The Warden Attitude: An investigation of the value of interaction with everyday wildlife

Using a discrete choice experiment, we elicit valuations of engagement with ‘everyday wildlife’ through feeding garden birds. We find that bird-feeding is primarily but not exclusively motivated by the direct consumption value of interaction with wildlife. The implicit valuations given to different species suggest that people prefer birds that have aesthetic appeal and that evoke human feelings of protectiveness. These findings suggest that people derive wellbeing by adopting a warden-like role towards ‘their’ wildlife. We test for external validity by conducting a hedonic analysis of sales of bird food. We discuss some policy implications of the existence of warden attitudes

Novel therapies in genitourinary cancer: an update

In recent years, new treatment for renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has been a spotlight in the field of cancer therapeutics. With several emerging agents branded as 'targeted therapy' now available, both medical oncologists and urologists are progressively more hopeful for better outcomes. The new remedies may provide patients with improved survival and at the same time less toxicity when compared to traditional cytotoxic agents. This article will center on current and emerging treatment strategies for advanced RCC and other GU malignancies with updates from 2008 annual ASCO meeting

Activation of T lymphocytes for the adoptive immunotherapy of cancer

Background: Adoptive immunotherapy of malignancy involves the passive transfer of antitumor-reactive cells into a host in order to mediate tumor regression. Based on animal models, the transfer of immune lymphoid cells can eradicate widely disseminated tumors and establish long-term systemic immunity. Critical for successful adoptive immunotherapy is the ability to isolate large numbers of immune cells. For clinical therapy, it will require the development of in vitro methods to promote the sensitization and propagation of tumor-reactive cells. However, this is formidable task since human cancers are postulated to be poorly immunogenic because of their spontaneous origins.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/41399/1/10434_2006_Article_BF02303568.pd

Epimagnolin targeting on an active pocket of mammalian target of rapamycin suppressed cell transformation and colony growth of lung cancer cells

Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) has a pivotal role in carcinogenesis and cancer cell proliferation in diverse human cancers. In this study, we observed that epimagnolin, a natural compound abundantly found in Shin-Yi, suppressed cell proliferation by inhibition of epidermal growth factor (EGF)-induced G1/S cell-cycle phase transition in JB6 Cl41 cells. Interestingly, epimagnolin suppressed EGF-induced Akt phosphorylation strongly at Ser473 and weakly at Thr308 without alteration of phosphorylation of MAPK/ERK kinases (MEKs), extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERKs), and RSK1, resulting in abrogation of the phosphorylation of GSK3β at Ser9 and p70S6K at Thr389. Moreover, we found that epimagnolin suppressed c-Jun phosphorylation at Ser63/73, resulting in the inhibition of activator protein 1 (AP-1) transactivation activity. Computational docking indicated that epimagnolin targeted an active pocket of the mTOR kinase domain by forming three hydrogen bonds and three hydrophobic interactions. The prediction was confirmed by using in vitro kinase and adenosine triphosphate-bead competition assays. The inhibition of mTOR kinase activity resulted in the suppression of anchorage-independent cell transformation. Importantly, epimagnolin efficiently suppressed cell proliferation and anchorage-independent colony growth of H1650 rather than H460 lung cancer cells with dependency of total and phosphorylated protein levels of mTOR and Akt. Inhibitory signaling of epimagnolin on cell proliferation of lung cancer cells was observed mainly in mTOR-Akt-p70S6K and mTOR-Akt-GSK3β-AP-1, which was similar to that shown in JB6 Cl41 cells. Taken together, our results indicate that epimagnolin potentiates as chemopreventive or therapeutic agents by direct active pocket targeting of mTOR kinase, resulting in sensitizing cancer cells harboring enhanced phosphorylation of the mTORC2-Akt-p70S6k signaling pathway