An IFN-beta-albumin fusion protein that displays improved pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties in nonhuman primates.

The long half-life and stability of human serum albumin (HSA) make it an attractive candidate for fusion to short-lived therapeutic proteins. Albuferon (Human Genome Sciences [HGS], Inc., Rockville, MD) beta is a novel recombinant protein derived from a gene fusion of interferon-beta (IFN-beta ) and HSA. In vitro, Albuferon beta displays antiviral and antiproliferative activities and triggers the IFN-stimulated response element (ISRE) signal transduction pathway. Array analysis of 5694 independent genes in Daudi-treated cells revealed that Albuferon beta and IFN-beta induce the expression of an identical set of 30 genes, including 9 previously not identified. In rhesus monkeys administered a dose of 50 microg/kg intravenously (i.v.) or subcutaneously (s.c.) or 300 microg/kg s.c., Albuferon beta demonstrated favorable pharmacokinetic properties. Subcutaneous bioavailability was 87%, plasma clearance at 4.7-5.7 ml/h/kg was approximately 140-fold lower than that of IFN-beta, and the terminal half-life was 36-40 h compared with 8 h for IFN-beta. Importantly, Albuferon beta induced sustained increases in serum neopterin levels and 2',5' mRNA expression. At a molar dose equivalent to one-half the dose of IFN-beta, Albuferon beta elicited comparable neopterin responses and significantly higher 2',5'-OAS mRNA levels in rhesus monkeys. The enhanced in vivo pharmacologic properties of IFN-beta when fused to serum albumin suggest a clinical opportunity for improved IFN-beta therapy.     

Reproducibility of histomorphologic diagnoses with special reference to the kappa statistic

Systems for classification and grading used in pathology should ideally be biologically meaningful and at least be reproducible from one pathologist to another. A statistical method to evaluate reproducibility (non-chance agreement) for several observers using nominal or ordinal categories has been developed and refined over the past few decades--the kappa statistic. A high level of observed agreement among different pathologists can either signify a high level of reproducibility, if agreement by chance is low, or express a low level of reproducibility, if agreement by chance is almost as high as the observed agreement. Therefore, the observed agreement says nothing in itself, unless it is low. The kappa value, however, indicates how much better the observers are compared to a throw of the dice, and therefore gives the real credit to the agreement which was found. We have developed a user-friendly computer program for calculating inter- and intra-observer agreement of 2 or more observers. By calculating associations between different categories and different observers, the statistic furthermore obtains a function close to the parameter of accuracy. We recommend the use of the above method before a set of nominal or rank scale parameters are used for deciding prognosis and treatment of patients. By submitting a diskette the computer program will be available at no cost.     

Mucosal/submucosal blood flow in the small intestine in pigs determined by local washout of 133Xe and microsphere techniques

In 11 anaesthetized pigs a laparotomy was performed and the mucosal and submucosal blood flow rate in the small intestine of the pig was determined by a local application of 133Xe and by 6.5-microns radioactive microspheres. The 133Xe washout plotted in a semilogarithmic diagram showed a multiexponential configuration. As localization studies of 133Xe in the intestinal mucosa showed a constant high concentration of 133Xe in the luminal part of the mucosa due to shunting by diffusion, the initial slope of the 133Xe washout was used for blood flow determination in the mucosa/submucosa. There was a good relationship between blood flow determined by the two techniques. The correlation coefficient, R, between the two techniques was 0.89.     

Phosphate glasses for tissue engineering: Part 2. Processing and characterisation of a ternary-based P2O5-CaO-Na2O glass fibre system

This paper presents the results of a study of the thermal properties, solubility and dimensions of a range of phosphate-based glass fibres (PB-GFs). The glass compositions were limited by fixing the P2O5 content to 45, 50 and 55 mol%, and varying the CaO mol% at 30, 35 and 40. PB-GFs were obtained from the 50 and 55 mol% P2O5 compositions; however, we were unable to obtain fibres from the 45 mol% compositions. This was linked to the cross-linked density, network connectivity and average chain length of the compositions studied. With regards to thermal parameters investigated, initial data showed an increase of the Tg and crystallisation temperatures with increasing CaO mol% at each fixed phosphate content. A decrease in Tg temperatures was also observed with increasing P2O5 content to 55 mol%. The crystallisation temperatures obtained for compositions with fixed phosphate at 55 mol%, showed a reverse pattern, with a decrease in values as compared to the fixed 50 mol% phosphate compositions. The diameters of the fibres all decreased with increasing RPMs as expected, and the solubility also increased with increasing RPMs. This was related to the increased surface area of the higher RPM fibres. There was also a decrease seen in solubility with increasing CaO mol%.     

