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Biomedical subjects

L Bouchard

Publications and source records attributed to L Bouchard.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Effects of sulindac and oltipraz on the tumorigenicity of 4-(methylnitrosamino)1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone in A/J mouse lung.

The efficacies of the non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drug sulindac and the schistosomicidal agent oltipraz in inhibiting lung tumorigenesis was measured in A/J mice. Lung tumors (15.7 tumors/mouse) were induced by the tobacco-specific nitrosamine 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK; 9.1 mg/mouse) administered in drinking water for 7 weeks. Feeding mice with sulindac (123 mg/kg diet), 2 weeks before carcinogen treatment until they were killed reduced tumor multiplicity by 53%. Oltipraz (250 mg/kg diet), however, has no effect on tumorigenesis. The absorption and metabolism of NNK were compared in the stomachs and intestines isolated from mice fed AIN-76A diet or sulindac + diet. Sulindac had no effect on alpha-carbon hydroxylation, pyridine N-oxidation or carbonyl reduction of NNK. Mouse lung explants were cultured with 4.7 microM [5-3H]NNK for 4 or 8 h. The addition of 1 mM sulindac to the culture medium reduces the alpha-carbon hydroxylation and pyridine N-oxidation of NNK. However, the administration of sulindac in the diet prior to the excision of the lung explants had no effect on these two metabolic pathways. We compared the levels of sulindac and its sulfide and sulfone metabolites in the lungs, livers and plasma of mice fed an AIN-76A diet containing 130 mg sulindac/kg for 2 weeks. The sulfide metabolite was the most abundant of the three compounds in plasma (17.6 pmol/microliters) and liver tissues (17.7 pmol/mg) but it could not be detected in lung tissues. These results show that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs constitute a new class of chemopreventive agents in lung tumorigenesis. The tumor chemopreventive activity of sulindac is not mediated by the sulfide metabolite responsible for its anti-inflammatory activity.

Adenoma↗

Intrachromosomal recombination mediated by papovavirus large T antigens.

To investigate the mechanism by which the large T antigen (T-Ag) of polyomavirus and simian virus 40 can promote recombination in mammalian cells, we analyzed homologous recombination events occurring between two defective copies of the polyomavirus middle T (pmt) oncogene lying in close proximity on the same chromosome in a rat cell line. Reconstitution of a functional pmt gene by spontaneous recombination occurred at a rate of about 2 x 10(-7) per cell generation. Introduction of the polyomavirus large T (plt) oncogene into the cell line by DNA transfection promoted recombination very efficiently, with rates in the range of 10(-1) to 10(-2) per cell generation. Recombination was independent of any amplification of viral sequences and could even be promoted by the large T-Ag from simian virus 40, which cannot activate polyomavirus DNA replication. To explain the role of large T-Ag, we propose a novel mechanism of nonconservative recombination involving slipped-strand mispairing between the two viral repeats followed by gap repair synthesis.

Animals↗

Stochastic appearance of mammary tumors in transgenic mice carrying the MMTV/c-neu oncogene.

Transgenic mice carrying the activated c-neu oncogene under the control of the mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) long terminal repeat were produced. Epithelial hyperplasia of epididymis, seminal vesicles, and salivary glands, and dysplasia of harderian glands, were induced. Moreover, in females of our four lines, independent but multiple mammary tumors arose asynchronously, between 5 and 10 months of age, as stochastic events. Histologically, poorly differentiated adenocarcinomas, with intratumor necrosis and calcifications, arose adjacent to morphologically normal epithelium. High transgene expression was detected in all mammary tumors tested and in normal mammary glands before the appearance of the tumors. Together these results suggest that the expression of the activated c-neu oncogene was necessary but not sufficient to induce malignant transformation of the mammary epithelial cells. These tumors appear to be an adequate model for human breast cancers overexpressing c-neu.

Animals↗

Stimulation of lymphoproliferation by sucrose esters.

Lauryl sucrose has recently been shown to decrease the toxicity of amphotericin B (AmB), a widely used antifungal agent, probably through a modulation of its physical state. In this paper, we demonstrate using a lymphoproliferative assay, that lauryl sucrose and monosubstituted analogs in addition to their effects on AmB also possess significant immune enhancer properties. An anti-bell shape relationship was observed between stimulation of lymphoproliferation and chain length of ester's fatty acid, lauryl sucrose being the less active of the tested derivatives. These properties of sucrose esters are discussed in the specific context of antifungal therapy.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

Effect of CpG-rich sequences in transformation and tumorigenesis by polyomavirus.

