1 4952 125 PATHOGENESIS OF CHRONIC CHIKUNGUNYA ARTHRITIS: RESEMBLANCES AND LINKS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS. CHIKUNGUNYA VIRUS (CHIKV) INFECTION RESULTS FROM TRANSMISSION BY THE MOSQUITO VECTOR. FOLLOWING AN INCUBATION PERIOD OF 5-7 DAYS, PATIENTS DEVELOP AN ACUTE FEBRILE ILLNESS, CHIKUNGUNYA FEVER (CHIKF), CHARACTERIZED BY HIGH FEVERS, MACULOPAPULAR RASH, HEADACHES, POLYARTHRITIS/ARTHRALGIAS, MYALGIAS, NAUSEA, VOMITING, AND DIARRHEA. JOINT PAIN IS OFTEN SEVERE, AND MOST OFTEN INVOLVES THE HANDS, THE WRISTS, THE ANKLES, AND THE METATARSAL-PHALANGEAL JOINTS OF THE FEET. MANY PATIENTS RECOVER WITHIN SEVERAL WEEKS, BUT UP TO 50% DEVELOP CHRONIC JOINT PAIN AND SWELLING FOR MORE THAN 12 WEEKS, THEN WE REFER TO THESE SYMPTOMS AS CHRONIC CHIKUNGUNYA ARTHRITIS (CCA). THE PATHOGENESIS OF CCA IS NOT WELL UNDERSTOOD. IN THIS ARTICLE, WE SUGGEST THAT MESENCHYMAL STEM CELLS (MSCS) MAY PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THIS PATHOGENESIS. THIS HETEROGENEOUS GROUP OF MULTIPOTENT CELLS, MORPHOLOGICALLY SIMILAR TO FIBROBLASTS, MAY UNDERGO EPIGENETIC CHANGES CAPABLE OF GENERATING ABERRANT PROGENIES. HOWEVER, WE BELIEVE THAT THERE IS NO NEED FOR A LATENT INFECTION. IN OUR PATHOGENIC HYPOTHESIS, CHIKV INFECTION OF MSCS WOULD CAUSE EPIGENETIC CHANGES BOTH IN MSCS THEMSELVES AND IN THEIR PROGENIES, WITHOUT THE NEED FOR REACTIVATION OF DORMANT VIRUSES. 2023 2 6744 26 WHO CARES ABOUT OLIGOZOOSPERMIA WHEN WE HAVE ICSI. THE VALUE OF ASSESSING SUBFERTILE MALES WITH OLIGOZOOSPERMIA IS CONTROVERSIAL DUE TO PREVAILING NOTIONS THAT THERAPIES ARE LIMITED AND ICSI MAY PROVIDE THE COUPLE WITH A BABY WITHOUT THE NEED TO EXPLAIN THE NATURE OR CAUSE OF UNDERLYING MALE INFERTILITY. THIS ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS THAT INDISCRIMINATELY OFFERING ICSI TO OLIGOZOOSPERMIC MEN IS NOT FREE OF POTENTIAL ADVERSE EFFECTS AND DOES NOT GRANT SUBFERTILE MEN THE BEST FERTILITY PATHWAY. RECENT DATA SUPPORT ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN OLIGOZOOSPERMIA AND POOR MALE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, DNA AND EPIGENETIC DAMAGE IN SPERMATOZOA, AND POSSIBLE ADVERSE HEALTH CONSEQUENCES TO OFFSPRING. MANY CONDITIONS AFFECTING THE TESTICLES ARE CAPABLE OF CAUSING OLIGOZOOSPERMIA (VARICOCELE, GENITAL INFECTIONS, CONGENITAL AND GENETIC DEFECTS TESTICULAR TORSION/TRAUMA, CHRONIC DISEASES, INADEQUATE LIFESTYLE, OCCUPATIONAL/ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE TO TOXICANTS, DRUGS, CANCER AND RELATED TREATMENTS, ACUTE FEBRILE ILLNESS, ENDOCRINE DISORDERS, AND IATROGENIC DAMAGE TO THE GENITOURINARY SYSTEM). IF OLIGOZOOSPERMIA IS DETECTED, THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTIONS CAN IMPROVE SPERM QUANTITY/QUALITY AND THE OVERALL MALE HEALTH, ULTIMATELY RESULTING IN BETTER PREGNANCY OUTCOMES EVEN WHEN ICSI IS USED. FERTILITY CLINICS ARE URGED TO ENGAGE MALE INFERTILITY SPECIALISTS IN DIAGNOSING AND TREATING OLIGOZOOSPERMIA AS A MATTER OF BEST CLINICAL PRACTICE. A WELL-CONDUCTED MALE INFERTILITY EVALUATION REPRESENTS A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO IDENTIFY RELEVANT MEDICAL AND INFERTILITY CONDITIONS, MANY OF WHICH MAY BE TREATED OR ALLEVIATED. THE ANDROLOGICAL ASSESSMENT MAY ALSO HELP GUIDE THE OPTIMAL APPLICATION OF ICSI. THE FINAL GOALS ARE TO POSITIVELY IMPACT THE OVERALL PATIENT HEALTH, THE COUPLE'S PREGNANCY PROSPECTS, AND THE OFFSPRING'S WELL-BEING. 2022 3 5056 21 PHASE I TRIAL OF LOW DOSE DECITABINE TARGETING DNA HYPERMETHYLATION IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LYMPHOCYTIC LEUKAEMIA AND NON-HODGKIN LYMPHOMA: DOSE-LIMITING MYELOSUPPRESSION WITHOUT EVIDENCE OF DNA HYPOMETHYLATION. TARGETING ABERRANT DNA HYPERMETHYLATION IN CHRONIC LYMPHOCYTIC LEUKAEMIA (CLL) AND NON-HODGKIN LYMPHOMA (NHL) WITH DECITABINE MAY REVERSE EPIGENETIC SILENCING IN B-CELL MALIGNANCIES. TWENTY PATIENTS WERE ENROLLED IN TWO PHASE I TRIALS TO DETERMINE THE MINIMUM EFFECTIVE PHARMACOLOGICAL DOSE OF DECITABINE IN PATIENTS WITH RELAPSED/REFRACTORY CLL (N = 16) AND NHL (N = 4). PATIENTS RECEIVED 1-3 CYCLES OF DECITABINE. DOSE-LIMITING TOXICITY (DLT) WAS OBSERVED IN 2 OF 4 CLL AND 2 OF 2 NHL PATIENTS RECEIVING DECITABINE AT 15 MG/M(2) PER D DAYS 1-10, CONSISTING OF GRADE 3-4 THROMBOCYTOPENIA AND HYPERBILIRUBINAEMIA. SIX PATIENTS WITH CLL RECEIVED DECITABINE AT 10 MG/M(2) PER D DAYS 1-10 WITHOUT DLT; HOWEVER, RE-EXPRESSION OF METHYLATED GENES OR CHANGES IN GLOBAL DNA METHYLATION WERE NOT OBSERVED. THEREFORE, A 5-DAY