Heterogeneous effects of G-CSF and GM-CSF on cell growth and ara-C cytotoxicity in childhood leukemias which express myeloid markers

It is uncertain if acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) cells expressing myeloid makers can respond to granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). We investigated the effects of G-CSF (0.01 microgram/ml) and GM-CSF (0.01 microgram/ml) on [3H]thymidine (TdR) uptake, and the cytotoxicity of 1-beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine (ara-C) in leukemia cells from 17 pediatric patients. ALL cells without myeloid markers did not respond to G-CSF or GM-CSF. On the other hand, these cytokines enhanced the [3H]TdR uptake and cell growth, not only of AML cells but also of ALL cells expressing myeloid antigens. However, G-CSF and GM-CSF did not always enhance the growth inhibitory effect of the cell cycle specific drug ara-C when the cells were co-cultured with the drug. There was no relationship between cell growth and the amount of [3H]TdR incorporation or the intracellular ara-CTP level. These results indicate the heterogeneous effects of G-CSF and GM-CSF on cell growth and ara-C sensitivity in childhood leukemia cells.     

Development of a new method for simultaneously evaluating mucociliary clearance and pulmonary epithelial permeability in rabbit experiments by means of 18FDG, three-dimensional positron emission tomography and rectilinear scan

OBJECTIVE: To determine which types of kinin receptor are present in human bronchial epithelial cells we studied the capability of bradykinin to mobilize intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) in a human bronchial epithelial cell line (16HBE cells). MATERIAL: Human bronchial epithelial cell line transformed with an original defective simian virus 40 (SV40). TREATMENT: Bradykinin (0.1 pM to 0.1 microM), des-Arg9 bradykinin (1 microM), des-Arg10) kallidin (1 microM), indomethacin (1 microM), phosphoramidon (1 microM), captopril (1 microM), des-Arg9-[Leu8]bradykinin (1 microM), HOE 140 (DArg-[Hyp3, Thi5, DTic , Oic8]-bradykinin) (1 microM), and NPC 16731 (DArg-[Hyp3, Thi5, DTic7, Tic8]-bradykinin) (1 microM). METHODS: The mobilization of [Ca2+]i was determined by the fura-2 method. Two sample Wilcoxon rank-sum (Mann-Whitney) test was used for statistical calculations. RESULTS: Bradykinin, but not the selective agonists for kinin B1 receptor des-Arg9 bradykinin and des-Arg10 kallidin, increased the mobilization of [Ca2+]i (EC50, 0.079+/-0.009nM) in 16HBE cells in a concentration-dependent manner. Pretreatment with the cyclooxygenase inhibitor indomethacin (1 microM) or the peptidase inhibitors, phosphoramidon (1 microM) or captopril (1 microM), did not affect the response to bradykinin. The kinin B1 receptor antagonist, des-Arg9-[Leu8]bradykinin (1 microM), was inactive. HOE 140 and NPC 16731, two selective antagonists of the kinin B2 receptor abolished the response to bradykinin (IC50 of HOE 140 and NPC 16731 were 0.52+/-0.037nM and 1.67 +/- 0.41 nM, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The present data indicate the presence of kinin B2 receptors in the 16HBE cells.     

Femoral vein stasis during laparoscopic cholecystectomy: effects of graded elastic compression leg bandages in preventing thrombus formation

Venous stasis of the legs during laparoscopic cholecystectomy was compared between patients without graded compression leg bandages (Group 1; n = 12) and patients with such bandages (Group 2; n = 12) by measuring mean blood flow velocity and cross-sectional area of the femoral vein using a color Doppler ultrasonography. In Group 1, when velocity and area were measured in the supine position, a significant decrease in velocity (p < .05) and a significant increase in area (p < .05) occurred after abdominal insufflation to 10 mm Hg. These changes were greater during abdominal insufflation in the reverse Trendelenburg position than during abdominal insufflation in the supine position. In Group 2, flow velocity was significantly higher (p < .05) before abdominal insufflation as compared with Group 1. After abdominal insufflation to 10 mm Hg and a postural change, velocity significantly decreased (p < .05) and area significantly increased (p < .05) in Group 2, similar to the results in Group 1. During abdominal insufflation at 5 mm Hg or lower, the use of the graded compression bandage was found to be useful for preventing femoral vein stasis. During abdominal insufflation at 10 mm Hg or in the reverse Trendelenburg position, the bandage did not prevent femoral vein stasis.     

