Skin tags: a cutaneous marker for colonic polyps.

The relation between adenomatous colonic polyps and the development of adenocarcinoma of the colon is well established. An association between skin tags and colonic polyps in patients with acromegaly has also been reported. To ascertain if skin tags are a cutaneous marker for colonic polyps independent of the presence of acromegaly, 100 men referred for colonoscopy were studied.

A randomized prospective study of vindesine versus doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide in the treatment of epidermoid lung cancer.

A randomized prospective study was conducted comparing vindesine (VDS) with doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (D/C) in the treatment of advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the lung. No patient had a complete response. Seven of 28 (25%) patients had partial response (PR) to VDS while one of 19 (5%) had a PR to D/C (P less than 0.

Psychological status among female candidates for surgical treatment of obesity.

The identification of patients who suffer psychosocial complications after surgical treatment for obesity remains an unresolved problem. Some researchers have tried to identify the psychological status of patients prior to surgery, but have been hampered by lack of an adequate methodology to handle surgical candidates as a psychologically heterogeneous group. The present studies of this problem utilized the multivariate method of profile analysis.

Vindesine (VDS) monochemotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer: a report of 45 cases.

Fifty-three patients with non-small cell lung cancer were treated with vindesine. Of the 45 evaluable patients, 11 (24%) had a partial response. Responses were all evident within 6 weeks.

Actin mutations in a human fibroblast model for carcinogenesis.

We assessed the modulation of gene expression accompanying neoplastic transformation by computerized microdensitometry of autoradiographic patterns of [35S]-methionine-labeled polypeptides separated by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Nearly 1000 polypeptide species of parent diploid human fibroblasts (KD strain) and clonally-derived malignant fibroblasts (HUT-14 strain) were compared. We found that the neoplastic HUT-14 fibroblasts express a mutation in one of the two functional beta-actin genes.

Changes in gene expression accompanying chemically-induced malignant transformation of human fibroblasts.

The modulation of gene expression accompanying neoplastic transformation has been assessed by computerized microdensitometry or autoradiographic patterns of [35S]methionine labeled polypeptides separated by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Nearly 1000 polypeptide species of parent diploid human fibroblasts (KD strain) and clonally-derived malignant fibroblasts (HUT-14 strain) were compared. HUT-14 fibroblasts express a mutation in one of the two functional beta-actin genes and possess properties that distinguish them as neoplastic cells.

Exposure of urban applicators to carbaryl.

Thirty-eight urban volunteers from the Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska areas were monitored for carbaryl exposure during the summer of 1979. All volunteers were involved in the application of carbaryl incidental to their employment or leisure activities. The investigators made no attempt to affect the method of carbaryl application.

Exposure of professional pesticide applicators to carbaryl.

Dermal and respiratory exposure, and erythrocyte and serum acetylcholinesterase activity were monitored on two groups of professional pesticide applicators spraying trees with carbaryl. The mean dermal exposure to the first group was 128 mg hr-1 of carbaryl and the mean respiratory exposure was 0.1 mg hr-1.

Mutated beta-actin gene: coexpression with an unmutated allele in a chemically transformed human fibroblast cell line.

By in vitro translation, we have identified the mRNA species that codes for a novel actin polypeptide (Ax-actin) in the chemically transformed human fibroblast line HuT-14. The relatedness of the coding sequences of the Ax- and beta-actin genes is indicated by our finding that pcDd actin ITL-I DNA, a recombinant plasmid DNA that contains a DNA sequence complementary to actin mRNA of Dictyostelium discoideum, hybridizes both the Ax-actin mRNA and the beta-actin mRNA but not the gamma-actin mRNA. In contrast, pcHa-1 DNA, a recombinant plasmid constructed by cloning a DNA sequence complementary to human actin mRNA from HuT-14 cells into pBR322, hybridized to all three mRNA species.

Coexpression of a mutant beta-actin and the two normal beta- and gamma-cytoplasmic actins in a stably transformed human cell line.

HUT 14 is a cloned transformed cell line derived from normal diploid human KD fibroblasts. HUT 14 cells have an altered actin phenotype. In addition to the two nonmuscle actins beta and gamma, also present in the parent KD cells, they show the stable expression of a novel actin species (Ax-actin).

Dissimilar modes of expression of beta- and gamma-actin in normal and leukemic human T lymphocytes.

Actin polypeptides are the most abundant protein components of replicating normal human T lymphocytes, comprising 16% of the total cellular protein. Unlike other replicating cell types which synthesize equal proportions of beta- and gamma-actin polypeptides, T cells synthesize beta-actin as the predominant species. By contrast, leukemic T cells (the Molt-4 cell line) synthesize nearly equal proportions of beta- and gamma-actin.

Expression of a variant form of actin and additional polypeptide changes following chemical-induced in vitro neoplastic transformation of human fibroblasts.

Malignant human fibroblasts, transformed in vitro by a single chemical treatment, and the untransformed parental cells have been compared by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of their proteins. One transformed cell line, HUT-14, exhibits an abundance of a new polypeptide, A' (pI 5.2; molecular weight 44,000), amounting to approximately 3% of the cellular protein.

Pancreatic exocrine function.

Stimulation of the pancreatic secretion of water, electrolytes, and enzymes is under neurohumoral control sensitive to the ingestion and digestion of food. Hormones interact to maximize physiologic responses to a meal and to autoregulate pancreatic secretion. Clinical manifestations of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency may result from obstruction to pancreatic flow through the major duct or to destructive disease of the exocrine cells; this insufficiency is a consequence of reduced volume, electrolytes, and enzyme output.