Evaluation of preoperative staging for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma(ESCC) is known for its rapid progression and poor outcomes. China has the highest incidence and mortality in the world. Diagnoses made at early stages and accurate staging are associated with better outcomes, all of which can play a significant role in the selection of treatment protocols. ESCC is staged according to the widely accepted TNM system. Common imaging modalities used in staging ESCC before treatment include endoscopy, computed tomography(CT), positron emission tomography(PET) and magnetic resonance imaging(MRI). Endoscopic ultrasound is useful for staging tumor depth and nodal status. Narrow band imaging is valuable for early stage disease assessment. CT and PET provide additional valuable information regarding node and metastasis staging. The ability of MRI to delineate ESCC is continuously being improved and adds information regarding locoregional status to routine examinations.

Primary intestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma:A clinicopathologic analysis of 81 patients

AIM:To analyze the clinicopathologic features and the prognosis of primary intestinal lymphoma.METHODS:Patients were included in the study based on standard diagnostic criteria for primary gastrointesti-nal lymphoma,and were treated at Sun Yat-sen Univer-sity Cancer Centre between 1993 and 2008.RESULTS:The study comprised 81 adults.The most common site was the ileocaecal region.Twenty-two point two percent patients had low-grade B-cell lym-phoma.Fifty-one point nine percent patients had high-grade B-cell lymphoma and 25.9% patients had T-cell lymphoma.Most patients had localized disease.There were more patients and more early stage diseases in the latter period,and the origin sites changed.The ma-jority of patients received the combined treatment,andabout 20% patients only received nonsurgical therapy.The wverall survival and event-free survival rates after 5 years were 71.6% and 60.9% respectively.The mul-tivariate analysis revealed that small intestine and ileo-caecal region localization,B-cell phenotype,and normal lactate dehydrogenase were independent prognostic factors for better patient survival.Surgery based treat-ment did not improve the survival rate.CONCLUSION:Refined stratification of the patients according to the prognostic variables may allow indi-vidualized treatment.Conservative treatment may be an optimal therapeutic modality for selected patients.

Endoscopic ultrasonography for staging of T1a and T1b esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

AIM: To investigate the accuracy of Endoscopic ultrasound(EUS) in staging and sub-staging T1a and T1b esophageal squamous cell carcinoma(ESCC). METHODS: A retrospective analysis involving 72 patients with pathologically confirmed T1a or T1b ESCC, was undertaken between January 2005 and December 2011 in Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center. The accuracy and efficiency of EUS for detecting stages T1a and T1b ESCC were examined. RESULTS: The overall accuracy of EUS for detecting stage T1a or T1b ESCC was 70.8%(51/72), and the sensitivity was 74.3%. 77.8%(7/9) of lesions originated in the upper thoracic region, 73.1%(38/52) in the mid-thoracic region and 72.7%(8/11) in the lower thoracic region. Multivariate analysis revealed that the diagnostic accuracy of EUS was closely related to lesion length(F = 4.984, P = 0.029). CONCLUSION: EUS demonstrated median degree of accuracy for distinguishing between stages T1a and T1b ESCC. Therefore, it is necessary to improve EUS for staging early ESCC.

Phenomic and metabolomic responses of roots to cadmium reveal contrasting resistance strategies in two rice cultivars(Oryza sativa L.)

To cope with heavy metal stress,plant root systems undergo root structure modification and release of multifarious metabolites.Elucidation of the resistance strategies to heavy metals mediated by the root system is crucial to comprehend the resistance mechanisms of plants.Here two rice cultivars with contrasting grain cadmium(Cd)accumulation traits were selected and the responses of their root systems to Cd stress were evaluated by morphological and metabolomics analysis.The phenomic and metabolomic responses of the root system varied between the two cultivars under Cd stress.The low-Cd accumulation rice cultivar(TY816)had a more highly developed root system that coped with Cd stress(10μM)by maintaining high root activity,while the root cells of the high-Cd accumulation cultivar(JY841)lost viability due to excessive Cd accumulation.TY816 upregulated lipids and fatty acids to reduce Cd uptake,whereas JY841 upregulated phenylethanoid glycosides to cope with Cd-induced oxidative stress.The combination of metabolomics and phenomics revealed that rice roots employ multiple strategies to increase their tolerance of Cd-induced oxidative stress.Differing capacities to shape the root system architecture and reprogram root exudate metabolites may contribute to the contrasting Cd accumulation abilities between JY841 and TY816.

Shotgun proteomic analysis of Bombyx mori brain： emphasis on regulation of behavior and development of the nervous system

The insect brain plays crucial roles in the regulation of growth and develop- ment and in all types of behavior. We used sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and high-performance liquid chromatography - electron spray ionization tandem mass spectrometry （ESI-MS/MS） shotgun to identify the proteome of the silkworm brain, to investigate its protein composition and to understand their biological functions. A total of 2210 proteins with molecular weights in the range of 5.64-1539.82 kDa and isoelectric points in the range of 3.78-12.55 were identified. These proteins were anno- tated according to Gene Ontology Annotation into the categories of molecular function, biological process and cellular component. We characterized two categories of proteins： one includes behavior-related proteins involved in the regulation of behaviors, such as locomotion, reproduction and learning; the other consists of proteins related to the devel- opment or function of the nervous system. The identified proteins were classified into 283 different pathways according to KEGG analysis, including the PI3K-Akt signaling path- way which plays a crucial role in mediating survival signals in a wide range of neuronal cell types. This extensive protein profile provides a basis for further understanding of the physiological functions in the silkworm brain.