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Biomedical subjects

W Rella

Publications and source records attributed to W Rella.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1979

Influence of thymosin on E-rosette formation of lymphoid cells in leukemic and nonleukemic children.

The influence of two thymosin and two spleen control preparations on the E-rosette formation of peripheral blood lymphocytes and leukemic cells from non-leukemic children with depressed T cell values and leukemic children was investigated. Both thymosin preparations but also one of the control preparations induced a significant increase in the mean percentage of E-rosette forming PBL in the non-leukemic children with depressed T cell values. Thymosin and spleen preparations, however, did not convert the non-erythrocyte binding blasts to erythrocyte binding cells in either common or pre-T-ALL.

Child↗
PubMed1979

MLC-activation by acute lymphatic leukemia blasts.

The MLC-activating potential of 25 ALL blasts (16 "common" ALL, 6 T-ALL, 3 not identified) was investigated. Mitomycin-treated leukemic blasts or X-irradiated lymphocytes were cultured with heparinized whole blood from different healthy donors. MLC activation by blast cells was expressed as percentage of MLC activation by X-irradiated lymphocytes. Leukemic blasts showed a heterogeneous pattern of MLC activation, ranging from 2% to 245%. Eleven out of 25 cases of ALL poorly stimulated the MLC (2% to 33% response). Twelve ALL stimulated a normal response (50% to 120%); and 2/25 ALL stimulated a supranormal response (more than 200%). Four of six cases of T-ALL stimulated the MLC as efficiently as irradiated lymphocytes, 2/6 were among the poor stimulators. Most poor stimulator blasts had, however, normal MLC-activating properties if, instead of whole blood, isolated lymphocytes were used as the responding cells. The poor activation of lymphocytes by some leukemic blasts in whole blood appeared to be associated with impaired release of blastogenic factor(s) during the MLBC. No evidence for active suppressor mechanisms was found. The significance of the MLC-activating properties of leukemic blasts for the classification and immunotherapeutic use of ALL is discussed.

Cells, Cultured↗
PubMed1978

The mixed lymphocyte response in whole blood: technical aspects.

Experiments were conducted to standardize the response of lymphocytes in whole blood in mixed culture with allogeneic lymphocytes. The following conditions were found suitable: (1) A culture period of 6-8 days. (2) The ratio of stimulator to responder lymphocytes should be 4-8, but may vary from one batch of stimulator cells to another. (3) Tests may be performed in culture tubes with 50-100 microliter blood in a total volume of 2 ml (macrotechnique) or in microplates with 10 microliter of blood in a volume of 0.2 ml (microtechnique). (4) Serum supplement is not required. (5) Results should be expressed as counts/min (cpm) per a given number of responder lymphocytes. Stimulation indices are less reliable.

Child↗
PubMed1978

[The prognostic value of lymphocyte transformation by phytohemagglutinin in children with acute lymphatic leukemia].

The response to phytohemagglutinin (PHA) of lymphocytes from 62 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) was tested before and during cytostatic therapy. Nineteen patients were tested as well for reactivity in autologous mixed lymphocyte-blast cell cultures. The prognostic value of the results obtained has been assessed. Children remained longer in their first complete remission 1) if the response to PHA before therapy was normal or only slightly diminished, or 2) if it returned to normal as soon as complete remission was attained, and 3) if periodic intensification therapy was followed by a rebound in spontaneous lymphocyte proliferation. The stimulatory response to PHA during maintenance therapy and the reactivity in mixed lymphocyte- blast cell cultures were not helpful prognostic criteria. In conclusion, determination of the PHA responsiveness at specific times, i.e. before therapy, after remission induction and after periodic intensification therapy, could help identify poor risk patients in ALL.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed1978

Immunotherapy with tumor cells and BCG in the guinea pig, studied by immunological in vivo and in vitro experiments.

