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Sample records for aminopterin

  1. LD-aminopterin in the canine homologue of human atopic dermatitis: a randomized, controlled trial reveals dosing factors affecting optimal therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zebala, John A; Mundell, Alan; Messinger, Linda; Griffin, Craig E; Schuler, Aaron D; Kahn, Stuart J

    2014-01-01

    Options are limited for patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) who do not respond to topical treatments. Antifolate therapy with systemic methotrexate improves the disease, but is associated with adverse effects. The investigational antifolate LD-aminopterin may offer improved safety. It is not known how antifolate dose and dosing frequency affect efficacy in AD, but a primary mechanism is thought to involve the antifolate-mediated accumulation of 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide (AICAR). However, recent in vitro studies indicate that AICAR increases then decreases as a function of antifolate concentration. To address this issue and understand how dosing affects antifolate efficacy in AD, we examined the efficacy and safety of different oral doses and schedules of LD-aminopterin in the canine model of AD. This was a multi-center, double-blind trial involving 75 subjects with canine AD randomized to receive up to 12 weeks of placebo, once-weekly (0.007, 0.014, 0.021 mg/kg) or twice-weekly (0.007 mg/kg) LD-aminopterin. The primary efficacy outcome was the Global Score (GS), a composite of validated measures of disease severity and itch. GS improved in all once-weekly cohorts, with 0.014 mg/kg being optimal and significant (43%, P<0.01). The majority of improvement was seen by 8 weeks. In contrast, GS in the twice-weekly cohort was similar to placebo and worse than all once-weekly cohorts. Adverse events were similar across all treated cohorts and placebo. Once-weekly LD-aminopterin was safe and efficacious in canine AD. Twice-weekly dosing negated efficacy despite having the same daily and weekly dose as effective once-weekly regimens. Optimal dosing in this homologue of human AD correlated with the concentration-selective accumulation of AICAR in vitro, consistent with AICAR mediating LD-aminopterin efficacy in AD.

  2. LD-aminopterin in the canine homologue of human atopic dermatitis: a randomized, controlled trial reveals dosing factors affecting optimal therapy.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John A Zebala

    Full Text Available Options are limited for patients with atopic dermatitis (AD who do not respond to topical treatments. Antifolate therapy with systemic methotrexate improves the disease, but is associated with adverse effects. The investigational antifolate LD-aminopterin may offer improved safety. It is not known how antifolate dose and dosing frequency affect efficacy in AD, but a primary mechanism is thought to involve the antifolate-mediated accumulation of 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide (AICAR. However, recent in vitro studies indicate that AICAR increases then decreases as a function of antifolate concentration. To address this issue and understand how dosing affects antifolate efficacy in AD, we examined the efficacy and safety of different oral doses and schedules of LD-aminopterin in the canine model of AD.This was a multi-center, double-blind trial involving 75 subjects with canine AD randomized to receive up to 12 weeks of placebo, once-weekly (0.007, 0.014, 0.021 mg/kg or twice-weekly (0.007 mg/kg LD-aminopterin. The primary efficacy outcome was the Global Score (GS, a composite of validated measures of disease severity and itch. GS improved in all once-weekly cohorts, with 0.014 mg/kg being optimal and significant (43%, P<0.01. The majority of improvement was seen by 8 weeks. In contrast, GS in the twice-weekly cohort was similar to placebo and worse than all once-weekly cohorts. Adverse events were similar across all treated cohorts and placebo.Once-weekly LD-aminopterin was safe and efficacious in canine AD. Twice-weekly dosing negated efficacy despite having the same daily and weekly dose as effective once-weekly regimens. Optimal dosing in this homologue of human AD correlated with the concentration-selective accumulation of AICAR in vitro, consistent with AICAR mediating LD-aminopterin efficacy in AD.

  3. Synthesis and Evaluation of Hydrogen Peroxide Sensitive Prodrugs of Methotrexate and Aminopterin for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Peiró Cadahía, Jorge; Bondebjerg, Jon; Hansen, Christian A.