Right of way in the sky: two problems in aircraft self-separation and the auction-based solution

There has been a growing movement to give commercial airliners more freedom in choosing their routes and responsibility for detecting and avoiding conflicts. These "free flight" concepts must contain new rules for assigning right of way in potential conflict situations. To evaluate the effect of prospective rules, the current paper derives the expected response of agents who exhibit different levels of sophistication. Traditional game theoretic analysis is used to derive the behavior of rational agents. Computer simulations are used to predict the behavior of boundedly rational reinforcement learners. The results reveal that several seemingly reasonable, straightforward right-of-way rules might lead to undesirable outcomes. These problematic results are robust to the assumed level of rationality. It is shown that these problems can be alleviated by using auctions to resolve competition for right of way. Actual or potential applications of this research include the usage of second price auctions to address right-of-way and similar conflicts.     

Digital Image Forgery Detection Based on Lens and Sensor Aberration

A new approach to detecting forgery in digital photographs is suggested. The method does not necessitate adding data to the image (such as a Digital Watermark) nor require other images for comparison or training. The fundamental assumption in the presented approach is the notion that image features arising from the image acquisition process itself or due to the physical structure and characteristics of digital cameras, are inherent proof of authenticity and they are sensitive to image manipulation as well as being difficult to forge synthetically. Typically, such features do not affect image content nor quality and are often invisible to the inexperienced eye. The approach presented in this work is based on the effects introduced in the acquired image by the optical and sensing systems of the camera. Specifically, it exploits image artifacts that are due to chromatic aberrations as indicators for evaluating image authenticity.     

Random low-degree polynomials are hard to approximate

We study the problem of how well a typical multivariate polynomial can be approximated by lower-degree polynomials over \mathbb F{\mathbb F} . We prove that almost all degree d polynomials have only an exponentially small correlation with all polynomials of degree at most d − 1, for all degrees d up to Θ(n). That is, a random degree d polynomial does not admit a good approximation of lower degree. In order to prove this, we prove far tail estimates on the distribution of the bias of a random low-degree polynomial. Recently, several results regarding the weight distribution of Reed–Muller codes were obtained. Our results can be interpreted as a new large deviation bound on the weight distribution of Reed–Muller codes.     

Metabolic Remodeling with Hepatosteatosis Induced Vascular Oxidative Stress in Hepatic ERK2 Deficiency Mice with High Fat Diets

We previously demonstrated the marked hepatosteatosis and endothelial dysfunction in hepatocyte-specific ERK2 knockout mice (LE2KO) with a high-fat/high-sucrose diet (HFHSD), but detailed metabolic changes and the characteristics in insulin-sensitive organs were not tested. This study aimed to characterize metabolic remodeling with changes in insulin-sensitive organs, which could induce endothelial dysfunction in HFHSD-LE2KO. The serum glucose and fatty acid (FA) were modestly higher in HFHSD-LE2KO than HFHSD-Control. FA synthesis genes were up-regulated, which was associated with the decreased phosphorylation of AMPK and ACC, and with the up-regulation of SREBP-1 in the liver from HFHSD-LE2KO. In FA and amino acids fraction analysis, arachidonic acid/eicosapentaenoic acid ratio, L-ornithine/arginine ratio, asymmetric dimethylarginine and homocysteine levels were elevated in HFHSD-LE2KO. Insulin-induced phosphorylation of AKT was blunted in skeletal muscle. Serum leptin and IL-1β were elevated, and serum adiponectin was decreased with the enlargement of epididymal adipocytes. Finally, the enhanced superoxide levels in the aorta, which were blunted with CCCP, apocynin, and tempol, were observed in HFHSD-LE2KO. A pre-incubation of aortic rings with tempol improved endothelial dysfunction in HFHSD-LE2KO. HFHSD-LE2KO revealed an acceleration of FA synthesis in the liver leading to insulin resistance in skeletal muscle and the enlargement of visceral adipocytes. Global metabolic remodeling such as changes in arginine metabolism, ω3/ω6 ratio, and adipocytokines, could affect the vascular oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction in HFHSD-LE2KO.     

