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Human leukemic B-cell (BALL-1), T-cell (TALL-1) and null-cell (NALL-1) lines have been established from three patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). To study the heterotransplantability and in vivo growth characteristics, attempts were made to transplant these ALL cell lines into newborn Syrian hamsters treated with rabbit anti-hamster thymocyte serum. Intraperitoneal implantation of 1.8-3.5 x 10(7) cells gave rise to invasive tumors in all recipients after 15 to 41 days. In addition to a common in vivo feature of mesenteric and retroperitoneal tumors, BALL-1 line was characterized by infiltration of the skin, massive ascites and bone marrow invasion. TALL-1 cells infiltrated various organs including the lymph nodes, liver, gallbladder, spleen, bone marrow, central nervous system and eyes. NALL-1 line grew slowly, producing the least tumors, although there were distant metastases in the lungs. Tumor cells were detected in the blood of 2 of 3 BALL-1-bearing hamsters and in the blood of 4 of 5 TALL-1-bearing hamsters. Thus, these three ALL cell lines were found to exhibit a characteristic biological behavior in hamsters, which might be related to the different cell lineage.

The effects of various compounds on replicative DNA synthesis in permeable mouse ascites sarcoma cells and on unscheduled DNA synthesis in permeable cells or in isolated rat liver nuclei were studied. Polyamines such as spermidine, putrescine and cadaverine inhibited replicative DNA synthesis. Unscheduled DNA synthesis was inhibited by spermidine and cadaverine, but slightly stimulated by putrescine at low concentrations. Aurintricarboxylic acid, a low molecular weight polyanion, inhibited both replicative DNA synthesis and unscheduled DNA synthesis. Replicative DNA synthesis was inhibited by heparin, a high molecular weight polyanion, whereas unscheduled DNA synthesis was stimulated at low heparin concentrations. Antitumor drugs such as daunomycin, neocarzinostatin and bleomycin inhibited replicative DNA synthesis. Unscheduled DNA synthesis was inhibited by daunomycin, slightly induced by neocarzinostatin and highly induced by bleomycin. The present system was thought to be useful for studying the separate effects of various drugs on either replicative DNA synthesis or unscheduled DNA synthesis in vitro.

A total of 45 cases of multiple myeloma has been followed up clinically during the period from 7 to 80 months. Out of these, six patients (13.3%) were diagnosed to be the tumor-forming type; they developed discrete tumor formation at the disease onset or during clinical observation. Biological behavior of these cases is briefly outlined. Histologically, five cases presented with well or moderately well differentiated plasma cells according to the grading made by Pasmantier and Azar. The remaining one case was poorly differentiated in cell maturity, and with electron and immunofluorescence microscopies, proved to be of plasmacytic nature.

Human cells derived from malignant tumors (HeLa, HEp-2 and KB) and human cells transformed by tumor viruses (KCand RSb) formed syncytia by simian sarcoma virus type I (SSV-I/SSAV-I), but human diploid or non-transformed cells (WI-38, HEL and HEC) did not.

A case of extravesical malacoplakia, the first case in Japan, is described in detail. The patient was a 61-year-old woman with a right flank mass. Radiologically, the mass was thought to be of the renal origin. Surgically, however, the tumor was found attached not only to the cortical surface but extended to the retroperitoneum and psoas muscle. Pathological examination confirmed the lesion to be malacoplakia characterized by the presence of von Hansemann cells and Michaelis-Gutmann bodies.

A 60-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with a right inguinal swelling that had been growing in size without any pain for 7 months. We diagnosed the growth as a right inguinal hernia and operated on him. The growth, however, was found to be a tumor it situated along the spermatic cord and testicular vessels. We diagnosed it as a lipoma. The tumor was resected near part of the internal inguinal ring. Histopathological diagnosis showed well-differentiated liposarcoma of the sclerosing type. Postoperative computed tomography (CT) revealed a large residual tumor in the retroperitoneum. We believed that the tumor was a retroperitoneal liposarcoma and that it developed in the inguinal region. The residue of the liposarcoma was resected onto the right inguinal tract. A periodic follow up has been performed and no evidence of recurrence or metastasis has been seen in the 4 years and 9 months since the second surgery. No adjuvant therapy was performed. Inguinal liposarcomas are relatively rare and in most cases these tumors are thought to originate in the spermatic cord. The origin of the tumor is believed to be the retroperitoneum

The immune status of thirteen living and related kidney transplant recipients with stable allografts were examined. The immunological assays consisted of a mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR), cell-mediated lympholysis (CML) assay, interleukin-2 (IL-2) production in mixed lymphocytes culture (MLC) and IL-2 receptor (IL-2 R) expression on MLC cells. The suppression rates of the monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against IL-2 R were tested on MLRs. The stimulation indices (SI) of the MLR against both donor and third-party cells increased compared with those of pretransplantation. The MLC responder cells stimulated by donor cells produced detectable amounts of IL-2, these amounts were lower than those by third-party cells. The MLC cells against donor cells expressed IL-2 R alpha and beta chains to the same degree as those against third-party cells. Anti-IL-2 R mAbs equally inhibited the MLRs between recipient and donor or third-party cells. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) against donor cells were not generated, even with the addition of recombinant IL-2 in any of recipients except one, while anti-donor CTL had been detected prior to transplantation and the CTL against third-party cells were induced in posttranspalnt CML

assays. These results indicate that the clonal anergy phenomenon might mediate the specific CTL unresponsiveness observed in kidney transplant recipients and the anergy phenomenon might serve in the long-term acceptance of allograft.

