Five novel natural allelic variants-951A>C, 1042G>A (D348N), 1156A>T (I386F), 1217G>A (C406Y) and 1291C>T (C431Y)-of the human CYP1A2 gene in a French Caucasian population.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J J Lafitte.
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A systematic review of the literature about the role of chemotherapy in comparison to local therapies--surgery or radiotherapy--in non-small cells lung cancers has identified 35 randomised trials. The methodological assessment has not shown significant difference for quality scores between negative or positive studies in term of survival effect. The aggregation (meta-analysis) shows a significant effect of survival improvement by chemotherapy, whatever all indications are considered or subgroups like adjuvant chemotherapy to surgery, neoadjuvant chemotherapy, concomitant radio-chemotherapy and induction chemotherapy prior to thoracic irradiation.
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BACKGROUND: Bronchial asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease associated with genetic components. Recently IL-9 has been reported as a candidate gene for asthma and to be associated with bronchial hyperresponsiveness and elevated levels of total serum IgE. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the contribution of IL-9 to the pathogenesis of asthma, we examined the expression of IL-9 and its receptor (IL-9R) in bronchial tissue from subjects with atopic asthma (n = 10), chronic bronchitis (n = 11), and sarcoidosis (n = 9) and from atopic (n = 7) and nonatopic (n = 10) healthy control subjects. METHODS: Bronchial biopsy specimens were examined for the presence of IL-9 and IL-9R protein and messenger RNA (mRNA) by immunocytochemistry and in situ hybridization, respectively. To phenotype the cells expressing IL-9 in asthmatic tissue, combined in situ hybridization and immunocytochemistry was also performed. RESULTS: There was a highly significant difference (P <.001) in the expression of IL-9 mRNA in asthmatic airways (20.6 +/- 4.0 cells/mm of basement membrane) compared with chronic bronchitis (5.6 +/- 4.4), sarcoidosis (2.5 +/- 1.8), atopic control subjects (7.7 +/- 2.2), and healthy control subjects (2.7 +/- 2.3). The number of IL-9 immunoreactive cells was also greater in asthmatic patients compared with the other groups (P <.05). Although the level of IL-9R mRNA expression did not differ in any of the groups (P >.05), IL-9R immunoreactivity was significantly higher in asthmatic compared with control subjects. Furthermore, IL-9 mRNA expression levels were also significantly correlated with FEV(1) (P <.05) and the airway responsiveness to methacholine producing a 20% fall in FEV(1) (P <. 01). The cells expressing IL-9 mRNA in asthmatic tissue were CD3(+) lymphocytes (68%), major basic protein(+) eosinophils (16%), and elastase(+) neutrophils (8%). CONCLUSION: The results of this study demonstrate the potential of IL-9 to be a marker for atopic asthma and furthermore suggest an important role for this cytokine in the pathophysiologic mechanisms of this disease.
The purpose of the present trial was to determine the activity of gemcitabine as a second-line chemotherapy for non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). To be eligible, patients had to have pathologically proven NSCLC that has failed to respond to a first-line chemotherapy with a cisplatin-containing regimen, a Karnofsky performance status greater than 50 and adequate renal, haematological and hepatic functions. After registration, patients were treated by gemcitabine given i.v. at a dose of 1 g/m(2) on days 1, 8, 15 every 4 weeks. Response was assessed after two courses of therapy. Eighty-two patients have been registered, five are ineligible and 65 are assessable for response. Four partial responses were observed (6%). No change was documented in 18 cases (28%). Tolerance was good. A few grade III leucopenia and grade III-IV thrombopenia were observed. We conclude that gemcitabine has a modest activity as second-line chemotherapy for NSCLC. It has the advantage to be well tolerated and may thus be one drug to be proposed to the patients who have disease progression after a first-line chemotherapy and who ask for further treatment.
