Publications by authors named "E Fortis"

Background: Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) axis blockade has become the mainstay in the treatment of recurrent and/or metastatic (R/M) head and neck squamous cell cancer (HNSCC). Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) is the only approved biomarker for patient selection; however, response rate is limited even among high expressors. Our primary objective was to investigate the association of immune cell-related biomarkers in the tumor and tumor microenvironment with PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors' outcomes in patients with R/M HNSCC.

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Article Synopsis
  • Current biomarkers for selecting cancer patients for PD-1 inhibitors, like PD-L1 expression, are often unreliable, particularly in malignant pleural mesothelioma, prompting a search for more effective markers.
  • In a study involving 144 patients, researchers analyzed immune cells in tumors to determine their relationship with treatment outcomes and discovered that traditional markers like total CD8+ T cells and macrophage presence did not predict patient survival benefits.
  • The study revealed that the presence of PD-1-expressing CD8+ T cells and PD-1-expressing macrophages is an independent predictor of progression-free survival, indicating their potential as valuable biomarkers for immunotherapy success.
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Acetic acid tolerance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is an important trait in sourdough fermentation processes, where the accumulation of acid by the growth of lactic acid bacteria reduces the yeast metabolic activity. In this work, we have carried out adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) experiments in two sourdough isolates of S. cerevisiae exposed to acetic acid, or alternatively to acetic acid and myriocin, an inhibitor of sphingolipid biosynthesis that sped-up the evolutionary adaptation.

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In the context of an autologous adult neural cell ecosystem (ANCE) transplantation study, four intact adult female macaque monkeys underwent a unilateral biopsy of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) to provide the cellular material needed to obtain the ANCE. Monkeys were previously trained to perform quantitative motor (manual dexterity) tasks, namely, the "modified-Brinkman board" task and the "reach and grasp drawer" task. The aim of the present study was to extend preliminary data on the role of the prefrontal cortex in motor habit and test the hypothesis that dlPFC contributes to predict the grip force required when a precise level of force to be generated is known beforehand.

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Background And Objectives: Clonidine has been used in anesthesia for its sedative and analgesic properties, and to achieve greater hemodynamic stability with reduction in intra-ocular pressure. This study evaluated the clinical effects of intravenous clonidine (2.5 microg.

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