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Biomedical subjects

K P Dingemans

Publications and source records attributed to K P Dingemans.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Biomaterial-associated persistence of Staphylococcus epidermidis in pericatheter macrophages.

Biomaterial surfaces may be modified to reduce bacterial adhesion. The susceptibility in mice to Staphylococcus epidermidis infection in tissue surrounding the commonly used catheter materials-silicon elastomer (SE), polyamide (PA), and their surface-modified polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-grafted derivatives, SE-PVP and PA-PVP, respectively-was assessed. Abscesses developed around SE-PVP. Around SE, PA, and PA-PVP catheters, no signs of infection were observed, although mice carrying PA-PVP developed septicemia after 14-21 days. S. epidermidis was cultured from the tissue surrounding PA-PVP segments. Cells around PA-PVP segments containing large numbers of bacteria were identified as macrophages by use of immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy. This persistence of intracellular bacteria was also observed around SE-PVP, SE, and PA catheters, although to a lesser extent. The cytokine profiles around the 4 materials were different. Implanted biomaterial induces an inflammatory response favorable to the persistence of S. epidermidis. Intracellular persistence of bacteria inside macrophages may be a pivotal process in the pathogenesis of biomaterial-associated infection.

Animals↗

Extracellular matrix of the human aortic media: an ultrastructural histochemical and immunohistochemical study of the adult aortic media.

Aortic distensability is the key to normal aortic function and relates to the lamellar unit in the media. However, the organization of the extracellular matrix components in these lamellar units, which are largely responsible for the distensability, is insufficiently known, especially in the human. We therefore performed a detailed ultrastructural analysis of these components. Thoracic aortas of 56 individuals (age 45-74 years), none of whom suffered from aortic disease, were studied by immunoelectron microscopy of elastin, collagen types I, III, IV, V, and VI, fibronectin, and fibrillin-1, and by ultrastructural histochemistry of proteoglycans, which were further characterized by enzymatic digestion. The elastic lamellae were closely associated with thick collagen fibers containing types I, III, and V collagen. Between these collagen fibers, numerous complex, circumferentially oriented streaks of elastin protruded from the lamellae. In contrast to what is usually reported in the aortas of experimental animals, the smooth muscle cells preferentially adhered to these ill-defined streaks rather than directly to the solid lamellae. Fibrillin-1- and type VI collagen-containing bundles of microfibrils (oxytalan fibers) were also involved in the smooth muscle cell-elastin contact. The smooth muscle cells were invested by basal lamina-like layers connecting them to each other as well as to the oxytalan fibers. Unexpectedly, these layers were abundantly labeled by anti-fibronectin, whereas type IV collagen, a specific basement membrane component, was mainly found in larger, flocculent deposits. The proteoglycans present were collagen-associated dermatan sulfate proteoglycan, cell-associated heparan sulfate proteoglycan, and interstitial chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan. Our observations demonstrate that the extracellular matrix in the human aorta is extremely complex and therefore differs from most descriptions based on experimental animals. They serve as reference for future studies on aortic diseases, such as aneurysmas and dissections.

Aged↗

Lung epithelial H292 cells induce differentiation of immature human HMC-1 mast cells by interleukin-6 and stem cell factor.

BACKGROUND: Immature mast cells migrate into tissues where they differentiate into mature mast cells under the influence of local factors. In the airways of asthmatics increased numbers of chronically activated mast cells are located nearby the airway epithelium. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate whether and, if so, which products released by epithelial cells may affect mast cell proliferation and differentiation. METHODS: We performed in vitro studies using the human lung mucoepidermoid carcinoma-derived H292 cell line and the immature human mast cell line, HMC-1. Proliferation was assessed by 3H-thymidine incorporation. Differentiation of HMC-1 cells was inferred from tryptase production. RESULTS: Exposure of HMC-1 cells to medium conditioned for 48 h by H292 cells resulted in a reduction of proliferation with 65 +/- 4.9% (mean +/- SEM, n = 9) at day 5. Culturing HMC-1 cells for 8 days in the presence of H292-conditioned medium resulted in morphological changes indicative of differentiation, and in a 3.0 +/- 0.4-fold increase of tryptase production (P = 0.0039, n = 9). Conditioned medium from H292 cells that were stimulated by LPS also inhibited HMC-1 proliferation. Inhibitory antibodies against two mediators from H292 cells, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and stem cell factor (SCF), abolished the increase in HMC-1 tryptase production induced by H292-conditioned medium. Recombinant human (rh) IL-6, but not rhSCF, reduced HMC-1 proliferation with 44% and 13% at day 3 and 5, respectively. Surprisingly, rhIL-6 did not increase HMC-1 tryptase production significantly whereas incubation with rhSCF did (1.5 +/- 0.1-fold, P = 0.002, n = 10) although the increase was less than observed for conditioned medium. CONCLUSION: Epithelial-derived IL-6 and SCF are implicated in differentiation of HMC-1 cells but additional factors are not excluded. As activated primary bronchial epithelial cells also express IL-6 and SCF, it should be considered that these cells are involved in mast cell differentiation within the airways, particularly in diseases where epithelial cells are activated, such as asthma.

