Developing Organ Offer and Acceptance Measures: When 'Good' Organs Are Turned Down

Turndowns of offers of deceased donor kidneys for transplantation can contribute to inefficiencies in the organ distribution system and inequality in access to donated organs. Match run data were obtained for 4967 'good' kidneys placed and transplanted in 2005 after fewer than 50 offers. These kidneys were not recovered from donation after cardiac death or expanded criteria donors, or from donors with a history of substance abuse. On average, these good kidneys were not accepted until after seven offers to candidates and after offers to 2.4 programs. Models for the likelihood of acceptance found several donor and candidate characteristics to be significantly related to acceptance rates (p < 0.05). After accounting for these variables, there remained 2- to 3-fold differences among transplant programs in acceptance rates. These models could be used to identify kidney transplant centers with exceptional acceptance practices. Several strategies might be employed to increase acceptance rates for good organs.     

Simultaneous versus sequential optimal design for pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic models with FO and FOCE considerations

We consider nested multiple response models which are used extensively in the area of pharmacometrics. Given the conditional nature of such models, differences in predicted responses are a consequence of different assumptions about how the models interact. As such, sequential versus simultaneous and First Order (FO) versus First Order Conditional Estimation (FOCE) techniques have been explored in the literature where it was found that the sequential and FO approaches can produce biased results. It is therefore of interest to determine any design consequences between the various methods and approximations. As optimal design for nonlinear mixed effects models is dependent upon initial parameter estimates and an approximation to the expected Fisher information matrix, it is necessary to incorporate any influence of nonlinearity (or parameter-effects curvature) into our exploration. Hence, sequential versus simultaneous design with FO and FOCE considerations are compared under low, typical and high degrees of nonlinearity. Additionally, predicted standard errors of parameters are also compared to empirical estimates formed via a simulation/estimation study in NONMEM. Initially, design theory for nested multiple response models is developed and approaches mentioned above are investigated by considering a pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic model found in the literature. We consider design for situations where all responses are continuous and extend this methodology to the case where a response may be a discrete random variable. In particular, for a binary response pharmacodynamic model, it is conjectured that such responses will offer little information about all parameters and hence a sequential optimization, in the form of product design optimality, may yield near optimal designs.     

Mathematical modelling of the spatio-temporal response of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes to a solid tumour.

In this paper a mathematical model describing the growth of a solid tumour in the presence of an immune system response is presented. In particular, attention is focused upon the attack of tumour cells by so-called tumour-infiltrating cytotoxic lymphocytes (TICLs), in a small, multicellular tumour, without necrosis and at some stage prior to (tumour-induced) angiogenesis. At this stage the immune cells and the tumour cells are considered to be in a state of dynamic equilibrium--cancer dormancy--a phenomenon which has been observed in primary tumours, micrometastases and residual disease after ablation of the primary tumour. Nonetheless, the precise biochemical and cellular mechanisms by which TICLs control cancer dormancy are still poorly understood from a biological and immunological point of view. Therefore we focus on the analysis of the spatio-temporal dynamics of tumour cells, immune cells and chemokines in an immunogenic tumour. The lymphocytes are assumed to migrate into the growing solid tumour and interact with the tumour cells in such a way that lymphocyte-tumour cell complexes are formed. These complexes result in either the death of the tumour cells (the normal situation) or the inactivation (sometimes even the death) of the lymphocytes. The migration of the TICLs is determined by a combination of random motility and chemotaxis in response to the presence of chemokines. The resulting system of four nonlinear partial differential equations (TICLs, tumour cells, complexes and chemokines) is analysed and numerical simulations are presented. We consider two different tumour geometries--multi-layered cell growth and multi-cellular spheroid growth. The numerical simulations demonstrate the existence of cell distributions that are quasi-stationary in time and heterogeneous in space. A linear stability analysis of the underlying (spatially homogeneous) ordinary differential equation (ODE) kinetics coupled with a numerical investigation of the ODE system reveals the existence of a stable limit cycle. This is verified further when a subsequent bifurcation analysis is undertaken using a numerical continuation package. These results then explain the complex heterogeneous spatio-temporal dynamics observed in the partial differential equation (PDE) system. Our approach may lead to a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of cancer dormancy and may be helpful in the future development of more effective anti-cancer vaccines.     

