Tracing the Scale of Fluid Flow in Subduction Zone Forearcs: Implications from Fluid-Mobile elements

Despite the importance of fluids in subduction zone processes, the extent of mass transfer and fluid circulation from the subducting plate through the forearc region remain unclear. To estimate the fluid budget and scale of fluid circulation in subducted sediments, we assess the distribution and retention of fluid-mobile elements (FME) in metamorphically equivalent metapelites from the Kodiak complex (Alaska) and the Shimanto Belt (Japan). The temperature range of interest is 230–350 °C, i.e., encompasses the base of the seismogenic zone. We examine the Li, B, Rb, Sr, Cs, and Ba concentrations in the bulk rock, as well as in fluid inclusions and individual minerals by (LA-) ICP-MS.The whole-rock composition in metapelites from Kodiak shows no significant loss of FME, which is in contrast to Shimanto where between 10% and 55% of FME (particularly Li, B and Cs) are leached out of rocks. The FME budget in Kodiak is consistent with a redistribution of elements between metamorphic illite and chlorite, whereas in Shimanto the loss of Li, B and Cs as temperature increases is the result of decreasing concentrations in illite and chlorite. The semi-quantitative analysis of fluid inclusions is consistent with a significant enrichment in all analyzed trace elements relative to seawater and interstitial pore fluids of seafloor sediments.Combining the fluid compositions with the whole-rock compositions, mass balance calculations were performed for B, Cs, and Ba. In the Kodiak complex the mass balance calculations are consistent with closed-system behavior, wherein the fluid is an insignificant reservoir for FME. Conversely, in the Shimanto Belt the mass balance calculations are consistent with open-system behavior, wherein large amounts of fluid percolated through rocks and the mass water-rock ratios correspond to 0.5–2.2. We infer that such an open system behavior was promoted by a larger amount of internal strain and the proximity to a large-scale fault zone. Moreover, fluid compositions observed in this study exhibit similarities to the composition of mud volcano fluids. This similarity is consistent with extensive, focused fluid circulation originating from depths of at least 15 km and ascending to the surface through a substantial damage zone associated with an out-of-sequence thrust

ELISA assay employing epitope-specific monoclonal antibodies to quantify circulating HER2 with potential application in monitoring cancer patients undergoing therapy with trastuzumab

Circulating HER2 extracellular domain (HER2 ECD) levels were proposed as a surrogate for HER2 tissue expression to monitor breast cancer patients for early relapse or responses to standard or HER2-targeted therapies, such as the monoclonal antibody (mAb) trastuzumab. Currently, available commercial ELISA assays for HER2 ECD rely on antibodies recognizing undisclosed or unknown epitopes. In this work, two ELISA assays employing MGR2 and MGR3 epitope-specific mAbs for HER2 ECD were developed and validated, showing good assay precision and linearity of the dose-response signal within the dynamic range of 0.19–12.50 ng mL−1 and detection limits of 0.76 and 0.75 ng mL−1 for the MGR2 and MGR3 assays, respectively. The developed assay showed a good agreement with two widely used commercial kits for HER2 ECD quantification in serum samples from breast cancer patients. A complete characterization of mAb-HER2 ECD interaction was performed by means of surface plasmon resonance using trastuzumab as control for both epitope mapping and kinetics analysis. The epitopes recognized by the two mAbs showed no overlap with trastuzumab, which was confirmed by trastuzumab interference analysis in serum samples. The method showed to be a practical approach to determine HER2 ECD with a high degree of sensitivity, reliability and recovery in samples containing mAbs-based therapies

Reduced trabecular bone mineral density and cortical thickness accompanied by increased outer bone circumference in metacarpal bone of rheumatoid arthritis patients: a cross-sectional study

Introduction The objective of this study was to assess three-dimensional bone geometry and density at the epiphysis and shaft of the third meta-carpal bone of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in comparison to healthy controls with the novel method of peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT). Methods PQCT scans were performed in 50 female RA patients and 100 healthy female controls at the distal epiphyses and shafts of the third metacarpal bone, the radius and the tibia. Reproducibility was determined by coefficient of varia-tion. Bone densitometric and geometric parameters were compared between the two groups and correlated to disease characteristics. Results Reproducibility of different pQCT parameters was between 0.7% and 2.5%. RA patients had 12% to 19% lower trabecular bone mineral density (BMD) (P ≤ 0.001) at the distal epiphyses of radius, tibia and metacarpal bone. At the shafts of these bones RA patients had 7% to 16% thinner cortices (P ≤ 0.03). Total cross-sectional area (CSA) at the metacarpal bone shaft of pa-tients was larger (between 5% and 7%, P < 0.02), and relative cortical area was reduced by 13%. Erosiveness by Ratingen score correlated negatively with tra-becular and total BMD at the epiphyses and shaft cortical thickness of all measured bones (P < 0.04). Conclusions Reduced trabecular BMD and thinner cortices at peripheral bones, and a greater bone shaft diameter at the metacarpal bone suggest RA spe-cific bone alterations. The proposed pQCT protocol is reliable and allows measuring juxta-articular trabecular BMD and shaft geometry at the metacarpal bone

Phase II study of Gemcitabine and Curcumin (Meriva®) as first line treatment for locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer: preliminary results

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