A case-control study of multiple myeloma and occupation

Lifetime job histories from a population-based, case-control study were analyzed to investigate the relationship between multiple myeloma and employment in various occupations and industries. Interviews were obtained from 89% (692) of eligible incident cases and 83% (1683) of eligible controls. An elevated risk was observed among persons ever employed as painters [odds ratio (OR) + 2.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) + 1.2–3.6], particularly for those employed for 10 or more years (OR + 4.1, 95% CI + 1.8–10.4). A small excess risk was observed among agricultural workers employed for 10 or more years (OR + 1.3, 95% CI + 1.0–2.2), with a higher relative risk observed among farm laborers (OR + 1.8, 95% CI + 1.0–4.0). Among agricultural workers who reported having been highly exposed to pesticides, the OR was 5.2 (95% CI + 1.6–21.1). Some evidence, based on smaller numbers, was also found to support an association with firefighting and employment in the petroleum- and coal-products manufacturing industries. Little evidence was found to support the previously noted association with wood exposure, and no evidence for an association with employment in the rubber or petroleum refining industries was found. This study lends further support to previously reported associations between multiple myeloma and employment among painters and agricultural workers. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

A comprehensive haplotype analysis of CYP19 and breast cancer risk: the Multiethnic Cohort

The CYP19 gene encodes for aromatase (P450arom), a key steroidogenic enzyme that catalyzes the final step of estrogen biosynthesis. Apart from rare mutations in CYP19 which result in severe phenotypes associated with estrogen insufficiency, little is known about whether common variation in CYP19 is associated with risk of hormone-related diseases. In this study, we employed a haplotype-based approach to search for common disease-associated variants in this candidate breast cancer susceptibility gene among African-American, Hawaiian, Japanese, Latina and White women in the Multiethnic Cohort Study (MEC). We utilized 74 densely spaced single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (one every approximately 2.6 kb) spanning 189.4 kb of the CYP19 locus to characterize linkage disequilibrium (LD) and haplotype patterns among 69-70 individuals from each ethnic population. We detected four regions of strong LD (blocks 1-4) that were quite closely conserved across populations. Within each block there was a limited diversity of common haplotypes (5 to 10 with a frequency >/=5%) and most haplotypes were observed to be shared across populations. Twenty-five haplotype-tagging SNPs (htSNPs) were selected to predict the common haplotypes with high probability (average Rh2=0.92) and genotyped in a breast cancer case-control study in the MEC (cases, n=1355; controls, n=2580). We first performed global tests for differences in risk according to the common haplotypes and observed significant haplotype-effects in block 2 [P=0.01; haplotypes 2b (OR=1.23; 95% CI, 1.07-1.40), 2d (OR=1.28; 95% CI, 1.01-1.62)]. We also found a common long-range haplotype comprised of block-specific haplotypes 2b and 3c to be associated with increased risk of breast cancer (haplotype 2b-3c: OR=1.31; 95% CI, 1.11-1.54). Our findings suggest the hypothesis that women with the long-range CYP19 haplotype 2b-3c may be carriers of a predisposing breast cancer susceptibility allele.     

Reproducibility of Immunological Tests Used To Assess Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Syndrome

Whether persons with multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome (MCS) have immunological abnormalities is unknown. To assess the reliability of selected immunological tests that have been hypothesized to be associated with MCS, replicate blood samples from 19 healthy volunteers, 15 persons diagnosed with MCS, and 11 persons diagnosed with autoimmune disease were analyzed in five laboratories for expression of four T-cell surface activation markers (CD25, CD26, CD38, and HLA-DR) and in four laboratories for autoantibodies (to smooth muscle, thyroid antigens, and myelin). For T-cell activation markers, the intralaboratory reproducibility was very good, with 90% of the replicates analyzed in the same laboratory differing by ≤3%. Interlaboratory differences were statistically significant for all T-cell subsets except CD4⁺ cells, ranging from minor to eightfold for CD25⁺ subsets. Within laboratories, the date of analysis was significantly associated with the values for all cellular activation markers. Although reproducibility of autoantibodies could not be precisely assessed due to the rarity of abnormal results, there were inconsistencies across laboratories. The effect of shipping on all measurements, while sometimes statistically significant, was very small. These results support the reliability of fresh and shipped samples for detecting large (but perhaps not small) differences between groups of donors in the T-cell subsets tested. When comparing markers that are not well standardized, it may be important to distribute samples from different study groups evenly over time.     

Endothelial progenitor cells.

The identification of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) has prompted an explosion of interest in postnatal vasculogenesis and the role of this mechanism in human health and disease. Previously considered restricted to the embryonic phase, the differentiation in situ of progenitor cells to vascular endothelium is now known to occur in the adult. A role for EPCs in the modulation of angiogenesis has also been recognized. These cells are enriched in the mononuclear cell fraction of peripheral blood but have also been isolated from bone marrow, the vessel wall, and a number of other organs and tissues. Accumulating data suggest an important vasculoprotective function for EPCs, although a maladaptive role underpinning a variety of angiogenesis-dependent diseases is also being investigated. Encouraging results observed with experimental and early human trials of EPC-based regenerative therapies have further underscored the significance of this recently discovered cell type. Notwithstanding the scope and pace of these developments, a number of challenges remain: the precise ontogeny and lineage of these cells is unknown, the true extent to which EPCs participate in neovascularization and vascular repair is still uncertain, and the efficacy of EPC-based regenerative therapies has yet to be proven in randomized controlled trials.     

Comparison of abilities of recombinant interleukin-1α and -β and noninflammatory IL-1β fragment 163–171 to upregulate C3b receptors (CR1) on human neutrophils and to enhance their phagocytic capacity

Both recombinant IL-1 and - caused an upregulation of C3b receptors (CR1) on human neutrophils and caused a receptor-mediated enhancement of phagocytosis of C3b·IgG-coated microspheres by these leukocytes. The and forms of the recombinant cytokine were of comparable potency regarding CR1 upregulation, although both generally had less than 25% of the potency of FMLP in this respect. Recombinant IL-1 was slightly more potent than the form of the cytokine regarding phagocytosis of opsonized microspheres and, again, both forms were less potent than FMLP in causing an enhancement of phagocytosis by neutrophils. The synthetic noninflammatory immunostimulatory nonapeptide corresponding to residues 163–171 of IL-1 was completely inert with respect to upregulation of CR1 on neutrophils and the enhancement of phagocytosis by these cells. Thus this domain in the intact IL-1 molecule apparently is not involved in CR1 upregulation and the ensuing enhancement in phagocytosis by neutrophils, although it is apparently important in the immunostimulatory activity regarding the proliferation of lymphocytes.