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African-American women have a long-standing approximately 20% higher breast cancer incidence rate than USA White women under age 40 while rates among Latinas are lower than those of Whites. The reasons for this are not clear, however they may be due to ethnic differences in circulating oestradiol and progesterone levels. In a cross-sectional study, we investigated whether anovulation frequency and circulating serum oestradiol and/or progesterone levels vary among normally cycling nulliparous African-American (n=60), Latina (n=112) and non-Latina White (n=69) women. Blood and urine specimens were collected over two menstrual cycles among healthy 17- to 34-year-old women. Frequency of anovulation was greater among White women (nine out of 63, 14.3%) than African-American women (four out of 56, 7.1%) or Latina women (seven out of 102, 6.9%), although these differences were not statistically significant. African-American women had 9.9% (P=0.26) higher follicular phase oestradiol concentrations than Latina women and 17.4% (P=0.13) higher levels than White women. African-American women also had considerably higher levels of luteal phase oestradiol (vs Latinas, +9.4%, P=0.14; vs Whites, +25.3%, P=0.003) and progesterone (vs Latinas, +15.4%, P=0.07; vs Whites, +36.4%, P=0.002). Latina women were also observed to have higher follicular oestradiol, and luteal oestradiol and progesterone levels than White women (follicular oestradiol: +6.8%, P=0.48; luteal oestradiol: +14.6%, P=0.04; luteal progesterone: +18.2%, P=0.06). These results suggest that exposure to endogenous steroid hormones may be greater for young African-American and Latina women than for Whites.
The Collaborative Corneal Transplantation Studies are a pair of multicenter prospective clinical trials evaluating the effectiveness of histocompatibility matching in high risk keratoplasty patients. The antigen matching study (AMS) evaluated HLA matching in patients without circulating lymphocytotoxic antibody to HLA antigens and the cross-match study (CS) evaluated the effect of using cross-match-negative donors in patients with identified circulating lymphocytotoxic antibodies to HLA antigens. Sera from 510 patients considered for enrollment in the studies were screened preoperatively for the presence of anti-class I lymphocytotoxic antibodies (LA). The 42 patients (8%) found to have detectable LA entered the CS. The 468 patients found not to have detectable LA preoperatively entered the AMS. Fifteen of the 37 transplanted CS patients were found to have donor-specific anti-class I antibody (before or after surgery). These patients were also screened for anti-class II LA and 25 had anti-class II panel reactive antibody > or = 5%. Forty-nine of the 419 transplanted AMS patients (12%) were found to have produced anti-class I LA after surgery, and in 19 patients, antibody specificities were those of donor HLA antigens. There was a significant association between the number of mismatched class I antigens and the number of donor-specific LA produced. The production of LA by AMS patients was significantly associated with reaction episodes; eighty-two percent of patients (40 of 49) with LA had reaction, compared with 63% of patients (230 of 365) without LA (P = 0.02). Likewise, production of donor-specific LA was significantly associated with immune-mediated graft failure (P = 0.025). For CS patients, there was no correlation between the production of donor-specific anti-class I or nonspecific anti-class II antibodies and graft outcome. However, the CS patients had poorer graft survival than did AMS patients at 3 years (57% vs. 66%, P = 0.01). These data demonstrate that LA, especially directed against donor class I HLA antigens following corneal transplantation in high risk patients, are associated with immune graft rejection and can be an indicator of allograft rejection.
BACKGROUND: Obesity is associated with oxidative stress, and the oxidation of LDL is thought to play a crucial role in the generation of atherosclerotic lesions. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to describe the association of waist circumference (WC) and body mass index (BMI; in kg/m2) with plasma circulating oxidized LDL (ox-LDL) and C-reactive protein (CRP). DESIGN: This cross-sectional study included data for circulating ox-LDL and CRP from a subpopulation of 586 men and women enrolled in a population-based survey conducted in 2000 in Girona, Spain. Multivariate analysis was performed to describe the independent association of WC and BMI with ox-LDL and CRP. RESULTS: Multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusted for lifestyle, educational level, and dietary confounders showed a direct association of WC (quartile distribution) and BMI categories with ox-LDL (P for linear trend = 0.002) and CRP (P for linear trend = 0.004). Subjects in the top quartile of WC and with a BMI > 29.9 were at high risk of elevated circulating concentrations of ox-LDL and CRP. Further adjustment for cardiovascular disease risk factors did not substantially modify these associations. The risk of high ox-LDL concentrations in overweight (BMI = 25.0-29.9) or obese (BMI > or = 30) subjects with a WC < 102 cm (men) or < 88 cm (women) was not significantly different from that in normal-weight subjects with these WCs. In contrast, overweight or obese subjects with higher WCs (WC > or = 102 cm for men and > or = 88 cm for women) were at significantly higher risk of increased ox-LDL. CONCLUSION: High WC was associated with high concentrations of ox-LDL independently of BMI in the study population.
