A Multifunctional Chiral Metasurface with Asymmetric Transmission and Linear-Polarization Conversion

In this paper,a multifunctional chiral metasurface is presented to achieve asymmetric transmission(AT)and linear-polarization conversion(LPC).The designed metasurface consists of a cross swords-like shape and two holes in the lower side of the unit cell.In the frequency band from 8.3 GHz to 10.4 GHz,AT is realized with more than 90%efficiency and the same chiral metasurface transforms linear polarized wave into its orthogonal counterpart with high efficiency.For LPC,the polarization conversion ratio(PCR)is greater than 95%.The proposed metasurface is stable against the incident angles of striking electromagnetic(EM)waves up to 60°for both operations of AT and LPC.

Clinical Application of Exclusive Right-Thoracic Approach in Surgery with or without Laparotomy for Mid-Upper Esophageal Cancer

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the clinical application of a right-thoracic approach with or without laparotomy for mid-upper esophageal cancer. METHODS We retrospectively reviewed the data of 34 esophageal cancer patients who received Belsey surgery or a modified Ivor-Lewis surgery from November 1992 to April 2007. Twenty of the patients underwent a Belsey prodecdure （Group A） from November 1992 to January 2001 and 14 underwent a modified Ivor-Lewis prodecdure （Group B） from May 2001 to April 2007. RESULTS Twenty patients with esophageal cancer received an esophagectomy through an exclusive right-thoracic approach （Belsey surgery）, and 14 patients received an esophagectomy through a right-thoracic approach combined with a laparotomy （modified IvorLewis surgery）. The complication rate was 15% （3/20） and 7.1% （1/14） respectively. The survival rate was 42.9% （5-year survival） and 38.7% （5-year survival） respectively for these two groups. CONCLUSION An exclusive right-thoracic approach （Belsey surgery） is associated with more complications. It is not a routine surgery for cancer of the mid-upper thorax of the esophagus, but can be selectively used as palliative esophagectomy for esophageal cancer patients with poor pulmonary function. Modified Ivor-Lewis surgery can simultaneously be utilized to resect the primary tumor and dissect lymph nodes of the thorax and abdomen. With a shorter time period of surgery and postoperative recovery period, modified Ivor-Lewis surgery can achieve better effects with patients who have midupper esophagus cancer.

Assembly fabrication of linkers on glass surface and their effect on DNA synthesis and hybridization

Linkers were assembled on a glass surface based on the hydrolysis and condensation of 3-glycidoxy￣propyltrimethoxysilane (GPS). After the assembly of GPS, four approaches were tried to open the ending epoxide group of GPS or to further elongate the linkers. The effect of these approaches on DNA in situ synthesis and hybridization was investigated. For the spacing of the synthesis initiation sites, the wettability of the support and the length of the linking group that attaches the initiation site to the surface have direct influences on the yield of coupling reactions and the subsequent hybridization events. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and mean contact angles of deionized water of the above slides were measured to assess the linker's characteristics in each procedure. It was proved that the glass slides were successfully modified and became excellent supports for the oligonucleotides synthesis. In addition, it proved best for the in situ oligonucleotides synthesis that a glass slide was in turn treated with ethylenediamine, glutaradehyde, ethanolamine and sodium borohydride solution at ambient temperature after silanized with GPS.

漫画与幽默

拍卖场上，拍卖暂时中止，拍卖商宣布道：“这个房间里的一位老先生刚刚丢失了一个钱包，里面有5000美元，如果能能找回钱包，他愿意表明200美元。”

Healthcare Algorithms by Wearable Inertial Sensors: A Survey

Wearable smart devices, such as smart watch, wristband are becoming increasingly popular recently. They generally integrate the MEMS-designed inertial sensors, including accelerometer, gyroscope and compass, which provide a convenient and inexpensive way to collect motion data of users. Such rich, continuous motion data provide great potential for remote healthcare and decease diagnosis. Information processing algorithms play the critical role in these approaches, which is to extract the motion signatures and to access different kinds of judgements. This paper reviews key algorithms in these areas. In particular, we focus on three kinds of applications: 1) gait analysis; 2) fall detection and 3) sleep monitoring. They are the most popular healthcare applications based on the inertial data. By categorizing and introducing the key algorithms, this paper tries to build a clear map of how the inertial data are processed; how the inertial signatures are defined, extracted, and utilized in different kinds of applications. This will provide a valuable guidance for users to understand the methodologies and to select proper algorithm for specifi c application purpose.

