O2- and pneumonia-induced lung injury. I. Pathological and morphometric studies

The physiological, morphological, and morphometric findings of several lung injury models in baboons have been compared in the following six study groups: 1) initial injury with oleic acid followed by ventilation with 100% O2, 2) ventilation with 100% O2, 3) ventilation with 80% O2, 4) ventilation with 80% O2 followed by inoculation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, 5) ventilation with 40% O2, and 6) normal nonventilated room-air-breathing animals. The animals were maintained for 11 days in an intensive care unit. Light microscopically, animals ventilated with 40 and 80% O2 showed mild lung injury, consisting mostly of an increase in alveolar macrophages in peribronchiolar sites and focal alveolar wall widening. The 100% O2-oleic acid, 100% O2, and 80% O2-Pseudomonas-treated baboons showed mixed exudative-reparative diffuse alveolar lesions. Ultrastructurally, the type II cells of these three groups had significantly altered morphology with aberrations of lamellar body configurations. Morphometric findings showed increases in type II and interstitial cells and decreases in type I and endothelial cells in these injured animals. A striking finding was that the physiological, morphological, and morphometric changes of an 80% O2-Pseudomonas insult was as injurious as 100% O2. This synergistic effect of hyperoxia and infection very likely reflects the most frequent evolution of adult respiratory distress syndrome in patients in intensive care units.

O2- and pneumonia-induced lung injury. II. Properties of pulmonary surfactant

Pulmonary surfactant was isolated from the lavage fluids of animals during the course of exposure to 100% O2, 80% O2, 40% O2, or 80% O2 plus 10(8) Pseudomonas aeruginosa instilled intratracheally and analyzed for its phospholipid composition. After 4-5 days of exposure to 100% O2, disaturated phophatidylcholine (DSPC) decreased to 87% of control, whereas the ratio of phosphatidylglycerol to phosphatidylinositol (PG/PI) was 37% of control. Longer periods of ventilation with 100% O2 resulted in DSPC falling to less than 40% of control. The injury was not reversed by reducing the O2 to 50%; rather, a progressive deterioration ensued. Acute respiratory failure (ARF) induced by 5 days of bacterial infection was very similar to that seen after 5 days of exposure to 100% O2. Ventilation with 80% O2 for 6 days resulted in smaller changes in DSPC but with differences in PG/PI comparable to those seen with 100% O2 or infection. We conclude that the ability of the type II cell to synthesize surfactant of normal composition is significantly impaired in these models of ARF. The earliest index of biochemical modification is the substantial change in PG/PI, which may be predictive of early lung injury. Further exacerbation of the injury could result in the reduction of DSPC content, with subsequent changes in lung mechanics and gas exchange.

Role of lung injury in the pathogenesis of hyaline membrane disease in premature baboons

To test the hypothesis that hyaline membrane disease (HMD) has a multifactorial etiology in which barotrauma plays a major role, we compared the immediate institution of high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV; 15 Hz, n = 5) with positive-pressure ventilation with positive end-expiratory pressure (PPV; n = 7) in premature baboons (140-days gestation) with HMD. Measurements of ventilation settings and physiological parameters were obtained and arterial-to-alveolar O2 (PaO2-to-PAO2) ratio and oxygenation index [(PaO2/PAO2)-to-mean airway pressure ratio (IO2)] were calculated. At death (24 h), static pressure-volume (PV) curves were performed, and phospholipids (PL) and platelet-activating factor (PAF) were measured in lung lavage fluid. Morphological inflation patterns were analyzed using a panel of standards. By design, mean airway pressure was initially higher (19 vs. 13 cmH2O) in the HFOV animals. PaO2-to-PAO2 ratio and IO2 progressively deteriorated in the PPV animals and then stabilized at significantly lower levels than with HFOV. PV curves from HFOV animals had significant increases in lung volume at maximum distending pressure, deflation volume at 10 cmH2O, and hysteresis area compared with PPV, which showed no hysteresis. Seven of seven PPV and only one of five HFOV animals had morphological findings of HMD. PL amount and composition in both groups were consistent with immaturity, even though the quantity was significantly greater in the PPV group. PAF was present (greater than or equal to 0.10 pmol) in six of seven PPV and in the only HFOV animal with HMD. We conclude that HFOV protected PL-deficient premature baboons from changes in gas exchange, lung mechanics, and morphology typical of HMD in this model.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Bile acid sulfotransferase I from rat liver sulfates bile acids and 3-hydroxy steroids: purification, N-terminal amino acid sequence, and kinetic properties

