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THE FACE OF HUNGER Vicki Adam owned two fur coats and many other trappings of prosperity until her stockbroker husband suffered three strokes that left him crippled and barely able [...]

DANGER IN THE WATER In February, 1989, Emily Gallant, who owns a beauty salon in Tignish, P.E.I., 100 km northwest of Charlottetown, noticed that the water from taps at the [...]

KUWAIT AND THE GUNS OF AUGUST IRAQ DISPLAYS ITS AWESOME POWER For days, Iraq had been massing troops and armor along its border with Kuwait. The buildup was ominously large, [...]

Trouble in paradise While other Americans celebrated Earth Day last week, Montana state Senator Petery Story hosted what he called an 'End of the World Party' on his ranch near [...]

THE AFTERSHOCK THE DEFEAT OF NICARAGUA'S SANDINISTA GOVERNMENT SHOCKED THE HEMISPHERE In the run-up to Nicaragua's election, President Daniel Ortega looked more like a pop star than the leftist revolutionary [...]

A celebrity statesman Mandela's speeches spark fury and euphoria From the moment he walked out of a South African prison last week, Nelson Mandela found himself a prisoner of another [...]

The recycling boom Successful programs have produced gluts By his own admission, Thane Cochran is 'not out to save the environment.' Still, although a businessman in search of profits, Cochran [...]

The use of nanobodies (Nbs) as vehicles in targeted alpha therapy (TAT) has gained great interest because of their excellent properties. They combine high in vivo affinity and specificity of binding with fast kinetics. This research investigates a novel targeted therapy that combines the α-particle emitter astatine-211 (211At) and the anti-HER2 Nb 2Rs15d to selectively target HER2+ cancer cells. Two distinctive radiochemical methodologies are investigated using three different coupling reagents. The first method uses the coupling reagents, N-succinimidyl 4-(1,2-bis-tert-butoxycarbonyl)guanidinomethyl-3-(trimethylstannyl)benzoate (Boc2-SGMTB) and N-succinimidyl-3-(trimethylstannyl)benzoate (m-MeATE), which are both directed to amino groups on the Nb, resulting in random conjugation. The second method aims at obtaining a homogeneous tracer population, via a site-specific conjugation of the N-[2-(maleimido)ethyl]-3-(trimethylstannyl)benzamide (MSB) reagent onto the carboxyl-terminal cysteine of the Nb. The resulting radioconjugates are evaluated in vitro and in vivo. 2Rs15d is labeled with 211At using Boc2-SGMTB, m-MeATE, and MSB. After astatination and purification, the binding specificity of the radioconjugates is validated on HER2+ cells, followed by an in vivo biodistribution assessment in SKOV-3 xenografted mice. α-camera imaging is performed to determine uptake and activity distribution in kidneys/tumors. 2Rs15d astatination resulted in a high radiochemical purity >95% for all radioconjugates. The biodistribution studies of all radioconjugates revealed comparable tumor uptake (higher than 8% ID/g at 1 h). [211At]SAGMB-2Rs15d showed minor uptake in normal tissues. Only in the kidneys, a higher uptake was measured after 1 h, but decreased rapidly after 3 h. Astatinated Nbs consisting of m-MeATE or MSB reagents revealed elevated uptake in lungs and stomach, indicating the presence of released 211At. α-Camera imaging of tumors revealed a homogeneous activity distribution. The radioactivity in the kidneys was initially concentrated in the renal cortex, while after 3 h most radioactivity was measured in the medulla, confirming the fast washout into urine. Changing the reagents for Nb astatination resulted in different in vivo biodistribution profiles, while keeping the targeting moiety identical. Boc2-SGMTB is the preferred reagent for Nb astatination because of its high tumor uptake, its low background signals, and its fast renal excretion. We envision [211At]SAGMB-2Rs15d to be a promising therapeutic agent for TAT and aim toward efficacy evaluation.

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US President Bill Clinton is faced with the problem of how to deal with China. The China question represents one of Mr. Clinton's toughest challenges in the realm of foreign policy in 1999. Mr. Clinton has followed a strategy of constructive engagement with China since he became president. Yet, there has been little if any result from that policy, which has been supported by people such as Henry Kissinger and Winston Lord. Although China has not acted an enemy toward the US, it has not acted entirely friendly either.

