Objective:To identify the dosimetric and radiobiological differences of three radiotherapy techniques of whole breast irradiation with simultaneous integrated boost (WBI-SIB) following breast-conserving surgery for early breast cancer (EBC).Methods:The data of 20 patients with early left-sided breast cancer who received radiotherapy following breast-conserving surgery were retrospectively analyzed. Three radiotherapy techniques, namely hybrid intensity-modulated radiotherapy (HIMRT), intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT), were redesigned with the same prescription dose and target conditions. Then, doses to target volume (TV) and organs at risk (OAR), along with the normal tissue complication probability (NTCP) and secondary cancer risk (SCR) for specific organs, were compared.Results:Compared to HIMRT and IMRT, VMAT led to significant decreases in various dosimetric indices of the affected lung and heart and increases in the Dmean doses to the healthy lung and healthy breast and V5 Gy doses to the healthy breast, with the differences being significantly different ( P < 0.05). The average NTCP values of cardiac death, radiation pneumonitis, and pulmonary fibrosis induced by VMAT were 0.41%, 1.62%, and 23.59%, respectively, significantly lower than those caused by other two techniques ( P < 0.05). No statistical differences were found in 10 dosimetric indices of OAR between IMRT and HIMRT, while the NTCP analysis suggested that the risks of cardiac death ( t = 2.70, P < 0.05) and pulmonary fibrosis ( t =4.11, P < 0.05) induced by IMRT were slightly lower than those caused by HIMRT. In addition, the excess absolute risk (EAR) to the healthy lung posed by VMAT was 1.65 and 1.83 times those induced by HIMRT and IMRT, respectively ( z = -3.92, t = -6.43, P < 0.05). In contrast, the EAR to the healthy breast induced by VMAT was 2.79 and 2.65 times those posed by HIMRT and IMRT, respectively ( z = -3.21, -3.70, P < 0.05). Conclusions:Among three intensive-modulated radiotherapy techniques of WBI-SIB for EBC, VMAT provides the optimal protection for the heart and affected lung but leads to the highest SCR to the healthy lung and breast. When VMAT is employed for young EBC patients or those with normal cardiopulmonary function, special attention should be paid to reducing low-dose irradiations to the healthy breast and thereby minimizing SCR. In contrast, VMAT might be more favorable for patients with pronounced cardiopulmonary risks or aged patients.

Background/Aims: Four-week treatment of linvencorvir (RO7049389) was generally safe and well tolerated, and showed anti-viral activity in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. This study evaluated the efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetics of 48-week treatment with linvencorvir plus standard of care (SoC) in CHB patients. Methods: This was a multicentre, non-randomized, non-controlled, open-label phase 2 study enrolling three cohorts: nucleos(t)ide analogue (NUC)-suppressed patients received linvencorvir plus NUC (Cohort A, n=32); treatment-naïve patients received linvencorvir plus NUC without (Cohort B, n=10) or with (Cohort C, n=30) pegylated interferon-α (Peg-IFN-α). Treatment duration was 48 weeks, followed by NUC alone for 24 weeks. Results: 68 patients completed the study. No patient achieved functional cure (sustained HBsAg loss and unquantifiable HBV DNA). By Week 48, 89% of treatment-naïve patients (10/10 Cohort B; 24/28 Cohort C) reached unquantifiable HBV DNA. Unquantifiable HBV RNA was achieved in 92% of patients with quantifiable baseline HBV RNA (14/15 Cohort A, 8/8 Cohort B, 22/25 Cohort C) at Week 48 along with partially sustained HBV RNA responses in treatment-naïve patients during follow-up period. Pronounced reductions in HBeAg and HBcrAg were observed in treatment-naïve patients, while HBsAg decline was only observed in Cohort C. Most adverse events were grade 1–2, and no linvencorvir-related serious adverse events were reported. Conclusions 48-week linvencorvir plus SoC was generally safe and well tolerated, and resulted in potent HBV DNA and RNA suppression. However, 48-week linvencorvir plus NUC with or without Peg-IFN did not result in the achievement of functional cure in any patient.

The negative effects of low temperature can readily induce a variety of diseases. We sought to understand the reasons why cold stress induces disease by studying the mechanisms of fine-tuning in macrophages following cold exposure. We found that cold stress triggers increased macrophage activation accompanied by metabolic reprogramming of aerobic glycolysis. The discovery, by genome-wide RNA sequencing, of defective mitochondria in mice macrophages following cold exposure indicated that mitochondrial defects may contribute to this process. In addition, changes in metabolism drive the differentiation of macrophages by affecting histone modifications. Finally, we showed that histone acetylation and lactylation are modulators of macrophage differentiation following cold exposure. Collectively, metabolism-related epigenetic modifications are essential for the differentiation of macrophages in cold-stressed mice, and the regulation of metabolism may be crucial for alleviating the harm induced by cold stress.
Acetylation ; Animals ; Cold-Shock Response ; Epigenesis, Genetic ; Macrophages/metabolism* ; Mice ; Mitochondria/metabolism*

