Effects of centrally acting analgesics on spinal segmental reflexes and wind-up.

BACKGROUND: The spinal cord is a prime site of action for analgesia. Here we characterize the effects of established analgesics on segmental spinal reflexes. The aim of the study was to look for the pattern of action or signature of analgesic effects on these reflexes. METHODS: We used a spinal cord in vitro preparation of neonate mice to record ventral root responses to dorsal root stimulation. Pregabalin, clonidine, morphine and duloxetine and an experimental sigma-1 receptor antagonist (S1RA) were applied to the preparation in a cumulative concentration protocol. Drug effects on the wind-up produced by repetitive stimulation of C-fibres and on responses to single A- and C-fibre intensity stimuli were analysed. RESULTS: All compounds produced a concentration-dependent inhibition of total spikes elicited by repetitive stimulation. Concentrations producing ∼50% reduction in this parameter were (in µM) clonidine (0.01), morphine (0.1), pregabalin (1), duloxetine (10) and S1RA (30). At these concentrations clonidine, pregabalin and S1RA had significant effects on the wind-up index and little depressant effects on responses to single stimuli. Morphine and duloxetine did not depress wind-up index and showed large effects on responses to single stimuli. None of the compounds had strong effects on the amplitude of the non-nociceptive monosynaptic reflex. CONCLUSIONS: morphine and duloxetine had general depressant effects on spinal reflexes, whereas the effects of clonidine, pregabalin and S1RA appeared to be restricted to signals originated by strong repetitive activation of C-fibres. Results are discussed in the context of reported behavioural effects of the compounds studied.

Axotomy-induced changes in activity-dependent slowing in peripheral nerve fibres: role of hyperpolarization-activated/HCN channel current.

BACKGROUND: Slowing refers to the gradual decrease in conduction velocity evoked by repetitive electrical stimuli. The underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood, and its physiological/pathological relevance scarcely discussed; however, changes in axonal conduction properties might unmask abnormal nociceptor function and alter the encoding time window at the spinal cord. METHODS: Here, we characterized and compared the slowing in isolated units recorded from intact and axotomized saphenous nerves from mice, in vitro. We evaluated the role of hyperpolarization-activated/HCN channel current, Ih , in the generation of slowing, by examining the effect of the specific Ih blocker ZD7288. RESULTS: Based on their degree of slowing, intact C-fibres were classified as presumed nociceptors or non-nociceptors (>13% or <7% latency increase, respectively). Upon ZD7288 treatment, slowing was significantly augmented in 19/25 of the presumed C-nociceptors. In nerve-end neuromas, axotomized C-fibres could not be classified by their degree of slowing, which, in addition, was unrelated to the presence of ectopic mechanosensitivity. Axotomized fibres showed a ∼2.5-fold reduction in their slowing as compared with intact units and the effects of ZD7288 were more prominent, both in magnitude and percentage of sensitive fibres. Interestingly, in control conditions, all fibres sensitive to ZD7288 were more resistant to slowing. CONCLUSIONS: Under our experimental conditions, slowing seems largely dependent on functional Ih . The marked decrease in slowing after axotomy in C-fibres fits with the increased expression of functional hyperpolarization-activated/HCN channel current and may underlie the analgesic effects of the specific Ih blocker ZD7288 previously described in neuropathic pain models.

Finding mesoscopic communities in sparse networks.

We suggest a fast method for finding possibly overlapping network communities of a desired size and link density. Our method is a natural generalization of the finite-T superparamagnetic Potts clustering introduced by Blatt et al (1996 Phys. Rev. Lett.76 3251) and the annealing of the Potts model with a global antiferromagnetic term recently suggested by Reichard and Bornholdt (2004 Phys. Rev. Lett.93 21870). Like in both cited works, the proposed generalization is based on ordering of the ferromagnetic Potts model; the novelty of the proposed approach lies in the adjustable dependence of the antiferromagnetic term on the population of each Potts state, which interpolates between the two previously considered cases. This adjustability allows one to empirically tune the algorithm to detect the maximum number of communities of the given size and link density. We illustrate the method by detecting protein complexes in high-throughput protein binding networks.

Cliques and duplication-divergence network growth.

