Investigations into the cellular contribution to host tissue proteases and inhibitors in gingival crevicular fluid

Gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) was collected from chronic periodontitis patients using plastic micropipettes and coverslip smears stained with antibodies for leukocyte markers and Toluidine Blue for mast cells. The smears consisted of 70-80% granulocytes, 10-20% monocytes/macrophages, 5% mast cells and 5% T lymphocytes; no B lymphocytes were found. Proteases and inhibitors in GCF cells were investigated by enzyme cytochemistry using 2-methoxy-4-naphthylamine-linked peptide substrates and simultaneous coupling to Fast Blue B and immunocytochemistry using biotinylated secondary antibodies and an alkaline phosphatase/new fuchsin detecting system. Elastase was detected in granulocytes, cathepsin B in macrophages, dipeptidyl peptidases II and IV in a small proportion of macrophages, dipeptidyl peptidase IV in a few T lymphocytes, tryptase in mast cells and alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor and alpha-2-macroglobulin in some macrophages. GCF was also collected on filter paper strips and eluted into buffer for biochemical enzyme assays. Lysis of cells by addition of detergent to the elution buffer increased activities to 140-240% of control values. Removal of cells by centrifugation reduced measured activities to 1-30% of original figures; this effect was less if samples were pre-treated with detergent. Proteases from inflammatory cells therefore appear to make up most of the measured enzyme activity in GCF, and this association may explain recent correlations with periodontal disease progression.

[Clinical analysis of patients with occupational urothelial tumors]

The incidence of occupational urothelial tumor and the accompanied problems were studied on the workers who had manufactured or handled aromatic amines at a certain chemical factory. Twenty-five out of 398 dyestuff workers, who were examined at regular intervals, were found to have urothelial tumors and the incidence rate was 63%. The mean age at onset, the mean period of aromatic exposure and the mean latent period from the initial exposure until tumor development were 61 year-old, 7.2 years and 30 years, respectively. A high incidence rate was found in the long exposed workers and the smoking group. The negative correlation was observed between the age of first exposure to carcinogens and the latent period. The workers who had been exposed to two or three kinds of aromatic amines had the highest incidence followed by those exposed to benzidine and those to alpha-naphthylamine. No urothelial tumor occurred in the workers exposed to beta-naphthylamine. Ninety-four percent of the initial tumors were superficial and transurethral resection of tumors was performed as the initial surgery for the patients with bladder tumors. The recurrence rate in the bladder cavity after the surgery was 39%, which was almost the same rate as that of non-occupational bladder tumors, however, the recurrence rate in the upper urinary tract was high (26%). The positive rate in the examination of urine cytology was 60% for initial tumors, 74% for recurrent tumors. The urine cytology was a significant method for the detection and monitoring of the patients with occupational urothelial tumors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

[Clinical study on occupational uroepithelial cancer]

We experienced 32 cases of occupational uroepithelial cancer at Jichi Medical School Hospital from 1974 to 1990. All of them were dyestuff workers who had been engaged in production or handling of benzidine, beta-naphthylamine or alpha-naphthylamine. In these 32 cases, upper urinary tract tumors were found in 7 cases, one of these having bilateral lesions. The mean age when the tumor of the urinary tract was first disclosed was 48 years old, with a range of 36 to 66 years old. The mean age of this occupational group was about 16 years younger than that of the spontaneous urinary tract tumor group in our hospital. We divided our cases into two groups according to duration of carcinogen exposure; less than 5 years and 5 years or more. However we did not obtain significant difference in the grade of tumors or prognosis between the two groups. But when we divided them into two groups according to the type of work; production group and handling group, 18 of 21 production workers had high grade tumors. On the other hand, only 3 of 11 handling workers had high grade tumors, which was a significant difference. Besides, 10 of 21 production workers or only one of 11 handling workers were fatal. The difference was also significant. There was no significant correlation among the type of work, the duration of exposure and the age of onset. In our study, we showed that the type of work was quite important to predict the grade of tumors and the prognosis in occupational uroepithelial cancer patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

A method for the amplification of chemically induced transformation in C3H/10T1/2 clone 8 cells: its use as a potential screening assay

