Characterization of human embryonic stem cell lines by the International Stem Cell Initiative.

The International Stem Cell Initiative characterized 59 human embryonic stem cell lines from 17 laboratories worldwide. Despite diverse genotypes and different techniques used for derivation and maintenance, all lines exhibited similar expression patterns for several markers of human embryonic stem cells. They expressed the glycolipid antigens SSEA3 and SSEA4, the keratan sulfate antigens TRA-1-60, TRA-1-81, GCTM2 and GCT343, and the protein antigens CD9, Thy1 (also known as CD90), tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase and class 1 HLA, as well as the strongly developmentally regulated genes NANOG, POU5F1 (formerly known as OCT4), TDGF1, DNMT3B, GABRB3 and GDF3.

The role of calcification for staging cystic echinococcosis (CE).

The prevalence of calcified cysts and the significance of calcification as a sign of cyst inactivity in cystic echinococcosis (CE) was evaluated. Seventy-eight patients (36 females, 42 males, mean age 40.8 +/- 16.

First case of typical Old World cutaneous leishmaniasis treated with miltefosine.

A 26-year-old man presented to our clinic for advice on treatment options regarding cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) with multiple lesions. The biopsy revealed Leishmania amastigotes; Leishmania major was identified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR).(11 )Leishmania serology (indirect immunofluorescence test) was positive at 1 : 160 (normal, < or = 1 : 40).

Restriction landmark genome scanning identifies culture-induced DNA methylation instability in the human embryonic stem cell epigenome.

Widespread provision of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) for therapeutic use, drug screening and disease modelling will require cell lines sustainable over long periods in culture. Since the short-term, in vitro culture of mammalian embryos can result in DNA methylation changes, the epigenetic stability of hESCs warrants investigation. Existing hESC lines have been derived and cultured under diverse conditions, providing the potential for programming differential changes into the epigenome that may result in inter-line variability over and above that inherited from the embryo.

Differentiation of human embryonic stem cells into corneal epithelial-like cells by in vitro replication of the corneal epithelial stem cell niche.

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are pluripotent cells capable of differentiating into any cell type of the body. It has long been known that the adult stem cell niche is vital for the maintenance of adult stem cells. The cornea at the front of the eye is covered by a stratified epithelium that is renewed by stem cells located at its periphery in a region known as the limbus.

The dicationic derivatives of DBTAA: Interactions with DNA/RNA and antiproliferative effects on human cell lines.

Three dibenzotetraaza[14]annulenes non-covalently interacted with double-stranded DNA and RNA by mixed minor groove and/or intercalative binding mode. Observed interactions were strongly dependent on the steric exposure of positive charges and the length of the linkers of studied compounds as well as on the secondary structure and basepair composition of DNA/RNA. Compound 2 showed pronounced selectivity toward dA-dT-rich sequences and binding mode switch from dominant minor groove binding to ds-DNA to dominant intercalation into ds-RNA.

[Aggressive intraabdominal fibromatosis].

Background: Intraabdominal or mesenteric fibromatosis is a rare benign nonmetastatic neoplasm that appears as a sporadic lesion or in patients with familiar polyposis. Its evolution is unpredictable. About 10% of the cases shaw a very aggressive growth.

Long-term outcome of strabismus and ptosis surgery in a mother and daughter with congenital fibrosis of extraocular muscles.

Background: Congenital fibrosis of extraocular muscles (CFEOM) is a very rare congenital condition, characterized by variable amounts of restriction of the extraocular muscles, with or without ptosis. The aim of this report was to describe a severe, atypical, exposure-induced corneal stromal lysis in two patients.

Case Report: A mother and a daughter with a severe CFEOM were presented.

Radioimmunoscintigraphy of colorectal carcinomas with three different radiopharmaceuticals.

The aim of the study was evaluation of the clinical reliability of the immunoscintigraphy for the detection of metastases and recurrences of colorectal carcinomas using three different radiopharmaceutical substances. With IMACIS 1, the number of true negative findings (TN) was 4/7 and true positive (TP) 3/7, while in one patient, the results of immunoscintigraphy significantly influenced the therapeutical management. With INDIMACIS 19-9, there were 2/8 TN and 6/8 TP.

Immunoscintigraphy of colorectal carcinomas with radiolabeled monoclonal antibody fragments.

Background/aims: The aim was evaluation of the accuracy and clinical impact of the immunoscintigraphy for the detection of metastases and recurrences of colorectal carcinomas using two different radiolabeled antibody fragments.

Methodology: The study was performed in 5 patients with IMACIS 1 containing the cocktail of 111MBq 131I MoAb 19-9 F(ab')2 and MoAb anti-CEA F(ab')2 and 8 patients with INDIMACIS 19-9 containing 150MBq of 111In-labeled MoAb 19-9 F(ab')2.

Results: With IMACIS 1, in all the patients, both tumor marker values were elevated.

Derivation of human embryonic stem cells from developing and arrested embryos.

Human embryonic stem cells (hESC) hold huge promise in modern regenerative medicine, drug discovery, and as a model for studying early human development. However, usage of embryos and derivation of hESC for research and potential medical application has resulted in polarized ethical debates since the process involves destruction of viable developing human embryos. Here we describe that not only developing embryos (morulae and blastocysts) of both good and poor quality but also arrested embryos could be used for the derivation of hESC.

Developmental competence of human in vitro aged oocytes as host cells for nuclear transfer.

Background: Improving human nuclear transfer (NT) efficiencies is paramount for the development of patient-specific stem cell lines, although the opportunities remain limited owing to difficulties in obtaining fresh mature oocytes.

Methods: Therefore, the developmental competence of aged, failed-to-fertilize human oocytes as an alternate cytoplasmic source for NT was assessed and compared with use of fresh, ovulation-induced oocytes. To further characterize the developmental potential of aged oocytes, parthenogenetic activation, immunocytochemical analysis of essential microtubule proteins involved in meiotic and mitotic division, and RT-PCR in single oocytes (n = 6) was performed to determine expression of oocyte-specific genes [oocyte-specific histone 1 (H1FOO), growth differentiation factor 9 (GDF9), bone morphogenetic protein 15 (BMP15), zygote arrest 1 (ZAR1)] and microtubule markers [nuclear mitotic arrest (NuMA), minus-end directed motor protein HSET and the microtubule kinesin motor protein EG5].

[Inflammatory pseudotumor of the spleen].

Background: Inflammatory pseudotumors are benign tumor lesions of an unknown etiology that can appear almost at any organ, sometimes along with infectious agens, like Epstein-Barr virus. They are extremely rare in the spleen, with less than 80 cases described in the world literature. It is a single, very rarely multinodal lesion.

[Tubular adenoma of the gallbladder with squamous metaplasia].

Adenomas of the gallbladder are rare tumors. They may be papillar or tubular. Tubular adenoma appears in middle aged and older patients, although it may develop even in children.

[Necrosis of the duodenum resulting from acute necrotising pancreatitis and treated with complete duodenopancreatectomy].

Necrosis of the duodenum resulting from acute necrotising pancreatitis is a rare but potentially lethal complication. A small number of cases has been reported so far, the majority of which having, unfortunately, had a lethal outcome. We present the cases of two patients, a 21-year-old woman and a 54-year-old man, both suffering from extensive duodenal necrosis stemming from acute necrotising pancreatitis, and both cases involving the second and third sections of the duodenum, one of which was probably caused by the thrombosis of nutritive blood vessels, the other by an abscess of the head of the pancreas.

Correlations between chemical parameters, mitogenic activity and embryotrophic activity of bovine oviduct-conditioned medium.

To establish parameters predicting the quality of bovine oviduct epithelial cell-conditioned media, we compared media conditioned by oviduct cells from cows at Day 2 (n = 3) and Day 15 (n = 3) of the estrous cycle. In addition, we tested the influence of time of conditioning. Media were evaluated for their embryotrophic activity using a cumulus cell co-culture system as a control.

Growth of teratomas derived from human pluripotent stem cells is influenced by the graft site.

Pluripotent stem cells transplanted into immune-deficient mice form complex teratomas. Although such tumors are generally haphazard in their organization, they do contain some structures that resemble tissues normally seen in the embryo. As a consequence, the teratoma model is useful for exploring the developmental potential of stem cells and studying certain aspects of tissue development.

The role of PI3K/AKT, MAPK/ERK and NFkappabeta signalling in the maintenance of human embryonic stem cell pluripotency and viability highlighted by transcriptional profiling and functional analysis.

Understanding the molecular mechanism by which pluripotency is maintained in human embryonic stem cells (hESC) is important for the development of improved methods to derive, culture and differentiate these into cells of potential therapeutic use. Large-scale transcriptional comparison of the hES-NCL1 line derived from a day 8 embryo with H1 line derived from a day 5 embryo (WiCell Inc.) showed that only 0.

[Bilateral angiomyolipoma of the kidney in patient with tuberous sclerosis].

Angiomyolipomas are relatively frequent tumours of the kidney. It is believed that about 10 million people worldwide have such a tumour. About 1/10 of these 10 million are patients who suffer from tuberous sclerosis.

Mechanisms of self-renewal in human embryonic stem cells.

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are the pluripotent cell population derived from the inner cell mass of pre-implantation embryos and are characterised by prolonged self-renewal and the potential to differentiate into cells representing all three germ layers both in vitro and in vivo. Preservation of the undifferentiated status of the ESC population requires the maintenance of self-renewal whilst inhibiting differentiation and regulating senescence and apoptosis. In this review, we discuss the intrinsic and extrinsic factors associated with self-renewal process, together with possible signalling pathway interactions and mechanisms of regulation.

Using therapeutic cloning to fight human disease: a conundrum or reality?

The development and transplantation of autologous cells derived from nuclear transfer embryonic stem cell (NT-ESC) lines to treat patients suffering from disease has been termed therapeutic cloning. Human NT is still a developing field, with further research required to improve somatic cell NT and human embryonic stem cell differentiation to deliver safe and effective cell replacement therapies. Furthermore, the implications of transferring mitochondrial heteroplasmic cells, which may harbor aberrant epigenetic gene expression profiles, are of concern.

Tissue-specific effects of in vitro fertilization procedures on genomic cytosine methylation levels in overgrown and normal sized bovine fetuses.

Epigenetic perturbations are assumed to be responsible for phenotypic abnormalities of fetuses and offspring originating from in vitro embryo techniques. We studied 29 viable Day-80 bovine fetuses to assess the effects of two in vitro fertilization protocols (IVF1 and IVF2) on fetal phenotype and genomic cytosine methylation levels in liver, skeletal muscle, and brain. The IVF1 protocol employed 0.

[Bronchogenic cyst of the abdomen].

A bronchogenic cyst is a rare congenital anomaly that appears in the thorax, usually the lungs or the mediastinum, being much rarer in the retrosternal space, within the pericardium or the diaphragm, as well as in the neck, while localisation within the abdomen is extremely rare, with only about 30 reported cases. We present the case of a 68-year-old woman. During an investigation for an epigastric pain, a cystic lesion in the area of the body and tail of the pancreas was found.