Replicating human characteristics: A promising animal model of central fatigue

Central fatigue is a common pathological state characterized by psychological loss of drive, lack of appetite, drowsiness, and decreased psychic alertness. The mechanism underlying central fatigue is still unclear, and there is no widely accepted successful animal model that fully represents human characteristics. We aimed to construct a more clinically relevant and comprehensive animal model of central fatigue. In this study, we utilized the Modified Multiple Platform Method (MMPM) combined with alternate-day fasting (ADF) to create the animal model. The model group rats are placed on a stationary water environment platform for sleep deprivation at a fixed time each day, and they were subjected to ADF treatment. On non-fasting days, the rats were allowed unrestricted access to food. This process was sustained over a period of 21 days. We evaluated the model using behavioral assessments such as open field test, elevated plus maze test, tail suspension test, Morris water maze test, grip strength test, and forced swimming test, as well as serum biochemical laboratory indices. Additionally, we conducted pathological observations of the hippocampus and quadriceps muscle tissues, transmission electron microscope observation of mitochondrial ultrastructure, and assessment of mitochondrial energy metabolism and oxidative stress-related markers. The results revealed that the model rats displayed emotional anomalies resembling symptoms of depression and anxiety, decreased exploratory behavior, decline in learning and memory function, and signs of skeletal muscle fatigue, successfully replicating human features of negative emotions, cognitive decline, and physical fatigue. Pathological damage and mitochondrial ultrastructural alterations were observed in the hippocampus and quadriceps muscle tissues, accompanied by abnormal mitochondrial energy metabolism and oxidative stress in the form of decreased ATP and increased ROS levels. In conclusion, our ADF+MMPM model comprehensively replicated the features of human central fatigue and is a promising platform for preclinical research. Furthermore, the pivotal role of mitochondrial energy metabolism and oxidative stress damage in the occurrence of central fatigue in the hippocampus and skeletal muscle tissues was corroborated.

[Relationship between dynamic changes of psychological distress and quality of life in Chinese early breast cancer patients]

Objective: To explore the dynamic changes of Distress Thermometer scores and the relationship between psychological distress and quality of life in Chinese early breast cancer patients during chemotherapy. Methods: This prospective study enrolled 110 Chinese postoperative early breast cancer patients between March 2019 and December 2019. The psychological distress and quality of life (QOL) of patients were assessed by using the psychological distress management screening tool and the patient quality of life scale. Logistic regression model was used to analyze the influencing factors of psychological distress degree. The correlation between distress thermometer (DT) score changes and quality of life was analyzed by Pearson correlation analysis. Results: In total, 96 valid cases were analyzed. Before chemotherapy, 47 cases (49.0%) had DT score ≥4 points. After 2 cycles of chemotherapy, 40 cases (41.7%) had DT score ≥4 points. Thirty-four patients (35.4%) had DT score ≥4 points after chemotherapy. The DT score after chemotherapy was lower than that before chemotherapy and after 2 cycles of chemotherapy. Univariate analysis showed that income level and pathological stage were still significant related to the detection of DT score ≥4 points after chemotherapy (P<0.05). The changes of DT scores before and after chemotherapy were negatively correlated with the changes of quality of life ( r=-0.298, P=0.003). Conclusions: The detection rate of psychological distress in patients with early breast cancer during chemotherapy showed a decreasing trend. Income level and tumor stage are significant factors affecting the psychological distress of patients. There is a significant correlation between the psychological distress and the quality of life during chemotherapy. We should pay attention to the evaluation and monitoring state of psychological distress of patients during chemotherapy.

