OBJECTIVE:At present,there are many reports on the related factors associated with the incidence of cervical spine instability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis,but there are problems such as small sample size and many confounding factors,and the research results of various studies on the same related factors are also different.This article analyzed the factors related to cervical spine instability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis by means of a systematic review. METHODS:Articles related to cervical spine instability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis were collected by searching both Chinese and English databases until March 2023.The outcome of cervical spine instability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis was used as the grouping criterion to abstract basic information,baseline patient characteristics,laboratory-related tests,medication use,and other relevant risk factors.Meta-analysis was done using Stata 14.0 software. RESULTS:(1)Sixteen relevant studies,all of moderate or above quality,were included,including seven studies with case-control studies and nine with cross-sectional studies.The overall incidence of cervical spine instability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis was 43.08%.(2)Meta-analysis showed:Related risk factors included female(OR=0.60,95%CI:0.44-0.82,P=0.002);age at disease onset(SMD=-0.52,95%CI:-0.86 to-0.18,P=0.003);duration of disease(SMD=0.58,95%CI:0.14-1.02,P=0.01);body mass index(OR=0.74,95%CI:0.63-0.88,P=0.001);rheumatoid factors positive univariate analysis subgroup(OR=1.33,95%CI:1.02 to 1.72,P=0.04),C-reactive protein(SMD=0.26,95%CI:0.16-0.35,P=0.00),erythrocyte sedimentation rate(SMD=0.15,95%CI:0.002-0.29,P=0.047),anti-cyclic-citrullinated peptide antibodies(OR=1.73,95%CI:1.19-2.51,P=0.004),28-joint Disease Activity Score(SMD=0.20,95%CI:0.04-0.37,P=0.02),destruction of peripheral joints(OR=2.48,95%CI:1.60-3.85,P=0.00),and corticosteroids(OR=1.91,95%CI:1.54-2.37,P=0.00)were strongly associated with the development of rheumatoid arthritis-cervical spine instability.Female and corticosteroid use were independently associated with the occurrence of rheumatoid arthritis-cervical spine instability. CONCLUSION:Based on clinical evidence from 16 observational studies,the overall incidence of rheumatoid arthritis-cervical spine instability was 43.08%.However,the incidence of cervical spine instability in rheumatoid arthritis patients varied greatly among different studies.Gender(female)and the use of corticosteroids were confirmed as independent correlation factors for the onset of cervical spine instability in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.The results of this study still provide some guidance for early clinical recognition,diagnosis,and prevention of rheumatoid arthritis-cervical spine instability.

Objective To describe and analyze the current situation of the four same type of departments in an hospital in order to provide a reference for the construction of"the most cost-effective medical care".Methods The CN-DRG were used to automatically group and compare the medical capacity and inpatient service efficiency of the hospital department groups,and in the refined analysis,one DRG disease group of in situ cancer and non-malignant disease loss uterine surgery and single species uterine fibroid was included,and the Kruskal-Wallis H test was used to further compare the differences in length of stay and various costs.Results It included a total of 22630 patients,whose weights varied from a maximum of 3948.62 in diagnostic group 1 to a minimum of 133.55 in diagnostic group 11.The cost consumption indexes ranged from a minimum of 0.89 in diagnostic group 5 to a maximum of 1.04 in diagnostic group 2,while the time consumption indexes ranged from a minimum of 0.48 in diagnostic group 11 to a maximum of 0.81 in diagnostic group 5.When comparing the diagnostic groups,there were statistically significant differences(P＜0.05)in hospitalization days,total cost,diagnostic cost,therapeutic cost,and cost of supplies.Specifically,when comparing the diagnostic and treatment groups within departments,the differences in hospitalization days and all costs were statistically significant(P＜0.05)in departments 1 and 2,the differences in diagnostic cost,therapeutic cost,and cost of supplies were statistically significant(P＜0.05)in department 3.Conclusion There exists a notable disparity in the extent to which each diagnostic and treatment group contributes to the hospital's service capacity and cost variability.Consequently,it is necessary to reasonably evaluate the length of hospital stay and medical cost of patients to achieve the highest cost-effective medical treatment.

