reduction in the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma compared with the population with genotype AA （P<0.001）. ConclusionThrough a genotyping analysis of hepatocellular carcinoma patients and healthy individuals in Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture of Jilin Province， China， this study shows that genotype AA at rs10225396 locus of the IGFBP3 gene is significantly associated with the susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma， and this genotype can significantly increase the risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma with the presence of specific risk factors， which provides a potential genetic marker for early screening and precise treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Purpose: Our previous study showed that circulating tumor cell (CTC) count combined with gene mutation detection might help differentiate benign and malignant pulmonary nodules (PNs). Herein, we aimed to expand the study cohort and conduct further sequencing analysis. Materials and Methods: Patients with PNs were included, and CTCs were identified before operation. Low-coverage whole-genome sequencing (LC-WGS) and lung cancer-related targeted gene sequencing were performed on CTCs. The diagnostic efficacy was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The differences in CTC counts among subgroups classified by demographic–clinical characteristics were analyzed. LC-WGS–based copy number variation (CNV) analysis and targeted gene mutation analysis were conducted. Results: A total of 172 patients were included. CTC count of 2.5 was identified by the ROC curves as the optimal diagnostic cutoff. The sensitivity and specificity of CTC count for differentiating benign and malignant PNs were 54.2% and 78.6%, respectively. The diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of combined CTC count, radiological nodule type, and any malignant imaging features were 84.7% and 71.4%, respectively. The CTC counts were significantly greater in patients with aggressive tumors, later stage, and spread through air spaces. CTCs from malignant cases had more CNVs than those from benign cases. Conclusion CTC count can be used in identifying malignant PNs. The diagnostic efficacy can be improved if combined with computed tomography imaging characteristics. Further CNV analysis might help differential diagnosis. Greater CTC count might suggest more aggressive tumors. CTC detection can provide important information and guidance for subsequent management of PNs.

Background/Aims: Biliary tract cancer (BTC) frequently harbors KRAS mutations, which are associated with resistance to traditional treatment and a poor prognosis. Synthetic lethality (SL) strategy may provide other targets of KRAS. Therefore, we aim to identify and validate potential therapeutic targets of KRAS for the treatment of BTC via SL. Methods: The dependency (DepMap) projects were used to predict the synthetic lethal gene of KRAS. FDA-approved anticancer drug library was applied to screen potential drugs effective against KRAS-mutant BTC. Furthermore, the synthetic lethal effects or corresponding mechanisms of potential genes and drugs on BTC were investigated using KRAS-mutant and KRAS-wild type BTC cell lines, patient-derived xenografts (PDX), and KRAS oncogene-driven tumor models, as well as other KRAS-mutant cancer cell lines. Results: Initially, we discovered that the loss of GATA2 reduced the viability of KRAS-mutant but not KRAS-wild-type BTC. Subsequently, the drug library screened out disulfiram, which primarily exerts a synthetic lethal effect by inhibiting interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in KRAS-mutant BTC. Mechanistically, GATA2 specifically enhanced the transcription of IL-1β to promote NF-κB signaling in KRAS-mutant BTC. IL-1β inhibition phenocopied GATA2 deficiency, leading to reduced KRAS-mutant BTC viability. These synthetically lethal effects were confirmed using PDX, a KRAS oncogene-driven tumor model, as well as in other KRAS-mutant cancer cell lines. Conclusions In summary, these results indicate that inhibiting GATA2/IL1β could be a therapeutic strategy in KRAS-mutant BTC and potentially other cancers.

Objective To develop a questionnaire for measuring the legal legitimacy of occupational health managers among enterprises, and to evaluate its reliability and validity. Methods Based on the theory of subjective procedural justice, an item pool for the Questionnaire on the Legal Legitimacy of Enterprise Occupational Health Managers was constructed through literature review and policy screening, database collation, and expert interviews. The Delphi method was used to conduct two rounds of expert consultation with 37 experts, and the questionnaire item pool was adjusted and refined based on the experts' opinions to determine the final version of the questionnaire. A total of 317 occupational health managers were selected using a random number table method to complete the questionnaire survey. The data were then used to evaluate its reliability and validity. Results The questionnaire response rates for the two rounds of expert consultation were 94.6% and 100.0%, respectively. The expert authority coefficient was 0.82, and Kendall's W coefficients of concordance were 0.16 and 0.23, respectively (both P<0.001). The final version of Questionnaire on the Legal Legitimacy of Enterprise Occupational Health Managers consists of four dimensions (legal statement, law enforcement, social environment, and obligation to comply with the law) with a total of 21 items. The Cronbach's α coefficients for the overall questionnaire and its four dimensions were 0.96, 0.97, 0.98, 0.70, and 0.91, respectively (all >0.70). The corrected item-total correlation for each item was >0.50. The results of confirmatory factor analysis indicated that all fit indices met good fit standards: 􀱽 ²/df ratio = 2.85, goodness-of-fit index = 0.917, adjusted goodness-of-fit index = 0.905, comparative fit index = 0.933, Tucker-Lewis index = 0.909, root mean square error of approximation = 0.056, and standardized root mean square residual = 0.059. The composite reliabilities for the four dimensions were 0.97, 0.98, 0.63, and 0.89, respectively. The average variance extracted values were 0.73, 0.91, 0.45, and 0.73, respectively. Conclusion The newly developed Questionnaire on the Legal Legitimacy of Enterprise Occupational Health Managers demonstrates good reliability and validity, with strong scientific rigor and robustness. It can be used as a measurement tool for assessing the legal legitimacy of occupational disease prevention and control laws and regulations among enterprise occupational health managers.

Objective:To evaluate the value of ultrasound radiomics combined with machine learning for early diagnosis of seronegative Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (SN-HT) .Methods:This retrospective study included 164 patients from Liaoning Provincial People’s Hospital , Lixin County People’s Hospital, Linghai Dalinghe Hospital, Fengcheng Phoenix Hospital, who underwent thyroidectomy for solitary nodules with normal thyroid function between Nov. 2016 and Jan. 2024. Postoperative pathology confirmed Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) in some cases, who were further categorized into antibody-positive and antibody-negative groups based on serum antibody status. Patients without Hashimoto’s thyroiditis served as the control group. A total of 298 ultrasound images were analyzed. Radiomics features were extracted from hypoechoic non-nodular areas within 0.5 cm surrounding the tumor. Two senior pathologists and two senior ultrasound physicians independently assessed lymphocytic infiltration, eosinophilic changes of follicular epithelium, and the proportion of hypoechoic areas in pathology and ultrasound images, respectively. A machine learning model, CCH-NET, was developed using linear regression and t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (t-SNE) techniques. The dataset was divided into a training set (80%) and a validation set (20%) to compare the diagnostic accuracy of CCH-NET with that of senior ultrasound physicians. Results:In internal validation, CCH-NET achieved a diagnostic accuracy of 88.89% for both antibody-positive and antibody-negative groups, significantly higher than the 66.67% accuracy of senior ultrasound physicians ( P<0.01). In external validation, CCH-NET achieved 75.00% and 66.67% accuracy for the two groups, compared to 50.00% by senior ultrasound physicians. For the control group, both methods achieved 93.33% accuracy. The AUC of CCH-NET was 0.848, outperforming senior ultrasound physicians (0.681) ,demonstrating superior diagnostic performance. Conclusion:The radiomics-based CCH-NET model, using non-nodular hypoechoic areas as a specific indicator, can accurately identify early SN-HT in euthyroid patients. It significantly outperforms senior ultrasound physicians, improving diagnostic accuracy and reducing missed diagnoses.

Objective:To verify and compare the correlation and diagnostic efficacy of international bowel ultrasound segmental activity score（IBUS-SAS），bowel ultrasound score（BUSS），simple ultrasound score for Crohn's disease（SUS-CD），and simple ultrasound score（Simple-US）with endoscopic disease activity in Crohn's disease（CD）patients. To provide external validation of the diagnostic efficacy of intestinal ultrasound（IUS）score and theoretical basis for clinical selection of optimal IUS score.Methods:A total of 160 patients with clinical diagnosis of CD combined with IUS and intestinal endoscopy were retrospectively analyzed in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine from January 2022 to August 2024. IUS parameters were measured and scored with IBUS-SAS，SUS-CD，BUSS and Simple-US scores. Endoscopic SES-CD was used to evaluate intestinal disease activity in patients without history of intestinal resection，and Rutgeerts score was used to evaluate intestinal disease activity in patients with history of intestinal resection. Endoscopic remission in patients with CD was defined as SES-CD < 3 or Rutgeerts score i0 and i1，mild endoscopic disease activity was defined as 7 > SES-CD≥3 or Rutgeerts score = 2，moderate endoscopic disease activity was defined as 15 > SES-CD≥7 or Rutgeerts score i3，severe endoscopic disease activity was defined as SES-CD≥15 or Rutgeerts i4. The correlation and diagnostic efficacy of IBUS-SAS，SUS-CD，BUSS and Simple-US scores with endoscopic disease activity in patients with CD were compared and analyzed.Results:IUS scores including IBUS-SAS，SUS-CD，BUSS and Simple-US were significantly correlated with endoscopic intestinal disease activity，SES-CD and Rutgeerts scores in CD patients（ r s = 0.706，0.492，0.502，0.526；0.825，0.581，0.584，0.603；0.541，0.434，0.437，0.467；all P＜0.05）. Among them，IBUS-SAS showed better correlation than the other three IUS scores. ROC curve showed that IBUS-SAS，SUS-CD，BUSS，and Simple-US had high predictive values for endoscopic disease activity and endoscopic disease moderate-severe activity in patients with CD（AUC = 0.886，0.748，0.730，0.756；all P＜0.05）. The diagnostic efficacy of IBUS-SAS on the presence of endoscopic disease activity in patients with CD was significantly higher than those of the other three IUS scores . Conclusions:IBUS-SAS，SUS-CD，BUSS and Simple-US are significantly correlated with the endoscopic results of on intestinal disease activity of CD，and have high predictive values for intestinal disease activity status，among which IBUS-SAS is superior to the other three IUS scores. It is recommended that IBUS-SAS be used first to evaluate intestinal disease activity in patients with CD.

