We screened a cDNA library prepared from a BALB.B10 CTL clone that expresses Qa-2 antigen, and isolated four clones derived from Q7b, a Qa region gene of C57BL/10. One of these Q7b cDNAs and the Q7b chromosomal gene were subcloned into expression vectors and transfected into L cells and R1.1 thymoma cells. We found that the chromosomal Q7b gene expresses Qa-2 on the surface of R1.1 cells, but n...

Qa-1 epitopes, the peptides that bind to non-classical major histocompatibility complex Ib Qa-1 molecules and are recognized by Qa-1-restricted CD8+ regulatory T (Treg) cells, have been identified in pathogenic autoimmune cells that attack myelin sheath in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE, an animal model for multiple sclerosis [MS]). Additionally, immunization with such epitopes ...

PURPOSE The purposes of this study were two-fold: first, to develop a four-axis moving phantom for patient-specific quality assurance (QA) in surrogate signal-based dynamic tumor-tracking intensity-modulated radiotherapy (DTT-IMRT), and second, to evaluate the accuracy of the moving phantom and perform patient-specific dosimetric QA of the surrogate signal-based DTT-IMRT. METHODS The four-axi...

In this project, we investigated the use of an electronic portal imaging device (EPID), together with the treatment planning system (TPS) and MLC log files, to determine the delivered doses to the patient and evaluate the agreement between the treatment plan and the delivered dose distribution. The QA analysis results are presented for 15 VMAT patients using the EPID measurements, the ScandiDos...

Suggestions for topics suitable for these Point/Counterpoint debates should be addressed to Colin G. Orton, Professor Emeritus, Wayne State University, Detroit: [email protected]. Persons participating in Point/Counterpoint discussions are selected for their knowledge and communicative skill. Their positions for or against a proposition may or may not reflect their personal opinions or the pos...

In 1992, the American College of Radiology (ACR) recommended a specific phantom and image analysis procedure for (x-ray) mammography (American College of Radiology 1992). This event removed uncertainty in the USA regarding quality assurance (QA) in mammography. Although the phantom and analysis procedure are probably not ideal, existence of definitive recommendations has resulted in essentially...

The Delta4 3D dose verification device was commissioned in the current work for pre-treatment quality assurance (QA) of Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy (IMRT) and Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy (VMAT) plans. The cross calibration and relative array calibration were performed to enable absolute dose comparison. The linearity of response with dose and temperature sensitivity tests were also co...

PURPOSE To analyze the reproducibility of patient specific IMRT QA results across five different clinical devices and one in-house detector by quantifying variations in the QA results from delivery-to-delivery (without re-setup, "redelivery") and variations when set-up is repeated ("re-setup"). METHODS Six patient plans were selected from among four treatment sites. Six methods of IMRT QA wer...

Radiochromic film for spot-scanning QA provides high spatial resolution and efficiency gains from one-shot irradiation for multiple depths. However, calibration can be a tedious procedure which may limit widespread use. Moreover, since there may be an energy dependence, which manifests as a depth dependence, this may require additional measurements for each patient. We present a one-scan protoc...

This study aims to investigate tolerance levels for patient-specific IMRT dose QA (DQA) using the confidence limits (CL) determined by a multi-institutional study. Eleven institutions participated in the multi-institutional study in Korea. A total of 155 DQA measurements, consisting of point-dose differences (high- and low-dose regions) and gamma passing rates (composite and per-field) for IMRT...