Semi-dominant mutation in the cysteine-rich receptor-like kinase gene, ALS1, conducts constitutive defence response in rice

Plants have evolved a sophisticated two-branch defence system to prevent the growth and spread of pathogen infection. The novel Cys-rich repeat (CRR) containing receptor-like kinases, known as CRKs, were reported to mediate defence resistance in plants. For rice, there are only two reports of CRKs. A semi-dominant lesion mimic mutant als1 (apoptosis leaf and sheath 1) in rice was identified to demonstrate spontaneous lesions on the leaf blade and sheath. A map-based cloning strategy was used for fine mapping and cloning of ALS1, which was confirmed to be a typical CRK in rice. Functional studies of ALS1 were conducted, including phylogenetic analysis, expression analysis, subcellular location and blast resistance identification. Most pathogenesis-related (PR) genes and other defence-related genes were activated and up-regulated to a high degree. ALS1 was expressed mainly in the leaf blade and sheath, in which further study revealed that ALS1 was present in the vascular bundles. ALS1 was located in the cell membrane of rice protoplasts, and its mutation did not change its subcellular location. Jasmonic acid (JA) and salicylic acid (SA) accumulation were observed in als1, and enhanced blast resistance was also observed. The mutation of ALS1 caused a constitutively activated defence response in als1. The results of our study imply that ALS1 participates in a defence response resembling the common SA-, JA- and NH1-mediated defence responses in rice.

Etching gas-sieving nanopores in single-layer graphene with an angstrom precision for high-performance gas mixture separation

One of the bottlenecks in realizing the potential of atom-thick graphene membrane for gas sieving is the difficulty in incorporating nanopores in an otherwise impermeable graphene lattice, with an angstrom precision at a high-enough pore density. We realize this design by developing a synergistic, partially decoupled defect nucleation and pore expansion strategy using O₂ plasma and O₃ treatment. A high density (ca. 2.1 × 10¹² cm^-2) of H₂-sieving pores was achieved while limiting the percentage of CH₄-permeating pores to 13 to 22 parts per million. As a result, a record-high gas mixture separation performance was achieved (H₂ permeance, 1340 to 6045 gas permeation units; H₂/CH₄ separation factor, 15.6 to 25.1; H₂/C₃H₈ separation factor, 38.0 to 57.8). This highly scalable pore etching strategy will accelerate the development of single-layer graphene-based energy-efficient membranes.

[The treatment of nose-eye correlated diseases with external nasal incision combined with nasal cavity approach surgery through endoscope]

Objective:To explore the indications and characteristics for the treatment of nose-eye correlated diseases with endoscopic surgery through external nasal incision combined with nasal cavity approach.Method:The clinical data of 13 patients whom hospitalized in our department and treated by endoscopic surgery through external nasal incision combined with nasal cavity approach since October 2011, were retrospectively analyzed and the characteristics of different pathological changes, clinical manifestations, surgical approach and follow-up results were summarized.Four cases of patients underwent endoscopic surgery through nasal cavity and lacrimal caruncle conjunctival incision, 4 cases received bone fracture reduction and DCR with endoscope through double path of nasal cavity and the original trauma wound, 2 cases with endoscopic bone tumor resection through nasal cavity and external nasal incision, the rest of the 3 cases with endonasal endoscopic and peri-orbit incision surgery.Result:Two cases of tumor patients showed no recurrence followed up for 1.5 to 2 years; the diplopia disappeared in 2 cases of orbital medial wall fracture; surgeries of 4 cases of orbital wall fracture with lacrimal duct obstruction patients, 3 cases succeeded, 1 case failed and change into dacryocystorhinotomy with external nasal incision, and epiphora of all patients vanished; all of the patients of sinus osteoma, foreign bodies and abscess were cured and symptoms disappeared; the symptoms of ectopic meningioma patient gradually died down with eyebrow scars left.Conclusion:The surgery with external nasal incision combined with nasal cavity approach through endoscope to treat noseeye correlated diseases can effectively deal with relevant pathological changes, with the advantages of clear operation field and less damage, but its exact indications and surgical methods still need to be further explored.

