Pituitary metastasis from lung adenocarcinoma:A case report

BACKGROUND Pituitary gland metastasis is an unusual event,and pituitary metastasis from lung adenocarcinoma is extremely rare and associated with poor prognosis.To date,approximately 15 cases have been reported.CASE SUMMARY Here,we present the case of a 64-year-old woman with pituitary metastasis derived from lung adenocarcinoma,which was difficult to distinguish from other sellar tumors.The patient presented to the neurosurgery clinic with blurred vision and intermittent headache.During hospitalization,brain computed tomography(CT)and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a pituitary macroadenoma.Chest CT revealed irregular nodules in the basal segment of the lower lobe of the left lung,which were likely lung cancer.Positron emission tomography-CT revealed a carbohydrate metabolism tumor in the lungs and sellar region,which was considered malignant.Postoperative pathological examination of the sellar tumor revealed lung adenocarcinoma.CONCLUSION Excision of pituitary metastases combined with radiotherapy and chemotherapy should be a priority treatment for patients with pituitary metastasis.

Electroacupuncture relieves irritable bowel syndrome by increasing expression of nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain protein-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 6 in water-avoidance stress mice

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of electroacupuncture(EA) on irritable bowel syndrome(IBS) in mice through regulating nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain protein-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 6(NLRP6).METHODS: Water-avoidance stress(WAS) mice model was used to investigate the effects and the mechanism of EA. Abdominal withdrawal reflex test, open field test, and intestinal motility test were used to evaluate visceral sensitivity, anxiety,and intestinal motility in mice. The expressions of NLRP6, Mucin-2(MUC2) and E-cadherin were determined using immunofluorescence and Western blotting assays.RESULTS: EA significantly upregulated the expression of NLRP6 in the intestine of mice. Moreover, EA increased the expressions of MUC2 and E-cadherin in WAS mice.CONCLUSION: Our study found that the relief of IBS symptoms by EA may involve the increase in the expression of NLRP6 in WAS mice.

Atresia of Coronary Sinus Ostium with a Persistent Left Superior Vena Cava Demonstrated on Cardiac Computed Tomography Angiography

To the Editor： A 43-year-old man diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy 6 years prior visited our institution recently because of worsened chest congestion with shortness of breath and abdominal distension. The patient had a history of diabetes. His electrocardiography （ECG） demonstrated a sinus rhythm with an mtraventricular conduction disturbance, an atypical left bundle branch block, and a QRS interval of 160 ms. Echocardiographic findings were consistent with dilated cardiomyopathy [bicentric type, Figure la], in which the left atrial diameter was 44 ram, the left ventricular end-diastolic diameter was 78 mm, and the left ventricular ejection fiaction was 30%. The final diagnosis was New York Heart Association Grade Ⅲ dilated cardiomyopathy. To achieve a good prognosis, improve exercise tolerance, and prevent sudden death, cardiac resynchronization therapy （CRT） with defibrillator implantation was advised. However, coronary sinus （CS） abnormalities were observed during the implantation operation. Therefore, it was forced to stop the operation and a cardiac computed tomography angiography （CTA） evaluation of the abnormalities was arranged.

Gold nanoclusters conjugated berberine reduce inflammation and alleviate neuronal apoptosis by mediating M2 polarization for spinal cord injury repair

Spinal cord injury(SCI)leads to nerve cell apoptosis and loss of motor function.Herein,excessive activation of the M1 phenotype macrophages/microglia is found to be the main reason for the poor prognosis of SCI,but the selective activation phenotype(M2)macrophages/microglia facilitates the recovery of SCI.Thereafter,we used gold nanoclusters loaded berberine(BRB-AuNCs)to reduce inflammation by inhibiting the activation of M1 phenotype macrophages/microglia,which simultaneously inhibited neuronal apoptosis after SCI.In vitro and in vivo experiments showed that BRB-AuNCs reduced M1 protein marker CD86,increased M2 protein marker CD206,reduced inflammation and apoptotic cytokines(IL-1β,IL-6,TNF-α,Cleaved Caspase-3 and Bax).These results indicate that BRB-AuNCs have excellent anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic effects by inducing the polarization of macrophages/microglia from M1 phenotype to M2 phenotype.Thereafter,the motor functions of SCI rats were significantly improved after treatment with BRB-AuNCs.This work not only provides a new way for the treatment of SCI but also broadens BRB utilization strategies.