Molecular nature of chromosome 5q loss in colorectal tumors and desmoids from patients with familial adenomatous polyposis

Summary Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), which includes familial polyposis coli (FPC) and the Gardner syndrome (GS), is a genetically determined premalignant disease of the colon inherited by a locus (APC) mapping within 5q15–q22. To elucidate the role of 5q loss in FAP tumorigenesis, we analysed 51 colorectal tumors and seven desmoids from 19 cases of FPC and five GS patients, as well as 15 sporadic colon cancers. RFLP analysis revealed a high incidence of allelic deletion in hereditary colon cancers as well as in sporadic colon cancers with a peak at the APC locus. APC loss resulted primarily from interstitial deletion or mitotic recombination. Combined tumor and pedigree analysis in a GS family revealed loss of normal 5q alleles in three tumors, including a desmoid tumor, which suggests the involvement of hemizygosity or homozygosity of the defective APC gene in colon carcinogenesis and, possibly, in extracolonic neoplasms associated with FAP.     

Culture of human adult endothelial cells on liquid-liquid interfaces: A new approach to the study of cell-matrix interactions

Summary Human adult endothelial cells (ECs) were cultured on liquid-liquid interface formed when aqueous culture medium is overlaid onto a fluorocarbon solvent. When ECs were seeded on untreated interfaces, some cells seemed to attach but they did not spread or grow. In contrast, when ECs were seeded on interfaces pretreated with such proteins as collagen type IV (COL), laminin (LN), fibronectin (FN), and fibrinogen (FG) the cells spread and proliferated until they formed confluent monolayers. Proteins such as bovine serum albumin (BSA) or gelatin (GN) were not as effective in providing surfaces for vigorous growth. Cells grown on fluorocarbon interfaces expressed specialized characteristics exhibited by endothelial cells grown under the usual culture conditions; they grew in a cobblestone monolayer, stained positively for Factor VIII-related antigen, and produced angiotensin-converting enzyme. The growth rate of ECs was the same whether they were cultured on treated fluorocarbon interfaces or on the usual tissue culture plastic surfaces. Using this culture system, the interactions of ECs with various adhesive proteins used as substrata was examined. ECs were observed to attach readily to the interfaces coated with GN, COL, LN, FN, and FG, but poorly to those coated with BSA. All the substrates tested, with the exception of BSA, promoted EC growth on fluorocarbon interfaces; ECs tended to grow more rapidly on COL- or FG-coated interfaces than on LN-, FN-, or GN-coated interfaces. This work was supported in part by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01-HL-34153 and P01-AG-04861).     

Biological half-time in rats exposed to nickel monosulfide (amorphous) aerosol by inhalation

This study reports the biological half-time of amorphous nickel monosulfide(NiS(A)) aerosol retained in rat lungs. Wistar male rats were exposed to NiS(A) aerosols (mass median aerodynamic diameter: 4.0 μm) for a single 4 h exposure, or for 7 h/d, 5 d/wk for 1 mo. The average exposure concentrations were controlled at 107 mg/m³ for the single exposure and at 8.8 mg/m³ for the repeated exposures by a dust generator consisting of a continuous fluidized bed with an overflow pipe and a screw feeder. After the exposures, the nickel contents in the rat organs, blood, and urine were measured and histopathological examinations were performed. The biological half time of NiS(A) in rat lungs was 20 h, which was extremely shorter than 21 mo of green nickel oxide (NiO(G)). There were no malignant tumors in any of the exposure groups.     

Discrimination of the sibling species Apodemus flavicollis and A. sylvaticus (Rodentia,Muridae)

Karyotyping and several molecular methods have allowed successful identification of two morphologically similar wide-ranging Western Palearctic species, the yellow-necked field mouse Apodemus flavicollis (Melchior, 1934) and the long-tailed wood mouse A. sylvaticus (Linnaeus, 1758), but reliable species diagnosis on the basis of morphometric characters is particularly problematic. Although they are easily morphologically distinguishable in Central and Northern Europe, this is not the case in southern parts of their distribution areas. Despite that, we have successfully discriminated A. flavicollis and A. sylvaticus from Serbia (Southern Europe) using geometric and traditional morphometric methods on a data set for ventral crania of specimens previously genotyped by the Inter Simple Sequence Repeat-PCR (ISSR-PCR). Discrimination power of applied approaches was more or less similar. The majority of our results were consistent with those obtained for specimens collected across the Czech Republic (Central Europe). Morphological differences observed herein, as well as those already reported between A. flavicollis and A. sylvaticus from the central and northern parts of their distribution areas, could be the outcome of their biology, i.e. ecological discrepancies, different assumed evolutionary scenarios considering biogeography, phylogeny, history and ontogeny.     

Proliferation, differentiation, and tube formation by endothelial progenitor cells in response to shear stress.

Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), circulating in peripheral blood, migrate toward target tissue, differentiate, and contribute to the formation of new vessels. In this study, we report that shear stress generated by blood flow or tissue fluid flow can accelerate the proliferation, differentiation, and capillary-like tube formation of EPCs. When EPCs cultured from human peripheral blood were subjected to laminar shear stress, the cells elongated and oriented their long axes in the direction of flow. The cell density of the EPCs exposed to shear stress was higher, and a larger percentage of these cells were in the G2-M phase of the cell cycle, compared with EPCs cultured under static conditions. Shear stress markedly increased the EPC expression of two vascular endothelial growth factor receptors, kinase insert domain-containing receptor and fms-like tyrosine kinase-1, and an intercellular adhesion molecule, vascular endothelial-cadherin, at both the protein and mRNA levels. Assays for tube formation in the collagen gels showed that the shear-stressed EPCs formed tubelike structures and developed an extensive tubular network significantly faster than the static controls. These findings suggest that EPCs are sensitive to shear stress and that their vasculogenic activities may be modulated by shear stress.     

