PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

L Bertolini

Publications and source records attributed to L Bertolini.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1975

Detection of nerve growth factor binding sites on neuroblastoma cells by rosette formation.

A cloned suspension culture of mouse C1300 neuroblastoma cells bound, at 2degrees, sheep erythrocytes passively coated with nerve growth factor, with the formation of rosettes. When grown in tissue culture dishes to which they could attach, neuroblastoma cells rapidly transformed, within 48 hr emitting cytoplasmic processes some of which were several mm long. Most of the attached neuroblastoma cells formed rosettes. In contrast, normal mouse kidney cells or various murine tumor cell lines used as cell controls exhibited a poor capacity for binding nerve growth factor. Rosette formation was a specific reaction that could be prevented by pretreating cells with proteolytic enzymes, free nerve growth factor, or specific antibodies against neuroblastoma cell extracts.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Phagocytosis of nerve growth factor-coated erythrocytes in neuroblastoma rosette-forming cells.

At 2 degrees, murine C1300 neuroblastoma cells bound NGF-coated sheep erythrocytes and formed rosettes. When the temperature was raised to 37 degrees, the neuroblastoma cells underwent a rapid transformation characterized by microtubule formation, which occurred under the membrane surface close to the points of contact with the attached red cells. Cytoplasmic processes filled wit- microtubules were then emitted by the cell body and surrounded the red cells. Within 20 to 30 min, the attached erythrocytes were phagocytized. Interiorization of membrane-bound erythrocytes-antibody-complement complexes by neuroblasto-a cells could be similarly induced at 37 degrees. In both cases, the extent of phagocytosis was decreased when microtubule formation was blocked with colchicine or vinblastine. Complete inhibition was obtained only by pretreatment of cells with cytochalasin B, a strong inhibitor of microfilament contraction. The role played by the microtubules and the microfilaments in promoting the phagocytosis of the attached erythrocytes is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1974

Specific binding of nerve growth factor (NGF) by murine C 1300 neuroblastoma cells.

Murine C 1300 neuroblastoma cells bind with high avidity on their membrane surface the nerve growth factor (NGF), a protein capable of inducing differentiation of sympathetic nerve cells. The total binding capacity of NGF by the cells was quantitatively measured by a radioimmunoassay technique, using (125)I-labeled NGF. An average number of about 10(6) molecules of NGF could be bound, at saturation, by each cell with an average relative association constant of about 10(7) liters/mol. Using synchronized cells, it was found, however, that either the number of molecules of ligand bound or the avidity of the binding interaction between NGF and cells varied depending upon their growth cycle, the maximal-binding occurring during the G(1) and early S phase. Binding of [(125)I]NGF was suppressed by trypsin treatment of the cells, however new receptor sites were rapidly replaced onto the membrane surface within 1-2 h. Cells exposed to 3 M KCl released into the supernate a protein product exhibiting similar high avidity for NGF. Acrylamide gel electrophoresis suggested a restricted molecular heterogeneity of this product, with a major component in the 52,000 mol wt region. Antibodies made specific to this protein were capable, in the absence of the complement, of inhibiting the binding of [(125)I]NGF by the cells and in the presence of the complement they killed them.

Amino Acids↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Detection of a 5' UTR variation in the HCV genome after a long-term in vitro infection.

The TOFE lymphoid cell line from normal human bone marrow is susceptible to infection by a hepatitis C virus (HCV) serum strain. A sequence analysis of the 5' untranslated region (UTR) of HCV before and after long-term in vitro infection revealed one base substitution at position -158 (C > T) of the 5' UTR. We performed the direct sequencing of 5' UTR polymerase chain reaction-amplified sequences of the HCV genome: a) from the original serum-derived strain; b) from TOFE cell extracts 6 months post infection. This base substitution in the regulatory elements of the 5' UTR might be related to the ability of the virus to grow in cell culture.