PURPOSE: Cisplatin (CDDP) and etoposide (VP16) are considered major standard cytotoxic drugs for small cell lung cancer (SCLC). The present systematic review had as its objective the evaluation of their role, as components of chemotherapy regimens, on survival. METHODS: Published randomised clinical trials (from 1980 to 1998) were selected comparing, in SCLC patients, chemotherapy regimens, given as first-line therapy. One arm (the experimental arm) had to include CDDP and/or VP16, while another had to omit the same drug(s). Trials quality was assessed by two published scores (Chalmers and European Lung Cancer Working Party (ELCWP)). For each individual trial, the hazard ratio (HR) of the survival distributions was estimated on the basis of reported statistics or, if not available, by extracting, from the survival graphical representations, the data required to construct the difference between expected and observed numbers of events as calculated in the log-rank statistic. A combined hazard ratio was obtained by the Peto method (a value < 1 meaning a benefit for CDDP and/or VP16). RESULTS: Thirty-six trials eligible for our systematic review were identified, classified into four groups (I-IV): group I, 1 trial testing a CDDP-based regimen (without VP16) against another arm not including either CDDP or VP16; group II, 17 trials testing a VP16-based regimen (without CDDP) against a regimen without VP16 and CDDP; group III, nine trials comparing a regimen including CDDP and VP16 with a regimen using neither drug; and, finally, group IV, nine trials comparing a regimen based on both drugs with a regimen based on VP16 only. Overall, Chalmers and ELCWP scores correlated well (r(S) = 0.76, P < 0. 001) and had respective median scores of 50.3 and 63.7%. The number of eligible patients did not have a significant impact on the scores as well as the trials group, the trial positivity (a positive trial defined as showing itself a statistically significant survival benefit for the experimental regimen), overall or in categories, and the year of publication. Combined hazard ratios with 95% confidence intervals were: 0.70 (0.41-1.21) for group I, 0.72 (0.67-0.78) for II, 0.57 (0.51-0.64) for III, and 0.74 (0.66-0.83) for IV, showing a survival benefit in favour of regimens including etoposide alone or in combination with cisplatin, justifying with high significance levels the use of each of these drugs. Overall survival benefits could also be shown for regimens including CDDP (HR = 0.61; confidence interval (CI), 0.57-0.66), as well as for those including VP16 (HR = 0. 65; CI, 0.61-0.69). Robustness of these results has to be confirmed with appropriate randomised trials.
A phase III randomized trial was conducted in patients with metastatic NSCLC, to determine if, in association with mitomycin (6 mg m(-2)) and ifosfamide (3 g m(-2)), the combination of moderate dosages of cisplatin (60 mg m(-2)) and carboplatin (200 mg m(-2)) - CarboMIP regimen - improved survival in comparison with cisplatin (50 mg m(-2)) alone - MIP regimen. A total of 305 patients with no prior chemotherapy were randomized, including 297 patients assessable for survival (147 in the MIP arm and 150 in the CarboMIP arm) and 268 patients assessable for response to chemotherapy. All but eight (with malignant pleural effusion) had stage IV disease. There was a 27% (95% CI, 19-34) objective response (OR) rate to MIP (25% of the eligible patients) and a 33% (95% CI, 24-41) OR rate to CarboMIP (29% of the eligible patients). This difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.34). Duration of response was not significantly different between both arms. There was also no difference (P = 0.67) in survival: median survival times were 28 weeks (95% Cl, 24-32) for MIP and 32 weeks (95% Cl, 26-35) for CarboMIP, with respectively 1-year survival rates of 24% and 23% and 2-year survival rates of 5% and 2%. The main toxicities consisted in emesis, alopecia, leucopenia and thrombocytopenia, that were, except alopecia, significantly more severe in the CarboMIP arm. Our trial failed to demonstrate a significant improvement in response or survival when patients with metastatic NSCLC were treated, in addition to ifosfamide and mitomycin, by combination of moderate dosages of cisplatin and carboplatin instead of moderate dosage of cisplatin alone. The results support the use of a moderate dose (50 mg m(-2)) of cisplatin in combination with ifosfamide and mitomycin for the chemotherapy of this disease.
