The effects of monoclonal anti-CD47 on RBCs, compatibility testing, and transfusion requirements in refractory acute myeloid leukemia.

BACKGROUND: CD47 is a novel therapeutic target in the treatment of solid-organ and hematologic malignancies. CD47 is also expressed on RBCs. Here, we report our experience of the RBC effects and the impact on blood bank testing and transfusion management in a Phase 1 trial of the humanized anti-CD47 monoclonal antibody Hu5F9-G4 in relapsed or primary refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) (NCT02678338). STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Nineteen patients with relapsed or primary refractory AML treated across five UK centers were included for analysis. Patients received escalating doses of Hu5F9-G4. Serial laboratory data were collected to evaluate impact on hemoglobin (Hb), markers of hemolysis (bilirubin, lactate dehydrogenase, reticulocyte count), transfusion requirements, and blood compatibility testing. RESULTS: A decline in Hb was observed with drug administration (median Hb change, -1.0 g/dL; range, 0.4-1.6) with associated increase in transfusion requirements. Patients responded to transfusion with a median Hb increment per unit of 1.0 g/dL. RBC agglutination was seen in all cases without associated change in Hb, lactate dehydrogenase, bilirubin, or reticulocyte count. Nine of 19 (47%) patients developed a newly positive antibody screen with a pan-agglutinin identified in plasma. Invalid ABO blood grouping occurred in 4 of 12 (33%) non-group O patients due to anomalous reactivity in the reverse ABO-type results. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment with Hu5F9-G4 in patients with AML resulted in an Hb decline and increased transfusion requirements. Problems with ABO blood typing and compatibility testing were widely observed and should be expected by centers treating recipients of Hu5F9-G4.

Patterns and mechanisms of early Pliocene warmth.

About five to four million years ago, in the early Pliocene epoch, Earth had a warm, temperate climate. The gradual cooling that followed led to the establishment of modern temperature patterns, possibly in response to a decrease in atmospheric CO2 concentration, of the order of 100 parts per million, towards preindustrial values. Here we synthesize the available geochemical proxy records of sea surface temperature and show that, compared with that of today, the early Pliocene climate had substantially lower meridional and zonal temperature gradients but similar maximum ocean temperatures. Using an Earth system model, we show that none of the mechanisms currently proposed to explain Pliocene warmth can simultaneously reproduce all three crucial features. We suggest that a combination of several dynamical feedbacks underestimated in the models at present, such as those related to ocean mixing and cloud albedo, may have been responsible for these climate conditions.

Cytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 1A autoantibody profile and clinical characteristics in inclusion body myositis.

OBJECTIVES: Autoantibodies directed against cytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 1A have been identified in many patients with inclusion body myositis. This retrospective study investigated the association between anticytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 1A antibody status and clinical, serological and histopathological features to explore the utility of this antibody to identify inclusion body myositis subgroups and to predict prognosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data from various European inclusion body myositis registries were pooled. Anticytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 1A status was determined by an established ELISA technique. Cases were stratified according to antibody status and comparisons made. Survival and mobility aid requirement analyses were performed using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards regression. RESULTS: Data from 311 patients were available for analysis; 102 (33%) had anticytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 1A antibodies. Antibody-positive patients had a higher adjusted mortality risk (HR 1.89, 95% CI 1.11 to 3.21, p=0.019), lower frequency of proximal upper limb weakness at disease onset (8% vs 23%, adjusted OR 0.29, 95% CI 0.12 to 0.68, p=0.005) and an increased prevalence of excess of cytochrome oxidase deficient fibres on muscle biopsy analysis (87% vs 72%, adjusted OR 2.80, 95% CI 1.17 to 6.66, p=0.020), compared with antibody-negative patients. INTERPRETATION: Differences were observed in clinical and histopathological features between anticytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 1A antibody positive and negative patients with inclusion body myositis, and antibody-positive patients had a higher adjusted mortality risk. Stratification of inclusion body myositis by anticytosolic 5'-nucleotidase 1A antibody status may be useful, potentially highlighting a distinct inclusion body myositis subtype with a more severe phenotype.

Chromothripsis orchestrates leukemic transformation in blast phase MPN through targetable amplification of DYRK1A.

