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Biomedical subjects

B A Lang

Publications and source records attributed to B A Lang.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

Spontaneous tumor necrosis factor production in Kawasaki disease.

Tumor necrosis factor production by peripheral blood mononuclear cells was measured in 18 patients with Kawasaki disease. In patients studied during the acute febrile phase of their disease, there was increased spontaneous TNF production (mean 26.9 +/- 40.3 U/ml) compared with that of control subjects (1.0 +/- .86 U/ml) (p less than or equal to 0.025). Spontaneous TNF production by patients tested in the subacute or convalescent phase of the illness was significantly lower than that in patients tested during the acute illness (p less than or equal to 0.025). In all patients studied with serial acute and subacute-convalescent samples, TNF production was normal in the follow-up samples. Because TNF is a potent mediator of inflammation and causes damage to vascular endothelial cells, we suggest that TNF may be important in the pathogenesis of both the immune activation and endothelial cell damage characteristic of this illness.

Child↗
PubMed1989

Immunohistochemical localization of alpha-lactalbumin in human breast cancer tissue.

One hundred and eleven formalin-fixed breast cancer tissue samples were examined for the presence of alpha-lactalbumin using our polyclonal antibodies to this specific milk protein. Alpha-lactalbumin was shown to be present in 67 tumor samples (60%), in 15% of cases the occurrence of alpha-lactalbumin was questionable. No relationship was found between alpha-lactalbumin positivity and the histological type of the tumor, differentiation grading, type of invasivity, or stromal reactivity. Disease progression occurred in an equal number of patients with tumors either alpha-lactalbumin positive or negative. However, negativity was often connected with a disease-free interval shorter than 24 months after primary operation.

Breast Neoplasms↗
PubMed1989

Complex biochemical analysis of human breast tumor tissue.

The quantitative biochemical analysis of tissue specimens from 76 human breast carcinomas consisted of examination for cytosolic estrogen receptors (cER), nuclear estrogen receptors (nER), progesterone receptors (PgR), 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol receptors (DR), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), alpha-lactalbumin (aLA), and gamma-glutamyl transferase (gGT). The highest incidence was found in CEA (76%), DR (70%), and aLA (62%). There was a high percentage of tumors containing only DR, in contrast to the tumors containing only cER or PgR. The simultaneous occurrence of DR and CEA was considerably high (61%). No statistically significant differences were observed in these biochemical parameters in relation to the grade of differentiation of the tumors. The values of aLA in tumors that invaded lymphatic or blood vessels were lower as compared to those tumors that invaded adipose or connective tissues. The level of statistical significance of this difference was close to 5%, the differences in other parameters were statistically insignificant. For prognosis assessed at the time of surgery, after a 2-3-year follow-up of 36 patients the level of gGT in the tumor seems to be the most promising prognostic factor. The values of gGT were significantly lower in those patients whose tumors were in progression during this time. The significance of nER and aLA was also taken into consideration.

Breast Neoplasms↗
PubMed1988

Occurrence of carcinoembryonic antigen in tumor tissue and serum of breast cancer patients.

In 116 breast cancer patients, the levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were determined before operation in the serum using RIA, and after operation in sections of breast tumor tissue using the immunohistological PAP technique. CEA circulating in the serum was found in 49 patients (42%). Elevated values (over 10 micrograms/l) were found in only 12 patients (10%). In histological specimens CEA positivity was found in 94 tumors (81%), however, in a majority of them the number of positive cells per section was low (1-10%). A comparison of positive and negative findings both in the serum and in the tumor specimens of individual patients showed that both serum and tumor sections were CEA positive in 40 patients (35%) and both localizations were CEA negative in 13 patients (12%). Although most patients had positive histological sections but negative sera (46%). Only 7% of patients had negative sections and positive sera. In 41 patients CEA could be examined both qualitatively (immunohistologically), and quantitatively in the cytosol of the same homogenized tumor. Of them, 30 patients (72%) had in the cytosol a CEA concentration exceeding 5 micrograms/g proteins, in 11 of the 41 patients (28%) no CEA was found. Immunohistological examination of CEA in this group gave positive results in 35 out of the 41 patients (85%), and only 6 tumors (15%) were completely negative. CEA was shown to be present in each histological type of the tumors studied, invasive ductal tumors being slightly more frequent and more positive than the lobular ones. No relation was observed to the structure of the tumors, nor to the degree of their differentiation. Thus, the examination of CEA levels can hardly contribute to the improvement of histological classification.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1987

A non-competitive enzyme immunoassay of human alpha-lactalbumin in biological fluids and tissue extracts.

A sandwich non-competitive enzyme immunoassay for the measurement of human alpha-lactalbumin in serum, milk, and tumour tissue cytosol was developed using affinity-purified polyclonal antibody adsorbed to solid phase. The detection limits of this procedure in tubes (macromethod) and in wells of microtitre plates (micromethod) are 50 pg and 25 pg/sample, respectively, which means 2.5 micrograms/l of serum at appropriate dilution. The micromethod enables a reduction of the volumes used in the reaction with equal sensitivity, accuracy and reproducibility. A comparison of alpha-lactalbumin concentrations in serum of healthy, pregnant, and lactating women determined by our method with those measured formerly by radioimmunoassays proved the specificity of our procedure.

Antibody Specificity↗
PubMed1986

Haptoglobin type in connection with mean age at first breast cancer signs?

In breast cancer patients divided into groups according to haptoglobin (Hp) type (519 patients), blood group (ABO) (433 patients) or Rh factor (358 patients) the mean age at first disease manifestation was calculated. The results indicate that in Hp 1 bearers breast cancer appears at significantly lower age (49 years) as compared to Hp type 2-1 (53.3 years) or Hp 2 (53 years). In blood groups the mean age at first cancer signs raises from 48 years in the AB group to 53.1 years in the A group, only the difference between A and AB being significant. However, these preliminary results require confirmation in larger patient series.

ABO Blood-Group System↗
PubMed1985

The influence of certain colchicine derivatives on the growth characteristics of L cells.

Colchicine and its derivatives (demecolcine, 2-demethyldemecolcine and acetylated 2-demethyldemecolcine) blocked the mitotic activity of L cells and inhibited proliferation and DNA synthesis. This effect depended on the length of the exposure and the concentration of the substances tested (from 0.05 micrograms/ml up to 2.6 micrograms/ml). The greatest values of plating efficiency, cell proliferation, mitotic index and inhibition of DNA synthesis, respectively, were found after the application of colchiciline (0.2 micrograms/ml). These effects were reversible, since L cells underwent regeneration of the mitotic spindle and renewal of their function after the removal of colchiciline. Reversible effects were much less with other colchicine derivatives tested. The different effects of colchicine and its derivatives were due to their chemical structure, which determines the interactions with respective L cell receptors and thus modifies the mechanism of action on the mitotic apparatus of L cells.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Three-year follow-up of carcinoembryonal antigen levels in the serum of patients with breast cancer.

The levels of carcinoembryonal antigen (CEA) were followed up for three years in 66 patients with breast cancer. In the group of patients treated surgically (N = 36, T1-2, NO-2, MO) the values of CEA were in agreement with the clinical course in 97% of the patients (35 out of 36 patients). Recurrence and/or dissemination of the disease were signalled by a rise in the serum CEA level to more than 15 micrograms/1 out four out of five patients more than 3-10 months before clinical manifestation. In the group of patients without surgery, who were treated by radiation and/or chemotherapy (N = 30, T2-4, NO-3, MO) the serum CEA values were in agreement with the clinical course in 71% of the patients (20/28). Within three years recurrence and/or dissemination were detected in 57% patients (16/28), ten patients died (10/30--two of them were not evaluated). The recurrence or dissemination were signalled in seven out of 16 patients (44%) more than 4-14 months before clinical detection, in three patients (19%) the rise was detected simultaneously with the clinical finding (examinations at 3-4 months intervals), and in 6 patients (38%) the CEA level was at variance with the clinical finding.

Breast Neoplasms↗
PubMed1982

Longitudinal follow-up circulating immune complexes of the serum in patients with breast cancer.

The values of circulating immune complexes (CIC) in patients with breast cancer were followed for one year at 4-month intervals by means of the "PEGIKEM" test. From the total of 67 patients, 37 were treated surgically and a significant decrease in mean values of CIC occurred 8 months after the operation. 30 patients with a more advanced stage of the disease treated with radiotherapy and chemotherapy showed a decrease in mean CIC values already after 4 months but later on the CIC values increased again. No significant differences in the mean CIC values prior to treatment between individual clinical stages were found, only a certain tendency towards a more frequent occurrence of higher CIC values in more advanced stages was noted. Nor were the findings in lymph nodes reflected in the mean CIC values prior to treatment. Comparison of CIC values prior to treatment and the results of 2-hour blood sedimentation, revealed conformity in only 40% of the patients. In the other cases higher values of blood sedimentation were more frequent. The study of prognostic value of CIC after 3 and 5 years follow-up is in progress.

Antigen-Antibody Complex↗
PubMed1979

Chemical characterization of human urine albumin in proteinuria.

From the urine of a patient with proteinuria, the albumin protein component was isolated and compared with human serum albumin. By comparing the amino acid composition of the original proteins and their large cyanogen bromide fragments, peptide maps and N-terminal sequences of 33 amino acid residues, the identity of both proteins was shown.

Albumins↗