Androgen receptor YAC transgenic mice carrying CAG 45 alleles show trinucleotide repeat instability

X-linked spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA) is caused by a CAG repeat expansion in the first exon of the androgen receptor (AR) gene. Disease-associated alleles (37-66 CAGs) change in length when transmitted from parents to offspring, with a significantly greater tendency to shift size when inherited paternally. As transgenic mice carrying human AR cDNAs with 45 and 66 CAG repeats do not display repeat instability, we attempted to model trinucleotide repeat instability by generating transgenic mice with yeast artificial chromosomes (YACs) carrying AR CAG repeat expansions in their genomic context. Studies of independent lines of AR YAC transgenic mice with CAG 45 alleles reveal intergenerational instability at an overall rate of approximately 10%. We also find that the 45 CAG repeat tracts are significantly more unstable with maternal transmission and as the transmitting mother ages. Of all the CAG/CTG repeat transgenic mice produced to date the AR YAC CAG 45 mice are unstable with the smallest trinucleotide repeat mutations, suggesting that the length threshold for repeat instability in the mouse may be lowered by including the appropriate flanking human DNA sequences. By sequence-tagged site content analysis and long range mapping we determined that one unstable transgenic line has integrated an approximately 70 kb segment of the AR locus due to fragmentation of the AR YAC. Identification of the cis - acting elements that permit CAG tract instability and the trans -acting factors that modulate repeat instability in the AR YAC CAG 45 mice may provide insights into the molecular basis of trinucleotide repeat instability in humans.      

Modulation of keratinocyte motility. Correlation with production of extracellular matrix molecules in response to growth promoting and antiproliferative factors.

Normal human epidermal keratinocytes (KC) grown under conditions that maintain the undifferentiated state are highly motile. Migration of these cells as measured in two different assays (migration out of an agarose drop explant, and into micropore filters in a modified Boyden chamber), is stimulated by fibronectin (FN) and to a lesser extent by thrombospondin (TSP). In contrast, laminin (LN) inhibits KC migration. Cultivation of the cells for 1 day under conditions that induce differentiation (ie, in the presence of 1.4 mM Ca2+) suppresses KC motility. A number of soluble growth modulating polypeptide factors also influence KC migration. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) stimulate KC motility. These factors simultaneously induce KC production of FN and a significant portion of the stimulated motility can be inhibited with antibodies to FN. EGF and somatomedin-C (SM-C), but not TGF-beta, also stimulate TSP production while EGF and SM-C (but not TGF-beta) induce KC proliferation. In contrast to these factors, interferon-gamma (INF-gamma) inhibits KC production of both FN and TSP and concomitantly inhibits both motility and proliferation. These data suggest that KC properties essential for normal wound healing (ie, motility and proliferation) are regulated by both extracellular matrix molecules and soluble peptide factors. Finally, these effects of various growth promoting and antiproliferative factors on KCs may, in part, be mediated through alteration in the endogenous production of extracellular matrix molecules by KCs.     

The spindle-shaped cells in cutaneous Kaposi''s sarcoma. Histologic simulators include factor XIIIa dermal dendrocytes.

Kaposi's sarcoma is a neoplasm that develops as multifocal lesions, often involving the skin, characterized by a complex histologic picture including numerous vascular spaces, perivascular and interstitial spindle-shaped cells, and extravasated erythrocytes, lymphocytes, and plasma cells. Using an antibody against factor XIIIa, which identifies dermal dendrocytes, numerous factor XIIIa-positive dermal dendrocytes were detected among the spindle-shaped cells in 12 acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)-associated, and five non-AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma lesions. The factor XIIIa-positive dermal dendrocytes were also increased in histologic simulators of Kaposi's sarcoma such as dermatofibroma, angiomatoid malignant fibrous histiocytoma, granuloma annulare, and early wound healing, but were absent in keloids. The increased number of dermal dendrocytes, which are often in an angiocentric configuration and which also express CD4, lymphocyte function associated antigen-1 (LFA-1), and Leu M3 in Kaposi's sarcoma, may be important to the angioproliferative response. The results suggested that the spindle-shaped cells that are present in a variety of cutaneous lesions are dermal dendrocytes and belong to the reticuloendothelial system, unlike other mesenchymal cell types such as the endothelial cell. Apparently a diverse array of stimuli, including human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) infection and trauma, can stimulate the accumulation of factor XIIIa expressing dermal dendrocytes in the skin. These cells can then participate in different stages of a variety of cutaneous alterations including Kaposi's sarcoma, dermatofibroma, granuloma annulare, and early wound healing. Thus, the factor XIIIa-positive dermal dendrocyte is a common cellular denominator among diverse clinical entities that share some histologic features.     

