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Biomedical subjects

J M Allan

Publications and source records attributed to J M Allan.

16 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Polymorphism in glutathione S-transferase P1 is associated with susceptibility to chemotherapy-induced leukemia.

Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) detoxify potentially mutagenic and toxic DNA-reactive electrophiles, including metabolites of several chemotherapeutic agents, some of which are suspected human carcinogens. Functional polymorphisms exist in at least three genes that encode GSTs, including GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1. We hypothesize, therefore, that polymorphisms in genes that encode GSTs alter susceptibility to chemotherapy-induced carcinogenesis, specifically to therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia (t-AML), a devastating complication of long-term cancer survival. Elucidation of genetic determinants may help to identify individuals at increased risk of developing t-AML. To this end, we have examined 89 cases of t-AML, 420 cases of de novo AML, and 1,022 controls for polymorphisms in GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1. Gene deletion of GSTM1 or GSTT1 was not specifically associated with susceptibility to t-AML. Individuals with at least one GSTP1 codon 105 Val allele were significantly over-represented in t-AML cases compared with de novo AML cases [odds ratio (OR), 1.81; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.11-2.94]. Moreover, relative to de novo AML, the GSTP1 codon 105 Val allele occurred more often among t-AML patients with prior exposure to chemotherapy (OR, 2.66; 95% CI, 1.39-5.09), particularly among those with prior exposure to known GSTP1 substrates (OR, 4.34; 95% CI, 1.43-13.20), and not among those t-AML patients with prior exposure to radiotherapy alone (OR,1.01; 95% CI, 0.50-2.07). These data suggest that inheritance of at least one Val allele at GSTP1 codon 105 confers a significantly increased risk of developing t-AML after cytotoxic chemotherapy, but not after radiotherapy.

Chromosome Aberrations↗
PubMed2001

Genetic alterations in bronchial mucosa and plasma DNA from individuals at high risk of lung cancer.

Evidence suggests that the majority of lung cancer patients have tumour-derived genetic alterations in circulating plasma DNA, and that this may be developed as a diagnostic tool. To this end, we have studied 60 individuals attending bronchoscopy clinic, with symptoms suspicious of lung cancer, for genetic alterations in bronchial mucosa biopsy (n = 47) and plasma (n = 40) DNA. Thirteen of 47 individuals from whom biopsies were taken displayed allelic loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in biopsy DNA for at least 1 of 4 markers. All 13 of these individuals had neoplastic tumour cells in their biopsies and were subsequently diagnosed with cancer. Thirteen of 40 individuals from whom plasma was taken displayed a plasma DNA LOH, and 12 of these 13 individuals were subsequently diagnosed with cancer. LOH in plasma was generally representative of LOH in the corresponding biopsy. In terms of sensitivity, using just 4 markers, biopsy LOH and plasma LOH were found in 13 of 44 (30%) and 12 of 29 (41%), respectively, of those patients subsequently diagnosed with cancer. Two patients were positive for LOH in plasma samples that pre-dated a diagnosis of cancer by several months. These data suggest that assay of genetic alterations in circulating plasma DNA may be developed as a useful addition to conventional techniques for the diagnosis of lung cancer.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

The effect of hOGG1 and glutathione peroxidase I genotypes and 3p chromosomal loss on 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine levels in lung cancer.

Polymorphic genes for the peroxide scavenger glutathione peroxidase I (GPX1) and 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) DNA glycosylase/apurinic (AP) lyase (hOGG1) map to loci on chromosome 3p which are subject to frequent loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in lung tumours. Levels of the pro-mutagenic, oxidative DNA lesion 8-OHdG, were measured in 37 paired normal and tumorous lung specimens using HPLC with electrochemical detection. Lung tumours were also analysed for 3p LOH by fluorescent PCR with Genescan analysis. No significant difference was observed between 8-OHdG levels in tumour [7.7 +/- 6.7 (mean +/- SE) 8-OHdG/10(6) 2'-deoxyguanosine (dG)] and normal (8.1 +/- 8.8 8-OHdG/10(6) dG) lung tissue. Adduct levels in normal lung tissue DNA were not associated with constitutive hOGG1 genotype although there was a trend towards lower 8-OHdG levels in individuals possessing the ALA6 GPX1 polymorphism. Lung tumours exhibiting 3p LOH (40%) contained higher levels of 8-OHdG adducts (10.9 +/- 2.6 8-OHdG/10(6) dG) (P = 0.05) and lower GPX1 enzyme activity [45.5 nmol glutathione (GSH)/min/mg] (P = 0.09) when compared with tumours without LOH at these sites (5.55 +/- 0.87 8-OHdG/10(6) dG and 63.6 nmol GSH/min/mg, respectively). In conclusion, tumours with 3p LOH at loci associated with hOGG1 and GPX1 appear to have compromised oxidative defence mechanisms as measured by reduced GPX1 enzyme activity and elevated 8-OHdG levels and this may affect the prognosis of lung cancer patients.

8-Hydroxy-2'-Deoxyguanosine↗
PubMed2000

Bone formation into surface phosphonylated polymeric implants.

Through the use of two animal models, the present study demonstrates the ability of phosphonylated surfaces to bind bone. In one model, surface-treated polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) were implanted in the medial cortex of the goat tibia. In the second model, surface-treated poly(ether-ether ketone) (PEEK) and carbon fiber-reinforced PEEK (CFR-PEEK) were implanted through both cortices of the goat mandible. Selected rods of all material types were microtextured using crystallization induced microphase separation, a method for the formation of continuous, open-cell microporous surfaces in thermoplastic polymers. Microtextured and smooth rods were phosphonylated, and calcium was subsequently introduced to the phosphonylated surface by incubating the samples in a saturated solution of calcium oxide. For all substrate materials tested, phosphonylation and calcium posttreatment resulted in an increased propensity for bone binding and apposition, as measured by push out test. Microtextured PP, PE, and CFR-PEEK surfaces that were further phosphonylated and calcium treated resulted in test samples with an increased interfacial strength.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

3-methyladenine DNA glycosylases: structure, function, and biological importance.

The genome continuously suffers damage due to its reactivity with chemical and physical agents. Finding such damage in genomes (that can be several million to several billion nucleotide base pairs in size) is a seemingly daunting task. 3-Methyladenine DNA glycosylases can initiate the base excision repair (BER) of an extraordinarily wide range of substrate bases. The advantage of such broad substrate recognition is that these enzymes provide resistance to a wide variety of DNA damaging agents; however, under certain circumstances, the eclectic nature of these enzymes can confer some biological disadvantages. Solving the X-ray crystal structures of two 3-methyladenine DNA glycosylases, and creating cells and animals altered for this activity, contributes to our understanding of their enzyme mechanism and how such enzymes influence the biological response of organisms to several different types of DNA damage.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

DNA repair methyltransferase (Mgmt) knockout mice are sensitive to the lethal effects of chemotherapeutic alkylating agents.

We have generated mice deficient in O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase activity encoded by the murine Mgmt gene using homologous recombination to delete the region encoding the Mgmt active site cysteine. Tissues from Mgmt null mice displayed very low O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase activity, suggesting that Mgmt constitutes the major, if not the only, O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase. Primary mouse embryo fibroblasts and bone marrow cells from Mgmt -/- mice were significantly more sensitive to the toxic effects of the chemotherapeutic alkylating agents 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea, streptozotocin and temozolomide than those from Mgmt wild-type mice. As expected, Mgmt-deficient fibroblasts and bone marrow cells were not sensitive to UV light or to the crosslinking agent mitomycin C. In addition, the 50% lethal doses for Mgmt -/- mice were 2- to 10-fold lower than those for Mgmt +/+ mice for 1,3-bis(2chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea, N-methyl-N-nitrosourea and streptozotocin; similar 50% lethal doses were observed for mitomycin C. Necropsies of both wild-type and Mgmt -/mice following drug treatment revealed histological evidence of significant ablation of hematopoietic tissues, but such ablation occurred at much lower doses for the Mgmt -/- mice. These results demonstrate the critical importance of O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase in protecting cells and animals against the toxic effects of alkylating agents used for cancer chemotherapy.

Alkylating Agents↗
PubMed1998

Mammalian 3-methyladenine DNA glycosylase protects against the toxicity and clastogenicity of certain chemotherapeutic DNA cross-linking agents.

