BackgroundWe performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to address the (added) value of intraoperative 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA)-guided resection of high-grade malignant gliomas compared with conventional neuronavigation-guided resection, with respect to diagnostic accuracy, extent of tumor resection, safety, and survival.Methods and FindingsAn electronic database search of Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Library was undertaken. The review process followed the guidelines of the Cochrane Collaboration. 10 studies matched all selection criteria, and were thus used for qualitative synthesis. 5-ALA-guided resection demonstrated an overall sensitivity of 0.87 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.81–0.92), specificity of 0.89 (95% CI, 0.79–0.94), positive likelihood ratio (LR) of 7.62 (95% CI, 3.87–15.01), negative LR of 0.14 (95% CI, 0.09–0.23), and diagnostic odds ratio (OR) of 53.06 (95% CI, 18.70–150.51). Summary receiver operating characteristic curves (SROC) showed an area under curve (AUC) of 94%. Contrast-enhancing tumor was completely resected in patients assigned 5-ALA as compared with patients assigned white light. Patients in the 5-ALA group had higher 6-month progression free survival and overall survival than those in the white light group.ConclusionBased on available literature, there is level 2 evidence that 5-ALA-guided surgery is more effective than conventional neuronavigation-guided surgery in increasing diagnostic accuracy and extent of tumor resection, enhancing quality of life, or prolonging survival in patients with high-grade malignant gliomas.

No abstract

No abstract

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most malignant brain tumor in humans. Previous studies have demonstrated that microRNA plays important roles in the development and proliferation of GBM cells. Here we defined the mechanism by which miR-212-3p regulated the proliferation of GBM. In this study, we showed that miR-212-3p expression was significantly down-regulated and negatively correlated with serum and glucocorticoid-inducible kinase 3 (SGK3) in GBM. Either over-expression of miR-212-3p or silence of SGK3 decreased viability of GBM cells. Moreover, miR-212-3p directly bound to 3'UTR of SGK3 and inhibited its mRNA and protein expression. And over-expression of SGK3 rescued the decreased proliferation of GBM cells induced by miR-212-3p. Importantly, miR-212-3p also suppressed tumor growth in vivo. Collectively, our results demonstrated that miR-212-3p inhibited proliferation of GBM cells by directly targeting SGK3, and could potentially serve as a new therapeutic target for GBM.

Glioma relies on glycolysis to obtain energy and sustain its survival under low glucose microenvironment in vivo. The mechanisms on glioma cell glycolysis regulation are still unclear. Signaling mediated by Double-stranded RNA-activated protein kinase (PKR) – like ER kinase (PERK) is one of the important pathways of unfolded protein response (UPR) which is comprehensively activated in cancer cells upon the hypoxic and low glucose stress. Here we show that PERK is significantly activated in human glioma tissues. PERK silencing results in decreased glioma cell viability and ATP/lactate production upon low glucose stress, which is mediated by partially blocked AKT activation and subsequent inhibition of Hexokinase II (HK2)'s mitochondria translocation. More importantly, PERK silenced glioma cells show decreased tumor formation capacity. Our results reveal that PERK activation is involved in glioma glycolysis regulation and may be a potential molecular target for glioma treatment.

No abstract

With the use of a scanning electron microscope, we observe specific microstructures of the mouthpart of the Italian bee (Apis mellifera ligustica), especially the distribution and dimensions of hairs on its glossa. Considering the erection of glossal hairs for trapping nectar modifies the viscous dipping model in analyzing the drinking strategy of a honeybee. Theoretical estimations of volume intake rates with respect to sucrose solutions of different concentrations agree with experimental data, which indicates that erectable hairs can significantly increase the ability of a bee to acquire nectar efficiently. The comparison with experimental results also indicates that a honeybee may continuously augment its pumping power, rather than keep it constant, to drink nectar with sharply increasing viscosity. Under the modified assumption of increasing working power, we introduce the rate at which working power increases with viscosity and discuss the nature-preferred nectar concentration of 35% by theoretically calculating optimal concentration maximizing energetic intake rates under varying increasing rates. Finally, the ability of the mouthparts of the honeybee to transfer viscous nectar may inspire a concept for transporting microfluidics with a wide range of viscosities.

No abstract