Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to S Gordon.
Pentoxifylline (Trental), a phosphodiesterase inhibitor with platelet aggregation inhibitory effect, was shown to decrease spontaneous metastases in a Wilms' tumor model in Furth-Wistar rats and in neuroblastoma C1300 in A/J mice. It was ineffective in the NIH renal adenocarcinoma in BALB/cCr mice.
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High levels of plasminogen activator (PA) were induced in mouse peritoneal macrophages by infection with BCG, 2-6 X 10(7) viable organisms intravenously, followed 3-4 wk later by intraperitoneal challenge with purified protein derivative (PPD) 2 days before harvest. Macrophages obtained from infected animal without boosting showed little fibrinolytic activity, but challenge of Bacille-Calmette-Guèrin (BCG)-primed peritoneal cells with PPD in culture also enhanced macrophage PA 4- to 10-fold. Stimulation of macrophage PA by PPD depended on specifically sensitized thymus-derived (T) lymphocytes because it was abolished by pretreatment of BCG-primed peritoneal cells with anti-thy 1.2 antiserum and complement. A direct assay was developed in which nylon wool separated sensitized lymphocytes and PPD induced PA in macrophages from uninfected animals under defined conditions on 125I-fibrin. Enhanced macrophage fibrinolysis was proportional to concentration of PPD and the number of sensitized lymphocytes transferred. An indirect two-stage assay was also used to show that BCG-sensitized peritoneal cells released a soluble inducer of macrophage PA into the culture medium, after challenge with PPD. Induction of macrophage PA by PPD challenge in vitro made it possible to study the generation and activity of sensitized peritoneal lymphocytes at different stages of infection. Our results show that nonadherent peritoneal cells of BCG-infected mice provide a rich source of specifically sensitized lymphocytes and that macrophage activation is limited by continued availability of antigen, as well as sensitized lymphocytes. Induction of macrophage PA provides a sensitive, versatile, and rapid in vitro assay to study the role of lymphocytes and specific antigen in macrophage activation by BCG.
In the inflammatory demyelinating diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, Landry-Guillain-Barré syndrome and experimental allergic encephalomyelitis, demyelination occurs in the vicinity of infiltrating mononuclear cells. Although the histopathology is characteristic of each disease, the general observation that myelin destruction in inflammatory lesions begins prior to phagocytosis suggests a common mechanism for myelinolysis in these diseases. Recent studies show that stimulated macrophages secrete several neutral proteinases, including plasminogen (Plg) activator. We have tested the possibility that these proteinases could, directly or indirectly, initiate myelin destruction. Isolated brain myelin was incubated with supernatant media from cultures of stimulated mouse peritoneal macrophages in the presence and absence of Plg. Cell supernatants alone caused some degradation of basic protein (BP) in myelin. The amount degraded was considerably enhanced in the presence of Plg. The other myelin proteins remained essentially intact. While the Plg-independent proteolytic activity in the supernatants was abolished by EDTA, known to inhibit the neutral proteinases, the Plg-dependent hydrolysis was inhibited by p-nitrophenylguanidinobenzoate, an inhibitor of Plg activator and plasmin. These results suggested that the Plg activator secreted by the macrophages generated plasmin, which selectively degraded BP. This interpretation was confirmed by the observation that urokinase, a Plg activator, plus Plg was effective in degrading BP in myelin. We propose that the action of neutral proteinases released by stimulated macrophages, and its amplification by the Plg-plasmin system, may play a significant role in several inflammatory demyelinating diseases; and that the relative specificity of these reactions for myelin lies in the extreme susceptibility of BP to proteolysis.
