Areas Of Basic Science Research Articles

Neuro-oncology research opportunities in North America: results of a survey by the AANS/CNS section on tumors.

A primary goal of the AANS/CNS Section on Tumors is to foster neuro-oncology research. The Research Committee was charged with the responsibility of assessing the neuro-oncology research opportunities currently available within neurosurgery residency programs and proposing strategies to enhance these activities. Two separate surveys were mailed to all neurosurgery program directors (112) and neurosurgery residents (872) in North America. The initial mailing was in December 1997 and a follow-up mailing was sent in June 1998 to those who did not respond. Seventy-seven (69%) program directors and 279 (32%) neurosurgery residents responded to the survey. Neuro-oncology research rotations of varying duration (usually <12 months) were available at most residency programs (87%). Research mentors included equal numbers of neurosurgeons and outside faculty. Funding sources were well distributed among departmental (27%), federal (24%), institutional (22%), and private (19%) sources. Common basic science research areas included molecular biology, gene therapy, and pathology, whereas image-guided surgery was the most frequent area of clinical research. Approximately one-third of the responding residents had completed a neuro-oncology research rotation, mainly in an area of basic science, which resulted in an average of two publications and three presentations at national meetings. The most significant challenges for residents pursuing neuro-oncology research were concurrent clinical responsibilities, lack of faculty mentors, and insufficient research funding. Neuro-oncology research opportunities are available within most neurosurgery residency programs and appear to attract a reasonable number of productive trainees. The results of this survey have identified several important ways in which the AANS/CNS Section on Tumors can enhance neuro-oncology research opportunities and a comprehensive strategy for accomplishing these goals is presented.

“Look Forward, Walk Tall”: Exploring Our “What If” Questions

Abstract Steven L Wolf, PT, PhD, FAPTA Dr Wolf has given much to the physical therapy profession through his teaching, research, and service. He has an extensive publication record of more than 100 peer-reviewed publications that reflect his interest and expertise in biofeedback, neuromuscular re-education, and management of patients with chronic pain, among others. His work spanned the basic science areas early in his career and has shifted more recently to large-scale clinical research that corresponds to the most urgent need within the profession of physical therapy. Dr Wolf's influence has reached beyond the United States, and he is a much sought-after lecturer internationally. As a researcher, he has had a profound effect as one of the most consistent and productive researchers. Over his career, he has been a part of 37 funded peer-reviewed grant proposals, and he is listed in more than half as either the Principal or Co-Principal Investigator. The funding totals an astounding $30 million. His profound experience as one of the cutting-edge researchers in physical therapy and as a superb educator and his international reputation—in addition to his many contributions to the professional association—have qualified him for this highest award the Association can provide. Dr Wolf's distinguished career is highlighted by numerous awards, including the Marian Williams Research Award, Gold Pen Award, Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the APTA, Lucy Blair Service Award, Helen J Hislop Award for Excellence in Contributions to Professional Literature, the Foundation for Physical Therapy's Robert C Bartlett Recognition Award, the Section on Geriatrics Outstanding Published Paper Award, and the Neurology Section Outstanding Research Award.

BASIC-SCIENCE EDUCATION

Advances in molecular and cellular biology and in genetics are progressing at an astonishing rate and already are influencing the clinical practice of orthopaedic surgery. The focus of basic-science education for residents and the continuing education of most orthopaedic surgeons has been and currently is in the fields of materials sciences and biomechanics because these disciplines are basic to our surgical practice. Education in genetics and in molecular and cellular biology is a must for orthopaedic residents and is rapidly becoming essential to the practice of senior surgeons. Since the founding of orthopaedic surgery, our education in these areas of basic science has been minimal, and including this erudite area of study, with its whole new language, into our curricula and developing interest in it among senior surgeons will not be easy. The following experience convinced me that this lack of interest is an issue of concern. This past year, while I was visiting an orthopaedic training program and discussing journal clubs with the chief of this program, he made a startling statement. He said that he and his residents were no longer reading The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery as it was not relevant to his practice or to their training. Their journal club focused on review journals. He said that The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery published too much basic science, which was not relevant to practice, and, besides, it was too difficult to understand molecular and cellular biology. They much preferred journals that focused on surgical techniques. After I picked myself up off the floor and sat down again, I asked him if he had looked at the American volume of The Journal recently. He told me, Yes, the new format looked like USA Today . I assume that this chief's opinion is an anomaly, …

