Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0149521 (chronic pancreatitis)
 7,199 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is characterized by mononuclear inflammatory cell infiltration and replacement of the destroyed parenchyma by fibrous tissue. Recently, mast cells have been implicated in chronic inflammatory processes with fibrous tissue deposition. Therefore, the number and distribution of mast cells and their state of activation were evaluated in 12 normal specimens and in 46 specimens of CP with different causes (alcoholic, tropical, and idiopathic). Furthermore, the presence of stem cell factor (SCF), the main mast cell growth factor, and of its receptor, c-kit, was also assessed. In CP tissues, mast cells were localized both in the fibrotic areas and in the residual acinar parenchyma. The total number of mast cells was significantly higher in CP than in the normal pancreas (P < .0001) and correlated positively with the extent of fibrosis and the intensity of inflammation. Immunoglobulin E (IgE)-dependent mast cell activation was higher in CP than in the normal pancreas. No differences in mast cell number or IgE positivity were found among the 3 causes of CP. SCF-and c-kit immunoreactive mast cells were mostly localized in fibrous tissue and around regenerating ducts, which were also positive for c-kit but were negative for SCF. These results suggest that mast cells, activated by an IgE-dependent mechanism and/or by an SCF-c-kit autocrine loop, are a relevant component of the inflammatory infiltrate in CP, independent of the underlying cause. Their localization near degenerating acini and regenerating ducts might indicate that they play a crucial role in tissue destruction and remodeling in CP.
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PMID:Mast cell distribution and activation in chronic pancreatitis. 1172 55

Stem cell factor (SCF) and macrophage-colony stimulating factor (M-CSF) have assumed an increasing importance in cancer biology. In the present study we investigated the serum levels of these cytokines in pancreatic cancer patients in relation to controls and to patients with benign lesions of the pancreas (chronic pancreatitis group). The classical tumor markers, such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) were also tested. We compared the serum levels of cytokines with tumor stage. We also defined the receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve for cytokines and classical tumor markers. The cytokines were measured in 47 patients with pancreatic cancer, in 27 patients with chronic pancreatitis and in 35 healthy subjects. SCF and M-CSF were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). CEA and CA 19-9 were measured by microparticle enzyme immunoassay. There were significant differences in the levels of circulating SCF, M-CSF, CEA and CA 19-9 in the pancreatic cancer patients compared to the control group, but only the serum levels of M-CSF, CEA and CA 19-9 were significantly higher in pancreatic cancer patients compared to the pancreatitis group. The levels of cytokines and tumor markers were higher in patients with a more advanced tumor stage. The M-CSF serum levels correlated positively with the tested tumor markers. The M-CSF area under the ROC curve was higher than the SCF area. These results suggest that M-CSF is a better candidate for a pancreatic cancer tumor marker than SCF.
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PMID:Stem cell factor and macrophage-colony stimulating factor in patients with pancreatic cancer. 1508 May 56

Hematopoietic cytokines (HCs) can affect the growth and spread of cancer. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated in pancreatic cancer patients the serum levels of selected HCs, such as stem cell factor (SCF), interleukin 3 (IL-3), granulocyte-macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) and macrophage-colony stimulating factor (M-CSF) in relation to a control group and to a group of patients with chronic pancreatitis. Classical tumor markers such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) were also tested. We compared the serum level of cytokines with the tumor stage. The diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve for cytokines and classical tumor markers were defined. The cytokines were measured in 48 patients with pancreatic cancer, in 23 patients with chronic pancreatitis and in 40 healthy subjects. HCs were determined using ELISA. CEA and CA 19-9 were measured by microparticle enzyme immunoassay. There were significant differences in the levels of circulating SCF, IL-3, GM-CSF, M-CSF, CEA and CA 19-9 in the pancreatic cancer patients compared to the control group. The serum levels of M-CSF and tumor markers were significantly higher in pancreatic cancer patients compared to the pancreatitis group. The levels of SCF, M-CSF and tumor markers were higher in patients with a more advanced tumor stage. The M-CSF serum levels in the pancreatitis group correlated positively with the tumor markers tested--CEA and CA 19-9. The diagnostic sensitivity of SCF and specificity of M-CSF and tumor markers were the highest. The SCF and M-CSF areas under the ROC curve were greater than the areas for other cytokines. These results suggest the potential usefulness of HCs in pancreatic cancer detection; however, further investigations of early-stage pancreatic cancer patients and confirmation by a prospective study are necessary.
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PMID:Hematopoietic cytokines in the sera of patients with pancreatic cancer. 1584 7