Biological Characteristics and Genetic Diversity of Phomopsis asparagi, Causal Agent of Asparagus Stem Blight

Asparagus stem blight is a regional disease. In the present study, we compared strains of Phomopsis asparagi from six different provinces to determine their biological characteristics and genetic diversity, differences in the pycnidium and conidium production, pathogenicity, and growth rate. Considerable differences were established in the pycnidium and conidium production among the P. asparagi strains from the six studied provinces. The largest pycnidium and conidium production had the strains from Fujian, followed by those from Hainan. The virulence of P. asparagi strains was significantly different but without a correlation with the geographical source of the strain. FJ2 had the highest virulence, followed by HN2, SD4, and SD5, whereas SD5 had the lowest virulence. The colony diameter and dry weight of the strains of asparagus stem blight fungus from the six provinces were substantially different. The colonies of HN1-5 had the largest diameters, whereas those of XT1-5, LT1-3, FJ1-5, and SX6 had smaller diameters. Four primers with good repeatability and strong specificity were selected from 100 intersimple sequence repeat (ISSR) primers. ISSR-PCR amplification was performed on 36 strains of asparagus stem blight fungus, and a large number of repeatable DNA fingerprints were obtained. Most of the amplified fragments were within 300 to 500 bp. In all, 69 total points, 64 multiple points, and 92.75% polymorphism points were established. The number of ISSR gene sites detected by four primers ranged from 14 to 20, with an average of 16 multiple sites. The copolymerization was divided into three groups: XT1-5, LT1-3, and FJ1-5, which were clustered into the first group; SD1-6, SX1-6, and HB1-6, clustered into the second group; and HN1-5 in the third group. The results of the cluster analysis revealed that the strains of the neighboring provinces had a nearer phylogenetic relationship than that between distant ones. Therefore, the system evolution of P. asparagi is related to the geographical distribution of its strains.

[The effect of ovarian function suppression on the psychological status of breast cancer patients under 35 years old in China]

Objective: To explore whether the addition of ovarian function suppression in endocrine therapy of Chinese breast cancer patients under 35 years old will affect the psychological state. Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled 91 Chinese postoperative breast cancer patients aged 35 years or younger. The depression and anxiety state of patients were assessed by Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and their sociodemographic characteristics were collected. Results: Among the 91 patients, 61 were receiving ovarian function suppression (OFS) treatment, 30 were not. Among the 30 patients with out OFS treatment, 2 had PHQ-9 score ≥8, 28 had PHQ-9 score < 8, 1 had GAD-7 score ≥10, and 29 had GAD-7 score < 10. Among the 61 patients with OFS, 19 had PHQ-9 score ≥8, 42 had PHQ-9 score < 8, 8 had GAD-7 score ≥10, and 53 had GAD-7 score <10. The incidence of depression was 6.7% and 31.1% in the non-OFS group and OFS group, respectively (P=0.018). The incidence of anxiety in the two groups was 3.3% and 13.1%, respectively (P=0.174). Univariate analysis showed that the incidence of depression was significantly higher in patients with OFS (P=0.018). After taking into account the sociodemographic factors, pathological stage and treatment of the patients, multivariate analysis showed that the administration of OFS was still significantly related to the incidence of depression (OR=9.14, 95% CI=1.52~55.16, P=0.016). There was no significant difference in the incidence of anxiety (P=0.174). Conclusions: For Chinese young breast cancer patients under 35 years old, the use of OFS in the adjuvant endocrine therapy may lead to a significant increase in the incidence of depression. We should pay attention to the evaluation and monitoring of the psychological state of this population.

[The clinical reports on adrenal insufficiency of patients with advanced solid tumors accepting anti-PD-1 antibody, SHR-1210 therapy]

Objective: To investigate the adrenocortical function changes of patients with advanced solid tumors who received the anti- programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) antibody, SHR-1210 therapy. Methods: The clinical data of 98 patients with advanced solid tumors who were enrolled in a prospective phase I trial of SHR-1210 therapy at our institution between April 27, 2016 and June 8, 2017 were collected. The levels of plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol were evaluated in 96 patients. The clinical manifestations, laboratory tests and radiologic data were collected to define the immune-related adrenal insufficiency. Results: Until December 14th, 2018, no SHR-1210 related primary adrenal insufficiency occurred, and the incidence of immune-related secondary adrenal insufficiency was 1.0% among the 96 patients, which was identified as grade 2. No patient developed grade 3-4 adrenal insufficiency. The main clinical manifestations of the patient who was diagnosed as secondary adrenal insufficiency were grade 2 fatigue, anorexia and headache.The patient developed fatigue and anorexia at the 267th day after receiving the first dose of SHR-1210, the hypocortisolism occurred on the 279th day, and the headache emerged on the 291th day. The anorexia of patient who treated by physiological replacement doses of glucocorticoid since the 457th day was attenuated.The patient whose cortisol level was still below the normal limit continued to accept the hormone replacement therapy up to 776 days after the initial administration of SHR-1210. Conclusions: The incidence of SHR-1210 related adrenal insufficiency of patients with advanced solid tumors is low, and the symptoms can be effectively ameliorated by hormone replacement therapy. The potential adverse outcome of adrenal insufficiency following immunotherapy should be noticed by clinicians to avoid the occurrence of adrenal crisis.

