Oral anticoagulation in the treatment of a spontaneously metastasising murine tumour (3LL).

The effects of long-term anticoagulation with phenprocoumon on growth of the Lewis lung carcinoma (3LL) were studied. Oral anticoagulation initiated at the day of i.m. transplantation of the 3LL into C57BL mice significantly inhibited primary tumour growth and reduced the number of spontaneous metastases to the lungs. Intermittent anticoagulation was without effect on metastasis formation but still retarded primary growth. There was no influence of anticoagulation on the mean survival time (MST) of tumour-bearing animals. Phenprocoumon appears to improve the results of cyclophosphamide of 5-fluorouracil treatment, but there were no statisticially significant differences. In contrast, bleomycin treatment in combination with adjuvant anticoagulation suggested a possible drug synergy. No significant influence of anticoagulation on the response of the primary tumour to irradiattion was found, though the MST of irradiated and anticoagulated animals was greater than in the solely irradiated controls. The present investigations suggest that coumarin derivatives have some direct tumour-inhibiting capacities, but exert their antimetastatic action via deceleration of the blood clotting mechanism

Hexadecylphosphocholine, a new ether lipid analogue. Studies on the antineoplastic activity in vitro and in vivo.

Hexadecylphosphocholine (He-PC) is a new compound synthesized according to the minimal structural requirements deducted from studies with other ether lipids. In vitro studies on He-PC revealed remarkable antineoplastic activity on HL60, U937, Raji and K562 leukemia cell lines. In addition, He-PC, applied orally, showed a superior effect in the treatment of dimethylbenzanthracene-induced rat mammary carcinomas when compared to intravenously administered cyclophosphamide. After oral application He-PC was well absorbed from the intestine and metabolized in the liver by phospholipases C and D. During a 5-week treatment no hematotoxic effects were detected. In a clinical pilot study on breast cancer patients with widespread skin involvement, topically applied He-PC showed skin tumor regressions without local or systemic side effects

ERiSA: building emotionally realistic social game-agents companions

We propose an integrated framework for social and emotional game-agents to enhance their believability and quality of interaction, in particular by allowing an agent to forge social relations and make appropriate use of social signals. The framework is modular including sensing, interpretation, behaviour generation, and game components. We propose a generic formulation of action selection rules based on observed social and emotional signals, the agent’s personality, and the social relation between agent and player. The rules are formulated such that its variables can easily be obtained from real data. We illustrate and evaluate our framework using a simple social game called The Smile Game

The Science of Sex Appeal: An Evolutionary Perspective

Growing evidence shows that features we find attractive in members of the opposite sex signal important underlying dimensions of health and reproductive viability. It has been discovered that men with attractive faces have higher quality sperm, women with attractive bodies are more fertile, men and women with attractive voices lose their virginity sooner, men who spend more money than they earn have more sex partners, and lap dancers make more tips when they are in the fertile phase of their menstrual cycle. This paper highlights recent evidence showing that the way we perceive other people has been shaped by our evolutionary history. An evolutionary approach provides a powerful tool for understanding the consistency and diversity of mating preferences and behaviors across individuals and cultures. Keywords: evolutionary psychology, facial attractiveness, body configuration, voice, menstrual cycle, muscularity, body fat, dishonest signals A cursory glance at the women featured in popular men's magazines, such as Maxim or Playboy, suggests that men are attracted to young women with smooth skin, long soft hair, large eyes, slender bodies, long legs, curved hips, large pronounced breasts, rounded buttocks, and flat stomachs The pressure to be attractive can leave many people feeling dissatisfied with their appearance Why do so many people spend so much time, effort, and money on their appearance? Why do we find some people more attractive than others? If beauty is only skin deep, why should it matter how people look? What follows is a review of the science of sex appeal, targeting recent findings that illustrate the conceptual and heuristic value of an evolutionary perspective. 1 We first briefly outline how evolution shapes the way we process information about other people, and then focus on why we find certain faces, body types, and voices appealing. We show how an evolutionary perspective enables us to understand and predict ways that women's preferences for some of these traits shift across the menstrual cycle. We conclude with a discussion of how individuals have developed cultural and technological innovations to enhance certain aspects of their appearance. The Impact of Evolution It is important to understand that we do not experience the world or other people directly. Rather, our experience is a byproduct of sensory input acting on the nervous system. Our sensory receptors are evolved neurological mechanisms that convert mechanical, chemical, thermal, or electromagnetic energy into nerve impulses. These nerve impulses in turn activate evolved parts of the brain that translate these impulses into experience. The age-old question, "if a tree fell over in the woods and no one was there to hear it, would it make a noise?" has a clear and definitive answer from a neurobiological perspective. No doubt a felled tree would produce intense air borne vibrations, but in order to be "heard" or to make a "noise" these vibrations would have to impinge on an ear and trigger nerve impulses that activate relevant 1 In biological terms, traits that are more typical of women are considered "feminine" whereas traits that are more typical of males are considered "masculine." For example, testosterone "masculinizes" men's faces by making their jaws squarer, and estrogen "feminizes" women's faces by making their jaws more rounded

Preliminary study of relationships between hypnotic susceptibility and personality disorder functioning styles in healthy volunteers and personality disorder patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hypnotic susceptibility is one of the stable characteristics of individuals, but not closely related to the personality traits such as those measured by the five-factor model in the general population. Whether it is related to the personality disorder functioning styles remains unanswered.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In 77 patients with personality disorders and 154 healthy volunteers, we administered the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale: Form C (SHSSC) and the Parker Personality Measure (PERM) tests.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Patients with personality disorders showed higher passing rates on SHSSC Dream and Posthypnotic Amnesia items. No significant correlation was found in healthy volunteers. In the patients however, SHSSC Taste hallucination (β = 0.26) and Anosmia to Ammonia (β = -0.23) were significantly correlated with the PERM Borderline style; SHSSC Posthypnotic Amnesia was correlated with the PERM Schizoid style (β = 0.25) but negatively the PERM Narcissistic style (β = -0.23).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results provide limited evidence that could help to understand the abnormal cognitions in personality disorders, such as their hallucination and memory distortions.</p

Time perception and the experience of agency in meditation and hypnosis

Mindfulness meditation and hypnosis are related in opposing ways to awareness of intentions. The cold control theory of hypnosis proposes that hypnotic responding involves the experience of involuntariness while performing an actually intentional action. Hypnosis therefore relies upon inaccurate metacognition about intentional actions and experiences. Mindfulness meditation centrally involves awareness of intentions and is associated with improved metacognitive access to intentions. Therefore, mindfulness meditators and highly hypnotizable people may lie at opposite ends of a spectrum with regard to metacognitive access to intention‐related information. Here we review the theoretical background and evidence for differences in the metacognition of intentions in these groups, as revealed by chronometric measures of the awareness of voluntary action: the timing of an intention to move (Libet's “W” judgments) and the compressed perception of time between an intentional action and its outcome (“intentional binding”). We review these measures and critically evaluate their proposed connection to the experience of volition and sense of agency