Nephrin, a gene product of the congenital nephrotic syndrome of the Finnish type (NPHS1), is a 1242-residue putative transmembrane protein of the immunoglobulin family of cell adhesion molecules. The expression of this gene is localized in rat and human glomerular epithelial cells. Here we report the expression of nephrin in various tissues other than the kidneys in mice. The expression of nephrin mRNA in various tissues of mice, including the kidneys, testes, spleen, thymus and brain, were first investigated by the RT-PCR method, and it was shown that a high level of nephrin mRNA could be detected in the testes of mice 1-6 weeks old. In situ hybridization revealed the expression of the nephrin gene in the Sertoli cells. Additionally, immunofluorescent staining studies indicated that nephrin was colocalized with anchoring protein ZO-1 in the mouse testis. From these results, it is inferred that nephrin is an important component of the barrier system in testes.

We report a case of retroperitoneal hematoma presenting as femoral nerve pulsy on antiplatelet therapy. The patient, a 78-year-old man who had undergone antiplatelet treatment using ticlopidine, was admitted to our hospital with complaints of sudden-onset low abdominal and back pain. Computed tomography showed an iso-density mass in the right retroperitoneum within the psoas muscle. We made a diagnosis of retroperitoneal hematoma compressing the femoral nerve and performed an operation to remove the hematoma in order to decompress the femoral neuropathy. Postoperatively, the patient rapidly recovered from the femoral neuropathy. In the particular case in which no antagonist against the ticlopidine is available, surgical decompression could produce a good outcome.

A 69-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of anal bleeding and fatigue. The patient was previously diagnosed as having Evans' syndrome on the basis of hematological examination and had been treated with predonisolone for 8 years. On admission, severe anemia and thrombocytopenia were noted. Colonoscopy and Barium enema studies demonstrated an irregular tumor with hemorrhagic ulceration in the rectum, which was histopathologically confirmed as an adenocarcinoma. After red blood cells and platelets were transfused, and the patient was treated with high-dose gammaglobulin, predonisolone, and camostat mesylate, the platelet count gradually increased and hemolysis was well controlled. The patient then underwent Hartmann's operation and splenectomy without any postoperative complications. Predonisolone and high-dose immunoglobulin therapy in a rectal cancer burdened patient with Evans' syndrome is considered useful in combination with surgical treatment. This is the first case report of rectal carcinoma resection in a patient with Evans' syndrome.

Spleen cells from tumor-bearing mice showed decreased natural killer (NK) activity and decreased binding to target cells with progression of the tumor. Treatment of spleen cells from tumor-bearing mice with vibrio cholerae neuraminidase (VCN) increased the cytotoxicity to a level twice or more as high as that of untreated cells, but the same treatment of spleen cells from normal mice had no or little effect. On the other hand, neither in spleen cells from tumor-bearing mice nor in those from normal mice, the VCN treatment had no effect on their binding to M-HeLa cells. The suppression of NK activity by preincubation with serum from tumor-bearing mice or prostaglandin E2 was completely abolished by VCN treatment. The above results indicate that VCN treatment of lymphocytes might augment NK activity by an antagonistic effect against an immune suppressive factor.

The survival rate of 19 patients who underwent living-related kidney transplantation after donor-specific blood transfusions (DST) was compared with that of 32 historical controls receiving transplants without DST. The graft survival rate of the DST group was 82% after two and three years. The graft survival rate of the DST group was significantly better than the 53% rate after two years obtained with the 32 historical controls (p less than 0.05). We tested sera from 16 DST-treated recipients to study the beneficial effect of DST on kidney allograft survival using the mixed lymphocyte culture (MLC) serum inhibition test. The results demonstrated that MLC inhibitory factors were induced in the serum of the recipient after completion of DST. This inhibition of MLC was observed by treatment of responder lymphocytes with serum obtained three weeks after DST plus rabbit complement. The inhibitory effect was also specific for responder cells in anti-donor MLC. Regarding the correlation with rejection episodes, these MLC inhibitory factors were often observed in the non-rejection group (p less than 0.05). The data suggest that such factors may be anti-idiotypic antibodies and be associated with prolonged graft survival.

