Sustained proliferation in cancer: mechanisms and novel therapeutic targets

Proliferation is an important part of cancer development and progression. This is manifest by altered expression and/or activity of cell cycle related proteins. Constitutive activation of many signal transduction pathways also stimulates cell growth. Early steps in tumor development are associated with a fibrogenic response and the development of a hypoxic environment which favors the survival and proliferation of cancer stem cells. Part of the survival strategy of cancer stem cells may manifested by alterations in cell metabolism. Once tumors appear, growth and metastasis may be supported by overproduction of appropriate hormones (in hormonally dependent cancers), by promoting angiogenesis, by undergoing epithelial to mesenchymal transition, by triggering autophagy, and by taking cues from surrounding stromal cells. A number of natural compounds (e.g., curcumin, resveratrol, indole-3-carbinol, brassinin, sulforaphane, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, genistein, ellagitannins, lycopene and quercetin) have been found to inhibit one or more pathways that contribute to proliferation (e.g., hypoxia inducible factor 1, nuclear factor kappa B, phosphoinositide 3 kinase/Akt, insulin-like growth factor receptor 1, Wnt, cell cycle associated proteins, as well as androgen and estrogen receptor signaling). These data, in combination with bioinformatics analyses, will be very important for identifying signaling pathways and molecular targets that may provide early diagnostic markers and/or critical targets for the development of new drugs or drug combinations that block tumor formation and progression

Modeling and optimization of sensory changes and shelf-life in vacuum-packaged cooked ham treated by E-beam irradiation

[EN] The E-beam irradiation of vacuum-packaged RTE cooked ham was carried out to establish the dose required to achieve the food safety objective (FSO) and to minimize changes in selected sensory attributes. Cooked ham was irradiated with doses ranging 1-4 kGy. After the treatment, the microbial inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes, the shelf-life of the product and some sensory attributes (appearance, odor, and flavor) were determined. The inactivation of L monocytogenes was satisfactorily described by a first-order kinetics equation (R2=0.99). The influence of the irradiation dose on appearance, odor, and flavor was modeled through Gompertz (R2=0.99, for appearance) and Activation/Inactivation (R2=0.99, for odor and flavor) equations. A model was also developed to determine the shelf-life of irradiated cooked ham depending on the irradiation dose (R2 > 0.91). The dose that maximized the scores of the sensory attributes was 0.96 kGy resulting in an acceptable sensory quality for 80 days. It is possible to apply up to 2 kGy to ensure microbial safety, while provoking no significant changes in the above mentioned sensory attributes. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.The authors acknowledge the financial support from the Project CSD2007-00016 (CONSOLIDER-INGENIO 2010) funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.Benedito Fort, JJ.; Cambero, MI.; Ortuño Cases, C.; Cabeza, MC.; Ordoñez, JA.; De La Hoz, L. (2011). Modeling and optimization of sensory changes and shelf-life in vacuum-packaged cooked ham treated by E-beam irradiation. Radiation Physics and Chemistry. 80(3):505-513. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radphyschem.2010.11.001S50551380

Elucidating the links between personality traits and diabetes mellitus:Examining the role of facets, assessment methods, and selected mediators

The aim of this paper is three-fold. First, we identified self- and informant-rated Five-Factor Model (FFM) personality domains and facets associated with diabetes diagnosis. Second, we tested whether the associations were independent of the rater method-specific variance. Lastly, we examined whether the observed associations were mediated by BMI, alcohol intake, dietary habits, and exercise. The participants were members of the Estonian Biobank (N = 3592; 1145 men; Mage = 46.6 ± 7.0 years). We fit a series of logistic regression models predicting diabetes diagnosis from one self- or informant-rated personality domain or facet at a time, controlling for age, sex, and education. Diabetes diagnosis was significantly associated with the N5: Impulsiveness, E4: Activity, and C2: Order facets. Method-independent variance, estimated by means of bi-factor models, was significantly related with diabetes for two of the facets, E4: Activity (β = − 0.106, p = .007) and C2: Order (β = − 0.089, p = .037), but not for N5: Impulsiveness. The strongest mediator of the personality–diabetes association was BMI, explaining 30–50% of the observed associations. We discuss implications of the current results

Cars and kids: childhood perceptions of electric vehicles and transport in Denmark and the Netherlands

What preferences, perceptions, and expectations do children have about current (and future) electric vehicles and conventional cars? The values, worldviews, and patterns of energy (and mobility) consumption that adults come to hold, and perform, become molded and perhaps cemented in childhood. However, given the particular sensitivities in conducting social science research involving children, recent comparative examinations of the perceptions and preferences of kids and cars remains rare. In this article, we offer the first international assessment of how 587 surveyed schoolchildren between 9 and 13 years of age across 15 schools in rural to intermediate regions in Denmark and the Netherlands think about electric mobility, and in examining their perceptions, automobility and transport more broadly. In general, we find that the children surveyed rank the environmental impact of cars just below personal safety and we can conclude that they are aware of innovations such as electric vehicles and their main benefits. Most important, children overwhelmingly seem to agree on the future direction of car-based transport but one with cars that are safer, more energy efficient and alternatively fueled

Wetlands for wastewater treatment and subsequent recycling of treated effluent : a review

Due to water scarcity challenges around the world, it is essential to think about non-conventional water resources to address the increased demand in clean freshwater. Environmental and public health problems may result from insufficient provision of sanitation and wastewater disposal facilities. Because of this, wastewater treatment and recycling methods will be vital to provide sufficient freshwater in the coming decades, since water resources are limited and more than 70% of water are consumed for irrigation purposes. Therefore, the application of treated wastewater for agricultural irrigation has much potential, especially when incorporating the reuse of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous, which are essential for plant production. Among the current treatment technologies applied in urban wastewater reuse for irrigation, wetlands were concluded to be the one of the most suitable ones in terms of pollutant removal and have advantages due to both low maintenance costs and required energy. Wetland behavior and efficiency concerning wastewater treatment is mainly linked to macrophyte composition, substrate, hydrology, surface loading rate, influent feeding mode, microorganism availability, and temperature. Constructed wetlands are very effective in removing organics and suspended solids, whereas the removal of nitrogen is relatively low, but could be improved by using a combination of various types of constructed wetlands meeting the irrigation reuse standards. The removal of phosphorus is usually low, unless special media with high sorption capacity are used. Pathogen removal from wetland effluent to meet irrigation reuse standards is a challenge unless supplementary lagoons or hybrid wetland systems are used

Heterochromatin and the molecular mechanisms of 'parent-of-origin' effects in animals.

Twenty five years ago it was proposed that conserved components of constitutive heterochromatin assemble heterochromatinlike complexes in euchromatin and this could provide a general mechanism for regulating heritable (cell-to-cell) changes in gene expressibility. As a special case, differences in the assembly of heterochromatin-like complexes on homologous chromosomes might also regulate the parent-of-origin-dependent gene expression observed in placental mammals. Here, the progress made in the intervening period with emphasis on the role of heterochromatin and heterochromatin-like complexes in parent-of-origin effects in animals is reviewed

Outcomes from elective colorectal cancer surgery during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic

This study aimed to describe the change in surgical practice and the impact of SARS-CoV-2 on mortality after surgical resection of colorectal cancer during the initial phases of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic