Systematic list, geographic distribution and ecological significance of lady beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) from the West Bank (Central Palestine).

We surveyed and identified species of lady beetles from the West Bank to document their geographic distribution and understand their ecological significance. This study documents the presence of 35 species of Coccinellidae in 19 genera belonging to 10 tribes and 6 subfamilies. Seven species (mostly very rare), out of the 35 documented, are recorded for the first time in the area studied.

Systematics, distribution and ecological analysis of rodents in Jordan.

Distributional and ecological data were given to all rodents of Jordan. The rodent fauna of Jordan consists of 28 species with 20 genera in eight families (Cricetidae, Dipodidae, Gliridae, Hystricidae, Muridae, Myocastoridae, Sciuridae,and Spalacidae), including four introduced species.Keys for families and species were provided, along with diagnosis for each species and cranial illustrations for most species.

Exploring factors contributing to injury severity at freeway merging and diverging locations in Ohio.

Identifying factors that affect crash injury severity and understanding how these factors affect injury severity is critical in planning and implementing highway safety improvement programs. Factors such as driver-related, traffic-related, environment-related and geometric design-related were considered when developing statistical models to predict the effects of these factors on the severity of injuries sustained from motor vehicle crashes at merging and diverging locations. Police-reported crash data at selected freeway merging and diverging areas in the state of Ohio were used for the development of the models.

Central review of cytogenetics is necessary for cooperative group correlative and clinical studies of adult acute leukemia: the Cancer and Leukemia Group B experience.

The Cancer and Leukemia Group B has performed central review of karyotypes submitted by institutional cytogenetics laboratories from patients with acute myeloid (AML) and acute lymphoblastic (ALL) leukemia since 1986. We assessed the role of central karyotype review in maintaining accurate, high quality cytogenetic data for clinical and translational studies using two criteria: the proportion of karyotypes rejected (i.e.

Genome profiling of ovarian adenocarcinomas using pangenomic BACs microarray comparative genomic hybridization.

Background: Routine cytogenetic investigations for ovarian cancers are limited by culture failure and poor growth of cancer cells compared to normal cells. Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (FISH) application or classical comparative genome hybridization techniques are also have their own limitations in detecting genome imbalance especially for small changes that are not known ahead of time and for which FISH probes could not be thus designed.

Methods: We applied microarray comparative genomic hybridization (A-CGH) using one mega base BAC arrays to investigate chromosomal disorders in ovarian adenocarcinoma in patients with familial history.

CytoAccess, a relational laboratory information management system for a clinical cytogenetics laboratory.

We developed a CytoAccess laboratory management system based on the widely used Microsoft Access software to facilitate data processing, result reporting, and quality management for a full-service cytogenetics laboratory. The CytoAccess system consists of four functional modules. The data entry module is for logging in patient information.

Karyotype-phenotype insights from 11q14.1-q23.2 interstitial deletions: FZD4 haploinsufficiency and exudative vitreoretinopathy in a patient with a complex chromosome rearrangement.

We detected a unique de novo complex chromosome rearrangement (CCR) in a patient with multiple abnormalities including growth retardation, facial anomalies, exudative vitreoretinopathy (EVR), cleft palate, and minor digital anomalies. Cytogenetic analysis, fluorescent in situ hybridization, and microsatellite genotyping showed a reciprocal translocation between chromosomes 5 and 8, and a complex translocation-deletion-inversion process in the formation of derivative chromosomes 11 and 16. High-density whole-genome oligonucleotide array comparative genomic hybridization (oaCGH) defined a 35-megabase interstitial deletion of 11q14.

RET/papillary thyroid cancer rearrangement in nonneoplastic thyrocytes: follicular cells of Hashimoto's thyroiditis share low-level recombination events with a subset of papillary carcinoma.

Context: RET/papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is a marker for papillary thyroid carcinoma, but its specificity has been questioned because of the disputed identification of RET/PTC in Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT), oncocytic tumors, and other thyroid lesions.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine 1) whether RET/PTC occurs in nonneoplastic follicular cells of HT, and 2) its recombination rate in thyroid tumors.

Design/patients: Forty-three samples from 31 cases of HT were examined using interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with RET probes spanning the breakpoint region; real-time RT-PCR to quantify RET/PTC1, RET/PTC3, and c-RET transcripts; and RT-PCR after laser capture microdissection to enrich samples for follicular cells.

Pretreatment cytogenetics add to other prognostic factors predicting complete remission and long-term outcome in patients 60 years of age or older with acute myeloid leukemia: results from Cancer and Leukemia Group B 8461.

We investigated the relative prognostic significance of cytogenetics in 635 adult acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients 60 years of age or older treated on front-line protocols. Classification trees and tree-structured survival analysis (TSSA) were used to identify important cytogenetic groups, and their prognostic significance was then assessed in multivariable analysis (MVA). Overall, 48.

Array comparative genomic hybridization profiling of first-trimester spontaneous abortions that fail to grow in vitro.

Objectives: Cytogenetic analysis of spontaneous abortion samples can be limited by culture failure. Failure to grow in vitro has traditionally been suspected to be due to in vivo death of tissue associated with spontaneous abortion (SAB) or simply technical factors of growth in culture.

Method: We used array comparative genomic hybridization (array CGH) to investigate chromosomal imbalances in products of conception that failed to grow in vitro.

Natural killer cell lymphoma/leukemia with homozygous loss of p27/kip1.

