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Biomedical subjects

H B Steen

Publications and source records attributed to H B Steen.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Cooperative effects of photodynamic treatment of cells in microcolonies.

Microcolonies of 2-8 Madison-Darby canine kidney cells (MDCK II) and Chinese hamster lung fibroblasts (V79) cells were incubated with the photosensitizer Photofrin and exposed to light, and the resulting number of dead cells per colony was determined. The distribution of this number was found to be incompatible with the assumption that cells are inactivated independently. The experimental distributions were significantly different from the binomial distribution expected from this assumption, but in accordance with a model in which an inactivated cell can inactivate adjacent cells with a certain probability. These findings are contrary to the common view that damage caused by radiation is limited to the cell in which the primary damage takes place. Our findings clearly indicate some kind of cooperativity between cells treated with Photofrin and light.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Rapid assessment of ceftazidime, ciprofloxacin, and gentamicin susceptibility in exponentially-growing E. coli cells by means of flow cytometry.

Exponentially growing E. coli cells were cultivated in the presence of ceftazidime, ciprofloxacin, and gentamicin in concentrations ranging from 0.5-8 minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC), permeabilized by means of cold shock in EDTA/azide, and stained with the DNA-specific dye combination of ethidium bromide and mithramycin before the fluorescence, light scattering, and cell number were measured flow-cytometrically. In order to evaluate the applicability of the cold-shock procedure, cells were also permeabillized by 70% ethanol. Permeabilization by cold shock, which eliminates washing of the cells, reduced the preparation time to <5 min. A statistically significant increase in light scattering and fluorescence, i.e., cell size and DNA content, could be detected already after 30 min of ceftazidime and ciprofloxacin exposure, even at sub-MIC concentrations. The results obtained with these drugs with cold-shock permeabilization were similar to those seen with ethanol fixation. For gentamicin-treated cells, however, a majority of the cells lost their fluorescence after cold shock. In gentamicin-treated cells fixed in ethanol, there was no consistent effect on either light scattering or fluorescence; however, we observed a substantial fragmentation and leakage of DNA in such cells. The cell proliferation was completely inhibited within 30 min of gentamicin incubation. For all three drugs, loss of light scattering and DNA were associated with cellular disintegration, i.e., reduced viability. The present results demonstrate that effects of ceftazidime, ciprofloxacin, and gentamicin on E. coli can be detected by flow cytometry within 1 h from the beginning of drug exposure to the completed measurement.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1997

Uncoupling of the order of the S and M phases: effects of staurosporine on human cell cycle kinases.

The protein kinase inhibitor staurosporine (SSP) was employed to study the involvement of kinases in human cell cycle progression. Thirty to 100 ng/ml SSP blocks entry into S phase and M phase. Lack of entry into S phase is due to impaired activity of the retinoblastoma protein kinase. The requirement for any of the SSP-sensitive kinases for cell cycle progression can be abrogated in tumour cells. Therefore, these kinases act in a checkpoint network negatively controlling the initiation of S phase, M phase and cytokinesis, rather than being inherent parts of a substrate-product chain required for the initiation of the cell cycle phases. As a consequence of the lack of certain checkpoint effectors, tumour cells may endoreduplicate or binucleate in the presence of SSP. The latter processes, as well as meiosis, are naturally occurring in specialized cell types, leading to the idea that this checkpoint network controls the order of the cell cycle phases in normal cells. A model is presented where the cell cycle is envisioned as two independently running cycles, the S and the M cycle, which are controlled by intra and intercycledependent checkpoints in human somatic cells. The model accounts for the dependency of S and M phase initiation on the successful completion of the previous M and S phase, respectively, as well as entry into a resting state.

Cell Cycle↗
PubMed1996

Rapid flow cytometric assessment of mecillinam and ampicillin bacterial susceptibility.

The effects of antibiotics on Escherichia coli during exponential growth in liquid medium were monitored by flow cytometry measuring cellular DNA content and cell size of individual cells in large numbers as well as cell counts. A statistically significant increase in cellular DNA as well as size was recorded after 20 and 40 min of incubation with the MIC of ampicillin and mecillinam, respectively. The optical density (OD600nm) of treated cultures continued to increase for at least 80 minutes, showing that the increase in cellular DNA and size reflected continued growth and elongation of cells coupled with inhibition of cell division, the latter being confirmed by the cell counting. Since fixation, staining and flow-cytometric analysis can be carried out within a few minutes, the present results suggest that flow cytometry may have potential as a rapid and quantitative technique that can be automated for clinical and experimental susceptibility testing of antibacterial drugs.

