The concentration of circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in plasma is an important determinant of the robustness of liquid biopsies. However, biological mechanisms that lead to inter-individual differences in cfDNA concentrations remain unexplored. The concentration of plasma cfDNA is governed by an interplay between its release and clearance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA 4-day-old infant was admitted for neonatal jaundice. He had persistent tachycardia and tachypnea. Initial workup showed a serum free T4 of 75.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To evaluate the sensitivities and specificities of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA in the detection of locally recurrent or persistent nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) through nasopharyngeal (NP) brush biopsy and plasma, respectively, and whether a combination of both would be superior to the individual tests.
Study Design: A case-control study was conducted from September 2016 to June 2022.
Setting: A multicentre study at 3 tertiary referral centers in Hong Kong was conducted by the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Radiotherapy (RT) is the standard-of-care for Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), where the post-RT clearance of plasma EBV DNA is prognostic. Currently, it is not known whether the post-RT clearance of plasma EBV DNA is related to the presence of circulating T-cell subsets. Blood samples from NPC patients were used to assess the frequency of T-cell subsets relating to differentiation, co-signaling and chemotaxis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLancet Oncol
December 2022
The past three decades have borne witness to many advances in the understanding of the molecular biology and treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), an Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated cancer endemic to southern China, southeast Asia and north Africa. In this Review, we provide a comprehensive, interdisciplinary overview of key research findings regarding NPC pathogenesis, treatment, screening and biomarker development. We describe how technological advances have led to the advent of proton therapy and other contemporary radiotherapy approaches, and emphasize the relentless efforts to identify the optimal sequencing of chemotherapy with radiotherapy through decades of clinical trials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Analysis of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) allows the noninvasive molecular profiling of tumor, and such analysis has gained popularity for the detection of mutations with therapeutic implications. A value-based assessment would be useful for an objective evaluation of the benefits of ctDNA testing.
Content: The value proposition approach was used to evaluate the benefits of implementing ctDNA testing to inform treatment decisions of targeted therapy.
Background: Cellular mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is organized as circular, covalently closed and double-stranded DNA. Studies have demonstrated the presence of short mtDNA fragments in plasma. It is not known whether circular mtDNA might concurrently exist with linear mtDNA in plasma.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnalysis of circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA), as one type of 'liquid biopsy', has recently attracted great attention. Researchers are exploring many potential applications of liquid biopsy in many different types of cancer. In particular, it is of biological interest and clinical relevance to study the molecular characteristics of ctDNA.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExpert Rev Mol Diagn
January 2019
Scientists have been exploring cell-free DNA in plasma for a wider clinical application in addition to noninvasive prenatal testing. Tracing the tissue of origin of plasma DNA is the next important step. In this perspective, we discuss different approaches recently reported for tracing the tissue of origin of plasma DNA and the implications.
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