Antibodies↗

Gangliocytic paraganglioma of the appendix.

AIMS: A case of gangliocytic paraganglioma is reported in the appendix which, to the best of our knowledge, is the first case at this particular site to be described in modern literature. METHODS AND RESULTS: A 47-year-old man with signs and symptoms of acute appendicitis underwent appendectomy. In the resected specimen a tumour with a diameter of 9 mm was found, which microscopically consisted of three different cell types: (a) epithelioid cells lying in a trabecular pattern and in formations reminiscent of 'Zellballen' as seen in paragangliomas (b) spindle cells and (c) ganglion-like cells. A diagnosis of 'gangliocytic paraganglioma' was made and confirmed by immunohistochemical and ultrastructural examination. CONCLUSION: Gangliocytic paragangliomas are rare tumours of uncertain histogenesis. More than 40 years ago a tumour in the appendix with features similar to our case was described by Masson as 'neuro-carcinoïde'. Concerning its origin, Masson, as well as other authors describing gangliocytic paragangliomas decades later, referred to the endodermal-neuroecto dermal complexes found by Van Campenhout. It is felt that the current finding of a gangliocytic paraganglioma in the appendix supports the hypothesis that gangliocytic paragangliomas arise from these embryonal structures.

Appendectomy↗

The expression of CD44 glycoprotein adhesion molecules in basal cell carcinomas is related to growth pattern and invasiveness.

Basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) of the skin exhibit a wide range of histological growth patterns as well as a highly variable rate of invasiveness. A large body of experimental and clinical studies supports a role for the CD44 glycoprotein family in the latter process. In the present study, we explored the distribution and the level of expression of pan-CD44, CD44v3, CD44v5 and CD44v6 in BCCs. The use of paraffin sections, combined with an antigen retrieval procedure, yielded far more detailed data than would have been possible with frozen sections. On average, the level of expression of the four CD44 isoforms studied appeared to differ relatively little. However, tumours or tumour areas consisting of thin tumour cell strands showed a significantly stronger expression of all four isoforms than those consisting of solid tumour cell groups. Furthermore, the highest CD44 expression was frequently observed in the smallest tumour cell strands in the tumour periphery. In these strands, the label seemed to be located not only at the tumour cell-tumour cell interface, as in other tumour areas, but also on the tumour cell surfaces facing the stroma. We are presently assessing the exact localization of CD44 at the cellular level by immunoelectron microscopy. In most cases, different growth patterns with significantly different levels of CD44 expression were found side by side within individual tumours. CD44 expression is therefore not a static tumour cell characteristic but is correlated with tumour architecture and tumour-stroma interaction.

Actins↗

Bacterial translocation from the biliary tract to blood and lymph in rats with obstructive jaundice.

