Proliferation to Apoptosis Tumor Cell Ratio as a Biomarker to Improve Clinical Management of Pre-Malignant and Symptomatic Plasma Cell Neoplasms

Proliferation and apoptosis of neoplastic cells are prognostic biomarkers in plasma cell neoplasms (PCNs). The prognostic capacity of proliferation to apoptosis ratio (Ratio-PA) in the era of immunomodulatory treatments is re-evaluated in 316 gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), 57 smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM), and 266 multiple myeloma (MM) patients. Ratio-PA of 0.77 ± 0.12, 1.94 ± 0.52, and 11.2 ± 0.7 (p < 0.0001) were observed in MGUS, SMM, and MM patients. Ten-year overall survival (10y-OS) rates for patients with low/high Ratio-PA were 93.5%/77.3% p < 0.0001) for MGUS, 82.5%/64.7% (p < 0.05) for SMM, and 62.3%/47.0% (p < 0.05) for MM. For patients with low, intermediate, and high risk, 10y-OS for low/high Ratio-PA were 95.5%/72.9% (p < 0.0001), 74.2%/50.4% (p < 0.0001), and 35.3%/20.0% (p = 0.836), respectively. Ratio-PA was an independent prognostic factor for OS (HR = 2.119, p < 0.0001, Harrell-C-statistic = 0.7440 ± 0.0194) when co-analyzed with sex, age, and standard risk. In patients with Ratio-PA^high, only first-line therapy with VRd/VTd, but not PAD/VCD, coupled with ASCT was associated with high 10y-OS (82.7%). Tumor cell Ratio-PA estimated at diagnosis offers a prognostic biomarker that complements standard risk stratification and helps to guide the clinical management of pre-malignant and symptomatic PCNs. Every effort should be made to provide first-line therapies including VTd or VRd associated with ASCT to patients with Ratio-PA^high at higher risk of progression and death.     

Pelletised fuel production from coal tailings and spent mushroom compost – Part II. Economic feasibility based on cost analysis

Due to the growing market for sustainable energy, in order to increase the quality of the fuels, pellets are being produced from various materials such as wood and other biomass energy crops, and municipal waste. This paper presents the results from an economic feasibility study for pellet production using blends of two residue materials: coal tailings from coal cleaning and spent mushroom compost (SMC) from mushroom production. Key variables such as the mixture composition, raw material haulage and plant scale were considered and the production costs were compared to coal and biomass energy prices. For both wet materials, the moisture content was the critical parameter that influenced the fuel energy costs. The haulage distance of the raw materials was another factor that can pose a high risk. The results showed that the pellet production from the above two materials can be viable when a less energy-intensive drying process is utilised. Potential market outlets and ways to lower the costs are also discussed in this paper.     

Free amino acid content of goat's milk cheese made with animal rennet and plant coagulant

BACKGROUND: Enzymes present in the flowers of Cynara cardunculus (cyprosins) are used in the production of some traditional Spanish and Portuguese cheeses, replacing animal rennet. The aim of this work was to study the changes that take place in free amino acids during the ripening of a goat's milk cheese (Murcia al Vino) manufactured with plant coagulant (PC) or animal rennet (AR). RESULTS: The total free amino acid (TFAA) concentration increased during ripening, with Ile, Val, Ala, Phe, Gaba, Arg and Lys representing more than 50% of the TFAA content at 60 days in both types of cheese. The TFAA concentration was significantly higher in cheeses made with PC (854 mg 100 g^?1 total solids (TS)) than those made with AR (735 mg 100 g^?1 TS). The concentration of most free amino acids, especially His, Ser, Gln, Thr, Ala, Met and Ile, was higher in the PC cheese. CONCLUSION: Cheese made using PC as coagulant presented higher contents of free amino acid throughout the ripening period than cheese made using AR. Therefore we can conclude that the use of PC to produce Murcia al Vino goat's cheese would accelerate the ripening process as a result of increased cyprosin proteolytic activity. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

In the Nick of Time: Males of the Parasitoid Wasp <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pimpla disparis</Emphasis> Respond to Semiochemicals from Emerging Mates

Males of the parasitoid wasp Pimpla disparis Viereck (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) aggregate on parasitized gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar, host pupae when the emergence of a prospective mate is imminent or under way. We tested the hypotheses that the developing parasitoid (“DePa”) inside the host pupal case produces a pheromone that attracts and arrests mate-seeking males, and that the pheromone is most effective during the emergence of the parasitoid from the host. Results obtained in two-choice laboratory experiments, with 4–7-d-old virgin males, indicate that (1) DePa-derived semiochemicals arrest males, (2) the opening of a host pupal case strongly arrests males, and (3) the arrestment cue emanates from oral fluid secreted by both female and male parasitoids while they chew their way out of a host pupal case. This phenomenon implies that emerging females, which are haplodiploid and can reproduce without mating, do not engage in active pheromone signaling to attract males, and that mate-seeking males co-opt chemicals involved in eclosion as a mate-finding cue, taking a 50% chance that the prospective mate is a female.     