Objective:To investigate the effect of prospective intervention on emergence agitation and postoperative recovery in patients with chronic sinusitis during preoperative visits.Methods:A total of 80 patients with chronic sinusitis who underwent general anesthesia in Dayi County People′s Hospital of Chengdu City from December 2019 to October 2020 were selected and randomly divided into group D and group G, with 40 patients in each group. Group D received preoperative visit with conventional methods and group G received preoperative visit with prospective intervention methods. The hemodynamic changes of patients in the two groups at 30 min before the operation (T 1) and 1 (T 2), 5 (T 3), 10 (T 4) and 30 min (T 5) after tracheal tube extraction were recorded. The anxiety and depression scores of patients before the intervention and 1 d after the operation were compared between the two groups. The incidence of emergence agitation after the operation and complications during anesthesia awakening period were observed in the two groups, sino-nasal outcome test-20 (SNOT-20) was used to assess the postoperative recovery. Results:The incidence of emergence agitation in group G was lower than that in group D: 7.5%(3/40) vs. 25.0%(10/40), the difference was statistically significant ( χ2 = 4.50, P<0.05). There was no significant difference in systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and heart rate between the two groups at T 1 and T 5 ( P>0.05), but the level of above indicators in group G at T 2, T 3 and T 4 were significantly higher than those in group D ( P<0.05). The scores of State-Trait Anxiety Inventory(S-AI) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) in group G at the first day after the operation were significantly lower than those in group D: (35.45 ± 5.32) scores vs. (39.35 ± 4.91) scores, (35.42 ± 7.82) scores vs. (38.76 ± 5.21) scores, the differences were statistically significant ( P<0.05). The incidence of complications during anesthesia awakening period in group G was slightly lower than that in group D ( P>0.05). After the operation, the scores of sinusitis symptoms and nasal symptoms in the two groups were significantly decreased compared with those before the operation, and the scores of group G were significantly lower than those in group D ( P<0.05). Conclusions:Prospective intervention before anesthesia in patients with chronic sinusitis surgery can reduce stress response, improve bad mood, reduce the incidence of emergence agitation, and promote the postoperative recovery.

Objective To examine the impact of case management on hospitalizations of the chronically and severely mentally ill patients in Zhongshan. Methods Patients with severe and chronic mental illness,aged ≥ 15 years and living in pilot area were divided into two groups naturally since the program of case management launched, 65 cases in the group of case management and 112 patients in the group of standard management. Hospitalizations of the two groups before and after case management were compared. Results Data were analysised with MIXED procedure. Length of stay in days per admission (LOS) of both groups decreased with time in years (F=11.02, P=0.001), and the decline in LOS of case management group was greater than that of standard management group (F=9.02, P=0.003). The average admissions of case management group was more than that of standard management group (F=4.98,P=0.03). There was no significant differences in average hospitalization incidents before and after case management in both groups(case management group 5.13%vs. 5.38%, standard management group 7.14%vs. 8.92%, P>0.05). Conclusions Case management was effective in reducing hospitalizations for a group of Chinese with chronic and severe mental illness, and may contribute to the balance on mental health resources between community and hospital.

Objective To investigate the efficacy and safety of combination use of diltiazem and nitroglycerin in preventing radial artery spasm in performing coronary angiography via radial artery access. Methods During the period from Dec. 2012 to June 2013 at authors’ hospital, coronary angiography via radial artery access was carried out in a total of 200 patients. The patients were randomly divided into 2 groups: nitroglycerin group (n = 100) and combination group (n = 100). After successful placement of catheter sheath 200 μg of nitroglycerin was injected through the sheath in the patients of the nitroglycerin group, while 200 μg of nitroglycerin together with 2 mg diltiazem was injected through the sheath in the patients of the combination group. The heart rate , blood pressure and electrocardiogram were recorded with an electrocardio-pressure monitor before the injection as well as at 2, 5, 15 and 30 minutes after the injection. The occurrence of radial artery spasm and patient ’s general condition were also under observation. Results Radial artery spasm occurred in 5 patients of the combination group , while it occurred in 13 patients of the nitroglycerin group, the difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P < 0.05). No significant difference in heart rate and electrocardiogram existed between the two groups (P > 0.05). Conclusion For the coronary intervention via radial artery access , combination use of diltiazem and nitroglycerin can more effectively prevent the occurrence of radial artery spasm. Besides , combination use of diltiazem and nitroglycerin has no obvious effect on the heart rate , the blood pressure and the electrocardiogram.

