Esculetin, a natural dihydroxy coumarin derived from the Chinese herbal medicine Cortex Fraxini, has demonstrated significant pharmacological activities, including anticancer properties. Ferroptosis, an iron-dependent form of regulated cell death, has garnered considerable attention due to its lethal effect on tumor cells. However, the exact role of ferroptosis in esculetin-mediated anti-hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) effects remains poorly understood. This study investigated the impact of esculetin on HCC cells both in vitro and in vivo. The findings indicate that esculetin effectively inhibited the growth of HCC cells. Importantly, esculetin promoted the accumulation of intracellular Fe²⁺, leading to an increase in ROS production through the Fenton reaction. This event subsequently induced lipid peroxidation (LPO) and triggered ferroptosis within the HCC cells. The occurrence of ferroptosis was confirmed by the elevation of malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, the depletion of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, and the disruption of mitochondrial morphology. Notably, the inhibitor of ferroptosis, ferrostatin-1 (Fer-1), attenuated the anti-tumor effect of esculetin in HCC cells. Furthermore, the findings revealed that esculetin inhibited the Nrf2-xCT/GPx4 axis signaling in HCC cells. Overexpression of Nrf2 upregulated the expression of downstream SLC7A11 and GPX4, consequently alleviating esculetin-induced ferroptosis. In conclusion, this study suggests that esculetin exerts an anti-HCC effect by inhibiting the activity of the Nrf2-xCT/GPx4 axis, thereby triggering ferroptosis in HCC cells. These findings may contribute to the potential clinical use of esculetin as a candidate for HCC treatment.
Umbelliferones/administration & dosage* ; Ferroptosis/drug effects* ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/physiopathology* ; NF-E2-Related Factor 2/genetics* ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/physiopathology* ; Phospholipid Hydroperoxide Glutathione Peroxidase/genetics* ; Animals ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Mice ; Amino Acid Transport System y+/genetics* ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Male ; Signal Transduction/drug effects* ; Lipid Peroxidation/drug effects* ; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism* ; Mice, Nude

Hormonal receptor positive human epidermal receptor 2 negative (HR⁺/HER2^-) is the commonest molecular subtype of breast cancer (BC). Patients with HR⁺/HER2^- BC may manifest clinically a late recurrence whose BC metastasizes 10-15 years post-operatively. We report one case who presented with pulmonary mass in upper lobe of lung and Horner syndrome 16 years after BC surgery. FDG PET/CT suggested pulmonary malignancy but could not differentiate between primary or metastatic cancer when invasive biopsy was quite risky. Novel ¹⁸F-FES PET/CT facilitated the non-invasive functional diagnosis of estrogen-receptor positive (ER+) pulmonary metastasis of BC, and the patient experienced partial response (PR) after CDK4/6 inhibitor and aromatase inhibitor as endocrine therapy. This article reviews the diagnosis and treatment process of this case, to provide guidance for non-invasive global evaluation of ER status among metastatic HR⁺/HER2^- BC patients with ¹⁸F-FES PET/CT.