We describe a case of natural killer (NK) cell lymphoma/leukemia with only an interstitial deletion in the short arm of chromosome 12 as the primary event. Fluorescence in situ hybridization revealed that the ETV6 locus (12p13) and subtelomeric sequences are not deleted in the process. The p27/kip1 locus (12p12-13), a candidate tumor suppressor gene, was deleted on the abnormal chromosome.

Rapid array-based genomic characterization of a subtle structural abnormality: a patient with psychosis and der(18)t(5;18)(p14.1;p11.23).

Array-based copy number analysis has recently emerged as a rapid means of mapping complex and/or subtle chromosomal abnormalities. We have compared two such techniques, using bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays in the evaluation of a 45-year-old woman with dysmorphic features, mental retardation, psychosis, and an unbalanced derivative chromosome 18, (46,XX, der(18)t(18;?)(p12;?)). Both array-based methods demonstrated that the additional material on chromosome 18 was of 5p origin.

Telomerase prolongs the lifespan of normal human ovarian surface epithelial cells without inducing neoplastic phenotype.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of exogenous expression of the catalytic subunit of telomerase (hTERT) on the lifespan, growth characteristics, and tumorigenicity of normal human ovarian surface epithelial (OSE) cells.

Methods: Low-passage primary cultures of normal human OSE cells were transfected with hTERT and the resulting cell lines were characterized.

Results: The ectopic expression of hTERT stabilized the telomeres of the OSE cultures above 8 kb.

Perivascular epithelioid cell tumor (PEComa) of the uterine cervix associated with intraabdominal "PEComatosis": A clinicopathological study with comparative genomic hybridization analysis.

Background: The World Health Organization recently recognized a family of neoplasms showing at least partial morphological or immunohistochemical evidence of a putative perivascular epithelioid cell (PEC) differentiation. These tumors include angiomyolipoma (AML), clear cell "sugar" tumors of the lung (CCST), lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), clear cell myomelanocytic tumors of the falciform ligament and distinctive clear cell tumors at various other anatomic sites.

Case Presentation & Methods: A 41-year old gravida-1 para-1 with tuberous sclerosis presented with an incidentally identified 2.

Cytogenetic abnormalities and the failure of development after round spermatid injections.

Objective: To assess cytologic and cytogenetic abnormalities following round spermatid injection.

Design: Prospective analysis.

Setting: In vitro fertilization centers.

A novel immortalized human endometrial stromal cell line with normal progestational response.

Obtaining primary human endometrial stromal cells (HESCs) for in vitro studies is limited by the scarcity of adequate human material and the inability to passage these cells in culture for long periods. Immortalization of these cells would greatly facilitate studies; however, the process of immortalization often results in abnormal karyotypes and aberrant functional characteristics. To meet this need, we have introduced telomerase into cultured HESCs to prevent the normal shortening of telomeres observed in adult somatic cells during mitosis.

FOXC1 gene deletion is associated with eye anomalies in ring chromosome 6.

We report a case of ring chromosome 6 presenting with growth and mental retardation, cerebral dysgenesis, eye malformations, mixed hearing loss, and abnormal physical features. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) and microsatellite genotyping demonstrated segmental deletions of less than 6 Mb on 6p and 1-2 Mb on 6q. The primary karyotype is designated as 46,XY,r(6)(p25q27).

Real-time quantitative RT-PCR of cyclin D1 mRNA in mantle cell lymphoma: comparison with FISH and immunohistochemistry.

Presence of the balanced translocation t(11;14)(q13;q32) and the consequent overexpression of cyclin D1 found in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) has been shown to be of important diagnostic value. Although many molecular and immunohistochemical approaches have been applied to analyze cyclin D1 status, correlative studies to compare different methods for the diagnosis of MCL are lacking. In this study, we examined 39 archived paraffin specimens from patients diagnosed with a variety of lymphoproliferative diseases including nine cases meeting morphologic and immunophenotypic criteria for MCL by: (1) real-time quantitative RT-PCR to evaluate cyclin D1 mRNA expression; (2) dual fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to evaluate the t(11;14) translocation in interphase nuclei; and (3) tissue array immunohistochemistry to evaluate the cyclin D1 protein level.

Morphological and cytogenetic analysis of intact oocytes and blocked zygotes.

We examined cytological and cytogenetic parameters of 1076 oocytes and 385 zygotes that failed to develop post in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Out of 1076 oocytes, 894 (83%) arrested oocytes showed a first polar body and were thus assumed arrested at metaphase II while the remainder showed no polar body. In the group of oocytes with a polar body, 20.

Double supernumerary isodicentric chromosomes derived from 15 resulting in partial hexasomy.

We report two unrelated patients each with two supernumerary marker chromosomes (SMCs) derived from chromosome 15, and thus resulting in partial hexasomy. Hexasomy in the one case (family 1) was diagnosed at prenatal diagnosis and did not include the Prader-Willi/Angelman critical region (PWACR). The double SMCs were also found in the mother, the pregnancy continued to term, and an apparently phenotypically normal child was born.

F-MuLV acceleration of myelomonocytic tumorigenesis in SV40 large T antigen transgenic mice is accompanied by retroviral insertion at Fli1 and a novel locus, Fim4.

We describe here the development of a murine system for the identification of genes involved in myelomonocytic neoplasms. Transgenic C57BL/6J mice expressing SV40 early region under a myelomonocytic promoter develop histiocytic sarcomas with a latency of 167 days. We used retroviral proviral tagging to accelerate tumorigenesis and to uncover genetic changes that contribute to tumor development.