A rapid, sensitive, label-free and separation-free analytical method for determination of melamine ( MA) was developed based on surface enhanced Raman scattering ( SERS ) effect of gold nanoparticles. Through tri-sodium citrate reduction method, gold nanoparticles with average diameter of 30 nm were obtained. The melamine detection platform was constructed after self-assembling 4-mercapto phenylboronic acid (4-MPBA) on the surface of gold nanoparticles through Au S covalent bond. When MA existed in solution, 4-MPBA functionalized gold nanoparticles would aggregate because of strong hydrogen bond interaction between MA and 4-MPBA. Moreover, following increase of the concentration of MA, gold nanoparticles would aggregate more intensively and form more hot spots. As a result, Raman signal of 4-MPBA and MA was enhanced greatly. The characteristic Raman peaks of 4-MPBA and MA respectively located at 1076 cm-1 and 715 cm-1 . Hence, the qualitative and quantitative detection for MA were realized based on the ratio value of I715 cm-1 to I1076 cm-1 . The linear range of MA detection was 0 . 1 μmol/L-1. 5 μmol/L. The limit of detection (LOD) reached 0. 02 μmol/L in terms of three times signal to noise.

Objective The Nuss procedure is a minimally invasive pectus repair.The aim of this study was to explore the changes in quality of life in patients who underwent a Nuss procedure.Methods 96 patients,who underwent a Nuss procedure in our institution,were interviewed at preoperation,1 year after operation with the bar in place,and before the planned bar removal.The Nuss Questionnaire modified by George Krasopoulos et al,which evaluates psychosocial and physical well-being,was independently used by patients.Results Most of the scoring of the individual questions and the total score of individual patients revealed a significant improvement,both in preoperation vs.1 year after operation and 1 year after operation vs.before the planned bar removal.Conclusion The Nuss procedure has been shown to improve the quality of life in patients with pectus excavatum deformity in the short term.

Objective To study the clinical features and antifungal therapeutic effects in nonacquired immune deficiency syndrome(AIDS)patients with cryptococcal meningitis. Methods One hundred and fifty-four non-AIDS patients with cryptococcal meningitis admitted to Huashan Hospital, Fudan University from 1997 to 2007 were reviewed retrospectively. Clinical characteristics, initial antifungal therapies and outcome of these patients were analyzed. Continuous variables were analyzed using t test and categorical variables were compared by X~2 test or Fisher's exact test. Kaplan-Meier survival curves of different therapies were compared with log-rank test. Results Fifty-one patients (33.12%)had one or more predisposing factors. Headache, fever, meningeal irritation, vomiting and altered mental status were common clinical symptoms and signs during the course of diseases. The positive rates of cerebrospinal fluid(CSF)smear, CSF culture and detection of CSF cryptococcal capsular polysaccharide antigen were 88.44%,78.95%and 100.00%,respectively.Twelve cases were excluded because treatment durations were less than 7 days, including 9 died,2 discharged against medical advice due to illness exacerbation and 1 lost after against medical advice discharge. The remaining 142 patients were evaluated for therapeutic effects. The effective rates in amphotericin B (AmB)group, fluconazole group and AmB plus fluconazole group were 78.3%(36/46),33.3%(8/24)and 76.0%(38/50),respectively. The therapeutic effects in AmB group and AmB plus fluconazole group were superior to fluconazole group(X~2=13.6354,12.5509;P＜0.01).Eleven patients were lost during 1-year follow-up. The attributable and overall mortality in the remaining 143 patients were 19.58% and 28.67%,respectively.The 1-year survival rates in AmB group and AmB plus fluconazole group were significantly higher than that in fluconazole group. Conclusions The mortality of non-AIDS cryptococcal meningitis is still high,which is closely correlated with initial antifungal therapies. AmB alone or combined with flucytosine is related to both higher successful response and higher survival rate, while the efficacy of initial fluconazole alone or combined with flucytosine is poor.

Objective To study the relationship between serum pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A(PAPP-A)and plaque stability of coronary lesion.Methods Levels of serum PAPP-A were measured among 230 patients seemed as coronary heart disease(CHD)including 50 cases with acute myocardial infraction(AMI),110 cases with unstable angina pectoris(UAP),40 cases with stable angina pectoris(SAP)and 30 cases without CHD as control by enzyme-linked immunoassay(ELISA).Anginographic morphology of the coronary lesion was assessed in patients with CHD.Then,the serum PAPP-A levels were compared among different types of CHD and plaque.Results Serum PAPP-A levels were significantly higher in the AMI group(26.13±4.65)mIU/L and UAP group(20.37±5.78)mIU/L than in the SAP group(12.82±3.94)mIU/L and without CHD group(10.70±2.86)mIU/L(P<0.01,UAP group vs AMI group,P<0.05).Serum PAPP-A levels were significantly higher in the type Ⅱ lesions(24.52±4.82)mIU/L than in the other type lesions group(16.82±5.37)mIU/L and in the control group(10.70±2.86)mIU/L(P<0.01).Conclusion Serum PAPP-A level was closely associated with plaque stability of coronary lesion.