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We retrospectively analysed the data obtained in a large randomised trial performed in 505 eligible patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. Its purpose had been to compare a combination of carboplatin (200 mg/m2) and cisplatin (60 mg/m2) with or without the addition of ifosfamide. The present retrospective analysis assessed two ways of dosing carboplatin: according to body surface area (mg/m2) or to the estimated targeted area under the concentration versus time curve (AUC). Two different methods were used in the latter calculation: the Calvert formula using the Cockroft approximation to evaluate the glomerular filtration rate and the Chatelut equation. There was an excellent linear correlation between them. With the Chatelut method, the calculated administered AUC were lower. Whichever method was used, carboplatin AUC was not significantly associated with antitumour response rate nor patient survival. A statistically significant increase in haematological toxicity, mainly thrombopenia, was observed with an increase in the AUC. This effect was observed whatever AUC variable was considered, i.e. total dosage at course one, total dosage during the first three chemotherapy courses or dose intensity during the first three courses. The effect remained highly significant after adjustment for treatment arm. We conclude that for a moderate carboplatin dose in non-small cell lung cancer, the therapeutic index could be improved if dosage is calculated according to the AUC.
PURPOSE: A phase III randomised trial was conducted in patients with non-metastatic unresectable non-small-cell lung cancer in order to compare, in responders to induction chemotherapy, consolidation treatment by further chemotherapy to chest irradiation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 462 untreated NSCLC patients were eligible for three courses of induction chemotherapy (MIP) consisting of cisplatin (50 mg/m2), ifosfamide (3 g/m2) and mitomycin C (6 mg/m2). It was proposed that objective responders be randomised to either three further courses of MIP or to chest irradiation (60 Gy; 2 Gy per fraction given over six weeks). RESULTS: An objective response rate of 35% was achieved; 115 patients (including 52% with initial stage IIIA and 44% with initial stage IIIB) were randomised to consolidation treatment, 60 of them to further chemotherapy and 55 to chest radiotherapy. There was no significant difference in survival between the two arms, with a respective median and two-year survival of 42 weeks (95% confidence intervals (95% CI: 35-51) and 18% (95% CI: 8-28) for chemotherapy and 54 weeks (95% CI: 43-73) and 22% (95% CI: 11-33) for irradiation. There was also no statistical difference for response duration between the two arms but chest irradiation was associated with a significantly greater duration of local control than chemotherapy (median duration times: 158 vs. 31 weeks, P = 0.0007). CONCLUSIONS: For non-metastatic unresectable NSCLC treated by an induction chemotherapy regimen containing cisplatin and ifosfamide, if an objective response is obtained, consolidation treatments by further chemotherapy or by chest irradiation result in non-statistically different survival distributions, although a better local control duration is observed with radiotherapy.
Bronchial mucins were purified from the sputum of 14 patients suffering from cystic fibrosis and 24 patients suffering from chronic bronchitis, using two CsBr density-gradient centrifugations. The presence of DNA in each secretion was used as an index to estimate the severity of infection and allowed to subdivide the mucins into four groups corresponding to infected or noninfected patients with cystic fibrosis, and to infected or noninfected patients with chronic bronchitis. All infected patients suffering from cystic fibrosis were colonized by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. As already observed, the mucins from the patients with cystic fibrosis had a higher sulfate content than the mucins from the patients with chronic bronchitis. However, there was a striking increase in the sialic acid content of the mucins secreted by severely infected patients as compared to noninfected patients. Thirty-six bronchial mucins out of 38 contained the sialyl-Lewis x epitope which was even expressed by subjects phenotyped as Lewis negative, indicating that at least one alpha1,3 fucosyltransferase different from the Lewis enzyme was involved in the biosynthesis of this epitope. Finally, the sialyl-Lewis x determinant was also overexpressed in the mucins from severely infected patients. Altogether these differences in the glycosylation process of mucins from infected and noninfected patients suggest that bacterial infection influences the expression of sialyltransferases and alpha1,3 fucosyltransferases in the human bronchial mucosa.
Glucocorticoid (GC)-insensitive asthma is a challenging clinical problem that can be associated with life-threatening disease progression. The molecular basis of GC insensitivity is unknown. Alternative splicing of the GC receptor (GCR) pre-mRNA generates a second GCR, termed GCRbeta, which does not bind GC but antagonizes the transactivating activity of the classic GCR. Thus increased expression of GCRbeta could account for glucocorticoid insensitivity. Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cells and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were examined for GCRbeta immunoreactivity using a GCRbeta-specific antibody by immunohistochemical staining. Cell localization of GCRbeta expression was performed using a double immunostaining technique. Patients with GC-insensitive asthma expressed a significantly higher number of GCRbeta-immunoreactive cells in their BAL and peripheral blood than GC-sensitive asthmatics or normal control subjects. Furthermore, GCRbeta expression in GC-insensitive asthma was particularly high in airway T cells, which are thought to play a major role in the pathogenesis of asthma. We also examined the expression of GCRbeta in specimens from the airways of patients with chronic bronchitis. In chronic bronchitis, few cells were GCRbeta-positive and their numbers did not differ significantly from normal control subjects. We conclude that GC-insensitive asthma is associated with increased expression of GCRbeta in airway T cells.