Abstract A01: Distinct mechanism of action of DNA-damaging agent dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) suggests combination therapy with PARP inhibitors

DNA damage response (DDR) is a network of intracellular pathways designed to minimize the impact of DNA damage. Multiple DNA repair pathways are known, including mismatch repair (MMR), O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT), non-homologous end joining (NHEJ), and homologous recombination (HR), which act either by repairing the damage, arresting cell growth or, if necessary, promoting cell death. DDR defects are a hallmark of cancer development, rendering the cancer cells highly sensitive to targeted DNA-damaging agents. Ovarian cancer is normally treated with platinum (Pt)-based chemotherapy, which forms predominantly intrastrand DNA crosslinks; however, most advanced ovarian cancer patients develop episodes of recurrent disease with progressively shorter disease-free intervals. Dysfunctional p53 diminishes the therapeutic cytotoxicity of many DNA-targeting drugs, including Pt-based agents, comprising a therapeutic challenge in high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC), where p53 is almost universally mutated (~96%). Attempts to overcome Pt-resistance in HGSOC include PARP inhibitors (PARPi), which target tumors with deficiencies in the HR pathway (50% of HGSOC), responsible for the repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). Unfortunately, PARPi resistance frequently arises, leading to a 5-year survival rate of only 40% in this cancer. VAL-083 is a first-in-class DNA-damaging agent that has demonstrated clinical activity against a range of tumor types, including ovarian cancer, in historical NCI-sponsored clinical studies. VAL-083 rapidly induces interstrand crosslinks at guanine-N7, causing DNA DSBs that, if left unrepaired, are lethal to the cancer cell. We have shown that VAL-083 treatment leads to DNA damage that activates HR and is independent of common DNA repair pathways, including MGMT, MMR, and NHEJ. Notably, VAL-083 induces persistent S/G2 phase cell cycle arrest through two parallel pathways--one p53-independent and one p53-dependent. Taken together, these data propose the potential for targeting HR-impaired tumors and for combination treatment with S-phase specific DNA-targeting agents, including PARPi. We have previously seen VAL-083 cytotoxicity against a panel of ovarian cancer cells with differing p53 status and superadditivity between VAL-083 and PARPi olaparib, in vitro. The purpose of this study was to expand on these studies by examining the cytotoxicity of VAL-083 against HR-impaired ovarian cancer cells, the impact of p53 status, and the potential for VAL-083 combination with PARPi as part of a treatment strategy for HR-impaired, p53 dysfunctional HGSOC. VAL-083 cytotoxicity was investigated using the 5-day MTT assay in A2780 ovarian cancer cells. HR-impaired A2780 were examined using BRCA1 siRNA oligos prior to VAL-083 exposure. Combinations with PARPi veliparib (catalytic) and talazoparib (trapping) were examined in HR-proficient and HR–impaired A2780. The impact of p53 status was investigated by CRISPR/cas 9 knockout of p53 in the wildtype (wt) A2780 cells and in p53-mutated OVCAR3 cancer cells. We report increased VAL-083 cytotoxicity against HR-impaired A2780 cancer cells, further supporting HR as the main repair pathway for VAL-083-induced DNA damage, and suggesting HR-impaired HGSOC as a target for VAL-083 treatment. We further report superadditivity between VAL-083 and PARPi veliparib and talazoparib. Significantly, VAL-083 cytotoxicity against wt and knockout p53 A2780 cells and against p53-mutated OVCAR3 cells differed only by a factor of ~2, supporting a p53-independent mechanism of action for VAL-083. In conclusion, our results demonstrate a distinct DNA-damaging mechanism for VAL-083, resulting in the ability to target HR-impaired tumors and overcome MGMT- , MMR- , and NHEJ-related chemoresistance. VAL-083 activity was independent of p53 status, and superadditivity with PARPi was identified in HR-proficient A2780. Studies in HR-impaired A2780 are ongoing and will also be presented.

