Identifying priority areas for longitudinal research in childhood obesity: Delphi technique survey.

In 2005, the Australian Child and Adolescent Obesity Research Network (ACAORN) addressed the question, "What childhood and adolescent obesity research questions remain to be addressed through longitudinal research?" Using the Delphi Technique, ACAORN members individually generated then refined and prioritised a set of research ideas. When delegates to a national child obesity symposium repeated the final (prioritisation) step, a strong concordance in rankings was evident. The highest-priority questions related to modifiable environmental risk/protective factors; parental and family factors; longitudinal relationships between development of obesity and physical, social and mental health; predisposing prenatal and early childhood patterns of growth and nutrition; identification of stronger early markers of later chronic disease risk; and better understanding of the natural course of overweight in childhood.

Regulation of platinum-compound cytotoxicity by the c-Jun N-terminal kinase and c-Jun signaling pathway in small-cell lung cancer cells.

Cytotoxic platinum compounds including cisplatin are standard cancer chemotherapeutics and are also activators of stress-signaling pathways. In this study, we tested the role of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) family of mitogen-activated protein kinases and their transcription factor target, c-Jun, in the cytotoxic response of small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) cells to cisplatin and its less effective trans-isomer, transplatin. Both agents stimulated JNK activity; the transplatin response was rapid and transient, whereas JNK activation by cisplatin was delayed and sustained.