Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

B Lee

Publications and source records attributed to B Lee.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2025

HLA-E and NKG2A Mediate Resistance to BCG Immunotherapy in Non-Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer.

Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is the first-line therapy for high-grade non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), yet many patients experience recurrence due to immune evasion. We identify HLA-E and NKG2A as mediators of adaptive resistance involving chronic activation of NK and T cells in BCG-unresponsive tumors. Prolonged IFN-γ exposure enhances HLA-E and PD-L1 expression on recurrent tumors, accompanied by the accumulation of NKG2A+ NK and CD8 T cells. HLA-Ehigh tumor cells preferentially cluster near CXCL12-rich stromal regions with dense effector cell presence, underscoring a spatially segregated tumor architecture. Although cytotoxic lymphocytes retain effector potential, their activity is restrained by HLA-E/NKG2A and PD-L1/PD-1 pathways located in their immediate neighborhood within the bladder tumor microenvironment. These data reveal a spatially organized immune escape program that limits anti-tumor immunity. Our findings support dually targeting NKG2A and PD-L1 checkpoint blockade as a rational, bladder-sparing strategy for patients with BCG-unresponsive NMIBC.

BCG-unresponsive↗
PubMed1995

Purified CD34+ Lin- Thy+ stem cells do not contain clonal myeloma cells.

High-dose therapy with autologous marrow or peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) rescue has been extensively applied in the treatment of multiple myeloma (MM) patients during the past 10 years resulting in improved event-free and overall survival when compared with standard chemotherapy. However, relapses are common and cure is unlikely in the majority of patients. Because both bone marrow and PBSCs are contaminated with myeloma cells it is conceivable that relapse after autotransplantation originates at least in part from autografted tumor cells. In this study, mobilized PBSCs were examined for the presence of myeloma cells based on immunophenotyping and sensitive polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based techniques. In addition, CD34+ Lin- Thy+ stem cells were purified from mobilized PBSC harvests of 10 MM patients by sequentially using counterflow elutriation centrifugation, treatment with phenylalanine methylester, and flow sorting, using 5-parameter gating (propidium iodide, forward scatter, side scatter, CD34+ v Lin- and CD34+ v Thy+). Virtually all mobilized unsorted PBSC preparations contained myeloma cells in sufficient quantities (range, < 0.01 to > 10%) potentially causing a disease relapse. Stem cell purification led to an overall enrichment by about 50-fold in all 10 patients; approximately 90% of the final cell population expressed CD34+ Lin- Thy+ with no evidence of myeloma cell contamination based on flow cytometric analysis of CD38bright cells (< 0.1%). Quantitative PCR amplification of patient-specific complementarity determining region III (CDRIII) DNA sequences showed depletion of clonal B cells by 2.7 to 7.3 logs, with the highest log reduction noted in the samples initially containing the most tumor cells. Our results show that purification of CD34+ Lin- Thy+ cells depletes myeloma cells to undetectable levels from up to 10% present in unsorted PBSCs, thus offering a tool to investigate whether MM relapse after autotransplantation can be reduced markedly.

ADP-ribosyl Cyclase↗
PubMed1995

Tuberculin sensitivity and the BCG scar in tuberculosis contacts.

SETTING: Tuberculosis clinic, St Vincents Hospital, Dublin. OBJECTIVE: To determine the influence of past BCG vaccination on tuberculin sensitivity in tuberculosis contacts. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study of tuberculin sensitivity using the Mantoux technique (5 TU). RESULTS: In 1050 contacts of 96 cases of tuberculosis, BCG scars were noted in 76% of the contacts. Approximately 50%, 30% and 20% of the contacts respectively had negative (0-4 mm), positive (5-14 mm) and strongly positive (15+ mm) Mantoux responses. The presence of a BCG scar was not found to significantly influence the degree of tuberculin sensitivity. The degree of tuberculin sensitivity increased after 20 years and decreased after 60 years of age. Contacts of sputum-positive cases of tuberculosis had larger Mantoux responses. CONCLUSIONS: The study suggests that age of the contact and sputum status of the index case are important determinants of the degree of tuberculin sensitivity. Attributing a 'positive' Mantoux response to past BCG vaccination may be encouraging a false sense of security in contacts recently exposed to an infectious case of tuberculosis. Contact management guidelines may need to be reviewed and perhaps modified to reflect this finding.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Construction of a functional disulfide-stabilized TCR Fv indicates that antibody and TCR Fv frameworks are very similar in structure.

