First Report of Curvularia Leaf Blight on Curcuma wenyujin Caused by Curvularia clavata in China

Curcuma wenyujin Y.H. Chen & C. Ling is a traditional Chinese medicinal herb in the Zingiberaceae family. Commonly known as Wen yujin, the root is widely used for alleviating pain and protecting the liver. A severe leaf blight disease was observed in three C. wenyujin farms in Hainan Province of China in October 2010. The obvious symptoms of leaf blight, yellow to brown irregular lesions (1 to 20 cm) on C. wenyujin, usually began at the tips of leaves and the main veins. This disease, especially severe from August to October, caused heavy damage and 100% of mature plants (10 months old) in farms were infected. The disease was most severe when continuous cropping was performed and showed slight improvement when rotation was adopted. Farmers usually sprayed carbendazim (50% WP) and thiophanate-methyl (70% WP) to control this disease, but these treatments were not effective. To isolate the causal pathogen, diseased plants were collected in October 2010 from a field of the Hainan Branch Institute of Medicinal Plant Development in Hainan Province. Lesion tissue was removed from the border between symptomatic and healthy tissue, surface sterilized in 75% ethanol for 1 min, washed in three changes of sterile distilled water, transferred to potato dextrose agar (PDA) plates, and incubated at 28°C for 7 days. Single spore cultures of five isolates were obtained and identified as Curvularia clavata based on morphological characteristics (1). Conidia measured 20 to 29 × 7.5 to 10.5 μm (n = 100), were curved, 3-septate, and the third cell from the base was larger and darker than the others. Mycelia of single spore cultures growing on PDA for 5 days were used for DNA extraction using a plant genomic DNA kit (TIANGEN, Beijing). The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the rDNA was amplified using primers ITS1 and ITS4. The amplicons were 562 bp in length (GenBank Accession No. JQ730852) and had 99% nucleotide identity with the GenBank Accession No. JN021115 and AF071336 of C. clavata. Pathogenicity tests were conducted using fresh and healthy detached Curcuma wenyujin leaves. Mycelial discs (10 mm) removed from a 5-day-old colony on PDA were used for inoculation. Each isolate was inoculated on three distinct leaves (two distinct inoculations per leaf). Three additional leaves inoculated with sterile PDA discs were used as control. Inoculated leaves were covered with a polythene film to maintain high humidity. Leaves in trays were kept in a growth chamber at 28°C and observed for symptom appearance every day. Five days after inoculation, inoculated leaves developed blight symptoms similar to those observed on naturally infected leaves. No symptoms were observed on non-inoculated leaves. C. clavata was reisolated from the inoculated leaves, thus fulfilling Koch's postulates. C. clavata has been previously reported to be economically important on a number of other hosts (2). To our knowledge, this is the first report of Curvularia leaf blight on Curcuma wenyujin caused by C. clavata in China. References: (1) A. M Mandokhot et al. Eur. J. Plant Pathol.78:65, 1972. (2) T. Y. Zhang et al. Flora fungorum sinicorum: Beijing, China, 2010.

HMGB1 promotes the differentiation of Th17 via up-regulating TLR2 and IL-23 of CD14+ monocytes from patients with rheumatoid arthritis

High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) is a non-histone nuclear protein that is released extracellulary and has been implicated in autoimmune disease. Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) signalling is thought to be essential for the inflammatory response and for immune disorders. In recent studies, enhanced HMGB1 and TLR2 expressions have been found in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), respectively. The aim of this study is to explore whether HMGB1 stimulation can up-regulate the expression of TLR2 on CD14(+) monocytes from patients with RA and to clarify the subsequent events involving Th17 cells and Th17 cell-associated cytokine changes. Our results showed that the frequency of CD14(+) cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) was obviously increased, and enhanced expression of TLR2 on CD14(+) monocytes was also found in patients with RA, compared with healthy controls with statistical significance (P < 0.001). In addition, the levels of IL-17, IL-23 and IL-6 in supernatants from cultured monocytes from patients and in patient's plasma were increased, and NF-κB, the downstream target of TLR2, also showed a marked elevation after monocytes were stimulated by HMGB1. This implies that the enhanced TLR2 pathway and Th17 cell polarization may be due to HMGB1 stimulation in rheumatoid arthritis.

