Global Efforts to Address Severe Acute Malnutrition.

Detailed description on the two formats presented, proBAM (S1A) and proBed (S1B). (XLSX 46 kb

Controllable Synthesis of Undoped and Doped Calcium Niobate Nanocrystals for Tailored Structural, Electronic, and Luminescent Properties

In this work, we report on the phase and particle size control of Ca₂Nb₂O₇ nanocrystals with an aim of tailoring structural, electronic, and luminescent properties. Using citric acid as the capping agent, the as-prepared nanocrystals exhibited a phase transformation from orthorhombic CaNb₂O₆ to cubic Ca₂Nb₂O₇. The samples were carefully characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and luminescence spectroscopy. It is found that Ca₂Nb₂O₇ showed particle sizes ranging from 14.6 to 26.9 nm by regulating the pH value under hydrothermal conditions. Contrary to the theoretical predictions of the quantum size effect, Ca₂Nb₂O₇ showed an abnormal band gap narrowing with particle size reduction, which can be well-defined as a function of lattice volumes, surface defects, and the surface dipole layer. As for the Eu³⁺-doped samples, it is shown that Eu³⁺ and K⁺ were simultaneously substituted at Ca²⁺ sites in the Ca₂Nb₂O₇ host lattice, which allows one to vary the local symmetry surrounding Eu³⁺ for an enhanced luminescence property. As the consequence of the particle size effect and variation of the local symmetry, a maximum quantum yield of 28% was observed for 19.2 nm Ca₂Nb₂O₇

Funnel plot (with pseudo 95% confidence limits) for rituximab on PCP risk.

<p>Funnel plot (with pseudo 95% confidence limits) for rituximab on PCP risk.</p

PCP risk in bi-weekly and tri-weekly regimens.

<p>M-H pooled risk ratio = 3.11; fixed effect model method. R-C-14: rituximab-added chemotherapy bi-weekly; R-C-21: rituximab-added chemotherapy tri-weekly. Patients treated with bi-weekly regimen seemed to have a higher risk for PCP but the difference between the two regimens was not statistically significant.</p

Effect of rituximab treatment on PCP risk.

<p>M-H pooled risk ratio = 3.65, fixed effect model method. R: rituximab. Rituximab increased the risk for PCP in lymphoma patients significantly.</p

Prophylaxis and Treatment of <i>Pneumocystis jiroveci</i> Pneumonia in Lymphoma Patients Subjected to Rituximab-Contained Therapy: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis

<div><p><i>Pneumocystis jiroveci</i> pneumonia (PCP) is frequently reported in lymphoma patients treated with rituximab-contained regimens. There is a trend toward a difference in PCP risk between bi- and tri-weekly regimens. The aims of this systemic review and meta-analysis were to estimate the risk for PCP in these patients, compare the impact of different regimens on the risk, and evaluate the efficacy of prophylaxis. The cohort studies with incept up to January 2014 were retrieved from the Cochrane Library, Medline, Embase, and Web of Science databases. Studies that compared the incidence of PCP in patients with and without rituximab treatment were conducted. Studies that reported the results of prophylaxis were concentrated to evaluate the efficacy of prophylaxis. Fixed effect Mantel-Haenszel model was chosen as the main analysis method. Funnel plots were examined to estimate the potential selection bias. Egger’s test and Begg’s test were used for the determination of possible small study bias. Eleven cohort studies that met the inclusion criteria were finally included. Results indicated that rituximab was associated with a significantly increased risk for PCP (28/942 vs 5/977; risk ratio: 3.65; 95% confidence interval 1.65 to 8.07; <i>P</i>=0.001), and no heterogeneity existed between different studies (<i>I²</i>=0%). Little significant difference in PCP risk was found between bi-weekly and tri-weekly regimens (risk ratio: 3.11; 95% confidence interval 0.92 to 10.52, <i>P</i>=0.068). PCP risk was inversely associated with prophylaxis in patients treated with rituximab (0/222 vs 26/986; risk ratio: 0.28; 95% confidence interval 0.09 to 0.94; <i>P</i>=0.039). In conclusion, PCP risk was increased significantly in lymphoma patients subjected to rituximab-contained chemotherapies. Difference in PCP risk between bi-weekly and tri-weekly regimens was not significant. Additionally, prophylaxis was dramatically effective in preventing PCP in rituximab-received lymphoma patients, suggesting that rituximab should be recommended for these patients.</p></div

Flow diagram of identification process for eligible studies.

