The minimal clinically important difference of two multifaceted fatigue evaluation questionnaires in chronic stroke.

Purpose: This research sought to ascertain the Minimal Clinically Important Difference (MCID) and Robust Clinically Important Difference (RCID) of the Multidimensional Fatigue Symptom Inventory-Short Form (MFSI-SF) and Chalder Fatigue Questionnaire-11 (CFQ-11) as two important concepts for the clinical interpretation of the results in chronic post-stroke population.

Methods: A total of 128 subjects with chronic post-stroke completed the MFSI-SF and CFQ-11 before and after six weeks of intervention. The MCIDs were derived using both anchor- and distribution-based methods; however, only anchor-based methods were used to estimate RCIDs.

Response of human glioblastoma cells to hyperthermia: Cellular apoptosis and molecular events.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) also categorized as a grade IV astrocytoma, is an aggressive brain tumor which invades the surrounding brain tissue. Hyperthermia is known to be effective for chemo-radiotherapy to sensitize cancer cells to radiation as a treatment option for patients with GBM. The current study was performed in order to assess and compare the properties of the astrocyte and cancer stem cells isolated from glioblastoma exposed to hyperthermia.

Treatment of Breast Cancer-Bearing BALB/c Mice with Magnetic Hyperthermia using Dendrimer Functionalized Iron-Oxide Nanoparticles.

The development of novel nanoparticles for diagnostic and therapeutic applications has been one of the most crucial challenges in cancer theranostics for the last decades. Herein, we functionalized iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) with the fourth generation (G) of poly amidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers (G@IONPs) for magnetic hyperthermia treatment of breast cancer in Bagg albino strain C (BALB/c)mice. The survival of breast cancer cells significantly decreased after incubation with G@IONPs and exposure to an alternating magnetic field (AMF) due to apoptosis and elevation of Bax (Bcl-2 associated X)/Bcl-2(B-cell lymphoma 2) ratio.

Combination of curcumin with autologous transplantation of adult neural stem/progenitor cells leads to more efficient repair of damaged cerebral tissue of rat.

New Findings: What is the central question of this study? Can the neuroprotective agent curcumin affect restorative action of neural stem/progenitor cells in the injured rat brain? What is the main finding and its importance? In the presence of curcumin, transplantation of neural stem/progenitor cells in the context of PuraMatrix reduced lesion size and reactive inflammatory responses, and boosted survival rate of grafted neurons. In addition it improved the neurological status of injured animals. This could be beneficial in designing new therapeutic approaches for brain injury based on this combination therapy.

The expression level of cannabinoid receptors type 1 and 2 in the different types of astrocytomas.

Astrocytomas, the most prevalent primary brain tumors, can be divided by histology and malignancy levels into four following types: pilocytic astrocytoma (grade I), diffuse fibrillary astrocytoma (grade II), anaplastic astrocytoma (grade III), and glioblastoma multiforme (grade IV). For high grade astrocytomas (grade III and grade IV), blood vessels formation is considered as the most important property. The distribution of cannabinoid receptors type 1 (CB1) and cannabinoid receptor type 2 (CB2) in blood vessels and tumor tissue of astrocytoma is still controversial.

Down-regulation of 14-3-3 zeta sensitizes human glioblastoma cells to apoptosis induction.

Strong 14-3-3 zeta protein expression plays an important role in tumorigenesis, including in the maintenance of cell growth, resistance increase, and the prevention of apoptosis. In this study, we focus on two targets: (1) the expression of 14-3-3 zeta in the different grades of human astrocytoma (II-IV), (2) suppression of 14-3-3 zeta protein expression in glioblastoma derived astrocytes by 14-3-3 zeta shRNA lentiviral particles. The tissues of human astrocytoma were provided from 30 patients (ten of each grade of astrocytoma).

Primary Olfactory Ensheathing Cell Culture from Human Olfactory Mucosa Specimen.

The human olfactory mucosa is located in the middle and superior turbinates, and the septum of nasal cavity. Olfactory mucosa plays an important role in detection of odours and it is also the only nervous tissue that is exposed to the external environment. This property leads to easy access to the olfactory mucosa for achieving various researches.

Preparation of Primary Astrocyte Culture Derived from Human Glioblastoma Multiforme Specimen.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a grade 4 astrocytoma tumor in central nervous system. Astrocytes can be isolated from human GBM. Study of astrocytes can provide insights about the formation, progression and recurrence of glioblastoma.

Cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN-55,212-2 protects differentiated PC12 cells from organophosphorus- induced apoptosis.

Cannabinoid neuroprotection is usually greater in vivo than in neuronal cell culture systems. To the authors' knowledge, a good in vitro culture model for the neuroprotective effects of cannabinoids does not exist. Therefore, a 3-dimensional (3D) culture system was developed to investigate the neuroprotective effects of the cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN-55,212-2 on apoptosis of differentiated PC12 cells, caused by the organophosphorus compounds paraoxon and diazinon.