Subcutaneous fat thickness and abdominal depth are risk factors for surgical site infection after gastric cancer surgery

BACKGROUND Surgical site infection(SSI)is one of the most common complications after gastric cancer(GC)surgery.The occurrence of SSI can lead to a prolonged postoperative hospital stay and increased medical expenses,and it can also affect postoperative rehabilitation and the quality of life of patients.Subcutaneous fat thickness(SFT)and abdominal depth(AD)can be used as predictors of SSI in patients undergoing radical resection of GC.AIM To explore the potential relationship between SFT or AD and SSI in patients undergoing elective radical resection of GC.METHODS Demographic,clinical,and pre-and intraoperative information of 355 patients who had undergone elective radical resection of GC were retrospectively collected from hospital electronic medical records.Univariate analysis was performed to screen out the significant parameters,which were subsequently analyzed using binary logistic regression and receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis.RESULTS The prevalence of SSI was 11.27%(40/355).Multivariate analyses revealed that SFT[odds ratio(OR)=1.150;95%confidence interval(95%CI):1.090-1.214;P<0.001],AD(OR=1.024;95%CI:1.009-1.040;P=0.002),laparoscopic-assisted surgery(OR=0.286;95%CI:0.030-0.797;P=0.017),and operation time(OR=1.008;95%CI:1.001-1.015;P=0.030)were independently associated with the incidence of SSI after elective radical resection of GC.In addition,the product of SFT and AD was a better potential predictor of SSI in these patients than either SFT or AD alone.CONCLUSION SFT and AD are independent risk factors and can be used as predictors of SSI in patients undergoing radical resection of GC.

Stanniocalcin-1 Detection of Peripheral Blood in Patients with Colorectal Cancer

Objective： Stanniocalcin-1 （STC-1）, a kind of glycoprotein hormone, is universally up-regulated in various tumor tissues compared to corresponding normal tissues, suggesting it may be used as a tumor marker, whilst disseminated tumor cells usually exist in peripheral blood. The aim of this study is to investigate the mRNA expression STC-1 in peripheral blood of colorectal cancer （CRC） and analyze its clinicopathological significance. Methods： The peripheral blood mononuclear cells （PBMNCs） were isolated from 78 CRC patients and 33 cancer-free controls. The expression status of STC-1 mRNA in PBMNCs was assessed by RT-PCR, its correlation with clinicopathological parameters and 5-year overall survival was analyzed as well. Results： In the 78 blood samples from CRC patients, 33 （42.31%） showed positive expression of STC-1 mRNA, and all of 15 gastrointestinal tumor tissues were positive for STC-1 mRNA. In contrast, all the blood samples from 14 healthy donors and 19 patients with inflammatory gastrointestinal disease were negative. Furthermore, STC-1 mRNA expression status was associated with patients’ advanced stage, distant metastasis and shortened overall survival. Conclusion： The detection of STC-1 mRNA in peripheral blood by RT-PCR was highly sensitive and specific for the patients with CRC. STC-1 mRNA may be a potential biomarker for detecting tumor micrometastasis and predicting prognosis.

Detection and Clinical Significance of DLC1 Gene Methylation in Serum DNA from Colorectal Cancer Patients

Objective: Deleted in liver cancer 1 (DLC1) is a new candidate tumor suppressor gene, whose down-regulation or even silence will result from promoter hypermethylation in various human cancers including colorectal cancer (CRC). The aim of this study is to evaluate the diagnostic role of DLC1 gene methylation in the serum DNA from CRC patients. Methods: This study enrolled 85 CRC patients and 45 patients with benign colorectal diseases. Methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MSP) was used to determine the promoter methylation status of DLC1 gene in serum DNA. The combination of DLC1 methylation and conventional tumor markers was further analyzed. Results: Hypermethylation of DLC1 was detected in 42.4% (36/85) of CRC serums, while seldom in the benign controls (8.9%, 4/45) (P<0.001). The aberrant DLC1 methylation in serum DNA was not associated with patients’ clinicopathological features and elevated CEA/CA19-9 levels. Furthermore, the combinational analysis of CEA, CA19-9 and DLC1 methylation showed a higher sensitivity and no reduced diagnostic specificity than CEA and CA19-9 combination for CRC diagnosis. Conclusion: The serum DLC1 methylation may be a promising biomarker for the early detection of CRC, which will further increase the diagnostic efficiency in combination with CEA and CA19-9.