The recent availability of both cordocentesis, a low risk and effective technique for fetal blood sampling, and ultrasensitive/highly specific two-site immunofluorometric assays (IFMA) for pituitary and chorionic glycoprotein hormone (I-LH, I-FSH, and I-CG) measurement prompted us to study the maturation of hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal function in 114 normal human fetuses (49 females and 65 males) from 17-40 weeks gestation. The subjects were selected from 216 consecutive cordocenteses carried out for rapid karyotyping and diagnosis of fetal infection or hematological disorders. In addition, FSH bioactivity (B-FSH) was measured by rat Sertoli cell aromatase induction assay, glycoprotein hormone alpha-subunit (alpha-SU) by RIA, and circulating free testosterone (fT) by direct analog technique. No significant cross-reactions were recorded in the different measurement methods. In particular, alpha-SU did not interfere in any IFMA, and CG cross-reactivity in LH IFMA was 0.5%. Circulating I-LH, I-FSH, and B-FSH levels at 17-24 weeks gestation were significantly higher in female than in male fetuses (I-LH, 48 +/- 4 vs. 6.3 +/- 0.7 U/L; I-FSH, 35 +/- 2 vs. 0.7 +/- 0.1 U/L; B-FSH, 131 +/- 17 vs. 43.4 +/- 5.4 U/L). During the last weeks of gestation, a significant decrease in I-LH and I-FSH levels was seen in both female and male fetuses (I-LH, 0.24 +/- 0.05 and 1.0 +/- 0.3 U/L; I-FSH, 0.45 +/- 0.1 and 0.5 +/- 0.1 U/L), while serum B-FSH remained elevated, but the previously recorded difference between sexes disappeared (54.3 +/- 7.2 and 58.7 +/- 7.3 U/L). Circulating I-CG and alpha-SU levels at midgestation were elevated in both female and male fetuses (I-CG, 117 +/- 29 and 191 +/- 44 U/L; alpha-SU, 143 +/- 16 and 105 +/- 9 micrograms/L, respectively) and decreased thereafter (I-CG, 42 +/- 9 and 26 +/- 6 U/L; alpha-SU, 60 +/- 15 and 37 +/- 6 micrograms/L). Serum fT levels at midgestation were significantly lower in females than in males (4.3 +/- 0.9 vs. 10.0 +/- 0.8 pmol/L) and increased until term, when the difference between sexes disappeared (16.2 +/- 1.8 vs. 17.6 +/- 1.6 pmol/L).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Shear-resistant arrest of circulating tumor cells is required for metastasis from the blood stream. Arrest during blood flow can be supported by tumor cell interaction with attached, activated platelets. This is mediated by tumor cell integrin alpha(v)beta3 and cross-linking plasma protein ligands. To analyze the mechanism of tumor cell ligand interactions under dynamic flow conditions, we used real-time video microscopy and tested human melanoma cell binding to fibrinogen, von Willebrand Factor, or fibronectin matrices in a buffer perfusion system. When perfused at venous flow, melanoma cells arrested abruptly and began to spread immediately. This was uniquely mediated by integrin alpha(v)beta3 on all tested ligands, and required alpha(v)beta3 activation and actin polymerization. Under static conditions, alpha(v)beta3 cooperated with alpha(v)beta1 and alpha5beta1 in supporting melanoma cell adhesion to fibronectin. But even when activated, beta1 integrins did not contribute to melanoma cell arrest during flow. Soluble ligand served as a cross-linker between attached and circulating tumor cells and enhanced melanoma cell arrest. Cohesion of activated melanoma cells was restricted to the matrix surface and did not occur in suspension. We conclude that the presence of alpha(v)beta3 in a functionally activated state provides a unique advantage for circulating tumor cells by promoting tumor cell arrest in the presence of flow-dependent shear forces.
It has been proposed that the presence of elevated serum titres against various Bacteroides species among patients with chronic inflammatory bowel disease (CIBD) may yield aetiological, pathogenic, or prognostic information. Using a crossed immunoelectrophoretic method, we investigated circulating antibodies against four Bacteroides species in 122 patients with CIBD (80 with ulcerative colitis (UC) and 42 with Crohn's disease (CD)) and in 32 patients with the irritable colon syndrome. In this cross-sectional study we found raised titre scores (greater than 0) among 26% of the patients with CD, among 46% of the patients with UC, and among 34% of the patients with the irritable colon syndrome. These differences are not significant. There were no correlations between the antibody titres and the duration of the disease, the clinical disease activity, or the site of the disease. Furthermore, the antibody titres yielded no prognostic information as to the necessity of surgery--that is, colectomy and/or small-bowel resection.
