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Biomedical subjects

J M Dunn

Publications and source records attributed to J M Dunn.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Correlation between p53 mutations and antibody staining in breast carcinoma.

Abnormalities of the p53 gene and protein were examined in 81 primary breast carcinoma samples. Using a polymerase chain reaction-single-strand conformational polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) analysis, mutations in p53 exons 5-8 were identified in 13 of 81 tumours (16 per cent) and confirmed by DNA sequencing. Positive staining for p53 protein was detected in ten of 77 (13 per cent) of these tumours using polyclonal CM1 antibody on formalin-fixed tissue. Mutations detected by PCR-SSCP analysis were more common in grade III tumours (P = 0.015), but no correlation was found with tumour size, node status or level of epidermal growth factor receptor expression. A p53 mutation was associated with positive antibody staining in only two patients. Positive immunohistochemical staining using a p53 antibody may detect p53 protein expression, but this may not correlate directly with an underlying mutation in the hot spot region examined.

Adult↗

Pressure-volume relationship of the fetal lamb heart.

In contrast to the adult heart, the fetal heart reportedly has little functional reserve. With increased clinical emphasis on fetal cardiac diagnosis, neonatal surgery, and the potential for future fetal cardiac intervention, it is essential that we better understand fetal cardiac function. Therefore, to demonstrate the extent of fetal cardiac preload reserve, we studied 10 fetal lambs using an isolated, isovolumic, blood-perfused heart preparation. We maintained constant afterload, inotropic state, coronary blood flow, heart rate, and perfusate blood gas values. As left ventricular (LV) volume (preload) was incrementally increased, LV end-diastolic pressure and LV peak systolic pressure were recorded. Linear regression analysis demonstrated that increases in LV developed pressures were predicted by the LV volume, demonstrating the presence of the Frank-Starling mechanism in each case. The plateau of the Starling pressure-volume curve occurred at an LV end-diastolic pressure of 12.5 +/- 4.79 mm Hg (95% confidence interval, 9.07 to 15.9 mm Hg), lower than the plateau expected in the adult heart. This implies that, in the management of fetal and immature neonatal hearts, preload reserve plays an important but limited role in cardiac reserve.

Animals↗

Epidermal growth factor receptor determination on tumour imprints.

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a sensitive prognostic indicator in women with breast cancer. A new technique for the detection of EGFR on breast cancer imprints is described and evaluated in relation to immunohistochemistry on frozen sections. The standard streptavidin-biotin method using the R1 antibody on frozen sections was modified for use on tumour imprints. In the first group (group 1 imprints) 43 tumours were assessed by frozen section and imprint staining. The group 1 imprint method had a sensitivity of 50% and a specificity of 89% compared with the frozen sections. Further modifications were made for the following 32 tumours (group 2) and this method had a much improved sensitivity of 94% while specificity was preserved. This method is simple and could be performed in any hospital histopathology department.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of fine-wire localization biopsy for impalpable breast cancer.

During the first 2 years (July 1989 to July 1991) of the Avon Breast Screening Service, fine-wire localization biopsy was indicated in 213 impalpable breast lesions. A total of 144 lesions were benign and 69 malignant. Only four of 213 lesions (1.9 per cent) were not excised at the first localization. Factors influencing reoperation in the 69 patients with malignant impalpable lesions were examined. There was a significant association (P < 0.001) between parenchymal disturbances on mammography and invasive carcinoma, and between non-invasive carcinoma and microcalcification (P < 0.001). In 31 patients the localization biopsy was the only surgical procedure. Thirty-eight patients required further surgery: 12 underwent further local excision and 26 mastectomy. Reoperation was more frequent in patients with calcification than in those with parenchymal disturbance (P < 0.001). The most frequent indications for mastectomy were inadequate excision of widespread comedo ductal carcinoma in situ or invasive ductal carcinoma combined with extensive ductal carcinoma in situ. Fine-wire localization biopsy was a combined therapeutic and diagnostic procedure in 31 of 69 women with impalpable screen-detected lesions. The majority of patients required further surgery because radiological abnormalities underestimated the extent of disease.

Biopsy, Needle↗

How do retinoblastoma tumours form?

The causes of retinoblastoma (RB) can now be described with considerable accuracy, although many details are still unclear. Understanding the genetic changes leading to RB has provided an awareness of general mechanisms of cancer development and progression, previously only suspected. From the basic understanding have come new diagnostic technologies that are now ready to be applied directly to RB patients and their families, and a rational approach, based on this understanding, will help us to develop new therapies that avoid the severe complications of conventional treatment.

