[Gene therapy: current situation and expectations]. / Terapia génica: realidades actuales y expectativas.

In this review the current situation of gene therapy is described in hematological diseases, immunological conditions, and cancer. In all of them, the principal objective of various approaches with gene therapy is transduction of therapeutic genes in most of target cells. In chronic or immunological diseases, a stable expression of therapeutic genes is also required; in tumor cells, the efficiency or percentage of transduced cells make conditional on the treatment success. Consequently, vectors are one of the basic elements to optimize gene therapy approaches and protocols in view of the facts that we know that with liposomes less than 10% of cells are transduced, that retrovirus only infect cells in replication, and that adenovirus give rise to an important inflammatory response and a transitory transduction of the therapeutic gene. In addition recent approaches in cancer gene therapy with selective replication virus, suicidal genes, etc., are discussed.

Terapia génica: realidades actuales y expectativas / Gene therapy: current situation and expectations

En esta revisión se describe la situación actual de la terapia génica en enfermedades hematológicas, inmunológicas y en cáncer. En todas ellas el objetivo principal de los diversos abordajes de la terapia génica es el transducir los genes terapéuticos en la mayor parte de las células diana. A nivel de enfermedades crónicas o inmunológicas se requiere, asimismo, una expresión estable de los genes terapéuticos y a nivel de las células tumorales la eficiencia o porcentaje de células transducidas condiciona el éxito de los tratamientos. Por consiguiente, los vectores son uno de los elementos básicos para optimizar los abordajes y protocolos de terapia génica dado que sabemos que con el empleo de liposomas menos del 10% de las células van a ser transducidas, que con el empleo de retrovirus sólo se van a infectar células en replicación y que con los adenovirus va a haber una respuesta inflamatoria importante y una transducción transitoria del gen terapéutico. Asimismo se discuten los últimos abordajes en terapia génica del cáncer con virus de replicación selectiva, genes suicidas, etc

In this review the current situation of gene therapy is described in hematological diseases, immunological conditions, and cancer. In all of them, the principal objective of various approaches with gene therapy is transduction of therapeutic genes in most of target cells. In chronic or immunological diseases, a stable expression of therapeutic genes is also required; in tumor cells, the efficiency or porcentage of transduced cells make conditional on the treatment success. Consequently, vectors are one of the basic elements to optimize gene therapy approaches and protocols in view of the facts that we know that with liposomes less than 10% of cells are transduced, that retrovirus only infect cells in replication, and that adenovirus give rise to an important inflammatory response and a transitory transduction of the therapeutic gene. In addition recent approaches in cancer gene therapy with selective replication virus, suicidal genes, etc., are discussed

Crystals in an oligodendroglioma: an optical, histochemical, and ultrastructural study.

The report describes an oligodendroglioma that was examined in four biopsies and contained a large number of intracytoplasmic crystals. The crystals appeared in neoplastic cells with eosinophilic cytoplasms and eccentric nuclei. They were positive to periodic acid-Schiff stain and resistant to diastase. A lysosomal genesis of the crystals is proposed on the basis of a transition observed between lysosomal bodies with lipid droplets and those with crystalloid electron-dense structures. The morphologic and histochemical features of these crystals are compared to those in other tumors, lesions, and nonneoplastic cells.

Layers I and VI of the visual cortex in the rabbit. A correlated Golgi and immunocytochemical study of somatostatin and vasoactive intestinal peptide containing neurons.

Immunocytochemical and Golgi staining techniques were used to correlate the morphology of neurons in layers I and VI of the rabbit's visual cortex. Antisera against somatostatine (SOM) and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) were employed in the immunocytochemical investigation. In layer I, SOM-positive cells were multipolar and situated in the lower part of the layer. Some had long horizontal axons like those of the Cajal-Retzius cells when observed by the Golgi method. Most VIP-positive cells were bipolar and some had axons throughout this layer. In layer VI, SOM-positive cells were of multipolar, bitufted, or pyramidal-like morphology. Frequently, they presented a thicker and more prominent dendrite with various collaterals and axons with ascending, horizontal and sometimes descending courses. Cells with recurrent axon were occasionally observed. Either the dendrite or the axonal characteristics are similar to some Golgi-impregnated non-pyramidal cells of our material, including the inverted pyramidal neurons. In this study, we have described peptidergic cells in these layers and correlate them with Golgi impregnated neurons and with those described in the literature.

Chandelier cells in the auditory cortex of monkey and man: a Golgi study.

Using the Golgi method we studied chandelier cells in the auditory cortex of monkeys (Macaca irus) subjected to hypoxia before perfusion, and in newborn humans deceased in hypoxic states. In humans these cells have round or ovoid bodies showing usually beaded and sparsely-spined dendrites. These may arise either from both apical and basal poles or from all directions of the soma. With respect to their axons, we found two different types of chandelier cells: cells with extended chandelier complexes which occupied several cortical layers, and cells with local chandelier complexes. The former has rows of vertical terminal endings and the latter has vertical terminals and curved beaded fibers. In adult monkeys, chandelier cells show similar characteristics. The possible relationships between chandelier cells, hypoxia and epilepsy, is discussed.

The distribution of VIP-immunoreactive neurons in the visual cortex of adult rabbits and during postnatal development.

In the adult rabbit, the majority of the VIP-immunoreactive neurons are distributed in layer II-III of the visual cortex. Labeled cells are also seen in layers VI, IV, V and occasionally in layer I. During postnatal development, we can see labeled neurons on the 2nd day of life, and in layers II-III-IV-V-VI on the 4th day. On the 7th day, these neurons reach a distribution typical in the adult animal. From the 2nd to the 10th day the number of VIP-neurons increases, and from the 10th day to maturity, there is a 15-20% loss in the number of labeled cells.

The distribution of somatostatin-immunoreactive neurons in the visual cortex of adult rabbits and during postnatal development.

In the adult rabbit, the somatostatin-immunoreactive neurons are seen in all visual cortical layers, with the majority of them being found in layers II-III, V and VI. During postnatal development, we can see labeled cells in layer VI at birth and in layers V and VI on the 3rd day. The labeled cells are seen in layers II-III beginning on the 5th day, and on the 10th day, these labeled neurons reach distribution typical in the adult rabbit. The number of somatostatin-immunoreactive cells increase from birth to the 10th day, and decrease about 15%, from the 10th day to adulthood.