Ferrocene-Decorated Hyperbranched Poly(aroxycarbonylphenylene)s: Synthesis, Light Refraction, Photopatterning and Precursor to Magnetic Ceramics

Ferrocene-decorated hyperbranched poly[1,3,5-tri(aroycarbonyl)phenylene]s (hb-PTACPs) are prepared in moderate yields with high molecular weights by one-pot polycyclotrimerization of 4,4'-isopropylidenediphenyl bipropiolate with 4-(ferrocenylmethyl)phenyl propiolate in reflux dimethylformamide. All the polymers are soluble and film-forming. They enjoy high thermal stability and lost little of their weight when heated to 300 °C under nitrogen. Thin solid films of the organometallic polymers shows high refractive indices (RI = 1.7038–1.6295) in the wavelength region of 400–1,700 nm. Ceramization of the organometallic hb-PTACPs at high temperature under inert atmosphere gives iron nanoparticles with high magnetizabilities. The organometallic polymers are readily cross-linked under UV irradiation and pyrolysis of the patterned polymer films produces magnetic ceramic patterns with good shape retention

Treatment outcome and prognostic factor analysis in transplant-eligible Chinese myeloma patients receiving bortezomib-based induction regimens including the staged approach, PAD or VTD

BACKGROUND: We have reported promising outcomes using a staged approach, in which bortezomib/thalidomide/dexamethasone was used only in 14 patients with suboptimal response to VAD (vincristine/adriamycin/dexamethasone) before autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). Here we compared the outcomes of the staged approach with frontline PAD (bortezomib/doxorubicin/dexamethasone) or VTD (bortezomib/thalidomide/dexamethasone) induction, and analysed prognostic factors for outcome. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Ninety-one transplant-eligible Chinese patients received three induction regimens prior to ASCT [staged approach (N = 25), PAD (N = 31), VTD (N = 35)]. and received thalidomide maintenance for 2 years post-ASCT. RESULTS: 43 (47.3%) patients had International Staging System (ISS) III disease. By an intention-to-treat analysis, the overall CR/nCR rate were 37.4% post-induction, and 62.6% post-ASCT. Five-year overall (OS) and event-free (EFS) survivals were 66% and 45.1%. There was no difference of the post-induction CR/nCR rate, EFS or OS between patients induced by these three regimens. Moreover, ISS III disease did not affect CR/nCR rates. Multivariate analysis showed that ISS and post-ASCT CR/nCR impacted OS while ISS and post-induction CR/nCR impacted EFS. CONCLUSIONS: These three induction regimens produced comparable and favorable outcomes in myeloma. The unfavorable outcome of ISS stage III persisted despite upfront/early use of bortezomib. CR/nCR predicted favorable survivals

Epigenomic analysis of aberrantly methylated genes in colorectal cancer identifies genes commonly affected by epigenetic alterations.

Methylation profiling based on bead-chip arrays is an effective method for screening aberrantly methylated genes in CRC. In addition, we identified novel methylated genes that are candidate diagnostic or prognostic markers for CRC

Curcumin―The Paradigm of a Multi-Target Natural Compound with Applications in Cancer Prevention and Treatment

As cancer is a multifactor disease, it may require treatment with compounds able to target multiple intracellular components. We summarize here how curcumin is able to modulate many components of intracellular signaling pathways implicated in inflammation, cell proliferation and invasion and to induce genetic modulations eventually leading to tumor cell death. Clinical applications of this natural compound were initially limited by its low solubility and bioavailability in both plasma and tissues but combination with adjuvant and delivery vehicles was reported to largely improve bio-availability of curcumin. Moreover, curcumin was reported to act in synergism with several natural compounds or synthetic agents commonly used in chemotherapy. Based on this, curcumin could thus be considered as a good candidate for cancer prevention and treatment when used alone or in combination with other conventional treatments