Chromosomes, Human, Pair 13↗

Mechanisms of loss of heterozygosity in retinoblastoma.

Retinoblastoma (RB) tumors arise when both alleles of the RB1 gene are inactivated by two mutational events (M1 and M2). M1 can be an initial germline or somatic mutation; M2 is frequently loss of heterozygosity (LOH), which makes the cell homozygous or hemizygous for the original mutation. LOH is the major mechanism by which many cancers are initiated. To further delineate the mechanism of LOH, we screened a total of 37 RB tumors for LOH by Southern blot analysis. The tumors were from 17 bilaterally and 17 unilaterally affected patients. Nineteen of 30 informative tumors (63%) from 27 patients showed LOH. Proximal and distal flanking markers on chromosome 13 were informative in 13 tumors, allowing evaluation of the mechanisms by which LOH occurred. Mitotic recombination was implicated in 6 (46%) of the 13 tumors.

Blotting, Southern↗

Validity of a cardiorespiratory fitness test for men with mental retardation.

The purpose of this study was to validate a field test of cardiorespiratory fitness for men with mental retardation. The subjects were 19 healthy young men (26 +/- 6 yr) with moderate mental retardation (IQ = 48 +/- 11). Each subject underwent a maximal treadmill test after a three-phase familiarization process. Each subject also completed a 1-mile walk test twice (Rockport Fitness Walking Test = RFWT). The correlation coefficients between peak VO2 on the treadmill and the two 1-mile walks varied from 0.78 to 0.83. When weight, height, age, heart rates of 1-mile walks, and their combinations were held constant, the correlations were strengthened. Using multiple correlation analysis the best equation for predicting peak VO2 was: Peak VO2 = 101.92 - 2.356(mile-1 time) - 0.42(weight). This model accounted for 85% of total variance. The standard error of estimate was 4.06 ml.kg-1.min-1. The test-retest reliability of the RFWT for the 19 subjects used in this study was very high (R = 0.97). This finding suggests that the RFWT is a valid and reliable field test for this population and appears to be a valid indicator of cardiorespiratory fitness for these men with mental retardation.

Adult↗

Myxedema coma.

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Aged↗

The genetics of retinoblastoma. Relevance to the patient.

The understanding of the molecular biology of human cancer has advanced rapidly in the last decade, in part due to discoveries in the rare, pediatric ocular tumor, retinoblastoma. RB studies have led to recognition of a class of human genes, the tumor suppressor genes, that are critical in the initiation and progression of the malignant process. Mutations in the RB1 gene initiate RB and other specific tumors. They may also contribute to progressive stages of many other malignancies. The protein product of RB1 (p110RB1) is a basic regulator of the cell cycle. In the absence of normal protein, the cell proceeds to the next cell division without the potential to become quiescent. Understanding the genetics of RB has benefited the patients, as the precise identification of the RB1 mutations in families has led to accurate prediction of individuals at risk for RB tumors. It seems unlikely, in the foreseeable future, that direct genetic manipulation of mutant RB1 genes will play a role in therapy, but complete understanding of the function of p110RB1 may eventually allow exploitation of its powerful antiproliferative effect. Other molecular genetic events in addition to RB1 mutations are documented in RB tumors, and may play a critical role in the full malignant phenotype. The oncogene, N-myc, is amplified in some RB tumors and is expressed in normal fetal retina. The cytogenetic abnormality, i(6p), is almost unique to RB tumors. The molecular and tissue-specific roles of these abnormalities are not yet known. Many RB tumors also acquire excessive expression of the cell surface membrane glycoprotein, p170, linked to multidrug resistance, whether or not the RB tumor has been exposed to chemotherapy. We anticipate that ways to avoid or counteract the drug resistance of excessive p170 expression will be developed for other pediatric tumors and eventually will be applied to chemotherapy for RB patients.

Child↗

Nitrogen requirement of pregnant gilts.

