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Biomedical subjects

J L Cook

Publications and source records attributed to J L Cook.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Experimental tumour induction by SV40 transformed cells.

Although SV40 transforms cells from many species, transformed cells from species other than the Syrian hamster are rarely tumorigenic in immunocompetent animals. However, secondary manipulations of SV40-transformed cells can result in increased tumorigenicity. Some early observations on tumour induction by SV40 and transformed cells will be followed by a selected review of evidence suggesting that tumorigenicity of SV40-transformed cells involves serial mutations. An SV40-transformed rat cell model will be described to illustrate the changes in tumorigenic phenotype that can occur during tumour progression. This information will be used to propose that SV40 immortalization of cells (other than hamster cells) is only the first in a series of steps in the pathway toward tumorigenicity and that a complete understanding of the oncogenicity of SV40 will require definition of the secondary genetic events which complement SV40 immortalization to create the fully tumorigenic phenotype.

Animals↗

Patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis with low CD4+ T cell counts have impaired Th1 responses.

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDRTB) has emerged as a challenging clinical problem in both HIV-infected and -uninfected individuals. In this study, immune responses from HIV-negative patients with MDRTB were compared with those of healthy purified protein derivative (PPD)-positive and PPD-negative individuals. These responses were characterized by measuring the proliferation and cytokine production from PBMCs stimulated in vitro with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, PPD, or mitogens. MDRTB patients with CD4 counts >500/microl stimulated in vitro with M. tuberculosis had similar immune responses (proliferation, IFN-gamma, and IL-2 production) as the PPD-positive and -negative controls. By contrast, MDRTB patients with CD4 counts <500/microl had markedly deficient immune responses to similar stimuli. In these patients, IFN-gamma production could be restored by adding IL-12 to the in vitro cultures. IL-12 also caused a striking increase in the amount of IFN-gamma produced from PBMCs of both PPD-positive and -negative controls. The role of endogenous IL-12 production was also studied. Addition of anti-IL-12 to cultures resulted in a two- to eightfold decrease in IFN-gamma production in response to PHA stimulation. Inhibition of IFN-gamma was also observed when cells were stimulated by M. tuberculosis and PPD. Using Staphylococcus aureus Cowan strain as a mitogenic stimulus, IL-12 p70 was produced in similar amounts in all groups tested. TNF-alpha production was also assessed from cells stimulated by M. tuberculosis. Addition of IL-12 to the cultures did not cause a significant enhancement of TNF-alpha production. Last, production of IL-10 and IL-4 in response to M. tuberculosis and PHA, respectively, was not significantly different among all groups tested. These results suggest that patients with MDRTB tuberculosis with CD4 T cell counts <500/microl have impaired IFN-gamma and IL-2 responses and might benefit by adjunctive IL-12 therapy.

CD4 Lymphocyte Count↗

Surgical treatment of osteoarthritis.

Surgical treatment of OA is appropriate when conservative therapy fails or is inadequate. The veterinary orthopedist's goals in treatment should be to alleviate pain, maintain function, and prevent or remove the potential for further degeneration of the joint. Currently, in veterinary surgery, THR and femoral head and neck excision are the primary treatments for OA of the coxofemoral joint. Other joints are treated primarily by arthrodesis or excision arthroplasty. Arthroscopy is proving to be a valuable tool in the diagnosis and treatment of OA, and total stifle and elbow replacement and cartilage resurfacing through chondrocyte grafting are on the horizon as potential treatment options.

Animals↗

Early onset of parturition induced by acute alcohol exposure in C57BL/6J mice: role of uterine PGE and PGF2alpha.

These studies were designed to determine the effect of acute alcohol treatment on gestational length and to probe for a mechanism underlying alcohol-induced early onset of parturition (EOP) in mice. Experiment 1: alcohol increases the incidence of EOP. Pregnant C57BL/6J mice were given alcohol (0, 4, 5 or 6 g kg(-1), i.g.) on Gestational Day (GD) 10, 15, 16, 17 or 18. Deliveries were monitored every 6 h from GD 18. Results indicated that 6 g kg(-1) alcohol treatment on GD 17 or 18 increased the incidence of EOP. Experiment 2: prostaglandins (PGs) play roles in parturition. The purpose of Experiment 2 was to determine whether PGs mediate alcohol-induced EOP in mice. The results indicated that pretreatment on GD 17 with aspirin, a prostaglandin synthesis inhibitor, prevented alcohol-induced EOP. These data suggest that alcohol-induced EOP in mice may be mediated by PGs. Experiment 3: PGs are influenced by alcohol and are triggers of labour. Experiment 3 measured uterine PGs associated with the onset of alcohol-induced EOP in mice. Alcohol increased uterine PGE and PGF2alpha, with PGE levels higher than control before labour, and elevated PGF2alpha levels correlating with labour. Changes in gestational length have important implications for pregnancy outcome, as well as for normal fetal growth and development.

