• Thomsen Cormier posted an update 1 week, 3 days ago

    Overexpression of Oct4 enhanced tumor growth and reduced the survival of lung tumor-bearing mice, which was correlated with increased number of M2 macrophages in lung cancer. Notably, NSCLC patients with high expression levels of Oct4, M-CSF, and M2 TAMs had the poorest recurrence-free survival. A positive correlation between Oct4, M-CSF, and M2 TAMs was observed in the tumor tissue of NSCLC patient. Treatment with all-trans retinoic acid exerted anti-tumor effects and reduced M2 TAMs in tumor-bearing mice. Conclusions Our results indicate that Oct4 expressed by lung cancer cells promotes M2 macrophage polarization through upregulation of M-CSF secretion, leading to cancer growth and metastasis. Our findings also implicate that the Oct4/M-CSF axis in M2 macrophage polarization may be potential therapeutic targets for lung cancer.Background Juvenile polyposis syndrome (JPS) is a rare disorder characterized by the presence of multiple juvenile polyps in the gastrointestinal tract, and germline mutations in SMAD4 or BMPR1A. Due to its rarity and complex clinical manifestation, misdiagnosis often occurs in clinical practice. Case presentation A 42-year-old man with multiple pedunculated colorectal polyps and concomitant rectal adenocarcinoma was admitted to our hospital. His mother had died of colon cancer. He was diagnosed with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and underwent total proctocolectomy and ileal pouch anal anastomosis. Two polyps were selected for pathological examination. One polyp had cystically dilated glands with slight dysplasia. The other polyp displayed severe dysplasia and was diagnosed as adenoma. Three years later, his 21-year-old son underwent a colonoscopy that revealed more than 50 pedunculated colorectal juvenile polyps. Both patients harbored a germline pathogenic mutation in BMPR1A. Endoscopic resection of AP in clinical practice. Conclusions Juvenile polyp with dysplasia is often diagnosed as adenoma, which might lead to the misdiagnosis of JPS as FAP. The differential diagnosis of JPS versus FAP, should be based on comprehensive evaluation of clinical presentation, endoscopic appearance and genetic investigations; not on the presence or absence of adenoma.Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) are neurodegenerative disorders, related by deterioration of motor and cognitive functions and short survival. Aside from cases with an inherited pathogenic mutation, the causes of the disorders are still largely unknown and no effective treatment currently exists. It has been shown that FTD may coexist with ALS and this overlap occurs at clinical, genetic, and molecular levels. In this work, we review the main pathological aspects of these complex diseases and discuss how the integration of the novel pathogenic molecular insights and the analysis of molecular interaction networks among all the genetic players represents a critical step to shed light on discovering novel therapeutic strategies and possibly tailoring personalized medicine approaches to specific ALS and FTD patients.Background Large portion sizes encourage overconsumption. Prior studies suggest that this may be due to errors in anticipating the effects of portion size, although the studies were limited to adults and energy-dense foods. Objective Our aim was to investigate potential anticipation errors related to the effects of portion size on hunger, eating enjoyment, and healthiness ratings among 8-to-11-year-old children, for snacks differing in energy density and healthiness perception, and as a function of initial hunger. Methods In a within-subject design, 83 children aged 8 to 11 years old were first asked to anticipate how much they would enjoy, how hungry they would feel after eating, and how healthy it would be to eat a recommended serving size, a 50% larger portion, and a 125% larger portion of brownie or applesauce. Over six subsequent sessions, the children were asked to eat all of each of these portions and then rate their post-intake enjoyment, residual hunger, and healthiness perceptions. We also measured hunger at the beginning of each session. Results For both snacks, larger portions reduced anticipated and experienced residual hunger similarly. In contrast, larger portions increased anticipated but not experienced eating enjoyment for both snacks; although larger portions increased anticipated and experienced enjoyment ratings among extremely hungry children. All children under-anticipated how much they would enjoy the smaller portion sizes. Healthiness ratings were unaffected by portion size for both snacks but differed across foods (applesauce vs. brownie). SRPIN340 Conclusions Children anticipate the effects of portion size on hunger change accurately, overestimate the effects of portion size on eating enjoyment, and rate food healthiness on food type and not portion size. Helping children better anticipate the enjoyment from smaller (recommended) portion sizes and understand that food quantity, not just quality, matters for healthy eating may be a solution to improve portion control.Background Our objective was to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the positive psychology intervention ‘Happiness Route’ compared to an active control condition in a vulnerable population with an accumulation of health and psychosocial problems. Methods We conducted a randomized, single-blind, actively-controlled, parallel group study in seven municipalities in the Netherlands. To be eligible, participants had to experience loneliness, health problems and low socio-economic status. Each group received several home visits by a counsellor (two in the control condition, two to six in the experimental condition). In the Happiness Route, a happiness-based approach was used, whereas the control condition used a traditional problem-based approach. The primary outcome was well-being, measured with the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF). Results Fifty-eight participants were randomized to the Happiness Route, 50 to the control condition. Participants were severely lonely, had on average throwever, we could not demonstrate that the Happiness Route yielded better health outcomes compared to the control condition. Nevertheless, the results of the cost-effectiveness analysis suggested that the Happiness Route is an acceptable intervention from a health-economic point of view. Our results should be viewed in light of the fact that we could not include the planned number of participants. Trial registration Netherlands Trial Register NTR3377. Registered 2 Apr 2012.