Venous thromboembolism after oral and maxillofacial oncologic surgery : report and analysis of 14 cases in Chinese population

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) including deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) is a leading cause of death in cancer patients. The aim of this study was to explore the potential risk factor of VTE in oral and maxillofacial oncological surgery. The data of patients who received operation in our institution were gathered in this retrospective study. A diagnosis of VTE was screened and confirmed by computer tomography angiography (CTA) of pulmonary artery or ultrasonography examination of lower extremity. Medical history and all perioperative details were analyzed. 14 patients were diagnosed as VTE, including 6 cases of PE, 7 cases of DVT, 1case of DVT and PE. The mean age of these patients was 62.07 years. Reconstruction was performed in 12 patients of these cases, most of which were diagnosed as malignance. Mean length of surgery was 8.74 hours, and lower extremity deep venous cannula (DVC) was performed in all these patients. We analyzed several characters of oral and maxillofacial surgery and suggested pay attention to lower extremity DVC which had a high correlation with DVT according to our data

Morphological and Comparative Transcriptome Analysis of Three Species of Five-Needle Pines: Insights Into Phenotypic Evolution and Phylogeny

Pinus koraiensis, Pinus sibirica, and Pinus pumila are the major five-needle pines in northeast China, with substantial economic and ecological values. The phenotypic variation, environmental adaptability and evolutionary relationships of these three five-needle pines remain largely undecided. It is therefore important to study their genetic differentiation and evolutionary history. To obtain more genetic information, the needle transcriptomes of the three five-needle pines were sequenced and assembled. To explore the relationship of sequence information and adaptation to a high mountain environment, data on needle morphological traits [needle length (NL), needle width (NW), needle thickness (NT), and fascicle width (FW)] and 19 climatic variables describing the patterns and intensity of temperature and precipitation at six natural populations were recorded. Geographic coordinates of altitude, latitude, and longitude were also obtained. The needle morphological data was combined with transcriptome information, location, and climate data, for a comparative analysis of the three five-needle pines. We found significant differences for needle traits among the populations of the three five-needle pine species. Transcriptome analysis showed that the phenotypic variation and environmental adaptation of the needles of P. koraiensis, P. sibirica, and P. pumila were related to photosynthesis, respiration, and metabolites. Analysis of orthologs from 11 Pinus species indicated a closer genetic relationship between P. koraiensis and P. sibirica compared to P. pumila. Our study lays a foundation for genetic improvement of these five-needle pines and provides insights into the adaptation and evolution of Pinus species

Replication of the Association of a MET Variant with Autism in a Chinese Han Population

Background: Autism is a common, severe and highly heritable neurodevelopmental disorder in children, affecting up to 100 children per 10,000. The MET gene has been regarded as a promising candidate gene for this disorder because it is located within a replicated linkage interval, is involved in pathways affecting the development of the cerebral cortex and cerebellum in ways relevant to autism patients, and has shown significant association signals in previous studies. Principal Findings: Here, we present new ASD patient and control samples from Heilongjiang, China and use them in a case-control and family-based replication study of two MET variants. One SNP, rs38845, was successfully replicated in a case-control association study, but failed to replicate in a family-based study, possibly due to small sample size. The other SNP, rs1858830, failed to replicate in both case-control and family-based studies. Conclusions: This is the first attempt to replicate associations in Chinese autism samples, and our result provides evidence that MET variants may be relevant to autism susceptibility in the Chinese Han population

Genome-Wide Network-Based Analysis of Colorectal Cancer Identifies Novel Prognostic Factors and an Integrative Prognostic Index

Background/Aims: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of leading cancers in both incidence and mortality rate. The 5-year survival rate varies considerably depending on the pathological stage of the tumor. Although prominent progress has been made through screening for survival-associated factors from a certain type of genetic or epigenetic modifications, few attempts have been made to apply a network-based approach in prognostic factor identification, which could prove valuable for a complex, multi-faceted disease such as CRC. Methods: In this study, a TCGA dataset of 379 CRC patients was subjected to a network-based analysis strategy consisting of multivariate regression, co-expression network and gene regulatory network analyses, and survival analyses. Both genetic and epigenetic aberrations, including those in gene expression and DNA methylation at specific sites, were screened for significant association with patient survival. A prognostic index (PI) integrating all potential prognostic factors was subsequently validated for its prognostic value. Results: A collection of six miRNAs, eleven mRNAs, and nine DNA methylation sites were identified as potential prognostic factors. The low- and high-risk patient groups assigned based on PI level showed significant difference in overall survival (hazard ratio = 1.32, 95% confidence interval 1.29-1.36, p < 0.0001). Patients in the low- and high-risk groups can be further divided into a total of four subgroups, based on pathological staging. In the two high-risk subgroups (PI > 0), there was significant different (Cox p < 0.0001) in OS between the earlier (stages I/II) and later stages (stages III/IV). However, in the two low-risk subgroups (PI < 0), earlier (stages I/II) and later stages (stages III/IV) showed no significant difference in OS (Cox p = 0.185). On the other hand, there were significant differences in OS between the low- and high-risk subgroups when both subgroups were of earlier stages (Cox p < 0.001) or of later stages (Cox p < 0.0001). Conclusion: The novel network-based, integrative analysis adopted in this study was efficient in screening for prognostic predictors. Along with PI, the set of 6 miRNAs, 11 mRNAs, and 9 DNA methylation sites could serve as the basis for improved prognosis estimation for CRC patients in future clinical practice

