Cetuximab versus bevacizumab following prior FOLFOXIRI and bevacizumab in postmenopausal women with advanced KRAS and BRAF wild-type colorectal cancer: a retrospective study

Background An upgraded understanding of factors (sex/estrogen) associated with survival benefit in advanced colorectal carcinoma (CRC) could improve personalised management and provide innovative insights into anti-tumour mechanisms. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of cetuximab (CET) versus bevacizumab (BEV) following prior 12 cycles of fluorouracil, leucovorin, oxaliplatin, and irinotecan (FOLFOXIRI) plus BEV in postmenopausal women with advanced KRAS and BRAF wild-type (wt) CRC. Methods Prospectively maintained databases were reviewed from 2013 to 2017 to assess postmenopausal women with advanced KRAS and BRAF wt CRC who received up to 12 cycles of FOLFOXIRI plus BEV inductive treatment, followed by CET or BEV maintenance treatment. The primary endpoints were overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), response rate. The secondary endpoint was the rate of adverse events (AEs). Results At a median follow-up of 27.0 months (IQR 25.1–29.2), significant difference was detected in median OS (17.7 months [95% confidence interval [CI], 16.2–18.6] for CET vs. 11.7 months [95% CI, 10.4–12.8] for BEV; hazard ratio [HR], 0.63; 95% CI, 0.44–0.89; p=0.007); Median PFS was 10.7 months (95% CI, 9.8–11.3) for CET vs. 8.4 months (95% CI, 7.2–9.6) for BEV (HR, 0.67; 95% CI 0.47–0.94; p=0.02). Dose reduction due to intolerable AEs occurred in 29 cases (24 [24.0%] for CET vs. 5 [4.8%] for BEV; p< 0.001). Conclusions CET tends to be superior survival benefit when compared with BEV, with tolerated AEs.

Effects of Plant Size, Temperature, and Light Intensity on Flowering ofPhalaenopsisHybrids in Mediterranean Greenhouses

Mediterranean greenhouses for cultivation ofPhalaenopsisorchids reproduce the warm, humid, and shaded environment of tropical underbrush. Heating represents the highest production cost, due to the high thermal requirements and the long unproductive phase of juvenility, in which plants attain the critical size for flowering. Our researches aimed to investigate the effect of plant size, temperature, and light intensity, during the phase of flower induction, on flowering of modern genotypes selected for Mediterranean greenhouses. Three experiments were carried out to compare (i) plant size: reduced size versus size considered optimal for flowering (hybrids “Sogo Yukidian,” “Chain Xen Diamond,” and “Pinlong”); (ii) temperature: moderate reduction of temperature versus standard thermal regime (hybrid “Premium”); (iii) light intensity: supplemental lighting versus reference light intensity (hybrid “Premium”). The premature exposure of plants to the inductive treatment delayed the beginning of flowering and reduced the flower stem quality, in all the tested hybrids. In “Premium,” the lower temperature did not affect flowering earliness and commercial quality of flower stems compared to the standard regime, whereas it promoted stem branching. In the same hybrid, supplemental lighting anticipated flowering and promoted the emission of the second stem and the stem branching, compared to the reference light regime.

The Effects of Various Kinds of Form-Focused Instruction on Learners' Ability to Comprehend and Produce Polite Requests in English

This study involving 60 Japanese learners of English investigated the effects of various kinds of form-focused instruction on learners' ability to comprehend and produce polite requests in English. Each treatment group received one of the following: (a) deductive instruction; (b) inductive instruction with problem-solving tasks; or (c) inductive instruction with structured input tasks. These tasks all involved explicit input-based instruction and were intended to test for differences in deductive versus inductive treatments. Treatment group performance was compared with that of a control group on a range of input- and output-based pretests, posttests, and follow-up tests. The results indicate that the three treatment groups performed significantly better than the control group, suggesting that in this study explicit input-based instruction was effective both deductively and inductively for learners' comprehension and production of English polite requests. There was also some indication that inductive treatment may be superior in the longer term.

