3,042 research outputs found
Acyclovir inhibition of IDO to decrease Tregs as a glioblastoma treatment adjunct
Regulatory T cells, Tregs, are a subset of lymphocytes that have immunosuppressive attributes. They are elevated in blood of glioblastoma patients and within this tumor's tissue itself. Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase, IDO, converts tryptophan to kynurenine. IDO activity enhances Treg formation by pathways that are unknown. Experimentally, inhibition of IDO decreases Treg function and number in rodents. The common anti-viral agent acyclovir inhibits IDO. Acyclovir may thereby decrease Treg function in glioblastoma. If it can be confirmed that Treg counts are elevated in glioblastoma patients' tumor tissue, and if we can document acyclovir's lowering of tissue Treg counts by a small trial of acyclovir in pre-operative glioblastoma patients, a trial of acyclovir effect on survival should be done given the current poor prognosis of glioblastoma and the well-established safety and low side effect burden of acyclovir
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A morphometric analysis of Actaea racemosa L. (Ranunculaceae)
Actaea racemosa L. (syn. Cimicifuga racemosa [L.] Nutt.), Ranunculaceae, commonly known as black cohosh, is an herbaceous, perennial, medicinal plant native to the deciduous woodlands of eastern North America. Historical texts and current sales data indicate the continued popularity of this plant as an herbal remedy for over 175 years. Much of the present supply of A. racemosa is harvested from the wild. Diversity within and between populations of the species has not been well characterized. The purpose of this study was to assess the morphological variation of A. racemosa and identify patterns of variation at the population and species levels. A total of 26 populations representative of a significant portion of the natural range of the species were surveyed and plant material was collected for the morphological analysis of 37 leaflet, flower, and whole plant characteristics. In total, 511 leaflet samples and 83 flower samples were examined. Several of the populations surveyed had sets of relatively unique characteristics (large leaflet measurements, tall leaves and flowers, and a large number of stamen), and Tukey-Kramer multiple comparisons revealed significant differences between specific populations for 20 different characteristics. No unique phenotype, however, was found. Considerable morphological plasticity was noted in the apices of the staminodia. Cluster analyses showed that the morphological variation within populations was not smaller than between population and that this variation in not influenced by their geographic distribution
The in-medium isovector pi N amplitude from low energy pion scattering
Differential cross sections for elastic scattering of 21.5 MeV positive and
negative pions by Si, Ca, Ni and Zr have been measured as part of a study of
the pion-nucleus potential across threshold. The `anomalous' repulsion in the
s-wave term was observed, as is the case with pionic atoms. The extra repulsion
can be accounted for by a chiral-motivated model where the pion decay constant
is modified in the medium. Unlike in pionic atoms, the anomaly cannot be
removed by merely introducing an empirical on-shell energy dependence.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures. Minor changes, to appear in PR
Elastic scattering of low energy pions by nuclei and the in-medium isovector pi N amplitude
Measurements of elastic scattering of 21.5 MeV pi+ and pi- by Si, Ca, Ni and
Zr were made using a single arm magnetic spectrometer. Absolute calibration was
made by parallel measurements of Coulomb scattering of muons. Parameters of a
pion-nucleus optical potential were obtained from fits to all eight angular
distributions put together. The `anomalous' s-wave repulsion known from pionic
atoms is clearly observed and could be removed by introducing a
chiral-motivated density dependence of the isovector scattering amplitude,
which also greatly improved the fits to the data. The empirical energy
dependence of the isoscalar amplitude also improves the fits to the data but,
contrary to what is found with pionic atoms, on its own is incapable of
removing the anomaly.Comment: 20 pages, 5 figures, 5 tables. V2 added details on
uncertainties,extended discussion. To appear in PR
Short Communication: Simultaneous Identification of Five Îş-Casein (CSN3) Alleles in Domestic Goat by Polymerase Chain Reaction-Single Strand Conformation Polymorphism