A bile acid:3'phosphoadenosine-5'phosphosulfate:sulfotransferase (BAST I) from adult female rat liver cytosol has been purified 157-fold by a two-step isolation procedure. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the 30,000 subunit has been determined for the first 35 residues. The Vmax of purified BAST I is 18.7 nmol/min per mg protein with N-(3-hydroxy-5 beta-cholanoyl)glycine (glycolithocholic acid) as substrate, comparable to that of the corresponding purified human BAST (Chen, L-J., and I. H. Segel, 1985. Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 241: 371-379). BAST I activity has a broad pH optimum from 5.5-7.5. Although maximum activity occurs with 5 mM MgCl2, Mg2+ is not essential for BAST I activity. The greatest sulfotransferase activity and the highest substrate affinity is observed with bile acids or steroids that have a steroid nucleus containing a 3 beta-hydroxy group and a 5-6 double bond or a trans A-B ring junction. These substrates have normal hyperbolic initial velocity curves with substrate inhibition occurring above 5 microM. Of the saturated 5 beta-bile acids, those with a single 3-hydroxy group are the most active. The addition of a second hydroxy group at the 6- or 7-position eliminates more than 99% of the activity. In contrast, 3 alpha,12 alpha-dihydroxy-5 beta-cholan-24-oic acid (deoxycholic acid) is an excellent substrate. The initial velocity curves for glycolithocholic and deoxycholic acid conjugates are sigmoidal rather than hyperbolic, suggestive of an allosteric effect. Maximum activity is observed at 80 microM for glycolithocholic acid. All substrates, bile acids and steroids, are inhibited by the 5 beta-bile acid, 3-keto-5 beta-cholanoic acid. The data suggest that BAST I is the same protein as hydrosteroid sulfotransferase 2 (Marcus, C. J., et al. 1980. Anal. Biochem. 107: 296-304).

Aspects of secondary and quaternary structure of surfactant protein A from canine lung

The results of a large number of studies indicate that pulmonary surfactant contains a unique protein whose principal isoform has a molecular weight of about 30,000, and whose presence in surfactant is associated with important metabolic and physicochemical properties. This protein, SP-A, as isolated from canine surfactant, contains a domain of 24 repeating triplets of Gly-X-Y, similar to that found in collagens. These studies were undertaken to determine whether SP-A forms a collagen-like triple helix when in solution, and to describe certain aspects of its size and shape. Our experiments were done on SP-A extracted by two different methods from canine surfactant, and on SP-A produced by molecular cloning. The results from all three preparations were similar. The circular dichroism of the complete protein was characterized by a relatively large negative ellipticity at 205 nm, with a negative shoulder ranging from 215 to 230 nm. There was no positive ellipticity, and the spectrum was not characteristic of collagen. Trypsin hydrolysis resulted in a fragment with peak negative ellipticity at about 200 nm, without the negative shoulder. Further hydrolysis of this fragment with pepsin resulted in a CD spectrum similar to that of collagen. The spectrum of the collagen-like fragment was reversibly sensitive to heating to 50 degrees C, and was irreversibly lost after treatment with bacterial collagenase. SP-A migrated on molecular sieving gels with an equivalent Stokes radius of 110 to 120 A, and had a sedimentation coefficient of 14 S. Using these data we calculate a molecular weight of about 700,000. The hydrodynamic characteristics can be approximated as a prolate ellipsoid of revolution having an axial ratio of about 20. We conclude that SP-A aggregates into a complex of 18 monomers, which may form six triple-helices. The shape of the complex is considerably more globular than collagen and is not consistent with end-to-end binding of the helices to form fibrous structures.