Objective:To evaluate the value of multi-slice spiral CT (MSCT) in the diagnosis of liver metastases with rich blood supply.Methods:The clinical data and imaging data of 19 patients with liver metastases with rich blood supply admitted to the 921st Hospital of the Joint Logistics Support Force of Chinese People′s Liberation Army from September 2018 to September 2023 were retrospectively analyzed, and the number, location, shape, size of the lesions and the images of CT plain scan and dynamic enhanced scan were analyzed.Results:Among the 19 patients, there were 18 multiple cases and 1 single case. A total of 108 lesions were found. There were 62 cases (57.4%) in the right lobe of liver and 87 cases (80.6%) in the peripheral part of liver. The form of circular or quasi-circular, there were 99, irregular shape or lobed 9. The focal diameter was 0.6-6.8 cm. CT plain scan showed that 99 lesions showed slightly low density, and the other 9 lesions showed equal density relative to the background liver. In the dynamic enhanced scan, 108 lesions in arterial stage showed high-density enhancement, 97 lesions showed circular enhancement, and 11 lesions showed nodular enhancement. Among them, 77 lesions had moderate to obvious intensification density. Of the 108 lesions in the portal vein stage, 31 lesions showed moderate to obvious enhancement density, 49 lesions showed slightly low clearance density, and 28 lesions showed continuous enhancement density. In the delayed stage, all 108 lesions showed slightly low density.Conclusions:The main features of liver metastases with rich blood supply are: low density on plain CT scan, annular or nodular enhancement in the arterial phase of enhanced CT scan, and the peak of enhanced density can be in the arterial phase or the portal vein phase. Combined with clinical data, CT can make a correct diagnosis.

BACKGROUND:Circadian rhythms are closely related to the life activities of most mammals and insects.Timless gene plays a crucial role in the generation of circadian rhythms as key components encoding the Timeless/Period gene complex.However,its specific mechanism in circadian rhythms is still unclear.OBJECTIVE:To study the relationship between Timless protein gene,Period gene,circadian rhythm,environment and cryptochrome gene,so as to have a more comprehensive understanding of the nucleation and accumulation mechanism of circadian cycle and the influence of environment on circadian rhythm.METHODS:Literature retrieval was conducted in the Web of science Core Collection database,PubMed and CNKI,and the relevant literature was searched,consulted and screened after the keyword was set as"Timless,Period,circadian rhythm,environment"in English and Chinese.Non-relevant literature was progressively excluded through full-text reading,and 126 papers were finally included for the review.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:In the circadian clock,the circadian spontaneous output of the cyclins kaput and CYCLE activate the Timeless/Period gene,Timeless gene regulates the nucleation mechanism and stability of Period gene,and Period gene can also be nucleated individually by a number of mechanisms.Casein kinase 2,Shaggy protein kinase and double time genes can regulate circadian rhythms and participate in transcription by phosphorylating Timeless gene/Period gene.Cryptochrome gene-mediated degradation of Timeless gene has a very important role in transcriptional integrity.External factors such as environmental factors and dietary patterns can influence circadian rhythms through the Timeless gene/Period gene.Interestingly,time-restricted eating can be used as an effective way to improve circadian rhythm disturbances.

Objective:To investigate the safety and efficacy of flow diverter (FD) in the treatment of middle cerebral artery (MCA) dissection aneurysms.Methods:Patients with MCA dissection aneurysm received FD treatment at the Department of Neurosurgery, Jinjiang Hospital and the Cerebrovascular Disease Center of the First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University from January 2021 to December 2023 were included retrospectively. The success rate of procedure, incidence of complications, occlusion rate of aneurysms, and clinical outcome were evaluated.Results:A total of 23 patients were included, with a success rate of 100% for FD implantation and a periprocedural complication rate of 8.7%. Nineteen patients (82.6%) completed angiography follow-up within an average of 7.2 months, of which the aneurysms of 16 patients (84.2%) were completely occluded, 3 (15.8%) were partial occluded, and 2 (10.5%) experienced in-stent restenosis; 14 (73.7%) showed stenosis of covered branch openings, of which 2 (10.5%) had branch occlusions, with no relevant clinical symptoms. The median clinical follow-up time was 23.2 months, with 95.7% of patients achieving good outcome (modified Rankin scale score ≤2).Conclusion:FD is safe and effective in the treatment of MCA dissection aneurysms, and precise device selection and release is the key to improving procedural safety.