Chemotherapy regimen GOLF induces apoptosis in colon cancer cells through multi-chaperone complex inactivation and increased Raf-1 ubiquitin-dependent degradation.

The multi-drug combination of oxaliplatin (OXA), 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) and leucovorin (LF) is currently considered as the gold standard treatment for metastatic colorectal carcinoma. In previous studies, we have studied a chemotherapy regimen containing gemcitabine (GEM), OXA, LF, and 5-FU (named GOLF regimen) that has shown a good safety profile and highly significant anti-tumor activity. In the present study, we have investigated on the anti-tumour mechanisms of GOLF in human colon cancer HT-29 and WiDr cell lines. We have found that GOLF induced growth inhibition that was largely caused by apoptosis differently from other combinations. Moreover, the different drugs composing GOLF were highly synergistic in inducing growth inhibition. Apoptosis induced by GOLF combination was paralleled by PARP cleavage and caspase 9 and 3 activation that were not recorded in the other combinations. An about 85% decrease of the activity of Erk and Akt was found in GOLF-treated cells. These effects were likely due to decreased expression of the upstream activator Raf-1 and of Akt itself, respectively. The intracellular levels of these signalling components can be post-translationally regulated by ubiquitin-dependent degradation through proteasome. Therefore, we have evaluated the expression of some chaperone components and we have found that GOLF did not affect the expression of both heat shock protein (HSP) 90 and 27 but induced an about 90% increase of HSP70 levels suggesting the inactivation of the multi-chaperone complex. Moreover, an about 4-fold increase of the ubiquitination of Raf-1 was also found and the addition for 12 h of 10 microM proteasome inhibitor lactacystin caused an accumulation of the ubiquitinated isoforms of Raf-1. In conclusions, GOLF was a combination highly synergistic in inducing both growth inhibition and apoptosis of colon cancer cells. These effects likely occurred through the disruption of critical survival pathways and the inactivation of multi-chaperone complex

Ultrasonographic and pathologic study of schwannoma in a Goldfish (Carassius auratus)

An adult Gold\ufb01sh (Carassius auratus) developed an exophitic,multinodular, mass in the dorsal region involving the \ufb01n. The clinical andpathologic approach included ultrasonography, cytology, histopathology,immunohistochemistry, and ultrastructural evaluation. B-mode and colorDoppler ultrasonographic \ufb01ndings showed an oval, well-de\ufb01ned mass withslightly inhomogeneous parenchymatous echotexture associated with anintense intralesional vascularization. Cytology and histology revealed neo-plastic pleomorphic spindle cells arranged in a storiform pattern or in pal-isades typical of Antoni A pattern schwannoma. Moderate anisocytosis andanisokaryosis and occasional binucleation were also present. The neoplastictissue deeply in\ufb01ltrated the skeletal muscle of the dorsal region. Immuno-histochemistry showed a diffuse cytoplasmic immunoreactivity of neoplas-tic cells to S100 protein and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA); glial\ufb01brillary acidic protein was negative. The PCNA proliferation rate was23.5% (calculated as the mean of 10 \ufb01elds). Ultrastructurally, neoplasticcells were juxtaposed with parallel nuclei forming the typical palisade pat-tern and sharing cytoplasmic and nuclear features with human schwan-noma. This is the \ufb01rst cytologic description supplied with echographicinvestigation of a malignant schwannoma in a \ufb01sh species

A Statistical Analysis of Risk Factors and Biological Behavior in Canine Mammary Tumors: A Multicenter Study