A method has been developed by which to amplify expression of phenotypic transformation of C3H/10T1/2 clone 8 mouse embryo cells not otherwise observed in the standard transformation assay. The expression of transformed foci was amplified by subcultivating chemically treated target cells after they had reached confluence and replating them at subconfluent cell densities. Conditions leading to the expression of the highest numbers of transformed foci include a) a cell seeding density for chemical treatment of 1 X 10(4) cells/dish, b) subculture 4 weeks after treatment, and c) replating cells at a density of 2 X 10(5) cells/-dish. Agents capable of inducing transformation in the standard assay (e.g., 4,4'-bis(dimethylamino)benzophenone, benzo[a]pyrene, 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene, and others) also yielded transformation in the replating assay. The more marginal transforming activities of chemicals such as ethyl methanesulfonate, 7-(bromomethyl)-12-methylbenz[a]anthracene, and N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine were enhanced by the amplification procedure. Compounds that failed to elicit focal transformation in the standard assay (e.g., dibenz[a,h]anthracene, Tris(2,3-dibromopropyl) phosphate, lead acetate, benzidine, propyleneimine, N-hydroxy-2-fluorenylacetamide, and numerous other compounds of various chemical classes) induced significant levels of phenotypic transformation upon amplification. Noncarcinogens (e.g., phenanthrene, anthracene, 2-aminobiphenyl, cycloheximide, and others) failed to cause significant phenotypic transformation even when cells were replated. To further enhance the applicability of this new replating system, an exogenous source of metabolic activation was added: a 9,000 X g supernatant from Aroclor 1254-induced rat hepatic S-9. This activation system was found a) to be only minimally cytotoxic by itself and b) to be able to mediate NADPH-dependent, dose-dependent toxicity, and transformation by activating the procarcinogens dimethylnitrosamine, 2-naphthylamine, 2-aminoanthracene, and aflatoxin B1. With the use of this revised assay, 14 coded and 23 model compounds were tested. Agreement with in vivo results was observed to be over 85%. The marked sensitivity and discriminatory ability of this revised assay procedure suggest its usefulness as a screen for potential carcinogens of diverse chemical structure.

[The role of epidemiology and experiments in the study of carcinogenesis]

Mutual understanding and collaboration of epidemiologists and experimental scientists are very important for the study of chemical carcinogenesis. This article reviews limitation and prospect of epidemiological and experimental studies: Limitation of epidemiology and roles of experimental studies. Limitation of experimental studies and roles of epidemiology. Collaborations of epidemiologists and experimental scientists. Expectation to epidemiologists in Japan.

Enhanced instrumental sensitivity and selectivity for aminopeptidase profiling

Laser-excited fluorimetry has been applied to the identification of bacteria and fungus. The instrumental sensitivity and selectivity of the aminopeptidase profiling method has been enhanced by the use of laser excitation in conjunction with improved spectral and temporal background rejection. The linear dynamic range for the aminopeptidase technique has been increased by achieving a reduced lower limit of detection of the fluorescent tag, beta-naphthylamine. Standard aminopeptidase methodology only provides a linear dynamic range of 1.5 orders of magnitude. The laser-based method expanded the range to three orders of magnitude allowing the inherent specificity of aminopeptidase enzymes within the pathogen to be observed. The enhanced linear dynamic range was observed in profiles of Agrobacterium tumefaciens rubi and Phytophthora megasperma var. sojae.

Esterase activity in the skeletal muscles of dystrophic and normal mice

Esterasic activity was measured in several muscles of dystrophic and littermate control Re 129/J mice employing as substrates a series of alpha and beta naphthyl esters of different aliphatic chain length (C2 to C5). Different skeletal muscles of normal and dystrophic mice varied markedly in their esterase activity when tested not only with different, closely related substrates but also with the same substrate. Dystrophic skeletal muscles showed higher esterase activity than the corresponding muscles of controls. No increase in enzymatic levels was seen in the heart and parenchymatous organs of dystrophic hosts.

Further studies on rat, mouse and guinea pig muscle esterase activity

Esterase activity was investigated in several skeletal muscles of different rodent species employing as substrates a series of alpha and beta naphthyl esters of different aliphatic chain lengths. Results with these chemically homogenous substrates show there is marked heterogeneity in the levels of esterase activity in several skeletal muscles of the same animal and among the same muscles from different species depending also on the sex, and the type and stereospecificity of the substrate.

Study of the effect of amines on structure of coacervates formed by photochemical effect on metal ions in presence of formaldehyde

If an aqueous mixture of ammonium molybdate, diammonium hydrogen phosphate, biological minerals, and formaldehyde is exposed to sunlight, typical "Jeewanu", mixtures are observed. However, if a little solution of p-phenylene diamine, p-nitroaniline, alpha-naphthylamine or beta-naphthyl amine is added to it, a dense white precipitate is obtained. This precipitate, under a microscope at X1200 magnification, appears as large clusters of very tiny cream-coloured spherules. But if the mixture is first exposed to sunlight for four hours, when the formation of typical microstructures appears, and then the amine solution is added, the formation of the precipitate is retarded as the exposure time of amine-free mixture is enhanced, till finally the formation of spherules as precipitate is stopped. Microscopic study in twenty days of exposure of the amine-containing mixture tube shows that the number of typical microstructures decreases; they get larger in size and gradually disintegrate, while the formation of tiny sdpherules is accelerated.

