Pulmonary tuberculosis due to bacille Calmette-Guérin

Summary Immunotherapy using bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) has gained increasing acceptance in the management of superficial bladder cancer. Systemic reactions after intravesical instillation of BCG are rare. However, when the therapy is complicated, the lung often becomes involved. Since the pathogenesis of lung infiltrates after immunotherapy is unknown, we report on a patient who developed a lung infiltrate after receiving BCG immunotherapy for bladder cancer. The infectious etiology was established by culture confirmation of a BCG strain in the broncheoalveolar lavage fluid.Abbreviation BCG bacille Calmette-Guérin     

High frequency of Coxsackie-B-virus-specific IgM in children developing type I diabetes during a period of high diabetes morbidity

Twenty-four consecutive children with newly diagnosed insulin-dependent (type I) diabetes mellitus (IDDM) were investigated for a history of infectious disease. Thirteen of the 24 (54%) patients reported symptoms of acute infection within two months before diabetes was diagnosed. The mean age was 8.5 years and 15 (63%) of the patients were girls. No clear seasonal variation in onset was seen. Coxsackie B (CB)-virus-specific IgM responses were detected by reverse radioimmunoassay (RIA) in 16 of the 24 (67%) patients on the day of diagnosis of IDDM. The highest titre was usually recorded at that time, but with some the highest titre was found with a second serum obtained three to seven weeks after diagnosis. Thereafter the titres declined, and after six months IgM was detected only in a few patients. Thirteen patients displayed monotypic IgM responses, whereas three patients showed ditypic responses. Among the former, IgM was recorded against Coxsackie B4 (CB4) in four, B5 (CB5) in three, B1 (CB1) in two, B2 (CB2) in two, and B3 (CB3) in two patients. The ditypic responses were against CB2 and CB3, CB3 and CB4, and CB5. No CB-virus-specific IgM was detected in sera, found during the same period, from age-matched nondiabetic children without evidence of infection. In neutralisation (NT) tests, antibodies to the homotypic virus were found in 12 of the 16 diabetic patients showing CB-virus-specific at the time of diagnosis. A significant rise in NT titre was demonstrated in three of these patients. No significant clinical difference was noted between IgM positive and IgM negative patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Regional assignment of human protooncogenec-myb to 6q21→qter

Using human-mouse somatic cell hybrids containing different parts of chromosome 6 and a DNA probe of the oncogene (V-myb) of avian myeloblastosis virus (AMV), we regionally mapped by Southern blot techniques the human cellular myb (cmyb) protooncogene to 6q21qter.     

Calcium-independent release of gamma-aminobutyrate from nerve processes in the developing rabbit retina

Retinas from 3- and 10-day-old rabbits, and from young (29 days), or adult animals were used to study in parallel the development of synaptic vesicles in amacrine cells and the Ca2+ dependence of the K+-stimulated [3H]gamma-aminobutyrate release from them. Few synaptic vesicles were observed in the amacrine cell processes in retinas from the 3-day-old rabbits. The number of vesicles significantly increased between 3 and 10 days and increased further between day 10 and the adult animal. The Ca2+ dependence of the K+-stimulated release decreased with increasing age. There is thus a poor correlation between the Ca2+ dependent transmitter release and the number of synaptic vesicles in the nerve terminal, favouring the existence of a Ca2+ dependent nonvesicular process for the [3H]gamma-aminobutyrate release in the rabbit retina.     

The role of prostaglandins in the endothelium-mediated vasodilatory response to hypoxia

The effect of intraluminal hypoxia on vascular tone and the release of prostaglandins (PG) I₂ and E₂ were investigated in intact isolated segments of canine femoral and coronary arteries as well as in the rat tail artery. Perfusion with hypoxic Tyrode's solution (pO₂ 20–40 mm Hg) evoked a marked vasodilation of the segments, precontracted with norepinephrine or serotonin. Simultaneously, a 2–3-fold increase in the release of 6-keto-PGF₁ (the stable hydrolysis product of PGI₂) could be observed. In parallel to 6-keto-PGF₁, smaller quantities of PGE₂ were released. Removal of the endothelium as well as pretreatment with indomethacin abolished both, the dilatory response and the PG-release. After administration of verapamil as well as 3,4,5-trimethoxybenzoic acid 8-diethyl-aminooctylester (TMB-8) (which binds intracellular calcium) the PG-increase was abolished and hypoxic dilatation could no longer be elicited, although the vessel had still a capacity to dilate. Exogenous administration of PGI₂ and PGE₂ showed that in canine femoral and coronary arteries PGI₂ was the most effective vasodilating prostaglandin, while in the rat tail artery PGE₂ had a 10-fold higher dilating potency compared to PGI₂. At very high concentrations both PGI₂ and PGE₂ caused vasoconstriction. Our experiments suggest that the hypoxic endothelium-dependent dilatation may be mediated by an increased PG-release. Hypoxia-induced transmembrane calcium influx into the endothelial cells seems to be the trigger reaction.Supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Bu 436/2-1)     

