Objective:To explore the survival and prognostic factors of a long-course venetoclax-based(VEN-based)regimen in patients with de novo acute myeloid leukemia(AML)and provide evidence for the maintenance treatment of AML.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted in patients who received a VEN-based regimen and completed at least four courses of efficacy evaluation at The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University from May 2021 to January 2024.The composite complete response rate(cCR),minimal residual disease(MRD)-negative rate,overall survival(OS)time,relapse-free survival(RFS)time,and adverse events were analyzed.Results:Overall,30 newly diagnosed patients with AML were enrolled in this study.The median age was 65(range,53-78)years,and the median number of treat-ment cycles was 7(range,4-20)years.After one cycle,the CR-and MRD-negative rates were 80.0%and 63.3%,respectively.The cumulative cCR was 96.7%,and MRD negative rate was 80.0%,respectively.The median follow-up time was 21.3(95%confidence intervals 14.7-27.9)months.The median OS time was 32.3 months and RFS time was not reached.The 2-year OS and RFS rates were 70.6%and 54.8%,respect-ively.Univariate analysis suggested that ELN2017 risk stratification and relapse status affected RFS and OS(P<0.05).However,the multivari-ate analysis failed to reveal any relationship between these factors and survival(P>0.05).In terms of safety,hematological adverse events were the most common,followed by infections.Overall,the VEN-based regimen was tolerated for patients with AML.Conclusions:A long-course VEN-based regimen is effective and safe.More than half of patients survive for>2 years,and it can be used as an effective mainten-ance treatment option for patients with AML.

Objective:To investigates the efficacy and safety of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT)in treating older patients(≥60 years old)with hematologic malignancies.Methods:We conducted a retrospective study involving 67 patients aged 60 years and above, diagnosed with malignant hematological diseases, who received allo-HSCT at the Clinical Research Centrer for Haematologic Diseases of the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University between June 2015 and March 2023.We collected pre-transplant data, including the patients' age, gender, pre-transplantation disease risk stratification, disease status, and the haematopoietic cell transplantation comorbidity index(HCT-CI). We retrospectively analyzed clinical data regarding treatment-related toxicity, infections, acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease(a/cGVHD), as well as recurrent and non-recurrent deaths, to estimate the overall survival(OS)rate and event-free survival (EFS)rate.Results:Sixty-seven patients were included in the study, comprising 55 males(82.1%)and 12 females(17.9%), with a median age of 63(61, 65) years .The cohort consisted of 42 cases of acute myeloid leukaemia, 22 cases of myelodysplastic syndromes, and 3 cases of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.The Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the 1-year OS and EFS rates were 62.9% and 59.2%, respectively, while the 2-year OS and EFS rates were 55.3% and 51.8%, respectively.The cumulative incidence of 1-year non-relapse mortality and relapse was 25.4% and 21.2%, respectively.A total of 13 patients developed grade Ⅱ-Ⅳ aGVHD, with a 1-year cumulative incidence of 22.0%, and 7 patients developed cGVHD requiring treatment.When stratified by age group, the OS rate was higher in patients aged 60~64 years compared to those aged ≥65 years; however, this difference was not statistically significant(Log-rank χ2=0.99, P=0.317). In contrast, when stratified by disease load, the OS rate was significantly higher in the complete remission(CR)group than in the non-CR group, with a statistically significant difference(Log-rank χ2=15.04, P<0.001). When stratified by donor type, the OS rate was higher in the human leukocyte antigens (HLA) allogeneic group compared to the haploinsufficiency group; however, the difference was not statistically significant(Log-rank χ2=2.71, P=0.100). Twenty-seven patients died at an average of 125 days (range 3-1 054 days) after HSCT.The causes of death included leukemia recurrence in 9 cases (33.3%), infection in 8 cases (29.6%), GVHD in 5 cases (18.5%), poor implantation in 3 cases (11.1%), multi-organ failure in 1 case (3.7%), and cerebrovascular accident in 1 case (3.7%). The results of multifactorial analysis indicated that a pre-transplant tumor load greater than 5% was an independent risk factor for OS after transplantation ( HR=4.59, 95% CI: 2.01-10.42, P<0.001)as well as for disease recurrence ( OR=13.11, 95% CI: 1.96-87.87, P=0.008). Additionally, the occurrence of infection was identified as an independent risk factor for non-recurrent death after transplantation( OR=3.95, 95% CI: 1.13 to 13.71, P=0.031). Conclusions:For patients aged 60 years or older with hematologic malignancies, HSCT can serve as a viable treatment option, particularly for those with refractory recurrence and high cytogenetic risk, as it has the potential to significantly enhance prognosis and increase both EFS and OS rates.