Citation Format: Jeffrey A. Bacha, Guangan He, Xiaolei Xie, Anne Steino, Dennis M. Brown, Zahid H. Siddik. Distinct mechanism of action of DNA-damaging agent dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) suggests combination therapy with PARP inhibitors. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Conference: Addressing Critical Questions in Ovarian Cancer Research and Treatment; Oct 1-4, 2017; Pittsburgh, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2018;24(15_Suppl):Abstract nr A01.

Abstract A109: DNA-damaging agent dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) targets HR repair pathway and suggests combination therapy with topoisomerase and PARP inhibitors

DNA damage repair (DDR) describes the network of pathways that are responsible for minimizing the effect of daily DNA damage such as mismatched base pairs, single-strand breaks, and double-strand breaks (DSBs). Multiple DNA repair pathways are known, including mismatch repair (MMR), O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT), non-homologous end joining (NHEJ), and homologous recombination (HR), which act either by repairing the damage, arresting cell growth or, if necessary, promoting cell death. DDR defects are a hallmark of cancer development, rendering the cancer cells highly sensitive to targeted DNA-damaging agents. Dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) is a first-in-class DNA-damaging agent that rapidly induces interstrand crosslinks at guanine-N7 causing persistent DNA DSBs that, if left unrepaired, are lethal to the cancer cells. We have previously shown that VAL-083 treatment leads to DNA damage that activates HR and is independent of MGMT DNA repair. Furthermore, we recently showed that VAL-083 induces persistent S/G2 phase cell cycle arrest, proposing potential for combination treatment with S-phase specific DNA-targeting agents such as topoisomerase and PARP inhibitors. In this study, biochemical and microscopic analyses of DNA repair markers were employed to investigate the VAL-083-induced DNA damage response in different MMR- or NHEJ-proficient/deficient cancer cell lines. VAL-083’s activity against HR-impaired cancer cells was also investigated using BRCA1 siRNAs. VAL-083 combination with topoisomerase inhibitors, etoposide (Top2) and camptothecin (Top1), and PARP inhibitor olaparib was investigated in PC3, A549, and A2780 cancer cells. Here, we report VAL-083 is a DNA-targeting agent that induces DNA DSBs, irreversible S/G2-phase cell cycle arrest, activation of the HR repair pathway, and ultimately cell death through mechanisms independent of MGMT, MMR, and NHEJ. We also show increased VAL-083 cytotoxicity against HR-impaired (BRCA1-knockdown) A2780 cancer cells, further supporting HR as the main repair pathway involved in VAL-083-induced cancer cell death, demonstrating the potential of VAL-083 for the treatment of HR-impaired tumors. Additionally, we report synergy between VAL-083 and topoisomerase inhibitors etoposide and camptothecin in A549 and PC3 cancer cell lines, as well as superadditivity with PARP inhibitor olaparib in A2780 cancer cells. Taken together, our results demonstrate a distinct DNA-targeting mechanism of VAL-083, leading to the ability to overcome MGMT- , MMR- , and NHEJ-related chemoresistance to common DNA-targeting agents, including temozolomide and nitrosoureas. In addition, increased VAL-083 cytotoxic effect in cancer cells with impaired HR and synergy/superadditivity with topoisomerase and PARP inhibitors was identified.

Citation Format: Beibei Zhai, Guangan He, Anne Steino, Jeffrey A. Bacha, Dennis M. Brown, Zahid Siddik, Mads Daugaard. DNA-damaging agent dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) targets HR repair pathway and suggests combination therapy with topoisomerase and PARP inhibitors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2017 Oct 26-30; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2018;17(1 Suppl):Abstract nr A109.

Total synthesis of teixobactin and its stereoisomers

The total syntheses of teixobactin and a series of its stereoisomers at positions 2, 5, 6, 10 and 11 were achieved via a combined strategy of solution and solid phase peptide synthesis.

High throughput in vitro and in vivo screening of inland waters of Southern California

The impact of unmonitored contaminants, also known as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), on freshwater streams remains largely uncharacterized. Water samples from 31 streams representing urban, agricultural and undeveloped (i.e., open space) land use in Southern California (USA) were analyzed for in vitro and in vivo bioactivity. The extent and magnitude of bioactivity screened using endocrine-responsive cell bioassays and a fish embryo screening assay were low. In contrast, a wider gradient of responses for the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) assay was observed, which was negatively correlated with a measure of benthic community structure. Both aromatic and non-aromatic CECs were tentatively identified in these samples, but polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), known AhR agonists in urban environments, were not present at detectable levels. These results suggest that a combination of in vitro and in vivo show potential as screening techniques for biological condition in situ, but that more advanced, comprehensive analytical methods are needed to identify bioactive contaminants.

Negative Differential Conductance & Hot-Carrier Avalanching in Monolayer WS2 FETs

The high field phenomena of inter-valley transfer and avalanching breakdown have long been exploited in devices based on conventional semiconductors. In this Article, we demonstrate the manifestation of these effects in atomically-thin WS2 field-effect transistors. The negative differential conductance exhibits all of the features familiar from discussions of this phenomenon in bulk semiconductors, including hysteresis in the transistor characteristics and increased noise that is indicative of travelling high-field domains. It is also found to be sensitive to thermal annealing, a result that we attribute to the influence of strain on the energy separation of the different valleys involved in hot-electron transfer. This idea is supported by the results of ensemble Monte Carlo simulations, which highlight the sensitivity of the negative differential conductance to the equilibrium populations of the different valleys. At high drain currents (>10 μA/μm) avalanching breakdown is also observed, and is attributed to trap-assisted inverse Auger scattering. This mechanism is not normally relevant in conventional semiconductors, but is possible in WS2 due to the narrow width of its energy bands. The various results presented here suggest that WS2 exhibits strong potential for use in hot-electron devices, including compact high-frequency sources and photonic detectors.

[The study of locating facial nerve precisely in middle ear surgery based on clinical anatomy]

Objective:To investigate the methods of locating facial nerve precisely in middle ear surgery through the observation and measurement of the facial nerve and surrounding anatomical structures and to provide reference for the middle ear surgery.Method:Combined surgical approach on 15 cases (30 sides) fresh adult cadaveric specimens were dissected, observed the characteristics of facial nerve and its shape and spatial relationship of the surrounding structures, and measured the distance between the facial nerve and its surrounding structures.Result:The shortest distance from the midpoint of the posterior wall of external auditory canal (annulus level) to the vertical segment of the facial nerve was (3.37±0.34)mm, the shortest distance from the leading edge of the sigmoid sinus to the vertical segment of facial nerve was (7.40±0.71)mm, the shortest distance from the lateral margin of jugular bulb to the facial nerve was (5.58±0.79)mm, the shortest distance from Henle crest to the pyramidal segment of facial nerve was (12.76±1.24)mm, the shortest distance between the pyramidal segment of facial nerve and the posterior short limb of incus was (1.56±0.35)mm, the shortest distance between the pyramidal segment of facial nerve and the lower edge of posterior semicircular canal was (2.56±0.41) mm, the shortest distance between the lower edge of horizontal semicircular canal and the horizontal segment of facial nerve was (1.28±0.32) mm, the shortest distance between the upper edge of vestibular window and the horizontal segment of facial nerve was (0.67±0.15)mm.Conclusion:A good command of the anatomy of temporal bone as well as the methods of locating facial nerve will provide the key to reduce the probability of iatrogenic facial nerve injury in middle ear surgery.

