Cerebral processing of voice gender studied using a continuous carryover fMRI design

Normal listeners effortlessly determine a person's gender by voice, but the cerebral mechanisms underlying this ability remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate 2 stages of cerebral processing during voice gender categorization. Using voice morphing along with an adaptation-optimized functional magnetic resonance imaging design, we found that secondary auditory cortex including the anterior part of the temporal voice areas in the right hemisphere responded primarily to acoustical distance with the previously heard stimulus. In contrast, a network of bilateral regions involving inferior prefrontal and anterior and posterior cingulate cortex reflected perceived stimulus ambiguity. These findings suggest that voice gender recognition involves neuronal populations along the auditory ventral stream responsible for auditory feature extraction, functioning in pair with the prefrontal cortex in voice gender perception

Evaluation of management of desmoid tumours associated with familial adenomatous polyposis in Dutch patients

Item does not contain fulltextBACKGROUND: The optimal treatment of desmoid tumours is controversial. We evaluated desmoid management in Dutch familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) patients. METHODS: Seventy-eight FAP patients with desmoids were identified from the Dutch Polyposis Registry. Data on desmoid morphology, management, and outcome were analysed retrospectively. Progression-free survival (PFS) rates and final outcome were compared for surgical vs non-surgical treatment, for intra-abdominal and extra-abdominal desmoids separately. Also, pharmacological treatment was evaluated for all desmoids. RESULTS: Median follow-up was 8 years. For intra-abdominal desmoids (n=62), PFS rates at 10 years of follow-up were comparable after surgical and non-surgical treatment (33% and 49%, respectively, P=0.163). None of these desmoids could be removed entirely. Eventually, one fifth died from desmoid disease. Most extra-abdominal and abdominal wall desmoids were treated surgically with a PFS rate of 63% and no deaths from desmoid disease. Comparison between NSAID and anti-estrogen treatment showed comparable outcomes. Four of the 10 patients who received chemotherapy had stabilisation of tumour growth, all after doxorubicin combination therapy. CONCLUSION: For intra-abdominal desmoids, a conservative approach and surgery showed comparable outcomes. For extra-abdominal and abdominal wall desmoids, surgery seemed appropriate. Different pharmacological therapies showed comparable outcomes. If chemotherapy was given for progressively growing intra-abdominal desmoids, most favourable outcomes occurred after combinations including doxorubicin

Natural killer cells: role in local tumor growth and metastasis

Inge Langers1,*, Virginie M Renoux1,*, Marc Thiry2, Philippe Delvenne1, Nathalie Jacobs1 1Laboratory of Experimental Pathology, GIGA-I3/GIGA-Cancer, University of Liège, 2Cellular and Tissular Biology, GIGA-Neurosciences, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium*These authors contributed equally to this workAbstract: Historically, the name of natural killer (NK) cells came from their natural ability to kill tumor cells in vitro. From the 1970s to date, accumulating data highlighted the importance of NK cells in host immune response against cancer and in therapy-induced antitumor response. The recognition and the lysis of tumor cells by NK cells are regulated by a complex balance of inhibitory and activating signals. This review summarizes NK cell mechanisms to kill cancer cells, their role in host immune responses against tumor growth or metastasis, and their implications in antitumor immunotherapies via cytokines, antibodies, or in combination with other therapies. The regulatory role of NK cells in autoimmunity is also discussed.Keywords: natural killer, tumor, cytotoxicity, natural cytotoxicity recepto

Development of monoclonal antibody microspheres using the solid-in-oil-in-water encapsulation method

info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublishe