Low-cost metaphase finder system.

In counting chromosome aberrations at low-dose radiation exposure in biological dosimetry, an automation technique has been required to process a large number of sample preparations. The metaphase finder is an automated optical microscope system, which automatically scans and finds metaphase cells on the slide glass in low magnification and relocates metaphase cells to the center of the field of view of the microscope to observe chromosomes in high magnification. The authors have constructed a cost-effective metaphase finder system by assembling commercially-available components, such as microscopes, motorized sample stages, personal computers and general-purpose image analysis software, instead of purchasing one dedicated system.

Dose limits below which the effect of radiation on health becomes undetectable due to background variation.

To clarify the low-dose limit at which the effect of radiation on health becomes undetectable is important in the regulation of radiation. As one of a series of cytogenetical studies on the effect of radiation on health, we present low-dose limits determined by analyzing the background frequencies of translocations in the lymphocytes of people living in normal circumstances. The frequencies of translocations in the lymphocytes were analyzed in 20 non-smokers (61.

Investigation of new cytogenetic biomarkers specific to high-LET radiation using in vivo and in vitro exposed human lymphocytes.

Purpose: To find detectable cytogenetic biomarkers that can offer information about the radiation quality of in vivo exposure retrospectively.

Materials And Methods: Chromosome-type aberrations of peripheral lymphocytes of uterine cancer patients that received internal gamma- and external X-ray therapy or carbon beam therapy and of victims severely exposed to neutrons and gamma-rays in a criticality accident that occurred in Tokai-mura, Japan were analysed. Data obtained from in vitro irradiation experiments using 60Co gamma-rays and 10 MeV neutrons were compared with the in vivo exposure data.

Growth factor-mediated interaction between tumor cells and stromal fibroblasts in an experimental model of human small-cell lung cancer.

Malignant tumors induce development of their own stromal tissues during the processes of growth, progression and metastasis. Since the vascular architecture among the various stromal elements is well known to facilitate tumor growth and has been a target of therapy, the importance of stromal fibroblasts has recently been established. To elucidate the interaction between the tumor and its stromal fibroblasts, the present study took advantage of a unique experimental model consisting of a human small-cell lung cancer cell line, WA-ht, and its mouse stromal fibroblast cell line, WA-mFib, both originally derived from a xenograft tumor in a mouse subcutis.

Effect of smoking on chromosomes compared with that of radiation in the residents of a high-background radiation area in China.

Cytogenetic investigation of stable-type aberrations (translocations) was carried out with our improved methods on 28 elderly individuals in a high-background radiation area (HBRA) in China, and on 24 elderly individuals in a control area (CA). The level of radiation in HBRA is 3 to 5 times higher than in CA. The mean frequencies of translocations per 1,000 cells in HBRA and CA were 12.

Characterization of ionizing radiation-induced ring chromosomes by atomic force microscopy.

We applied atomic force microscopy (AFM) to the structural analysis of radiation-induced ring chromosomes. Constrictions observed on the metaphase ring chromosome were found to correspond to the centromere regions of the ring chromosome in comparison with the AFM image of the centromere of rod chromosomes and with the fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) technique. Section analysis by AFM revealed that some ring-like chromosome fragments and ring-like chromatid fragments were thicker than standard chromosomes or chromatids, suggesting that they were ring chromosomes viewed edge on.

Effect of high-level natural radiation on chromosomes of residents in southern China.

To study the effect of low-dose (rate) radiation on human health, we analyzed chromosomes of peripheral lymphocytes of residents in a high background radiation area (HBRA) and compared the results with those obtained from residents in a control area (CA) in Guangdong Province, China. Unstable types of chromosome aberrations (dicentrics and rings) were studied in 22 members of eight families in HBRA and 17 members of five families in CA. Each family consists of three generations.

Dynamic analysis of chromosome aberrations in three victims of the Tokai-mura criticality accident.

Purpose: To investigate the dynamics of chromosome aberrations in the blood cells of three workers severely exposed to neutrons and gamma-rays in a criticality accident that occurred in Tokai-mura, Japan, in 1999.

Materials And Methods: The change with time of the frequency of' chromosome aberrations in the three patients was examined using a new analysis to score drug-induced prematurely condensed ring chromosomes (PCC-R) and a conventional meta-phase analysis.

Results: The frequencies and cellular distributions of PCC-R, dicentrics and rings did not change significantly among the samples obtained at 9-48h after the accident while the first depletion of lymphocytes occurred.

Cytogenetical dose estimation for 3 severely exposed patients in the JCO criticality accident in Tokai-mura.

A dose estimation by chromosome analysis was performed on the 3 severely exposed patients in the Tokai-mura criticality accident. Drastically reduced lymphocyte counts suggested that the whole-body dose of radiation which they had been exposed to was unprecedentedly high. Because the number of lymphocytes in the white blood cells in two patients was very low, we could not culture and harvest cells by the conventional method.

Induction of asymmetrical type of chromosomal aberrations in cultured human lymphocytes by ion beams of different energies at varying LET from HIMAC and RRC.

Frequencies of asymmetrical type of chromosome aberration were scored in cultured human blood lymphocytes irradiated with carbon and neon beams. Blood cells were irradiated with various doses to establish dose response curves for chromosome aberration frequency vs. dose, and chromosome preparation was made by conventional method.

Structural analysis of heavy ion radiation-induced chromosome aberrations by atomic force microscopy.