Modern management of rectal cancer: A 2006 update

The goal of this review is to outline some of the important surgical issues surrounding the management of patients with early (T1/T2 and NO), as well as locally advanced (T3/T4 and/or N1) rectal cancer. Surgery for rectal cancer continues to develop towards the ultimate goals of improved local control and overall survival, maintaining quality of life, and preserving sphincter, genitourinary, and sexual function. Information concerning the depth of tumor penetration through the rectal wall, lymph node involvement, and presence of distant metastatic disease is of crucial importance when planning a curative rectal cancer resection. Preoperative staging is used to determine the indication for neoadjuvant therapy as well as the indication for local excision versus radical cancer resection. Local excision is likely to be curative in most patients with a primary tumor which is limited to the submucosa (T1N0M0), without high-risk features and in the absence of metastatic disease. In appropriate patients, minimally invasive procedures, such as local excision, TEM, and laparoscopic resection allow for improved patient comfort, shorter hospital stays, and earlier return to preoperative activity level. Once the tumor invades the muscularis propria (T2), radical rectal resection in acceptable operative candidates is recommended. In patients with transmural and/or node positive disease (T3/T4 and/or N1) with no distant metastases, preoperative chemoradiation followed by radical resection according to the principles of TME has become widely accepted. During the planning and conduct of a radical operation for a locally advanced rectal cancer, a number of surgical management issues are considered, including: (1) total mesorectal excision (TME); (2) autonomic nerve preservation (ANP); (3) circumferential resection margin (CRM); (4) distal resection margin; (5) sphincter preservation and options for restoration of bowel continuity; (6) laparoscopic approaches; and (7) postoperative quality of life.

Clinical outcome of intersphincteric resection for ultra-low rectal cancer

AIM： To analyze oncological outcome of intersphincteric resection （ISR） in ultra-low rectal cancer with intent to spare colostoma. METHODS： From 1995 to 1998, patients with a nonfixed rectal adenocarcinoma （tumor stage T2） preserving the lower margin at 1-3 cm above the dentate line without distant metastasis was enrolled （period I）. ISR was practiced in eight patients, and their postoperative followup was at least 5 years. In addition, from 1999 to 2003, another 10 patients having the same tumor location as period Ⅰ underwent ISR （period Ⅱ）. Among those, 6 patients with T3-4-staged tumor received preoperative chemoradiotherapy. RESULTS： All patients received ISR with curative intention and no postoperative mortality. In these case series at period Ⅰ, local recurrence rate was 12.5% and metastasis rate 25.0%; the S-year survival rate was 87.5% and disease-free survival rate 75.0%. There was no local recurrence or distant metastases in 10 patients with a median follow-up of 30 （range, 18-47） mo at period Ⅱ. CONCLUSION： As to ultra-low rectal cancer, intersphincteric resection could provide acceptable local control and cancerrelated survival with no permanent stoma in early-staged tumor （tumor stage T2）; more- over, preoperative concurrent chemoradiotheraw would make ISR feasible with surgical curative intent in more advanced tumors （tumor stages T3-4）.

Value of contrast-enhanced intraoperative ultrasound for cirrhotic patients with hepatocellular carcinoma:A report of 20 cases

