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G Astaldi

Publications and source records attributed to G Astaldi.

33 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1976

Trace elements and immunologic defects. Zinc deficiency and activity of lysosomal acid phosphatase in lymphocyte of mice.

Activity of lysosomal acid phosphatase in peripheral blood lymphocytes of mice fed a low-Zn diet has been studied. The study comprised 40 CBA T6T6 mice, female, aged 8 weeks, with body weight equal to about 18.0 g. The animals were fed during 10 days with a low-Zn diet. This latter diet, as well as the control one contained 0.8 mg% and 11.4 mg% of zinc, respectively; potable water contained 0.06 mg% of this element. Activity of the enzyme was determined semiquantitatively using cytochemical method of Barka and Anderson. Peripheral blood lymphocytes in mice fed a low-Zn diet exhibited statistically significant lowering of the intracellular enzyme activity when compared with control groups. Absolute count of enzyme-positive lymphocytes was also significantly lowered. The Authors discuss the importance of their observations for evaluation of immune reactivity in trace-elements-deficient animals.

Acid Phosphatase↗
PubMed1976

With reference to a simple kit for short-term lymphocyte culture tested in experimental animals.

The results on blastic transformation of peripheral-blood lymphocytes from different species of experimental animals studied in short-term cell culture made with a fully pre-prepared Kit, are here illustrated and discussed. Lymphocyte donors were: mice, rats, hamsters, guinea-pigs, and rabbits. The Kit used in these experiments was the so-called Blasto-Kit, prepared by the Istituto Sieroterapico Milanese. It contains a lyophilized mixture of all the culture medium components, including the mitogen (in our study: PHA). The lyophilized mixture was diluted with the proper solvent just at the culture time, and then supplemented with 5 drops (200 mul) of whole blood. The extent of blastic transformation was evaluated in morphology, by counting the blast-like cells on culture smears; but the method provides adequate data also when lymphocyte transformation is evaluated via the extent of 3H-Tdr incorporation. The results showed quite significant discrimination (blastic indices) between the mitogen stimulated cultures and the non-stimulated controls in all the animals tested. On the other hand, different transformation extents were observed in relationship to the single animal species: it appeared that guinea-pigs, and mostly the rabbits gave the most beautiful blast-like cells, which appears to indicate that they are the most appropriate for this study among all those tested. It should be finally emphasized that : (1) the simplicity of the method makes the investigation on the transformation capability of lymphocytes easy to be carried out in every Lab; and (2), the small quantity of blood which is needed to perform the test makes it possible to investigate each single animal even in the case, when it has to be examined before, during, and after given treatments.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

Administration of peripheral-blood rat-lymphocytes stimulated "in vitro" with human lymphokines and spleen colonies in the total body irradiated rat.

It was previously reported that PHA-incubation of a pool of peripheral-blood lymphocytes before their i.v. injection into rats submitted to total body irradiation, stimulates spleen colony formation and growth. On the same model, the present study has investigated the effect of lymphocyte preincubation with supernates obtained in short term cultures from human lymphocytes prestimulated with PHA (lymphokines). The "in vitro" culture of rat lymphocytes in a medium supplemented with human lymphokines showed either a marked increase of lymphocyte survival rate, or significant stimulation of lymphocyte blastogenesis, but at an extent much lower than that caused by PHA, also because in this particular experiment the culture medium was supplemented with too little amount of lymphokines. These data support the interpretation that human lymphokines may act across the species barriers. Peripheral-blood rat lymphocytes prestimulated with human lymphokines, and then injected i.v. into rats previously submitted to total body irradiation, caused significant increase in the spleen weight, as well as formation of spleen colonies quite larger and with higher erythroid differentiation - though less numerous than in the controls (i.e., in the rats injected just with untreated lymphocytes). This behaviour may be due to the tendency to merge together of two or more colonies in a single giant colony, and supports the interpretation that immune-competent lymphocytes activated either with PHA or with lymphokines may stimulate spleen colony growth and erythroid differentiation, though at different extents.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

L-Asparaginase: effect on 7S gamma globulin extents and germinal centers in spleen and lymph-nodes.