The effect of intradermal immunisation with viable line 1 hepatoma cells and BCG was studied in syngeneic strain 2 guinea pigs. Immunisation with 1.5 X 10(6) hepatoma cells admixed to 200 microgram BCG induced tumor regression in 7/8 animals. Higher or lower doses were less effective and sometimes led to enhanced tumor growth. It appeared that regression or progression of tumors is established as early as 3 weeks after tumor inoculation. Aspects of humoral and cell-mediated tumor immunity in immunised and/or tumor-bearing animals were studied in vitro by the use of mixed cell cultures and of cytotoxicity tests. Immunised tumor-bearing animals reacted more vigorously than those from non-immunised animals when the tumor was small. With increasing tumor volume the specific tumor immunity disappeared in both immunised and non-immunised animals. Sera obtained from immunised or regressor animals were cytotoxic and partially blocked the mixed cell interaction. Sera obtained from progressor animals were neither cytotoxic and nor did they block the mixed cell interaction. Cytotoxic activities resided within immunoglobulin fractions enriched in IgG1 or IgG2, whereas blocking activity was mainly associated with IgG2. The effector cell function was not inhibited by the immunoglobulin fractions tested. In the discussion it is suggested that the ratio of IgG1 and IgG2 antibodies elicited during immune treatment may critically influence the success or failure of immunotherapy.

Animals↗
PubMed1978

Immunological properties of lymphoblasts and lymphocytes in children with acute lymphatic or undifferentiated leukemia.

In 35 children with acute lymphatic or undifferentiated leukemia, immunological properties of normal lymphocytes and lymphoblasts were investigated. In most cases the number of circulating normal lymphocytes with surface or B markers and delayed type hypersensitivity was depressed. On the other hand, the response to mitogenic stimulation with PHA as well as the antibody and immunoglobulin serum concentrations were found to be normal. Lymphoblasts did not exhibit surface receptors in any but four patients, who showed 10--18% of leukemic blasts being positive for E-rosette formation at 0 degree but not at 37 degrees.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1977

[Cellular immunity during and after high-dose methotrexate therapy in patients with osteosarcoma (author's transl)].

Nine patients with osteogenic sarcoma and one patient with epitheloid sarcoma of bone undergoing treatment with high-dose methotrexate (MTX) therapy were studied immunologically. The following peripheral blood lymphocyte parameters were evaluated: 1-8 days after the intravenous infusion of 7.5 g MTX followed by leucovorin rescue: absolute count/mm3, the stimulatory response to the mitogens, phythemagglutinin (PHA) and pokeweed (PW) and the reactivity in the mixed lymphocyte culture (MLC). The response to PHA remained unaffected during the observation period, whereas the response to PW decreased on the 2nd and 4th day after treatment. The MLC response was inhibited between the 1st and the 4th day. The inhibition manifested itself first in the patients plasma and was demonstrable 48 hours later in the lymphocyte itself. The responsiveness regained normal or even reacted supranormal values about 7 days after treatment. Lymphocyte function remained essentially unaltered after several cycles of treatment. Absolute lymphocyte counts, however, tended to decrease. The MTX sensitive period in vitro lasts from the 2nd to the 6th day of the MLC, which is the period of intense RNA and DNA synthesis. We conclude that high-dose MTX therapy for osteogenic sarcoma leaves the patient without major permanent damage to cellular immune function.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

Tumor-specific immunity in sarcoma patients.

Stimulatory responses of 40 patients with bone [33] and soft tissue [7] sarcomas to autologous tumor cells were correlated with clinical data and prognosis. Although conclusive judgments for individual patients cannot be made, some genral features emerge: patients with stimulation indices greater than 1.5 have a 50 percent relapse-free interval after surgery of 22 months, patients with indices, below 1.5 have a 50 percent relapse-free interval of 5 months. 7 out of 10 responder patients are tumor-free 1 year after surgery as compared to 5 out of 19 (26 percent of non-responder pateints (p less than 0.05). Removal of the tumor is followed by an increase in the stimulatory response and by the dissappearance of blocking serum factors in patients with favourable prognosis. Responses return to baseline levels in tumor free patients 9-12 months after surgery. The results suggest that tumor-associated immune responses play a role in the development of human sarcomas. In addition, 47 lymphocyte samples of 25 patients were tested for stimulation by autologous tumor cells and for cell-mediated cytotoxicity against allogeneic sarcoma cell lines. Similar results were obtained in both test systems when pre-therapy lymphocytes were used. Discordant results were frequently seen at times after surgery. Both test systems may complement each other and may help clarify the tumor-specificity of certain lymphocytotoxic activities.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

The immune-status in patients with bone and soft-tissue sarcomas.

