Effect of Interspecific Yeast Hybrids for Secondary In-Bottle Alcoholic Fermentation of English Sparkling Wines

In sparkling winemaking, only a few yeast strains are regularly used for the secondary in-bottle alcoholic fermentation (SiBAF). Recently, advances in yeast development programs have yielded new breeds of interspecific wine yeast hybrids that ferment efficiently while producing novel flavors and aromas. In this work, the chemical and sensorial impacts of the use of interspecific yeast hybrids for SiBAF were studied using three commercial English base wines prepared for SiBAF using two commercial and four novel interspecific hybrids. After 12 months of lees aging, the chemical and macromolecular composition, phenolic profile, foaming, viscosity and sensory properties of the resulting 13 wines were assessed. Chemically, the yeast strains did not result in significant differences in the main wine parameters, while some differences in their macromolecular contents and sensory characteristics were noticeable. The foamability was mostly unaffected by the strain used; however, some effect on the foam stability was noticeable, likely due to the differences in polysaccharides released into the wines by the yeast strains. The wines exhibited different sensory characteristics in terms of aroma and bouquet, balance, finish, overall liking and preference, but these were mostly attributable to the differences in the base wines rather than the strain used for SiBAF. Novel interspecific yeast hybrids can be used for the elaboration of sparkling wines, as they provided wines with chemical characteristics, flavor and aroma attributes similar to those of commonly used commercial Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains

Delays in the diagnosis of lung cancer patients in Poland

Introduction. Lung cancer is the most common cause of death from malignant tumors in the world, with more than 2 million patients diagnosed every year. The most common symptoms of lung cancer are cough and shortness of breath. However, they appear late when the cancer is at an advanced stage. The standard measure of the correct diagnostic path in cancer patients is the time from the first symptoms of the disease to the final diagnosis. The aim of the study is to identify reasons for late diagnosis of patients with symptoms of lung cancer in Poland.  Material and methods. We performed an analysis of a survey conducted among 149 patients with lung cancer from the Department of Pneumonology, Oncology and Allergology at the Medical University of Lublin. The SPSS software was used to perform the analysis of these data. Males accounted for 56.4% of the patients, and the median age of the patients was 66.8 ± 7.2 years. The mean time from the first symptoms to the first appointment with a doctor was 5.3 weeks and from the first symptoms to diagnosis was 14.7 weeks.  Results. The time from the onset of symptoms and treatment initiation was significantly (p = 0.04) longer in patients living at a greater distance from cancer centers (24.1 weeks) than in patients living nearby (18.3 weeks). In patients who were treated with antibiotics before diagnosis, the time from the onset of the symptoms to the start of treatment was significantly longer (p = 0.003) than in patients who did not use antibiotics (26.8 weeks vs. 18.1 weeks).  Conclusions. The results of our study showed that Polish patients with suspected lung cancer are diagnosed too late, which has an impact on the stage at which the tumor is diagnosed

Tumor heterogeneity and its impact on sotorasib response in a patient with non-small cell lung cancer

Mutations in the Kirsten rat sarcoma virus (KRAS) gene are the most common mutations in NSCLC, and they occur in 25–40% of patients with lung adenocarcinoma. Sotorasib, a selective KRAS inhibitor, is an anticancer drug used in NSCLC patients with a G12C mutation in the KRAS gene. In previously treated patients, this therapy was safer and more effective than docetaxel chemotherapy. Heterogeneity refers to differences between tumor cells within a single tumor as well as in primary and metastatic lesions. It may influence the response to targeted therapies and the development of acquired resistance to these therapies. It is assumed that sotorasib efficacy is lower in patients with known tumor molecular heterogeneity, which may be common in patients exposed to tobacco smoke.  This case report presents a 63-year-old woman with advanced NSCLC and a confirmed G12C mutation in the KRAS gene detected with the real-time PCR technique. A later next-generation sequencing (NGS) examination did not show the presence of this mutation. However, the NGS study was performed on material from a different metastatic lesion. The negative NGS result from this material was confirmed by the real-time PCR technique. The patient had a short-term benefit from first-line chemotherapy and second-line nivolumab immunotherapy (disease stabilization). Due to progression (progression of measurable lesions and new metastases to the CNS), the patient received brain radiotherapy and then sotorasib in the third line of treatment. However, the effectiveness of KRAS inhibition was limited. Regression of the lesion with a detected mutation in the KRAS gene and progression of lesions without this mutation were observed. Sotorasib therapy was terminated. The woman died two years after diagnosis, not benefiting from subsequent lines of therapy.  NSCLC heterogeneity (presence of mutations in only some clones of cancer cells) may be responsible for primary and acquired resistance to molecularly targeted therapies, including KRAS inhibitors.

The influence of different culture microenvironments on the generation of dendritic cells from non-small-cell lung cancer patients

This study extends the model developed in Williams and Seaman’s [Williams, J. J. and Seaman, A. E. (2010). Corporate Governance and Mindfulness: The Impact of Management Accounting Systems Change, The Journal of Applied Business Research, Vol. 26, No. 5, pp. 1-17] exploratory paper examining the moderating effects of management accounting systems (MAS) change on the corporate governance/mindfulness relationship for a Canadian sample of 124 top-level accounting professionals. Canonical correlation analysis was applied to the linkage of multiple cognitive processes of mindfulness (Weick and Sutcliffe, 2001; 2007) and the governance dimensions of performance and conformance specified by the International Federation of Accountants (2009), underpinned by the moderating effects of five different components of MAS change, which yielded 13 significant relationships. The latter were subsequently analyzed for important gestalts (i.e., patterns) in the overall relationship, and assessed within the context of aligning professional accounting practices involving systems changes to the IFAC (2009) governance framework. These findings appear to have implications for improved governance structures in practice as well as offering a rich foundation for future research