Hormonal signaling in cnidarians : do we understand the pathways well enough to know whether they are being disrupted?

Author Posting. © The Author, 2006. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Springer for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Ecotoxicology 16 (2007): 5-13, doi:10.1007/s10646-006-0121-1.Cnidarians occupy a key evolutionary position as basal metazoans and are ecologically important as predators, prey and structure-builders. Bioregulatory molecules (e.g., amines, peptides and steroids) have been identified in cnidarians, but cnidarian signaling pathways remain poorly characterized. Cnidarians, especially hydras, are regularly used in toxicity testing, but few studies have used cnidarians in explicit testing for signal disruption. Sublethal endpoints developed in cnidarians include budding, regeneration, gametogenesis, mucus production and larval metamorphosis. Cnidarian genomic databases, microarrays and other molecular tools are increasingly facilitating mechanistic investigation of signaling pathways and signal disruption. Elucidation of cnidarian signaling processes in a comparative context can provide insight into the evolution and diversification of metazoan bioregulation. Characterizing signaling and signal disruption in cnidarians may also provide unique opportunities for evaluating risk to valuable marine resources, such as coral reefs

Contemporary Management of Locally Advanced and Recurrent Rectal Cancer: Views from the PelvEx Collaborative

Pelvic exenteration is a complex operation performed for locally advanced and recurrent pelvic cancers. The goal of surgery is to achieve clear margins, therefore identifying adjacent or involved organs, bone, muscle, nerves and/or vascular structures that may need resection. While these extensive resections are potentially curative, they can be associated with substantial morbidity. Recently, there has been a move to centralize care to specialized units, as this facilitates better multi-disciplinary care input. Advancements in pelvic oncology and surgical innovation have redefined the boundaries of pelvic exenterative surgery. Combined with improved neoadjuvant therapies, advances in diagnostics, and better reconstructive techniques have provided quicker recovery and better quality of life outcomes, with improved survival This article provides highlights of the current management of advanced pelvic cancers in terms of surgical strategy and potential future developments

Thyroid and pituitary gland development from hatching through metamorphosis of a teleost flatfish, the Atlantic halibut

Fish larval development, not least the spectacular process of flatfish metamorphosis, appears to be under complex endocrine control, many aspects of which are still not fully elucidated. In order to obtain data on the functional development of two major endocrine glands, the pituitary and the thyroid, during flatfish metamorphosis, histology, immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization techniques were applied on larvae of the Atlantic halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus), a large, marine flatfish species, from hatching through metamorphosis. The material was obtained from a commercial hatchery. Larval age is defined as day-degrees (D =accumulated daily temperature from hatching). Sporadic thyroid follicles are first detected in larvae at 142 D (27 days post-hatch), prior to the completion of yolk sack absorption. Both the number and activity of the follicles increase markedly after yolk sack absorption and continue to do so during subsequent development. The larval triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) content increases, subsequent to yolk absorption, and coincides with the proliferation of thyroid follicles. A second increase of both T3 and T4 occurs around the start of metamorphosis and the T3 content further increases at the metamorphic climax. Overall, the T3 content is lower than T4. The pituitary gland can first be distinguished as a separate organ at the yolk sack stage. During subsequent development, the gland becomes more elongated and differentiates into neurohypophysis (NH), pars distalis (PD) and pars intermedia (PI). The first sporadic endocrine pituitary cells are observed at the yolk sack stage, somatotrophs (growth hormone producing cells) and somatolactotrophs (somatolactin producing cells) are first observed at 121 D (23 days post-hatch), and lactotrophs (prolactin producing cells) at 134 D (25 days post-hatch). Scarce thyrotrophs are evident after detection of the first thyroid follicles (142 D ), but coincident with a phase in which follicle number and activity increase (260 D ). The somatotrophs are clustered in the medium ventral region of the PD, lactotrophs in the anterior part of the PD and somatolactotrophs are scattered in the mid and posterior region of the pituitary. At around 600 D , coinciding with the start of metamorphosis, somatolactotrophs are restricted to the interdigitating tissue of the NH. During larval development, the pituitary endocrine cells become more numerous. The present data on thyroid development support the notion that thyroid hormones may play a significant role in Atlantic halibut metamorphosis. The time of appearance and the subsequent proliferation of pituitary somatotrophs, lactotrophs, somatolactotrophs and thyrotrophs indicate at which stages of larval development and metamorphosis these endocrine cells may start to play active regulatory roles.This work has been carried out within the projects ‘‘Endocrine Control as a Determinant of Larval Quality in Fish Aquaculture’’ (CT-96-1422) and ‘‘Arrested development: The Molecular and Endocrine Basis of Flatfish Metamorphosis’’ (Q5RS-2002-01192), with financial support from the Commission of the European Communities. However, it does not necessarily reflect the Commission’s views and in no way anticipates its future policy in this area. This project was further supported by the Swedish Council for Agricultural and Forestry Research and Pluriannual funding to CCMAR by the Portuguese Science and Technology Council

Induction chemotherapy followed by chemoradiotherapy versus chemoradiotherapy alone as neoadjuvant treatment for locally recurrent rectal cancer: study protocol of a multicentre, open-label, parallel-arms, randomized controlled study (PelvEx II)

