Austin S. Weisberger

CYTOPLASMIC INTERACTION BETWEEN MACROPHAGES AND LYMPHOCYTIC CELLS IN ANTIBODY SYNTHESIS.

A direct cytoplasmic connection between macrophages and potential antibody-producing cells has been demonstrated in lymph nodes and spleen. This was observed in the tissues from both immunized and nonimmunized rabbits.

EARLY ATYPICAL MANIFESTATIONS OF LEUKEMIA

Excerpt The diagnosis of leukemia by clinical and laboratory studies is usually not difficult. Occasionally, however, the initial manifestations of the leukemic process may be atypical and precede ...

Coexistent Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura and Hyperthyroidism

Excerpt Since 1931, sporadic reports have appeared noting an apparent association between hyperthyroidism and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) (1-4). During a recent survey of our patients...

TRANSFUSION OF LEUKOCYTES LABELED WITH RADIOACTIVE PHOSPHORUS.

Mechanisms involved in the failure to raise the white blood cell count by transfusion remain unknown. Previous studies (1) on the effect of transfusion of concentrated suspensions of leuko-cytes obtained from the peritoneal cavity of rabbits have confirmed the clinical observation that the white blood cell count cannot be effectively increased by transfusion. When concentrated sus-pensions of leukocytes were transfused into the venous system of the same rabbit from which they had been obtained or into other rabbits, not only was there no increase in the leukocyte count over a period of several hours, but a severe leuko-penia developed in nearly every animal. In over half the rabbits a subsequent marked leukocytosis developed in four to six hours. This investigation was undertaken to study the disappearance of leukocytes from the circulating blood by determining the radioactivity in various tissues following the transfusion of leukocytes labeled with P52. METHODS Leukocytes labeled with radioactive phosphorus were obtained by injecting a rabbit with approximately 1.0 millicurie of p82 intravenously prior to stimulating the production of leukocytes in the rabbits peritoneum. Two to seven days after injecting the radioactive phosphorus , leukocytes were obtained from the rabbits peri-toneal cavity by a modification of the method of Mudd and coworkers (2). Three hundred to 500 ml. of physio-logic saline were injected intraperitoneally in the evening and a similar amount about 15 hours later. Over-distension of the abdomen is poorly tolerated by the rabbits and may cause respiratory embarrassment and death. Four hours after the second injection of physio-logic saline the peritoneal fluid was removed through a 16 gauge needle using 5 mg. of heparin as an anticoagu-lant. This fluid was centrifuged at a speed of about 500-1000 R.P.M. for five minutes and the sediment re-suspended in Tyrodes solution so that the final concentration of cells was approximately 50,000 cells per cmm. The leukocytes prepared in this manner stained normally with Wrights stain, exhibited ameboid activity, were actively phagocytic for staphylococci and took up supravital stain (Janus green and neutral red). Approximately 90% of the cells were segmented and unsegmented neutrophils. The radioactive phosphorus was firmly bound within the cell, presumably in the nuclear nucleoprotein. In order to demonstrate this, samples of the leukocyte suspension were subjected to repeated washing with Tyrodes solution. Only negligible amounts of radioactivity could be removed by this procedure (Table I), indicating the chemically bound nature of the p82 in these …

Unusual manifestations of disseminated lupus erythematosus.

Excerpt Since the discovery of the L.E. test1as a highly specific diagnostic procedure, our knowledge of the clinical course and manifestations of disseminated lupus erythematosus has increased mar...

Comparative evaluation of radioactive colloidal gold and nitrogen mustard in the treatment of serous effusions of neoplastic origin.

Since its introduction by Muller in 1949, intracavitary radioactive colloidal gold therapy for carcinomatous effusions has become an almost universally accepted mode of treatment. A substantial body of literature (1–12) attests to the fact that this isotope can be expected to control the production of neoplastic effusions in 50 to 70 per cent of all cases. Most authors have agreed that it is most effective when the primary neoplasm originates in the ovary or breast. Those who have worked with colloidal Au198 realize, however, that there are certain disadvantages inherent in its use: (a) the treatment is rather costly to the patient; (b) the short half-life and local unavailability necessitate careful planning and sometimes entail considerable delay in treatment; (c) the amount of radioactivity involved dictates certain precautions against exposure of nursing personnel which militate against optimum nursing care for the patient; (d) even with the best apparatus currently available for instillation, there i...

Some structural requirements for the prevention of leukopenia induced by nitrogen mustard.

Administration of L-cysteine hydrochloride to animals prior to the injection of nitrogen mustard (HN2) modifies the severe leukopenia characteristically induced by HN2 (1). However, if the L-cysteine hydrochloride is administered after HN2, even immediately, the leukopenia is not modified. It has not been demonstrated whether the effect of L-cysteine depends upon the presence of certain groups or groupings in the molecule or whether it is the result of non-specific chemical inactivation of HN2. Accordingly, the specificity as well as the mechanism of L-cysteine protection was investigated by correlating the chemical structure of related compounds with their ability to prevent HN2-induced leukopenia.

Transfusion of Leukocytes and Products of Disintegrated Leukocytes.

Summary and Conclusions 1. Leukocytes were obtained in large numbers by introduction of large amounts of physiologic salt solution into the peritoneal cavity of rabbits. 2. Intravenous administration of these cells to the same or different animals was followed by very rapidly developing and severe leukopenia. A subsequent leukocytosis developed in the majority of rabbits after several hours. 3. Disintegrated leukocytes, or aqueous extract of disintegrated leukocytes produced similar results. 4. Preliminary data indicate that the leukocytes stick in the capillaries of the lung. Ether extraction of disintegrated leukocytes does not cause loss of activity but heating reduces activity. 5. These experiments indicate that unsatisfactory preservation of leukocytes in stored blood is not the reason for failure to raise leukocyte counts with transfusions, but that white blood cells contain a substance (or substances) which is capable of producing leukopenia.

THE RESPONSE OF VARIOUS TYPES OF BRONCHOGENIC CARCINOMA TO NITROGEN MUSTARD

Excerpt The beneficial effects of nitrogen mustard (HN2) in some cases of bronchogenic carcinoma is well known.1-15The number of patients receiving benefit from HN2therapy has varied from 18% to 74...

Suppression of Antibody Synthesis by Chloramphenicol Analogs

Summary In previous studies we showed that the immunosuppressive effects of chloramphenicol are related to its ability to inhibit protein synthesis in cells being committed to newly induced protein synthesis. In the present study a number of chloramphenicol analogs were 4–6 times as effective as chloramphenicol in suppressing the primary immune response and in prolonging the survival of skin homografts in rabbits. These analogs have an antimicrobial effectiveness equivalent to that of chloramphenicol. The dissociation between the antimicrobial and immuno-suppressive effectiveness of these compounds is probably related to structural modifications and cellular mechanisms rather than to higher or more sustained levels of these antibiotics. The most effective analog of chloramphenicol with respect to immunosuppression was the CH3SO2 derivative (Thiocymetin). Preliminary studies with this compound in patients with lupus glomerulonephritis indicate that this analog of chloramphenicol may have some clinical application.