Cytogenetic and molecular characterization of a newly established neuroblastoma cell line LS

Summary A new human neuroblastoma cell line (LS) that originated from an abdominal tumor of a 16-month-old girl is presented; it was classified, according to Evans, as being stage III. Morphological (dense-core particles) and biochemical characteristics (dopamine--hydroxylase, acetylcholinesterase, neuron-specific-enolase) confirmed the diagnosis. In addition to a slightly variable modal chromosome number of 48 or 49 (because of marker-chromosomes and autosomal trisomies), cytogenetic analysis revealed two constantly appearing chromosomes with homogeneously stained regions (HSR's). The karyo-type remained constant over 50 passages in vitro [49,XX, –12,+der5, + 17,+mar1,+mar2]. Double minutes were a rare phenomenon and appeared only in a few metaphases. In situ hybridization showed that some of the HSR's consisted of amplified N-myc copies. The distribution of the N-myc copies according to in situ hybridization signals along the HSR's was compared with the data of Southern and Northern blotting analyses.     

Capitalist Philanthropy and Russian Revolutionaries: The Jesup North Pacific Expedition (1897-1902)

This review of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition, still the most important expedition in American anthropology, gives an idea of the goals and hazards of fieldwork around 1900, the pitfalls of international research, the tensions between anthropologists and host populations, the careers of early anthropologists, the role of private philanthropy, and the character of anthropology at the turn of the century. Franz Boas was the Expedition's linchpin. His organization of the Expedition, the way he handled problems, and his personal concerns reveal aspects of his view of anthropology and some of his basic attitudes.     

Regulation of collagen synthesis in fibroblasts within a three-dimensional collagen gel

Fibroblasts cultivated within a three-dimensional collagen gel display an elongated, spindle-like morphology, reduce their proliferation rate, contact the gel to a very dense tissue, and modify their metabolic activity as compared to monolayer cultures. Collagen synthesis measured as protein-bound hydroxyproline is reduced to 5% of the values found in monolayer culture. The reduction involving type I and type III collagen is due to decreased de novo synthesis and not to enhanced degradation. Dot blot hybridization, Northern blot analysis, and in situ hybridization using collagen I- and III-specific cDNA probes demonstrate that reduced biosynthesis rates are reflected by a marked reduction of pro alpha 1 (I), pro alpha 2 (I), and pro alpha 1 (III) collagen mRNA indicating pretranslational regulation. A similar reduction was observed for actin mRNA whereas levels of tubulin mRNA were similar for fibroblasts in monolayer culture or cultivated within the three-dimensional collagen gels. The data suggest a specific reprogramming of various cellular activities in response to contact with the reconstituted extracellular matrix.     

Mechanisms of Mutagenesis by a Bulky DNA Lesion at the Guanine N7 Position

The RpII215 locus encodes the large subunit of RNA polymerase II (polII). Three of 22 RpII215 alleles cause a synergistic enhancement of the mutant phenotype elicited by mutations in the Ultrabithorax (Ubx) locus. We have recovered and analyzed three new mutations that suppress this enhancement. All three mutations map to the RpII215 locus. In addition to suppressing the Ubx enhancement of other RpII215 alleles, two of the new mutations, JH1 and WJK2, themselves enhance Ubx. RpII215 alleles can be placed into three classes based on their ability to enhance Ubx. Class I alleles, including Ubl, C4, C11, JH1, and WJK2, enhance Ubx when heterozygous with class II alleles, which include wild-type RpII215. Class III alleles, which include amorphic alleles, do not enhance Ubx. The third new mutation, WJK1, is a conditional amorphic allele, which behaves like a class III allele at 29 degrees but like a class II allele at 19 degrees. Another mutant phenotype is caused by certain RpII215 alleles, including all class I alleles. This phenotype is a synergistic enhancement of a mutant phenotype elicited by mutations at the Delta (Dl) locus. Unlike the enhancement of Ubx, the enhancement of Dl is not dependent upon antagonistic interactions between different classes of RpII215 alleles.     

