CD274/PD-L1 gene amplification and PD-L1 protein expression are common events in squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity.

Immunomodulatory therapies, targeting the immune checkpoint receptor-ligand complex PD-1/PD-L1 have shown promising results in early phase clinical trials in solid malignancies, including carcinomas of the head and neck. In this context, PD-L1 protein expression has been proposed as a potentially valuable predictive marker. In the present study, expression of PD-L1 and PD-1 was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in 80 patients with predominantly HPV-negative oral squamous cell carcinomas and associated nodal metastasis. In addition, CD274/PD-L1 gene copy number status was assessed by fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis. PD-L1 expression was detected in 36/80 (45%) cases and concordance of PD-L1 expression in primary tumor and corresponding nodal metastasis was present in only 20/28 (72%) cases. PD-1 expression was found in tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) but not in tumor cells. CD274/PD-L1 gene amplification was detected in 19% of cases, with high level PD-L1 amplification present in 12/80 (15%), and low level amplification in 3/80 (4%). Interestingly, CD274/PD-L1 gene amplification was associated with positive PD-L1 immunostaining in only 73% of cases. PD-L1 copy number status was concordant in primary tumor and associated metastases. Clinically, PD-L1 tumor immunopositivity was associated with a higher risk for nodal metastasis at diagnosis, overall tumor related death und recurrence. Based on our findings we propose to include PD-L1 copy number status in addition to protein status in screening programs for future clinical trials with immunotherapeutic strategies targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis

Oncologic impact of delay between diagnosis and radical nephroureterectomy

PurposeThis study aimed to evaluate the oncological outcome of delayed surgical wait time from the diagnosis of upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) to radical nephroureterectomy (RNU).MethodsIn this multicenter retrospective study, medical records were collected between 1988 and 2021 from 18 participating Taiwanese hospitals under the Taiwan UTUC Collaboration Group. Patients were dichotomized into the early (≤90 days) and late (>90 days) surgical wait-time groups. Overall survival, disease-free survival, and bladder recurrence-free survival were calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method and multivariate Cox regression analysis. Multivariate analysis was performed using stepwise linear regression.ResultsOf the 1251 patients, 1181 (94.4%) were classifed into the early surgical wait-time group and 70 (5.6%) into the late surgical wait-time group. The median surgical wait time was 21 days, and the median follow-up was 59.5 months. Our study showed delay-time more than 90 days appeared to be associated with worse overall survival (hazard ratio [HR] 1.974, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.166−3.343, p = 0.011), and disease-free survival (HR 1.997, 95% CI 1.137−3.507, p = 0.016). This remained as an independent prognostic factor after other confounding factors were adjusted. Age, ECOG performance status, Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), surgical margin, tumor location and adjuvant systemic therapy were independent prognostic factors for overall survival. Tumor location and adjuvant systemic therapy were also independent prognostic factors for disease-free survival.ConclusionsFor patients with UTUC undergoing RNU, the surgical wait time should be minimized to less than 90 days. Prolonged delay times may be associated with poor overall and disease-free survival

Directed Self-Assembly: Expectations and Achievements

Nanotechnology has been a revolutionary thrust in recent years of development of science and technology for its broad appeal for employing a novel idea for relevant technological applications in particular and for mass-scale production and marketing as common man commodity in general. An interesting aspect of this emergent technology is that it involves scientific research community and relevant industries alike. Top–down and bottom–up approaches are two broad division of production of nanoscale materials in general. However, both the approaches have their own limits as far as large-scale production and cost involved are concerned. Therefore, novel new techniques are desired to be developed to optimize production and cost. Directed self-assembly seems to be a promising technique in this regard; which can work as a bridge between the top–down and bottom–up approaches. This article reviews how directed self-assembly as a technique has grown up and outlines its future prospects

Recent Progress in Electrospun Nanofibres: Reinforcement Effect and Mechanical Performance

Composite materials are becoming increasingly important as structural materials for aeronautical and space engineering, naval, automotive, and civil engineering, sporting goods, and other consumer products. Fiber-based reinforcement represents one of the most effective manufacturing strategies for enhancing the mechanical strength and other properties of composite materials. Electrospinning has gained widespread interest in the last two decades because of its ability to fabricate continuous ultrafine nanofibers with unique characteristics. The impact of electrospinning on fiber synthesis and processing, characterization, and applications in drug delivery, nanofiltration, tissue scaffolding, and electronics has been extensively studied in the past. In this article, the authors have focused on a comprehensive review of the mechanical performance and properties of electrospun nanofibers as potential reinforcements as well as their advanced nanocomposites

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data