BackgroundPregnancy represents a physiological adaptation to the transient load changes of maternal heart. This study aimed to investigate maternal left ventricle (LV) performance during normal pregnancy by three-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography (3D STE) parameters considering LV loading and shape.MethodsSequential two-dimensional echocardiography (2DE) and 3D STE were performed on 68 women during each pregnancy trimester and 6 to 9 weeks after delivery, while thirty age-matched, healthy, nonpregnant women served as controls. Global longitudinal strain (GLS), global circumferential strain (GCS), global area strain (GAS) and global radial strain (GRS) were measured.ResultsIncreased cardiac index and progressive eccentric hypertrophy was detected, which subsequently recovered postpartum. In late pregnancy, GLS, GCS, GAS and GRS significantly decreased (P < 0.05) accompanied by a slight reduction of LV ejection fraction (EF) (P < 0.05), and these values returned postpartum to baseline level. All 3D strain indices correlated well with gestation age (P < 0.01), while compared to other components, GAS exhibited the strongest association with 3D EF (r = 0.549) and sphericity index (r = 0.328), and was the only parameter that correlated well with LV mass index (r = 0.22).ConclusionsThis study gives normal ranges of 3D STE indices in pregnancy. 3D STE demonstrated modified myocardial deformation and changes in maternal LV structure and function during the gestation period.

Aims preeclampsia (PE) is a pregnancy complication that remains a main cause of maternal morbidity and mortality. The aims of this study were to investigate left ventricle (LV) performance in PE and to compare maternal cardiac function between early-onset preeclampsia (EP) and late-onset preeclampsia (LP) by novel threedimensional (3D) speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) parameters while considering LV loading and shape. Methods and Results Two-dimensional echocardiography and 3D STE were performed in 43 women with EP, 41 women with LP, and 81 normal pregnancies. Global longitudinal strain (GLS), global circumferential strain (GCS), global area strain (GAS), and global radial strain (GRS) were measured using 3D speckle-tracking software. There was eccentric hypertrophy and reduced LV ejection fraction (EF) in PE; meanwhile, GLS in EP and LP, GCS in LP, as well as GAS and GRS in EP significantly decreased in PE versus controls. All 3D strain indices were correlated with gestation age. Increased left atrial (LA) volume index was detected in PE. Higher LV mass index and lower 3D-derived strain value were present in women with EP compared to that in women with LP. Conclusion PE cases exhibited significant eccentric hypertrophy, ventricular dysfunction, and LA remodeling. Furthermore, myocardial deformation abnormalities preceded chamber dysfunction in this hypertensive disorder complicated pregnancy. Compared with LP, women with EP demonstrated more remarkable cardiac damage.

Background: Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been consistently reported to be involved in the progression of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this study, we aimed to identify aberrantly expressed lncRNAs in NSCLC, in order to explore new therapeutic targets for NSCLC.Methods: Two pairs of NSCLC and adjacent normal tissues were first analyzed by RNA sequencing. The expressions of LINC00702 in 40 pairs patient samples and in 4 NSCLC cell lines was measured by quantitative real-time PCR. Putative target miRNAs of LINC00702 were predicted by the bioinformatics tools. The effect of LINC00702 on tumor growth in vivo was evaluated.Results: LINC00702 was significantly down-regulated in patients with NSCLC, which was correlated with tumor size and metastasis. In addition, overexpression of LINC00702 markedly suppressed proliferation and metastasis in NSCLC cells via inducing apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, bioinformatics and luciferase reporter assays demonstrated that LINC00702 functioned as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-510 in NSCLC, and upregulated its target gene PTEN.Conclusion: Our results indicated that LINC00702 modulated the expression of PTEN gene by acting as a ceRNA for miR-510 in NSCLC. Therefore, LINC00702 may serve as a potential target for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with NSCLC.

The changes in left atrial (LA) size and function during normotensive and preeclamptic (PE) pregnancy have rarely been previously studied and the results have been inconsistent. The aim of this study was to assess the time changes in LA volume during normal pregnancy, to determine the impact of the increased afterload occurring in PE on maternal LA, and to compare differences in LA geometry and function between early-onset and late-onset PE. Using a real time three-dimensional echocardiograph, the body surface area-indexed LA volume and emptying function (EF) were compared between nonpregnant controls (n = 30), normotensive (n = 43), and PE (36 with early-onset PE and 34 with late-onset PE) pregnant women. During normotensive pregnancy, the indexed LA maximum, pre-contraction, and minimum volumes progressively increased, as well as total, passive, and active EF (P < 0.05, Trimester 3 vs. controls), as an adaption to risen cardiac preload. In the PE group, indexed LA volumes were significantly enlarged and the values of LA EF were markedly decreased (P < 0.05) resulting from elevated ventricular filling pressure and diastolic dysfunction. Compared with late-onset PE, smaller LA volume and greater atrial EF were shown in early-onset PE despite a higher afterload and more hypertrophied ventricle. In conclusion, LA size and function gradually improved to maintain adequate blood volume during normotensive pregnancy, while dilated chamber and reduced action of LA occurred in PE associated with increased afterload. Less LA volume and higher LA EF were shown in early-onset PE than in late-onset PE.

Preeclampsia (PE) remains a main cause of maternal morbidity and mortality during pregnancy. Vascular spasm and ischemic damage play the primary role in the presentation of PE. The aim of this study was to assess the longitudinal strain (LS) in each of the three myocardial layers in patients with PE using the layer-specific strain. Forty-five PE women and forty-one normotensive pregnant women were included. Layer-specific LS were assessed in endocardium, mid-myocardium, and epicardium by 2-dimensional (2D) speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE). Compared to the control subjects, the LS of all the three analyzed myocardial layers showed a significant decline in PE patients and the greatest decrease of LS occurred in the endocardium. Considering a layer-specific analysis of myocardial deformation, there is a continuous reduced tendency from endocardial to midmyocardial and epicardial layers in PE cases. The epicardial-to-epicardial LS gradient was lower in PE women than the normotensive subjects. There are some relationship of layer-specific strain values and the pregnant outcomes in PE women. All three myocardial layers were impaired in PE cases and the most prominent decrease in myocardial function occurred in the endocardial layer. Layer-specific analysis of myocardial function performed by novel 2D STE might increase diagnostic accuracy of myocardial performance in PE patients.