Predictive value of early kinetics of ctDNA combined with cfDNA and serum CEA for EGFR-TKI treatment in advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Background: Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has made a breakthrough as an early biomarker in operable early-stage cancer patients. However, the function of ctDNA combined with cell-free DNA (cfDNA) as a predictor in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains unknown. Here, we explored its potential as a biomarker for predicting the efficacy of epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) in patients with advanced NSCLC.

Modeling the effects of trait-mediated dispersal on coexistence of mutualists.

Even though mutualistic interactions are ubiquitous in nature, we are still far from making good predictions about the fate of mutualistic communities under threats such as habitat fragmentation and climate change. Fragmentation often causes declines in abundance of a species due to increased susceptibility to edge effects between remnant habitat patches and lower quality "matrix" surrounding these focal patches. It has been argued that ecological communities are replete with trait-mediated indirect effects, and that these effects may sometimes contribute more to the dynamics of a population than direct density-mediated effects, e.

Pelvic parameters directly influence ideal S2 alar-iliac (S2AI) screw trajectory.

Background: The utilization of the S2 Alar-Iliac (S2AI) screw provides an optimal method of spinopelvic fixation. The free-hand placement of these screws obviates the use of intra-operative fluoroscopy and relies heavily on sacropelvic anatomy; variations of this anatomy could alter the ideal screw trajectory. The S2AI corridor is near several neurovascular structures, thus an accurate trajectory is critical.

Modeling the effects of density dependent emigration, weak Allee effects, and matrix hostility on patch-level population persistence.

The relationship between conspecific density and the probability of emigrating from a patch can play an essential role in determining the population-dynamic consequences of an Allee effect. In this paper, we model a population that inside a patch is diffusing and growing according to a weak Allee effect per-capita growth rate, but the emigration probability is dependent on conspecific density. The habitat patch is one-dimensional and is surrounded by a tuneable hostile matrix.

Paranoid personality masking an atypical case of frontotemporal dementia.

Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a debilitating disease that is well described in the "Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5)", and typically presents with memory impairment, progressive decline in cortical functioning, and behavioral changes. Age of onset is generally in the late fifties, and usually the first presentation involves a change in behavior and emotional blunting. Treatment of FTD involves management of any neurobehavioral symptoms while trials of atypical antipsychotics are ongoing but suggest some efficacy.

The effect of carbohydrate restriction on prostate cancer tumor growth in a castrate mouse xenograft model.

Background: No- and low-carbohydrate diets delay tumor growth compared to western diet (WD) in prostate cancer (PCa) xenograft studies. The effect of these diets in concert with androgen deprivation is unknown.

Methods: A total of 160 male SCID mice were injected with 1× 10(5) LAPC-4 human PCa cells.

Evidence for validity of a survey to measure the learning environment for professionalism.

Background: With the emphasis on professionalism in academic health settings, including recently added accreditation requirements for US medical schools, there is a need for a valid and feasible method to assess the learning environment for professionalism.

Aim:  This article describes the development and investigation of the validity of a brief measure, the learning environment for professionalism (LEP) survey, designed to assess medical student perceptions of professionalism among residents and faculty during clinical rotations.

Method:  Two successive cohorts of third-year medical students completed the 22-item LEP survey at the conclusion of clerkship rotations, providing a total of 902 responses for scale reliability and principal components factor analysis, as well as assessment of changes in scores over time and correlations with a related clerkship evaluation item.

Photosynthesis in Arabidopsis thaliana mutants with reduced chloroplast number.

We have used a class of Arabidopsis mutants altered in the accumulation and replication of chloroplasts (arc mutants) to investigate the effect of reduced chloroplast number on the photosynthetic competence of leaves. Each of the arc mutants examined (arc3, arc5, and arc6) accumulate only a few (2-15) large chloroplasts per mesophyll cell. The increased plastid size maintains a constant plastid to mesophyll cell volume, which has been suggested to compensate for the lower chloroplast number.

Spectral properties, gas exchange, and water potential of leaves of glandular and non-glandular trichome types in Datura wrightii (Solanaceae).

Plant trichomes commonly serve a role in mechanical and chemical defence against herbivores, but may also have the potential to alter physiology by reducing the amount of light absorbed by leaves, lowering temperatures, and reducing water loss. Populations of Datura wrightii Regel in southern California produce 'sticky' plants with glandular trichomes and 'velvety' plants bearing non-glandular trichomes. Because stickiness is inherited as a dominant Mendelian trait, and the proportions of sticky plants vary among populations with the moisture availability of their environment, there may be some ecophysiological differences between trichome types that contribute to their ability to survive in a particular geographic location.