The frequency of Fabry disease with the E66Q variant in the α-galactosidase A gene in Japanese dialysis patients: a case report and a literature review.

Fabry disease (FD) is an Xlinked disorder resulting in a deficiency in α-galactosidase A (α-Gal) activity. FD is one of the causes of progressive renal dysfunction, but its diagnosis is often delayed or missed completely. We herein report the case of a 70-year-old male who had been receiving hemodialysis (HD) for 23 y who was diagnosed with FD after his participation in a screening program for plasma α-Gal activity for 892 HD patients. He had a low plasma α-Gal activity level and was demonstrated to have an E66Q mutation in exon 2 of the α-Gal gene. One of his daughters had the same mutation. The proband died due to aspiration pneumonia before receiving enzyme replacement therapy. We reviewed previous studies and found E66Q mutation in 36% of Japanese FD patients on HD including the present case. The clinical characteristics of E66Q variant are also discussed.

[Application of the lower partial sternotomy approach to patients who may need tracheostomy in the early period after cardiac surgery].

Recent good results of cardiovascular surgery have led to expansion of its indication to elderly patients and patients with serious complications. Such patients may have serious respiratory complications after cardiac surgery and need to undergo tracheostomy relatively early in the postoperative period. Although the full sternotomy approach is the standard in almost all cardiac surgeries, superficial and deep sternal infections are rather common after early tracheostomy in full sternotomy patients. The lower partial sternotomy approach is a safer and more useful procedure in patients who will need tracheostomy in the early period after cardiac surgery. We report on 2 patients who were successfully tracheostomized within a week after cardiac surgery, with a review of the literature.

Induction of programmed cell death in human hematopoietic cell lines by fibronectin via its interaction with very late antigen 5.

Extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules such as fibronectin (FN), collagens, and laminin have important roles in hematopoiesis. However, little is known about the precise mechanisms by which ECM molecules regulate proliferation of human hematopoietic progenitor cells. In this study, we have investigated the effects of ECM molecules, particularly of FN, on the proliferation of a myeloid leukemia cell line, M07E, which proliferates in response to either human granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or stem cell factor (SCF). The [3H]thymidine incorporation and cell enumeration assays showed that FN strikingly inhibited GM-CSF- or SCF-induced proliferation of M07E cells in a dose-dependent manner, whereas little or no inhibition was induced by collagen types I and IV. The growth suppression of M07E cells was not due to the inhibitory effect of FN on ligand binding or very early events in the signal transduction pathways from the GM-CSF or SCF receptors. DNA content analysis using flow cytometry after staining with propidium iodide revealed that the treatment of M07E cells with FN did not block the entry of the cells into the cell cycle after stimulation with GM-CSF or SCF, whereas the treatment resulted in the appearance of subdiploid peak. Furthermore, FN was found to induce oligonucleosomal DNA fragmentation and chromatin condensation in the cells even in the presence of GM-CSF or SCF, suggesting the involvement of programmed cell death (apoptosis) in the FN-induced growth suppression. The growth suppression or apoptosis induced by FN was rescued by the addition of either anti-FN antibody, anti-very late antigen 5 monoclonal antibody (anti-VLA5 mAb), or GRGDSP peptide, but not by that of anti-VLA4 mAb or GRGESP peptide, suggesting that the FN effects on M07E cells were mediated through VLA5. In addition, the FN-induced apoptosis was detectable in VLA5-positive human hematopoietic cell lines other than M07E cells, but not in any of the VLA5-negative cell lines. These results suggest that FN is capable of inducing apoptosis via its interaction with VLA5, and also raise the possibility that the FN-VLA5 interaction may contribute, at least in part, to negative regulation of hematopoiesis.

Histone deacetylase inhibitor FK228 suppresses the Ras-MAP kinase signaling pathway by upregulating Rap1 and induces apoptosis in malignant melanoma.

Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors are expected to be effective for refractory cancer because their mechanism of action differs from that of conventional antineoplastic agents. In this study, we examined the effect of the HDAC inhibitor FK228 on malignant melanoma, as well as its molecular mechanisms. FK228 was highly effective against melanoma compared with other commonly used drugs. By comparing the gene expression profiles of melanoma cells and normal melanocytes, we defined a subset of genes specifically upregulated in melanoma cells by FK228, which included Rap1, a small GTP-binding protein of the Ras family. The expression of Rap1 mRNA and protein increased in FK228-treated melanoma cells in both a dose- and a time-dependent manner. A decrease in the phosphorylation of c-Raf, MEK1/2, and ERK1/2 was accompanied by an increase in Rap1 expression in both FK228-treated and Rap1-overexpressing cells. Inhibition of Rap1 upregulation by small interfering RNA (siRNA) abrogated the induction of apoptosis and suppression of ERK1/2 phosphorylation in FK228-treated melanoma cells. These results indicate that the cytotoxic effects of FK228 are mediated via the upregulation of Rap1. Furthermore, we found that Rap1 was overexpressed and formed a complex with B-Raf in melanoma cell lines with a V599E mutation of B-Raf. The siRNA-mediated abrogation of Rap1 overexpression increased the viability of these cells, suggesting that Rap1 is also an endogenous regulator of Ras-MAP kinase signaling in melanomas.

Identification of mutations in the coding sequence of the proto-oncogene c-kit in a human mast cell leukemia cell line causing ligand-independent activation of c-kit product.

The c-kit proto-oncogene encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase. Binding of c-kit ligand, stem cell factor (SCF) to c-kit receptor (c-kitR) is known to activate c-kitR tyrosine kinase, thereby leading to autophosphorylation of c-kitR on tyrosine and to association of c-kitR with substrates such as phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K). In a human mast cell leukemia cell line HMC-1, c-kitR was found to be constitutively phosphorylated on tyrosine, activated, and associated with PI3K without the addition of SCF. The expression of SCF mRNA transcript in HMC-1 cells was not detectable by means of PCR after reverse transcription (RT-PCR) analysis, suggesting that the constitutive activation of c-kitR was ligand independent. Sequencing of whole coding region of c-kit cDNA revealed that c-kit genes of HMC-1 cells were composed of a normal, wild-type allele and a mutant allele with two point mutations resulting in intracellular amino acid substitutions of Gly-560 for Val and Val-816 for Asp. Amino acid sequences in the regions of the two mutations are completely conserved in all of mouse, rat, and human c-kit. In order to determine the causal role of these mutations in the constitutive activation, murine c-kit mutants encoding Gly-559 and/or Val-814, corresponding to human Gly-560 and/or Val-816, were constructed by site-directed mutagenesis and expressed in a human embryonic kidney cell line, 293T cells. In the transfected cells, both c-kitR (Gly-559, Val-814) and c-kitR (Val-814) were abundantly phosphorylated on tyrosine and activated in immune complex kinase reaction in the absence of SCF, whereas tyrosine phosphorylation and activation of c-kitR (Gly-559) or wild-type c-kitR was modest or little, respectively. These results suggest that conversion of Asp-816 to Val in human c-kitR may be an activating mutation and responsible for the constitutive activation of c-kitR in HMC-1 cells.

Identification of Rap1 as a target for the Crk SH3 domain-binding guanine nucleotide-releasing factor C3G.

C3G, which was identified as a Crk SH3 domain-binding guanine nucleotide-releasing factor, shows sequence similarity to CDC25 and Sos family proteins (S. Tanaka, T. Morishita, Y. Hashimoto, S. Hattori, S. Nakamura, M. Shibuya, K. Matuoka, T. Takenawa, T. Kurata, K. Nagashima, and M. Matsuda, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 91:3443-3447, 1994). The substrate specificity of C3G was examined by in vitro and in vivo experiments. C3G markedly stimulated dissociation of bound GDP from Rap1B but marginally affected the same reaction of other Ras family proteins (Ha-Ras, N-Ras, and RalA). C3G also stimulated binding of GTP-gamma S [guanosine 5'-3-O-(thio)triphosphate] to Rap1B. When C3G and Rap1A were expressed in COS7 cells, marked accumulation of the active GTP-bound form of Rap1A was observed, while Sos was not effective in the activation of Rap1A. These results clearly show that C3G is an activator for Rap1. Furthermore, expression of C3G with a membrane localization signal in a v-Ki-ras transformant, DT, induced a reversion of the cells to the flat form, possibly through the activation of endogenous Rap1.

