D-dimer as a possible prognostic marker of operable hormone receptor-negative breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is the most common cause of death in women by neoplasia. The mechanisms related to recurrence are unclear, specially the hemostatic alterations that occur during the development of the disease. Plasma D-dimer is a hypercoagulability and fibrinolytic system marker and is increased in patients with various solid tumors. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the hemostatic status assessed by plasma D-dimer in operable breast cancer patients and to investigate its value as a prognostic marker. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study comprised 32 patients with operable hormone receptor-negative breast cancer and a control group with 43 healthy women. Variables included presence and absence of breast cancer, clinical and histopathology findings, and overall survival. RESULTS: Plasma D-dimer level was normal in the control group and significantly higher in breast cancer patients (P = 0.001), as well as in nonsurvivors compared with survivors (P = 0.025). The results showed that plasma D-dimer levels were not correlated with clinical and histopathology findings (P > 0.213). CONCLUSIONS: The results taken together indicate the presence of a hypercoagulability state in women with operable hormone receptor-negative breast cancer given the increased levels of D-dimer in this group. Therefore, considering higher levels of D-dimer in patients with a poor outcome, its evaluation may be a promising tool for prognosis in women with operable hormone receptor-negative breast cancer.

Antigen-specific suppression of cultured lymphocytes from patients with neurocysticercosis.

The biological parasite-host interactions involved in neurocysticercosis (NC) are of a complex nature. A lymphoproliferation assay was performed using mononuclear cells from 11 patients with NC, who were classified according to the alterations obtained by imaging examinations. Antigen extracts from the membrane and/or scolex of Taenia solium and from the vesicular fluid of Taenia crassiceps were used. Mononuclear cells from patients with NC showed antigen-specific suppression when compared with a control group. The patients presenting calcified cysts showed higher suppression when compared with patients in the active phase of disease. The antigen in the vesicular fluid of T. crassiceps seems to play a suppressor role in vitro, completely inhibiting cell proliferation induced by the mitogens phytohaemagglutinin, concanavalin A and pokeweed mitogen.

Serodiagnosis of human cysticercosis by using antigens from vesicular fluid of Taenia crassiceps cysticerci.

Neurocysticercosis (NC), caused by the presence of Taenia solium metacestodes in tissues, is a severe parasitic infection of the central nervous system with universal distribution. To determine the efficiency of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoblot with antigens of T. crassiceps vesicular fluid (Tcra) compared to standard techniques (indirect immunofluorescence test [IFT] and complement fixation test [CFT]) using T. solium cysticerci (Tso) for the serodiagnosis of NC, we studied serum samples from 24 patients with NC, 30 supposedly healthy individuals, 76 blood bank donors, 45 individuals with other non-NC parasitoses, and 97 samples from individuals screened for cysticercosis serology (SC). The sensitivity observed was 100% for ELISA-Tso and ELISA-Tcra, 91.7% for the IFT, and 87.5% for the CFT. The specificity was 90% for ELISA-Tso, 96.7% for ELISA-Tcra, 50% for IFT, and 63.3% for CFT. The efficiency was highest for ELISA-Tcra, followed by ELISA-Tso, IFT, and CFT. Of the 23 samples from SC group, which were reactive to ELISA-Tso and/or ELISA-Tcra, only 3 were positive to immunblot-Tcra (specific peptides of 14- and 18-kDa) and to glycoprotein peptides purified from Tcra antigen (gp-Tcra), showing the low predictive value of ELISA for screening. None of the samples from the remaining groups showed specific reactivity in immunoblot-Tcra. These results demonstrate that ELISA-Tcra can be used as a screening method for the serodiagnosis of NC and support the need for specific tests for confirmation of the results. The immunoblot can be used as a confirmatory test both with Tcra and gp-Tcra, with the latter having an advantage in terms of visualization of the results.

Total IgE detection in paired cerebrospinal fluid and serum samples from patients with neurocysticercosis.

