Tripartite quantum entanglement with squeezed optomechanics

The ability to engineer entangled states that involve macroscopic objects is of particular importance for a wide variety of quantum-enabled technologies, ranging from quantum information processing to quantum sensing. Here we propose how to achieve coherent manipulation and enhancement of quantum entanglement in a hybrid optomechanical system, which consists of a Fabry-P\'{e}rot cavity with two movable mirrors, an optical parametric amplifier (OPA), and an injected squeezed vacuum reservoir. We show that the advantages of this system are twofold: (i) one can effectively regulate the light-mirror interactions by introducing a squeezed intracavity mode via the OPA; (ii) when properly matching the squeezing parameters between the squeezed cavity mode and the injected squeezed vacuum reservoir, the optical input noises can be suppressed completely. These peculiar features of this system allow us to generate and manipulate quantum entanglement in a coherent and controllable way. More importantly, we also find that such controllable entanglement, under some specific squeezing parameters, can be considerably enhanced in comparison with those of the conventional optomechanical system. Our work, providing a promising method to regulate and tailor the light-mirror interaction, are poised to serve as a useful tool for engineering various quantum effects which are based on cavity optomechanics.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figure

LncRNA MALAT1 Promotes Cancer Metastasis in Osteosarcoma via Activation of the PI3K-Akt Signaling Pathway

Background/Aims: LncRNAs have been reported to be vital regulators of the progression of osteosarcoma, although the underlying mechanisms are not completely understood. Methods: The levels of MALAT1 and miR-129-5p expression were measured using qRT-PCR. Cell growth was determined using the CCK-8 and colony formation assays. Cell migration and invasion were detected using the wound healing and Transwell invasion assays, respectively. Tumor growth was determined with a xenograft model. Results: MALAT1 was significantly up-regulated in osteosarcoma tissues compared with adjacent non-tumor soft tissues. Overexpression of MALAT1 promoted osteosarcoma cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro and enhanced tumor growth in a tumor xenograft mouse model. MALAT1 promoted osteosarcoma progression by modulating stem cell-like properties. Moreover, rescue experiment and luciferase reporter assay results indicated that MALAT1 modulates RET expression by sponging miR-129-5p in osteosarcomas. Furthermore, MALAT1 augmented the expression of downstream proteins of the RET-Akt pathway. MALAT1 was consistently significantly increased in osteosarcoma tissues and MALAT1 expression was positively correlated with tumor size and metastasis. High expression of MALAT1 was significantly associated with poor outcomes in patients with osteosarcomas. MALAT1 expression was positively related to RET and negatively related to miR-129-5p in osteosarcoma samples and xenograft tumors. MALAT1 functioned as an oncogenic lncRNA in osteosarcomas and was as an independent prognostic indicator. Conclusion: Our data revealed for the first time that MALAT1 increases stem cell-like properties by up-regulating RET via sponging miR-129-5p, and thus activates the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway and provides potential therapeutic targets for osteosarcoma treatment

Intensity of Left Atrial Spontaneous Echo Contrast as a Correlate for Stroke Risk Stratification in Patients with Nonvalvular Atrial Fibrillation.

The intensity of left atrial spontaneous echo contrast (LASEC) by transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) has been proposed as an important variable in the stratification of thromboembolic risk, particularly in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). We hypothesized that the quantification of LASEC by ultrasound will improve its utility in predicting subsequent stroke events in patients with NVAF. Patients (n = 206) with definite NVAF receiving TEE were included for this prospective cohort study. Baseline clinical risk factors of stroke, CHADS2 score and CHA2DS2-Vasc, left atrial thrombus (LAT), the five-grades of LASEC and video intensity (VI) value of LASEC were measured. During 2 years follow-up, 20 patients (9.7%) developed stroke. VI value of LASEC in the patients with stroke was higher compared to patients without stroke (25.30 ± 3.61 vs. 8.65 ± 0.81, p \u3c 0.001). On logistic regression analysis, LAT, qualitative LASEC, graded LASEC, VI value of LASEC and CHADS2 and CHA2DS2-Vasc score were independent predictors of stroke. Among them, the highest area under the curve of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) in predicting stroke was VI value of LASEC (p \u3c 0.05). These results show that quantification of LASEC by VI value is the most favorable predictor of stroke in patients with NVAF, and calls for improving the utility of LASEC in predicting subsequent stroke events

