Association between birth weight and adolescent systolic blood pressure in a caucasian birth cohort differs according to skin type, CRH promoter or 11beta-HSD2 genotype

OBJECTIVE

To examine whether the inverse association between birth weight and blood pressure varies by skin pigmentation and/or related genotypes.

STUDY DESIGN

671 children from a predominantly caucasian birth cohort were followed-up to adolescence (mean (SD) age 14.4 (0.64)).

METHODS

Data on birth weight, socioeconomic status, maternal antenatal smoking, adolescent blood pressure and polymorphisms of candidate genes were obtained and analysed by multiple linear regression.

RESULTS

An increase in birth weight of 1 kg was associated with an non-significant difference in adolescent systolic blood pressure of -0.53 mm Hg (95% CI -1.72 to 0.66) per kg after adjustment for child age and cohort entry criteria. The inverse association between birth weight and systolic blood pressure was stronger for those with darker skin (> or =2% melanin) (difference in effect, p = 0.02), those with more copies of the C allele of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) +T1273C (p = 0.06), and those with more copies of the short (< or =236 bp) form of the 11beta-HSD2{CA}n(repeat) microsatellite (p = 0.03).

CONCLUSIONS

These findings add to the evidence that cortisol-related pathways may account for at least part of the observed birth weight-blood pressure associations.

Case Report: Delayed Hemorrhage from an Accessory Internal Pudendal Artery Pseudoaneurysm after Robotic Radical Prostatectomy: Successful Management with CT Angiography and Embolization

We present the first report of a pseudoaneurysm of an accessory internal pudendal artery after transperitoneal robotic radical prostatectomy. The vesicourethral anastomosis was performed using two continuous 3-0 Monocryl sutures tied at the six o'clock position. As the anastomotic suture was placed at 11 o'clock, lateral to the dorsal venous complex, there was a small amount of pulsatile bleeding that ceased when the suture was completed and tied. The lesion presented as hematuria beginning on the fourth day. On the 14(th) day, the pseudoaneurysm was diagnosed by CT angiography and treated by embolization with eight 3-mm/30-mm micro coils after superselective catheterization. There were no complications or further hematuria.

The telomere of human chromosome 1p contains at least two independent autosomal dominant congenital cataract genes

AIMS

Multiple genetic causes of congenital cataract have been identified, both as a component of syndromes and in families that present with isolated congenital cataract. Linkage analysis was used to map the genetic locus in a six generation Australian family presenting with total congenital cataract.

METHODS

Microsatellite markers located across all known autosomal dominant congenital cataract loci were genotyped in all recruited family members of the Tasmanian family. Both two point and multipoint linkage analysis were used to assess each locus under an autosomal dominant model.

RESULTS

Significant linkage was detected at the telomere of the p arm of chromosome 1, with a maximum two point LOD of 4.21 at marker D1S507, a maximum multipoint exact LOD of 5.44, and an estimated location score of 5.61 at marker D1S507. Haplotype analysis places the gene inside a critical region between D1S228 and D1S199, a distance of approximately 6 megabases. The candidate gene PAX7 residing within the critical interval was excluded by direct sequencing in affected individuals.

CONCLUSION

This is the third report of congenital cataract linkage to 1ptel. The critical region as defined by the shared haplotype in this family is clearly centromeric from the Volkmann cataract locus identified through study of a Danish family, indicating that two genes causing autosomal dominant congenital cataract map to the telomeric region of chromosome 1p.

Geology and fauna of a new Pliocene locality in north-western Kenya

Lothagam Hill reveals a succession of fossil bearing sediments that extend knowledge of the East African Pliocene back from the base of the Omo succession, to about 5.5 million years.

Seizure frequency and characteristics in children with Down syndrome

Seizures have not historically been considered a major component of Down syndrome. We examined the prevalence of epileptic seizures in 350 children and adolescents with Down syndrome evaluated at a regional center between 1985 and 1997. Results showed that 28 patients (8%) had epileptic seizures: 13 (47%) partial seizures; 9 (32%) infantile spasms, and 6 (21%) generalized tonic-clonic seizures. In the infantile spasm group, there was no relationship between the initial electroencephalogram (EEG) pattern and response to treatment or long-term seizure control, or between type of pharmacologic treatment (valproic acid, adrenocorticotropic hormone or both) and clinical remission, EEG normalization or long-term seizure control. Neurodevelopmental outcome was poor despite good seizure control in the infantile spasm group. This regional study reinforces the relative association of seizures and Down syndrome. A prospective study including a national/international registry with emphasis on developmental assessment and long-term follow up is warranted.

Summary statement on quantitative cytochemistry (DNA and molecular biology): Task Force 8

OBJECTIVE

To reach consensus on the application of quantitative cytochemical analysis of chromosomal and DNA aneuploidy in cervical cytopathology.

CONCLUSION

The current Pap test has limited specificity to predict cancer and its truly progressive pre-malignant lesions. Infection with human papillomavirus may trigger genetic instability, hyperproliferation and immortalization of the cervical mucosa and cause cervical cancer. Several related molecular markers have been shown to be informative about this neoplastic process. Quantitative analysis of chromosomal and DNA aneuploidy has been shown to be an important tool for identifying (progression to) high grade squamous intraepithelial lesions. A high degree of standardization (material handling, calibration and quality control, measurement and interpretation of results) is required for accurate and reproducible measurements. Areas for further study are presented.

