Efficacy of zoledronic acid for the elimination of disseminated tumor cells in a clinically relevant, spontaneously metastatic prostate cancer xenograft model.

Bone metastases develop in >90 % of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (PCa) through complex interactions between the bone microenvironment and tumor cells. Previous androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT), which is known to cause bone loss, as well as anti-resorptive agents such as zoledronic acid (ZA), used to prevent skeletal complications, may influence these interactions and thereby the growth of disseminated tumor cells (DTC) in the bone marrow (BM). Here, a spontaneously metastatic xenograft tumor model of human PCa was further optimized to mimic the common clinical situation of ADT (castration) combined with primary tumor resection in vivo.

Spatiotemporal distributions of mammals occurring in an agro-prairie ecosystem.

Anthropogenic activities since the European colonization of the North American Great Plains have drastically altered landscape composition and configuration, subsequently affecting native biodiversity. These contemporary human-modified landscapes may affect mammal species' distributions, diel activity patterns, habitat use, and interspecific interactions, though a better understanding of these effects on mammals occurring in remaining prairie landscapes is needed. To fill this gap, we surveyed 381 randomly selected sites in 2018, 2019, and 2020 using motion-sensing camera traps across the western part of the US state of Kansas (7,160,077 ha).

Demographic effects of a megafire on a declining prairie grouse in the mixed-grass prairie.

Recent studies have documented benefits of small, prescribed fire and wildfire for grassland-dependent wildlife, such as lesser prairie-chickens (), but wildlife demographic response to the scale and intensity of megafire (wildfire >40,000 ha) in modern, fragmented grasslands remains unknown. Limited available grassland habitat makes it imperative to understand if increasing frequency of megafires could further reduce already declining lesser prairie-chicken populations, or if historical evolutionary interactions with fire make lesser prairie-chickens resilient. To evaluate lesser prairie-chicken demographic response to megafires, we compared lek counts, nest density, and survival rates of adults, nests, and chicks before (2014-2016) and after (2018-2020) a 2017 megafire in the mixed-grass prairie of Kansas, USA (Starbuck fire ~254,000 ha).

Net Conversion of Human-Edible Vitamins and Minerals in the U.S. Southern Great Plains Beef Production System.

Beef is a good source of several vitamins and minerals but data on the net contribution to the human diet is lacking. The objective was to quantify the net nutrient contribution of the beef supply chain to provide vitamins and minerals to the human diet. Beef cattle production parameters for the beef supply chain were as described by Baber et al.

Mammals adjust diel activity across gradients of urbanization.

Time is a fundamental component of ecological processes. How animal behavior changes over time has been explored through well-known ecological theories like niche partitioning and predator-prey dynamics. Yet, changes in animal behavior within the shorter 24-hr light-dark cycle have largely gone unstudied.

Low expression of CD24 is associated with poor survival in colorectal cancer.

In this study we analyzed expression of CD24 in a cohort of colorectal cancer patients using immunohistochemistry staining of CD24. We found a significant association between absence or low expression of CD24 (10% of membranous and 55% of cytoplasmic staining) and shortened patient survival. Protein localization played a crucial role in the prognosis: membranous form was the major and prognostic one in primary tumors, while cytoplasmic expression was elevated in liver metastases compared to the primary tumors and contained prognostic information.

Wealth and urbanization shape medium and large terrestrial mammal communities.

Urban biodiversity provides critical ecosystem services and is a key component to environmentally and socially sustainable cities. However, biodiversity varies greatly within and among cities, leading to human communities with changing and unequal experiences with nature. The "luxury effect," a hypothesis that predicts a positive correlation between wealth, typically measured by per capita income, and species richness may be one indication of these inequities.

In vivo Skin Penetration, Radical Protection, and Structural Changes after Topical Application of a Herbal Oil Cream Compared to Topical Calcipotriol in Mild to Moderate Psoriasis.

Background: The chronicity of psoriasis often requires continuous topical treatment.

Materials And Methods: Here, the radical protection of a cream containing various herbal oils was evaluated in vivo by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy and its skin penetration by Raman microscopy in intact and barrier-disturbed skin. Changes in skin barrier properties were evaluated after 4 weeks of daily topical application using in vivo laser scanning microscopy (LSM) and transepidermal water loss in 26 healthy volunteers.

BASELINE PHYSIOLOGIC AND HEMATOLOGIC HEALTH IN WILD-CAUGHT MUSKRATS () FROM A NEAR-PRISTINE ECOSYSTEM IN NORTHERN MINNESOTA.

Muskrat () populations show long-term and widespread declines across North America, necessitating research into potential mechanistic explanations, including population health. Previous research established reference hematology values, a proxy of individual health, of muskrats occurring in highly modified ecosystems. However, our knowledge of hematology metrics in muskrat populations occurring in more natural ecosystems is limited.

Opposing prognostic relevance of junction plakoglobin in distinct prostate cancer patient subsets.

Both oncogenic and tumor suppressor functions have been described for junction plakoglobin (JUP), also known as γ-catenin. To clarify the role of JUP in prostate cancer, JUP protein expression was immunohistochemically detected in a tissue microarray containing 11 267 individual prostatectomy specimens. Considering all patients, high JUP expression was associated with adverse tumor stage (P = 0.

