Prognostic value of pre-and post-transplantation 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography results in non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients receiving autologous stem cell transplantation

Objective： High-dose chemotherapy （HDC） followed by autologous stem cell transplantation （ASCT） is the standard of care in the upfront or relapsed/refractory setting in some patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma （NHL）. However, a proportion of patients do not respond to ASCT. lSF-fluorodeoxyglueose （FDG） positron emission tomography （PET）/computed tomography （CT） has been widely used for staging, response evaluation, and prognosis prediction. Here, we investigated the prognostic role of PET/CT in NHL patients before and after ASCT. Methods： A retrospective study was conducted at Peking University Cancer Hospital. All NHL patients who underwent ASCT between March 2010 and July 2016 were identified. Patients who had PET/CT scan before and after ASCT were included. Deauville criteria （5-point scale） were used to interpret PET scans. Univariate and multivariate survival analyses were performed using Cox regression. The predictive value of PET scanning was estimated by comparing the area under the receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve. Results： In total, 79 patients were enrolled in this study. In univariate analysis, pre- and post-ASCT PET result was identified as prognostic factors for 3-year progression-free survival （PFS） and overall survival （OS）. Patients with negative pre-ASCT PET result demonstrated significantly better PFS （84.2% vs. 54.2%） and OS （89.2% vs. 63.6%） than patients with positive pre-ASCT PET result. PFS （91.6% vs. 25.3%） and OS （96.5% vs. 36.8%） were also significantly different between patients with negative and positive post-ASCT PET result. Multivariate analysis also showed a significant association between survival and post-ASCT PET result. ROC analysis revealed that the predictive value of post-ASCT PET result was superior to that of pre-ASCT PET result alone. Combined pre- and post-ASCT PET result is better for predicting outcomes in patients with NHL receiving transplantation. Deauville criteria score 〉3 was identified as the best cutoffvalue for post-ASCT PET. Conclusions： Post-ASCT PET result was more important than pre-ASCT PET result in predicting outcomes for NHL patients who underwent ASCT. The prognostic significance can be improved when combining pre- ASCT PET result with post-ASCT PET result. Deauville criteria can be used for interpreting PET scans in this scenario.

Changes in the frequency of myeloid-derived suppressor cells after transarterial chemoembolization with gelatin sponge microparticles for hepatocellular carcinoma

Purpose: A series of clinical studies have established the safety and efficacy of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization(TACE) with gelatin sponge microparticles(GSMs) in treating hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). HCC can lead to obvious necrosis inside tumors, especially larger ones, although it is unclear whether such necrotic tumor tissue can induce favorable immune reactions against the tumor. Myeloid-derived suppressor cells(MDSCs)have immunosuppressive functions and are currently considered a very important cell type affecting tumor immunity. This study observed changes in MDSC frequency in peripheral blood before and after GSM–TACE to evaluate the effect on the immune function of HCC patients.Methods: Eight patients diagnosed with HCC underwent GSM–TACE treatment in the Hepatobiliary Interventional Department of Beijing Tsinghua Chang Gung Hospital, Beijing, China;we followed up with the patients over a period of 30 days post-surgery. We used flow cytometry(FCM) to quantify the frequency of MDSCs in peripheral blood before TACE, 10 days after surgery and 30 days after surgery.Results: MDSC frequency after GSM–TACE had a significant downward trend. Pre-TACE, it was 30.73% ? 11.93%,decreasing to 18.60% ? 11.37% at 10 days after operation. This decrease was not statistically significant(P > 0.05). MDSC frequency was even lower 30 days after TACE(7.63% ? 7.32%) than at 10 days after TACE(P < 0.05), and there was a significant difference compared with pre-TACE(P < 0.001). We evaluated tumor response at 30 days after GSM–TACE according to the Modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors(mRECIST), and all eight patients showed partial response(PR).Conclusion: Our results confirmed that GSM–TACE was beneficial for improving anti-tumor immunity in the treatment of HCC.

The Application of BP Neural Networks to Analysis the National Vulnerability

Climate change is the main factor affecting the country’s vulnerability,meanwhile,it is also a complicated and nonlinear dynamic system.In order to solve this complex problem,this paper first uses the analytic hierarchy process(AHP)and natural breakpoint method(NBM)to implement an AHP-NBM comprehensive evaluation model to assess the national vulnerability.By using ArcGIS,national vulnerability scores are classified and the country’s vulnerability is divided into three levels:fragile,vulnerable,and stable.Then,a BP neural network prediction model which is based on multivariate linear regression is used to predict the critical point of vulnerability.The function of the critical point of vulnerability and time is established through multiple linear regression analysis to obtain the regression equation.And the proportion of each factor in the equation is established by using the partial least-squares regression to select the main factors affecting the country’s vulnerability,and using the neural network algorithm to perform the fitting.Lastly,the BP neural network prediction model is optimized by genetic algorithm to get the chaotic time series BP neural network prediction model.In order to verify the practicability of the model,Cambodia is selected to be an example to analyze the critical point of the national vulnerability index.

Luminescent gold(Ⅲ)exciplexes enable efficient multicolor electroluminescence

The control of excited states and related emissive properties of gold(Ⅲ)complexes mainly depends on the modulation of intramolecular electronic interactions among gold(Ⅲ)metal center,chelating ligands and/or peripheral groups.However,luminescent gold(Ⅲ)systems based on intermolecular electronic interactions have never been explored.Here we report a series of proof-of-concept gold(Ⅲ)exciplexes using a simple gold(Ⅲ)complex,AuDPPy,as an electron acceptor.The emissive properties of gold(Ⅲ)exciplexes can be regulated by combining AuDPPy with different donors.Inspiringly,these gold(Ⅲ)exciplexes have donor-dependent emission mechanisms:dominant phosphorescence or dual radiative channels of thermally activated delayed fluorescence(TADF)and phosphorescence.Consequently,these gold(Ⅲ)exciplexes deliver green-to-red electroluminescence with external quantum efficiencies(EQEs)of up to 10.1%.More importantly,using these gold(Ⅲ)exciplexes to host multi-resonance TADF emitters results in narrowband yellow,orange,and deep-red electroluminescence with high EQEs of 23.5%,24.4%,and 27.4%,respectively,competitive to the highest values for gold(Ⅲ)OLEDs in similar color gamut.

Tumor Receptor-Seeking Dyes for Rapid Intraoperative Definition of Tumor Margin and Histopathological Morphology

Histopathological diagnosis is a crucial part of surgical treatment,as it determines further treatment decisions and prognosis for patients.Due to the heterogeneity of tumors,traditional histopathological diagnosis relies on histological and cytological morphological analysis of cryo-slides by well-trained pathologists,which is subjective,time-consuming,and lacks considerable reliability.Therefore,we engineer a series of tumor receptor-seeking dyes to automatically label and visually depict the tumor contour with antibody-free interaction.The meso-chlorine on the cyclohexyl ring of dyes can covalently react with specific thiol groups in various tumor signature proteins to form stable dye@protein complexes.These dye@protein complexes have significantly amplified fluorescence signals in tumor sites,enabling highresolution delineation of tumormargins and providing histological morphology information to potentially determine tumor staging.The orthogonal effect not only avoids errors caused by individual signature proteins,but also amplifies the fluorescence difference between tumor and normal tissues.Notably,our method is easy to operate with a minimal detection time of only 4 min.The tumor receptor-seeking dyes successfully assess tumor-positive margins from 66 resected breast tumor samples and 25 intraoperative cancer patients with 100%accuracy,providing a newgeneration technique for intraoperative pathologic diagnosis of tumor biopsy.

Deep-blue organic light-emitting diodes based on a doublet d-f transition cerium(Ⅲ) complex with 100% exciton utilization efficiency

Compared to red and green organic light-emitting diodes(OLEDs),blue OLEDs are still the bottleneck due to the lack of efficient emitters with simultaneous high exciton utilization efficiency(EUE)and short excited-state lifetime.Different from the fluorescence,phosphorescence,thermally activated delayed fluorescence(TADF),and organic radical materials traditionally used in OLEDs,we demonstrate herein a new type of emitter,cerium(Ⅲ)complex Ce-1 with spin-allowed and parity-allowed d-f transition of the centre Ce^(3+) ion.The compound exhibits a high EUE up to 100% in OLEDs and a short excited-state lifetime of 42 ns,which is considerably faster than that achieved in efficient phosphorescence and TADF emitters.The optimized OLEDs show an average maximum external quantum efficiency(EQE)of 12.4% and Commission Internationale de L’Eclairage(CIE)coordinates of(0.146,0.078).

A Mitochondria-Specific Orange/Near-Infrared-Emissive Fluorescent Probe for Dual-Imaging of Viscosity and H_(2)0_(2) in Inflammation and Tumor Models

Elucidating the intrinsic relationship between viscosity/H_(2)0_(2) and mitochondria-associated diseases remains a great challenge owing to the lack of research on multiple diseases models,such as inflammation and malignant tumor models.In this work,we have developed a mitochondria-specific orange/near-infrared-emissive fluorescent probe TTPB,for dual-imaging of viscosity and H_(2)0_(2) levels in two different channels.The probe exhibited a remarkable response to viscosity with NIR emission round 666 nm,and was highly sensitive to H_(2)0_(2) in orange channel with emission peak at 586 nm.Moreover,TTPB has good mitochondria-specific ability and permits individual detecting of viscosity in NIR channels and H_(2)0_(2) levels in orange channel in living cells.More notably,TTPB was successfully applied to simultaneously image the viscosity and H_(2)0_(2) levels in inflammation and cancer models.