DECITABINE SCHEDULE WAS EXAMINED. WITH 15 MG/M(2) PER D DECITABINE DAYS 1-5, DLT OCCURRED IN 2 OF 6 CLL AND 2 OF 2 NHL PATIENTS, CONSISTING OF GRADE 3-4 NEUTROPENIA, THROMBOCYTOPENIA, AND FEBRILE NEUTROPENIA. EIGHT PATIENTS HAD STABLE DISEASE. IN 17 PATIENTS, THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN GENOME-WIDE METHYLATION OR IN TARGET GENE RE-EXPRESSION. IN CONCLUSION, DOSE-LIMITING MYELOSUPPRESSION AND INFECTIOUS COMPLICATIONS PREVENTED DOSE ESCALATION OF DECITABINE TO LEVELS ASSOCIATED WITH CHANGES IN GLOBAL METHYLATION OR GENE RE-EXPRESSION IN CLL AND NHL. 2010 4 6840 20 [MALE INFERTILITY AND UROLOGIC CANCERS: ADVANCES IN STUDIES]. MALE INFERTILITY IS ONE OF THE MOST COMMON DISEASES IN ANDROLOGY. STUDIES SHOW THAT MALE INFERTILITY IS SIGNIFICANTLY CORRELATED WITH THE INCIDENCE AND MORTALITY OF TUMORS, ESPECIALLY MALIGNANT TUMORS IN THE GENITOURINARY SYSTEM, SUCH AS TESTIS CANCER AND PROSTATE CANCER. THE RELATIONSHIP OF MALE INFERTILITY WITH GENITOURINARY SYSTEM TUMORS INVOLVES VARIOUS ASPECTS, MAINLY INCLUDING CHANGES IN CHROMOSOME MUTATIONS, EPIGENETIC MARKS, HORMONAL IMBALANCE, AND CONGENITAL DEFORMITY. BESIDES, SOME CHRONIC DISEASES ARE SHOWN TO BE SIGNIFICANTLY ASSOCIATED WITH MALE INFERTILITY, AND SEMEN QUALITY OR FERTILITY STATUS MAY BE BIOMARKERS OF THE OVERALL HEALTH OF MALES. IN-DEPTH STUDIES OF THE CORRELATION BETWEEN MALE INFERTILITY AND THESE FACTORS ARE VERY IMPORTANT FOR AN INSIGHT INTO THE PATHOGENESIS AND PREVENTION OF THE RELATED DISEASES. 2022 5 2692 20 EVOLUTION OF THE CONCEPTS OF ENDOMETROSIS, POST BREEDING ENDOMETRITIS, AND SUSCEPTIBILITY OF MARES. IN THIS PAPER, THE EVOLUTION OF OUR UNDERSTANDING ABOUT POST BREEDING ENDOMETRITIS (PBE), THE SUSCEPTIBILITY OF MARES, AND EVENTS LEADING TO ENDOMETROSIS ARE REVIEWED. WHEN SPERM ARRIVE IN THE UTERUS, PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES AND CHEMOKINES ARE RELEASED. THEY ATTRACT NEUTROPHILS AND INDUCE MODULATORY CYTOKINES WHICH CONTROL INFLAMMATION. IN SUSCEPTIBLE MARES, THIS PHYSIOLOGICAL DEFENSE CAN BE PROLONGED SINCE THE PATTERN OF CYTOKINE RELEASE DIFFERS FROM THAT OF RESISTANT MARES BEING DELAYED AND WEAKER FOR ANTI-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES. DELAYED UTERINE CLEARANCE DUE TO CONFORMATIONAL DEFECTS, DEFICIENT MYOMETRIAL CONTRACTIONS, AND FAILURE OF THE CERVIX TO RELAX IS DETECTED BY INTRAUTERINE FLUID ACCUMULATION AND IS AN IMPORTANT REASON FOR SUSCEPTIBILITY TO ENDOMETRITIS. MULTIPAROUS AGED MARES ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE SUSCEPTIBLE. UNTREATED PROLONGED PBE CAN LEAD TO BACTERIAL OR FUNGAL ENDOMETRITIS CALLED PERSISTENT OR CHRONIC ENDOMETRITIS. EXUBERANT OR PROLONGED NEUTROPHILIA AND CYTOKINE RELEASE CAN HAVE DELETERIOUS AND PERMANENT EFFECTS IN INDUCING ENDOMETROSIS. INTERACTIONS OF NEUTROPHILS, CYTOKINES, AND PROSTAGLANDINS IN THE FORMATION OF COLLAGEN AND EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF FIBROSIS ARE DISCUSSED. ENDOMETRITIS AND ENDOMETROSIS ARE INTERCONNECTED, INFLUENCING EACH OTHER. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT THEY REPRESENT EPIGENETIC CHANGES INDUCED BY AGE AND HOSTILE UTERINE ENVIRONMENT. 2022 6 88 30 A PHASE I BIOLOGICAL STUDY OF MG98, AN OLIGODEOXYNUCLEOTIDE ANTISENSE TO DNA METHYLTRANSFERASE 1, IN PATIENTS WITH HIGH-RISK MYELODYSPLASIA AND ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA. PURPOSE: EPIGENETIC SILENCING VIA ABERRANT PROMOTER DNA HYPERMETHYLATION OF NORMAL GENES HAS BEEN DESCRIBED AS A LEUKEMOGENIC MECHANISM IN MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROMES (MDS) AND ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIAS (AML). WE HYPOTHESIZED THAT MG98, AN OLIGONUCLEOTIDE ANTISENSE TO DNA METHYLTRANSFERASE 1 (DNMT1), COULD REVERSE MALIGNANT PHENOTYPES BY DOWN-REGULATING DNMT1 AND INDUCING REEXPRESSION OF HYPERMETHYLATED GENES. THIS PHASE I STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO DETERMINE A BIOLOGICALLY EFFECTIVE DOSE AND DESCRIBE THE SAFETY OF MG98 IN MDS/AML. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: TWENTY-THREE PATIENTS WITH MDS (N = 11) AND AML (N = 12) WERE ENROLLED. BIOLOGICALLY EFFECTIVE DOSE WAS DEFINED AS THE DOSE AT WHICH > OR =50% OF PATIENTS EXPERIENCED >50% REDUCTION IN DNMT1 EXPRESSION WITH ACCEPTABLE TOXICITY. ESCALATING DOSES OF MG98 WERE ADMINISTERED ACCORDING TO TWO SCHEDULES (2-HOUR I.V. BOLUS FOLLOWED BY 5-DAY CONTINUOUS I.V. INFUSION EVERY 14 DAYS, OR 14-DAY CONTINUOUS I.V. INFUSION EVERY 21 DAYS). RESULTS: DNMT1 DOWN-REGULATION WAS OBSERVED IN 8 PATIENTS. HOWEVER, BIOLOGICALLY EFFECTIVE DOSE WAS NOT REACHED. REEXPRESSION OF TARGET GENES (P15, WIT1, AND ER) WAS OBSERVED IN 12 PATIENTS BUT DID NOT CORRELATE WITH DNMT1 DOWN-REGULATION. ESCALATION WAS STOPPED DUE TO DOSE-LIMITING TOXICITIES (BONE PAIN, NAUSEA, AND FEVER). NO OBJECTIVE CLINICAL RESPONSE WAS OBSERVED. DISEASE STABILIZATION OCCURRED IN 6 (26%) PATIENTS. CONCLUSIONS: NO PHARMACODYNAMIC OR CLINICAL ACTIVITY WAS OBSERVED AT MG98 DOSES AND SCHEDULES ADMINISTERED. DESPITE THIS, PURSUING DNMT1 DOWN-REGULATION REMAINS A SOUND APPROACH FOR TARGETING ABERRANT EPIGENETICS IN AML/MDS. FUTURE STUDIES WITH DIFFERENT FORMULATION AND/OR DOSES AND SCHEDULES WILL BE REQUIRED TO ENSURE EFFICIENT MG98 INTRACELLULAR UPTAKE AND FULLY EVALUATE ITS THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL. 2008 7 5612 29 SAFETY AND ACTIVITY OF RRX-001 IN PATIENTS WITH ADVANCED CANCER: A FIRST-IN-HUMAN, OPEN-LABEL, DOSE-ESCALATION PHASE 1 STUDY. BACKGROUND: EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS HAVE BEEN STRONGLY ASSOCIATED WITH TUMOUR FORMATION AND RESISTANCE TO CHEMOTHERAPEUTIC DRUGS, AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS ARE AN ATTRACTIVE TARGET IN CANCER RESEARCH. RRX-001 IS ACTIVATED BY HYPOXIA AND INDUCES THE GENERATION OF REACTIVE OXYGEN AND NITROGEN SPECIES THAT CAN EPIGENETICALLY MODULATE DNA METHYLATION, HISTONE DEACETYLATION, AND LYSINE DEMETHYLATION. THE AIM OF THIS PHASE 1 STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE SAFETY, TOLERABILITY, AND PHARMACOKINETICS OF RRX-001. METHODS: IN THIS OPEN-LABEL, DOSE-ESCALATION, PHASE 1 STUDY, WE RECRUITED ADULT PATIENTS (AGED >18 YEARS) WITH HISTOLOGICALLY OR CYTOLOGICALLY CONFIRMED DIAGNOSIS OF ADVANCED, MALIGNANT, INCURABLE SOLID TUMOURS FROM UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT SAN DIEGO, CA, USA, AND SARAH CANNON RESEARCH INSTITUTE, NASHVILLE, TN, USA. KEY ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA INCLUDED EVALUABLE DISEASE, EASTERN COOPERATIVE GROUP PERFORMANCE STATUS OF 2 OR LESS, AN ESTIMATED LIFE EXPECTANCY OF AT LEAST 12 WEEKS, ADEQUATE LABORATORY PARAMETERS, DISCONTINUATION OF ALL PREVIOUS ANTINEOPLASTIC THERAPIES AT LEAST 6 WEEKS BEFORE INTERVENTION, AND NO RESIDUAL SIDE-EFFECTS FROM PREVIOUS THERAPIES. PATIENTS WERE ASSIGNED TO RECEIVE INTRAVENOUS INFUSIONS OF RRX-001 AT INCREASING DOSES (10 MG/M(2), 16.7 MG/M(2), 24.6 MG/M(2), 33 MG/M(2), 55 MG/M(2), AND 83 MG/M(2)) EITHER ONCE OR TWICE-WEEKLY FOR AT LEAST 4 WEEKS, WITH AT LEAST THREE PATIENTS PER DOSE COHORT AND ALLOWING A 2-WEEK OBSERVATION PERIOD BEFORE DOSE ESCALATION. SAMPLES FOR SAFETY AND PHARMACOKINETICS ANALYSIS, INCLUDING STANDARD CHEMISTRY AND HAEMATOLOGICAL PANELS, WERE TAKEN ON EACH TREATMENT DAY. THE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE WAS TO ASSESS SAFETY, TOLERABILITY, AND DOSE-LIMITING TOXIC EFFECTS OF RRX-001, TO DETERMINE SINGLE-DOSE PHARMACOKINETICS, AND TO IDENTIFY A RECOMMENDED DOSE FOR PHASE 2 TRIALS. ALL ANALYSES WERE DONE PER PROTOCOL. ACCRUAL IS COMPLETE AND FOLLOW-UP IS STILL ON-GOING. THIS TRIAL IS REGISTERED WITH CLINICALTRIALS.GOV, NUMBER NCT01359982. FINDINGS: BETWEEN OCT 10, 2011, AND MARCH 18, 2013, WE ENROLLED 25 PATIENTS AND TREATED SIX PATIENTS IN THE 10 MG/M(2) COHORT, THREE PATIENTS IN THE 16.7 MG/M(2) COHORT, THREE PATIENTS IN THE 24.6 MG/M(2) COHORT, FOUR PATIENTS IN THE 33 MG/M(2) COHORT, THREE PATIENTS IN THE 55 MG/M(2), AND SIX PATIENTS IN THE 83 MG/M(2) COHORT. PAIN AT THE INJECTION SITE, MOSTLY GRADE 1 AND GRADE 2, WAS THE MOST COMMON ADVERSE EVENT RELATED TO TREATMENT, EXPERIENCED BY 21 (84%) PATIENTS. OTHER COMMON DRUG-RELATED ADVERSE EVENTS INCLUDED ARM SWELLING OR OEDEMA (EIGHT [32%] PATIENTS), AND VEIN HARDENING (SEVEN [28%] PATIENTS). NO DOSE-LIMITING TOXICITIES WERE OBSERVED. TIME CONSTRAINTS RELATED TO MANAGEMENT OF INFUSION PAIN FROM RRX-001 RESULTED IN A MAXIMALLY FEASIBLE DOSE OF 83 MG/M(2). OF THE 21 EVALUABLE PATIENTS, ONE (5%) PATIENT HAD A PARTIAL RESPONSE, 14 (67%) PATIENTS HAD STABLE DISEASE, AND SIX (29%) PATIENTS HAD PROGRESSIVE DISEASE; ALL RESPONSES WERE ACROSS A VARIETY OF TUMOUR TYPES. FOUR PATIENTS WHO HAD RECEIVED RRX-001 WERE SUBSEQUENTLY RECHALLENGED WITH A TREATMENT THAT THEY HAD BECOME REFRACTORY TO; ALL FOUR RESPONDED TO THE RECHALLENGE. INTERPRETATION: RRX-001 IS A WELL-TOLERATED NOVEL COMPOUND WITHOUT CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT TOXIC EFFECTS AT THE TESTED DOSES. PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE OF ACTIVITY IS PROMISING AND, ON THE BASIS OF ALL FINDINGS, A DOSE OF 16.7 MG/M(2) WAS RECOMMENDED AS THE TARGETED DOSE FOR PHASE 2 TRIALS. FUNDING: EPICENTRX (FORMERLY RADIORX). 