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The fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are important for embryo development, wound healing, hematopoiesis, and angiogenesis. FGF-1, a member of FGF family, is involved in both receptor-dependent pathways and an intracrine pathway. Studies have recently shown that FGF-1 is overexpressed in the early stages of several kinds of cancer. Thus, FGF-1 is a candidate for cancer immunotargeting. To study the potential use of therapeutic antibodies against FGF-1, a monoclonal hybridoma 1C9 secreting monoclonal antibody specific for FGF-1 was developed. Then, a single-chain variable fragment (scFv) antibody was genetically engineered from hybridama 1C9. The binding of the scFv1C9 to the antigen FGF-1 was demonstrated by ELISA and immunoprecipitation assays. Functional analysis showed that the overexpressed scFv1C9 in MCF-7 cells targeted endogenous FGF-1 and prevented the translocation of FGF-1 into the nucleus, resulting in the blockade of the intracrine pathway of FGF-1, which caused the G1 arrest by p21 up-regulation. These results suggest that the generated scFv1C9 is an effective inhibitor of the intracrine pathway of FGF-1 and has a potential application as anti-tumoral agent in breast cancer. © 2011 IUBMB IUBMB Life, 63(2): 129-137, 2011 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bibliothèque Sino-Internationale Genève was an important oversea cultural agency established by the government of the Republic of China in the 1930s. However, little research has been done on its history. Furthermore, the current understanding of the library is often based on anecdotal accounts of Li Shizeng and Xiao Yu. Many existing impressions of the library are distorted and incorrect. This study employs firsthand materials including chronicles, diaries, newspapers, and other archival resources to reconstruct the history of the library and its major publication, the Orient et Occident. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How and to what extent can China be more accurately understood? Is China best understood as it is or through theories that appear to reveal its nature? John Wong is an example of the former approach, a pursuer of economic realism in the discipline of economic analysis. This paper first describes John Wong's conceptual model of Chinese economic development, which consists of three major components: Singapore as the reference point; economic scale as the first adjusted variable; and economic development phase as the second variable. The paper further explores sources of his choice of methodology through the positionality of his research. He cannot be neatly categorized in any existing school of economic analysis of the Western academic tradition but pursues his accurate understanding of China through pragmatism; his institutionalized research position constitutes the methodological foundation for his research strategy and conceptual framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]