Disulfide-stabilized Fvs (dsFv) are recombinant Fv fragments of antibodies in which the inherently unstable VH-VL heterodimer is stabilized by an interchain disulfide bond engineered between structurally conserved framework positions. We now design and produce a disulfide-stabilized Fv of a T cell receptor. It is composed of V alpha and V beta variable domains of the 2B4 TCR stabilized by a disulfide bond between framework residues of the TCR Fv at a site corresponding to that used for disulfide stabilization of antibody Fvs. For ease of production and detection, the TCRdsFv was fused to a truncated form of Pseudomonas exotoxin (PE38). The TCR(dsFv) retains its native conformation and is much more stable than a TCR scFv. Moreover, it is functional in biological assays. Because successful disulfide stabilization of the TCR Fv by the positions used for antibody Fv stabilization would not occur unless the mutated residues in TCR Fv are at positions closely similar to those in antibody Fvs, most likely within less than 1.5 A, these results provide very strong experimental evidence for the structural similarity between immunoglobulin and TCR antigen-binding variable domains.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1995

Cloning of the putative tumour suppressor gene for hereditary multiple exostoses (EXT1).

Hereditary multiple exostoses is an autosomal dominant disorder that is characterized by short stature and multiple, benign bone tumours. In a majority of families, the genetic defect (EXT1) is linked to the Langer-Giedion syndrome chromosomal region in 8q24.1. From this region we have cloned and characterized a cDNA which spans chromosomal breakpoints previously identified in two multiple exostoses patients. Furthermore, the gene harbours frameshift mutations in affected members of two EXT1 families. The cDNA has a coding region of 2,238 bp with no apparent homology to other known gene sequences and thus its function remains elusive. However, recent studies in sporadic and exostosis-derived chondrosarcomas suggest that the 8q24.1-encoded EXT1 gene may have tumour suppressor function.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1995

Noninvasive central nervous system imaging in sickle cell anemia. A preliminary study comparing transcranial Doppler with magnetic resonance angiography.

PURPOSE: We evaluated the accuracy of transcranial Doppler (TCD) and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) as a screening modality for cerebral infarct in patients with sickle cell disease. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twenty-four patients with sickle cell disease were assessed for a cerebral infarct. Each patient underwent neurologic examination, psychometric evaluation, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), MRA, and TCD. Presence of a cerebral infarct was determined by an MRI and supported by neurologic and neuropsychometric evaluation. All investigators were unaware of the patient's status. Cerebral vasculature by MRA was categorized as being occluded, stenotic, or normal. The maximum TCD velocity of the right and left middle cerebral artery were assessed. Various cutoffs were used to determine the sensitivity and specificity of TCD. RESULTS: MRA had a sensitivity and specificity of 100% and 92%, respectively. At a maximum velocity cutoff of 180 cm/s, the sensitivity and specificity of TCD were 20% and 67%, respectively. No maximum velocity on TCD produced both sensitivity and specificity > 50%. CONCLUSION: MRA is more sensitive than TCD when the middle cerebral artery for maximum velocity is compared. Prospective evaluation is warranted to determine if TCD is useful as a screening technique for cerebral infarction in children with SCD.

Anemia, Sickle Cell↗
PubMed1995

[Pharmacological profiles of F-1322, a novel anti-asthmatic agent. (1). Mechanisms of action].

