Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M Burger

Publications and source records attributed to M Burger.

105 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

[Smoking habits in Germany -- results of the German National Telephone Health Survey 2003].

Analyses are based on the National German Telephone Health Survey 2003, which provides data on current smoking behaviour among residents aged 18 years and older in Germany. Smoking prevalence is approximately 37 % for men and 28 % for women. About 95 % of the smokers prefer cigarettes, whereas other tobacco goods are secondary and predominantly consumed by men from middle age onwards. Among cigarette consumers, almost half of the men and one third of the women smoke 20 or more cigarettes per day. Over the years, the average age at onset of smoking has become earlier in life, particularly among women. Women born between 1970 and 1985 started smoking at the age of nearly 16, which is comparable to the age at onset among men. Considering data of preceding German National Health Surveys, the percentage of smokers has slightly decreased among men but increased among women during the past twenty years. The presented analyses confirm previous results on unequivocal social and socio-economic differences in smoking.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Accumulation of industrial radionuclides by the Yenisei River aquatic plants in the area affected by the activity of the mining and chemical plant].

The aim of the paper is to investigate accumulation of artificial radionuclides by the Yenisei River aquatic plants collected in the area affected by the activity of the Mining-and-Chemical Combine (Zheleznogorsk) from 1997 to 2000. The samples of aquatic plants were of four species: Potamogeton lucens, Fontinalis antipyretica, Elodea canadensis, and Ceratophyllum demersum. The gamma-spectrometric analysis of the samples of aquatic plants for artificial radionuclides revealed a wide spectrum of long-half-life and short-half-life radionuclides. Radionuclides of activation origin were found in the aquatic plants taken both near the Combine and 200 km down of it. The data obtained suggest that the cooling water of the operating reactor is still being released into the Yenisei. The radiochemical analysis of aquatic plants revealed strontium and plutonium isotopes. Among the aquatic plants, the highest concentration factors for the principal radionuclides were recorded in Fontinalis antipyretica (water moss).

Chemical Industry↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The role of adhesion molecules and chemokine receptor CXCR4 (CD184) in small cell lung cancer.

Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a particularly aggressive form of lung cancer. Responsible for this highly malignant phenotype is an early and widespread metastasis with a high propensity of SCLC cells for bone marrow involvement and the ability to develop resistance against chemotherapeutic agents. Tumor cell migration and metastasis share many similarities with leukocyte trafficking, which is critically regulated by chemokines and adhesion molecules. There is growing evidence that the chemokine stromal derived factor-1 (SDF-1/CXCL12) and its receptor CXCR4 (CD184) regulate migration and metastasis of a variety of cancers including SCLC. SCLC cells express high levels of functional CXCR4 receptors. Engagement of CXCR4 by CXCL12 leads to an upregulation of integrin-mediated adhesion in SCLC and other tumor cells. Activation of CXCR4 chemokine receptors and integrins on SCLC cells promotes adhesion to accessory cells (such as stromal cells) and extracellular matrix molecules within the tumor microenvironment. These adhesive interactions result in an increased resistance of SCLC cells to chemotherapy. As such, inhibitors of the CXCR4/CXCL12 axis and/or integrin activation may increase the chemosensitivity of SCLC cells and lead to new therapeutic avenues for patients with SCLC.

Carcinoma, Small Cell↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Murine models of liver metastasis.

Even though the liver is a relevant metastatic site for several human malignant tumors, mechanisms or organ-specific metastasis to the liver remain largely unknown. In the following paper we summarize the results obtained with different murine model systems which have been set up to elucidate the above mechanisms, and describe our own results with two murine models: the F9 teratocarcinoma and the B16 melanoma. While the F9 teratocarcinoma model system underscores the roles of both adhesion and growth stimulation in the target organ, the B16 melanoma model strengthens the relevance of paracrine growth stimulation. Moreover, B16 melanoma cells selected in vivo for increased liver colonization ability appear to depend on cell-to-cell contact with hepatocytes in order to gain efficient growth stimulation. When we next tried to identify the molecule(s) responsible for the growth effect in a liver plasma membrane extract, we found that such activity was mediated by two closely related protein bands. These turned out to be two different forms of transferrin (Tf), one of which is specifically present on the hepatocyte surface. Moreover, when we analyzed the different B16 lines for the expression of c-Met[the receptor for the hepatocyte growth factor-scatter factor (HGF/SF)], we found that liver-specific LS9 had more of this protein than lung-specific F10 or parental F1, suggesting a role for HGF/SF in liver colonization by B16 melanoma cells.

Amino Acid Sequence↗