Cryopreservation of human oocytes: a review of current problems and perspectives

It is well recognized that the ability to cryopreserve unfertilizedhuman oocytes would make a significant contribution to infertilitytreatment. However, despite considerable interest, very fewsuccessful pregnancies have arisen from cryopreserved oocytesafter thawing, insemination and transfer of the subsequent embryo.The reasons for this lack of progress may well result from adearth of information on how the various biophysical changesduring a cryopreservation regimen affect human oocyte function.Recently, fundamental studies on the effects of cooling, membranepermeability, cryoprotectant addition and ice formation havebeen performed on human oocytes by a number of groups, and theseform the basis of the current review. It is likely that successfulhuman oocyte cryopreservation will only follow once these factorsare fully understood, but the existing base of knowledge shouldprovide a platform for further improvements in the techniquescurrently employed.     

Estimation of size of clonal unit for keratinocytes in normal human skin

OBJECTIVE: It has been suggested that keratinocyte (KC) stem cells reside at the epicenter of a clonal population of cells. To estimate the territory or surface area covered by a single stem-cell-derived KC population in human skin, clonal skin maps were created from 3 healthy adult women and from normal skin of a psoriatic patient. DESIGN: Two hundred fifty-eight punch biopsy samples of various sizes (ranging from 2 to 8 mm in diameter) were analyzed for clonality employing X chromosome inactivation patterns at the human androgen receptor gene (HUMARA) locus. DNA was isolated and clonality established by significant decrease of either maternal or paternal X chromosome band patterns following restriction enzyme digestion, polymerase chain reaction amplification, and gel electrophoresis. RESULTS: Fifty-three (41%) of 128 two-mm biopsies were clonal, whereas only 6 (14%) of 43 three-mm, 5 (14%) of 36 four-mm, and 3 (8%) of 35 five-mm biopsies revealed a clonal population of KCs. By contrast, in 5 different biopsies from a psoriatic patient, including 4- or 5-mm sizes, all but 1 were clonal; even an 8-mm biopsy contained a clonal population of KCs. Mantel-Haenszel chi(2) analysis revealed a P value of.001, reflecting a strong trend in probability for presence of a single clone of KCs as related to size of the biopsy sample. By sequentially analyzing 30 contiguous 2-mm biopsy samples within a given strip of skin, 10 clonal domain changes, as reflected in maternal versus paternal switches, were observed. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide direct evidence of a clonal population of KCs in normal and psoriatic lesion-free skin, and indicate that a clonal epidermal unit of KCs frequently can be detected in small biopsies (2 mm), but that in normal skin sampling, overlapping clones are apparently present in larger (ie, 4-5-mm) biopsies, producing nonclonal patterns. The clonal domain of progeny in normal skin has a rather limited territorial boundary (2 mm in diameter). However, in lesion-free skin from a psoriatic patient, there may be clonal expansion of KCs due to perturbation in epidermopoiesis and/or stem cell distribution.     

Initial evaluation of a continuous speech recognition program for radiology

The aims of this work were to measure the accuracy of one continuous speech recognition product and dependence on the speaker's gender and status as a native or nonnative English speaker, and evaluate the product's potential for routine use in transcribing radiology reports. IBM MedSpeak/Radiology software, version 1.1 was evaluated by 6 speakers. Two were nonnative English speakers, and 3 were men. Each speaker dictated a set of 12 reports. The reports included neurologic and body imaging examinations performed with 6 different modalities. The dictated and original report texts were compared, and error rates for overall, significant, and subtle significant errors were computed. Error rate dependence on modality, native English speaker status, and gender were evaluated by performing ttests. The overall error rate was 10.3 +/- 3.3%. No difference in accuracy between men and women was found; however, significant differences were seen for overall and significant errors when comparing native and nonnative English speakers (P = .009 and P = .008, respectively). The speech recognition software is approximately 90% accurate, and while practical implementation issues (rather than accuracy) currently limit routine use of this product throughout a radiology practice, application in niche areas such as the emergency room currently is being pursued. This methodology provides a convenient way to compare the initial accuracy of different speech recognition products, and changes in accuracy over time, in a detailed and sensitive manner.