Vimlarani Chopra

Circulating Serum Levels of Cytokines and Angiogenic Factors in Patients with Cervical Cancer

Progression of cervical cancer is associated with excessive circulating levels of cytokines, which are known to be modulators of tumor angiogenesis. The concentrations of cytokines and growth factors were assayed using enzyme-linked immunosorbant assays in the serum of 61 women in various stages of cancer [stage 0 (n = 6), stage I (n = 15), stage II (n = 15), stage III (n = 15), and stage IV (n = 10)] and of 20 healthy control subjects. Our results indicated that b-FGF and TNF-beta levels were significantly elevated in stage I, and serum levels of TGF-beta and IL-7 were elevated in stages II-IV of invasive carcinoma. Our experimental subjects had significantly increased serum levels of IL-6, GM-CSF, and angiogenin in stages I-IV of cervical cancer, and TNF-alpha serum levels were elevated in all stages of invasive carcinoma. The serum levels of IL-8 and IL-10 were elevated only in stages II-III, and the levels of IL-2 were elevated in stages III-IV. The serum levels of IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta remained unaltered in all stages of cancer progression. Progression of cervical cancer is associated with increased serum levels of angiogenin, IL-2, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-10, b-FGF TNF-alpha, TGF-beta, TNF-beta, and GM-CSF during different stages, all of which have the potential to be angiogenic amplifiers.

Serum levels of interleukins, growth factors and anglogenin in patients with endometrial cancer

The purpose of this work was to study changes in serum levels of interleukins, growth factors and angiogenin during different stages of endometrial cancer progression. Serum levels were assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay in 59 women with stages I–IV of endometrial cancer (study subjects: stage I,n=20; stage II,n=8; stage III,n=5; stage IV,n=6) and compared to the serum levels in 20 women without cancer as control subjects. Patients with endometrial cancer had varied serum levels of interleukins and growth factors. There was a significant increase in serum levels of angiogenin in all stages of tumor progression. Levels of interleukin-8 (IL-8), IL-10 and transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) were significantly elevated in patients with stages I and II carcinoma. The serum levels of tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα), granulocyte/macrophage-colony-stimulating factor, basic fibroblast growth factor (BFGF), IL-7 and IL-2 were significantly elevated in patients with stages II and III carcinoma and the serum level of tumor necrosis factor β (TNFβ) was slightly elevated in patients with stage II carcinoma only. The serum levels of IL-1α, IL-1β and IL-6 were not elevated in endometrial cancer patients in any of the clinical stages. The results showed that progression of endometrial cancer is associated with increased serum levels of cytokines, growth factors and angiogenin, which possibly amplify angiogenesis during different clinical stages.

Altered cytokine production in black patients with keloids

The treatment of keloids in black patients remains a medical dilemma. Previous studies have focused on primary alterations in the metabolism of fibroblasts as the key in the etiology of this condition. Yet alterations in the production of various cytokines which may alter fibroblast responses secondarily have received little attention. Twelve black patients with clinical and histological diagnosis of keloids and eight black control volunteers were studied. Peripheral blood mononuclear-cell (PBMC) fractions from both groups were assayed for production of interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-2 (IL-2), interleukin-6 (IL-6), alpha-interferon (IFN-α), beta-interferon (IFN-β), gamma-interferon (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and tumor necrosis factor-beta (TNF-β). The production of IFN-α, IFN-γ, and TNF-β were markedly depressed in keloid patients compared to normal controls. However, IL-1 and IL-2 production was not significantly different between the two groups. In contradistinction, keloid patients produce greater amounts of IL-6, TNF-α, and IFN-β. Altered levels of immunoregulatory cytokines may play a significant role in the net increase in collagen which characterizes keloid formation.