Expression of the transformed phenotype induced by diverse acting viral oncogenes mediates sensitivity to growth suppression induced by caffeic Acid phenethyl ester (cape)

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) displays enhanced growth suppressive and toxic effects toward cloned rat embryo fibroblast (CREF) cells transformed by adenovirus type 5 (Ad5) or the Ad5 E1A transforming gene versus untransformed CREF cells (Su et al, Mol Carcinogen 4: 231-242, 1991). The present study was conducted to determine if transformation of CREF cells with additional oncogenes rendered these cells sensitive to the antiproliferative effect of CAPE. Additionally, studies were conducted to determine if reversion of the transformed phenotype could modify CAPE sensitivity. CAPE displayed increased growth suppressive activity toward CREF cells transformed by a number of oncogenes, including Ha-ras, v-src, v-raf, human papillomavirus type 18 (HPV-18) and human papillomavirus type 51 (HPV-51). Employing Ha-ras-transformed CREF (Ha-ras) and Ha-ras-transformed CREF cells overexpressing the Krev-1 suppressor gene (Ha-ras/Krev-1), evidence for a direct relationship between expression of the transformed phenotype and CAPE sensitivity was demonstrated. Ha-ras/Krev-1 cells displaying a suppression of the transformed phenotype exhibited increased resistance to CAPE-induced growth suppression versus Ha-ras cells, whereas Ha-ras/Krev-1 cells escaping transformation-suppression following in vivo growth in nude mice displayed enhanced sensitivity to growth-suppression induced by CAPE. Similarly, mutant Ad5 (H5hr1)-transformed and v-src-transformed CREF cells displaying a stable reversion in transformation also displayed a reduced sensitivity to CAPE versus their transformed counterparts. These observations indicate a direct relationship between expression of the transformed phenotype and CAPE sensitivity. Elucidation of the mechanism by which CAPE selectively inhibits growth of transformed cells should provide important insights into the critical molecular changes mediating expression of the transformed state and could help identify cellular targets for cancer therapy.

Transcriptional switching model for the regulation of tumorigenesis and metastasis by the ha-ras oncogene - transcriptional changes in the ha-ras tumor-suppressor gene lysyl oxidase

A model system is described that allows an analysis of the molecular and biochemical changes associated with expression and suppression of the oncogenic and metastatic phenotype of cloned rat embryo fibroblast (CREF) cells. Ha-ras-transformed CREF cells are morphologically transformed, anchorage-independent and both tumorigenic and metastatic in athymic nude mice and syngeneic Fischer rats. Co-expression of the Ha-ras oncogene and Krev-1 tumor suppressor gene in CREF cells results in suppression of in vitro transformation. In contrast, Ha-ras/Krev-1 transformed CREF cells retain, with greatly extended latency periods, both tumorigenic and metastatic capabilities in athymic nude mice. The present study investigates changes in the Ha-ms suppressor gene, rrg (lysyl oxidase), during expression and suppression of the oncogenic phenotype in CREF cells. Nontumorigenic CREF cells and CREF cells transformed by the Ha-ras and Krev-1 gene that express a suppression in in vitro transformation contain elevated levels of lysyl oxidase mRNA and protein. In contrast, Ha-ms and Ha-ras/Krev-1 nude mouse tumor- and nude mouse lung metastasis-derived CREF cells contain reduced levels of lysyl oxidase mRNA and protein. Nuclear run-on assays indicate that suppression of lysyl oxidase expression in transformed subclones of CREF cells correlates with a reduction in transcription of the lysyl oxidase gene. Taken together, the current studies support a transcriptional switching model in which lysyl oxidase expression correlates directly with suppression of the Ka-ms-induced transformation phenotype and escape from oncogenic suppression correlates with a transcriptional silencing of the lysyl oxidase gene and decreased lysyl oxidase mRNA and protein.

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester profoundly modifies protein synthesis profile in type 5 adenovirus-transformed cloned rat embryo fibroblast cells

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE), an active component of propolis from bee hives, exerts a plethora of biological changes in diverse systems. These include antimitogenic, anticarcinogenic, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory responses. CAPE directly induces programmed cell death (apoptosis) in type 5 adenovirus (Ad5)-transformed cloned rat embryo fibroblast cells, wt3A. To identify the gene and protein expression changes induced by CAPE in wt3A cells we used a strategy involving in vitro translation of mRNAs followed by high resolution two-dimensional (2D) gel electrophoresis. This approach results in the detection of 745 spots, including 172 displaying differences in expression upon exposure to CAPE. A high proportion of spots show profound changes in spot intensity (42 spots with increased and 27 spots with decreased intensity) following CAPE treatment. These studies provide a basis for comparing these changes to known protein patterns of various cell populations with an ultimate aim of identifying families of polypeptides responsible for the up- and down-regulation of cellular proteins during CAPE-induced apoptosis. Specific newly appearing or completely disappearing spots (52 and 51 molecular species, respectively) will be used to attempt to identify and retrieve their cDNA counterparts from an ordered cDNA library. These approaches represent a novel strategy for cloning genes associated with and potentially mediating apoptosis.

