Non-invasively differentiate non-alcoholic steatohepatitis by visualizing hepatic integrinαvβ3 expression with a targeted molecular imaging modality

BACKGROUND Non-invasive methods to diagnose non-alcoholic steatohepatitis(NASH),an inflammatory subtype of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD),are currently unavailable.AIM To develop an integrinαvβ3-targeted molecular imaging modality to differentiate NASH.METHODS Integrinαvβ3 expression was assessed in Human LO2 hepatocytes Scultured with palmitic and oleic acids(FFA).Hepatic integrinαvβ3 expression was analyzed in rabbits fed a high-fat diet(HFD)and in rats fed a high-fat,high-carbohydrate diet(HFCD).After synthesis,cyclic arginine-glycine-aspartic acid peptide(cRGD)was labeled with gadolinium(Gd)and used as a contrast agent in magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)performed on mice fed with HFCD.RESULTS Integrinαvβ3 was markedly expressed on FFA-cultured hepatocytes,unlike the control hepatocytes.Hepatic integrinαvβ3 expression significantly increased in both HFD-fed rabbits and HFCD-fed rats as simple fatty liver(FL)progressed to steatohepatitis.The distribution of integrinαvβ3 in the liver of NASH cases largely overlapped with albumin-positive staining areas.In comparison to mice with simple FL,the relative liver MRI-T1 signal value at 60 minutes post-injection of Gd-labeled cRGD was significantly increased in mice with steatohepatitis(P<0.05),showing a positive correlation with the NAFLD activity score(r=0.945;P<0.01).Hepatic integrinαvβ3 expression was significantly upregulated during NASH development,with hepatocytes being the primary cells expressing integrinαvβ3.CONCLUSION After using Gd-labeled cRGD as a tracer,NASH was successfully distinguished by visualizing hepatic integrinαvβ3 expression with MRI.

Gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging in the assessment of hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome in a mouse model

