Two cases of maternal alloimmunization against human neutrophil alloantigen-4b, one causing severe alloimmune neonatal neutropenia.

Background: Human neutrophil antigen (HNA)-4a/4bw is encoded by 230G>A in ITGAM, which results in an Arg61His substitution of the αM chain (CD11b) of complement receptor 3 (CR3; CD11b/18 or Mac-1). HNA-4a antibodies have been detected in the sera of female blood donors and in maternal sera that caused alloimmune neonatal neutropenia (ANN), in which maternal immunoglobulin (Ig)G antibodies against a paternally inherited HNA cross the placenta and destroy fetal and neonatal neutrophils. However, to date, antibodies specific for HNA-4b have not been reported.

Inherent interfacial mechanical gradients in 3D hydrogels influence tumor cell behaviors.

Cells sense and respond to the rigidity of their microenvironment by altering their morphology and migration behavior. To examine this response, hydrogels with a range of moduli or mechanical gradients have been developed. Here, we show that edge effects inherent in hydrogels supported on rigid substrates also influence cell behavior.

High-dose chemotherapy followed by reinfusion of a high number of CD34+ progenitor cells is frequently associated with development of fever in the postengraftment period.

Twenty-nine patients received high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation from June 1997 to December 1998. The number of CD34+ cells reinfused was 2.4 x 10(6) to 69.

Cadmium toxicity among wildlife in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.

Cadmium is known to be both extremely toxic and ubiquitous in natural environments. It occurs in almost all soils, surface waters and plants, and it is readily mobilized by human activities such as mining. As a result, cadmium has been named as a potential health threat to wildlife species; however, because it exists most commonly in the environment as a trace constituent, reported incidences of cadmium toxicity are rare.