Molecular characterization, expression pattern and metabolic activity of flavin-dependent monooxygenases in Spodoptera exigua

Enhanced detoxification is one of the important mechanisms for insecticide resistance. Most research in this field to date has focused on the role of cytochrome P450s. Our previous work revealed that flavin-dependent monooxygenases (FMOs) were involved in metabolic resistance of Spodoptera exigua. In the present study we investigated the molecular characteristics, expression patterns and oxidative activities of SeFMO on insecticides. Three FMO genes, which encode proteins with the typical FMO motifs, were cloned from S. exigua. The oxidative activities of eukaryotically expressed SeFMO enzymes were verified with the model substrate of FMO. Importantly, the SeFMOs had significantly higher oxidative activities on metaflumizone and lambda-cyhalothrin than on model substrates and other insecticides tested. The three SeFMOs were mainly expressed in the midgut, fat body and Malpighian tubules. The tissues responsible for xenobiotic metabolism and their expression characteristics were similar to those of P450s acting as detoxification genes. The study also revealed that the expression of SeFMOs could be induced by insecticide exposure, and that SeFMOs were over-expressed in a metaflumizone-resistant strain of S. exigua. These results suggest that SeFMOs are important insecticide detoxifying enzymes, and that over-expression of FMO genes may be one of the mechanisms for metabolic resistance in S. exigua.

Standardizing compression testing for measuring the stiffness of human bone

Objectives

The ability to determine human bone stiffness is of clinical relevance in many fields, including bone quality assessment and orthopaedic prosthesis design. Stiffness can be measured using compression testing, an experimental technique commonly used to test bone specimens in vitro. This systematic review aims to determine how best to perform compression testing of human bone.

Methods

A keyword search of all English language articles up until December 2017 of compression testing of bone was undertaken in Medline, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus databases. Studies using bulk tissue, animal tissue, whole bone, or testing techniques other than compression testing were excluded.

Results

A total of 4712 abstracts were retrieved, with 177 papers included in the analysis; 20 studies directly analyzed the compression testing technique to improve the accuracy of testing. Several influencing factors should be considered when testing bone samples in compression. These include the method of data analysis, specimen storage, specimen preparation, testing configuration, and loading protocol.

Conclusion

Compression testing is a widely used technique for measuring the stiffness of bone but there is a great deal of inter-study variation in experimental techniques across the literature. Based on best evidence from the literature, suggestions for bone compression testing are made in this review, although further studies are needed to establish standardized bone testing techniques in order to increase the comparability and reliability of bone stiffness studies.

Cite this article: S. Zhao, M. Arnold, S. Ma, R. L. Abel, J. P. Cobb, U. Hansen, O. Boughton. Standardizing compression testing for measuring the stiffness of human bone. Bone Joint Res 2018;7:524–538. DOI: 10.1302/2046-3758.78.BJR-2018-0025.R1.

Analysis of evolution and genetic diversity of sweetpotato and its related different polyploidy wild species I. trifida using RAD-seq

BACKGROUND

Sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) is one of the most important crops from the family of Convolvulaceae. It is widely reported that cultivated sweetpotato was originated from Ipomoea trifida. However, diploid, tetraploid and hexaploid I. trifida were found in nature. The relationship, between them, and among them and sweetpotato, is remaining unclear.

RESULTS

In the present study, we detected the genome diversity and relationship of sweetpotato and different polyploidy types I. trifida using Restriction-site Associated DNA Sequencing (RAD-seq). A total of 38,605 RAD-tags containing 832,204 SNPs had been identified. These tags were annotated using five public databases, about 11,519 tags were aligned to functional genes in various pathways. Based on SNP genotype, phylogenetic relation analysis results confirmed that cultivated sweetpotato has a closer relationship with I. trifida 6× than with I. trifida 4X and I. trifida 2×. Besides, 5042 SSRs were detected in I. trifida 6×, and 3202 pairs of high-quality SSR primers were developed. A total of 68 primers were randomly selected and synthesized, of which 61 were successfully amplified.

CONCLUSION

These results provided new evidence that cultivated sweetpotato originated from I. trifida 6×, and that I. trifida 6× evolved from I. trifida 4X and I. trifida 2×. Therefore, using I. trifida 6× as the model plant of sweetpotato research should be more practical than using I. trifida 2× in the future. Meanwhile, sequence information and markers from the present study will be helpful for sweetpotato and I. trifida studies in the future.