VCP/p97/Cdc48, A Linking of Protein Homeostasis and Cancer Therapy

VCP/p97/Cdc48, a member of the ATPases associated with diverse cellular activities (AAA) family, is necessary for the endoplasmic-reticulum-associated protein degradation (ERAD) pathway to maintain protein homeostasis. Overwhelming proteotoxic stress drove cancer cells to enhance VCP/p97/Cdc48-associated ERAD to maintain protein homeostasis for survival, demonstrating that VCP/p97/Cdc48 expression was positively correlated with cancer prognosis. More studies revealed that targeting VCP/p97/Cdc48 could be a potential target in cancer therapy. CB-5083, a novel inhibitor of VCP/p97/Cdc48, is in clinical trials as the first VCP/p97/Cdc48- inhibiting drug for cancer therapy. Here, we discuss the relationship between VCP/p97/Cdc48, ERAD, protein homeostasis and cancer therapy.

[Clinical observation of thyroid-related adverse events induced by anti-PD-1 antibody SHR-1210 in patients with advanced solid tumor]

Objective: To assess the incidence and characteristics of thyroid dysfunction during anti-Programmed cell death 1 receptor (PD-1) antibody SHR-1210 therapy in patients with advanced solid tumor. Methods: The medical records of 98 patients who initiated SHR-1210 treatment between April 27, 2016 and June 8, 2017 in the phase 1 trial to evaluate the safety, efficacy, and pharmacokinetics of SHR-1210 in patients with advanced solid tumors were retrospectively reviewed. Serological tests of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and free thyroxine (fT4) were measured at baseline and prior to each SHR-1210 administration. Results: A total of 86 patients had normal thyroid function before the first dose of SHR-1210 treatment. Nine out of 86 (10.5%) patients developed new onset hypothyroidism from euthyroid state. 12 patients presented thyroid dysfunction at baseline, 10 of whom were subclinical hypothyroid and 2 were hypothyroidism. Four out of 10 patients developed hypothyroidism from subclinical hypothyroid. Most patients with hypothyroidism were asymptomatic. Thyroid dysfunction occurred early (median, 55days) after the initiation of SHR-1210. The severity of hypothyroidism were all grade 1-2. No grade 3-4 hypothyroidism occurred. No patients discontinue the treatment of SHR-1210 due to clinical impact of the thyroid dysfunctions. Conclusions: Thyroid-related adverse events were common during anti-PD-1 antibody SHR-1210 treatment . The incidence of hypothyroidism is lower in patients with euthyroid state than in patients with thyroid dysfunction at baseline during SHR-1210 treatment . Thyroid function can be improved after thyroid hormone replacement. During SHR-1210 treatment, it is necessary to pay attention to monitor the thyroid function, especially in the patients with thyroid dysfunction at baseline. Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, 2016L01455.