Direct Response to Proton Beam Linear Energy Transfer (LET) in a Novel Polymer Gel Dosimeter Formulation

Linear energy transfer (LET) of clinical proton beams is an important parameter influencing the biological effects of radiation. This work demonstrates LET-induced response enhancement in novel formulations of polymer gel dosimeters, potentially useful for LET mapping of clinical proton beams. A series of four polymer gel dosimeters (labeled A through D), prepared based on the BANG3-Pro2 formulation, but with varying concentrations of polymerization modifiers, were irradiated by a clinical proton beam with a spread out Bragg peak modulation (SOBP) and read out using the OCTOPUS-IQ optical CT scanner. The evaluation of optical density profiles in the SOBP (constant physical dose) revealed response deviations at the distal end consistent with variations in gel composition. Maximum response deviations were as follows: −3% (under-response) for gel A, and over-response of 2%, 12%, and 17% for gels B, C, and D, respectively, relative to the mean dose in the center of the SOBP. This enhancement in optical response was correlated to LET by analytical calculations. Gels A and B showed no measurable dependence on LET. Gel C responded linearly in the limited range from 1.5 to 3.5 keV/μm. LET response of gel D was linear up to at least 5.5 keV/μm, with the threshold at about 1.3 keV/μm. These results suggest that it may be possible to develop a polymer gel system with direct optical response to LET for mapping of LET distributions for particle therapy beams.

Increased T-cell stimulating activity by mutated SEC2 correlates with its improved antitumour potency

AIMS

To investigate the improved antitumour activity of SAM-3 compared with recombinant staphylococcal enterotoxins C2 (rSEC2).

METHODS AND RESULTS

Methylthiazol tetrazolium and flow cytometry assays showed that the antitumour activity of SAM-3 in vivo was improved because of enhanced T-cell stimulating potency, resulting in massive activation of T cells, particularly CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells, and subsequent cytokine release. Quantitative real-time PCR assay showed that despite similar Vβ specificities induced by rSEC2 and SAM-3, the quantities of activated T cells bearing specific Vβin vitro were different.

CONCLUSIONS

The results strongly suggested that the increased SAM-3-T-cell receptor (TCR) binding affinity contributed to massive T-cell activation and cytokine release, substantially amplifying antitumour immune response in vivo.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

This study provided evidence for the mechanism of SAM-3 antitumour activity improvement compared with rSEC2. Results indicated that SAM-3 could be used as a potent powerful candidate agent for tumour treatment in clinics.

Intranasal administration of TAT-haFGF(₁₄₋₁₅₄) attenuates disease progression in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease

Human acidic fibroblast growth factor (haFGF), a neurotrophin-like growth factor in the brain, plays important roles in the development, differentiation and regeneration of brain neurons, which makes it potential to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD). In this study, haFGF(14-154) and TAT-haFGF(14-154) (haFGF(14-154) fused with the cell-penetrating peptide transactivator of transcription protein transduction domain (TAT-PTD)) were intranasally administrated for 5 weeks to investigate the effects on senescence-accelerated mouse prone-8 (SAMP8) mice (a mouse model of AD). Results showed that TAT-PTD could increase the concentration of haFGF in the brain significantly, and TAT-haFGF(14-154) was more effective than haFGF(14-154) in the same dosage (300 μg/kg). Importantly, TAT-haFGF(14-154) improved the learning and memory abilities of SAMP8 mice in the behavioral test, and promoted the function of cholinergic system by measuring the relevant biomarkers (acetylcholine (ACh) level, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activities). TAT-haFGF(14-154) also significantly reduced β-amyloid protein(1-42) (Aβ(1-42)) deposits as well as the levels of Aβ soluble forms in the mice brains and prevented the neurons from apoptosis. Besides, the oxidative stress impairment in the brain and serum was also ameliorated. The results suggest that TAT-haFGF(14-154) could attenuate the disease progression of SAMP8 AD mice, and the mechanism is related to the regulation of neurons microenvironment including neurotransmitters, Aβ pathology and oxidative stress.

SU-E-T-225: A Comprehensive Evaluation of Real-Time Motion Tracking of a Surface Imaging System for Lung Treatment

PURPOSE

Applicability of the AlignRT surface imaging system was extensively investigated for real-time motion tracking in radiation therapy of lung cancer.

