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Intracellular localisation of mTHPC and effect of photodynamic therapy in cells of the mammalian peripheral nervous system
Fewer nerve-related side effects have been noted after treating head and neck cancer with photodynamic therapy (PDT) compared to conventional cancer therapy. Our aim is to investigate the biological basis for any such nerve-sparing effect. In this study the intracellular localisation and effect on cell viability of the photosensitiser meta-tetrahydroxylphenylchlorin (mTHPC) was investigated in cell culture models using peripheral nerve cells.
Primary cells from adult rat dorsal root ganglia (containing both neurons and glia) were used in these experiments. Localisation of mTHPC was detected using fluorescence and confocal microscopy. Levels of mTHPC fluorescence were quantified using digital image analysis. Immunocytochemistry with anti-?-III-tubulin and anti-S100 was used to distinguish neuronal and glial cell populations respectively. A cell-death assay using propidium iodide was used to evaluate neural cell susceptibility to PDT following incubation with mTHPC.
The results showed that mTHPC was localised in cytoplasmic regions of neurons and glia, but was not detected in neuronal axons. Necrotic cell death was detected after PDT in these neural cell types.
These results suggest that the cells of the peripheral nervous system are susceptible to PDT-mediated necrosis, but that the sparing of nerves observed during clinical PDT may be related to the heterogeneous distribution of mTHPC within neurons
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Assessing the Effect of Photodynamic Therapy on Peripheral Nerve and Cancer Cells Using a Thin Tissue Engineered Collagen Culture Model
Abstract not available
Universal features of Thermopower in High Tc systems and Quantum Criticality
In high Tc superconductors a wide ranging connection between the doping
dependence of the transition temperature Tc and the room temperature
thermopower Q has been observed. A "universal correlation" between these two
quantities exists with the thermopower vanishing at optimum doping as noted by
OCTHH (Obertelli, Cooper, Tallon, Honma and Hor). In this work we provide an
interpretation of this OCTHH universality in terms of a possible underlying
quantum critical point (QCP) at Tc. Central to our viewpoint is the recently
noted Kelvin formula relating the thermopower to the density derivative of the
entropy. Perspective on this formula is gained through a model calculation of
the various Kubo formulas in an exactly solved 1-dimensional model with various
limiting procedures of wave vector and frequency.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figure
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Differences in sensitivity to mTHPC-mediated photodynamic therapy of neurons, glial cells and MCF7 cells in a 3-dimensional cell culture model
The effect of photodynamic therapy (PDT) on the cells of the nervous system is an important consideration in the treatment of tumours that are located within or adjacent to the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nerves. Previous studies have reported the sparing of nerves during PDT using meta-tetrahydroxyphenylchlorin (mTHPC, Foscan®) in patients and in animal models. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of mTHPC on key nervous system cells using a 3-dimensional cell culture system for the accurate detection of differences in sensitivity
Silicon abundance from RESIK solar flare observations
The RESIK instrument on the CORONAS-F spacecraft obtained solar flare and
active region X-ray spectra in four channels covering the wavelength range 3.8
-- 6.1 \AA in its operational period between 2001 and 2003. Several highly
ionized silicon lines were observed within the range of the long-wavelength
channel (5.00 -- 6.05 \AA). The fluxes of the \sixiv Ly- line (5.217
\AA) and the \sixiii line (5.688 \AA) during 21 flares with
optimized pulse-height analyzer settings on RESIK have been analyzed to obtain
the silicon abundance relative to hydrogen in flare plasmas. As in previous
work, the emitting plasma for each spectrum is assumed to be characterized by a
single temperature and emission measure given by the ratio of emission in the
two channels of GOES. The silicon abundance is determined to be (\sixiv) and (\sixiii) on a logarithmic scale with
H = 12. These values, which vary by only very small amounts from flare to flare
and times within flares, are and times the
photospheric abundance, and are about a factor of three higher than RESIK
measurements during a period of very low activity. There is a suggestion that
the Si/S abundance ratio increases from active regions to flares.Comment: To be published, Solar Physic
RESIK observations of He-like Ar X-ray line emission in solar flares
The Ar XVII X-ray line group principally due to transitions 1s2 - 1s2l (l=s,
p) near 4 Anstroms was observed in numerous flares by the RESIK bent crystal
spectrometer aboard CORONAS-F between 2001 and 2003. The three line features
include the Ar XVII w (resonance line), a blend of x and y (intercombination
lines), and z (forbidden line), all of which are blended with Ar XVI
dielectronic satellites. The ratio G, equal to [I(x+y) + I(z)]/I(w), varies
with electron temperature Te mostly because of unresolved dielectronic
satellites. With temperatures estimated from GOES X-ray emission, the observed
G ratios agree fairly well with those calculated from CHIANTI and other data.
With a two-component emission measure, better agreement is achieved. Some S XV
and S XVI lines blend with the Ar lines, the effect of which occurs at
temperatures greater than 8MK, allowing the S/Ar abundance ratio to be
determined. This is found to agree with coronal values. A nonthermal
contribution is indicated for some spectra in the repeating-pulse flare of 2003
February 6.Comment: Latex file and 3 ps files. Astrophysical Journal Letters (accepted,
June 2008
A solar spectroscopic absolute abundance of argon from RESIK
Observations of He-like and H-like Ar (Ar XVII and Ar XVIII) lines at 3.949
Angstroms and 3.733 Angstroms respectively with the RESIK X-ray spectrometer on
the CORONAS-F spacecraft, together with temperatures and emission measures from
the two channels of GOES, have been analyzed to obtain the abundance of Ar in
flare plasmas in the solar corona. The line fluxes per unit emission measure
show a temperature dependence like that predicted from theory, and lead to
spectroscopically determined values for the absolute Ar abundance, A(Ar) = 6.44
pm 0.07 (Ar XVII) and 6.49 pm 0.16 (Ar XVIII) which are in agreement to within
uncertainties. The weighted mean is 6.45 pm 0.06, which is between two recent
compilations of the solar Ar abundance and suggest that the photospheric and
coronal abundances of Ar are very similar.Comment: 4 figure
The Solar Flare Iron Abundance
The abundance of iron is measured from emission line complexes at 6.65 keV
(Fe line) and 8 keV (Fe/Ni line) in {\em RHESSI} X-ray spectra during solar
flares. Spectra during long-duration flares with steady declines were selected,
with an isothermal assumption and improved data analysis methods over previous
work. Two spectral fitting models give comparable results, viz. an iron
abundance that is lower than previous coronal values but higher than
photospheric values. In the preferred method, the estimated Fe abundance is
(on a logarithmic scale, with ),
or times the photospheric Fe abundance. Our estimate is based on
a detailed analysis of 1,898 spectra taken during 20 flares. No variation from
flare to flare is indicated. This argues for a fractionation mechanism similar
to quiet-Sun plasma. The new value of has important implications
for radiation loss curves, which are estimated.Comment: Accepted by Astrophysical Journa
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