Human papillomavirus (HPV) cofactors for cervical cancer include smoking, multiparity, and oral contraceptive use, but their mechanisms of action are not fully understood. It is also unknown whether cofactors vary by HPV genotypes. The Study to Understand Cervical Cancer Early Endpoints and Determinants (SUCCEED) is a cross-sectional study comprising women referred to the University of Oklahoma from November 2003 to September 2007 for abnormal cervical screening results. Detailed questionnaire data and liquid cytology specimens were collected and the latter was genotyped for HPV using the LINEAR ARRAY HPV Genotyping Test. The present analysis includes women with both questionnaire and HPV data and diagnosed with
Blue light (496 nm; threshold intensity approximately 1500 Lux) induces a transient frequency decrease of oscillatory contraction automaticity in Physarum. Many, but not all specimens react by an increase in the force amplitude of longitudinal contraction. The spectral region of 496 nm provokes a photophobic response of the plasmodia. The blue light reaction of radial and longitudinal contraction activities decreases with increasing distance from the irradiated area. The light-induced decrease in frequency can be used for experimental phase shifting, e.g., when studying the nature and the pathway of signal transmission for the spatial phase synchronization of contractile activities.
Gravity alteration (micro- and hypergravity) is known to influence cell functions. As guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cGMP) plays an important role in human melanocyte functions and different guanylyl cyclase isoforms are responsible for cGMP synthesis in human non-metastatic and metastatic melanoma cells, we investigated the effects of hypergravity on the regulation of cGMP levels in cultured human melanocytes and in melanoma cell lines with different metastatic potentials. Hypergravity was produced by horizontal centrifugal acceleration. Here we report that long-term application of hypergravity (up to 5 g for 24 h) stimulated cGMP efflux in cultured melanocytes and in non-metastatic melanoma cells in the presence of 0.1 mM 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX), a non-selective phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitor. Under these conditions, cAMP synthesis and melanin production were up-regulated in pigmented melanocytes and non-metastatic melanoma cells. Hypergravity also stimulated cGMP transport in the presence of 1 microM trequinsin, an inhibitor of cGMP-binding PDE (PDE5) and of transport by multidrug resistance proteins MRP4/5, whereas 50 microM trequinsin partially inhibited cGMP transport. Transport was further inhibited by probenecid, an inhibitor of endogenous non-selective transporters as well as of MRP4/5 and by cycloheximide as an inhibitor of de novo protein synthesis. In contrast, hypergravity did not affect cGMP efflux in metastatic melanoma cells, which might be related to an up-regulated cGMP efflux at 1 g. The results of the present study indicate that hypergravity may stimulate cGMP efflux in melanocytes and in non-metastatic melanoma cells most probably by an enhanced expression of endogenous transporters and/or MRP4/5. Thus, an altered acceleration vector may induce signaling events in melanocytic cells.
This study provides support for the use of a psychostimulant to treat fatigue in women who have recurrent gynecologic cancer. It is particularly relevant for these patients with incurable disease who are facing the end of life.
Irradiation of the plasmodia of Physarum with blue and white light results in a transient change of theie oscillatory contraction frequency. This reaction to light decreases with increasing distance from the illuminated area (Block and Wohlfarth-Bottermann, 1981). The first local appearance of light response in non-illuminated parts of the plasmodia was used to analyse the sensory pathway of the light stimulus modulating the contractile apparatus. Different experimental assays revealed that the direction of photosensory transduction is determined by the momentary direction of protoplasmic shuttle streaming. The endoplasmic flow carriers the signal responsible for photosensory transduction and light reaction to the force generating ectoplasmic tube.
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