CHD1 loss negatively influences metastasis-free survival in R0-resected prostate cancer patients and promotes spontaneous metastasis in vivo.

The outcome of prostate cancer (PCa) patients is highly variable and depends on whether or not distant metastases occur. Multiple chromosomal deletions have been linked to early tumor marker PSA recurrence (biochemical relapse, BCR) after radical prostatectomy (RP), but their potential role for distant metastasis formation is largely unknown. Here, we specifically analyzed whether deletion of the tumor suppressor CHD1 (5q21) influences the post-surgical risk of distant metastasis and whether CHD1 loss directly contributes to metastasis formation in vivo.

Landscape-scale differences among cities alter common species' responses to urbanization.

Understanding how biodiversity responds to urbanization is challenging, due in part to the single-city focus of most urban ecological research. Here, we delineate continent-scale patterns in urban species assemblages by leveraging data from a multi-city camera trap survey and quantify how differences in greenspace availability and average housing density among 10 North American cities relate to the distribution of eight widespread North American mammals. To do so, we deployed camera traps at 569 sites across these ten cities between 18 June and 14 August.

Xenograft-derived mRNA/miR and protein interaction networks of systemic dissemination in human prostate cancer.

Background: Distant metastasis formation is the major clinical problem in prostate cancer (PCa) and the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Our aim was to identify novel molecules that functionally contribute to human PCa systemic dissemination based on unbiased approaches.

Methods: We compared mRNA, microRNA (miR) and protein expression levels in established human PCa xenograft tumours with high (PC-3), moderate (VCaP) or weak (DU-145) spontaneous micrometastatic potential.

Survey of Toxoplasma gondii Exposure in Muskrats in a Relatively Pristine Ecosystem.

Waterborne transmission of Toxoplasma gondii is assumed to be enhanced in areas with human-altered landscapes (e.g., urbanization, agriculture) and increased populations of non-native domestic and feral cats (Felis catus).

Modeling Spontaneous Bone Metastasis Formation of Solid Human Tumor Xenografts in Mice.

The majority of cancer-related deaths are due to hematogenous metastases, and the bone marrow (BM) represents one of the most frequent metastatic sites. To study BM metastasis formation in vivo, the most efficient approach is based on intracardiac injection of human tumor cells into immunodeficient mice. However, such a procedure circumvents the early steps of the metastatic cascade.

Metathesis at an Implausible Site: A Formal Total Synthesis of Rhizoxin D.

The new approach to the anticancer agent rhizoxin D described herein does not cohere with the conventional logic of metathesis, according to which macrocycles are best closed at a disubstituted olefinic site; rather, the trisubstituted C11-C12 alkene flanked by an allylic -OH group served as the pivot point for synthesis. This motif was attained in good yield and excellent selectivity by a sequence of alkyne metathesis, trans-hydrostannation and cross coupling. Because the exact same substructure is prominently featured in numerous other natural products, the underpinning strategy, though unusual, might bear more general relevance.

Concise Total Synthesis of Enigmazole A.

An efficient entry into the phosphorylated marine macrolide enigmazole A is described. Enigmazole A interferes with c-Kit signaling by an as yet unknown mode of action and is therefore a potential lead in the quest for novel anticancer agents. Key to success is a gold-catalyzed cascade comprising a [3,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement of a propargyl acetate along the periphery of a macrocyclic scaffold, followed by a transannular hydroalkoxylation of the resulting transient allenyl acetate.

Summer Precipitation Predicts Spatial Distributions of Semiaquatic Mammals.

Climate change is predicted to increase the frequency of droughts and intensity of seasonal precipitation in many regions. Semiaquatic mammals should be vulnerable to this increased variability in precipitation, especially in human-modified landscapes where dispersal to suitable habitat or temporary refugia may be limited. Using six years of presence-absence data (2007-2012) spanning years of record-breaking drought and flood conditions, we evaluated regional occupancy dynamics of American mink (Neovison vison) and muskrats (Ondatra zibethicus) in a highly altered agroecosystem in Illinois, USA.

Risk factors for Toxoplasma gondii exposure in semiaquatic mammals in a freshwater ecosystem.

We assessed risk factors for Toxoplasma gondii exposure in semiaquatic mammals in east-central Illinois, US. This agricultural region has extensive drainage systems that could potentially transport T. gondii oocysts into the watershed.

Preference for fluent versus disfluent work schedules.

Two studies were conducted that examined the preference of a student diagnosed with a brain injury. In Study 1, a preference assessment was followed by a three-choice concurrent-operants reinforcer assessment. Two choices resulted in access to preferred activities for completing work, and a third choice resulted in access to nothing (i.

Hematologic and blood chemistry reference values for free-ranging muskrats (Ondatra zibethicus).

Baseline hematologic and serum chemistry values are used by veterinarians and wildlife biologists to identify abnormally high or low levels of particular blood parameters in a target species. This vital information can assist animal care providers in making informed decisions on the care of wildlife and help to determine diagnoses for certain illnesses. Published blood parameter values are not available for wild-caught muskrats (Ondatra zibethicus).