DNA repair status is recognized as an important determinant of the clinical efficacy of cancer chemotherapy. To assess the role that a mammalian DNA glycosylase plays in modulating the toxicity and clastogenicity of the chemotherapeutic DNA cross-linking alkylating agents, we compared the sensitivity of wild-type murine cells to that of isogenic cells bearing homozygous null mutations in the 3-methyladenine DNA glycosylase gene (Aag). We show that Aag protects against the toxic and clastogenic effects of 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea and mitomycin C (MMC), as measured by cell killing, sister chromatid exchange, and chromosome aberrations. This protection is accompanied by suppression of apoptosis and a slightly reduced p53 response. Our results identify 3-methyladenine DNA glycosylase-initiated base excision repair as a potentially important determinant of the clinical efficacy and, possibly, the carcinogenicity of these widely used chemotherapeutic agents. However, Aag does not contribute significantly to protection against the toxic and clastogenic effects of several chemotherapeutic nitrogen mustards (namely, mechlorethamine, melphalan, and chlorambucil), at least in the mouse embryonic stem cells used here. We also compare the Aag null phenotype with the Fanconi anemia phenotype, a human disorder characterized by cellular hypersensitivity to DNA cross-linking agents, including MMC. Although Aag null cells are sensitive to MMC-induced growth delay and cell cycle arrest, their sensitivity is modest compared to that of Fanconi anemia cells.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

A chemical and genetic approach together define the biological consequences of 3-methyladenine lesions in the mammalian genome.

DNA-damaging agents produce a plethora of cellular responses that include p53 induction, cell cycle arrest, and apoptosis. It is generally assumed that it is the DNA damage produced by these agents that triggers such responses, but there is limited direct evidence to support this assumption. Here, we used DNA alkylation repair proficient and deficient isogenic mouse cell lines to demonstrate that the signal to trigger p53 induction, cell cycle arrest, and apoptosis in response to alkylating agents does emanate from DNA damage. Moreover, we established that 3-methyladenine, a relatively minor DNA lesion produced by most methylating agents (which form mainly 7-methylguanine), can specifically induce sister chromatid exchange, chromatid and chromosome gaps and breaks, S phase arrest, the accumulation of p53, and apoptosis. This study was made possible by the generation of 3-methyladenine DNA glycosylase null mutant cells by targeted homologous recombination and by the chemical synthesis of a methylating agent that almost exclusively produces 3-methyladenine DNA lesions. The combined use of these two experimental tools has defined the biological consequences of 3-methyladenine, a DNA lesion produced by endogenous cellular metabolites, environmental carcinogens, and chemotherapeutic alkylating agents.

Adenine↗
PubMed1997

Modulation of surface and bulk properties of biomedical polymers.

The surface and bulk modulation of polymeric biomedical devices allows the full range of material properties to be exercised as demanded by custom applications. Polymeric biomaterials are finding greater use as relatively inert and even transient options and so therefore will require thorough processing analyses and the transfer of technology from nonbiomedical applications to the biomedical industry.

Biocompatible Materials↗
PubMed1997

Base excision repair deficient mice lacking the Aag alkyladenine DNA glycosylase.

3-methyladenine (3MeA) DNA glycosylases remove 3MeAs from alkylated DNA to initiate the base excision repair pathway. Here we report the generation of mice deficient in the 3MeA DNA glycosylase encoded by the Aag (Mpg) gene. Alkyladenine DNA glycosylase turns out to be the major DNA glycosylase not only for the cytotoxic 3MeA DNA lesion, but also for the mutagenic 1,N6-ethenoadenine (epsilonA) and hypoxanthine lesions. Aag appears to be the only 3MeA and hypoxanthine DNA glycosylase in liver, testes, kidney, and lung, and the only epsilonA DNA glycosylase in liver, testes, and kidney; another epsilonA DNA glycosylase may be expressed in lung. Although alkyladenine DNA glycosylase has the capacity to remove 8-oxoguanine DNA lesions, it does not appear to be the major glycosylase for 8-oxoguanine repair. Fibroblasts derived from Aag -/- mice are alkylation sensitive, indicating that Aag -/- mice may be similarly sensitive.

Alkylating Agents↗
PubMed1997

Detection of DNA damage by Escherichia coli UvrB-binding competition assay is limited by the stability of the UvrB-DNA complex.