AIM： To assess the clinical value of contrast-enhanced intraoperative ultrasound （CE-IOUS） as a novel tool in partial hepatectomy for cirrhotic patients with hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. METHODS： From January 2007 to September 2007, a total of 20 consecutive cirrhotic patients with HCC scheduled to undergo partial hepatectomy were studied. Preoperative contrast enhanced computer tomography （CT） and/or magnetic resonance （MR） scans were performed within 1-2 wk before operation. Intraoperative ultrasound （IOUS） and CE-IOUS were carried out after mobilization of the liver. Lesions on precontrast and postcontrast scans were counted and mapped. CE-IOUS was performed with intravenous injection of ultrasound contrast agents SonoVue （Bracco Imaging, Milan, Italy）. Arterial, portal and late phases of contrast enhancement were recorded and analyzed. Nodules showing arterial phase hyper-enhancing and/or hypo-enhancing in late parenchymal phase were considered malignant and removed surgically. Ultrasound-guided biopsy and ethanol ablation would be an option if the nodule could not be removed surgically. Newly detected nodules on IOUS showing iso-enhancement in both arterial and late phases were considered benign. These nodules were either removed surgically if they were close to the main lesion or followed by examinations of alpha-fetoprotein （AFP） level and ultrasound and/or CT/MR every 3 too. RESULTS： IOUS found 41 nodules in total, among which 17 （41.46%） were newly detected compared to preoperative imaging. Thirty-three nodules were diagnosed malignant by CE-IOUS, including one missed by IOUS. The sensitivity and specificity of CE-IOUS on detecting HCC nodules are 100% （33/33 and 100% （9/9）, respectively. Nine nodules were considered benign by CE-IOUS, four was confirmed at histology and five by follow-up. CE-IOUS changed the surgical strategy in 35% （7/20） of patients and avoid unnecessary intervention in 30% （6/20） of patients. CONCLUSION： CE-IOUS is a useful means to characterize the nodules detected by IOUS in cirrhotic liver, to find isoechoic HCC nodules which can not be shown on IOUS and to improve the accuracy of conventional IOUS, thus it can be used as an essential tool in the surgical treatment of cirrhotic patients with HCC.

Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy for morbid obesity

The incidence of obesity is steadily rising, and it has been estimated that 40% of the US population will be obese by the year 2025 if the current trend continues. In recent years there has been renewed interest in the surgical treatment of morbid obesity in concomitance with the epidemic of obesity. Bariatric surgery proved effective in providing weight loss of large magnitude, correction of comorbidities and excellent short-term and long-term outcomes, decreasing overall mortality and providing a marked survival advantage. The Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy (LSG) has increased in popularity and is currently very "trendy" among laparoscopic surgeons involved in bariatric surgery. As LSG proved to be effective in achieving considerable weight loss in the short-term, it has been proposed by some as a sole bariatric procedure. This editorial focuses on the particular advantages of LSG in the treatment of morbid obesity.

Experimental and clinical study of influence of high-frequency electric surgical knives on healing of abdominal incision

AIM： To study the influence of high-frequency electric surgical knives on healing of abdominal incision. METHODS： Two hundred and forty white rats were divided into 10^0, 10^2, 10^5, and 10^8 groups and rat models of abdominal operation were induced by using electric surgical knives and common lancets respectively. Then they were respectively given hypodermic injections of normal saline and 0.2 mL quantitative mixture of Escherichia coil, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudornonas aeruginosa at a concentration of 10^2, 10^5 and 10^8. On the basis of the animal experiment, 220 patients undergoing abdominal operations （above type Ⅱ） were randomly allocated into one of following three groups： electric knife （EK, 93 cases）, electro-coagulation （EC, 55 cases） and control （72 cases）. High-frequency electric surgical knives were used to dissect abdominal tissues and electro-coagulation for hemostasis in EK group. Common lancets and electro-coagulation were applied in EC group. Common lancets and tieing silk suture were used in the controls. RESULTS： In all the groups except group 10^0, infection rate of incisional wounds made by electric surgical knives were remarkably higher than that with common lancets. Furthermore, there were significant differences in groups 10^2, 10^5, and 10^8 （P 〈 0.05）, but not in group 10^0 （P 〉 0.05） between EK and EC groups. Clinical studies showed a delayed wound healing in 16 cases （17.20%） in EK, 11 cases （16.36%） in EC and 2 cases （2.86%）in the control groups. A significant difference between EK and the control groups （χ^2= 8.57, P 〈 0.01）, and between EC and the control groups （χ^2 = 5.66, P 〈 0.05） was observed, but not between EK and EC （χ^2= 0.017, P 〉 0.05）. CONCLUSION： High-frequency electric knives may remarkably delay abdominal incision healing. Its application should be minimized so as to reduce the possibility of postoperative complications.