Abstract 1429: DNA damage response to dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) in p53-deficient non-small cell lung cancer cells

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treatment usually involves surgery and chemotherapy with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) in patients with EGFR mutations (10-15% in Western population, 40% in Asian populations) or with platinum-based regimens. Response to TKI treatment is short lived, and tumors recur with new mutations, primarily T790M. Recurrent NSCLC with T790M is sensitive to third generation TKIs, but resistance usually emerges through new mutations, including KRAS. Resistance to cisplatin and carboplatin, partly due to p53 mutation, is also a major clinical limitation and long-term prognosis in NSCLC is poor. Dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) is a bi-functional alkylating agent with demonstrated clinical activity against NSCLC in historical NCI-sponsored trials and VAL-083 is approved for lung cancer treatment in China. However, the mechanism-of-action of how DNA damage signals are propagated and their effects on NSCLC cells are not fully understood. Therefore, we examined VAL-083 in a panel of 11 human NSCLC cell lines harboring wild-type p53 (H460, A549, H226), mutant p53 (H1975, SkLU1, H2122, H157, H1792, H23) or null p53 (H838, H1299). Importantly, as determined by the 5-day MTT assay, VAL-083 was cytotoxic against all 11 cell lines at low μM concentrations and cytotoxicity was independent of p53 status. We chose 3 TKI-resistant cell lines with different mutation profiles for cell cycle kinetics studies: i) H1975 (p53 mut, EGFR-T790M mut, KRAS wt) with IC50 0.9μM, ii) A549 (p53 wt, EGFR wt, KRAS mut) with IC50 1.8μM, and iii) H157 (p53 mut, EGFR wt, KRAS mut) with IC50 4.5μM. In all 3 cell lines, early response at 18 hr showed dose-dependent increase in cells in S-phase, with continued slow cell cycle progression resulting in accumulation of cells in G2/M phase by 36 hr, suggesting persistent cell cycle arrest. DNA damage signaling was examined by immunoblot analysis in A549 and H1975 cells. In p53-wt A549, VAL-083 induced the phospho-Ser15 form of p53, total p53 and total p21, thus indicating that VAL-083 treatment activated p53 function. On the other hand, in p53-mutant H1975, VAL-083 treatment did not result in consistent p53 or p21 increases, but did readily induce phospho-Ser15 p53. This is consistent with a lack of p53 function, as anticipated for mutant p53 cells. Interestingly, H1975 was 2-fold more sensitive to VAL-083 than A549, suggesting, that in p53-mutant cells, VAL-083 acts through a p53-independent mechanism. Examination of ATR, ATM, Chk1 and Chk2 indicated that DNA damage by VAL-083 prompted phosphorylation of these kinases. Notably, the total anti-apoptotic Chk1 was more prominently reduced in H1975 than A549, which may partly explain the stronger cytotoxicity of VAL-083 in p53-mutant H1975. These preclinical data strongly support VAL-083 as a potential treatment of mutant p53 and TKI-resistant NSCLC, and indicate DNA damage signaling is mediated via ATM, ATR, Chk1 and Chk2.

Citation Format: Anne Steino, Guangan He, Jeffrey A. Bacha, Dennis M. Brown, Zahid Siddik. DNA damage response to dianhydrogalactitol (VAL-083) in p53-deficient non-small cell lung cancer cells [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 1429. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-1429

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound in the diagnosis of orbital space-occupying lesions

AIM

To summarise the sonographic findings and assess the feasibility of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) as an imaging method for the diagnosis of orbital space-occupying lesions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This was a prospective study of 53 patients who underwent orbital ultrasound at Xijing Hospital. Two-dimensional ultrasound, colour Doppler flow imaging (CDFI), and CEUS imaging were obtained and compared in patients with orbital haemangioma, pseudotumour, melanoma of the choroid, and retinoblastoma.

RESULTS

CEUS imaging cannot only visualise the location, shape, border, acoustic properties of a lesion, and interactions between the lesion and surrounding tissues, but also display the microvasculature and tissue perfusion within the lesion. The information obtained from CEUS imaging is valuable for diagnosis and differential diagnosis of orbital space-occupying lesions.

