PURPOSE This study assessed whether myristoylated alanine-rich C-kinase substrate (MARCKS) can regulate glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) growth, radiation sensitivity, and clinical outcome. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN MARCKS protein levels were analyzed in five GBM explant cell lines and eight patient-derived xenograft tumors by immunoblot, and these levels were correlated to proliferation rates and int...

T he role of gatekeepers, gurus and experts is dramatically increasing in our societies, where sorting information about quality can become a very cumbersome task. A change in the rating of a corporate bond or of a country’s risk by Moody or Standard & Poor’s can generate large capital movements. In the field of cultural economics, prominent examples of expert judgment include the award of an O...

Two paintings of older men by Rembrandt (1609-1669) are examined to demonstrate that historical attitudes toward diseases of old age and the ageing person's response to illness can be investigated in paintings. The works selected are of different genres and date from different stages of Rembrandt's own life, one from his youth and one from his old age. Both paintings show figures who have joint...

Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been criticized considerably for possible rank reversal phenomenon caused by the addition or deletion of an alternative. While in many cases this is a perfectly valid phenomenon, there are also many cases where ranks should be preserved. Our findings indicate that using the geometric mean reduces the variance in ratings substantially; hence, yielding lower i...

Signaling of platelet derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFRA) is critically involved in the development of gliomas. However, the clinical relevance of PDGFRA expression in glioma subtypes and the mechanisms of PDGFRA expression in gliomas have been controversial. Under the supervision of morphological diagnosis, analysis of the GSE16011 and the Repository of Molecular Brain Neoplasia Data...