Análise da marcação de células da linhagem C6 de glioma com as lectinas vegetais CPL, WGA, e Con A / cell marking analysis of C6 glioma line with plant lectins CPL, WGA and Con A

Introdução e objetivos: O glioblastoma multiforme é um glioma de alto grau que apresenta um prognóstico ruim. O diagnóstico definitivo é estabelecido pela avaliação histológica, porém este pode apresentar conflitos na classificação, com isso surge à necessidade de ferramentas que auxiliem o patologista em sua análise. Atualmente, maior ênfase tem sido dada a alterações na glicosilação, pois estão associadas a neoplasias, e a descoberta da capacidade de lectinas em reconhecer tais alterações fez destas, ferramentas aplicáveis para o diagnóstico biomédico. Dessa forma, o objetivo deste trabalho é analisar a marcação das lectinas CpL, WGA e Con A em células da linhagem C6...

Introduction and objectives: Glioblastoma multiforme is a high-grade glioma that has a poor prognosis. The definitive diagnosis is established by histological assessment. However, this can present conflicts in grading gliomas, which justifies new tools to assist the pathologist in his analysis. Currently, it is known that there are changes in glycosylation pattern of molecules associated with cancer, and the discovery of the ability of lectins to recognize these changes made these tools applicable for biomedical diagnosis. Thus, the aim of this study is to analyze the labelling of C6...

Oxidant/antioxidant status and immunoglobulin levels in patients with primary brain tumors before and after surgical intervention

To assess serum level of malondialehyde [MDA], total antioxidant status [TAS] as a representative of oxidative stress, with immunoglobulin levels [IgG, IgA, IgM] in patients with primary brain tumors at diagnosis and one month after surgical resection in comparison to healthy controls. The study was conducted in Iben-Seena Hospital in Mosul city Iraq. Thirty-seven patients with primary brain tumors were included in the study, later proved by histopathology to be cases of meningioma [24 cases] and glioma [13 cases]. Also included 32 apparently healthy, age and sex matched subjects as a control group. Initially, blood samples were taken from both the patients and controls and assessment of serum MDA, TAS and immunoglobulin levels [IgG, IgA, IgM] were done, later for the patients group one month after surgical resection of the tumor another blood samples were taken and assessment of the same parameters mentioned above were done again. Serum MDA was found to be significantly higher [p<0.001] and serum TAS was significantly lower [p<0.001] in patients with primary brain tumors [both meningioma and glioma] prior to surgical resection in comparison to controls. Postoperatively, there was a significant reduction [p<0.001] in serum MDA levels with an increase in TAS [which was slightly significant in gliomas and insignificant with meningiomas]. With regard to serum immunoglobulin levels, there was a significant increase in serum IgG [gliomas p<0.05; meningioma p<0.001] preoperatively compared with controls, with a significant reduction [p<0.001] in the serum levels of IgG, IgA and IgM postoperatively in comparison to preoperative values. Primary brain tumors [both meningioma and glioma] as a disease carry a substantial effects on oxidant/antioxidant status and on serum immunoglobulin levels as part of the humoral immunity so as the surgical removal of the tumor mass as a way of therapy

Anti-P53 antibodies in Brazilian brain tumor patients

Gliomas of astrocytic origin are the most common primary brain tumors, accounting for over 40 to 50 of all central nervous system tumors. The TP53 tumor suppressor gene is the most frequently mutated gene found in human malignancies. A mutation of this gene can lead to an increased half-life of the resulting protein and loss of biological function. High levels of p53 have been detected in the serum of colon cancer patients, although p53 protein has not been detected in the serum of brain tumor patients. Besides circulating p53, several studies have detected antibodies against p53 in patients with lung and breast cancer, as well as those with other types of cancer. We studied p53 protein and anti-p53 antibodies in the plasma of Brazilian brain tumor patients. Plasma samples were drawn from 24 untreated brain tumor patients and from 15 healthy donors without clinical signs of cancer. Western blotting techniques were used to detect p53 protein and anti-p53 antibodies. We found anti-p53 antibodies in 5/24 brain tumor patients. Age appears to affect the immune response, as four of six tumor patients under 16 years old had detectable anti-p53 antibodies, while these were found in only 1 of 18 adults (over 16 years old). We found no p53 protein in any of the serum samples from the brain tumors. Possibly the presence of this protein is affected by tumor type or by the organs that are sampled

Tryptophan and tyrosine catabolic pattern in neuropsychiatric disorders.

Catabolism of tryptophan and tyrosine in relation to the isoprenoid pathway was studied in neurological and psychiatric disorders. The concentration of trytophan, quinolinic acid, kynurenic acid, serotonin and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid was found to be higher in the plasma of patients with all these disorders; while that of tyrosine, dopamine, epinephrine and norepinephrine was lower. There was increase in free fatty acids and decrease in albumin (factors modulating tryptophan transport) in the plasma of these patients. Concentration of digoxin, a modulator of amino acid transport, and the activity of HMG CoA reductase, which synthesizes digoxin, were higher in these patients; while RBC membrane Na+-K+ ATPase activity showed a decrease. Concentration of plasma ubiquinone (part of which is synthesised from tyrosine) and magnesium was also lower in these patients. No morphine could be detected in the plasma of these patients except in MS. On the other hand, strychnine and nicotine were detectable. These results indicate hypercatabolism of tryptophan and hypocatabolism of tyrosine in these disorders, which could be a consequence of the modulating effect of hypothalamic digoxin on amino acid transport.

Endogenous strychnine, nicotine, and morphine--description of hypo and hyper-strychninergic, nicotinergic and morphinergic state in relation to neuropsychiatric diseases.

Previous work from this laboratory had demonstrated the presence of endogenous morphine, strychnine and nicotine in the mammalian brain and human serum samples. Morphine is synthesised from tyrosine and strychnine and nicotine from tryptophan. This study examines the role of strychnine, nicotine and morphine in neuropsychiatric disorders. The blood levels of tyrosine, tryptophan, strychnine, nicotine and morphine were studied as also RBC membrane Na(+)-K+ ATPase activity. It was found that serum tyrosine levels were reduced and tryptophan levels elevated in all neuropsychiatric disorders studied with a reduction in RBC Na(+)-K+ ATPase activity. Nicotine was present in significant amounts in serum of patients with schizophrenia, CNS glioma and syndrome X with multiple lacunar state. Morphine was present in significant amounts only in the serum of patients with multiple sclerosis and MDP. Strychnine was present in significant amounts in the serum of patients with epilepsy, Parkinson's disease and MDP. The presence of nicotine and strychnine in significant amounts could be related to elevated tryptophan levels suggesting the synthesis of these alkaloids from tryptophan. Morphine was not detected in most of the disorders owing to low tyrosine levels noted in them. Na(+)-K+ ATPase inhibition noticed in most of the disorders could be related to decreased hyperpolarising morphinergic transmission and increased depolarising nicotinergic and strychinergic transmission. The role of morphine, strychnine and nicotine in the pathogenesis of these disorders in the setting of membrane Na(+)-K+ ATPase inhibition is discussed.