CONCLUSION

CEUS imaging allowed better visualisation of the lesions, enabled detection of vascular changes, increased the signal-to-noise ratio, and increased the sensitivity of detection of changes in perfusion in the microcirculation. It has relatively high sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of orbital space-occupying lesions and increases the accuracy of diagnosis.

Tumour-activated liver stromal cells regulate myeloid-derived suppressor cells accumulation in the liver

Regulating mechanisms underlying hepatic myeloid-derived suppressor cell (MDSC) accumulation remain to be described. Here, we provide evidence for the involvement of tumour-activated liver stromal cells in the process of hepatic MDSCs migration and accumulation. Our data showed an elevated frequency of MDSCs in the liver of tumour-bearing mice. Moreover, tumour-activated liver stromal cells promote MDSC migration into the liver site. Further investigation indicated higher levels of cytokine and chemokine expression in liver stromal cells after exposure to the tumour-conditioned supernatant. Notably, the expression levels of proinflammatory factors, mainly including macrophage colony stimulating factor (M-CSF), transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) and stromal-derived factor-1 (SDF-1), increased after treatment with tumour-conditioned supernatant, and blockade of MCP-1 or SDF-1 decreased the proportion of tumour infiltrated MDSCs in mice co-transplanted with liver stromal cells and tumour cells, but not in mice with only tumour cells injection. These findings demonstrate that tumour-activated liver stromal cells produce higher levels of chemokines and cytokines, which may contribute to MDSC accumulation into the liver site in patients with liver cancer.

Simultaneous detection of 45 fusion genes in leukemia by dual-color fluorescence real-time PCR

INTRODUCTION

Detection of recurrent genetic abnormalities is of great significance for a refined diagnosis and assessment of prognosis in leukemia. Conventional nested reverse transcription PCR is labor intensive and time-consuming.

METHODS

We have developed a novel dual-color TaqMan probe-based real-time PCR method for the simultaneous screening of 45 fusion transcripts in 12 parallel reactions. The method was tested and validated with cell lines carrying known fusion transcripts and patient samples.

RESULTS

A multiplex real-time PCR method was successfully developed for rapid detection of 45 fusion genes and validated for 15 of the more commonly detected fusion genes. Intra-assay reproducibility assessed for the most frequent rearrangements ranged from 0.41% to 0.74% for the coefficient of variation (CV) of cycle threshold (Ct) and the interassay reproducibility ranged from 1.62% to 2.83% in five separate experiments. The lowest detection limit for the translocations tested ranged between 1 : 16 000 and 1 : 32 000. Validation of the method with 213 patient samples showed 100% specificity and excellent consistence with conventional nested RT-PCR.

CONCLUSION

Overall, we believe that this method is easily applicable, cost-effective, and clinically useful for a rapid screening of fusion genes in the initial diagnostic phase of leukemia. Its use can also be extended to the monitoring of minimal residual disease.

Functional Activation of Mutant p53 by Platinum Analogues in Cisplatin-Resistant Cells Is Dependent on Phosphorylation

Dysfunctionality of the p53 tumor suppressor is a major cause of therapeutic drug resistance in cancer. Recently, we reported that mutant, but otherwise functional, p53^v172F was inactivated in cisplatin-resistant 2780CP/Cl-16 and 2780CP/Cl-24 human ovarian tumor cells by increased recruitment of the inhibitor MDM4. The current study demonstrates that, unlike cisplatin, platinum analogues oxaliplatin and DACH-diacetato-dichloro-Pt(IV) (DAP) strongly stabilize and activate p53^v172F in resistant cells, as indicated by prolonged p53 half-life and transactivation of targets p21 (CDKN1A) and MDM2. This increase in MDM2 reduced MDM4 levels in cell lysates as well as the p53 immunocomplex and prevented reversion of p53 to the inactive p53-MDM2-MDM4-bound state. Phosphorylation of p53 at Ser15 was demonstrated by all three drugs in sensitive A2780 and corresponding resistant 2780CP/Cl-16 and 2780CP/Cl-24 cell lines. However, cisplatin induced Ser20 phosphorylation in A2780 cells only, but not in resistant cells; in contrast, both DAP and oxaliplatin induced this phosphorylation in all three cell lines. The inference that Ser20 phosphorylation is more important for p53 activation was confirmed by ectopic expression of a phosphomimetic (S20D) mutant p53 that displayed reduced binding, relative to wild-type p53, to both MDM2 and MDM4 in p53-knockout A2780 cells. In consonance, temporal studies demonstrated drug-induced Ser15 phosphorylation coincided with p53 stabilization, whereas Ser20 phosphorylation coincided with p53 transactivation.Implications: Cisplatin fails to activate the pathway involved in phosphorylating mutant p53^v172F at Ser20 in resistant cells, but this phosphorylation is restored by oxaliplatin and DAP that reactivates p53 function and circumvents cisplatin resistance. Mol Cancer Res; 15(3); 328-39. ©2016 AACR.

