Hepatic artery injection of I-131-labeled lipiodol. Part I. Biodistribution study results in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and liver metastases

Biodistribution of iodine-131-labeled Lipiodol Ultra-Fluide (I-131 LUF) injected into the hepatic artery was studied scintigraphically in 47 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (n = 23), hepatic metastases (n = 14), or normal livers (n = 10). The investigation was extremely well tolerated. I-131 LUF concentrated mainly in the liver (L) and the lungs (l), with L/L + l activity ratios greater than 75% for all three groups of patients. I-131 LUF distribution was homogeneous in normal livers and heterogeneous in cirrhotic livers. I-131 LUF concentrated in the tumor with a tumorous (T) to nontumorous (NT) activity ratio (T/NT) of 4.3 +/- 3.6 for hepatocellular carcinoma and 2.4 +/- 0.7 for hepatic metastases. The effective half-life of I-131 LUF is more than 4.5 days for the three groups. It was eliminated mainly through the urine. Clearance from tumor is slower than from normal liver, as shown by the increase in T/NT at day 18. Biodistribution did not change in patients who had a second injection, which indicates that there is no saturation phenomenon. The results of this study suggest that LUF may be considered as a potential carrier vehicle for therapeutic agents.     

When should bone density measurements be repeated?

We calculated how long to wait before repeating bone mineral density (BMD) measurements to reassess fracture risk. Correlation results from serial measurements of 495 postmenopausal Japanese-American women were used to estimate 95% confidence intervals (CI) for future BMD. After 7 years of follow-up, BMD correlations with the initial measurement ranged between 0.81 and 0.94, depending on age group and measurement site. In this analysis, the period between measurements was defined as the time required for the lower 95% CI to fall below the BMD value corresponding to doubling of fracture risk. Progressive bone loss causes fracture risk to double after 10 years, on average. However, the 95% CIs indicate that a second BMD measurement will detect risk doubling after only 2 or 3 years for some women. For untreated, early postmenopausal women, the period between measurements was approximately 2–5 years for the radius and 4–6 years for the calcaneus, depending on the initial BMD level. The period was approximately 1 year longer for women age 60 and older. Treatments that halve the bone loss rate would increase the period by 1–3 years. In the absence of a second measurement of BMD, the CI will continue to expand with time, corresponding to a wider range in risk between individuals, and a greater proportion of women will be at increased fracture risk. Obtaining a second BMD measurement pinpoints the patient's status within the precision of the measurement. We conclude that repeated BMD measurements will provide a more accurate estimate of fracture risk than a single, baseline measurement.     

Porcine colostrum and milk stimulate visceral organ and skeletal muscle protein synthesis in neonatal piglets.

Our objective was to determine the relative contributions of protein synthesis and protein absorption in the rapid accretion of gastrointestinal protein in suckling piglets during the early neonatal period. We measured the rates of tissue protein synthesis using a flooding dose of L-[4-3H]phenylalanine in various visceral and peripheral tissues of neonatal piglets fed water, mature milk or colostrum for 6 h. The jejunal and ileal protein synthesis rates in piglets fed either colostrum or milk were three- to fourfold higher than in piglets fed water. The increased jejunal and ileal protein synthesis could not, however, account for the differences in protein mass between the colostrum-fed and water-fed groups. The relative abundance of IgG, a major porcine colostral protein, in jejunal tissue was markedly higher in piglets fed colostrum than in piglets fed either milk or water. The fractional protein synthesis rates in liver, kidney, spleen and skeletal muscle and the absolute protein synthesis rates in liver and spleen were also greater in piglets fed colostrum than in those fed milk or water. Increased endogenous protein synthesis made only a minor contribution to the increased intestinal protein accretion in neonatal piglets fed colostrum. A much larger proportion of this increase seemed to be a result of absorption and retention of ingested immunoglobulins.     

Rapid monitoring of changes in water diffusion coefficients during reversible ischemia in cat and rat brain

Changes in the diffusion constant of water during reversible brain ischemia and cardiac arrest were monitored with a 10-s time resolution. Results (five cats, three rats) indicate that these changes are reversible and that the bulk of the changes are not caused by temperature or motion related to brain pulsations and blood flow. The rapid time course of the changes corresponds to the known time course for changes in energy state, signal transduction, and ionic homeostasis.     

Establishing a cancer center data bank and biorepository for multidisciplinary research.

The establishment of a biorepository with linkage to clinical and epidemiologic data will provide an invaluable resource for cancer research, including studies of cancer etiology, progression, and prognosis, as well as development of biomarkers for early detection. Developing an infrastructure for a biorepository linked to clinical, pathologic, and epidemiologic data requires significant efforts in strategic planning for efficient means to ascertain, identify, and consent participants, as well as guidelines for blood collection, processing, and storage while maintaining participant privacy rights. In this report, we present an approach to developing a Data Bank and Biorepository at our own institution, with discussion of elements to be considered when establishing such a bank.