Phosphorus in sediments — speciation and analysis

Characterization of sediment phosphorus is commonly based on sequential chemical extractions, in which phosphorus is supposed to be selectively removed from different compounds in the sediments. The first extraction schemes were designed to quantify discrete chemical or mineralogical compounds. As extraction schemes have been tested on different sediments, several systematic errors have been detected and the schemes have been modified and simplified accordingly. Other chemical extractions or treatments have attempted to determine phosphorus bound to particles with a certain strength or binding energy, the purpose being to determine the labile, loosely bound, exchangeable, mobile or algal-available fraction of sediment phosphorus. All extraction procedures yield operationally defined fractions and cannot be used for identification of discrete phosphorus compounds. The many methodological modifications make it necessary to be cautious when comparing results from the literature in this field.     

Solubilization of the bovine cardiac sarcolemmal binding sites for calcium channel blockers

Nonionic and ionic detergents were used to solubilize the bovine cardiac sarcolemmal binding sites for nimodipine and (-)desmethoxyverapamil in the absence of added ligand. Only Chaps, digitonin and sucrose monolauryl ester were able to solubilize the binding sites in a form that bound radioligands. About 45% of each of the membrane-bound high-affinity site was solubilized by 0.4% Chaps (w/v) in the presence of 48% (w/v) glycerol. The solubilized binding sites were destroyed by trypsin or by a 10-min incubation at 50 degrees C. Calcium stimulated nimodipine binding slightly at 0.3 mM and inhibited (-)desmethoxyverapamil binding completely with an IC50 of 1.2 mM. Nimodipine binding was reduced by 20% in the presence of EGTA. The solubilized receptors sedimented in sucrose density gradients with an apparent s20,w of 21 S. An identical sedimentation value was obtained for the cardiac sarcolemmal and skeletal transverse tubulus receptor which were prelabeled with nitrendipine and solubilized by digitonin. Solubilization reduced the affinity of nimodipine for its high-affinity site slightly from 0.35 nM to 1.2 nM and that for its low-affinity site from 33 nM to 130 nM. Solubilization did not affect significantly the specific density of these sites. Binding of nimodipine to the low-affinity site was completely abolished by 0.1 microM nitrobenzylthioinosine. After solubilization only the high-affinity site for (-)desmethoxyverapamil could be measured with tenfold reduced affinity (Kd = 15.3 nM) but unchanged specific density. Binding to the solubilized high-affinity site for nimodipine and (-)desmethoxyverapamil was stereospecific and showed a similar rank order as the particulate binding sites. Binding of nimodipine was inhibited allosterically by phenylalkylamines. Similarly, (+)PN200-110 inhibited allosterically (-)desmethoxyverapamil binding. d-cis-Diltiazem stimulated nimodipine binding at 20 degrees C 1.2-fold, reduced the dissociation rate from 0.018 min-1 to 0.0083 min-1 and had no effect on the association rate (0.173 min-1. nM-1). The Kd calculated from the rate constants was 0.1 nM and in close agreement with the value of 0.49 nM measured under equilibrium conditions in the presence of nitrobenzylthioinosine. In contrast, desmethoxyverapamil increased the dissociation rate of nimodipine to 0.03 min-1. The association and dissociation rate constants for (-)desmethoxyverapamil were 0.024 min-1. nM-1 and 0.025 min-1, respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

Cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum contains a low-affinity site for phenylalkylamines

The distribution of the bovine cardiac binding sites for the organic calcium-channel blockers was studied. Crude microsomal membranes were separated into three fractions, which contained mainly membranes derived from sarcolemma, 'junctional' sarcoplasmic reticulum containing transversal tubuli, and free sarcoplasmic reticulum. The high-affinity binding site for the dihydropyridines, determined in the presence of nitrobenzylthioinosine, was enriched 12-fold and 17-fold in sarcolemma and junctional sarcoplasmic reticulum. The binding sites for the phenylalkylamines, determined with [3H]verapamil or [3H](-)desmethoxyverapamil, were enriched 1.5-3.4-fold in sarcolemma and junctional sarcoplasmic reticulum but 6-10-fold in free sarcoplasmic reticulum. The phenylalkylamine-binding site, present in free sarcoplasmic reticulum, was partially destroyed by chymotrypsin or phospholipase A2 and C treatment. Specific binding was proportional to the concentration of the added membrane protein. The binding of (-)desmethoxyverapamil was half-maximally inhibited by 6.5 mM calcium chloride and was optimal in the presence of 5 mM EGTA. In three out of five preparations (-)desmethoxyverapamil bound to a single site with an apparent Kd value of 191 +/- 42.8 nM and a density of 34.5 +/- 7.7 pmol/mg protein. In two out of five preparations an additional high-affinity site (Kd approximately 0.67 nM) was detected. The low-affinity site bound other phenylalkylamines, but stereospecific binding of phenylalkylamines was not observed. Binding of phenylalkylamines to the low-affinity site was inhibited by some but not all calmodulin 'antagonists'. Furthermore dihydropyridines did not affect the binding of (--)desmethoxyverapamil suggesting that the low-affinity site differs considerably from the high-affinity sarcolemmal site. These results suggest that free sarcoplasmic reticulum contains a binding site for phenylalkylamines at a relative high density, which is not related to the high-affinity site present in the voltage-dependent calcium channel.     