Amdinocillin↗
PubMed1995

Anti-tumour activity of photodynamic therapy in combination with mitomycin C in nude mice with human colon adenocarcinoma.

The interaction of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and a chemotherapeutic drug, mitomycin C (MMC), was investigated using WiDr human colon adenocarcinoma tumours implanted on Balb/c athymic nude mice. The WiDr tumours were treated with PDT alone, MMC alone or with both. It was found that the combined treatment produced a greater retardation in the growth of the WiDr tumour than monotherapy with MMC or PDT. The synergistic effect was especially prominent when PDT was used in combination with a low dose of MMC (1 mg kg-1), since treatment of 1 mg kg-1 MMC alone had no effect on the tumour. The anti-tumour activity of PDT was found to be increased with MMC of 5 mg kg-1. The response of normal skin on mice feet to PDT slightly greater when PDT was combined with 5 mg kg-1 MMC than when PDT was applied alone, while no detectable additional effect on skin photosensitivity was observed when PDT was combined with 1 mg kg-1 MMC. An enhanced uptake of Photofrin in tumours was found 12 h and 24 h after administration of MMC. The effect of MMC on the cell cycle distribution of cell dissociated directly from the tumours was studied. The results suggest that the increased susceptibility to photoinactivation of Photofrin-sensitised tumours may be due to MMC-induced accumulation of the tumour cells in S-phase.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1995

Distribution of 5-aminolevulinic acid-induced porphyrins in noduloulcerative basal cell carcinoma.

Microscopic fluorescence photometry incorporating a light-sensitive thermo-electrically cooled charge-coupled device (CCD) camera was employed to investigate the fluorescence distribution of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA)-induced porphyrins in 22 patients with a total number of 52 noduloulcerative basal cell carcinomas (BCC) after topical ALA application with or without dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO)/ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) or after intravenous administration of ALA. Both localization patterns and amounts of ALA-induced porphyrins in the BCC were studied. The ALA-induced porphyrins were localized only in the superficial layers of the noduloulcerative BCC lesions after topical application of 20% ALA alone for 3 h. However, both the penetration of ALA into deep lesions and the production of the ALA-induced porphyrin fluorescence were increased after topical administration of 20% ALA and 20% DMSO/4% EDTA for 3 h. Prior treatment with 99% DMSO for 15 min further enhanced the ALA penetration into the BCC lesions after topical application of the ALA/DMSO/EDTA mixture and produced more ALA-induced porphyrins by a factor of about three compared with those treated with ALA alone. The penetration of ALA into the deep BCC lesions could also be increased by prolonging the time of topical application of 20% ALA/4% EDTA to 29-48 h (without DMSO). Intravenous injection of ALA led to a more homogeneous distribution of the ALA-derived porphyrins in the whole noduloulcerative BCC lesions.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Staining of Escherichia coli for flow cytometry: influx and efflux of ethidium bromide.

In an attempt to develop procedures for nucleic acid staining of bacteria for clinical routine assays, the uptake of ethidium bromide (EB) in wild-type Escherichia coli was studied using flow cytometry. Phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) containing EDTA or Tris significantly increased the net uptake of EB compared to PBS only. However, in the majority of the cells, the net uptake reached a constant level that was only a few percent of that of fully permeabilized cells, apparently due to the activity of a metabolically driven efflux pump. When cells were exposed to cold shock (0 degrees C for 30 min) in the presence of Tris or EDTA, the net uptake of dye was similar to that of fully permeabilized cells, whereas it was about half that value in PBS. When cold shock was given in growth medium, the cells split up into four subpopulations, with a net dye uptake ranging from that of fully permeabilized cells to less than 1% of that value. As expected, metabolic inhibitors (Na-azide, 2-deoxy-D-glucose, and CCCP) reduced efflux activity. However, fluorescence of metabolically inhibited cells never exceeded more than about half the value of that of dead cells, possibly reflecting conformational changes in DNA structure as a result of cell death.

Cell Separation↗
PubMed1994

Intracellular calcium and pH alterations induced by tri-n-butyltin chloride in isolated rainbow trout hepatocytes: a flow cytometric analysis.