BACKGROUND Neoadjuvant chemotherapy can cause hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome(SOS)in patients with colorectal cancer liver metastases and increases posto-perative morbidity and mortality.AIM To evaluate T1 mapping based on gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)for diagnosis of hepatic SOS induced by monocrotaline.METHODS Twenty-four mice were divided into control(n=10)and experimental(n=14)groups.The experimental groups were injected with monocrotaline 2 or 6 days before MRI.MRI parameters were:T1 relaxation time before enhancement;T1 relaxation time 20 minutes after enhancement(T_(1post));a reduction in T1 relaxation time(△T_(1)%);and first enhancement slope percentage of the liver parenchyma(ESP).Albumin and bilirubin score was determined.Histological results served as a reference.Liver parenchyma samples from the control and experimental groups were analyzed by western blotting,and organic anion transporter polypeptide 1(OATP1)was measured.RESULTS T_(1post),△T_(1)%,and ESP of the liver parenchyma were significantly different between two groups(all P<0.001)and significantly correlated with the total histological score of hepatic SOS(r=-0.70,0.68 and 0.79;P<0.001).△T_(1)%and ESP were positively correlated with OATP1 levels(r=0.82,0.85;P<0.001),whereas T_(1post) had a negative correlation with OATP1 levels(r=-0.83;P<0.001).INTRODUCTION Hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome(SOS)is also known as hepatic veno-occlusive disease of the liver[1].The main pathological feature of hepatic SOS is damage to liver terminal vessels,and the clinical symptoms of it include ascites and abdominal pain[2].It was first proposed in 1979 as an early complication of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation[3].The prevalence ranges from 5%to 60%,and hepatic SOS is a potentially severe complication and can even lead to death in severe cases[4].Recently,systemic neoadjuvant chemotherapy became widely regarded as one of the causes hepatic SOS in the patients with advanced metastatic colorectal cancer[5,6],especially those were treated with oxaliplatin[7,8].Oxaliplatin-based preoperative chemotherapy is used for patients with colorectal liver metastases as the standard regimen[8,9],because it could improve tumor resection outcome by shrinking the metastatic sites and reducing recurrence rate[10].Nevertheless,chemotherapy-induced hepatic SOS has been associated with a higher risk of postresection morbidity[11],such as intraoperative bleeding,intraoperative transfusions,and postoperative liver failure[12].Therefore,it is important to detect and diagnose of hepatic SOS timely.Currently,the gold standard is still based on liver biopsy[13],but it is an invasive procedure and has several limitations and complications,such as hemorrhage[14].A noninvasive diagnostic modality is needed for the assessment of hepatic SOS.Some noninvasive tools have been used for diagnosis of hepatic SOS.Researchers have utilized a preoperative platelet count and aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index[15].In addition,some imaging methods such as shear wave ultrasonography,computed tomography,and gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)have been promoted as useful methods for evaluation of hepatic SOS[16-18].Recent studies with monocrotaline(MCT)-treated rats were conducted to investigate diagnosis and prediction of severity of SOS.For example,intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted imaging,non-Gaussian diffusion models,and T1 rho quantification[19,20].The MCT-induced hepatic SOS animal model was reproducible,with a detailed pathological scoring criteria[21].Gadoxetic acid is a hepatocyte-specific contrast substance,which can provide parenchymal contrast in the hepato-biliary phase.It is reported that gadoxetic acid is absorbed into the liver parenchyma via organic anion transporter polypeptide 1(OATP1)on the hepatocyte membranes[22-24].Recently,several authors have described the feasibility of gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI for the diagnosis of oxaliplatin-induced hepatic SOS[25].They mainly diagnosed hepatic SOS based on the signal intensity of the hepatobiliary specific phase.However,there were several limitations due to the inconsistency between signal intensity of the liver parenchyma and the concentration of contrast agent for evaluation of the degree of hepatic SOS[26].Therefore,we measured T1 relaxation time on parametric mapping because it is linearly related to the concentration of the contrast agent and is not affected by other factors[27].Yang et al[28]demonstrated T1 mapping on gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI for the assessment of oxaliplatin-induced liver injury in a C57BL/6 mouse model.However,the main pathological changes in their model were hepatocyte degeneration and fibrosis.Therefore,we aimed to explore the effectiveness of T1 mapping based on gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI for the diagnosis of hepatic SOS in a C57BL/6 mouse model,as well as a possible relation between OATP1 Levels and MRI parameters.

Assessment of T staging and mesorectal fascia status using high-resolution MRI in rectal cancer with rectal distention

AIM： To determine the accuracy of high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging （MRI） using phasedarray coil for preoperative assessment of T staging and mesorectal fascia infiltration in rectal cancer with rectal distention.METHODS： In a prospective study of 67 patients with primary rectal cancer, high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging （in-plane resolution, 0.66 × 0.56） with phased-array coil were performed for T-staging and measurement of distance between the tumor and the mesorectal fascia. The assessment of MRI was compared with postoperative histopathologic findings. Sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were evaluated.RESULTS： The overall magnetic resonance accuracy was 85.1% for Tstaging and 88% for predicting mesorectal fascia involvement. Magnetic resonance sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value was 70%, 97.9%, 89.6%, 93.3% and 88.5% for ≤ T2 tumors, 90.5% , 76% , 85.1%, 86.4% and 82.6% for T3 tumors, 100%, 95.2%, 95.5% , 62.5% and 100% for T4 tumors, and 80% , 90.4%, 88%, 70.6% and 9d% for predicting mesorectal fascia involvement, respectively.CONCLUSION： High-resolution MRI enables accurate preoperative assessment for T staging and mesorectal fascia infiltration in rectal cancer with rectal distention.