    2018-01-01

    A series of novel hydrogen peroxide sensitive prodrugs of methotrexate (MTX) and aminopterin (AMT) were synthesized and evaluated for therapeutic efficacy in mice with collagen induced arthritis (CIA) as a model of chronic rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The prodrug strategy selected is based on ROS...... assays. Selected candidates showed moderate to good solubility, high chemical and enzymatic stability, and therapeutic efficacy comparable to the parent drugs in the CIA model. Importantly, the prodrugs displayed the expected safer toxicity profile and increased therapeutic window compared to MTX and AMT...

  4. Chromosomes of older humans are more prone to aminopterine-induced breakage

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Esposito, D.; Fassina, G.; Szabo, P.; Weksler, M.; De Angelis, P.; Siniscalco, M.; Rodgers, L.

    1989-01-01

    The authors have adopted a simplified version of the cell hybrid cotransfer method to test the hypothesis that human lymphocytes derived from elderly individuals have a higher chromosome instability. Peripheral blood lymphocytes from old male individuals and young controls were fused with a Chinese hamster cell line (CHO-YH21), yielding 10 HAT-resistant rodent-human clones from the old propositi and 22 from the young controls. Both series of hybrid clones were analyzed with respect to the retention of the enzyme glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and the surface antigen MIC2 identified by monoclonal antibody 12E7, two human X chromosome-linked markers located at opposite ends of the X chromosome. Cell hybrid clones with an X chromosome from a young control retained both markers in about 70% of the cells. In contrast, cell hybrid clones with an X chromosome from an old donor retained the MIC2 marker in only 30% of their cells. Slot-blot hybridization studies have established that the observed loss of the MIC2 marker is due to loss of the coding gene, not to suppression of its expression. T lymphocytes from old donors were also found to have an LD 50 for aminopterine significantly lower than the concentration of this drug in the HAT medium used to grow the hybrids. They speculate that the higher rate of chromosomal breakage and of marker loss observed along the old-age X chromosomes could be the result of molecular scars accumulated with aging at sites of constitutive chromosomal fragility

  5. Loss and stabilization of resistance to aminopterin in mouse cell lines

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Safronov, V.V.; Kapitsa, O.S.; Sapegina, M.B.; Gorodetskii, S.I.

    1986-01-01

    Using step-wise selection, lines of mouse L-cells were obtained (clones B-82, TK-), resistance to aminopterin (AP) of which exceeds resistance of parental cells by 10 3 -5 x 10 4 times. Increased resistance is the result of amplification of the gene for dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), which was established according to increase in enzyme activity by 15-120 times and by cytogenetic methods. Development and disappearance of resistance to AP was studied and karyological analysis of lines obtained was conducted. Two types of karylogical changes were revealed: the presence of double microchromosomes (DM) and of a marker chromosome having homogeneously staining regions (HSR). The localization of the DHFR and HSR genes was demonstrated using in situ hybridization. At early stages of the development of resistance and for a long time, an extrachromosomal localization of amplified genes in the structure of DM, which determine unstable resistance to toxin, is fundamental. The possibility was demonstrated of the long-term existence of cells in which DM and HSR are present simultaneously. Change in number of copies of the DHFR gene in lines of such cells occurs through change in the number of DM, while size and localization of HSR are constant in different conditions of cell culturing. The presence of HSR determines stable resistance to AP. Data were obtained in support of an intermediate relative stabilization of resistance, which is caused by temporary insertion of copies of the DHFR gene into other sections of chromosomes, in addition to HSR dispersed variously through the genome

  6. Base excision repair of both uracil and oxidatively damaged bases contribute to thymidine deprivation-induced radiosensitization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Allen, Bryan G.; Johnson, Monika; Marsh, Anne E.; Dornfeld, Kenneth J.