The Genetics of the DORSAL-BICAUDAL-D Region of DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER

The chromosomal region 36C on 2L contains two maternal-effect loci, dorsal (dl) and Bicaudal-D (Bic-D), which are involved in establishing polarity of the Drosophila embryo along the dorsal-ventral and anterior-posterior axes, respectively. To analyze the region genetically, we isolated X-ray-induced dorsal alleles, which we recognized by virtue of the haplo-insufficient temperature-sensitive dorsal-dominant phenotype in progeny of single females heterozygous for a mutagenized chromosome. From the 20,000 chromosomes tested, we isolated three deficiencies, two inversions with breakpoint in dl and one apparent dl point mutant. One of the deficiencies, Df(2L)H20 (36A6,7; 36F1,2) was used to screen for EMS-induced lethal- and maternal-effect mutants mapping in the vicinity of dl and Bic-D. We isolated 44 lethal mutations defining 11 complementation groups. We also recovered as maternal-effect mutations four dl alleles, as well as six alleles of quail and one allele of kelch, two previously identified maternal-effect genes. Through complementation tests with various viable mutants and deficiencies in the region, a total of 18 loci were identified in an interval of about 30 cytologically visible bands. The region was subdivided into seven subregions by deficiency breakpoints. One lethal complementation group as well as the two maternal loci, Bic-D and quail, are located in the same deficiency interval as is dl.     

Antibody-nucleic acid interactions. Monoclonal antibodies define different antigenic domains in 2',5'-oligoadenylates

To define the epitopes involved in binding anti-oligonucleotide antibodies, several hybridomas producing monoclonal antibodies directed against 2',5'-oligoadenylate were established. A solid-phase enzyme-linked immunoassay that employed microtiter wells coated with Ficoll-2',5'-oligoadenylate conjugates proved useful in screening and characterizing hybridoma supernatants. Control experiments demonstrated that the conjugates were irreversibly adsorbed to polystyrene wells under the conditions employed in the assay. Reactivity of monoclonal antibodies with numerous analogues of 2',5'-oligoadenylate was measured by using a competition assay. Several monoclonal antibodies originating from different mice immunized with the same or different immunogens possessed distinctive fine specificities. At least one 2',5'-phosphodiester bond was important in forming each epitope, suggesting that the ribose phosphate backbone is a critical element in defining an antigenic domain of an oligonucleotide. The purine bases were also important, and modification of the bases had varied effects on the extent of antibody recognition. The length of the oligonucleotide and the nature of the termini were also of some importance. In several instances the modification created by linkage of 2',5'-oligoadenylate to carrier protein also contributed to the determinant. The monoclonal antibody most specific for 2',5'-oligoadenylates was relatively insensitive to ionic strength. In contrast, a monoclonal antibody with a 2',5'-oligopurine specificity appeared to bind 2',5'-oligoadenylate through one ion pair, whereas the binding of a monoclonal antibody with a low degree of base specificity appeared to bind through two ion pairs. The results demonstrated that 2',5'-linked oligoadenylate-protein complexes possess at least three distinct oligonucleotide-related antigenic surfaces that can be recognized with high apparent affinity by monoclonal antibodies. A model for the three epitopes is presented.     

Genotype-specific soluble auxin-binding in etiolated pea epicotyls

Using different independent procedures for assaying soluble auxin-binding in etiolated pea epicotyls, wo could prove the reliability of the (XH₄)₂SO₄-pelleting assay both for crude cytosols as well as for specific protein fractions obtained after chromatofocusing. Three distinct genotypes (two parent lines, one tall recombinant) investigated so far exhibit characteristic differences with respect to soluble auxin-binding kinetics in their cytosols.