TRPA1- FGFR2 binding event is a regulatory oncogenic driver modulated by miRNA-142-3p

YesRecent evidence suggests that the ion channel TRPA1 is implicated in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) where its role and mechanism of action remain unknown. We have previously established that the membrane receptor FGFR2 drives LUAD progression through aberrant protein-protein interactions mediated via its C-terminal proline rich motif. Here, we report that the N-terminal ankyrin repeats of TRPA1 directly bind to the C-terminal proline rich motif of FGFR2 inducing the constitutive activation of the receptor, thereby prompting LUAD progression and metastasis. Furthermore, we show that upon metastasis to the brain, TRPA1 gets depleted, an effect triggered by the transfer of TRPA1-targeting exosomal microRNA (miRNA-142-3p) from brain astrocytes to cancer cells. This downregulation, in turn, inhibits TRPA1-mediated activation of FGFR2 hindering the metastatic process. Our study reveals a direct binding event and characterizes the role of TRPA1 ankyrin repeats in regulating FGFR2-driven oncogenic process; a mechanism that is hindered by miRNA-142-3p.Faculty of Biological Sciences at the University of Leeds, Wellcome Trust Seed Award, Royal Society Research Grant RG150100, MR/K021303/1, Swedish Research Council (2014-3801) and the Medical Faculty at Lund University

Pediatricians’ assessments of caries risk and need for a dental evaluation in preschool aged children

Abstract Background Risk-based prioritization of dental referrals during well-child visits might improve dental access for infants and toddlers. This study identifies pediatrician-assessed risk factors for early childhood caries (ECC) and their association with the need for a dentist’s evaluation. Methods A priority oral health risk assessment and referral tool (PORRT) for children < 36 months was developed collaboratively by physicians and dentists and used by 10 pediatricians during well-child visits. PORRT documented behavioral, clinical, and child health risks for ECC. Pediatricians also assessed overall ECC risk on an 11-point scale and determined the need for a dental evaluation. Logistic regression models calculated the odds for evaluation need for each risk factor and according to a 3-level risk classification. Results In total 1,288 PORRT forms were completed; 6.8% of children were identified as needing a dentist evaluation. Behavioral risk factors were prevalent but not strong predictors of the need for an evaluation. The child’s overall caries risk was the strongest predictor of the need for an evaluation. Cavitated (OR = 17.5; 95% CI = 8.08, 37.97) and non-cavitated (OR = 6.9; 95% CI = 4.47, 10.82) lesions were the strongest predictors when the caries risk scale was excluded from the analysis. Few patients (6.3%) were classified as high risk, but their probability of needing an evaluation was only 0.36. Conclusions Low referral rates for children with disease and prior to disease onset but at elevated risk, indicate interventions are needed to help improve the dental referral rates of physicians

Antiinflammatory Therapy with Canakinumab for Atherosclerotic Disease

Background: Experimental and clinical data suggest that reducing inflammation without affecting lipid levels may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Yet, the inflammatory hypothesis of atherothrombosis has remained unproved. Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind trial of canakinumab, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1β, involving 10,061 patients with previous myocardial infarction and a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level of 2 mg or more per liter. The trial compared three doses of canakinumab (50 mg, 150 mg, and 300 mg, administered subcutaneously every 3 months) with placebo. The primary efficacy end point was nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular death. RESULTS: At 48 months, the median reduction from baseline in the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level was 26 percentage points greater in the group that received the 50-mg dose of canakinumab, 37 percentage points greater in the 150-mg group, and 41 percentage points greater in the 300-mg group than in the placebo group. Canakinumab did not reduce lipid levels from baseline. At a median follow-up of 3.7 years, the incidence rate for the primary end point was 4.50 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group, 4.11 events per 100 person-years in the 50-mg group, 3.86 events per 100 person-years in the 150-mg group, and 3.90 events per 100 person-years in the 300-mg group. The hazard ratios as compared with placebo were as follows: in the 50-mg group, 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 1.07; P = 0.30); in the 150-mg group, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.74 to 0.98; P = 0.021); and in the 300-mg group, 0.86 (95% CI, 0.75 to 0.99; P = 0.031). The 150-mg dose, but not the other doses, met the prespecified multiplicity-adjusted threshold for statistical significance for the primary end point and the secondary end point that additionally included hospitalization for unstable angina that led to urgent revascularization (hazard ratio vs. placebo, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.95; P = 0.005). Canakinumab was associated with a higher incidence of fatal infection than was placebo. There was no significant difference in all-cause mortality (hazard ratio for all canakinumab doses vs. placebo, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.83 to 1.06; P = 0.31). Conclusions: Antiinflammatory therapy targeting the interleukin-1β innate immunity pathway with canakinumab at a dose of 150 mg every 3 months led to a significantly lower rate of recurrent cardiovascular events than placebo, independent of lipid-level lowering. (Funded by Novartis; CANTOS ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01327846.

A Deep Neural Network for Simultaneous Estimation of b Jet Energy and Resolution

We describe a method to obtain point and dispersion estimates for the energies of jets arising from b quarks produced in proton-proton collisions at an energy of s = 13 TeV at the CERN LHC. The algorithm is trained on a large sample of simulated b jets and validated on data recorded by the CMS detector in 2017 corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 41 fb - 1 . A multivariate regression algorithm based on a deep feed-forward neural network employs jet composition and shape information, and the properties of reconstructed secondary vertices associated with the jet. The results of the algorithm are used to improve the sensitivity of analyses that make use of b jets in the final state, such as the observation of Higgs boson decay to b b ¯

Respiratory syncytial virus activates epidermal growth factor receptor to suppress interferon regulatory factor 1-dependent interferon-lambda and antiviral defense in airway epithelium.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) persists as a significant human pathogen that continues to contribute to morbidity and mortality. In children, RSV is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract infections, and in adults RSV causes pneumonia and contributes to exacerbations of chronic lung diseases. RSV induces airway epithelial inflammation by activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), a tyrosine kinase receptor. Recently, EGFR inhibition was shown to decrease RSV infection, but the mechanism(s) for this effect are not known. Interferon (IFN) signaling is critical for innate antiviral responses, and recent experiments have implicated IFN-λ (lambda), a type III IFN, as the most significant IFN for mucosal antiviral immune responses to RSV infection. However, a role for RSV-induced EGFR activation to suppress airway epithelial antiviral immunity has not been explored. Here, we show that RSV-induced EGFR activation suppresses IFN regulatory factor (IRF) 1-induced IFN-λ production and increased viral infection, and we implicate RSV F protein to mediate this effect. EGFR inhibition, during viral infection, augmented IRF1, IFN-λ, and decreased RSV titers. These results suggest a mechanism for EGFR inhibition to suppress RSV by activation of endogenous epithelial antiviral defenses, which may be a potential target for novel therapeutics