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Biomedical subjects

J E Wagner

Publications and source records attributed to J E Wagner.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Separation of pluripotent haematopoietic stem cells from spleen colony-forming cells.

Long-term reconstitution of the lymphohaematopoietic cells of a mouse after lethal irradiation requires the transplantation of at least (5-10) x 10(3) bone marrow cells. Several cell-separation techniques based on cell-surface characteristics have been used in attempts to identify the pluripotent haematopoietic stem cells (PHSC), and have allowed the long-term engraftment of lethally irradiated mice with an enriched fraction of fewer than 200 marrow cells. But these techniques enrich not only for PHSC but also for haematopoietic progenitors, especially day-12 spleen colony-forming units (CFU-S). Although day-12 CFU-S have been postulated to be primitive multipotential haematopoietic progenitors, with day-8 CFU-S representing later, more committed progenitors, recent evidence suggests that neither of these CFU-S represents mouse PHSC. Here we report that counterflow centrifugal elutriation, which sorts cells on the basis of size and density, can separate PHSC from these less primitive progenitors. The fraction containing the largest cells was enriched for the granulocyte-macrophage colony-forming units (CFU-GM), but gave only transient, early engraftment and was therefore depleted of PHSC. The intermediate fraction was enriched for CFU-S, but depleted of CFU-GM. Despite being devoid of CFU-GM and CFU-S, the fraction consisting of only morphological lymphocytes gave sustained, albeit delayed, reconstitution of all lymphohaematopoietic cells, and was therefore enriched for PHSC. We conclude that there are two vital classes of engrafting cells: committed progenitors, which provide initial, unsustained engraftment, and PHSC, which produce delayed, but durable, engraftment. Therefore for late haematological reconstitution, PHSC must be transplanted with a distinguishable source of early engrafting cells, thereby allowing the lethally irradiated host to survive initial aplasia.

Animals↗

Bone marrow graft engineering by counterflow centrifugal elutriation: results of a phase I-II clinical trial.

In an attempt to reduce the incidence and severity of acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), we have decreased the number of bone marrow (BM) lymphocytes in the donor marrow graft before bone marrow transplantation (BMT) using counterflow centrifugal elutriation (CCE). In a phase I-II clinical trial, 23 patients received lymphocyte-depleted BM allografts from their HLA-identical, mixed lymphocyte culture (MLC)-nonreactive sibling donors. The patients entered in the study were deemed to be at high risk for treatment failure on the basis of age (greater than 30 years; median, 39 years) and the result of our skin explant assay predictive of acute GVHD. Patients predicted not to develop acute GVHD by this assay were excluded from this study. All patients received a standard lymphocyte dose of 0.5 x 10(6) morphologic lymphocytes per kilogram ideal body weight (IBW) in the marrow graft and were maintained on cyclosporine A (CsA) immunosuppression for 170 days after BMT. Prompt hematopoietic recovery occurred in 22 of 23 patients with a median time to an absolute neutrophil count (ANC) greater than or equal to 500/microL of 21 days. Donor cell engraftment was subsequently verified by cytogenetic and/or DNA analysis in all of 21 evaluable patients. No patient developed systemic acute GVHD. Only five (22%) developed cutaneous GVHD (clinical stage 1) that required steroid treatment, including one patient who failed to engraft. The median follow-up of the patients enrolled in this study is 14 months (range, 5 to 20 months). Actuarial survival 1 year after BMT is 83%. Thus, in two consecutive clinical trials using CCE to deplete donor BM of alloreactive lymphocytes (1.0 x 10(6) versus 0.5 x 10(6) lymphocytes/kg), we have demonstrated that the procedure does not interfere with BM engraftment and is effective in decreasing the incidence and severity of acute GVHD. Furthermore, comparison of these studies has revealed a differential dose response relationship between the number of graft lymphocytes, protection of engraftment, and induction of acute GVHD. Although there appears to be a modest relationship between lymphocyte dose and time to hematopoietic recovery, the 50% reduction in lymphocyte dose from that used in our previous trial resulted in a marked decrease in acute GVHD without compromising engraftment.

