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Background. Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a brain tumour with a very high patient mortality rate, with a median survival of 47 weeks. This might be improved by the identification of novel diagnostic, prognostic and predictive therapy-response biomarkers, preferentially through the monitoring of the patient blood. The aim of this study was to define the impact of GBM in terms of alterations of the plasma protein levels in these patients. Materials and methods. We used a commercially available antibody array that includes 656 antibodies to analyse blood plasma samples from 17 healthy volunteers in comparison with 17 blood plasma samples from patients with GBM. Results. We identified 11 plasma proteins that are statistically most strongly associated with the presence of GBM. These proteins belong to three functional signalling pathways: T-cell signalling and immune responses; cell adhesion and migration; and cell-cycle control and apoptosis. Thus, we can consider this identified set of proteins as potential diagnostic biomarker candidates for GBM. In addition, a set of 16 plasma proteins were significantly associated with the overall survival of these patients with GBM. Guanine nucleotide binding protein alpha (GNAO1) was associated with both GBM presence and survival of patients with GBM. Conclusions. Antibody array analysis represents a useful tool for the screening of plasma samples for potential cancer biomarker candidates in small-scale exploratory experiments; however, clinical validation of these candidates requires their further evaluation in a larger study on an independent cohort of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents notes for contributors which have a connection to statistics. The International Association for Statistical Education (IASE) Review 2005 can be downloaded at the IASE web site. The Seventh International Conference on Teaching Statistics will be held in Salvador, Brazil on July 2-7, 2006. Also, the Reasoning about Distributions: A Collection of Current Research Studies has been published. The Fifth International Research Forum on Statistical Reasoning, Thinking, and Literacy will be held in the University of Warwick, Coventry, UK on August 11-17, 2007. A survey will be conducted to users and potential users for the improvement of the Information on International Statistical Literacy Project (ISLP) webpages.

This article provides information about the International Association for Statistical Education (IASE). The IASE Executive appointed Andrej Blejec and Larry Weldon as editors of the IASE matters insert of "Teaching Statistics" periodical. The article also presented a message from IASE president Gilberte Schuyten, presented at the IASE General Assembly during the ISI-55 meeting. Furthermore, the association and the International Statistical Institute (ISI) are organizing the Seventh International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS-7), which will be hosted by the Brazilian Statistical Association in Salvador (Bahia), Brazil on July 2-7, 2006. Planning is now well advanced and the ICOTS-7 website at http://www.maths.otago.ac.nz/icots7 is being continuously updated.

The article presents schedules of the different conferences that were organized and sponsored by the International Association for Statistical Education (IASE). These include the "International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS)-7: Working Cooperatively in Statistics Education," held in Salvador (Bahia), Brazil on July 2-7,2006, "The 2007 Session of the International Statistical Institute, ISI-56," to be held in Lisboa, Portugal on August 22-29, 2007, and "IASE Satellite Conference on Assessing Student Learning in Statistics," to be held on August 19-21,2007 in Guimares, Portugal.

An statistical method for analysis of event data analysis, common in electrophysiological investigations of activities of olfactory receptor neurons, is proposed. The method is based on the analysis of the slopes of cumulative frequency distribution function. During the spontaneous activity the distribution function is linear which indicate that probability density distribution is uniform. During the chemical stimulation, the density of action potentials is either increased (excitation - E) or decreased (suppression -S), causing the observable change of the slope. The slope at each event is evaluated by piecewise linear regression. The type (E or S) and time of change of the slope can be determined, providing information for further statistical analyses. Graphically supported computer program (in S-PLUS) is available for interactive or routine use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]