Functional expression of interleukin 2 receptor in a human factor-dependent megakaryoblastic leukemia cell line: evidence that granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor inhibits interleukin 2 binding to its receptor.

Human interleukin 2 (IL-2) is a member of the class of crucial regulators of lymphocyte proliferation. The action of IL-2 is known to be mediated through binding to a specific IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) which comprises at least two distinct proteins: IL-2R alpha (p55) and IL-2R beta (p70-75). However, the expression and function of IL-2R are largely unknown in acute myeloblastic leukemia cells. In a human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), IL-3, or stem cell factor-dependent myeloid leukemia cell line (M07E), IL-2 was found to stimulate proliferation in a dose-dependent manner and to augment GM-CSF- and stem cell factor-induced proliferation of M07E cells. The expression of IL-2R beta on M07E cells was detectable with 125I-IL-2 binding and affinity cross-linking analyses and with a monoclonal antibody against IL-2R beta, Mik-beta 1. Although the expression of IL-2R beta was not down-regulated but somewhat up-regulated by treatment with GM-CSF in both mRNA and protein levels, GM-CSF was found to compete (75%) with radiolabeled IL-2 for binding to IL-2R on M07E cells, whereas no competition of GM-CSF binding was observed with IL-2 even at a 400-fold molar excess. These results suggest that IL-2R may be functionally expressed in some cases of acute myeloblastic leukemia cells and raise the possibility that IL-2 may have some effects on human myelopoiesis.

Characterization of a human MSX-2 cDNA and its fragment isolated as a transformation suppressor gene against v-Ki-ras oncogene.

A cDNA (termed CT124) encoding a carboxyl-terminal fragment of the human homeobox protein MSX-2 was found to induce flat reversion when expressed in v-Ki-ras-transformed NIH3T3 cells. Although the expression of endogenous MSX-2 gene is low in most of the normal adult tissues examined, it is frequently activated in carcinoma-derived cell lines. Likewise, the gene is inactive in NIH3T3 cells but is transcriptionally activated after transformation by v-Ki-ras oncogene, suggesting that the intact MSX-2 may play a positive, rather than suppressive, role in cell transformation. To test this possibility, we isolated a near full-length human MSX-2 cDNA and tested its activities in two cell systems, i.e. fibroblast and myoblast. In NIH3T3 fibroblasts, although the gene by itself failed to confer a transformed phenotype, antisense MSX-2 cDNA as well as truncated CT124 cDNA interfered with the transforming activities of v-Ki-ras oncogene. In C2C12 myoblasts, MSX-2 was found to suppress MyoD gene expression, as do activated ras oncogenes, under certain culture conditions, and CT124 was found to inhibit the activities of both MSX-2 and ras in this system as well. Our findings not only suggest that CT124 may act as a dominant suppressor of MSX-2 but also raise the possibility that MSX-2 gene may be an important downstream target for the Ras signaling pathways.

Plasma membrane recruitment of RalGDS is critical for Ras-dependent Ral activation.

