Ferulic acid induces neural progenitor cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo

Ferulic acid (4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamic acid; FA) is a plant constituent and is contained in several medicinal plants for clinical use. In this paper, we investigated the effects of FA on the proliferation of neural stem/progenitor cells (NSC/NPCs) in vitro and in vivo. FA significantly increased the proliferation of NSC/NPCs cultured from the telencephalon of embryonic day-14 rats, and increased the number and size of secondary formed neurospheres. An in vitro differentiation assay showed that FA did not affect the percentage of either neuron-specific class III beta-tubulin (Tuj-1)-positive cells or glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-positive cells in the total cell population. Oral administration of FA increased the number of newly generated cells in the dentate gyrus (DG) of the hippocampus of corticosterone (CORT)-treated mice, indicating that FA enhances the proliferation of adult NSC/NPCs in vivo. We also found that oral administration of FA increased cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) phosphorylation and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA level in the hippocampus of CORT-treated mice, and ameliorated the stress-induced depression-like behavior of mice. These novel pharmacological effects of FA may be useful for the treatment of mood disorders such as depression.

Serum factors that suppress cytotoxic effect of methotrexate

AIM

To study the phenomenon that human erythroid leukemia K-562 cells are more sensitive to cytotoxic effect of antimetabolites when cultured in a serum-free medium than in a conventional medium containing fetal calf serum (FCS).

METHODS

Cytotoxic effects of methotrexate, azaserine and 5-fluorouracil were estimated by accessing the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity of viable tumor cells. Proteins of FCS were separated using two-dimensional electrophoresis followed by mass spectrometry analysis.

RESULTS

Addition of 10% FCS attenuated anti-tumor activity of methotrexate and azaserine against K-562 cells compared with serum-free medium. Such an activity of FCS was different for each serum lot. Comparison of the proteins in active serum lot with those in not active one using two-dimensional electrophoresis showed that in the active serum there were proteins 150 kDa, which were absent in the not active serum lot. Mass spectrometry indicated that all those proteins had the amino acid sequence of albumin. Sera of one healthy volunteer and two patients with thyroid cancer also attenuated the activity of the agent.

CONCLUSION

Several lots of FCS and human serum demonstrated the ability to attenuate the cytotoxic effect of methotrexate in vitro, possibly due to the formation of albumin dimers/MTX complexes.

In vivo anti-tumor activities of gelatin

AIM

As reported previously, porcine skin gelatin exerted direct anti-tumor effect in vitro and induced anti-tumor peritoneal macrophages in vitro. The present study investigated whether or not the gelatin exerted anti-tumor effect in vivo.

METHODS

In vitro anti-tumor activities of peritoneal macrophages and the gelatin were evaluated with tritium thymidine uptake by target tumor cells. In vivo anti-tumor activity was evaluated with the survival of tumor-bearing animals and the size of the tumor.

RESULTS

Intraperitoneal daily administration of 12.5 mg of the gelatin prolonged the survival of mice which had been intraperitoneally inoculated with MH134 (hepatic cell carcinoma cell line) or Colon 26 (colon carcinoma cell line) tumor cells, and there were no tumors in case of MH134 cells inoculation. Intraperitoneal daily administration of 12.5 mg of the gelatin did not affect growth of subcutaneous MH134 tumor. The gelatin administered subcutaneously did not affect the survival of mice with intraperitoneal MH134 tumor. On the other hand, bovine skin gelatin administered subcutaneously achieved statistically significant prolongation of the survival. The contact of MH134 cells with porcine skin gelatin for 5 min was required for the gelatin to exert its anti-tumor activity in vitro. Porcine skin gelatin of 12.5 mg injected intraperitoneally was detected as protein in the peritoneal cavity 5 min after the injection. Peritoneal macrophages elicited by intraperitoneal injection with porcine skin gelatin suppressed tritium thymidine uptake by MH134 cells more strongly than those elicited by thioglycollate injection.

CONCLUSION

Porcine skin gelatin administered intraperitoneally prolonged the survival of tumor-bearing mice via activation of peritoneal macrophages and involvement of direct anti-tumor activity of porcine skin gelatin. Key Words: porcine skin, gelatin, dissemination.

Modification of carcinogenesis by antioxidants and other compounds

Studies were made on the effects of butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), sodium L-ascorbate (SA), ethoxyquin (EQ) and acetaminophen (AAF) on the induction of neoplastic lesions in the liver, kidney or urinary bladder of rats initiated by N-ethyl-N-hydroxyethylnitrosamine (EHEN), diethylnitrosamine (DEN) or N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine (BBN). The number and area of histochemical gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase-positive (gamma-GT+) foci per unit area of liver section in rats given BHA, BHT, EQ or AAP, but not SA, were significantly less than in rats given EHEN or DEN alone. Similarly, the number of hyperplastic nodules (HN) in groups given BHA or AAP and their area in groups given BHA, EQ or AAP were significantly less than in control groups. Induction of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was also clearly inhibited by these three chemicals. In contrast, the incidence and quantitative values of preneoplastic lesions and renal cell adenoma in the group given EHEN were significantly increased in groups given BHA, EQ or AAP administration. For assesing the influence of BHA and BHT on urinary bladder carcinogenesis, rats received BHA or BHT after treatment with BBN. The incidences and the number per unit length of basement membrane of papilloma and carcinomas were significantly increased in rats given BHA. BHT also showed significant increase but values were less than with BHA. These results clearly demonstrated that BHA, BHT, EQ and AAP inhibit the development of gamma-GT+ foci, or HN and HCC, whereas BHA, EQ and AAP enhance the appearance of preneoplastic and neoplastic lesions in the kidney, BHA and BHT also enhancing urinary bladder carcinogenesis.

[Aprotinin reduces bleeding during off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting in a patient on ticlopidine; report of a case]

A 65-year-old man was admitted to a local hospital with symptoms of unstable angina pectoris. He was administered ticlopidine before drug eluting stent (DES) stenting for 2 weeks. Coronary angiography showed 3 vessel diseases. He was then admitted to our hospital due to a sudden onset of unstable angina following shock during the percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedure, emergency off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) was thus performed. He received aprotinin 5 hundred thousand KIU just at the start of surgery and 5 hundred thousand KIU after undergoing anastomosis of the coronary artery. Postoperatively, only some minor bleeding was observed. Aprotinin reduces bleeding, the transfusion requirements of packed red blood cells, platelets, and the total blood units in patients on ticlopidine who undergo emergency OPCAB.

Genetic analysis of multifocal superficial urothelial cancers by array-based comparative genomic hybridisation

The purpose of this study was to investigate the accumulation of genetic alterations during metachronous and/or synchronous development of multifocal low-grade superficial urothelial tumours in the same patient, by using array-based comparative genomic hybridisation (array-CGH) and FGFR mutation analysis. We analysed 24 tumours (pTa-1 G1-2) from five patients. We had previously identified a clonal relationship among the tumours of each patient by microsatellite analysis. This time, unsupervised hierarchical cluster analysis revealed that the tumours from each patient were clustered together independently of the tumours from the other patients. All of the tumours from a single patient showed a set of 2–7 identical regional or whole-arm chromosomal changes. In addition, several individual alterations were also found. Cladistic diagrams revealed that the accumulation of genetic alterations could not be explained by a linear model, and the existence of a hypothetical precursor cell was assumed in four patients. In some cases, FGFR mutation seemed to occur later during multifocal tumour development. Taken together, these findings suggest that low-grade superficial urothelial tumours accumulate minor genetic alterations during multifocal development, although these tumours are genetically stable.