Louis-Ferdinand Céline, literary genius or national pariah? Defining moral parameters for influential cultural figures, post- Charlie Hebdo

In January 2011 the French Minister of Culture, Frédéric Mitterrand, withdrew Louis-Ferdinand Céline from a list of famous French authors specifically selected for a national celebration of culture. This bold decision polarized opinion: while many welcomed Mitterrand’s intervention, a number of prominent writers, some of them Jewish, opposed it on the grounds that Céline’s abhorrent political beliefs – expressed in three anti-Semitic pamphlets and his flirtation with Nazism- should in no way detract from his literary genius. In the light of this controversy, and of the rise in anti-Semitism following the Charlie Hebdo attacks of January 2015, this paper proposes Céline as a vital case study of the moral parameters a democratic nation should apply to a culturally important figure whose political views are deemed unacceptably reactionary

Targeting Cancer Stem Cells in HNSCC: Synergic Effect of Cetuximab and ABT-199 in Combination with Photon Radiation

International audiencePurpose/Objective(s)Concurrent cetuximab based radio-chemotherapy is a validated scheme in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Cancer Stem Cells (CSCs) are highly resistant to treatment, have large migratory abilities, and are hypothesized to be responsible for a significant part of recurrences. Apoptotic signaling in CSCs is a major way of treatment escape, through Bcl-2 proteins family. The aim of the present study was to explore the synergic effect between cetuximab and an anti-Bcl-2 antibody (ABT-199), when combined or not with photon radiation.Materials/MethodsHNSCC chemo and radio resistant human cell line (SQ20B) and its corresponding stem cell line (SQ20B/CSCs) were used to test the treatment combinations. HaCaT cell line was used to assess toxicity on healthy cell population. SQ20B/CSCs subpopulation was isolated through double cell sorting: side population (SP) (Hoechst exclusion) and CD44 staining: SP/CD44High. SQ20B and SQ20B/CSCs proliferation, invasion/migration, and apoptosis were studied after an exposition to cetuximab 5nM + ABT-199 10mM treatment +/- 10Gy photon irradiation. Invasion and migration were assessed based on scratch wound assay with or without matrigel. Apoptosis was measured using caspases 3/7. 3D spheroid assay was performed to validate the results in a 3D culture approach. EGFR, phospho-EGFR (Tyr1068), Bcl-2 and Bcl-xl protein expression were studied.ResultsCetuximab strongly inhibited SQ20B proliferation, migration and invasion whereas it had little effect on SQ20B/CSCs. Conversely, ABT-199 significantly inhibited these properties on SQ20B/CSCs, without showing any effect on SQ20B parental cell line. Cetuximab-ABT-199 combined with radiation had a significant inhibitory effect on both SQ20B and SQ20B/CSCs proliferation, migration and invasion. Although exclusive cetuximab had no pro-apoptotic effect, activation of caspases 3/7 was induced by ABT-199 and enhanced by the cetuximab+ABT-199 combination in both populations. Cetuximab was a strong inhibitor of 3D-spheroid proliferation in SQ20B, whereas ABT-199 strongly decreased spheroid size in CSCs. EGFR was overexpressed in SQ20B, and under-expressed in SQ20B/CSCs. Bcl2 was overexpressed in SQ20B/CSCs. Although cetuximab moderately inhibited HaCaT cell proliferation, the drug combination did not significantly enhanced toxicity.ConclusionCetuximab+ABT-199 combined with photon radiation significantly inhibited proliferation, invasion and migration of SQ20B HNSCC cell line and its CSCs subpopulation, with an acceptable toxicity profile on healthy cell lines. Apoptotic cell death was enhanced by this drug combination

HER Family Blockade in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Couple Therapy Efficacy of Cetuximab and Pertuzumab Combined With Photon Irradiation

International audiencePurpose/Objective(s)Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a malignancy still associated with severe mortality, due to loco-regional recurrences or distant metastasis. Head and neck cancer stem cells (CSCs) are highly resistant to treatment and have large migratory abilities. These particular properties could explain treatment resistances in this location. If EGFR is strongly overexpressed in 80-100% of HNSCC, HER2 and HER3 seem to be also expressed in these lines. The aim of the present study was to explore the efficacy of HER1-2-3 blockade through cetuximab-pertuzumab association with or without photon irradiation on the proliferation and migration/invasion capabilities of a HNSCC chemo and radio resistant human cell line (SQ20B) and its corresponding stem cell line (SQ20B/CSCs).Materials/MethodsSQ20B/CSCs subpopulation was isolated through double cell sorting: side population (SP) (Hoechst exclusion) and CD44 staining: SP/CD44High. SQ20B and SQ20B/CSCs proliferation was studied after treatment with cetuximab 5nM + pertuzumab 20mg/mL treatment +/- 10Gy photon irradiation. Invasion and migration were assessed with scratch wound assay with or without matrigel. EGFR, phospho-EGFR (Tyr1068), HER2 and HER3 basal protein expression was studied. Activation or inhibition of RAS/MAPK and AKT-mTOR downstream signaling cascade was studied through phospho-AKT (Ser473), phospho-MEK1/2(Ser217/221) expression exposed to combined treatments.ResultsCetuximab strongly inhibits SQ20B proliferation, migration and invasion when it has a small effect on SQ20B/CSCs. Cetuximab-pertuzumab treatment combined with radiation has a potent significant inhibitory effect on SQ20B and SQ20B/CSCs proliferation, migration and invasion. EGFR is overexpressed in SQ20B, and under-expressed in SQ20B/CSCs, while HER2 and HER3 are expressed equivalently in both populations in basal conditions. Phospho-AKT is strongly expressed in SQ20B, at the opposite of SQ20B/CSCs which express phospho-MEK1/2. Cetuximab-pertuzumab treatment combination with 10Gy photon irradiation switches off both phospho-AKT and phospho-MEK1/2 expression in the two populations.ConclusionCetuximab-pertuzumab couple pan-HER treatment combined with photon irradiation significantly inhibits proliferation, invasion and migration of SQ20B HNSCC cell line and its CSCs subpopulation, through both AKT-mTOR and Ras-MAPK downstream signaling blockade. HER family seems to be a promising therapeutic target in HNSCC