Isoflurane is one of the most common general anaesthetics used during surgical procedures, including tumour resection. However, the effects of isoflurane on the viability and migration capacity of cancer cells, specifically in the context of brain cancer cells, remain unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the influence that isoflurane has on the function of glioblastoma stem cells (GCSs) in regards to cell proliferation, survival and migration. U251-GSCs were exposed to isoflurane at clinically relevant concentrations and incubation times. The effects on proliferation, survival and migration capacities of the cells were evaluated in vitro. The potential risk was assessed in mice by intracranial injection of U251-GSCs pretreated with isoflurane. Furthermore, the average tumour volume and migration distance of U251-GSCs from the tumour centre were calculated. Exposure of U251-GSCs to 1.2% isoflurane for 6 h resulted in increased proliferation (P<0.05) and decreased apoptosis rate (P<0.05) when compared with the control group. In addition, isoflurane exposure caused increased migration capacity in vitro (P<0.05) and the distance migrated was increased in vivo (P<0.05). Clinically relevant concentrations and incubation times of isoflurane could promote the viability and mobility of U251-GSCs, suggesting this general anaesthetic may have detrimental effects in glioblastoma by facilitating its growth and migration.

Summary Since December 2019, an outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has posed significant threats to the public health and life in China. Unlike the other 6 identified coronaviruses, the SARS-Cov-2 has a high infectious rate, a long incubation period and a variety of manifestations. In the absence of effective treatments for the virus, it becomes extremely urgent to develop scientific and standardized proposals for prevention and control of virus transmission. Hereby we focused on the surgical practice in Neurosurgery Department, Tongji Hospital, Wuhan, and drafted several recommendations based on the latest relevant guidelines and our experience. These recommendations have helped us until now to achieve ‘zero infection’ of doctors and nurses in our department, we would like to share them with other medical staff of neurosurgery to fight 2019-nCoV infection.

Pituitary adenomas (PAs) are benign lesions; nonetheless, some PAs exhibit aggressive behaviors, which lead to recurrence. The impact of pituitary dysfunction, invasion-related risks, and other complications considerably affect the quality of life of patients with recurrent PAs. Reliable prognostic factors are needed for recurrent PAs but require confirmation. This review summarizes research progress on two aspects—namely, the clinical and biological factors (biomarkers) for recurrent PAs. Postoperative residue, age, immunohistological subtypes, invasion, tumor size, hormone levels, and postoperative radiotherapy can predict the risk of recurrence in patients with PAs. Additionally, biomarkers such as Ki-67, p53, cadherin, pituitary tumor transforming gene, matrix metalloproteinase-9, epidermal growth factor receptor, fascin actin-bundling protein 1, cyclooxygenase-2, and some miRNAs and lncRNAs may be utilized as valuable tools for predicting PA recurrence. As no single marker can independently predict PA recurrence, we introduce an array of comprehensive models and grading methods, including multiple prognostic factors, to predict the prognosis of PAs, which have shown good effectiveness and would be beneficial for predicting PA recurrence.