Macrophages in culture secrete a variety of products including neutral protease activities such as plasminogen activator(s) (P.A.), collagenase and elastase. These products are not made by unstimulated macrophages, but only after induction by inflammatory stimuli, phagocytosis and lymphokines. Phagocytosis induces the prompt release of high levels of P.A. by endotoxin-primed macrophages and prolonged secretion follows uptake of non-degradable particles. Stimulation of lymphocytes results in the release of a supernatant product which enhances P.A. secretion by unstimulated mouse macrophages up to 5-fold. The production of the P.A. inducer (P.A.I.) is immunologically specific and is found in allogeneic mixed leukocyte culture (MLC) reactions, but not in syngeneic controls. The P.A. is also induced in activated macrophages from animals infected with BCG of T. cruzi and challenged with specific antigen. Production of the P.A.I. in MLC reactions depends on the presence of thymus-derived (T) lymphocytes and is closely correlated with the appearance of macrophage migration inhibition factor (MIF). The induction of macrophage P.A. and other proteases provides an important pathway for activating macrophages in delayed hypersensitivity reactions and could contribute significantly to tissue destruction in chronic inflammatory diseases in joints.
In this 54 year old woman with celiac disease, osteomalacia developed while she was on a gluten-free diet which had caused regression of her steatorrhea. She was not responsive to large doses of parenterally administered dihydrotachysterol and calcium, but she was responsive to the oral administration of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25-OHD3). The data suggest that 25-OHD3 is the treatment of choice for patients with vitamin D deficiency due to intestinal malabsorption.
In inflammatory demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis and experimental allergic encephalomyelitis, myelin destruction occurs in the vicinity of infiltrating mononuclear cells. The observations that myelin can be altered prior to phagocytosis and in areas not contiguous with inflammatory cells suggests a common mechanism for the initial stages of demyelination. Because stimulated macrophages secrete several neutral proteases, including plasminogen activator, we have investigated the possibility that myelinolysis could be mediated directly or indirectly by these enzymes. Isolated myelin was incubated with conditioned media from cultures of thioglycollate-stimulated mouse peritoneal macrophages in the presence and absence of plasminogen. Myelin appeared to be vulnerable to attack by at least two proteolytic activities secreted by the macrophages, a plasminogen-dependent and a plasminogen-independent activity; of the major proteins in myelin, the basic protein was most susceptible. The direct myelinolytic activity of macrophage-conditioned media was abolished by EDTA, and the plasminogen-dependent hydrolysis was abolished by p-nitrophenylguanidinobenzoate, an inhibitor of plasminogen activator and plasmin. These results suggest that the plasminogen activator released by the stimulated macrophages generated plasmin which hydrolyzed basic protein in intact myelin. This interpretation was confirmed by the observation that urokinase, a plasminogen activator, in the presence of plasminogen brought about marked degradation of basic protein in myelin. We propose that the release of neutral proteases by stimulated macrophages involved in cell-mediated reactions, and its amplification by the plasminogen-plasmin system, may play a significant role in the demyelination observed in several inflammatory demyelinating diseases.
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Lysozyme and plasminogen activator (PA) are independently regulated secretion products of the macrophage. Lysozyme is released constitutively by all types of macrophage, whereas PA is induced during macrophage activation by nonspecific stimuli or by an immunologically specific pathway under control of sensitized T lymphocytes and antigen. Production of PA is closely related to the ability of the macrophage to proliferate in the presence of colony stimulating factor (CSF). Production of lysozyme is often extinguished after hybridization of macrophages with other cells, but may persist and serve as a useful marker for expression of the differentiated macrophage phenotype in somatic cell hybrids.
Biopsy specimens of a skin lesion from a patient with pseudoxanthoma elasticum were obtained at the beginning and end of a 1 1/2-year period of clinically documented regression of the lesion. Light microscopic studies of these specimens showed that, during the period of regression, there was a decrease in the number of abnormal calcified elastic fibers in the dermis. Electron microscopic findings were interpreted as indicating breakdown and removal of mineralized elastic fibers at the beginning and formation of new elastic fibers at the end of the regression period. Cytoplasmic processes of active fibroblasts were intimately associated with fibers undergoing dissolution. The case thus represents a clinically and morphologically documented example of resolution and repair of elastic tissue calcification.