Objective:To explore the survival and prognostic factors of a long-course venetoclax-based(VEN-based)regimen in patients with de novo acute myeloid leukemia(AML)and provide evidence for the maintenance treatment of AML.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted in patients who received a VEN-based regimen and completed at least four courses of efficacy evaluation at The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University from May 2021 to January 2024.The composite complete response rate(cCR),minimal residual disease(MRD)-negative rate,overall survival(OS)time,relapse-free survival(RFS)time,and adverse events were analyzed.Results:Overall,30 newly diagnosed patients with AML were enrolled in this study.The median age was 65(range,53-78)years,and the median number of treat-ment cycles was 7(range,4-20)years.After one cycle,the CR-and MRD-negative rates were 80.0%and 63.3%,respectively.The cumulative cCR was 96.7%,and MRD negative rate was 80.0%,respectively.The median follow-up time was 21.3(95%confidence intervals 14.7-27.9)months.The median OS time was 32.3 months and RFS time was not reached.The 2-year OS and RFS rates were 70.6%and 54.8%,respect-ively.Univariate analysis suggested that ELN2017 risk stratification and relapse status affected RFS and OS(P<0.05).However,the multivari-ate analysis failed to reveal any relationship between these factors and survival(P>0.05).In terms of safety,hematological adverse events were the most common,followed by infections.Overall,the VEN-based regimen was tolerated for patients with AML.Conclusions:A long-course VEN-based regimen is effective and safe.More than half of patients survive for>2 years,and it can be used as an effective mainten-ance treatment option for patients with AML.

Objective:To investigates the efficacy and safety of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT)in treating older patients(≥60 years old)with hematologic malignancies.Methods:We conducted a retrospective study involving 67 patients aged 60 years and above, diagnosed with malignant hematological diseases, who received allo-HSCT at the Clinical Research Centrer for Haematologic Diseases of the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University between June 2015 and March 2023.We collected pre-transplant data, including the patients' age, gender, pre-transplantation disease risk stratification, disease status, and the haematopoietic cell transplantation comorbidity index(HCT-CI). We retrospectively analyzed clinical data regarding treatment-related toxicity, infections, acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease(a/cGVHD), as well as recurrent and non-recurrent deaths, to estimate the overall survival(OS)rate and event-free survival (EFS)rate.Results:Sixty-seven patients were included in the study, comprising 55 males(82.1%)and 12 females(17.9%), with a median age of 63(61, 65) years .The cohort consisted of 42 cases of acute myeloid leukaemia, 22 cases of myelodysplastic syndromes, and 3 cases of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.The Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the 1-year OS and EFS rates were 62.9% and 59.2%, respectively, while the 2-year OS and EFS rates were 55.3% and 51.8%, respectively.The cumulative incidence of 1-year non-relapse mortality and relapse was 25.4% and 21.2%, respectively.A total of 13 patients developed grade Ⅱ-Ⅳ aGVHD, with a 1-year cumulative incidence of 22.0%, and 7 patients developed cGVHD requiring treatment.When stratified by age group, the OS rate was higher in patients aged 60~64 years compared to those aged ≥65 years; however, this difference was not statistically significant(Log-rank χ2=0.99, P=0.317). In contrast, when stratified by disease load, the OS rate was significantly higher in the complete remission(CR)group than in the non-CR group, with a statistically significant difference(Log-rank χ2=15.04, P<0.001). When stratified by donor type, the OS rate was higher in the human leukocyte antigens (HLA) allogeneic group compared to the haploinsufficiency group; however, the difference was not statistically significant(Log-rank χ2=2.71, P=0.100). Twenty-seven patients died at an average of 125 days (range 3-1 054 days) after HSCT.The causes of death included leukemia recurrence in 9 cases (33.3%), infection in 8 cases (29.6%), GVHD in 5 cases (18.5%), poor implantation in 3 cases (11.1%), multi-organ failure in 1 case (3.7%), and cerebrovascular accident in 1 case (3.7%). The results of multifactorial analysis indicated that a pre-transplant tumor load greater than 5% was an independent risk factor for OS after transplantation ( HR=4.59, 95% CI: 2.01-10.42, P<0.001)as well as for disease recurrence ( OR=13.11, 95% CI: 1.96-87.87, P=0.008). Additionally, the occurrence of infection was identified as an independent risk factor for non-recurrent death after transplantation( OR=3.95, 95% CI: 1.13 to 13.71, P=0.031). Conclusions:For patients aged 60 years or older with hematologic malignancies, HSCT can serve as a viable treatment option, particularly for those with refractory recurrence and high cytogenetic risk, as it has the potential to significantly enhance prognosis and increase both EFS and OS rates.

