Comparison of the comet assay and the oxygen microelectrode for measuring tumor oxygenation in head-and-neck cancer patients.

Purpose: To compare the Eppendorf PO2 histograph and the alkaline comet assay as methods of measuring tumor hypoxia in patients with head-and-neck squamous cell carcinomas.

Materials And Methods: As part of a larger clinical trial, 65 patients with head-and-neck squamous cell carcinoma nodal metastasis underwent tumor oxygenation measurements with Eppendorf PO2 histographs and comet assays, performed on fine-needle aspirates at 1 and 2 min after 5 Gy. Fifty-four patients had sufficient tumor cells for comet analysis at 1 min and 26 at both 1 and 2 min.

Modulation of bone ingrowth and tissue differentiation by local infusion of interleukin-10 in the presence of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) wear particles.

Interleukin-10 (IL-10) is a cytokine that plays a major role in suppressing the inflammatory response, particularly cell-mediated immunity that is characteristic of the TH1 response. The purpose of this study was to determine whether local infusion of IL-10 could mitigate the suppression of bone ingrowth associated with polyethylene wear particles. Drug test chambers were implanted in the proximal tibia of 20 mature New Zealand White rabbits.