Stable transfection of the oestrogen receptor gene into a human osteosarcoma cell line

The oestrogen receptor (ER) gene was introduced into an ER-negative osteoblast-like osteosarcoma cell line HTB 96 by transfection. A number of clones were isolated which expressed ER at levels of up to 70 fmol/mg cytosol protein as determined by immunoassay. Scatchard analysis of the binding of [3H]17 beta-oestradiol in cytosols demonstrated the presence of high affinity binding sites, with a dissociation constant of 0.08-0.13 nM at 4 degrees C. High levels of a 3 kb ER mRNA are produced by the clones, which have gene copy numbers ranging from 2 to greater than 10. Functional receptor activity has been demonstrated by co-transfection of a plasmid containing the chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) gene linked to an oestrogen response element. Induction of CAT activity is observed in the presence of added oestradiol and is concentration-dependent. The transfected ER is also able to affect endogenous cellular function as several ER-positive clones, but not HTB 96 cells, are growth inhibited by oestradiol in the concentration range 10(-9)-10(-7) M. These effects on growth are not induced by other classes of steroids and are reversible by antioestrogens. No endogenous genes have yet been identified which are oestrogen-regulated in ER-transfected clones.

Approaches to studying the role of growth factors in the progression of breast tumours from the steroid sensitive to insensitive state

Progression from steroid sensitive to autonomous proliferation can be modelled in several cultured mammary tumour cell lines by long-term withdrawal of steroids. A feature of all the four systems studied thus far is that the basal growth in the absence of steroid increases with duration of steroid withdrawal until it reaches that obtained in the presence of steroid. It cannot be assumed that the increased proliferation in the absence of steroid is modulated by the same pathways as those stimulated by steroids in sensitive cells. Therefore, we feel that mechanisms of progression can best be studied via cell behaviour in the absence of steroid. With both the mouse S115 and human T-47-D systems, changes in sensitivity to several growth factors accompany progression; responses to TGF beta 1 are of particular interest in the T-47-D cells where this growth factor becomes stimulatory in the steroid insensitive state. This is accompanied by upregulation of TGF beta 1 mRNA. This upregulation of TGF beta agrees with the finding that ER - PR - primary human breast tumours contain more TGF beta 1 than do ER + PR + tumours; TGF alpha has the opposite pattern. Furthermore, only 40 and 30 kDa TGF beta species have been detected within cultured cells and primary tumours; TGF alpha exists in a 30 kDa form. The functions of these large forms of TGF alpha and TGF beta are unclear. Our conclusions from these experiments is that the increased proliferation in the absence of steroid accompanying progression may not be mediated by the same pathways as those perturbed by steroids in sensitive cells. Furthermore, TGF beta 1 may have different effects in steroid responsive and unresponsive cells.

Progression from steroid-responsive to unresponsive state in breast cancer

Both steroid-responsive and unresponsive cancers can be identified at first presentation. Endocrine treatment produces remission that, however, is invariably followed by relapse. The role of steroids in the genesis of the pathways involved in producing a steroid-unresponsive cancer is discussed, as are its clinical implications using data from mammary tumour cell lines.

Characterization of p29, an estrogen-receptor associated tumor marker

Monoclonal antibody D5, raised against cytosolic human estrogen receptor (ER) reacts with p29, a receptor-associated cytoplasmic serine phosphoprotein which does not bind steroid, While p29 selectively binds GTP and to a lesser extent ATP, in vitro GTP binding does not result in p29 phosphorylation. Under ER activating conditions, p29 associates with cytosolic ER; GTP, ATP and sodium molybdate block formation of immunoprecipitable p29-ER complexes. Nucleotide binding data suggest a role for p29 in the estrogen response machinery, possibly at the level of phosphate or nucleotide metabolism.

Measurement of phenylacetic acid in cerebrospinal fluid and plasma using combined gas chromatography/electron capture chemical ionization mass spectrometry

Details are presented of an ultra-sensitive gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric assay for phenylacetic acid in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid based on measurements of the relative intensities of the carboxylate anions, derived from the penta- and tetrafluorobenzyl esters under electron capture chemical ionization conditions, of unlabeled and a (13C2)-labeled internal standard. The limits of detection for the penta- and tetrafluorobenzyl esters are 0.85 and 4.0 pg respectively, and the assay is capable of measuring phenylacetic acid concentrations in samples as small as 20 microliter of CSF and plasma. The penta- and tetrafluorobenzyl esters are chromatographically separated on the gas chromatograph column, which allows for their co-injection and independent measurement from the same chromatogram.