Objective:To investigate the prognostic value of preoperative red blood cell distribution width (RDW) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).Methods:The retrospective cohort study was conducted. The clinicopathological data of 1 025 HCC patients who were admitted to three medical centers (586 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, 248 in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University and 191 in the Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital) between April 2002 and August 2017 were collected. There were 809 males and 216 females, aged (54±11)years, with a range from 16 to 83 years. The average coefficient of variation of RDW (RDW-CV) of 1 025 patients was 14.3%. Of 1 025 patients, 347 cases had high RDW of RDW-CV >14.3%, and 678 had low RDW of RDW-CV ≤14.3%. Observation indicators: (1) clinico-pathological data of HCC patients; (2) influencing factors for prognosis of HCC patients; (3) follow-up and survival. (4) stratified analysis of independent influencing factors. Follow-up was performed by outpatient examination, telephone interview or internet interview to detect postoperative survival of patients up to October 2017. Measurment data with normal distribution were represented as Mean±SD, and measurment data with skewed distribution were described as M (range). Count data were described as absolute numbers, and comparison between groups was analyzed using the chi-square test. The Graphpad Prism 7.0 was used to draw survival curves, and Log-rank test was used for survival analysis. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed using the COX proportional hazard model. Results:(1) Clinicopathological data of HCC patients: cases with age ≤70 years or >70 years, cases without cirhhosis or with cirhhosis , cases of Child-Pugh grade A or Child-Pugh grade B or C, cases with the level of alpha fetoprotein (AFP) ≤200 μg/L or >200 μg/L, cases with single tumor or multiple tumors were 313, 34, 152, 186, 161, 53, 158, 143, 186, 109 for high RDW patients, versus 641, 37, 359, 310, 415, 48, 367, 227, 547, 131 for low RDW patients, respectively, showing significant differences in above indicators between the two groups ( χ2=6.709, 6.787, 23.906, 7.114, 34.375, P<0.05). (2) Influencing factors for prognosis of HCC patients: results of univariate analysis showed that age, Child-Pugh grade, AFP, RDW-CV, tumor diameter, the number of tumors were related factors for prognosis of patients ( hazard ratio=1.388, 1.432, 1.534, 1.455, 2.813, 1.505, 95% confidence interval as 1.004-1.920, 1.086-1.887, 1.263-1.864, 1.211-1.748, 2.293-3.450, 1.173-1.932, P<0.05 ). Results of multivariate analysis showed that age, RDW-CV, tumor diameter and the number of tumors were independent factors for prognosis of patients ( hazard ratio=1.020, 1.340, 2.427, 1.438, 95% confidence interval as 1.007-1.032, 1.027-1.749, 1.801-3.272, 1.057-1.956, P<0.05). (3) Follow-up and survival: 1 025 patients were followed up for 1-124 months, with a median follow-up time of 25 months. The median survival time was 23 months for high RDW patients, versus 44 months for low RDW patients, showing a significant difference in the overall survival between the two groups ( χ2=11.640, P<0.05). (4) Stratified analysis of independent influencing factors: the results of stratified analysis of 3 independent influencing factors including age, tumor diameter and the number of tumors showed that in the 954 patients with age ≤70 years, the median survival time was 25 months for high RDW patients, versus 48 months for low RDW patients, showing a significant difference in the overall survival between the two groups ( χ2=14.030, P<0.05). In the 71 patients with age >70 years, the median survival time was 11 months for high RDW patients, versus 29 months for low RDW patients, showing no significant difference in the overall survival between the two groups ( χ2=0.933, P>0.05). In the 459 patients with tumor diameter ≤5 cm, the median survival time was 44 months for high RDW patients, versus 76 months for low RDW patients, showing a significant difference in the overall survival between the two groups ( χ2=8.660, P<0.05). In the 487 patients with tumor diameter >5 cm, the median survival time was 14 months for high RDW patients, versus 18 months for low RDW patients, showing no significant difference in the overall survival between the two groups ( χ2=2.950, P>0.05). In the 733 patients with single tumor, the median survival time was 20 months for high RDW patients, versus 48 months for low RDW patients, showing a significant difference in the overall survival between the two groups ( χ2=13.530, P<0.05). In the 240 patients with multiple tumors, the median survival time was 15 months for high RDW patients, versus 20 months for low RDW patients, showing a significant difference in the overall survival between the two groups ( χ2=6.820, P<0.05). Conclusions:Preoperative RDW can be used as a predictive index for prognosis of HCC patients, and patients with high RDW have poorer prognosis. RDW have better predictive value in patients with age ≤70 years or tumor diameter ≤5 cm.

