211 research outputs found
Theoretical studies of optimal light delivery for tumor treatment
Optimal laser light delivery into turbid biological tissue was studied using MOnte Carlo simulations. The goal was to efficiently deliver maximum amount of optical power into buried tumors being treated while avoiding damage to normal tissue caused by strong optical power deposition underneath the tissue surface illuminated by the laser beam. The buried tumors were considered to have much higher absorption than the surrounding normal tissue via selective uptake of absorption-enhancement dye by the tumor. The power delivering efficiency to buried tumors was investigated for various diameters of the laser beam. An optimal beam diameter was estimated to achieve the maximum produce of the power coupling efficiency and the power delivered to the buried tumor. The distribution of power deposition was simulated for single beam delivery and multiple beam delivery as well. The simulated results showed that with an appropriate dye enhancement and an optimal laser delivery configuration, a high selectivity for laser treatment of tumor could be achieved
Optimal beam size for light delivery to absorption-enhanced tumors buried in biological tissues and effect of multiple-beam delivery: a Monte Carlo study
Optimal laser light delivery into turbid biological tissues was studied by using Monte Carlo simulations based on the delta-scattering technique. The goal was to deliver efficiently the maximum amount of optical power into buried tumors being treated while avoiding potential damage to normal tissue caused by strong optical power deposition underneath the tissue surface illuminated by the laser beam. The buried tumors were considered to have much higher absorption than the surrounding normal tissue because of selective uptake of the absorption-enhancement dye. The power delivering efficiency to buried tumors was investigated for various diameters of the laser beam. An optimal beam diameter was estimated to achieve the maximum product of the power coupling efficiency and the power delivered to the buried tumor. The distribution of power deposition was simulated for single-beam delivery and multiple-beam delivery as well. The simulated results showed that with an appropriate dye enhancement and an optimal laser delivery configuration, a high selectivity for laser treatment of tumor could be achieved
Measurement of tissue optical properties and modeling of optimal light delivery for tumor treatment
Oblique-incidence reflectometry was used to measure the optical properties of rat tumors with injected absorption- enhancement dye. The measured optical properties were used to model light delivery into the tissues for optimal therapeutic effects. The goal was to efficiently deliver the maximum amount of optical power into buried tumors being treated while avoiding potential damage to normal tissue caused by strong optical power deposition underneath the tissue surface illuminated by the laser beam. The distribution of power deposition was simulated for single beam delivery and multiple beam delivery as well. The simulated results showed that with an appropriate dye enhancement and an optimal laser delivery configuration, a high selectivity for laser treatment of tumors could be achieved
Theoretical studies of optimal light delivery for tumor treatment
Optimal laser light delivery into turbid biological tissue was studied using MOnte Carlo simulations. The goal was to efficiently deliver maximum amount of optical power into buried tumors being treated while avoiding damage to normal tissue caused by strong optical power deposition underneath the tissue surface illuminated by the laser beam. The buried tumors were considered to have much higher absorption than the surrounding normal tissue via selective uptake of absorption-enhancement dye by the tumor. The power delivering efficiency to buried tumors was investigated for various diameters of the laser beam. An optimal beam diameter was estimated to achieve the maximum produce of the power coupling efficiency and the power delivered to the buried tumor. The distribution of power deposition was simulated for single beam delivery and multiple beam delivery as well. The simulated results showed that with an appropriate dye enhancement and an optimal laser delivery configuration, a high selectivity for laser treatment of tumor could be achieved
Measurement of tissue optical properties and modeling of optimal light delivery for tumor treatment
Oblique-incidence reflectometry was used to measure the optical properties of rat tumors with injected absorption- enhancement dye. The measured optical properties were used to model light delivery into the tissues for optimal therapeutic effects. The goal was to efficiently deliver the maximum amount of optical power into buried tumors being treated while avoiding potential damage to normal tissue caused by strong optical power deposition underneath the tissue surface illuminated by the laser beam. The distribution of power deposition was simulated for single beam delivery and multiple beam delivery as well. The simulated results showed that with an appropriate dye enhancement and an optimal laser delivery configuration, a high selectivity for laser treatment of tumors could be achieved
Synthetic DNA immunotherapy in biochemically relapsed prostate cancer
Background: INO-5150 (PSA and PSMA) +/- INO-9012 (IL-12), a synthetic DNA immunotherapy, was assessed for safety, immunogenicity and efficacy in biochemically recurrent prostate cancer patients (pts).
Methods: Phase I, open-label, multi-center study in the US included pts with rising PSA after surgery and/or RT, PSA doubling time (PSADT) \u3e3 months (mos), testosterone \u3e150 ng/dL and no concurrent ADT. Safety, immunogenicity and efficacy (PSA kinetics, PFS) were evaluated in 4 treatment arms of 15 pts each. Arms A: 2mg INO-5150, B: 8.5 mg INO-5150, C: 2mg INO-5150 + 1mg INO-9012 and D: 8.5mg INO-5150 + 1mg INO-9012. Pts received 4 IM doses of vaccine followed by electroporation on day 0, wks 3, 12 and 24 and were followed for 72 wks.