To address the question of the role of CpG-rich sequences in gene expression, we investigated the effect of an HTF island on the activity of the polyomavirus middle T (pmt) oncogene. pmt is less transformant and less tumorigenic when it is introduced into cultured cells or newborn rats in the presence of an HTF island. Transformed cells carrying pmt in the vicinity of the HTF island have a propensity to revert at a relatively high rate of about 2 X 10(-3) per cell per generation by a mechanism probably involving methylation of some CpG sites in the island. Our results suggest that HTF islands can function as transcriptional silencers.

Animals↗

Transfer of mlt mutations into polyomavirus intronless genomes by intramolecular recombination in bacteria.

We describe a modification of the procedure of Weber and Weissmann [Nucl. Acids Res. 11 (1983) 5661-5669] for the formation of hybrid genes by in vivo recombination to introduce two separate mutations into the same gene. The mutants of interest are inserted as head-to-tail tandems in a bacterial plasmid in such a way that the 5'-proximal mutation is located upstream from the mutant with the more distal mutation. Propagation of the plasmid in a rec+ strain of Escherichia coli allows recombination between homologous sequences in the insert. DNA with the size expected for the recombinant plasmid is isolated by agarose gel electrophoresis, cloned in a recA strain, and characterized by restriction endonuclease mapping. Using this procedure, we have transferred the deletion from polyomavirus mutant dl-8 into other mutant genomes lacking the intervening sequences for either middle T or large T.

Antigens, Polyomavirus Transforming↗

Polyoma large T can activate middle T expression by a hit-and-run mechanism.

We studied the activation of polyoma middle T expression in revertant cells carrying transcriptionally inactive copies of the middle T (pmt) oncogene. Introduction of polyoma large T with neo into a rat cell line containing multiple copies of pmt stably integrated into the genome corrected the transformation defect in some of the transfected cells by activating the resident pmt gene. However, once the cells were transformed, continuous expression of the large T protein was not required for the maintenance of pmt expression and hence the maintenance of the transformed state. Transformants arising spontaneously as well as those induced by large T exhibited frequent rearrangements of the pmt inserts. Our results suggest that large T activated pmt expression by a hit-and-run mechanism involving recombination of sequences in the viral insert.

Animals↗

High-frequency changes in transcriptional activity in polyomavirus-transformed cell lines.

We applied the Luria and Delbruck fluctuation test to analyze high-frequency changes in the phenotype of rat cells transformed by a plasmid carrying the polyomavirus middle T (pmt) gene. All of the transformed cell lines analyzed were capable of switching to the normal state with rates ranging from 10(-3) to 10(-2) per cell per generation. Analysis of both middle T antigen and middle T transcripts indicated that the reversion occurred by a mechanism involving a transcriptional block of the pmt locus. Cell lines containing two separate loci reverted with a lower rate, suggesting that phenotypic switching in these cells involved two independent events affecting each locus. The flat revertants mutated to the transformed state with rates in the range of 10(-5) to 5 X 10(-5) per cell per generation. To determine whether changes in pmt expression would affect neighboring sequences, we transfected a hybrid plasmid carrying pmt linked to the neo marker and selected either for morphological transformants or for G418-resistant cells. Although their coordinate regulation was not absolute, both genes were usually subject to the same changes, reflected by loss and reacquisition of transcriptional activity.

Animals↗

Expression of the malignant phenotype in rat fibroblasts transfected with the polyomavirus transforming genes.

As a step toward understanding the molecular mechanism of cooperation between viral and cellular genes in oncogenic transformation, we examined various properties of rat cells transfected with the polyomavirus transforming genes without selecting for a neoplastic phenotype. The cell lines displayed a phenotype ranging from nontumorigenic (flat) to fully transformed (tumorigenic). In the established FR3T3 cell line, acquisition of the fully transformed phenotype correlated with effective expression of the polyomavirus middle T (pmt) antigen. Flat cells carrying silent copies of pmt mutated spontaneously to the fully transformed state with a frequency of 2 to 6 X 10(-5) per cell per generation. In unestablished rat fibroblasts, simultaneous transfer of either pmt and small T or pmt and large T in the presence of the neo marker conferred only a partially transformed phenotype to most of the cell lines. The same results were obtained when wild-type genomic DNA was cotransfected with pSV2-neo. The flat transformants progressively acquired properties characteristic of fully transformed cells with passage in culture. However, in contrast to FR3T3 cells, the generation of fully transformed variants from the flat, unestablished fibroblasts was not caused by activation of pmt expression. This indicates that the functions conferred by the large and small T antigens, alone or in combination with each other, cannot substitute for all the functions expressed by the FR3T3 cell line as a result of in vitro establishment. Thus, polyomavirus-mediated transformation may require additional cellular alterations beyond the acquisition of the three viral oncogenes.

Animals↗

Tumorigenic activity of polyoma virus and SV40 DNAs in newborn rodents.

A procedure has been developed whereby the oncogenicity of the DNA from polyoma (Py) virus and Simian virus 40 (SV40) can be tested directly by injecting recombinant DNA into newborn rodents. Injection of 0.2-2.0 micrograms of linear DNA induced the development of subcutaneous liposarcomas and fibrosarcomas at the site of inoculation. Coinjection of high-molecular-weight rat DNA as carrier had little or no effect on tumor formation but plasmids pBR322, pAT153 , and pML2 behaved as strong inhibitors. Tumor induction by injecting DNA into newborn rodents provides an in vivo equivalent to a transformation assay but appears to be a more stringent and rigorous criterion of oncogenic transformation. The oncogenic potential of Py virus in newborn hamsters could be expressed by a recombinant encoding only the middle T protein, although with average tumor latencies 5-10 times longer than those observed with wild-type Py DNA. Py middle T required the cooperation from small T to induce tumors in newborn rats. SV40 DNA was tumorigenic only in newborn hamsters. delta 2005 DNA which is unable to produce the SV40 small T antigen was much less active and required a latent period about twice that of wild-type SV40 DNA. However, its tumorigenic potential was restored by addition of the Py small T antigen gene. This indicates that Py and SV40 small T antigens are interchangeable and that they probably play an identical role in malignant transformation. Finally, evidence was provided that intermolecular recombination or recombination between DNA fragments can occur in vivo.

Animals↗

Evaluation of regulated-breathing method and awareness training in the treatment of stuttering.

Twelve subjects participated in this study. One group was treated by means of the regulated-breathing technique (Azrin & Nunn, 1974). Three other groups were treated similarly after receiving additional types of awareness training. Measures of stuttering were obtained obtrusively and unobtrusively during telephone and laboratory interviews before, during, at termination, and two months after the end of treatment. It was hypothesized that increasing a subject's awareness of his stuttering before treatment would lead to better maintenance of therapeutic gains. Results partially support this hypothesis, but the clinical effectiveness of the regulated-breathing method is questioned.

Adolescent↗

Usefulness of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt in the management of bleeding ectopic varices in cirrhotic patients.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) in the control of bleeding from ectopic varices. METHODS: From 1995 to 2004, 24 cirrhotic patients, bleeding from ectopic varices, mean age 54.5 years (range 15-76 years), were treated by TIPS. The etiology of cirrhosis was alcoholic in 13 patients and nonalcoholic in 11 patients. The location of the varices was duodenal (n = 5), stomal (n = 8), ileocolic (n = 6), anorectal (n = 3), umbilical (n = 1), and peritoneal (n = 1). RESULTS: TIPS controlled the bleeding in all patients and induced a decrease in the portacaval gradient from 19.7 +/- 5.4 to 6.4 +/- 3.1 mmHg. Postoperative complications included self-limited intra-abdominal bleeding (n = 2), self-limited hemobilia (n = 1), acute thrombosis of the shunt (n = 1), and bile leak treated by a covered stent (n = 1). Median follow-up was 592 days (range 28-2482 days). Rebleeding occurred in 6 patients. In 2 cases rebleeding was observed despite a post-TIPS portacaval gradient lower than 12 mmHg and was controlled by variceal embolization; 1 patient underwent surgical portacaval shunt and never rebled; in 3 patients rebleeding was related to TIPS stenosis and treated with shunt dilatation with addition of a new stent. The cumulative rate of rebleeding was 23% and 31% at 1 and 2 years, respectively. One- and 2-year survival rates were 80% and 76%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The present series demonstrates that bleeding from ectopic varices, a challenging clinical problem, can be managed safely by TIPS placement with low rebleeding and good survival rates.

Adolescent↗

[Therapeutic touch].

In the advanced stages of dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT), affected persons present body language and various behaviours expressing discomfort: shouting, agitation, irritability, aggressiveness, tense movements. Nursing, up until now, has had few available means to ease this discomfort. The authors of the following article have conducted an experimental study measuring the alleviating effects of therapeutic touch on the discomfort of persons in the advanced stages of DAT. Experimental group subjects (n = 16) received 5 sessions of therapeutic touch lasting 12.4 minutes. Control group subjects (n = 11) received 5 sessions of simple presence lasting 10.3 minutes. The authors measured subject discomfort levels using the Discomfort Scale for Dementias of the Alzheimer's Type (DS-DAT). Results show that discomfort levels of persons in the advanced stages of DAT decreased significantly after 5 therapeutic touch sessions, becoming significantly lower than levels in the control group. If care was focused on the whole person and his or her comfort, tools like therapeutic touch would become available to nurses, allowing them to enhance the quality of life of the people in their care.

Aged↗