2015 8 3985 23 LONG-TERM MAINTENANCE OF THE MUCOSAL HEALING INDUCED BY AZACITIDINE THERAPY IN A PATIENT WITH INTESTINAL BEHCET'S-LIKE DISEASE ACCOMPANIED WITH MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROME INVOLVING TRISOMY 8. MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROMES (MDSS) ARE A GROUP OF MYELOID NEOPLASMS CHARACTERIZED BY BLOOD CELL DEFORMATION AND DYSFUNCTION, AND MDS WITH TRISOMY 8 IS CLOSELY LINKED WITH INTESTINAL BEHCET'S-LIKE DISEASES. INTESTINAL BEHCET'S-LIKE DISEASE IS REFRACTORY TO CONVENTIONAL THERAPIES, INCLUDING PREDNISOLONE, IMMUNOMODULATORS, AND ANTI-TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR ALPHA AGENTS. HERE, WE DESCRIBE A 56-YEAR-OLD WOMAN WITH INTESTINAL BEHCET'S-LIKE DISEASE ASCRIBED TO MDS WITH TRISOMY 8 WHO HAD MULTIPLE INTRACTABLE INTESTINAL ULCERS. SHE PRESENTED WITH PERIODIC FEVER AND ABDOMINAL PAIN. THE GENETIC ANALYSIS SHOWED A HETEROZYGOUS E148Q MUTATION IN THE MEDITERRANEAN FEVER GENE. THE PATIENT DID NOT TOLERATE TREATMENT WITH COLCHICINE BECAUSE OF DIARRHEA; THEREFORE, AZACITIDINE THERAPY WAS INITIATED. ONE CYCLE OF AZACITIDINE THERAPY IMPROVED THE MULTIPLE INTESTINAL ULCERS, AND THE PERIODIC FEVER AND ABDOMINAL PAIN GRADUALLY DISAPPEARED. AFTER EIGHT CYCLES OF AZACITIDINE THERAPY, ILEOCOLONOSCOPY, HISTOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT AND CAPSULE ENDOSCOPY REVEALED MUCOSAL HEALING. AZACITIDINE THERAPY WAS CONTINUED, AND MUCOSAL HEALING WAS MAINTAINED FOR MORE THAN 2 YEARS. THIS CASE SUGGESTS THAT AZACITIDINE THERAPY WHICH HAS IMMUNOREGULATORY EFFECTS AND EPIGENETIC MODULATIONS, MIGHT CONTROL INTESTINAL BEHCET'S-LIKE DISEASE ASSOCIATED WITH MDS INVOLVING TRISOMY 8. 2019 9 5613 23 SAFETY AND EFFICACY OF ABEXINOSTAT, A PAN-HISTONE DEACETYLASE INHIBITOR, IN NON-HODGKIN LYMPHOMA AND CHRONIC LYMPHOCYTIC LEUKEMIA: RESULTS OF A PHASE II STUDY. HISTONE DEACETYLASE INHIBITORS ARE MEMBERS OF A CLASS OF EPIGENETIC DRUGS THAT HAVE PROVEN ACTIVITY IN T-CELL MALIGNANCIES, BUT LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT THEIR EFFICACY IN B-CELL LYMPHOMAS. ABEXINOSTAT IS AN ORALLY AVAILABLE HYDROXAMATE-CONTAINING HISTONE DEACETYLASE INHIBITOR THAT DIFFERS FROM APPROVED INHIBITORS; ITS UNIQUE PHARMACOKINETIC PROFILE AND ORAL DOSING SCHEDULE, TWICE DAILY FOUR HOURS APART, ALLOWS FOR CONTINUOUS EXPOSURE AT CONCENTRATIONS REQUIRED TO EFFICIENTLY KILL TUMOR CELLS. IN THIS PHASE II STUDY, PATIENTS WITH RELAPSED/REFRACTORY NON-HODGKIN LYMPHOMA OR CHRONIC LYMPHOCYTIC LEUKEMIA RECEIVED ORAL ABEXINOSTAT AT 80 MG BID FOR 14 DAYS OF A 21-DAY CYCLE AND CONTINUED UNTIL PROGRESSIVE DISEASE OR UNACCEPTABLE TOXICITY. A TOTAL OF 100 PATIENTS WITH B-CELL MALIGNANCIES AND T-CELL LYMPHOMAS WERE ENROLLED BETWEEN OCTOBER 2011 AND JULY 2014. ALL PATIENTS RECEIVED AT LEAST ONE DOSE OF STUDY DRUG. PRIMARY REASONS FOR DISCONTINUATION INCLUDED PROGRESSIVE DISEASE (56%) AND ADVERSE EVENTS (25%). GRADE 3 OR OVER ADVERSE EVENTS AND ANY SERIOUS ADVERSE EVENTS WERE REPORTED IN 88% AND 73% OF PATIENTS, RESPECTIVELY. THE MOST FREQUENTLY REPORTED GRADE 3 OR OVER TREATMENT-EMERGENT RELATED ADVERSE EVENTS WERE THROMBOCYTOPENIA (80%), NEUTROPENIA (27%), AND ANEMIA (12%). AMONG THE 87 PATIENTS EVALUABLE FOR EFFICACY, OVERALL RESPONSE RATE WAS 28% (COMPLETE RESPONSE 5%), WITH HIGHEST RESPONSES OBSERVED IN PATIENTS WITH FOLLICULAR LYMPHOMA (OVERALL RESPONSE RATE 56%), T-CELL LYMPHOMA (OVERALL RESPONSE RATE 40%), AND DIFFUSE LARGE B-CELL LYMPHOMA (OVERALL RESPONSE RATE 31%). FURTHER INVESTIGATION OF THE SAFETY AND EFFICACY OF ABEXINOSTAT IN FOLLICULAR LYMPHOMA, T-CELL LYMPHOMA, AND DIFFUSE LARGE B-CELL LYMPHOMA IMPLEMENTING A LESS DOSE-INTENSE WEEK-ON-WEEK-OFF SCHEDULE IS WARRANTED. (TRIAL REGISTERED AT: EUDRACT-2009-013691-47). 