Evolving management of colorectal cancer

This article reviews recent advances in surgical techniques and adjuvant therapies for colorectal cancer, including total mesorectal excision, the resection of liver and lung metastasis and advances in chemoradiation and foreshadows some interventions that may lie just beyond the frontier. In particular, little is known about the intracellular and extracellular cascades that may influence colorectal cancer cell adhesion and metastasis. Although the phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinases and focal adhesion associated proteins in response to integrin-mediated cell matrix binding ("outside in integrin signaling") is well described, the stimulation of cell adhesion by intracellular signals activated by pressure prior to adhesion represents a different signal paradigm. However, several studies have suggested that increased pressure and shear stress activate cancer cell adhesion. Further studies of the pathways that regulate integrin-driven cancer cell adhesion may identify ways to disrupt these signals or block integrin-mediated adhesion so that adhesion and eventual metastasis can be prevented in the future.

Comparison of computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging for the detection of mandibular condylar osteochondroma

Objective The purpose of this study was to compare computed tomography(CT) and magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) for the detection of mandibular condylar osteochondroma.Methods Preoperative CT and MRI of 33 patients with unilateral condylar osteochondroma were reviewed. The morphology, location, continuity with the parent bone, cartilage cap, perichondrium of tumors, and changes in soft and hard tissues adjacent to the lesions were investigated by two reviewers. Data were analyzed using Mc Nemar test. A P value < 0.05 was considered significant.Results Among the 33 condylar osteochondromas, 11 were of the diffuse type, 10 were of the sessile type, and 12 were of the pedunculated type. Continuity with the cortex and marrow of the host condyle was observed on both CT and MRI. Both modalities had identical detection rates of surface reconstruction of the temporal bone joint, condylar dislocation, and pseudarthrosis formation. However, MRI showed significantly higher detection rates of the cartilage cap and perichondrium than CT(P < 0.05). Furthermore, MRI showed ipsilateral and contralateral temporo-mandibular joint(TMJ) disc displacement in 4 cases and 6 cases, respectively, and ipsilateral and contralateral TMJ effusion in 20 cases and 14 cases, respectively.Conclusion CT can intuitively display the morphology and spatial location of condylar osteochondromas through three-dimensional reconstruction. MRI may be superior to CT in the detection of cartilage cap, perichondrium of the condylar osteochondroma, and changes in the TMJ and adjacent soft tissues.

FORCED-AIR WARMING AND FLUID WARMING MINIMIZE CORE HYPOTHERMIA DURING ABDOMINAL SURGERY

Objective To evaluate the effect of intraoperative combined forced-air warming and fluid warming system on patient＇s core temperature, blood loss, transfusion demand, extubation time, and incidence of postoperative shivering. Mothods Forty patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status I and II, aged 18-70 years, scheduled for elective abdominal surgery were randomly assigned to receive intraoperative warming from a forced-air blanket and fluid warming system or conventional cotton blanket, 20 in each group. The core temperature was recorded every 20 minutes during the operation, as well as the blood loss, blood transfusion, extubation time, and incidence of postoperative shivering. Results The core temperature at the end of the surgery in the warming group was significantly different from that in the control group （36.4±0.4℃ vs. 35.3±0.5℃, P〈0.001）. Application of intraoperative warming significantly shortened the time between the end of the surgery and extubation （P〈0.01）. Postoperative shivering occurred in 30% of the patients in the control group compared to no patient in the warming group （P 〈0.01）. Conclusion Active warming with air-forced blanket and fluid warming system provides sufficient heat to prevent hypothermia during abdominal surgery.