In COS cells, Ral GDP dissociation stimulator (RalGDS)-induced Ral activation was stimulated by RasG12V or a Rap1/Ras chimera in which the N-terminal region of Rap1 was ligated to the C-terminal region of Ras but not by Rap1G12V or a Ras/Rap1 chimera in which the N-terminal region of Ras was ligated to the C-terminal region of Rap1, although RalGDS interacted with these small GTP-binding proteins. When RasG12V, Ral and the Rap1/Ras chimera were individually expressed in NIH3T3 cells, they localized to the plasma membrane. Rap1Q63E and the Ras/Rap1 chimera were detected in the perinuclear region. When RalGDS was expressed alone, it was abundant in the cytoplasm. When coexpressed with RasG12V or the Rap1/Ras chimera, RalGDS was detected at the plasma membrane, whereas when coexpressed with Rap1Q63E or the Ras/Rap1 chimera, RalGDS was observed in the perinuclear region. RalGDS which was targeted to the plasma membrane by the addition of Ras farnesylation site (RalGDS-CAAX) activated Ral in the absence of RasG12V. Although RalGDS did not stimulate the dissociation of GDP from Ral in the absence of the GTP-bound form of Ras in a reconstitution assay using the liposomes, RalGDS-CAAX could stimulate it without Ras. RasG12V activated Raf-1 when they were coexpressed in Sf9 cells, whereas RasG12V did not affect the RalGDS activity. These results indicate that Ras recruits RalGDS to the plasma membrane and that the translocated RalGDS induces the activation of Ral, but that Rap1 does not activate Ral due to distinct subcellular localization.

Possible involvement of MSX-2 homeoprotein in v-ras-induced transformation.

A truncated MSX-2 homeoprotein was found to induce flat reversion when expressed in v-Ki-ras-transformed NIH3T3 cells. Although the expression of endogenous MSX-2 gene is low in most of the normal adult tissues examined, it is frequently activated in carcinoma-derived cell lines. Likewise, the gene is inactive in untransformed cells but is transcriptionally activated after transformation by v-Ki-ras oncogene, suggesting that the intact MSX-2 may play a positive, rather than suppressive, role in cell transformation. To test this possibility, we isolated a full-length human MSX-2 cDNA and tested its activities in two cell systems: fibroblast and myoblast. In NIH3T3 fibroblasts, although the gene by itself failed to confer a transformed phenotype, antisense MSX-2 cDNA as well as truncated MSX-2 cDNA interfered with the transforming activities of both v-Ki-ras and v-raf oncogene. In C2C12 myoblasts, MSX-2 was found to suppress MyoD gene expression, as do activated ras oncogenes, under certain culture conditions, and truncated MSX-2 cDNA was found to inhibit the activities of both MSX-2 and ras in this system as well. Our findings not only suggest that the truncated version MSX-2 may act as a dominant suppressor of intact MSX-2 but also raise the possibility that MSX-2 gene may be an important downstream target for the Ras signaling pathways.

Activating mutations of the c-kit proto-oncogene in a human mast cell leukemia cell line.

The c-kit proto-oncogene encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase that is known to play a crucial role in mast cell growth and differentiation. In a human mast cell leukemia cell line (HMC-1), KitR was found to be constitutively phosphorylated on tyrosine, activated and associated with phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (P13K) in the absence of autocrine production of SCF. Sequencing of c-kit cDNA revealed that c-kit genes of HMC-1 cells were composed of a normal, wild-type allele and a mutant allele with two point mutations in codon 560 and codon 816, resulting in intracellular amino acid substitutions of Gly-560 for Val and Val-816 for Asp, respectively. Murine c-kit mutants encoding Gly-559 and/or Val-814, corresponding to human Gly-560 and/or Val-816, were constructed by site-directed mutagenesis and expressed in cells of a human embryonic kidney cell line (293T). In the transfected cells, KitR (Gly-559 + Val-814) and KitR (Val-814) were strikingly phosphorylated on tyrosine and activated in the absence of SCF, whereas tyrosine phosphorylation and activation of KitR (Gly-559) or wild-type KitR was modest or little, respectively. These results suggest that constitutive activation of KitR in HMC-1 results from the activating mutations of c-kit gene, and raise the possibility that the activating mutations, particularly at codon 814 of murine c-kit or at codon 816 of human c-kit, may participate in oncogenesis of mast cells.

Clinical effects of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in leukemia patients: a phase I/II study.

