Resistance of breast cancer cells to paclitaxel is associated with low expressions of miRNA-186 and miRNA-7.

Neo-adjuvant chemotherapy is a common approach for the complex treatment of breast cancer (BC) and paclitaxel (PTX) is frequently included in the therapeutic regimen. However, the effect of PTX-based treatment is hard to predict precisely based on routinely used markers. As microRNAs are considered a new promising class of biomarkers, the link between miRNA expression and PTX resistance of BC cells needs to be well investigated.

Use of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to detect carbapenemase production in Enterobacteriaceae by a rapid meropenem degradation assay.

We evaluated the analytical performance of a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry assay to detect carbapenemase activity in a group of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae by meropenem hydrolysis. This one-hour method showed a sensitivity of 94% and a specificity of 100%, representing a rapid and reliable option compared to conventional phenotypic assays.