From In-Vitro to In-Vivo: Corporate Development and Efficacy of a Topical Hair Growth Agent Derived from Natural Extracts

Androgenetic alopecia (male pattern baldness) affects up to 50% of the world’s population, propelling the development for a possible treatment. The hair follicle is influenced by several genetic and physiologic factors, which, when gone awry, lead to androgenetic alopecia. Vascular endothelial and keratinocyte growth factors are believed to be promoters of hair growth, as is inhibition of the proteasome complex. The cytokine IL-1α is also known to regulate follicle dynamics. The research objective described herein was an attempt to develop a botanical blend, which could mediate the above biomarkers, be successfully incorporated into a safe topical product and be evaluated for in-vivo efficacy. By using an arbitrary scoring system to evaluate in-vitro performance, botanical extracts were screened in cell culture and enzyme assays. A Design of Experiments analysis, utilizing analyses of variance and multiple linear regressions, was performed to derive an optimized blend of Eichochalcone, Saw Palmetto, Shiso and Green Rooibos for incorporation into the prototype formulation. After passing human irritancy and sensitization testing, these extracts were coupled with liposomes to create a final prototype that was also screened for long-term stability. The end product was used in a clinical-type trial, assessing its effectiveness to increase scalp hair density, promote anagen follicle activity and increase the growth rate of the hair fiber. The product was benchmarked by Rogaine® Extra Strength (5% minoxidil) and Rovisomes Biotin (commercially available). The twelve-week study involved sixty-nine males experiencing varying degrees of androgenetic alopecia who underwent 14” length haircuts and a series of digital imaging focusing on a transition zone area of interest. The three test products significantly increased hair density and the number of anagen follicles compared to baseline values. Growth rate was up regulated for users of the prototype and Rogaine®. Subjective self-assessment of the products revealed the prototype to he the least effective in improving hair quality characteristics, but with no significant difference to the other two products. These results indicate the herbal blend of Lichochalcone, Saw Palmetto, Shiso and Green Rooibos, in a liposomal base, has the potential to be an effective topical treatment for androgenetic alopecia

Acoustic calibration and bathymetric processing with a Klein 5410 sidescan sonar

In 2001, NOAA acquired an L-3 Communications Klein 5410 bathymetric sidescan sonar system that simultaneously provided high resolution multibeam acoustic imagery and wide swath bathymetry. The sonar\u27s inability to produce matching bathymetry in overlapping swaths motivated the detailed acoustic and signal processing analyses described in this thesis. Results of this research include specific corrections for phase distortions introduced by the sonar\u27s transmit pulses, receiver electronics, and transducer elements, which are implemented in a newly-developed full vector bathymetric processing algorithm to estimate accurate acoustic arrival angles for each sample of the seafloor echo acquired by the Klein 5410 sonar. Performance of this algorithm was verified during a survey conducted in New York Harbor during October of 2006. The resulting bathymetry matches bathymetry obtained independently over the same survey area with a Reson SeaBat 8125 focused multibeam echo-sounder operating at the same acoustic frequency

Evaluating the impacts of refuge width on source-sink dynamics between transgenic and non-transgenic cotton

Resistance management for Bt-transgenic crops relies in part on the production of sufficient numbers of susceptible insects in non-toxic refuges. Simulation models suggested that source-sink dynamics could interact with the structure of refuges to impact the production of insects in these areas. We tested the hypothesis that altering isolation between refuges and transgenic cotton by manipulating the width of refuges embedded within cotton fields would alter the density of Heliothis virescens and Helicoverpa zea eggs oviposited in refuges. Three categories of refuge widths were tested over two years: they included narrow (16–24m wide), medium (32-48m wide) and wide (80–96m wide) refuges. Isolation between the two habitats increased as refuge width increased. In 1996, eggs of H. virescens from H. zea were not distinguished, but a significant increase in the density of eggs and a significant decrease in relative yield (refuge yield compared to the yield from immediately surrounding Bt-cotton) was found as refuge width increased. In 1997, eggs from H. virescens were analyzed separately from H. zea using an ELISA test. The density of H. virescens eggs increased with increasing refuge width, and there was a significant decline in density of H. virescens eggs with increasing distance from the refuge. In contrast, there was no impact of refuge width on the density of H. zea eggs, nor was the slope of a regression of egg density and distance from the refuge significantly different from zero. We suggest that these differences reflect differences in the biology of the two insects

Association between adiponectin and heart failure risk in the Physicians' Health Study

Limited data are available on the association between adiponectin and incident heart failure. In the current ancillary study to the Physicians' Health Study, we used a prospective nested-case control design to examine whether plasma adiponectin concentration was related to the risk of heart failure. We selected 787 incident heart failure cases and 787 matched controls for the current analysis. Each control was selected using a risk set sampling technique at the time of the occurrence of the index case and matched on year of birth, age at blood collection, and race. Adiponectin was measured using ELISA. Heart failure occurrence was self-reported in annual follow-up questionnaire. Validation of self-reported heart failure in this cohort has been published. The mean age was 58.7 years. In a conditional logistic regression adjusting for age, race, time of blood collection, year of birth, hypertension, atrial fibrillation, smoking, alcohol intake, and exercise, estimates of the relative risk (95% confidence interval) were 1.0 (ref), 0.74 (0.53–1.04), 0.67 (0.48–0.94), 0.70 (0.50–0.99), and 0.92 (0.65–1.30) from the lowest to the highest quintile of adiponectin, respectively, p for quadratic trend 0.004. Additional adjustment for potential mediating factors including diabetes, C-reactive protein, and body mass index led to the attenuation of the estimate of effect [1.0 (ref), 0.81 (0.57–1.15), 0.75 (0.53–1.06), 0.83 (0.58–1.18), and 1.26 (0.87–1.81) across consecutive quintiles of adiponectin]. Our data are consistent with a J-shaped association between total adiponectin and the risk of heart failure among US male physicians

A Combined Experimental and Analytical Modeling Approach to Understanding Friction Stir Welding

In the Friction Stir Welding (FSW) process a rotating pin tool joins the sides of a seam by stirring them together. This solid state welding process avoids problems with melting and hot-shortness presented by some difficult-to weld high-performance light alloys. The details of the plastic flow during the process are not well understood and are currently a subject of research. Two candidate models of the FSW process, the Mixed Zone (MZ) and the Single Slip Surface (S3) model are presented and their predictions compared to experimental data

Compilation and review engagements : essential questions and answers

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/aicpa_guides/1524/thumbnail.jp

Purification and Identification of a 7.6-kDa Protein in Media Conditioned by Superinvasive Cancer Cells

Background: Selection of the human drug sensitive and invasive cell line (MDA-MB-435S-F) with the chemotherapeutic agent paclitaxel, resulted in the development of drug resistant cell lines displaying enhanced invasion-related characteristics. Materials and Methods: Serum-free conditioned media from the human cancer drug-sensitive and invasive cell line (MDA-MB-435S-F) and its paclitaxel-resistant superinvasive variant (MDA-MB-435S-F/Taxol10p4pSI) were analyzed using Surface enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF MS). Results: A differentially expressed protein was observed at 7.6 kDa, which was 4-fold upregulated in MDA-MB-435S-F/Taxol10p4pSI. The differentially expressed protein was identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF MS), as a fragment of bovine transferrin. The transferrin receptor was also found to be overexpressed in the superinvasive cell line. Conclusion: Cleavage of serum proteins such as transferrin could provide a valuable source of markers for malignant tumours and could also play a role in aspects of cancer pathogenesis, such as tumour cachexia