Neurocysticercosis (NC), the presence of Taenia solium metacestodes in tissues, is the most frequent and severe parasitic infection of the central nervous system. We investigated the presence of total IgE by an automated chemiluminescence assay in 53 paired cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum samples from patients with NC (P) and in 40 CSF samples from individuals with other neurological disorders as the control group (C). Total IgE concentration ranged from 1.2 to 6.6 IU/ml (mean = 1.4 IU/ml, standard deviation-sd = 1.1 IU/ml) in 28.3% of CSF samples from the P group, a value significantly higher than for the C group ( pound1.0 IU/ml). The serum samples from the P group showed concentrations ranging from 1. 0 to 2330.0 IU/ml (mean = 224.1 IU/ml, sd = 452.1 IU/ml), which were higher than the normal value cited by the manufacturer (<100.0 IU/ml) in 32.1% of the samples. A significant difference was observed in CSF samples from the P and C groups (p = 0.005) and in serum samples from the P group compared to the normal value (p = 0. 005), with sera showing more frequent abnormal results.

Neurocysticercosis: detection of IgG, IgA and IgE antibodies in cerebrospinal fluid, serum and saliva samples by ELISA with Taenia solium and Taenia crassiceps antigens.

We assayed samples of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), serum and saliva from patients with neurocysticercoses, control group and individuals with other parasitoses, by ELISA with Taenia crassiceps vesicular fluid antigen (Tcra) and Taenia solium total antigen (Tso) for the detection of antibodies. The sensitivity for IgG-Tcra was 100% for CSF and serum, and 32.0% for saliva; and for IgG-Tso 100% for CSF, 80.0% for serum and 24.% for saliva. Specificity was 100% for CSF and 80.0% for serum with both antigens, and 100% for saliva with Tcra and 87.5% with Tso. The sensitivity and specificity for IgA-Tcra was, respectively, 40.0% and 100% for CSF, 36.0% and 97.1% for serum, and 4.0% and 90.0% for saliva. IgE detection showed 24.0% sensitivity and 97.1% specificity for serum, with no detection in CSF samples. The search for antibodies revealed the presence of IgG > IgA > IgE in CSF, serum and saliva samples, with IgG being present in all phases of the disease, while IgA/IgE were more frequent in the inactive form.

Specific Taenia crassiceps and Taenia solium antigenic peptides for neurocysticercosis immunodiagnosis using serum samples.

Neurocysticercosis (NC), i.e., the presence of the larval form of Taenia solium in tissues, is the most frequent and severe infection involving the central nervous system. Paired serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from patients with NC, CSF and serum samples from a control group, and serum samples from patients with other parasitoses were studied by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and by immunoblotting with Taenia crassiceps vesicular fluid antigen (Tcra) and Taenia solium total saline antigen (Tso) for the detection of immunoglobulin G antibodies. ELISAs carried out with the Tso and Tcra antigens showed 94.1 and 95.6% sensitivities, respectively, for the detection of antibodies in CSF and 70.6% and 91.2% sensitivities, respectively, for the detection of antibodies in serum, with 100% specificity for the detection of antibodies in CSF and 80% specificity for the detection of antibodies in serum for both antigens. On the basis of the reactivities of the peptides in the samples analyzed, the peptides of

Analysis of cells in cerebrospinal fluid from patients with neurocysticercosis by means of flow cytometry.

The events of the cellular immune response in neurocysticercosis (NC) are not fully understood. Studies of the CD3, CD3/CD4, CD3/CD8, CD45/CD19, and CD45/CD56 molecules and activation-related CD69 molecule in cells from the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and peripheral blood (PB) of patients with NC may provide a better elucidation of the inflammatory and immunological events occurring in this disease. Seven patients with NC and 3 individuals with other disorders were evaluated by a three-color flow cytometric method. CD69 was detected in a higher percentage of cells in all CSF samples from patients, but not in PB or CSF from the control group. The percentage of CD3+ cells did not differ significantly in CSF and PB cells from patients and controls. The predominance of CD3+CD8+ cells was observed in CSF from one patient and in PB from 2 patients, who were in stage III of the disease (inflammatory process). The percentage of CD45+CD19+ cells was higher in CSF than in PB from patients who presented anti-cysticercus antibodies in CSF. The percentage of CD45+CD56+ cells in CSF was higher than in PB, but this rate was similar to reference values reported by other authors. Our data suggest that the cytometric method applied to a larger number of CSF samples may provide a better understanding of the cell-mediated immune response involved in NC.