PBSC collection from family donors in Japan: a prospective survey.

Severe adverse events (SAE) and late hematological malignancies have been reported after PBSC donation. No prospective data on incidence and risk factors have been available for family donors so far. The Japan Society for Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation (JSHCT) introduced therefore in 2000 a mandatory registration system.

Mismatch of minor histocompatibility antigen contributes to a graft-versus-leukemia effect rather than to acute GVHD, resulting in long-term survival after HLA-identical stem cell transplantation in Japan.

We determined the alleles of five polymorphic molecules including HA-1 and four adhesion molecules for 106 patients transplanted with HLA-identical stem cell grafts and investigated the association of mismatches as correlates of relapse and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). All 106 recipients underwent stem cell transplantation (SCT) after myeloablative conditioning between 1985 and 2002. Risk status of disease at SCT was standard (n=63) and high (n=42).

Extreme fluorescence sensitivity of some aniline derivatives to aqueous and nonaqueous environments: mechanistic study and its implication as a fluorescent probe.

Effects of solvent water on the photophysical properties of a series of meta- and para-substituted anilines have been investigated by means of time-resolved fluorescence, transient absorption, and photoacoustic measurements. Some aniline derivatives exhibit extremely short fluorescence lifetime (tau(f)) and small quantum yield (Phi(f)) in water (e.g.

Current status of hematopoietic cell transplantation for adult patients with hematologic diseases and solid tumors in Japan.

A nationwide survey of hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) was started in Japan in 1991, and the analyzed survey data have been presented as the annual report of the Japan Society for Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation. The 10-year overall survival (OS) rates after HCT for each disease are as follows: acute myelogenous leukemia, 44.2%; acute lymphocytic leukemia, 33.

Synthesis and complexing properties of [2.n](2,6)pyridinocrownophanes.

[2.n](2,6)Pyridinocrownophanes (3a-e) were efficiently prepared by intramolecular [2 + 2] photocycloaddition of vinylpyridine derivatives under irradiation using a 400-W high-pressure mercury lamp through a Pyrex filter. They were of cis-configuration with respect to the cyclobutane ring, which was proven by the specific methine proton NMR resonances at delta 3.

Intramyocardial CD34+ cell transplantation combined with off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting.

This report describes a new therapeutic approach for severe ischemic heart disease, intramyocardial transplantation of autologous bone marrow-derived CD34 + cells combined with off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). CD34 is widely known as a cell surface antigen expressed on hematopoietic stem cells, and recent experimental studies have shown that CD34 + cells include endothelial progenitor cells. We used the Isolex 300i magnetic cell selection system to separate CD34 + cells from bone marrow cells.

[Role of polymorphic adhesion molecules in the development of graft-versus-leukemia effect after HLA-matched allogeneic stem cell transplantation].

Mismatches of minor histocompatibility antigens (mHas) between HLA-identical stem cell donors and recipients are known as a major risk factor for graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). We determined the alleles of 5 polymorphic molecules including HA-1 and 4 adhesion molecules in 102 patients who had undergone stem cell transplantation from HLA-identical donors and investigated the association of their mismatches with the relapse rate and incidence of GVHD. We observed relapse rates of 16.

Expansion and activation of minor histocompatibility antigen HY-specific T cells associated with graft-versus-leukemia response.

The immune system of females is capable of recognizing and reacting against the male-specific minor histocompatibility antigen (mHA), HY. Thus, cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (CTLs) recognizing this antigen may be useful in eradicating leukemic cells of a male patient if they can be generated in vivo or in vitro from a human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-identical female donor. The HLA-A*0201-restricted HY antigen, FIDSYICQV, is a male-specific mHA.

Graft-versus-leukemia effect of allogeneic stem cell transplantation; a Japanese single center study.

To clarify graft-versus-leukemia effect of graft-versus-host disease, we studied 166 patients treated with allogeneic stem cell transplantation for hematologic malignancies. The cumulative incidence of relapse in patients with acute GVHD was significantly lower than that in patients without acute GVHD, but there was no similar GVL effect for chronic GVHD.

Complete hydatidiform mole in a triplet pregnancy coexisting two viable fetuses: case report and review of the literature.

We report a rare case of a complete hydatidiform mole with two or more coexisting fetuses where both infants survived without complications. A male infant weighing 1258 g and a female infant weighing 880 g were delivered without complications and discharged 95 days after the birth. The analysis of DNA microsatellite polymorphisms indicated that the mole was of paternal origin and probably homozygous.

Enhancement of cyclosporin A-induced autologous graft-versus-host disease after peripheral blood stem cell transplantation by utilizing selected CD34(+) cells.

