Genomic instability and proliferative activity as risk factors for distant metastases in breast cancer

The role of genomic instability and proliferative activity for development of distant metastases in breast cancer was analysed, and the relative contribution of these two risk factors was quantified. A detailed quantitative comparison was performed between Ki67 and cyclin A as proliferative markers. The frequency of Ki67 and cyclin A-positive cells was scored in the same microscopic areas in 428 breast tumours. The frequency of Ki67-positive cells was found to be highly correlated with the frequency of cyclin A-positive cells, and both proliferation markers were equally good to predict risk of distant metastases. The relative contribution of degree of aneuploidy and proliferative activity as risk markers for developing distant metastases was studied independently. Although increased proliferative activity in general was associated with an increased risk of developing distant metastases, ploidy level was found to be an independent and even stronger marker when considering the group of small (T1) node negative tumours. By combining proliferative activity and ploidy level, a large group of low risk breast tumours (39%) could be identified in which only a few percentage of the tumours (5%) developed distant metastases during the 9-year follow-up time period

Spotting Signs of Autism in 3-Year-Olds: Comparing Information from Parents and Preschool Staff

© 2018, The Author(s). Preschool informants may provide valuable information about symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in young children. We compared the diagnostic accuracy of ratings by preschool staff with those by parents of 3-year-old children using the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment Preschool Forms. The sample consisted of 32 children at familial risk for ASD without diagnosis, 10 children at risk for ASD with diagnosis, and 14 low-risk typically developing controls. Preschool staff ratings were more accurate than parent ratings at differentiating children with and without ASD, and more closely associated with clinician-rated symptoms. These results point to the value of information from preschool informants in early detection and diagnostic assessments

Physiological responses to low-force work and psychosocial stress in women with chronic trapezius myalgia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Repetitive and stressful work tasks have been linked to the development of pain in the trapezius muscle, although the underlying mechanisms still remain unclear. In earlier studies, it has been hypothesized that chronic muscle pain conditions are associated with imbalance in the autonomic nervous system, predominantly expressed as an increased sympathetic activity. This study investigates whether women with chronic trapezius myalgia show higher muscle activity and increased sympathetic tone at baseline and during repetitive low-force work and psychosocial stress, compared with pain-free controls.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Eighteen women with chronic trapezius myalgia (MYA) and 30 healthy female controls (CON) were studied during baseline rest, 100 min of repetitive low-force work, 20 min of psychosocial stress (Trier Social Stress Test, TSST), and 80 min recovery. The subjects rated their pain intensity, stress and energy level every 20 min throughout the experiment. Muscle activity was measured by surface electromyography in the trapezius muscle (EMGtrap) and deltoid muscle (EMGdelt). Autonomic reactivity was measured through heart rate (HR), skin conductance (SCL), blood pressure (MAP) and respiration rate (Resp).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>At baseline, EMGtrap, stress ratings, and HR were higher in MYA than in CON. Energy ratings, EMGdelt, SCL, MAP and Resp were, however, similar in the two groups. Significant main group effects were found for pain intensity, stress ratings and EMGtrap. Deltoid muscle activity and autonomic responses were almost identical in MYA and CON during work, stress and recovery. In MYA only, pain intensity and stress ratings increased towards the end of the repetitive work.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We found increased muscle activity during uninstructed rest in the painful muscle of a group of women with trapezius myalgia. The present study could not confirm the hypothesis that chronic trapezius myalgia is associated with increased sympathetic activity. The suggestion of autonomic imbalance in patients with chronic local or regional musculoskeletal pain needs to be further investigated.</p

Belongingness in early secondary school: Key factors that primary and secondary schools need to consider

© 2015 Vaz et al. It is unknown if, and how, students redefine their sense of school belongingness after negotiating the transition to secondary school. The current study used longitudinal data from 266 students with, and without, disabilities who negotiated the transition from 52 primary schools to 152 secondary schools. The study presents the 13 most significant personal student and contextual factors associated with belongingness in the first year of secondary school. Student perception of school belongingness was found to be stable across the transition. No variability in school belongingness due to gender, disability or household-socio-economic status (SES) was noted. Primary school belongingness accounted for 22% of the variability in secondary school belongingness. Several personal student factors (competence, coping skills) and school factors (low-level classroom task-goal orientation), which influenced belongingness in primary school, continued to influence belongingness in secondary school. In secondary school, effort-goal orientation of the student and perception of their school's tolerance to disability were each associated with perception of school belongingness. Family factors did not influence belongingness in secondary school. Findings of the current study highlight the need for primary schools to foster belongingness among their students at an early age, and transfer students' belongingness profiles as part of the handover documentation. Most of the factors that influenced school belongingness before and after the transition to secondary are amenable to change

IGF-I in human breast cancer: low differentiation stage is associated with decreased IGF-I content

OBJECTIVE: Few investigations on the potential role of IGF-I in human breast cancer have used morphological criteria, and the data presented on the localisation of IGF-I are controversial. Moreover, little information exists on a potential correlation between local IGF-I and the grade of malignancy or prognostic factors. Therefore, we investigated the immunohistochemical localisation of IGF-I in specimens of human breast cancer tumours of the ductal type, graded as G1/G2 (well-/moderately differentiated, n=115) and G3 (poorly differentiated, n=28). METHODS: IGF-I immunoreactivity was quantified using a scaling from no (-) to numerous (+++) IGF-I-immunoreactive cells. From 29 of the G1/G2 and 17 of the G3 tumours IGF-I was also measured by RIA. Cytosolic oestrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) levels, and S-phase fraction were established and related to the number of IGF-I-immunoreactive cells. RESULTS: IGF-I immunoreactivity occurred predominantly in ductal epithelial cells. Of G3 tumours, 57% exhibited IGF-I immunoreactivity as compared with 84% of G1/G2 tumours. Correspondingly, the amount of IGF-I measured by RIA was significantly lower in G3 tumours (6.9+/-0.9 ng/g wet weight) than in G1/G2 tumours (10.5+/-1.1 ng/g wet weight) (P=0.031). G1/G2 tumours exhibited a higher percentage of IGF-I-immunoreactive cells (16% -, 23% +, 41% ++, 20% +++) than G3 tumours (43% -, 37% +, 12% ++, 8% +++). When comparing the - with the +++ G1/G2 tumours, the frequency of IGF-I-immunoreactive cells was related significantly to the ER (P<0.016) and the PR (P<0.008) levels. In G1/G2 and G3 tumours, the ER and PR levels increased with the amount of IGF immunoreactivity while the S-phase fraction increased with decreasing IGF-I content. In 25% of the specimens, IGF-I immunoreactivity occurred in stromal cells, but there was no obvious difference between the different types of tumours. The survival of the G1/G2 tumour patients increased with increasing numbers of IGF-I-immunoreactive cells. CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that IGF-I is associated with the more-differentiated type of epithelial cells and that increasing dedifferentiation goes along with decreased IGF-I content. Thus, the presence of IGF-I immunoreactivity in breast cancer epithelial cells indicates a lower degree of malignancy than the lack of IGF-I