Anthocyanin Pigments: Beyond Aesthetics.

Anthocyanins are polyphenol compounds that render various hues of pink, red, purple, and blue in flowers, vegetables, and fruits. Anthocyanins also play significant roles in plant propagation, ecophysiology, and plant defense mechanisms. Structurally, anthocyanins are anthocyanidins modified by sugars and acyl acids. Anthocyanin colors are susceptible to pH, light, temperatures, and metal ions. The stability of anthocyanins is controlled by various factors, including inter and intramolecular complexations. Chromatographic and spectrometric methods have been extensively used for the extraction, isolation, and identification of anthocyanins. Anthocyanins play a major role in the pharmaceutical; nutraceutical; and food coloring, flavoring, and preserving industries. Research in these areas has not satisfied the urge for natural and sustainable colors and supplemental products. The lability of anthocyanins under various formulated conditions is the primary reason for this delay. New gene editing technologies to modify anthocyanin structures in vivo and the structural modification of anthocyanin via semi-synthetic methods offer new opportunities in this area. This review focusses on the biogenetics of anthocyanins; their colors, structural modifications, and stability; their various applications in human health and welfare; and advances in the field.

Retrospect and Prospect for Lung Cancer in China: Clinical Advances of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors.

Lung cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in China. The recent emergence of immunotherapy treatment options, such as the use of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) checkpoint inhibitors, has also led to a paradigm shift in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer, and has provided promising directions for the treatment of small cell lung cancer. This review provides a summary of the developmental process of immunotherapy, especially immune checkpoint inhibitors in lung cancer, ongoing international and domestic clinical trials in this field, and the challenges and considerations related to the use of immunotherapy in Chinese patients with lung cancer, with the aim of providing detailed information for future immunotherapy-related clinical trials in China. Research regarding immune checkpoint inhibitors in China is several years behind similar research in several developed countries. However, although PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor-related clinical trials remain in their early stages in China, increased efforts by Chinese clinicians, researchers, and government staff have been directed toward trying to introduce novel drugs into the clinical setting. Because of the specific characteristics of Chinese patients with lung cancer (such as high epidermal growth factor receptor mutation rates, later disease stages, and different toxicity profiles), large-scale clinical trials targeting the Chinese population or Chinese participation in multinational trials should be promoted. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: As the leading cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality, lung cancer is a major public health problem in China. Immunotherapy based on programmed cell death protein 1/programmed death-ligand 1 checkpoint inhibitors may result in new treatment directions and a paradigm shift for Chinese patients with lung cancer. Although checkpoint inhibitor-related clinical trials remain in their early stages in China, increased efforts by Chinese clinicians, researchers, and government staff have been directed toward trying to introduce novel drugs into the clinical setting by encouraging the development of large-scale clinical trials targeting the Chinese population and promoting Chinese patients with lung cancer to participate in international trials.

Evaluation of Discordance in Primary Tumor and Lymph Node Response After Neoadjuvant Therapy in Breast Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) offers a unique opportunity to assess tumor response to systemic agents. However, a discrepancy may exist between the response of the primary tumor and involved nodes. We report on the frequency of response discordance after NAT in breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All consecutive node-positive patients receiving NAT in our department from 2009 to 2014 were identified. Patient demographics, and radiologic and pathologic features were tabulated. Tumor response was estimated by magnetic resonance imaging of the breast. Lymph node (LN) response was estimated from pathologic treatment response measurements. Statistical analysis was performed. RESULTS: A total of 108 node-positive patients treated with NAT were eligible for inclusion. Median age was 51.73 years (range, 20-87 years). All patients underwent axillary clearance, and 62% underwent mastectomy. A 40% mean reduction in tumor size was observed. Statistically, a positive correlation between tumor and LN response after NAT was observed (Spearman correlation coefficient, r = 0.46, P < .001). Complete pathologic response was observed in 17 patients (15.7%). However, 21 patients experienced complete LN response, with only 81% of these patients (n = 17) experiencing a complete response in tumor also. A complete response was observed in tumor in 20 patients, and this predicted complete nodal response in 85% of cases (n = 17). Fifteen percent of primary tumors with complete pathologic response had persistently positive LNs. CONCLUSION: A significant discordance exists between the primary tumor and LN response, representing a concern for the lack of response of occult regional or systemic metastases due to potential biologic heterogeneity.