Predicted and Unpredicted Changes In Non-Impact Printing: 1981&amp;#x2013;2001

&#x201C;Future Directions of Non-Impact Printing Technologies&#x201D; was the title of a panel discussion during the &#x201C;First International Congress on Advances in Non-Impact Printing Technologies&#x201D; in 1981. The 1981 status of non-impact printing establishes the context for the panelists' predictions. Evolution of the non-impact printing technologies and their applications from 1981 to 2001 are then compared with the panelists' predictions. Despite the fact that these predictions were not intended to cover a 20 year period, many were surprisingly accurate. Only a few differed from reality dramatically. The last section is entitled &#x201C;Where To From Here?&#x201D; The first part covers expansion of the present application range plus possible future applications. The second deals with a) technical advances in each non-impact printing technology that could improve performance and cost effectiveness and b) new non-impact processes under development or on the horizon plus basic science and technology areas that could have a significant impact on non-impact printing in the future.

The relationship between surgeon and basic scientist

Basic science research has always been the cornerstone of a solid academic career, even for surgeons. In the past, many cardiothoracic and cardiovascular surgeons have used the large animal laboratory to design surgical operations, refine extracorporeal circulation, improve myocardial protection or simply validate clinical concepts. Today, funding for large animal research has almost disappeared. The basic science areas of ‘cellular, molecular, genomics or gene therapy’ must be involved to be considered for national or even local funding. This endeavor requires a new generation of surgical scientists and perhaps even more importantly, a new environment for the performance of such research. Academic surgery does not exist without active and long-standing commitment to research. Clinical research focusing on patient outcome remains an important task of the academic surgeon but this paper will focus on the relationship between surgeons and basic scientists and shall concentrate primarily on translational research and its challenge now and in the future. The collaboration between basic scientist and clinician is more essential than ever, because the society still optimally rewards science that has potential clinical applicability [1]. Even within surgical departments, active support and very close contact with PhDs can be essential for the clinical faculty members to be productive, using cellular and molecular techniques. In cardiovascular medicine and biology, there is a great potential to prevent or treat diseases with these techniques. The potential to modify ischemia–reperfusion, inflammation, angiogenesis, restenosis, organ tolerance or cardiomyocyte transplantation to remodel ventricles will be accomplished by a better understanding of cardiovascular biology. Surgeons must plan for a speciality that may look quite different in the next future.

Development and implementation of a science training course for breast cancer activists: Project LEAD (leadership, education and advocacy development).

To develop and implement Project LEAD (leadership, education, and advocacy development), a science course for breast cancer activists. Students were breast cancer activists and other consumers, mainly affiliated with advocacy organizations in the United States of America. Project LEAD is offered by the National Breast Cancer Coalition; the course takes place over 5 days and is offered 4 times a year, in various cities in the United States of America. The Project LEAD curriculum has developed over 5 years to include lectures, problem-based study groups, case studies, interactive critical appraisal sessions, a seminar by an 'expert' scientist, role play, and homework components. A core faculty has been valuable for evaluating and revising the course and has proved necessary to provide consistent high quality teaching. Course evaluations indicated that students gained critical appraisal skills, enhanced their knowledge and developed confidence in selected areas of basic science and epidemiology. Project LEAD comprises a unique curriculum for training breast cancer activists in science and critical appraisal. Course evaluations indicate that students gain confidence and skills from the course.

Toward a developmental family therapy: the clinical utility of research on adolescence.