Giant appendiceal mucocele: Report of a case and brief review

Mucocele of the appendix is a rare lesion, characterized by distension of the lumen due to accumulation of mucoid substance. This disease is often asymptomatic and pre-operative diagnosis is rare. If untreated, one type of mucocele may rupture producing a potentially fatal entity known as pseudomyxoma peritonei. The type of surgical treatment is related to the dimensions and to histology of the mucocele. Appendectomy is used for simple mucocele or for cystadenoma. Right hemi-colectomy is recommended for cystadenocarcinoma. In this paper, we report a case of a 51-year-old woman with a mobile, painless mass in the right lower quadrant of abdomen caused by a giant appendiceal mucocele. Imaging showed a larger tubular, cystic structure extending below from the inferior wall of the cecum. Surgery revealed a giant retro-cecal appendix measuring 17 cm in length and 4 cm in diameter. The final pathologic diagnosis was mucocele caused by mucinous cystadenoma.

Mirizzi Syndrome: Our Experience with 27 Cases in PUMC Hospital

Objective To retrospectively evaluate the diagnosis and treatment of Mirizzi syndrome （MS）. Methods Patients who received elective or emergency cholecystectomies in our center during 23 years were retrospectively evaluated. The data reviewed included demography, clinical presentations, diagnostic methods, surgical procedures, postoperative complications, and follow-up.

Multiple metastases to the small bowel from large cell bronchial carcinomas

AIM: Metastases from lung cancer to gastrointestinal tract are not rare at postmortem studies but the development of clinically significant symptoms from the gastrointestinal metastases is very unusual. METHODS: Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues were cut into 5 urn thick sections and routinely stained with hematoxylin and eosin. Some slides were also stained with Alcian-PAS. Antibodies used were primary antibodies to pancytokeratin, cytokeratin 7, cytokeratin 20, epithelial membrane antigen, vimentin, smooth muscle actin and CD-117. RESULTS: We observed three patients who presented with multiple metastases from large cell bronchial carcinoma to small intestine. Two of them had abdominal symptoms (sudden onset of abdominal pain, constipation and vomiting) and in one case the tumor was incidentally found during autopsy. Microscopically, all tumors showed a same histological pattern and consisted almost exclusively of strands and sheets of poorly cohesive, polymorphic giant cells with scanty, delicate stromas. Few smaller polygonal anaplastic cells dispersed between polymorphic giant cells, were also observed. Immunohistochemistry showed positive staining of the tumor cells with cytokeratin and vimentin. Microscopically and immunohistochemically all metastases had a similar pattern to primary anaplastic carcinoma of the small intestine. CONCLUSION: In patients with small intestine tumors showing anaplastic features, especially with multiple tumors, metastases from large cell bronchial carcinoma should be first excluded, because it seems that they are more common than expected.

Sensory Evaluation in Characterization of Fabric Hand

This paper is divided in two parts. The first part presents optimized methods for formalizing and analyzing sensory data provided by different panels on fabric hand evaluation. For achieving this challenge, we first transform each evaluation into fuzzy sets and we submit criteria for assessing the fabric hand evaluation given by experts as well as criteria for computing the distances between different panels and the employed linguistic terms in different evaluation spaces. This sensory data analysis allows us to check expert’s and customer’s behaviors on fabric hand. Based on this first procedure about formalization and sensory data analysis, we can study the relationships between sensory evaluation given by different experts for a fabric set and the objective data set provided by appropriate measurements. From a set of fabric samples, a database with nearly 10 parameters characterizing the touch handle is built. This way of evaluation is performed by measuring a set of physical parameters on fabrics. Those parameters constitute the input variables of our model. For the textile industry, the major difficulty lies in the fact that the performed measurements on fabrics lead to precise numerical data describing indirectly fabric hand but their relationships with the evaluation given by experts should be exploited. We implement a fuzzy model which predicts the marks reached for a set of linguistic terms. The effectiveness of these methods and criteria is shown through a number of knitted cotton fabrics.

