Influence of Borneol on In Vitro Corneal Permeability and on In Vivo and In Vitro Corneal Toxicity

This study examined whether borneol could enhance corneal drug permeability. Model drugs containing either synthetic or natural borneol were co-administered to isolated intact or de-epithelialized rabbit corneas and the apparent permeability coefficients were measured. Draize tests in rabbits and levels of isolated intact rabbit corneal hydration were used to measure in vivo and in vitro toxicity, respectively. Synthetic borneol (0.1%) increased corneal penetration of the lipophilic agents, indomethacin and dexamethasone, by 1.23 and 2.40, respectively, and of the hydrophilic agents, ofloxacin, ribavirin and tobramycin, by 1.87, 2.80 and 3.89, respectively. For natural borneol, the corresponding fold increases were 1.67, 2.00, 2.15, 2.18 and 3.39, respectively. Removing the epithelium attenuated the penetration-enhancing effects of borneol. Borneol (0.1%) did not damage corneal tissue. The ability of borneol to enhance drug penetration through the outer corneal layer, particularly for highly-hydrophilic drugs, suggests that further clinical investigation may be warranted.

Characterization of a new HLA-C allele in a Chinese family by sequence-based typing: HLA-Cw*0348

The novel human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-Cw*0348 allele was identified by sequence-based typing in a Chinese family. This allele shows that the sequences of exons 1-3 of HLA-Cw*0348 are identical to those of HLA-Cw*030401 except for a nucleotide substitution that changes CCG to CTG at codon 57, resulting in an amino acid change from Pro to Leu in the protein, and this is a unique nucleotide change among the HLA-C alleles, suggesting a point mutation mechanism. The extended haplotype carrying the new allele was deduced from the family group typing and defined as A*110101, B*1301, Cw*0348, DRB1*0405, and DQB1*0402.

PI3K/Akt mediates expression of TNF-alpha mRNA and activation of NF-kappaB in calyculin A-treated primary osteoblasts

OBJECTIVE

The effect of calyculin A (CA), a serine/threonine protein phosphatase inhibitor, on tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) in primary osteoblasts was investigated to determine whether protein phosphatases could affect primary osteoblasts and if so which signaling pathways would be involved.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Primary osteoblasts were prepared from newborn rat calvaria. Cells were treated with 1 nM CA for different time periods. The expressions of TNF-alpha and GAPDH mRNA were determined by RT-PCR. Cell extracts were subjected to SDS-PAGE and the activation of Akt and NF-kappaB were analyzed by western blotting.

RESULTS

Calyculin A-treatment markedly increased the expression of TNF-alpha mRNA and enhanced the phosphorylation level of Akt (Ser473) in these cells. Pretreatment with the PI3K inhibitor LY294002 suppressed the increase in TNF-alpha mRNA expression and the phosphorylation of Akt in response to CA. Western blot analysis showed that CA stimulated the phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of NF-kappaB in primary osteoblasts, and these responses were blocked by pretreatment with LY294002.

CONCLUSION

Calyculin A elicits activation of PI3K/Akt pathway which leads to expression of TNF-alpha mRNA and activation of NF-kappaB. This NF-kappaB activation involves both phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of NF-kappaB.

Soft-hydrothermal processing of red cedar bedding reduces its induction of cytochrome P450 in mouse liver

Red cedar-derived bedding materials cause changes in cytochrome P450-dependent microsomal enzyme systems in laboratory animals. We examined the effect of essential oil of red cedar (EORC), as well as the effect of bedding from which it had been removed, on the hepatic expression cytochrome P450s in mice. EORC was obtained from liquid extracts of red cedar bedding by a soft-hydrothermal process and was administered orally to mice. Between days 1 and 2 after administration, hepatic P450s were significantly induced as follows: CYP3As, 7.1×; CYP1As, 1.6×; CYP2E1, 1.5×; CYP2Cs, 1.6×. A housing study of mice indicated that red cedar bedding increased the levels of these P450s in mouse liver, whereas mice housed in cedar bedding from which EORC had been removed (ST-cedar bedding) showed significantly lower levels of P450s, especially CYP3As, CYP1As and CYP2E1. Soft-hydrothermal processing partially removed many components of EORC. In particular, several volatile sesquiterpenes, naphthalene-derived aromatics and 4,4-dimethyl-13α-androst-5-ene were decreased in the ST-cedar bedding, suggesting that these may be responsible for P450 induction. This study demonstrated that the removal of these volatile compounds by soft-hydrothermal processing can decrease the hepatic P450-inducing effect of red cedar bedding.