Abstract P3-12-09: CYP2D6*10 genotype was associated with worse outcome of premenopausal breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant tamoxifen but not toremifene: A single institution expericence

Background: Tamoxifen(TAM), a selective estrogen receptor modulator(SERM), is the most widely used adjuvant endocrine therapy for premenopausal breast cancer patients. Cytochrome P-450(CYP450) enzyme, CYP2D6, is involved in the conversion of tamoxifen to endoxifen which is one of the main active metabolites of tamoxifen in vivo. Variants of CYP2D6 gene may result in a decreased enzyme activity and lead to poor prognosis of the patients. Different from caucasians, the most common polymorphism among Chinese women is allelic variant *10, which generates a 188 C to T transition, resulting in a lower activity of the enzyme. Based on some retrospective studies, tamoxifen-treated patients with the CYP2D6*10 T/T genotype have a worse clinical outcome. Toremifene(TOR), another kind of SERM is not metabolited by CYP2D6 enzyme thus may not be influenced by its polymorphism. We conducted this study to validate the association between CYP2D6*10 genotype and the outcomes of patients receiving TAM and TOR respectively.

Methods: A total of 276 patients with primary early-stage ER-positive breast cancer received adjuvant tamoxifen (n=169) or toremifene (n=107) therapy at Natinal Cancer Center from 2004-2012 were analyzed. All patients had received 5-year endocrine therapy after completion of surgery. TaqMan SNP genotyping assays was performed on CYP2D6*10 from blood samples. The association of CYP2D6 *10 genotype with disease free survival (DFS) and clinicopathological characteristics was analyzed in patients receiving tamoxifen and toremifen.

Results: 32.6% (90 of 276) of the patients were homozygous for wild-type C/C genotype, 47.1% (130 of 276) were heterozygous for C/T genotype, and 20.3% (56 of 276) were homozygous for variant T/T genotype. The frequency of CYP2D6 *10 allele in our study was 43.8%. The 5-year DFS rate for tamoxifen and toremifene treatment group were 81.6% and 83.2% respectively. There was no significant difference of DFS between the two groups(P=0.274). Among 169 patients in tamoxifen group, 5-year DFS rate was considerably lower in patients with homozygous variant T/T genotype than those with wild-type C/C or C/T genotype (73.4% versus 83.2%, P=0.004). And the T/T genotype was found to be a significant prognostic marker for DFS in multivariate analysis (hazard ratio = 4.7; P&lt;0.001) after adjusting for patient's characteristics mentioned above. For the toremifene group, there was no difference of DFS between T/T genotype and the others(P=0.332). For all the 56 homozygous variant T/T genotype patients, patients receiving toremifene treatment had a much higher 5-year DFS rate than those receiving tamoxifen but unfortunately it was not statistically significant (90.0% versus 73.4%, P=0.192).

Conclusions: About one fifth of Chinese breast cancer patients had homozygous T/T genotype which might get less benefit from TAM adjuvant treatment. Toremifene may be a better option for this kind of patients. Further large-scale prospective clinical studies are warranted to validate this concept.

Citation Format: Lan B, Ma F, Fan Y, Zhai X, Xu B. CYP2D6*10 genotype was associated with worse outcome of premenopausal breast cancer patients receiving adjuvant tamoxifen but not toremifene: A single institution expericence [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 P3-12-09.

[The treatment and prognosis of peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumor]

Objective: To evaluate the treatment and prognosis of peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumor (pPNET). Methods: From March 2006 to April 2015, 47 patients with pPNET who had undergone chemotherapy in our hospital were enrolled. The clinical data and survival information of these patients were collected and interpreted retrospectively to analyze the effect of each treatment on the survival of patients. Results: The median overall survival (OS) for whole group was 23.5 months, and 5-year survival rate was 33.8%. In the patients who underwent radical surgery, the median OS was 70.4 months, the 5-year survival rate was 54.4%, the median disease-free survival (DFS) was 23.1months, and 5-year DFS rate was 34.4%. Sixteen patients had recurrences or metastasis after surgery. Eighty-one percent of them (13/16) occurred within 2 years after surgery. The difference of median OS between patients who got adjuvant chemotherapy and those who did not was statistically significant (P=0.04). But the difference of median PFS between these two groups was not statistically significant (P=0.057). There was no statistically significant difference for median OS (P=0.619) and median DFS (P=0.191) between patients who got adjuvant radiotherapy and those who did not. The recurrence rate between these two groups was not statistically significant (P=0.40). The median OS and PFS for 34 patients who received first-line palliative chemotherapy was 10.7 months and 3.2 months. 1-year and 2-year survival rates were 48.0% and 17.8%. The response rate and clinical benefit rate for first-line chemotherapy was 53.1% and 75.0%. The median PFS and OS for patients who received platinum-based regimens were 3.3 months and 14.5 months. The median PFS and OS for patients who got non-platinum regimens were 2.7 months and 10.3 months. There was no significant difference of PFS and OS between platinum-based and non-platinum regimens. Palliative surgery and radiotherapy did not improve the OS of pPNET this cohort. Conclusions: Comprehensive treatment including chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery is the standard treatment model for early pPNET patients. Adjuvant chemotherapy significantly improved the overall survival of early pPNET patients. Chemotherapy is the main treatment for patients with advanced pPNET. Platinum-based chemotherapy seem to be a good option.

