Objective To compare efficacy, survival outcome and prognostic factors of conventional transarterial chemoembolization (cTACE), drug-eluting beads TACE (DEB-TACE) and 90Yttrium-radioembolization (Y90) for the treatment of liver metastases from gastro-entero-pancreatic (GEP) neuroendocrine tumors (NELM). Methods This retrospective analysis included 192 patients (58.6years mean age, 56%men) with NELM treated with cTACE(N=122), DEB-TACE(N=26), or Y90(N=44) between 2000 and 2014. Radiologic response to therapy was assessed according to Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) and World Health Organization (WHO) using peri-procedural MR imaging. Survival analysis included Propensity score analysis (PSA), median overall survival (MOS), hepatic progression-free survival, Kaplan-Meier using log-rank test and the uni-and multivariate Cox proportional hazards model (MVA). Results MOS of the entire study population was 28.8months. As for cTACE, DEB-TACE and Y90, MOS was 33.8months, 21.7months and 23.6months, respectively. According to the MVA, cTACE demonstrated a significantly longer MOS as compared to DEB-TACE(p=.04) or Y90(p=.032). The five-year survival rate after initial cTACE, DEB-TACE and Y90 was 28.2%, 10.3% and 18.5%, respectively. Conclusions Upon PSA, our study suggests significant survival benefits for patients treated with cTACE as compared to DEB-TACE and Y90. This data supports the therapeutic decision for cTACE as the primary intra-arterial therapy option in patients with unresectable NELM until proven otherwise.

MicroRNAs refer to small RNA molecules that destroy the messenger RNA by binding on them inhibiting the production of protein. However, the role of miR-155 in uveal melanoma metastasis remains largely unknown. In this study, we found that miR-155 was upregulated in both uveal melanoma cells and tissues. Transfection of miR-155 mimic into uveal melanoma cells led to an increase in cell growth and invasion; in contrast, inhibition of miR-155 resulted in opposite effects. Also, we identified Nedd4-family interacting protein 1 as a direct target of miR-155, and the expression of Nedd4-family interacting protein 1 was inhibited by miR-155. Furthermore, ectopic expression of Nedd4-family interacting protein 1 restored the effects of miR-155 on cell proliferation and invasion of uveal melanoma cells. In conclusion, miR-155 acts as a tumor promotor in uveal melanoma through increasing cell proliferation and invasion. Thus, miR-155 might serve as a potential therapeutic target in patients with uveal melanoma.

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Biological surfaces with unique wettability in nature have provided an enormous innovation for scientists and engineers. More specifically, materials possessing various wetting properties have drawn considerable attention owing to their promising application prospects. Recently, great efforts have been concentrated on the researches on wetting-induced drag-reduction materials inspired by biology because of their ability to save energy. In this work, the drag-reduction characteristics of the bionic surface with delicate water-trapping microstructures of fish Ctenopharyngodon idellus scales were explored by experimental method. Firstly, the resistance of smooth surface and bionic surface experimental sample at different speeds was carefully tested through the testing system for operation resistance. Then, the contact angle (CA) of fish scale surface was measured by means of the contact angle measuring instrument. It was discovered that the bionic surface created a rewarding drag-reduction effect at a low speed, and the drag-reduction rate significantly displayed a downward trend with the increase in flow speed. Thus, when the rate was 0.66 m/s, the drag-reduction effect was at the optimum level, and the maximum drag reduction rate was 2.805%, which was in concordance with the simulated one. Furthermore, a contact angle (CA) of 11.5° appeared on the fish scale surface, exhibiting fine hydrophilic property. It further manifested the spreading-wetting phenomenon and the higher surface energy for the area of apical of fish scales, which played an important role in drag-reduction performance. This work will have a great potential in the engineering and transportation field.

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An ultrasensitive refractive index (RI) sensor based on enhanced Vernier effect is proposed, which consists of two cascaded fiber core-offset pairs. One pair functions as a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI), the other with larger core offset as a low-finesse Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI). In traditional Vernier-effect based sensors, an interferometer insensitive to environment change is used as sensing reference. Here in the proposed sensor, interference fringes of the MZI and the FPI shift to opposite directions as ambient RI varies, and to the same direction as surrounding temperature changes. Thus, the envelope of superimposed fringe manifests enhanced Vernier effect for RI sensing while reduced Vernier effect for temperature change. As a result, an ultra-high RI sensitivity of -87261.06 nm/RIU is obtained near the RI of 1.33 with good linearity, while the temperature sensitivity is as low as 204.7 pm/ °C. The proposed structure is robust and of low cost. Furthermore, the proposed scheme of enhanced Vernier effect provides a new perspective and idea in other sensing field.

Interest in the influence of musical training on executive functions (EFs) has been growing in recent years. However, the relationship between musical training and EFs remains unclear. By dividing EFs into inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility, this study systematically examined its association with musical training in children, and further verified whether there was a sensitive period for the influence of music training on EFs. In Experiment 1, musically trained and untrained children were asked to complete the Go/No-go, Stroop, Continuous Performance, and Switching tasks. Results showed that musically trained children had an advantage in attention inhibition, response inhibition, and working memory, but not in cognitive flexibility. Moreover, the level of musical training was positively correlated with response inhibition and working memory abilities. In Experiment 2, results showed that early-trained musicians performed better on measures of attention inhibition, response inhibition, and working memory than did the age-matched control group, but late-trained musicians only performed better in attention inhibition. Thus, our findings suggest that music training is associated with enhanced EF abilities and provide the first evidence that early childhood is a sensitive period when musical training has a more powerful effect on the development of EFs.