Serotonin receptor sensitivity and aggression

This study investigated the relationship between increased serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5HT) receptor sensitivity and human aggression. A low oral dose of meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (MCPP), a postsynaptic 5HT receptor agonist, was administered in a placebo-controlled design to depressed (n = 22) and panic disorder (n = 20) patients classified with or without signs of outwardly directed aggression, patients with a history of suicide attempts (inwardly directed aggression) (n = 11), and normal controls (n = 19). Hormones under 5HT control were measured at 30-min intervals. Results were as follows: (1) MCPP did not induce or reduce anger, (2) patients with outwardly directed aggression did not have significantly greater MCPP-induced cortisol or prolactin release than did patients without signs of outwardly directed aggression, (3) patients with a history of suicide attempts did not have significantly greater MCPP-induced cortisol or prolactin release than did normal controls, and (4) MCPP-induced hormone release was unrelated to measures of aggression.     

Recombinant human anti-transforming growth factor beta1 antibody therapy in systemic sclerosis: a multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled phase I/II trial of CAT-192

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate CAT-192, a recombinant human antibody that neutralizes transforming growth factor beta1 (TGFbeta1), in the treatment of early-stage diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis (dcSSc). METHODS: Patients with SSc duration of <18 months were randomly assigned to the placebo group or to 1 of 3 CAT-192 treatment groups: 10 mg/kg, 5 mg/kg, 0.5 mg/kg. Infusions were given on day 0 and weeks 6, 12, and 18. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of CAT-192. Secondary outcomes included the modified Rodnan skin thickness score (MRSS), the Scleroderma Health Assessment Questionnaire, assessment of organ-based disease, serum levels of soluble interleukin-2 receptor, collagen propeptides (N propeptide of type I [PINP] and type III collagen), and tissue levels of messenger RNA for procollagens I and III and for TGFbeta1 and TGFbeta2. RESULTS: Forty-five patients were enrolled. There was significant morbidity and mortality, including 1 death in the group receiving 0.5 mg/kg of CAT-192 and 3 deaths in the group receiving 5 mg/kg of CAT-192. There were more adverse events and more serious adverse events in patients receiving CAT-192 than in those receiving placebo, although these events were not more frequent in the high-dose treatment group. The MRSS improved in all groups during the study, but there was no evidence of a treatment effect for CAT-192. Improvement in the MRSS correlated with the disease duration (r = -0.54, P = 0.0008). Changes in the PINP level from baseline correlated with changes in the MRSS (r = 0.37, P = 0.027). CONCLUSION: We report the first evaluation of a systemically administered and repeatedly dosed anti-TGFbeta1 drug. In this pilot study, CAT-192, in doses up to 10 mg/kg, showed no evidence of efficacy. The utility of clinical and biochemical outcome measures and the feasibility of multicenter trials of early dcSSc were confirmed.     

High frequency and allele‐specific differences of BRCA1 founder mutations in breast cancer and ovarian cancer patients from Belarus

Bogdanova NV, Antonenkova NN, Rogov YI, Karstens JH, Hillemanns P, Dörk T. High frequency and allele‐specific differences of BRCA1 founder mutations in breast cancer and ovarian cancer patients from Belarus. Breast cancer and ovarian cancer are common malignancies in Belarus accounting for about 3500 and 800 new cases per year, respectively. For breast cancer, the rates and age of onset appear to vary significantly in regions differentially affected by the Chernobyl accident. We assessed the frequency and distribution of three BRCA1 founder mutations 5382insC, 4153delA and Cys61Gly in two hospital‐based series of 1945 unselected breast cancer patients and of 201 unselected ovarian cancer patients from Belarus as well as in 1019 healthy control females from the same population. Any of these mutations were identified in 4.4% of the breast cancer patients, 26.4% of the ovarian cancer patients and 0.5% of the controls. In the breast cancer patients, BRCA1 mutations were strongly associated with earlier age at diagnosis, with oestrogen receptor (ER) negative tumours and with a first‐degree family history of breast cancer, although only 35% of the identified BRCA1 mutation carriers had such a family history. There were no marked differences in the regional distribution of BRCA1 mutations, so that the significant differences in age at diagnosis and family history of breast cancer patients from areas afflicted by the Chernobyl accident could not be explained by BRCA1. We next observed a higher impact and a shifted mutational spectrum of BRCA1 in the series of Byelorussian ovarian cancer patients where the three founder mutations accounted for 26.4% (53/201). While the Cys61Gly mutation appeared underrepresented in ovarian cancer as compared with breast cancer cases from the same population (p = 0.01), the 4153delA mutation made a higher contribution to ovarian cancer than to breast cancer (p < 0.01). BRCA1 mutations were significantly enriched among ovarian cancer cases with a first‐degree family history of breast or ovarian cancer, whereas the median age at ovarian cancer diagnosis was not different between mutation carriers and non‐carriers. Taken together, these results identify three BRCA1 founder mutations as key components of inherited breast and ovarian cancer susceptibility in Belarus and might have implications for cancer prevention, treatment and genetic counselling in this population.     