Tremendous advances have been made in our understanding of the intrapersonal, interpersonal, familial, and contextual characteristics and processes that contribute to adaptive as well as maladaptive developmental outcomes with high-risk and clinically referred adolescents. This empirical knowledge base offers clinically rich opportunities for systematic treatment development. An important step in this process is distinguishing which research findings in basic science areas such as developmental psychology and developmental psychopathology might have clinical relevance. Toward this goal, we review relevant but selective research in areas that are central to clinical work with adolescents (parent-adolescent relationship, biological aspects, and affect and cognition), and we offer examples of how basic research in these areas can inform treatment.

Ovarial cancer: best timing and applications of debulking surgery

Ovarian Cancer is the fifth leading cause of death in women in the United States and the most common cause of death in women with gynaecological malignancies in most Western countries. Despite the significant advances in surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the resulting overall 5-year survival is about 40-50% [1]. In addition, millions of women remain fearful and concerned about being diagnosed with this too often fatal disease. While early detection improves the chances that ovarian cancer can be treated successfully, early cancers of the ovaries rarely cause symptoms that women would notice, or the symptoms are mistaken for menopausal ailments or intestinal illness. As a result, almost 75% of women with ovarian cancer are not diagnosed until the disease is advanced in stage with only 15-20% chances of reaching 5-year survival. Investigative efforts for the new millennium involve the areas of basic science and translational research, genetic susceptibility and prevention, diagnostic imaging, screening and diagnosis and, finally, therapy. Unfortunately, at present, results of treatment are still far from optimal. Integration of surgery with chemotherapy are crucial in the treatment of ovarian cancer and the recommended treatment strategy for patients with advanced ovarian cancer is radical cytoreductive surgery followed by 6 cycles of platinum-based combination chemotherapy [2]. The role of whole-abdominal radiation therapy in the treatment of ovarian cancer is still controversial. In particular, evidence that radiation therapy is curative in patients with advanced disease is lacking while severe toxicity is reported [3]. Critics of this modality have argued that the dose of radiation that can be safely delivered is low and unlikely to eradicate more than microscopic disease. Despite the fact that during the last two decades the cytoreductive ability of gynaecological oncologists has increased and an higher response rate to platinum-based chemotherapy can be obtained, the state of the art treatment fails to cure the vast majority of patients with advanced disease. In order to minimise the tumour burden before chemotherapy, cytoreductive (or debulking) surgery is usually performed upfront. Possible benefits from upfront cytoreductive surgery include: (a) improvement of tumour response to further therapy due to improved tumour perfusion and increased growth fraction. Smaller tumour masses require fewer cycles of chemotherapy with less chance of induced drug-resistance. Clones of phenotypically resistant cells may be removed also; (b) immediate treatment, or prevention of complications arising from tumour masses, i.e. bowel obstruction and ascites; (c) enhancement of the immunological competence of the patient. The immunogenicity of ovarian cancer has been demonstrated in vivo and cytoreduction may help the patient to mobilise her own immune response to the cancer [4]; (d) psychological benefit to the patient of knowing that the tumour bulk has been removed [5]. Several non randomised studies showed improved survival of patients with less than 1 cm diameter of residual tumour after primary surgery, as compared with patients with larger lesions. In a case-control study of patients with minimal residual disease, . Eisenkop et al. reported a longer survival for patients whose small lesions were completely resected rather than for those patients whose similar lesions were not completely removed [6]. Conversely, both Hoskins [7] and Hacker [8] reported that, despite optimal cytoreduction, the survival of patients with large intra-abdominal metastases before resection was significantly worse than that observed in patients with initially small intra-abdominal lesions. These observations suggested that intrinsic tumour factors are of prognostic importance in addition to residual disease after cytoreduction and also raised the question of whether cytoreduction has a significant effect on survival among patients with the same size tumours and the same intrinsic prognostic factors. Moreover, the problem still under debate is whether the observed survival benefits for cytoreduced patients are a function of surgical skill, tumour biology or both.

Increased funding for stroke research.