Although autologous graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) can be induced by administration of cyclosporin A (CsA) after peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT), the incidence appears to be remarkably lower compared to the incidence after bone marrow transplantation. The reduced incidence of autologous GVHD after PBSCT may be attributed to peripheral regulatory cells that are transferred with the stem cell inoculum. To determine whether transplantation of CD34-selected peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) leads to potentiation of autologous GVHD, five patients with malignant lymphoma were transplanted with CD34-selected PBSCs, followed by administration of CsA and interferon (IFN)-gamma.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated post-transplantation lymphoproliferative disorder simultaneously affecting both B and T cells after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.

Post-transplantation lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD) is usually an aberrant proliferation of EBV-infected B cells. We report the case of a 31-year-old man with severe aplastic anemia who suffered PTLD 42 days post-BMT from an unrelated donor. At the onset of PTLD, peripheral blood lymphocytes were comprised of 40% CD20(+) cells, 3% CD4(+) cells, and 56% CD8(+) cells.

High-dose chemotherapy with peripheral blood stem cell transplantation for advanced testicular cancer.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy and safety of high-dose chemotherapy (HDCT) for the treatment of patients with advanced testicular cancer.

Methods: Fourteen patients were treated with high-dose carboplatin, etoposide and cyclophosphamide (with or without THP-adriamycin) followed by peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. The treatment was used for two refractory cases, a second relapse, and for consolidation after the first relapse in one case each.

Lymphocyte collection for donor leucocyte infusion from normal donors: estimation of the minimum processed blood volume and safety of the procedure.

Background And Objectives: To estimate the minimum volume of processed blood necessary for the purpose of donor leucocyte infusion (DLI), we determined the number of CD3+ cells harvested by apheresis from normal donors and examined adverse events during the procedure.

Materials And Methods: Leukapheresis utilizing the COBE Spectra' was performed a total of 24 times from 12 normal donors. Blood counts were obtained and the number of CD3+ cells was evaluated before and after apheresis and in the peripheral blood products.

Relative increase of granulocytes with a paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria phenotype in aplastic anaemia patients: the high prevalence at diagnosis.

To clarify the pathologic significance of granulocytes exhibiting the paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH) phenotype in patients with aplastic anaemia (AA), we examined peripheral blood from 100 patients with AA for the presence of granulocytes deficient in glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins using a sensitive flow cytometric assay. A significant increase in the frequency of CD55-CD59-CD11b+ granulocytes (>0.003%) compared to normal individuals was observed in 31 of 35 (88.

Identification of T-cell clones showing expansion associated with graft-vs-leukemia effect on chronic myelogenous leukemia in vivo and in vitro.

Although the graft-vs-leukemia (GVL) effect induced by donor leukocyte infusion (DLI) is thought to be mediated by T cells, their features, as well as target molecules, remain unknown. To characterize T cells that mediate the GVL effect on chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), we studied T-cell repertoire in peripheral blood (PB) of two patients treated with DLI for relapsed CML after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were obtained at 2-week intervals following DLI and examined for the presence of antigen-driven T-cell proliferation using complementarity-determining region (CDR) 3 size spectratyping of T-cell receptor beta chain subfamilies.

Donor leukocyte infusion for Japanese patients with relapsed leukemia after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation: indications and dose escalation.

To clarify the role of dose escalation of donor leukocyte infusion (DLI) in the treatment of relapsed leukemia after allogeneic bone marrow transplant (BMT), data from 100 patients were collected from 46 facilities in Japan and analyzed with respect to indications and infused cell dose. Complete remission (CR) was achieved in 11 of 12 (91%) patients with relapsed chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) in the chronic phase, 3 of 11 (27%) with CML in the acute phase, 8 of 21 (38%) with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), 6 of 23 (25%) with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and 5 of 11 (45%) with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). The probability of remaining in CR at 3 years was 82% in CML patients in the chronic phase, but 0% in those with CML in the acute phase, 7% in those with AML, 0% with ALL, and 33% with MDS.

Optical recordings of taste responses from fungiform papillae of mouse in situ.

Single taste buds in mouse fungiform papillae consist of approximately 50 elongated cells (TBCs), where fewer than three TBCs have synaptic contacts with taste nerves. We investigated whether the non-innervated TBCs were chemosensitive using a voltage-sensitive dye, tetramethylrhodamine methyl ester (TMRM), under in situ optical recording conditions. Prior to the optical recordings, we investigated the magnitude and polarity of receptor potentials under in situ whole-cell clamp conditions.