The immunologic status of 50 sarcoma patients was established. It was possible to apply the DNCB test and the recall antigen test in most cases during the course of the illness. The PHA stimulation of the lymphocytes and their cytotoxicity on homologous sarcoma cell lines were also correlated with the course of the illness. Nonspecific tests related neither to each other nor to the development of the illness while the tumor-specific cytotoxicity test correlated closely with the course of the disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

Immunocompetence of pinealectomized and simultaneously pinealectomized and thymectomized rats.

The cellular and antibody-mediated immune responsiveness was studied in adult rats which had the pineal and/or the thymus gland removed within 36 hours after birth. The immunolgical parameters measured were: Skin graft rejection, haemolytic plaque formation, and haemagglutinating antibody formation in response to sheep red blood cells and the stimulation of lymphoid cells from the spleen by phytohaemagglutinin in lipopolysaccharide. The removal of the pineal gland had little effect on the degree of immunocompetence in normal or immunosuppressed animals. In some of the immunological tests an accelerated response was observed, which suggests that lymphoid cells from pinealectomized or pinealectomized-thymectomized animals proliferate more rapidly upon contact with antigen or mitogen. This accelerated cell proliferation, unlike the immunodepression of the host, could explain the enhanced growth of transplantable tumors observed in pinealectomized animals.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

[Responsiveness of lymphocytes to stimulation by pha and autologous blasts in acute lymphatic leukemias during remission (author's transl)].

The paper deals with the question how far the lymphocytes of acute lymphatic leukemia patients in remission can be stimulated by PHA and autologous blasts in the MLC-Test. The lymphocyte stimulation by PHA showed considerable variation dependent on the phase of therapy. A significant reduction of the responsiveness to PHA stimulation was found during the prophylactic reinduction treatment with Vincristin and Prednisolon compared with the results during maintenance therapy. The examination of lymphocyte stimulation by conserved autologous blasts in the mixed lymphocyte culture-test yielded positive results in one of three children at the beginning of remission and in 2 of 3 children during the consolidated remission period.

Child↗
PubMed1975

Investigation of cell-vitality in tumor specimen after cryosurgical operations.

Carcinomas of the gastro-intestinal tract were resected in 6 patients either by cryosurgery or in the usual, conventional manner without freezing the tumor. Cells from the tumorsections in each case were isolated by the use of enzymes and were examined for vitality following trypan-blue vital staining. In 5 out of 6 cryosurgical cases fewer than 10% of the cells were vital compared with sections from nonfrozen specimen. In one case the freezing method (cryosurgery) did not have any influence on the cell vitality. The cell-damaging effect of cryosurgical procedures proven in vitro suggests possible additional therapeutic effects in tumor-patients. Cryosurgery has proven useful in the treatment of hypertrophic prostates, when an unusual risk was involved. Recently it has also been used in the surgical treatment of carcinomas of the skin, the bladder and the cervix (1; 2, 3, 6). Approximately a year ago we started to use cryosurgery in our hospital in inoperable abdominal tumors. After freezing the primary tumor or its metastases a massive breakdown of the remaining tumor in-situ occurs, which might produce a palliative effect. As a result of freezing the tumor before resection, we expect a decrease in the spread of tumor cells during surgery and a stimulation and mobilization of specific immune response against the tumor (5). In order to increase our knowledge of the biological behaviour of cryosurgically treated tumors, we investigated in the present study teh cell-vitality in tumor tissues before and after cryosurgery.

Cell Survival↗