BACKGROUND: The disruption of the hepatocyte tight junctions observed in biliary obstruction suggests altered permeability of the blood-bile barrier. In this study the role of biliary obstruction and increased biliary pressure on the translocation of bacteria from biliary tract to bloodstream and lymphatic system were evaluated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Rats underwent distal bile duct ligation (BDL, n = 33) for two weeks or a sham celiotomy (n = 21). Seventeen of the 33 BDL rats underwent subsequent biliary decompression by a choledochojejunostomy (CJ). Two weeks after the final operation, a laparotomy was performed again and the CBD, the thoracic duct, and the caval vein were canulated. Next, a suspension containing 10(8) Escherichia coli/ml was retrogradely infused in the CBD for 5 min at 5 or 20 cm H2O above the secretory biliary pressure. RESULTS: A higher biliary infusion pressure resulted in a significant increase of cfu E.coli per milliliter of blood in all the three groups (Sham, BDL, CJ). BDL rats showed significantly more bacterial translocation to the bloodstream than the shams. After biliary decompression, translocation normalized to the control levels. At 5 cm H2O infusion pressure only one lymph culture was positive (CJ group). At 20 cm H2O overpressure, nine lymph cultures were E.coli positive (P = 0.03). These were found mainly in groups with a nonobstructed bile duct (Sham and CJ 40% vs BDL 10%). CONCLUSION: Translocation of bacteria from biliary tract to bloodstream increased at higher intrabiliary pressures. Longstanding bile duct obstruction was an independent determinant for cholangiovenous reflux. Bacterial translocation to the lymphatic system did not parallel translocation to the bloodstream, although in the nonobstructed biliary tract, increased bacterial translocation to the lymphatic system was pressure related.

Animals↗

Infantile fibre type disproportion, myofibrillar lysis and cardiomyopathy: a disorder in three unrelated Dutch families.

An apparently new cardioskeletal myopathy is reported in three unrelated families. Five infants were affected by rapidly progressive generalized muscle weakness, with onset shortly after birth, and dilated cardiomyopathy. All had generalized tremor (clonus) starting in the first week of life. The disease was lethal in all cases between 4 and 6 months. Muscle biopsy, performed in four of the five patients, showed a light microscopic pattern of small type I and normal-sized type II fibres. By electron microscopy small fibres were affected by myofibrillar disruption and swelling of organelles. Findings in blood and urine suggested a disturbance in energy metabolism but an extensive search for respiratory chain disorders and disorders of mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation in frozen muscle and cultured fibroblasts was negative. The findings support a new progressive autosomal recessive infantile cardioskeletal myopathy in which type I muscle fibres are preferentially affected.

Cardiomyopathy, Dilated↗

Depletion of mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid in a family with fatal neonatal liver disease.

We describe a family in which three children of consanguineous parents died of hepatic failure before the age of 3 months. The first child had clinical symptoms of liver disease with hypoglycemia that were evident at birth. The second child was healthy and has normal development. The third child had severe liver dysfunction noted a few days after birth. Liver failure also developed in the fourth child soon after birth. Recently a mitochondrial disorder was considered as a possible cause. Deficiency of respiratory chain enzymes that contain polypeptides encoded by mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and depletion of mtDNA were found in the liver of the fourth child, but mitochondrial abnormalities were absent in muscle of the third child. The similarities in clinical presentation suggest that liver-specific depletion of mtDNA was the cause of the hepatic failure in all three children. We conclude that liver dysfunction with onset in the perinatal period can be caused by depletion of mtDNA.

Autoradiography↗

Effects of Ursodeoxycholate and cholate feeding on liver disease in FVB mice with a disrupted mdr2 P-glycoprotein gene.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The mouse mdr2 gene encodes a P-glycoprotein expressed in the hepatocanalicular membrane. Inactivation of this gene causes lack of biliary phospholipid and cholesterol secretion and non-suppurative cholangitis. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of bile salt hydrophobicity in induction of liver pathology in mdr2 (-/-) mice. METHODS: Mice (+/+) wild type or (-/-) knockout for the mdr2 gene were fed with either purified control diet or this diet supplemented with cholate (0.1%) or ursodeoxycholate (0.5%) for 3, 6, or 22 weeks after weaning. Liver histology was semiquantitatively scored. RESULTS: Each mouse fed bile acid became the major constituent of the bile salt pool. The cholate diet during 22 weeks induced only very mild liver pathology in (+/+) mice. By contrast, lever histology had already deteriorated after 3 weeks in the (-/-) mice and caused pronounced inflammatory nonsuppurative cholangitis and fibrosis in the 75% of mice that survived. Dietary ursodeoxycholate had no effect on histology in (+/+) mice but improved liver pathology significantly in (-/-) mice compared with purified control diet; the decrease of ductular proliferation and portal inflammation was most prominent after 22 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: The cholangiolitis and its sequelae in the mdr2 knockout mice depend on bile salt hydrophobicity.

ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B↗

Multiple labeling in electron microscopy: its application in cardiovascular research.