Objective: To analyze the effects of different N stages, surgical treatment, lymph node dissection and combined chemoradiotherapy on the prognosis of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC). Methods: The clinical data and follow-up results of 4 555 ICCs in the SEER database were retrospectively analyzed. Including 3 710 patients with N₀ phase and 845 patients with N₁, all patients included complete TNM staging information, survival time and survival status information, surgical related information and radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment information. The survival curve was described by Kaplan-Meier method. The survival of 120 months was described. The hypothesis test was performed by Log-rank test. The overall prognosis of patients with different N-stage ICCs was observed. Different surgical methods, lymph nodes were removed, and postoperatively. The effect of chemoradiotherapy on the prognosis of patients with different N-stage ICC. Measurement data with skewed distribution were expressed as medians, and count data were expressed as percentages. Results: The median survival time of N₁ patients was 12 months while 15 months in N₀ patients. In N₀ patients, the median survival time was 8 months of no operation performed patients, 26 months of local tumor destruction patients, and 45-59 months of surgical treatment performed patients. In N₁ patients, the survival time was 9 months, 26 months and 14-22 months of no operation performed, local tumor destruction and surgical treatment performed patients, respectively. In the N₀ stage, the median survival time was 37 months for lymph node dissection not performed patients, and the median survival time for lymph node dissection patients was 46-55 months. In N₁ patients, the median survival time was 26 months and 18-20 months for without or with lymph node dissection patients. In the N₀ stage, the median survival time was 41-42 months for without chemo- or radio-therapy, and it was 43-46 months for with chemo- or radio-therapy patients. In the N₁ stage, the median survival time 10-17 months and 23 months for without or with chemo- or radio-therapy patients. Conclusions The prognosis of patients with N₁ in ICC is significantly worse than that in patients with N₀. Surgery is an effective method for the treatment of ICC. At the same time, routine lymphadenectomy should be recommended. Patients with N₁ are recommended for radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Objective To assess right ventricular systolic function using real-time three-dimensional right ventricular quantitative analysis (RT-3DRVQ) in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) complicating left heart failure. Methods Sixty-eight patients diagnosed with CAD and left heart failure were selected as the case group.Among them,38 individuals were associated with pulmonary hypertension (PH) and 30 were without. Another 30 healthy people were recruited as control group. Conventional echocardiographic parameters,as well free wall and septum longitudinal strains of right ventricle were evaluated in all subjects. Results Patients with left heart failure had significant lower strain values than control group( P <0.001).In case group,three-dimensional derived right ventricular free wall longitudinal strain (3D-FWLS) had strongly correlation with right ventricular ejection fraction ( r = -0.877, P <0.001). The patients with PH had also significantly reduced 3D-FWLS values compared with patients without PH ( P < 0.01),and the area under the curve was 0.726 using ROC method to predict patients with PH.Conclusions RT-3DRVQ could be recognized as a good technology to evaluate right ventricular systolic function,which would provide valuable information for clinical decision-making.

Objective To observe the correlation between platelet parameters , platelet activation marker and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods One hundred and ninety-five type 2 diabetic patients were enrolled in this study. The patients were divided into the normal control group, the CIMT increased group and the clot group according to the carotid intima-media thickness. Levels of platelet count (PLT), mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), platelet hematocrit(PCT), urinary 11-dehydro-thromboxane B2 (11-DH-TXB2) and other clinical, biochemical characteristics were measured. Results (1) Levels of serum LDL-C, MPV, PDW, urinary 11-DH-TXB2 and clinical course in the clot group were higher than those in the CIMT increased group and the normal control group (P < 0.05). (2) Compared with the normal control group, the clinical course, serum LDL-C, MPV, PDW and urinary 11-DH-TXB2 were higher in the CIMT increased group (P < 0.05). (3) By using with spearman rank correlation test, carotid intima-media thickness was positively associated with age , course , BMI , GLU , GHbA1C , LDL-C , MPV , PDW and urinary 11-DH-TXB2, whereas carotid intima-media thickness was negative associated with HDL-C, PLT (both P < 0.05). (4) MPV, PDW and urinary11-DH-TXB2 were shown as the independent risk factors for CIMT. Conclusions Platelet activation marker and platelet parameters are associated with carotid intima-media thickness in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

OBJECTIVECellular senescence as one of the important steps against tumor is observed in many cancer patients receiving chemotherapy and is related to chemotherapeutic response. To investigate the effect of cisplatin on hepatocellular carcinoma, we treated HepG2 cells exhibiting wild-type TP53 with gradient concentrations of cisplatin.

METHODSThe inhibitory effects of cisplatin on human hepatoma HepG2 cells were detected by MTT assay and colony formation test. The changes in cell cycle were analyzed by flow cytometry, and cellular senescence was detected with senescence associated β-galactosidase (SA β-gal) staining. The relative mRNA expression levels of TP53, P21 and P19 was estimated using semi-quantitative real-time RT-PCR, and the protein expressions of P53 and P21 were detected using Western blotting.

RESULTSCisplatin induced irreversible proliferation inhibition and G1 phase arrest of HepG2 cells. Elevated levels of senescence-associated β-galactosidase was observed in HepG2 cells exposed to low doses of cisplatin. P19 expression immediately increased following cisplatin exposure and reached the maximum level at 48 h, followed then by a rapid decrease to the baseline level, whereas the expressions levels of TP53 and P21 mRNA increased continuously. Western blotting confirmed P53 and P21 expression changes similar to their mRNA expressions during cisplatin-induced cellular senescence in HepG2 cells.