It is an exciting time for stroke research. Over the last couple of years with the use of tPA, and now at the most recent International Stroke and Cerebral Circulation Conference meeting, the announcement of 2 promising new thrombolytic agents (Ancrod and Pro-urokinase) for acute stroke treatment, it is an exciting time indeed. Neuroprotective agents are still being investigated, and while an effective neuroprotective agent has not yet been identified in humans, almost assuredly one will come to light soon. The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association (AHA/ASA) is making significant efforts to provide dollars for stroke research for both clinical and basic science areas. The AHA/ASA for 1997–98 provided some $6 million for stroke-specific research, with a projection for the year 2001 of $11.3 million. Another $33.7 million was provided for research that was related in some way to stroke. In addition, there is a very exciting new commitment …

A survey of cancer curricula in Australian and New Zealand medical schools in 1997

To assess teaching about cancer in medical schools in Australia and New Zealand. Postal survey of all 12 Australian and New Zealand medical schools in 1997. The Dean (or a nominee) of each medical school and the representative of each university on the Oncology Education Committee (OEC) of the Australian Cancer Society. Curriculum content, clinical placements and forms of teaching and assessment related to cancer; presence and composition of cancer curriculum planning, and assessment groups. 22 responses were received from 10 medical schools (from nine Deans or nominees and 13 OEC representatives). Implementation of cancer teaching and overall course structure varied considerably between schools. Nine of these 10 schools had a "cancer planning group", and four were using problem-based learning. Only five schools could readily provide detailed curriculum maps. Courses covered most areas of basic and clinical sciences outlined in the ACS ideal curriculum; chemotherapy and palliative care were taught in all courses, but other subjects were covered less often (e.g., clinical staging, radiation oncology and pain management were taught in nine schools, critical evaluation of medical literature in seven, and economic evaluation in five). Teaching on cancer in clinical placements also varied considerably (e.g., one school devoted no time to palliative care). There has been some improvement in delivery of cancer education in medical schools since 1993, but considerable variation in teaching practice and implementation remains. Difficulty in determining details of course content led directly to difficulty in assessing the quality of teaching about cancer.

ROLE OF MR IMAGING IN SPORTS MEDICINE RESEARCH: Basic Science and Clinical Research Studies

The advent and advancement of MR imaging have provided an entire new dimension for medical imaging. MR imaging has been especially useful because of its capacity to image nonmineralized tissues with a very high degree of resolution. Although modalities such as ultrasound and scintigraphy have proven useful for specific purposes, it is MR imaging that has the most utility and capabilities, especially in the area of sports-induced injuries. The technology associated with MR imaging has expanded greatly, and it continues to evolve at a rapid pace. The result has been an ever-increasing diagnostic capability that has become more economic with time. As described previously, MR imaging is gaining importance in the area of comparative medicine for animal athletes as well. It is also interesting to note that MR imaging now has a greater potential for monitoring physiological and biochemical changes as well as anatomic ones. Some newer MR units actually include physiologic data acquisition components. Consequently, new bioassays and nondestructive tissue tests can be performed to further understand the molecular biology and ongoing cellular processes in any given condition. Coupled with MR spectroscopy, the enhanced MR techniques should continue to contribute to the overall information that will be integrated into the training and rehabilitation of patients with sports-induced inflammation and injuries. The authors support and encourage ongoing efforts in the area of MR imaging research, both basic science and clinical studies.

Glycosylation and rheumatic disease.

Oligosaccharide biochemistry has been an important field of research for many years and this area of basic science continues to flourish.

Enhanced maintenance and retroviral transduction of primitive hematopoietic progenitor cells using a novel three-dimensional culture system.

