Identification of Tumor Cells through Spectroscopic Profiling of the Cellular Surface Chemistry

A key challenge for molecular cancer diagnostics is the identification of appropriate biomarkers and detection modalities. One target of interest is the cell surface, which is involved in important steps of cancerogenesis. Here, we explore the feasibility of a label-free spectroscopic profiling of the cell surface chemistry for the detection of tumor cells. Vibrational spectra of the cellular surfaces of tumor and nontumor breast and prostate cell lines were recorded on silver nanoparticle substrates using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). The quantitative analysis of the spectra revealed characteristic differences, especially in the spectral range between 600 and 900 cm⁻¹. The detection of tumor-cell-specific differences in the recorded SERS spectra indicates the possibility of improving the precision of current cancer detection and staging approaches through a spectroscopic profiling of cell surface cancer biomarkers

Sustainable Production of Acrylic Acid: Catalytic Performance of Hydroxyapatites for Gas-Phase Dehydration of Lactic Acid

Hydroxyapatites (HAP_<i>m</i>-<i>T</i>) of varying molar Ca/P ratios <i>m</i> (1.58–1.69) and calcination temperatures <i>T</i> (360–700 °C) were prepared and comprehensively characterized by nitrogen adsorption, TG, XPS, XRD, CO₂-TPD, and NH₃-TPD and were employed to catalyze the gas-phase dehydration of lactic acid (LA) to produce acrylic acid (AA). While the texture and crystallinity of the HAP_<i>m</i>-<i>T</i> sample were affected little by variation of <i>m</i>, its surface acidity decreased but basicity increased with the increase in <i>m</i>. The HAP_<i>m</i>-<i>T</i> sample with a higher <i>T</i> showed a higher crystallinity but lower surface area, acidity, and basicity. The conversion of LA decreased with increasing either <i>m</i> or <i>T</i> of the HAP_<i>m</i>-<i>T</i> catalyst; the selectivity for AA maximized at <i>m</i> = 1.62 but decreased steadily with the <i>T</i> increase. The HAP_1.62-360 sample (<i>m</i> = 1.62, <i>T</i> = 360 °C) was identified as the most efficient catalyst, offering an AA yield as high as 50–62% for longer than 8 h (AA selectivity: 71–74 mol %) under optimized reaction conditions (360 °C, WHSV_LA= 1.4–2.1 h^–1). Correlating the catalyst performance with its surface acidity and basicity disclosed that the LA consumption rate increased linearly with the acidity/basicity ratio, but volcano-type dependence appeared between the AA production rate and the acidity/basicity ratio, which reveals a kind of cooperative acid–base catalysis for selective AA production. The HAP_<i>m</i>-<i>T</i> catalysts became more or less deactivated after reaction, but the reacted ones could be fully regenerated by in situ treatment with flowing air

Coordination of Cell Proliferation and Cell Fate Determination by CES-1 Snail

<div><p>The coordination of cell proliferation and cell fate determination is critical during development but the mechanisms through which this is accomplished are unclear. We present evidence that the Snail-related transcription factor CES-1 of <i>Caenorhabditis elegans</i> coordinates these processes in a specific cell lineage. CES-1 can cause loss of cell polarity in the NSM neuroblast. By repressing the transcription of the BH3-only gene <i>egl-1</i>, CES-1 can also suppress apoptosis in the daughters of the NSM neuroblasts. We now demonstrate that CES-1 also affects cell cycle progression in this lineage. Specifically, we found that CES-1 can repress the transcription of the <i>cdc-25.2</i> gene, which encodes a Cdc25-like phosphatase, thereby enhancing the block in NSM neuroblast division caused by the partial loss of <i>cya-1</i>, which encodes Cyclin A. Our results indicate that CDC-25.2 and CYA-1 control specific cell divisions and that the over-expression of the <i>ces-1</i> gene leads to incorrect regulation of this functional ‘module’. Finally, we provide evidence that <i>dnj-11</i> MIDA1 not only regulate CES-1 activity in the context of cell polarity and apoptosis but also in the context of cell cycle progression. In mammals, the over-expression of Snail-related genes has been implicated in tumorigenesis. Our findings support the notion that the oncogenic potential of Snail-related transcription factors lies in their capability to, simultaneously, affect cell cycle progression, cell polarity and apoptosis and, hence, the coordination of cell proliferation and cell fate determination.</p></div

A global framework of CA-AFSA-BP.

<p>A global framework of CA-AFSA-BP.</p

<i>ces-1(n703</i>gf<i>)</i>; <i>cya-1(bc416)</i> causes temperature-sensitive embryonic lethality.

<p>(A) The percentages of embryonic lethality at 15°C and 25°C. The numbers above the bars represent the percentage of embryonic lethality. For each genotype, around 1000 embryos were scored. DIC images of embryos arrested during the elongation stage of embryogenesis (B, D, E) or during the first larval stage (L1) (C) when grown at 25°C are shown. White arrows point to abnormalities in the hypodermis. All strains analyzed were homozygous for <i>bcIs66</i>. RNAi was performed by injection.</p

Cluster-based anomaly detection flow.

<p>Cluster-based anomaly detection flow.</p

Selection of training and test samples.

<p>Selection of training and test samples.</p

CA-AFSA-BP mis-use detection of flow.

<p>CA-AFSA-BP mis-use detection of flow.</p

DR and FR of 4 intrusion detection algorithms.

<p>DR and FR of 4 intrusion detection algorithms.</p

Classification Results of 4 intrusion detection algorithms.

<p>Classification Results of 4 intrusion detection algorithms.</p