The Effect of Expertise on Kinesthetic Motor Imagery of Complex Actions

The ability to mentally simulate an action by recalling the body sensations relative to the real execution is referred to as kinesthetic motor imagery (MI). Frontal and parietal motor-related brain regions are generally engaged during MI. The present study aimed to investigate the time course and neural correlates of complex action imagery and possible effects of expertise on the underlying action representation processes. Professional ballet dancers and controls were presented with effortful and effortless ballet steps and instructed to mentally reproduce each movement during EEG recording. Time-locked MI was associated with an Anterior Negativity (AN) component (400-550 ms) that was larger in dancers relative to controls. The AN was differentially modulated by the motor content (effort) as a function of ballet expertise. It was more negative in response to effortful (than effortless) movements in control participants only. This effect also had a frontal distribution in controls and a centro-parietal distribution in dancers, as shown by the topographic maps of the scalp voltage. The source reconstruction (swLORETA) of the recorded potentials in the AN time-window showed enhanced engagement of prefrontal regions in controls (BA 10/47) relative to dancers, and occipitotemporal (BA 20) and bilateral sensorimotor areas in dancers (BA6/40) compared with controls. This evidence seems to suggest that kinesthetic MI of complex action relied on visuomotor simulation processes in participants with acquired dance expertise. Simultaneously, increased cognitive demands occurred in participants lacking in motor knowledge with the specific action. Hence, professional dance training may lead to refined action representation processes.

SULT1A1 concordance between whole blood and breast cancer tissue

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Background: The human sulfotransferase (SULT1A1) enzyme is involved in the conjugation of tamoxifen. Studies have demonstrated the significance of polymorphisms within the SULT1A1 gene in relation to breast cancer survival and tamoxifen metabolism (Nowell et al, J Natl Cancer Inst 2002). DNA for genotyping in previous studies was obtained from a number of different biological specimens including whole blood or paraffin-embedded formalin-fixed tissue. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the genotypic concordance of SULT1A1 polymorphisms in whole blood and breast cancer tissue. Methods: Breast cancer patients receiving tamoxifen and previously genotyped for the SULT1A1 gene were consented for enrollment. Samples representing each of the three possible genotypes (*1/*1, *1/*2,*2/*2) were selected for the collection of archived tissue. DNA was extracted from whole blood using the QIAamp Blood Midi Kit (Qiagen Inc., Valencia, CA, USA) and from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded breast cancer tissue using the QIAamp DNA Mini Kit (Qiagen Inc., Valencia, CA, USA) as per protocol. Genotyping of the SULT1A1 gene was conducted using a validated Pyrosequencing assay. Results: Tissue samples representing each of the three different SULT1A1 genotypes were compared to the whole blood genotypes. Each of the clinical samples demonstrated 100% concordance between the two different specimens. Conclusion: Our data provides evidence to support the genotyping of clinical samples for the SULT1A1 gene utilizing either whole blood or tumor tissue from breast cancer patients.

No significant financial relationships to disclose.

Immunological reconstitution after high-dose chemotherapy and autologous blood stem cell transplantation for advanced ovarian cancer

We evaluated the immunological reconstitution of patients who underwent high-dose chemotherapy and autologous blood stem cell transplantation (ABSCT) for advanced ovarian cancer. Sixty days after transplantation a complete reconstitution of lymphocytes and of the CD3, CD4, CD8, CD19, and CD16/56 subsets was observed in this series. A significant increase in the count of interleukin-2 receptor expressing lymphocyte (CD25) was found on day +60 after transplantation compared to that obtained at diagnosis and before transplantation. A significantly higher lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) precursor activity was seen on day +60 compared to the values obtained at diagnosis and before transplantation while natural killer activity did not show any significant variation. We conclude that ABSCT gives prompt and complete immunohaematopoietic reconstitution after high-dose treatment. Moreover, our data support the feasibility of interleukin-2/LAK therapy as consolidative therapy after ABSCT.

Measurement of a breast cancer associated antigen detected by monoclonal antibody SP-2 in sera of cancer patients

An enzyme-linked immuno-absorbent assay has been developed for the detection of a circulating tumor-associated antigen, 90K, recognized by murine monoclonal antibody SP-2 (Iacobelli et al., Cancer Res 46: 3005-3010, 1986). This assay was found to be simple and reproducible. Using this method, 6% of 165 apparently healthy individuals and 15% of 91 patients with benign breast disease showed 90K levels above 1.7 units/ml. Approximately 50% of 129 patients with advanced breast cancer demonstrated serum antigen levels above 1.7 units/ml. All histological types of breast cancer were positive, and no association between the incidence of elevated 90K levels and other prognostic variables could be detected. The titers of 90K were significantly higher in sera from advanced-stage (3 and 4) patients than in those from patients with limited-stage (1 and 2) disease. Elevated 90K levels were also observed in patients with carcinomas of other sites, including gastrointestinal, gynecological, and lung tumors. By means of the immune blotting technique, the antigenic components carrying the determinants in serum and extracts of breast cancer cells have been identified. The levels of 90K did not correlate with those of CA 15-3 or CEA. The measurement of 90K in sera appears to be a useful adjunct to other available assays for the detection and monitoring of breast cancer and other malignant tumors.