IJMS, Vol. 18, Pages 686: Future Prospects for the Development of Cost-Effective Adenovirus Vaccines

Vaccination is one of the most efficient tools for disease prevention, and a continuously growing field of research. However, despite progress, we still need more efficient and cost-effective vaccines that would improve access to those in need. In this review, we will describe the status of virus-vectored vaccine technology with a focus on adenoviral-based vaccines. Adenovirus (Ad) vaccines have proven to be efficient in military vaccinations against Ad4 and Ad7 and as highly efficient vectored vaccines against rabies. The question of how other adenovirus-based vaccines can become as efficient as the rabies vaccine is the underlying theme in this review. Here, we will first give an overview of the basic properties of vectored vaccines, followed by an introduction to the characteristics of adenoviral vectors and previously tested modifications of the vector backbone and expression cassettes, with a focus on how they can contribute to increased vaccine cost-effectiveness. Finally, we will highlight a few successful examples of research that have attempted to improve the use of adenoviral-based vaccines by improving the transgene immunogenicity.

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Nonfamilial Juvenile Polyposis Syndrome with Exon 5 Novel Mutation in SMAD 4 Gene

Juvenile polyposis syndrome (JPS) is a rare autosomal dominant hereditary disorder, characterized by multiple juvenile polyps in the gastrointestinal tract and an increased risk of colorectal cancer. JPS is most frequently caused by mutations in the SMAD4 or BMPR1A genes. Herein, we report a child with juvenile polyposis syndrome (JPS) with a novel mutation in the SMAD4 gene. An 8-year-old boy presented with recurrent rectal bleeding and was found to have multiple polyps in the entire colon. The histology of the resected polyps was consistent with juvenile polyps. Subsequent genetic screening revealed a novel mutation in SMAD4, exon 5 (p.Ser144Stop). To the best of our knowledge, this mutation has not been reported before. Offering genotypic diagnosis for patients with JPS is an important step for strategic plan of management.

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Suppression of Retinal Neovascularization by Inhibition of Galectin-1 in a Murine Model of Oxygen-Induced Retinopathy

Galectin-1 (Gal-1) has been proved to be an important factor in the process of tumor angiogenesis recently. As a small molecule, OTX008 serves as a selective inhibitor of Gal-1. In this study, the role of Gal-1 and the antiangiogenic effect of OTX008 on retinal neovascularization (RNV) were investigated using a mouse model of oxygen-induced retinopathy. The outcome indicated that Gal-1 was overexpressed and closely related to retinal neovessels in OIR. After intravitreal injection of OTX008 at P12, the RNV was significantly reduced at P17, measuring by cross-sectional H&E staining and whole-mount fluorescence. Our results demonstrate the inhibitory function of OTX008 on RNV, which provides a promising strategy of treating retinal angiogenic diseases such as retinopathy of prematurity and proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

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Use of Preplaced Casting Method in Lightweight Aggregate Concrete

This study addresses the use of preplaced casting method in lightweight aggregate concrete (LC) to provide a new perspective to solve the aggregate segregation. In casting preplaced lightweight aggregate concrete (PLC), the lightweight aggregates are cast into formworks and then fresh grout is injected to fill voids. PLC and conventional lightweight aggregate concrete (CLC) with three different mixtures are compared to observe the degree of segregation. The properties of PLC and CLC are characterized by means of cubic and axial compression, splitting tension and flexural tests, static modulus of elasticity, and drying shrinkage measurements. Results show that the mechanical properties of PLC are improved with respect to that of CLC with the same mixture. The increase of shrinkage is approximately 13% for the CLC and 6% for PLC when w/c ratio ranges from 0.4 to 0.5 due to effect on interlocking. PLC shows an increased tendency in elastic modulus by approximately 2.5% of 0.5 w/c ratio, 2.7% of 0.45 w/c ratio, and 3.3% of 0.4 w/c ratio at the age of 28 days compared with CLC. In conclusion, PLC has significant reduction in the weight on the premise that it shows excellent mechanical properties.

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Impact of age and mismatch repair status on survival in colorectal cancer

Abstract

Previous studies have suggested that deficiencies in mismatch repair genes (dMMR) often occur in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) and contribute to disease etiology. Here, we looked for a correlation of MMR status to disease outcomes from a large number of Chinese CRC patients stratified by the age of onset of disease. A total of 2233 CRC patients were analyzed and tissue biopsies of surgically removed tumors scored for MMR gene status. The patient distribution after classification consisted of 188 younger aged patients (20–39 years of age), 1024 middle aged patients (40–59 years of age), and 1020 older aged patients (60–85 years of age). In this analysis, the expression of four MMR genes was assessed by immunohistochemistry (IHC). We found that the young group of CRC patients with dMMR had higher overall survival (OS) than the young group of patients with proficient MMR (pMMR) (77% vs. 56%, P = 0.03). Middle-aged patients with dMMR also had higher OS than middle-aged group patients with pMMR (78% vs. 68%, P = 0.012). However, we found no statistical difference in OS between dMMR and pMMR status in the older group of patients (75% vs. 71%, P = 0.224). Finally, the middle- and older-aged group set of patients had higher OS than the young group of patients (69% vs. 71% vs. 59%, P = 0.008). These data demonstrated that the age of disease onset can be an important factor to help evaluate the prognosis of CRC when combined with the analysis of MMR status within tumor biopsied tissue.

The combination of age and MMR was a significant predictor of overall survival in our study, reflecting the importance of optimizing patient beyond treatment.

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newly available online.Studi Italici

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The new issue is now available.Journal of Japanese Society of Child Health Nursing

Vol.8 No.2

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