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Cysteine-X-cysteine ligand 8 (CXCL8) was originally discovered as a proinflammatory chemokine. Recently, CXCL8 has been shown to act as an oncogene in several types of human cancers. However, the clinical and prognostic significance of CXCL8 in cervical cancer is poorly understood. In our study, we found that CXCL8 was highly expressed in cervical cancer tissues compared with normal cervical tissues in microarray datasets (GSE9750 and GSE7803). CXCL8 mRNA and protein expressions were increased in cervical cancer tissues and cell lines compared with normal cervical tissues and cervical epithelial cell lines. CXCL8 protein expression was significantly correlated with clinical stage, distant metastasis, histological type, and histological grade. CXCL8 high expression was a poor independent prognostic parameter for cervical cancer patients. In conclusion, CXCL8 is highly expressed in cervical cancer tissues and cell lines, and correlated with malignant status and prognosis in cervical cancer patients.

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BackgroundTransversus abdominis plane (TAP) block can provide effective analgesia for abdominal surgery. However, many randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have shown controversial results in hysterectomy. We conducted a meta-analysis of RCTs to investigate the effectiveness of TAP block after hysterectomy.MethodsStudies were gathered from PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases up to March 2018. RCTs involving TAP blocks in women undergoing hysterectomy were selected. The primary outcome of mean 24 hours morphine consumption and other outcomes, such as time to first request for analgesic, rest, and pain scores on movement at different times, and rates of nausea and vomiting, were compared between TAP block and no or sham block groups.ResultsA total of 841 participants were included in the 13 selected RCTs. Compared with no or sham blocks, TAP block reduced mean 24-hour morphine consumption in abdominal hysterectomy (AH) (weighted mean difference [WMD] −10.77 mg, P=0.04) but not in laparoscopic hysterectomy (LH)/robotic-assisted hysterectomy (RH) (WMD −1.39 mg, P=0.24). TAP block in AH prolonged analgesic time and reduced nausea and vomiting rates. TAP block also reduced the postoperative pain score at rest and on movement at different times in the AH subgroup, but it did not significantly reduce the postoperative pain score at rest, 6–8, and 24 hours, as well as the pain score on movement at 2, 6–8, and 24 hours in the LH/RH subgroup.ConclusionTAP block is an effective analgesic for AH. TAP block can reduce postoperative morphine consumption in AH and pain scores at rest and on movement for AH without increasing side effects. However, TAP block has limited analgesic effects for women undergoing LH/RH, as it does not reduce postoperative morphine consumption and pain scores at rest and on movement.

SLIT2/ROBO1 signalling may regulate trophoblast differentiation and invasion causing restricting β-hCG production, shallow trophoblast invasion and inhibiting placental angiogenesis in missed and threatened miscarriage during the first trimester.

The aim of this study was to determine whether double labelling of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs) with gadolinium-diethylene triamine penta-acetic acid (Gd-DTPA) and PKH26 influences their biological characteristics. A tissue adherence technique was used to separate and purify the hUCMSCs and flow cytometry was performed to detect the surface markers expressed on them. Gd-DTPA and PKH26 were used to label the stem cells and MRI and fluorescence microscopy were used to detect the double-labelled hUCMSCs. A MTT assay was used to delineate the growth curve. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscopy were used to demonstrate the ultrastructural features of the hUCMSCs. Flow cytometry showed that hUCMSCs highly expressed CD29, CD90, CD44 and CD105. No expression of CD31, CD34 and CD45 was detected. Very low expression of HLA-DR and CD40 was detected. Atomic force microscopy showed these cells were long, spindle shaped, and the cytoplasm and nucleus had clear boundaries. After double labelling, TEM showed Gd particles aggregated in the cytoplasm in a cluster pattern. The proliferation activity, cell cycle, apoptosis and differentiation of the stem cells were not influenced by double labelling. Thus a tissue adherence technique is helpful to separate and purify hUCMSCs effectively; and Gd-DTPA and PKH26 are promising tracers in the investigation of migration and distribution of hUCMSCs in vivo.

The method of choice for assisted reproductive technology treatment in vitro fertilisation (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is usually based on the evaluation of male infertility factors. Decisions for couples with moderate oligoasthenozoospermia (OA) are often empirical because uniform treatment criteria are lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of patients with moderate OA treated with conventional IVF and ICSI. A total of 199 couples with moderate OA undergoing their first IVF/ICSI cycle were included in the study. The patients were divided into two groups according to the type of insemination: conventional IVF group (n = 97) and ICSI group (n = 102). All patients were randomised to be inseminated either by conventional IVF or ICSI. The fertilisation rate, embryo quality, implantation rate and clinical pregnancy rate were examined. No differences in the fertilisation, implantation and pregnancy rates were observed between conventional IVF and ICSI groups (P > 0.05). However, the number of good-quality embryos was significantly higher in the ICSI group than in the IVF group (P < 0.05). Couples with moderate OA did not influence on the overall clinical outcomes between IVF and ICSI treatments, and a negative influence by ICSI on blastocyst development was not confirmed.