Immunohistochemical study of cytoplasmic oestradiol receptor in normal, dysplastic and malignant cervical tissue

Using a monoclonal antibody raised against an oestrogen receptor-related protein, p29, and an indirect immunoperoxidase technique to stain human tissue, the presence of the antigen was investigated in normal, dysplastic and malignant tissue of the uterine cervix. In normal tissue p29 was present throughout the ectocervix during the menstrual cycle and virtually absent from the endocervix. In dysplastic cervical tissue there was a decreasing p29 content with increasing severity of the dysplasia, and very low levels were seen in the carcinomatous tissues.

Tonic arousal and activity: relationships to personality and personality disorder traits in panic patients

Personality theorists have long predicted a relationship between personality traits and autonomic activation. In this study, 48 patients with panic disorder underwent personality assessment by questionnaire (Eysenck Personality Inventory: 48 patients) and by interview (Personality Disorders Examination: 35 patients). Ambulatory heart rate and activity were measured by the Vitalog method and were used as measures of activation and autonomic arousal. There was a significant positive correlation between histrionic traits and activity level and a significant negative correlation between sociability and heart rate. The findings are consistent with previous studies showing a negative relationship between sensation-seeking personality traits and cerebrospinal fluid levels of norepinephrine and a positive relationship between extroversion and cerebrospinal fluid levels of dopamine.

Immunohistochemical study of D5 antigen (an oestrogen receptor related protein) in normal breast, benign breast disease, and mammary carcinoma in situ

Patterns of staining with a monoclonal antibody which recognises D5 antigen (a 29,000 kD oestrogen receptor-related protein) were studied in seven normal and 76 benign breast biopsy specimens as well as in 12 cases of pure in situ mammary carcinoma. Staining in benign breast lesions was weak and heterogeneous when compared with that seen in most infiltrating carcinomas. In situ carcinomas showed an intermediate pattern of staining. The finding of only small foci of weak positivity for D5 antigen in normal and benign breast disease indicated that there are similarities between the expression of D5 antigen and the presence of oestrogen receptor protein in these tissues. A further similarity was seen with in situ carcinomas, which have been shown to have lower oestrogen receptor content than infiltrating carcinomas and a more heterogeneous staining pattern with D5 than is seen in infiltrating tumours. The importance of these findings remains to be evaluated because the precise nature of D5 antigen and its association with the oestrogen receptor molecule is not fully understood.

Role of receptor occupancy in the transition from responsive to unresponsive states in cultured breast tumor cells

Progression from a steroid sensitive to insensitive state is characteristic of breast tumors, but little is known about the molecular mechanisms involved. Changes in steroid receptor can be associated with the progression. This paper reviews the cell culture data pertaining to loss of response and concludes that loss of receptor is a consequence rather than a cause of insensitivity. This view is based on evidence that loss of all response parameters occurs despite the presence of fully functional receptors as determined by transfection experiments. The postreceptor defect appears to be at the level of the hormone response element of the responsive genes and may involve DNA methylation. The implications of the model for human breast cancer biology are discussed.

Psychiatric disability in female carriers of the fragile X chromosome

Fragile X syndrome, an X-linked genetic condition, is an important genetic cause of mental retardation in males. In addition to mental retardation, hemizygous males with fragile X syndrome appear to have a greater likelihood of displaying behaviors classified under the diagnostic category of pervasive developmental disorder than would be expected on the basis of mental retardation alone. Although the majority of female heterozygotes with the fragile X genetic defect are of normal intelligence, our clinical work with this population and a recent case report have suggested that females with fragile X syndrome have an increased rate of schizophrenia spectrum and affective disorders. In this study, the relationship of the fragile X genetic defect to psychopathology in female heterozygotes is investigated by psychiatric evaluation of 35 obligate female carriers of the fragile X chromosome and a comparison group of 24 fragile X-negative controls. Female fragile X carriers were found to have a greater frequency of psychopathology associated with schizophrenia spectrum diagnoses, particularly schizotypal features. A weaker association between the fragile X genetic defect and chronic affective disorders was detected. The specificity of the neuropsychiatric phenotype occurring in particular genetic conditions such as the fragile X syndrome adds a potentially valuable tool to the study of psychopathology in the general population.

