Olfactory response of the predatory bug, Orius albidipennis to volatile blends of strawberry and cucumber infested by spider mite.

Herbivore induced plant volatiles (HIPV) that cause by plant because of pest feeding can affect on the searching behavioral response of natural enemies. We investigated the response of generalist predator Orius albidipennis Reut (Heteroptera: Anthocoridae) to volatiles from strawberry and cucumber leaves which infested with the spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) in Y-tube olfactometer under ambient laboratory conditions. Our results suggest that O. albidipennis is able to discriminate between volatiles emitted by infested plant versus uninfested plant and show the ability of predatory bugs to use odours related to prey presence to locate them.

Large mediastinal mass in Hodgkin's disease. Results of two treatment modalities.

Sixty-eight untreated patients with Hodgkin's disease (HD), stages I-III, presenting with a large mediastinal mass were treated as follows: patients with "good-risk HD" (lymphocyte predominant or nodular sclerosis and no "B" symptoms) stages I and II were treated by randomization with involved field radiotherapy (IF RT) or IF RT plus six cycles of combination chemotherapy (CT). Those with "poor-risk HD" (presence of B symptoms or with other histologic types) stages I and II and all patients with stage III were treated by randomization with total nodal radiation (TNR) or TNR + CT. Complete remission (CR) was achieved in 66/68 patients (97%) with the initial RT. A significantly longer duration of remission (p = 0.001), but not of survival (p = 0.08) was observed in patients treated with RT + CT compared to RT alone. Significantly longer duration of remission (p = 0.01), but not of survival, was observed in patients with good-risk stages I-II treated with RT + CT. In this category, remission and survival was better with RT + CT than with RT alone in stage III, but these differences were not statistically significant. In poor-risk patients stages I-II, a trend for longer remission and survival (not significant) was observed in patients treated with RT + CT; in stage III, both treatment modalities gave similar poor results. Both treatment modalities were well tolerated by most patients. One patients died with radiation pneumonitis shortly after completion of TNR. One patient developed a malignant schwannoma after treatment with IF RT, and another one developed acute nonlymphocytic leukemia after TNR + CT. Decrease in the transverse diameter of the heart without overt manifestations of cardiac disease was observed in 59% of the patients evaluated for this parameter.

Phase I study of high-dose methotrexate with thymidine and low-dose leucovorin.

A total of 15 patients with advanced neoplastic disease, 13 with different solid tumors, one with lymphoma, and one with acute lymphocytic leukemia, underwent treatment consisting of continuous infusion of methotrexate (2 g/sq m/day) with concomitant thymidine (8 g/sq m/day) and leucovorin (1 mg/sq m/day). The dose of methotrexate was increased progressively by lengthening the methotrexate infusion from 2 to 7 days. After cessation of methotrexate infusion, thymidine and leucovorin were continued until the plasma level of methotrexate decreased to 2 X 10(-8) M. Toxicity was mucositis (23 of 27 evaluable courses), leukopenia (15 of 26 evaluable courses), thrombocytopenia (10 of 26 evaluable courses), renal and hepatic toxicity and diarrhea. Plateau levels of plasma methotrexate or methotrexate plasma half-life did not correlate with toxicity.

Combinations of methotrexate (COP or CHOP) in the treatment of previously untreated and treated lymphomas.

A regimen consisting of two courses of methotrexate (MTX) with leucovorin rescue followed 1 week later by cyclophosphamide, vincristine, and prednisone (MTX-COP) was studied in ten patients with disseminated diffuse non-Hodgkin's lymphoma who had had no prior chemotherapy. A similar regimen with the addition of doxorubicin (MTX-CHOP) was used for patients who had had previous chemotherapy: 11 with diffuse non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and two with Hodgkin's disease. The response rate to initial MTX administration was 55%, and the clinical onset of effect was usually observed within 48 hours. Responses were observed in previously treated and untreated patients. The remission rate was 100% with both regimens. There were seven complete remissions with MTX-COP and six with MTX-CHOP. The median durations of remission were 23 and 13 months, respectively; median survival was not reached in either group. MTX was well-tolerated by both groups of patients without serious toxic effects. Overall, significantly more hematologic toxicity was observed in previously treated patients; however, no life-threatening toxic effects were observed in either group. The incorporation of MTX and other antimetabolites into schedules of chemotherapy for previously treated and untreated patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is well tolerated and deserved further exploration.

