The relationship between proliferation and apoptosis in patients with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance or multiple myeloma.

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a clonal neoplastic lymphoproliferative disease affecting terminally differentiated B cells i.e. plasma cells characterized by slow proliferation activity and different resistance to apoptosis with latent accumulation of myeloma cells in the bone marrow.

[Bortezomib (Velcade) in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma--the first experience in the Czech Republic].

Background: Multiple myeloma is the second most prevalent and mostly fatal hematologic cancer. Further advances have been made in understanding the mechanisms involved in the myeloma pathogenesis and elucidation of critical signalling pathways as therapeutical targets. Proteasome inhibitors are the example of this new approach and bortezomib is the first agent in this class to enter clinical trials.

Scintigraphy using (99m)Tc-MIBI (sestamibi), a sensitive parameter of activity of multiple myeloma.

Technetium-99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile ((99m)Tc-MIBI) has been shown to be useful in identifying several types of tumors, such as breast, brain, thyroid gland, malignant lymphomas and multiple myeloma. In this study, 102 patients with multiple myeloma (MM) and 32 patients with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) had been evaluated for correlation between (99m)Tc-MIBI and biochemical and hematological markers of activity of the disease. Significant statistical correlation was found between summary score (SS) of (99m)Tc-MIBI scintigrams and beta2-microglobulin (p<0.

Macrophages overloaded with tissue debris in Wegener's granulomatosis.

Objectives: To analyse some scavenging related molecules in Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) macrophages.

Methods: Immunohistochemical staining of lung, nasopharynx, and skin for macrophage markers related to scavenging (macrophage scavenger receptor MARCO, collagenase-1 and gelatinase-B), formation of multinuclear foreign body giant cells (ADAM 9/meltrin-gamma and ADAM 12/meltrin-alpha), and cell debris derived from neutrophils, endothelial cells and mast cells (specific granule protein 28 (SGP28), von Willebrand factor (vWF) and mast cell tryptase, respectively). TechMate staining robot and biotin-streptavidin protocol were used.

A contribution to examination of propidium iodide and annexin V plasma cells indices in multiple myeloma.

The aim of this study was a contemporaneous measurement and a mutual comparison of plasma cells proliferative activity and grade of apoptosis in patients with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) and various phases of MM i.e. smoldering (SMM), stable/plateau and active (progression/relapse) forms of this disease.