Three-dimensional endothelial-tumor epithelial cell interactions in human cervical cancers

SummaryThe purpose of this study is to understand the multicellular interaction between tumor epithelial (TEC) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). The development of in vitro systems in which to coculture these cells as multicellular aggregates is very critical. Cell lines were established from cervical tumor cells (n=6) and two from HUVEC (n=2) and they were cultured as three-dimensional (3-D) multicellular-cultures using Cytodex-3 microcarrier beads in the rotating wall vessel (RWV). After a 240-h incubation, TEC and HUVEC proliferated exponentially to 4.2×107 and 2.2 × 107 cells/ml, respectively, without requiring a feeder layer; in contrast to the two-dimensional (2-D) cultures that average about 8 × 106 cells/ml. Phase contrast microscopy indicated formation of 3-D aggregates that varied in size from 0.5 to 5 mm. The size of the aggregates (1–5 mm, 6⊋ash;14 microcarriers) increased over time; however, the number of aggregates (0.5–1 mm, 2–5 microcarriers) decreased over a long-term incubation (240 h) because the cells merged to form large clumps. Maximum aggregation was observed with TEC at 120 h and HUVEC at 96 h. The culture of TEC in the absence of HUVEC produced minimal differentiation in contrast to cocultures. The TEC and HUVEC as cocultures in RWV proliferated at an accelerated rate (1.3 × 107 cells/ml, 96 h). The TEC-HUVEC coculture presented tubular structures penetrating the tumor cell masses, forming aggregates larger in size than the monocultures and typically with greater cell mass and number. The cells were viable (trypan blue exclusion) and metabolically active (glucose utilization) until 240 h. These data suggest that RWV provides a new model that allows us to investigate the regulatory factors that govern tumor angiogenesis.

Patients with severe forms of inherited epidermolysis bullosa exhibit decreased lymphokine and monokine production.

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from patients with severe forms of inherited epidermolysis bullosa (EB) are deficient in functions governing cellular immunity. Very low levels of interferon-γ (IFN-γ), interleukin-1 (IL-1), and interleukin-2 (IL-2) were producedin vitro by PBMC from patients with severe forms of EB (recessive dystrophic and dominant dystrophic) as compared to sex- and age-matched controls. Lymphokine production by PBMC from patients with junctional EB was somewhat greater than that from patients with dystrophic forms of EB but was significantly less than that from controls. The production of interferon-α was not found to be altered in the severe forms of EB. The PBMC from dystrophic types of EB were also deficient in production of tumor necrosis factors (TNF-α and TNF-β). The degree of the reduction in immune functions was directly related to the severity of skin involvement, with recessive dystrophic EB having the lowest level of cytokine production. This reduced production of monokines and lymphokines may be partially responsible for the progression of cutaneous infections to septicemia and for the metastasis of cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas in patients with severe forms of dystrophic EB.

Effects of 5-aminolaevulinic acid on human ovarian cancer cells and human vascular endothelial cells in vitro.

Results are reported on the cellular effects and the sensitivity of cultured tumor epithelial cells (TEC) derived from human ovarian cystadenocarcinoma and human umbilical vein-derived endothelial cells (HUVEC) to exogenous 5-aminolaevulinic acid (ALA) and ALA-induced photodynamic therapy (PDT). Cellular alterations and PDT efficiency were evaluated using colorimetric thiazolyl blue (MTT) assay, trypan blue exclusion assay, electron microscopy, and gel electrophoresis. ALA-induced protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) accumulation in TEC was associated with a concentration and time-dependent significant decrease in mitochondrial activity, increase in cell membrane permeability, and dark toxicity. Maximum PpIX loaded TEC demonstrated a high sensitivity to PDT. Neither cellular alterations nor PDT effects were observed in HUVEC under identical experimental conditions. These results indicate a potential clinical value for the use of ALA-mediated PDT to treat minimal residual disease in mucinous ovarian carcinoma. In addition, the ALA-induced PpIX cytotoxicity may be exported to a new chemotherapeutic regimen via a conventionally viewed photochemotherapeutic agent.