Dose-dependent change in the pattern of phenacetin metabolism in man and its possible significance in analgesic nephropathy

Summary Ten healthy volunteers were given twice a single dose of phenacetin, 0,5 g in the first and 2,5 g in the second experiment carried out one week later. Based on the pattern of phenacetin metabolism elaborated by Büchet al. [5] phenacetin, total acetyl-p-aminophenol, p-phenetidine and 2-hydroxyphenetidinesulfate were estimated in the urine which was collected for 12 hours after ingestion of the drug.The results obtained reveal a shift in the metabolic degradation of phenacetin from simply raising the dose. While the average output of total acetyl-p-aminophenol and of phenacetin (expressed in percentage of the dose) is similar with both doses, the formation and output of p-phenetidine and of 2-hydroxyphenetidinesulfate are enhanced with the higher dose.As a working hypothesis for further investigation it is assumed, that in the attempt to elucidate the pathogenesis of analgesic nephropathy the metabolite phenetidine deserves special consideration.

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Zusammenfassung Ergebnisse von Versuchen über den Metabolismus von Phenacetin bei 10 Normalpersonen zeigen, daß die Metabolisierung dosisabhängige Charakteristica aufweist, indem bei einer Erhöhung der Einzeldosis von 0,5 auf 2,5 g die im 12 Std-Harn ausgeschiedenen Mengen von Phenetidin und 2-Hydroxyphenetidinsulfat (ausgedrückt in Dosisprozenten) um angenähert das Vierfache zunehmen. Demgegenüber bleiben die ausgeschiedenen Dosisprozente des totalen N-Acetylaminophenols (frei und konjugiert) und von Phenacetin unverändert.Als Arbeitshypothese für weitere Versuche wird angenommen, daß in der Pathogenese der chronisch interstitiellen Nephritis im Anschluß an Abusus von phenacetinhaltigen Analgetica dem Phenacetinmetaboliten Phenetidin eine besondere Bedeutung zukommt.

     

Monomeres IgM bei akuten und chronischen Lebererkrankungen

Journal of Molecular Medicine - Monomeres IgM, bisher nur bei lymphoproliferativen Autoimmun- und einigen Infektionserkrankungen sowie vereinzelt bei Lebercirrhosen beschrieben, ließ sich...     

Sister chromatid exchange and chromosome breakage in complete hydatidiform moles.

Women with complete hydatidiform moles (CHM) are at a 10% risk for developing persistent trophoblastic disease or choriocarcinoma. We studied sister chromatid exchange (SCE) as a prognostic indicator for malignancy in peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) from women with CHM and their husbands, but found no differences from normal control couples. SCE levels in cultured tissue derived from 11 CHM (avg. 7.9) and 2 choriocarcinomas (avg. 6.8) were not significantly different from those of 8 normal skin fibroblast cultures (avg. 7.8). These same tissues were then examined for chromosome breakage which was significantly higher for CHM (0.48/cell) and choriocarcinoma (0.87/cell) than normal fibroblasts (0.33/cell). Chromosome breaks occurred at 50-60% known fragile sites and at 50-55% of cancer breakpoints. Whereas SCE was only associated with 13% of breaks in the three tissues, half of these were at known fragile sites. Our results suggest that SCE is not an indicator of malignancy in PBL or cultured cells from CHM or choriocarcinoma and that the level of SCE is not elevated in CHM or choriocarcinoma. However, our results confirm the increased breakage seen in the latter two tissues which may represent general DNA instability predisposing to choriocarcinoma and its accompanying chromosomal rearrangements.