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Arsenic trioxide (As 2 O 3 ) is an effective therapeutic against acute promyelocytic leukemia and certain solid tumors. Because As 2 O 3 inhibits mitochondrial respiration in leukemia cells, we hypothesized that As 2 O 3 might enhance the radiosensitivity of solid tumors by increasing tumor oxygenation [partial pressure of oxygen (pO 2 )] via a decrease in oxygen consumption. Two murine models of radioresistant hypoxic cancer were used to study the effects of As 2 O 3 . We measured pO 2 and the oxygen consumption rate in vivo by electron paramagnetic resonance oximetry and 19 fluorine-MRI relaxometry. Tumor perfusion was assessed by Patent blue staining. In both models, As 2 O 3 inhibited mitochondrial respiration, leading to a rapid increase in pO 2 . The decrease in oxygen consumption could be explained by an observed decrease in glutathione in As 2 O 3 -treated cells, as this could increase intracellular reactive oxygen species that can disrupt mitochondrial membrane potential. When tumors were irradiated during periods of As 2 O 3 -induced augmented oxygenation, radiosensitivity increased by 2.2-fold compared with control mice. Notably, this effect was abolished when temporarily clamped tumors were irradiated. Together, our findings show that As 2 O 3 acutely increases oxygen consumption and radiosensitizes tumors, providing a new rationale for clinical investigations of As 2 O 3 in irradiation protocols to treat solid tumors. Cancer Res; 72(2); 482-90. Ó2011 AACR.

Islet encapsulation requires several properties including (1) biocompatibility, (2) immunoprotection, and (3) oxygen diffusion for islet survival and diabetes correction. New chemical alginates were tested in vivo and compared with traditional high-mannuronate and -guluronate alginates. New alginates with coupled peptide sequence (sterile lyophilized high mannuronate [SLM]-RGD3% and sterile lyophilized high guluronate [SLG]-RGD3%), to improve encapsulated cell adherence in the matrix, and alginates with a very low viscosity (VLDM7% and VLDG7%), to reduce implant size by loading a higher number of islets per volume of polymer, were implanted subcutaneously in 70 Wistar rats for comparison with alginates of high viscosity and high content of mannuronic (SLM3%) or guluronic acids (SLG3%). Permeability of alginates to 36-, 75-, and 150-kDa lectins coupled to fluorescein isothiocynate was quantified before implantation and at 2, 4, and 12 weeks after implantation. Biocompatibility (fibrosis, graft stability, immunologic infiltration by CD3/CD68 cells, and neovascularization) was assessed at each explantation time. Permeability to small molecules was found for all alginates. Impermeability to 150-kDa molecules, such as IgG, was observed only for SLM3% before implantation and was maintained up to 12 weeks after implantation. SLM3% and SLG3% demonstrated better graft stability with lower CD3/CD68 recruitment and fibrosis than the other alginates. SLM3% induced a significantly higher angiogenesis and maintained oxygen pressure at approximately 40 mm Hg for up to 4 weeks after implantation as measured by in vivo electronic paramagnetic resonance oximetry. SLM-encapsulated pig islets implanted subcutaneously in rats demonstrated no inflammatory/immunologic reactions and islets functioned for up to 60 days without immunosuppression. A traditional alginate made of high mannuronic content (SLM3%) is an adapted material to immunoprotect islets in subcutaneous tissue. No improvement was found with lower viscosity and use of GRGDSP-peptide sequence.

The central nervous system is the most likely target of mobile telephony radiofrequency (RF) field exposure in terms of biological effects. Several electroencephalography (EEG) studies have reported variations in the alpha-band power spectrum during and/or after RF exposure, in resting EEG and during sleep. In this context, the observation of the spontaneous electrical activity of neuronal networks under RF exposure can be an efficient tool to detect the occurrence of low-level RF effects on the nervous system. Our research group has developed a dedicated experimental setup in the GHz range for the simultaneous exposure of neuronal networks and monitoring of electrical activity. A transverse electromagnetic (TEM) cell was used to expose the neuronal networks to GSM-1800 signals at a SAR level of 3.2 W/kg. Recording of the neuronal electrical activity and detection of the extracellular spikes and bursts under exposure were performed using microelectrode arrays (MEAs). This work provides the proof of feasibility and preliminary results of the integrated investigation regarding exposure setup, culture of the neuronal network, recording of the electrical activity, and analysis of the signals obtained under RF exposure. In this pilot study on 16 cultures, there was a 30% reversible decrease in firing rate (FR) and bursting rate (BR) during a 3 min exposure to RF. Additional experiments are needed to further characterize this effect.

A new water soluble phosphonated tetrathiatriarylmethyl radical has been synthesized and its application for pH measurement in a physiological range by EPR is reported.

A microdosimetric study of nanosecond pulsed electric fields, including dielectric dispersivity of cell compartments, is proposed in our paper. A quasi-static solution based on the Laplace equation was adapted to wideband signals and used to address the problem of electric field estimation at cellular level. The electric solution was coupled with an asymptotic electroporation model able to predict membrane pore density. An initial result of our paper is the relevance of the dielectric dispersivity, providing evidence that both the transmembrane potential and the pore density are strongly influenced by the choice of modeling used. We note the crucial role played by the dielectric properties of the membrane that can greatly impact on the poration of the cell. This can partly explain the selective action reported on cancerous cells in mixed populations, if one considers that tumor cells may present different dielectric responses. Moreover, these kinds of studies can be useful to determine the appropriate setting of nsPEF generators as well as for the design and optimization of new-generation devices.

High powered, nanosecond duration, pulsed electric fields (nsPEF) cause cell death by a mechanism that is not fully understood and have been proposed as a targeted cancer therapy. Numerous chemotherapeutics work by disrupting microtubules. As microtubules are affected by electrical fields, this study looks at the possibility of disrupting them electrically with nsPEF. Human glioblastoma cells (U87-MG) treated with 100, 10 ns, 44 kV/cm pulses at a frequency of 10 Hz showed a breakdown of their interphase microtubule network that was accompanied by a reduction in the number of growing microtubules. This effect is temporally linked to loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and independent of cellular swelling and calcium influx, two factors that disrupt microtubule growth dynamics. Super-resolution microscopy revealed microtubule buckling and breaking as a result of nsPEF application, suggesting that nsPEF may act directly on microtubules.