OBJECTIVES: To investigate the inhibitory effect of multimerin-2 (MMRN2) overexpression on growth and metastasis of cutaneous melanoma cells. METHODS: Clinical data of patients with cutaneous melanoma were obtained from the GEO database to compare MMRN2 expressions between normal and tumor tissues. A protein-protein interaction network was constructed using the STRING database, and the intersecting genes from GEPIA2.0 were subjected to GO and KEGG enrichment analysis. The prognostic relevance of MMRN2 expression level was assessed using Cox regression and "timeROC". The correlations of MMRN2 expression level with immune infiltration and angiogenesis-related genes were analyzed using GSCA database and the ssGSEA algorithm. Colony-forming assay, Transwell assay, and wound healing assay were used to examine the changes in proliferation and migration of cultured cutaneous melanoma cells following MMRN2 knockdown. In a mouse model bearing cutaneous melanoma xenograft, the effect of MMRN2 knockdown on vital organ pathologies, survival of the mice and GM-CSF, CXCL9, and TGF‑β1 protein expressions were analyzed. RESULTS: MMRN2 was significantly upregulated in metastatic cutaneous melanoma (P<0.001). Protein interaction network analysis identified 15 intersecting genes, which were enriched in endothelium development and cell-cell junctions. In patients with cutaneous melanoma, a high MMRN2 expression was correlated with a poor prognosis, an advanced T stage, a greater Breslow depth, and ulceration (P<0.05). MMRN2 expression level was strongly correlated with 24 immune cell types (P<0.001), fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and expressions of the pro-angiogenic genes (KCNJ8, SLCO2A1, NRP1, and COL3A1; P<0.001). In cultured B16F10 cells, MMRN2 knockdown significantly suppressed cell proliferation, migration and invasion and caused remo-deling of the immunosuppressive microenvironment. CONCLUSIONS MMRN2 overexpression drives progression of cutaneous melanoma by enhancing tumor metastasis, angiogenesis and immune evasion, highlighting its potential as a therapeutic target for melanomas.
Humans ; Melanoma/metabolism* ; Animals ; Cell Movement ; Prognosis ; Skin Neoplasms/metabolism* ; Mice ; Cell Proliferation ; Neoplasm Invasiveness ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Protein Interaction Maps

Objective To investigate the effect of the aqueous extract of Chuan Xiong Rhizoma(CR)on brain metastasis of melanoma B16F10 cells in mice.Methods C57BL/6J mouse models of brain metastasis of melanoma were established by ultrasound-guided intraventricular injection of Luc-labeled B16F10 cells,and brain tumor growth was monitored by in vivo imaging.The mouse models were then randomized for daily gavage of saline or aqueous extract of CR(equivalent crude drug concentration of 1 mg/g).Behavioral tests were used to evaluate the neuroprotective effects of CR in the tumor-bearing mice,and the changes in proteins associated with blood-brain barrier integrity,neuronal cell proliferation and apoptosis,and microglial cell apoptosis and activation were observed using immunofluorescence assay.The efficacy of CR combined with temozolomide(25 mg/kg)against brain metastases of B16F10 cells was observed by in vivo imaging.Results CR-treated mouse models did not show obvious progression of brain metastases and had a reduced rate of body weight loss and lowered protein expressions of ZO-1,claudin-5,occludin,P-gp,TNF-α,AQP4 and PDGFRβ.In the behavioral tests,the CR-treated mice showed prolonged stay on the wooden stick with a shortened time of sticky stick removal.Immunofluorescence assay showed increased proliferation and decreased apoptosis of neuronal cells and microglia in CR-treated mice.CR treatment significantly increased the levels of CD86,CD206,IL-4 and IL-10 and decreased the levels of CD163 and IL-1β in the microenvironment of brain metastases.The mice receiving combined treatments with CR and temozolomide showed significantly lower intensity of fluorescent signals in the brain than those treated with temozolomide alone.Conclusion CR does not promote brain metastasis of melanoma while inducing opening of the blood-brain barrier,and its combined use with TMZ results in enhanced inhibition against brain metastasis of melanoma B16F10 cells in mice.