FREE AT LAST! The no-man's-land between the Czechoslovakian and West German borders at Schirnding was littered with abandoned East German cars and motorcycles that gave out on the final yards [...]

HIDING THE DRUG MONEY The trail of $3 million in crisp currency - much of it in $1,000 bills - led directly back to Canada. It started last April, when [...]

Turning towards peace The two most powerful men in South African politics emerged red-eyed and weary from their 16-hour negotiating session, but they were visibly elated. First, Nelson Mandela informed [...]

A TRIUMPH OF WILLS Only five months ago, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev declared that NATO membership was 'absolutely out of the question' for a united Germany. And as recently as [...]

Sailing to freedom Refugees flee Europe's last Stalinist state Albania's fiercely insular leaders, the last guardians of Stalinism in Eastern Europe, have traditionally allowed few outsiders into the country and [...]

A BAD-LUCK PRESIDENT When Carlos Menem swept to power in Argentina a year ago, he promised to revive the nation's weak economy and provide political stability. Most Argentines welcomed his [...]

A MOOD OF REBELLION It should have been a triumphal homecoming. Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev returned to Moscow from the United States last week with an unexpected trade accord, agreement [...]

A threat of nuclear war Nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, the Vale of Kashmir is one of the world's most beautiful natural attractions and, according to some military [...]

First step: the money West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, trying to speed reunification with East Germany, picked up his own pace last week. First, he travelled to West Berlin for [...]

South Korea's student radicals say that they have an obligation to fight the Establishment, the very group that many of them will join after they graduate. Their weapons are rocks [...]

Coming home His face was gaunt, his back was hunched, and he could not stop squinting. Frank Reed said that his kidnapers had kept him blindfolded for all but 90 [...]

The cost of neglect A lake near a chemical plant in the town of Kemerovo, 3,000 km east of Moscow, is so polluted that citizens of the town dispose of [...]

AN ULTIMATE CHALLENGE Voting in regional elections last week, the Soviet Union's top Communist seemed unconcerned about whether the winners would all be carrying party cards. President Mikhail Gorbachev said [...]

A CURIOUS PASSAGE VACLAV HAVEL, CZECHOSLOVAKIA'S DISSIDENT-TURNED-PRESIDENT, IS HAILED AS A HERO IN NORTH AMERICA Vaclav Havel, whose metamorphosis from political prisoner to Czechoslovakia's president is a striking symbol of [...]

FREE AT LAST The T-shirts proclaiming 'Welcome home Nelson Mandela' appeared throughout South Africa last week as the jailed African National Congress (ANC) leader prepared to leave prison after 27 [...]

United States Department of State may be sending mixed messages to other nations about its policies on human rights, foreign trade and fight against drug trafficking.

TERROR IN THE DRUG WORLD The sicarios, paid gunmen who make up Columbia's private armies, use names such as Rambo, Terminator and Lovers of Medellin. But there is nothing lovable [...]

ANDEAN STRATEGY It was a startling scene: the President of the United States holding aloft a bag of crack cocaine on national television. George Bush twice showed the plastic container, [...]

•We study DNA damage response to low-LET photons and high-LET alpha particles.•Cycling primary thyrocytes are more sensitive to radiation than stationary cells.•Influence of radiation quality varies due to cell cycle status of normal cells.•High-LET radiation gives rise to a sustained DNA damage response.

China has been quietly eroding its promise to 'one country, two systems' policy. Recently, the national government asked the courts to reinterpret Hong Kong's constitution giving legal status to children of illegal immigrants. The World Bank considers Hong Kong to be the most densely inhabited place on the planet. The Chinese government is trying to limit the explosive immigration into Hong Kong. The method, however, opens the door for the national government to change other parts of Hong Kong's constitution it does not like.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a country facing a bleak future under the presidency of Laurent Kabila. Kabila, promising reforms, replaced Mobutu Sese Seko, Africa's longest ruling dictator. However, Kabila followed Mobutu's footsteps of dictatorship, with corruption and human rights violation still prevalent. Moreover, Kabila has done nothing to reform the economy and utilize the vast resource potential of Congo. The country is rich in copper, gold and diamond and boasts of a hydroelectrical plant large enough to energize central and southern Africa.

The military aid being given to Taiwan has been a controversial topic in light of efforts to promote a reunification with mainland China. President Clinton stresses the military aid the government furnishes Taiwan are intended for self-defense and should not impede efforts at improving relations between the two nations. The Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 ensures US intervention in the event of any military actions by China to force reunification with Taiwan. However, the successful China visit of President Clinton may cause some apprehension in Taiwanese circles.