Performance and tissue fatty acid profile of broiler chickens and laying hens fed hemp oil and HempOmegaTM

This study was conducted to determine the effects of hemp oil (HO) and HempOmega (HΩ), an equivalent product to HO, on performance and tissue fatty acid profile of layers and broiler chickens in two separate experiments. In the first experiment, forty 19-wk old Lohmann white laying hens were randomized to 1 of 5 dietary treatments, either a control diet or a control diet supplemented with 4 or 8% hemp oil provided by HO or HΩ, for a period of 6 wk (n = 8/diet). In experiment 2, 150-day-old mixed-sex (75 male; 75 female) Ross 308 chicks were randomly allocated into 5 dietary treatments, a control diet or a control diet supplemented with either 3 or 6% hemp oil provided by HO or HΩ, each with six replicates of 5 chicks for a 21-d feeding period. Performance of layers and broilers was not affected by dietary treatments. Animals provided with either HO or HΩ diets had greater total n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in egg yolks, thighs, and breasts compared to the control diet (P < 0.01), and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) content of egg yolks and thighs decreased (P < 0.05). The levels of total n-6 PUFAs, linoleic acid (LA), or arachidonic acid (ARA) of the egg yolk and meat were generally not affected by dietary supplementation with HO or HΩ, but gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) was notably increased (P < 0.01). The current data show that inclusion of hemp oil up to 8% in layer diets and 6% in broiler diets provided by HO or HΩ does not negatively affect overall performance of birds and results in the enrichment of n-3 PUFAs and GLA in eggs and meat.

Abstract 1164: Pdx model of pleural effusion of lung cancer patient for testing on targeted drug sensitivity and resistance

Advanced lung cancer of late stage patients is selectively sensitive to available targeted therapeutics and often develops resistance to early sensitive drug treatment. Surgery tumor tissues are usually not available to establish patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models which is critical to evaluate drug sensitivity and resistance. We applied CD45 magnet beads to enrich the tumor cell population from pleural effusion specimens of advanced lung cancer. Valuable drug-resistant PDX models were successfully established both from pleural effusion and from routine surgery tissues. Genetic profiling of the PDX models revealed TKI drug-associated EGFR mutations (L858R, T790M, Exon19del, C797S). In particular we successfully established a clinically AZD9291-resistant EGFR triple mutant (Ex19del, T790M, C797S) PDX model. In vivo efficacy results with gefitinib, erlotinib and AZD9291 well matched corresponding gene mutations among the models. Interestingly, we successfully induced AZD9291-resistant clones in vivo using an EGFR double mutant (L858R, T790M) PDX model, and NGS revealed mutations in kinases involved in other signaling pathways, indicating potential therapeutic options against resistance emergence. In conclusion, these precious PDX models provide insight into resistance mechanisms as well as serve as models to test potency of many drugs including current investigational TKIs.

Citation Format: Feifei Zhang, Zhen Zhou, Yuan Long, Wenhua Xu, Shizhu Zhao, Yang Yang, Hui Liu, Jijun Cheng, Shun Lu, Danyi Wen. Pdx model of pleural effusion of lung cancer patient for testing on targeted drug sensitivity and resistance [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 1164.

Gasoline exhaust damages spermatogenesis through downregulating α6-integrin and β1-integrin in the rat model

The health influence of air pollution has been an international public health concern. Increasing evidence has suggested that air pollution has been associated with decreased sperm quality. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are still not fully elucidated. We aimed to verify whether gasoline exhaust leads to reproductive impairment by injuring spermatogonial stem cells and explore its underlying molecular mechanism. Twenty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into two groups: the exposure group (n = 10) and the control group (n = 10). After 6-month exposure, the sperm count and morphology were determined. The histological changes in the seminiferous tubules were examined by HE staining. The expression of α6-integrin and β1-integrin was assessed with Quantitative RT-PCR, Western blot and Immunohistochemical staining. Compared with control group, male rats exposed to gasoline exhaust showed significantly reduced sperm count, increased sperm abnormality rate and the total number of spermatogonia, primary spermatocytes, secondary spermatocytes, spermatids were decreased. (all p < .01). The expression levels of α6-integrin and β1-integrin in the exposure group were significantly lower than those in the control group (all p < .01). Our study showed that exposure to gasoline exhaust caused impairment to spermatogonial stem cells through downregulating α6-integrin and β1-integrin.