Animals↗

Patellar tendon ultrasonography and jumper's knee in female basketball players: a longitudinal study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare patellar tendon sonographic findings at baseline and at follow-up in active female basketball players with and without symptoms of jumper's knee. We hypothesized that baseline sonographic morphology would not reliably predict prognosis and, in particular, that it would not predict the need for surgery. DESIGN: Prospective longitudinal study with 12-month minimum follow-up. SETTING: Institutional elite athlete study group in Australia (Victorian Institute of Sport Tendon Study Group). PATIENTS AND PARTICIPANTS: A total of 15 female elite basketball players with 23 sonographically abnormal tendons and 15 matched control basketball players with 23 sonographically normal tendons. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Sonographic patellar tendon appearance and clinical assessment of symptoms of jumper's knee at baseline and follow-up. Dimensions of abnormal regions were measured. RESULTS: At baseline, the 23 subject tendons contained sonographic hypoechoic regions (six currently symptomatic, eight previously symptomatic only, and nine never symptomatic). At follow-up, the hypoechoic areas in seven tendons had resolved (and caused no symptoms), the hypoechoic areas in 11 tendons had remained essentially the same size (five were symptomatic), and the hypoechoic areas in five tendons had expanded (three symptomatic). At baseline, there were no differences between the mean +/- SD cross-sectional areas of the abnormalities in the tendons that subsequently resolved (15.9 +/- 10.1 mm2) and those that remained unchanged (39.3 +/- 25.8) or expanded (25.3 +/- 12.5). The presence of a baseline sonographic abnormality predicted symptoms of jumper's knee at follow-up (p < 0.05), but the presence of symptoms of jumper's knee at baseline also predicted symptoms at follow-up (p < 0.05). No subject or control missed any games or underwent surgical treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Patellar tendon sonographic hypoechoic areas can resolve, remain unchanged, or expand in active sports-women without predicting symptoms of jumper's knee. Thus, symptoms were not directly related to sonographic tendon morphology. Sonographic hypoechoic regions ought not to constitute per se an indication for surgery.

Analysis of Variance↗

A cross sectional study of 100 athletes with jumper's knee managed conservatively and surgically. The Victorian Institute of Sport Tendon Study Group.

OBJECTIVES: Jumper's knee causes significant morbidity in athletes of all standards. However, there are few reference data on the clinical course of this condition in a large number of patients, and the aim of this study was to rectify this. METHODS: A retrospective study of the course of jumper's knee in 100 athletes who presented to a sports medicine clinic over a nine year period was carried out. Subjects completed a questionnaire designed to collect details of sport participation, symptoms, and time out of sport. Ultrasonographic results were recorded from the radiologists' reports. Histopathological results were obtained for patients who had surgery. RESULTS: Forty eight subjects recalled that symptoms of jumper's knee began before the age of 20 years. Symptoms prevented 33 from participating in sport for more than six months, and 18 of these were sidelined for more than 12 months. Forty nine of the subjects had two or more separate episodes of symptoms. Ultrasonography showed a characteristics hypoechoic region at the junction of the inferior pole of the patella and the deep surface of the patellar tendon. Histopathological examination showed separation and disruption of collagen fibres on polarisation light microscopy and an increase in mucoid ground substance consistent with damage of tendon collagen without inflammation. CONCLUSIONS: Jumper's knee has the potential to be a debilitating condition for a sports person. About 33% of athletes presenting to a sports medicine clinic with jumper's knee were unable to return to sport for more than six months.

Adolescent↗

Regulation of heme oxygenase-1 gene expression in vascular smooth muscle cells by nitric oxide.

