New clinically relevant, orthotopic mouse models of human chondrosarcoma with spontaneous metastasis

Chondrosarcoma responds poorly to adjuvant therapy and new, clinically relevant animal models are required to test targeted therapy. Two human chondrosarcoma cell lines, JJ012 and FS090, were evaluated for proliferation, colony formation, invasion, angiogenesis and osteoclastogenesis. Cell lines were also investigated for VEGF, MMP-2, MMP-9, and RECK expression. JJ012 and FS090 were injected separately into the mouse tibia intramedullary canal or tibial periosteum. Animal limbs were measured, and x-rayed for evidence of tumour take and progression. Tibias and lungs were harvested to determine the presence of tumour and lung metastases. JJ012 demonstrated significantly higher proliferative capacity, invasion, and colony formation in collagen I gel. JJ012 conditioned medium stimulated endothelial tube formation and osteoclastogenesis with a greater potency than FS090 conditioned medium, perhaps related to the effects of VEGF and MMP-9. In vivo, tumours formed in intratibial and periosteal groups injected with JJ012, however no mice injected with FS090 developed tumours. JJ012 periosteal tumours grew to 3 times the non-injected limb size by 7 weeks, whereas intratibial injected limbs required 10 weeks to achieve a similar tumour size. Sectioned tumour tissue demonstrated features of grade III chondrosarcoma. All JJ012 periosteal tumours (5/5) resulted in lung micro-metastases, while only 2/4 JJ012 intratibial tumours demonstrated metastases. The established JJ012 models replicate the site, morphology, and many behavioural characteristics of human chondrosarcoma. Local tumour invasion of bone and spontaneous lung metastasis offer valuable assessment tools to test the potential of novel agents for future chondrosarcoma therapy

Alterations of tumor suppressor gene p16(INK4a )in pancreatic ductal carcinoma

BACKGROUND: Cell cycle inhibitor and tumor suppressor gene p16 / MTS-1 has been reported to be altered in a variety of human tumors. The purpose of the study was to evaluate primary pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas for potentially inactivating p16 alterations. METHODS: We investigated the status of p16 gene by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), nonradioisotopic single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP), DNA sequencing and hypermethylation analysis in 25 primary resected ductal adenocarcinomas. In addition, we investigated p16 protein expression in these cases by immunohistochemistry (IHC) using a monoclonal antibody clone (MS-887-PO). RESULTS: Out of the 25 samples analyzed and compared to normal pancreatic control tissues, the overall frequency of p16 alterations was 80% (20/25). Aberrant promoter methylation was the most common mechanism of gene inactivation present in 52% (13/25) cases, followed by coding sequence mutations in 16% (4/25) cases and presumably homozygous deletion in 12% (3/25) cases. These genetic alterations correlated well with p16 protein expression as complete loss of p16 protein was found in 18 of 25 tumors (72%). CONCLUSION: These findings confirm that loss of p16 function could be involved in pancreatic cancer and may explain at least in part the aggressive behaviour of this tumor type

Right drug, right patient, right time: aspiration or future promise for biologics in rheumatoid arthritis?

Individualising biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) to maximise outcomes and deliver safe and cost-effective care is a key goal in the management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Investigation to identify predictive tools of bDMARD response is a highly active and prolific area of research. In addition to clinical phenotyping, cellular and molecular characterisation of synovial tissue and blood in patients with RA, using different technologies, can facilitate predictive testing. This narrative review will summarise the literature for the available bDMARD classes and focus on where progress has been made. We will also look ahead and consider the increasing use of ‘omics’ technologies, the potential they hold as well as the challenges, and what is needed in the future to fully realise our ambition of personalised bDMARD treatment

Why protective measurement does not establish the reality of the quantum state

“Protective measurement” refers to two related schemes for finding the expectation value of an observable without disturbing the state of a quantum system, given a single copy of the system that is subject to a “protecting” operation. There have been several claims that these schemes support interpreting the quantum state as an objective property of a single quantum system. Here we provide three counter-arguments, each of which we present in two versions tailored to the two different schemes. Our first argument shows that the same resources used in protective measurement can be used to reconstruct the quantum state in a different way via process tomography. Our second argument is based on exact analyses of special cases of protective measurement, and our final argument is to construct explicit “휓-epistemic” toy models for protective measurement, which strongly suggest that protective measurement does not imply the reality of the quantum state. The common theme of the three arguments is that almost all of the information comes from the “protection” operation rather than the quantum state of the system, and hence the schemes have no implications for the reality of the quantum state

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Background: Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. // Methods: We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung's disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. // Findings: We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung's disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middle-income countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in low-income countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. // Interpretation: Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

Correction to: Clinical recommendations for cardiovascular magnetic resonance mapping of T1, T2, T2* and extracellular volume: A consensus statement by the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR) endorsed by the European Association for Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI).

CORRECTION TO: J CARDIOVASC MAGN RESON (2017) 19: 75. DOI: 10.1186/S12968-017-0389-8: In the original publication of this article [1] the "Competing interests" section was incorrect. The original publication stated the following competing interests

Not Available

Not AvailableMaize is the world's leading cereal grain crop that was first domesticated in Central America. Globally, maize is known as queen of cereals because of its highest genetic yield potential. Several breeding methods have been developed for maize improvement. This chapter discusses the details of the pedigree breeding method. The pedigree breeding method involves crossing two elite inbred lines followed by continuous inbreeding till phenotypic uniformity is achieved. Due to the increase of urbanization, change in food habit, and improved economic status, the specialty corn has gained significant importance in peri‐urban areas of the country. Baby corn and sweet corn cultivation in the peri‐urban pockets of the country will ensure livelihood security and cater to the need for green fodder for livestock promotion without any additional land. The major abiotic stress that affects maize productivity, production, and quality is moisture stress. Breeding efforts are required to address the issues under climate change in the future.Not Availabl