Oral Administration of Chlorella Vulgaris Augments Concomitant Antitumor Immunity

Chlorella vulgaris, an unicellular green algae, or its acetone-extract (Ac-Ex) were administered orally to Meth A tumor bearing BALB/c or (BALB/c DBA/2)F1 (CDF1) mice. When CDF1 mice were fed daily with 10% dried powder of Chlorella vulgaris (CVP) containing diet before and after Meth A tumor inoculation, the growth of rechallenged Meth A tumor was significantly suppressed in an antigen-specific manner. Augmentation of antitumor resistance was exhibited also by Winn assay using lymph node cells of tumor-bearing mice orally administered with CVP or Ac-Ex. Antigen-specific concomitant immunity in these mice were mediated by cytostatic T cells but not by cytotoxic T cells. Natural killer cells seemed not to contribute in antitumor resistance in this system.     

Sotos syndrome associated with a de novo balanced reciprocal translocation t(5;8)(q35;q24.1).

We describe a de novo balanced reciprocal translocation between the long arms of chromosomes 5 and 8 [46,XX,t(5;8)(q35;q24.1)] in a 15-month-old girl with a typical Sotos syndrome phenotype. Involvement of the 5q35 region was previously reported (Maroun et al. [1994: Am J Med Genet 50:291-293]) as one of translocation breakpoints in the present patient. We suggest that the gene responsible for Sotos syndrome is located to a distal long-arm region of chromosome 5.     

Partial purification and characterization of anhydrotetracycline oxygenase of Streptomyces aureofaciens

Anhydrotetracycline oxygenase was purified both by affinity chromatography and by hydrophobic interaction chromatography. Molecular weight of anhydrotetracycline oxygenase was determined to be 115,000 by Sephadex G-200 gel filtration. Using preparative isoelectric focusing the isoelectric point of the enzyme was estimated to be 5.3. The enzyme showed a sensitivity to thiol-specific inhibitors. During the hydrophobic interaction purification step, the activity dropped considerably. Reactivation occurred when a heat treated crude extract was added to the reaction mixture.     

Hypercalcemia with elevation of parathormone in lymphocytic lymphoma. Efficacy of ethanehydroxydiphosphonate by mouth

Acute hypercalcaemia was observed in a 54 year old woman followed up over a five year period for a lymphocytic non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a complication which is rare in chronic lymphoproliferative disorders except multiple myeloma. This case is of interest from 3 points of view: haematological: the simultaneous occurrence of hypercalcaemia (4.80 mmol/l) and of a leukaemic phase (19,300 lymphocytes/mm3) with no signs of "transformation" of the haemopathy; physiopathological: increased osteoclastic bone resorption and a rise in serum parathormone (0.21 to 4.82 ng/ml); therapeutic: efficacy of oral ethane 1, hydroxy 1, 1 diphosphonate (20 mg/kg/day) in treating the hypercalcaemia.     

Psychiatric morbidity in three primary medical care clinics in the city of Sao Paulo

Summary The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of psychiatric disturbance in three primary medical care settings (Brasilandia, Servidor and Barra Funda) in a large city of a developing country and the effect of relevant sociodemographic factors (sex, age, marital status, occupation, migration, colour of skin and housing) on minor psychiatric morbidity.The prevalence rates of psychiatric morbidity were estimated at two levels: for minor and for severe psychiatric disturbance. The extent of minor psychiatric morbidity was found to be very high in the three primary medical care clinics (Brasilandia 56%, Servidor 50% and Barra Funda 47%) and about one-quarter of persons attending each clinic presented a severe psychiatric disturbance.Two factors were found to be associated with minor psychiatric morbidity (sex and family income per capita) when the joint effects of the sociodemographic variables were investigated. Women were more likely than men to present a minor psychiatric disturbance and the lower the family income the higher the risk of minor psychiatric morbidity. These findings are discussed in the light of the mental health of the urban poor living in the large cities of developing countries.     

IgE to cross-reactive carbohydrate determinants: analysis of the distribution and appraisal of the in vivo and in vitro reactivity

BACKGROUND: IgE to cross-reacting carbohydrate determinants has already been described by several authors, but their function and distribution are still a matter of debate. In previous studies we showed how the presence of IgE to bromelain could be a useful and simple marker of the presence of IgE to carbohydrate epitopes. METHODS: A survey of 1,831 subjects with a suspected allergic respiratory disease has been carried out by detecting IgE to bromelain. Data were analysed on the basis of demographical and allergological parameters. To find out whether a glycoprotein is capable of triggering an allergic reaction, 1,076 subjects were also skin tested with several purified molecules bearing carbohydrate side chains differing in number, composition and complexity. RESULTS: An overall prevalence of 23% of positive IgE to cross-reacting carbohydrate determinants was recorded. Prevalence varied when subsets of non-allergic (5%), non-pollen-allergic (10%), and pollen-allergic (31%) subjects were considered. Prevalence further increased in subsets with multiple pollen sensitization (71%), and with a previous pollen immunotherapy course (46%), whereas minor differences were found in gender and age distribution. Almost all the allergenic extracts recorded negative in the skin test gave a positive IgE test in vitro. A higher correlation was found mainly with plant-derived allergenic extracts, whereas a lower one was recorded with mites and fungi. Horseradish peroxidase was the only glycoprotein capable of exerting a positive skin test in 21% of the subjects with IgE to cross-reacting carbohydrate determinants, 80% of them having IgE to the HRP molecule. CONCLUSIONS: IgE to cross-reacting carbohydrate determinants are common among the allergic population and the binding to skin test negative allergenic extracts further confirms their poor biological activity. Further studies on horseradish peroxidase should be carried out to define the role of the glycan side chains in its allergenic activity.