Haemophilus ducreyi Outer membrane determinants, including DsrA, define two clonal populations

The Haemophilus ducreyi outer membrane component DsrA (for ducreyi serum resistance A) is necessary for complete resistance to normal human serum (NHS). When DsrA expression in 19 temporally and geographically diverse clinical isolates of H. ducreyi was examined by Western blotting, 5 of the strains expressed a different immunotype of the DsrA protein (DsrA(II)) than the well-characterized prototypical strain 35000HP (DsrA(I)). The predicted DsrA proteins expressed by the DsrA(II) strains were 100% identical to each other but only 48% identical to that of strain 35000HP. In addition to the DsrA(II) protein, class II strains also expressed variant forms of other outer membrane proteins (OMPs) including NcaA (necessary for collagen adhesion A), DltA (ducreyi lectin A), Hlp (H. ducreyi lipoprotein), major OMP, and/or OmpA2 (for OMP A2) and synthesized a distinct, faster-migrating lipooligosaccharide. Based on these data, strains expressing DsrA(I) were termed class I, and those expressing DsrA(II) were termed class II. Expression of dsrA(II) from strain CIP 542 ATCC in the class I dsrA(I) mutant FX517 (35000HP background), which does not express a DsrA protein, rendered this strain resistant to 50% NHS. This demonstrates that DsrA(II) protein is also critical to serum resistance. Taken together, these results indicate that there are two clonal populations of H. ducreyi. The implications of two classes of H. ducreyi strains differing in important antigenic outer membrane components are discussed.     

The sensitivity and specificity of the Major Depression Inventory, using the Present State Examination as the index of diagnostic validity

BACKGROUND: A self-rating inventory has been developed to measure DSM-IV and ICD-10 diagnoses of major (moderate to severe) depression by the patients' self-reported symptoms. This Major Depression Inventory (MDI) can be scored both according to the DSM-IV and the ICD-10 algorithms for depressive symptomatology and according to severity scales by the simple total sum of the items. METHODS: The Schedule for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry (SCAN) was used as index of validity for the clinician's DSM-IV and ICD-10 diagnosis of major (moderate to severe) depression. The sensitivity and specificity of MDI was assessed in a sample of 43 subjects covering a spectrum of depressive symptoms. RESULTS: The sensitivity of the MDI algorithms for major depression varied between 0.86 and 0.92. The specificity varied between 0.82 and 0.86. When using the total score of MDI the optimal cut-off score was estimated 26 and the total score was shown to be a sufficient statistic. LIMITATIONS: The sample of subjects was limited. Patients with psychotic depression were not included. CONCLUSION: The MDI was found to have a sensitivity and specificity which is acceptable. The questionnaire is brief and can be scored diagnostically by the DSM-IV and ICD-10 algorithms as well as by its simple total score.     

Combination-sensitive neurons in the medial geniculate body of the mustached bat: encoding of target range information.

1. Delay-tuned combination-sensitive neurons (FM-FM neurons) have been discovered in the dorsal and medial divisions of the medial geniculate body (MGB) of the mustached bat (Pteronotus parnellii). In this paper we present evidence for a thalamic origin for FM-FM neurons. Our examination of the response properties of FM-FM neurons indicates that the neural mechanism of delay-tuning depends on coincidence detection and involves an interaction between neural inhibition and excitation. 2. The biosonar pulse (P) and its echo (E) produced and heard by the mustached bat consist of four harmonics; each harmonic contains a constant frequency (CF) component and a frequency modulated (FM) component. Thus the pulse-echo pair contains eight CF components (PCF1-4, ECF1-4) and eight FM components (PFM1-4, EFM1-4). The stimuli used in this study consisted of CF, FM, and CF-FM sounds: paired CF-FM sounds were used to simulate any two harmonics of pulse-echo pairs. The responses of FM-FM neurons in the MGB were recorded extracellularly. We found that FM-FM neurons respond poorly or not at all to single sounds, respond strongly to paired sounds, and are tuned to the frequency and amplitude of each sound of the pair and to the time interval separating them (simulated echo delay). 3. All FM-FM neurons are facilitated by paired FM sounds and most are facilitated by paired CF sounds. Best facilitative frequencies measured with paired CF sounds fall outside the frequency ranges of the CF components of biosonar signals, whereas best facilitative frequencies measured with paired FM sounds fall within the frequency ranges of the FM components of biosonar signals. Thus FM-FM neurons are expected to respond selectively to combinations of FM components in biosonar signals. The FM components of pulse-echo pairs essential to facilitate FM-FM neurons are the FM component of the fundamental of the pulse (PFM1) in combination with the FM component of the second, third, or fourth harmonic of an echo (EFM2, EFM3, EFM4; collectively, EFMn). 4. The frequency combinations to which FM-FM neurons are tuned reflect small deviations from the harmonic relationship such as occurs in combinations of FM components from pulses and Doppler-shifted echoes. Compared with CF/CF neurons, however, FM-FM neurons are broadly tuned to stimulus frequency. Thus FM-FM neurons are Doppler-shift tolerant and relatively unspecialized for processing velocity information in the frequency domain.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

Dactinomycin treatment of murine lupus erythematosus. I. Renal disease and longevity.

Three groups of female (NZB X NZW)F1 hybrid mice were treated with an intermittent regimen of dactinomycin (actinomycin D), 3.5 microgram. daily. Median survival was doubled in two of the groups and increased by more than 75 per cent in the third. Most of the treated animals never had significant proteinuria. When kidneys from 14 treated mice, which died between the ages of 11 and 20 months, were examined by light and fluorescence microscopy, most showed the lesions of normal aged CBA and C57BL/6 mice, some expansion of the mesangial matrix and increased cellularity, consistent with deposition of immunoglobulins and complement components in the mesangium, generally sparing the capillary loops. Four of the 14 animals, three of them long-lived, had advanced renal glomerular disease. These data indicate that dactinomycin, by whatever therapeutic mechanism, permits very extended survival of B/W female mice, the large majority of them without significant renal disease.