A phase I/II study of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) in 24 leukemia patients was conducted at our institute. Recombinant human G-CSF (50-200 micrograms/m2/day) was administered i.v. In seven allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) recipients, treatment with rhG-CSF was started 5 days after BMT. Neutrophils began to increase within 3 days after the start of rhG-CSF administration in five of seven patients. The mean duration necessary for recovery of neutrophils to greater than 500/microliters was 11.3 days after BMT with rhG-CSF; 26.8 days is the figure for recovery without rhG-CSF from Japanese historical data. In seven out of eight patients who received rhG-CSF administration after the first remission-induction chemotherapy, the neutrophil counts increased from less than 300/microliters to greater than 4000/microliters within 10 days. Blasts did not increase in all patients including four acute nonlymphocytic leukemia (ANLL) patients. Severe infections such as septicemia and pneumonia, which were unable to be controlled by antibiotics only, were successfully treated with rhG-CSF and antibiotics. rhG-CSF either stimulated or inhibited myeloid leukemic cells in some refractory cases. Mild bone pain occurred in one patient while receiving rhG-CSF i.v. rhG-CSF seems to have the ability to shorten the period of neutropenia, prevent infections after allogeneic BMT and remission-induction chemotherapy for acute leukemia, and support therapy for infections.

Changes in phenotype and proliferative potential of human acute myeloblastic leukemia cells in culture with stem cell factor.

The interaction of the proto-oncogene c-kit product with its ligand (stem cell factor or SCF) is considered to play crucial roles in hematopoiesis. In a series of human acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) cells, the effects of recombinant human (rh) SCF on AML cells were examined in short-term and long-term cultures. c-kit expression was detected in 26 of 31 AML cases, and short-term treatment of AML cells with rhSCF led to proliferation in 13 of 18 AML cases that expressed the c-kit product. In seven of the 13 cases showing proliferative response to rhSCF, AML cells were exclusively composed of immature blast cells. We therefore used the seven AML cases for examining the effect of rhSCF on the differentiation and proliferation of AML cells in a long-term culture. Proliferation of AML cells was found to be maintained with rhSCF more than 2 weeks in five of seven cases and 4 weeks in two cases, whereas most of the AML cells died before 2 weeks in the absence of rhSCF. Further, in four of five AML cases, all of which expressed the CD34 antigen and showed a proliferative response to rhSCF in a long-term culture, rhSCF appeared to promote differentiation of blast cells toward lineages of various cell types, such as granulocytic and/or monocytic and mast-cell lineages. These results suggest that, at least in a fraction of AML cases, rhSCF can induce not only proliferation but also differentiation of AML cells, and also that phenotypic manifestation of AML cells may not mean definite cell commitment but can be changed by stimulation with rhSCF.

Effects of ras and Rap1 on electrical excitability of differentiated NG108-15 cells.

Effects of two small G-proteins, Rap1 and Ras, on the sodium channel activity in NG108-15 cells were studied using sindbis virus-mediated gene transfer. When an activated Rap1A mutant (Rap1-12V, the activated mutant of Rap1 carrying glycine to valine substitution at codon 12) or a dominant-negative H-Ras mutant (Ras-17N, carrying serine to asparagine substitution at codon 17) was expressed in differentiated NG108-15 cells, the proportion of cells generating action potential decreased and the amplitudes of sodium current diminished. This effect was sensitive to an inhibitor of protein kinase A. The effects of a cyclic AMP (cAMP) analog (dibutyl cAMP) on sodium current in these cells were biphasic: inhibitory at lower concentrations (<100 microM) and enhancing at higher concentrations (200-500 microM). The inhibitory phase of cAMP effect was suppressed by an activated Ras mutant (Ras-12V) while the enhancing phase was suppressed by Rap1-12V. These data are consistent with the model that Rap1 and Ras function as counteracting regulators of voltage-gated sodium current through cAMP-dependent mechanisms.

Isolation of a set of genes expressed in the choroid plexus of the mouse using suppression subtractive hybridization.

