1.Research hotspots and advances in contrast-enhanced ultrasound for hepatocellular carcinoma
Wenfei HOU ; Jiajia TANG ; Meng YANG
Journal of Clinical Hepatology 2026;42(7):1526-1531
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common type of primary liver cancer and has a poor overall prognosis. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) plays a crucial role in the diagnosis, treatment response evaluation, and prognostic evaluation of HCC. This article systematically reviews the literature characteristics, research hotspots, and frontier advances of CEUS in the field of HCC. There has been a gradual increase in annual publication volume in this field, with China ranking first globally in the total number of publications. Highly cited articles mainly focus on clinical guidelines and standardized protocols. Keyword analysis shows that the main research hotspots in this field include the diagnosis and standardized assessment of HCC, differential diagnosis, treatment response evaluation after local therapy, and prognostic prediction. Meanwhile, microvascular invasion, artificial intelligence (AI), and super-resolution ultrasound (SRUS) may be emerging as cutting-edge frontiers in this field. Specifically, AI can be used for the auxiliary diagnosis of HCC, the evaluation of tumor biological characteristics, and prognostic prediction, and SRUS can overcome the acoustic diffraction limit to achieve precise microvascular imaging of the liver. Currently, a solid foundation has been established for the research on CEUS in HCC, showing a strong orientation toward clinical practice. In the future, emerging technologies such as CEUS-based AI models and SRUS are expected to further promote the development of precise diagnosis and treatment for HCC.
2.FGF-21 Improves Glucose Uptake and Glycogen Synthesis of Insulin-resistant Liver Cells
Mingyao LIU ; Wenfei WANG ; Yixue YU ; Yuting HOU ; Guiping REN ; Deshan LI
Progress in Biochemistry and Biophysics 2006;0(10):-
Insulin resistance in insulin sensitive organ results in metabolic disorder such as hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia and hyper triglyceridemia which are common features of type 2 diabetes.Insulin resistance in liver cells mainly causes impaired glycogen synthesis, failed to suppress glucose production which is the major contribution to hyperglycemia.FGF-21 as a new metabolic regulator can control fasting blood glucose.The mechanism of FGF-21 effects on regulating plasma glucose has little to known.In order to establish an in vitro insulin resistant model of liver cells and evaluate the effects and mechanism of FGF-21 on glucose metabolism in the cell model, HepG2 cells were incubated with 10-7 mol/L insulin for 24 h to build insulin-resistant cell model.To evaluate the cells for insulin resistance, the cells were stimulated with fresh insulin for 24 h and the glucose uptake by these cells was carried out.The insulin-resistant cells were treated with different concentrations of FGF-21 for 24 h and insulin-treated cells were used as a control.The glucose uptake by the cells was detected by the method of glucose oxidizes/peroxides(GOD-POD);the synergy between insulin and FGF-21 was evaluated.The mRNA expression of GLUT1 in the insulin-resistant cells was detected by the real-time PCR.Glycogen synthesis of the cells was examined by the anthrone method.The results showed that HepG2 cells treated with 10-7 mol/L insulin for 24 h became resistant to insulin and the insulin resistance status was maintained for 48 h without change of cell morphology.FGF-21 could stimulate glucose consumption of the insulin-resistant model in a dose-dependent manner.The glucose consumption and glycogen synthesis of the insulin-resistant model were significantly improved by FGF-21 treatment.FGF-21 showed strong synergy with insulin in glucose uptake and glycogen synthesis of the model cells.While the cells became resistant to insulin, FGF-21 could increase the mRNA expression of GLUT1.Thus, It is concluded that FGF-21 stimulates glucose uptake in insulin resistant HepG2 cells through GLUT1 expression, stimulates glycogen synthesis and improves the glucose metabolism in the insulin resistant liver cell model.

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