METHODS

A 4D computer-controlled motion phantom was employed to simulate a human breathing motion. An anthropomorphic thoracic phantom (a coronal cross-sectional area: ∼1,200 cm² ) was monitored during the 4D motion tracking. A breathing cycle from a healthy subject (breathing frequency: 0.2 Hz; maximum amplitude: vertical 7 mm, longitudinal 6 mm, and lateral 1.2 mm) was monitored and fed into the phantom control system. The real time monitoring was investigated by modifying a region of detection (the whole, a half, and a quarter of the area) and combination of 3 cameras (patient left, middle, and right).

RESULTS

The real-time tracking errors (detected breathing motion - the input of the subject's breathing) of the phantom motion using one camera (lateral, longitudinal, vertical) were (0.02±0.14 mm, -0.23±0.48 mm, -0.10±0.48 mm) with ipsilateral halves of the area (frame rate: 1.52 Hz), (0.06±0.10 mm, -0.30±0.30 mm, -0.03-0.35 mm) with ipsilateral quarters (frame rate: 1.95 Hz), and (0.19±0.96 mm, 0.29±1.50 mm, -0.46±1.58 mm) with contralateral quarters (frame rate: 3.04 Hz). The detection errors using 2-camera combinations (left-middle and right-middle) were (-0.06±0.06 mm, -0.43±0.21 mm, 0.00±0.22 mm) for the ipsilateral quarters and (-0.62±0.18 mm, -1.20±0.37 mm, 0.03±0.30 mm) for the contralateral quarters, respectively. The 3-camera tracking using halves of the area presented an error of (-0.04±0.12 mm, -0.69±0.35 mm, -0.08±0.38 mm) with a frame rate of 0.62 Hz.

CONCLUSIONS

To guarantee a sub-millimeter accuracy of realtime motion tracking in the lung treatment, combination of 2 cameras or less, a frame rate of greater than the Nyquist frequency (in this study fN = 2B (breathing frequency) = 0.4 Hz), and a tracking area of less than an ipsilateral half of thoracic area is highly recommended.

SU-E-J-214: Target Intrafraction Motion Dosimetric Impact on 5-Fraction Proton Prostate SBRT

PURPOSE

To investigate dosimetric impact of prostate intra-fraction motion to five fraction hypofractionated proton treatment with uniform scanning (US) and double scattering (DS) techniques using real-time prostate tracking data from electromagnetic transponder system.

METHODS

Prostate intra-fraction motion can have spatiotemporal interplay with proton treatment delivery. Five fraction (7.25Gy/fraction) prostate proton stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) treatments were simulated for total 14 patients using in-house proton treatment simulation program. The US treatment was simulated by rigidly moving CTV through a series of temporal-spatial dose matrices indexed by energy layers, according to prostate motion traces. The CTV temporal doses of the whole treatment fraction were obtained and summed as final prostate CTV dose. The DS treatment was simulated by moving CTV through the energy layer summed dose matrix. For all patients, the fraction doses and the total dose to the CTV were presented for both DS and US treatments.

RESULTS

The CTV dose of different fractions indicated that its dose degradation depends on magnitude and direction of prostate intra-fraction motion and is patient specific. For one of the prostate motion traces investigated, only 70% of CTV received 100% prescribed dose for a simulated US treatment and 79% CTV had 100% dose for a DS treatment. Furthermore, DVH and isodose graphs of both treatments revealed that intra-fraction motion caused significant CTV cold and hot spots in US treatment whereas only cause CTV underdose in DS treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

Intra-fraction prostate motion causes dose uncertainty to CTV. In the 5 fraction prostate SBRT, prostate intra-fraction motion causes significant target dose degradation. In US treatment, spatiotemporal interplay between energy layers delivery and prostate motion leads to hot and cold spots in CTV for some patients with severe prostate intra-fraction motion. Further investigation of intra-fraction motion management and its impact on CTV dose is necessary.

Converging evidence implicates the dopamine D3 receptor gene in vulnerability to schizophrenia

The dopamine D3 receptor has been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia (SZ). A glycine-to-serine polymorphism at codon 9 of the dopamine D3 receptor gene (DRD3), rs6280, has been widely studied for its association with SZ, but with conflicting results. Altered levels of DRD3 mRNA have also been reported in SZ compared with normal controls. Moreover, it has been suggested that DRD3 is subject to recent positive selection in European populations. To explore the potential role of DRD3 in SZ from these various aspects, we conducted a threefold study. First, we tested the genetic association of rs6280 with SZ in 685 SZ patients and 768 normal controls. Second, we examined DRD3 mRNA levels in peripheral leukocytes in a subset of 37 patients and 37 controls. Finally, we investigated the possible recent positive selection on DRD3 in an East Asian population. Consequently, we observed that the genotypic distribution of rs6280 was nominally associated with SZ (P = 0.045), with the ancestral CC genotype being significantly over-represented in SZ patients. DRD3 mRNA levels were significantly lower in patients than in controls (P = 5.91E-5). The derived C-allele of rs6280 might have been subject to recent positive selection (P < 0.001) in the East Asian population. Taken together, our results suggest that DRD3, a gene possibly under natural selection, might be involved in vulnerability to SZ in the Han Chinese population. These findings may further add to the body of data implicating DRD3 as a schizophrenia risk gene.