Chromothripsis, the process of catastrophic shattering and haphazard repair of chromosomes, is a common event in cancer. Whether chromothripsis might constitute an actionable molecular event amenable to therapeutic targeting remains an open question. We describe recurrent chromothripsis of chromosome 21 in a subset of patients in blast phase of a myeloproliferative neoplasm (BP-MPN), which alongside other structural variants leads to amplification of a region of chromosome 21 in ∼25% of patients ('chr21amp'). We report that chr21amp BP-MPN has a particularly aggressive and treatment-resistant phenotype. The chr21amp event is highly clonal and present throughout the hematopoietic hierarchy. DYRK1A , a serine threonine kinase and transcription factor, is the only gene in the 2.7Mb minimally amplified region which showed both increased expression and chromatin accessibility compared to non-chr21amp BP-MPN controls. We demonstrate that DYRK1A is a central node at the nexus of multiple cellular functions critical for BP-MPN development, including DNA repair, STAT signalling and BCL2 overexpression. DYRK1A is essential for BP-MPN cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo , and DYRK1A inhibition synergises with BCL2 targeting to induce BP-MPN cell apoptosis. Collectively, these findings define the chr21amp event as a prognostic biomarker in BP-MPN and link chromothripsis to a druggable target.

Leaching: use of a thermophilic and chemoautotrophic microbe.

A chemoautotrophic, thermophilic, and acidophilic microorganism capable of oxidizing reduced sulfur and iron compounds and leaching concentrates of molybdenite and chalcopyrite at 60 degrees C has been characterized by transmission and scanning electron microscopy. This constitutes the first direct observations of microorganisms on ore fines.

Early Class II treatment.

The treatment of children presenting with a Class II division I malocclusion involves one of two approaches. The first provides treatment in two phases; one of intervention during the mixed dentition (phase I) followed by a second definitive course of appliance treatment in early adolescence (phase II). The second approach involves providing a single course of comprehensive therapy during adolescence. The debate for and against early treatment is discussed alongside key, clinically relevant evidence related to Class II division I malocclusions.

Impact of ABO blood group mismatch in alemtuzumab-based reduced-intensity conditioned haematopoietic SCT.

The impact of ABO incompatibility on clinical outcomes following haematopoietic SCT (HSCT) remains controversial. This retrospective study assessed the effect of ABO mismatch on transplant outcomes and transfusion requirements in 594 patients undergoing reduced-intensity conditioned (RIC) HSCT with alemtuzumab in three UK transplant centres. We found no significant effects of minor, major or bidirectional ABO mismatch on overall survival, relapse-free survival, nonrelapse mortality or relapse incidence. Although the rate of acute GVHD was unaffected by ABO mismatch, the incidence of extensive chronic GVHD was higher in patients with minor and major mismatch compared with those who were ABO matched (hazard ratio (HR) 1.74, P=0.032 for minor, HR 1.69 P=0.0036 for major mismatch). Red cell and platelet transfusion requirements in the first 100 days post transplant did not differ by ABO mismatch. In this large UK series, ABO mismatch in RIC HSCT has no clinically significant effect on survival outcomes but appears to modify susceptibility to extensive chronic GVHD.

Drug glucuronidation by human renal UDP-glucuronosyltransferases.

The UDP-glucuronosyltransferases catalyse the conjugation of glucuronic acid to a wide variety of endobiotics and xenobiotics, representing one of the major conjugation reactions in the conversion of both exogenous (e.g. drugs and pesticides) and endogenous compounds (e.g. bilirubin and steroid hormones). The liver is the major site of glucuronidation, however a number of extrahepatic tissues exhibit particular UDP-glucuronosyltransferase activities. The present study was undertaken to assess the human renal UDP-glucuronosyltransferase system. Enzymatic analysis of human kidney showed that a limited number of UDP-glucuronosyltransferase isoforms were expressed in this tissue. However the level of renal UGT activity towards the anaesthetic propofol was higher compared with human liver. The glucuronidation of propofol is catalysed by UGT1A8/9 suggesting higher levels of this isoform in the kidney. Immunoblot analysis revealed two major UDP-glucuronosyltransferase immunopositive bands to be present in human kidney as compared to four major bands in human liver. The human kidney was capable of conjugating various structurally diverse drugs and xenobiotics.

Use of cloned and expressed human liver UDP-glucuronosyltransferases for analysis of drug glucuronide formation and assessment of drug toxicity.