Objective To investigate the effect of the aqueous extract of Chuan Xiong Rhizoma(CR)on brain metastasis of melanoma B16F10 cells in mice.Methods C57BL/6J mouse models of brain metastasis of melanoma were established by ultrasound-guided intraventricular injection of Luc-labeled B16F10 cells,and brain tumor growth was monitored by in vivo imaging.The mouse models were then randomized for daily gavage of saline or aqueous extract of CR(equivalent crude drug concentration of 1 mg/g).Behavioral tests were used to evaluate the neuroprotective effects of CR in the tumor-bearing mice,and the changes in proteins associated with blood-brain barrier integrity,neuronal cell proliferation and apoptosis,and microglial cell apoptosis and activation were observed using immunofluorescence assay.The efficacy of CR combined with temozolomide(25 mg/kg)against brain metastases of B16F10 cells was observed by in vivo imaging.Results CR-treated mouse models did not show obvious progression of brain metastases and had a reduced rate of body weight loss and lowered protein expressions of ZO-1,claudin-5,occludin,P-gp,TNF-α,AQP4 and PDGFRβ.In the behavioral tests,the CR-treated mice showed prolonged stay on the wooden stick with a shortened time of sticky stick removal.Immunofluorescence assay showed increased proliferation and decreased apoptosis of neuronal cells and microglia in CR-treated mice.CR treatment significantly increased the levels of CD86,CD206,IL-4 and IL-10 and decreased the levels of CD163 and IL-1β in the microenvironment of brain metastases.The mice receiving combined treatments with CR and temozolomide showed significantly lower intensity of fluorescent signals in the brain than those treated with temozolomide alone.Conclusion CR does not promote brain metastasis of melanoma while inducing opening of the blood-brain barrier,and its combined use with TMZ results in enhanced inhibition against brain metastasis of melanoma B16F10 cells in mice.

Objective:To identify the factors influencing acute kidney injury (AKI) following abdominal surgery in elderly patients and develop a predictive model based on the LASSO regression.Methods:The medical records of American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Physical Status classificationⅠ-Ⅳ patients, aged ≥60 yr, with operation time ≥ 2 h, undergoing elective abdominal surgery under anesthesia in the General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University from May 2021 to May 2023, were retrospectively collected. AKI was diagnosed based on the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes organization guidelines. The patients were divided into 2 groups based on whether AKI occurred within 7 days after surgery: AKI group and non-AKI group. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator algorithm was performed to reduce the dimension of unbalanced factors between AKI group and non-AKI group and the known risk factors for AKI. A nomogram prediction model was developed by integrating the optimized features derived from the LASSO regression model into multivariate logistic regression analysis. Internal validation was performed using the Bootstrap method, and the predictive ability and accuracy of the prediction model were assessed through the calibration curve, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, Brier index and decision curve analysis.Results:Five hundred and ninety patients were finally included in this study, with 62 cases (10.5%) suffered postoperative AKI. The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that increased age ( OR=1.06, 95% confidence interval [ CI] 1.01-1.11, P=0.048), higher ASA classification ( OR=2.32, 95% CI 1.21-4.45, P=0.011), preoperative coronary heart disease ( OR=1.89, 95% CI 1.01-3.61, P=0.049), and longer surgical duration ( OR=1.01, 95% CI 1.01-1.02, P=0.004) were risk factors for AKI after abdominal surgery, and the intraoperative use of dexmedetomidine ( OR=0.22, 95% CI 0.08-0.59, P=0.003) and increased postoperative albumin concentrations ( OR=0.91, 95% CI 0.85-0.98, P=0.017) were protective factors for postoperative AKI in elderly patients ( P<0.05). A risk prediction model was constructed based on the 9 identified factors of age, ASA classification, Charlson Comorbidity Index, preoperative coronary heart disease, preoperative hemoglobin concentration, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate, surgical duration, intraoperative use of dexmedetomidine and postoperative albumin concentration. A nomogram was plotted to visualize the model and verify it, showing that the Brier score of the model was 0.079, with a discrimination of 0.844, sensitivity of 84.4%, and specificity of 70.2%. Two hundred bootstrap resamples were used for internal validation, yielding a receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.821 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.79 to 0.90. The clinical decision curve indicated significant net benefits when the threshold probability of the model was between 0.03 and 0.45. Conclusions:Increased age, higher ASA classification, preoperative coronary heart disease, and longer surgical duration are risk factors, and the intraoperative use of dexmedetomidine and increased postoperative albumin concentrations are protective factors for postoperative AKI in elderly patients. The AKI prediction model following abdominal surgery developed based on age, ASA classification, Charlson Comorbidity Index, preoperative coronary heart disease, preoperative hemoglobin concentration, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate, surgical duration, intraoperative use of dexmedetomidine and postoperative albumin concentration has good predictive value in elderly patients.