A population of complete subgraphs or cliques in a protein network model is studied. The network evolves via duplication and divergence supplemented with linking a certain fraction of target-replica vertex pairs. We derive a clique population distribution, which scales linearly with the size of the network and is in a perfect agreement with numerical simulations. Fixing both parameters of the model so that the number of links and abundance of triangles are equal to those observed in the fruitfly protein-binding network, we precisely predict the 4- and 5-clique abundance. In addition, we show that such features as fat-tail degree distribution, various rates of average degree growth and nonaveraging, revealed recently for a particular case of a completely asymmetric divergence, are present in a general case of arbitrary divergence.

Adhesion and homing of blood-borne cells in bone marrow microvessels.

After birth, the bone marrow (BM) is the principal site of hematopoiesis in mammals. Thus, a large number of newly formed blood cells must penetrate the wall of BM microvessels to enter the circulation. In addition, the BM appears to function as a lymphoid organ and is also part of the macrophagal system. Subsets of circulating lymphocytes and other cells of the immune system continuously home to the BM. However, neither the mechanisms of blood cell migration to and from the BM nor its precise role in the immune system are well understood. One reason for the relative paucity of data on BM physiology is the fact that normal BM is surrounded by thick cortical bone that impedes direct observation and experimental manipulation. One notable exception is the calvaria of the murine skull where hematopoietically active BM is only covered by a thin lamella of bone that is sufficiently translucent to allow a detailed in situ analysis of the BM microcirculation by epi-fluorescence microscopy. Here, we review our current knowledge of the anatomic, hemodynamic, and endothelial properties of the specialized microvascular bed within murine skull BM. In addition, we summarize recent studies on the molecular mechanisms that mediate the homing of circulating hematopoietic progenitor cells to the BM, an event that is critical for the success of BM transplantations.

The RD114/simian type D retrovirus receptor is a neutral amino acid transporter.

The RD114/simian type D retroviruses, which include the feline endogenous retrovirus RD114, all strains of simian immunosuppressive type D retroviruses, the avian reticuloendotheliosis group including spleen necrosis virus, and baboon endogenous virus, use a common cell-surface receptor for cell entry. We have used a retroviral cDNA library approach, involving transfer and expression of cDNAs from highly infectable HeLa cells to nonpermissive NIH 3T3 mouse cells, to clone and identify this receptor. The cloned cDNA, denoted RDR, is an allele of the previously cloned neutral amino acid transporter ATB0 (SLC1A5). Both RDR and ATB0 serve as retrovirus receptors and both show specific transport of neutral amino acids. We have localized the receptor by radiation hybrid mapping to a region of about 500-kb pairs on the long arm of human chromosome 19 at q13.3. Infection of cells with RD114/type D retroviruses results in impaired amino acid transport, suggesting a mechanism for virus toxicity and immunosuppression. The identification and functional characterization of this retrovirus receptor provide insight into the retrovirus life cycle and pathogenesis and will be an important tool for optimization of gene therapy using vectors derived from RD114/type D retroviruses.

Endothelial selectins and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 promote hematopoietic progenitor homing to bone marrow.

The adhesive mechanisms allowing hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPC) homing to the bone marrow (BM) after BM transplantation are poorly understood. We investigated the role of endothelial selectins and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) in this process. Lethally irradiated recipient mice deficient in both P-and E-selectins (P/E-/-), reconstituted with minimal numbers (

Hematopoietic progenitor cell rolling in bone marrow microvessels: parallel contributions by endothelial selectins and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1.

We have used intravital microscopy to study physiologically perfused microvessels in murine bone marrow (BM). BM sinusoids and venules, but not adjacent bone vessels, supported rolling interactions of hematopoietic progenitor cells. Rolling did not involve L-selectin, but was partially reduced in wild-type mice treated with antibodies to P- or E-selectin and in mice that were deficient in these two selectins. Selectin-independent rolling was mediated by alpha4 integrins, which interacted with endothelial vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM)-1. Parallel contribution of the endothelial selectins and VCAM-1 is not known to direct blood cell trafficking to other noninflamed tissues. This combination of constitutively expressed adhesion molecules may thus constitute a BM-specific recruitment pathway for progenitor cells analogous to the vascular addressins that direct selective lymphocyte homing to lymphoid organs.

