Splenopancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma with multiorgan metastasis in a northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon)

A 16-yr-old northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon) presented with a large, firm midcoelomic swelling. A complete blood count, survey radiographs, coelomic ultrasound, and fine needle aspirate of the mass were performed. Survey radiographs revealed a soft tissue opacity mass. Ultrasonographic examination confirmed the presence of the mass but could not aid in its visceral localization. After 2 weeks, the snake presented again because of continued anorexia and poor quality of life. Euthanasia was performed. Gross necropsy revealed a multilobulated mass attached to and effacing the splenopancreas. Histologically, the mass was composed of cuboidal to columnar neoplastic epithelial cells forming tubules surrounded by variable amounts of fibrovascular stroma. Histological examination and immunohistochemical staining of other tissues revealed local invasion in the subserosa and tunica muscularis of the stomach, metastasis within the liver, in the mesovarium, and an intravascular metastasis within the ventricle of the heart surrounded by a thrombus

p62/SQSTM1 is required for cell survival of apoptosis-resistant bone metastatic prostate cancer cell lines

BACKGROUND: Bone marrow stromal cell (BMSC) paracrine factor(s) can induce apoptosis in bone metastatic prostate cancer (PCa) cell lines. However, the PCa cells that escape BMSC-induced apoptosis can upregulate cytoprotective autophagy. METHODS: C4-2, C4-2B, MDA PCa 2a, MDA PCa 2b, VCaP, PC3, or DU145 PCa cell lines were grown in BMSC conditioned medium and analyzed for mRNA and/or protein accumulation of p62 (also known as sequestome-1/SQSTM1), Microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3B (LC3B), or lysosomal-associated membrane protein 1 (LAMP1) using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (QPCR), Western blot, or immunofluorescence. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) was used to determine if p62 is necessary PCa cell survival. RESULTS: BMSC paracrine signaling upregulated p62 mRNA and protein in a subset of the PCa cell lines. The PCa cell lines that were insensitive to BMSC-induced apoptosis and autophagy induction had elevated basal p62 mRNA and protein. In the BMSC-insensitive PCa cell lines, siRNA knockdown of p62 was cytotoxic and immunostaining showed peri-nuclear clustering of autolysosomes. However, in the BMSC-sensitive PCa cell lines, p62 siRNA knockdown was not appreciably cytotoxic and did not affect autolysosome subcellular localization. CONCLUSIONS: A pattern emerges wherein the BMSC-sensitive PCa cell lines are known to be osteoblastic and express the androgen receptor, while the BMSC-insensitive PCa cell lines are characteristically osteolytic and do not express the androgen receptor. Furthermore, BMSC-insensitive PCa may have evolved a dependency on p62 for cell survival that could be exploited to target and kill these apoptosis-resistant PCa cells in the bone

A Kantian Ethical Analysis of Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis

In an era where new genetic and reproductive technologies are increasing, ethical concerns continue to grow as well. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is a technique used in addition to in vitro fertilization (IVF) to screen embryos for genetic abnormalities and either discard them or place them in the uterus. The emergence of new uses for PGD has made PGD a frequent target of ethical commentary and speculation about a future of greatly increased genetic selection and manipulation of offspring (Robertson, 2003). Although PGD is not currently widespread, its potential for abuse signifies a need for serious ethical analysis. Immanuel Kant was an 18th Century philosopher, whose theories still influence modern ethics. In this paper, I will examine the ethical issues relating to PGD, describe its benefits, analyze it through a Kantian ethical framework, and discuss my own position. Although my worldview differs from that of Kant, we both hold the same position in regards to PGD and view it as morally wrong. PGD is a procedure based on IVF, where embryos are screened for a variety of genetic diseases, including sex-linked disorders, single gene defects, and chromosomal defects. Defective embryos are discarded, while genetically normal embryos are selected for re-implantation into the uterus. This decreases the likelihood of having a miscarriage or of giving birth to a child with a birth defect. Some parents can also use PGD to select their child’s gender

European Political Economy: Which Factors Make Some Member States of the European Union More Economically Competitive than Others?