    2006-01-01

    Purpose: Increased cellular sensitivity to ionizing radiation due to thymidine depletion is the basis of radiosensitization with fluoropyrimidine and methotrexate. The mechanism responsible for cytotoxicity has not been fully elucidated but appears to involve both the introduction of uracil into, and its removal from, DNA. The role of base excision repair of uracil and oxidatively damaged bases in creating the increased radiosensitization during thymidine depletion is examined. Methods and Materials: Isogenic strains of S. cerevisiae differing only at loci involved in DNA repair functions were exposed to aminopterin and sulfanilamide to induce thymidine deprivation. Cultures were irradiated and survival determined by clonogenic survival assay. Results: Strains lacking uracil base excision repair (BER) activities demonstrated less radiosensitization than the parental strain. Mutant strains continued to show partial radiosensitization with aminopterin treatment. Mutants deficient in BER of both uracil and oxidatively damaged bases did not demonstrate radiosensitization. A recombination deficient rad52 mutant strain was markedly sensitive to radiation; addition of aminopterin increased radiosensitivity only slightly. Radiosensitization observed in rad52 mutants was also abolished by deletion of the APN1, NTG1, and NTG2 genes. Conclusion: These data suggest radiosensitization during thymidine depletion is the result of BER activities directed at both uracil and oxidatively damaged bases

  7. Tritiated thymidine and deoxycytidine suicide of mouse hemopoietic colony forming cells (CFC)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Uyeki, E.M.; Wierzba, K.; Bisel, T.U.

    1981-01-01

    Significant enhancement of tritiated dCyd suicide occurred when unlabelled dThd was added to cultures of mouse monocytic colony-forming cells. Incorporation experiments supported the suicide experiments in that incorporation of tritiated dCyd into DNA was significantly increased. One hundred micromolar dCyd significantly reduced the radiotoxicity of 0.3 μCi of tritiated dThd; incorporation experiments indicated a dose-related reduction in the incorporation of tritiated dThd into DNA with the addition of 1-100 μM unlabelled dCyd. The addition of 1 μM aminopterin reversed the effect of 100 μM deoxycytidine; viz., incorporation of dThd into DNA was 90% of controls. Aminopterin had a similar effect on deoxyuridine reversal of tritiated dThd incorporation into DNA. Aminopterin had no effect on the reduction of tritiated dThd incorporation into DNA due to the addition of 100 μM unlabelled thymidine. Unlabelled ribonucleosides, Urd and Cyd, did not significantly affect the suicide pattern of tritiated dThd or dCyd when they were added to CFC cultures. Unlabelled deoxyribonucleosides, dThd or dCyd, did not significantly affect the suicide pattern of either tritiated Cyd or Urd when they were added to cultures containing tritiated ribonucleosides. Unlabelled Urd or Cyd was effective in reversing the suicide due to tritiated Urd or Cyd. (author)

  8. Induction of morphological aberrations by enzyme inhibition in Drosophila melanogaster

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bos, M.; Scharloo, W.; Bijlsma, R.; de Boer, I.M.; den Hollander, J.

    1969-01-01

    Zusatz zum Futter vonDrosophila melanogaster von 5-Fluoro-2-deoxyuridin oder Aminopterin induziert überzählige Skutellar- und Dorsozentralborsten sowie gekerbte Flügel. Diese Modifikationen wurden als Konsequenz von Enzymhemmung interpretiert.

  9. Stimulation of cytolytic T lymphocytes by azaguanine-resistant mouse tumor cells in selective hat medium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Snick, J. van; Uyttenhove, C.; Pel, A. van; Boon, T.

    1981-01-01

    Primed syngeneic or umprimed allogeneic mouse spleen cells were stimulated with azaguanine-resistant P815 tumor cells that were killed by the addition of aminopterin to the stimulation medium. The recovery of lymphocytes and their cytolytic activity and specificity were similar to those obtained after stimulation with irradiated cells. This method conveniently replaces the inactivation of stimulatory cells by irradiation or mitomycin treatment. Moreover, it has the advantage of inactivating not only the stimulatory cells but also the tumor cells that often contaminate the spleens of tumor-bearing animals, provided these animals have been inoculated with azaguanine-resistant tumor cell mutants. (Auth.)

  10. Construction of a map of chromosome 16 by using radiation hybrids

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ceccherini, I.; Romeo, G.; Lawrence, S.; Morton, N.E.; Breuning, M.H.; Harris, P.C.; Himmelbauer, H.; Frischauf, A.M.; Sutherland, G.R.; Germino, G.G.; Reeders, S.T.