Adult↗

Treatment of experimentally induced cytauxzoonosis in cats with parvaquone and buparvaquone.

The efficacy of parvaquone (Clexon) and buparvaquone (Butalex) in treating experimentally induced feline cytauxzoonosis was explored. Domestic cats were inoculated subcutaneously with blood from a cat infected with Cytauxzoon felis and treated daily with either 20 or 30 mg kg-1 parvaquone, or 5 or 10 mg kg-1 buparvaquone, beginning on either the first day parasites were detected in peripheral blood, or 2 days after the onset of parasitemia. Fifteen cats were treated and all but one died due to the infection. Unexpectedly, one of two non-treated, infected control cats survived. Although parvaquone and buparvaquone are the treatments of choice for a related hemoprotozoan parasite causing theileriosis in African cattle, wer concluded that at the dosages and regimes tested, these drugs are not effective treatments for feline cytauxzoonosis. Blood from the two surviving cats was inoculated into naive cats and in these animals clinical disease or death were not observed. The latter two naive recipient cats were then inoculated with a lethal dose of viable, frozen C. felis and both died, thereby indicating that blood from surviving cats did not induce an infectious state that resulted in immunity. The two cats that survived the acute infection were subsequently challenged with a lethal inoculum of C. felis; they showed no clinical signs of cytauxzoonosis and were obviously immune to reinfection.

Animals↗

Using elutriation to engineer bone marrow allografts.

We have used elutriation to deplete lymphocytes from the marrow allografts of 64 patients to date. The first phase I trial (1 x 10(6) lymphocytes/kg IBW) was designed to test the procedure for potential toxicities, most notably, graft failure. Study 2 (1 x 10(6) lymphocytes/kg, no CsA) was expected to reduce potential toxicity incurred from long term immunoprophylaxis while study 3 was aimed at reducing the incidence of GVHD by further reducing lymphocyte dose (5 x 10(5)/kg). Graft lymphocyte dose was based on morphologic determination and was subsequently confirmed by limiting dilution analysis and flow cytometry. Although grafts were standardized solely by lymphocyte dose, the product was more uniform than the original harvested BM with respect to other cell populations. Nearly all study I (n = 40) and study III (n = 20) patients engrafted with a median time to ANC greater than 500/ul of 19 days. Three of the 4 patients consecutively enrolled in study II failed to engraft, thus terminating the trial. While a moderate proportion of study I patients had AGVHD (44%) with attendant morbidity, only 20% of study III patients were found to have mild AGVHD (less than or equal to stage I). To date, this cohort has no organ or chronic GVHD and no GVHD-associated morbidity. Median follow-up times for patients in studies I and III are 27 and 11 months, respectively. Overall actuarial survival (n = 60) is 42% at 38 months (38% study I, 80% study III). Good prognosis study I patients experienced 45% actuarial survival versus 9% in the poor prognostic group. While lymphocyte depletion has been effective in reducing the incidence and severity of AGVHD, new strategies are needed to address the issue of disease relapse. As with other methods, lymphocyte depletion by elutriation caused an increased rate of leukemia relapse. The actuarial probability of remaining in remission for recipients of elutriated marrow containing 1 x 10(6) and 5 x 10(5) lymphocytes/kg, respectively, were 60% and 46% at 16 months. Elutriation provides a rapid, reproducible and flexible methodology for graft manipulation which has been effective in reducing the incidence and severity of AGVHD. However, if lymphocyte depletion is to fulfill its promise as a means of reducing the overall morbidity of allogeneic BMT, new strategies may be needed to address the issue of relapse. These may include changes in marrow ablative therapy and post-graft immunosuppression. Equally as important may be the ability to further manipulate accessory cells and lymphoid populations presently excluded from the graft.

Adult↗

Elutriation of bone marrow delineates two distinct natural suppressor cell populations.