In order to clarify the pathophysiological significance of the fibrinogen (FgDP)-protamine complex, the interaction between fibrinogen and protamine sulphate was studied in vitro and in vivo. Using the electrophoretic technique, an attempt was made to determine whether the complex could be detected in vitro and in the circulating blood. From the present studies, it has been clarified in in vitro experiments that the slower mobility of two peaks on immunoelectrophoresis represented a complex of protamine sulphate and fibrinogen (FgDP). Furthermore, the peak of slower mobility on crossed immunoelectrophoresis appeared in the circulating blood of a rabbit receiving administration of excess protamine sulphate. That is, in vivo experiments showed that a complex of protamine sulphate and fibrinogen (FgDP) could be detected in the circulating blood.
A radioimmunoassay for circulating levels of the pyridinoline cross-linked carboxy-terminal telopeptide of type 1 collagen (1CTP) was developed and can be available as a kit on a commercial base. Using the kits, we evaluated basically and clinically the assay. The assayed values were reproducible and the assay can detect as low as 0.5 ng/ml of 1CTP. In healthy volunteers, circulating level was high under age 24 and over age 46. In patients with bone metastasis, serum levels elevated even in its early stage and correlated well with clinical status. In other bone diseases, such as primary hyperparathyroidism, hyperthyroidism, post-gastrectomy, hypercalcemia of malignancy and myeloma, serum levels elevated according to their clinical conditions. In patients with chronic renal failure, serum levels were high, suggesting decrease of renal clearance of 1CTP. The circulating 1CTP levels seemed to reflect well clinical bone destructive status. A high correlation between serum 1CTP level and urinary pyridinoline (r = 0.884) was shown, whereas essentially no correlation was observed between bone formation markers such as osteocalcin and alkaline phosphatase. Thus, the measurement of circulating 1CTP seems to be a simple and sensitive method to monitor bone destruction.
In a previous report, it was demonstrated that heterologous anti-idiotypic antibodies to autoantibodies against rat thyroglobulin (ART) were capable of inhibiting the in vitro binding between ART and rat thyroglobulin. It has also been shown that repeated injections of anti-idiotypic antibodies into Buffalo (BUF) rats with spontaneous autoimmune thyroiditis were followed by a significant decrease in the levels of circulating ART. In this report, cross-reacting idiotypic determinants, detectable by rabbit anti-idiotypic antibodies to ART, are shown to also be present on ART from rats with experimentally induced autoimmune thyroiditis. In addition, antibodies to rat thyroglobulin from animals of various strains and species are shown to also express idiotypes cross-reacting with those of spontaneous ART of BUF rats. Finally, it is reported that idiotypic determinants similar to those of circulating ART are present on spleen lymphocytes from rats with autoimmune thyroiditis.
Myocardial injury was studied in 104 patients undergoing coronary artery grafting without cold chemical cardioplegia using the quantity of the isoenzyme MB of the creatine kinase liberated as an indicator. This method of evaluation, which is said to permit comparison of different techniques of myocardial protection, allowed us to consider the relative importance of several factors believed to have an influence on intraoperative myocardial injury. Indices of significance were duration of symptoms before operation, presence of chronic arterial hypertension, and the type of antiangina treatment employed. Other operative factors included severity of the arterial lesions, number of anastomoses performed, and duration of extracorporeal circulation and of aortic cross-clamping.
UNLABELLED: There are anecdotal reports and small series describing the presence of anticardiolipin antibodies in patients with Takayasu Arteritis. This communication describes a systematic study searching for non-organ specific autoantibodies which includes antinuclear antibodies, anticardiolipin and anti-beta(2) GP(1) antibodies in a cohort of 28 Mexicans with angiographic definitive diagnostic of Takayasu Arteritis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-eight consecutive patients, who fulfilled classification and diagnostic criteria for Takayasu Arteritis and had a diagnostic panaortogram, were bled to study the presence of circulating autoantibodies in a cross-sectional design. RESULTS: There were no antinuclear antibodies, although a few sera had faint cytoplasm fluorescent deposit and reacted with cell extract. We did not recognize a distinct pattern. Also, there was no IgG nor IgM anticardiolipin antibodies nor anticofactor antibodies of clinical interest. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The presence of circulating non-organ specific autoantibodies is not a characteristic feature in Takayasu Arteritis when strict diagnostic criteria are applied. The occasional presence of such immune markers could be due to technical differences in sample management, less strict diagnosis or biological variability in certain cases, but has no diagnostic value.