Base Sequence↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The human bone-marrow-derived B-cell line CE, susceptible to hepatitis C virus infection.

The euploid-diploid cell line CE, issuing spontaneously from a normal human bone marrow culture, displays B-cell differentiation and activation markers and is positive (> or = 90% of cells) for Epstein-Barr nuclear antigens. CE suspensions were inoculated with serum from a patient chronically infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). After inoculation, the cells were regularly subcultured with a split ratio of 1:2 every 4-6 days. RNA extracted as late as 65 days after infection from the inoculated cells were positive by polymerase chain reaction for the 5' untranslated region of the HCV genome, and viral antigens were detected by immunofluorescence. Virus was also released from the infected cells into the medium. Intracellular HCV could be successfully passaged twice in CE cultures. On the basis of these findings, the CE cell line appears promising as a model for studying HCV replication and persistent infection in vitro.

Antigens, Differentiation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Quantitation of hepatitis C virus RNA production in two human bone marrow-derived B-cell lines infected in vitro.

The ability of hepatitis C virus (HCV) to replicate in two B-cell lines, CE and TOFE, derived from bone marrow of healthy subjects was compared using qualitative and quantitative molecular methods. The presence of intracellular negative-stranded HCV RNA (replicative intermediate) was investigated by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the infected cultures at different times after infection. The amounts of positive-stranded HCV RNA (genomic RNA copies) synthesized and released from cells one week after in vitro infection were determined by competitive PCR after reverse transcription of viral RNA for the 5' viral untranslated region. In both cell lines, HCV RNA replication took place, but the TOFE cell line appeared to be a more efficient virus producer than the CE cell line. The TOFE cell line could be a valuable and reliable tool for basic and clinical HCV studies.

B-Lymphocytes↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Ultrastructural observations of viral particles within hepatitis C virus-infected human B lymphoblastoid cell line.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected TOFE cells, a human bone marrow-derived B-cell line, were studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). We reported the presence of virus-like particles, (VLPs) having a diameter of 45 nm on average, within the cytoplasm of HCV-infected cells and their absence in uninfected cells. The VLPs were mostly seen in dilated cisternae of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and consisted of an electron-dense core and a membrane envelope with surface projections. In the HCV-infected TOFE cells, examination by TEM revealed tubular structures similar to those observed in liver cells of chimpanzees and humans infected by the virus. In some instances, the outer membrane of the particles was connected to the ER membrane, indicating possible virus budding into the cisternae. Rarely, coated vesicles containing a particle were seen. In most of the infected cells, enlarged cytoplasmic vacuoles filled with degenerative amorphous material were observed. The data suggest a flavivirus-like pattern of HCV morphogenesis in infected non-hepatic cells and identify lymphoblastoid TOFE cells as a valuable system for the study of the sequential steps of the infection process and the morphological effects produced by HCV infection.

B-Lymphocytes↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Morphological modifications induced by HCV infection in the TOFE human lymphoblastoid cell line.

In this study, we analysed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), sequential details of morphological modifications that accompanied viral morphogenesis in the lymphoblastoid cell line (LCL) TOFE infected in vitro with hepatitis C virus (HCV). As previously reported, we observed virus-like particles (VLPs) in cytoplasmic vesicles mainly located in the perinuclear region of infected cells. In this area, the Golgi apparatus and the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) appeared hyperplastic, remarkably enriched in vesicles and lysosomal structures. Furthermore, only in this perinuclear region, cytopathic-effect(CPE)-like changes seemed to originate, consisting in enlarged cytoplasmic vacuoles filled with degenerative amorphous material containing VLPs. Finally, the complete filling-up of the cytoplasm with these degenerative vacuoles, in addition to cellular lysis displayed by some cells, appeared as the possible terminal pattern of the infectious process. Our data suggest that in vitro HCV-infected TOFE cells undergo typical CPE-like changes that may be connected with virus replication.

B-Lymphocytes↗