The myeloma-associated oncogene fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 is transforming in hematopoietic cells

Translocations involving fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (fgfr3) have been identified in about 25% of patients with myeloma. To directly examine the oncogenic potential of fgfr3, murine bone marrow (BM) cells were transduced with retroviral vectors containing either wild-type fgfr3 or an activated mutant form of the receptor, fgfr3-TD. Mice transplanted with FGFR3-TD-expressing BM developed a marked leukocytosis and lethal hematopoietic cell infiltration of multiple tissues within 6 weeks of transplantation. Secondary and tertiary recipients of spleen or BM from primary fgfr3-TD mice also developed tumors within 6 to 8 weeks. Analysis of the circulating tumor cells revealed a pre-B-cell phenotype in most mice, although immature T-lymphoid or mature myeloid populations also predominated in some animals. Enhanced lymphoid but not myeloid colony formation was observed in the early posttransplantation period and only interleukin 7 and FGF-responsive pre-B-cell lines could be established from tumors. Cell expansions in primary recipients appeared polyclonal, whereas tumors in later passages exhibited either clonal B- or T-cell receptor gene rearrangements. Mice transplanted with wild-type FGFR3-expressing BM developed delayed pro-B-cell lymphoma/leukemias approximately 1 year after transplantation. These studies confirm that FGFR3 is transforming and can produce lymphoid malignancies in mice.

Interleukin 13 and interleukin 13 receptor are frequently expressed by Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg cells of Hodgkin lymphoma

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is characterized by the abnormal expression of multiple cytokines, accounting for its unique clinicopathologic features. We have previously shown that interleukin-13 (IL-13) is secreted by HL cell lines and may serve as an autocrine growth factor. To determine the frequency of IL-13 expression in lymphoma patients, tissue sections from 36 patients with classical HL, 5 patients with nodular lymphocyte predominance HL (NLPHL), and 23 patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) were subjected to in situ hybridization. In 31 of 36 cases (86%) of classical HL patients of all histologic subtypes, between 25% to almost 100% of Hodgkin and Reed Sternberg (HRS) cells were positive for IL-13 expression. In contrast, in no case of NLPHL and in only 4 of 23 NHL cases (1 of 5 T-cell-rich B-cell lymphomas, 2 of 5 anaplastic large cell lymphomas, and 1 of 5 peripheral T-cell lymphomas) did the neoplastic cells express IL-13. The expression of the IL-13 receptor chain alpha1 (IL-13Ralpha1) was also analyzed by in situ hybridization. In 24 of 27 (89%) cases of classical HL, between 25% to 75% of HRS cells, as well as a high frequency of lymphocytes and histiocytes, were positive for IL-13Ralpha1 expression. These results were confirmed by the construction of complementary DNA libraries from single HRS cells, followed by polymerase chain reaction analysis, in which IL-13Ralpha1 transcripts were found to be present in all 6 cases of HL. These data indicate that expression of IL-13 and IL-13Ralpha1 is a common feature of HRS cells in HL, consistent with the hypothesis that IL-13 may play a role in autocrine growth in classical HL.

Molecular biomarker-based screening for early detection of cervical cancer

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effectiveness of a molecular biomarker-based screening method for early detection of cervical cancer.

STUDY DESIGN

Fluorescent immunochemical labeling was used to classify cervical cytology specimens as probably normal or probably abnormal. These specimens were then Papanicolaou stained and evaluated twice by a cytotechnologist and by a pathologist when appropriate. The first evaluation was performed as conventional Pap screening to assign a reference per-specimen diagnosis. The second evaluation assigned a cytologic diagnosis to each cell in the specimen. The fluorescence results were correlated with those from each of the two morphologic evaluations to determine the sensitivity and specificity of the method on a per-specimen and a per-cell basis. Where available, in cases of positive morphologic analysis, biopsy was compared to fluorescence results.

RESULTS

The per-specimen sensitivity and specificity were 87.5% and 81.8%, respectively, when using atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance and "above" as the decision threshold. For the same specimens evaluated on a cell-by-cell basis, the corresponding sensitivity and specificity were 71.4% and 66.3% when the same threshold was used. The per-specimen sensitivity for high grade squamous intraepithelial lesions was 100% under these conditions.

CONCLUSION

This method appears to be a robust and reliable means of detecting cervical dysplasia and is now being evaluated in additional clinical studies.

Genetic techniques for enhancing biochemical and structural characterization of Dictyostelium myosin II

Myosin mutants and their suppressors can provide information about conformational states of the myosin motor and their biochemical properties. Appropriate mutations can give rise to motors that arrest or overoccupy otherwise inaccessible states in the motor cycle. Intragenic (in the same gene) suppressor mutations that counteract mutations of known properties represent "fixes" or counters to the defect of the starting mutation and thus contain information about driving transitions or stabilizing states of the motor. Due to its variety of myosin-dependent phenotypes, Dictyostelium is a powerful tool for the identification of conditional mutants as well as selection of large numbers of intragenic revertants of a mutant of interest. Techniques are presented that allow isolation and identification of cold-sensitive myosin mutants in Dictyostelium as well as facile selection of revertants and identification of their suppressing mutation.