A highly specific antiserum to 3,3',5'-triiodothyronine (reverse T(3), rT(3)) was prepared by immunization of rabbits with D,L-rT(3)-human serum albumin conjugate. Of the various thyroid hormone derivatives tested, only 3,3'-diiodothyronine (3,3'-T(2)) cross-reacted significantly (10%) with rT(3)-binding sites on the antiserum, while thyroxine (T(4)) and triiodothyronine (T(3)) cross-reacted by less than 0.1%. The antiserum was used in a simple, sensitive, precise, and reproducible radioimmunoassay (RIA) for measurement of rT(3) in ethanolic extracts of serum. The dose-response curves of inhibition of the binding of [(125)I]rT(3) to antibody obtained by serial dilutions of serum extracts were essentially parallel to the standard assay curve. Recovery of nonradioactive rT(3) added to serum before extraction averaged 93%. Serum rT(3) concentrations were found to be (mean+/-SD) 41+/-10 ng/100 ml in 27 normal subjects, 103+/-49 ng/100 ml in 22 hyperthyroid patients, 19+/-9 ng/100 ml in 12 hypothyroid patients, and 54+/-7 ng/100 ml in five subjects with elevated serum thyroxine-binding globulin: the values in each of the latter three groups of individuals were significantly different from normal. Reverse T(3) was detected regularly in normal or supranormal concentrations in serum of 12 hypothyroid patients rendered euthyroid or mildly hyperthyroid by treatment with synthetic T(4). It is suggested that serum rT(3) values noted here should be taken to reflect the relative changes in serum rT(3) rather than its absolute values in health and thyroid disease. True serum rT(3) may be somewhat different because: (a) D.L-rT(3) employed in the standard curve and L-rT(3) present in human serum may react differently with anti-D,L-rT(2). (b) Even though 3,3'-T(2), which cross-reacted 10% in rT(3) RIA, has been considered unlikely to be present in human serum, it may circulate in low levels. (c) Cross-reaction of T(4) in rT(3) RIA of 0.06% although small, could contribute to RIA estimates of rT(2); the effect of T(4) would be particularly important in case of serum of hyperthyroid patients. Thus, serum rT(3) concentration in hyperthyroid patients averaged 89+/-48 mug/100 ml after correction for cross-reaction effects of T(4): this value was about 14% lower than that before correction (see above). Serum rT(3) concentration in cord sera of seven newborns averaged 136+/-19 ng/100 ml; it was clearly elevated and within the range of values seen in hyperthyroid patients. This was the case when the mean T(4) concentration in the newborn cord sera was moderately higher than normal and about one-half that in hyperthyroid patients, whereas serum T(3) was markedly below the normal adult level. A Pronase hydrolysate of thyroglobulin prepared from pooled normal thyroid glands contained 0.042, 3.0, and 0.16 mug/mg protein of rT(3), T(4), and T(3), respectively. The various data suggest that: (a) rT(3) is a normal component of human serum and thyroglobulin: (b) peripheral metabolism of T(4) is an important source of the rT(3) present in serum: (c) peripheral conversion of T(4) to T(3) and rT(3) may not necessarily be a random process.
A/Goose/Guangdong/1/96-like H5N1 influenza viruses now circulating in southeastern China differ genetically from the H5N1 viruses transmitted to humans in 1997 but were their precursors. Here we show that the currently circulating H9N2 influenza viruses provide chickens with cross-reactive protective immunity against the currently circulating H5N1 influenza viruses and that this protective immunity is closely related to the percentage of pulmonary CD8(+) T cells expressing gamma interferon (IFN-gamma). In vivo depletion of T-cell subsets showed that the cross-reactive immunity was mediated by T cells bearing CD8(+) and T-cell receptor (TCR) alpha/beta and that the Vbeta1 subset of TCR alpha/beta T cells had a dominant role in protective immunity. The protective immunity induced by infection with H9N2 virus declined with time, lasting as long as 100 days after immunization. Shedding of A/Goose/Guangdong/1/96-like H5N1 virus by immunized chickens also increased with the passage of time and thus may play a role in the perpetuation and spread of these highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza viruses. Our findings indicate that pulmonary cellular immunity may be very important in protecting naïve natural hosts against lethal influenza viruses.
A previously described technique has been modified to permit the continuously recirculating perfusion of the separate maternal and fetal circulations of an isolated cotyledon of human placenta. Viability of the perfused cotyledons was established by measurements of oxygen consumption (average, 0.18 ml/gm/hr), glucose utilization (average, 1.0 mg/gm/hr), and lactate production (less than 0.01 mumol/gm/hr), and integrity of the placental barrier by the failure of India ink, 125I-albumin, or 35S-sulfobromophthalein to cross from fetal to maternal circulation. Clearance of 3H-inulin from the fetal circuit, 0.0059 +/- 0.0005 (SE) ml/min/gm, corresponded to 2.5% of its clearance by the adult human kidney. Clearance of 14C-antipyrine was 0.013 +/- 0.003 ml/min/gm. After introduction into the fetal circuit, the observed appearance of both inulin and antipyrine in the maternal circuit closely paralleled curves predicted by a simple mathematical model. The use of a continuously recirculating perfusion system is technically feasible, and has advantages over the single-pass technique for studying transplacental transfer of metabolites with a low efficiency of extraction.
Panels of monoclonal antibodies were raised to the haemagglutinin of strains of the Hong Kong subtype of influenza (H3N2), namely Hong Kong 1968, England 1972, Port Chalmers 1973, Victoria 1975 and Texas 1977. The probable binding sites of individual antibodies in each panel were determined by correlation of cross-reactivity with 16 heterologous strains from the same subtype, and amino acid differences between their haemagglutinin molecules. This led to an approximation of the "average repertoire" of the BALB/c mouse to influenza type A haemagglutinin. Comparative data of the cross-reactivity of whole mouse sera suggested that the monoclonal panels derived from spleen cells were a fair representation of circulating antibody. Variation in the cross-reactivities of individual sera approached that of individual monoclonal antibodies. The relevance of this finding to selection of new virus variants in the human population was discussed. Heterospecific antibodies were detected in some monoclonal panels. Specific amino acid changes which could be responsible for such activity were identified.
Labeled microspheres, 15 microns in diameter, were used to determine cardiac output and regional blood flow response to cross-clamping of the midthoracic aorta and subsequent sodium nitroprusside (SNP) infusion in 11 dogs. During aortic cross-clamping, mean arterial pressure above the occlusion (MAPa) increased 30% to 35%, mean arterial pressure below the occlusion (MAPb) decreased 87%, cardiac index decreased 12% to 14%, left atrial pressure (LAP) doubled, and renal and spinal cord (lower part) blood flows decreased substantially (85% to 94%). SNP infusion returned MAPa to baseline values, decreased MAPb by half, and substantially and further decreased renal blood flow (to 3% to 5% of baseline values). Myocardial and cerebral blood flows increased substantially (up to 250% to 400%). An increase in preload (fluid load) was accompanied by an increase in LAP, cardiac index, and myocardial blood flow only but not in renal or spinal cord flow. There was a strong association between cortical renal blood flow and MAPb (r2 = 0.92; p less than 0.0001), which suggests that blood flow through organs and tissues below the occlusion is pressure dependent. The data show that SNP infusion during thoracic aortic cross-clamping improves systemic and regional circulation above the occlusion but decreases MAPb and therefore blood flow below the occlusion. SNP infusion should be used with caution during aortic cross-clamping, since arterial hypotension of any degree may be deleterious to organs below the cross-clamp.
BACKGROUND: Cross-reactivity between food allergens occurs when they share part of their amino acid sequence, or when their three-dimensional molecular structure causes them to have a similar capacity to bind specific antibodies. OBJECTIVES: To review data from our laboratory on cross-reactivity between mammalian proteins (milk and meat allergens). METHODS: Studies used immunoelectrophoresis (sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and immunoblotting), and animal monoclonal antibodies. RESULTS: The findings suggest that animal monoclonal antibodies specific for cow's milk proteins are able to recognize the major part of milk proteins from mammals bred in Mediterranean countries (sheep, goat, and buffalo); weak cross-reactivity was observed with milk proteins from mares and donkeys. None of the antibodies used in our studies reacted with proteins from an exotic mammalian species: the camel. Similar cross-reactions were found with human circulating immunoglobulin E from children allergic to milk. With regard to beef allergy, monoclonal antibodies specific for bovine serum albumin cross-reacted only with ovine serum albumin, whereas the number of sera from allergic children able to recognize other mammalian serum albumins depended directly on the closeness of phylogenetic relationship between animal species and inversely on the percent identity with human serum albumin in the main epitopic sequence. CONCLUSION: An area of heterogeneity between animal and human species in a critical amino acid sequence (epitope) of an allergen can determine the degree of immunogenic activity.