[Research progress of HPV therapeutic vaccine]

Bivalent and quadrivalent HPV vaccine have been approved by CFDA successively in China. However, currently available prophylactic vaccines have no therapeutic effect for established infection or disease. In recent years, based on the application of genomics and proteomics for interpretation of tumor antigen, animal experiments and clinical trials of vaccines aiming at a wide variety of antigens have been conducted. In this review, we summarize about the preclinical and clinical research status of HPV therapeutic vaccine and find that the efficacy of HPV therapeutic vaccine alone or combined with other conventional cancer treatment is satisfying, which has potential clinical application value. As the further research of tumor immune regulation and optimization of strategies for the HPV therapeutic vaccine, the vaccine will play an important role in improving the quality of life in cancer patients and eventually become widely used in clinical practice.

Myocardial late gadolinium enhancement: a head-to-head comparison of motion-corrected balanced steady-state free precession with segmented turbo fast low angle shot

AIM

To evaluate the image quality and diagnostic agreement with a head-to-head comparison of late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) images acquired by the motion-corrected (MOCO) balanced steady-state free precession (bSSFP) phase sensitivity inversion recovery (PSIR) and conventional segmented fast low angle shot (FLASH) PSIR methods^15,16 in a patient cohort with a wide spectrum of cardiovascular disease.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In 59 consecutive patients, signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs), contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) of the normal myocardium (NM), LGE, and blood pool (BP) were pair-wise compared between the two different sequences. A further semi-qualitative score system (graded 1 -4) was used to compare the overall image quality (OIQ). The diagnostic agreement of the two techniques were evaluated by both transmural severity and absolutely quantitative size of LGE.

RESULTS

The SNRs of the NM, LGE, and BP of MOCO bSSFP were 4.8±3.4, 53.6±35.6 and 43.2±29.3, compared with 3.9±3.6 (p=0.126), 27.7±18.5 (p<0.001) and 24.3±13.4 (p<0.001) of FLASH LGE, respectively. The CNRs of LGE to NM, LGE to BP, and BP to NM were 48.3±33.1 versus 23.8±16.7 (p<0.001), 6.5±21.6 versus 3.8±10.8 (p<0.001), and 38.3±27.2 versus 20.3±10.7 (p=0.448), respectively. The OIQ of MOCO bSSFP was higher than that of segmented FLASH (median 4 versus median 3, p<0.001). For quantification of LGE size, there is good agreement and high correlation (r=0.992, p<0.001) between the two methods.

CONCLUSIONS

MOCO bSSFP is a feasible, robust sequence for LGE imaging, especially for patients with arrhythmia and those incapable of breath-holding due to severe heart failure.

Screening for cognitive impairment in SLE using the Self-Administered Gerocognitive Exam

Objective Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multisystem autoimmune disease that can affect the central nervous system in multiple ways, including causing cognitive dysfunction. Cognitive dysfunction is a common complaint of SLE patients yet diagnosis is challenging, time consuming, and costly. This study evaluated the Self-Administered Gerocognitive Exam (SAGE) as a screening test for cognitive impairment in a cohort of SLE patients. Methods A total of 118 SLE patients completed the SAGE. Providers completed the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) and the Systemic Lupus International Collaborative Clinics Damage Index (SLICC-DI). SAGE scores were grouped into normal (>16) and abnormal (≤16) categories. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed. Results Of the 118 participants, 21(18%) scored ≤16 on the SAGE instrument. In univariate analysis, race, ethnicity, household income, and SLICC-DI scores were associated with the SAGE ( p < 0.05). In multivariable analysis, abnormal SAGE score was independently associated with higher SLICC-DI score (odds ratio (OR) = 1.44, 95% confidence intervals 1.04-1.99, p = 0.03)), Hispanic ethnicity (OR = 43.4, 95% CI 3.1-601, p = 0.005), and lower household income (OR = 11.9 for ≤$15,000 vs >$50,000, 95% CI 2.45-57, p = 0.002). Conclusions In SLE patients, this study demonstrates an independent relationship between neurocognitive impairment (as measured by the SAGE) and higher lupus-related damage, as measured by the SLICC-DI, and lower household income. Abnormal SAGE scores were also associated with Hispanic ethnicity. A language barrier could explain this because the SAGE instrument was conducted in English only. The SAGE was feasible to measure in the clinic setting.

Abstract P2-03-03: A multicenter clinical study of Xpert® breast cancer STRAT4 demonstrates high concordance with central lab ER, PgR, HER2, and Ki67 IHC and HER2 FISH tests in FFPE breast tumor tissues

The Xpert® Breast Cancer STRAT4 (STRAT4) is a CE-IVD marked, semi-quantitative, cartridge-based RT-qPCR assay for the detection of ESR1, PGR, ERBB2 (HER2), and MKi67 mRNAs from formalin fixed, paraffin embedded (FFPE) breast tumors. The assay is fast (&lt; 2 hrs), reproducible, robust, and easy to perform.

