Characterizing the malignancy and drug resistance of cancer cells from their membrane resealing response

In this report, we showed that two tumor cell characteristics, namely the malignancy and drug-resistance status can be evaluated by their membrane resealing response. Specifically, membrane pores in a number of pairs of cancer and normal cell lines originated from nasopharynx, lung and intestine were introduced by nano-mechanical puncturing. Interestingly, such nanometer-sized holes in tumor cells can reseal ∼ 2-3 times faster than those in the corresponding normal cells. Furthermore, the membrane resealing time in cancer cell lines exhibiting resistance to several leading chemotherapeutic drugs was also found to be substantially shorter than that in their drug-sensitive counterparts, demonstrating the potential of using this quantity as a novel marker for future cancer diagnosis and drug resistance detection. Finally, a simple model was proposed to explain the observed resealing dynamics of cells which suggested that the distinct response exhibited by normal, tumor and drug resistant cells is likely due to the different tension levels in their lipid membranes, a conclusion that is also supported by direct cortical tension measurement.published_or_final_versio

Renegotiating Migration Experiences: Indonesian Domestic Workers in Singapore and Use of Information Communication Technologies

This article considers the ways in which information communication technologies (ICTs) are embedded in foreign domestic workers' migration experiences in Singapore. Due to Singapore's stringent migration regime, whereby foreign domestic workers are required to live-in with their employers, domestic workers often find their access and use of ICTs subject to a high degree of surveillance and regulation by their employers. Using Massey's notion of power geometry, we consider how increasing reliance upon communications technology by both domestic workers and their employers necessitates a renegotiation of social relations in the household. In doing so, this article demonstrates that foreign domestic workers' negotiations of ICTs are 'always ongoing', creating fluid possibilities for these women to exercise a greater sense of agency within the realm of their daily lives. Yet, we highlight that gaining access to ICTs also requires women to negotiate the inequalities inscribed upon their position as a foreign domestic worker

Potential Interest in Circulating miR-BART17-5p As a Post-Treatment Biomarker for Prediction of Recurrence in Epstein-Barr Virus-Related Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-related micoRNAs (miRNAs), BamHI-A rightward transcripts (BART)-miRNAs, are released in a stable form from viable cells, which are abundant in patients with EBV-positive nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). We estimated copy numbers of circulating miR-BART2-5p, miR-BART17-5p, and miR-BART18-5p as well as BamHI-W DNA as biomarkers.Serums from 31 EBV-positive (confirmed by in situ hybridization for EBV-encoded small RNAs) NPC patients and 40 non-NPC controls were analyzed. Among the 31 NPC patients, serums at the initial diagnosis and three months after treatment were obtained from 20 patients, and serums only at three months after treatment were obtained from 11 patients.The sensitivity/specificity of circulating BamHI-W DNA, miR-BART2-5p, miR-BART17-5p, and miR-BART18-5p for the diagnosis of NPC before treatment were 100 / 100, 85 / 85, 60 / 95, and 25 / 100%, respectively. For BamHI-W DNA, NPC patients with stage IV disease had significantly higher copy numbers than those with I-III. Copy numbers decreased significantly post-treatment. In contrast, copy numbers of the three BART-miRNAs showed no significant correlation with the clinical stage at diagnosis or any significant post-treatment change. After treatment, BamHI-W DNA and miR-BART17-5p were detected in 5 and 6 cases out of 11 patients with recurrent or residual tumors, respectively. However, BamHI-W DNA and miR-BART17-5p were absent in all 20 patients without relapse or residual tumors.The copy number of circulating BamHI-W DNA is a more useful biomarker for the initial diagnosis of NPC than the three BART-miRNAs examined. Post-treatment detection of miR-BART17-5p is a potential biomarker of a poor prognosis