Xueying Long

Rhabdomyosarcoma in adrenal region of a child with hypertension and fever: a case report and literature review.

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is the most common soft tissue sarcoma in children but rarely involves the adrenal. We describe a case of alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (ARMS) of the right adrenal in a 5-year-old boy with a characteristic history of hypertension and recurrent fever. On surveillance imaging, a right adrenal mass was incidentally detected, and a right adrenalectomy was subsequently performed. After the surgery, the fever disappeared simultaneously, and the blood pressure gradually returned to normal level. This is the first reported case in children.

KLF8 knockdown triggered growth inhibition and induced cell phase arrest in human pancreatic cancer cells.

BACKGROUND The transcription factor Krüppel-like factor 8 (KLF8) plays an important role in tumor development and growth, but its role in pancreatic cancer (PC) is not clear. METHODS KLF8 expression in human PC cell lines and tumor tissues was measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analyses. The effects of lentivirus mediated knockdown of KLF8 on proliferation and growth in Panc-1 pancreatic cancer cells were examined. RESULTS KLF8 was overexpressed in 5 pancreatic cancer cell lines and in samples from patients with PC. In Panc-1 cells, KLF8 knockdown inhibited cell proliferation, tumorigenicity, and induced G2/M phase arrest. KLF8 knockdown suppressed PC tumor growth in nude mice model. Western blot analysis showed that KLF8 knockdown in Panc-1 cells down-regulated the expression of CDK1/CDC2, cyclin B1, and cyclin D1 and up-regulated the expression of p21, and p27. CONCLUSIONS Overexpression of KLF8 may contribute to the progression of pancreatic cancer, and downregulation of KLF8 expression by lentivirus-delivered shRNA is a novel therapeutic approach for PC.

Adrenal incidentaloma: machine learning-based quantitative texture analysis of unenhanced CT can effectively differentiate sPHEO from lipid-poor adrenal adenoma

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility and accuracy of machine learning based texture analysis of unenhanced CT images in differentiating subclinical pheochromocytoma (sPHEO) from lipid-poor adenoma (LPA) in adrenal incidentaloma (AI). Methods: Seventy-nine patients with 80 LPA and 29 patients with 30 sPHEO were included in the study. Texture parameters were derived using imaging software (MaZda). Thirty texture features were selected and LPA was performed for the features selected. The number of positive features was used to predict results. Logistic multiple regression analysis was performed on the 30 texture features, and a predictive equation was created based on the coefficients obtained. Results: LPA yielded a misclassification rate of 19.39% in differentiating sPHEO from LPA. Our predictive model had an accuracy rate of 94.4% (102/108), with a sensitivity of 86.2% (25/29) and a specificity of 97.5% (77/79) for differentiation. When the number of positive features was greater than 8, the accuracy of prediction was 85.2% (92/108), with a sensitivity of 96.6% (28/29) and a specificity of 81% (64/79). Conclusions: Machine learning-based quantitative texture analysis of unenhanced CT may be a reliable quantitative method in differentiating sPHEO from LPA when AI is present.

Radiological features of primitive neuroectodermal tumors in intra-abdominal and retroperitoneal regions: A series of 18 cases

Objectives To characterize the imaging and clinicopathological features of primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNETs) arising in intra-abdominal and retroperitoneal regions. Methods Eighteen patients with histopathologically proven intra-abdominal and retroperitoneal PNET were enrolled; computed tomography was performed for all cases, and magnetic resonance imaging was performed for a single case. Typical computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging findings, including morphology, texture and enhancement features, as well as clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis data were retrospectively analyzed. Results Of eighteen PNET patients, fifteen were male and three were female, with a median age of 36 years (range, 2–65 years). The onset of symptoms was most often nonspecific and insidious. The mean tumor diameter was 7.2 cm (range, 3.0–12.1 cm), with necrosis in fifteen cases, cystic changes in eight, partition structure in five, calcification in five, hemorrhage in two, and mural nodules in one. Contrast enhanced computed tomography showed multiple tiny feeding arteries within the masses in six cases, resulting in a crab-like appearance, and mild ring enhancement pattern in five cases. Eleven cases showed surrounding invasion and metastasis. Of the eighteen PNET cases, nine cases showed smooth, well-defined margins, and nine cases had irregular, ill-defined margins. A median survival was 10.0±1.6 months. However, chemotherapy had efficacy on patients even those with advanced disease. Conclusions Primary intra-abdominal and retroperitoneal PNETs are rare, and imaging features documented here may help the diagnosis of this severe disease. Notably, two signs present in retroperitoneal PNET tumors, including a mild ring enhancement pattern and a crab-like appearance of the tiny feeding arteries, may have the potential to help us improve the ability to make a relatively reliable diagnosis.

Krüppel-like factor 8 induces epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and promotes invasion of pancreatic cancer cells through transcriptional activation of four and a half LIM-only protein 2

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the most aggressive types of cancer with an extremely poor prognosis. Invasive growth and early metastasis is one of the greatest challenges to overcome for the treatment of PC. Numerous previous studies have indicated that the transcription factor Krüppel-like factor 8 (KLF8) and nuclear cofactor four and a half LIM-only protein 2 (FHL2) serve important roles in tumorigenesis and tumor progression; however, their roles in PC remain elusive. The present study revealed that KLF8 and FHL2 expression is aberrantly co-overexpressed in PC tissue samples and associated with tumor metastasis. Furthermore, a positive correlation between the expression levels of KLF8 and FHL2 was observed. Subsequently, the present study identified KLF8 as a critical inducer of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and invasion. Of note, the present study demonstrated that KLF8 overexpression induced a strong increase in FHL2 expression, and subsequent promoter reporter assays determined that KLF8 directly bound and activated the FHL2 gene promoter. Furthermore, FHL2 knockdown in KLF8-overexpressing cells partially reversed the EMT and invasive phenotypes. The present study identified KLF8-induced FHL2 activation as a novel and critical signaling mechanism underlying human PC invasion.