Administration of L-asparaginase may cause remission in a high percentage of acute lymphocytic leukemias and lymphomas, either in experimental animals or in human beings. This enzyme is able to depress immune reactions like lymphocyte blastogenesis and delayed hypersensitivity, and to impair gamma-globulin synthesis. L-asparaginase also has antigenic properties, and may cause the formation of anti-L-asparaginase antibodies. This study reports observations on the effect of L-asparginase on the 7S gamma-globulin levels and on the behaviour of the germinal centers in spleen and lymph nodes. It has been found that after administration of low or intermediate doses of L-asparginase, a decrease in the size of the follicular marginal zones occurred. This was accompanied by an enlargement of the germinal centers. Furthermore the spleen weight decreased and the concentration of 7S gamma-globulin diminished slightly. In animals given high doses of L-asparaginase, germinal centers were enlarged even more but marginal zones appeared repopulated although not to the degree of the controls. The spleen weight of these enzyme-injected animals reached almost the normal values, while a statistically significant decrease of 7S gamma-globulin concentrations was found.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

A preliminary study on humoral control of granulopoiesis in primary myelofibrosis and chronic granulocytic leukaemia.

The extent of the urine Colony Stimulating Factor (CSF/u), as well as the Colony Stimulating Activity (CSA) of peripheral-white blood cells (WBC) were evaluated in two groups of patients with myeloproliferative disorders, at the disease onset. The first patient group deals with Primary Myelofibrosis (PM), whereas the second group deals with Chronic Granulocytic Leukaemia (CGL). The Stanley technique was used for the above-mentioned assay, and in each group of patients either human or murine bone-marrow cell-suspensions were cultivated. In all patients with PM, a low CSF/u was detected, while patients with CGL showed a high CSF/u, regardless whether Ph1-positive or not. CSA of WBC in the PM-group was normal. In contrast, a significant low CSA in the CGL-group was noted. This fact could be of some importance in differentiating the two disorders at their onset.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Immunologic cell features in lymphocytic leukemias: a review.

Since four years, it has been possible to classify most cases of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) as given to the expansion of abnormal B-lymphocytes. On the contrary, the T-cell class is apparently normal and the T cell extent in CLL-peripheral blood can be even greater than normal when taken as absolute value. The clonal nature theory of B-lymphocytes in CLL is substantiated by the fact that, in general, in every patient only one Ig light chain determinant is present. Again, when serum Ig monoclonality is present in CLL, it appears idiotypically identical to the Ig shown by the lymphocytes of the same patient. Among the most important B-lymphocyte abnormalities in CLL, there are: (a) fluorescence of surface Ig is usually less intense than that in normal subjects, and fluorescence intensity may vary not only from patient to patient, but also from cell to cell in the same patient; (b) the Fc-receptor can be lacking; (c) the C3b-receptor is not always present, or it is from 2 to 20 folds less frequent than the C3d-receptor, whereas normal human lymphocytes do not show any outstanding differences between the number of EAC rosette-forming cells either when tested with mouse complement (C3d-receptor) or with human complement (C3b-receptor); (d) the traffic capacity of peripheral-blood B-lymphocytes in CLL is quite defective. All the above-mentioned data, taken as a whole, suggest that CLL is in general given by the expansion of an abnormal clone of cells of B origin, arrested in their maturative development, non-responsive to the mitogen stimulation, accumulating in the peripheral-blood for a traffic deficiency.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

N-acetyl-beta-glucosaminidase of peripheral blood lymphocytes in patients with cancer of the larynx.

In 20 men, age 35 to 55 years, with cancer of the larynx of N-acetyl-beta-glucosaminidase in peripheral blood lymphocytes was determined cytochemically according to Hayashi's method. Numbers of enzyme-positive cells were counted with regard to the type of cytochemical reaction (granular, granular-diffuse, or diffuse), and to the number of enzyme-positive lysosomal granules within a single cell. In comparison to 20 healthy men, age 20 to 30 years, the following changes were noted in the patients: 1) the decrease of the total count of enzyme-negative lymphocytes; 2) the decrease of the total count of lymphocytes with granular type of reaction; 3) the increase of the counts of lymphocytes with granular-diffuse and diffuse type of reaction. The authors suggest that these changes could be related to the immune reaction of specific tumor antigens.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Activity and intracellular localization of lysosomal acid phosphatase in lymphocytes from patients with Hodgkin's disease, plasma cell myeloma and primary polycythemia.

Using the cytochemical method after Barka and Anderson, activity and localization of lysosomal acid phosphatase (AP) was determined in peripheral-blood lymphocytes from 20 healthy subjects, 10 patients with Hodgkin's disease (HD), 10 patients with plasma cell myeloma (PCM), and 10 patients with primary polycythemia (PP). Total count of AP-positive lymphocytes was lowest in the patients with HD. Moreover, they showed a significant decrease of the absolute count of lymphocytes with well formed and more numerous AP-positive lysosomal granules. Analogous alterations in lymphocytes from patients with PCM and those with PP were much less significant. The authors discuss the importance of the above-mentioned observations for evaluation on a cellular basis of lowered immunity of patients with lympho-proliferative and myelo-proliferative disorders, with special regard to AP as a T-cell marker.

Acid Phosphatase↗