USP21 is a kind of deubiquitinating enzymes involved in the malignant progression of various cancers, while its role in gastric cancer (GC) and the specific molecular mechanism are still unclear. This study probed into the function of USP21 in vitro and in vivo, and discussed the regulatory mechanism of USP21 in GC in vitro. We reported that USP21 promoted GC cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and stemness in vitro, and regulated GC tumor growth and cell stemness in mice in vivo. USP21 stabilized the expression of GATA3 by binding to GATA3. Besides, GATA3 also regulated the expression of MAPK1 at the transcriptional level. A series of in vitro experiments testified that USP21 regulated the expression of MAPK1 by binding to transcription factor GATA3, thereby regulating the tumor growth and cell stemness of GC. Overall, this study identified a new USP21/GATA3/MAPK1 axis, which plays a pivotal role in promoting the malignant progression of GC and might provide a potential target for treatment.

We aimed to investigate the changes in p-selectin (p-sel), thrombus precursor protein, and D-dimer (D-D) in patients with cirrhosis after portal hypertensive splenectomy and explore its values on the prediction of postoperative portal vein thrombosis (PVT) formation. A total of 144 patients with cirrhosis with portal hypertension who underwent portal hypertensive splenectomy from January 2009 to December 2016 were enrolled in this study and divided into the thrombus and nonthrombus groups. The levels of p-sel, thrombus precursor protein (TpP), and D-D were measured by flow cytometry, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and immunoturbidimetry, respectively. Sensitivity, specificity, and other values for p-sel, TpP, and D-D were calculated. The linear discriminant, logistic regression, and decision tree methods were used to analyze the p-sel value on the prediction of PVT formation. Seventy-nine patients were confirmed having postoperative PVT, with the incidence rate of 54.86%. No significant differences were observed in the p-sel, TpP, and D-D between the thrombus and nonthrombus groups before surgery, but these 3 indexes were obviously elevated in the thrombus group after operation ( P < .01). P-selectin level on first day showed the highest positive predictive value (91.0%) and diagnostic coincidence rate (83.3%), while negative expected value (76.6%) was lower than those of TpP and D-D. Multiple analyses showed the prediction accuracy of PVT was 61.1% ( P = .023), 97.2% ( P < .001), and 97.2% ( P < .001), respectively. P-selectin has a significant value in predicting PVT. P-selectin level on first and third day is valuable and feasible for the early prediction of PVT.

Gastric cancer (GC) is associated with poor patient prognosis, and so it crucial to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the progression of GC. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of transmembrane-4 L6 family member 1 (TM4SF1) in the progression of GC. TM4SF1 small interfering RNA (siRNA) and TM4SF1-expressing plasmids were employed to regulate TM4SF1 expression. In vitro experiments were performed to determine the effect of TM4SF1 on the expression of apoptosis-associated molecules and determine the role of TM4SF1 in apoptosis, proliferation, migration and invasion using human GC cell lines MGC803 and MKN45. The data of the present study demonstrated that TM4SF1 may regulate the expression of apoptosis-associated molecules at the mRNA and protein levels. TM4SF1 silencing reduced B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) expression, whilst caspase-3 and Bcl2-associated X expression increased, and upregulating TM4SF1 reversed these changes in GC cells. Furthermore, TM4SF1 knockdown promoted apoptosis while inhibiting the proliferation, migration and invasion of GC cells. Rescue experiments demonstrated that TM4SF1 upregulation reversed the changes induced by transfection with TM4SF1 siRNA. In summary, TM4SF1 is an anti-apoptosis protein associated with the progression of GC. Additional in vivo experiments and clinical trials are required to confirm the possible use of TM4SF1 in tumor therapy.

Splenic artery aneurysm is one of the most common visceral aneurysms, and patients with this type of aneurysm often present without symptoms. However, when rupture occurs, it can be a catastrophic event. Although most of these aneurysms can be treated with percutaneous embolization, some located in uncommon parts of the splenic artery may make this approach impossible. We present a patient with an aneurysm in the proximal splenic artery, close to the celiac trunk, which was treated by laparoscopic ligation only, without resection of the aneurysm, and with long-term preservation of splenic function.