CONCLUSIONOur results revealed a functional link between cisplatin and hepatocellular senescence. Cellular senescence induced by cisplatin as a stabile senescent cellular model can be used for further research.

Cell Cycle ; drug effects ; Cell Cycle Checkpoints ; drug effects ; Cellular Senescence ; Cisplatin ; pharmacology ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p19 ; metabolism ; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p21 ; metabolism ; Hep G2 Cells ; Humans ; Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 ; metabolism ; Up-Regulation

Objective Cellular senescence as one of the important steps against tumor is observed in many cancer patients receiving chemotherapy and is related to chemotherapeutic response. To investigate the effect of cisplatin on hepatocellular carcinoma, we treated HepG2 cells exhibiting wild-type TP53 with gradient concentrations of cisplatin. Methods The inhibitory effects of cisplatin on human hepatoma HepG2 cells were detected by MTT assay and colony formation test. The changes in cell cycle were analyzed by flow cytometry, and cellular senescence was detected with senescence associatedβ-galactosidase (SA β-gal) staining. The relative mRNA expression levels of TP53, P21 and P19 was estimated using semi-quantitative real-time RT-PCR, and the protein expressions of P53 and P21 were detected using Western blotting. Results Cisplatin induced irreversible proliferation inhibition and G1 phase arrest of HepG2 cells. Elevated levels of senescence-associated β-galactosidase was observed in HepG2 cells exposed to low doses of cisplatin. P19 expression immediately increased following cisplatin exposure and reached the maximum level at 48 h, followed then by a rapid decrease to the baseline level, whereas the expressions levels of TP53 and P21 mRNA increased continuously. Western blotting confirmed P53 and P21 expression changes similar to their mRNA expressions during cisplatin-induced cellular senescence in HepG2 cells. Conclusion Our results revealed a functional link between cisplatin and hepatocellular senescence. Cellular senescence induced by cisplatin as a stabile senescent cellular model can be used for further research.

Objective Cellular senescence as one of the important steps against tumor is observed in many cancer patients receiving chemotherapy and is related to chemotherapeutic response. To investigate the effect of cisplatin on hepatocellular carcinoma, we treated HepG2 cells exhibiting wild-type TP53 with gradient concentrations of cisplatin. Methods The inhibitory effects of cisplatin on human hepatoma HepG2 cells were detected by MTT assay and colony formation test. The changes in cell cycle were analyzed by flow cytometry, and cellular senescence was detected with senescence associatedβ-galactosidase (SA β-gal) staining. The relative mRNA expression levels of TP53, P21 and P19 was estimated using semi-quantitative real-time RT-PCR, and the protein expressions of P53 and P21 were detected using Western blotting. Results Cisplatin induced irreversible proliferation inhibition and G1 phase arrest of HepG2 cells. Elevated levels of senescence-associated β-galactosidase was observed in HepG2 cells exposed to low doses of cisplatin. P19 expression immediately increased following cisplatin exposure and reached the maximum level at 48 h, followed then by a rapid decrease to the baseline level, whereas the expressions levels of TP53 and P21 mRNA increased continuously. Western blotting confirmed P53 and P21 expression changes similar to their mRNA expressions during cisplatin-induced cellular senescence in HepG2 cells. Conclusion Our results revealed a functional link between cisplatin and hepatocellular senescence. Cellular senescence induced by cisplatin as a stabile senescent cellular model can be used for further research.

Previous studies have suggested that various kinds of inflammatory factors can influence the formation and development of tumor cells.Researche has shown that gallbladder cancer is closely linked with local inflammation,which is a risk factor for the development of gallbladder cancer.It is widely known that cholecystitis is closely correlated with gallstones,and that bile obtained from patients with gallbladder cancer contains a large variety of bacteria,such as Salmonella typhi,Helicobacter,and Escherichia coli.It is proposed that the gallbladder may be the result of the joint action of inflammation with the bacterial flora.Similarly,the inflammatory “tumor infiltrating lymphocyte” (TIL)can be observed in the tumor and its surrounding tissues,and may also play a role in tumor growth and metastasis.However,detailed mechanisms about the relationship between inflammation and gallbladder cancer is still not clear.No specific anti-inflammatory drugs for gallbladder cancer have been developed. In the near future,anti inflammatory drugs may play a more important role in gallbladder cancer prevention and treatment.