    1992-01-01

    A human-hamster cell hybrid carrying a single copy of chromosome 16 as the only human genetic material was irradiated with a single dose of γ-rays and then fused with a thymidine kinase-deficient hamster cell line (RJKM) to generate radiation hybrids retaining unselected fragments of this human chromosome. In two experiments, 223 hybrids were isolated in hypoxanthine/aminopterine/thymidine (HAT) medium and screened with 38 DNA probes, corresponding to anonymous DNA or gene sequences localized on chromosome 16. The most likely order and location of the 38 DNA sequences were established by multiple pairwise analysis and scaled to estimate physical distance in megabases. The order and the distances thus obtained are mostly consistent with available data on genetic and physical mapping of these markers, illustrating the usefulness of radiation hybrids for mapping

  11. Absence of hypoxanthine:guanine phosphoribosyltransferase activity in murine Dunn osteosarcoma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abelson, H.T.; Gorka, C.

    1983-01-01

    The transplantable murine Dunn osteosarcoma has no detectable hypoxanthine:guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (EC 2.4.2.8) activity. This was established from the tumors directly and from tissue culture cell lines derived from the tumor using a variety of assays: e.g., no [3H]hypoxanthine uptake into tumor or tissue culture cells, no conversion of [3H]hypoxanthine to [3H]IMP by cell extracts from tumors or tissue culture cells, no growth of tissue culture cells in hypoxanthine:aminopterin:thymidine medium, and normal growth of these cells in 10 microM 6-mercaptopurine. Ten human osteosarcomas have been assayed, and two have no apparent hypoxanthine:guanine phosphoribosyltransferase enzyme activity. After high-dose methotrexate treatment in vivo, murine tumors could be selectively killed and normal tissues could be spared by using a rescue regimen of hypoxanthine-thymidine-allopurinol

  12. Quantification and analysis of reverse mutations at the hgprt locus in Chinese hamster ovary cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fuscoe, J.C.; O' Neill, J.P.; Machanoff, R.; Hsie, A.W.

    1982-01-01

    An assay is described for the quantification of reverse mutations at the hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (hgprt) locus in Chinese hamster ovary cells utilizing the selective agent L-azaserine (AS). Conditions are defined in terms of optimal AS concentration, cell density, and phenotypic expression time. After treatment, replicate cultures of 10/sup 6/ cells are allowed a 48-h phenotypic expression time in 100-mm plates. AS (10..mu..M) is then added directly to the growing culture and AS-resistant (AS/sup r/) cells form visible colonies. This assay is used to quantify ICR-191-, ICR-170-, and N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea-induced reversion of independently isolated HGPRT/sup -/ clones. The AS/sup r/ phenotype is characterized both physiologically and biochemically. All AS/sup r/ clones isolated are stably resistant to AS and aminopterin but sensitive to 6-thioguanine. They also have re-expressed HGPRT enzyme. In addition, several revertants are shown to contain altered HGPRT.

  13. Uridine 5'-Monophosphate Synthase Is Transcriptionally Regulated by Pyrimidine Levels in Nicotiana plumbaginifolia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santoso; Thornburg

    1998-02-01

    To understand the regulation and expression of pyrimidine biosynthesis in plants, we have examined the effect of the metabolic inhibitor 5-fluoroorotic acid (FOA) on uridine-5'-monophosphate synthase (UMPSase) expression in cell cultures of Nicotiana plumbaginifolia. UMPSase is the rate-limiting step of pyrimidine biosynthesis in plants. Addition of FOA causes an up-regulation of UMPSase enzyme activity in cell cultures after a lag phase of several days. Western-blot analysis demonstrated that the up-regulation in enzyme activity was caused by increased expression of the UMPSase protein. Northern-blot analysis demonstrated a higher level of UMPSase mRNA in the FOA-induced tissues than in control tissues. Run-on transcriptional assays showed that the UMPSase gene was transcriptionally activated after FOA treatment. The mechanism of toxicity of FOA is through thymine starvation. We found that addition of thymine abrogated the FOA-mediated up-regulation of UMPSase. In addition, methotrexate and aminopterin, which affect thymine levels by inhibiting dihydrofolate reductase, also up-regulate UMPSase in N. plumbaginifolia cells.

