A Study of the Vascular Dissemination of Tumor Cells in Cortisone-Treated Mice

IT has been reported that cortisone increases metastatic spread in mice bearing the following transplanted and induced tumors: mammary adenocarcinomas K7 (Agosin et al., 1952), DBA (Baserga and Shubik, 1954), K9, Sa and Sb (unpublished work of Vergara et al.), bladder carcinoma T150 (Baserga and Shubik, 1955), methylcholanthrene-induced squamous cell carcinoma and methylcholanthrene-induced sarcoma (Baserga and Shubik, 1954). The phenomenon, however, is not general and the following mouse transplantable tumors do not seem to be affected by treatment with cortisone: mammary adenocarcinomas Acc. 635 (Sparks et al., 1955), Eo771 and C3HBA (unpublished observations of Gasic and Gasic), Sarcoma 1 (Kaliss, Borges, and Day, 1954) an

Regioselektivnost konjugovane adicijena monoalkil-1,4-benzohinone

The regioselectivity of the reaction of conjugate addition of thiols, amines, methanol and hydrogen chloride with the monoalkyl-1,4-benzoquinones avarone and 2-tert-butyl-1,4-benzoquinone was investigated. It was shown that the regioselectivity of the reaction is influenced by the electrophilicity of position 5 in unprotonated 2-alkylquinones, the increased electrophilicity of position 6 in acidic medium, and by the acidity of the intermediate hydroquinones.Proučavana je regioselektivnost konjugovane adicije tiola, amina, metanola i hlorovodonika na monoalkil-1,4-benzohinone avaron i 2-tert-butil-1,4-benzohinon. Pokazano je da na regioselektivnost reakcije utiču elektrofilnost položaja 5 neprotonovanih 2-alkil-hinona i povećana elektrofilnost položaja 6 u kiseloj sredini, kao i kiselost intermedijernih hidrohinona

Kovalentne modifikacije proteina biološki aktivnim hinonima

The avarone/avarol quinone/hydroquinone couple shows considerable antitumor activity. In this work, covalent modification of beta-lactoglobulin by avarone and its derivatives as well as by the synthetic steroidal quinone 2,5(10)-estradiene-1,4,17-trione and its derivatives were studied. The techniques for studying chemical modification of beta-lactoglobulin by quinones were: UV/Vis spectrophotometry, SDS PAGE and isoelectrofocusing. SDS PAGE results suggest that polymerization of the protein Occurs. It Could be seen that the protein of 18 kD gives the bands of 20 kD, 36 kD, 40 kD, 45 kD, 64 kD and 128 kD depending on modification agent. The shift of the pl of the protein (5.4) upon modification toward lower values (from pl 5.0 to 5.3) indicated that lysine amino groups are the principal site of the reaction of beta-lactoglobulin with the quinones.Hinonsko/hidrohinonski par avaron/avarol pokazuje značajnu antitumorsku aktivnost. U ovom radu proučavane su kovalentne modifikacije β-laktoglobulina avaronom, sintetičkim steroidnim hinonom 2,5(10)-estradien-1,4,17-trionom i njihovim derivatima. Tehnike za praćenje hemijske modifikacije bile su: UV/Vis spektrofotometrija, SDS PAGE i izoelektrofokusiranje. Rezultati SDS PAGE ukazuju da se dešava polimerizacija proteina.Može se videti da protein od 18 kD daje trake od 20 kD, 36 kD, 40 kD, 45 kD, 64 kD i 128 kD u zavisnosti od agensa za modifikaciju. Pomeranje pI vrednosti proteina (5,4) nakon modifikacije ka nižim vrednostima (od pI 5,0 do 5,3) pokazuje da su amino-grupe lizina glavna mesta reakcije β-laktoglobulina sa hinonima

"How May I Help You?": Modeling Twitter Customer Service Conversations Using Fine-Grained Dialogue Acts

Given the increasing popularity of customer service dialogue on Twitter, analysis of conversation data is essential to understand trends in customer and agent behavior for the purpose of automating customer service interactions. In this work, we develop a novel taxonomy of fine-grained "dialogue acts" frequently observed in customer service, showcasing acts that are more suited to the domain than the more generic existing taxonomies. Using a sequential SVM-HMM model, we model conversation flow, predicting the dialogue act of a given turn in real-time. We characterize differences between customer and agent behavior in Twitter customer service conversations, and investigate the effect of testing our system on different customer service industries. Finally, we use a data-driven approach to predict important conversation outcomes: customer satisfaction, customer frustration, and overall problem resolution. We show that the type and location of certain dialogue acts in a conversation have a significant effect on the probability of desirable and undesirable outcomes, and present actionable rules based on our findings. The patterns and rules we derive can be used as guidelines for outcome-driven automated customer service platforms.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figures, IUI 201

