Plasma and erythrocyte copper level as an indicator of disease activity during malignancy.

Copper and zinc concentrations in erythrocytes, plasma and whole blood were determined in mice bearing spontaneous-, transplanted- and benezo[a]pyrene-induced-tumour. The transplanted tumours studied were Sarcoma 180, Ehrlich carcinoma, and Dalton's lymphoma. Copper concentration in the malignant-tumour-bearing mice showed significant increases in erythrocytes and plasma, when compared with their normal controls.

Antitumor activity of some organotin complexes of hydroxamic acids derived from dibasic carboxylic acid.

The sensitivities of normal and preneoplastic rat hepatocytes have been tested against four organotin hydroxamates in vitro. These organotin hydroxamates are soluble in lipids but not in aqueous medium. The solubility in lipid had initially been utilized in the pilot experiments with Ehrlich ascites tumor cells containing lipids in the ascites fluid.

Decrease in dopamine and norepinephrine concentration in different brain regions of mice during progression of Sarcoma 180 tumour.

The distribution and concentration of dopamine (DA) and norepinephrine (NE), the catecholamine neurotransmitters, were studied in discrete brain areas of Sarcoma 180 tumour bearing mice. With the progression of tumour, marked depletion of DA and NE concentration was observed in some brain areas richly innervated with dopaminergic and noradrenergic neurons suggesting an inverse relationship between brain CA and tumour growth. Since brain CA influence different important physiological activities like hormonal and immunological functions, it's alteration in brain areas during malignant growth suggests the possibility that the hormonal and immunological alterations during tumour growth is at the level of brain CA.

Cervical cytology screening in Calcutta and adjoining areas with special reference to carcinoma of the uterine cervix.

A total of 1232 female subjects including 100 prostitutes from Calcutta and adjoining areas in the age group of 21-70 years were screened for cervical pathology according to the method of Papanicolaou. Of 1232 examined, 815 were found to have smears with normal cellular cytology (66.15%).

Effect of calorie restriction on the development of virus induced leukaemia in mice.

The present study reports for the first time the influence of dietary restriction to mother of suckling animals in reducing incidence of virally induced leukaemia. A delay in the carcinogenic process was also noted in the offsprings maintained on dietary restriction during suckling.

The role of polyamines as a marker of tumor progression and regression in experimental tumors.

The pattern of changes in the polyamine spectrum has been studied under the stress of Sarcoma 180, a transplanted tumor growing in the peritoneal cavity of mice. Retinol, a known inhibitor of ornithine decarboxylase, was used to modulate tumor growth pattern and subsequent changes in the level of polyamines. The polyamine levels showed an increase during tumor proliferation.

Identification of a novel 80 kDa antigen associated with cell proliferation.

Exploiting the immunomasking method, a polyclonal antibody has been developed in mice for identification of a novel 80 kDa antigen (P80) in KB cells. The P80 was not detected in normal resting cells but was present in appreciable amount in malignant cells. In a comparative Western transfer the antisera to the immune complexes identified a 80 kDa peptide absent in normal cell extracts.

Mechanism of action of alpha-methylene-gamma-lactone derivatives of substituted nucleic acid bases in tumour cells.

Some alpha-methylene-gamma-lactone derivatives of substituted nucleic acid bases, which showed significant antitumour activity against experimental tumours, were tested for their possible mechanism of action. Derivatives 1, 4 and 7 strongly inhibit active transport of uridine through sarcoma-180 ascites tumour cells. Derivatives 1, 7 and 10 strongly inhibit a translation process in these cells, besides apparent inhibition in transcription.

Serum calcium level in patients with carcinoma of the cervix in relation to menstrual status.

Serum levels of calcium and phosphorous were evaluated in patients with carcinoma of the cervix between pre- and post-menopausal women and compared the same with various normal female populations of different physiological status, involving premenopause, postmenopause and third trimester of pregnancy. Hypercalcemia was noted both in premenopausal and postmenopausal cervix cancer patients although this is more marked in the latter. No definite relationship was observed between serum calcium and phosphorous (inorganic) level.

Changes in the template activity of chromatin isolated from sarcoma-180 ascites cells treated with mitomycin C and gamma irradiation in vivo.

The murine ascites sarcoma 180 cells were used to test the in vivo effectiveness of mitomycin C (MMC) and gamma-radiation applied in combination. The action of intraperitoneal administration of MMC and/or whole-body gamma irradiation on sarcoma 180 tumor bearing Swiss albino mice was investigated by studying the template activity of isolated tumor chromatin. The Km value for transcription of 10 Gy-irradiated chromatin was found to decrease with time implying an increase in the template efficiency with respect to that of the unirradiated control.

