Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:2.7.10.2 (focal adhesion kinase)
44,029 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Several lines of evidence have demonstrated that IFNs could be relevant in the treatment of certain neoplastic diseases such as carcinomas. In particular, IFN-alpha, in addition to the anti-proliferative and cytostatic effects, was demonstrated to be capable of inducing cell death by apoptosis both in vivo and in vitro. Numerous protocols have also been proposed which consider the association of IFN-alpha with other drugs. Among these are retinoids, a class of compounds capable of inducing inhibition of cell growth and differentiation. We address the question here by analyzing the role of cell adhesion in susceptibility to IFN-alpha, RA and their combination of a human cell line derived from a squamous carcinoma of the cervix, the Bcl-2-negative SiHa cell line. In this context, cytoskeleton components and several surface molecules playing a role in cell substrate and cell-to-cell relationships have been evaluated. We found that RA treatment is capable of improving stress fiber formation, decreasing cell detachment and increasing cell-adhesion capability. However, no variations in the ability to adhere to specific extracellular-matrix molecules were found in RA-treated cells. No quantitative changes were detected in integrins involved as receptors for extracellular matrix molecules (VLAI-VLA5) or in other cell-adhesion-associated molecules (e.g., CD44). By contrast, 2 important molecules involved in cell-adhesion processes appeared to be up-regulated by RA exposure: focal adhesion kinase and E-cadherin, involved in adhesion plaque formation and cell-to-cell contacts, respectively. Keeping in mind the importance of adhesion properties in the cell-growth pathway, our findings could be of interest in the study of carcinoma-cell proliferation and metastatic potential.
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PMID:Antiproliferative activity of interferon alpha and retinoic acid in SiHa carcinoma cells: the role of cell adhesion. 959 Jan 30

There is a need for fast and sensitive methods to evaluate the response of patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) to interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) therapy to complement cytogenetic analysis of Philadelphia (Ph) chromosome-positive metaphases. We have used interphase FISH (fluorescence in situ hybridization) and competitive RT-PCR (reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction) techniques for detection of BCR-ABL-positive cells to measure suppression of leukaemic clone in a series of 51 follow-up samples from 24 CML patients undergoing IFN-alpha treatment. Interphase FISH analysis of the malignant clone in bone marrow using BCR and ABL probes was found to be highly correlated to conventional G-banding metaphase examination (r = 0.98). RT-PCR quantification of BCR-ABL mRNA transcripts in blood also showed a high degree of concordance with the proportion of Ph-positive metaphases (r = 0.93). In addition, the degree of cytogenetic response did not influence the equivalence between karyotype analysis and molecular methods. We concluded that interphase FISH and competitive RT-PCR provide reliable information on residual tumour burden and response to IFN-alpha in CML patients. These molecular methods may significantly improve the efficiency of residual disease monitoring during IFN-alpha therapy of CML.
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PMID:Interphase cytogenetics and competitive RT-PCR for residual disease monitoring in patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia during interferon-alpha therapy. 963 1

To determine the source of residual disease detected in patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) in complete cytogenetic remission (n=8) after treatment with interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha), we have tested CFU-GM colonies grown from bone marrow mononuclear cells or from plastic-adherent (Pdelta) cells for BCR-ABL mRNA using a nested multiplex RT-PCR. We compared our results with those obtained by analysis of colonies from newly diagnosed patients (n=4) and patients achieving no cytogenetic response (n=1) or incomplete cytogenetic response to treatment with IFN-alpha (n=5). A total of 1239 informative colonies were analysed. A small proportion of BCR-ABL-positive colonies was detected in all eight patients in complete cytogenetic remission, suggesting the persistence of leukaemia that could potentially lead to relapse. The overall proportion of BCR-ABL-positive colonies in patients achieving a cytogenetic response to IFN-alpha correlated with the levels of BCR-ABL transcripts detected in the peripheral blood by competitive RT-PCR (P=0.004). We conclude that residual disease detected in the peripheral blood of complete cytogenetic responders to IFN-alpha is at least partly derived from clonogenic myeloid cells. It is probable that the leukaemia clone in CML is only very rarely or never entirely eradicated by treatment with IFN-alpha.
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PMID:BCR-ABL-positive progenitors in chronic myeloid leukaemia patients in complete cytogenetic remission after treatment with interferon-alpha. 975 56