Eleven Yorkshire x Landrace gravid gilts were used in two Latin square trials to determine the N requirement for pregnancy. Semipurified diets were formulated to be adequate in indispensable amino acids (IAA) and other nutrients. Diets were fed once daily (1.82 kg); L-glutamic acid, corn sugar, powdered cellulose, and soybean oil percentages differed to maintain isocaloric diets. In Trial 1, six gilts were fed diets containing 6.6 to 17.2% CP equivalent (19.2 to 50.1 g of N/d) during six 10-d periods beginning on d 40 postcoitum. In Trial 2, five gilts were fed diets containing 4.3 to 12.6% CP equivalent (12.5 to 36.8 g of N/d) during five 10-d periods beginning on d 50 postcoitum. Nitrogen balance trials were conducted during the last 5 d of each period. Blood samples were taken both before and 3 h after the last feeding of each period. Results from Trial 1 suggested that adequate N retention (10 g/d) could be attained by pregnant gilts fed less than 28 g of N/d intake when the diet contained indispensible amino acids at levels suggested by Nutrient Requirements of Swine (NRC, 1988). An intake of 20.6 g of N/d (7.1% CP equivalent) yielded near maximum N retention among pregnant gilts fed the semipurified diets in Trial 2. Other criteria measured (urine urea nitrogen and plasma urea nitrogen) had limited value in the evaluation of the N status of the pregnant gilts in these trials.

Animal Feed↗

Preferential germline mutation of the paternal allele in retinoblastoma.

The event triggering malignant proliferation in 70% of retinoblastoma tumours is loss of heterozygosity for chromosome 13q14, whereby the normal retinoblastoma gene (RB1) allele is lost and an already mutated RB1 allele remains in the tumour. The first allele suffers a mutational event--deletion, duplication or point mutation (manuscript in preparation)--either in the germ line (all bilateral patients) or in a somatic retinal cell (most unilateral patients). Most bilateral patients have no family history of retinoblastoma and are presumed to have new germline mutations which arose in the egg, sperm or early embryo. We have determined the parental origin of the retained allele in nine retinoblastoma tumours from eight unrelated non-familial cases by using RB1-linked genetic markers. Six tumours retained the paternal allele and three retained the maternal allele. Of the three unilateral tumours, only one retained the paternal RB1 allele. Thus, there is no evidence that the paternal RB1 allele is preferentially retained in retinoblastoma, as has been suggested to be the case in osteosarcoma. By contrast, tumours from four of the five bilateral patients retained the paternal RB1 allele. This suggests either that new germline RB1 mutations arise more frequently during spermatogenesis than during oogenesis, or that imprinting in the early embryo affects chromosomal susceptibility to mutation.

Alleles↗

Mutations in the RB1 gene and their effects on transcription.

Inactivation of both alleles of the RB1 gene during normal retinal development initiates the formation of a retinoblastoma (RB) tumor. To identify the mutations which inactivate RB1, 21 RB tumors isolated from 19 patients were analyzed with the polymerase chain reaction or an RNase protection assay or both. Mutations were identified in 13 of 21 RB tumors; in 8 tumors, the precise errors in nucleotide sequence were characterized. Each of four germ line mutations involved a small deletion or duplication, while three somatic mutations were point mutations leading to splice alterations and loss of an exon from the mature RB1 mRNA. We were unable to detect expression of the mutant allele in lymphoblasts of three bilaterally affected patients, although the mutation was present in the genomic DNA and transcripts containing the mutations were obvious in the RB tumors in the absence of a normal RB1 allele. The variations in the level of expression of mutant transcripts suggest deregulation of RB1 transcription in the absence of a functional RB1 gene product.

Alleles↗

Identification of germline and somatic mutations affecting the retinoblastoma gene.

Retinoblastoma (RB) is a malignant tumor of developing retina that arises when abnormalities resulting in loss of function affect both alleles of the gene at the retinoblastoma locus (RB1) on chromosome 13q. The majority of RB tumors do not show gross alterations in a 4.7-kb fragment (4.7R), which is a candidate RB1 gene. To search for more subtle mutations, the ribonuclease protection method was used to analyze 4.7R messenger RNA from RB tumors. Five of 11 RB tumors, which exhibit normal 4.7R DNA and normal-sized RNA transcripts, showed abnormal ribonuclease cleavage patterns. Three of the five mutations affected the same region of the messenger RNA, consistent with an effect on splicing involving an as yet unidentified 5' exon. The high frequency of mutations in 4.7R supports the identification of 4.7R as the RB1 gene. However, the unusual nature of some of the abnormalities of 4.7 R alleles indicates that the accepted sequence of genetic events involved in the genesis of RB may require reevaluation.

Base Sequence↗