Current techniques for the in vitro maintenance of hematopoietic stem cells often lead to loss of pluripotency. Overcoming the technical difficulties that result in alterations in stem cells in vitro has important implications for areas of basic science and clinical medicine such as cell expansion, bone marrow transplantation and gene therapy. Recent insights into hematopoietic stem cell biology have demonstrated that the three-dimensional architecture of the culture environment may influence the maintenance of stem cell pluripotency in vitro. An intriguing hypothesis is that the utilization of three-dimensional culture systems may improve the maintenance and manipulation of these cells in vitro. We report that a novel, three-dimensional, tantalum-coated porous biomaterial (TCPB) may be employed effectively as a hematopoietic progenitor cell culture device that offers distinct advantages over conventional culture systems. Specifically, we demonstrate that the use of TCPB for culturing hematopoietic progenitor cells in the absence of exogenous cytokines results in enhanced hematopoietic progenitor cell survival, improved maintenance of the immature CD34+/38- phenotype, and improved retroviral transduction of CD34+ cells and long-term culture initiating cells (LTCIC), without compromising multipotency, as compared with cultures in plastic dishes or bone marrow stroma. These findings suggest that this three-dimensional culture system may be useful in advancing the in vitro culture and transduction of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells.

From the President of the International Society of Nephrology

Thomas Andreoli presented his Kidney International Editor's report to the ISN Management Committee and Council in New Orleans. The success of the Journal under his editorship has been nothing short of phenomenal. During Tom's editorship between 1984 and 1996, the number of editorial pages has risen from 1,906 to 4,193, an aggregate increase of 220%. Over this period this growth rate of Kidney International ranks with the very highest among the leading biomedical science journals in the world. During the same time the acceptance rate has remained at approximately 38% with an equal balance between clinical and basic science articles. The excellent timeframe from receipt of the manuscript to the first decision letter is 38 days and the publication time by Blackwell Science after the final decision is between 4.4 and 5.0 months. The circulation of Kidney International has increased by 35% since 1984. In 1995 the Journal has become available on CD-ROM. Editorial Reviews focus on basic science issues and Perspectives in Clinical Nephrology focus on clinical aspects. The excellent ISN Forefronts in Nephrology are routinely published as Symposia in Kidney International. The profitability of Kidney International has allowed for a dramatic increase in the various ISN educational programs worldwide. On the background of this superb leadership as Editor of Kidney International over the past 13 years Dr. Andreoli has decided to complete his tenure as Editor on July 1, 1997. After consultation with the ISN membership, Council and Search Committee chaired by President-elect Kiyoshi Kurokawa, Saulo Klahr has been selected as the next Editor of Kidney International for a six-year term. Dr. Klahr has been an Associate Editor of Journal of Clinical Investigation; Editor, American Journal of Kidney Disease, and ISN Program Chair for the XlVth Congress to be held in Sydney, Australia, May 25–29, 1997. He has published over 400 scientific papers in both basic and clinical science areas. Dr. Klahr presented his proposed Associate Editors to the Management Committee which enthusiastically approved his team. Continuity in clinical and basic research will be maintained by the reappointment of Jim Knochel (Dallas) and Jan Weening (Amsterdam) who have performed so well as current Associate Editors. Pierre Ronco (Paris) will replace the late Claude Amiel as an Associate Editor. Eric Nielson (Philadelphia) and Sei Sasaki (Tokyo) will be the remaining Associate Editors and they add knowledge of cutting edge basic and clinical science and geographical balance to the editorial team. With these Associate Editors Dr. Klahr will surely maintain the remarkable Editorial excellence established by Tom Andreoli and his predecessor, Ike Robinson, which has allowed Kidney International to be the leading kidney journal in the world.

Basic science

Whereas today's basic research can seed tomorrow's technology, just which research will bear useful fruit is not always evident. Breakthroughs in laser science and solid-state physics often find applications immediately, but the technical potential of discoveries in some areas of basic science can be less apparent. This paper describes recent technological advances in the field of basic science. Topics covered include: a new state of matter which hints at wide applications; doped polymers which yield many electronic devices; holography which stores data in three-dimensions; and how a lack of inversion could be good for UV and X-ray lasers.