A retrospective analysis of the clinical data of seven acute B-lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) patients with TCF3-HLF fusion gene-positive admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University from June 2017 to August 2022 was conducted to summarize their clinical features and prognoses. The seven B-ALL patients comprised four males and three females, with a median age of 18 (11-33) years. Five patients tested positive for CD33 expression, and four patients had a normal karyotype. Two patients had hypercalcemia at the initial diagnosis, and one patient developed hypercalcemia at relapse. Six patients presented with coagulation dysfunction at diagnosis. After induction chemotherapy, five out of seven patients achieved complete remission, of which four subsequently relapsed. Two patients did not achieve remission even after two rounds of induction chemotherapy, with one achieving complete remission after treatment with blinatumomab immunotherapy. Three patients underwent chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy, whereas three patients subsequently underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Five patients died, while two patients survived with sustained complete remission. TCF3-HLF-positive B-ALL is rare and has a high relapse rate and poor prognosis.

BACKGROUND:Recently, the effects of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cel s (hUCMSCs) and placenta-derived mesenchymal stem cel s (PDMSCs) on treatment of acute graft versus host disease (aGVHD) have been confirmed in some in vitro studies or animal models. But there are stil no reports comparing the therapeutic effects of these two cel types. OBJECTIVE:To compare the immunosuppressive function of hUCMSCs and PDMSCs in vitro or in a mouse aGVHD model. METHODS:(1) In vitro experiment. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cel s (PBMCs) were isolated and divided into four groups:PBMCs cultured alone, PBMCs stimulated with phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), PHA stimulated-PBMCs cocultured with hUCMSCs, PHA stimulated-PBMCs cocultured with PDMSCs. After 5 days, PBMCs proliferation and interferon-γlevel in cel supernatant were measured. (2) In vivo experiment. Fifty-seven BABL/C(H-2d) mice exposed to 8.5 Gy irradiation were randomly divided into five groups:only saline injection group, syngeneic bone marrow transplantation group, al ogeneic bone marrow transplantation group, aGVHD group, hUCMSCs treatment group, PDMSCs treatment group. The clinical aGVHD score, histopathology of skin, liver, and smal intestine, and survival time were analyzed at days 11, 14, 21 after transplantation. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1) In vitro test:compared with the hUCMSCs, PDMSCs had stronger anti-inflammatory function. (2) In vivo test:The clinical scores on acute graft versus host disease were significantly lower in the hUCMSCs and PDMSCs treatment groups than that in the aGVHD group (P<0.05). The survival rates of mice were significantly increased in the hUCMSCs and PDMSCs treatment groups compared to the aGVHD group (P<0.05). Evident skin lesions were not found in al groups. Although smal intestine mucosal lesions were found in al groups, the damage level seemed similar. Notably, significant difference was found in the liver that multifocal necrosis and a large number of inflammatory cel s were seen in the aGVHD group, but less necrosis and inflammatory cel s in the hUCMSC and PDMSC treatment groups. In conclusion, hUCMSC and PDMSC are comparably effective in the treatment of aGVHD in mice.

BACKGROUND: Imatinib has a significant pro-apoptosis effect on chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), but there are still some patients being resistant to it. Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) affect the apoptosis of a variety of hematologic malignancies. However, the impacts of hUC-MSCs on the apoptosis of CML cells induced by imatinib remain unclear.OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether hUC-MSCs have an influence on the apoptosis of K562 cells induced by imatinib and to reveal the possible underlying mechanism.METHODS: K562 cells were cultured with hUC-MSCs or/and imatinib. Cellular apoptosis was measured with Annexin-V and PI staining by flow cytometry analysis. The protein expressions of Bax, Bcl-2, caspase-3, caspase-9 and cleaved-PARP in K562 cells were detected by western blot assay. Pan-caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK was used to block apoptosis in each group, and during this process the effect of caspase apoptosis signaling pathway was detected.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The apoptosis of K562 cells was enhanced, when imatinib was combined with hUC-MSCs. Western blot analysis showed that the expression of pro-apoptotic protein Bax was enhenced and the expression of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 was suppressed. Furthermore, the cleaved forms of caspase-9, caspase-3 and PARP in K562 cell were higher in the hUC-MSCs+imatinib group than in the imatinib group. The apoptosis of K562 cells induced by the hUC-MSCs combined with imatinib was significantly inhibited by Z-VAD-FMK. In conclusion, these findings indicate that hUC-MSCs can enhance imatinib-induced apoptosis of K562 cells by activating caspase apoptosis signaling pathway.

