Ahmadmarker7605

Tumor Initiating Cells (TICs) are resistant to radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and are believed to be responsible for tumor recurrence and metastasis. Combination therapies can overcome the limitation of conventional cancer treatments, and have demonstrated promising application in the clinic. Here, we show that dual modality radiotherapy (RT) and photothermal therapy (PTT) mediated by a single compartment nanosystem copper-64-labeled copper sulfide nanoparticles ([(64)Cu]CuS NPs) could suppress breast tumor metastasis through eradication of TICs. Positron electron tomography (PET) imaging and biodistribution studies showed that more than 90% of [(64)Cu]CuS NPs was retained in subcutaneously grown BT474 breast tumor 24 h after intratumoral (i.t.) injection, indicating the NPs are suitable for the combination therapy. Combined RT/PTT therapy resulted in significant tumor growth delay in the subcutaneous BT474 breast cancer model. Moreover, RT/PTT treatment significantly prolonged the survival of mice bearing orthotopic 4T1 breast tumors compared to no treatment, RT alone, or PTT alone. The RT/PTT combination therapy significantly reduced the number of tumor nodules in the lung and the formation of tumor mammospheres from treated 4T1 tumors. No obvious side effects of the CuS NPs were noted in the treated mice in a pilot toxicity study. Taken together, our data support the feasibility of a therapeutic approach for the suppression of tumor metastasis through localized RT/PTT therapy.Costimulatory molecules are essential regulators of the immunological synapse and enable the fine-tuning of the immune response. These mechanisms are subverted by cancer cells to evade immunosurveillance. The B7 family of costimulatory molecules comprises several ligands that may contribute to immunoescape. B7-H3 [B7-homolog 3 or CD276] remains poorly investigated in hematological malignancies. To determine the role B7-H3, we analyzed the expression of this molecule in blast cells from a cohort of 111 acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. B7-H3 was expressed in blast cells with a mean fluorescence intensity ratio >3 in 30 (27%) of the 111 patients. B7-H3 expression was higher in the M3 and M5 FAB subtypes and in cases with mutated NPM1 and wild type CEBPA. There were no significant differences found for the FLT3-ITD or cytogenetic risk groups. The complete remission (CR) rate between the 17 B7-H3-positive and 58 negative patients who were treated intensively was not different. The event free survival was longer in B7-H3-positive patients (P = 0.014), and there was a trend toward better overall survival. However, this difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.053). In conclusion, B7-H3 is one of the most strongly expressed B7-family molecules in AML and merits further investigation.

Tumor volume change has potential as a biomarker for diagnosis, therapy planning, and treatment response. Precision was evaluated and compared among semiautomated lung tumor volume measurement algorithms from clinical thoracic computed tomography data sets. The results inform approaches and testing requirements for establishing conformance with the Quantitative Imaging Biomarker Alliance (QIBA) Computed Tomography Volumetry Profile.

Industry and academic groups participated in a challenge study. Intra-algorithm repeatability and inter-algorithm reproducibility were estimated. Relative magnitudes of various sources of variability were estimated using a linear mixed effects model. Segmentation boundaries were compared to provide a basis on which to optimize algorithm performance for developers.

Intra-algorithm repeatability ranged from 13% (best performing) to 100% (least performing), with most algorithms demonstrating improved repeatability as the tumor size increased. Inter-algorithm reproducibility wasts for interchangeability down to 10mm, although the partition comprising best performing algorithms did meet this requirement for a tumor size of greater than approximately 40mm.