Background A resection with clear margins (R0 resection) is the most important prognostic factor in patients with locally recurrent rectal cancer (LRRC). However, this is achieved in only 60 per cent of patients. The aim of this study is to investigate whether the addition of induction chemotherapy to neoadjuvant chemo(re)irradiation improves the R0 resection rate in LRRC. Methods This multicentre, international, open-label, phase III, parallel-arms study will enrol 364 patients with resectable LRRC after previous partial or total mesorectal resection without synchronous distant metastases or recent chemo- and/or radiotherapy treatment. Patients will be randomized to receive either induction chemotherapy (three 3-week cycles of CAPOX (capecitabine, oxaliplatin), four 2-week cycles of FOLFOX (5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, oxaliplatin) or FOLFORI (5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, irinotecan)) followed by neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and surgery (experimental arm) or neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and surgery alone (control arm). Tumours will be restaged using MRI and, in the experimental arm, a further cycle of CAPOX or two cycles of FOLFOX/FOLFIRI will be administered before chemoradiotherapy in case of stable or responsive disease. The radiotherapy dose will be 25 × 2.0 Gy or 28 × 1.8 Gy in radiotherapy-naive patients, and 15 × 2.0 Gy in previously irradiated patients. The concomitant chemotherapy agent will be capecitabine administered twice daily at a dose of 825 mg/m2 on radiotherapy days. The primary endpoint of the study is the R0 resection rate. Secondary endpoints are long-term oncological outcomes, radiological and pathological response, toxicity, postoperative complications, costs, and quality of life. Discussion This trial protocol describes the PelvEx II study. PelvEx II, designed as a multicentre, open-label, phase III, parallel-arms study, is the first randomized study to compare induction chemotherapy followed by neoadjuvant chemo(re)irradiation and surgery with neoadjuvant chemo(re)irradiation and surgery alone in patients with locally recurrent rectal cancer, with the aim of improving the number of R0 resections

Radiosynthesis and biodistribution of cyclic RGD peptides conjugated with novel [¹⁸F] fluorinated aldehyde-containing prosthetic groups

Achieving high-yielding, robust, and reproducible chemistry is a prerequisite for the <sup>18</sup>F-labeling of peptides for quantitative receptor imaging using positron emission tomography (PET). In this study, we extend the toolbox of oxime chemistry to include the novel prosthetic groups [<sup>18</sup>F]-(2-{2-[2-(2-fluoroethoxy)ethoxy]ethoxy}ethoxy)acetaldehyde, [<sup>18</sup>F]5, and [<sup>18</sup>F]-4-(3-fluoropropoxy)benzaldehyde, [<sup>18</sup>F]9, in addition to the widely used 4-[<sup>18</sup>F]fluorobenzaldehyde, [<sup>18</sup>F]12. The three <sup>18</sup>F-aldehydes were conjugated to the same aminooxy-bearing RGD peptide and the effect of the prosthetic group on biodistribution and tumor uptake studied in mice. The peptide conjugate [<sup>18</sup>F]7 was found to possess superior in vivo pharmacokinetics with higher tumor to blood, tumor to liver, tumor to muscle, and tumor to lung ratios than either [<sup>18</sup>F]10 or [<sup>18</sup>F]13. The radioactivity from the [<sup>18</sup>F]7 conjugate excreted more extensively through the kidney route with 79%id passing through the urine and bladder at the 2 h time point compared to around 55%id for the more hydrophobic conjugates [<sup>18</sup>F]10 and [<sup>18</sup>F]13. The chemical nature of a prosthetic group can be employed to tailor the overall biodistribution profile of the radiotracer. In this example, the hydrophilic nature of the ethylene glycol containing prosthetic group [<sup>18</sup>F]5 clearly influences the overall excretion pattern for the RGD peptide conjugate

Noninvasive Imaging of Angiotensin Receptors After Myocardial Infarction

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of noninvasive imaging of angiotensin II (AT) receptor upregulation in a mouse model of post-myocardial infarction (MI) heart failure (HF).BackgroundCirculating AT levels do not reflect the status of upregulation of renin-angiotensin axis in the myocardium, which plays a central role in ventricular remodeling and evolution of HF after MI. Appropriately labeled AT or AT receptor blocking agents should be able to specifically target AT receptors by molecular imaging techniques.MethodsAT receptor imaging was performed in 29 mice at various time points after permanent coronary artery ligation or in controls using a fluoresceinated angiotensin peptide analog (APA) and radiolabeled losartan. The APA was used in 19 animals for intravital fluorescence microscopy on a beating mouse heart. Tc-99m losartan was used for in vivo radionuclide imaging and quantitative assessment of AT receptor expression in 10 mice. After imaging, hearts were harvested for pathological characterization using confocal and 2-photon microscopy.ResultsNo or little APA uptake was observed in control animals or within infarct regions on days 0 and 1. Distinct uptake occurred in the infarct area at 1 to 12 weeks after MI; the uptake was at maximum at 3 weeks and reduced markedly at 12 weeks after MI. Ultrasonographic examination demonstrated left ventricular remodeling, and pathologic characterization revealed localization of the APA tracer with collagen-producing myofibroblasts. Tc-99m losartan uptake in the infarct region (0.524 ± 0.212% injected dose/g) increased 2.4-fold as compared to uptake in the control animals (0.215 ± 0.129%; p < 0.05).ConclusionsThe present study demonstrates the feasibility of in vivo molecular imaging of AT receptors in the remodeling myocardium. Noninvasive imaging studies aimed at AT receptor expression could play a role in identification of subjects likely to develop heart failure. In addition, such a strategy could allow for optimization of anti-angiotensin therapy in patients after MI