Multi-modal therapeutics are emerging for simultaneous diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Polymeric carriers are often employed for loading multiple drugs due to their versatility and controlled release of these drugs in response to a tumor specific microenvironment. A theranostic nanomedicine was designed and prepared by complexing a small gadolinium chelate, conjugating a chemotherapeutic drug PTX through a cathepsin B-responsive linker and covalently bonding a fluorescent probe pheophorbide a (Ppa) with a branched glycopolymer. The branched prodrug-based nanosystem was degradable in the tumor microenvironment with overexpressed cathepsin B, and PTX was simultaneously released to exert its therapeutic effect. The theranostic nanomedicine, branched glycopolymer-PTX-DOTA-Gd, had an extended circulation time, enhanced accumulation in tumors, and excellent biocompatibility with significantly reduced gadolinium ion (Gd3+) retention after 96 h post-injection. Enhanced imaging contrast up to 24 h post-injection and excellent antitumor efficacy with a tumor inhibition rate more than 90% were achieved from glycopolymer-PTX-DOTA-Gd without obvious systematic toxicity. This branched polymeric prodrug-based nanomedicine is very promising for safe and effective diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

Purpose: There is a great controversy regarding the prognostic significance of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in glioma patients. The current meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the effect of abnormal EGFR expression on overall survival in glioma patients. Materials and methods: A comprehensive literature search of PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library was conducted. The combined hazard ratio (HR) and its 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to evaluate the association between EGFR expression and survival in glioma. Results: A total of 476 articles were screened, and 17 articles containing 1,458 patients were selected. The quality assessment of the included studies was performed by the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale. Overexpression of EGFR was found to be an indicator of poor prognosis in overall survival in glioma patients (HR =1.72, 95% CI 1.32–2.25, P=0.000, random effect) and glioblastoma multiforme patients (HR =1.57, 95% CI 1.15–2.14, P=0.004, random effect). Subgroup analysis was conducted to explore the source of high heterogeneity. Conclusion: This meta-analysis indicated that high expression of EGFR may serve as a biomarker for poor prognosis in glioma patients.

Background: Intrauterine adhesion (IUA) is the second leading cause of secondary infertility in women. Research has shown that stem cells can promote endometrial regeneration and that biomaterials are also helpful in tissue regeneration. Therefore, we compared the efficacy of a collagen scaffold combined with either human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSC) or estrogen for the treatment of IUA. Methods: The IUA-induced rats were injected with hUCMSCs or estrogen, and with a collagen scaffold. The endometrial glands and amount of fibrosis were assessed using hematoxylin and eosin and Masson staining. The extent of fibrosis and levels of regeneration-related cytokines were examined by real-time quantitative PCR, and the expression levels of the estrogen receptor, KI67 and cytokeratin were analyzed using an immunochemistry assay. In addition, human nuclear antigen (HuNu) and vimentin were examined by immunofluorescence microscopy. Results: The collagen scaffold administered with hUCMSCs markedly increased the number of endometrial glands and reduced the area of fibrosis compared with either the collagen scaffold or hUCMSCs alone. In addition, the collagen scaffold with hUCMSCs significantly regulated the expression levels of fibrosis, estrogen, and differentiation-related genes relative to the collagen scaffold or hUCMSCs alone. Furthermore, the hUCMSCs alone or in combination with the collagen scaffold increased the expression of HuNu and vimentin in the IUA-induced rat model. In addition, protein levels of the p-transcriptional co-activator with PDZ-binding motif, stromal cell-derived factor-1, and C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 were upregulated in the group that received the collagen scaffold in combination with ­hUCMSCs. Conclusion: Our results suggest that the combination of the collagen scaffold with hUCMSCs may be an alternative approach for treating IUA.