Serum protein profiles to identify head and neck cancer.

Purpose: New and more consistent biomarkers of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) are needed to improve early detection of disease and to monitor successful patient management. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a new proteomic technology could correctly identify protein expression profiles for cancer in patient serum samples.

Experimental Design: Surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization-time of flight-mass spectrometry ProteinChip system was used to screen for differentially expressed proteins in serum from 99 patients with HNSCC and 102 normal controls.

Identification of patients with head and neck cancer using serum protein profiles.

Background: New and more consistent biomarkers of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) are needed to improve early detection of disease and to monitor successful patient management.

Objective: To determine if a new proteomic technology can correctly identify protein expression profiles for cancer in patient serum samples as well as detect the presence of a known tumor marker.

Design: Direct proteomic analysis and comparison.

Diverse effects of nanosecond pulsed electric fields on cells and tissues.

The application of pulsed electric fields to cells is extended to include nonthermal pulses with shorter durations (10-300 ns), higher electric fields (< or =350 kV/cm), higher power (gigawatts), and distinct effects (nsPEF) compared to classical electroporation. Here we define effects and explore potential application for nsPEF in biology and medicine. As the pulse duration is decreased below the plasma membrane charging time constant, plasma membrane effects decrease and intracellular effects predominate.

Prostate tumor microenvironment alters immune cells and prevents long-term survival in an orthotopic mouse model following flt3-ligand/CD40-ligand immunotherapy.

A novel orthotopic metastatic model of mouse prostate cancer was developed using MHC-negative TRAMP-C1P3 (transgenic adenocarcinoma of mouse prostate) cells derived by serial passage of the parental TRAMP-C1 line in mouse prostate glands. TRAMP-C1P3 cells grew efficiently in mouse prostate glands and reproducibly metastasized to draining lymph nodes. Using this model, we show that Fms-like tyrosine kinase-3 ligand (flt3-L) dramatically inhibited growth of preexisting orthotopic TRAMP-C1P3 tumors and the development of metastatic disease.

Impact of the tumor microenvironment on host infiltrating cells and the efficacy of flt3-ligand combination immunotherapy evaluated in a treatment model of mouse prostate cancer.

We have previously reported that Fms-like tyrosine kinase-3 ligand (flt3-L) induced tumor stabilization and regression of palpable ectopic prostate tumors (TRAMP-C1). Although some mice remained "tumor free" for several months following termination of therapy, tumors invariably reappeared and grew progressively in all animals. The lack of a curative response suggests that TRAMP-C1 tumors may inhibit the development of a flt3-L-induced anti-tumor immune response.

Orthotopic treatment model of prostate cancer and metastasis in the immunocompetent mouse: efficacy of flt3 ligand immunotherapy.

We established an orthotopic treatment model of prostate cancer to generate reproducible primary and metastatic carcinoma in immunocompetent C57BL/6 mice. Using an in vivo selection scheme of intraprostatic implantation of TRAMP-C1 cells, primary prostate tumors were cultured and recycled three times by intraprostatic injection resulting in the selection and establishment of the recycled cell line TRAMP-C1P3. Prostate tumors were detected approximately 30 days post-implantation with periaortic lymph node metastasis in 19/20 (95%) of mice.