Early and late postnatal lung distribution of collagen type VI in preterm and term infants.

Collagen type VI (COL6) is an important component of the extracellular matrix (EM) and may have a major role in lung development and disease. Studies on COL6 expression during lung development are mainly based on animal models. The aim of the study was to define COL6 expression pattern in lung parenchyma in infants with different lung maturational stages.

The Incidence of Necrotizing Enterocolitis and Late-Onset Sepsis during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Sweden: A Population-Based Cohort Study.

Introduction: The effect of the pandemic restrictions in the NICUs is not well studied. Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is characterized by intestinal inflammation and bacterial invasion. This study aimed to investigate whether the incidence of NEC has changed during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden and whether it was associated with a change in the frequency of extremely preterm births.

Collagen type IV alpha 1 chain (COL4A1) expression in the developing human lung.

Background: Collagen type IV alpha 1 chain (COL4A1) in the basement membrane is an important component during lung development, as suggested from animal models where COL4A1 has been shown to regulate alveolarization and angiogenesis. Less is known about its role in human lung development. Our aim was to study COL4A1 expression in preterm infants with different lung maturational and clinical features.

Paneth cell proteins DEFA6 and GUCA2A as tissue markers in necrotizing enterocolitis.

Unlabelled: Previous studies suggest that Paneth cells are involved in NEC development. Defensin alpha 6 (DEFA6) and guanylate cyclase activator 2A (GUCA2A) are selective protein markers of Paneth cells. The objective was to explore DEFA6 and GUCA2A expression in intestinal tissue samples from newborn infants with and without NEC.

Vascular adhesion protein-1 expression is reduced in the intestines of infants with necrotizing enterocolitis: an observational research study.

Background: Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is an inflammatory bowel disease in preterm neonates with high morbidity and mortality. The only treatment available is supportive with broad-spectrum antibiotics and gastrointestinal rest. Better understanding of the pathogenesis is crucial for the development of new therapies.

Early Postnatal Comprehensive Biomarkers Cannot Identify Extremely Preterm Infants at Risk of Developing Necrotizing Enterocolitis.

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a fatal disease where current diagnostic tools are insufficient for preventing NEC. Early predictive biomarkers could be beneficial in identifying infants at high risk of developing NEC. To explore early biomarkers for predicting NEC in extremely preterm infants (EPIs).

Cluster Analysis of Early Postnatal Biochemical Markers May Predict Development of Retinopathy of Prematurity.

Purpose: Growth factors and inflammatory and angiogenetic proteins are involved in the development of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). However, no early biochemical markers are in clinical use to predict ROP. By performing cluster analysis of multiple biomarkers, we aimed to determine patient groups with high and low risk for developing ROP.

CD44 and RHAMM expression patterns in the human developing lung.

Background: The hyaluronan (HA) receptors CD44 and RHAMM (CD168) are involved in cellular proliferation, differentiation, and motility. As previously investigated, HA and RHAMM expression in human neonatal lungs correlates to gestational age (GA) and air content.

Methods: CD44 immunofluorescence was analyzed in postmortem lung samples from infants (n = 93; 22-41 GA) by digital image analysis together with clinical data, including RHAMM expression, lung air, and HA content by hierarchical clustering.

Diminished DEFA6 Expression in Paneth Cells Is Associated with Necrotizing Enterocolitis.

Background: Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is the most common gastrointestinal disorder in premature infants with a high morbidity and mortality. Paneth cell dysfunction has been suggested to be involved in the pathogenesis of NEC. Defensin alpha-6 (DEFA6) is a specific marker for Paneth cells acting as part of the innate immunity in the human intestines.

The receptor for hyaluronan-mediated motility (RHAMM) expression in neonatal bronchiolar epithelium correlates negatively with lung air content.

Introduction: Hyaluronan (HA) and the receptor for hyaluronan-mediated motility (RHAMM) may play an important role in lung development. We examined the expression of HA content and RHAMM during postnatal lung development by analyzing human lung specimens from newborn infants with a variety of lung diseases at different gestational (GA) and postnatal (PNA) ages.

Materials And Methods: Ninety-four patients were evaluated.

Inhibition of protein phosphatase-1 and -2A decreases the chemosensitivity of leukemic cells to chemotherapeutic drugs.

The phosphorylation of key proteins balanced by protein kinases and phosphatases are implicated in the regulation of cell cycle and apoptosis of malignant cells and influences anticancer drug actions. The efficacy of daunorubicin (DNR) in suppression of leukemic cell survival was investigated in the presence of tautomycin (TM) and calyculin A (CLA), specific membrane permeable inhibitors of protein phosphatase-1 (PP1) and -2A (PP2A), respectively. CLA (50 nM) or TM (1μM) suppressed viability of THP-1 and KG-1 myeloid leukemia cell lines to moderate extents; however, they significantly increased survival upon DNR-induced cell death.

Drug sensitivity patterns of HHV8 carrying body cavity lymphoma cell lines.

Background: Primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) is a rare KSHV/HHV8-associated high-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) of B-cell origin, characterized by serous effusions in body cavities. Most patients are HIV-infected men with severe immunosuppression and other HHV8-associated diseases such as Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). The prognosis for those infected is poor, with a median survival of less than 6 months in most cohorts.