Brain metastases occur in 17 to 40% of lung carcinoma and 30 to 60% of brain metastases originate from a lung carcinoma. Brain metastasis directly influences prognosis and treatment of lung cancer. The aim of this study was to prospectively compare the findings of the neurological examination performed by a neurologist and results of double dose delayed computed tomography (CT DDD). The neurologist and radiologist were blinded to each other's results. Patients included had non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and were neurologically asymptomatic with no other cancer. From November 1993 to May 1996, 135 patients were included (126 men and 9 women). Ninety neurological examinations were normal, 34 suggested brain metastasis and 11 were abnormal but did not suggest brain metastasis. One hundred thirteen CTs were normal, 1 showed a brain metastasis and 11 were abnormal but did not evidence brain metastasis. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of the neurological examination were 73, 79, 23 and 97% respectively. The presence of brain metastasis was directly related to tumor stage but not to age or histology. We suggest that brain CT DDD should be performed in stage IIIA, IIIB, IV whereas in stage I or II, the neurological examination is sufficient. However, a larger number of patients would be required to confirm these findings.
PURPOSE: This study attempted to investigate, in a cohort of patients with clinical stage III initially unresectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated by the same induction chemotherapy regimen, the prognostic value of clinical T and N sub-groupings in order to validate the current International Staging System (ISS). PATIENTS AND METHODS: All the eligible patients with stage III NSCLC (428 patients) registered in a clinical trial were included in the study investigating, after three courses of induction chemotherapy, the role, in responders, of chest irradiation in comparison to further chemotherapy. The chemotherapy regimen consisted of mitomycin C, ifosfamide and cisplatin. RESULTS: Patients with ISS 1986 stage IIIA had a significantly better survival than those with stage IIIB (median survival 47 vs 36 weeks; P = 0.01). A RECPAM analysis showed that patients with T1-T2 N3 and T4 N0-1-2 stage had a more similar prognosis to those with stage IIIA. That result leads to define two new sub-groups: stage IIIlalpha (T3-T4 N0-N1; any T N2; T1-T2 N3) and IIIbeta (T3-T4 N3), with a highly significant difference in survival between them (median survival: 45 vs 29 weeks; P < 0.0001). The superiority of that new classification on the ISS documented in our series of stage III patients for discriminating survival and tumour response has to be confirmed on another series in a multivariate context. CONCLUSION: For unresectable NSCLC treated by induction chemotherapy, stage III sub-classification by moving T4 N0-1 and T1-2 N3 tumours from stage IIIB to stage IIIA appeared to better correlate with prognosis. The usefulness of this new sub-division has to be tested in validation studies.
1. Characterization of allelic variants of the TPMT gene (TPMT) responsible for changes in TPMT activity, and elucidation of the mechanism by which these alleles act, are required because of the clinical importance of this polymorphism for patients receiving thiopurine drugs. 2. We defined the mutational and allelic spectrum of TPMT in a group of 191 Europeans. Using PCR-SSCP, we screened for mutation the entire coding sequence, the exon-intron boundaries, the promoter region and the 3'-flanking region of the gene. Six mutations were detected throughout the ten exons and seven TPMT alleles were characterized. Four of them, TPMT*2, *3A, *3C and *7, harbouring the known mutations, G238C, G460A, A719G or T681G, were nonfunctional and accounted for 0.5, 5.7, 0.8 and 0.3% of the allele totality, respectively. 3. Within the promoter region, six alleles corresponding to a variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR), were identified. VNTR*V4 and *V5a which harbour four or five repeats of a 17-18 bp unit, were the most frequent (55% and 34%, respectively). The other VNTR alleles, having from five to eight repeats, were rarer. 4. The TPMT phenotype was correctly predicted by genotyping for 87% of individuals. A clear negative correlation between the total number of repeats from both alleles and the TPMT activity level was observed, indicating that VNTRs contribute to interindividual variations of TPMT activity. Therefore, additional analysis of the promoter region of TPMT can improve the phenotype prediction rate by genotyping.
