Computed tomography (CT) evaluation of breast cancer patients with osteolytic bone metastases undergoing palliative radiotherapy—a feasibility study

Twenty-five patients with osteolytic metastases had computed tomography (CT) scans before and 3 months after palliative radiotherapy. The median % density change following single 8 Gy, 20 Gy/5#, 30 Gy/10# were: 128 (range 98–255), 141 (79–342), and 145 (65–235), respectively. It is feasible to evaluate remineralization of osteolytic lesions with palliative radiotherapy.     

Correlation of serum hormone concentrations in maternal and umbilical cord samples.

Evidence suggests that adult cancer risk of hormonally related tumors may be influenced by the in utero environment, and most speculation on the biological mechanism has focused on the hormonal component. Epidemiological studies investigating the biological nature of pregnancy and maternal factors associated with offspring's cancer risk have relied on maternal hormone measurements. The degree to which maternal hormone levels represent the fetal environment, however, is not widely known. Pregnancy estrogen, androstenedione, testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), and DHEA-sulfate concentrations were measured in maternal and mixed umbilical cord sera from 86 singleton pregnancies. Spearman correlations between maternal and cord hormone levels generally ranged between 0.2 and 0.3. The correlation was 0.26 for estriol, the estrogen of highest concentration in pregnancy, and 0.27 for estradiol, the most biologically active estrogen. The correlations between mother and offspring for the estrogens and DHEA appeared similar for males and females, whereas there was a suggestion that the maternal-umbilical cord correlations for other androgens varied in magnitude by fetal sex, and all correlations appeared higher in pregnancies lasting <38 weeks compared with longer gestational lengths, although these stratified findings may have been attributable to chance. These data show a moderate degree of correlation in hormone concentrations between the maternal and fetal circulation. Studies using maternal hormone concentrations as a proxy for the fetal environment should consider the misclassification resulting with the use of this marker.     

Confocal microscopy for real-time detection of oral cavity neoplasia.

PURPOSE: The goal of this study was to characterize features of normal and neoplastic oral mucosa using reflectance confocal microscopy. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Oral cavity biopsies were acquired from 17 patients at the Head and Neck Clinic of The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center who were undergoing surgery for squamous cell carcinoma within the oral cavity. Reflectance confocal images were obtained at multiple image plane depths from biopsies within 6 h of excision. After imaging, biopsies were fixed in 10% formalin and submitted for routine histological examination. Reflectance confocal images were compared with histological images from the same sample to determine which tissue features contribute to image contrast and can be potentially imaged using in vivo confocal microscopy. RESULTS: Confocal images were successfully acquired from 15 biopsy pairs from 17 patients. Depth-related changes in cell diameter and nuclear density were observed at multiple anatomical sites within the oral cavity. In squamous cell carcinomas, densely packed, pleomorphic tumor nuclei could be visualized with distinct differences in nuclear density and morphology distinguishable between confocal images of neoplastic and nonneoplastic oral cavity. Other features of noncancerous and cancerous oral tissue that could be identified in the confocal images included areas of inflammation, fibrosis, muscle fibers, and salivary glands. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the potential for this tool to play a significant role in the clinical evaluation of oral lesions, real-time identification of tumor margins, and monitoring of response to therapeutic treatment.     

Overly Literal Interpretations of Speech in Autism: Understanding That Messages Arise from Minds

Children with autism and children with Down's syndrome watched the following enactment. A protagonist put one item in location A and another in location B and then left the scene. Subsequently, the items were swapped the other way round. Finally, the protagonist (who remained ignorant of the swap) requested the item in A. The observing child participant was asked to judge (1) which item the protagonist wanted and (2) which item the protagonist put in A. Unlike children with Down's syndrome, those with autism made more errors in judging that the speaker wanted the item in B than in judging that the item the speaker put in A is now in B; children with autism wrongly tended to interpret utterances literally, and they did this significantly more frequently than children with Down's syndrome. We conclude that children with autism have a difficulty making non literal interpretations that cannot be explained as (1) a realist bias, (2) an inability to inhibit a prepotent response, and (3) a failure to keep track of the exchange of items.     

An Investigation of Adolescents' Substance Use Behaviors, Depressed Affect, and Suicidal Behaviors

Data from a four-wave panel design of 975 adolescents were used to study inter-relationships among suicidal behaviors, depressive symptoms, and substance use behaviors. Persistently high levels of problem drinking and depressive symptoms were associated with higher levels of suicidal thoughts and attempts. Higher levels of depressive symptoms and greater cigarette and illicit drug use distinguished suicidal ideators from attempters. Adolescents attempting suicide reported lower levels of family social support, a greater use of substances to cope with stressors, and a higher density of substance-using peers. Implications of the findings for preventive interventions with high-risk teens are discussed.     

Effects of conjugated linoleic acid supplementation on blood lipids and adiposity of rats fed diets rich in saturated versus unsaturated fat

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) may decrease adiposity and improve blood lipid profiles under some conditions. The goal of this study was to determine the effects of CLA supplementation on blood lipid profiles and adiposity of rats fed a diet containing a primarily saturated fat versus a diet containing a primarily unsaturated fat. Twenty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to one of four diets containing coconut oil, coconut oil with CLA, corn oil or corn oil with CLA. After 28 days, blood was collected and serum concentrations of total cholesterol (TC), HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), and triacylglycerols (TG) were assessed. Food intake, body weights, and epididymal fat pads were measured. No significant differences (p>0.05) were noted among groups for amount of food consumed, weight gained, food efficiency ratio or serum TG concentrations. TC concentrations were lower (p<0.05) in the CLA-supplemented rats that were fed coconut oil but not those consuming corn oil. Serum HDL-C was lower (p<0.05) in rats consuming corn oil but was not significantly different (p>0.05) for CLA supplemented groups. Epididymal fat pads weighed significantly more (p<0.05) in the coconut oil fed group compared to the corn oil fed group, but there was no significant difference (p>0.05) between the corn oil and coconut oil + CLA group. Overall, this study suggests that CLA is more beneficial for control of blood lipids and adiposity when supplemented to a diet rich in saturated versus unsaturated fat.     

广州、南宁市汽车安全带佩戴状况调查

目的 调查广州、南宁市汽车安全带佩戴情况。方法 采用随机抽样的方法，按照3种不同类型的道路选取观察点，在4个不同时间段对目标车辆进行观察。结果 司机安全带正确佩戴率南宁市（63．8％）高于广州市（49．3％），而不正确佩戴率广州市（22．9％）高于南宁市（8．1％）；乘客安全带佩戴率广州市高于南宁市，包括正确佩戴率和不正确佩戴率；安全带佩戴率受道路类型、时间、性别和车型等的影响，正确佩戴率高速路高于其他道路、白天高于晚上、女性高于男性、小型汽车高于其他车型，不正确佩戴率工作151高于周末。结论 广州市男性出租车司机安全带不正确佩戴率高；两地区周末和晚上佩戴安全带率较低，应加大执法力度；加强宣传教育，提高司乘人员佩戴安全带的意识。