Heavy ion radiation (high linear energy transfer, LET, radiation) induces various types of chromosome aberration. In this report, we describe a new method employing an atomic force microscope (AFM) for nanometer-level structural analysis of chromosome damage induced by heavy ion irradiation. Metaphase mouse chromosomes with chromatid gap or chromatid breaks induced by heavy ion irradiation were marked under a light microscope.

Chromosome translocation in residents of the high background radiation areas in southern China.

We performed a cytogenetical study using chromosome painting analysis on 9 residents of the naturally high background radiation areas (HBRA) and 8 residents of the control areas in southern China. The estimated dose (air kerma) of each resident measured by an electric pocket dosimeter showed 2.20-4.

Chromosome aberrations in bone marrow cells from Japanese patients with thorotrastosis.

Exposure of bone marrow cells to alpha-particle radiation causes various types of chromosome abnormalities and hematological malignancies. We performed chromosome analysis of hematopoietic stem cells from the bone marrow of 52 Japanese patients with thorotrastosis and 21 age-matched controls. The frequency of cells with stable chromosome abnormalities was significantly higher in the patients with thorotrastosis.

New system for assessing the prognosis of refractory anemia patients.

Refractory anemia (RA) is a very heterogeneous disease regarding biological and clinical features. The International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS) was useful for assessing the prognosis in the whole group of 219 myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) patients. However, the IPSS was not sufficient in 132 RA patients.

Non-fluorescent chromosome painting using the peroxidase/diaminobenzidine (DAB) reaction.

Purpose: To develop and validate non-fluorescent chromosome painting for bright-field microscopy using the peroxidase/diaminobenzidine (DAB) reaction.

Materials And Methods: Peripheral blood lymphocytes were taken from patients with uterine cancer who had received heavy-ion radiation therapy. Chromosome slides were treated with RNase and pepsin, denatured mildly, hybridized with a biotinylated DNA probe specific for whole-chromosome 4 and stained using the peroxidase/DAB reaction with an avidin-biotin amplification.

Establishment of novel cell lines derived from two patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia in blast crisis; IMS-BC1 and IMS-BC2 which exhibit markedly different sensitivity to apoptosis.

We established two novel cell lines, designated as IMS-BC1 and IMS-BC2, from two patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia in blast crisis. The two cell lines were positive for CD13 and CD33 and negative for CD34 and HLA-DR by surface marker analysis. IMS-BC1 had four Philadelphia (Ph1) chromosomes and a breakpoint within the 3'-portion of M-bcr, and IMS-BC2 had five Ph1 chromosomes and two breakpoints within the 3'- and 5'-portions of M-bcr.

Refractory anemia with severe dysplasia: clinical significance of morphological features in refractory anemia.

Refractory anemia (RA) in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are very heterogeneous diseases regarding their morphology, clinical features and survival. We proposed the new designations 'RA with severe dysplasia (RASD)' and 'RA with minimal dysplasia (RAminiD)'. In our criteria, RASD is considered present if a bone marrow (BM) examination shows Pseudo-Pelger-Huet anomalies of mature neutrophils > or =3% and/or micromegakaryocytes (mMgk) of megakaryocytes > or =10% in RA patients.

Bone marrow patterns in patients with aplastic anaemia and myelodysplastic syndrome: observations with magnetic resonance imaging.

Bone marrow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was obtained in 48 patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) (35 cases) or aplastic anaemia (AA) (13 cases). The lower thoracic and lumbar spine were evaluated on sagittal plane using a 1.5 Tesla superconducting MR unit with a surface coil.

Sideroblastic anemia associated with multiple myeloma in Turner's syndrome.

A 67-year-old female was admitted to our hospital because of pancytopenia. Forty-six percent of erythroblasts in the bone marrow were ringed sideroblasts. Laboratory findings showed an IgG-kappa monoclonal gammopathy.

A hematological remission by clonal hematopoiesis after treatment with recombinant human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor and erythropoietin in a patient with therapy-related myelodysplastic syndrome.

We treated a patient with therapy-related myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) with human recombinant granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and erythropoietin (Epo). The patient achieved a hematological remission which continued for more than 16 months despite discontinuation of the treatment. Before the treatment with GM-CSF and Epo the patient had severe pancytopenia, required frequent red cell transfusions, and experienced episodes of severe infection, but after the therapy he no longer needed transfusion and no longer had the infection.

Chromosomal insertion and amplification of human papillomavirus 16 DNA sequences in a cell line of argyrophil small cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix.

The chromosomal location of human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 DNA sequences integrated in a cell line derived from argyrophil small cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix was determined by means of fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). The HPV 16 DNA sequences were integrated near a fragile site and the location of the c-myc oncogene at 8q24.1.

Transformation of bilineal hybrid acute leukemia to acute lymphoid leukemia: a case report with serial analyses of cytogenetics and gene rearrangement.

A 17-year-old male with bilineal hybrid acute leukemia is described. Two-color flow cytometric analysis of blast surface phenotype revealed that there were two groups of blasts which showed either CD 10+ CD 19+ CD 13- CD 33- or CD 10- CD 19- CD 13+ CD 33+, but not both. He developed a complete remission by treatment with vincristine, prednisolone, adriamycin, and L-asparaginase.

[Prominent lymphadenopathy and double Ph1 chromosomes as initial and recurrent manifestations of chronic myelogenous leukemia in blast crisis: report of a case and review of the literature].

A 60-year-old woman was admitted because of fatigue. Physical examination revealed prominent peripheral lymphadenopathy, marked tonsillar swelling and hepatosplenomegaly. The leukocyte count was 68,900/microliters with 75% lymphoid blasts and 5% basophils.