BackgroundA tendency to selectively process a threat to positive information may be involved in the etiology of anxiety disorders. The aim of this study is to examine whether attentional bias modification (ABM) can be used to modify high test-anxiety individuals’ attention to emotional information and whether this change is related to anxiety vulnerability.MethodsSeventy-seven undergraduates were included: 28 individuals received a 5-day modified dot probe task as ABM training, 29 individuals received a 5-day classic dot probe task as placebo, and 20 individuals did not receive an intervention between the two test sections. In addition to the measure of biased attention, salivary α-amylase (sAA) and the visual analogue scale of anxiety were assessed as emotional reactivity to stress.ResultsA repeated measurement of variance analysis and paired sample t-test indicated that the ABM group showed a significant change in attentional bias scores after the 5-day training, whereas there were no changes in the attentional bias scores in the placebo or waiting list groups. Importantly, anxiety vulnerability with attention to threats was significantly decreased in the training group.ConclusionsThese results suggest that attentional bias toward threat stimuli may play an important role in anxiety vulnerability. The attentional bias modification away from the threat is effective for the individuals preparing for an exam.Trial registrationThis trial was retrospectively registered on June 22, 2017 with the registration number ChiCTR-IOR-17011745 and the title ‘Attentional Bias in high anxiety individuals and its modification’.
The problem of immunotolerance to GM3, an important tumor-associated trisaccharide antigen, seriously hinders its usage in cancer vaccine development. To solve this problem, the keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) conjugates of a series of GM3 derivatives were synthesized and screened as therapeutic cancer vaccines. First, the β-linked anomeric azides of differently Nacylated GM3 analogs were prepared by a highly convergent procedure. Next, a pentenoyl group was linked to the reducing end of the carbohydrate antigens following selective reduction of the azido group. The linker was thereafter ozonolyzed to give an aldehyde functionality permitting the conjugation of the antigens to KLH via reductive amination. Finally, the immunological properties of the resultant glycoconjugates were studied in C57BL/6 mice by assessing the titers of specific antibodies induced by the GM3 analogs. While KLH-GM3 elicited low levels of immune response, the KLH conjugates of N-propionyl, N-butanoyl, N-iso-butanoyl and N-phenylacetyl GM3's induced robust immune reactions with antibodies of multiple isotypes, indicating significantly improved and T-cell dependent immune responses that lead to isotype switching, affinity maturation and the induction of immunological 'memory'. It was suggested that GM3PhAc-KLH is a promising vaccine candidate for glycoengineered immunotherapy of cancer with GM3 as the primary target.
BackgroundEpidemiological studies have repeatedly investigated the association between anxiety and hypertension. However, the results have been inconsistent. This study aimed to summarize the current evidence from cross-sectional and prospective studies that evaluated this association.MethodsSeven common databases were searched for articles published up to November 2014. Cross-sectional and prospective studies that reported an association between the two conditions in adults were included. Data on prevalence, incidence, unadjusted or adjusted odds ratios or hazard ratios, and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were extracted or calculated by the authors. The pooled odds ratio was calculated separately for cross-sectional and prospective studies using random-effects models. The Q test and I 2 statistic was used to assess heterogeneity. A funnel plot and modified Egger linear regression test were used to estimate publication bias.ResultsThe search yielded 13 cross-sectional studies (n=151,389), and the final pooled odds ratio was 1.18 (95% CI 1.02–1.37; PQ<0.001; I2=84.9%). Eight prospective studies with a total sample size of 80,146 and 2,394 hypertension case subjects, and the pooled adjusted hazard ratio was 1.55 (95% CI 1.24–1.94; PQ<0.001; I2=84.6%). The meta-regression showed that location, diagnostic criteria for anxiety, age, sex, sample size, year of publication, quality, and years of follow-up (for prospective study) were not sources of heterogeneity.ConclusionOur results suggest that there is an association between anxiety and increased risk of hypertension. These results support early detection and management of anxiety in hypertensive patients.
Abnormal carbohydrates expressed on tumor cells, which are referred to as tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs), are potential targets for development of cancer vaccines. However, immune tolerance to TACAs has severely hindered progress in this area. To overcome this problem, we have developed a novel immunotherapeutic strategy based on synthetic cancer vaccines and metabolic engineering of TACAs on tumor cells. One critical step of this new strategy is metabolic engineering of cancer, namely to induce expression of an artificial form of a TACA by supplying tumors with an artificial monosaccharide precursor. To identify the proper precursor for this application, N-propionyl, N-butanoyl, N-iso-butanoyl and N-phenylacetyl derivatives of Dmannosamine were synthesized, and their efficiency as biosynthetic precursors to modify sialic acid and induce expression of modified forms of GM3 antigen on tumor cells was investigated. For this purpose, tumor cells were incubated with different N-acyl-D-mannosamines, and modified forms of GM3 expressed on tumor cells were analyzed by flow cytometry using antigen-specific antisera. Nphenylacetyl-D-mannosamine was efficiently incorporated in a time and dose dependent manner to bioengineer GM3 expression by several tumor cell lines including K562, SKMEL-28 and B16-F0. Moreover, these tumor cell lines also showed ManPAc-dependent sensitivity to cytotoxicity medicated by anti-PAcGM3 immune serum and complement. These results provide an important validation for this novel therapeutic strategy. Because N-phenylacetyl GM3-protein conjugates are particularly immunogenic, the combination of an N-phenylacetyl GM3 conjugate vaccine with systemic N-phenylacetyl-D-mannosamine treatment is a promising immunotherapy for future development and application to melanoma and other GM3-bearing tumors. KeywordsMetabolic engineering; cancer vaccine; GM3; D-mannosamine; sialic acid Sialic acids are unique nine-carbon acidic monosaccharides ubiquitously distributed in high animals and human beings (1). The most common form of sialic acids is N-acetyl-D-neuraminic acid (Neu5Ac, also knows as N-acetyl sialic acid). Neu5Ac is a fascinating sugar in that it usually appears at the nonreducing end of cell surface glycans and thus plays forefront roles in various biological functions such as cell proliferation, immune recognition and pathogenic invasion (2-8).
Background The fit of implant‐supported prostheses is of prime importance for the long‐term success of implant therapy. Purpose This systematic review aimed to evaluate recent evidence on current techniques for assessing implant‐framework misfit, its associated strain/stress, and whether these misfits are related to mechanical, biological, and clinical consequences. Materials and methods An electronic search for publications from January 2010 to October 2020 was performed using the Pubmed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases with combined keywords on implant‐framework misfit assessments and related clinical complications. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied. After full‐text analyses, data extraction was implemented on current techniques of misfit assessment and the relationship between the misfit and the induced strain/stress. Results A total of 3 in vivo and 92 in vitro studies were selected, including 47 studies on quantifying the degree of implant‐framework misfit with dimensional techniques, 24 studies measuring misfit‐induced strain/stress with modeling techniques, and 24 studies using both methods. The technical details, advantages, and limitations of each technique were illustrated. The correlation between the implant‐framework misfit and the induced strain/stress has been revealed in vitro, while that with the biological complications and implant/prostheses failure was weak in clinical studies. Conclusions Dimensional and modeling techniques are available to measure the implant‐framework misfit. The passivity of implant‐supported fixed prostheses appeared related to the induced strain/stress, but not the clinical complications. Further studies combining three‐dimensional (3D) assessments using dimensional and modeling techniques was needed.
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