Synthesis of Monodisperse CexZr1-xO2 Nanocrystals and the Size-Dependent Enhancement of Their Properties

Monodisperse CexZr1-xO2 nanocrystals have been synthesized using a simple two-phase approach; adjusting the ratio of precursors used, amount of capping agent used, reaction time and temperature affords precise control over their composition, structure and size. Size-dependent enhancement of oxygen-storage capacity and kinetics of oxygen storage and release were observed. Systematic studies were conducted in order to understand the size-dependent enhancement of these properties. This work provides important insights into the synthesis and fundamental understanding of multi-component nanocrystals with a large variety of applications.

High-Efficiency Narrow-Band Electro-Fluorescent Devices with Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence Sensitizers Combined Through-Bond and Through-Space Charge Transfers

Organic light-emitting diodes utilizing thermally activated delayed fluorescence sensitizers and multiple-resonance(MR)dopants may simultaneously offer high efficiencies and narrow-band emissions,but these devices still face intractable challenges with a lack of design rules for high-performance sensitizers.Here,sensitizers with ortho-arranged donor–acceptors on a(trifluoromethyl)benzene linker have been proposed,which not only facilitate relatively small molecular dipole moments but also combine through-bond and through-space charge transfers for fast reverse intersystem crossing(RISC).

Suppressing Competitive Coordination Reaction for Ohmic Cathode Contact Using Amino-Substituted Organic Ligands and Air-Stable Metals

Ohmic cathode contact can be formed readily via coordination-activated n-doping(CAN),by co-evaporating air-stable metals(e.g.,silver)and organic ligands with coordination sites.It has been proposed that increasing the nucleophilicity of the main binding site of a ligand is essential for reducing the work function of the doped films.

Exploratory study of microparticle transcatheter arterial chemoembolization combined with resection for huge hepatocellular carcinoma

Objective:To investigate the safety and clinical efficacy of microparticle transcatheter arterial chemoembolization(mTACE)combined with surgical resection for the treatment of huge hepatocellular carcinoma(hHCC;
10 cm).Methods:A retrospective descriptive study was conducted to gather the clinical data of nine patients with hHCCs treated with mTACE combined with resection in Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital from December 2016 to July 2020.The outcome were as follows:(1)the excellent effect and adverse reactions of mTACE and(2)the efficacy and safety of perioperative resection.Count data were expressed as absolute numbers and percentages.The measurement data of the normal distribution is represented by XS,and the measurement data of the skewed distribution are represented by M(range).A paired t-test was used to compare the data of the same patient.p values<0.05 are considered statistically significant.Results:(1)Regarding the efficacy and safety of mTACE,all nine hHCCs were treated with mTACE one time.The tumor necrosis rate after particle TACE was(77.615.7)%(51.7%–100%);according to the modified response evaluation criteria in solid tumors,the objective response was partial response in eight patients and complete response in one patient.The alpha fetoprotein(AFP)level was abnormal in six cases(>20 ng/mL),of which three cases exceeded the maximum value(>30,000 ng/mL)pre-mTACE.In six patients with abnormal AFP levels,the AFP level decreased in five patients,with a median percentage of 74.5%(35.2%–96.0%).The PIVKA-II level in nine patients was>40 mAU/mL before mTACE and decreased to varying degrees after mTACE.The median percentage of decline was 76.0%(4.5%–99.8%).The maximum diameter of the tumor decreased from(13.91.9)cm(11.0–16.4 cm)to(12.81.9)cm(10.4–15.6 cm)(P?0.001)before surgical resection.Prior to the surgical resection,the tumor volume decreased from(897244)mL(436–1250 mL)to(750291)mL(260–1130 mL)(P?0.001),and the residual liver volume/standard liver volume increased from(42.812.8)%(25.8%–61.3%)to(50.214.9)%(28.8%–67.4%)(P?0.008).All patients had embolism syndrome such as fever and abdominal pain in varying degrees,and no serious complications such as liver abscess,liver and kidney failure,or ectopic embolism were noted.(2)For perioperative efficacy and safety,all lesions were successfully resected in(3111)days(14–48 days)after mTACE.The operation time was(39579)min(296–540 min),and the amount of intraoperative bleeding was(433158)mL(200–600 mL).Complications such as biliary fistula,abdominal bleeding,liver and kidney failure,or abdominal infection were not found.The postoperative hospital stay was(134)days(9–19 days).No tumor invasion was found at the cutting edge,and hepatic vein invasion was observed in one case.(3)The follow-up ended in November 2021,with a median follow-up of 34 months(16–46 months).Recurrence or distant metastasis occurred in four patients,of which two patients died.The survival times were 18 and 31 months,respectively.The other two patients were followed up for 34 and 41 months.The remaining five patients were followed up for 16–46 months without antitumor treatment or disease progression.Conclusions:mTACE combined with tumor resection is feasible for the treatment of patients with hHCC,which needs to be further confirmed by prospective studies.