Plos One
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Lapatinib plus capecitabine is an effective treatment option for trastuzumab-refractory HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. We have investigated the correlation between quantitative measures of HER2, p95HER2, and HER3 and treatment outcomes using lapatinib and capecitabine. ⋯ These data suggest a correlation between high HER2 and high HER3 expression and treatment outcome, while no significant difference was observed between clinical outcome and p95 expression level in this cohort of HER2-positive, trastuzumab-refractory metastatic breast cancer patients treated with lapatinib and capecitabine.
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The blood vessel is no longer viewed as passive plumbing for the brain. Increasingly, experimental and clinical findings suggest that cerebral endothelium may possess endocrine and paracrine properties - actively releasing signals into and receiving signals from the neuronal parenchyma. Hence, metabolically perturbed microvessels may contribute to central nervous system (CNS) injury and disease. ⋯ Finally, comparison of our mouse brain vasculome with representative plasma protein databases demonstrated significant overlap, suggesting that the vasculome may be an important source of circulating signals in blood. Perturbations in cerebral endothelial function may profoundly affect CNS homeostasis. Mapping and dissecting the vasculome of the brain in health and disease may provide a novel database for investigating disease mechanisms, assessing therapeutic targets and exploring new biomarkers for the CNS.
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Anthropometric measures such as the body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference are widely used as convenient indices of adiposity, yet there are limitations in their estimates of body fat. We aimed to determine the prevalence of obesity using criteria based on the BMI and waist circumference, and to examine the relationship between the BMI and body fat. ⋯ As the BMI does not account for differences in body composition, we suggest that gender- and age-specific thresholds should be considered when the BMI is used to indicate adiposity.
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To characterize lymphatic vessel morphology in lower extremity lymphedema using MR lymphography at 3T. ⋯ There are significant differences in the number or diameter of lymphatic vessels between normal and affected limbs and there are significant differences for affected calf between early and late stages of lymphedema; therefore, MR lymphography can be helpful in diagnosis or clinical staging for lower extremity with gynecologic oncology-related lymphedema.
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Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) is a protein that stimulates differentiation, proliferation, and survival of cells in the granulocytic lineage. Recently, a neuroprotective effect of G-CSF was reported in a model of cerebral infarction and we previously reported the same effect in studies of murine spinal cord injury (SCI). The aim of the present study was to elucidate the potential therapeutic effect of G-CSF for SCI in rats. ⋯ G-CSF protects oligodendrocyte from SCI-induced cell death via the suppression of inflammatory cytokines and up-regulation of anti-apoptotic protein. As a result, G-CSF attenuates white matter loss and promotes hindlimb functional recovery.