Heme oxygenase (HO)-mediated heme degradation is the primary mechanism for production of cellular carbon monoxide (CO). Analogous to nitric oxide (NO), CO mediates physiological and cellular functions such as vasodilation, stimulation of guanylate cyclase, and neuronal transmission. In view of accumulating data demonstrating a correlation between the activity of these two gaseous molecules and that the predominant source of CO is via HO catalysis, we hypothesized that NO regulates HO expression. We demonstrate that the NO donor spermine NONOate (SNN) increases steady-state levels of HO-1 mRNA in aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (aSMC) in both a time- and dose-dependent manner. The accumulation of HO-1 mRNA that correlated with increased HO-1 protein synthesis resulted from both an increased rate of gene transcription and a decreased rate of mRNA turnover. Inhibition of the NO-induced HO-1 mRNA expression by cycloheximide suggests that new protein synthesis is required for increased HO-1 gene expression. Induction of HO-1 expression by SNN occurs in a guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cGMP)-independent manner because exposure of cells to 8-bromoguanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate, a cGMP analog, did not increase HO-1 mRNA levels, and pretreatment of cells with 1H-[1,2,4]oxadiazolo[4,3-a]quinoxalin-1-one, a selective guanylate cyclase inhibitor, did not prevent SNN-induced HO-1 mRNA accumulation. The antioxidant N-acetyl-L-cysteine markedly inhibited SNN-induced HO-1 mRNA expression, whereas peroxynitrite did not induce HO-1 expression in aSMC. Interestingly, CO did not attenuate NO-induced HO-1 expression through an autocrine negative feedback mechanism as had been observed for hypoxia-induced HO-1 expression. These data provide evidence for an important regulatory network between NO and CO via HO-1.

Animals↗

Three-dimensional culture of canine articular chondrocytes on multiple transplantable substrates.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of transplantable substrates on canine chondrocytes grown in three-dimensional culture. ANIMALS: 3 canine cadavers. PROCEDURE: Articular cartilage harvested from canine cadavers was used to obtain chondrocytes for primary culture. Subcultured chondrocytes were grown in agarose alone (AG), or in agarose on canine cancellous bone (CB), polypropylene mesh, or oxidized regenerated cellulose substrate. Cell proliferation, proteoglycan and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) production, and collagen production were assessed on days 3, 6, 10, 15 and 20. RESULTS: Chondrocytes from groups AG and CB proliferated and produced matrix over the entire 20-day study period. Group-CB chondrocytes had significantly more GAG than did chondrocytes of all other groups on days 6 (P = 0.0297) and 15 (P = 0.00272). Those of groups AG and CB contained significantly (P = 0.0235) more GAG on day 20. Chondrocytes of the polypropylene mesh group proliferated and produced matrix through day 10 in culture, but were no longer viable and had no matrix production on days 15 and 20. Regenerated cellulose appeared to be toxic to canine chondrocytes during all stages of in vitro three-dimensional culture. CONCLUSIONS: Three-dimensional culture of canine chondrocytes in agarose appears to produce favorable results with respect to chondrocyte proliferation and matrix production. Canine CB appears to have beneficial effects with regard to early GAG synthesis. Polypropylene mesh and oxidized regenerated cellulose had detrimental effects on cellular proliferation and matrix production.

Analysis of Variance↗

The importance of Java and CORBA in medicine.

One of the most powerful tools available for telemedicine is a multimedia medical record accessible over a wide area and simultaneously editable by multiple physicians. The ability to do this through an intuitive interface linking multiple distributed data repositories while maintaining full data integrity is a fundamental enabling technology in healthcare. We discuss the role of distributed object technology using Java and CORBA in providing this capability including an example of such a system (TeleMed) which can be accessed through the World Wide Web. Issues of security, scalability, data integrity, and usability are emphasized.

Computer Communication Networks↗

Aging of the skin: implications for cutaneous surgery.

There are precious few benefits, save perhaps experience and wisdom, that those of advanced age may claim over those who continue to dwell in their youth. One somewhat paradoxical advantage, however, is the ability of older patients to apparently heal better than younger patients after cutaneous surgery. In older patients, the incision lines are less red, the scarring is less hypertrophic, and "normalization" of appearance occurs more rapidly. And yet, the "wrapping" does not necessarily reflect the contents of the "box." Unfavorable age-dependent alterations in the physical properties of the skin and the wound-healing cascade may affect the viability and structural integrity of the postoperative result. Surgery on the aged population must therefore couple the optimism for a pleasing aesthetic result with the caution reflecting a cutaneous substrate altered by the perturbations of time. This somewhat shaky balance, although not altogether understood, is worthy of study by the physician approaching the patient of advanced age.

Aged↗

Role of p300-family proteins in E1A oncogene induction of cytolytic susceptibility and tumor cell rejection.