2017 10 765 25 CC-486 MAINTENANCE AFTER STEM CELL TRANSPLANTATION IN PATIENTS WITH ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA OR MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROMES. RELAPSE IS THE MAIN CAUSE OF TREATMENT FAILURE AFTER ALLOGENEIC STEM CELL TRANSPLANT (ALLOSCT) IN ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA (AML) AND MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROMES (MDS). INJECTABLE AZACITIDINE CAN IMPROVE POST-TRANSPLANT OUTCOMES BUT PRESENTS CHALLENGES WITH EXPOSURE AND COMPLIANCE. ORAL CC-486 ALLOWS EXTENDED DOSING TO PROLONG AZACITIDINE ACTIVITY. WE INVESTIGATED USE OF CC-486 MAINTENANCE THERAPY AFTER ALLOSCT. ADULTS WITH MDS OR AML IN MORPHOLOGIC COMPLETE REMISSION AT CC-486 INITIATION (42 TO 84 DAYS AFTER ALLOSCT) WERE INCLUDED. PATIENTS RECEIVED 1 OF 4 CC-486 DOSING SCHEDULES PER 28-DAY CYCLE FOR UP TO 12 CYCLES. ENDPOINTS INCLUDED SAFETY, PHARMACOKINETICS, GRAFT-VERSUS-HOST DISEASE (GVHD) INCIDENCE, RELAPSE/PROGRESSION RATE, AND SURVIVAL. OF 30 PATIENTS, 7 RECEIVED CC-486 ONCE DAILY FOR 7 DAYS PER CYCLE (200 MG, N = 3; 300 MG, N = 4) AND 23 FOR 14 DAYS PER CYCLE (150 MG, N = 4; 200 MG, N = 19 [EXPANSION COHORT]). GRADES 3 TO 4 ADVERSE EVENTS WERE INFREQUENT AND OCCURRED WITH SIMILAR FREQUENCY ACROSS REGIMENS. STANDARD CONCOMITANT MEDICATIONS DID NOT ALTER CC-486 PHARMACOKINETIC PARAMETERS. THREE PATIENTS (10%) EXPERIENCED GRADE III ACUTE GVHD AND 9 EXPERIENCED CHRONIC GVHD. OF 28 EVALUABLE PATIENTS, 6 (21%) RELAPSED OR HAD PROGRESSIVE DISEASE: 3 OF 7 PATIENTS (43%) WHO HAD RECEIVED 7-DAY DOSING AND 3 OF 23 (13%) WHO HAD RECEIVED 14-DAY DOSING. TRANSPLANT-RELATED MORTALITY WAS 3%. AT 19 MONTHS OF FOLLOW-UP, MEDIAN OVERALL SURVIVAL WAS NOT REACHED. ESTIMATED 1-YEAR SURVIVAL RATES WERE 86% AND 81% IN THE 7-DAY AND 14-DAY DOSING COHORTS, RESPECTIVELY. CC-486 MAINTENANCE WAS GENERALLY WELL TOLERATED, WITH LOW RATES OF RELAPSE, DISEASE PROGRESSION, AND GVHD. CC-486 MAINTENANCE MAY PERMIT EPIGENETIC MANIPULATION OF THE ALLOREACTIVE RESPONSE POSTALLOGRAFT. FINDINGS REQUIRE CONFIRMATION IN RANDOMIZED TRIALS. (CLINICALTRIALS.GOV NCT01835587.). 2018 11 5885 36 SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS FOLLOWING HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS VACCINATION: A CASE-BASED REVIEW. SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) IS A HETEROGENEOUS SYSTEMIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES (AIDS) WITH MANY PATHOGENIC FACTORS, RANGING FROM GENETIC TO EPIGENETIC TO ENVIRONMENTAL. THE HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS (HPV), A VIRAL INFECTIOUS AGENT, IS A COMMON CONTRIBUTOR TO THE ONSET AND EXACERBATION OF SLE. HPV INFECTIONS ARE MORE PREVALENT AMONG SLE PATIENTS THAN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS, BRINGING ABOUT A SUBSTANTIAL NEED FOR TREATMENT. WHILE HPV RECOMBINANT GENE VACCINES ARE ACCEPTED AS A UNIVERSAL METHOD FOR INFECTION PREVENTION, THEY POSE A RISK FOR ADVERSE EVENTS SUCH AS FEVER, JOINT PAIN, AND RASHES. IN RARE CASES, THEY MIGHT EVEN TRIGGER AIDS SUCH AS SLE, ESPECIALLY IN PATIENTS WITH A PERSONAL OR FAMILY HISTORY OF SUCH DISEASES. IN THIS ARTICLE, WE PROVIDE A REPORT OF A CASE OF SLE ONSET FOLLOWING HPV VACCINATION AND A REVIEW OF 11 SIMILAR CASES. AN ANALYSIS OF 12 PATIENTS REVEALED THAT 7 CASES OF SLE DEVELOPED BETWEEN 3 WEEKS AND 2 MONTHS POST-VACCINATION. SYMPTOMS OF SLE GENERALLY MANIFEST AS FATIGUE, FEVER, JOINT PAIN, AND MYALGIA. TWO PATIENTS HAD LUPUS NEPHRITIS, 2 SHOWED CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM INVOLVEMENT, INCLUDING ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR AND EPILEPTIC SEIZURES, AND 1 HAD INTESTINAL PSEUDO-OBSTRUCTION. ALL PATIENTS SHOWED RAPID REMISSION WITH GLUCOCORTICOID AND IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE THERAPY AND REMAINED STABLE DURING SEVERAL MONTHS OF FOLLOW-UP. 2022 12 2822 26 FIRST-IN-HUMAN STUDY OF INHALED AZACITIDINE IN PATIENTS WITH ADVANCED NON-SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER. BACKGROUND: AEROSOLIZED AZACITIDINE HAS BEEN SHOWN TO INHIBIT ORTHOTOPIC LUNG CANCER GROWTH AND INDUCE RE-EXPRESSION OF METHYLATED TUMOR SUPPRESSOR GENES IN MURINE MODELS. WE HYPOTHESIZED THAT INHALED AZACITIDINE IS SAFE AND EFFECTIVE IN REVERSING EPIGENETIC CHANGES IN THE BRONCHIAL EPITHELIUM SECONDARY TO CHRONIC SMOKING. PATIENTS AND METHODS: WE REPORT THE FIRST IN HUMAN STUDY OF INHALED AZACITIDINE. AZACITIDINE IN AQUEOUS SOLUTION WAS USED TO GENERATE AN AEROSOL SUSPENSION OF 0.25-5 MUM PARTICLE SIZE. MAIN INCLUSION CRITERIA: STAGE IV OR RECURRENT NSCLC WITH PREDOMINANTLY LUNG INVOLVEMENT, >/=1 PRIOR SYSTEMIC THERAPY, ECOG PS 0-1, AND ADEQUATE PULMONARY FUNCTION. PATIENTS RECEIVED INHALED AZACITIDINE DAILY ON DAYS 1-5 AND 15-19 OF 28-DAY CYCLES, AT 3 ESCALATING DOSES (15, 30 AND 45 MG/M(2) DAILY). THE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE WAS TO DETERMINE THE FEASIBILITY AND TOLERABILITY OF THIS NEW THERAPEUTIC MODALITY. THE KEY SECONDARY OBJECTIVES INCLUDED PHARMACOKINETICS, METHYLATION