Endoscopic treatment outcome of oesophageal gastrointestinal stromal tumours

BACKGROUND There are few clinicopathologic characteristics and clinical results for oesophageal gastrointestinal stromal tumours(GISTs).Thus,the objective of this study was to identify the clinicopathologic characteristics and clinical results of oesophageal GISTs.AIM To investigate endoscopic treatment effective of oesophageal GISTs.METHODS It was retrospective research that collected 32 patients with oesophageal GISTs treated by endoscopic resection(ER)between January 2012 and January 2023 in two Hospital.Clinicopathologic,endoscopic records,and follow-up data were collected and analysed.RESULTS Thirty-one patients underwent en bloc resection and 24(75.0%)lesions underwent R0 resection.The size of GISTs was 2.12±1.88 cm.The overall complication rate was 25.0%,including hydrothorax and post-endoscopic submucosal dissection electrocoagulation syndrome.The mean mitotic index was 3.34±5.04(median,1.50;range,1.00-4.00).Eighteen(56.3%),6(18.8%),2(6.3%),and 6(18.8%)patients were identified as very low,low,intermediate,and high risk,respectively.Three patients developed recurrence after a median follow-up of 64.69±33.13 months.The 5-year overall survival rate was 100%,and the disease-free survival rate was 90.6%.CONCLUSION ER is safe and effective for patients with low-risk oesophageal GISTs.Early detection of oesophageal GISTs is essential to achieve a favourable prognosis.

Effectiveness and safety of adjunctive non-drug measures in improving respiratory symptoms among patients with severe COVID-19:A multicenter randomized controlled trial

Background:The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)infection posed a huge threat and burden to public healthcare in late 2022.Non-drug measures of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM),such as acupuncture,cupping and moxibustion,are commonly used as adjuncts in China to help in severe cases,but their effects remain unclear.Objectives:To observe the clinical effect of TCM non-drug measures in improving respiratory function and symptoms among patients with severe COVID-19.Design,setting,participants and interventions:This study was designed as a multicenter,assessor-blind,randomized controlled trial.Hospitalized patients with COVID-19 were randomly assigned to the treatment or control group.The treatment group received individualized TCM non-drug measures in combination with prone position ventilation,while the control group received prone position ventilation only for 5 consecutive days.Main outcome measures:The primary outcome measures were the percentage of patients with improved oxygen saturation(SpO_(2))at the end of the 5-day intervention,as well as changes of patients'respiratory rates.The secondary outcome measures included changes in SpO_(2)and total score on the self-made respiratory symptom scale.The improvement rate,defined as a 3-day consecutive increase in SpO_(2),the duration of prone positioning,and adverse events were recorded as well.Results:Among the 198 patients included in the intention-to-treat analysis,159(80.3%)completed all assessments on day 5,and 39(19.7%)patients withdrew from the study.At the end of the intervention,71(91%)patients in the treatment group had SpO_(2)above 93%,while 61(75.3%)in the control group reached this level.The proportion of participant with improved SpO_(2)was significantly greater in the intervention group(mean difference[MD]=15.7;95%confidence interval[CI]:4.4,27.1;P=0.008).Compared to the baseline,with daily treatment there were significant daily decreases in respiratory rates in both groups,but no statistical differences between groups were found(all P≥0.05).Compared to the control group,the respiratory-related symptoms score was lower among patients in the treatment group(MD=-1.7;95%CI:-2.8,-0.5;P=0.008)after day 3 of treatment.A gradual decrease in the total scores of both groups was also observed.Thirty-one adverse events occurred during the intervention,and 2patients were transferred to the intensive care unit due to deterioration of their illness.Conclusion:TCM non-drug measures combined with prone positioning can effectively treat patients with severe COVID-19.The combined therapy significantly increased SpO_(2)and improved symptom scores compared to prone positioning alone,thus improving the patients'respiratory function to help them recover.However,the improvement rate did not differ between the two groups.

GTF2H4 regulates partial EndMT via NF-κB activation through NCOA3 phosphorylation in ischemic diseases

Partial endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition(EndMT)is an intermediate phenotype observed in endothelial cells(ECs)undergoing a transition toward a mesenchymal state to support neovascularization during(patho)physiological angiogenesis.Here,we investigated the occurrence of partial EndMT in ECs under hypoxic/ischemic conditions and identified general transcription factor IIH subunit 4(GTF2H4)as a positive regulator of this process.In addition,we discovered that GTF2H4 collaborates with its target protein excision repair cross-complementation group 3(ERCC3)to co-regulate partial EndMT.Furthermore,by using phosphorylation proteomics and site-directed mutagenesis,we demonstrated that GTF2H4 was involved in the phosphorylation of receptor coactivator 3(NCOA3)at serine 1330,which promoted the interaction between NCOA3 and p65,resulting in the transcriptional activation of NF-κB and the NF-kB/Snail signaling axis during partial EndMT.In vivo experiments confirmed that GTF2H4 significantly promoted partial EndMT and angiogenesis after ischemic injury.Collectively,our findings reveal that targeting GTF2H4 is promising for tissue repair and offers potential opportunities for treating hypoxic/ischemic diseases.

miR-130b inhibits proliferation and promotes differentiation in myocytes via targeting Sp1

Muscle regeneration after damage or during myopathies requires a fine cooperation between myoblast proliferation and myogenic differentiation.A growing body of evidence suggests that microRNAs play critical roles in myocyte proliferation and differentiation transcriptionally.However,the molecular mechanisms underlying the orchestration are not fully understood.Here,we showed that miR-130b is able to repress myoblast proliferation and promote myogenic differentiation via targeting Sp1 transcription factor.Importantly,overexpression of miR-130b is capable of improving the recovery of damaged muscle in a freeze injury model.Moreover,miR-130b expression is declined in the muscle of muscular dystrophy patients.Thus,these results indicated that miR-130b may play a role in skeletal muscle regeneration and myopathy progression.Together,our findings suggest that the miR-130b/Sp1 axis may serve as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of patients with muscle damage or severe myopathies.

Nanotechnology for cardiovascular diseases

Cardiovascular diseases have become the major killers in today’s world,among which coronary artery diseases(CADs)make the greatest contributions to morbidity and mortality.Although state-of-the-art technologies have increased our knowledge of the cardiovascular system,the current diagnosis and treatment modalities for CADs still have limitations.As an emerging cross-disciplinary approach.