Cytotoxic Chemotherapy and CD4+ Effector T Cells: An Emerging Alliance for Durable Antitumor Effects

Standard cytotoxic chemotherapy can initially achieve high response rates, but relapses often occur in patients and represent a severe clinical problem. As increasing numbers of chemotherapeutic agents are found to have immunostimulatory effects, there is a growing interest to combine chemotherapy and immunotherapy for synergistic antitumor effects and improved clinical benefits. Findings from recent studies suggest that highly activated, polyfunctional CD4+ effector T cells have tremendous potential in strengthening and sustaining the overall host antitumor immunity in the postchemotherapy window. This review focuses on the latest progresses regarding the impact of chemotherapy on CD4+ T-cell phenotype and function and discusses the prospect of exploiting CD4+ T cells to control tumor progression and prevent relapse after chemotherapy

Utility of Landsat Image in the Study of Land Cover and Land Surface Temperature Change

AbstractScientists have aimed at exploring land use and land cover (LULC) and their environmental influence in order to improve our understanding of the causes and consequences of these phenomena. This study addresses and use and land cover change (LUCC) in the upper reaches of Pearl River Delta, China, from 1990 to 2008. Based on remotely sensed images of Landsat, LUCC and land surface temperature were assessed. Results showed that land surface temperature was highly influenced by the LUCC from 1990 to 2008. An examination of the relationship between the LULC and LST maps was finally conducted to comprehension their interactions. Results indicated that Landsat image was effective for quantifying the heat environment and providing reliable measurements of land use change. LST was found to be positively correlated with impervious surface but negatively correlated with vegetated land. Each temperature zone was associated with a dominant LULC category

Comprehensive analysis of tandem amino acid repeats from ten angiosperm genomes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The presence of tandem amino acid repeats (AARs) is one of the signatures of eukaryotic proteins. AARs were thought to be frequently involved in bio-molecular interactions. Comprehensive studies that primarily focused on metazoan AARs have suggested that AARs are evolving rapidly and are highly variable among species. However, there is still controversy over causal factors of this inter-species variation. In this work, we attempted to investigate this topic mainly by comparing AARs in orthologous proteins from ten angiosperm genomes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Angiosperm AAR content is positively correlated with the GC content of the protein coding sequence. However, based on observations from fungal AARs and insect AARs, we argue that the applicability of this kind of correlation is limited by AAR residue composition and species' life history traits. Angiosperm AARs also tend to be fast evolving and structurally disordered, supporting the results of comprehensive analyses of metazoans. The functions of conserved long AARs are summarized. Finally, we propose that the rapid mRNA decay rate, alternative splicing and tissue specificity are regulatory processes that are associated with angiosperm proteins harboring AARs.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our investigation suggests that GC content is a predictor of AAR content in the protein coding sequence under certain conditions. Although angiosperm AARs lack conservation and 3D structure, a fraction of the proteins that contain AARs may be functionally important and are under extensive regulation in plant cells.</p

N-Acetyl-N-{2-[(Z)-2-chloro-3,3,3-tri­fluoro­prop-1-en­yl]phen­yl}acetamide

The title compound, C13H11ClF3NO2, adopts a Z conformation. Halogen⋯oxygen inter­actions [Cl⋯O = 2.967 (3) Å] in the crystal packing lead to the formation of a dimer joined by two Cl⋯O bonds

Comparison of lower extremity atherosclerosis in diabetic and non-diabetic patients using multidetector computed tomography

BACKGROUND: Lower extremity atherosclerosis (LEA) is among the most serious diabetic complications and leads to non-traumatic amputations. The recently developed dual-source CT (DSCT) and 320- multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) may help to detect plaques more precisely. The aim of our study was to evaluate the differences in LEA between diabetic and non-diabetic patients using MDCT angiography. METHODS: DSCT and 320-MDCT angiographies of the lower extremities were performed in 161 patients (60 diabetic and 101 non-diabetic). The plaque type, distribution, shape and obstructive natures were compared. RESULTS: Compared with non-diabetic patients, diabetic patients had higher peripheral neuropathy, history of cerebrovasuclar infarction and hypertension rates. A total of 2898 vascular segments were included in the analysis. Plaque and stenosis were detected in 681 segments in 60 diabetic patients (63.1%) and 854 segments in 101 non-diabetic patients (46.9%; p <0.05). Regarding these plaques, diabetic patients had a higher incidence of mixed plaques (34.2% vs. 27.1% for non-diabetic patients). An increased moderate stenosis rate and decreased occlusion rate were observed in diabetic patients relative to non-diabetic patients (35.8% vs. 28.3%; and 6.6% vs. 11.4%; respectively). In diabetic patients, 362 (53.2%) plaques were detected in the distal lower leg segments, whereas in non-diabetic patients, 551 (64.5%) plaques were found in the proximal upper leg segments. The type IV plaque shape, in which the full lumen was involved, was detected more frequently in diabetic patients than in non-diabetic patients (13.1% vs. 8.2%). CONCLUSION: Diabetes is associated with a higher incidence of plaque, increased incidence of mixed plaques, moderate stenosis and localisation primarily in the distal lower leg segments. The advanced and non-invasive MDCT could be used for routine preoperative evaluations of LEA