<p>Flow diagram of identification process for eligible studies.</p

Effect of prophylaxis on PCP risk in rituximab-received lymphoma patients.

<p>M-H pooled risk ratio = 0.28, fixed effect model method. Prophylaxis dramatically reduced PCP risk in rituximab-received patients.</p

Increased expression of protein kinase CK2α correlates with poor patient prognosis in epithelial ovarian cancer

<div><p>Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is one of the deadly gynecological malignancies. The function of protein kinase CK2α (CK2α) in EOC is still unknown. Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between the protein expression of CK2α and the tumor progression, the prognosis of human EOC. In this study, we analyzed the expression levels of CK2α through Western blot, using EOC cell lines like A2780, HO8910, COV644, OVCAR3, SKOV3, and the primary normal ovarian surface epithelial (NOSE) cells. Furthermore, OVCAR3 and SKOV3 EOC cells were employed as a cellular model to study the role of CK2α on cell growth, migration, invasion, apoptosis, and cell cycle distribution. In addition, we investigated CK2α protein expression in tumor tissues from patients with EOC by immunohistochemistry and analyzed the association between CK2α expression and clinicopathologic parameters and prognosis of EOC patients. And we found that compared with NOSE cells, CK2α protein expression was increased in A2780, HO8910, OVCAR3, and SKOV3 ovarian cancer cell lines. Decreased CK2α expression suppressed OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cell growth and induced more apoptosis. CK2α knockdown using specific siRNAs inhibited migration and invasion ability of OVCAR3 and SKOV3 cells. In addition, high CK2α protein expression was found in 68.4% (80/117) of EOC patients. Increased CK2α expression of was significantly correlated with FIGO staging and peritoneal cytology. Patients with higher CK2α expression had a significantly poorer overall survival compared with those with lower CK2α expression. Multi-variate Cox regression analysis proved that increased CK2α expression was an independent prognostic marker for EOC. Taken together, our data displayed that CK2α may play a role in tumor aggressive behavior of EOC and could be used as a marker for predicting prognosis of EOC patient. High CK2α expression might predict poor patient survival.</p></div

Noble Metal Coated Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes for Applications in Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering Imaging and Photothermal Therapy

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) with various unique optical properties are interesting nanoprobes widely explored in biomedical imaging and phototherapies. Herein, DNA-functionalized SWNTs are modified with noble metal (Ag or Au) nanoparticles via an in situ solution phase synthesis method comprised of seed attachment, seeded growth, and surface modification with polyethylene glycol (PEG), yielding SWNT-Ag-PEG and SWNT-Au-PEG nanocomposites stable in physiological environments. With gold or silver nanoparticles decorated on the surface, the SWNT-metal nanocomposites gain an excellent concentration and excitation-source dependent surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect. Using a near-infrared (NIR) laser as the excitation source, targeted Raman imaging of cancer cells labeled with folic acid (FA) conjugated SWNT-Au nanocomposite (SWNT-Au-PEG-FA) is realized, with images acquired in significantly shortened periods of time as compared to that of using nonenhanced SWNT Raman probes. Owing to the strong surface plasmon resonance absorption contributed by the gold shell, the SWNTs-Au-PEG-FA nanocomposite also offers remarkably improved photothermal cancer cell killing efficacy. This work presents a facile approach to synthesize water-soluble noble metal coated SWNTs with a strong SERS effect suitable for labeling and fast Raman spectroscopic imaging of biological samples, which has been rarely realized before. The SWNT-Au-PEG nanocomposite developed here may thus be an interesting optical theranostic probe for cancer imaging and therapy