The aim of this multicenter clinical study was to assess the performance characteristics of the STRAT4 assay relative to central lab immunohistochemistry (IHC) for ER, PgR, HER2, and Ki67 and to fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) for HER2 gene amplification.

Methods: A total of 200 archived primary invasive breast cancer FFPE blocks were sourced from Indivumed for this study. From each block, twelve (12) adjacent tissue sections (4-µm thickness) on slides were prepared for pathological H&E confirmation to define tumor area, and for testing by STRAT4, IHC (ER, PgR, HER2,Ki67), and HER2 FISH. Standard STRAT4 lysate preparation using a single unstained slide per specimen and testing on N=84, N=68, and N=48 samples was performed at 3 independent sites, respectively (2 US and 1 EU). A single slide from each specimen was also processed using the recommended concentrated lysate procedure for STRAT4 testing at Cepheid. All IHC and FISH testing was performed by a central academic reference laboratory in the US. For a given sample, STRAT4 data generated using the standard lysate procedure was included for concordance analysis when all target gene test results were valid. In cases where the standard lysate preparation yielded indeterminate test results for any target, data from the concentrated lysate preparation was used for the data analysis. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis, overall percent agreement (OPA), positive percent agreement (PPA), and negative percent agreement (NPA) between STRAT4 and IHC (IHC/FISH for HER2) were determined for ESR1,PGR, ERBB2, and MKi67.

Results: Of the 200 samples tested by STRAT4, all samples generated valid results for ESR1 and ERBB2, 199 of 200 samples were valid for PGR, and 198 of 200 samples were valid for MKi67 using the standard or concentrated lysate preparation protocol. One sample failed to generate results for both ER and PgR IHC. Twelve samples failed to yield HER2 FISH results.

The STRAT4 success rate and results concordance with IHC were comparable across study sites. OPA between STRAT4 and IHC was 97% for ESR1, 88.9% for PGR, 93.3% for HER2 (92.4% for IHC and FISH), and 90.7% for MKi67 (excluding IHC 10-20% staining). Areas under the ROC curves were 0.9922 for ESR1, 0.9509 for PGR, 0.9958 for ERBB2, and 0.9395 for MKi67.

Conclusion: STRAT4 measurements for ESR1, PGR, ERBB2 and MKi67 mRNA expression are robust and highly concordant with IHC (IHC/FISH for HER2). The technical portion of the assay is easily performed in &lt; 2 hrs including hands-on time using standard FFPE tissue sections. Xpert STRAT4 offers local pathology labs an alternative to centralized, subjective IHC/FISH tests that require a higher level of expertise. Further investigations correlating STRAT4 markers directly with clinical outcomes in independent cohorts are in progress.

Citation Format: Wu NC, Wong E, Acca B, Birkmeier J, Tran L, Zhao S, Wong W, Chu VC, Ho K, Malek M, Lu C, Ge G, David K, Quigley NB, Beqaj SS, Davenport S, Weidler J, Bates M, Press M. A multicenter clinical study of Xpert® breast cancer STRAT4 demonstrates high concordance with central lab ER, PgR, HER2, and Ki67 IHC and HER2 FISH tests in FFPE breast tumor tissues [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2017 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P2-03-03.

[Diagnostic significance of lymph node core needle biopsy for lymphoproliferative disease: a clinicopathologic study of 1 013 cases]