Use of genetic suppressor elements to dissect distinct biological effects of separate p53 domains.

p53 is a multifunctional tumor suppressor protein involved in the negative control of cell growth. Mutations in p53 cause alterations in cellular phenotype, including immortalization, neoplastic transformation, and resistance to DNA-damaging drugs. To help dissect distinct functions of p53, a set of genetic suppressor elements (GSEs) capable of inducing different p53-related phenotypes in rodent embryo fibroblasts was isolated from a retroviral library of random rat p53 cDNA fragments. All the GSEs were 100-300 nucleotides long and were in the sense orientation. They fell into four classes, corresponding to the transactivator (class I), DNA-binding (class II), and C-terminal (class III) domains of the protein and the 3'-untranslated region of the mRNA (class IV). GSEs in all four classes promoted immortalization of primary cells, but only members of classes I and III cooperated with activated ras to transform cells, and only members of class III conferred resistance to etoposide and strongly inhibited transcriptional transactivation by p53. These observations suggest that processes related to control of senescence, response to DNA damage, and transformation involve different functions of the p53 protein and furthermore indicate a regulatory role for the 3'-untranslated region of p53 mRNA.

Genetic suppressor elements: new tools for molecular oncology--thirteenth Cornelius P. Rhoads Memorial Award Lecture.

Genetic suppressor elements (GSEs) are short biologically active gene fragments that encode dominantly acting peptides or inhibitory antisense RNAs. GSEs can be isolated from a single gene or from a multigene complex by constructing a library of short random fragments of the target gene(s) in an expression vector, followed by expression selection for the desired phenotype in a suitable cellular system. GSE selection from a single gene allows one to develop efficient and specific inhibitors of the gene function and to identify functional protein domains. GSE selection from a multigene complex, such as a normalized (uniform abundance) cDNA population from mammalian cells, makes it possible to identify genes that are involved in selectable cellular phenotypes. The potential of GSE selection for uncovering novel gene functions was first demonstrated using bacteriophage lambda as a model system. GSE selection in retroviral expression vectors has been applied in mammalian cells to identify genes responsible for sensitivity to etoposide and other chemotherapeutic drugs. GSE selection is also useful for cloning and analysis of tumor suppressor genes and can be applied to identifying tumor-specific targets for future anticancer drugs. Investigators should find this experimental strategy applicable to many different areas of medical and biological research.

Tyrosine kinase gene expression in the mouse small intestine.

To identify tyrosine kinases that may regulate regeneration of the mammalian intestinal epithelium, we amplified portions of the catalytic domains of protein kinases expressed in intestinal crypt cells, using the polymerase chain reaction technique with primers directed against two invariant amino acid sequence motifs found in all kinases. These fragments were cloned and a library of kinase catalytic domains was generated. Sequence analysis of unique clones resulted in the identification of the catalytic domains of several characterized tyrosine kinases, including lyn, hck, c-fgr, tec, JAK2, itk, and the putative receptor kinase ryk, and expression of these kinases has not previously been described in the intestine. We compared the levels of mRNA encoding these kinases in multiple tissues using RNase protection assays, and we localized the expression of hck, lyn, and JAK2 in the intestine using in situ hybridization. In addition, we identified two novel putative catalytic domain sequences. One of these, which we have named sik (src-related intestinal kinase), is expressed at high levels in the gastrointestinal tract and may play a specific role in signal transduction in epithelial tissues.

Cloning mammalian genes by expression selection of genetic suppressor elements: association of kinesin with drug resistance and cell immortalization.

We describe a general strategy for cloning mammalian genes whose downregulation results in a selectable phenotype. This strategy is based on expression selection of genetic suppressor elements (GSEs), cDNA fragments encoding either specific peptides that act as dominant inhibitors of protein function or antisense RNA segments that efficiently inhibit gene expression. Since GSEs counteract the gene from which they are derived, they can be used as dominant selectable markers for the phenotype associated with downregulation of the corresponding gene. A retroviral library containing random fragments of normalized (uniform abundance) cDNA expressed in mouse NIH 3T3 cells was used to select for GSEs inducing resistance to the anticancer drug etoposide. Three GSEs were isolated, two of which are derived from unknown genes and the third encodes antisense RNA for the heavy chain of a motor protein kinesin. The kinesin-derived GSE induces resistance to several DNA-damaging drugs and immortalizes senescent mouse embryo fibroblasts, indicating that kinesin is involved in the mechanisms of drug sensitivity and in vitro senescence. Expression of the human kinesin heavy-chain gene was decreased in four of four etoposide-resistant HeLa cell lines, derived by conventional drug selection, indicating that downregulation of kinesin represents a natural mechanism of drug resistance in mammalian cells.

[Results of treatment of acute leukemia in children using intensive therapy programs]. / Rezul'taty lecheniia ostrykh leikozov u detei s ispol'zovaniem programm intensivnoi terapii.