Indonesian Pres Suharto's last days at governing Indonesia is marked by civil unrest that is further aggravated by the Asian economic crisis. Protesters have vented their anger on the Chinese minority, banks, and businesses particularly those run by relatives and cronies. Civil unrest has escalated with protesters burning and looting business establishments and political prisoners speaking out.

The increasing trade in smuggling oil to China is part of the prevalent piracy of various goods to China that is happening in Asia. There is strong proof that Indonesian and Chinese military authorities are behind the operations. Over 250 assaults on commercial vessels are reported yearly to the International Maritime Bureau, which approximates yearly losses at over $16 bil.

Land is the key issue to a lasting peace in the Middle East. However, there is not enough land that could accomodate an estimated six millions Palestinians even if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives up the entire West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Israel, of course, can never be expected to give up the two territories for security reasons. The West Bank and Gaza Strip form part of Israel's defense strategies.

The improving relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia could spell trouble for US policy, which has consistently been based on the conviction that Iranians and Arabs are hostile to each other. Iran showed its mounting influence in the Middle East by hosting the yearly summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in December 1997. Iranian President Mohammad Khatami declared that Iran is free to strengthen relations with Saudi Arabia, while acknowledging the good that the Western civil society has done.

Russian Pres Boris Yeltsin's attempt to establish a Russia with no ethnic, religious and economic divisions appears to be a failure. After commissioning Kremlin adviser Georgy Satarov to a fact finding mission, the group fielded no more than statistics without national idea. Opposition groups take the opportunity to launch their own national idea called the 'Law on Freedom and Religious Organizations' with full support from the powerful Orthodox Church.

US State Secretary Madeleine Albright's denunciation of France's involvement in a $2 billion project to develop Iran's natural gas reserves is an exercise in futility. For one, the US, much as it wanted, cannot subject foreigners to its laws. Secondly, the US government itself has been inconsistent in implementing its foreign policies. It has steadfastly refused to penalize China and Russia for doing business with Iran.

Ukraine is scrambling to gain recognition by the international community. Six years after it gains independence from Russia, the republic is still in the verge of economic downfall due to corruption and lawlessness that scare countless of foreign investors. President Leonid Kuchma's leadership is not enough to subdue ethnic groups dependence and loyalty to Russia as much as political leaders' opposing a free market program.

The survival of South Africa's National Party in the wake of Frederik de Klerk's retirement depends on the party's ability to choose a successor without splitting into factions. The party is currently divided into those seeking a black leader and those seeking only to maintain the interests of its white and mixed-race supporters. Survival of the party is questionable as factions will surely force the party into dissolution.

The defense ties between the US and Japan is one of the most significant bilateral issues and the foremost concern of President Clinton and Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto. The prime minister of Japan believes in strengthening defense relations with the US because two of the foremost security threats in the world are Asian, and Japan can be caught in the cross-fire. North Korea is the immediate threat, and the long-term threat is China, which is into an expensive military modernization program that will make it even with the West in 10 to 20 years.

French President Jacques Chirac's call for an early parliamentary election on May 25 and June 1, 1997, is interpreted as an effort to help retain Prime Minister Alain Juppe, in exchange for a smaller contingent for Gaullists in the legislative sector. Other analysts believe Chirac's move is aimed at letting the Socialist Party win a larger share of parliamentary seats in order to effect divergent views on issues such as the deficit. Should Chirac's plan prove effective, the Gaullists could win a larger share of the seats in the next election.

China is enjoying immunity from being rebuked due to the enormous potential that the Chinese market holds for other countries. Representative nations in a recent United Nations meeting have demonstrated that trade is more important than morality since they have refused to support a Danish resolution seeking to punish China for restricting civil liberties in Tibet, maltreating political prisoners and suppressing dissent.

Italy's peacekeeping efforts in Albania may have serious repercussion on the country's political stability. Recent events such as the independence movement in the northern portion of Italy and the rift in the fragile coalition government of Italian Premier Romano Prodi proves taxing to the already tense social and political situation in Italy. Italy's peacekeeping efforts in Albania is to ensure that the country would push through with its elections to provide some form of security. But Italy itself is known for frequently changing its government.