An investigation of the clinical impact and therapeutic relevance of a DNA damage immune response (DDIR) signature in patients with advanced gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma.

Background: An improved understanding of which gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma (GOA) patients respond to both chemotherapy and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) is needed. We investigated the predictive role and underlying biology of a 44-gene DNA damage immune response (DDIR) signature in patients with advanced GOA.

Materials And Methods: Transcriptional profiling was carried out on pretreatment tissue from 252 GOA patients treated with platinum-based chemotherapy (three dose levels) within the randomized phase III GO2 trial.

Linking Interfacial Bonding and Thermal Conductivity in Molecularly-Confined Polymer-Glass Nanocomposites with Ultra-High Interfacial Density.

Thermal transport in polymer nanocomposites becomes dependent on the interfacial thermal conductance due to the ultra-high density of the internal interfaces when the polymer and filler domains are intimately mixed at the nanoscale. However, there is a lack of experimental measurements that can link the thermal conductance across the interfaces to the chemistry and bonding between the polymer molecules and the glass surface. Characterizing the thermal properties of amorphous composites are a particular challenge as their low intrinsic thermal conductivity leads to poor measurement sensitivity of the interfacial thermal conductance.

Insights into the Mechanical Properties of Ultrathin Perfluoropolyether-Silane Coatings.

Ultrathin perfluoropolyether-silane (PFPE-silane) films offer excellent functionality as antifingerprint coatings for display touchscreens due to their oleophobic, hydrophobic, and good adhesion properties. During smartphone use, PFPE-silane coatings undergo many abrasion cycles which limit the coating lifetime, so a better understanding of how to optimize the film structure for improved mechanical durability is desired. However, the hydrophobic and ultrathin (1-10 nm) nature of PFPE-silane films renders them very difficult to experimentally characterize.

Interactions between anti-EGFR therapies and cytotoxic chemotherapy in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma: why clinical trials might have failed and how they could succeed.

Purpose: Oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) has a poor prognosis. Advanced tumours are treated with fluoropyrimidine/platinum chemotherapy followed by irinotecan or taxane monotherapy, but resistance is common and new treatments are needed. Approximately 20% of ESCCs carry copy number gain (CNG) of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene.