A Correlative Study Between IVIM-DWI Parameters and the Expression Levels of Ang-2 and TKT in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Abstract

BackgroundNoninvasive evaluation of the expression of angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) and transketolase (TKT) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is of great significance for the clinical development of individualized treatment plans. However, the correlation between intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion weighted imaging (IVIM-DWI) and the expression of Ang-2 and TKT has not been reported. We sought to investigate the correlations between IVIM-DWI parameters and Ang-2 and TKT expression levels in HCCs.MethodsConventional non-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and IVIM-DWI and dynamic contrast MRI were performed for 61 patients with HCC before surgical treatment. Various IVIM-DWI parameters, such as apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), slow apparent diffusion coefficient (D), fast apparent diffusion coefficient (D*) and fraction of fast apparent diffusion coefficient (f), were calculated using Function-MADC software. Expression levels of Ang-2 and TKT in HCC were detected via immunohistochemical staining and classified into two grades. Independent sample t tests were used to compare differences in parameters between the two groups. The Spearman rank correlation test was used to analyze the correlations between IVIM-DWI parameters and Ang-2 and TKT expression levels in HCCs.ResultsThe D* and f values were significantly higher in the high Ang-2 group than in the low Ang-2 group; there were no obvious between-group differences in ADC and D. Ang-2 expression was positively correlated with D* and f but not with ADC and D. The ADC and D values were significantly lower in the high TKT group than in the low TKT group, whereas the between-group differences for D* and f were not significant. TKT expression was negatively correlated with ADC and D but not with D* and f.ConclusionsIVIM-DWI can be used to evaluate Ang-2 and TKT expression in HCC.

b value and first‐order motion moment optimized data acquisition for repeatable quantitative intravoxel incoherent motion DWI

“…Although promising results were observed in healthy volunteers, the proposed optimal 2D sampling also needs to be rigorously validated in the relevant patient populations. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] In conclusion, 2D b-M 1 -optimized data acquisition enables repeatable IVIM quantification with improved noise performance in healthy volunteers. Therefore, this work may advance the establishment of IVIM-based quantitative biomarkers for the detection and staging of chronic and focal liver diseases.…”

“…Intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) DWI is an MR‐based technique capable of quantifying parameters related to the microstructure of liver tissue, including measures of diffusivity (diffusion coefficient ( D )) and microcirculation of blood (perfusion fraction ( F) and blood velocity SD ( V b , which is related to the pseudo‐diffusion parameter D* )) 3,4 . Several studies have demonstrated the potential utility of quantitative IVIM‐DWI in the evaluation of liver diseases, including fibrosis, 5–7 hepatitis, 8 fatty liver disease, 9,10 hepatocellular carcinoma, 5,11–13 and metastatic lesions 14,15 . However, the predictive performance (e.g., distinguishing benign vs. malignant or responding vs. nonresponding) of the blood microcirculation or perfusion parameters suffers from high measurement variability and poor precision (repeatability and reproducibility) when using conventional IVIM‐DWI methods 5,6,11,15–18 .…”

Evaluation of Angiogenesis and Pathological Classification of Extrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma by Dynamic MR Imaging for E-Healthcare

“…In this study, the CD34 was used to label ECC blood vessels to count MVD, because its specificity for vascular endothelium is much higher than other markers. The number of tumor neovascularization can be intuitively determined by counting MVD, so as to determine the tumor tissue malignant degree [ 35 ]. VEGF is a polypeptide factor that can specifically induce the new blood vessels formation in tumor tissues and usually acts on tumor vascular endothelial cell membranes.…”

Local Therapies and Modulation of Tumor Surrounding Stroma in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma: A Translational Approach

“…Moreover, liposomes give the opportunity to deliver both hydrophobic and hydrophilic compounds, but also genetic material. In MPM treatment, liposomes are exploited to deliver chemotherapeutics, such as doxorubicin [54,55], or pemetrexed [56,57], with the main goal to increase the concentration of drugs in the peritoneal cavity, to avoid fast degradation of drug molecules, and to have the possibility Comparing the two images, it can be observed that even if the CT/PET scan allows a greater morphological detail, the IVIM sequence has an equal capacity to highlight, with hyper-intensity of the signal, the same functional aspects.…”

“…Moreover, liposomes give the opportunity to deliver both hydrophobic and hydrophilic compounds, but also genetic material. In MPM treatment, liposomes are exploited to deliver chemotherapeutics, such as doxorubicin [54,55], or pemetrexed [56,57], with the main goal to increase the concentration of drugs in the peritoneal cavity, to avoid fast degradation of drug molecules, and to have the possibility to prolong the release of the drug. For example, Ando et al demonstrated that an injection into the pleural cavity of pemetrexed loaded into liposomes had more suppressive effect on tumor growth in an orthotopic mesothelioma mouse model, compared to free pemetrexed.…”