Ultrasound Assessment of Spastic Muscles in Ambulatory Chronic Stroke Survivors Reveals Function-Dependent Changes.

Objective: To correlate ultrasound characteristics of spastic muscles with clinical and functional measurements in chronic stroke survivors.

Methods: Ultrasound assessment and clinical and functional assessments were performed in 28 ambulatory stroke survivors (12 females, mean age 57.8 ± 11.

Inhibition of CAMKK2 impairs autophagy and castration-resistant prostate cancer via suppression of AMPK-ULK1 signaling.

Previous work has suggested androgen receptor (AR) signaling mediates prostate cancer progression in part through the modulation of autophagy. However, clinical trials testing autophagy inhibition using chloroquine derivatives in men with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) have yet to yield promising results, potentially due to the side effects of this class of compounds. We hypothesized that identification of the upstream activators of autophagy in prostate cancer could highlight alternative, context-dependent targets for blocking this important cellular process during disease progression.

Transcriptional regulation of core autophagy and lysosomal genes by the androgen receptor promotes prostate cancer progression.

AR (androgen receptor) signaling is crucial for the development and maintenance of the prostate as well as the initiation and progression of prostate cancer. Despite the AR's central role in prostate cancer progression, it is still unclear which AR-mediated processes drive the disease. Here, we identified 4 core autophagy genes: ATG4B, ATG4D, ULK1, and ULK2, in addition to the transcription factor TFEB, a master regulator of lysosomal biogenesis and function, as transcriptional targets of AR in prostate cancer.