To investigate the use of UvrB-binding to detect DNA damage, mobility shift gel electrophoresis was used to detect binding of UvrB protein to a 136 bp DNA fragment that was randomly adducted with aflatoxin B1 8,9-epoxide and end-labelled with 32P. After polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the shifted band that contained DNA bound by UvrB was quantified as a percentage of total radioactive substrate DNA. This method was applied to analyse plasmid DNA that was adducted with various DNA modifying agents in vitro. These adducts competed for UvrB-binding to the labelled substrate. By competing for UvrB-binding with 10 ng of plasmid DNA that was adducted with known levels of aflatoxin B1, 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline, or benzo[a]pyrene diol epoxide, UvrB competition could be quantified for DNA adducted with between one adduct in 10(2) and one adduct in 10(5) normal nucleotides. However, plasmid DNA exposed to N-methyl-N-nitrosourea or methylene blue + visible light, did not compete for UvrB-binding, even though the presence of UvrABC sensitive sites were confirmed on this DNA by a UvrABC incision assay. Mono-adducted 96-bp DNA substrates, which contained an internal 32P-label and either a single apurinic site, aflatoxin B1-guanine adduct, O6-methylguanine, 8-oxo-deoxyguanosine or non-adducted guanine, were also used as substrates for UvrA- and UvrB-binding to examine the stability of UvrB-DNA complexes with specific adducts. Under similar conditions used for the competition assay, significant UvrB-binding was seen only for the aflatoxin adducted substrate. These results suggest that stability of UvrB-binding varies greatly between bulky and non-bulky adducts. It was also found that rat liver DNA from untreated rats inhibited UvrB-binding to the substrate DNA in the competition assay, to a degree that was equivalent to competition with plasmid adducted at one adduct in 10(3) normal nucleotides.

Aflatoxin B1↗
PubMed1996

The Escherichia coli DNA repair protein UvrA can re-associate with the UvrB: aflatoxin B1-DNA complex in vitro.

The UvrA and UvrB proteins form part of the UvrABc endonuclease, which is responsible for nucleotide excision repair in Escherichia coli. Using a mobility shift gel assay we have studied the binding of UvrA dimer, UvrB monomer and UvA(2)B trimer complexes with 40, 50 and 136 bp (32)P-end-labelled DNA fragments adducted with aflatoxin B(1). UvrA was shown to re-associate with adduct specific UvrB: DNA complexes, a phenomenon which could be reversed by the addition of 500 mM potassium chloride or anti-UvrA anti-sera. Re-association was shown to be UvrA concentration dependent. Re-association of UvrA(2)B to the UvrB:DNA complex was not seen. We have also shown that the UvrB:DNA complex, in the case of aflatoxin B(1), is extremely stable with a half-life excess of 400 min and that fragment termini are not a specific substrate for UvrA binding.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗
PubMed1983

Spread of rotavirus within families: a community based study.

The spread of rotavirus infection was studied over four weeks in a sample of 28 families exposed to a child with rotavirus infection. The results showed a high incidence of intrafamilial infection, with 46% of members of these families developing rotavirus infections compared with none in another series of 18 families. Children in the families with an index case were more frequently affected than adults: 75% of the children developed rotavirus infection but only 33% of the adults. Children tended to suffer the infection in a more severe form. Intrafamily contact is clearly important in transmitting rotavirus infection, and preventive measures should aim at reducing the likelihood of such cross infection.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Infusing a teacher preparation program in learning disabilities with assistive technology.

A recent trend in the fields of special education, rehabilitation, and technology is the development and implementation of assistive technology (AT) devices and services to assist individuals in compensating for disabilities and/or utilizing functional capabilities to meet environmental demands. AT devices and services have major implications for individuals with learning disabilities (LD) regarding life span issues, environmental and curricular accessibility, and compensatory strategies. Faculty members in higher education who are responsible for designing teacher preparation programs in LD must explore ways to structure curricula, methodologies, and practica to better prepare teachers to work with students who use AT devices to compensate for their specific learning disabilities. The purpose of this article is to describe curriculum design steps and barriers to and solutions for infusing LD teacher preparation programs with assistive technology.

Curriculum↗