B1 but not B2 bradykinin receptor agonists promote DU145 prostate cancer cell proliferation and migration

Background

The kallikrein-kinin system (KKS) is an endogenous pathway involved in angiogenesis and tumourigenesis, both vital for cancer growth and progression.

Objectives

To investigate the effect of two bradykinin receptor (B1R and B2R) agonists on growth and motility of prostate tumour (DU145) and micro-vascular endothelial cells (dMVECs).

Methods

Increasing concentrations of selective B1R and B2R agonists were added to cultured cells. Cell proliferation and migration were assessed using the 3-[4,5 dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) and modified Boyden Chamber assays, respectively. Where significant stimulation was found, the influence of an antagonist was also investigated.

Results

Neither growth nor motility of endothelial cells was affected by either agonist. In DU145 cells, while the B2R agonist was without any significant effect, the B1R agonist stimulated proliferation and migration at concentrations of 10nM and 50nM respectively. Further, this effect was abrogated when cells were pre-incubated with a B1R antagonist.

Conclusions

Unlike the physiologically-active B2R, the pathologically-inducible B1R may be implicated in prostate tumourigenic events. The involvement of the KKS in malignant prostate pathology supports on-going exploration of bradykinin receptor antagonists as target candidates in the development of alternate approaches to cancer therapy.     

The insulin‐like growth factor system and sarcomas

Sarcomas are a diverse group of malignant mesenchymal tumours arising from bone and soft tissues. The identification of critical cellular signalling pathways in sarcomas is an important issue for the development of new targeted therapies. This review highlights the experimental and clinical evidence supporting the role of the insulin‐like growth factor (IGF) signalling system in the cellular transformation and progression of several types of sarcoma, including rhabdomyosarcoma, synovial sarcoma, leiomyosarcoma, Ewing's sarcoma and osteosarcoma. Preclinical data suggest that the IGF system could be a promising target for therapy in these sarcomas. Currently, therapies interrupting IGF signalling have been or are being developed. In recent phase 1 clinical studies with humanized monoclonal antibodies directed against IGF receptor type 1 (IGF‐1R), objective tumour responses were observed in several patients with Ewing's sarcoma, encouraging further clinical testing in Ewing's sarcoma and other sarcoma (sub)types. Moreover, the occasional occurrence of paraneoplastic hypoglycaemia as a result of the secretion of incompletely processed forms of pro‐IGF‐II by sarcomas is discussed. Copyright © 2008 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Isolation and complete genome characterization of novel reassortant orthoreovirus from common vole (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Microtus arvalis</Emphasis>)

A novel mammalian orthoreovirus (MRV) strain was isolated from the lung tissue of a common vole (Microtus arvalis) with Tula hantavirus infection. Seven segments (L1–L3, M2–M3, S2, and S4) of the Hungarian MRV isolate MORV/47Ma/06 revealed a high similarity with an MRV strain detected in bank vole (Myodes glareolus) in Germany. The M1 and S3 segment of the Hungarian isolate showed the closest relationship with the sequence of a Slovenian human and a French murine isolate, respectively. The highest nucleotide and amino acid identity values were above 90 and 95% in all of the comparisons to the reference sequences in GenBank, except for the S1 with a maximum of 69.6% nucleotide and 75.4% amino acid identity. As wild rodents are among the main sources of zoonotic infections, the reservoir role of these animals and zoonotic potential of rodent origin MRVs need to be further investigated.