The pharmacological effects of N-[2-(4-(benzhydryloxy)piperidino)ethyl]-3-hydroxy-5-(3-pyridyl methoxy)-2- naphthamide (F-1322), a novel anti-asthmatic agent, was investigated in vitro. The results obtained were as follows: 1) In the isolated trachea of guinea pigs, F-1322 showed a markedly potent antagonistic action against the contraction induced by histamine, while it had little or no effect on 5-hydroxytryptamine-, acetylcholine-, leukotriene D4- or U-46619-induced contractions. 2) In rabbit platelets, F-1322 did not affect the platelet aggregation induced by platelet activating factor. 3) F-1322 significantly inhibited the thromboxane (TX) A2 synthetase (IC50 value: 1.7 x 10(-8) M) and 5-lipoxygenase (IC50 value: 9 x 10(-7) M) activities. 4) F-1322 had no effect on phospholipase A2, cyclooxygenase, Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent phosphodiesterase and phosphodiesterase activities. These in vitro studies suggest that the anti-asthmatic action of F-1322 is associated with histamine antagonism and an inhibitory action on TXA2 synthetase and 5-lipoxygenase activities.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Molecular structure and function of autoantigens in systemic sclerosis.

Autoantibodies in systemic sclerosis target a limited set of nuclear proteins, principally those of the nucleolus and RNA transcription complexes. These antibodies have proved helpful in diagnosis of this disease, and have been used extensively as probes of nuclear structure and function. Despite these advances, the events that initially trigger autoantibody production in systemic sclerosis are not yet known. While these ANA are not known to disrupt cellular processes by entering living cells, or to cause tissue injury (in contrast to SLE, where autoantibodies may mediate tissue damage), it seems likely that they do not merely represent epiphenomena of the disease. Rather, it is logical to assume that their origin is in some manner tied to etiology of systemic sclerosis, since they segregate by syndrome within the spectrum of this disease (for example, anti-kinetochore antibodies occur in limited cutaneous disease, and anti-topoisomerase I and anti-RNA polymerase antibodies occur in diffuse disease), and since they are distinct from the ANA found in other connective tissue diseases in their selectivity for the nucleolus and RNA polymerases.

Antigens, Nuclear↗
PubMed1995

The incidence of drug resistant tuberculosis in 1279 Korean patients.

OBJECTIVES: In the past decade, the incidence of tuberculosis has been decreased in Korea and the nationwide survey of tuberculosis from 1965 through 1990 suggested a declining tendency of resistant organisms. But the prevalence rate of multidrug resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is still a serious problem in Korea, and the aim of this study is to check the drug resistance pattern in the patients visiting University Hospital, the 3rd referral center. METHODS: We reviewed 1279 cases (522 female, 757 male, mean age 39.4 +/- 16.7) of bacteriologically proven tuberculosis seen during the period from 1986 to 1992 retrospectively. Of 1093 patients, who were indentified in previous medical history, 454 (41.5%) had a history of prior antituberculous chemotherapy. RESULTS: Resistance rate (resistant to 1 or more drugs) was 33.9%. Eleven percent of patients had resistance to a single drug (INH: 80.6%). Twenty two percent of patients had resistance to 2 or more drugs. Resistance rate is higher (47.4%) in the patients with a history of prior treatment than without a history (25.5%). CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that the high rate of multidrug resistance in Korea did not show any decreasing tendency. So, mycobacterial culture and sensitivity tests should be recommended at initial treatment of tuberculosis and potent antituberculosis drugs are strongly recommended.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Breastfeeding.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1994

Rapid humanization of the Fv of monoclonal antibody B3 by using framework exchange of the recombinant immunotoxin B3(Fv)-PE38.

