Determination of chemosensitivity/chemoresistance is becoming increasingly important for individualization of breast cancer chemotherapy. We developed a simple non-destructive test of cellular activity (NTCA) for assessment of the cytopathic effect of antitumour drugs in vitro. Contrary to routinely used methods (e.g. MTT), besides the comparative evaluation of metabolic activity using pH (give...

BACKGROUND Oscillatory breathing patterns characterized by rises and falls in ventilation with apnea (Cheyne-Stokes respiration [CSR]) or without apnea (periodic breathing [PB]) commonly occur during the daytime in chronic heart failure (CHF). We have prospectively characterized patients with cyclical breathing in terms of clinical characteristics, indices of autonomic control, prognosis, and t...

Increased chemosensitivity has been observed in HF (heart failure) and, in order to clarify its pathophysiological and clinical relevance, the aim of the present study was to investigate its impact on neurohormonal balance, breathing pattern, response to exercise and arrhythmic profile. A total of 60 patients with chronic HF [age, 66+/-1 years; LVEF (left ventricular ejection fraction), 31+/-1%...

The choice of therapy for metastatic cancer is largely empirical because of a lack of chemosensitivity prediction for available combination chemotherapeutic regimens. Here, we identify molecular models of bladder carcinoma chemosensitivity based on gene expression for three widely used chemotherapeutic agents: cisplatin, paclitaxel, and gemcitabine. We measured the growth inhibition elicited by...

Adrenomedullin (AM), a potent vasodilator peptide, is present in various types of tumors. Here, we constructed short hairpin RNA (shRNA) in order to target the AM gene in vitro using RNA interference (RNAi) technology. HO8910 ovarian cancer cells were transfected, and the effects of AM on proliferation and chemosensitivity of the cells were examin...

BACKGROUND Heptocelluar carcinoma (HCC) is insensitive to chemotherapy due to limited bioavailability and acquired drug resistance. Smad3 plays dual roles by inhibiting cell growth initially and promoting the progression of advanced tumors in HCC. However, the role of smad3 in chemosensitivity of HCC remains elusive. METHODS The role of smad3 in chemosensitivity of HCC was measured by cell vi...

OBJECTIVE The in vitro microculture kinetic (MiCK) apoptosis assay has been used to predict single or combination chemotherapy response in leukemia patients. This feasibility study addressed MiCK in endometrial cancer specimens. METHODS Endometrial cancer specimens from total abdominal hysterectomies were processed at a central laboratory. Single cell suspensions of viable endometrial cancer ...