Year-round Production of Flowering Calathea crocata: Influence of Light and Carbon Dioxide

Programmed flower induction of Calathea crocata Morr. et Joris is possible under the controlled environmental conditions of a multilayer growing room. A photoperiod of 10 hours for 9 weeks, growth at 18C, and a photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) of 71 μmol·s-l·m-2 induced flowering in more than 95% of the plants and in 50% to 80% of the shoots. In the meantime, none of the plants under natural conditions was induced. Significantly more flowers were induced when PPFD during the short-day treatment was 71 rather than 56 μmol·s-1·m-2. Flowers became visible 14 to 16 weeks after the start of the inductive treatment. Moreover, raising the CO2 concentration to 900 ppm for 5 months increased the leaf area and dry weight by 40%, and resulted in darker leaf color, longer flower stalks, and significantly accelerated flowering (10 days).

Floral-specific polypeptides in Silene coeli-rosa

In Silene coeli-rosa (L.) Godron given a 7-long-day inductive treatment, scanning electron microscopy and two-dimensional minigel electrophoreses of total proteins were used to characterize the polypeptide pattern of each type of floral organ through early differentiation and to research the changes that occurred in the reproductive apex that initiated each new floral whorl. During early differentiation of each whorl, some polypeptides no longer expressed in the subsequent whorls were distinguished as unique to sepals (24), petals (7), and stamens (4). Newly expressed polypeptides were also observed that occasionally persisted in the subsequent whorl. However, qualitative changes were only between 1.2 and 3.8% of all the detected spots, and common spots remained the most numerous, even if a modulation of their expression in the various types of floral organs was observed. Comparison between leaves and differentiating floral organs showed that sepals shared 57% of their polypeptide spots with leaves, whereas petals, stamens, or carpels shared only 14.6, 10.5, and 7.7%, respectively. In the reproductive apex, polypeptides newly detected or unique to a particular whorl were expressed at the time of initiation of this whorl. However, some of these spots were also detected before, in the apex that initiated the preceding whorl, or they persisted later, in the apex that initiated the following whorl. Key words: floral organs, polypeptides, reproductive apex, Silene coeli-rosa.

Temperature effects on flower initiation in sweet orange (Citrus sinensis)

The effects of temperature on flower induction in sweet orange were studied over a range of shoot and root temperatures representing the conditions found in the field in commercial growing regions. Rooted cuttings of the orange cultivar 'Late Valencia' were used in the Canberra phytotron, with an extended photoperiod of 16 hours and a photo-temperature of 8 hours' duration. Following low temperature inductive conditions (5 weeks at 15/10°C), profuse flowering occurred at 24/19°; flowering was only slightly less at this air temperature with a root temperature of 30°, and at an air temperature of 30/25°. At 36/31° few flowers were formed and these abscissed before opening. However, when the root temperature was maintained at 22° with this shoot temperature a few flowers were formed. In another experiment a root temperature of 30° and shoot temperature of 24/19° reduced the number of flowers that formed (86 cf. 137). Only a small part of the effect of high temperature in inhibiting flower initiation was due to root temperature. Two attempts were made to induce flowering under non-inductive temperatures (27/22°) with low root temperatures (15 and 11°). Flowering could not be induced under these conditions, and the lack of flowers apparently was not due to inhibition of growth by low root temperature. Although few flowers were formed at 27/22° without any previous inductive treatment (15 flowers per plant), profuse flowering was induced by 27/13° (141 flowers/plant), which indicated that a low night temperature will induce flowering. A high root temperature (29°) during inductive conditions (15/10°) had little effect on the number of flowers formed. It appeared that the site of flower stimulation by temperature was in the shoot only, and that subsequent high root temperature effected floral development. It was concluded that flowering could be induced in the field during the summer by low night temperature, and root temperatures would probably have little influence on floral development.

Changes in the gibberellin content of Bryophyllum daigremontianum in connection with floral induction.

After transfer from long days (LD) to short days (SD) the GA content of B. daigremontianum increased to a maximum at 14 SD, which is the minimal duration of inductive treatment necessary for flowering. At the time flower primordia started to differentiate the GA level reached a second peak. Between the two maxima the GA content dropped to a low level at 20 SD. Under LD conditions it showed little variation. Plants shifted to SD at a night temperature of 23 degrees C. did not flower and the GA content diminished to that of plants grown in SD throughout. Variations in the GA level were due to changes in fraction II, which is probably identical with GA5. No significant changes in the level of fraction I were observed.-Mich. St. Univ., East Lansing. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)