The two glycosylation sites (Asn142 and Asn177) were observed in the HA of most human seasonal influenza A/H1N1 viruses, while none in pandemic H1N1/2009 influenza A (pH1N1) viruses. We investigated the effect of the two glycosylation sites on viral virulence and pathogenicity in mice using recombinant pH1N1. The H1N1/144 and H1N1/177 mutants which gained potential glycosylation sites Asn142 an...

Recurrent prostate cancer presents a challenge to conventional treatment, particularly so to address micrometastatic and small-volume disease. Use of α-radionuclide therapy is considered as a highly effective treatment in such applications due to the shorter range and exquisite cytotoxicity of α-particles as compared with β-particles. (213)Bi is considered an α-emitter with high clinical potent...

BACKGROUND Successful treatments of patients with somatostatin receptor (SSTR)-overexpressing neuroendocrine tumours (NET) comprise somatostatin-analogue lutetium-177-labelled octreotate ((177)Lu-TATE) treatment, also referred to as peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT), and temozolomide (TMZ) treatment. Their combination might result in additive effects. Using MRI and SPECT/CT, we studi...

Targeted radionuclide therapy has shown impressive results for the palliative treatment of several types of cancer diseases. The folate receptor has been identified as specifically associated with a variety of frequent tumor types. Therefore, it is an attractive target for the development of new radionuclide therapies using folate-based radioconjugates. Previously, we found that pemetrexed (PMX...

This study was undertaken in order to investigate the effect of chronic treatment with 5′-chloro-5′-deoxy-(±)-ENBA, a potent and highly selective agonist of human adenosine A(1) receptor, on thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia in a mouse model of neuropathic pain, the Spared Nerve Injury (SNI) of the sciatic nerve. Chronic systemic administration of 5′-chloro-5&...

PURPOSE To develop effective combination therapy against pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) with a combination of chemotherapy, CHK1 inhibition, and EGFR-targeted radioimmunotherapy. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Maximum tolerated doses were determined for the combination of gemcitabine, the CHK1 inhibitor PF-477736, and Lutetium-177 ((177)Lu)-labeled anti-EGFR antibody. This triple combination th...

Ethylene-inducing xylanase (EIX) elicits plant defense responses in certain tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) and tomato cultivars in addition to its xylan degradation activity. It is not clear, however, whether elicitation occurs by cell wall fragments released by the enzymatic activity or by the xylanase protein interacting directly with the plant cells. We cloned the gene encoding EIX protein and ...

In this study, the total phenolic and flavonoid contents, the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging ability and the ferric reducing power (FRAP) of Aloe vera were measured to determine the antioxidant activity of this species. The in vivo antidiabetic effects of the plant were also investigated using streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic model rats that were divided into fi...

Comparison exercises involving (90)Y and (177)Lu were performed during 2009 and 2012, respectively, to assess the measurement capability of hospitals in the UK and Europe. The results from the measurement of a typical liquid solution of (90)Y show that only 40% of participants could measure the solution to within 5% of the certificated value and that a significant -6% bias was present due to th...

The ADP-ribosylating toxins (ADPRTs) produced by pathogenic bacteria modify intracellular protein and affect eukaryotic cell function. Actin-specific ADPRTs (including Clostridium perfringens iota-toxin and Clostridium botulinum C2 toxin) ADP-ribosylate G-actin at Arg-177, leading to disorganization of the cytoskeleton and cell death. Although the structures of many actin-specific ADPRTs are av...