兔肢体爆炸伤合并海水浸泡后在不同复温速率及维持浅低体温下机体炎症反应的特征

Objective To investigate effects of different rewarming rates and maintenance of light hypothermia on inflammatory response in rabbits after limb blast injury, coupled with seawater immersion. Methods First, the model of limb blast injury coupled with seawater immersion was reproduced [the animals were immersed to low body temperature of (31.0±0.5℃)]. Then, 24 adult rabbits were randomly divided into group Ⅰ [the rapid rewarming group, n=6, rewarmed to (38±0.5)℃ at a rate of (8.94±0.93)℃/h], group Ⅱ [the slow rewarming group, n=6, rewarmed to (38±0.5)℃ at a rate of (3.88±0.22)℃/h], group Ⅲ [another slow rewarming group, n=6, rewarmed to (38±0.5)℃ at a rate of (2.18±0.12)℃/h], and the H group [the hypothermia group, n =6, rewarmed to (34 - 35)℃ at a rate of (4.49±0.66)℃/h and kept at that temperature till termination of the experiment]. Regulation of ambient temperature and warm transfusion were used to restore body temperature to target levels and maintained there for 6 hours. Blood samples were taken at 5 different times, I.e. Pre-injury time(T0), post-immersion time (T1), the time when rewarming started (T2), 3 h after rewarming (T3), and 6 h after rewarming (T4). Tissue samples from heart, liver, intestinum, lung and kidney were also collected. Levels of TNF-α (tumor necrosis factor-α), IL-1β (interleukin-1β) and IL-6 (interleukin-6) in plasma and MPO (myeloperoxidase) in homogenate were detected. Results Following rewarming, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 concentrations in the plasma of the animals in group Ⅰ and group H were significantly higher when compared with those of the animals in group Ⅱ and group Ⅲ (P<0.05, P<0.01), and MPO activity in homogenate was significantly higher when compared with that of the animals in group Ⅱ and group Ⅲ(P<0.01, P<0.05), and no statistical difference could be seen between group Ⅱ and Ⅲ (P>0.05). Conclusions Rapid rewarming and maintenance of light hypothermia could obviously elevate TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 concentrations in plasma and MPO activity in homogenate, following limb blast injury coupled with hypothermia induced by seawater immersion, while slow rewarming (with a rewarming rate of 2-4℃/h) could significantly inhibit TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 levels and PMN activity.     

Characteristics of antibody responses in tick-borne encephalitis vaccination breakthroughs

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) virus is an important human pathogenic flavivirus that is endemic in Europe and Asia. The disease can be effectively prevented by inactivated vaccines and vaccination breakthroughs (VBTs) are rare. We investigated the characteristics of antibody responses in such VBTs in comparison to those in unvaccinated TBE patients. In contrast to the unvaccinated controls, most of the VBTs displayed a delayed IgM antibody response and had high avidity and strongly neutralizing antibodies already in the first sample taken upon hospitalization. The antibody profile of these patients therefore had the characteristics of an anamnestic immune response. In the VBTs analyzed, immunological priming and memory were apparently not sufficient or fast enough to prevent the disease.     

HBV转录激活蛋白HBx、MHBst78MHBst155真核重组载体构建

目的分别构建人乙型肝炎病毒(HBV)X蛋白、羧基端截断的中分子表面蛋白MHBst78、MHBst155编码基因的真核重组表达载体,以便进一步研究其转录激活功能及对宿主细胞信号传导通路的影响。方法设计合成3对寡核苷酸引物,以adr亚型HBV质粒pHBVDNA为模板,采用PCR法分别扩增HBVX基因、MHBst78与MHBst155编码基因片段;用HindⅢ,KpnⅠ双酶切HBVⅩ基因;用HindⅢ和BamHⅠ双酶切MHBst78与MHBst155编码基因片段后,分别定向插入到真核表达载体pcDNA3.1相应酶切位点,转化宿主菌JM109,提取质粒,分别用上述内切酶酶切及DNA测序鉴定重组质粒。结果酶切重组体显示所切下的片段大小均与预计相符,测序结果与文献报道序列及预计结果一致。结论成功构建了HBVX基因、羧基端截断的HBV中分子表面蛋白MHBst78、MHBst155编码基因的真核重组表达载体,为进一步研究HBV转录激活蛋白HBx、MHBst78MHBst155对宿主细胞信号转导通路的影响奠定基础。     

显露血管内皮下层纤维连接素的方法

本文报道了一种显露内皮下层纤维连接素的理想方法。大白鼠主动脉壁分别用1.0％NP-40作用5min,30.0mmol/L KCl作用10min后,内皮细胞全部脱离,内皮下层大部分纤维连接素被保留。本法适用于建立细胞与血管壁相互作用的体外实验模型。     

Response rates,duration of response,and dose response effects in phase I studies of antineoplastics

Summary Over a period of 14 years, 7,960 patients were treated in 228 phase I trials. In these patients, there were 75 complete and 432 partial responses for an overall objective response rate of 6%. Complete responses lasted a median of six months (range 1–18), while partial responses lasted a median of three months (range 1–17). Of note is that no drug has made it to the market which has not had a response in phase I trials. Responses were noted in very diverse histologic types of tumors. Although there were responses at doses which were as low as 3–5% of the recommended dose for phase II trials, the majority of responses did occur at 80–120% of the dose recommended for phase II trials. Although the response rate in phase I trials is indeed low, responses do occur. This response rate information should help the clinician provide facts for the patient considering a phase I trial with new anticancer agents. These findings also emphasize that although phase I trials are characteristically dose-finding studies, if no responses are noted in phase I studies, it is unlikely the drug will be used routinely in the clinic.