Glycosphingolipids (GSLs) are widely distributed in the phospholipid bilayer of various cell membranes, which play an important role in maintaining cell membrane stability, and regulate various cellular processes including adhesion, proliferation, apoptosis and recognition, as well as participate in various cellular activities. In addition, GSLs are not only involved in the process of apoptosis, but also regulate multiple signals in tumorigenesis and tumor development. The tumor-associated GSLs are expected to be used as diagnostic markers and immunotherapeutic targets for malignant tumors. These findings have important implications for the study of apoptosis and provide the new direction of tumor therapy. This review summarized the latest research progress of GSLs-mediated apoptosis and its effect on the genesis, development and metastasis of tumor cells. Moreover, we discussed the metabolic pathway of GSLs-mediated apoptosis and its application in tumor therapy, as well as the development prospect of targeted therapy strategies based on GSLs.
Humans ; Glycosphingolipids/metabolism* ; Apoptosis ; Cell Membrane ; Neoplasms/metabolism*

Objective:To investigate the dosimetric differences in volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) and intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) in patients receiving adjuvant radiotherapy and internal lymph node irradiation after left-sided modified radical mastectomy.Methods:VMAT and IMRT radiotherapy plans were established for 20 patients undergoing left-sided modified radical mastectomy. The dosimetric parameters of the target area and organs at risk were calculated by the dose volume histogram. The categorical variables were tested by χ2 or Fisher′ s exact probability test. The continuous variables with normal distribution were analyzed by paired-t test or rank-sum test. Results:Among the two radiotherapy techniques, the homogeneity index of IMRT was significantly higher than that of VMAT ( P<0.05). The time of VMAT treatment was significantly shorter than that of IMRT ( P<0.01). VMAT was superior to IMRT in V 20Gy and V 30Gy of the affected lung (both P<0.05). VMAT was superior to IMRT in the left anterior descending coronary artery D mean, D max, and heart V 30Gy, V 40Gy, D mean and D max(all P<0.01). The esophageal D mean in the VMAT group was superior to that in the IMRT group ( P<0.05). The V 5Gy and V 10Gy of the contralateral lung and the D max of the esophagus in the IMRT group were significantly better compared with those in the VMAT group (all P<0.05). Conclusions:VMAT can significantly reduce the dose of the heart, contralateral lung, spinal cord, esophagus and other vital organs, and shorten the treatment time. For patients who need adjuvant radiotherapy and internal mammary lymph node irradiation after left-sided modified radical mastectomy, VMAT technology can better protect normal tissues than IMRT.

Objective To analyze the role of lienal polypeptide injection in acute lung injury induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in rats. Methods Eighty male SD rats were randomly allocated into 4 groups: a LPS group, a control group, a lienal polypeptide group and a LPS+ lienal polypeptide group (20 rats in each group). Lienal polypeptide or normal saline was given with an intramuscular injection 30 min after an intraperitoneal injection of LPS (5 mg/kg). The severity of pulmonary injury was evaluated 4 h after LPS challenge by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), wet-to-dry weight ratio, hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining, TUNEL and Western blotting. Results Lienal polypeptide injection treatment significantly attenuated LPS-induced pulmonary histopathologic changes, alveolar hemorrhage, and neutrophil infiltration. Moreover lienal polypeptide injection significantly suppressed LPS-induced activation of metastasis-associated protein-1 (MTA1). Conclusion Lienal polypeptide injection is demonstrated to protect rats from LPS-induced acute lung injury by the expression of MTA1.