Objective: To study the clinicopathologic features of lymphoproliferative disease by lymph node core needle biopsy(CNB)and to evaluate the diagnostic significance of CNB for lymphoproliferative disease. Methods: The annual distribution, entity constitute, clinical finding, gross feature, morphologic change, affiliate study and repeat biopsy diagnosis of 1 013 cases of lymph node CNB diagnosed at West China Hospital of Sichuan University from January 2009 to December 2015 were investigated. Results: (1) Proportion of lymph node CNB in total amount of biopsy specimens increased from 0.2% in 2009 to 0.8% in 2015.(2) The study cohort included 471 lymphomas, 12 atypical lymphoid hyperplasia (ALH), 136 suspected lymphomas, 372 benign lesions, and 22 cases of descriptive diagnoses. The most common types were diffuse large B cell lymphoma and T-lymphoblastic lymphoma. (3) Majority of patients were adolescents and children younger than 20 years or the elderly older than 60 years. 53.1% CNB tumor specimen consisted of ≥4 tissue cores and 40.5% were >2 cm in length. (4) 104 CNB cases with previous history of excision biopsy was included 45 carcinomas(no metastatic carcinoma was found), 32 lymphomas for treatment observation.1/14 suspicious lymphomas, 1/1 ALH and 3/22 cases benign lesions were diagnosed as lymphoma by repeat biopsy respectively. (5) 217 CNB cases were diagnosed as lymphoma by subsequent CNB (70), or subsequent excision biopsy (147) including 78.5%(73/93) suspected lymphomas, 5/7 ALH and 32.3%(20/62)benign lesions. Conclusions: Lymph node CNB has certain clinical indications, although limited for the diagnosis of lymphoproliferative disorders. Suspected lymphomas and ALH diagnosed by CNB should be followed by repeat tissue biopsy. For the benign lesions by CNB it does not rule out additional biopsy to further investigate the lesion.

MICAL2 promotes breast cancer cell migration by maintaining epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) stability and EGFR/P38 signalling activation

AIM

MICAL2, a cytoskeleton dynamics regulator, is identified associated with survival and metastasis of several types of cancers recently. This study was designed to investigate the role of MICAL2 in breast cancer cell migration as well as its underlying mechanisms.

METHODS

The relationship between MICAL2 and EGF/EGFR signalling was analysed by gene overexpression and knock-down techniques. Cell migration was measured by wound-healing assays. Activation of EGF/EGFR signalling pathways were evaluated by immunofluorescence, qPCR, Western blotting and zymography techniques. Rac1 activity was assessed by pull-down assay. Correlation of MICAL2 and EGFR in breast cancer specimens was examined by immunohistochemical analysis.

RESULTS

Ectopic expression of MICAL2 in MCF-7 cells augmented EGFR protein level, accompanied by the promotion of cell migration. Silencing MICAL2 in MDA-MB-231 cells destabilized EGFR and inhibited cell migration. In mechanism, the maintaining effect of MICAL2 on EGFR protein content was due to a delay in EGFR degradation. Expression of MICAL2 was also shown positively correlated with the activation of P38/HSP27 and P38/MMP9 signallings, which are the main downstream signalling cascades of EGF/EGFR involved in cell migration. Further analysis indicated that Rac1 activation contributed to the maintaining effect of MICAL2 on EGFR stability. In addition, analysis of breast cancer specimens revealed a positive correlation between MICAL2 and EGFR levels and an association between MICAL2 expression and worse prognosis.

CONCLUSION

MICAL2 is a major regulator of breast cancer cell migration, maintaining EGFR stability and subsequent EGFR/P38 signalling activation through inhibiting EGFR degradation in a Rac1-dependent manner.

Identification of the novel HLA-C*07:530 allele by polymerase chain reaction sequence-based typing

HLA-C*07:530 differs from HLA-C*07:02:01 by a single nucleotide at position 363G>C.

The antibacterial activity and modes of LI-F type antimicrobial peptides against Bacillus cereus in vitro

AIMS

LI-Fs are a family of highly potent cyclic lipodepsipeptide antibiotics with a broad antimicrobial spectrum (Gram-positive bacteria and fungi). In this study, LI-F-type antimicrobial peptides (AMP-jsa9) composing of LI-F03a, LI-F03b, LI-F04a, LI-F04b and LI-F05b were isolated from Paenibacillus polymyxa JSA-9. To better understand the antimicrobial mechanism of AMP-jsa9, the potency and action(s) of AMP-jsa9 against Bacillus cereus were examined.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Flow cytometry, confocal laser microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy observation, as well as determination of peptidoglycan and cell wall-associated protein and other methods were used. The results indicate that AMP-jsa9 exhibits strong, broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. Moreover, AMP-jsa9 targets the cell wall and membrane of B. cereus to impair membrane integrity, increase membrane permeability and enhance cytoplasm leakage (e.g. K⁺ , protein, nucleic acid). This leads to bacterial cells with irregular, withered and coarse surfaces. In addition, AMP-jsa9 is also able to bind to DNA and break down B. cereus biofilms.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, the action mechanism of LI-Fs against B. cereus was clarified in details.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

The results of this study provide a theoretical basis for utilizing AMP-jsa9 or similar analogues as natural and effective preservatives in the food and feed industries. These efforts could also stimulate research activities interested in understanding the specific effects of other antimicrobial agents.