Chronic lymphoid leukemia cells are highly sensitive to the combination of prednisolone and daunorubicin, but much less to doxorubicin or epirubicin.

Objective: To generate a comprehensive map of the drug sensitivity of chronic lymphoid leukemia cells (CLL) using a newly developed in vitro drug-sensitivity assay based on automated evaluation of cell viability on single-cell level.

Materials And Methods: Primary CLL cells from 77 patients were tested using automated digital fluorescence microscopy. The effect of 27 frequently used chemotherapeutic agents was measured in short-term fluorescence survival assay.

High-throughput live-cell imaging reveals differential inhibition of tumor cell proliferation by human fibroblasts.

Increasing evidence indicates that cancer development requires changes both in the precancerous cells and in their microenvironment. To study one aspect of the microenvironmental control, we departed from Michael Stoker's observation (Stroker et al, J Cell Sci 1966;1:297-310) that normal fibroblasts can inhibit the growth of admixed cancer cells (neighbour suppression). We have developed a high-throughput microscopy and image analysis system permitting the examination of live mixed cell cultures growing on 384-well plates, at the single cell level and over time.

NK cell-mediated lysis is essential to kill Epstein-Barr virus transformed lymphoblastoid B cells when using rituximab.

Rituximab is a humanized chimeric monoclonal antibody, targeted against the pan B cell marker CD20. It is frequently used to treat a variety of B cell lymphomas and immunosuppression associated lymphoproliferations such as posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD). The response rate of rituximab treatment is 65%, but the exact in vivo mechanism of action is not yet fully understood, although antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC), complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC), and direct induction of apoptosis have been suggested as effector mechanism.

Myosin phosphatase interacts with and dephosphorylates the retinoblastoma protein in THP-1 leukemic cells: its inhibition is involved in the attenuation of daunorubicin-induced cell death by calyculin-A.

Reversible phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma protein (pRb) is an important regulatory mechanism in cell cycle progression. The role of protein phosphatases is less understood in this process, especially concerning the regulatory/targeting subunits involved. It is shown that pretreatment of THP-1 leukemic cells with calyculin-A (CL-A), a cell-permeable phosphatase inhibitor, attenuated daunorubicin (DNR)-induced cell death and resulted in increased pRb phosphorylation and protection against proteolytic degradation.

Granulocyte colony stimulating factor increases drug resistance of leukaemic blast cells to daunorubicin.

Acute leukaemia is known as the most common cancer in childhood. Febrile neutropenia is a common serious side effect of the cytostatic treatment of malignancies. The clinical use of Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor (G-CSF) has become widespread to minimize chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression and febrile neutropenia in childhood solid tumors, acute lymphoid leukaemia (ALL) and in several trials with AML.

Effect of frequently used chemotherapeutic drugs on cytotoxic activity of human cytotoxic T-lymphocytes.

Tumors are considered to be possible targets of immunotherapy using stimulated and expanded cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTL). It is important to consider the drug-induced effects when chemotherapeutic regimens and CTL-mediated immunotherapy is planned to be used in parallel. In this study, we characterized the effect of 29 frequently used chemotherapeutic agents on the cytotoxic activity of autologous and allogeneic CTLs.

Hodgkin-lymphoma-derived cells show high sensitivity to dactinomycin and paclitaxel.

Depending on stage and risk factors, up to 30% of patients with advanced Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) progress or relapse. Patients with pleural effusions have a particularly poor prognosis and this stage of HL is regularly resistant to chemotherapy. All currently available HL cell lines are derived from late stage HL patients.

HHV-8 encoded LANA-1 alters the higher organization of the cell nucleus.

The latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA-1) of Human Herpes Virus 8 (HHV-8), alternatively called Kaposi Sarcoma Herpes Virus (KSHV) is constitutively expressed in all HHV-8 infected cells. LANA-1 accumulates in well-defined foci that co-localize with the viral episomes. We have previously shown that these foci are tightly associated with the borders of heterochromatin 1.

Effect of frequently used chemotherapeutic drugs on the cytotoxic activity of human natural killer cells.

Tumors are considered to be possible targets of immunotherapy using stimulated and expanded autologous or allogeneic natural killer (NK) cells mismatched for MHC class I molecules and inhibitory NK receptors. NK cell-based immunoadjuvant therapies are carried out in combination with standard chemotherapeutic protocols. In the presented study, we characterized the effect of 28 frequently used chemotherapeutic agents on the capacity of NK cells to kill target cells.

Cytotoxic drug sensitivity of Epstein-Barr virus transformed lymphoblastoid B-cells.

Background: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is the causative agent of immunosuppression associated lymphoproliferations such as post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD), AIDS related immunoblastic lymphomas (ARL) and immunoblastic lymphomas in X-linked lymphoproliferative syndrome (XLP). The reported overall mortality for PTLD often exceeds 50%. Reducing the immunosuppression in recipients of solid organ transplants (SOT) or using highly active antiretroviral therapy in AIDS patients leads to complete remission in 23-50% of the PTLD/ARL cases but will not suffice for recipients of bone marrow grafts.