The influence of surgical stress on the natural killer (NK) activity of peripheral blood lymphocytes in patients with carcinoma of the lung or gastrointestinal system was studied. The peripheral blood lymphocytes of the patients showed a marked decrease in NK activity against K-562 cells as target cells 1-2 days after surgery. The activity remained lowered for 2 weeks after thoractomy and for 1 week after laparotomy. No appreciable suppression of NK activity was observed with normal human peripheral blood lymphocytes preincubated with postoperative patient sera. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells obtained postoperatively from patients lost NK activity after ultraviolet irradiation, without any detectable loss of viability. Such irradiated mononuclear cells showed inhibition of NK activity after a 24-hour preincubation with peripheral blood lymphocytes from normal subjects. Similar suppressive activity was demonstrable in a fraction of mononuclear cells with adhesiveness to plastic petri dishes, while non-adherent cells had no such activity. When added immediately to the cytotoxicity assay system without the 24-hour preincubation, patient mononuclear cells caused no inhibition of NK activity, whereas adherent cells from normal subjects enhanced NK activity. The findings seems to indicate that, following surgical stress, plastic dish-adherent peripheral blood mononuclear cells become deprived of NK helper activity and exert suppression, thus causing postoperative depression of NK activity.

It has long been a clinically and experimentally well recognized fact that the hearing organs of man and animal would be impaired by the excessive sound stimuli. It has also been pointed out that the hearing organ of each man is not always impaired in the same degree by the same noise, and their impairments show the individual variation in a considerable range. It is indeed not too difficult to imagine, that, under the same acoustic condition, such individual variation of the acoustic impairment owes to the inherent disposition of each man. But at the same time, this individual variation may more or less owe to the patency of the ear tube; the normal tube having a physiological function to control the unnecessary acoustic stimuli, and on the contrary, the stenosed tube being devoid of this function, induces more impairment of the hearing organ. This latter suggestion, which occured to the author, led him to attempt the following experiment.

Surgical treatment of metastatic spinal cord compression is controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of our current surgical treatments and the use of spinal instrumentation. In this retrospective study covering the years between 1990 and 2006, 100 patients with spinal metastases which were secondary to various cancers underwent posterior and/or anterior decompression with spinal stabilization for the purposes of reduction of pain, and/or to help correct or improve neurological deficits. The group was made up of 60 men and 40 women whose ages ranged from 16 to 83 years (average of 60 years), and the average follow-up period was 14 months. The effect of treatment upon pain relief and neural deficits was assessed, and the cumulative survival rate was calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method. The average surgical time was 185min. This was calculated based on the following times, listed here with the surgery type:178min for posterior surgery;245min for anterior surgery;465 min for combined surgery;and 475min for total en bloc spondylectomy. Average blood loss during surgery was 1,630 ml for posterior surgery, 1,760 ml for anterior surgery, 1,930 ml for combined surgery, and 3,640 ml for total en bloc spondylectomy. Preoperative pain and paralysis were improved by 88% and 53%, respectively. In regards to surgical complications, postoperative epidural hematoma was observed in 2 patients, and instrumentation-related infection was observed in 1. Only 2 patients died within 2 months of surgery. In conclusion, posterior and/or anterior decompression with spinal stabilization is a safe and effective treatment for patients with spinal metastases, and can improve their quality of life.

We report 2 cases of small cell carcinoma (SmCC) of the stomach with distant metastasis that were treated with the same chemotherapeutic regimens as used to treat small cell lung cancer. Although the mean survival of patients with SmCC of the stomach is reported to be only 7 months, our patients survived for 15 and 14 months, respectively. In our experience, these chemotherapeutic regimens might provide a survival benefit for patients with SmCC of the stomach, although they demonstrated no remarkable antitumor effects.

Reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) dehydrogenase subunit 2 237 leucine/methionine (ND2-237 Leu/Met) polymorphism, is reportedly associated with longevity in the Japanese population. The ND2-237Met genotype may exert resistance to atherogenic diseases, such as myocardial infarction or cerebrovascular disorders. To investigate whether ND2-237 Leu/Met polymorphism is associated with yearly changes in serum lipid levels, we conducted a longitudinal study of 107 healthy Japanese male subjects. Analysis of covariance revealed that the interaction between the ND2-237 Leu/Met genotypes and habitual drinking was significantly associated with yearly changes in serum total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC) levels (p0.036 and p0.006, respectively). In multiple regression analysis, daily drinking was significantly and positively associated with yearly changes in serum LDLC levels in men with ND2-237Met (p0.026). After adjusting for covariates, yearly changes in serum LDLC levels were significantly lower in non-daily drinkers with ND2-237Met than in those with ND2-237Leu (p0.047). These results suggest that ND2-237Met has a beneficial impact on yearly changes in serum LDLC in non-daily drinkers but not in daily drinkers.

Scoliosis is a common clinical manifestation of Rett syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder that almost exclusively affects females. The spinal curve in patients with Rett syndrome is typically a long C curve of a neuromuscular type. As the onset of the scoliosis is very early and shows rapid progression, early surgical intervention has been recommended to prevent a life-threatening collapsing spine syndrome. However, there are high perioperative risks in Rett syndrome patients who undergo spinal surgery, such as neurological compromise and respiratory dysfunction due to rigid spinal curve. We herein report the surgical result of treating severe rapid progressive thoracic scoliosis in a 16-year-old girl with Rett syndrome. Posterior segmental pedicle screw fixation was performed from T1 to L3 using a computer-assisted technique. Post-operative radiography demonstrated a good correction of the curve in both the sagittal and coronal alignment. There were no postoperative complications such as neurological compromise. The patient had maintained satisfactory spinal balance as of the 3-year follow-up examination.