Synchronous Asynchronicity: The Use of Mobiles to Pattern Face-to-Face Encounters in Chaotic Environments

Although mobile media are commonly associated with distant communications, young adults also use Short Message Service (SMS) texting for inter-group exchanges in co-located circumstances. Such co-located mobile phone use is particularly evident where usual communication cues are compromised by a chaotic environment. Chaos can ensue when cues of voice and vision are impaired, with secondary impacts upon clear thought and fixed points of reference. A dark, noisy club environment would provide one example of this dynamic at work. Chaotic surroundings can encourage a pleasing suspension of individual control, while exposing participants to a range of social and emotional risks. Text communication offers the security of connecting with co-located companions in such circumstances. Mobile phone use mediates the chaos and introduces the possibility of synchronous activity. Accepting the argument that texting is a form of asynchronous communication, this paper suggests its commonplace co-located use to synchronise activity in chaotic situations

Differentiating tumor heterogeneity in formalin‐fixed paraffin‐embedded (FFPE) prostate adenocarcinoma tissues using principal component analysis of matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization imaging mass spectral data

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/135165/1/rcm7776.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/135165/2/rcm7776_am.pd

Proteomic analysis of a murine model of lung hypoplasia induced by oligohydramnios

Acknowledgments This work was supported by funding from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health, Number: P30GM114750 and Oh–Zopfi Grant for Perinatal Research, Department of Pediatrics; Kilguss Research Core at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island. Funding information National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Grant/Award Number: 30GM114750; Oh–Zopfi Award for Perinatal Research, Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode IslandPeer reviewedPostprin

Expression of the intestinal biomarkers Guanylyl cyclase C and CDX2 in poorly differentiated colorectal carcinomas.

Guanylyl cyclase C, a receptor for bacterial diarrheagenic enterotoxins, is expressed selectively by intestinal epithelium and is an endogenous downstream target of CDX2. The expression of Guanylyl cyclase C is preserved throughout the adenoma/carcinoma sequence in the colorectum. Detection of Guanylyl cyclase C expression by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction is currently being validated as a technique to identify occult lymph node metastases in patients with colorectal cancer and for circulating cells in the blood for postoperative surveillance. Although Guanylyl cyclase C is widely expressed by well-differentiated colorectal cancer, its expression in poorly differentiated colorectal cancer has not been evaluated. A tissue microarray was created from 69 archival specimens including 44 poorly differentiated, 15 undifferentiated or medullary, and 10 signet ring cell colorectal carcinomas. Matched normal colonic mucosa was used as a positive control. Immunohistochemical staining for Guanylyl cyclase C and CDX2 was evaluated as positive or negative based on at least a 10% extent of staining. Of the 69 tumor samples, 75%, 47%, and 90% of the poorly differentiated, medullary, and signet ring cell tumors were positive for Guanylyl cyclase C and 75%, 40% and 90% of these subsets were positive for CDX2, respectively. There was excellent correlation between Guanylyl cyclase C and CDX2 expression on a case-per-case basis (P \u3c .0001). There was also a statistically significant difference in the Guanylyl cyclase C staining pattern between medullary carcinomas and poorly differentiated, not otherwise specified (P = .05). Immunopositivity for Guanylyl cyclase C was greater than 95% in a separately stained microarray series of well/moderately differentiated colorectal carcinomas. In conclusion, Guanylyl cyclase C expression is lost in a quarter of poorly differentiated and half of undifferentiated colorectal carcinomas. Therefore, the utility of Guanylyl cyclase C expression as a diagnostic marker for colorectal carcinoma may be questionable in poorly differentiated colorectal neoplasms

The QuinteT Recruitment Intervention supported five randomized trials to recruit to target: a mixed-methods evaluation

ObjectiveTo evaluate the impact of the Quintet Recruitment Intervention (QRI) on recruitment in challenging randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that have applied the intervention. The QRI aims to understand recruitment difficulties, and then implements ‘QRI-actions’ to address these as recruitment proceeds.Study Design and SettingA mixed-methods study, comprising: a) before-and-after comparisons of recruitment rates and numbers of patients approached, and b) qualitative case studies, including documentary analysis and interviews with RCT investigators.ResultsFive UK-based publicly-funded RCTs were included in the evaluation. All recruited to target. RCT2 and RCT5 both received up-front pre-recruitment training before the intervention was applied. RCT2 did not encounter recruitment issues and recruited above target from its outset. Recruitment difficulties, particularly communication issues, were identified and addressed through QRI-actions in RCTs 1, 3, 4 and 5. Randomization rates significantly improved post-QRI-action in RCTs 1,3, and 4. QRI-actions addressed issues with approaching eligible patients in RCTs 3 and 5, which both saw significant increases in patients approached. Trial investigators reported that the QRI had unearthed issues they had been unaware of, and reportedly changed their practices post QRI-action.ConclusionThere is promising evidence to suggest the QRI can support recruitment to difficult RCTs. This needs to be substantiated with future controlled evaluations

Assessment of molecular differentiation in FFPE colon adenocarcinoma tissues using PCA analysis of MALDI IMS spectral data

MALDI IMS datasets comprise huge amounts of spectra and their interpretation requires the use of multivariate statistical methods. MALDI IMS spectral data have been processed using sequential principal component analysis and 2-D peak distribution tests so as to investigate the molecular differentiation of tumor regions in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue biopsies of colorectal adenocarcinoma. In some of the cases fresh frozen tissue section samples were also analyzed for comparison. Multivariate analysis of spectral data revealed a specific pattern of mass ion peaks in different tumor regions that were distinguishable from the adjacent normal regions within a given specimen. Moreover, similar mass ion peaks could be detected in both FFPE and fresh-frozen tissue section samples. These significant mass ion peaks have been used to generate ion images and visualize the difference between tumor and normal regions. These specific and statistically significant ion peaks may serve as potential biomarkers for colorectal adenocarcinoma

Tissue Microarray Lipidomic Imaging Mass Spectrometry Method: Application to the Study of Alcohol-Related White Matter Neurodegeneration

Central nervous system (CNS) white matter pathologies accompany many diseases across the lifespan, yet their biochemical bases, mechanisms, and consequences have remained poorly understood due to the complexity of myelin lipid-based research. However, recent advances in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-imaging mass spectrometry (MALDI-IMS) have minimized or eliminated many technical challenges that previously limited progress in CNS disease-based lipidomic research. MALDI-IMS can be used for lipid identification, semi-quantification, and the refined interpretation of histopathology. The present work illustrates the use of tissue micro-arrays (TMAs) for MALDI-IMS analysis of frontal lobe white matter biochemical lipidomic pathology in an experimental rat model of chronic ethanol feeding. The use of TMAs combines workload efficiency with the robustness and uniformity of data acquisition. The methods described for generating TMAs enable simultaneous comparisons of lipid profiles across multiple samples under identical conditions. With the methods described, we demonstrate significant reductions in phosphatidylinositol and increases in phosphatidylcholine in the frontal white matter of chronic ethanol-fed rats. Together with the use of a novel rapid peak alignment protocol, this approach facilitates reliable inter- and intra-group comparisons of MALDI-IMS data from experimental models and could be extended to human disease states, including using archival specimens

Proteomic analysis of a murine model of lung hypoplasia induced by oligohydramnios

Acknowledgments This work was supported by funding from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health, Number: P30GM114750 and Oh–Zopfi Grant for Perinatal Research, Department of Pediatrics; Kilguss Research Core at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island. Funding information National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Grant/Award Number: 30GM114750; Oh–Zopfi Award for Perinatal Research, Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode IslandPeer reviewedPostprin