This study was designed to evaluate the ability of a specifically programmed computer to select those biochemical substances most capable of distinguishing "cirrhotic ascites" from "malignant ascites". After simultaneously performing selected biochemical and electrophoretic studies on fresh unstored serum and ascites of 23 patients with documented cirrhosis and 18 patients with proven malignancies, computerized step-wise discriminant analysis of the multiple input revealed that the serum-to-ascites LDH ratio was able to distinguish "cirrhotic ascites" from "malignant ascites" with greater than 86% accuracy. Assignment to proper groups was increased to 89% with the addition of the ratio to serum total protein-to-ascites total protein. The predictive value of a positive result was 100%; specificity was 100%; the predictive value of a negative result was 85%. This type of computer analysis also permits incorporation of both additional cases and new substances thus increasing predictability and reducing type II statistical errors.
Infection of mice with Trypanosoma cruzi and subsequent intraperitoneal challenge with heat-killed trypanosomes elicits peritoneal macrophages which display in vitro microbicidal activity against trypomastigotes of T. cruzi. These cells also display other activated properties including rapid spreading, intense membrane activity, secretion of high levels of plasminogen activator, and ingestion mediated by the C3 receptor. An intravenous infection with BCG, followed by an intraperitoneal challenge with mycobacterial antigens brings about macrophages with similar properties. These criteria of macrophage activation were compared in normal and BCG- or T. cruzi-immune mice, with or without an intraperitoneal challenge with specific or unrelated antigens. Trypanocidal activity is displayed by both BCG- and T. cruzi-immune macrophages after intraperitoneal challenge with either antigen. Resident-immune macrophages from both T. cruzi- and BCG-infected mice show a trypanostatic, rather than trypanocidal activity. Macrophages from noninfected mice, challenged with the same antigens, show neither trypanostatic nor trypanocidal activity. Increased secretion of plasminogen activator shows a definite immunological specificity. Challenge with the specific antigen induces the appearance of macrophages secreting high levels of plasminogen activator, while unrelated antigens induce much smaller levels. Noninfected mice challenged with the same antigens do not display any enchancement in secretion. In contrast, increased spreading and phagocytosis mediated by the complement receptor are also displayed by cells from noninfected mice challenged with any of the agents tested.
In this article we describe methods in which unstimulated mouse peritoneal macrophages were induced to secrete high livels of plasminogen activator under in vitro conditions. The exposure of sensitized peritoneal or spleen cell populations from Trypanosoma cruzi-infected animals to either viable or heat-killed trypanosomes lead to the release of an inducing factor(s). Maximal levels of plasminogen activator secretion are achieved by the incubation of such factors (s) with unstimulated macrophages for 48 h. A significant increase in enzyme secretion was already observed after a 24 h incubation. The production of the inducing factor(s) by sensitized cells was immunologically specific and unrelated antigens did not stimulate the production of the factor(s) by sensitized peritoneal or spleen cell populations. The inducing factor(s) was produced by nylon-wool-fractionated spleen and peritoneal cells which had been depleted of marcrophages. Pretreatment of sensitized spleen cells with anti-theta serum and C abolished the production of the activating factor(s). The active supernatant fluids were able to induce secretion of macrophage plasminogen activator across H-2 barriers. Attempts to induce trypanocidal activity in unstimulated macrophages have not been successful.
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A preliminary report on the effect of the addition of caffeine to 45 frozen sperm samples, in order to restore the effectiveness and motility of frozen stored human sperm, is presented. The addition of 7.2 mM caffeine proved optimal and resulted in 40% to 80% increased sperm motility after 30 days of frozen storage. The use of rapid-rate freezing to produce frozen sperm pellets and the addition of one frozen pellet of buffered caffeine (7.2 mM) to five sperm pellets before thawing are recommonded. For slow-rate freezing in paillettes, the addition of a caffeine solution (final concentration, 7.2 mM) to the sperm and protective medium is recommended. With these methods, frozen storage of hypomotile sperm, which previously could not be preserved by freezing, is now practical.
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