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The title compound, C15H14N2O4, is approximately planar, with a dihedral angle of 6.48 (4)° between the aminomethylene unit and the planar five-atom part of the dioxane ring, and a dihedral angle of 2.40 (4)° between aminomethylene unit and the phenylene ring. The dioxane ring is envelope shaped, with the dimethyl-substituted C atom that represents the flap 0.535 (8) Å out of the plane. The molecule has an intramolecular N—H...O hydrogen bond.

The title compound, C15H17NO6, is approximately planar, with dihedral angles of 3.11 (4) and 2.12 (4)° between the connecting aminomethylene unit and the planar part of the dioxane ring, and between the dimethoxybenzyl ring and the aminomethylene group, respectively. The dioxane ring exhibits a half-boat conformation, in which the C atom between the dioxane O atoms is 0.5471 (8) Å out of the plane. The molecule has an intramolecular N—H...O hydrogen bond which may stabilize the planar conformation. In the crystal, weak intermolecular C—H...O hydrogen-bonding contacts, result in the formation of sheets parallel to the ab plane.

During vertebrate embryonic development, the body axis formation requires the action of Wnt signals and their antago- nists. Zygotic canonical wnt8 expression appears exclusively at the ventrolateral margin and mediates Wnt/β-catenin activi- ties to promote posterior and ventral cell fate. However, the mechanisms involved in the initiation of zygotic wnt8 signals are poorly understood. Here, we identify a novel, maternally derived transcription factor, Kzp (Kaiso zinc finger-containing protein), as an important determinant for the initiation of zy- gotic Wnt signals in zebrafish. Kzp is a DNA-binding tran- scription factor that recognizes specific consensus DNA sequences, 5'-(t/a/g)t(a/t/g)nctgcca-3', through zinc fingers and controls the initiation of zygotic wnt8 expression by directly binding to the wnt8 promoter during zebrafish embryonic de- velopment. Depletion of Kzp strongly dorsalized embryos, which was characterized by the expansion of dorsal gene ex- pression. Overexpression of Kzp caused posteriorization. These phenotypes were highly similar to ones induced by wnt8 depletion or overexpression and were rescued by alteration of wnt8 activity. Thus, our results provide the first insight into the mechanism involved in the initiation of zygotic canonical Wnt signals by a maternally derived transcription factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, biodegradable PCL–PEG–PCL (PCEC) triblock copolymers were successfully synthesized at one-step. Aqueous solution of PCEC copolymer displayed thermosensitive sol–gel–sol transition behavior, which is flowing sol at low temperature and turns into non-flowing gel at body temperature. The cytotoxicity of PCEC copolymer was evaluated by cell viability assay using HEK293 and WISH cells. In vivo gel-formation, degradation test, acute toxicity tests, and histopathological study of PCEC hydrogels were performed in BALB/c mice by subcutaneous administration. In acute toxicity test, the mice were observed continuously for 21 days. For histopathologic study, samples including heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidneys, and tissue of injection site were histochemical prepared and stained with hematoxylin–eosin. No mortality or significant signs of acute toxicity was observed during the whole observation period and there is no significant lesion to be shown in histopathologic study of major organs and tissue of injection site. The maximum tolerance dose (MTD) of PCEC hydrogel (20 wt%) by subcutaneous administration was calculated to be higher than 25 g/kg b.w. The results indicated that the obtained PCEC hydrogel was non-toxic after subcutaneous administration, and could be a safe candidate for in situ gel-forming controlled drug delivery system. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association J Pharm Sci 98:4684–4694, 2009 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, biodegradable and low molecular weight poly(ethylene glycol)–poly(ℇ-caprolactone)–poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG–PCL–PEG, PECE) triblock copolymers were successfully synthesized. Aqueous solution of the obtained PECE copolymers underwent sol–gel–sol transition as temperature increased which was flowing sol at room temperature and then turned into nonflowing gel at body temperature. Sol–gel–sol phase transition behaviors of aqueous PECE solutions were studied using rheometry and test tube-inverting method, which were affected by many factors, including the heating/cooling procedure and different additives in copolymers aqueous solution. In vitro drug release behavior was studied using bovine serum albumin (BSA) and Vitamin B12 (VB12) as model drugs, and the PECE hydrogel could protect BSA from acidic degradation for 1 week at least. Therefore, PECE hydrogel is believed to be promising for injectable in situ gel-forming controlled drug delivery system due to their great thermosensitivity and biodegradability. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association J Pharm Sci 98:3707–3717, 2009 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A correction to the article "Kzp controls canonical wnt8 signaling to modulate dorsoventral patterning during zebrafish gastrulation" is presented.

Aim: To compare transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) and 3D conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT) with TACE monotherapy in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)., Methods: We searched all the eligible studies from the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Medline, Embase, and CNKI. The meta-analysis was performed to assess the survival benefit, tumor response, and the decline in α-fetoprotein (AFP) level. According to the heterogeneity of the studies, pooled OR with 95%CI were calculated using the fixed-effects or random-effects model. An observed OR > 1 indicated that the addition of 3D-CRT to TACE offered survival benefits to patients that could be considered statistically significant. Statistical analyses were performed using Review Manager Software., Results: Ten studies met the criteria to perform a meta-analysis including 908 HCC participants, with 400 patients in the TACE/3D-CRT combination group and 508 in the TACE alone group. TACE combined with 3D-CRT significantly improved 1-, 2- and 3-year overall survival compared with TACE monotherapy (OR = 1.87, 95%CI: 1.37-2.55, P < 0.0001), (OR = 2.38, 95%CI: 1.78-3.17, P < 0.00001) and (OR = 2.97, 95%CI: 2.10-4.21, P < 0.00001). In addition, TACE plus 3D-CRT was associated with a higher tumor response (complete remission and partial remission) (OR = 3.81; 95%CI: 2.70-5.37; P < 0.00001), and decline rates of AFP level (OR = 3.24, 95%CI: 2.09-5.02, P < 0.00001)., Conclusion: This meta-analysis demonstrated that TACE combined with 3D-CRT was better than TACE monotherapy for patients with HCC, which needs to be confirmed by large multicenter trials．