Objective:To investigate the application value of antegrade splenic superior region dissection first in laparoscopic total gastrectomy of obesity gastric cancer.Methods:The retrospective and descriptive study was conducted. The clinicopathological data of 21 obesity patients with gastric cancer who underwent laparoscopic total gastrectomy in Renji Hospital of Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine from July 2018 to October 2023 were collected. There were 16 males and 5 females, aged (58±13)years. All 21 patients underwent laparoscopic total gastrec-tomy with antegrade splenic superior region dissection first. Observation indicators: operation time, volume of intraoperative blood loss, laparotomy conversion, intraoperative splenic hemorrhage or gastric hemorrhage, lymph node dissection, time to postoperative first flatus, time to postoperative initial liquid food intake, duration of postoperative hospital stay, postoperative complication. Measure-ment data with normal distribution were represented as Mean± SD, and count data were expressed as absolute numbers. Results:All 21 patients underwent laparoscopic total gastrectomy success-fully, with the operation time of (283±47)minutes, time for splenogastric ligament and vascular manage-ment of (34±12)minutes, volume of intraoperative blood loss of (143±86)mL, and no laparotomy conversion. There was no intraoperative splenic hemorrhage or gastric haemorrhage. The total number of lymph node dissected in 21 patients was 375, with the number of lymph node dissected as (21±9)per case. Time to postoperative first flatus, time to postoperative initial liquid food intake and duration of postoperative hospital stay in 21 patients were (3.1±0.7)days, (4.0±0.8)days and (10.1±3.0)days, respectively. There were 2 patients with postoperative complications, including 1 case of incision infection and 1 case of lung infection. The 2 patients with postoperative com-plications were recovered and discharged after conservative treatment. There was no death during the postoperative 30 days.Conclusion:The application of antegrade splenic superior region dissec-tion first in laparoscopic total gastrectomy is safe and feasible, which can reduce surgical difficulty.

Lipophosphatidic acid(LTA)was used to stimulate Mac-T cells,and the expression lev-els and phosphorylation levels of key proteins of nuclear factor-κB(NF-κB)and mitogen-activated protein kinase(MAPK)signaling pathway and the expression levels of upstream key action factors TLR4 and MyD88 proteins were detected by Western blot,and EDU assay was used to detect cell proliferation levels and flow cytometry was used to detect apoptosis.The results showed that acti-vation of GPR120 significantly decreased the phosphorylation levels of LTA-induced NF-κB(P65 and IκBα)(P＜0.01)and MAPK(JNK,ERK,p38)(P＜0.01)in Mac-T cells;inhibition of GPR120 was able to upregulate LTA-induced NF-κB(p65 and IκBα)in Mac-T cells(P＜0.01)and MAPK(JNK,ERK,p38)phosphorylation levels(P＜0.01);and activation of GPR120 significantly allevia-ted LTA-induced upregulation of TLR4 and MyD88(P＜0.01);inhibition of GPR120 significantly exacerbated LTA-induced upregulation of TLR4 and MyD88(P＜0.05);LTA stimulation led to a trend of diminished Mac-T cell proliferation and significantly increased apoptosis,whereas activa-tion of the GPR120 gene significantly increased cell activity(P＜0.01),promoted cell proliferation and significantly reduced apoptosis(P＜0.05)thereby alleviating the damage to Mac-T cells by LTA;LTA stimulation led to a highly significant increase in apoptosis(P＜0.01).In contrast,acti-vation of the GPR120 gene significantly reversed the increase in the apoptosis rate of Mac-T cells induced by LTA(P＜0.01),while inhibition of the GPR120 gene enhanced the apoptosis-promo-ting effect of LTA(P＜0.05),indicating that activation of the GPR120 gene attenuated the in-crease of apoptosis rate caused by LTA-induced inflammatory Mac-T cells.The results suggest that GPR120 can regulate inflammation by mediating TLR4 and MyD88 expression to inhibit NF-κB/MAPK inflammatory pathway activation and can promote cell proliferation.