The choroid plexus produces cerebrospinal fluid, providing a specialized environment for the CNS. We previously demonstrated that choroid plexus ependymal cells can enhance nerve regeneration in vivo and promote neurite outgrowth in vitro. To understand the molecular mechanisms of choroid plexus functions, we isolated genes predominantly expressed in the mouse choroid plexus using suppression subtractive hybridization. Out of the 49 complementary DNA (cDNA) fragments isolated in two types of screening, 43 matched known sequences in the database and six were novel. In one type of screening where choroid plexus cDNAs were subtracted with cerebral cortex cDNAs, transthyretin and phosphodiesterase I alpha were predominant. This is consistent with previous reports and supports the authenticity of our approach. In the other type of screening, cDNAs derived from the choroid plexus of neonatal (postnatal day 5) mice were subtracted with cDNAs from the choroid plexus of adult mice. RNA blot and/or in situ hybridization confirmed abundant expression, in the mouse choroid plexus, of the mRNA encoding gelsolin, phospholipid transfer protein, ATP-binding cassette transporter A8 (ABCA8), androgen-inducible aldehyde reductase, and Na(+)/sulfate cotransporter SUT-1. Also, one novel gene (FS88) was found to be expressed in the choroid plexus from neonatal mice. Our data suggest that the choroid plexus cells produce molecules involved in processes such as prevention of fibrillization of amyloid beta-protein (transthyretin and gelsolin), lipid metabolism (phospholipid transfer protein and ABCA8), and detoxification (androgen-inducible aldehyde reductase).

Whole-body hybrid PET with 18F-FDG in the staging of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

UNLABELLED: PET with a double-head gamma camera (hybrid PET) is a new approach to tumor imaging with 18F-FDG. This study was conducted to clarify the feasibility of whole-body FDG hybrid PET in the staging of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) in comparison with PET with a dedicated camera (dedicated PET) and to compare the results of both FDG studies with those of CT and 67Ga scanning as conventional imaging studies (CIS). METHODS: Thirty patients with NHL were prospectively evaluated. The results of the imaging studies regarding detection of the sites involved and staging were compared with each other and with those of the reference standard based on the final overall clinical evaluation. RESULTS: Of the total of 206 sites, whole-body FDG hybrid PET and dedicated PET detected 159 sites (77.2%) and 179 sites (86.9%), respectively. Eighteen of the 20 sites missed by hybrid PET alone consisted of lesions < 1.5 cm. Both FDG studies provided concordant staging results in all but 2 patients. CIS, on the other hand, detected 164 (79.6%) of the 206 sites, 137 of which were also detected by hybrid PET. Hybrid PET detected an additional 22 sites not found by CIS, whereas CIS detected 27 additional sites. Hybrid PET and CIS provided concordant staging results in 19 patients. Hybrid PET correctly staged NHL in 5 additional patients, whereas CIS correctly staged NHL in only 1 additional patient. CONCLUSION: Whole-body FDG hybrid PET appeared to be an accurate method of staging NHL. Despite its poorer image quality compared with dedicated PET, hybrid PET provided NHL staging results comparable with those of dedicated PET. Hybrid PET also yielded results comparable with those of CIS. However, whole-body FDG hybrid PET is currently inadequate as a single modality for staging NHL and is complementary to CT.

Value of cardiac ultrafast computed tomography for detecting right atrial thrombi in chronic atrial fibrillation.

We evaluated the accuracy of cardiac ultrafast computed tomography in diagnosing atrial thrombi in 70 patients with chronic atrial fibrillation, and identified the predictors of atrial thrombi from among clinical, echocardiographic, and ultrafast computed tomographic features. Ultrafast computed tomography identified 11 atrial thrombi in 9 patients: 4 patients had thrombi in the left atrium, 3 in the right, and 2 in both. Transthoracic echocardiography detected only 4 left atrial thrombi, and enlargement of the left or right atrium was associated with atrial thrombi (p <0.05).

Genetic analysis of the K-rev-1 transformation-suppressor gene.

