Given a passage, construct a question on the basis of the information present in the passage. Construct the question in such a way that (i) it is unambiguous, (ii) it is answerable from the passage, (iii) its answer is unique (iv) it answer uses text phrases from the passage. Avoid creating questions that (i) can't be answered correctly without actually understanding the passage and (ii) uses the same words or phrases given in the passage.
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Question: Cancer cells frequently exhibit resistance to the cytotoxic effect of tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL). Pretreatment of TRAIL-resistant cells with cisplatin sensitizes them to this ligand. Cisplatin also has been shown to enhance adenoviral transgene expression.', 'This study aims to evaluate the ability of cisplatin to enhance the expression and the cytotoxic effect of the tumor-specific adenoviral vector Ad/gTRAIL, which expresses a green fluorescent protein-TRAIL fusion protein.', 'Cultured cancer cells and normal human cells were infected with Ad/gTRAIL with or without cisplatin pretreatment. Adenoviral transgene expression was determined by using flow cytometry to measure green fluorescent protein fluorescence. Cytotoxicity was measured by using thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide assays and an apoptosis enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit.', 'Green fluorescent protein-TRAIL fusion protein expression was significantly enhanced by cisplatin pretreatment in cancer cells. Cisplatin treatment before Ad/gTRAIL infection resulted in a 2- to 12-fold increase in green fluorescent protein fluorescence intensity across cancer lines. Although Ad/gTRAIL induced mild cytotoxicity in all cancer lines (inhibitory concentration of 50% values of >500 pfu/cell), pretreatment with cisplatin resulted in a dose-dependent enhancement of Ad/gTRAIL-mediated cytotoxicity, as indicated by the drastic reduction of inhibitory concentration of 50% values to 4 to 42 pfu/cell in all cell lines. There was no cytotoxicity noted in normal cells treated with both cisplatin and Ad/gTRAIL.

Answer: Does cisplatin enhance apoptosis induced by a tumor-selective adenovirus expressing tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand?


Question: Enhanced activation of the mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs) in cardiovascular tissues increases oxidative stress, maladaptive immune responses, and inflammation with associated functional vascular abnormalities. We previously demonstrated that consumption of a Western diet (WD) for 16 weeks results in aortic stiffening, and that these abnormalities were prevented by systemic MR blockade in female mice. However, the cell-specific role of endothelial cell MR (ECMR) in these maladaptive vascular effects has not been explored.', 'We hypothesized that specific deletion of the ECMR would prevent WD-induced increases in endothelial sodium channel activation, reductions in bioavailable nitric oxide, increased vascular remodeling, and associated increases in vascular stiffness in females.', 'Four-week-old female ECMR knockout and wild-type mice were fed either mouse chow or WD for 16 weeks. WD feeding resulted in aortic stiffness and endothelial dysfunction as determined in vivo by pulse wave velocity and ex vivo by atomic force microscopy, and wire and pressure myography. The WD-induced aortic stiffness was associated with enhanced endothelial sodium channel activation, attenuated endothelial nitric oxide synthase activation, increased oxidative stress, a proinflammatory immune response and fibrosis. Conversely, cell-specific ECMR deficiency prevented WD-induced aortic fibrosis and stiffness in conjunction with reductions in endothelial sodium channel activation, oxidative stress and macrophage proinflammatory polarization, restoration of endothelial nitric oxide synthase activation.

Answer: Does endothelial Mineralocorticoid Receptor mediate Diet-Induced Aortic Stiffness in Females?


Question: The Eustachian tube (ET) plays an important role in maintaining a normally aerated middle ear. Inflammation in middle ear disease is related to ET dysfunction, and postoperative restoration of middle ear integrity and hearing are closely related to ET function in chronic ear disease patients. After successful tympanoplasty, restoration of a well-aerated middle ear with good ET function can permit better compliance of the tympanic membrane. In this study, we evaluated the predictive validity of preoperative ET function measurements.', 'We reviewed 137 patients who underwent type 1 tympanoplasty. All patients had non-cholesteatomatous chronic otitis media and received canal wall-up-type tympanomastoidectomies. Patients were categorized into four groups according to preoperative ET function measurements using a modified pressure inflation-deflation equilibration test. Group I patients had residual pressures less than 10 daPa, and Group IV patients showed no pressure change (poor results). Groups II and III were intermediate. Hearing levels were determined using pure tone averages at four frequencies. Postoperative tympanography was performed to determine middle ear aeration.', 'The preoperative air bone (AB) gap was 29.6+/-7.0 dB, and the postoperative gap was 16.5+/-5.7 dB; thus, there was significant overall improvement. In all groups, hearing was significantly better after surgery, but the worst postoperative hearing level was seen in Group IV patients. Type B tympanograms were more frequently recorded in Group IV patients than they were in Group I or II patients. Postoperative AB gaps were 9.2+/-3.8 dB in patients with type A tympanograms, 13.4+/-2.1 dB in those with type As, 24.1+/-2.5 dB in those with type C, and 18.5+/-2.8 dB in those with type B.

Answer:
Is pre-operative Evaluation of Eustachian Tube Function Using a Modified Pressure Equilibration Test Predictive of Good Postoperative Hearing and Middle Ear Aeration in Type 1 Tympanoplasty Patients?