Fetal fibronectin in patients at increased risk for premature birth.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate fetal fibronectin as a screening test for subsequent preterm birth in asymptomatic pregnant women.

Study Design: Eighty-seven pregnant women at increased risk for preterm birth underwent weekly sampling of cervicovaginal secretions beginning in the middle of the second trimester and continuing until delivery or until 34 weeks of gestation, with quantitative measurement for fetal fibronectin. In addition, assessment of cervical dilatation, uterine activity, and tocolytic therapy was performed with each sampling.

Fetal cells in the maternal circulation. Technical considerations for practical application to prenatal diagnosis.

Recent advances in cell separation technology and DNA analytic techniques leave little doubt as to the presence of fetal cells in the maternal circulation. The potential of using these cells for genetic analysis is compelling. The practical aspects of establishing a universal method utilizing the new capabilities in clinical practice have not been addressed to date.

Fetal fibronectin in cervical and vaginal secretions as a predictor of preterm delivery.

Background: Preterm delivery is the leading cause of neonatal mortality in the United States, but efforts to address the problem are hampered by the inability to predict accurately which pregnancies are at risk. We postulated that damage to the fetal membranes may release fetal fibronectin into the cervix and vagina, giving rise to a biochemical marker for preterm delivery.

Methods: We measured fetal-fibronectin concentrations in cervical and vaginal secretions, amniotic fluid, and maternal plasma with a sensitive immunoassay using the monoclonal antibody FDC-6.

Treatment of a syngeneic rat tumor with magnetically responsive albumin microspheres labeled with doxorubicin or protein A.

The tumoricidal activity of magnetically responsive albumin microspheres tagged with either doxorubicin or Staphylococcal protein A was tested against an induced mammary adenocarcinoma, 13762, implanted subcutaneously in the tail of female Fischer-344 rats. Magnetically responsive albumin microspheres containing Fe3O4 particles were prepared by an emulsion polymerization method incorporating either doxorubicin or protein A into the albumin matrix. Microspheres were produced with an average diameter of 1 micron (0.

In vivo alteration of RES phagocytosis by magnetic albumin microspheres.

The effect of non-localized magnetically responsive albumin microspheres (MR-AMS) on RES phagocytic function was investigated. MR-AMS and MR-AMS containing Adriamycin (MR-AMS-ADR) were injected intravenously in rats at a dose which saturated all RES phagocytes. The ability of the RES to clear the bloodstream of a subsequent suspension of MR-AMS or streptococci was then analyzed over a three day period.