The heart is a muscular pump kept together by a network of extracellular matrix components. An increase in collagens, as in chronic congestive heart failure (CHF), is thought to have a negative effect on cardiac compliance and, thus, on the clinical condition. Conventional electron microscopy allows for the study of cellular and extracellular components and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) can put these structures in three-dimensional perspective. However, in order to study extracellular matrix components in relation to cells, immunoelectron microscopy is superior. We have used this technique in our studies on heart failure. Heart specimens were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde and 0.1% glutaraldehyde in sodium cacodylate buffer, dehydrated by the method of progressive lowering of temperature and embedded in LR Gold plastic. Immunolabeling could be achieved with different sized gold-conjugated secondary antibodies or protein-A gold conjugates. Depending on the objective, ultra small gold (USG) conjugates or a regular probe size can be used. Labeling efficiency could be increased by bridging antibodies. The double and triple staining procedures were based on single staining methods using one- and two-face labeling. The choice of antibodies and gold conjugates depended on the objectives. Immunoelectron microscopy, using multiple labeling, allowed a detailed study of the organization of the extracellular matrix and its relationship with cardiac myocytes. This may prove to be a useful tool for the study of chronic heart failure.

Actins↗

Developmental stages in experimental liver metastases: relation to invasiveness.

We have previously reported that an invasive morphotype can be evoked in a rat colon carcinoma by transplanting it into pre-induced subcutaneous granulation tissue. We have now studied the interaction of the same tumor with liver tissue, which is extremely poor in connective tissue in comparison with the subcutaneous site. Tumor cells were injected into the portal system and the resulting experimental liver metastases were examined by electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry. Early metastases consisted of well-differentiated acini, fully surrounded by connective tissue that was derived from the periportal stroma. In a later stage, this connective tissue was overgrown by tumor cells and, almost immediately, acinar differentiation was lost. Most metastases eventually reached the liver capsule, which reacted by forming a layer of granulation tissue. Only in this layer, we observed invasion by thin tumor cell strands, which were often intimately associated with fibroblasts or with blood capillaries. The tumor cells remained smooth and rounded during this process. After fully penetrating the granulation tissue, the tumor cell strands reached the liver surface, where they formed poorly structured papillary masses that were nearly devoid of stroma. Our observations indicate that, even in a relatively homogeneous organ like the liver, the tumor-host interaction is highly complex and dynamic. They also confirm the notion that granulation tissue stimulates tumor invasiveness. Finally, they show that tumor cells can actively invade host tissues without exhibiting a "fibroblastic" morphology.

Animals↗

Cerebellar astrocytoma with extensive lipidization mimicking adipose tissue.

We report the case of an elderly woman with a history of headache, vomiting and dizziness while walking. On CT scans a mass was identified in the right cerebellar hemisphere exhibiting radiological characteristics of lipomatous tissue. Surgery revealed a compact lesion consisting of whitish-yellow tissue with a fatty aspect and texture. Smears of tissue samples and paraffin sections showed features suggestive of tissue mainly composed of fully differentiated lipocytes. Lipid-specific stainings on fresh frozen material confirmed univacuolar intracytoplasmic fat accumulation. However, immunohistochemistry for glial fibrillary acidic protein and electron microscopy clearly demonstrated the glial lineage of these lipid-laden cells. Therefore, the tumor was diagnosed as a highly lipidized astrocytoma. In our view, this case represents a variant of lipidized gliomas that has not been described previously and that differs phenotypically from the entities documented earlier.

Adipose Tissue↗

Organotypic culture of human skin to study melanocyte migration.

An ex vivo model system was developed to investigate melanocyte migration. Within this model system, melanocytes migrate among other epidermal cells in the epibolic outgrowth of skin explants. This process is initiated by loss of contact inhibition of epidermal cells at the rim of the explants and by locally produced chemotactic factors. Punch biopsies provided explants of reproducible diameter. Optimal culture conditions include medium consisting of Dulbecco's Minimal Essential Medium containing 10% inactivated normal human serum and placement of explants epidermal side up at the air-liquid interphase. Within 7 days, epidermal cells completely surround the explant. Approximately 3 days after the onset of keratinocyte migration, melanocytes distribute themselves within the newly formed epidermis. Throughout the 7-day culture period, melanocytes and keratinocytes show maintenance of subcellular morphology, and the dermo-epidermal junction remains intact. Melanocyte migration was quantified using immunoperoxidase staining in combination with light microscopy and computer-aided image analysis. Preliminary results using the model system to compare migration in control and nonlesional vitiligo skin indicate that no inherent migration defect is responsible for impaired repigmentation of vitiligo lesions. The organotypic culture model system allows for investigations on melanocytes within their environment of autologous epidermal and dermal components, closely resembling in vivo circumstances in human skin.