Many studies have been performed in an attempt to establish a link between the polymorphism of the cytochrome P450 CYP2D6 gene and the incidence of lung cancer. Nevertheless, whether or not this genetic polymorphism has a role in the development of the disease remains unclear. Recently, new advances in our knowledge of the CYP2D6 gene and its locus (CYP2D) have been achieved. In particular, CYP2D6 was found to be highly polymorphic and multiple novel mutations and allelic variants of the gene have been identified. In addition, a number of CYP2D rearrangements, including those with amplification of the gene, have been demonstrated. Taking this new information into account, we have reconsidered the potential influence of CYP2D6 polymorphism in lung cancer susceptibility by performing a comparative analysis of the overall mutational spectrum of CYP2D6 and of the rearrangements of CYP2D in 249 patients with lung cancer and in 265 control individuals matched on age, sex, hospital and residence area. For this purpose, a strategy based on SSCP analysis of the entire coding sequence of CYP2D6 and on RFLP analysis of the gene locus was carried out in DNA samples from each individual. Forty mutations occurring in various combinations on 42 alleles of the gene and 82 different genotypes were identified. No significant difference in the distribution of the mutations, alleles or genotypes was observed between the two groups, except a particular genotype (CYP2D6*1A/*2), which was more common in the sub-group of moderate smokers (< 30 pack-years) suffering from small cell carcinoma (Odds Ratio (OR) 3.6, 95% CI 1.1-11.9). When the phenotype was predicted according to genotype, only a trend toward a higher frequency of ultrarapid metabolizers in patients was obtained. In spite of a complete analysis of the CYP2D6 gene and its locus, this case-control study provides elements against an influence of the CYP2D6 polymorphism on lung cancer susceptibility.
PURPOSE: A phase III randomized trial in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) was performed to determine if the addition of ifosfamide to moderate-dose cisplatin and carboplatin improved response rate (primary end point) and survival. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 529 patients were randomized to receive a combination of moderate-dose carboplatin (200 mg/m2 intravenously [i.v.] on day 1) and cisplatin (30 mg/m2 i.v. on days 2 and 3) with (CCI arm) or without (CC arm) ifosfamide (1.5 g/m2 i.v. on days 1 to 3). There were 248 eligible patients on the CC arm and 257 on the CCI arm, with 220 and 238 patients assessable for response, respectively. All but 23 had stage IV disease with pleural effusion. RESULTS: There was a 16% objective response (OR) rate to CC and a 31% OR rate to CCI. That observed difference was highly statistically significant (P < 0.001). Duration of response and survival were not statistically different between arms. The CCI regimen was associated with significantly more acute toxicities: emesis, alopecia, leukopenia, and thrombocytopenia. The frequency of chronic renal, auditive, and peripheral neurologic toxicity was low in both arms (4.6% and 6.6%, respectively, after six courses of chemotherapy). The relative dose-intensity (RDI) of the CCI arm was significantly lower than that of the CC arm. CONCLUSION: The addition of ifosfamide to moderate-dose cisplatin and carboplatin significantly improves the antitumoral response rate, but has no apparent effect an survival in advanced NSCLC.
The cytochrome P450 CYP2D6 gene (CYP2D6) expression was examined in samples from human bronchial mucosa and lung parenchyma using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunochemistry. Except specimen from a patient previously genotyped as homozygous for a complete deletion of the gene, all tissue samples were positive. When compared to that in the liver, the mean level of CYP2D6 mRNA was 3-fold lower in bronchial mucosa and 6-fold lower in lung parenchyma. To our knowledge, these data demonstrate for the first time the presence of CYP2D6 protein in human lung. They also indicate that the gene is nonuniformly distributed within this organ. The possibility that CYP2D6 has a role in lung carcinogenesis by locally activating inhaled chemicals should therefore be considered.