Apolipoprotein(a) polymorphism in Hong Kong Chinese: genetic and hormonal effects

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Effects of treatment of acromegaly with Sandostatin® LAR® on lipolytic enzymes and cholesteryl ester transfer protein activities

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Inhibition of tumour growth by Raf265 via blockade of Raf/MEK/ERK pathway in colorectal cancer

published_or_final_versionThe 15th Annual Research Conference of the Department of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 16 January 2010. In Hong Kong Medical Journal, 2010, v. 16, suppl. 1, p. 16, abstract no. 1

Detection of CD44+ cancer initiating cells in pleural effusion of a liver cancer patient

published_or_final_versionThe 16th Annual Research Conference of the Department of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 22 January 2011. In Hong Kong Medical Journal, 2011, v. 17, suppl. 1, p. 24, abstract no. 2

O processo de profissionalização dos Osteopatas em Portugal: as forças e as debilidades de uma profissão em construção

Sendo certo que os profissionais de saúde têm suscitado enorme interesse junto dos sociólogos que se interessam pela problemática das profissões, não será despiciendo afirmar que as áreas das medicinas alternativas ou não convencionais estão ainda muito pouco estudadas entre nós. Assim sendo, o objectivo principal deste artigo será o de dar a conhecer os aspectos mais marcantes do processo de profissionalização dos Osteopatas em Portugal, tendo como referencial teórico de base o paradigma do poder na análise das profissões. Segundo Mike Saks (2000), o facto de existir um elevado número de profissionais da medicina alternativa e complementar, tal não significa que as práticas alternativas estejam consolidadas no quadro das ofertas dos sistemas de saúde europeus. Entre nós, a inserção no mercado de trabalho dos profissionais em Osteopatia é ainda relativamente recente e revela algumas especificidades, ao aceitar pessoas sem qualquer formação estruturada e consolidada, ou reconhecimento profissional acreditado pelo Estado. Sabendo que a qualidade da inserção no mercado de trabalho dos profissionais em Osteopatia pode determinar em grande medida a qualidade da carreira a ser construída, o objectivo deste trabalho consistiu em analisar o processo de profissionalização e de formação identitária dos actuais Osteopatas que trabalham em Portugal. Tendo por base a caracterização do conceito de profissão apresentado por E. Freidson e a partir de um conjunto de entrevistas realizadas junto de indivíduos de ambos os sexos a trabalhar em Portugal e assumindo diferentes experiências e formações ditas Osteopáticas, tanto a nível nacional como internacional, foi possível concluir que sem a regulamentação da profissão por parte do Estado e sem a formação de cursos a tempo inteiro devidamente estruturados e oficialmente reconhecidos, dificilmente será possível ultrapassar uma imagem muito débil de percepcionar o que é a Osteopatia e qual o seu verdadeiro “métier”. Desta forma poder-se-á estar a criar um problema de natureza e formação identitária entre os profissionais e na imagem que estes transmitem para a opinião pública. O poder profissional desta classe apresentar-se-á debilitado e enfraquecido por falta de uma consolidação da profissão, ao gerar valores e formas muito diferenciadas de apropriação da profissão e das suas actividades de trabalho

Survivin depletion inhibits tumor growth and enhances chemosensitivity in hepatocellular carcinoma

Survivin is a member of the inhibitor of apoptosis family, which has been suggested to be crucial in the control of cell division and inhibition of apoptosis. Expression of this protein has been observed in transformed cell lines and human tumor tissues, including those from colorectal cancer, but not in terminally differentiated adult tissues. Survivin mRNA expression has frequently been detected in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and its protein expression has been demonstrated to be highly correlated with proliferation index rather than apoptotic index. The present study aimed to analyze the effect of survivin on the tumorigenicity and chemosensitivity of HCC via the establishment of an HCC cell line (PLC/PRF/5) with the stable knockdown of the survivin gene (PLC-k3). This cell line displayed significantly lower rates of survival and proliferation in assays of cell viability and proliferation, respectively, compared with those of the control cell line (PLC-v). In addition, PLC-k3 cells were more sensitive to cisplatin treatment, resulting in S phase arrest. These findings were further confirmed by an in vivo experiment. The data of the present study suggest that survivin is critical in promoting cell proliferation but not in inhibition of apoptosis, and enhances the chemosensitivity of HCC. Thus, the suppression of survivin expression in combination with cisplatin may contribute to the development of more effective treatments for HCC.published_or_final_versio

A preclinical study on the combination therapy of everolimus and transarterial chemoembolization in hepatocellular carcinoma

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Over-expression of miR-106b promotes cell migration and metastasis in hepatocellular carcinoma by activating epithelial-mesenchymal transition process

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one the the most fatal cancers worldwide. The poor prognosis of HCC is mainly due to the developement of distance metastasis. To investigate the mechanism of metastasis in HCC, an orthotopic HCC metastasis animal model was established. Two sets of primary liver tumor cell lines and corresponding lung metastasis cell lines were generated. In vitro functional analysis demonstrated that the metastatic cell line had higher invasion and migration ability when compared with the primary liver tumor cell line. These cell lines were subjected to microRNA (miRNAs) microarray analysis to identify differentially expressed miRNAs which were associated with the developement of metastasis in vivo. Fifteen human miRNAs, including miR-106b, were differentially expressed in 2 metastatic cell lines compared with the primary tumor cell lines. The clinical significance of miR-106b in 99 HCC clinical samples was studied. The results demonstrated that miR-106b was over-expressed in HCC tumor tissue compared with adjacent non-tumor tissue (p = 0.0005), and overexpression of miR-106b was signficantly correlated with higher tumor grade (p = 0.018). Further functional studies demonstrated that miR-106b could promote cell migration and stress fiber formation by over-expressing RhoGTPases, RhoA and RhoC. In vivo functional studies also showed that over-expression of miR-106b promoted HCC metastasis. These effects were related to the activation of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process. Our results suggested that miR-106b expression contributed to HCC metastasis by activating the EMT process promoting cell migration in vitro and metastasis in vivo. © 2013 Yau et al.published_or_final_versio

Plasma Bmil mRNA as a potential prognostic biomarker for distant metastasis in colorectal cancer patients

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Emergence of CD26+ cancer stem cells with metastatic properties in colorectal carcinogenesis

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