Studies of the c-Mpl thrombopoietin receptor through gene disruption and activation.

The c-mpl gene encodes a receptor for thrombopoietin (TPO), a cytokine that potently stimulates megakaryocytopoiesis. To study the mechanisms of c-Mpl activation, we generated constitutively active receptor mutants. Substitution of cysteine residues into a dimer interface homology domain of c-Mpl forced ligand-independent homodimerization and constitutive receptor activation. In factor-dependent cells, mutant receptors induced autonomous growth and tumorigenicity. The receptors were constitutively phosphorylated in these cells, as were signal transduction molecules implicated in Mpl function. These data suggest that the normal process of ligand-induced Mpl activation involves receptor homodimerization and that mutated forms of the cellular mpl gene can contribute to tumorigenicity. We have also examined the biological role of c-Mpl in mpl-deficient mice generated via homologous recombination in embryonic stem cells. Homozygous mutant animals were deficient in megakaryocytes and severely thrombocytopenic. Mature cells from all other hemopoietic lineages were unaffected. Bone marrow cells from mpl-/- mice were incapable of binding to TPO or responding to the cytokine in clonogenic assays, and further displayed a marked deficiency in progenitor cells capable of megakaryocyte colony formation in response to other stimuli. Moreover, total progenitor numbers were also deficient and included significant reductions in colony-forming cells of multiple hemopoietic lineages. Unexpectedly, the numbers of progenitor cells of all lineages were not perturbed in mid-gestation mpl-/- fetal liver. Our analyses suggest an indispensable role for c-Mpl in megakaryocyte development and reveal that the function of TPO and its receptor is not confined solely to activities in megakaryocytopoiesis.

Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 catalytic domain can transduce a proliferative signal in FDC-P1 cells that is qualitatively similar to the signal delivered by c-Fms.

A full length clone of murine fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 [flt3, also known as fetal liver kinase 2 (flk2)] was constructed from sequences obtained from a brain complementary DNA (cDNA) library and from cDNA prepared from the cell line Tikaut. In the absence of a ligand to study the function of Flt3, a chimeric molecule was constructed comprising the extracellular domain of murine c-Fms and the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of Flt3. A plasmid encoding the chimeric receptor was cotransfected along with a plasmid conferring neomycin resistance into FDC-P1 cells that do not normally express c-fms or flt3 and require granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or interleukin 3 for growth. Two types of clones were obtained following selection in GM-CSF and G418. Two of seven clones had the capacity for M-CSF-dependent colony formation in semisolid medium, indicating that the cytoplasmic domain of Flt3 can transduce a proliferative signal. From the remaining clones, M-CSF-dependent clonogenic cells could be selected by prior bulk liquid culture in M-CSF. It has been shown previously that the GM-CSF-dependent proliferative capacity is strongly inhibited by M-CSF in FDC-P1 cells engineered to express full length c-fms. This phenomenon was also observed with FD/fms-flt3 cells that were clonogenic in M-CSF. Stimulation of FD/fms or FD/fms-flt3 cells in liquid culture by M-CSF caused differentiation of a small proportion of cells along the myelomonocytic pathway which was enhanced by the combination of M-CSF and GM-CSF.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Increased levels of leukemia inhibitory factor in synovial fluid from patients with rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory arthritides.

OBJECTIVE: To examine synovial fluid (SF) from patients with arthritis, for the presence of the cytokine leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF). METHODS: SF from 152 subjects was examined for LIF, using a radioreceptor competition assay. RESULTS: LIF was present at concentrations of 1-43 ng/ml in the SF of 23% of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or other inflammatory or infectious arthritides but in only 1 of 29 patients with osteoarthritis (P < 0.01). In the RA patients, the SF LIF concentration correlated significantly with the peripheral blood white blood cell count (WBC) (P < 0.05) and the SF WBC count (P < 0.01), but not with other clinical or radiologic parameters of disease activity or progression. CONCLUSION: LIF is implicated as a potential mediator of the local or systemic inflammatory response or the joint destruction seen in inflammatory arthritis.

Segmentation of brain CT images using the concept of region growing.

A method is described for extracting and isolating cerebrospinal fluid and tissue areas of brain images obtained with computed tomography. The classification of the pixels into components is based on region growing and nearest neighbor principles. To aid the performance of this method, the algorithm utilizes a priori information on the anatomic composition of the brain, and reduces the 'cupping effect' in the CT image that is attributed to beam hardening artifacts. In order to avoid subjectivity, the performance of the algorithm was tested by superimposing five computer-simulated circular lesions on different areas of the original CT scans, 8 mm thick. These images were taken at different levels in the brain, thereby accommodating different anatomy as well as the apical artifact of CT scanning. In this exploratory investigation, the false negative error of segmentation for lesions having diameter of 20 pixels was found in the order of 25% at an estimated partial volume (PV) effect of 50% that decrease further to about 5% for a PV of 80%. At that point the false positive error becomes the dominant error in the analysis.

The detection and initial characterization of colony-stimulating factors in synovial fluid.

In this study which included 16 patients with inflammatory or non-inflammatory arthropathies, human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating activity was detected in synovial fluid. This was attributable to the presence of colony-stimulating factor(s) (CSF), as a direct action on human bone marrow progenitor cells was demonstrated using clone transfer experiments. Samples of synovial fluid also stimulated the growth of murine macrophage colonies and induced differentiation in the murine myelomonocytic leukemia cell line, WEHI-3B(D+), which are characteristic properties of human macrophage-CSF or granulocyte-CSF respectively. These findings and the results of preliminary fractionation procedures suggested that the colony-stimulating activity in synovial fluid was not explicable by the presence of any one of the well-characterized human CSF acting in isolation. This provides a new insight into the pathogenesis of inflammatory arthropathies and supports the hypothesis that CSF have important roles in vivo in addition to the regulation of haemopoiesis.

An innovative approach to methadone detoxification.

An atmosphere can be created in which the user's anxiety during methadone or heroin detoxification is reduced via the facilitation of adaptive, druglike experiences provided through behavioral and psychological means. The switch to a nondrug life-style is promoted by the continued satisfaction of underlying needs which, through appropriate dosage, can lead to a higher probability of self-reliance abd abstinence. The addictive dependency on the nondrug, need-gratifying therapy is resolved through clinically monitored and graded frustrations.