Improved Single Breath-Hold SSFSE Sequence for Liver MRI Based on Compressed Sensing: Evaluation of Image Quality Compared with Conventional T2-Weighted Sequences

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the image quality of compressed-sensing accelerated single-shot fast spin-echo (SSFSECS) sequences acquired within a single breath-hold in comparison with conventional SSFSE (SSFSECONV) and multishot TSE (mTSE). A total of 101 patients who underwent liver MRI at 3 T, including SSFSECONV (acquisition time (TA) = 58–62 s), mTSE (TA = 108 s), and SSFSECS (TA = 18 s), were included in this retrospective study. Two radiologists assessed the three sequences with respect to artifacts, organ sharpness, small structure visibility, overall image quality, and conspicuity of main lesions of liver and pancreas using a five-point evaluation scale system. Descriptive statistics and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test were used for statistical analysis. SSFSECS was significantly better than SSFSECONV and mTSE for artifacts, small structure visibility, overall image quality, and conspicuity of main lesions (p < 0.005). Regarding organ sharpness, mTSE and SSFSECS did not significantly differ (p = 0.554). Conspicuity of liver lesion did not significantly differ between SSFSECONV and mTSE (p = 0.404). SSFSECS showed superior image quality compared with SSFSECONV and mTSE despite a more than three-fold reduction in TA, suggesting a remarkable potential for saving time in liver imaging

The Role of ZNF143 in Breast Cancer Cell Survival Through the NAD(P)H Quinone Dehydrogenase 1–p53–Beclin1 Axis Under Metabolic Stress

Autophagy is a cellular process that disrupts and uses unnecessary or malfunctioning components for cellular homeostasis. Evidence has shown a role for autophagy in tumor cell survival, but the molecular determinants that define sensitivity against autophagic regulation in cancers are not clear. Importantly, we found that breast cancer cells with low expression levels of a zinc-finger protein, ZNF143 (MCF7 sh-ZNF143), showed better survival than control cells (MCF7 sh-Control) under starvation, which was compromised with chloroquine, an autophagy inhibitor. In addition, there were more autophagic vesicles in MCF7 sh-ZNF143 cells than in MCF7 sh-Control cells, and proteins related with the autophagic process, such as Beclin1, p62, and ATGs, were altered in cells with less ZNF143. ZNF143 knockdown affected the stability of p53, which showed a dependence on MG132, a proteasome inhibitor. Data from proteome profiling in breast cancer cells with less ZNF143 suggest a role of NAD(P)H quinone dehydrogenase 1(NQO1) for p53 stability. Taken together, we showed that a subset of breast cancer cells with low expression of ZNF143 might exhibit better survival via an autophagic process by regulating the p53–Beclin1 axis, corroborating the necessity of blocking autophagy for the best therapy

Correction with blood T1 is essential when measuring post-contrast myocardial T1 value in patients with acute myocardial infarction

Abstract Background Post-contrast T1 mapping by modified Look-Locker inversion recovery (MOLLI) sequence has been introduced as a promising means to assess an expansion of the extra-cellular space. However, T1 value in the myocardium can be affected by scanning time after bolus contrast injection. In this study, we investigated the changes of the T1 values according to multiple slicing over scanning time at 15 minutes after contrast injection and usefulness of blood T1 correction. Methods Eighteen reperfused acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients, 13 cardiomyopathy patients and 8 healthy volunteers underwent cardiovascular magnetic resonance with 15 minute-post contrast MOLLI to generate T1 maps. In 10 cardiomyopathy cases, pre- and post-contrast MOLLI techniques were performed to generate extracellular volume fraction (Ve). Six slices of T1 maps according to the left ventricular (LV) short axis, from apex to base, were consecutively obtained. Each T1 value was measured in the whole myocardium, infarcted myocardium, non-infarcted myocardium and LV blood cavity. Results The mean T1 value of infarcted myocardium was significantly lower than that of non-infarcted myocardium (425.4±68.1 ms vs. 540.5±88.0 ms, respectively, p0.05). The Ve did not show significant differences from apical to basal slices. Conclusion Post-contrast myocardial T1 corrected by blood T1 or Ve, provide more stable measurement of degree of fibrosis in non-infarcted myocardium in short- axis multiple slicing.</p

Proteogenomic landscape of human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in an Asian population reveals tumor cell-enriched and immune-rich subtypes

We report a proteogenomic analysis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Mutation–phosphorylation correlations identified signaling pathways associated with somatic mutations in significantly mutated genes. Messenger RNA–protein abundance correlations revealed potential prognostic biomarkers correlated with patient survival. Integrated clustering of mRNA, protein and phosphorylation data identified six PDAC subtypes. Cellular pathways represented by mRNA and protein signatures, defining the subtypes and compositions of cell types in the subtypes, characterized them as classical progenitor (TS1), squamous (TS2–4), immunogenic progenitor (IS1) and exocrine-like (IS2) subtypes. Compared with the mRNA data, protein and phosphorylation data further classified the squamous subtypes into activated stroma-enriched (TS2), invasive (TS3) and invasive-proliferative (TS4) squamous subtypes. Orthotopic mouse PDAC models revealed a higher number of pro-tumorigenic immune cells in TS4, inhibiting T cell proliferation. Our proteogenomic analysis provides significantly mutated genes/biomarkers, cellular pathways and cell types as potential therapeutic targets to improve stratification of patients with PDAC. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature America, Inc.FALS