The authors report the results of the treatment according to the programs BFM-ALL-90 and BFM-AML-83 and 87. A total of 110 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and 35 with acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) were treated with remission rate 94.5% and 74.5%, respectively. Under programmed treatment of ALL the recurrences occurred in 12.2% against 46% of the cases in nonprogrammed treatment. 2-year survival made up 75% and 47.3%, respectively. Among AML cases there were frequently prognostically unfavorable ones and patients with neuroleukemia this dictating the necessity of the treatment intensification and irradiation of the skull in AML. Improvement of adjuvant therapy is a must in advance of acute leukemia treatment.

[The effect of polychemotherapy on hemopoiesis in acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children]. / Vlianie polikhimioterapii na gemopoéz pri ostrom limfoblastnom leikoze u detei.

Bone marrow granulocytic-macrophagal precursors (GMP) and fibroblastic precursors (FP) were measured in 235 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) receiving polychemotherapy (PCT) in progression of the disease. A total of 408 culture investigations were conducted. PCT proved to exert different effects on hemopoiesis during the first acute ALL period and remission. In the former period the target for PCT were blast cells, the course of induction therapy increased the number of GMP, FP and early granulocytic cells. In recurrent ALL the sensitivity of GMP to PCT grew, while FP remained intact. PCT performed in remission resulted in gradual suppression of granulocytopoiesis, GMP beginning from the second remission year. The treatment discontinuation on remission year 3-5 produced enhancement of granulocytosis by all parameters.

Linkage mapping of the human CSF2 and IL3 genes.

Interleukin 3 (encoded by the IL3 gene) and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (encoded by the CSF2 gene) are small secreted polypeptides that bind to specific cell surface receptors and regulate the growth, gene expression, and differentiation of many of the hematopoietic cell lineages, particularly nonlymphoid cells. The IL3 and CSF2 genes have been cloned and mapped to human chromosome bands 5q23-31. Only 10 kilobases of DNA separates the two genes, suggesting that they have a common origin and/or regulation. We have cloned 70 kilobases of genomic DNA that includes the IL3 and CSF2 genes, as well as flanking sequences, and report a physical map of this region. Several unique-sequence DNA segments have been identified in this region, and one of these fragments detects two restriction fragment length polymorphisms in DNA from unrelated Caucasians. Segregation of these DNA polymorphisms was followed in the Centre Etudé du Polymorphisme Humaine (CEPH) panel of 40 large three-generation pedigrees, and linkage was detected with 17 genetic markers previously typed in these families. Multipoint linkage analysis permits the placement of the region containing the IL3 and CSF2 structural genes on the recombination-genetic linkage map of chromosome 5q and thereby allows the role of these genes in leukemogenesis to be more critically examined.

[Effect of soybean trypsin inhibitor and chicken ovomucoid on the immunogenic and sensitizing properties of various dietary proteins]. / Vliianie soevogo ingibitora tripsina i kurinogo ovomukoida na immunogennye i sensibiliziruiushchie svoistva nekotorykh pishchevykh belkov.

Adult male guinea pigs were sensitized by intragastric administration of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and chick ovalbumin (OA) and their mixtures with soybean Kunitz trypsin inhibitor (SBTI) and chick ovomucoid (OM). Sensitization of the animals was evaluated by the anaphylactic shock reaction and also by the levels of serum specific IgG antibodies against BSA and OA as measured in the solid phase radioimmunoassay. The experiment revealed pronounced desensitizing properties of SBTI combined both with OA and BSA. OM produced no effect on the animal sensitization caused by OA and enhanced the BSA-induced sensitization. The results obtained demonstrate the necessity of differential approach to the evaluation of the action of varying trypsin inhibitors on food sensitization.

[Effect of changes in electrolyte composition of the perilymph on endocochlear potentials]. / Vliianie izmeneniia élektrolitnogo sostava perilimfy na éndokokhlearnyi potentsial.

Perfusion of the cochlear perilymphatic space was performed in guinea pigs with complete or partial removal of K+, Na+ or Ca++ from the solution. The most obvious changes of the endocochlear potential occurred in the deficiency of Na+ in the perilymph: i. e., after a short increase the potential steadily diminished in accordance with the degree of Na+ deficit in the perilymph. The deficit of K+ in the perilymph caused a lesser and reversible reduction of the potential. The absence of Ca++ in the perilymph did not affect the potential.