The histochemical localisation of aminopeptidases in the central nervous system and an analysis of factors contributing to the final staining pattern

A method is described for the localisation of aminopeptidases in the central nervous system. The enzymatic cleavage of the peptide bond in the substituted naphthylamide substrates results in the liberation of free naphthylamine which in the presence of an azo salt can be precipitated as a blue dye at sites of enzyme activity. Analysis of different brain regions using this technique indicates that these enzymes may have a specific function at certain sites in the CNS. Since this is the first method to produce any localised staining in nervous tissue an analysis of factors contributing to the final staining pattern is also presented.

Ozonation of mutagenic and carcinogenic polyaromatic amines and polyaromatic hydrocarbons in water

The Salmonella-microsome assay for mutagenesis was used to determine the effect of ozone on the mutagenesis of selected carcinogens and mutagens in water. Short periods of ozonation were shown to completely inactivate the mutagenicity of several polyaromatic amine mutagens including acriflavine, proflavine, and beta-naphthylamine. Selected polyaromatic hydrocarbons were also sensitive to ozonation. Kinetic studies revealed that the mutagenicity of benzo(a)pyrene, 3-methylcholanthrene, and 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene was destroyed after short periods of ozonation. To correlate loss of mutagenicity with loss of carcinogenicity, two polyaromatic hydrocarbons were treated with ozone, extracted from water with hexane, and tested for carcinogenicity in mice. When 7,12-dimethyl-benz(a)anthracene and 3-methyl-cholanthrene were treated with ozone, there was a substantial reduction in carcinogenicity compared to control groups treated with oxygen alone. However, a small number of tumors developed in the group of animals receiving a hexane extract of ozonated 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene. This activity may be due to breakdown products of 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene that are not mutagenic.

Investigation of effect of alpha-naphthylamine and beta-naphthylamine on organic acids formation of self-sustaining coacervates

Malonic and oleic acids were found in the typical mixtures. Samples containing alpha-naphthylamine gave oleic and malic acids which disintegrated with time of exposure. Tricarballylic acid was confirmed in presence of beta-naphthyl amine, but disappeared with time. Arachidic, tartaric, and adipic acids were found, but they disappeared in eight days' exposed samples. At later stages of exposure, malonic acid was observed along with sporadic appearances of citric , succinic, and oleic acids. Rate of disintegration of these compounds was directly proportional to time of exposure to sunlight.

Histologic and histochemical preneoplastic changes in the bladder mucosae of dogs given 2-naphthylamine

So that the earliest morphologic changes produced in dog bladders by a bladder carcinogen could be detected, 25 mg 2-naphthylamine/kg was given daily to dogs for 1, 6, and 36 weeks. Among early changes observed in some, but not all, dogs at 1 and 6 weeks were a loss of the bladder luminal membrane, hyperplasia of the epithelium, and lymphocytic infiltration of the submucosa. These changes were also present, to a more severe degree, in all dogs at 36 weeks. A more advanced preneoplastic change observed only at 36 weeks was a scalloped appearance of the normally straight basal cell line due to the beginning of nodule formation of the hyperplastic epithelial cells (von Brunn's epithelial nests). Histochemically, the alkaline phosphatase activity was altered from the normally regular, dense staining of the basal cell layer to a weaker, intermittent staining. No tumors were observed. Of the dogs given the same dose of 2-naphthylamine for 26 weeks and then kept for 3 years before being killed, 2 dogs had normal bladders but the other 2 had epithelial carcinomas.

[Results of hyperthermia on the bladder carcinomas of the dog (author's transl)]

A study on the effects of hyperthermia on B.N.A. induced bladder carcinomas of the dog has been carried out since 1966. The hyperthermic treatment has been performed directly in the bladder using an original equipment especially designed. In a large majority of the animals definite cancericidal changes have been shown. The most favorable results were obtained in the treatment of carcinomas not infiltrating the muscular layer of the bladder. In these cases malignant recurrency was not shown up to five years after treatment. Good palliative effect is also refferred in the treatment of advanced bladder carcinoma of the man.

Causative agents in the induction of bladder cancer

A survey of many of the known or suspected causative agents in the etiology of bladder cancer is presented. In several instances, a comparison of the epidemiological evidence and the results of animal bioassays is made. Difficulties in the interpretation of animal studies and the extrapolation of animal data to estimate human risk is discussed. Each class of chemicals, such as the aromatic aminatic amines or the non-nutritive sweetners, presents its unique problems when attempts are made to evaluate its potential as a causative agent in the etiology of bladder cancer.