Bendamustine: Safety and Efficacy in the Management of Indolent Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma

Bendamustine (Treanda, Ribomustin) was recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment of patients with rituximab refractory indolent lymphoma and is expected to turn into a frontline therapy option for indolent lymphoma. This compound with amphoteric properties was designed in the former Germany Democratic Republic in 1960s and re-discovered in 1990s with multiple successive well-designed studies. Bendamustine possesses a unique mechanism of action with potential antimetabolite properties, and only partial cross-resistance with other alkylators. Used in combination with rituximab in vitro, bendamustine shows synergistic effects against various leukemia and lymphoma cell lines. In clinical studies, bendamustine plus rituximab is highly effective in patients with relapsed-refractory indolent lymphoma, inducing remissions in 90% or more and a median progression-free survival of 23–24 months. The optimal dosing and schedule of bendamustine administration is largely undecided and varies among studies. Results of ongoing trials and dose-finding studies will help to further help ascertain the optimal place of bendamustine in the management of indolent NHL

The fate of the homoctenids (Tentaculitoidea) during the Frasnian-Famennian mass extinction (Late Devonian)

The homoctenids (Tentaculitoidea) are small, conical-shelled marine animals which are amongst the most abundant and widespread of all Late Devonian fossils. They were a principal casualty of the Frasnian-Famennian (F-F, Late Devonian) mass extinction, and thus provide an insight into the extinction dynamics. Despite their abundance during the Late Devonian, they have been largely neglected by extinction studies. A number of Frasnian-Famennian boundary sections have been studied, in Poland, Germany, France, and the United States. These sections have yielded homoctenids, which allow precise recognition of the timing of the mass extinction. It is clear that the homoctenids almost disappear from the fossil record during the latest Frasnian “Upper Kellwasser Event”. The coincident extinction of this pelagic group, and the widespread development of intense marine anoxia within the water column, provides a causal link between anoxia and the F-F extinction. Most notable is the sudden demise of a group, which had been present in rock-forming densities, during this anoxic event. One new species, belonging to Homoctenus is described, but is not formally named here

Event shapes in e+e- annihilation and deep inelastic scattering

This article reviews the status of event-shape studies in e+e- annihilation and DIS. It includes discussions of perturbative calculations, of various approaches to modelling hadronisation and of comparisons to data.Comment: Invited topical review for J.Phys.G; 40 pages; revised version corrects some nomenclatur

Simulation of milling cells in shell through the cam module Compas‐3D v18

У роботі проведено комп’ютерне моделювання фрезерування карманів дослідної оболонки корпусу ракетно‐космічного призначення із алюмінієвого сплаву. При моделюванні застосована програма «Модуль ЧПУ. Фрезерная обработка», що є інтегрована в систему тривимірного моделювання КОМПАС‐3D v18. Показано, що з трьох стратегій фрезерування карманів («зігзаг», «еквідистанта», «по рядках») найбільш продуктивною є стратегія «зігзаг».The computer simulation of the milling of cells of the experimental shell of the rocket space housing of aluminum alloy. For simulation, we use the program "CNC Module. Milling Processing", which is integrated into Compas‐3D v18. It is shown that of the three pocket milling strategies ("zigzag", "equidistant", "line by line") the most productive is the "zigzag" strategy

Alectorioid morphologies in Paleogene lichens : New evidence and re-evaluation of the fossil Alectoria succini Mägdefrau

One of the most important issues in molecular dating studies concerns the incorporation of reliable fossil taxa into the phylogenies reconstructed from DNA sequence variation in extant taxa. Lichens are symbiotic associations between fungi and algae and/or cyanobacteria. Several lichen fossils have been used as minimum age constraints in recent studies concerning the diversification of the Ascomycota. Recent evolutionary studies of Lecanoromycetes, an almost exclusively lichen-forming class in the Ascomycota, have utilized the Eocene amber inclusion Alectoria succinic as a minimum age constraint. However, a re-investigation of the type material revealed that this inclusion in fact represents poorly preserved plant remains, most probably of a root. Consequently, this fossil cannot be used as evidence of the presence of the genus Alectoria (Parmeliaceae, Lecanorales) or any other lichens in the Paleogene. However, newly discovered inclusions from Paleogene Baltic and Bitterfeld amber verify that alectorioid morphologies in lichens were in existence by the Paleogene. The new fossils represent either a lineage within the alectorioid group or belong to the genus Oropogon.Peer reviewe