The Interaction of Polymer Dispersions with Portland Cement Paste

Research has been done on the interaction of two types of polymer dispersions, a styrene acrylate (SA) and a polyvinylidene chloride (PVDLC), with portland cement by means of a COULTER particle size analyzer and a filtration technique. It was found that over 50% of the polymer SA particles were adsorbed onto the cement surface, the others did not adhere to cement grains and remained dispersed in the mixing water. However, the polymer dispersion PVDLC caused a quick flocculation and coagulation of cement grains and stiffening of the paste. Hardly any free polymer particles of this polymer were found in the liquid phase.

Gynandroblastoma with the symptoms of infertility and secondary amenorrhea: a case report

The case of a female patient who failed to get pregnant due to delayed menstruation is reported. Gynecological examination showed that the patient had a male pubic distribution, hypertrophic clitoris, unobstructed vagina and hypertrophic cervices with smooth and medium texture. B ultrasonic examination detected a 42 x 30 mm in size medium echo mass. This mass had irregular shape, smooth surface, relatively clear boundary and hard texture. Examination with paraffin-embedded section indicated that the tumor was composed of supporting cells and to a lesser amount of interstitial components. Some regions had particle-like cell differentiation. These results suggested that the tumor was gynandroblastoma. We found that the increased level of serum testosterone in the patient was the reason for amenorrhea and infertility. The diagnosis and treatment for patients with gynandroblastoma is also discussed.

Assessing sources of inconsistencies in genotypes and their effects on genome-wide association studies with HapMap samples

The discordance in results of independent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) indicates the potential for Type I and Type II errors. We assessed the repeatibility of current Affymetrix technologies that support GWAS. Reasonable reproducibility was observed for both raw intensity and the genotypes/copy number variants. We also assessed consistencies between different SNP arrays and between genotype calling algorithms. We observed that the inconsistency in genotypes was generally small at the specimen level. To further examine whether the differences from genotyping and genotype calling are possible sources of variation in GWAS results, an association analysis was applied to compare the associated SNPs. We observed that the inconsistency in genotypes not only propagated to the association analysis, but was amplified in the associated SNPs. Our studies show that inconsistencies between SNP arrays and between genotype calling algorithms are potential sources for the lack of reproducibility in GWAS results.

Multimodality treatment with intensity modulated radiation therapy for esophageal cancer

The objective of this study is to determine the feasibility and report the outcome of patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer treated with preoperative or definitive chemoradiotherapy (CRT) using intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). Between 2003 and 2007, 30 patients with non-cervical esophageal cancer received concurrent chemotherapy and IMRT at Stanford University. Eighteen patients were planned for definitive CRT and 12 were planned for preoperative CRT. All patients had computed tomography-based treatment planning and received IMRT. The median dose delivered was 50.4 Gy. Patients planned for preoperative CRT underwent surgery 4-13 weeks (median 8.3 weeks) following completion of CRT. Median follow-up of surviving patients from start of RT was 24.2 months (range 8.2-38.3 months). The majority of tumors were adenocarcinomas (67%) and poorly differentiated (57%). Tumor location was 7% upper, 20% mid, 47% lower, and 27% gastroesophageal junction. Actuarial 2-year local-regional control (LRC) was 64%. High tumor grade was an adverse prognostic factor for LRC and overall survival (OS) (P= 0.015 and 0.012, respectively). The 2-year LRC was 83% vs. 51% for patients treated preoperatively vs. definitively (P= 0.32). The 2-year disease-free and OS were 38% and 56%, respectively. Twelve patients (40%) required feeding tube placement, and the average weight loss from baseline was 4.8%. Twelve (40%) patients experienced grade 3+ acute complications and one patient died of complications following feeding tube placement. Three patients (10%) required a treatment break. Eight patients (27%) experienced grade 3 late complications. No grade 4 complications were seen. IMRT was effective and well tolerated. Disease recurrence remains a challenge and further investigation with dose escalation to improve LRC and OS is warranted.