BACKGROUND:There are various methodstoinduceadipogenic differentiation ofbone marrow mesenchymal stem cels, and the main componentfor adipogenic induction isindomethacin or rosiglitazone. However, there is a lack of comparative studyonthe induction efficiency and mechanism among these methods.
OBJECTIVE:Tocompare the adipogenic responses ofhuman bone marrow mesenchymal stem celsto different induction methods, and to analyze the mechanismunderlyingdifferent induction efficiency.
METHODS:After isolation and purification,the adipogenic abilitiesof human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cels in threedifferentculture systemswere comparedby oil red O staining and lipogenic geneassay. At 0, 1, 3 and 7 days of adipogenensis, mRNA expressionsof PPARγ, C/EBPα, Adiponectin and Leptin were detected.At7 daysofadipogenensis, protein expressionsof PPARγ and C/EBPβ were detectedby western blot assay,andeffects ofDIMIversusDIMRonphosphorylationofPPARγatSer273were compared.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Findings from oil red O staining andreal-time PCRshowedthat DIMR significantlyinducedadipogenicdifferentiation of bonemarrow mesenchymal stem cels compared with DIM and DIMI at 7 daysofinduction. Western blot showed thattheprotein expressionsof PPARγ and C/EBPβ in the DIMIgroupwere significantly higher than those in the DIMRand DIM at 7days ofinduction. In addition, the ratio ofPPARγphosphorylation atSer273was lowerin the DIMR group thantheDIMI group.To conclude,DIMR has the most potential to induce early adipogenesis ofhumanbone marrow mesenchymal stem cels by weakening the phosphorylationof PPARγ-Ser273.

Objective To explore the clinical,neuroimage,and neuropsychological profiles of semantic dementia (SD).Methods Detailed medical history were collected on 18 SD patients.Brain MRI scans were administered.Neuropsychological evaluation taping semantic memory (things naming),overall cognitive function ( Mini-mental State Examination,MMSE),visuoconstructive skill ( Clock Drawing Test,CDT), daily functional ability (Activities of Daily Living, ADL), neuropsychiatric symptoms (Neuropsychiatric Inventory,NPI),and disease severity (Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration Modified Clinical Dementia Rating Scale,FTLD-CDR) were performed on all patients.Results The mean age at onset was (60.6 ± 8.5 ) years,with 5 cases over 65. All patients developed progressive word-finding difficulty and anomic speech.Ten patients complained significant memory impairment and 14 experienced behavioral disturbance.Five patients were previously diagnosed as Alzheimer' s disease (AD) and 1 as schizophrenia.All patients developed marked semantic memory impairment both for living things and nonliving things.The mean score on MMSE was 10.94 ± 8.86,with 16 cases performed incorrectly on naming.Mean score on CDT copy was 4.61 ±0.85,with 14 cases scored normally.Mean score on ADL was 29.72 ± 8.75.Cases with a 5-year course showed a significant overall decline.Fourteen cases presented behavior symptoms and scored 8.00 ± 7.22 on NPI.All patients scored worst on language domain among all the domains evaluated in FTLD-CDR.Atrophy,typically involving the left anterior temporal was shown on MRI scans.However,predominantly right temporal atrophy was observed in one patient.Atrophy confined to the temporal lobe in patients with early stage and extended to the contralateral temporal,frontal lobe,and parietal lobe as disease progression. Conclusions Current study suggested that SD tend to develop in presenile age.However,about 1/3 cases develop the disease after 65 years. Deficit in language is the earliest and most prominent symptom. Behavior change is prevalent as well. Patients are commonly misdiagnosed as AD or lack a definite diagnosis.Visuoconstructive skill and other abilities are relatively preserved in the early stage.With progression into the 5th years,overall decline comes inevitably.Brain scans can reflect the disease characteristics and progression. Of note,there exists individual with right dominant atrophy.

OBJECTIVE: To study the expression of Survivin in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) and laryngeal papilloma in adults and its significance in carcinogenesis and development of the LSCC. METHOD: The expressions of Survivin protein were detected by immunohistochemistry technique in 46 cases of LSCC, 24 cases of adjacent nontumorous laryngeal epithelium, 20 cases of laryngeal papilloma and 16 cases of normal laryngeal epithelium. RESULT: The positive rates of Survivin protein expression in laryngeal carcinoma, adjacent nontumorous laryngeal epithelium and laryngeal papilloma were 71.74% (33/46), 33.33% (8/24)and 40.00% (8/20) respectively. There was no expression in normal laryngeal epithelium. The positive rate of Survivin protein expression in laryngeal carcinoma was significantly higher than that in the adjacent nontumorous laryngeal epithelium, laryngeal papilloma and normal laryngeal epithelium. But there was no statistically significant correlations between Survivin protein expression and the clinicopathological characteristics of tumor site, T-stage, pathological grading, UICC-stage and lymph node metastasis (P > 0.05). Expression of Survivin protein in 3 cases in laryngeal papilloma group which turned into laryngeal carcinoma later were all positive. CONCLUSION There was overexpression of Survivin in the laryngeal carcinoma. The expression of Survivin might play an important role in the carcinogenesis of LSCC and might be an early event during laryngeal carcinogenesis. It could be a diagnostic marker for evaluating the malignant potential of laryngeal papilloma in adults.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; metabolism ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins ; metabolism ; Laryngeal Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Papilloma ; metabolism ; pathology ; Survivin ; Young Adult