PROFILES AND EFFICACY. RESULTS: FROM 3/2015 TO 2/2018, EIGHT PATIENTS RECEIVED A MEDIAN NUMBER OF 2 (IQR = 1) CYCLES OF INHALED AZACITIDINE. NO CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT ADVERSE EVENTS WERE OBSERVED, EXCEPT ONE PATIENT TREATED AT THE HIGHEST DOSE DEVELOPED AN ASYMPTOMATIC GRADE 2 DECREASED DLCO WHICH RESOLVED SPONTANEOUSLY. ONE PATIENT RECEIVING 12 CYCLES OF THERAPY HAD AN OBJECTIVE AND DURABLE PARTIAL RESPONSE, AND TWO PATIENTS HAD STABLE DISEASE. PLASMA AZACITIDINE WAS ONLY BRIEFLY DETECTABLE IN PATIENTS TREATED AT THE HIGHER DOSES. MOREOVER, IN 2 OF 3 PARTICIPANTS WHO AGREED AND UNDERWENT PRE- AND POST-TREATMENT BRONCHOSCOPY, THE GLOBAL DNA METHYLATION IN THE BRONCHIAL EPITHELIUM DECREASED BY 24 % AND 79 % POST-THERAPY, RESPECTIVELY. THE INTERVAL BETWEEN LAST INHALED TREATMENT AND BRONCHOSCOPY WAS 3 DAYS. CONCLUSIONS: INHALED AZACITIDINE RESULTED IN NEGLIGIBLE PLASMA LEVELS COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUSLY REPORTED SUBCUTANEOUS ADMINISTRATION AND WAS WELL-TOLERATED. THE RESULTS JUSTIFY THE CONTINUED DEVELOPMENT OF INHALED AZACITIDINE AT NON-CYTOTOXIC DOSES FOR PATIENTS WITH LUNG-CONFINED MALIGNANT AND/OR PREMALIGNANT LESIONS. 2021 13 2464 24 EPIGENETIC THERAPY USING BELINOSTAT FOR PATIENTS WITH UNRESECTABLE HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA: A MULTICENTER PHASE I/II STUDY WITH BIOMARKER AND PHARMACOKINETIC ANALYSIS OF TUMORS FROM PATIENTS IN THE MAYO PHASE II CONSORTIUM AND THE CANCER THERAPEUTICS RESEARCH GROUP. PURPOSE: EPIGENETIC ABERRATIONS HAVE BEEN REPORTED IN HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA (HCC). IN THIS STUDY OF PATIENTS WITH UNRESECTABLE HCC AND CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE, EPIGENETIC THERAPY WITH THE HISTONE DEACETYLASE INHIBITOR BELINOSTAT WAS ASSESSED. THE OBJECTIVES WERE TO DETERMINE DOSE-LIMITING TOXICITY AND MAXIMUM-TOLERATED DOSE (MTD), TO ASSESS PHARMACOKINETICS IN PHASE I, AND TO ASSESS ACTIVITY OF AND EXPLORE POTENTIAL BIOMARKERS FOR RESPONSE IN PHASE II. PATIENTS AND METHODS: MAJOR ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA INCLUDED HISTOLOGICALLY CONFIRMED UNRESECTABLE HCC, EUROPEAN COOPERATIVE ONCOLOGY GROUP PERFORMANCE SCORE 20% BLAST INFILTRATION PRIOR TO DAC, WITHOUT A CLEAR ASSOCIATION WITH RESPONSE. IN CONCLUSION, THE DAC + DLI REGIMEN PROVED FEASIBLE AND EFFECTIVE IN RELAPSED MYELOID MALIGNANCIES AFTER ALLO-HCT, WITH EFFICACY NOT RESTRICTED TO PATIENTS WITH LOW LEUKEMIC BURDEN. 2018 16 5283 24 PROPHYLACTIC OR PREEMPTIVE LOW-DOSE AZACITIDINE AND DONOR LYMPHOCYTE INFUSION TO PREVENT DISEASE RELAPSE FOLLOWING ALLOGENEIC TRANSPLANTATION IN PATIENTS WITH HIGH-RISK ACUTE MYELOGENOUS LEUKEMIA OR MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROME. BECAUSE OF THE PERSISTENTLY HIGH RATES OF RELAPSE OF PATIENTS WITH HIGH-RISK ACUTE MYELOGENOUS LEUKEMIA (AML) AND MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROME (MDS) FOLLOWING ALLOGENEIC HEMATOPOIETIC STEM CELL TRANSPLANTATION (ALLO-HSCT), POST-TRANSPLANTATION MAINTENANCE THERAPY HAS BEEN PROPOSED. WE PREVIOUSLY INITIATED A PHASE II TRIAL IN WHICH EPIGENETIC THERAPY WAS COMBINED WITH IMMUNOTHERAPY IN AN ATTEMPT TO REDUCE DISEASE RELAPSE. IN THAT STUDY, LOW-DOSE AZACITIDINE (AZA) AND ESCALATING DOSES OF DONOR LYMPHOCYTE INFUSION (DLI) WERE GIVEN AS POST-ALLO-HSCT MAINTENANCE TREATMENT. IN THE PRESENT STUDY, WE RETROSPECTIVELY ANALYZE A LARGER COHORT OF PATIENTS RECEIVING POST-TRANSPLANTATION MAINTENANCE THERAPY AND PROVIDE UPDATES ON SOME PATIENTS OF THE EARLIER STUDY. THE OBJECTIVES OF THE PRESENT STUDY WERE TO ANALYZE THE CUMULATIVE INCIDENCE OF RELAPSE (CIR), OVERALL SURVIVAL (OS), AND PROGRESSION-FREE SURVIVAL (PFS) AND THE INCIDENCE OF ACUTE AND CHRONIC GRAFT-VERSUS-HOST DISEASE (GVHD) OF PATIENTS WITH HIGH-RISK AML OR MDS RECEIVING POST-TRANSPLANTATION MAINTENANCE TREATMENT WITH AZA WITH OR WITHOUT DLI. WE RETROSPECTIVELY ANALYZED 77 PATIENTS (54 WITH AML, 23 WITH MDS) CONSIDERED AT HIGH RISK BASED ON EITHER THEIR GENOMIC OR CLINICAL STATUS AT TRANSPLANTATION. FOLLOWING ALLOGENEIC TRANSPLANTATION, THEY RECEIVED AT LEAST 1 CYCLE OF PROPHYLACTIC OR PREEMPTIVE LOW-DOSE AZA WITH OR WITHOUT ESCALATING DOSES OF DLI TO PREVENT DISEASE RELAPSE. ALMOST ONE-HALF OF THE PATIENTS (47%) WERE ABLE TO RECEIVE THE FULL 12 CYCLES OF SCHEDULED AZA, AND A MAJORITY (79%) RECEIVED AT LEAST 1 DLI. WITH A MEDIAN FOLLOW-UP OF 24 MONTHS, 19 PATIENTS (25%; 16 WITH AML, 3 WITH MDS) RELAPSED, AT A MEDIAN OF 9.8 MONTHS (RANGE, 4 TO 58.6 MONTHS), GIVING A 22% CIR AT 24 MONTHS. OS AND PFS AT 24 MONTHS WERE 70.8% AND 68.3%, RESPECTIVELY. THE CUMULATIVE INCIDENCES OF GRADE II-IV ACUTE GVHD AND CHRONIC GVHD WERE 27.4% AND 45%, RESPECTIVELY. ONLY A MINORITY OF PATIENTS (11%) REQUIRED DELAYED ADMINISTRATION OF AZA. THESE FINDINGS CONFIRM THAT AZA-DLI MAINTENANCE IS BOTH TOLERABLE AND EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING THE RISK OF POST-TRANSPLANTATION RELAPSE. 