A Cre knock‐in mouse line on the Sickle tail locus induces recombination in the notochord and intervertebral disks

Sickle tail (Skt) was originally identified by gene trap mutagenesis in mice, and the trapped gene is highly expressed in the notochord, intervertebral discs (IVD), and mesonephros. Here, we report the generation of Skt^cre mice expressing Cre recombinase in the IVD due to target insertion of the cre gene into the Skt locus by recombinase‐mediated cassette exchange. Crossing a conditional lacZ Reporter (R26R), Cre expression from the Skt^cre allele specifically activates β‐galactosidase expression in the whole notochord from E9.5 onwards. In E15.5 Skt^cre;R26R embryos, reporter activity was detected in the nucleus pulposus and in a portion of the annulus fibrosus, resulting in expansion of Cre‐expressing cells in the adult IVD. Reporter activity was also seen in the Skt^cre;R26R mesonephros at E15.5. These results suggest that Skt^cre mice are useful for exploring the fate specification of notochordal cells and creating models for IVD‐related skeletal diseases. genesis 50:758–765, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Effects of Corn Steep Liquor and Thiamine on l-Glutamic Acid Fermentation of Hydrocarbons: IV. Utilization of Hydrocarbons by Microorganisms

The effect of nutrients of natural source, such as corn steep liquor, peptone, and yeast extract, on the fermentative production of L-glutamic acid from hydrocarbons by a Corynebacterium was studied. Corn steep liquor and meat extract were found to be remarkably stimulatory to L-glutamic acid production; about 5 g per liter of L-glutamic acid were accumulated in a culture broth containing 3% n-paraffins, 0.01% corn steep liquor, and mineral salts. Among nutritional factors contained in corn steep liquor, biotin had very little effect on the accumulation of L-glutamic acid, but thiamine was highly stimulatory to L-glutamic acid production. The optimal concentration of thiamine for L-glutamic acid production was 3 to 5 μg per liter, and for cell growth, 50 μg per liter. L-Glutamic acid was accumulated in negligible quantity when the amount of thiamine in the culture broth was sufficient to support abundant growth of bacterial cells.     

The Effects of Different Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) Protocols on Cortical Gene Expression in a Rat Model of Cerebral Ischemic-Reperfusion Injury

Although repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) in treatment of stroke in humans has been explored over the past decade the data remain controversial in terms of optimal stimulation parameters and the mechanisms of rTMS long-term effects. This study aimed to explore the potential of different rTMS protocols to induce changes in gene expression in rat cortices after acute ischemic-reperfusion brain injury. The stroke was induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) with subsequent reperfusion. Changes in the expression of 96 genes were examined using low-density expression arrays after MCAO alone and after MCAO combined with 1Hz, 5Hz, continuous (cTBS) and intermittent (iTBS) theta-burst rTMS. rTMS over the lesioned hemisphere was given for two weeks (with a 2-day pause) in a single daily session and a total of 2400 pulses. MCAO alone induced significant upregulation in the expression of 44 genes and downregulation in 10. Two weeks of iTBS induced significant increase in the expression of 52 genes. There were no downregulated genes. 1Hz and 5Hz had no significant effects on gene expression, while cTBS effects were negligible. Upregulated genes included those involved in angiogenesis, inflammation, injury response and cellular repair, structural remodeling, neuroprotection, neurotransmission and neuronal plasticity. The results show that long-term rTMS in acute ischemic-reperfusion brain injury induces complex changes in gene expression that span multiple pathways, which generally promote the recovery. They also demonstrate that induced changes primarily depend on the rTMS frequency (1Hz and 5Hz vs. iTBS) and pattern (cTBS vs. iTBS). The results further underlines the premise that one of the benefits of rTMS application in stroke may be to prime the brain, enhancing its potential to cope with the injury and to rewire. This could further augment its potential to favorably respond to rehabilitation, and to restore some of the loss functions.     

Autotaxin is overexpressed in glioblastoma multiforme and contributes to cell motility of glioblastoma by converting lysophosphatidylcholine to lysophosphatidic acid

Autotaxin (ATX) is a multifunctional phosphodiesterase originally isolated from melanoma cells as a potent cell motility-stimulating factor. ATX is identical to lysophospholipase D, which produces a bioactive phospholipid, lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), from lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC). Although enhanced expression of ATX in various tumor tissues has been repeatedly demonstrated, and thus, ATX is implicated in progression of tumor, the precise role of ATX expressed by tumor cells was unclear. In this study, we found that ATX is highly expressed in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most malignant glioma due to its high infiltration into the normal brain parenchyma, but not in tissues from other brain tumors. In addition, LPA1, an LPA receptor responsible for LPA-driven cell motility, is predominantly expressed in GBM. One of the glioblastomas that showed the highest ATX expression (SNB-78), as well as ATX-stable transfectants, showed LPA1-dependent cell migration in response to LPA in both Boyden chamber and wound healing assays. Interestingly these ATX-expressing cells also showed chemotactic response to LPC. In addition, knockdown of the ATX level using small interfering RNA technique in SNB-78 cells suppressed their migratory response to LPC. These results suggest that the autocrine production of LPA by cancer cell-derived ATX and exogenously supplied LPC contribute to the invasiveness of cancer cells and that LPA1, ATX, and LPC-producing enzymes are potential targets for cancer therapy, including GBM.