  14. Uridine 5′-Monophosphate Synthase Is Transcriptionally Regulated by Pyrimidine Levels in Nicotiana plumbaginifolia1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santoso, Djoko; Thornburg, Robert

    1998-01-01

    To understand the regulation and expression of pyrimidine biosynthesis in plants, we have examined the effect of the metabolic inhibitor 5-fluoroorotic acid (FOA) on uridine-5′-monophosphate synthase (UMPSase) expression in cell cultures of Nicotiana plumbaginifolia. UMPSase is the rate-limiting step of pyrimidine biosynthesis in plants. Addition of FOA causes an up-regulation of UMPSase enzyme activity in cell cultures after a lag phase of several days. Western-blot analysis demonstrated that the up-regulation in enzyme activity was caused by increased expression of the UMPSase protein. Northern-blot analysis demonstrated a higher level of UMPSase mRNA in the FOA-induced tissues than in control tissues. Run-on transcriptional assays showed that the UMPSase gene was transcriptionally activated after FOA treatment. The mechanism of toxicity of FOA is through thymine starvation. We found that addition of thymine abrogated the FOA-mediated up-regulation of UMPSase. In addition, methotrexate and aminopterin, which affect thymine levels by inhibiting dihydrofolate reductase, also up-regulate UMPSase in N. plumbaginifolia cells. PMID:9490773

  15. Antivitamins for Medicinal Applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zelder, Felix; Sonnay, Marjorie; Prieto, Lucas

    2015-06-15

    Antivitamins represent a broad class of compounds that counteract the essential effects of vitamins. The symptoms triggered by such antinutritional factors resemble those of vitamin deficiencies, but can be successfully reversed by treating patients with the intact vitamin. Despite being undesirable for healthy organisms, the toxicities of these compounds present considerable interest for biological and medicinal purposes. Indeed, antivitamins played fundamental roles in the development of pioneering antibiotic and antiproliferative drugs, such as prontosil and aminopterin. Their development and optimisation were made possible by the study, throughout the 20th century, of the vitamins' and antivitamins' functions in metabolic processes. However, even with this thorough knowledge, commercialised antivitamin-based drugs are still nowadays limited to antagonists of vitamins B9 and K. The antivitamin field thus still needs to be explored more intensely, in view of the outstanding therapeutic success exhibited by several antivitamin-based medicines. Here we summarise historical achievements and discuss critically recent developments, opportunities and potential limitations of the antivitamin approach, with a special focus on antivitamins K, B9 and B12 . © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  16. Generation and Characterization of Anti-CD34 Monoclonal Antibodies that React with Hematopoietic Stem Cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aghebati Maleki, Leili; Majidi, Jafar; Baradaran, Behzad; Movassaghpour, Aliakbar; Abdolalizadeh, Jalal

    2014-01-01

    CD34 is a type I membrane protein with a molecular mass of approximately 110 kDa. This antigen is associated with human hematopoietic progenitor cells and is a differentiation stage-specific leukocyte antigen. In this study we have generated and characterized monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) directed against a CD34 marker. Mice were immunized with two keyhole lympet hemocyanin (KLH)-conjugated CD34 peptides. Fused cells were grown in hypoxanthine, aminopterine and thymidine (HAT) selective medium and cloned by the limiting dilution (L.D) method. Several monoclones were isolated by three rounds of limited dilutions. From these, we chose stable clones that presented sustained antibody production for subsequent characterization. Antibodies were tested for their reactivity and specificity to recognize the CD34 peptides and further screened by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Western blotting analyses. One of the mAbs (3D5) was strongly reactive against the CD34 peptide and with native CD34 from human umbilical cord blood cells (UCB) in ELISA and Western blotting analyses. The results have shown that this antibody is highly specific and functional in biomedical applications such as ELISA and Western blot assays. This monoclonal antibodies (mAb) can be a useful tool for isolation and purification of human hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). PMID:24611141

  17. Structures of human folate receptors reveal biological trafficking states and diversity in folate and antifolate recognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wibowo, Ardian S; Singh, Mirage; Reeder, Kristen M; Carter, Joshua J; Kovach, Alexander R; Meng, Wuyi; Ratnam, Manohar; Zhang, Faming; Dann, Charles E