2021 17 369 27 AN ANDROGEN-DEPENDENT SEXUAL DIMORPHISM VISIBLE AT PUBERTY IN THE RAT HYPOTHALAMUS. MORPHOLOGICAL STUDIES IN RODENTS HAVE WELL DOCUMENTED THE MASCULINIZATION OF THE PERINATAL BRAIN BY ESTRADIOL DERIVED FROM AROMATIZED TESTOSTERONE, AND THE RESULTING IRREVERSIBLE QUANTITATIVE SEX-DIFFERENCES GENERATED IN CELL NUMBERS OR EXPRESSION OF CHEMICAL PHENOTYPES. HERE, USING IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY, WE EXPLORED HOW THIS APPLIES TO THE POSTNATAL DEVELOPMENT AND MASCULINIZATION OF THE NEUROKININ B (NKB)-CONTAINING SYSTEM OF THE ARCUATE NUCLEUS/MEDIAN EMINENCE COMPLEX (ARC/ME). IN ADULT RATS, NKB-IMMUNOREACTIVE NEURONS EXHIBIT AN UNUSUAL, QUALITATIVE SEXUAL DIMORPHISM OF THEIR VENTRAL AXONAL PROJECTIONS: TO THE NEUROPIL IN FEMALES, TO CAPILLARY VESSELS IN MALES. IN ADULTS, THERE WAS NO SEX-DIFFERENCE IN THE NUMBERS OF NKB-IMMUNOREACTIVE PERIKARYA OR CAPILLARY VESSELS IN THE ARC/ME, SUGGESTING THAT THIS SEXUAL DIMORPHISM CANNOT BE EXPLAINED BY THE EXISTENCE OF SUPERNUMERARY STRUCTURES. AT BIRTH (DAY 0) THE NKB SYSTEM WAS IMMATURE IN BOTH SEXES, AND WHILE ITS ADULT FEATURES EMERGED PROGRESSIVELY UNTIL PUBERTY IN FEMALES, THEY DID NOT DEVELOP BEFORE PUBERTY (DAY 40) IN MALES, REVEALING A SEXUAL DIMORPHISM ONLY LATE POSTNATALLY. WHEN MALES WERE ORCHIDECTOMIZED AT DAY 30, THE MASCULINE DISTRIBUTION OF NKB-IMMUNOREACTIVE AXONS EXPECTED AT DAY 40 WAS NOT SEEN, WHILE IT WAS APPARENT AFTER CHRONIC TREATMENT WITH TESTOSTERONE OR DIHYDROTESTOSTERONE, SUGGESTING A TESTICULAR MASCULINIZING ACTION VIA ANDROGEN RECEPTORS AT PUBERTY. MOREOVER IN THESE PREPUBERTAL-ORCHIDECTOMIZED MALES, THE DISTRIBUTION OF NKB-IMMUNOREACTIVE AXONS WAS SURPRISINGLY FEMINIZED BY CHRONIC ESTRADIOL ALONE, SUGGESTING THAT NKB NEURONS ARE NOT IRREVERSIBLY PROGRAMMED BEFORE PUBERTY. LAST, IN ADULT FEMALES, THE DISTRIBUTION OF NKB-IMMUNOREACTIVE AXONS WAS FEMININE 30 DAYS AFTER OVARIECTOMY, AND IT WAS MASCULINIZED AFTER CONCURRENT CHRONIC DIHYDROTESTOSTERONE, SUGGESTING THAT NKB NEURONS REMAIN RESPONSIVE TO ANDROGENS LATE IN REPRODUCTIVE LIFE. THUS, THE SEXUAL DIFFERENTIATION OF THE HYPOTHALAMUS PROCEEDS WELL BEYOND THE PERINATAL PERIOD AND INCLUDES THE EPIGENETIC ACTION OF NON-AROMATIZABLE ANDROGENS UPON SUBSETS OF NEURONS THAT HAVE RETAINED BIPOTENT FEATURES. 2007 18 87 25 A PHASE 1 STUDY OF AZACITIDINE WITH HIGH-DOSE CYTARABINE AND MITOXANTRONE IN HIGH-RISK ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA. IN THIS PHASE 1 STUDY, AZACITIDINE (AZA) WAS GIVEN BEFORE HIGH-DOSE CYTARABINE (HIDAC) AND MITOXANTRONE (MITO) BASED ON THE HYPOTHESIS THAT EPIGENETIC PRIMING WITH A HYPOMETHYLATING AGENT BEFORE CYTOTOXIC CHEMOTHERAPY WOULD IMPROVE RESPONSE RATES IN PATIENTS WITH HIGH-RISK ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA (AML), INCLUDING RELAPSED/REFRACTORY DISEASE. THE PRIMARY OBJECTIVE WAS TO ESTABLISH THE RECOMMENDED PHASE 2 DOSE OF AZA GIVEN BEFORE STANDARD HIDAC/MITO. IN A DOSE ESCALATION SCHEME, 46 PATIENTS (MEDIAN AGE, 66 YEARS) RECEIVED AZA AT 37.5, 50, OR 75 MG/M2 SUBCUTANEOUSLY OR IV ONCE DAILY ON DAYS 1 TO 5 FOLLOWED BY HIDAC (3000 MG/M2) AND MITOXANTRONE (30 MG/M2) ONCE EACH ON DAYS 6 AND 10 (THE HIDAC/MITO DOSE WAS REDUCED 33% IN ELDERLY SUBJECTS). TWO DOSE-LIMITING TOXICITIES OCCURRED (BOTH IN THE SAME PATIENT): ACUTE LIVER FAILURE AND KIDNEY INJURY AT THE 50 MG/M2 DOSE. THE 30-DAY INDUCTION DEATH RATE WAS 2.2% (1 OF 46). THE OVERALL RESPONSE RATE, INCLUDING COMPLETE REMISSION AND COMPLETE REMISSION WITH INCOMPLETE COUNT RECOVERY, WAS 61% (28 OF 46). PREVIOUSLY UNTREATED PATIENTS AGED >/=60 YEARS WITH THERAPY-RELATED AML AND DE NOVO AML WERE MORE LIKELY TO RESPOND THAN UNTREATED PATIENTS WITH AML PROGRESSING FROM AN ANTECEDENT HEMATOLOGIC DISORDER (MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROME AND CHRONIC MYELOMONOCYTIC LEUKEMIA). PATIENTS WITH FAVORABLE EUROPEAN LEUKEMIA NETWORK RISK (P = .008), NPM1 MUTATIONS (P = .007), OR IDH2 MUTATIONS (P = .03) WERE MORE LIKELY TO RESPOND, AND THOSE WITH TP53 MUTATIONS (P = .03) WERE LESS LIKELY TO RESPOND. THE RECOMMENDED PHASE 2 DOSE OF AZA IS 75 MG/M2 PER DAY ON DAYS 1 TO 5 FOLLOWED BY HIDAC (3000 MG/M2) AND MITOXANTRONE (30 MG/M2) ONCE EACH ON DAYS 6 AND 10. THIS TRIAL WAS REGISTERED AT WWW.CLINICALTRIALS.GOV AS #NCT01839240. 