Objective To investigate the radioactivity distribution of 131 I-bovine serum albumin ( BSA )-mesoporous silica nanoparticles ( MSNs )-anti-vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2) in anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) and to explore its antitumor efficacy in ATC-bearing nude mouse models. Methods 131 I-BSA-MSNs-anti-VEGFR2 and 131 I-BSA-MSNs were constructed. FRO tumor xenografts were established and the SPECT/CT images of tumor-bearing mice were acquired at differ-ent time points after intratumoral injection with 131 I-BSA-MSNs-anti-VEGFR2 ( targeting group) , 131 I-BSA-MSNs ( non-targeting group) , Na131 I ( Na131 I group) and saline ( control group) , respectively. The changes of body mass and tumor volume in each group were recorded. Two-sample t test and log-rank test were used to analyze the data. Results After incubation for 3 h, the fluorescence intensity in targeting group was higher than that in non-targeting group (345.26±16.35 vs 280.61±9.65;t=5.90, P<0.05). After injection for 1-3 weeks, the radioactivity detected by SPECT/CT in targeting group was obviously stronger than that in non-targeting group ( t values:7.060-12.780, all P<0.05) . At the end of the observation, the tumor vol-ume of Na131I group, control group, non-targeting group and targeting group increased to (278.3±19.3)％, (296.6±24.2)％, (198.7±13.2)％ and (103.7±6.2)％ of the original volume, respectively. The body mass of the first 2 groups decreased to (88.6±3.0)％ and (86.2±3.1)％ of the original body mass respec-tively, while that of the latter 2 groups increased to (102.1±3.1)％ and (116.2±3.4)％ of the original body mass respectively. Survival analysis showed that the median survival time in targeting group ( 38 d) was sig-nificantly longer than that in non-targeting group (34 d;χ2=8.05, P<0.05). Conclusion 131I-BSA-MSNs-anti-VEGFR2 can effectively inhibit the tumor growth of ATC and prolong the survival of tumor-bearing nude mice, which gives a good suggestion for the treatment and prognosis evaluation of ATC.

Objective: To establish a new scoring system based on the clinicopathological features of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) to predict prognosis of patients who received hepatectomy. Methods: A total of 845 HCC patients who underwent hepatectomy from 1999 to 2010 at Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences were retrospectively analyzed. 21 common clinical factors were selected in this analysis. Among these factors, the cut-off values of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and intraoperative blood loss were evaluated by using a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model were used to evaluate the independent risk factors associated with the prognosis of HCC patients after hepatectomy. HCC postoperatively prognostic scoring system was established according to the minimum weighted method of these independent risk factors, and divided the patients into 3 risk groups, including low-risk, intermediate-risk and high-risk group. The relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared among these groups. Results: The univariate analysis showed that clinical symptoms, preoperative α-fetoprotein (AFP) level, serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) level, tumor size, tumor number, abdominal lymph node metastasis, macrovascular invasion or tumor thrombus, extrahepatic invasion or serosa perforation, the severity of hepatic cirrhosis, intraoperative blood loss, the liver operative method, pathological tumor thrombus, intraoperative blood transfusion, perioperative blood transfusion were significantly associated with median RFS of these HCC patients (P<0.05). Alternatively, clinical symptoms, preoperative AFP level, serum ALP level, tumor size, tumor number, abdominal lymph node metastasis, macrovascular invasion or tumor thrombus, extrahepatic invasion or serosa perforation, the severity of hepatic cirrhosis, intraoperative blood loss, the liver operative method, pathological lymphocyte invasion, pathological tumor thrombus, intraoperative blood transfusion, perioperative blood transfusion were significantly associated with the median OS of these HCC patients (P<0.05). The multivariate analysis showed that AFP ≥20 ng/ml, clinical symptoms, tumor diameter ≥5 cm, multiple tumors, macrovascular invasion or tumor thrombus, extrahepatic invasion or serosa perforation, moderate and severe liver cirrhosis, non- anatomic resection were the independent risk factors of RFS and OS (P<0.05). The independent risk factor of RFS was intraoperative bleeding loss ≥325 ml (P<0.05); The independent risk factors of OS were abdominal lymph node metastasis and pathological tumors thrombus (P<0.05). The respective weight of 11 independent factors was used to establish the scoring system (scores range from 0 to 26). In the score system, 0 to 5 points were defined as the low-risk group (286 cases), 6 to 12 points were determined as the intermediate-risk group (503 cases), more than 13 points were classified as the high-risk group (56 cases). The median RFS of the low-risk, intermediate-risk and high-risk group were 80, 27 and 6 months, respectively. The differences were statistically significant (P<0.001). The median OS of the three groups were 134, 51 and 15 months, respectively, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.001). Conclusion This new score system provides effective prediction of postoperative prognosis for HCC patients.