It appears that part of the confusion surrounding the lineage of NS cells could be due, in part, to the presence of more than one cell population in normal BM. Whether other cell populations exist in other organ compartments, or can be induced, is presently unknown. This is of particular interest in allogeneic BMT where various lymphocyte depletion techniques have been employed to reduce the incidence of AGVHD. When CCE is used for depletion, the NS lymphocyte component is entirely removed. Since the incidence of AGVHD is significantly reduced with CCE lymphocyte-depleted rat and human BM, it appears that this subpopulation need not be present to abrogate AGVHD. Quite surprisingly, preliminary studies in rats indicates that this lymphocyte subpopulation may actually induce acute syngeneic GVHD (Fischer et al., 1989). That a cell(s) in the clonogenic compartment has the ability to suppress or down-regulate a variety of immune responses is not altogether surprising. This cell is better thought of as an auto-regulatory cell which has the ability to control the cellular interactions in its immediate micro-environment. Indeed, R/O NSCA can be augmented by GM-CSF, IL-3, and CsA (NoGa et al., 1988a). In vitro, this cell differentiates into the mono-myeloid series using a variety of stimulatory agents and can acquire tumoricidal activity. The ability to express NSCA is lost however, being present only during a brief window of early maturation. Only IL-3 can sustain NSCA in culture.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aging↗

Naturally acquired enteric adenovirus infection in Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus).

Intranuclear inclusions indicative of adenovirus infection were detected microscopically in formalin-fixed intestinal tissues from preweanling Syrian hamsters. The amphophilic intranuclear inclusion bodies were observed in ileal enterocytes from 16-to 24-day-old hamsters. Electron microscopy revealed large numbers of 72 +/- 3-nm viral particles typical of adenoviridae in enterocytic nuclei. Serum antibodies reacted with mouse adenovirus strains K87 and, to a lesser extent, FL, by indirect fluorescent antibody testing. Clinical disease was not associated with the adenoviral infections. Hamsters from 10 production colonies, including all major commercial Syrian hamster suppliers in the United States, were surveyed and all had serologic or histopathologic evidence of adenovirus infection.

Adenoviridae Infections↗

Graft-versus-host disease.

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is caused by immunologic recognition of the patient by the donor marrow graft after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. Despite advances in understanding and new agents and methods to treat GVHD, the disease and complications related to it and its treatment are the principal causes of death after transplantation. This article reviews the pathogenesis, prediction, prophylaxis, and treatment of both acute and chronic GVHD.

Acute Disease↗

Systemic monoclonal antibody therapy for eliminating minimal residual leukemia in a rat bone marrow transplant model.

In an animal bone marrow transplant (BMT) model that mimics the human clinical condition, we evaluated the effectiveness of monoclonal antibody (MoAb) therapy in eliminating minimal residual disease (MRD) in a leukemic host. Leukemic rats were prepared with marrow ablative but noncurative doses of busulfan (BU) and cyclophosphamide (CY). Two days after syngeneic BMT, rats were treated with MoAb. Although all control rats died of leukemia relapse, 58% of those treated with MoAb were cured without any demonstrable effect on the rate of peripheral blood leukocyte recovery. Furthermore, the level of complement, an important effector in suppressing leukemia proliferation in the normal rat, was not adversely affected by BU/CY, BMT and MoAb. Thus, we demonstrated in an animal model that MoAb therapy may be a useful, nontoxic adjunct to high-dose chemotherapy and BMT in eliminating MRD.

Animals↗

Second bone marrow transplantation after leukemia relapse in 11 patients.

Since June 1977 eight patients with acute leukemia and three with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) have undergone cytoreductive therapy prior to a second allogeneic or syngeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The median age was 24 years (range 7-49 years) and the median time to second BMT was 495 days (range 122-1887 days). Prompt hematopoietic recovery was documented in 11/11 patients and verified by cytogenetic analysis in 7/11. Early death (less than 100 days) was the result of sepsis in one, veno-occlusive disease in one and interstitial pneumonitis in two. Of seven patients who survived beyond 1 year, two patients subsequently died, one as a result of acute respiratory failure and one of leukemia relapse. Five are currently disease-free at 8+, 20+, 42+, 49+ and 72+ months after the second BMT. In this patient population which is at high risk for resistant disease and treatment-related toxicity, a second preparative therapy and BMT may offer a durable disease remission with tolerable toxicity.

