Perspectives of scintigraphic diagnosis of malignant lymphoma using a new radiopharmaceutical

In the sequence of our studies on radiopharmaceuticals for malignant melanoma detection the results were most promising for the possible use of 125I or 123I-N-(2-diethyl amino ethyl)4-iodobenzamide. The biodistribution in mice bearing melanoma either human or animal from 4 to 24 hrs. post i.v. injection showed high uptake in tumor tissue together with relatively low uptake in muscle, brain, lung and liver. Scintigraphic images of the tumor obtained at the same times confirmed that melanoma detection was very promising.     

Serum chemistries of Coturnix coturnix japonica given dietary manganese oxide (Mn3O4)

1. Plasma creatinine and inorganic phosphorus were increased in manganese oxide (Mn3O4)-treated adult male Coturnix quail, but BUN, BUN/creatinine ratio, uric acid, and total calcium were decreased. 2. Serum enzymes (alkaline phosphatase, glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, glutamic pyruvic transaminase, and lactic dehydrogenase) were elevated in Mn3O4-treated adult male Coturnix quail, but creatine phosphokinase was not affected. 3. Dietary Mn3O4 at 5000 ppm did not produce overt signs of toxicosis.     

Zinc has opposite effects on NMDA and non-NMDA receptors expressed in Xenopus oocytes

Pharmacological characterization of Zn2+ effects on glutamate ionotropic receptors was investigated in Xenopus oocytes injected with rat brain mRNA, using a double microelectrode, voltage-clamp technique. At low concentration, Zn2+ inhibited NMDA currents (IC50 = 42.9 +/- 1.3 microM) and potentiated both AMPA (EC50 = 30.0 +/- 1.2 microM) and desensitized kainate responses (EC50 = 13.0 +/- 0.1 microM). At higher concentrations, Zn2+ inhibited non-NMDA responses with IC50 values of 1.3 +/- 0.1 mM and 1.2 +/- 0.3 mM for AMPA and kainate, respectively. The potentiation of AMPA or quisqualate currents by Zn2+ was more than 2-fold, whereas that of the kainate current was only close to 30%. This potentiating effect of Zn2+ on AMPA current modified neither the affinity of the agonist for its site nor the current-voltage relationship. In addition, 500 microM Zn2+ differentially affected NMDA and non-NMDA components of the glutamate-induced response. The possible physiological relevance of Zn2+ modulation is discussed.     

Virus Infection of Forest Trees by Mechanical Transmission

Abstract Back transmission trials on young forest plants with isolates of purified viruses from the same tree species were performed using different inoculation techniques. Spruce seedlings and willow plants were successfully infected with tobacco necrosis virus (TNV) by the conventional method of mechanical inoculation of virus suspension mixed with celite as abrasive. Cherry leaf roll virus (CLRV) was transmitted to birches only after adding poly-L-orithine (PLO) to the inoculum. The same method was successful with brome mosaic virus (BMV) on beech seedlings. PLO also improved the rate of infection on TNV in willows. In only one case, was CLRV transmitted conventionally to a white ash seedling. The infection of white ash was increased when frozen powders, of infected ash leaves were directly rubbed onto leaves. BMV could not be transmitted to beech seedlings by carborundum pressure-inoculation. Stem slashing-inoculation of BMV and CLRV was successful with CLRV in one beech out of 60 seedlings.     

Modulation of sulfated proteoglycan synthesis and collagen gene expression by chondrocytes grown in the presence of bFGF alone or combined with IGF1

Prepubertal rabbit epiphyseal chondrocytes were grown in high density primary culture for 3 d. They were then incubated for 3 additional d in serum-free culture medium to which bFGF (1-50 ng/ml) was added. During the last 24 h incubation period, either IGF1 (1-80 ng/ml) or Insulin (1-5 micrograms/ml) was added to the culture medium. Chondrocyte DNA was significantly augmented with the increasing concentration of bFGF used, thus confirming its mitogenic effect on chondrocytes. On the other hand, bFGF was also shown to modulate the phenotypic expression of the chondrocytes. The 35S-sulfate incorporation into newly synthesized proteoglycans by the cultured cells decreased in a dose-dependent manner with bFGF concentration used. In addition, chondrocyte collagen gene expression was also shown to be modulated by bFGF. Total RNA extracted from the cultured cells was analyzed by dot blot and Northern blot with cDNA probes encoding for alpha 1 II and alpha 1 I procollagen chains. A significant lower level of type II collagen mRNA, the marker of chondrocytic phenotype, was observed when cells were grown in the presence of bFGF while the level of type I mRNA remained unchanged. When IGF1 or a high concentration of insulin was added to the cells during the last 24 h of incubation with bFGF, sulfated proteoglycan synthesis, as well as collagen type II mRNA level, were significantly stimulated when compared with chondrocytes incubated with bFGF alone. In conclusion, in the present experimental conditions, bFGF appears to be a growth promoting agent for chondrocytes in vitro with dedifferentiating action on chondrocyte phenotype. IGF1 or insulin used at a high concentration can prevent the dedifferentiating effect of bFGF without inhibiting its stimulating effect on chondrocyte DNA synthesis.     

Chromosome-specific identification and quantification of S1 nuclease-sensitive sites in yeast chromatin by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis

Sites that are sensitive to the single-strand-specific endonuclease S1 ('S1-sensitive sites', SSS) occur in native chromatin and, like DNA double-stranded breaks (DSB), they are induced by DNA-damaging agents, such as ionizing radiation. We have developed a method to quantify SSS and DSB in yeast chromatin by using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) to separate the intact chromosomal-length DNA molecules from the lower molecular-weight broken ones. Direct evaluation of the photonegatives of the ethidium bromide-stained gels by laser densitometry enabled us to calculate the numbers of DSB and SSS per DNA molecule. These numbers were determined from the bulk of the non-separated genomic DNA of yeast, corresponding to a single band in the PFGE (pulse time 10 seconds), and in each of the eight largest yeast chromosomes, corresponding to distinct bands in the PFGE gels (pulse time 50 seconds), which were not superimposed by the smear of the broken, low molecular-weight DNA. Furthermore, the induction of DSB and SSS in a specific chromosome (circular chromosome III) was determined by Southern hybridization of the PFGE gels with a suitable centromere probe, followed by densitometry of the autoradiographs. Our method allows the chromosome-specific monitoring of DSB and all those DNA structures that are processed either in vivo or in vitro into DSB and which may not be distributed randomly within the genome.     

The effect of gamma-linolenic acid, an in vitro cytostatic substance contained in evening primrose oil, on primary liver cancer. A double-blind placebo controlled trial

The cytostatic effects of essential fatty acid metabolic intermediates and of some prostaglandins and leukotrienes in vitro have been extensively documented. The essential fatty acids (EFAs) exhibit no side-effects when taken as a dietary supplement, even in large doses. Primary Liver Cancer (PLC) is a fatal disease in our area as it is always multifocal in nature. In vitro studies have shown a cytostatic effect of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) on primary liver cancer cells. In a double-blind placebo controlled trial, using Evening Primrose Oil (as a source of GLA) as a dietary supplement in PLC patients, no statistically significant effect was observed on survival time or liver size. There was however a statistical significant beneficial effect on Gamma Glutamyl transferase values as a measure of liver function. No side-effects were observed. The large size of tumour and the low doses of GLA used in this trial probably explain the lack of significant effect on survival times.