[Endonasal endoscopic surgery in treatment of medial recus muscle entrapment: the management and effectiveness]

Objective:To explore the indications , surgery method and effect for the treatment of medial rectus muscle entrapment with endoscopic surgery.Method: Eight medial rectus muscle entrapment patients were enrolled in this study,3 cases underwent obital medial wall fracture reposition and medial rectus muscle adhesion decomposition surgery through endonasal endoscope,and 5 cases received obital medial wall fracture reposition surgery with endoscope through nasal cavity and lacrimal caruncle conjunctival incision. Result:The diplopia disappeared and eyeball abduction function recovered in 6 cases of medial rectus muscle entrapment patients within 2 months,and 1 case with each surgery had mild diplopia and eyeball incomplete abduction left.Conclusion:Adopting endonasal endoscopic surgery or dual approaches surgery with endonasal endoscopic and transcaruncular surgery were ideal methods for medial rectus muscle entrapment diseases.Surgery with endoscope has the characteristics of clear field and less damage.The surgery should be performed whithin 3 weeks, and the entrapment of medial rectus muscle can be resoved effectively.

Thermally Assisted Nonvolatile Memory in Monolayer MoS2 Transistors

We demonstrate a novel form of thermally-assisted hysteresis in the transfer curves of monolayer MoS₂ FETs, characterized by the appearance of a large gate-voltage window and distinct current levels that differ by a factor of ∼10². The hysteresis emerges for temperatures in excess of 400 K and, from studies in which the gate-voltage sweep parameters are varied, appears to be related to charge injection into the SiO₂ gate dielectric. The thermally-assisted memory is strongly suppressed in equivalent measurements performed on bilayer transistors, suggesting that weak screening in the monolayer system plays a vital role in generating its strongly sensitive response to the charge-injection process. By exploiting the full features of the hysteretic transfer curves, programmable memory operation is demonstrated. The essential principles demonstrated here point the way to a new class of thermally assisted memories based on atomically thin two-dimensional semiconductors.

Activation of Platinum(IV) Prodrugs By Motexafin Gadolinium as a Redox Mediator

Water-soluble platinum(IV) prodrugs, which proved kinetically stable to reduction in the presence of physiological concentration of ascorbate, were quickly reduced to their active form, oxaliplatin, when co-incubated with a macrocycle metallotexaphyrin (i.e., Motexafin Gadolinium (MGd)). The reduction of Pt(IV) to Pt(II) promoted by MGd occurs in cell culture as well, leading to an increase in the antiproliferative activity of the Pt(IV) species in question. The mediated effect is proportional to the concentration of MGd and gives rise to an enhancement when the prodrug is relatively hydrophilic. MGd is known to localize/accumulate preferentially in tumor tissues. Thus, the present "activation by reduction" approach may allow for the cancer-selective enhancement in the cytotoxicity of Pt(IV) prodrugs.