Five cloned human hepatic UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) cDNAs were stably expressed in tissue culture cell lines. More than 100 drugs and xenobiotics were used as substrates for glucuronidation catalyzed by the cloned human transferases to determine the chemical structures accepted as substrates. UGT-HP1 exhibited a limited substrate specificity for planar phenolic compounds, whereas UGT-HP4 was more accepting of nonplanar phenols, anthraquinones, flavones, alphatic alcohols, aromatic carboxylic acids, steroids and many drugs of varied structure. UGT-HP3 (bilirubin UGT) catalyzed the glucuronidation of ethinylestradiol. UGT-H6 and UGT-H25 (steroid/bile acid UGTs) also catalyzed the glucuronidation of some xenobiotics. Levels of UGT-HP4 activity towards some substrates were sufficient to allow determination of kinetic parameters for the enzyme reaction. Further, metabolism of drugs could be studied by addition to the recombinant cell lines in culture and extraction of the media allowed analysis of glucuronide formation. The protection afforded against cytotoxic drugs was observed. The data presented here demonstrate the potential of using these recombinant cell lines for investigation of phase II metabolism by human UGTs and subtle differences in protein structure which affect their specificity.

Remyelination of demyelinated CNS axons by transplanted human schwann cells: the deleterious effect of contaminating fibroblasts.

Areas of demyelination can be remyelinated by transplanting myelin-forming cells. Schwann cells are the naturally remyelinating cells of the peripheral nervous system and have a number of features that may make them attractive for cell implantation therapies in multiple sclerosis, in which spontaneous but limited Schwann cell remyelination has been well documented. Schwann cells can be expanded in vitro, potentially affording the opportunity of autologous transplantation; and they might also be spared the demyelinating process in multiple sclerosis. Although rat, cat, and monkey Schwann cells have been transplanted into rodent demyelinating lesions, the behavior of transplanted human Schwann cells has not been evaluated. In this study we examined the consequences of injecting human Schwann cells into areas of acute demyelination in the spinal cords of adult rats. We found that transplants containing significant fibroblast contamination resulted in deposition of large amounts of collagen and extensive axonal degeneration. However, Schwann cell preparations that had been purified by positive immunoselection using antibodies to human low-affinity nerve growth factor receptor containing less than 10% fibroblasts were associated with remyelination. This result indicates that fibroblast contamination of human Schwann cells represents a greater problem than would have been appreciated from previous studies.

Regulation of the human bilirubin UDP-glucuronosyltransferase gene.

The human UGT1 gene is a single copy gene consisting of four common exons and more than 13 variable exons which span more than 200 kb of the human genome. A single variable exon is spliced to the four common exons to form the mRNA for synthesis of a single UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) isoenzyme. Treatment of humans or hepatoma cell lines with drugs such as phenobarbital causes the induction of hepatic bilirubin UGT by increased transcription from the UGT1 gene. The upstream region of UGT1*1 (bilirubin UGT) was sequenced and found to contain consensus sequences for several transcriptional regulatory elements including a 'BARBIE box'. An unusual 'TATA' promoter sequence A(TA)6TAA was also observed. The 5' region flanking the UGT1*1 exon when cloned into reporter constructs and transfected into four cells lines was capable of promoting reporter gene expression, but not when transfected into monkey kidney cell fibroblasts (COS-7 cells) indicating a cell specific expression. Sequential deletion of the 5' flanking region in the plasmid constructs did not cause any significant reduction in reporter expression. Treatment of cells transfected with these plasmid constructs with drugs did not cause a significant increase in reporter expression except with retinoic acid plus WY 14643. Introduction of an additional two base pairs (TA) into the 'TATA' box of the 5' gene sequence (as observed in Gilbert's patients) did not significantly change reporter expression levels. The regulation of the biliruibin UGT gene by drugs is not yet understood and it will be important to identify additional genetic elements possibly further than -2kb upstream of the UGT1*1 coding region, which regulate the expression of this gene.

Infratentorial hypointense lesion volume on T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging correlates with disability in patients with chronic cerebellar ataxia due to multiple sclerosis.

In multiple sclerosis (MS), hypointense lesions on T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging are thought to represent areas of tissue disruption and axonal loss. In previous studies of MS patients, infratentorial T1 hypointense lesions were found to be rare. In MS patients selected to have chronic cerebellar ataxia, we have determined the extent of infratentorial T1 hypointense lesions and their relationship with disability. We recruited nine patients with chronic cerebellar ataxia due to MS. An expanded disability status scale (EDSS) assessment was performed on each. The patients' brains were then imaged with axial-oblique dual-echo fast spin-echo and contrast-enhanced T1-weighted conventional spin-echo sequences. The number and total volume of infratentorial high-signal lesions on T2-weighted images and infratentorial hypointense lesions on T1-weighted images were calculated by a blinded observer using a computer-assisted contouring technique. A total of 96 infratentorial high-signal lesions were present, of which 62 (64.6%) appeared isointense and 34 (35.4%) hypointense with respect to the surrounding brain substance on the T1-weighted images. There was a median of 3 (range 0-10) and median volume of 0.43 ml (range 0-0.85 ml) infratentorial T1 hypointense lesions per patient. The EDSS score correlated with both the number (r=0.68, p=0.043) and the volume per patient (r=0.89, p=0.001) of infratentorial T1 hypointense but not T2 high-signal lesions. Infratentorial T1 hypointense lesions are often seen in patients with MS and chronic cerebellar ataxia. They may play a significant role in the disability suffered by these patients.