Nine of the 12 participating algorithms pass precision requirements similar to what is indicated in the QIBA Profile, with the caveat that the present study was not designed to explicitly evaluate algorithm profile conformance. Change in tumor volume can be measured with confidence to within ±14% using any of these nine algorithms on tumor sizes greater than 10 mm. No partition of the algorithms was able to meet the QIBA requirements for interchangeability down to 10 mm, although the partition comprising best performing algorithms did meet this requirement for a tumor size of greater than approximately 40 mm.Collagen hydrolysate (CH) was orally administered to UVB-irradiated hairless mice at doses of 20, 200-2000 mg/kg BW/day. The low dose of CH increased the skin hydration and reduced the transepidermal water loss on damaged skin. These results suggested the optimal dose of collagen to improve the UV-damaged skin condition.Methodological considerations of football injury epidemiology have only scarcely been described. The aim of this study was to evaluate the inter-rater agreement in injury capture rate and injury categorization for data registered in two different prospective injury surveillance audits studying the same two Norwegian male professional football clubs for two consecutive seasons, 2008-2009. One audit used team-based exposure (TBE) recording and the other individual-based exposure (IBE). The number of injuries recorded and corresponding injury rates (injuries/1000 h exposure) were compared between audits. Cohen's kappa and prevalence-adjusted bias-adjusted kappa (PABAK) coefficients were calculated for injury variables. Of 323 injuries included, the IBE audit captured 318 (overall capture rate 98.5%, training 98.9%, match 97.8%) and the TBE audit 303 injuries (overall capture rate 93.8%, training 91.4%, match 97.1%). Agreement analysis showed kappa and PABAK coefficients regarded as almost perfect (> 0.81) for 8 of 9 injury variables, and substantial (ƙ 0.75) for the variable injury severity. In conclusion, the capture rate for training injuries was slightly higher with IBE recording, and inter-agreement in injury categorization was very high.Hyaluronan (HA) is a natural polyelectrolyte with distinctive biological functions. Cross-linking of HA to generate less degradable hydrogels for use in biomedical applications has attracted interest over many years. One limitation of HA hydrogels is that they are very brittle and/or easily dissolve in physiological environments, which limit their use in load-bearing applications. Herein, we describe the preparation of triple-network (TN) hydrogels based on HA and poly(N,N-dimethylacrylamide) (PDMA) of high mechanical strength by sequential gelation reactions. TN hydrogels containing 81-91% water sustain compressive stresses above 20 MPa and exhibit Young's moduli of up to 1 MPa. HA of various degrees of methacrylation was used as a multifunctional macromer for the synthesis of the brittle first-network component, while loosely cross-linked PDMA was used as the ductile, second and third network components of TN hydrogels. By tuning the methacrylation degree of HA, double-network hydrogels with a fracture stress above 10 MPa and a fracture strain of 96% were obtained. Increasing the ratio of ductile-to-brittle components via the TN approach further increases the fracture stress above 20 MPa. Cyclic mechanical tests show that, although TN hydrogels internally fracture even under small strain, the ductile components hinder macroscopic crack propagation by keeping the macroscopic gel samples together.A comprehensive Raman resonance scattering study of ZnSxSe1-x (ZnSSe) solid solutions over the whole compositional range (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) has been carried out using 325 and 455 nm excitation wavelengths. The Raman scattering intensities of LO ZnS-like and ZnSe-like phonon modes, corresponding to pure S and Se vibrations, respectively, are revealed to be significantly enhanced when excited with 325 nm excitation in the case of S vibrations, and with 455 nm in the case of Se vibrations. This behavior is explained by the interaction of the excitation photons with the corresponding S or Se electronic states in the conduction band, and further confirmed by first principles simulations. These findings advance the fundamental understanding of the coupling between the electronic transitions and photons in the case of Raman resonance effects, and provide inputs for further studies of lattice dynamics, especially in the case of chalcogenide materials. Additionally, the coexistence of modes corresponding to only S vibrations and only Se vibrations in the ZnSSe alloys makes these results applicable for the compositional assessment of ZnSSe compounds.Control eradication campaigns of bovine tuberculosis based on the «test and slaughter» approach were successful in many countries and regions; however, in some areas the infection persists and one of the main reasons is Mycobacterium bovis infection in wild life species. Argentina has applied the same approach since 1999, achieving progress in dairy cattle herds. Nonetheless, the wildlife role has never been investigated. The objective of this study was to determine if wildlife from the Santa Fe dairy area is infected with M. bovis. Wildlife species having a positive tuberculin skin test were captured in five dairy farms. Ninety five wildlife mammals were captured; M. bovis was recovered from 7 possums (Didelphys albiventris), from one fox (Lycolapex gimnocercus) and from one rat (Rattus norvegicus). None of the animals exhibited macroscopic lesions. The most frequently isolated M. bovis spoligotypes were types 34 (4 isolates) and 12 (3 isolates). Spoligotype 34 is the most frequently isolated type in Argentine cattle. The role of D. albiventris as spillover host of M. bovis is discussed in this study.BRCA-associated protein 1 (BAP1) has emerged as a promising biomarker for malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). Loss of BAP1 expression can occur by a variety of mechanisms, but reports on incidence are variable and the clinical significance is unclear. In order to investigate the diagnostic and prognostic significance of BAP1, we constructed a tissue microarray consisting of 111 MPM cases and performed BAP1 immunohistochemistry. BAP1 was lost in 77% of epithelioid cases (n=58) but was retained in all sarcomatoid cases (n=10); 49% of biphasic cases showed loss (n=43), and BAP1-negative cases demonstrated loss of staining in both the epithelioid and sarcomatoid components. 11-deoxojervine All non-neoplastic mesothelial tissues (n=20) retained BAP1, resulting in a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 61%, 100%, 100%, and 32%, respectively. Moreover, BAP1 expression in spindled mesothelium enabled discrimination of reactive and malignant cells, thus providing a more objective means of distinguishing epithelioid from biphasic morphology compared to histology alone. Nonetheless, BAP1 staining was patchy in some benign mesothelial neoplasms, which raises concern for using BAP1 in small biopsies. Kaplan-Meier analysis demonstrated a significant improvement in overall survival with BAP1 loss, but this did not reach significance in multivariate analysis accounting for histologic subtype. When only epithelioid cases were analyzed there was a trend toward increased survival, but it did not reach significance. We conclude that BAP1 loss is frequent in epithelioid MPM, which is in turn associated with improved survival, and that it can have additional clinical significance by facilitating histologic classification.