R A Chee-Awai | PubMed Health

PubMed1998

Laparoscopic nephrectomy in children.

Using the techniques for laparoscopic nephrectomy developed in adults, pediatric nephrectomy results in equivalent surgical outcomes compared with open surgery. To date, both transperitoneal and retroperitoneal laparoscopic approaches to nephrectomy for benign renal disease have been described. Controversy exists among pediatric urologists, however, regarding the advantages of laparoscopic nephrectomy in children because convalescence from an open nephrectomy is also rapid. This article reviews the current indications and techniques for laparoscopic nephrectomy in children as well as other surgical applications of laparoscopy with respect to the pediatric patient.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Efficient delivery of triplex forming oligonucleotides to tumor cells by adenovirus-polylysine complexes.

Oligonucleotides (ODNs) show great promise in their ability to specifically inhibit single gene expression but must cross the cell membrane, escape the endosomal vesicle, and possibly traverse the nuclear membrane to arrive at their intracellular target molecules. In an attempt to improve the delivery of phosphodiester triplex forming ODNs to malignant cells, we have constructed adenovirus-polylysine (AdpL)-ODN complexes designed to take advantage of the receptor mediated endocytosis of adenoviruses to transfer the ODNs to the cell nucleus. Treatment of several different types of tumor cells in culture by AdpL-ODN complex resulted in superior uptake and persistence of the ODNs compared to both free ODN and cationic lipid-ODN complexes. Nuclear uptake peaks at 4 h and intact ODN persists in the nucleus with a half-life of 12 h. ODN concentrations of 20-70 microM are achieved at 24 h in all monolayer cell lines evaluated to date. ODNs are detected in 50-100% of the total cell population by immunohistochemistry with apparent uptake into vesicles and nuclear localization. Luciferase expression of a co-delivered reporter plasmid suggests that these ODNs are free in the nucleus. AdpL-ODN complexes will provide a valuable tool for delivering unmodified ODNs to the nucleus of malignant cells.

Adenoviruses, Human↗