Objective: To investigate the clinical value of intraoperative radiofrequency ablation (RFA) in the treatment of colorectal liver metastasis (CLM). Methods: A retrospectively analysis of 187 patients with CLM who underwent liver resection with or without RFA from January 2009 to August 2016 in Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences was performed. According to whether RFA was used intraoperatively, patients were divided into resection only group and combined treatment group. The clinical and pathological characteristics of the two groups were compared to explore factors influencing survival and recurrence. Imbalance of background characteristics between the two groups was further overcome by propensity score matching method (PSM). Results: The number of liver metastases (267), simultaneous liver metastases (100%), bilobar involvement (73.3%) and preoperative chemotherapy (93.3%) rates were significantly higher in the combined treatment group than those in the resection only group(471, 74.7%, 42.0% and 63.1%)(all P<0.05). In the combined treatment group, median overall survival (OS) was 25.7 months; and 3-year and 5-year OS were 47.9% and 28.8%, respectively. In the resection only group, the median survival time was 46.9 months; and 3-year and 5-year OS rate was 59.1% and 42.4%, respectively (χ²=4.579, P=0.034). Median disease-free survival (DFS) was 5.4 months in the combined treatment group, and 10.1 months in the resection only group (χ²=5.399, P=0.023). In multivariate analysis, intraoperative RFA was not an independent prognostic factor for OS and DFS (HR=0.98, 95%CI: 0.47-2.08, P=0.965; HR=1.21, 95%CI: 0.71-2.07, P=0.465). After PSM, the median OS of the resection only and the combined treatment groups were 30.2 and 25.7 months (χ²=0.876, P=0.350). The median DFS in the two groups was 5.3 and 4.2 months, respectively (χ²=0.199, P=0.650). Conclusion In patients with similar tumor burden, liver resection combined with intraoperative RFA for unresectable CLM can achieve long-term outcomes similar to hepatectomy alone for resectable CLM.

Objective To prepare a new dental topical anesthetics,lidocaine hydrochloride loaded trans-activator of transcription peptide conjugated nano-niosome(LID-TAT-N),and to evaluate its transdermal properties and topical anesthesia effects.Methods LID-TAT-N was prepared using reversephase evaporation method,and lidocaine loaded conventional liposome(LID-CL) was prepared in the same manner as positive control.The diameter,ξ potential and encapsulation efficiency of LID-TAT-N and LID-CL were measured.The skin permeation of LID-TAT-N was examined,and compared with LID-CL and lidocaine injection(LID-IJ,as negative control),using a Franz diffusion cell mounted with depilated mouse skin in vitro for 12 hours.Each experiment was repeated six times.The anesthetic effect of the new topical anesthetic was investigated on the cornea of rabbits.Results The mean diameter of LID-TAT-N was smaller than that of LID-CL[(152.7 ± 10.6) nm vs.(259.5 ± 15.5) nm,P＜0.01].The 12 h cumulative permeation amount was significantly higher in LID-TAT-N group[(1 340.0±97.5) μg· cm-2] than those of LID-CL and LID-IJ groups[(1 060.6±80.2),(282.6±65.1) μg· cm-2,respectively,P＜0.05].Rabbit corneal reflex results showed that LID-TAT-N had anesthetic effect and the duration of analgesia[(24.8±2.8) min] was also longer than that of LID-IJ[(14.5 ± 2.3) min,P＜0.05].Conclusions LID-TAT-N had good transdermal ability,and the advanced skin penetration feature can improve its tropical anesthetic effect.

Objective:To investigate the relationship between cervical lesion development and histone acetylation that regulates RAR-β2 expression. Methods:Immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis were performed to detect AcH3, RAR-β2, and involu-crin expression in normal cervical tissues as well as in tissues with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN)Ⅱ-Ⅲand squamous cell cer-vical carcinoma. The relationship among histone acetylation level, RAR-β2 expression, and cervical lesion severity were analyzed. Re-sults:AcH3, RAR-β2, and involucrin expression were reduced or absent with the progression of cervical lesions;significant differences were noted between the groups (P<0.05). Histone acetylation level and RAR-β2 expression were positively correlated (r=0.797, P<0.05). AcH3 and RAR-β2 expression, which were both associated with the cervical lesions, were negatively correlated [r=-0.547(AcH3), r=-0.585(RAR-β2), P<0.05]. Conclusion:Histone acetylation modification is associated with the regulation of RAR-β2 expression. This pro-cess is also likely to participate in the carcinogenesis of cervical carcinoma.