    2013-09-17

    Antifolates, folate analogs that inhibit vitamin B9 (folic acid)-using cellular enzymes, have been used over several decades for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases. Cellular uptake of the antifolates in clinical use occurs primarily via widely expressed facilitative membrane transporters. More recently, human folate receptors (FRs), high affinity receptors that transport folate via endocytosis, have been proposed as targets for the specific delivery of new classes of antifolates or folate conjugates to tumors or sites of inflammation. The development of specific, FR-targeted antifolates would be accelerated if additional biophysical data, particularly structural models of the receptors, were available. Here we describe six distinct crystallographic models that provide insight into biological trafficking of FRs and distinct binding modes of folate and antifolates to these receptors. From comparison of the structures, we delineate discrete structural conformations representative of key stages in the endocytic trafficking of FRs and propose models for pH-dependent conformational changes. Additionally, we describe the molecular details of human FR in complex with three clinically prevalent antifolates, pemetrexed (also Alimta), aminopterin, and methotrexate. On the whole, our data form the basis for rapid design and implementation of unique, FR-targeted, folate-based drugs for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases.

  18. Effects of cancer, radiotherapy and cytotoxic drugs on intestinal structure and function

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shaw, M T; Spector, M H; Ladman, A J [New Mexico Univ., Albuquerque (USA)

    1979-09-01

    Intestinal malabsorption and the structural changes in the small intestine in relation to cancer, radiotherapy and cytotoxic drugs are reviewed. Primary intestinal malignancies are often associated with malabsorption; further studies have shown that tumours outside the gastrointestinal tract may also be accompanied by changes in intestinal structure resulting in malabsorption. Abdominal radiotherapy of cancer patients has been shown to result in ultrastructural changes in the small intestine, a decrease in intestinal enzyme activity and malabsorption of nutrients. The effects of cytotoxic drugs on the small intestinal structure and function are reviewed in more detail. The drugs discussed include the alkylating agents such as nitrogen mustard, cyclophosphamide, iphosphamide, 1,3-bis (2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea and 1(2-chloroethyl)-3-(4-methylcyclohexyl)-1-nitrosourea. The effects of antimetabolites such as aminopterin, methotrexate, 5-fluoracil, cytosine arabinoside and 6-mercaptorpurine are also reviewed. Other drugs discussed were adriamycin, vincrinstine sulfate, vinblastine and hydroxyurea. Studies of the effects of combination chemotherapy on small intestinal structure and function are also described. It is concluded that chemotherapeutic drugs and radiation therapy may aggravate a malabsorptive state in view of their toxicity to the small intestinal cell, or may by themselves be responsible for malabsorption with resultant increase in cachexia and weight loss.

  19. Effects of cancer, radiotherapy and cytotoxic drugs on intestinal structure and function

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shaw, M.T.; Spector, M.H.; Ladman, A.J.

    1979-01-01

    Intestinal malabsorption and the structural changes in the small intestine in relation to cancer, radiotherapy and cytotoxic drugs are reviewed. Primary intestinal malignancies are often associated with malabsorption; further studies have shown that tumours outside the gastrointestinal tract may also be accompanied by changes in intestinal structure resulting in malabsorption. Abdominal radiotherapy of cancer patients has been shown to result in ultrastructural changes in the small intestine, a decrease in intestinal enzyme activity and malabsorption of nutrients. The effects of cytotoxic drugs on the small intestinal structure and function are reviewed in more detail. The drugs discussed include the alkylating agents such as nitrogen mustard, cyclophosphamide, iphosphamide, 1,3-bis (2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea and 1(2-chloroethyl)-3-(4-methylcyclohexyl)-1-nitrosourea. The effects of antimetabolites such as aminopterin, methotrexate, 5-fluoracil, cytosine arabinoside and 6-mercaptorpurine are also reviewed. Other drugs discussed were adriamycin, vincrinstine sulfate, vinblastine and hydroxyurea. Studies of the effects of combination chemotherapy on small intestinal structure and function are also described. It is concluded that chemotherapeutic drugs and radiation therapy may aggravate a malabsorptive state in view of their toxicity to the small intestinal cell, or may by themselves be responsible for malabsorption with resultant increase in cachexia and weight loss. (UK)

  20. Biochemical transformation of deoxythymidine kinase-deficient mouse cells with uv-irradiated equine herpesvirus type 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Allen, G.P.; McGowan, J.J.; Gentry, G.A.; Randall, C.C.

