Effect of magnetic resonance imaging in liver metastases

This letter to the editor is a commentary on a study titled"Liver metastases:The role of magnetic resonance imaging."Exploring a noninvasive imaging evaluation system for the biological behavior of hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC)is the key to achieving precise diagnosis and treatment and improving prognosis.This review summarizes the role of magnetic resonance imaging in the detection and evaluation of liver metastases,describes its main imaging features,and focuses on the added value of the latest imaging tools(such as T1 weighted in phase imaging,T1 weighted out of phase imaging;diffusion-weighted imaging,T2 weighted imaging).In this study,I investigated the necessity and benefits of gadolinium ethoxybenzyl diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid for HCC diagnostic testing and prognostic evaluation.

Inhibitory effect of oxymatrine on hepatocyte apoptosis via TLR4/PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β signaling pathway

AIM To evaluate the effect of oxymatrine(OMT) on hepatocyte apoptosis in rats with lipopolysaccharide(LPS)/D-galactosamine(D-Gal N)-induced acute liver failure(ALF). METHODS LPS/D-Gal N was used to establish a model of ALF in rats. To evaluate the effect of OMT, we assessed apoptosis by transmission electron microscopy, and the pathological changes in the liver by light microscopy with hematoxylin and eosin staining. An automated biochemical analyzer was used to measure serum alanine aminotransferase(ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase(AST). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to determine the levels of tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-α and interleukin(IL)-1β. Western blotting was used to detect protein levels in liver tissues. Streptavidin peroxidase immunohistochemistry was used to observe expression of Toll-like receptor(TLR)4, active caspase-3, Bax and Bcl-2. RESULTS All rats in the normal control and OMT-pretreated groups survived. The mortality rate in the model group was 30%. OMT preconditioning down-regulated apoptosis of hepatocytes and ameliorated pathological changes in liver tissue. The levels of AST, ALT, TNF-α and IL-1β in the model group increased significantly, and were significantly reduced by OMT pretreatment. OMT pretreatment down-regulated expression of TLR4 and active caspase-3 and the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, and upregulated expression of P-AktSer473(Akt phosphorylated at serine 473) and P-GSK3βSer9(glycogen synthase kinase 3β phosphorylated at serine 9) induced by LPS/D-Gal N. CONCLUSION OMT inhibits hepatocyte apoptosis by suppressing the TLR4/PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β signaling pathway, which suggests that OMT is an effective candidate for ameliorating acute liver failure.