Objective:To explore the application value of humidifying high-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy (HHFNC) in children with pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) after weaning.Methods:From January 2018 to October 2021, 42 children with endotracheal intubation admitted to PICU of Tai′an city Central Hospital were prospectively selected and randomly divided into HHFNC group and nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) group, with 21 patients in each group. The blood gas analysis [arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO 2), partial pressure of carbon dioxide in artery (PaCO 2), PaO 2/oxygen concentration (FiO 2)], blood oxygen saturation (SaO 2), comfort, non-invasive ventilation time, and total hospital stay of the two groups of children 1 hour after using HHFNC and NCPAP were compared, and the rate of reintubation of trachea within 48 hours, gastroesophageal reflux, nasal injury, facial skin indentation, abdominal distension, and pulmonary air leakage were recorded. Results:There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of blood gas analysis (PaO 2, PaCO 2, PaO 2/FiO 2), SaO 2, pulmonary air leakage, non-invasive ventilation time, hospital stay, and reintubation rate within 48 h after weaning (all P>0.05). Compared with NCPAP group, HHFNC group had higher comfort, lower incidence of facial skin indentation, gastroesophageal reflux, nasal injury and abdominal distension, and the difference was statistically significant (all P<0.05). Conclusions:HHFNC and NCPAP can both be used as the transitional respiratory support mode after weaning, and the clinical treatment effect are similar. The HHFNC group has higher comfort, which is more conducive to improving the tolerance of children, reducing adverse reactions, and has higher safety.

AIM: To investigate the effect of oxypeucedanin (OPD) on doxorubicin resistance in human breast cancer MCF-7/DOX cells and its possible mechanism. METHODS: MCF-7/DOX cells were cultured in vitro, MTT assay was used to detect the effect of OPD on the survival of MCF-7/DOX cells, and the effect of OPD combined with different concentrations of doxorubicin on the proliferation of MCF-7/DOX cells were investigated. The effect of OPD combined with doxorubicin on the expression of genes including MDR1, MRP1, AGPAT2, CHKA, CEPT1, DGKA, PCYT1A, PLA2G15 in MCF-7/DOX cells was measured by qRT-PCR. The effect of OPD combined with doxorubicin on the protein expression of MDR1, MRP1, CHKA and CCTα in MCF-7/DOX cells was determined by Western blot. RESULTS: The IC

To assess the correlation between thyroid function and glucolipid metabolism in type 1 diabetic adults. A retrospective analysis was conducted in 230 type 1 diabetic adults who were hospitalized in the Department of Endocrinology of Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University from January 2008 to January 2020. It showed that thyroid stimulating hormone(TSH) was significantly positively correlated with total cholesterol (TC) ( r=0.239), triglycerides (TG) ( r=0.166) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ( r=0.249), respectively (all P<0.05). Free triiodothyronine (FT 3) was significantly negatively correlated with fasting plasma glucose (FPG) ( r=-0.272), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) ( r=-0.240), TC ( r=-0.197) and LDL-C ( r=-0.220), respectively (all P<0.05). Free thyroxine (FT 4) was negatively correlated with TC ( r=-0.171) and LDL-C ( r=-0.170), respectively (all P<0.05). TC was an independent predictor of TSH, FT 3 and FT 4, FT 3 and FT 4 were independent predictors of HbA1c. TSH was an independent predictor of TC, TG and LDL-C. Thyroid function is closely related to glucolipid metabolism in type 1 diabetic adults.

The blood donation, component preparation and manufacturing, laboratory, issuing and quality control were studied and compared between the UK and China, in order to learn British experience in the clinical practice and blood services. The age limits of blood donors, blood collection units, donation times per year, laboratory items, and the types(volumes) of component preparation and manufacturing in the UK are more superior than those in China. In addition, the blood quality monitoring and regarding indicators are more scientific and reasonable in the UK. The full reimbursement of clinical blood expenses for patients has been realized in the UK. The British experience in continuous safeguard of the blood safety and balance of requirement and availability contributes to the constant and scientific development of British blood services over the years, and is worthy of references.