In vitro chemoresponse analysis of cervical cancer patient specimens.

Purpose: The objective of this study was to report the results of in vitro chemoresponse analysis of primary, metastatic, and recurrent human cervical cancers.

Methods: There were 557 tumor specimens submitted for testing from August 2006 to June 2010. Single agents tested were cisplatin, carboplatin, paclitaxel, docetaxel, epirubicin, fluorouracil, 4-hydroxy ifosfamide (active metabolite of ifosfamide), SN-38 (active metabolite of irinotecan), topotecan, and vinorelbine.

Consistency of in vitro chemoresponse assay results and population clinical response rates among women with endometrial carcinoma.

Background: There are a number of equally efficacious chemotherapy options for the treatment of women with endometrial cancer, all of which work in only a subset of those women with this disease. An in vitro assay performed before therapy initiation to identify the drug(s) most likely to be effective for the individual patient would have clinical utility. Such an assay should yield response rates similar to those found in treated patient populations.

Induction of persistent colitis by a human commensal, enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis, in wild-type C57BL/6 mice.

Enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis (ETBF) causes diarrhea and is implicated in inflammatory bowel diseases and colorectal cancer. The only known ETBF virulence factor is the Bacteroides fragilis toxin (BFT), which induces E-cadherin cleavage, interleukin-8 secretion, and epithelial cell proliferation. A murine model for ETBF has not been characterized.

Enterotoxigenic bacteroides fragilis: a potential instigator of colitis.

Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is proposed to result from a dysregulated mucosal immune response to the colonic flora in genetically susceptible individuals. Enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis (ETBF), a molecular subclass of the common human commensal, B. fragilis, has been associated with IBD.

A multidimensional analysis of genes mutated in breast and colorectal cancers.

A recent study of a large number of genes in a panel of breast and colorectal cancers identified somatic mutations in 1149 genes. To identify potential biological processes affected by these genes, we examined their putative roles based on sequence similarity, membership in known functional groups and pathways, and predicted interactions with other proteins. These analyses identified functional groups and pathways that were enriched for mutated genes in both tumor types.