    1978-01-01

    A line of 3T3 mouse cells lacking deoxythymidine kinase (dTK - ) was stably transformed to the dTK + phenotype after exposure to uv-irradiated equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1). Biochemical transformants were isolated in a system selective for the dTK + phenotype (Eagle minimal essential medium containing 10 -4 M hypoxanthine, 6 x 10 -7 M aminopterin, and 2 x 10 -5 M deoxythymidine). Transformation was accompanied by the acquisition of a dTK activity with immunological, electrophoretic, and biochemical characteristics identical to those of the dTK induced by EHV-1 during productive infection. The transformed cells have been maintained in selective culture medium for more than 50 passages and have retained the capacity to express EHV-1-specific antigens. Spontaneous release of infectious virus has not been detected in the transformed lines, and the cells were not oncogenic for athymic nude mice. In contrast to normal dTK + 3T3 cells, EHV-1 transformants were unable to grow in the presence of arabinosylthymine, a drug selectively phosphorylated by herpesvirus-coded dTK's. These results indicate that a portion of the EHV-1 genome is able to persist in the transformed cells for many generations and be expressed as an enzymatically active viral gene product

  1. Establishment and characterization of mouse bone marrow-derived mast cell hybridomas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kawahara, Takeshi, E-mail: tkawafb@shinshu-u.ac.jp [Integrated Department of Sciences of Functional Foods, Graduate School of Agriculture, Shinshu University, Nagano (Japan)

    2012-11-01

    Interleukin (IL)-3-dependent mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs) are an important model for studying the function of mucosal-type mast cells. In the present study, BMMCs were successfully immortalized by cell fusion using a hypoxanthine-aminopterin-thymidine medium-sensitive variant of P815 mouse mastocytoma (P815-6TgR) as a partner cell line. The established mouse mast cell hybridomas (MMCHs) expressed {alpha}, {beta}, and {gamma} subunits of high-affinity immunoglobulin E (IgE) receptor (Fc{epsilon}RI) and possessed cytoplasmic granules devoid of or partially filled with electron-dense material. Four independent MMCH clones continuously proliferated without supplemental exogenous IL-3 and showed a degranulation response on stimulation with IgE+antigen. Furthermore, histamine synthesis and release by degranulation were confirmed in MMCH-D5, a MMCH clone that showed the strongest degranulation response. MMCH-D5 exhibited elevated levels of IL-3, IL-4, IL-13, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-{alpha}, and cyclooxygenase 2, and production of prostaglandin D{sub 2} and leukotriene C{sub 4} in response to IgE-induced stimulation. MMCH clones also expressed Toll-like receptors (TLRs) 1, 2, 4, and 6 and showed elevated levels of TNF-{alpha} expression in response to stimulation with TLR2 and TLR4 ligands. The MMCHs established using this method should be suitable for studies on Fc{epsilon}RI- and TLR-mediated effector functions of mast cells.

  2. Mammalian folylpoly-γ-glutamate synthetase. 2. Substrate specificity and kinetic properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cichowicz, D.J.; Shane, B.