The mechanism by which the adenoviral (Ad) E1A oncogene induces cellular susceptibility to lysis by killer lymphocytes involves interactions between its first exon and different second-exon accessory regions. Mutational analysis showed that two first-exon regions--one in the N terminus and one in the conserved region 1 (CR1) domain--are necessary for this activity. E1A complex formation with cellular p300 protein through these first-exon-encoded regions correlated with induction of the cytolytic susceptible phenotype but was only effective in the context of E1A second-exon expression. An E1A first-exon deletion that prevented p300 binding eliminated both oncoprotein-induced cytolytic susceptibility and rejection of transfected sarcoma cells by immunocompetent animals. These results suggest that the E1A oncogene induces cytolytic susceptibility and tumor rejection by interactions with cellular proteins of the p300 family that affect transcription of genes involved in the cellular response to injury inflicted by host killer cells.

Adenoviridae↗

E1A oncogene expression in target cells induces cytolytic susceptibility at a post-recognition stage in the interaction with killer lymphocytes.

E1A oncogene expression increases the susceptibility of cells from several species to lysis by natural killer lymphocytes (NK cells). We asked whether this E1A-induced cellular phenotypic conversion is specific for NK cell recognition interactions with target cells or whether it results from an E1A effect that is mediated independently of recognition. E1A-positive and E1A-negative cell pairs were compared for cytolytic susceptibility to other types of killer cells that use recognition mechanisms different from those of NK cells. E1A-positive, NK-susceptible target cells were also preferentially lysed by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) that recognize only foreign MHC molecules, lymphokine-activated T cells that lack recognition specificity, and CTL whose conventional recognition mechanisms were bypassed by lectin treatment of target cells. E1A expression increased cellular susceptibility to both major mechanisms of killer cell lysis-perforin/granzyme lysis and Fas-dependent lysis. Furthermore, anti-Fas antibody lysed E1A-positive, but not E1A-negative, cells expressing comparable levels of cell surface Fas antigen. These results indicate that a major mechanism by which E1A induces cellular susceptibility to lysis involves a stage in the interaction of killer cells with their targets that follows and is independent of cell surface recognition.

Adenovirus E1A Proteins↗

E1A second exon requirements for induction of target cell susceptibility to lysis by natural killer cells: implications for the mechanism of action.

The E1A oncogene of adenovirus type 5 induces susceptibility of mammalian cells to lysis by natural killer lymphocytes (NK cells). It is unknown whether sensitization to NK killing is mediated directly by targeting effects of interactions between E1A peptides and cell surface MHC molecules or indirectly by an E1A activity that requires structural integrity of the oncoprotein. To discriminate between these hypotheses, rat and hamster cells expressing wild type E1A were contrasted with those expressing truncated products resulting from E1A termination or deletion mutations. Transfected rat cells, expressing truncated proteins from the E1A first exon that encodes MHC-binding peptides, remained resistant to lysis by NK cells, whereas cells expressing full-length E1A protein were highly susceptible to lysis. Studies of infected hamster cells showed that addition of either of two, nonoverlapping, second exon regions reconstituted cytolytic susceptibility induction by E1A. The results do not support the E1A-peptide-MHC hypothesis, since no single E1A peptide coding region was sufficient to convey cytolytic susceptibility to expresser cells. The data indicate that coordinate functions of the E1A first exon and redundant accessory regions in the second exon are required for E1A-induced susceptibility to NK killing.

Adenovirus E1A Proteins↗

Cocaine does not affect prostacyclin, thromboxane or prostaglandin E production in human umbilical veins.

Vasoactive prostaglandins have been reported to mediate umbilical/placental blood flow in humans. Since it has been suggested that cocaine exerts its teratogenic action via vasoconstriction and a corresponding reduction in blood flow, it is reasonable to hypothesize that cocaine influences the vasoactive prostaglandins such that blood flow would be affected. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to determine the effects of cocaine on the vasoactive prostaglandins prostacyclin, thromboxane, and prostaglandin E, using human umbilical veins. Prostacyclin (PGI2), thromboxane (TXA2), and prostaglandin E (PGE) levels were measured from human umbilical veins collected at term. The veins were perfused in a closed system with either a 50 micrograms/ml, a 100 micrograms/ml, a 200 micrograms/ml, or a 400 micrograms/ml cocaine solution for 60 min, and the prostaglandins were measured by radioimmunoassay of their stable metabolites. Data were analyzed by ANOVA, and post-hoc analyses were performed by Fisher's Protected Least Significant Difference Test. Cocaine did not influence PGI2, TXA2, or PGE production (Ps > 0.05) in this series of studies. Thus, contraction of human umbilical vessels and decreased blood flow in human umbilical vessels does not appear to be mediated by changes in the vasoactive prostaglandins.

Cocaine↗