Learning in both mazes was sex dependent, but no interactions with MA were found. The data demonstrate that extending the exposure period of MA beyond the sensitive periods (P6-15 and P11-20) did not exacerbate the cognitive deficits. © 2020 ISDN. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.We read with interest the paper by Liu et al. describing a new algorithm-based platform that automates the assessment of a number of parameters that correlate with key histological features of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).(1) Using unstained liver biopsy slides, Liu's method utilizes second-harmonic generation microscopy images to visualize and quantify fibrosis-related parameters as well as two-photon excitation fluorescence microscopy images to visualize and quantify inflammation-, ballooning-, and steatosis-related parameters. We commend the authors for their important work. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.Resistance to tamoxifen remains a prominent conundrum in the therapy of hormone-sensitive breast cancer. Also, the molecular underpinnings leading to tamoxifen resistance remain unclear. In the present study, we utilized the Gene Expression Omnibus database to identify that SOX11 might exert a pivotal function in conferring tamoxifen resistance of breast cancer. SOX11 was found to be markedly upregulated at both the messenger RNA and protein levels in established MCF-7-Tam-R cells compared to the parental counterparts. Moreover, SOX11 was able to activate the transcription of slug via binding to its promoter, resulting in promoting the progress of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and suppressing the expression of ESR1. Downregulating SOX11 expression can restore the sensitivity to 4-hydroxytamoxifen in MCF-7-Tam-R cells. Survival analysis from large sample datasets indicated that SOX11 was closely related to poorer survival in patients with breast cancer. These findings suggest a novel feature of SOX11 in contributing to tamoxifen resistance. Hence, targeting SOX11 could be a potential therapeutic strategy to tackle tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer. © 2020 The Authors. Journal of Cellular Physiology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.AIMS Metaplastic breast carcinoma (MBC) is a rare type of triple-negative breast cancer that displays vast histologic and genetic heterogeneity. Osseous differentiation can be found in different subtypes of MBC. Whether MBCs with osseous differentiation are underpinned by specific genetic alterations has yet to be defined. Here we investigate the repertoire of somatic mutations and copy number alterations (CNAs) in three MBCs with extensive osseous differentiation. METHODS AND RESULTS Tumor and normal DNA samples from three MBCs with extensive osseous differentiation were subjected to whole-exome sequencing. Somatic mutations, CNAs and mutational signatures were determined using a validated bioinformatics pipeline. Our analyses revealed clonal TP53 hotspot mutations associated with loss of heterozygosity of the wild-type allele coupled with mutations affecting genes related to the WNT and/or the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathways in all cases analyzed. All cases displayed a dominant mutational signature 1 with two cases showing a secondary signature 3 in addition to other features of homologous recombination DNA repair defects (HRD). The Oncostatin M Receptor gene (OSMR), which plays a role in mesenchymal differentiation and bone formation, was found to be mutated in two MBCs with extensive osseous differentiation and in none of 35 previously published 35 MBCs.  https://www.selleckchem.com/products/ABT-263.html  CONCLUSION Our findings suggest that MBCs with osseous differentiation have somatic mutations similar to those of other forms of MBC. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) accounts for 90% of cases of liver cancer and is one of the most common and lethal malignancies among all cancers. Current screening practices in high-risk populations using ultrasound and serological α-fetoprotein (AFP) have significantly reduced HCC mortality. However, considering the highly operative-dependent nature of ultrasound and dissatisfactory diagnostic performance of AFP, there is an unfulfilled need for a biomarker that can be used in HCC-related at-risk population screening. Here, sera from 322 patients, including 105 cases of chronic hepatitis (CH), 116 of liver cirrhosis (LC), and 101 of HCC, were collected. Two biomarkers, osteopontin (OPN) and dickkopf WNT signaling pathway inhibitor 1 (DKK1), were evaluated and compared with AFP alone and in combination. In our data, the serum OPN level increased significantly in HCC even in tumors of less than 2 cm. The area under the curve (AUC) reached 0.851, much higher than AFP and DKK1, with 79.21% sensitivity and 79.64% specificity at optimal cutoff in all of the samples. In AFP-negative samples, serum OPN also performed well with an AUC of 0.838. The combination of AFP and OPN improved diagnosis performance significantly when compared with AFP alone. However, the DKK1 level showed an increase in HCC only compared with the LC group. The AUC does not improve significantly when added into the binary logistic model. We conclude that OPN, but not DKK1, is a promising biomarker for HCC diagnosis. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.Rifampicin is a semi-synthetic broad-spectrum antibiotic obtained from rifamycin B. It is one of the most effective first-line antituberculosis drugs and is widely used in clinical practice. In the present study, we describe a rapid and sensitive method for the determination of rifampin in aquatic products by stable isotope-dilution high liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). Samples were extracted with the acetonitrile, degreased by hexane, and then concentrated by nitrogen blowing. After separation using a C18 column with a mixture of acetonitrile and water as mobile phase, it was determined by HPLC-MS/MS using the stable isotope-dilution calibration method. The performance of our method was validated. The limit of detection was 0.25 μg kg-1 and the limit of quantification was 0.5 μg kg-1 . At the three spiked levels of 0.5, 1.0 and 5.0 μg kg-1 , the average recoveries of rifampicin in different aquatic products were between 75.28 and 107.6%, and the relative standard deviation ranged from 0.