A comparative scanning electron microscopy evaluation of smear layer removal with chitosan and MTAD

The aim of the present study was to compare the efficacy of chitosan and MTAD for the smear layer removal from the root canal through a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Thirty teeth were randomly divided into three groups according to the final irrigants: 0.2% chitosan, MTAD, saline (control group). After the mechanical preparation, the samples were irrigated with saline (control group), 0.2% chitosan and MTDA respectively. Then, the samples were split and the smear layer at the apical, middle, and coronal thirds of each root canal was imaged using SEM. The statistical analysis was performed using the Kruskal-Wallis test and the Mann-Whitney U test (α = 5%). The difference between chitosan and MTDA was statistically significant in the apical region (p < 0.05), no significant difference was obtained in the coronal and middle regions in these two experiment groups (p > 0.05). The control group exhibited the lowest efficacy in smear layer removal in all regions. Thus, from the result of the present study, we may conclude that chitosan was more effective in smear layer removal than MTAD especially in the apical third.

CONTEXT

Irrigation, which serves a variety of purposes including antibacterial action, tissue dissolution, cleaning and chelating, plays a centric role in the final success of root canal treatment. Thus, more and more attention has been put on the improvement and development of various irrigation techniques or systems.

AIMS

The aim of the present study was to compare the efficacy of chitosan and MTAD for the smear layer removal from the root canal through scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

SETTINGS AND DESIGN

Thirty single-canal premolars were instrumented with rotary-files and then, randomly assigned to test groups which were irrigated with chitosan and MTDA, and control group was treated with saline. Thereafter, the efficacy of smear layer removal was evaluated by SEM.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Thirty teeth were randomly divided into three groups according to the final irrigants: 0.2% chitosan, MTAD, saline (control group). After the mechanical preparation, the samples were irrigated with saline (control group), 0.2% chitosan and MTDA respectively. Then, the samples were split and the smear layer at the apical, middle, and coronal thirds of each root canal was imaged using SEM.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED

Kruskal-Walli test and Mann-Whitney U test Results: The difference between chitosan and MTDA was statistically significant in the apical regions (p < 0.05), no significant difference was obtained in the coronal and middle regions in these two experiment groups (p > 0.05). The control group exhibited the lowest efficacy in smear layer removal in all regions.

CONCLUSION

Thus, from the result of present study, we may conclude that chitosan was more effective in smear layer removal than MTAD, especially in the apical third.

Forty-nine cases of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia/lymphoma in pleural and pericardial effusions: A cytological-histological correlation

INTRODUCTION

Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia/lymphoma (ALL/LBL) is an aggressive entity of precursor lymphoid neoplasm and may cause malignant serous effusion (SE). The current study aimed to analyse the characteristics of SE cytology of ALL/LBL including cytomorphology, immunophenotyping, clonality and evaluate the effectiveness of SE cytology as a diagnostic method for ALL/LBL.

METHODS

SE specimens with final diagnosis of ALL/LBL from 2006 to 2016 were reviewed for clinical data, cytomorphological features and ancillary studies. Cytodiagnoses were compared with histodiagnoses, and the discordant cases were analysed.

RESULTS

A total of 49 specimens including 47 pleural fluids and 2 pericardial fluids from 49 patients were evaluated. Cytomorphology revealed lymphoblasts varied from small size with scant cytoplasm, condensed nuclear chromatin and indistinct nucleoli to large size with dispersed nuclear chromatin and multiple variably prominent nucleoli. Nuclear clefts and hand mirror-shaped blasts were demonstrated. The positive rates of CD99 and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase were 90.9% and 81.6%, respectively. Both monoclonal immunoglobulin (Ig)H and T-cell receptor-γ gene rearrangements were demonstrated in 1 of 3 cases. Monoclonal T-cell receptor-γ gene rearrangement was found in 10 of 11 cases. Monoclonal IgH and/or Ig? gene rearrangements were revealed in 2 of 3 cases. Cytodiagnoses included 4 ALL/LBL, 3 B-ALL/LBL and 42 T-ALL/LBL. Histodiagnoses were available in 24 cases including 2 ALL/LBL, 2 B-ALL/LBL and 20 T-ALL/LBL. The concordance rates of cytological-histological diagnoses were 66.7%, 0% and 95.2% in the three categories, respectively. There were 3 cases with discrepancies of cell lineages.

CONCLUSIONS

SE cytological evaluation is a reliable and effective method for the diagnosis of ALL/LBL.

