Listening to rhythmic patterns leads to neural entrainment to beat and meter periodicities. The debate over whether entrainment is a mere reflection of external stimuli, or an inherent intrinsic response persists. The objective of this study was to ascertain whether there are cerebral cortices, which satisfy 3 distinct features of intrinsic entrainment; first, the ability to sustain neural oscillations even in random beat omission; second, a requisite latency period for the build-up before initiating a response to rhythmic stimuli; and third, the persistence of these neural oscillations gradually recedes following the cessation of the stimulus. In 27 patients with medically intractable epilepsy, electrocorticography data were obtained with 2- or 3-beat sound stimulations with random omissions. We found that there are cortices which satisfy all three requirements of intrinsic entrainment. The cortices synchronized with beat were in Brodmann areas (BA) 21, and 22, whereas the cortices synchronized with meter corresponded to BA3, 6, 9, 22, 40, and 44. We showed that entrainment is an intrinsic response, with distinct neural processing for beat and meter. These insights advance our understanding of neural entrainment to beat and meter periodicities.

Purpose: BVAC-B is an autologous B cell– and monocyte-based immunotherapeutic vaccine that contains cells transfected with a recombinant human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) gene and loaded with the natural killer T cell ligand alpha-galactosylceramide. Here, we report the first BVAC-B study in patients with HER2-positive advanced gastric cancer. Materials and Methods: Patients with advanced gastric cancer refractory to standard treatment with HER2+ immunohistochemistry ≥ 1 were eligible for treatment. Patients were administered low (2.5×107 cells/dose), medium (5.0×107 cells/dose), or high dose (1.0×108 cells/dose) of BVAC-B intravenously four times every 4 weeks. Primary endpoints included safety and maximum tolerated BVAC-B dose. Secondary endpoints included preliminary clinical efficacy and BVAC-B-induced immune responses. Results: Eight patients were treated with BVAC-B at low (n=1), medium (n=1), and high doses (n=6). No dose-limiting toxicity was observed, while treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) were observed in patients treated with medium and high doses. The most common TRAEs were grade 1 (n=2) and grade 2 (n=2) fever. Out of the six patients treated with high-dose BVAC-B, three had stable disease with no response. Interferon gamma, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin-6 increased after BVAC-B treatment in all patients with medium and high dose, and HER2-specific antibody was detected in some patients. Conclusion BVAC-B monotherapy had a safe toxicity profile with limited clinical activity; however, it activated immune cells in heavily pretreated patients with HER2-positive gastric cancer. Earlier treatment with BVAC-B and combination therapy is warranted for evaluation of clinical efficacy.

Background/Aims: Treatment decisions for locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (LA-HNSCC) are complicated, and multi-modal treatments are usually indicated. However, it is challenging for older patients to complete treatments. Thus, we investigated disease characteristics, real-world treatment, and outcomes in older LA-HNSCC patients. Methods: Older patients (aged ≥ 70 years) were selected from a large nationwide cohort that included 445 patients with stage III–IVB LA-HNSCC from January 2005 to December 2015. Their data were retrospectively analyzed and compared with those of younger patients. Results: Older patients accounted for 18.7% (83/445) of all patients with median age was 73 years (range, 70 to 89). Proportions of primary tumors in the hypopharynx and larynx were higher in older patients and older patients had a more advanced T stage and worse performance status. Regarding treatment strategies of older patients, 44.5% of patients received concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT), 41.0% underwent surgery, and 14.5% did not complete the planned treatment. Induction chemotherapy (IC) was administered to 27.7% (23/83) of older patients; the preferred regimen for IC was fluorouracil and cisplatin (47.9%). For CCRT, weekly cisplatin was prescribed 3.3 times more often than 3-weekly cisplatin (62.2% vs. 18.9%). Older patients had a 60% higher risk of death than younger patients (hazard ratio, 1.6; p = 0.035). Oral cavity cancer patients had the worst survival probability. Conclusions Older LA-HNSCC patients had aggressive tumor characteristics and received less intensive treatment, resulting in poor survival. Further research focusing on the older population is necessary.

PURPOSE: Temsirolimus is effective in the treatment for metastatic non-clear cell renal cell carcinoma (nccRCC) with poor prognosis. We aim to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of temsirolimus in treatment of naïve Asian patients with metastatic/recurrent nccRCC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From January 2008 to July 2017, data of treatment-naïve, metastatic/recurrent nccRCC patients, who were treated with temsirolimus according to the standard protocol, were collected. The primary end-point was progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary end points were overall survival (OS), objective response rate (ORR), and tolerability of temsirolimus. RESULTS: Forty-four metastatic/recurrent nccRCC patients, 10 from prospective and 34 from retrospective groups, were enrolled; 24 patients (54%) were papillary type, and other histology subtypes included 11 chromophobes (25%), two collecting ducts (5%), one Xp11.2 translocation (2%), and six others (14%). The median PFS and OS were 7.6 months and 17.6 months, res-pectively. ORR was 11% and disease control rate was 83%. Patients with prior nephrectomy had longer PFS (hazard ratio [HR], 0.16; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.06 to 0.42; p < 0.001) and OS (HR, 0.15; 95% CI, 0.05 to 0.45; p < 0.001). Compared to favorable/intermediate prognosis group, poor prognosis group had shorter median PFS (4.7 months vs. 7.6 months [HR, 2.91; 95% CI, 1.39 to 6.12; p=0.005]) and median OS (9.2 months vs. 17.6 months [HR, 2.84; 95% CI, 1.23 to 6.56; p=0.015]). CONCLUSION: Temsirolimus not only benefits poor-risk nccRCC patients, but it is also effective in favorable or intermediate-risk group in Asians. Temsirolimus was well-tolerated with manageable adverse events.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Carcinoma, Renal Cell ; Disease-Free Survival ; Humans ; Nephrectomy ; Prognosis ; Prospective Studies ; Retrospective Studies