Tumor-Initiating Cells Are Enriched in CD44hi Population in Murine Salivary Gland Tumor

Tumor-initiating cells (T-ICs) discovered in various tumors have been widely reported. However, T-IC populations in salivary gland tumors have yet to be elucidated. Using the established Pleomorphic Adenoma Gene-1 (Plag1) transgenic mouse model of a salivary gland tumor, we identified CD44high (CD44hi) tumor cells, characterized by high levels of CD44 cell surface expression, as the T-ICs for pleomorphic adenomas. These CD44hi tumor cells incorporated 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU), at a lower rate than their CD44negative (CD44neg) counterparts, and also retained BrdU for a long period of time. Cell surface maker analysis revealed that 25% of the CD44hi tumor cells co-express other cancer stem cell markers such as CD133 and CD117. As few as 500 CD44hi tumor cells were sufficient to initiate pleomorphic adenomas in one third of the wildtype mice, whereas more than 1×104 CD44neg cells were needed for the same purpose. In NIH 3T3 cells, Plag1 was capable of activating the gene transcription of Egr1, a known upregulator for CD44. Furthermore, deletion of sequence 81–96 in the Egr1 promoter region abolished the effect of Plag1 on Egr1 upregulation. Our results establish the existence of T-ICs in murine salivary gland tumors, and suggest a potential molecular mechanism for CD44 upregulation

Post-myocardial infarction depression, inflammatory markers and cardiac prognosis in Chinese patients

published_or_final_versionabstractCommunity MedicineDoctoralDoctor of Philosoph

Thermodynamic Analysis of Transcritical CO2 Ejector Expansion Refrigeration Cycle with Dedicated Mechanical Subcooling

The new configuration of a transcritical CO2 ejector expansion refrigeration cycle combined with a dedicated mechanical subcooling cycle (EMS) is proposed. Three mass ratios of R32/R1234ze(Z) (0.4/0.6, 0.6/0.4, and 0.8/0.2) were selected as the refrigerants of the mechanical subcooling cycle (MS) to further explore the possibility of improving the EMS cycle’s performance. The thermodynamic performances of the new cycle were evaluated using energetic and exergetic methods and compared with those of the transcritical CO2 ejector expansion cycle integrated with a thermoelectric subcooling system (ETS). The results showed that the proposed cycle presents significant advantages over the ETS cycle in terms of the ejector performance and the system energetic and exergetic performances. Taking the EMS cycle using R32/R1234ze(Z) (0.6/0.4) as the MS refrigerant as an example, the improvements in the coefficient of performance and system exergy efficiency were able to reach up to 10.27% and 15.56%, respectively, at an environmental temperature of 35 °C and evaporation temperature of −5 °C. Additionally, the advantages of the EMS cycle were more pronounced at higher environmental temperatures

Unravelling the causes and consequences of dispersal syndromes in a wild passerine

Evidence accumulates that dispersal is correlated with individual behavioural phenotype (dispersal syndrome). The evolutionary causes and consequences of such covariation depend on the degree of plasticity versus inheritance of the traits, which requires challenging experiments to implement in mobile organisms. Here, we combine a forced dispersal experiment, natural colonization and longitudinal data to establish if dispersal and aggression levels are integrated and to test their adaptive nature in pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca). We found that (forced) dispersers behaved more aggressively in their first breeding year after dispersal and decreased their aggression in following years. Strength of dispersal syndrome and direction of fecundity selection on aggression in newly colonized areas varied between years. We propose that the net benefits of aggression for dispersers increase under harsh conditions (e.g. low food abundance). This hypothesis now warrants further testing. Overall, this study provides unprecedented experimental evidence that dispersal syndromes can be remodelled via adaptive plasticity depending on the individuals' local breeding experience and/or year-specific ecological conditions. It highlights the importance of individual behavioural variation in population dynamics

Mild selective oxidative cleavage of lignin C-C bonds over a copper catalyst in water

The conversion of lignin into aromatics as commodity chemicals and high-quality fuels is a highly desirable goal for biorefineries. However, the presence of robust inter-unit carbon-carbon (C-C) bonds in natural lignin seriously impedes this process. Herein, for the first time, we report the selective cleavage of C-C bonds in beta-O-4 and beta-1 linkages catalyzed by cheap copper and a base to yield aromatic acids and phenols in excellent yields in water at 30 degrees C under air without the need for additional complex ligands. Isotope-labeling experiments show that a base-mediated C-beta-H bond cleavage is the rate-determining step for C-alpha-C-beta bond cleavage. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations suggest that the oxidation of beta-O-4 ketone to a key intermediate, i.e., a peroxide, by copper and O-2 lowers the C-alpha-C-beta bond dissociation energy and facilitates its subsequent cleavage. In addition, the catalytic system could be successfully applied to the depolymerization of various authentic lignin feedstocks, affording excellent yields of aromatic compounds and high selectivity of a single monomer. This study offers the potential to economically produce aromatic chemicals from biomass