The Manchester Nurse Rating Scales for the daily simultaneous assessment of depressive and manic ward behaviours.

Two nurses' rating scales, the Manchester Nurse Rating Scale for Depression (MNRS-D) and the Manchester Nurse Rating Scale for Mania (MNRS-M) are described. The scales were designed for the daily rating of depressive and manic ward behaviours. The inter-rater reliability coefficients (r) for pairs of qualified nurses were found to be 0.790 (MNRS-D) and 0.949 (MNRS-M). All but one of the individual items yielded significant reliability coefficients. The validity coefficients, using psychiatrists' global ratings as the criterion, were 0.533 (MNRS-D) and 0.650 (MNRS-M); somewhat higher correlations were obtained between the MNRS-D and the Montgomery-Asberg Scale and the Beck Depression Inventory, and between the MNRS-M and the Young Mania Scale. The MNRS-D was shown to be sensitive to clinical change following treatment with antidepressant drugs.

Specificity of human UDP-glucuronosyltransferases and xenobiotic glucuronidation.

Several human liver UDP-Glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs) have been cloned and the cDNAs expressed in heterologous cell lines. This technological advance has allowed the assessment of the functional substrate specificity of these UGTs. The problems which may be encountered with the latency and assay of UGTs are briefly described. The data accumulated to date indicate that the Km, and possibly the Vmax/Km, for individual substrates are the best parameters to assess the specificity of the enzymes towards xenobiotic molecules. The substrate specificity of seven UGTs has been summarised from the currently available information. Of these, UGT1*02 and UGT2B8 appear to be key isoforms in the glucuronidation of a wide range of xenobiotic substrates. Additional UGTs have yet to be identified and characterised and their future inclusion may provide further insights. Finally, the functional role of each UGT in vivo has to be determined.

In a 12-allele analysis HLA-DPB1 matching is associated with improved OS in leukaemic and myelodysplastic patients receiving myeloablative T-cell-depleted PBSCT from unrelated donors.

The effect on survival of including HLA-DPB1 in a 12-allele matching strategy was retrospectively evaluated in 130 patients with acute leukaemia and myelodysplasia undergoing T-cell-depleted PBSC transplantation using unrelated donors. Patients received alemtuzumab in vivo T-cell depletion as part of a myeloablative (MA; n=61) or reduced-intensity conditioning regimen (n=69). No difference in OS was seen with single-locus mismatching (mm) when 10 conventional alleles (HLA-A, B, C, DRB1 and DQB1) were considered. However, the addition of HLA-DPB1 matching data proved highly discriminatory. Mismatches were identified in 87% of patients previously considered fully matched (1DPmm=49pts: 2DPmm=28pts), and in the 9/10 group 22 patients were reclassified as double and 16 as triple mismatches. In 10/10 transplants, there was a distinct trend to poorer OS with double DPB1 mm. If all 12 loci were considered, 98% of single mm were at HLA-DPB1. Furthermore, cumulative mm at two or more loci was associated with significantly poorer 3-year OS (34% vs 48%, P=0.013: hazard ratio 1.8 (95% confidence interval 1.14-3.06; P=0.017), although his detrimental effect was only apparent using MA conditioning, in which reduced OS was associated with increased chronic GVHD (61% vs 16%, P=0.018) and nonrelapse mortality (30% vs 9%, P=0.039).

The retrotransposon copia controls the relative levels of its gene products post-transcriptionally by differential expression from its two major mRNAs.

All retroviruses and retrotransposons studied to date regulate the relative levels of gag and pol/int gene products post-transcriptionally from a single mRNA. In these genetic elements the production of protein encoded by the pol and int genes is attenuated by a translational stop or frameshift in the reading frame preceding their coding regions in the mRNA. We show here that the Drosophila retrotransposon copia also produces lower amounts of gene products from its int/pol region than gag region but this is achieved by a mechanism which is novel for this class of genetic element. We show by the use of gene fusion constructs that the subgenomic 2 kilobase copia RNA, encoding gag products, is expressed as protein in cultured cells at least ten-fold more efficiently than the full genome length RNA, which additionally contains the pol and int open reading frames.