Evaluation of endoscopic-ultrasound-guided celiac ganglion irradiation with iodine-125 seeds: a pilot study in a porcine model

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS

Implantation of iodine-125 ( (125)I) seeds under the guidance of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) has been proved to be a safe alternative treatment option for advanced pancreatic cancer. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and safety of EUS-guided radiation of the celiac ganglia with (125)I seeds in a porcine model.

METHODS

Twelve domestic pigs were randomly divided into three groups. The pigs in group A had blank seeds implanted, and groups B and C had 0.4 mCi and 0.8 mCi (125)I seeds implanted, respectively. Enhanced CT scan and 3-D vascular remodeling were used to check the location of the seeds. All animals were killed and celiac ganglia were checked at 14 and at 60 days after procedure. Necrosis and apoptosis in celiac ganglia and adjacent vessels and organs were also observed.

RESULTS

EUS-guided implantations of (125)I seeds in celiac plexus were successful at first procedure in 10 animals. The remaining two animals were implanted successfully the next day. No severe complications occurred in any animal and no damage was found in the surrounding organs. At day 60 after operation, the apoptotic index in the ganglia was 0.53 in the 0.4 mCi group and 0.94 in the 0.8 mCi group. No apoptotic cells were found in the control group implanted with blank seeds. Damage to vessels and surrounding organs by radioactive seeds was observed in only one pig at each time point.

CONCLUSION

EUS-guided implantation of (125)I seeds beside the celiac ganglia is a safe procedure and can induce apoptosis of local neurons. This new method may lead to an alternative treatment for pain accompanying pancreatic diseases in human.

Identification of a new HLA-B*40 allele, HLA-B*4081, in a Chinese individual

A novel human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B*40 allele, officially named B*4081, was identified during routine high-resolution sequence-based typing in a Chinese potential hematopoietic stem cell transplantation donor. The HLA-B*4081 allele shows one nucleotide difference from B*400101 in exon 2 at nucleotide position 124 where G-->C (codon 18 GGG-->CGG) resulting in a coding change, 18Gly is changed to Arg, this is a unique nucleotide change among the HLA class I alleles, suggesting a point mutation mechanism.

Transcriptome analysis in mouse tumors induced by Ret-MEN2/FMTC mutations reveals subtype-specific role in survival and interference with immune surveillance

Activating mutations in the Ret proto-oncogene are responsible for occurrence of multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) type 2A and 2B, and familial medullary thyroid carcinoma (FMTC). A striking genotype-phenotype correlation between the mutated RET codon and clinical manifestation implies that tumorigenesis is conditioned by the type of mutation. We investigated gene expression profiles between and within distinct MEN2 subtypes through whole-genome microarray analysis in tumors induced by NIH-3T3 cells transformed with defined RET-MEN2A (C609Y, C634R), MEN2B, (A883F, M918T), and FMTC (Y791F) mutations. Expression profiling identified a statistically significant modification of 1494 genes, 628 down- and 866 upregulated in MEN2B compared with MEN2A/FMTC tumors. By contrast, no obvious alterations were observed among individual MEN2B and MEN2A type mutations, or between MEN2A and FMTC. Functional clustering of differential genes revealed RET-MEN2B specific upregulation of genes associated with novel growth and survival pathways. Intriguingly, RET-MEN2A/FMTC-specific tumors were characterized by a considerable number of genes involved in the host antitumor immune response via stimulation of natural killer/T-cell proliferation, migration, and cytotoxicity, which were completely absent in RET-MEN2B related cancers. QPCR on tumors versus cultured NIH-RET cell lines demonstrated that they are largely attributed to the host innate immune system, whereas expression of CX3CL1 involved in leukocyte recruitment is exclusively RET-MEN2A/FMTC tumor cell dependent. In correlation, massive inflammatory infiltrates were apparent only in tumors carrying MEN type 2A/FMTC mutations, suggesting that RET-MEN2B receptors specifically counteract immune infiltration by preventing chemokine expression, which may contribute to the different clinical outcome of both subtypes.