Sensitivity of a human oral carcinoma cell line to retinoic acid.

We have examined the effect of retinoic acid (RA) on proliferation of KB cells in both anchorage dependent and independent growth conditions. Our study shows that RA can cause a reduction in cell proliferation rate both in monolayer and in agar cultures. After 48 h of exposure to RA, the cells started to assume a flattened appearance and no longer formed multilayers.

Changes in plasma gangliosides in relation to tumor growth and their tumor-enhancing effect.

Gangliosides in the plasma of Ehrlich ascites tumor-bearing mice showed changes, both quantitative and qualitative, with progress of tumor. Quantitative changes assessed by chemical estimation indicated a gradual increase of gangliosides up to day 6 of tumor growth followed by a decline leading to a level below the normal by day 12. Qualitative changes studied by thin-layer chromatography indicated appearance of new gangliosides in the plasma of tumor-bearing mice, which were absent from normal plasma.

Colony-forming ability of pluripotent hematopoietic stem cells in mice following tumor transplantation.

The mechanism of tumor-induced hematological alterations at the level of pluripotent hematopoietic stem cells (CFU-S) was investigated in mice bearing transplantable ascites tumor, Sarcoma 180. Tumor growth for 10 days caused neutrophilic leukocytosis and decline in hemoglobin and RBC values in the peripheral blood, and significant reduction (p less than 0.05) in the concentration as well as absolute number of CFU-S in the femoral marrow but an increment in the spleen.

Micronuclei test in routine smears from uterine cervix.

Micronuclei are intracytoplasmatic inclusion bodies formed from chromatin fragments or whole chromosomes. Their presence in cells is a reflection of chromosomal aberrations during cellular mitosis. The micronuclei in exfoliated cells of the cervix have been suggested to represent a marker of their malignant potential.

Characterization of DNA binding proteins released from sarcoma-180 chromatin during brief digestion with DNase-I.

Brief digestion of sarcoma-180 chromatin (less than or equal to 5%) by pancreatic DNase-I releases six non-histone proteins with Mol. wt. 21.

Spontaneous neoplastic evolution of Swiss mouse embryo cells (PMS-14) in culture.

Some biological properties related to transformation have been studied to characterize a spontaneously transformed mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line, PMS-14. Low population doubling time with moderately high plating efficiency and saturation density were noted. These cells showed reduced adhesion to substratum, enhanced agglutinability by concanavalin A, anchorage independent growth in soft agar and tumorigenicity in mice.

Activation of lymphocytes of normal and tumor bearing mice by mangiferin, a naturally occurring glucosylxanthone.

Mangiferin, a naturally occurring glucosylxanthone, was assessed for its immunomodulatory potential. The phytochemical induced extensive in vitro proliferation of murine splenocytes and thymocytes at the doses of 5-40 micrograms ml-1. Suppression of the proliferative response of the cells was observed with higher doses of mangiferin.

Evaluation of colposcopy in the screening of pre-malignant and malignant lesions of uterine cervix.

In an attempt to evaluate the effectiveness of colposcopy in screening pre-malignant and malignant lesions of uterine cervix, one hundred cases of atypical colposcopical findings were cytologically and histologically analysed along with one hundred individuals with typical colposcopical appearance. It was observed that moderate dysplasia, severe dysplasia and malignant lesions of uterine cervix reveal certain distinct changes in the colposcopic "Transformation Zone" which are well related to the cytological and histological findings. The results suggested that colposcopy might be undertaken as a rapid, reliable and complementary tool for cancer screening in a vastly populated country like India.

Quantification of polyethylene glycol precipitable circulating immune complex from carcinoma of cervix patients.

Changes in the level of circulating immune complexes (CIC) among Indian patients with untreated and treated squamous cell carcinoma of cervix and its correlation with the progression of the disease were studied. The quantitative determination of CIC was performed by precipitating the complex with 3% polyethylene glycol (PEG) and assaying the total protein content in the precipitate. The CIC level in serum was observed to increase gradually with the progression of the disease in CaCx and in stage III of the disease the CIC content was found to be more than double of the level obtained in normal healthy individual.

Variability in response pattern of DMBA induced mammary tumors of Wistar rats.

The incidence and growth pattern of DMBA induced mammary tumors of Wistar rats in altered hormonal conditions induced by endocrine ablation were studied. Elevation of prolactin by pituitary stalk section, removal of primary source of estrogen by bilateral oophorectomy or both were done before administration of DMBA as well as after formation of palpable tumors. The results indicate that while estrogen is essential for the induction of these tumors, elevation of prolactin before administration of DMBA inhibits tumor incidence.