Adolescent↗

Pathogenesis and pathology of graft-vs.-host disease.

Over the past decade, there has been a significant increase in the number of patients with a variety of malignant and nonmalignant disorders referred for bone marrow transplantation. Despite numerous advances in the care of such patients after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation, acute and chronic graft-vs.-host disease continues to be a principal cause of morbidity and mortality. In this article, we will present an overview of the pathogenesis, clinical presentation, and pathological manifestations of these two major complications.

Acute Disease↗

Characterization of the natural suppressor cell population in adult rat bone marrow.

Natural suppressor cell activity (NSCA) has been ascribed to a subset of cells present in human and murine hematopoietic tissues which can suppress a variety of lymphocyte responses without MHC restriction. We investigated NSCA in lymphocyte-depleted rat bone marrow (BM) which is used as a model for prevention of graft vs host disease (GVHD) following allogeneic BM transplantation (BMT). The T-cell depleted fraction obtained after elutriation contained higher levels of NSCA than the unseparated BM. Further separation of this graft fraction by discontinuous Percoll gradient centrifugation revealed high levels of radiosensitive NSCA in the low density (less than 1.070) fraction which represented 0.5% of the original BM population. These cells were of blast morphology, stained intensely with a dansylated derivative of cyclosporine A (dans CsA) and weakly expressed macrophage/granulocyte antigens and non-specific esterase (NSE). These cells were initially non-adherent but proliferated in culture to produce intensely NSE positive, adherent, phagocytic cells of macrophage morphology. We conclude that the highly suppressive, radiosensitive cell present in rat BM may be of early progenitor or monocyte lineage. The grafting of natural suppressor (NS) cells and progenitor cells may affect graft/host immunoregulation and their characterization may provide insight into GVH biology and graft rejection.

Animals↗

Syndrome of idiopathic hyperammonemia after high-dose chemotherapy: review of nine cases.

PURPOSE: The syndrome of idiopathic hyperammonemia occurs in patients who have received high-dose cytoreductive therapy for the treatment of hematologic malignancy. It is characterized by abrupt alteration in mental status and respiratory alkalosis associated with markedly elevated plasma ammonium levels in the absence of any identifiable cause, and frequently results in intractable coma and death. Our goal was to survey clinical and pathologic manifestations of the disorder and discuss treatment options. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Plasma ammonium levels were measured in patients on the acute leukemia service or on the bone marrow transplant service at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, and a level more than twice normal was considered diagnostic of hyperammonemia. The syndrome was identified in nine patients; in eight, hyperammonemia occurred after administration of intensive cytoreductive therapy that resulted in profound leukopenia. The disorder occurred in the ninth patient two months after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. RESULTS: Three of the nine patients survived an episode of idiopathic hyperammonemia; one patient subsequently died of leukemia and one of recurrent idiopathic hyperammonemia. The one long-term survivor is currently alive and well without neurologic sequelae 250 days after autologous bone marrow transplantation. CONCLUSION: Because neurologic function can deteriorate rapidly, early recognition of this disorder and close monitoring of the patient's neurologic status are critical.

Adolescent↗

New semisolid agar for the detection of motile salmonellae.

A semisolid selective motility agar based on selenite broth and designated semisolid selenite fecal (SSF) agar was developed for recovery of motile salmonellae from large numbers of rodent fecal specimens. The medium is easily prepared and inoculated; results are readily interpreted. When combined with selenite or gram-negative broth enrichment, SSF agar yielded significantly better Salmonella isolation from experimentally infected rodents than a standard battery of media. Only 14 non-Salmonella isolates from 1,002 Salmonella-free rodent fecal specimens migrated on SSF agar.

Animals↗