A double-edged sword: advantages and disadvantages to the current emphasis on biogenetic causes of child psychopathology.

Research on child psychopathology is a largely biogenetic endeavor these days, at least according to current funding priorities at the National Institutes of Health in the US. This heavy focus on genetic contributions to child psychopathology has some real advantages. Available research has conclusively indicated that child and adolescent mental health problems are partially genetic in origin and, moreover, are related to neural structure and function (as an example, see Plomin et al.). Moreover, these genetic effects may be responsible for some previously reported 'environmental' effects, such that, what appear to be direct environmental risk factors may in fact reflect genetic/familial risks. As one example, Sengupta et al. (this issue) found that maternal smoking during pregnancy was in fact a marker of maternal and paternal psychopathology. Put another way, the association between ADHD and maternal smoking during pregnancy may index a genetic/familial risk for a more severe form of ADHD, rather than a direct effect of uterine exposure to cigarettes. A final, more subtle reason for the current trend towards biogenetic research is that it has the rarely-discussed but all-too-important 'allure of the unknown'. We have only just recently been able to directly explore the biological underpinnings of psychopathology; and as technology advances, so too will the insights gained (presumably). This offers both funding agencies and individual scientists the very real possibility of making a major new discovery - a siren's call for most of us. In sharp contrast, decades of research have explored putatively environmental contributions to child and adolescent psychopathology. New paradigm-shifting discoveries are thus likely to be fewer in number and farther between (if we continue using traditional study designs that omit joint consideration of biology, that is). In short, biogenetic research just feels more cutting edge at the moment. The clear merits of such work notwithstanding, there are a number of critical disadvantages to the current emphasis on genetics. These issues are presented below, not necessarily in order of importance.

Liberdade e natureza (in)humana (Zizek versus Habermas) / Freedom and nature (in)human (Zizek versus Habermas)

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo problematizar a relação entre o princípio de liberdade e a ideia de natureza humana. Defendemos a tese de que o verdadeiro conceito de liberdade só pode ser pensado além dos limites (naturalmente) estabelecidos pela espécie humana. Logo, liberdade tem a ver com o domínio do inumano, não com o do humano. Desse modo, convém contrapor duas perspectivas contemporâneas que divergem radicalmente sobre o conceito de modernidade: a pragmática formal de Jürgen Habermas e o materialismo dialético de Slavoj Zizek. Tomamos como fio condutor, portanto, a polêmica sobre o tema da biogenética, e, a partir daí, procuramos demonstrar como a concepção de modernidade para Zizek - apoiado principalmente em Hegel e Lacan - revela-se ainda mais radical do que o projeto de uma modernidade inacabada de Habermas.

This paper aims to discuss the relationship between the principle of freedom and the idea of human nature. We seek to argue that the very concept of freedom can only be thought beyond the limits of course set by the human species. I.e. freedom has to do with the domain of the inhumane, not of the human. Therefore, it is essential to oppose two contemporary perspectives that differ radically about the concept of modernity: the Habermas' formal pragmatics and Slavoj Zizek's dialectical materialism. We must take, therefore, as a guide the controversy on the subject of biogenetic, and, from there, to demonstrate how the concept of modernity to Zizek proves to be even more radical than the Habermas' project of modernity unfinished.

Biogenética e psicologia / Biogenetics and psychology

O autor apresenta aspectos importantes do estado atual da Biogenética, fazendo um chamado aos psicólogos a integrarem-se nesses progressos. A função desses profissionais é apontada na ajuda aos comprometidos por graves quadros clínicos de natureza genética e intensos riscos de repetição. Cita exemplos desses quadros com as possíveis conseqüências psicológicas tanto ao afetado quanto a seus familiares(AU)

The author presents important aspects of the actual state of Biogenetics, extending an invitation to psychologists to come and integrate into these progresses. The function of these professionals is pointed out in the help to those compromised by serious clinical cases of a genetic nature and to intense risks of repetition. Examples of these cases are given with the possible psychological consequence, not only to the one affected, but also to his relatives(AU)