Mapping of class alpha glutathione S-transferase 2 (GST-2) genes to the vicinity of the d locus on mouse chromosome 9

Recombinant inbred strains of mice were used to localize the genes coding for the class alpha glutathione S-transferase 2 (Gst-2). The genes showed three distinct strain distribution patterns, indicating that they occur in at least three clusters separable by recombination. All three clusters are located in the vicinity of the d locus on mouse chromosome 9, but two of them are closer to d than the third. Linked to Gst-2 on mouse chromosome 9 are two enzyme-encoding loci, Pgm-3 and Mod-1. The human counterparts of Gst-2, Pgm-3, and Mod-1 map to 6p12, 6q12, and 6q12, respectively. Thus, the pericentric region of human chromosome 6 has its homolog in the segment spanning Gst-2, Pgm-3, and Mod-1 on mouse chromosome 9. The fact that the syntenic group extends across the centromere of human chromosome 6 can best be explained by a pericentric inversion postulated to have taken place in the primate lineage leading to Catarhini.     

A simplified screening test for the diagnosis of allergy.

The Quidel allergy screen is a relatively rapid (less than 2 hours) multiallergen dipstick method for detecting specific immunoglobin E antibodies in serum. It was developed to answer the need of primary physician nonspecialists in allergy for a convenient in-office screening test for diagnosing allergy. The new test was evaluated against the benchmark diagnostic skin tests and the radioallergosorbent serologic tests for sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and technical feasibility in an office setting. It was found that while the Quidel allergy screen lacks the specificity of the standard tests, its overall sensitivity, as defined by the percentage of patients with positive skin reactions who also tested positive with the Quidel screen (68%), its ease of use, and its rapidity warrant its consideration as a screening tool for confirming a possible case of allergy.     

Impact of Bacillus popilliae,Rickettsiella popilliae and entomopathogenic nematodes on a population of the scarabaeid,Cyclocephala hirta

Larvae of the scarabaeid, Cyclocephala hirta, are major pests of turfgrass in California. A field test was conducted against third instars that included the following treatments: untreated control; chemical insecticide (bendiocarb); milky disease bacterium (Bacillus popilliae); and entomopathogenic nematodes (Steinernema feltiae and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora). There were no significant differences in population reduction among the treatments, but the larval population in all plots showed a dramatic decline. The C. hirta population had a natural occurrence of milky disease and blue disease caused by Rickettsiella popilliae. The prevalence of blue disease during the course of the study averaged < 10% but that of milky disease averaged about 20%. More significantly, the soil from all treatment plots when bioassayed for B. popilliae showed that 67–90% of the larvae became infected with this bacterium. None of the larvae became infected with the blue disease organism. We conclude that B. popilliae was occurring in epizootic proportions in our field tests and was a significant mortality factor in causing the decline of the C. hirta population.     

Ecology of Hantaan virus at Twin Bridges Training Area,Gyeonggi Province,Republic of Korea, 2005–2007

The Twin Bridges Training Area (TBTA) in the Republic of Korea consists of dirt roads, barren training areas, and forested hillsides adjacent to linear and broad expanses of tall grasses, herbaceous, and scrub vegetation. Of the six species of small mammals, the striped field mouse, Apodemus agrarius, was the most frequently captured (96.1%). Apodemus agrarius capture rates varied from 17.7 to 33.2% during three trapping periods. Gravid females were observed during November‐December 2006 (8.4%) and March 2007 (5.1%). In 2005, the overall seroprevalence of Hantaan virus (HTNV) was high (34.4%) and lower during surveys in 2006 (14.2%) and 2007 (13.8%). Seroprevalence was directly correlated with weight increase of A. agrarius.     

Combined treatment with interferon (IFN)-gamma and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha up-regulates the expression of HLA class I determinants in Burkitt lymphoma lines

Cell lines derived from Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-positive and EBV-negative Burkitt lymphoma (BL) have a low or defective expression of polymorphic HLA class I determinants compared to EBV-transformed lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCL) of normal B cell origin and are resistant to lysis by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) specific for the corresponding determinants (M. G. Masucci, S. Torsteinsdottir, J. Colombani, C. Brautbar, E. Klein, and G. Klein, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 84, 4567, 1987; S. Torsteinsdottir, C. Brautbar, E. Klein, G. Klein, and M. G. Masucci, Int. J. Cancer, 41, 913, 1988). In order to investigate whether this phenotypic trait of the tumor cells can be modulated by agents known to enhance HLA class I antigen expression, pairs of LCL and BL lines were cultured in the presence of recombinant human interferon (IFN)-gamma and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha. Three low HLA A11 expressor EBV-negative BL lines, DG 75, BL 28, and BL 41, reacted significantly stronger with the anti-HLA A11 monoclonal antibody (Mab) AUF 5.13 after combined treatment with 500 U/ml IFN-gamma and 500 U/ml TNF-alpha. Reactivity with the AUF 5.13 and with other anti-polymorphic class I Mab's was up-regulated also in in vitro EBV-converted sublines of BL 28 and BL 41. The increment of antigen expression depended on the baseline expression in untreated cells. It was largest for the low expressor lines and decreased proportionally to the level of up-regulation induced by EBV conversion. Up-regulation of HLA A11 was accompanied by induction of sensitivity to HLA A11-specific CTLs in BL 28 and its converted subline E95A BL28 while BL 41 and E95A BL 41 remained resistant. The treatment did not affect significantly HLA A11 expression of two EBV-carrying, low HLA A11 expressor BL lines, WW-1-BL and WW-2-BL, and of the EBV-carrying BL 72 line that had a high spontaneous expression. The results suggest that the down-regulation of class I antigen expression is reversible in some but not all BL lines.     

The selection of somatic cell hybrids between human lymphoma cell lines.

Somatic cell hybrids have been selected between three pairs of established human lymphoid cell lines producing pure lines of proliferating hybrid cells: Raji/Namalwa, Raji/Daudi, and Raji/BJAB. The hybrid cell lines have been characterized with respect to isozyme pattern, volume, and karyotype.     

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) receptors, complement receptors, and EBV infectibility of different lymphocyte fractions of human peripheral blood. I. Complement receptor distribution and complement binding by separated lymphocyte subpopulations.

Human peripheral lymphocytes were fractionated into a variety of B-, T-, and O-cell fractions and were characterized with regard to several surface receptors. There was a strong correlation between the frequency of EAC receptor-positive cells and the percentage of complement membrane fluorescence (CMF)-stained cells following exposure to fresh human serum and subsequent staining with an anti-C3 conjugate. CMF staining did not diminish in C4-deficient or hypogammaglobulinemic serum, or in the presence of EDTA or EGTA-Mg²⁺, but was completely negative with C3-depleted normal human serum. In all likelihood, the staining is therefore due to the direct binding of C3 to preformed receptors on the lymphocyte surface. In addition to the surface Ig-positive B-cell fractions, C3 receptors were also detected on part of the O-cell population and on a proportion of the Fc receptor-positive T cells.