Clinical Utility of Magnetic Resonance Thermal Imaging (MRTI) For Realtime Guidance of Deep Hyperthermia

A critical need has emerged for volumetric thermometry to visualize 3D temperature distributions in real time during deep hyperthermia treatments used as an adjuvant to radiation or chemotherapy for cancer. For the current effort, magnetic resonance thermal imaging (MRTI) is used to measure 2D temperature rise distributions in four cross sections of large extremity soft tissue sarcomas during hyperthermia treatments. Novel hardware and software techniques are described which improve the signal to noise ratio of MR images, minimize motion artifact from circulating coupling fluids, and provide accurate high resolution volumetric thermal dosimetry. For the first 10 extremity sarcoma patients, the mean difference between MRTI region of interest and adjacent interstitial point measurements during the period of steady state temperature was 0.85°C. With 1min temporal resolution of measurements in four image planes, this non-invasive MRTI approach has demonstrated its utility for accurate monitoring and realtime steering of heat into tumors at depth in the body.

Expression of ER-a36, a novel variant of estrogen receptor a, and resistance to tamoxifen treatment in breast cancer

Abstract #3037

Background: Recently, a 36 kDa variant of estrogen receptor a (ER-a66), ER-a36, has been identified and cloned. ER-a36 predominantly localizes on the plasma membrane and in the cytoplasm and mediates a membrane-initiated “nongenomic” signaling pathway. In this study, we investigated the association between ER-a36 expression and tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer patients.
 Methods: ER-a36 protein expression in tumors from 710 breast cancer patients with a median follow-up of 7.9 years was assessed using immunohistochemistry (IHC) assay. Survival curves were compared using the log-rank test and multivariate analysis was performed using Cox model. All statistical tests were two-sided.
 Results: Among the patients with ER-a66 positive tumors who received tamoxifen treatment (n=307), overexpression of ER-a36 was associated with poorer disease-free survival (DFS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) and remained as an unfavorable independent factor of survival in multivariate analyses (DFS: HR=2.27; 95% CI= 1.40 to 3.68; P=. 001; DSS: HR=2.42; 95% CI= 1.37 to 4.28; P= .002). In contrast, among patients with ER-a66 positive tumors who did not receive tamoxifen (n=129), ER-a36 expression was not associated with survival, indicating a correlation between ER-a36 expression and tamoxifen resistance. Furthermore, ER-a36 expression was not associated with survival in ER-a66 negative tumors whether the patients received tamoxifen (n=73) or not (n=149). Our in vitro experiments with MCF7/ER36 cells also confirmed that high ER-a36 expression resulted in tamoxifen resistance.
 Conclusions: Patients with ER-a66 positive tumors that also express high levels of ER-a36 are less likely to benefit from tamoxifen treatment. ER-a36 is an important predictive marker for tamoxifen therapy in ER-a66 positive breast cancer patients.

Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(2 Suppl):Abstract nr 3037.

Split-ring-resonator-coupled enhanced transmission through a single subwavelength aperture

We report the enhanced transmission of electromagnetic waves through a single subwavelength aperture by using a split-ring resonator (SRR) at microwave frequencies. By placing a single SRR at the near field of the aperture, strongly localized electromagnetic fields are effectively coupled to the aperture with a radius that is 20 times smaller than the resonance wavelength (r/lambda=0.05). We obtained 740-fold transmission enhancement by exciting the electric resonance of SRR. A different coupling mechanism, through the magnetic resonance of SRR, is also verified to lead to enhanced transmission.