Aggregation Behavior of Perfluorononanoic Acid/Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate Mixtures

The mixed system of an anionic hydrocarbon surfactant, sodium dodecyl sulfate, and a perfluorinated surfactant, perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), was investigated by a combination of methods. The critical micellar concentrations (CMC) were determined over a wide range of sample compositions by surface tension, conductivity and UV–visible spectrophotometry using N-(4-nitrophenyl)perfluorononanamide as a molecular probe. The values of CMC obtained by different techniques were in good agreement. In addition, the aggregation numbers were determined in the mixtures with a low content of hydrocarbon surfactant, by measuring the fluorescence quenching of pyrene. The hydrodynamic radii of the aggregates were estimated through the diffusion ordered ¹⁹F- and ¹H-NMR spectroscopy. The values obtained are in agreement with those expected according to the measured aggregation numbers. The analysis of the data with different aggregation models suggests the formation of a non-ideal mixed micelle that is enriched in the perfluorinated surfactant when its mole fraction increases, and that is practically formed by PFNA only at mole fractions higher than 0.8.     

The role of specific emotions in children's responses to interparental conflict: A test of the model.

Mothers, fathers, and their 6-year-old children (N?=?164) participated in a study testing key tenets of the specific emotions model of marital conflict. Parents reported their marital conflict strategies, were observed interacting with their children, and rated children's behavioral adjustment. Children reported their emotional reactions to specific interparental conflicts. Results support the specific emotions model. Children's behaviors mirrored the marital or parental behaviors of same-gender parents. Indirect effects of marital aggression through parental behavior were detected, and marital and parental behaviors interacted to predict girls' externalizing. Girls' anger, sadness, and fear increased with fathers' marital aggression. Fear and the anger by fear interaction predicted girls' internalizing. Fathers' marital aggression interacted with anger to predict externalizing and interacted with fear to predict internalizing behavior in boys. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Impact of Multiple Sclerosis Risk Polymorphism rs7665090 on MANBA Activity,Lysosomal Endocytosis,and Lymphocyte Activation

Deficiencies in Mannosidase β (MANBA) are associated with neurological abnormalities and recurrent infections. The single nucleotide polymorphism located in the 3′UTR of MANBA, rs7665090, was found to be associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) susceptibility. We aimed to study the functional impact of this polymorphism in lymphocytes isolated from MS patients and healthy controls. A total of 152 MS patients and 112 controls were genotyped for rs7665090. MANBA mRNA expression was quantified through qPCR and MANBA enzymatic activity was analyzed. Upon phytohemagglutinin stimulation, immune activation was evaluated by flow cytometry detection of CD69, endocytic function, and metabolic rates with Seahorse XFp Analyzer, and results were stratified by variation in rs7665090. A significantly reduced gene expression (p < 0.0001) and enzymatic activity (p = 0.018) of MANBA were found in lymphocytes of MS patients compared to those of controls. The rs7665090*GG genotype led to a significant β-mannosidase enzymatic deficiency correlated with lysosomal dysfunction, as well as decreased metabolic activation in lymphocytes of MS patients compared to those of rs7665090*GG controls. In contrast, lymphocytes of MS patients and controls carrying the homozygous AA genotype behaved similarly. Our work provides new evidence highlighting the impact of the MS-risk variant, rs7665090, and the role of MANBA in the immunopathology of MS.     

Telocytes’ Role in Modulating Gut Motility Function and Development: Medical Hypotheses and Literature Review

This review article explores the telocytes’ roles in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), presenting the mechanisms and hypotheses related to epithelial regeneration, progressive fibrosis, and dysmotility as a consequence of TCs’ reduced or absent number. Based on the presented mechanisms and hypotheses, we aim to provide a functional model to illustrate TCs’ possible roles in the normal and pathological functioning of the digestive tract. TCs are influenced by the compression of nearby blood vessels and the degree of fibrosis of the surrounding tissues and mediate these processes in response. The changes in intestinal tube vascularization induced by the movement of the food bowl, and the consequent pH changes that show an anisotropy in the thickness of the intestinal tube wall, have led to the identification of a pattern of intestinal tube development based on telocytes’ ability to communicate and modulate surrounding cell functions. In the construction of the theoretical model, given the predictable occurrence of colic in the infant, the two-layer arrangement of the nerve plexuses associated with the intestinal tube was considered to be incompletely adapted to the motility required with a diversified diet. There is resulting evidence of possible therapeutic targets for diseases associated with changes in local nerve tissue development.     

Managing e-government implementation in China: A process perspective

Launching a municipality-wide e-government program is an extensive, meticulously planned initiative involving ambitious goals and large-scale operational transformation. This has been particularly true in Shanghai, an urban area, occupying approximately the same area as New York or London. Here we report on our study of a social security smart card project developed and now operating in Shanghai. From the perspectives of modularity and societal learning, this case study demonstrates how localized e-government efforts may be implemented throughout the tiers of the municipal government, to present an e-government model that can be diffused to other parts of the country.     

Phase Equilibria in the Sn-Rich Corner of the Ni-Sb-Sn System

Phase equilibria in the ternary Ni-Sb-Sn system are of interest for high-temperature soldering, both considering ternary alloys as solder materials themselves or as the basis for understanding the reactions between Sb-Sn-based solders and Ni-based substrates. Therefore, the Sn-rich corner of the ternary Ni-Sb-Sn phase diagram with Sn content of more than 75 at.% was investigated by a combination of powder x-ray diffraction (XRD), differential thermal analysis (DTA), and electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). Ternary phase equilibria and phase compositions of the respective equilibrium phases were determined within the isothermal section at 200°C, and two isopleths were constructed for constant Sn contents of 80 at.% and 85 at.%. The experiments were supported by CALPHAD-type calculations of this ternary system to yield a consistent reaction scheme which shows four invariant ternary transition reactions in this composition range. A liquidus projection is presented, accompanied by the corresponding Scheil diagram.