The effects of tri-n-butyltin chloride (TBT) on ionic homeostasis on isolated trout hepatocytes were investigated by flow cytometry (FCM), using the Ca(2+)-sensitive and pH-sensitive fluorescent probes Indo-1 and SNARF-1, respectively. Cell viability was monitored concurrently. Treatment of hepatocytes with 1 and 5 microM TBT caused a rapid and sustained elevation of cytosolic free Ca2+ concentration [Ca2+]i and an important cytoplasmic acidification. These changes were dependent upon TBT concentration and were maintained over 60 min, the maximum exposure period investigated. At 0.5 microM TBT, there was a slight but not significant increase in [Ca2+]i and a significant reduction in intracellular pH (pHi) only after 60 min of exposure. A rise in [Ca2+]i and cytoplasmic acidification were observed before loss of viability was detectable. Experiments carried out in Ca(2+)-free medium suggest that TBT mainly mobilizes Ca2+ from intracellular stores in trout hepatocytes. The cytoplasmic acidification following TBT exposure seems to be caused by the combination of intracellular Ca2+ mobilization and by direct action of TBT. The present results suggest that ionic homeostasis perturbations could be early events in the mechanism of cell injury by TBT.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

The initiation mass for DNA replication in Escherichia coli K-12 is dependent on growth rate.

It is widely accepted that the initiation mass of Escherichia coli is constant and independent of growth rate, and therefore is an important parameter in the regulation of initiation of DNA replication. We have used flow cytometry to measure the initiation mass of E. coli K-12 cells as a function of growth rate. The average initiation mass was determined by two methods: (i) from a mathematical relationship between average cell mass, cell age at initiation and number of origins present in the cells, and (ii) directly from the cell mass distribution. The light scattering signal from individual cells and the protein content per cell were employed as measures of cell mass. The initiation mass was found to increase monotonically with decreasing growth rate, being 1.6 times higher (light scattering) or 2.1 times higher (protein content) at 0.3 than at 2.5 doublings per hour. We conclude that the initiation mass is dependent on growth rate. This finding indicates that the control for timing of initiation is not governed by a direct connection between mass accumulation and the molecule(s) determining initiation of replication.

Cell Division↗
PubMed1994

Characterization of singlet oxygen-induced guanine residue damage after photochemical treatment of free nucleosides and DNA.

DNA and free nucleosides were photosensitized with the DNA-binding dyes methylene blue (MB) and meso-tetra(4-N-methyl-pyridyl) porphyrin (p-TMPyP) and the non-binding meso-tetra (4-sulphonatophenyl) porphyrin (TSPP). After light exposure DNA was enzymatically digested to nucleosides. Only the guanine residues were photodegraded. By measuring optical absorption, at least 20 photoproducts were detected. Singlet oxygen (1O2) was involved in induction of all these products since D2O enhanced their yields from 4 to 10 times. The photoproducts were the same for all sensitizers. However, several photoproducts were found only with DNA or only with free 2'-deoxyguanosine. Four of 20 photoproducts were induced both in DNA and free 2'-deoxy-guanosine. The yield of the photoproduct 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxo-dG) relative to the degree of 2'-deoxy-guanosine degradation depended on which sensitizer was used and on whether nucleosides or DNA was exposed. Apparently, DNA structure affected the types of as well as the yields of photo-products induced by 1O2.

DNA↗
PubMed1993

Pulse modulation of the excitation light source boosts the sensitivity of an arc lamp-based flow cytometer.

It has been found that the type of short arc high-pressure lamps used in some flow cytometers can be pulsed to reach intensities many times higher than that measured when they are operated on constant power. A 75 W mercury-xenon lamp was fed 20 microseconds current pulses super-imposed on its rated current of 5.4 A. Pulses of 50 A produced a 75-fold increase of the emission intensity at the excitation wavelength of FITC, which means that the excitation intensity in the flow chamber at this wavelength exceeded 100 mW. At the major emission lines of mercury, i.e., 366, 436, and 546 nm, the increase was about 25-fold, corresponding to intensities of the order of 300 mW. The light pulses were found to be reproducible to within 2% and the intensity was independent of the pulse frequency up to at least 250 pulses/s. Operated in this mode the lamp produced more than 1 x 10(8) 30 A pulses, which is sufficient to measure some 10,000 typical size samples. The rise time of the light pulses was about 5 microseconds. This was sufficiently short that the leading edge of the light scattering signal from a cell entering the excitation focus of the flow cytometer could be used to trigger the current pulse so that the cells were exposed to the full light pulse intensity while they were still within the focus.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Flow Cytometry↗
PubMed1993

The retinoblastoma gene product is bound in the nucleus in early G1 phase.

