Activation of caspase-3/7, an apoptotic-related marker, during incubation and cryopreservation of alpaca (Vicugna pacos) spermatozoa.

Caspases are crucial mediators of programmed cell death (apoptosis). Apoptosis can occur in spermatozoa during spermatogenesis or epididymal transit, as well as in ejaculated spermatozoa. A high proportion of apoptotic sperm would be a poor indicator of the freezability of a raw seminal sample.

Cell wall integrity regulation across plant species.

Plant cell walls are highly dynamic and chemically complex structures surrounding all plant cells. They provide structural support, protection from both abiotic and biotic stress as well as ensure containment of turgor. Recently evidence has accumulated that a dedicated mechanism exists in plants, which is monitoring the functional integrity of cell walls and initiates adaptive responses to maintain integrity in case it is impaired during growth, development or exposure to biotic and abiotic stress.

Molecular Characterization and Prospective Evaluation of Pathologic Response and Outcomes with Neoadjuvant Therapy in Metaplastic Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Purpose: Metaplastic breast cancer (MpBC) is a rare subtype of breast cancer that is commonly triple-negative and poorly responsive to neoadjuvant therapy in retrospective studies.

Experimental Design: To better define clinical outcomes and correlates of response, we analyzed the rate of pathologic complete response (pCR) to neoadjuvant therapy, survival outcomes, and genomic and transcriptomic profiles of the pretreatment tumors in a prospective clinical trial (NCT02276443). A total of 211 patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), including 39 with MpBC, received doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide-based neoadjuvant therapy.

Development of emulgels formulated with sweet fennel oil and rhamsan gum, a biological macromolecule produced by Sphingomonas.

In this work, a current application of rhamsan gum, a biological macromolecule which belongs to the sphingans group, as an efficient stabilizer of emulsions and emulgels is investigated. The main objective of this investigation was 1) to study the influence of glycerol and sweet fennel oil concentration on microfluidized emulsion properties; and 2) to develop stable emulgels stabilized with rhamsan gum. The emulsions and emulgels were characterized by droplet size, rheological properties, physical stability and microstructure.

Effects of malnutrition on treatment-related morbidity and survival of children with cancer in Nicaragua.

Background: Most children with cancer live in resource-limited countries where malnutrition is often prevalent. We identified the relationship between malnutrition and treatment-related morbidity (TRM), abandonment of therapy, and survival of children with cancer in Nicaragua to better inform targeted nutritional interventions.

Procedure: We conducted a retrospective review of patients aged 6 months to 18 years with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia (AML), Wilms tumor, Hodgkin lymphoma, or Burkitt lymphoma (BL) who were treated between January 1, 2004, and December 31, 2007 at Children's Hospital Manuel de Jesus Rivera in Managua, Nicaragua.

ent-Labdane Diterpenoids from the Aerial Parts of Eupatorium obtusissmum.

Six new ent-labdane diterpenoids, uasdlabdanes A-F (1-6), were isolated from the aerial parts of Eupatorium obtusissmum. The new structures were elucidated through spectroscopic and spectrometric data analyses. The absolute configurations of compounds 1 and 2 were established by X-ray crystallography, and those of 3-6, by comparison of experimental and calculated electronic circular dichroism spectra.

Metastatic Ovarian Tumor Masquerading as Atypical Pneumonia.

Krukenberg tumor is a malignancy in the ovary from a primary lesion in the gastrointestinal tract and a metastatic signet ring cell adenocarcinoma to the ovary. Stomach is the most common primary site, but other organs can serve as a primary site. The lymphatic system is the most likely route for metastasis.

Metastatic extra-abdominal presentation of gastrointestinal stromal tumors in a young Hispanic male: a case presentation and literature review.

This article presents the medical history and management of a 44-year-old Hispanic male with metastatic extra-abdominal gastrointestinal stromal tumor including a literature review on this rare clinical presentation.

One-dimensional silver nanostructures on single-wall carbon nanotubes.