[Clinical research of anxiety and depression state among patients suffered from sudden deafness with vertigo]

Objective:To offer the objective evidences for the diagnosis by analyzing anxiety and depression among patients with sudden deafness and vertigo and their possible causes. Method:Eighty patients with sudden deafness and vertigo of single ear as the observation group; 80 patients with sudden deafness without vertigo and 60 healthy people as control group.Hamilton anxiety scale (HAMA), Hamilton depression scale (HAMD) are used for quantitative analysis and compare the results of each group score. Result:①The HAMA score of the deafness group with vertigo was significantly higher than that of the group without vertigo and the healthy group (P<0.01). The HAMD score of the deafness group with vertigo was significantly higher than that of the group without vertigo and the healthy group (P<0.01). ②There was correlation between HAMA and sex, age, duration of dizziness, tinnitus, DHI and efficacy grading (P<0.05). There was no correlation between HAMA and the mean hearing threshold, urban and rural distribution, ear fullness (P> 0.05). There was a correlation between HAMD and sex, age, tinnitus, DHI and efficacy grading (P<0.05). There was no correlation between HAMD and the mean hearing threshold, duration of dizziness, urban and rural distribution, ear fullness (P>0.05). Conclusion:There are anxiety and depression in patients with deafness and vertigo. It is mainly related to sex, age, dizziness duration, tinnitus, DHI and grade of efficacy. It is necessary to pay attention to the mental state of patients in clinical treatment. Psychological counseling or treatment can be used to improve clinical efficacy.

[Clinical outcomes of cervical disc herniation treated by posterior percutaneous endoscopic cervical discectomy]

Objective: To evaluate the clinical outcomes of posterior percutaneous endoscopic cervical discectomy (PPECD) for cervical disc herniation. Methods: A total of 23 patients who underwent PPECD for cervical disc herniation at Department of Spine Surgery, Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine from August 2014 to April 2016 were reviewed. The mean age of the 17 males and 6 females was 49.5 years (range from 31 to 61 years). All patients had unilateral upper limb radiating symptoms, 13 patients with right upper limb radiating pain and 10 patients with left upper limb radiation pain, 17 patients with neck pain symptoms. Responsible segment: left C(4-5) 1 case, right C(4-5) 2 cases, left C(5-6) 4 cases, right C(5-6) 8 cases, left C(6-7) 5 cases, right C(6-7) 3 example.Operating time, length of hospitalization, complications, neck and arm Visual analog scale(VAS), and Neck Disability Index(NDI) were evaluated. The excellent and good rate of surgery was evaluated by using the Odom criteria. Harrison method was used to measure cervical curvature. The Cobb angle of the surgical segment was measured on the X-ray, and the range of motion (ROM) was calculated. The changes of the cervical curvature and the surgical segment ROM were compared pre- and post-operation. Results: The operation time was 94.1 min (range from 80 to 150 min). The average length of hospital stay was 4.8 days. The mean follow-up period was 23.5 months (range from 15 to 35 months). The preoperative arm VAS score was 6.95±0.88, 1-week postoperative arm VAS score was 2.09±0.67, the last follow-up arm VAS score was 1.04±0.98. The preoperative neck VAS score was 3.04±0.77, 1-week postoperative neck VAS score was 1.52±0.51 and the last follow-up neck VAS score was 0.61±0.78. The 1-week postoperative and last follow-up arm and neck VAS scores were significantly reduced compared with pre-operation (P<0.01). Compared with 1 week after surgery, the last follow-up of the arm and neck VAS score further reduced, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). The preoperative NDI was (58.52±4.98)%, the 1-week postoperative NDI was (33.74±4.72)%, the last follow-up NDI was (19.22±3.23)%. The 1-week postoperative and last follow-up NDI was significantly improved compared with pre-operation (P<0.01). Compared with 1 week after surgery, the last follow-up of the NDI further improved, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). The 1-week postoperative cervical curvature was (14.65±2.89)°, and it was improved compared with preoperative(14.23±3.06)°, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05) . The last follow-up was cervical curvature(14.64±2.68)°, there was no significant difference compared with preoperative (P> 0.05). The preoperative surgical ROM was(5.37±1.83)°, 1-week postoperative was(5.53±1.52)°, and the last follow-up was (5.62±1.48)°, there was no significant difference pre-operative and post-operation (P> 0.05). The excellent and good rate was 91.3% (excellent in 16 cases, good in 5 cases, 2 cases). There was no nerve root injury, cerebrospinal fluid leakage, wound infection, and other complications. Conclusions: PPECD is a sufficient and safe supplement for cervical disc herniation, its recent clinical efficacy was good. And it has no significant effect on cervical stability.

