Effects of in vivo treatment with interleukins 1beta and 6 on rat mesenteric vascular bed reactivity.

1. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a condition that involves proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukins 1beta and 6 (ILs). In this disease, it has been shown that an abnormal microcirculatory system is implicated.

Effects of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists on uterine volume and vasculature and on the immunohistochemical expression of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) in uterine leiomyomas.

We investigated the effect of the GnRH agonist (GnRH-a) on the uterine volume and on the immunohistochemical expression of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and the vasculature of leiomyomas. Twenty-five women were treated with leuprorelin acetate for 3 months; 46 untreated patients were enrolled as a control group. The uterine volume was measured by ultrasonography.

DNA immunization followed by a single boost with cells: a protein-free immunization protocol for production of monoclonal antibodies against the native form of membrane proteins.

Recent advancements in antibody-based therapies require the development of an efficient method for generation of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against the native form of membrane proteins. We examined DNA immunization followed by a single boost with cells as a protein-free immunization protocol for production of MAbs. Mice immunized with plasmid cDNAs encoding human CD30 or Ret tyrosine kinase were given a single boost with cells expressing the corresponding antigen prior to cell fusion.

[Gastric non-Hodgkin lymphoma: guidelines for the therapeutic approach].

The aims of this study were to contribute to the drawing up of guidelines for the therapeutic approach to primary gastric lymphoma and to identify the most effective sequence of treatment in the different stages of the disease. We conducted a retrospective analysis of the clinical data of 34 patients with primary gastric lymphoma admitted from 1993 to 2001 to the 4th General Surgery Department of the "Federico II" University in Naples. All the patients underwent surgical therapy and neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy.

Interleukins 1 beta and 6 induce functional alteration of rat colonic motility: an in vitro study.

Background: In rodents, interleukins administration induces intestinal changes similar to those found in inflammatory bowel disease. We investigated the effects of in vivo subchronic treatment with IL-1 beta and IL-6 on rat colonic mucosa and circular smooth muscle.

Materials And Method: We evaluated transmucosal electrical parameters (Ussing chambers) and early changes of in vitro direct contractility induced by carbachol and tachykinins.

In vitro and in vivo activity of tea tree oil against azole-susceptible and -resistant human pathogenic yeasts.

A tea tree oil (TTO) preparation of defined chemical composition was studied, using a microbroth method, for its in vitro activity against 115 isolates of Candida albicans, other Candida species and Cryptococcus neoformans. The fungal strains were from HIV-seropositive subjects, or from an established type collection, including reference and quality control strains. Fourteen strains of C.

Involvement of kappa-opioid receptors in peripheral response to nerve stimulation in kappa-opioid receptor knockout mice.

1 The present study aimed to evaluate the role of kappa-opioid receptors at two peripheral sites, the vas deferens and the proximal colon, in kappa-opioid receptor knockout mice. We investigated the role of the kappa-opioid receptor in the vas deferens twitch response and in the colonic "off-contraction", a rebound contractile response which follows the inhibitory response to low frequencies stimulation (10, 20, 30 Hz) and which has been suggested to "locally" reproduce the contractile component of the peristaltic reflex. 2 Transmural stimulation of the vas deferens at lower frequencies (10 Hz, 10 V, 1 ms pulse trains lasting 0.

Generation and characterization of novel monoclonal antibodies to the Ret receptor tyrosine kinase.

Ret is a tyrosine kinase receptor involved in several human diseases germ-line mutations are responsible for multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 syndromes while somatic mutations of Ret are found in sporadic medullary thyroid carcinomas. In the present work, we describe the generation and characterization of a panel of novel monoclonal antibodies to Ret obtained by immunizing mice with a Ret-FC fusion protein. Fifty-five independent monoclonal antibodies recognize Ret-FC by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay but not a non-related FC fusion protein.

Relationship between platelet-derived growth factor expression in leiomyomas and uterine volume changes after gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist treatment.

The unopposed estrogen effect is the main cause of leiomyoma growth and is at the basis of the clinical use of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists. Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) has been indicated as the main growth factor involved, in vitro in the proliferation response of leiomyoma smooth muscle cells to estrogen stimulation. The aim of this article is to evaluate the mitogenic action of PDGF in vivo by studying the relationship between PDGF expression in leiomyomas and post-GnRH analogue treatment changes in uterine volume.

Improved cytotoxic activity toward cell lines and fresh leukemia cells of a mutant anti-CD22 immunotoxin obtained by antibody phage display.

Recombinant immunotoxins are fusion proteins composed of the Fv domains of antibodies fused to bacterial or plant toxins that are being developed for the targeted therapy of cancer. RFB4 (Fv)-Pseudomonas exotoxin 38 (PE38) is an immunotoxin that targets CD22 expressed on B cells and B-cell malignancies. A disulfide-stabilized form of RFB4 (Fv)-PE38 is being evaluated in a Phase I clinical trial.

Muscle relaxing activity of Hyssopus officinalis essential oil on isolated intestinal preparations.

The muscle relaxing activity of the essential oil of Hyssopus officinalis L. (Lamiaceae) and some of its main components (isopinocamphone, limonene and beta-pinene) was studied on isolated preparations of guinea-pig and rabbit intestine. The essential oil and isopinocamphone inhibited the acetylcholine- and BaCl2-induced contractions in guinea-pig ileum in a concentration-dependent manner (IC50 42.

Interaction between bcl-2 and P53 in neoplastic progression of basal cell carcinoma of the head and neck.

Background: Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most frequent tumor of the human skin and generally shows a favourable clinical behaviour. However, a percentage of BCC grows aggressively, infiltrating contiguous structures, sometimes giving distant metastases.

