Anti-HER-2 DNA vaccine protects Syrian hamsters against squamous cell carcinomas

This paper illustrates the efficacy of DNA vaccination through electroporation in the prevention of oral transplantable carcinoma in Syrian hamsters. At 21 and 7 days before tumour challenge, 19 hamsters were vaccinated with plasmids coding for the extracellular and transmembrane domains of rat HER-2 receptor (EC-TM plasmids), whereas 19 control hamsters were injected intramuscularly with the empty plasmid. Immediately following plasmid injection, hamsters of both groups received two square-wave 25 ms, 375 V cm−1 electric pulses via two electrodes placed on the skin of the injection area. At day 0, all hamsters were challenged in the submucosa of the right cheek pouch with HER-2-positive HCPC I cells established in vitro from an 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene-induced oral carcinoma. This challenge gave rise to HER-2-positive buccal neoplastic lesions in 14 controls (73.37%), compared with only seven (36.8%, P<0.0027) vaccinated hamsters. In addition, the vaccinated hamsters displayed both a stronger proliferative and cytotoxic response than the controls and a significant anti-HER-2 antibody response. Most of the hamsters that rejected the challenge displayed the highest antibody titres. These findings suggest that DNA vaccination may have a future in the prevention of HER-2-positive human oral cancer

State of the Art Review: Emerging Therapies: The Use of Insulin Sensitizers in the Treatment of Adolescents with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

PCOS, a heterogeneous disorder characterized by cystic ovarian morphology, androgen excess, and/or irregular periods, emerges during or shortly after puberty. Peri- and post-pubertal obesity, insulin resistance and consequent hyperinsulinemia are highly prevalent co-morbidities of PCOS and promote an ongoing state of excess androgen. Given the relationship of insulin to androgen excess, reduction of insulin secretion and/or improvement of its action at target tissues offer the possibility of improving the physical stigmata of androgen excess by correction of the reproductive dysfunction and preventing metabolic derangements from becoming entrenched. While lifestyle changes that concentrate on behavioral, dietary and exercise regimens should be considered as first line therapy for weight reduction and normalization of insulin levels in adolescents with PCOS, several therapeutic options are available and in wide use, including oral contraceptives, metformin, thiazolidenediones and spironolactone. Overwhelmingly, the data on the safety and efficacy of these medications derive from the adult PCOS literature. Despite the paucity of randomized control trials to adequately evaluate these modalities in adolescents, their use, particularly that of metformin, has gained popularity in the pediatric endocrine community. In this article, we present an overview of the use of insulin sensitizing medications in PCOS and review both the adult and (where available) adolescent literature, focusing specifically on the use of metformin in both mono- and combination therapy

Interracial Dating on College Campuses: The Associations Between Race and Gender

We hypothesized that interracial couples would be perceived more negatively than same-race couples, that survey participants would find those of the same race more attractive, and that they would be more willing to date within their race. Our participants were from a convenience sample of 77 females, 22 males, and 3 non-binary individuals, most of whom attend Winthrop University. Most (64%) were between 18-24 years of age. We displayed a photo of an interracial couple and measured perceived levels of commitment, satisfaction, and physical intimacy. Next, we showed a same-race couple and measured the same variables. Then, we displayed a series of photos of similarly attractive people and asked the participants to rank their attraction to each photo along with their willingness to date the person photographed. Then, we asked for the background of the participants, including their numbers of interracial and same-race relationships. Finally, we asked a series of demographic questions measuring gender, race, and age. Statistical tests showed few significant differences between perceived attributes of photographed interracial versus same-race couples, with the exception that the woman in the interracial relationship was perceived to have a higher commitment level. Analyzing responses to photos of attractive people, we found that black participants were more attracted to and willing to date the black man than were white participants; white participants were more willing to date the white and Asian women than were black participants. In conclusion, perceptions of interracial relationships are not very different from those of same-race relationships, but people’s dating behavior and attraction are still primarily within race

CREATING AFFORDABLE RURAL HOUSING WITH SERVICES: OPTIONS AND STRATEGIESCREATING AFFORDABLE RURAL HOUSING WITH SERVICES: OPTIONS AND STRATEGIES

opinions expressed in the paper are the authors ’ and no endorsement by the University of Southern Maine or the funding sources is intended or should be inferred. Acknowledgements The authors gratefully acknowledge the valuable assistance we received from the members o

Mid-Gap Electronic States in Zn1-xMnxO.

Electronic absorption, magnetic circular dichroism (MCD), photoconductivity, and valence-band x-ray photoelectron (XPS) spectroscopic measurements were performed on epitaxial Zn1−xMnxO films to investigate the origin of the mid-gap band that appears upon introduction of Mn2+ into the ZnO lattice. Absorption and MCD spectroscopies reveal Mn2+-related intensity at energies below the first excitonic transition of ZnO, tailing well into the visible energy region, with an onset at ∼2.2 eV. Photoconductivity measurements show that excitation into this visible band generates mobile charge carriers, consistent with assignment as a Mn2+/3+ photoionization transition. XPS measurements reveal the presence of occupied Mn2+ levels just above the valence-band edge, supporting this assignment. MCD measurements additionally show a change in sign and large increase in magnitude of the excitonic Zeeman splitting in Zn1−xMnxO relative to ZnO, suggesting that sp-d exchange in Zn1−xMnxO is not as qualitatively different from those in other II-VI diluted magnetic semiconductors as has been suggested. The singular electronic structure feature of Zn1−xMnxO is the presence of this Mn2+/3+ ionization level within the gap, and the influence of this level on other physical properties of Zn1−xMnxO is discussed