Novel Nomograms-Based Prediction Models for Patients with Primary Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Sarcomas Resections

Background: Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcomas (UPS) were one of the most common soft tissue sarcomas. As UPS had relatively high potentials of recurrence and metastasis, we designed two nomograms to better predict the overall survival (OS) and time to recurrence (TTR) for patients who underwent primary surgery. Methods: The data of UPS patients who underwent primary surgery were extracted from Shanghai Cancer Center, Fudan University. Multivariate analyses were performed using Cox proportional hazards regression to identify independent prognostic factors. Kaplan–Meier analysis was used to compare differences for patients who underwent primary surgery in OS and TTR. Nomograms were designed with the help of R software and validated using calibration curves and receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC). Results: Kaplan–Meier curves showed that patients with older ages (p = 0.0024), deeper locations (p = 0.0422), necrosis (p < 0.0001), G3 French Federation Nationale des Centres de Lutte Contre le Cancer (FNCLCC) classification (p < 0.0001), higher Ki-67 (p < 0.0001), higher mitotic index (p < 0.0001), R1/R2 resections (p = 0.0002) and higher invasive depth (p = 0.0099) had shorter OS than the other patients while patients with older ages (p = 0.0108), necrosis (p = 0.0001), G3 FNCLCC classification (p < 0.0001), higher Ki-67 (p = 0.0006), higher mitotic index (p < 0.0001) and R1/R2 resections (p < 0.0001) had shorter TTR compared with those without. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that mitotic rates and surgical margin were independent factors for TTR while age and invasive depth were independent factors for OS. Three parameters were adopted to build the nomograms for 3- and 5-year OS and TTR. The Area Under Curve (AUC) of this nomogram at 3- and 5-year TTR reached 0.802, 0.814, respectively, while OS reached 0.718, 0.802, respectively. Calibration curves for the prediction of 3- and 5-year OS and TTR showed excellent agreement between the predicted and the actual survival outcomes. Conclusions: Some important parameters could be used to predict the outcome of individual UPS patients such as mitotic age, rates, surgical margin, and invasive depth. We developed two accurate and practicable nomograms that could predict 3- and 5-year OS and TTR for UPS patients, which could be involved in the modern medical decision-making process

Silencing of synaptotagmin 7 regulates osteosarcoma cell proliferation, apoptosis, and migration

Background. Synaptotagmin 7 (SYT7) is a component of the synaptotagmin family, which is essential in many physiological and pathological processes. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of SYT7 in osteosarcoma. Methods. We defined the expression levels of SYT7 in osteosarcoma tissues and para-sarcoma tissues by immunohistochemistry and analyzed the possible correlation between SYT7 expression and pathological characteristics via Mann-Whitney U analysis and Spearman correlation analysis. The effects of SYT7 silencing in vitro on cell growth were assessed by MTT assay. Cell cycle and cell apoptosis were assessed by flow cytometry analysis. Wound healing assay and transwell assay were applied to assess the migration and invasion capacity. Results. The results showed that the expression levels of SYT7 were upregulated in osteosarcoma tissues compared with para-sarcoma tissues and positively correlated with the pathological characteristics of osteosarcoma. Functional experiments demonstrated that SYT7 silencing significantly inhibited cell proliferation and colony formation capacity (P<0.001), induced cell cycle arrest which increased the proportion of G2 phase and decreased the proportion of S phase, enhanced cell apoptosis (P<0.01), and limited the capacity of migration and invasion (P<0.01), compared with shCtrl group. Conclusion. The results indicated that SYT7 plays a crucial role in the development of osteosarcoma. SYT7 can be applied as a new diagnostic and therapeutic target in osteosarcoma