Flat revertants with reduced malignancy in vivo can be isolated from Kirsten sarcoma virus-transformed NIH 3T3 cells (DT line) following transfection with a normal human fibroblast cDNA expression library. We have recovered from one such revertant a 1.8-kb cDNA clone, K-rev-1, that exhibits an activity of inducing flat revertants at certain frequencies (2-5% of total transfectants) when transfected into DT cells. The K-rev-1 cDNA has the capacity to encode a protein with a calculated molecular weight of 21,000, having strong structural similarity to ras proteins (approximately 50% homology), especially in their guanosine triphosphate/guanosine diphosphate-binding, effector-binding, and membrane-attachment domains. Toward understanding the mechanism of action of K-rev-1 protein, we constructed a series of point mutants of K-rev-1 cDNA and tested their biological activities. Substitutions of the amino acid residues in the putative guanine nucleotide-binding regions (Asp17 and Asn116), in the putative effector-binding domain (residue 38), at the putative acylation site (Cys181), and at the unique Thr61 all decreased the transformation-suppressor activity. On the other hand, substitutions including Gly12 to Val12, Ala59 to Thr59, and Gln63 to Glu63 were found to significantly increase the transformation-suppressor activity of K-rev-1. These findings are consistent with the idea that K-rev-1 protein is regulated like many other G-proteins by guanine triphosphate/guanine diphosphate-exchange mechanism probably in response to certain negative growth-regulatory signals.

Regulation of basophilic and erythroid-differentiation of a human chronic myelogenous leukemia-cell line, ku812f, by interleukin-3 and stem-cell factor.

We have investigated the effects of c-kit ligand (stem cell factor [SCF]) and interleukin-3 (IL-3) on proliferation and differentiation of a human chronic myelogenous leukemia cell line, KU812F, which can differentiate toward erythroid and basophilic lineages. When purified c-kit-positive cells (approximately 20% of KU812F cells) were used as a target, SCF induced not only proliferation but also augumented erythroid differentiation of the cells, while IL-3 did promote basophilic differentiation. Further, analyses of in situ hybridization and cell sorting with anti-c-kit antibody showed that the expression of c-kit decreased along with differentiation from immature to mature basophils and erythroid cells.

Experimental orthotopic heart and bilateral lung transplantation completed without cardiopulmonary bypass.

INTRODUCTION: Most experimental studies of orthotopic heart and lung graft failure are complicated by an inability to eliminate the rejection-specific inflammatory mediator from the cardiopulmonary bypass. METHODS: The following model was developed in our laboratory to investigate the feasibility of performing an orthotopic heart and bilateral lung transplantation without performing a cardiopulmonary bypass. Nineteen transplants were attempted using 19 pairs of mongrel dogs. The recipient dog (mean weight, 23 kg) was anesthetized, and the ascending aorta, the superior vena cava (SVC), the inferior vena cava (IVC), and the main bronchus were dissected. Then, the donor dog (mean weight, 20 kg) was anesthetized, and the heart and lung block was prepared and explanted from the chest under cardioplegic arrest. A Gore-tex shunt (W. L. Gore; Flagstaff, AZ) was placed side-to-side between the recipient IVC and SVC, and then the donor right atrium was anastomosed to the Gore-tex shunt. The donor ascending aorta was anastomosed to the recipient ascending aorta with a partial clamp. On completion of these anastomoses, the donor heart was reperfused by the recipient heart and allowed to beat. When hemodynamic conditions were stable with double hearts, the recipient SVC and IVC were ligated just proximal to the venous anastomosis and the recipient aorta was ligated proximal to the anastomotic site. The recipient trachea was anastomosed to the donor trachea with an end-to-end anastomosis. Finally, the recipient heart and lungs were removed from the chest and the sternum was closed. RESULTS: Four of the 19 transplants failed. Three died due to left ventricular dysfunction, and one died due to bleeding. Mean (+/- SD) ischemic time was 67 +/- 11 min with a mean (+/- SD) anastomotic time of 54 +/- 12 min. The 15 survivors were hemodynamically stable with or without the minimal use of inotropic support (dopamine, 2 to 3 microg/kg/min) 6 h after grafting, with normal cardiac output, satisfactory oxygenation, and normal wall motion. The sternotomy was repaired without loss of cardiopulmonary function. CONCLUSIONS: On the basis of our experiences, the experimental model of orthotopic heart and bilateral lung transplantation completed "off pump" can be technically feasible without the loss of cardiac and pulmonary functions.