Canine mammary tumors (CMTs) represent a serious issue in worldwide veterinary practice and several risk factors are variably implicated in the biology of CMTs. The present study examines the relationship between risk factors and histological diagnosis of a large CMT dataset from three academic institutions by classical statistical analysis and supervised machine learning methods. Epidemiological, clinical, and histopathological data of 1866 CMTs were included. Dogs with malignant tumors were significantly older than dogs with benign tumors (9.6 versus 8.7 years, p < 0.001). Malignant tumors were significantly larger than benign counterparts (2.69 versus 1.7 cm, p < 0.001). Interestingly, 18% of malignant tumors were smaller than 1 cm in diameter, providing compelling evidence that the size of the tumor should be reconsidered during the assessment of the TNM-WHO clinical staging. The application of the logistic regression and the machine learning model identified the age and the tumor’s size as the best predictors with an overall diagnostic accuracy of 0.63, suggesting that these risk factors are sufficient but not exhaustive indicators of the malignancy of CMTs. This multicenter study increases the general knowledge of the main epidemiologica-clinical risk factors involved in the onset of CMTs and paves the way for further investigations of these factors in association with CMTs and in the application of machine learning technology

Trends in the Incidence and Antibiotic Resistance of Enterococcal Bloodstream Isolates: A 7-Year Retrospective Multicenter Epidemiological Study in Italy

The spread of resistance to vancomycin and other last-resort drugs in Enterococcus spp. remains of concern. In Italy, surveillance data for enterococcal bloodstream isolates in humans are scant. The aim of our study was to assess the incidence trends of bacteremias due to Enterococcus species and their prevalence trends of antimicrobial resistance. We retrospectively included all consecutive not-duplicate Enterococcus species isolated from blood cultures, in patients from 11 Italian hospitals (2011-2017). Incidence was defined as the number of isolates per 10,000 patient-days, while resistance prevalence was defined as the number of resistant strains divided by the number of tested strains. We included 4,858 isolates (59%, 36%, and 5% due to Enterococcus faecalis, E. faecium, and other Enterococcus spp., respectively). Over the study period, the incidence of bacteremias due to E. faecalis (incidence rate ratio [IRR]: 1.02, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.00-1.04, p = 0.008) and E. faecium increased (IRR: 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.05, p < 0.001) alongside with the whole enterococcal bacteremias trend (IRR: 1.02, 95% CIs: 1.01-1.04, p = 0.002). A progressive increase in vancomycin-resistant E. faecium (VREfm) bacteremias was observed. Resistance to tigecycline and linezolid was rarely reported. The incidence of enterococcal bloodstream isolates is increasing in Italy, together with the prevalence of VREfm. Resistance to linezolid, a cornerstone drug used in the treatment of VRE bloodstream infection, remains negligible

Trends in the Incidence and Antibiotic Resistance of Enterococcal Bloodstream Isolates: A 7-Year Retrospective Multicenter Epidemiological Study in Italy

The spread of resistance to vancomycin and other last-resort drugs in Enterococcus spp. remains of concern. In Italy, surveillance data for enterococcal bloodstream isolates in humans are scant. The aim of our study was to assess the incidence trends of bacteremias due to Enterococcus species and their prevalence trends of antimicrobial resistance. We retrospectively included all consecutive not-duplicate Enterococcus species isolated from blood cultures, in patients from 11 Italian hospitals (2011-2017). Incidence was defined as the number of isolates per 10,000 patient-days, while resistance prevalence was defined as the number of resistant strains divided by the number of tested strains. We included 4,858 isolates (59%, 36%, and 5% due to Enterococcus faecalis, E. faecium, and other Enterococcus spp., respectively). Over the study period, the incidence of bacteremias due to E. faecalis (incidence rate ratio [IRR]: 1.02, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.00-1.04, p\u2009=\u20090.008) and E. faecium increased (IRR: 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01-1.05, p\u2009<\u20090.001) alongside with the whole enterococcal bacteremias trend (IRR: 1.02, 95% CIs: 1.01-1.04, p\u2009=\u20090.002). A progressive increase in vancomycin-resistant E. faecium (VREfm) bacteremias was observed. Resistance to tigecycline and linezolid was rarely reported. The incidence of enterococcal bloodstream isolates is increasing in Italy, together with the prevalence of VREfm. Resistance to linezolid, a cornerstone drug used in the treatment of VRE bloodstream infection, remains negligible