The product of the retinoblastoma susceptibility gene (pRB) exerts its growth-regulatory effects during the G1 phase of the cell cycle, where all pRB present has been assumed to be in the underphosphorylated form. We demonstrate here that pRB is underphosphorylated and firmly bound in the nucleus only in early G1 phase. All G0 cells contain bound, underphosphorylated pRB. The duration of the cell cycle and of the G1 phase seems to be determined by the time during which pRB is underphosphorylated and bound in the nucleus. The observed time lag between the phosphorylation and release of pRB in the G1 phase and entry into S phase was 6.5 h and independent of the G1 transit time. The data suggest that pRB is not directly involved in initiation of DNA replication.

Cell Cycle↗
PubMed1993

Expression of CD18 (integrin beta 2 chain) correlates with prognosis in malignant B cell lymphomas.

Several studies have shown that cell cycle related parameters including DNA synthesis and activation antigen expression can predict patient survival in lymphoma patients. In this study of 69 malignant B cell lymphomas we have examined the cell surface expression of several cell interaction and activation molecules by flow cytometry. Expression of CD18 (integrin beta 2 chain) was found to correlate strongly with patient survival (median follow up 50 months) even when adjusting for other important prognostic factors (P = 0.0001). The percentage of cells positive for CDw75 proved important both as a single parameter and in the multivariate analysis. Histology, classified as low versus high grade malignancy, bulky versus not bulky disease and high versus low thymidine incorporation, was also found to correlate with prognosis in this study.

Antigens, CD↗
PubMed1993

Primary DNA damage, HPRT mutation and cell inactivation photoinduced with various sensitizers in V79 cells.

DNA strand breaks and hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyl transferase (HPRT) mutants were measured in parallel in photochemically treated (PCT) cells and compared at the same level of cell survival. Chinese hamster fibroblasts (V79 cells) were either incubated with the lipophilic dyes tetra(3-hydroxyphenyl)porphyrin (3THPP) and Photofrin II (PII), the anionic dye meso-tetra(4-sulfonatophenyl)porphine (TPPS4) or the cationic dye meso-tetra(N-methyl-4-pyridyl)porphine (p-TMPyPH2) before light exposure. In the cells, the lipophilic dyes were localized in membranes, including the nuclear membrane, while the hydrophilic dyes were taken up primarily into spots in the cytoplasm. In addition, the hydrophilic TPPS4 was distributed homogeneously throughout the whole cytoplasm and nucleoplasm. According to the HPRT mutation test, the mutagenicity of light doses survived by 10% of the cells was a factor of six higher in the presence of 3THPP than of PII, whereas for X-rays it was a factor of three higher than for PCT with 3THPP. Light exposure in the presence of the hydrophilic dyes TPPS4 and p-TMPyPH2 was not significantly mutagenic. There was no correlation between the induced rates of HPRT mutants and of DNA strand breaks. Thus, TPPS4 was the most efficient sensitizer with regard to DNA strand breaks when compared at the same level of cell survival, followed by 3THPP, PII and p-TMPyPH2. Hence, the rate of DNA strand breaks cannot be used to predict the mutagenicity of PCT.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Potentiation of photodynamic therapy by mitomycin C in cultured human colon adenocarcinoma cells.

The effects of photodynamic therapy (PDT) alone and in combination with Mitomycin C (MMC) on WiDr cells, a human colon adenocarcinoma cell line, were investigated. The addition of MMC increased the cytotoxicity of PDT. The presence of MMC resulted in a reduction or a removal of the shoulder of the PDT survival curves as well as an increase in their slopes. Increasing with the concentrations of MMC from 0.01 to 0.025 micrograms/ml, the cytotoxic effects of the two treatments changed from additivity to supra-additivity as judged by comparing dose-response curves for each treatment alone with survival curves after combination therapy and by isobologram analysis. The cytotoxicity of MMC could also be enhanced by a practically nontoxic treatment of PDT (8% cell inactivation). The cytotoxicities of MMC and PDT in combination were found to be dependent on the sequence of the two treatments. When MMC (> or = 0.02 micrograms/ml) and Photofrin II were given simultaneously for 16 h and then followed by irradiation, the combination was found to be more effective than when MMC was given to the cells immediately after PDT and kept in the medium for 16 h. Possible mechanisms of the combination effects of PDT and MMC are discussed briefly.

Adenocarcinoma↗