B3(Fv)-PE38 is a recombinant single-chain immunotoxin in which the Fv region of carcinoma-specific antibody B3 is fused to a truncated form of Pseudomonas exotoxin (PE). The efficacy of monoclonal antibody B3 and B3 immunotoxins in cancer therapy and diagnosis may be limited by the human anti-mouse response. Here we describe the humanization of the Fv of B3(Fv)-PE38 by "framework exchange." The variable domains of the heavy (VH) and light (VL) chains were aligned with their best human homologs to identify framework residues that differ. Initially, 11 framework residues in VH and six in VL were changed by site-specific mutagenesis to human residues and introduced simultaneously into a preassembled single-chain Fv expression cassette. Six VH and five VL residues that differ were not changed because they were buried, in the interdomain interface, or previously found to result in decreased affinity when mutated. This basic design resulted in some 20-fold loss of activity. Changing VL residues at the interdomain interfacial position 100 and at the buried position 104 to the human sequence increased the activity 8-fold. Changing VH residue at position 82b from the human sequence back to that of the mouse restored the activity 2- to 3-fold to the full binding and cytotoxic activity of the mouse sequence. Humanized B3(Fv)-PE38 lost immunogenic epitopes recognized by sera from monkeys that had been immunized with B3(Fv)-PE38.

ADP Ribose Transferases↗
PubMed1994

Alignment of beta-barrels in (beta/alpha)8 proteins using hydrogen-bonding pattern.

A multiple alignment procedure for aligning the beta-sheet residues of the (beta/alpha)8-barrel structures is described. It uses a two-dimensional numbering scheme which is based on the covalent and hydrogen-bonding pattern of the beta-sheet. Two different scoring functions were used: one measured the sequence and topological similarity and the other the root-mean-square deviation of the coordinates of the matched residues. The procedure was applied to obtain multiple alignments of the beta-barrels of ten (beta/alpha)8-barrel proteins of known structure. Two kinds of alignments were derived: one in which the beta-strand numbering was preserved and another in which the beta-strands were allowed to be cyclically permuted. It is shown that-preservation of the beta-strand numbering corresponds to aligning only the layer structure of the beta-barrels. In order to obtain the optimal rotational alignment of the barrels as well, the beta-strands must be allowed to be renumbered. Although the 2-fold or 4-fold rotational symmetry of the beta-barrels makes it difficult to obtain unique rotational alignment of the barrels, the results of the alignment indicate that the beta-strands in the beta-barrel of enolase, xylose isomerase, taka-amylase, and possibly fructose biphosphate aldolase, must be cyclically permuted in order to be optimally aligned to those of the other proteins, which include triose phosphate isomerase, the alpha-subunit of tryptophan synthetase, flavocytochrome b2, ribulose-1, 5-biphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, and glycolate oxidase.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Site-specific conjugation to interleukin 4 containing mutated cysteine residues produces interleukin 4-toxin conjugates with improved binding and activity.

Fusion of a ligand to another protein frequently impairs the binding of the ligand. Recombinant toxins composed of mutants of Pseudomonas exotoxin (PE) fused to the C-terminus of human interleukin 4 (IL4) are cytotoxic to IL4 receptor- (IL4R-) bearing tumor cells but bind to the IL4R with only 1% the affinity of IL4. We have developed a method to connect a toxin to a ligand which allows the junction to be moved to a location on the ligand which would minimize the binding impairment. We designed mutants of IL4 in which residue 28, 38, 68, 70, 97, or 105 was substituted with cysteine. All purified mutants bound to the IL4R with 60-100% the affinity of IL4, indicating that the IL4 structure was essentially unchanged. The IL4 mutants were then each conjugated through a disulfide bond to PE35, a truncated form of PE which contains a single cysteine. IL4 conjugated to PE35 at residue 28, 38, or 105 of IL4 bound with 10-fold improved affinity and was 10-fold more cytotoxic than the recombinant IL4-toxin in which PE is fused to position 129 at the C-terminus of IL4. IL4 containing PE35 conjugated at position 68, 70, or 97 had lower binding affinity and cytotoxic activity. These results indicate that the location of the ligand-protein junction can be selectively moved to enhance conjugate effectiveness, and implications could be made regarding which regions of IL4 are important for binding.

ADP Ribose Transferases↗
PubMed1994

Methylation- and mutation-dependent stimulation of Alu transcription in vitro.

Alu genes are GC-rich, highly repetitive genetic elements whose functions remain unknown. Members of this family are readily transcribed in vitro by RNA polymerase III, but RNA corresponding to only a small sub-set of Alu elements has been found in vivo. Based on the hypothesis that methylation of Alu elements affects their transcription, the transcriptional activity of unmethylated and methylated template DNA was assessed in vitro. It was found that methylation of a single CG site just 5' to Alu functions to stimulate transcription; the base composition in this region also affects transcriptional activity. These results indicate that the methylation state and sequence of DNA flanking Alu elements influence its transcription rate.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Improved binding and antitumor activity of a recombinant anti-erbB2 immunotoxin by disulfide stabilization of the Fv fragment.

e23(dsFv)-PE38KDEL is a recombinant immunotoxin composed of the Fv region of anti-erbB2 monoclonal antibody e23 connected to a truncated form of Pseudomonas exotoxin (PE38KDEL), in which the inherently unstable Fv heterodimer (composed of VH and VL) is stabilized by a disulfide bond engineered between structurally conserved framework positions of VH and VL. We have now found that e23(dsFv)-PE38KDEL is considerably more cytotoxic to antigen-positive cell lines than the corresponding single-chain immunotoxin. The basis for the enhanced cytotoxic activity is that the e23 dsFv-immunotoxin binds to erbB2 with greater affinity than the single-chain counterpart. The dsFv-immunotoxin had 4-fold increased binding compared to the scFv and almost identical to the binding affinity of e23 Fab. e23(dsFv)-PE38KDEL was also considerably more stable at 37 degrees C than the single-chain immunotoxin. The therapeutic potential of the disulfide-stabilized immunotoxin was compared with its single-chain counterpart using two animal models of immunodeficient mice bearing subcutaneous tumor xenografts of human gastric tumor N87 cells or human A431 epidermoid carcinoma cells. The antitumor effect of e23(dsFv)-PE38KDEL was significantly better than that of the single-chain immunotoxin. e23(dsFv)-PE38KDEL caused complete regression of tumors at doses which caused no toxic effects in mice, whereas the single-chain immunotoxin did not cause complete regressions at the same doses.

ADP Ribose Transferases↗
PubMed1994

Stabilization of the Fv fragments in recombinant immunotoxins by disulfide bonds engineered into conserved framework regions.

Disulfide-stabilized Fv's (dsFv's) are recombinant Fv fragments of antibodies in which the unstable variable heavy (VH) and variable light (VL) heterodimers are stabilized by disulfide bonds engineered at specific sites that lie between structurally conserved framework positions of VH and VL. We have recently described one example of a recombinant immunotoxin, B3(dsFv)-PE38KDEL, that is composed of such a dsFv connected to a truncated form of Pseudomonas exotoxin [Brinkmann, U., Reiter, Y., Jung, S.-H., Lee, B., & Pastan, I. (1993) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 90, 7538-7542]. This disulfide-stabilized immunotoxin has the same cytotoxic activity and specificity as its single-chain immunotoxin counterpart. To determine whether the stabilization of Fv's by disulfides at these positions is generally applicable, we made and analyzed two other dsFv-containing immunotoxins. One is made from the e23 antibody, which binds to the carcinoma-associated antigen erbB2; the other is made from the anti-Tac antibody, which binds to the p55 subunit of the IL-2 receptor. Comparison of the specificity and activity of these immunotoxins with those of their scFv counterparts revealed that e23(dsFv)-PE38KDEL was considerably more active than e23(Fv)-PE38KDEL, whereas anti-Tac(dsFv)-PE38KDEL was only somewhat more active than its single-chain counterpart. These results suggest that dsFv's have at least the same binding properties as scFv's, and in some cases they may have better binding. Thus, it should be feasible to use the positions we have identified in the conserved framework region to disulfide-stabilize many different Fv's.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

ADP Ribose Transferases↗