Spontaneous versus posed smile recognition via region-specific texture descriptor and geometric facial dynamics

微笑作为一种典型的生物多样性特征信号,在社会交往中有较大影响力,它揭示了人的情感感受和内心状态。自发性的微笑与假笑由不同大脑系统发出,在形态学和动力学上均存在差异。区分这两种类型的微笑仍具有挑战性,因为其中细微差别很难被肉眼观察到,仍有待被识别捕捉。已有相关研究大多是提取自发性微笑的几何特征,而外观特征并没有被充分利用,导致纹理信息的丢失。本文提出一种基于特定区域纹理描述来表示不同面部区域的局部模式变化,从而弥补几何特征研究的局限性。每个面部区域的时间相位是通过计算相应的面部区域强度来划分,而非仅考虑嘴巴区域强度。同时利用支持向量机的中层融合策略,将两种特征类型结合起来。实验结果表明,本文提出的外观表示法及其与基于几何形状的人脸动力学的结合技术,在BBC、SPOS、MMI和UvA‐NEMO四个基准数据库中得到很好的应用。

Entropic destruction of heavy quarkonium in a rotating hot and dense medium from holography

Previous studies have indicated that the peak of the quarkonium entropy at the deconfinement transition can be related to the entropic force,which would induce the dissociation of heavy quarkonium.In this study,we investigated the entropic force in a rotating hot and dense medium using AdS/CFT correspondence.It was found that the inclusion of angular velocity increases the entropic force,thus enhancing quarkonium dissociation,while chemical potential has the same effect.The results imply that the quarkonium dissociates easier in rotating medium compared with the static case.

Practice and reflection on the teaching of the reproductive system

Objective To review and explore the advantages and disadvantages of the teaching of the reproductive system in Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine,in order to provide a feasible scheme for the subsequent reform of the teaching system,including the syllabus design and the optimization of the teaching method,etc.Methods With the one-year practice in the teaching of the reproductive system,this paper has explored the achievements in the implementation of this teaching system from three aspects,including the teaching experience and feelings of teachers,student questionnaires and test scores.Meanwhile,this paper has also deeply analyzed some problems that may exist or be derived from the teaching practice in that teaching model.Results The new teaching method has huge differences from the traditional"discipline-oriented"teaching method in the curricular design,teachers’lecture form,students’learning skills and examination types,etc.What is more important,the new teaching method will significantly renew the concepts of both teaching and learning.Conclusion The method of the systemic teaching is one of the critical ways to realize the reform of the medical education,and can also provide the necessary basis for the cultivation of professional high-quality teachers required in the medical education.

Fluorescence Retention of Organosilane-polymerized Carbon Dots Inverse Opals in CuCl Suspension

A novel and fluorescence retention inverse opal has been achieved from organosilane-polymerized carbon dots（SiCDs）, which is prepared via infiltrating SiCD solution into the interstice of photonic crystal（PC） template, low temperature treatment, heating polymerization and removing the colloidal template. The as-prepared SiCD inverse opals demonstrate close-cell structure, which is completely different from conventional open-cell structure. Then the fluorescence signal of as-prepared sample keeps almost unchanged in CuCl suspension while the fluorescence of SiCD solution can be quenched by CuCl suspension through an effective electron transfer process. This phenomenon can be attributed to the combined effect of high hydrostatic pressure in the pore structure, stable crosslinking network and fluorescence enhancement by PC structure. The SiCD inverse opals have advantages of unique close-cell structure, easy preparation and good repeatability that give an important insight into the design and manufacture of novel and advanced optical devices.