Biomedical subjects

E Fritz

Publications and source records attributed to E Fritz.

69 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

PubMed1982

[Lymphocyte subpopulations in multiple myeloma. Shift in the helper/suppressor cell relation].

Absolute and relative proportions of lymphocyte subpopulations were studied in 21 patients with multiple myeloma and 22 controls. For characterization of cell subsets monoclonal antibodies against differentiation antigens were applied as well as other established techniques. A significant reduction in the absolute and relative proportion of T-lymphocytes (OKT3+, E-rosette+) and of helper-inducer T cells (OKT4+) was found. The absolute counts of OKT8+ suppressor-cytotoxic T cells were of the same magnitude in patients and controls resulting in a significant increase of their relative proportion in patients with multiple myeloma. Moreover, a significant but uniform reduction of leukocytes, lymphocytes, monocytes, OKM1+ cells and B-lymphocytes was found. The relation of T helper-inducer/suppressor-cytotoxic cells was significantly decreased in terms of a relative increase in suppressor T cells.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

PubMed1982

Epidemiologic and age-dependent data on multiple myeloma in Austria.

The mortality rates for multiple myeloma showed an increasing trend between 1969 and 1979, when multiple myeloma accounted for 6% of the reported cancer deaths in Austria. The median age at diagnosis was relatively high: 68.5 years for males and 69.0 years for females. The age-corrected male:female ratio of 1.23:1 indicated a higher incidence of multiple myeloma in males. Age-standardized (standard population for Europe) incidence rates amounted to 1.5/100,000 male inhabitants and 1.2/100,000 female inhabitants/year. In subsample of patients with multiple myeloma, the paraprotein types as well as the k:lambda ratio resembled the frequency distribution of normal immunoglobulins. There were no age-related differences for the stages of the disease and the poor risk factors at diagnosis for patients 85 years old or younger or for those over 65 years of age at diagnosis. Survival rates were significantly higher for younger patients than for older ones, with a 50% survival time of 45 and 26 months, respectively. The differences resulted solely from the dissimilar general life expectancies in both groups, and survival rates with strict regard to multiple myeloma proved to be identical in younger and older patients.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1981

Embedding plant tissue with plastic using high pressure: a new method for light and electron microscopy.

An embedding technique has been developed to overcome difficulties that confront light and electron microscopists working with so-called "hard-to-embed" plant tissue. The method was originally described for freeze-dried material. It uses a modified Quickfit Rotaflo Valve and low heat to generate high pressure to aid in the infiltration and embedding of tissue with propylene oxide and plastic. The technique is not too cumbersome and requires 6 days from the dehydration step to the end of the polymerization process. Thick sections (1-2 micrometer) obtained from material prepared by this method stain readily with toluidine blue, and thin sections for the electron microscope stain satisfactorily following standard treatment with uranyl acetate and lead citrate. The thin sections are stable under the beam of the electron microscope. Results indicate that the quality of tissue preservation with this high pressure embedding technique is as good as tht observed using standard embedding methods for electron microscopy.

Histological Techniques↗

PubMed1981

Individualized chemotherapy in multiple myeloma by cytostatic drug sensitivity testing of colony-forming stem cells.

Chemotherapy for patients with multiple myeloma was individually selected on the basis of antiproliferative drug sensitivity determined in vitro by a clonogenic assay. Myeloma stem cells were preincubated with various cytostatic drugs and allowed to form colonies in a plasma clot culture system. In 21 out of 24 prospective trials on 14 patients, clinical improvement corresponded to the cytostatic drug sensitivity determined in vitro amounting to a predictive accuracy of 87.5% for the test system. Repeated cytostatic drug sensitivity testing in five untreated patients and in seven patients under intensive chemotherapy during the test intervals indicated the emergence of resistant tumor cell clones in both groups, but the loss of sensitivity was much more pronounced in the cells of patients receiving therapy. Selection of cytostatic drugs according to the results of in vitro antiproliferative drug sensitivity testing of myeloma stem cells should improve the efficacy of subsequent chemotherapy. Furthermore, the surveillance of evolving tumor cell clones by periodical reevaluation of the patient's sensitivity status may add a new dimension to the treatment regimens for multiple myeloma.

Antineoplastic Agents↗

PubMed1978

Sucrose in the free space of translocating maize leaf bundles.

Following exposure of portions of mature maize (Zea mays L.) leaf strips to (14)CO(2), xylem exudate from the leaf strips contained [(14)C]sucrose. Sucrose was the only sugar in the xylem exudate which was obtained from the cut surface of the leaf strips by reducing the external pressure. The sucrose found in the xylem exudate apparently was obtained from the free space of the vascular bundles, its concentration amounting up to 0.25%. When [(14)C]glucose or [(14)C]fructose was supplied in the dark to one end of a maize leaf strip, each was taken up by the xylem, and transported to the opposite end. Xylem exudate from such leaf strips contained (14)C-labeled sucrose in addition to the (14)C-labeled hexose. The results of this study support the view that sucrose is loaded into the companion cell-sieve tube complexes from the apoplast of the vascular bundles in the maize leaf.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1969