A phase II study of fluorodopan in the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer.

In an early phase II study, fluorodopan (5-(2'-fluoroethyl-2'-chloroethyl)-amino-6-methyl uracil) was given to 17 patients with advanced colorectal cancer previously treated with multiple agents. Side effects included mild nausea and vomiting in 14 patients, platelet counts of less than 50,000/microliter in four patients, and wbc counts of less than 2000/microliter in two patients. Partial remission lasting 9 weeks was achieved in one patient, and stable disease with a mean duration of 7.1 weeks was achieved in ten patients. Given in this setting fluorodopan does not appear to have a significant effect in terms of regression of tumor or prolongation of survival.

In vitro leukocyte thymidine uptake and prognosis in chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Among 60 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, higher in vitro uptake of tritiated (3H) thymidine by leukocytes of a standard volume of peripheral blood was associated with a higher lymphocyte count, a more advanced stage, greater frequency of functional impairment and shorter survival. Appropriate analyses demonstrated that leukocyte thymidine uptake correlated with survival independently of these other disease features. Relative thymidine uptake (radioactivity per 10(3) lymphocytes) did not prove to be a useful prognostic parameter. Among 33 patients not receiving antileukemic therapy at the time of study, 15 of 17 (88 per cent) of those with higher thymidine uptake values, but only 3 of 16 (19 per cent) of those with lower values, were treated during a median follow-up period of four and a half years (p less than 0.001). Seven of the former group, but none of the latter group, died during the first three years of follow-up (p less than 0.01). We conclude that thymidine uptake by circulating leukocytes constitutes a relatively accurate index of the proliferating leukemic cell mass in this disease and provides useful prognostic information.

Bronchogenic carcinoma in chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Fourteen cases of bronchogenic carcinoma were found in 191 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia seen at the Rosewell Park Memorial Institute, Buffalo, NY, from 1951 to 1976. Four of these were not diagnosed until the time of autopsy. There was an average lag of nine months between the onset of symptoms and signs suggestive of bronchogenic carcinoma and its diagnosis. In patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a high index of suspicion for bronchogenic carcinoma is necessary fo its early detection.

Phase II study of melphalan in colorectal carcinoma.

In a prospective phase II study, 25 patients with advanced (Duke's D) colorectal adenocarcinoma received 0.25 mg/kg of melphalan orally daily for 4 days every 28 days. There were 17 men and eight women. All patients had measurable areas of known malignant disease which served as objective indicators of the response to chemotherapy. All patients were evaluated for at least two cycles of therapy. Each patient had had previous treatment with 5-fluorouracil and, in addition, 24 of 25 patients had had treatment with methyl-CCNU; all patients had disease progression with both regimens. Toxicity consisted of mild gastrointestinal symptoms and transient leukopenia (wbc count less than 4000/mm3) in nine of 25 (36%) patients and thrombocytopenia (platelet count less than 100,000/mm3) in six of 25 (24%). One of 25 (4%) patients had an objective response for 12 weeks, 15 of 25 (60%) had disease progression, and nine of 25 (36%) remained stable for 2 months. We conclude that melphalan is ineffective for patients with metastatic colorectal carcinoma who have previously failed to respond to both 5-fluorouracil and methyl-CCNU.

T- and B-lymphocytes in chronic lymphocytic leukemia: correlation with clinical and immunologic status of the disease.

T- and B-lymphocyte count were correlated with clinical and immunologic status of 59 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. The mean total T-cell count was slightly lower than normal in patients in complete remission, within normal limits in those in partial remission, and significantly higher in those with active disease. The mean total B-cell count, however, was slightly elevated in patients in complete remission and those in partial remission, and markedly elevated in those with active disease. The T-cell count correlated well with the duration of disease in patients in remission: The mean count was within normal range in those patients with disease of less than 3 years, whereas for those patients with disease of 3-12 years, a significant reduction was observed. The T-cell count was well correlated with the status of skin test response of patients with either complete or partial remission; the B-cell count did not correlate with immunoglobulin levels in patients with this disease.