2020 19 1358 26 DEVELOPMENT OF RATIOMETRIC ELECTROCHEMICAL MOLECULAR SWITCHES TO ASSAY ENDOGENOUS FORMALDEHYDE IN LIVE CELLS, WHOLE BLOOD AND CREATININE IN SALIVA. FORMALDEHYDE IS A REACTIVE CARBONYL SPECIES (RCS) THAT IS PRODUCED NATURALLY IN THE HUMAN BODY VIA METABOLIC AND EPIGENETIC BIOCHEMICAL PROCESSES, YET IN HIGH CONCENTRATIONS IS HIGHLY TOXIC TO THE ENVIRONMENT AS WELL AS TO LIVING ORGANISMS. THEREFORE, WE DESIGNED TWO RATIOMETRIC ELECTROCHEMICAL MOLECULAR REDOX PROBES, FORMALDEHYDE OXIDATIVE LATENT PROBE (FOLP) AND DIHYDROXY-FORMALDEHYDE OXIDATIVE LATENT PROBE (HFOLP), FOR THE SELECTIVE PROFILING OF ENDOGENOUS FORMALDEHYDE. FOLP AND HFOLP EACH UNDERWENT THE AZA-COPE REACTION WITH FORMALDEHYDE FOLLOWED BY HYDROLYSIS TO ELIMINATE UNMASK REDOX REPORTER N-ALKYLATED AMINOFERROCENE (AAF) TO MONITOR THEIR RESPONSE CURRENT. THE FOLP AND HFOLP SENSORS SHOWED BROAD DYNAMIC RANGES OF 0.12-1000 MUM AND 0.09-3 MM FOR FORMALDEHYDE WITH DETECTION LIMITS OF 48.2 NM AND 31.6 MUM, RESPECTIVELY. ALSO, SINCE FORMALDEHYDE IS THE BYPRODUCT OF BIOCHEMICAL REACTIONS FOR DETECTING CREATININE AND CREATININE IS AN IMPORTANT BIOMARKER FOR CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD), WE TESTED THE FOLP PROBE FOR ITS ABILITY TO MONITOR CREATININE. IT SUCCESSFULLY DID SO, AND THIS ABILITY WAS USED TO DEVELOP AN ELECTROCHEMICAL PLATFORM FOR THE QUANTIFICATION OF CREATININE; IT SHOWED A DYNAMIC RANGE OF 3.25-200 MUM AND A LIMIT OF DETECTION (1.3 MUM). IN ADDITION, THE FOLP-BASED ASSAY PLATFORM DELIVERED A RELIABLE ANALYTICAL PERFORMANCE FOR THE QUANTIFICATION OF FORMALDEHYDE IN HUMAN WHOLE BLOOD AND OF CREATININE IN SALIVA, AND ALSO FOR THE REAL-TIME MONITORING OF ENDOGENOUS FORMALDEHYDE SECRETION IN HELA CELLS. MOREOVER, THE CONCENTRATIONS DETERMINED USING OUR METHOD WERE FOUND TO BE CONSISTENT WITH THOSE DETERMINED USING FORMALDEHYDE AND CREATININE FLUOROMETRIC ASSAY KITS. 2021 20 6302 35 THE PUTATIVE ROLE OF VIRUSES, BACTERIA, AND CHRONIC FUNGAL BIOTOXIN EXPOSURE IN THE GENESIS OF INTRACTABLE FATIGUE ACCOMPANIED BY COGNITIVE AND PHYSICAL DISABILITY. PATIENTS WHO PRESENT WITH SEVERE INTRACTABLE APPARENTLY IDIOPATHIC FATIGUE ACCOMPANIED BY PROFOUND PHYSICAL AND OR COGNITIVE DISABILITY PRESENT A SIGNIFICANT THERAPEUTIC CHALLENGE. THE EFFECT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL COUNSELING IS LIMITED, WITH SIGNIFICANT BUT VERY SLIGHT IMPROVEMENTS IN PSYCHOMETRIC MEASURES OF FATIGUE AND DISABILITY BUT NO IMPROVEMENT ON SCIENTIFIC MEASURES OF PHYSICAL IMPAIRMENT COMPARED TO CONTROLS. SIMILARLY, EXERCISE REGIMES EITHER PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT, BUT PRACTICALLY UNIMPORTANT, BENEFIT OR PROVOKE SYMPTOM EXACERBATION. MANY SUCH PATIENTS ARE AFFORDED THE EXCLUSIONARY, NON-SPECIFIC DIAGNOSIS OF CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME IF RUDIMENTARY TESTING FAILS TO DISCOVER THE CAUSE OF THEIR SYMPTOMS. MORE SOPHISTICATED INVESTIGATIONS OFTEN REVEAL THE PRESENCE OF A RANGE OF PATHOGENS CAPABLE OF ESTABLISHING LIFE-LONG INFECTIONS WITH SOPHISTICATED IMMUNE EVASION STRATEGIES, INCLUDING PARVOVIRUSES, HHV6, VARIANTS OF EPSTEIN-BARR, CYTOMEGALOVIRUS, MYCOPLASMA, AND BORRELIA BURGDORFERI. OTHER PATIENTS HAVE A HISTORY OF CHRONIC FUNGAL OR OTHER BIOTOXIN EXPOSURE. HEREIN, WE EXPLAIN THE EPIGENETIC FACTORS THAT MAY RENDER SUCH INDIVIDUALS SUSCEPTIBLE TO THE CHRONIC PATHOLOGY INDUCED BY SUCH AGENTS, HOW SUCH AGENTS INDUCE PATHOLOGY, AND, INDEED, HOW SUCH PATHOLOGY CAN PERSIST AND EVEN AMPLIFY EVEN WHEN INFECTIONS HAVE CLEARED OR WHEN BIOTOXIN EXPOSURE HAS CEASED. THE PRESENCE OF ACTIVE, REACTIVATED, OR EVEN LATENT HERPES VIRUS COULD BE A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF INTRACTABLE FATIGUE ACCOMPANIED BY PROFOUND PHYSICAL AND OR COGNITIVE DISABILITY IN SOME PATIENTS, AND THE SAME MAY BE TRUE OF PERSISTENT PARVOVIRUS B12 AND MYCOPLASMA INFECTION. A HISTORY OF CHRONIC MOLD EXPOSURE IS A FEASIBLE EXPLANATION FOR SUCH SYMPTOMS, AS IS THE PRESENCE OF B. BURGDORFERI. THE COMPLEX TROPISM, LIFE CYCLES, GENETIC VARIABILITY, AND LOW TITER OF MANY OF THESE PATHOGENS MAKES THEIR DETECTION IN BLOOD A CHALLENGE. EXAMINATION OF LYMPHOID TISSUE OR CSF IN SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES MAY BE WARRANTED. 2016