High mobility group-box 3 overexpression is associated with poor prognosis of resected gastric adenocarcinoma

AIM:To elucidate high mobility group-box 3(HMGB3) protein expression in gastric adenocarcinoma,its potential prognostic relevance,and possible mechanism of action.METHODS:Ninety-two patients with gastric adenocarcinomas surgically removed entered the study.HMGB3 expression was determined by immunohistochemistry through a tissue microarray procedure.The clinicopathologic characteristics of all patients were recorded,and regular follow-up was made for all patients.The inter-relationship of HMGB3 expression with histological and clinical factors was analyzed using nonparametric tests.Survival analysis was carried out by Kaplan-Meier(log-rank) and multivariate Cox(Forward LR) analyses between the group with overexpression of HMGB3 and the group with low or no HMGB3 ex-pression to determine the prognosis value of HMGB3 expression on overall survival.Further,HMGB3 expression was knocked down by small hairpin RNAs(shRNAs) in the human gastric cancer cell line BGC823 to observe its influence on cell biological characteristics.The MTT method was utilized to detect gastric cancer cell proliferation changes,and cell cycle distribution was analyzed by flow cytometry.RESULTS:Among 92 patients with gastric adenocarcinomas surgically removed in this study,high HMGB3 protein expression was detected in the gastric adenocarcinoma tissues vs peritumoral tissues(P < 0.001).Further correlation analysis with patients' clinical and histology variables revealed that HMGB3 overexpression was obviously associated with extensive wall penetration(P = 0.005),a positive nodal status(P = 0.004),and advanced tumor-node-metastasis(TNM) stage(P = 0.001).But there was no correlation between HMGB3 overexpression and the age and gender of the patient,tumor localization or histologic grade.Statistical Kaplan-Meier survival analysis disclosed significant differences in overall survival between the HMGB3 overexpression group and the HMGB3 no or low expression group(P = 0.006).The expected overall survival time was 31.00 ± 3.773 mo(95%CI = 23.605-38.395) for patients with HMGB3 overexpression and 49.074 ± 3.648 mo(95%CI = 41.925-57.311) for patients with HMGB3 no and low-level expression.Additionally,older age(P = 0.040),extensive wall penetration(P = 0.008),positive lymph node metastasis(P = 0.005),and advanced TNM tumor stage(P = 0.007) showed negative correlation with overall survival.Multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that HMGB3 overexpression was an independent variable with respect to age,gender,histologic grade,extent of wall penetration,lymph nodal metastasis,and TNM stage for patients with resectable gastric adenocarcinomas with poor prognosis(hazard ratio = 2.791,95%CI = 1.233-6.319,P = 0.019).In the gene function study,after HMGB3 was knocked down in the gastric cell line BGC823 by shRNA,the cell proliferation rate was reduced at 24 h,48 h and 72 h.Compared to BGC823 shRNA-negative control(NC) cells,the cell proliferation rate in cells that had HMGB3 shRNA transfected was significantly decreased(P < 0.01).Finally,cell cycle analysis by FACS showed that BGC823 cells that had HMGB3 knocked down were blocked in G1/G0 phase.The percentage of cells in G1/G0 phase in BGC823 cells with shRNA-NC and with shRNA-HMGB3 was 46.84% ± 1.7%,and 73.03% ± 3.51% respectively(P = 0.001),whereas G2/M cells percentage decreased from 26.51% ± 0.83% to 17.8% ± 2.26%.CONCLUSION:HMGB3 is likely to be a useful prognostic marker involved in gastric cancer disease onset and progression by regulating the cell cycle.

Isolated rectal diverticulum complicating with rectal prolapse and outlet obstruction: Case report

The occurrence of rectal diverticula is very rare, with only sporadic reports in the literature since 1911. Symptomatic rectal diverticula are encountered even less frequently.Treatments of these complicated events range from conservative treatments to major surgical interventions.We present a hitherto unreported occurrence of isolated rectal diverticulum complicated with rectal prolapse and outlet obstruction. Delorme's procedure resulted in subsidence of symptoms and resolution of the diverticulum. It provides a minimal invasive surgical technique to successfully address the reported malady.

The Apocalypse of Love--An Analysis of Symbolism in D. H. Lawrence Women in Love

D.H.Lawrence is a great writer and Woman in Love is considered as his masterpiece and one of the undoubted classic ofthe 20tb century. Through his flexible application of symbolism, the novel is presented with fragmentary scenes instead of the usual plots, and a lot of separate and unrelated images are employed to reflect the mental conflicts among the major characters. By analyzing the symbolism in this paper, the author hopes to find the importance of symbolism in strengthening the distinct characteristics, enhancing the development of the plot, and hence the emphasis of the theme of the novel.