Results: 50/61 (82%) pts completed all visits and treatments were well tolerated with no safety concerns. Median PFS for overall population [N = 61, baseline (D0) PSADT range (mos) 1.5-217.1, median 9.8] and for a subset of pts with D0 PSADT ≤12mos (N = 36) has not yet been reached (FU 3-19 mos). 86% of pts with D0 PSADT ≤12 mos were progression free through 19mos FU. 27 out of 36 (75%) pts with D0 PSADT≤ 12 mos had disease stabilization at wks 27 evidenced by significant improvement in log2PSA change over time (slope) and PSADT from D0 (Slope=0.19 declined to 0.1, PSADT=5.3 improved to 10.1 mos, p = \u3c0.0001). This effect was maintained at wk 72 (Slope=0.09, PSADT=10.6, p = \u3c0.0001). Immunogenicity was observed in 77% (47/61) of pts by multiple immunologic assessments. Patient immunogenicity to INO-5150 as determined by CD38 and Perforin + CD8 T cell immune reactivity correlated with attenuated % PSA rise compared to pts without reactivity (p = 0.05, n = 50).
Conclusions: INO-5150 +/- INO-9012 was safe, well tolerated and immunogenic. Clinical efficacy was observed in the patients with D0 PSADT≤ 12 mos as evidenced by a significant dampening of log2PSA change over time and increased PSADT up to 72 weeks FU. Additional genomic analyses are ongoing to further elucidate the correlation of immunologic efficacy and clinical benefit. (NCT02514213)
Comparing Common Techniques for Calculating Parasite Prevalence
Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are the final host for raccoon roundworms (Baylisascaris procyonis). Raccoon roundworm is the leading cause of a dangerous neurological disease, known as larva migrans encephalopathy. Diagnostic tools for detecting the presence of B. procyonis within a raccoon population include necropsy, fecal flotation, and latrine analysis. Necropsies yield the highest measure of prevalence, with fecal flotation and latrine analysis often underestimating infection rates. We necropsied 225 raccoons gathered from 10 townships of Clark and Greene Counties in Ohio. We collected fecal samples from 95 raccoons negative for B. procyonis at necropsy. We suspended the feces in Sheather’s solution to float any eggs, and prepared slides from this solution. Nearly 14% of raccoons negative at necropsy for B. procyonis possessed eggs in their feces. We used a chi squared test for equality of distributions to determine the likelihood that a positive fecal analysis is related to B. procyonis prevalence or to the area in which the raccoon was trapped. These data will help us determine how well fecal analyses estimate parasite prevalence
Baylisascaris procyonis Impacts Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Diets
Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are the definitive host for raccoon roundworms (Baylisascaris procyonis). Raccoon roundworm is responsible for a dangerous neurological disease known as larva migrans encephalopathy. Raccoons are omnivorous animals and rely on various food items. Dietary analyses help determine how a raccoon changes its diet in response to environmental features. Raccoons eat whatever food resource is most convenient and abundant. Parasite infections can potentially affect host eating habits in order to keep the host alive and active longer. In this study, we analyzed the diets of necropsied raccoons from ten townships of Clark and Greene Counties by examining their stomach contents. We categorized stomach contents by separating out plant material, vertebrate tissue, and invertebrate tissue. We measured the total stomach mass and the mass of plant material alone in order to compare and obtain a percentage of plant material in the raccoons’ diet. We conducted two chi-squared tests for equality of distributions. We tested the null hypotheses that raccoons from townships with high prevalence (\u3e60%) have the same vertebrate tissue and plant tissue prevalence as raccoons from townships with low roundworm prevalence
Does Baylisascaris procyonis Impact Raccoon (Procyon lotor) Genetics?
Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are the final host for raccoon roundworms (Baylisascaris procyonis). Raccoon roundworm is the leading cause of a dangerous neurological disease, known as larva migrans encephalopathy. Phylogenetic trees illustrate co-evolutionary events between species living in a symbiotic relationship with each other. Throughout the coevolution of host and parasite, many aspects of a population affect the way the members interact with one another and with symbiotic species. In order to evaluate the relationship between host and parasite in regards to diet, we isolated DNA from intestinal wall tissue, amplified a portion of exon 2 from MHC II, and sent our samples to Ohio State University for sequencing. We calculated heterozygosities for the nine townships we surveyed. We used a chi-squared test for equality of distributions to test whether raccoons from townships with above 60% prevalence have different heterozygosity for this locus than other raccoons. These data will help us to understand the relationship between raccoons and raccoon roundworm
Does Baylisascaris procyonis Phylogeny Correlate with That of the Raccoon (Procyon lotor)
Baylisacaris procyonis, commonly known as the raccoon roundworm, is a parasite that inhabits the small intestine of the North American raccoon (Procyon lotor). Although humans do not typically become the definitive host, humans can become infected through handling soil containing eggs. B. procyonis can induce serious health complications in cases of human infection, including degenerative retinal and behavioral changes, coma, and even death. High prevalence of B. procyonis in a raccoon population increases the probability of transference to human hosts. In our study, we analyzed the genetic structure of B. procyonis harvested from raccoons of southwestern Ohio, and compared this to the genetic structure of the raccoons they inhabited. It is our hypothesis that the genetic structuring of the roundworms is the same as the genetic structuring of the raccoons. We isolated DNA from the roundworms using the method outlined in the DNA Minikit (Qiagen). Our research team isolated DNA from each roundworm sample and sent it to the Plant-Microbe Genomics Facility at The Ohio State University for gene amplification and sequencing. We built phylogenetic trees using these sequences, and compared these trees to some constructed for the raccoons. The correlations drawn between the raccoon and B. procyonis phylogenetic trees will help us better understand the relationship between the two species
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