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Similarities Between the Second Generation of Female Psychologists and Female Students in Cal Poly’s Child Development Program

This essay aims to uncover the similarities between female students in Cal Poly’s Psychology and Child Development Department and the second generation of female psychologists in American society. The department’s history will be examined in order to establish its importance at Cal Poly, a traditionally vocational institution. Additionally, this essay will consider how female students in the department argued its importance and validity through on campus advocacy and their senior projects. The essay will close with a section detailing faculty perspectives on the validity of psychology and child development as a true science amongst other disciplines at Cal Poly. The goal of this essay is to illustrate how female students were able to aid in the progress of Cal Poly’s Psychology and Child Development Department in similar ways to that of the second generation of female psychologists who aided in the progress of the discipline in American society and academia at large

A Statistical Analysis of Drought and Its Global Impact

Droughts are the most ambiguous of all natural hazards and yet are often cited as the most destructive and are responsible for the most widespread damage across all sectors of society. The purpose of this study was to further understand the impact that drought has on various sectors of society, especially the economic sector, and how various regions across the United States are specifically impacted by droughts and drought effects. In order to quantify the impact that drought has on the economic sector, an analysis was performed internationally between each country’s GDP and various drought indices such as PDSI, SPI, and SPEI. In order to account for exponential growth in GDP, the correlation was performed on detrended GDP using logarithmic trend free pre-whitening (TFPW) and logarithmic quadratic methods. The combination of PDSI and Log. TFPW gave the most complete understanding of negative correlation between drought and a nation’s economy. In order to focus on drought impact in the United States, ARIMA modeling was used to establish a forecasting model for PDSI time series for various climatic regions around the country. The accuracy of these forecasting models was quantified through an approximate AIC method and compared to precipitation and temperature of each of the regions to determine the influence each drought component had on model accuracy. The regions with lower temperatures such as the Upper Midwest gave the more accurate drought forecasting models. The applicability of each of these climatic regions towards drought studies were tested by Severity Area Frequency curve analysis. While the Northwest region of America necessitated a need for two drought sub-regions, most of the climatic regions were affected by droughts homogenously

A Kantian Ethical Analysis of Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis

In an era where new genetic and reproductive technologies are increasing, ethical concerns continue to grow as well. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is a technique used in addition to in vitro fertilization (IVF) to screen embryos for genetic abnormalities and either discard them or place them in the uterus. The emergence of new uses for PGD has made PGD a frequent target of ethical commentary and speculation about a future of greatly increased genetic selection and manipulation of offspring (Robertson, 2003). Although PGD is not currently widespread, its potential for abuse signifies a need for serious ethical analysis. Immanuel Kant was an 18th Century philosopher, whose theories still influence modern ethics. In this paper, I will examine the ethical issues relating to PGD, describe its benefits, analyze it through a Kantian ethical framework, and discuss my own position. Although my worldview differs from that of Kant, we both hold the same position in regards to PGD and view it as morally wrong. PGD is a procedure based on IVF, where embryos are screened for a variety of genetic diseases, including sex-linked disorders, single gene defects, and chromosomal defects. Defective embryos are discarded, while genetically normal embryos are selected for re-implantation into the uterus. This decreases the likelihood of having a miscarriage or of giving birth to a child with a birth defect. Some parents can also use PGD to select their child’s gender

Payments by Check as Voidable Preferences: The Impact of Barnhill v. Johnson

Under the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978 (the Code), the trustee in bankruptcy has the duty to seek to avoid “preferential” transfers of the debtor\u27s property made ninety days or less before the date of the filing of the bankruptcy case. Because of the delay that may occur between the time a check in payment of a debt is delivered by the debtor and when it is honored by the drawee bank, determining when the transfer was made to the payee-creditor has been a difficult issue for courts to resolve. The Supreme Court recently addressed this problem when it ruled, in Barnhill v. Johnson, that the date of honor of the check is the transfer date for purposes of preference law. The Court\u27s decision, however, has the potential to create significant practical problems because it frustrates general bankruptcy policy, it creates a conflict with existing preference exceptions law, and it is inconsistent with general commercial practice. In explaining these conclusions, this Article first considers the policies and goals of bankruptcy preference law. It then explores the language of the preference statute and analyzes the application of the statute to transfers by check. Next, this Article examines the recent Supreme Court opinion deciding the issue of the transfer date for payments by check and the dissenting opinion of Justice Stevens, with whom Justice Blackmun joined. This Article then discusses the potential problems that the Court\u27s decision creates. Finally, this article recommends that Congress revise the Bankruptcy Code to adopt the “date of delivery” rule for the effective date of check transfers in view of the problems that the “date of honor” rule will create