Mechanisms of Ophthalmic Disease

In this issueof theArchiveswe institute a new section, Mechanisms of Ophthalmic Disease, concentrating on basic science areas that are of relevance to the clinical practice of ophthalmology. Our goal is to have short reviews focusing on topics in the visual sciences where the principles and understanding have solidified in recent years. These will be written by preeminent scientists in each particular field. More important, they will be addressed not to the basic scientist, but to the clinician with curiosity about the underpinnings of ophthalmic disease. See also page 79 Articles in this section will ordinarily be invited by the section editor. Unsolicited manuscripts that are particularly suited to this section will be considered as well. All manuscripts will undergo the same rigorous peer review provided to all submissions to theArchives. We plan on having several articles each year, initially focusing on pathophysiological processes that are relevant

Professor George Gray, Honoured as 1995 Kyoto Laureate in Advanced Technology

Abstract The prestigious 1995 Kyoto prize for Advanced Technology has been awarded to Professor George Gray CBE, FRS, Consultant to Merck Industrial Chemicals and Board Director of the International Liquid Crystal Society. The Kyoto Prizes are awarded annually by the lnamori Foundation to individuals distinguished by scholarship, distinction and achievement in the areas of Advanced Technology, Basic Sciences and Creative Arts and Moral Sciences. Recipients of the Kyoto Prizes must have contributed significantly to mankind's scientific, cultural and spiritual betterment.

Strawberry Plasticulture in North Carolina Part I

The United States land-grant university system has been coming under increasing criticism by a number of extension professionals as well as senior horticulturists for its primary emphasis on basic research at the expense of applied research and service to horticultural industries. Once-strong extension/research/producer ties have been weakened, and this could result in further declines in general public support for land-grant universities. New approaches, including a “participatory model,” have been proposed as a mechanism to provide public feedback to land-grant scientists on relevant areas of basic science and encourage implementation of new technologies. However, our present expert/student relationship between research scientists and grower would be altered if the participatory model were to be adopted. Recognizing the limitations of existing horticultural production systems and visualizing new purposes for technology is the work of “experts,” not committees. The experience in North Carolina h...

Strawberry Plasticulture in North Carolina: I. Developing a Competitive Horticultural Industry Requires “Experts,” not “Participatory Groups.”

The U.S. land-grant university system has been coming under increasing criticism by a number of extension professionals, as well as senior horticulturists, for its primary emphasis on basic research at the expense of applied research and service to horticultural industries. Once-strong extension/research/producer ties have been weakened, and this could result in further declines in general public support for land-grant universities. New approaches, including a “participatory model,” have been proposed as a mechanism to provide public feedback to land-grant scientists on relevant areas of basic science and encourage implementation of new technologies. However, our present expert/student relationship between research scientists and grower would be altered if the participatory model were to be adopted. Recognizing the limitations of existing horticultural production systems and visualizing new purposes for technology is the work of “experts,” not committees. The experience in North Carolina has been that a commodity specialist with a split research/extension appointment (20/80) is capable of providing leadership and guidance `to the scientific community on the problems and research needs of industry. In the case of introducing North Carolina farmers to “strawberry plasticulture,” the split appointment specialist had a role in: 1) identifying useful technological innovations from outside the university community (“reverse technology”); 2) conducting localized testing on promising new “hybrid growing systems”; and 3) extending new research findings to industry.

Biennial survey of physician clinical-nutrition training programs

This is the fourth survey of physician clinical-nutrition training programs. As in previous reports, current fellowship training programs were identified, descriptive information obtained, and program content surveyed. In addition, a questionnaire developed by the American Board of Nutrition Committee on Fellowship Training Programs was used to determine the degree of emphasis given to content in the areas of basic nutrition science, clinical applications, and research training. Among the 38 programs identified, uniform ratings of importance were found in all major topic areas. There was also uniformity in most subtopics, with minor exceptions. As expected, in the area of nutrition in the life cycle, pediatric training programs emphasized infancy and childhood whereas medical-surgical programs emphasized adulthood and aging. Alcoholism was emphasized in medical-surgical training programs whereas cystic fibrosis and inborn errors of metabolism were emphasized in pediatric programs. Nutrition in burn patients received minor emphasis in all programs. The overall uniformity of curricular content in training programs confirms the contention that clinical nutrition has a defined clinical scope and should be considered for establishment as a recognized subspecialty in American medicine.