Adult↗

Mice with homozygous disruption of the mdr2 P-glycoprotein gene. A novel animal model for studies of nonsuppurative inflammatory cholangitis and hepatocarcinogenesis.

The mouse mdr2 gene (and its human homologue MDR3, also called MDR2) encodes a P-glycoprotein that is present in high concentration in the bile canalicular membrane of hepatocytes. The 129/OlaHsd mice with a homozygous disruption of the mdr2 gene (-/- mice) lack this P-glycoprotein in the canalicular membrane. These mice are unable to secrete phospholipids into bile, showing an essential role for the mdr2 P-glycoprotein in the transport of phosphatidylcholine across the canalicular membrane. The complete absence of phospholipids from bile leads to a hepatic disease, which becomes manifest shortly after birth and shows progression to an end stage in the course of 3 months. The liver pathology is that of a nonsuppurative inflammatory cholangitis with portal inflammation and ductular proliferation, consistent with toxic injury of the biliary system from bile salts unaccompanied by phospholipids. Thus, the mdr2 (-/-) mice can serve as an animal model for studying mechanisms and potential interventions in nonsuppurative inflammatory cholangitis (in a generic sense) in human disease, be it congenital or acquired. When the mice are 4 to 6 months of age, preneoplastic lesions develop in the liver, progressing to metastatic liver cancer in the terminal phase. The mdr2 (-/-) mice therefore also provide a tumor progression model of value for the study of hepatic carcinogenesis. Interestingly, also in this regard, the model mimicks human disease, because chronic inflammation of the biliary system in humans may similarly carry increased cancer risk.

ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B, Mem↗

Transplantation of colon carcinoma into granulation tissue induces an invasive morphotype.

The stroma surrounding many malignant tumors resembles granulation tissue. To test the hypothesis that such stroma stimulates tumor invasiveness, we compared, by electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry, the growth patterns of CC531 rat colon adenocarcinoma in 2 experimental situations: (i) after transplantation into the undisturbed subcutaneous connective tissue of rats, and (ii) after transplantation into experimentally induced subcutaneous granulation tissue in rats. For the latter experimental situation, a subcutaneous "tissue chamber" was designed allowing fragments of tumor tissue to be transplanted into the very center of developing granulation tissue. In the undisturbed subcutaneous tissue, the whole tumor was generally encapsulated, and the tumor cells were arranged in compact groups with a strong tendency to form acini. In the pre-formed granulation tissue, on the other hand, the tumor tissue closely matched descriptions of invasive colon carcinomas in the literature and met the criteria for the "invasive morphotype". In this situation, the tumor consisted of thin, unorganized, widely dispersed strands of irregular tumor cells with numerous protrusions that deeply penetrated the surrounding matrix. Our results show that an invasive morphotype can be evoked by pre-inducing granulation tissue at the transplantation site.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Phagocytosis by normal human melanocytes in vitro.

Phagocytosis is an important first step in processing of antigens ultimately to be presented in the context of MHC class II molecules on the cell surface. Degradation of internalized antigens can then proceed by fusion of the phagosome with organelles containing lysosomal enzymes. Evidence for the phagocytic capacity of cultured normal human skin melanocytes is provided, both by electron microscopy and by confocal laser scanning microscopy. The phagocytic capacity of melanocytes is approximately 5% of that found for cultured human dermal skin fibroblasts. However, in a mixed culture of keratinocytes and melanocytes, uptake of 1 micron latex beads in 72 h was found to be comparable for both epidermal cell types, implicating in vivo significance for phagocytosis by melanocytes. Furthermore, it is shown that phagosomes containing latex beads will fuse with melanosomes, indicating that melanosomes can function as specialized lysosomal organelles within normal human skin melanocytes. The present investigation indicates that melanocytes are equipped with the phagocytic machinery important for the processing of antigens and thus may function as accessory cells within the skin immune system.

Humans↗