Interaction of different steroid hormones during progression of tumour cells to steroid autonomy

Progression to steroid insensitivity poses a major problem in therapy of breast cancer, but studies of the origin of steroid-insensitive cells have been few and have concentrated in any one system on the loss of response to only one steroid. Since both normal and tumour mammary cells have complex endocrine requirements, we wondered how different steroids might interact during loss of steroid sensitivity. Cloned cells from the androgen-responsive Shionogi 115 mouse mammary carcinoma respond in vitro to both androgens and glucocorticoids in terms of both cellular and molecular parameters but, following prolonged absence of any steroid, these cells become unresponsive. We show here that 2 steroids can interact to prevent the progression to steroid insensitivity since the S115 cells can be protected against any loss of response to either androgen or glucocorticoid with either steroid alone. Androgen protects against loss of glucocorticoid sensitivity and glucocorticoid protects against loss of androgen sensitivity. The clinical implications are discussed.

Progression to steroid insensitivity can occur irrespective of the presence of functional steroid receptors

A major problem in treatment of cancers arising in steroid-sensitive cells is their inevitable progression to a steroid-insensitive state; current therapies are based on the assumption that hormone insensitivity is associated with loss of receptor. We demonstrate for the first time that breast tumor cells can progress to steroid insensitivity in spite of functional steroid receptors. Transfection of the steroid-inducible LTR-C3 gene into unresponsive S115 mouse mammary tumor cells results in full inducibility of that gene with both androgen and glucocorticoid. Thus, although all known endogenous inducible parameters are lost, the steroid sensitivity of a transfected exogenous gene demonstrates that the machinery for steroid responsiveness is still fully functional. Furthermore, these transfected genes retain steroid sensitivity only while steroid is present; on prolonged withdrawal of steroid, they lose responsiveness, implying an epigenetic mechanism is involved.

Differential effects of steroid hormones on parameters of cell growth

Steroid hormones affect the growth of many tumor cells both in vivo and in vitro. Growth of cells in vitro can be studied as either anchorage dependent (monolayer culture) or anchorage independent (suspension culture), and in each case, steroid hormones can alter log-phase proliferation rate, saturation density, or cell morphology. Results presented here demonstrate that different steroid hormones can have different effects on each of these parameters in breast cancer cells. In androgen-responsive cells, glucocorticoid and androgen both stimulated fibroblastic morphology and saturation density in monolayer and growth in suspension, but glucocorticoid inhibited log-phase proliferation rate while androgen stimulated it. By transfection experiments, it has been possible to separate the androgen-regulated stimulation of cell proliferation from the androgen-regulated cell morphology changes indicating that the two parameters are not totally interdependent. The same separation, however, was not achieved for glucocorticoid regulation. Further separation of hormone effects was achieved also during the natural course of progression to steroid autonomy. In particular, the androgen and glucocorticoid stimulations of growth in suspension were separated. The experiments described here carry important messages for the design and interpretation of any experiment aimed at elucidating molecular events involved in steroid-mediated cell growth in culture.

CSF amine metabolites and depression

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) amine metabolites were measured in 37 male subjects with major depressive disorder. Scores on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) correlated significantly with 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5HIAA) and with homovanillic acid (HVA). In addition, the single suicide item of the HRSD correlated significantly with 5HIAA. Further, 5HIAA and HVA correlated significantly with each other. There was a significant positive correlation between HVA and two HRSD items, the depersonalization/derealization item and the paranoid item. Since lumbar CSF metabolite concentrations may reflect central nervous system activity of parent amines, these data suggest a relationship between depression and decreased dopaminergic and serotonergic activity.