[Outcomes of total deafness type of idiopathic suddendeafness in different ages]

Objective:This retrospective study was aimed to investigate the characteristics of hearing recovery in the complete deafness type of SSNHL(≥81 dBHL) in patients with different ages.Method:Clinical outcomes of 179 total deafness type of idiopathic sudden deafness were compared.Patients were divided into 5 groups according to age,they were,pediatric group(13 years or less),youthful group(14-44 years),middle-aged group(45-59 years),presenium group(60-74 years),senectitude group(75 years or higher).Patients were divided into 3 groups according to the initial degree of hearing loss: 81 dB group (81-89 dBHL),90 dB group(90- 99 dBHL),100 dB group(100 dBHL or higher).Routine comprehensive treatment including corticosteroids,the inner ear microcirculation improvement drugs,neurotrophic drugs,saturationoxygen and hyperbaric oxygen therapy,etc.was applied.Patients were treated in accordance with the age and body weight.Result:The percentage of youthful group(83/179,46.4%) was highest(P<0.05),middle-aged group(57/179,31.8%)followed(P<0.05),presenium group(26/179,14.5%)was lower(P<0.05),pediatric group(8/179,4.5%) and senectitude group(5/179,2.8%)were the lowest.No a complete recovery in either pediatric group or senectitude group.A complete recovery was rare in the other groups.Recovery rate of the different aged groups was similar(P>0.05).The percentage of 100 dB group(108/179,60.3%) was highest(P<0.05).The percentage of 81 dB group(39/179,21.8%)was similar to 90 dB group(32/179,17.9%)(P>0.05).Recovery rate was similar in 81 dB group(25/39,64.1%)and 90 dB group(18/32,56.2%)(P>0.05).Recovery rate of both 81 dB group and 90 dB group were greater than 100 dB group(24/108,22.2%)(P<0.05).The 100 dB group reduced the satisfactory recovery effects.There were no differences in the proportion of the patients with dizziness(95/179,53.1%)and without dizziness(84/179,46.9%)(P>0.05).Recovery rate of patients without dizziness(43/84,51.2%) was greater than with dizziness(24/95,25.3%)(P<0.05).The percentage of the patients without dizziness(31/39,79.5%)in 81 dB group was the highest(P<0.05),90 dB group(18/32,56.2%)followed(P<0.05).The percentage of the patients with dizziness in 100 dB group(73/108,67.6%)was highest(P<0.05).Recovery rate was similar in the patients without dizziness of 81 dB group(21/31,67.7%)and 90 dB group(11/18,61.1%)(P>0.05).Recovery rate of the above two groups was greater than that of 100 dB group(11/35,31.4%)(P<0.05).Conclusion:Recovery rate of the different aged groups was similar.The percentage of the patients with dizziness in 100 dB group was highest.Initial hearing threshold in excess of 100 dB reduced the satisfactory recovery in patients with total deafness type of SSNHL.Our results provided a good reference for other clinicians.

Tristetraprolin: a novel mediator of the anticancer properties of resveratrol

Resveratrol is a natural compound that exhibits anticancer properties. Previous studies have proved that it can inhibit the proliferation of breast cancer cell lines and upregulate some cytokines such as cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The initiation and progression of cancer are associated with the abnormal expression of multiple cytokines. Tristetraprolin (TTP), an mRNA-binding protein, is one of the key proteins that participate in regulating cytokine expression. Two different proliferation assays on MCF-7 cells showed that the cell proliferation rate significantly reduced following treatment with resveratrol. Most importantly, we found that resveratrol promoted TTP expression at both the mRNA and protein level in a dose- and time-dependent manner. In addition, the expression of COX-2 and VEGF were significantly suppressed by resveratrol while that of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) was upregulated. Lastly, the effects of resveratrol on both MCF-7 proliferation and expression of COX-2, VEGF, and iNOS were significantly inhibited by TTP knockdown, indicating that TTP mediates the anticancer properties of resveratrol. In summary, we conclude that resveratrol inhibits the proliferation of MCF-7 cells by TTP upregulation, which is associated with downregulation of COX-2 and VEGF and upregulation of iNOS.