Materials And Methods: Bcl-2 and p53 protein expression was studied immunohistochemically in 60 cases of BCC (30 non-aggressive, BCC1 and 30 aggressive cases, BCC2) of the head and neck region with a complete clinical follow-up.

Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor induces proliferative inhibition of NT2/D1 cells through RET-mediated up-regulation of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27(kip1).

Growth factors of the glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) family control the differentiation of neuronal cells of the central and peripheral nervous systems. Intracellular signalling of these growth factors is, at least in part, mediated by activation of the RET receptor tyrosine kinase. Here, we demonstrate that GDNF triggering inhibits the proliferation of the embryonal carcinoma cell line NT2/D1.

PATE, a gene expressed in prostate cancer, normal prostate, and testis, identified by a functional genomic approach.

To identify target antigens for prostate cancer therapy, we have combined computer-based screening of the human expressed sequence tag database and experimental expression analysis to identify genes that are expressed in normal prostate and prostate cancer but not in essential human tissues. Using this approach, we identified a gene that is expressed specifically in prostate cancer, normal prostate, and testis. The gene has a 1.

Effect of Helicobacter pylori infection on gastric cell proliferation and genomic instability in a paediatric population of southern Italy.

Background: The incidence of gastric cancer is high in areas with a high prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection. Cell transformation and tumour progression occur over a long period of time and markers of genomic instability usually precede morphological changes.

Aim: To evaluate the effect of Helicobacter pylori infection on cell proliferation, DNA status and oncogene expression in children.

17 beta-estradiol induces spermatogonial proliferation through mitogen-activated protein kinase (extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2) activity in the lizard (Podarcis s. sicula).

There are always more evidences indicating that 17beta-estradiol (E(2)) is necessary for normal male fertility. We have used a nonmammalian vertebrate model (the lizard Podarcis s. sicula) to investigate the regulation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) activity in the testis during the annual sexual cycle and to study whether E(2) exerts a role in the spermatogenesis through ERK1/2 activity.

Potent mitogenicity of the RET/PTC3 oncogene correlates with its prevalence in tall-cell variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma.

The tall-cell variant (TCV) of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), characterized by tall cells bearing an oxyphilic cytoplasm, is more clinically aggressive than conventional PTC. RET tyrosine kinase rearrangements, which represent the most frequent genetic alteration in PTC, lead to the recombination of RET with heterologous genes to generate chimeric RET/PTC oncogenes. RET/PTC1 and RET/PTC3 are the most prevalent variants.

MRP8, a new member of ABC transporter superfamily, identified by EST database mining and gene prediction program, is highly expressed in breast cancer.

Background: With the completion of the human draft genome sequence, efforts are now devoted to identifying new genes. We have developed a computer-based strategy that utilizes the EST database to identify new genes that could be targets for the immunotherapy of cancer or could be involved in the multistep process of cancer.

Materials And Methods: Utilizing our computer-based screening strategy, we identified a cluster of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) that are highly expressed in breast cancer.

In vitro activity of tea tree oil against Candida albicans mycelial conversion and other pathogenic fungi.

The antifungal activity of Melaleuca alternifolia Maiden (Myrtaceae) essential oil against yeasts (Candida spp., Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Debaryomyces hansenii) and dermatophytes (Microsporum spp. and Tricophyton spp.

[Long-term evaluation of the endoscopic treatment of gastric polyps].

Background: The authors intend to evaluate the long-term efficacy of endoscopic treatment of gastric polyps.

Methods: They report their experience in 5000 upper gastro intestinal endoscopies performed between 1985 and 1998. The method used aimed to evaluate the distribution of polyps by sex and age, the frequency of various histological types and the incidence of complications in relation to histological type and the size of the polyps.

Expression of the apoptosis inhibitor survivin in aggressive squamous cell carcinoma.

Deregulated expression of inhibitors of apoptosis (programmed cell death) may contribute to cancer by aberrantly extending cell viability and facilitating the insurgence of resistance to therapy. In this study, we investigated the potential expression and prognostic significance of the apoptosis inhibitor survivin in squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). A series of 135 cases of SCC including 46 oral SCC and 89 cutaneous SCC was analyzed for survivin expression by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting.

Changes in myocardial cytoskeletal intermediate filaments and myocyte contractile dysfunction in dilated cardiomyopathy: an in vivo study in humans.

Aim: To investigate in vivo the intermediate cytoskeletal filaments desmin and vimentin in myocardial tissues from patients with dilated cardiomyopathy, and to determine whether alterations in these proteins are associated with impaired contractility.

Methods: Endomyocardial biopsies were performed in 12 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and in 12 controls (six women with breast cancer before anthracycline chemotherapy and six male donors for heart transplantation). Biopsy specimens were analysed by light microscopy and immunochemistry (desmin, vimentin).

Tyrosines 1015 and 1062 are in vivo autophosphorylation sites in ret and ret-derived oncoproteins.

Point mutations of the RET receptor tyrosine kinase are responsible for the inheritance of multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) type 2 syndromes and are also present in a fraction of sporadic medullary thyroid carcinomas. Somatic rearrangements of the RET gene generating the chimeric RET/papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) oncogenes are the predominant molecular lesions associated with papillary carcinoma, the most frequent thyroid malignancy in humans. Oncogenic mutations cause constitutive activation of the kinase function of RET, which, in turn, results in the autophosphorylation of RET tyrosine residues critical for signaling.

[Ovarian cysts diagnosed in utero: Report of 2 clinical cases].

Two cases of ovarian cyst detected antenatally with complications are described. The Authors enphatize the utility of graphic serial investigation for their management.