Invasive and prognostic significance of pRB in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a meta-analysis

This paper investigates the association between protein retinoblastoma (pRB) loss and the T,N stage and prognosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCCs) using meta-analysis. We conducted a meta-analysis of 16 studies, comprising 1,117 patients to clarify this issue. All the studies searched by the electronic literature PubMed and http://www.KJEBM.com, which had been published during the period from January 1996 to January 2012 according to the inclusion criteria. Summary odds ratios (OR) were calculated using fixed or random-effects models. The summary odds ratios (ORs) for pRB inactive were 0.64 (95% confidence interval [CI]:0.45-0.91, P = 0.01) for T1/T2 versus T3/T4 tumors; summary OR = 0.69 (95% CI:0.51-0.94, P = 0.02) for N0 versus N1 tumors. The association between pRB loss and prognosis was examined in nine studies, and the summary hazard ratio was 1.39 (95% CI:1.11-1.74, P = 0.004). pRB inactive was significant associated with T3/T4 tumors and N1 stage as well as adverse prognosis for ESCCs. It appears warranted to prospectively validate that pRB loss may be used for subdividing the T,N stage evaluation of patients with ESCCs, and these patients may be the preponderant people for individualized treatment or target therapy.

Laser surface modification of poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) membrane for tissue engineering applications

Ultra-thin polycaprolactone (PCL) produced by bi-axial stretching was previously shown to have significant advantage for membrane tissue engineering. However, the permeability of the membrane needs to be enhanced. In this study, ablation experiments using femtosecond laser and excimer laser were carried out to modify the PCL surface. The use of the femtosecond laser produces neat drilled-through holes while the excimer laser is employed to produce blind-holes on the membrane. The modified surface of the membrane was studied and analyzed for different laser parameters (such as pulse energy and pulse repetition rate and characterized using several techniques that include optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and water contact angle measurements). Results showed that the morphological surface changes with different laser parameters, and the water contact angle decreases as the surface of the membrane is modified. The decrease in water contact angle suggests that surface of the membrane had become more hydrophilic than the non-laser treated membrane. The present study demonstrated that laser surface modification on the PCL can be achieved with high degree of success and precision. This paved the way for further enhancement in membrane tissue engineering.

[Energy distribution of Phyllostachys pubescens ecosytem in north Fujian]

Based on the data obtrained from 40 Phyllostachys pubescens plots in Jianou City of Fujian Province, the distribution of energy was studied in this paper. The results showed that the energy contained in stems, branches and leaves, and underground parts of P. pubescens ecosystem were 4.2322 x 10(8) kJ.hm-2, 0.9230 x 10(8) kJ.hm-2 and 1.7643 x 10(8) kJ.hm-2, accounting for 61.32%, 13.11% and 25.57% of the total energy respectively.

[Mondini's deafness]

Mondini's deafness was the congenital malformation of inner ear. We studied 199 ears of 106 cases. Most of them were found deaf when they were babies. High resolution computed tomography of temperal bone was described: cochlea malformation 4 ears; malformation of cochlea, vestibule and semicircular canal 90 ears; vestibular of semicircular malformation without cochlea malformation 105 ears, this type was called the vestibule malformation or untypically Mondini's. Of all the 199 ears there were 81 ears with enlargement of the vestibule aqueducts. The pathogeny, clinical manifestation and treatment were discussed.