On-site cytopathological evaluation improves the diagnostic yield of EUS-guided FNA for the cytological diagnosis of solid pancreatic masses. This is associated with a significantly lower number of inadequate samples and a lower number of needle passes.

Purpose Tumor cells expressing elevated aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity attributed to ALDH1/3 isoforms have been identified as ALDHbright cells and have the properties attributed to cancer initiating cells (CIC). CIC represent the subpopulation of tumor cells that are resistant to conventional cancer treatments and highly tumorigenic in immunodeficient mice. They are considered to be responsible for tumor recurrence and metastasis. The ALDH1A1 isoform was previously identified as a tumor antigen recognized by CD8+ T cells. This study examines the ability of ALDH1A1-specific CD8+ T cells to eliminate ALDHbright cells and control tumor growth and metastases. Experimental Design ALDHbright cells were isolated by flow cytometry from HLA-A2+ human head and neck, breast and pancreas carcinoma cell lines using ALDEFLUOR® and tested for their tumorigenicity in immunodeficient mice. ALDH1A1-specific CD8+ T cells were generated in vitro and tested for their ability to eliminate CIC in vitro and in vivo by adoptive transfer to immunodeficient mice bearing human tumor xenografts. Results ALDHbright cells isolated by flow cytometry from HLA-A2+ breast, head and neck and pancreas carcinoma cell lines at low numbers (500 cells) were tumorigenic in immunodeficient mice. ALDHbright cells present in these cell lines, xenografts or surgically removed lesions were recognized by ALDH1A1-specific CD8+ T cells in vitro. Adoptive therapy with ALDH1A1-specific CD8+ T cells eliminated ALDHbright cells, inhibited tumor growth, metastases or prolonged survival of xenograft-bearing immunodeficient mice. Conclusions The results of this translational study strongly support the potential of ALDH1A1-based immunotherapy to selectively target CIC in human cancer.

Infections associated with Vibrio parahaemolyticus on the coast of Galicia (in northwestern Spain) were reported to be linked to large outbreaks of illness during 1999 and 2000. Little information is available about the ecological factors that influence the emergence of V. parahaemolyticus infections in this temperate region. We carried out a 3-year study to investigate the occurrence and distribution of V. parahaemolyticus at 26 sites located in the four main rias of Galicia in association with environmental and oceanographic variables. V. parahaemolyticus was detected in all the areas investigated and throughout the complete period of study with an overall incidence of 12.5%. Salinity was the primary factor governing the temporal and spatial distribution of V. parahaemolyticus, whereas seawater temperature had a secondary effect and only modulated the abundance in periods and areas of reduced salinities. Higher occurrence of V. parahaemolyticus was observed during periods of lower salinity in autumn, with a total of 61 positive samples (18%) and a mean density of 1,234 most probable number/100 g. V. parahaemolyticus was primarily detected in areas of reduced salinity close to freshwater discharge points, where it was found in up to 45% of the samples. Characterization of the isolates obtained from the study resulted in the first identification of two pathogenic tdh-positive strains of V. parahaemolyticus recovered from the marine environment in Galicia. These isolates showed serotypes identical to and DNA profiles indistinguishable from those of the clinical clone of V. parahaemolyticus dominant in infections in Spain in the last 10 years.Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a natural inhabitant of the marine environments of coastal areas and estuaries worldwide. The presence of the organism has traditionally been confined to warm and temperate geographical areas (11). However, in recent years, the emergence of infections caused by V. parahaemolyticus in remote areas of Europe and America (14,15,23,24) has revealed the presence of the organism in regions where it had never previously been reported. The progressive spread of V. parahaemolyticus and its colonization of new areas has been related to an unusual increase in seawater temperatures in coastal zones (5,15,24). However, little information is available about the environmental variables governing the dynamics of V. parahaemolyticus populations in these areas of recent emergence.V. parahaemolyticus infections were rarely reported in Europe before 1998 (2). The presence of V. parahaemolyticus was reduced to sporadic cases reported in different countries without any evidence of epidemiological connection. The epidemiology of the organism in Europe changed significantly when a large number of illnesses associated with V. parahaemolyticus were reported in Galicia (in northwestern Spain) in 1999 and 2000. Isolates obtained from the outbreaks in Galicia and from hospitals in other regions of Spain were characteristically tdh positive, serotype O4:K11, and belonged to a di...