Integrative analyses reveal biological pathways and key genes in psoriasis

BACKGROUND

Psoriasis is a complex disease influenced by both genetic and environmental factors with abnormal gene expression in lesional skin. However, no studies are available on genome-scale gene expression of psoriatic lesions in the Chinese population. In addition, systematic studies on the biological pathways, pathogenicity and interaction networks of psoriasis-related genes with abnormal expression profiles require further investigation.

OBJECTIVES

To further explore the associated pathways in psoriasis by functional analysis and to identify the key genes by gene pathogenicity analysis.

METHODS

We performed RNA sequencing on 60 skin biopsy samples from patients with psoriasis and healthy controls to identify the primary differentially expressed genes in psoriatic lesional skin. We retrieved all reported psoriasis-associated genes and performed integrative analyses covering gene expression profiling, pathway analysis, gene pathogenicities and protein-protein interaction networks.

RESULTS

We found that internal and external stimuli may activate immunoinflammatory responses to promote the development of psoriasis. Pathways associated with infectious diseases and cancers were identified by functional and pathway analyses. The gene pathogenicity analysis revealed five key genes in psoriasis: PPARD, GATA3, TIMP3, WNT5A and PTTG1.

CONCLUSIONS

Our analyses showed that genes contributed to the pathogenesis of psoriasis by activating risk pathways with components abnormality in expression. We identified five potentially pathogenic genes for psoriasis that may serve as important biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment.

Large-scale study of clinical and biochemical characteristics of Chinese patients diagnosed with Krabbe disease

Krabbe disease (KD) is a rare disease caused by the deficiency of β-galactocerebrosidase. This study investigated 22 unrelated Chinese patients, including their clinical presentations, plasma psychosine levels and β-galactocerebrosidase gene mutations. We found the late-onset form of KD present in 82% of the patients in our study, which was more prevalent than in patients from other populations. Plasma psychosine levels were elevated in KD, which were correlated with the severity of clinical presentations. Sanger sequencing identified 8 novel mutations, including 7 missense mutations, p.H253Y, p.S259L, p.P318L, p.F350V, p.T428A, p.L530P, p.G586D, and 1 splicing mutation, c.1251+1G>A. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification identified a novel exon 12 and 14 deletion, separately. Next generation sequencing, applied at the final step, revealed 2 missense mutant alleles missed using Sanger sequencing. The most common mutation in Chinese population is p.P154H, which accounts for 20.5% of alleles. Consistent with the higher prevalence of the late-onset form of KD, missense mutations predominated in our study, different with the common mutation types in Europe and Japan. This work was the first large-scale study of Chinese KD patients describing their clinical, biochemical and genetic characteristics, which furthered our understanding of this classical neurological lysosomal storage disease.

Microindentation - a tool for measuring cortical bone stiffness? A systematic review

Objectives

Microindentation has the potential to measure the stiffness of an individual patient’s bone. Bone stiffness plays a crucial role in the press-fit stability of orthopaedic implants. Arming surgeons with accurate bone stiffness information may reduce surgical complications including periprosthetic fractures. The question addressed with this systematic review is whether microindentation can accurately measure cortical bone stiffness.

Methods

A systematic review of all English language articles using a keyword search was undertaken using Medline, Embase, PubMed, Scopus and Cochrane databases. Studies that only used nanoindentation, cancellous bone or animal tissue were excluded.

Results

A total of 1094 abstracts were retrieved and 32 papers were included in the analysis, 20 of which used reference point indentation, and 12 of which used traditional depth-sensing indentation. There are several factors that must be considered when using microindentation, such as tip size, depth and method of analysis. Only two studies validated microindentation against traditional mechanical testing techniques. Both studies used reference point indentation (RPI), with one showing that RPI parameters correlate well with mechanical testing, but the other suggested that they do not.

Conclusion

Microindentation has been used in various studies to assess bone stiffness, but only two studies with conflicting results compared microindentation with traditional mechanical testing techniques. Further research, including more studies comparing microindentation with other mechanical testing methods, is needed before microindentation can be used reliably to calculate cortical bone stiffness.

Cite this article: M. Arnold, S. Zhao, S. Ma, F. Giuliani, U. Hansen, J. P. Cobb, R. L. Abel, O. Boughton. Microindentation – a tool for measuring cortical bone stiffness? A systematic review. Bone Joint Res 2017;6:542–549. DOI: 10.1302/2046-3758.69.BJR-2016-0317.R2.