David Bruce (1855–1931) : discoverer of brucellosis

This article gives a detailed biography of David Bruce, the discoverer of Brucellosis. Also in this article, Malta is remembered as the place where David Bruce discovered the cause of the mysterious febrile illness that debilitated so many British soldiers and Maltese people in general.peer-reviewe

Effects of IL-6, IL-10 and TGF-β on the expression of survivin and apoptosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma TW01 cells

The aim of this study is to investigate whether IL-6, IL-10 and TGF-β are able to confer resistance to apoptosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells by upregulating the expression of survivin. Methods: The human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line TW01 (WHO NPC Type I) was cultured in DMEM-F12 Ham medium containing 10% FBS in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2 and 37◦C and treated with different concentrations of IL-6, IL-10 and TGF-β. Survivin mRNA expression was measured by real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot. Apoptosis was determined based on the assay for caspase-3 activity. Results: Of all the cytokines tested, only TGF-β (10 pg/mL) induced the over-expression of survivin at a significant level and this correlated with resistance to apoptosis (p ≤ 0.05). To confirm if survivin is responsible for resistance to apoptosis, YM155 which is a survivin inhibitor was used and the results showed that YM155 abrogated the protective effect of TGF-β. Interestingly, IL-10 did not significantly alter the expression of survivin. Conclusions: We conclude that TGF-β up-regulates the expression of survivin leading to the resistance to apoptosis in NPC TW01 cells

Functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes and their binding to cancer cells

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Effects of IL-6, IL-10 and TGF-β on the expression of survivin and apoptosisin nasopharyngeal carcinoma TW01 cells

The aim of this study is to investigate whether IL-6, IL-10 and TGF-β are able to confer resistance to apoptosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells by upregulating the expression of survivin. Methods: The human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line TW01 (WHO NPC Type I) was cultured in DMEM-F12 Ham medium containing 10% FBS in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2 and 37◦C and treated with different concentrations of IL-6, IL-10 and TGF-β. Survivin mRNA expression was measured by real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot. Apoptosis was determined based on the assay for caspase-3 activity. Results: Of all the cytokines tested, only TGF-β (10 pg/mL) induced the over-expression of survivin at a significant level and this correlated with resistance to apoptosis (p ≤ 0.05). To confirm if survivin is responsible for resistance to apoptosis, YM155 which is a survivin inhibitor was used and the results showed that YM155 abrogated the protective effect of TGF-β. Interestingly, IL-10 did not significantly alter the expression of survivin. Conclusions: We conclude that TGF-β up-regulates the expression of survivin leading to the resistance to apoptosis in NPC TW01 cells

The effectiveness of sponsorship of the F1 Singapore Grand Prix: recall and recognition

The effectiveness of sponsorship of the F1 Singapore Grand Prix: recall and recognitio

Elucidating the roles of miR-372 in cell proliferation and apoptosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma TW01 cells

Aim: Deregulation of microRNA has been associated with cancer progression and the modification of cancer phenotypes could be achieved by targeting microRNA expression. This study aimed to determine the effects of miR-372 on cell progression and gene expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line, TW01. Materials and Methods: NPC TW01 cells were transfected with the miR-372 precursor molecules. Gene expression studies were conducted using RT-PCR assays for nine cancer related genes. The effects of miR-372 on cell proliferation, cell cycle arrest and apoptosis were also investigated. Results: Expression of ­miR-372 caused cell cycle arrest at the S phase that was accompanied by an overall decrease of cells entering the G2/M phase. miR-372 did not have any significant effect on apoptosis. Of the nine genes studied, four were up-regulated, namely CDKN1A, INCA1, LATS2 and BIRC5. The other five genes — CDK2, CCNA1, TP53, BAX and BCL2 were down-regulated by miR-372. Conclusion: This preliminary study indicated the tumor suppressing roles of miR-372 in cell cycle progression of TW01 cells, possibly via the down-regulation of CDK2 and CCNA1 as well as the up-regulation of CDKN1A and INCA1.Key Words: apoptosis, microRNA, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, miR-372, CDK2, CCNA1

Synergistic photothermal ablative effects of functionalizing carbon nanotubes with a POSS-PCU nanocomposite polymer

10.1186/1477-3155-10-34Journal of Nanobiotechnology10-JNOA

Spatial Variation in Foliar Chemicals Within Radish (Raphanus sativus) Plants and Their Effects on Performance of Spodoptera litura

Foliar chemicals are variable within a plant and this may affect herbivore feeding preference. This study was carried out to quantify concentrations of primary (nitrogen, water, and total nonstructural carbohydrates) and secondary substances (sinigrin) in young and old leaves of Raphanus sativus L. and to evaluate performance and survival of a generalist herbivore Spodoptera litura F. feeding on them. Forty to 50-d-old R. sativus plants were used in both foliar chemical analysis and insect performance bioassays. Leaves located on the third to the sixth node from the base of the plant were defined as old leaves and the remaining leaves (from seventh node to the plant apex) of the plant were referred as young leaves in this study. All foliar chemicals except water differed significantly between young and old leaves. Moreover, young leaves were more nutritious but much more defended, based on sinigrin content, against S. litura than old leaves. Performance and survival of S. litura were reduced on young leaves as compared with old leaves. Male and female larval duration only differed significantly on young leaves. Female larval development time was longer than male development time on young leaves, but not on older leaves. Therefore, this study revealed that defenses in young leaves have differential effects upon male and female S. litura

Visual arts in counselling adults with depressive disorders

This study provides a better understanding of using visual arts in counselling adults with depressive disorders. Three in-depthcase studieswere conducted in the counselling unit of amentalhealth hospital inMalaysia. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were applied to explore three adult participants’ counselling experiences. They attended six individual counselling sessions, which included four art-making activities, and two after-session interviews, for approximately two months. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. The findings showed that through the therapeutic use of visual arts, the participants were able to explore and express various emotions, face their problems, communicate better with themselves and the counsellor, achieve a deeper self-understanding, and make meaningful progress in counselling, even though some of them experienced a sense of uncertainty at the beginning of some art-making activities