Usefulness of two-point Dixon fat-water separation technique in gadoxetic acid-enhanced liver magnetic resonance imaging

AIM:To compare differences between volumetric interpolated breath-hold examination(VIBE) using two-point Dixon fat-water separation(Dixon-VIBE) and chemically selective fat saturation(FS-VIBE) with magnetic resonance imaging examination.METHODS:Forty-nine patients were included, who were scanned with two VIBE sequences(Dixon-VIBE and FS-VIBE) in hepatobiliary phase after gadoxetic acid administration.Subjective evaluations including sharpness of tumor, sharpness of vessels, strength and homogeneity of fat suppression, and artifacts that were scored using a 4-point scale.The liver-to-lesion contrast was also calculated and compared.RESULTS:Dixon-VIBE with water reconstruction had significantly higher subjective scores than FS-VIBE in strength and homogeneity of fat suppression(< 0.0001) but lower scores in sharpness of tumor(P < 0.0001), sharpness of vessels(P = 0.0001), and artifacts(P = 0.034).The liver-to-lesion contrast on Dixon-VIBE images was significantly lower than that on FS-VIBE(16.6% ± 9.4% vs 23.9% ± 12.1%, P = 0.0001).CONCLUSION:Dixon-VIBE provides stronger and more homogenous fat suppression than FS-VIBE, while has lower clarity of focal liver lesions in hepatobiliary phase after gadoxetic acid administration.

The Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO): Clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer, 2023

The 2023 update of the Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology(CSCO)Clini-cal Guidelines for Gastric Cancer focuses on standardizing cancer diagnosis and treatment in China,reflecting the latest advancements in evidence-based medicine,healthcare resource availability,and precision medicine.These updates address the differences in epidemiological characteristics,clinicopatho-logical features,tumor biology,treatment patterns,and drug selections between Eastern and Western gastric cancer patients.Key revisions include a structured template for imaging diagnosis reports,updated standards for molecular marker testing in pathological diagnosis,and an elevated recommendation for neoadju-vant chemotherapy in stage III gastric cancer.For advanced metastatic gastric cancer,the guidelines introduce new recommendations for immunotherapy,anti-angiogenic therapy and targeted drugs,along with updated management strategies for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)-positive and deficient DNA mismatch repair(dMMR)/microsatellite instability-high(MSI-H)patients.Additionally,the guidelines offer detailed screening recommendations for hereditary gastric cancer and an appendix listing drug treatment regimens for various stages of gastric cancer.The 2023 CSCO Clinical Guidelines for Gastric Cancer updates are based on both Chinese and international clinical research and expert consensus to enhance their applicability and relevance in clinical practice,particularly in the heterogeneous healthcare landscape of China,while maintaining a commitment to scientific rigor,impartiality,and timely revisions.

The Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology(CSCO):Clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer,2021

There exist differences in the epidemiological characteristics,clinicopathological features,tumor biological characteristics,treatment patterns,and drug selections between gastric cancer patients from the Eastern and Western countries.The Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology(CSCO)has organized a panel of senior experts specializing in all sub-specialties of gastric cancer to compile a clinical guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer since 2016 and renews it annually.Taking into account regional differences,giving full consideration to the accessibility of diagnosis and treatment resources,these experts have conducted expert consensus judgment on relevant evidence and made various grades of recommendations for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer to reflect the value of cancer treatment and meeting health economic indexes in China.The 2021 CSCO Clinical Practice Guidelines for Gastric Cancer covers the diagnosis,treatment,follow-up,and screening of gastric cancer.Based on the 2020 version of the CSCO Chinese Gastric Cancer guidelines,this updated guideline integrates the results ofmajor clinical studies from China and overseas for the past year,focused on the inclusion of research data from the Chinese population for more personalized and clinically relevant recommendations.For the comprehensive treatment of non-metastatic gastric cancer,attentions were paid to neoadjuvant treatment.The value of perioperative chemotherapy is gradually becoming clearer and its recommendation level has been updated.For the comprehensive treatment of metastatic gastric cancer,recommendations for immunotherapy were included,and immune checkpoint inhibitors fromthird-line to the first-line of treatment for different patient groups with detailed notes are provided.