Until now, a total of nine polymorphic sites corresponding to six different alleles have been described at the kappa-casein (CSN3) locus in the domestic goat (Capra hircus). A protocol for the rapid and simultaneous genotyping of five goat CSN3 alleles by using polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) technique was developed. Moreover, the developed test was validated by screening the CSN3 variability in four Italian breeds, Garganica, Jonica, Maltese, and Camosciata. Seven different patterns were readily identifiable. These corresponded to five known alleles and two newly identified variants. The G/A substitution at nucleotide position 471, which is not identifiable at the protein level but was found to be very frequent in the typed breeds, is easily detectable by the protocol developed. The PCR-SSCP analysis is a powerful tool for the genetic study of CSN3 variability in domestic goats, allowing both the simultaneous identification of different alleles, and the detection of new variants
Characterization of the casein gene complex in West Africa goats and description of a new αs1-casein polymorphism
The analysis of casein polymorphisms was carried
out in West Africa goat populations: Red Sokoto (n =
57), West African Dwarf Nigeria (n = 27), West African
Dwarf Cameroon (n = 39), and Borno (n = 37). The 4
casein genes alphas1 (CSN1S1), beta (CSN2), alphas2 (CSN1S2), and kappa (CSN3) were typed at the DNA level. No null alleles were found in any of the genes analyzed. A PCR single-strand conformation polymorphism method was
implemented for the identification of CSN1S1*F allele
simultaneously with A/01, B/E, N and the new allele.
The allele differed from CSN1S1*B by a synonymous
transversion TCG->TCT in the codon corresponding to
Ser66 of the mature protein. The new allele, named
CSN1S1*B', occurred at a high frequency in all the
populations, ranging from 0.295 (West African Dwarf
Cameroon) to 0.405 (Borno). A greater frequency was
found for alleles associated with high alphas1-casein quantity,
as has already been observed in the goat populations
from the Mediterranean area. The intermediate
E allele occurred only in the Red Sokoto and at a low
frequency. The faint F allele occurred in 3 populations
at frequencies lower than 0.03. Linkage disequilibrium
occurred in all the populations, with highly significant
differences in Borno, Red Sokoto, and West Africa
Dwarf Nigeria, and significant differences in West Africa
Dwarf Cameroon. Only 10 haplotypes showed frequencies
>= 0.05 in at least 1 of the 4 populations considered,
and the overall frequency was >0.1 only for 4
haplotypes: BAAB, B'ACA, ACAB, and BACA (in the
order CSN1S1-CSN2-CSN1S2-CSN3). Haplotype
BAAB, postulated as an ancestral haplotype in previous
studies, was the most common haplotype in all breeds
except Borno, where B'ACA was predominant. The results
obtained are of considerable significance given that very little information exists on the subject for African goats. The high frequency of strong alleles in the calcium-sensitive caseins as well as the high linkage disequilibrium found among the casein genes in the African breeds analyzed may suggest that specific casein haplotypes have already been selected due to their advantages for nutrition. Haplotypes providing greater
protein and casein content would increase the energy
content of milk, thus resulting in more favorable growth
and survival of young goats and humans consuming
the milk
Flexible Bioelectronic Devices Based on Micropatterned Monolithic Carbon Fiber Mats
Polymer-derived carbon can serve as an electrode material in multimodal neural stimulation, recording, and neurotransmitter sensing platforms. The primary challenge in its applicability in implantable, flexible neural devices is its characteristic mechanical hardness that renders it difficult to fabricate the entire device using only carbon. A microfabrication technique is introduced for patterning flexible, cloth-like, polymer-derived carbon fiber (CF) mats embedded in polyimide (PI), via selective reactive ion etching. This scalable, monolithic manufacturing method eliminates any joints or metal interconnects and creates electrocorticography electrode arrays based on a single CF mat. The batch-fabricated CF/PI composite structures, with critical dimension of 12.5 µm, are tested for their mechanical, electrical, and electrochemical stability, as well as to chemicals that mimic acute postsurgery inflammatory reactions. Their recording performance is validated in rat models. Reported CF patterning process can benefit various carbon microdevices that are expected to feature flexibility, material stability, and biocompatibility
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