Rapid and progressive CD4+ decline in a monkey infected with an SIV+HIV-1 chimeric virus

We previously constructed a simian immunodeficiency virus+human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) chimeric virus, NM-3rN to generate a pathogenic HIV-1 in macaque monkeys. During the in vivo passage of this virus in several monkeys, a viral strain, R43-56 was obtained which acquired a better replication ability in vivo. MM121, one of the three monkeys inoculated with the R43-56, showed weight loss, diarrhea and a rapid and continuous decrease in CD4+ lymphocytes at the moribund stage. An autopsy revealed generalized lymphadenopathy, dehydration, and ileocecal intussusception. In situ hybridization showed that the virus infection was in systemic lymphoid organs. We are presently monitoring the survivors to obtain candidates for a more virulent virus. R43-56 may be a better challenge virus and useful tool for human acquired immunodeficiency syndrome research.     

Studies on peroxidized lipids. V. Formation and characterization of 1,4-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbaldehydes as model of fluorescent components in lipofuscin

We investigated fluorescence properties of 1,4-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbaldehydes and their formation in mild reaction of primary amines and malonaldehyde, in order to clarify the role of malonaldehyde in the formation of fluorescent components of lipofuscin. The compounds exhibited fluorescence with excitation maxima at 375–405 nm and emission maxima at 435–465 nm, which was similar to those of lipofuscin and the fluorescent substances derived from the reaction of oxidized fatty acids with primary amines. Fluorescence of the compounds was greatly affected in acidic medium and little influenced in alkaline medium or by the metal chelator. The compounds lost fluorescence by treatment with sodium borohydride. They were inert to thiobarbituric acid reaction. Some of the fluorescence properties of the compounds were different from those of lipofuscin and the related fluorescent substances. Mild reaction of methylamine with pure malonaldehyde gave a single fluorescent compound, 1,4-dimethyl-1,4-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbaldehyde (Ia), and the reaction with the acid hydrolysate of tetramethoxypropane gave Ia and 1-methyl-4-(dimethoxyethyl)-1,4-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbaldehyde (IIa), the latter being produced from the impurity in the hydrolysate. These reactions produced a non-fluorescent Schiff base, a 1∶1-adduct of methylamine and malonaldehyde (IIIa), as a major product. It looks unlikely that malonaldehyde is the only product of lipid oxidation that produces fluorescent components in lipofuscin complex.     

The effect of airflow pattern on filter breakthrough in physical adsorption

The Wheeler-Jonas (WJ) model for prediction of the protection capacity of organic vapor filters under a fixed airflow was extended to breathing-simulation, pulsating flow. Breakthrough curves of dimethyl-methyl phosphonate (DMMP) and decane were measured under fixed flow and sinusoidal flow. A linear dependence of ln(C_X/C₀) on the breakthrough time (t_B) was observed in all the experiments, indicating that the concepts of critical bed weight (W_C) and dynamic adsorption capacity (W_E) as defined by the WJ model are applicable to pulsating flow as well. W_E was found to be almost unchanged by the flow pattern, whereas W_C was considerably larger (by 7-44%) at pulsating flow compared to fixed flow with the same average rate. Thus, shifting from fixed flow to pulsating flow may shorten t_B significantly. The effect of the flow type on t_B increases with the ratio of the critical weight to the total bed weight. For a high protection level (C₀/C_X=60?000), the protection capacity of personal NBC canisters was reduced by up to 15% upon shifting from fixed to pulsating flow.