Bioconjugate of Lysozyme and the Antibacterial Marine Sesquiterpene Quinone Avarone and Its Derivatives

A conjugate of lysozyme with avarone, a bioactive sesquiterpene quinone of marine origin, and its three derivatives were synthesized. MALDI TOF mass spectral analysis and tryptic digestion showed that the only residue in lysozyme that was modified by all derivatives was lysine 97. The identity of the residue was in full correlation with the prediction obtained by molecular modeling. All bioconjugates preserved most of the enzymatic activity of lysozyme. The melting point of the conjugates was slightly increased in comparison to lysozyme, indicating a slight stabilization of structure. The antibacterial activity of all the conjugates to both Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria was stronger than the activity of either lysozyme or the quinones, the MIC values being in low micromolar range for some conjugates.This is the peer-reviewed version of the article: Novaković, I., Anđelković, U., Zlatović, M., Gašić, M.J., Sladić, D., 2012. Bioconjugate of Lysozyme and the Antibacterial Marine Sesquiterpene Quinone Avarone and Its Derivatives. Bioconjugate Chem. 23, 57–65. [https://doi.org/10.1021/bc200330m

Characterization of inflorescence-predominant chitinase gene in Metroxylon sagu via differential display

Chitinase is an enzyme that catalyzes the degradation of chitin, commonly induced upon the attack of pathogens and other stresses. A cDNA (MsChi1) was isolated from Metroxylon sagu and expressed predominantly in the inflorescence tissue of M. sagu, suggesting its role in developmental processes. The chitinase cDNA was detected and isolated via differential display and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE). Primers specific to M. saguchitinase were used as probes to amplify the 3′-end and 5′-end regions of chitinase cDNA. Transcript analysis showed that chitinase is expressed in inflorescence and meristem tissues but was not detected in the leaf tissue. Sequence analysis of amplified cDNA fragments of 3′-end and 5′-end regions indicated that the chitinase cDNA was successfully amplified. The M. saguchitinase cDNA isolated was approximately 1,143 bp long and corresponds to 312 predicted amino acids. Alignments of nucleotide and amino acid have grouped this chitinase to family 19 class I chitinase

Swiss digital pathology recommendations: results from a Delphi process conducted by the Swiss Digital Pathology Consortium of the Swiss Society of Pathology

Integration of digital pathology (DP) into clinical diagnostic workflows is increasingly receiving attention as new hardware and software become available. To facilitate the adoption of DP, the Swiss Digital Pathology Consortium (SDiPath) organized a Delphi process to produce a series of recommendations for DP integration within Swiss clinical environments. This process saw the creation of 4 working groups, focusing on the various components of a DP system (1) scanners, quality assurance and validation of scans, (2) integration of Whole Slide Image (WSI)-scanners and DP systems into the Pathology Laboratory Information System, (3) digital workflow-compliance with general quality guidelines, and (4) image analysis (IA)/artificial intelligence (AI), with topic experts for each recruited for discussion and statement generation. The work product of the Delphi process is 83 consensus statements presented here, forming the basis for "SDiPath Recommendations for Digital Pathology". They represent an up-to-date resource for national and international hospitals, researchers, device manufacturers, algorithm developers, and all supporting fields, with the intent of providing expectations and best practices to help ensure safe and efficient DP usage

Expression of tissue factor in non-small-cell lung cancers and its relationship to metastasis

Tissue factor (TF) is an initiator of the extrinsic cascade of blood coagulation. Although recent studies have revealed a relationship between metastatic properties and TF expression in some neoplastic cells, the significance of TF in lung cancer, especially in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), is still unclear. In this study, TF was detected in NSCLC cell lines by functional study, Western blot analysis and immunocytochemical staining. TF levels in eight NSCLC cell lines were also quantitated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and TF expression was evaluated in 55 specimens of surgically resected NSCLCs. NSCLC cell lines derived from metastatic lesions produced high levels of TF (48.3 ± 23.5 ng 10−6 cells, mean ± s.e.m.), whereas those derived from primary lesions produced low levels of TF (0.2 ± 0.1 ng 10−6 cells). Immunohistochemical studies disclosed significantly stronger staining for TF in cells from NSCLC patients with metastasis than in those without metastasis. Among the 28 patients with metastasis, ten were strongly positive, 16 were moderately positive and two were negative for TF. In contrast, among the 27 patients without metastasis, only two were strongly positive, 18 were moderately positive and seven were negative for TF. Therefore, malignant cells from patients with lung cancer produce various levels of TF, and TF may play an important role in the metastatic process. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig