Epigenetic changes associated with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) treatment in bladder cancer.

Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) is an established immunotherapeutic, however, a significant portion of patients do not respond to treatment. Despite extensive research into the therapeutic mechanism of BCG, gaps remain in our understanding. This review specifically focuses on the epigenomic contributions in the immune microenvironment, in the context of BCG treatment for NMIBC.

Development of a long term, ex vivo, patient-derived explant model of endometrial cancer.

Incidence of endometrial cancer (EC) is rising in the developed world. The current standard of care, hysterectomy, is often infeasible for younger patients and those with high body mass index. There are limited non-surgical treatment options and a lack of biologically relevant research models to investigate novel alternatives to surgery for EC.

Validating a measure of motivational climate in health science courses.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to examine the validity evidence for the 19-item form of the MUSIC Model of Academic Motivation Inventory (College Student version) within health science schools in three different countries. The MUSIC Inventory includes five scales that assess the motivational climate by measuring students' perceptions related to five separate constructs: empowerment, usefulness, success, interest, and caring.

Background: The 26-item form of the MUSIC Inventory has been validated for use with undergraduate students and with students in professional schools, including students at a veterinary medicine school, a pharmacy school, and a medical school.

Chromosomal instability and its effect on cell lines.

Background: Cancer cell lines are invaluable model systems for biomedical research because they provide an almost unlimited supply of biological materials. However, there is considerable skepticism regarding the reproducibility of data derived from these in vitro models.

Recent Findings: Chromosomal instability (CIN) is one of the primary issues associated with cell lines, which can cause genetic heterogeneity and unstable cell properties within a cell population.

LOT and HOT … or not. The proliferation of clinically insignificant and poorly characterised types of renal neoplasia.

The classification of malignant tumours is influenced by both immunohistochemical and molecular genetic findings. This is highlighted in the latest World Health Organization classification of renal neoplasia, which has a tumour category of 'tumours that are molecularly defined'. This implies that the defining molecular features are integral to tumourigenesis, which may not necessarily be the case.