ACPA-positive and -negative DLBCL patients and healthy controls stratified by RF (IgM)-negative and -positive serostatus.

<p>DLBCL = diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients. RF−/+ = rheumatoid factor IgM-negative/positive; ACPA−/+ = anti-citrullinated cyclic peptide positive/negative. *no significant difference, p = 0.802. §No significant difference, p = 0.493. ^#Significantly higher frequency of ACPA in RF (IgM)+DLBCL than in RF(IgM)+HC (p = 0.043).</p

Levels of CMV peptide specific CD8 T cells do not correlate with viremia.

<p>CMV specific CD8 T cells were quantified using peptide bound MHC class I pentamers. A Dotplots of an HLA-A2 and HLA-B7 positive patient with T cells reactive towards a total of four peptides are shown. B No association of CMV specific CD8 T cells or total CD8 T cells with the presence or absence of detectable viremia (p = 0.82 and p = 0.22, respectively). Bars indicate median T-cell numbers/µl. C CMV specific CD8 T-cell numbers towards individual peptides may show different kinetics over time within one individual. D Higher percentage of PD-1 expressing CD8 T cells in CMV specific CD8 T cells (recognizing HLA-A2 with peptide NLV and/or VLE) as compared to total CD8 T cells (p<0.0001). E No significant difference in the percentage of PD-1 expressing CD8 T cells in CMV specific CD8 T cells (recognizing HLA-A2 with peptide NLV) as compared to total CD8 T cells (p<0.19).</p

Patient characteristics.

<p>Abbreviations: BM, bone marrow; BU, busulfan; CY, cytoxin; FLU, fludarabin; MM, multiple myeloma; NHL, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; PBSC, peripheral blood stem cells; TBI, total body irradiation.</p

Clinical characteristics of ACPA positive and negative DLBCL patients.

(1)<p>Mann-Whitney U Test.</p>(2)<p>Log rank/Mantel-Cox tests. ACPA = anti-citrullinated cyclic peptide. ECOG = index of life quality according to the European Cooperative Oncology Group. ESR = erythrocyte sedimentation rate. LDH = lactate dehydrogenase.</p

Combined immunosuppression with cyclosporine A and methylprednisolone contributes to a decrease in CMV specific CD4 T-cell function.

<p>CMV specific CD4 T cells reactivity from six immunocompetent CMV seropositive individuals were analyzed directly from whole blood supplemented with or without 180 ng/ml cyclosporine A (CyA) in the absence or presence of increasing dosages of methylprednisolone (MP). A The mean percentage of IFN-γ producing CD4 T cells (including standard error of the mean, SEM) and B the mean percentage of BrdU positive, proliferating CD4 T cells (including SEM) was analyzed after 36 h of stimulation using flow-cytometry.</p

Age and gender distribution of DLBCL patients and healthy controls.

<p>*p = 0.0192 (difference in age of HC versus DLBCL).</p><p>**p = 0.038 (difference in gender distribution of HC versus DLBCL).</p><p>DLBCL = diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients.</p><p>HC = healthy controls.</p

Lowest levels of CMV specific CD4 T cells at the onset of and during viremia.

<p>A CMV specific or B total CD4 T cells were quantified in non-viremic individuals and compared to patients >14 days, <14 days, at the onset of, during, or after viremia. Bars indicate median numbers of cells/µl whole blood. Each patient is depicted once in a given time period. If more than one data set existed, mean values were calculated for each patient. The level of significance in the post-test (p<0.05, p<0.01, p<0.001) is depicted by one, two or three stars, respectively. C Inverse correlation between the levels of CMV specific CD4 T cells at onset of viremia and peak viral load thereafter (r = −0.45, p = 0.02).</p

Boxplots presenting results of ACPA serum concentration levels in DLBCL (n = 14) and RA (n = 175).

<p>Boxplots with median (10.4 versus 124.1) and first/third quartile, respectively. ACPA−/+ = anti-citrullinated cyclic peptide positive/negative. DLBCL = diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients. *p-value = 0.0001.</p

A modified spatial soil moisture storage capacity distribution curve for the Xinanjiang model

The Xinanjiang model provides a statistically integral structure to describe the runoff generation on partial areas over a catchment. In the original version of the model, a single parabolic curve is used to describe the soil moisture variation. In reality however, the spatial and temporal distribution of soil moisture is quite complex because many different states, which change with seasons of the year, co-exist in the catchment. In this study, a more general double parabolic curve is proposed to describe the complex soil moisture variation. It consists of lower and upper branches, with the lower branch for the wet condition, the upper branch for the dry condition, and a smooth transition. Two parameters, c and b represent the relative weight between the lower and the upper branches and their gradients. The single parabolic curve of the original Xinanjiang model can be thought of as a special case of the proposed double parabolic curve. Both the single and double parabolic curves perform similarly when used with storm events isolated from daily data in the wet seasons, but the double parabolic curve improves the predictions significantly when used with data from the dry seasons. When used with hourly event data there is no significant difference between the two curves because of the dominance of the wet soil moisture condition. Even in this case, the double parabolic curve differentiates the parameter values more clearly for different soil moisture states. There is also a slight improvement on the predictions for storms in the dry seasons

Positive Interaction between Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation and Maintenance Sunitinib for Untreated Extensive-Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients After Standard Chemotherapy: A Secondary Analysis of CALGB 30504 (ALLIANCE)

BACKGROUND: Prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) has become a standard option for patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC). The Cancer and Leukemia Group B 30504 trial was a randomized phase II study of the effect of sunitinib versus placebo in ES-SCLC patients responding to platinum-based systemic therapy. The study required preenrollment brain imaging. PCI was provided at the discretion of treating physicians. We performed a secondary analysis of the Cancer and Leukemia Group B trial to determine the impact of PCI on patients with ES-SCLC. METHODS: Fisher's exact test and the Wilcoxon rank-sum test were conducted to identify the differences between patients receiving PCI and patients not receiving PCI. Kaplan-Meier analyses described progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for patients in the PCI and non-PCI groups. RESULTS: A total of 85 patients received maintenance therapy (41 received placebo and 44 received sunitinib). Patient characteristics were balanced between the PCI and non-PCI groups. The patients receiving PCI plus sunitinib had a nonsignificant 2.7-month improvement in PFS (5.0 months versus 2.3 months, p = 0.14, hazard risk [HR] = 0.62, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.33-1.18) trending toward improved OS (8.9 months versus 5.4 months, p = 0.053, HR = 0.47, 95% CI: 0.22-1.03). PCI was associated with a trend toward improved median PFS (2.9 months versus 2.2 months, p = 0.096, HR = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.45-1.07) but not median OS (8.3 months in the PCI group versus 8.7 months in the non-PCI group, p = 0.76, HR = 1.07, 95% CI: 0.67-1.71). The patients receiving placebo had no improvement in PFS or OS with PCI. CONCLUSIONS: Trends toward improved PFS and OS were seen in patients receiving PCI and sunitinib, thus supporting the need for further prospective research evaluating the integration of maintenance systemic therapy and PCI for patients with ES-SCLC. Improved outcomes for patients with ES-SCLC after induction chemotherapy may require PCI, thoracic radiotherapy, and maintenance systemic therapy to achieve control of both intracranial and extracranial disease.link_to_subscribed_fulltex