    1987-01-01

    The specificity of hog liver folylpolyglutamate synthetase for folate substrates and for nucleotide and L-[ 14 C]glutamate substrates and analogues has been investigated. The kinetic mechanism, determined by using aminopterin as the folate substrate, is ordered Ter-Ter with MgATP binding first, folate second, and glutamate last. This mechanism precludes the sequential addition of glutamate moieties to enzyme-bound folate. Folate, dihydrofolate, and tetrahydrofolate possess the optimal configurations for catalysis while 5- and 10-position substitutions of the folate molecule impair catalysis. k/sub cat/ values decrease with increasing glutamate chain length, and the rate of decrease varies depending on the state of reduction and substitution of the folate molecule. Folate binding, as assessed by on rates, is slow. Dihydrofolate exhibits the fastest rate, and the rates are slightly reduced for tetrahydrofolate and 10-formyltetrahydrofolate and greatly reduced for 5-methyltetrahydrofolate and folic acid. Tetrahydrofolate polyglutamates are the only long glutamate chain length folates with detectable substrate activity. The specificity of the L-glutamate binding site is very narrow. L-Homocysteate and 4-threo-fluoroglutamate are alternate substrates and act as chain termination inhibitors in that their addition to the folate molecule prevents or severely retards the further addition of glutamate moieties. The K/sub m/ for glutamate is dependent on the folate substrate used. MgATP is the preferred nucleotide substrate, and β,γ-methylene-ATP, β,γ-imido-ATP, adenosine 5'-O-(3-thiotriphosphate), P 1 ,P 5 -di(adenosine-5') pentaphosphate, and free ATP 4- are potent inhibitors of the reaction

  3. Studies of globin gene expression in differentiating erythroid cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sullivan, T.D.

    1985-01-01

    The author has addressed questions concerning globin gene expression and the loss of protein synthesis in the terminal stages of erythroid development. (1) The hypothesis that the rate of cell division affects the relative synthesis of γ and β globin in erythroid cells was investigated. The effect of hydroxyurea, aminopterin, or low culture temperature on the in vitro growth of erythroid progenitor cells and on the relative synthesis of γ and β globin was measured. No consistent change in γ globin synthesis was detected. (2) The hypothesis that the ratio of γ and β globin synthesis decreases during erythroid maturation because of differential mRNA stability was investigated. The half-lives of γ and β globin mRNAs and γ and β globin protein synthesis were measured in cultured reticulocytes. γ and β globin mRNAs were assayed by solution hybridization and by in vitro translation. Globin synthesis was determined by 3 H-leucine incorporation into the γ and β globin chains. γ and β globin mRNAs decay with similar half-lives in cultured reticulocytes. Therefore, the change in the ratio of γ and β globin synthesis during erythroid maturation cannot be explained by differences in mRNA stability and is likely to result from asynchronous transcription of the genes. These data suggest that protein synthesis in maturing reticulocytes is not limited by the quantity of mRNA but by the availability of translation factors. (3) The hypothesis was tested that the initiation factor GEF becomes limiting for protein synthesis during reticulocyte maturation

  4. Battling the hematological malignancies: the 200 years' war.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lichtman, Marshall A

    2008-02-01

    The delineation of the hematological malignancies began near the end of the first third of the 19th century with the recognition of the similarity among cases with lymph node tumors and an enlarged spleen (Hodgkin's disease). Descriptions of chronic and acute leukemia and myeloma followed thereafter. In the first years of the 20th century the discovery of x-radiation permitted palliative orthovoltage radiation therapy of Hodgkin's disease. Following World War II, legitimate drug therapy for the hematological malignancies was introduced: nitrogen mustard, adrenocorticotropic hormone and cortisone acetate, and anti-folic acid derivatives, initially aminopterin. Today, about 14 classes of drugs (different mechanisms of action) and >50 individual agents are being used, with others under study. Several examples of agents targeting specific transcription factors or oncoproteins have been introduced. Despite remarkable progress, including the ability to cure acute leukemia in about 70% of children, cure several genetic variants of acute myelogenous leukemia in younger adults, cure some cases of lymphoma in children and younger adults, and induce prolonged remission in many affected persons, the majority of patients face an uncertain outcome and shortened life. Thus, we have much to do in the next several decades. The significant hurdles we must overcome include: the apparent infrequency of an exogenous cause that can be avoided, the exponential increase in incidence rates with age and the dramatic negative effect of aging on the results of treatment, the challenge of one trillion or more disseminated cancer cells among which are a smaller population of cancer stem cells, the profound genetic diversity of the hematological malignancies (apparently hundreds of unique genetic primary lesions), the redundant growth and survival pathways defining the cancer phenotype, the decreasing market for pharmaceutical companies as therapy becomes more specific (fewer target patients