We report the synthesis and characterization of one-dimensional silver nanostructures using single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) as a template material. Transmission electron microscopy and scanning tunneling microscopy are consistent with the formation of a one-dimensional array of silver particles on SWCNT. We observe evidence for the excitation of the longitudinal silver plasmon mode in the optical absorption spectra of Ag-SWCNT dispersions, even in the lowest silver concentrations employed.

Primary angiosarcoma of the breast in a pre-menopausal woman.

This case report describes the clinical presentation, imaging findings and pathologic features of a rare aggressive breast tumor in a pre-menopausal woman, namely primary angiosarcoma. Recognition of this extremely rare entity is needed to make an early diagnosis, institute early therapy and eventually improve patient's survival.

Rare benign breast tumor.

We report the case of a female patient with an incidental finding at routine mammography evaluation which consisted of a benign spindle cell tumor, namely Breast Myofibroblastoma. It is arranged in fascicles with interspersed broad bands of hyalinized collagen with variable immunohistochemical reactivity to desmin, vimentin, smooth muscle actin and CD 34. It is usually not reactive to cytokeratins and S-100 as seen in the myoepitheliomas.

Signal transduction proteins in tumors from Puerto Rican and Caucasian gastric adenocarcinoma patients: expression differences with potential for specific targeted therapies.

Overexpression of the HER2/NEU gene is associated with aggressive behavior and poor prognosis in breast cancer, making the Her2/neu protein a directed-therapy target. Tumors of two Puerto Rican (PR) patients overexpressed Her2/neu and resulting partial clinical responses motivated us to compare Her2/neu expression in PR (n = 101) and Caucasian non-Hispanic (n = 95) patients. Immunohistochemistry of tumors showed overexpression of p-Stat3, Cyclin D1, and Her2/neu, compared to non-neoplastic mucosa.

Phase II study of intravenous TZT-1027 in patients with advanced or metastatic soft-tissue sarcomas with prior exposure to anthracycline-based chemotherapy.

Background: TZT-1027, a novel chemotherapeutic agent, is derived from dolastatin 10, and blocks cells during G2/M-phase by interfering with microtubule assembly and stability. TZT-1027 has exhibited potential cytotoxic activity in several human cancer cell lines (in vitro) and also demonstrated antitumor activity in human xenografts (in vivo). In addition, Phase I clinical investigations suggested activity in STS (soft-tissue sarcoma).

Protocol-based treatment for children with cancer in low income countries in Latin America: a report on the recent meetings of the Monza International School of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (MISPHO)--part II.

Pediatric cancer programs in low-income countries (LIC) can improve outcomes. However, treatment must be tailored to the patient's living conditions and the availability of supportive care. In some cases, a more intense regimen will decrease survival since the increase in death from toxicity may exceed any decrease in relapse.

A phase II clinical and pharmacokinetic study of intravenous exatecan mesylate (DX-8951f) in patients with untreated metastatic gastric cancer.

Purpose: To determine the anti-tumor activity DX-8951f when administered as a 30-minute infusion daily for 5 days every 3 weeks to patients with previously untreated metastatic gastric cancer, and to evaluate toxicities and pharmacokinetics (PK) of DX-8951f in this patient population.

Patients And Methods: Forty-one patients were enrolled. All had previously untreated metastatic gastric cancer.

Single ectopic ureter inserting into a duplicated imperforate hemivagina: a rare cause of a fetal abdominal mass.

We present a unique case of obstructed vaginal duplication with ectopic ureteral drainage of an ectopic dysplastic kidney presenting as an antenatal diagnosis of a pelvic mass.

Detection of Enterotoxigenic Clostridium perfringens in Raw Beef by Polymerase Chain Reaction.

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) procedure was developed for direct detection of Clostridium perfringens strains with potential for food poisoning in raw beef samples. An oligonucleotide primer pair was used to amplify a 364 base pair sequence internal to the C. perfringens enterotoxin gene.