It has been proposed elsewhere that thyrocyte (TEC) class I expression plays a central role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD). We have studied thyroid xenografts from patients with Graves' disease (GD) and normal (paranodular) (N) tissues in nude and severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. TEC class I and II expression are markedly increased in GD, as compared with N thyroids. When these tissues are transplanted to nude mice in which the immune environment is deleted from the thyroid grafts, TEC class I and class II expression decline to low levels; interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) but not interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) will then upregulate TEC class I and class II expression in these N and GD nude xenografts. In SCID mouse xenografts, GD tissue shows higher TEC class I and II expression compared with N. In these SCID mice, both IFN-alpha and IFN-gamma will stimulate TEC class I and II expression further in both GD and N. However, only IFN-alpha increases thyroid antibody (TAb) production from GD SCID grafts, whereas IFN-gamma causes a rise in GD TEC class I and II expression, but no significant increase in TAb. Moreover, in N SCID grafts, despite a rise in TEC class I and II expression induced by both IFNs, no TAb could be detected. Because an immune environment is necessary for TEC class I and II upregulated expression, we conclude that such upregulation is a secondary phenomenon. Because there was dissociation between the stimulation of TEC class I and II expression versus the production of TAb, then at least under these experimental conditions, there is no support for a role for TEC class I and class II upregulation in the pathogenesis of AITD.
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PMID:Thyrocyte class I and class II upregulation is a secondary phenomenon and does not contribute to the pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroid disease. 977 45

To study the oncogenic role of the p210(bcr-abl) fusion protein in chronic myelogenous leukemia cells, we generated a mouse cell line that was stably transfected with and overexpressed the human p210(bcr-abl) fusion protein. We then looked for phosphorylation activation of the Janus-activated kinase (JAK) family of tyrosine-specific protein kinases by the p210(bcr-abl) fusion protein. We found that JAK1, which has been shown by others to be associated with the IFN-alpha and -gamma plasma membrane receptors, was phosphorylated to a much greater degree in cells containing the p210(bcr-abl) fusion protein than was the case in the original, untransfected cell line. In contrast, no phosphorylation of the JAK2 kinase, which is associated with the IFN-gamma but not IFN-alpha receptor, was observed either with or without p210(bcr-abl) protein. A substrate of JAK1, STAT1 (signal transducers and activators of transcription 1), was found to be phosphorylated in cells containing overexpressed p210(bcr-abl) fusion protein. These results indicate that the presence of the p210(bcr-abl) protein kinase within a cell is associated with phosphorylation of the JAK1 kinase and its substrate STAT1.
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PMID:Potential role of bcr-abl in the activation of JAK1 kinase. 981 65

The principle aim of residual disease analysis in patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) is to gauge patient response to treatment and, in patients after allogeneic BMT, to enable early diagnosis of relapse. RT-PCR is by far the most sensitive assay to detect residual disease in CML and can enable a single leukaemia cell to be detected in a background of 10(5)-10(6) normal cells. This is approximately 1000 x greater than the routine detection limit of the other methods. After allogeneic BMT, many CML patients are BCR-ABL positive for prolonged periods of time without subsequently relapsing. Thus the simple presence or absence of residual BCR-ABL transcripts in patients' leukocytes is of little value in the management of individual cases. Quantitative PCR techniques can distinguish between those PCR positive patients who have low or falling BCR-ABL levels on sequential analysis from those who have levels that are increasing. Provided assays are performed frequently enough, rising or persistently high numbers of BCR-ABL transcripts can be detected prior to frank relapse and this information may be used for early therapeutic intervention. Most patients who respond to treatment for relapse by donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) achieve durable molecular remission. Quantitative PCR is also useful to gauge the response of CML patients to IFN-alpha. We have found that the great majority of patients in complete cytogenetic remission after treatment with IFN-alpha remain PCR positive and harbour a minority population of BCR-ABL positive myeloid precursor cells. It is unlikely therefore this treatment modality completely eliminates the disease in any patient.
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PMID:Minimal residual disease in chronic myeloid leukaemia. 984 16

Interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) can be considered as treatment of choice for patients with chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) in chronic phase. With this treatment major cytogenetic responses can be achieved in 30% to 50% of patients. Regular monitoring of cytogenetic response is essential for the therapeutic management of these patients. As conventional cytogenetics is not always successful, especially under IFN-alpha treatment, molecular cytogenetic methods have been established for the examination of interphase nuclei for the presence of the BCR-ABL fusion gene, the molecular counterpart of the Philadelphia chromosome. To demonstrate the value of these new methods we have analysed interphase nuclei from sequentially cultured bone marrow cells from 14 CML patients who were treated with IFN-alpha and whose bone marrow was investigated regularly during therapy. Dual-colour FISH with a breakpoint spanning BCR-YAC and a flanking cosmid from the ABL region was applied. When compared with conventional cytogenetics the results achieved by FISH were favourable. The most evident advantage of FISH analysis is that in case of failure of conventional cytogenetics a reliable determination of the remission status can be done. Together with other recent studies our results illustrate the advantages and limitations of the interphase FISH method for monitoring CML patients.
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PMID:Monitoring of remission status by fluorescence in situ hybridisation in chronic myeloid leukaemia patients treated with interferon-alpha. 986 21

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation is the only curative treatment for patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (CML); however, recurrence of disease remains a major cause of treatment failure. A 26-year-old man with chronic myeloid leukemia who had a cytogenetic relapse 49 months after his first syngeneic bone marrow transplant (BMT) and hematologic relapse 23 months thereafter progressed to blast crisis despite treatment with IFN-alpha for 15 months. He underwent a second transplantation in early second blast crisis, 92 months after the first BMT with PBPC from his previous donor. Successful hematological reconstitution occurred. On day 50 after the second transplantation the patient developed a generalized rash, hepatomegaly, and cholestatic signs. Skin and liver biopsy revealed changes compatible with acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Treatment with cyclosporin A (CSA) and prednisone was started, and the GVHD resolved. Fifteen months after PBPC transplantation he had a molecular relapse. Despite discontinuation of CSA, the patient progressed into blast crisis 7 months later. The occurrence of GVHD and disappearance of the BCR-ABL-positive clone suggest that a graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) effect may have been operative for 15 months in a patient given a second syngeneic BMT in blast crisis.
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PMID:Graft-versus-host disease following second syngeneic stem cell transplantation for relapsed chronic myeloid leukemia. 987 66

IFN-gamma induces transcription of several IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs). Recently, the IFN-gamma-dependent Janus kinase (JAK)/STAT pathway has been shown to mediate the activation of some ISGs, by the sequential phosphorylation of two JAK kinases (JAK1 and JAK2) and of STAT1. Given that the JAK/STAT is the major, but not the only pathway linked to the IFN-gammaR, aim of our work was to investigate the signal-transduction pathway(s) by which IFN-gamma exerts its effects on acute replication of HIV in monocytic cells. To this end, we utilized clones previously derived from the U937 promonocytic cell line, differing for their efficient (plus clones) or inefficient (minus clones) abilities of supporting HIV replication. Unlike IFN-alpha, IFN-gamma did not inhibit HIV replication in plus clones, whereas virus production in minus cells was efficiently inhibited by both types of IFN. Plus clones generated a JAK/STAT signal-transduction pathway in response to IFN-alpha, but not IFN-gamma. In contrast, minus clones responded to either cytokines. The functional defect of plus clones in response to IFN-gamma was correlated to a selective defect of IFN-gammaR2, but not IFN-gammaR1, membrane expression. Surprisingly enough, IFN-gamma stimulation of plus clones induced IFN-stimulated gene factor 3 (ISGF3gamma). These results strongly support the hypothesis that the JAK/STAT pathway is responsible for the antiretroviral effect of IFN-gamma, and further provide evidence for a potential second pathway triggered by IFN-gamma in the absence of IFN-gammaR2 chain cell surface expression and involving ISGF3gamma.
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PMID:A selective defect of IFN-gamma- but not of IFN-alpha-induced JAK/STAT pathway in a subset of U937 clones prevents the antiretroviral effect of IFN-gamma against HIV-1. 988 2

The purpose of this study was to review the progress in clinical and translational research in chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) over the past 20 years at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. The CML database updating the clinical and basic research investigations was reviewed as the source of this report. Publications resulting from these investigations were summarized. The long-term results with intensive chemotherapy, IFN-alpha therapy alone or in combination, autologous stem cell transplantation, and new agents such as homoharringtonine and decitabine showed encouraging results. Biological studies related to the BCR-ABL molecular abnormality, other molecular events, and the detection of minimal residual disease were detailed. Future strategies with potential promise in CML were outlined. Significant progress in understanding CML biology and in treating patients afflicted with the disease has occurred. Several therapeutic and research tools are currently investigated, which should hopefully improve further the prognosis of patients with CML.
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PMID:Chronic myelogenous leukemia--progress at the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center over the past two decades and future directions: first Emil J Freireich Award Lecture. 1006 80


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