The immune system has been implicated in the control of bladder tumor growth. To evaluate the clonality of bladder tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes (TILs) in vivo, we studied the T-cell antigen ...receptor (TCR) repertoire in tumor biopsy specimens from 10 patients with transitional-cell carcinoma (TCC) of the bladder. Nine patients had a primary tumor, and one had a multifocal disease, consisting of two bladder tumors and three bilateral upper urinary tract sites of involvement. The following specimens from the nine patients with a primary tumor also were analyzed: a recurrent tumor from four patients, a metastatic lymph node from one patient, and peripheral blood from five patients. We used a high-resolution polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to determine CDR3 (complementarity-determining region 3) size lengths of TCR beta-chain transcripts. Oligoclonal T-cell expansion was identified in all specimens, with a larger number of expanded clones in the tumors than in peripheral blood. Expanded clones were identified in several beta-chain variable region (BV) subfamilies and varied from one patient to the next and also in different specimens from the same patient. However, a number of clones with the same VJ combination and the same CDR3 size were identified in a given patient (in specimens collected either simultaneously or at different times), suggesting homogeneity in the immunogenic environment. Clonal T-cell expansion in patients with bladder cancer may reflect prolonged exposure of T lymphocytes to tumor antigens. Our findings provide a basis for functional studies to elucidate T lymphocyte-bladder tumor cell interactions.
To achieve submillimetric spatial resolution, a new detection block has been designed for the LabPET II, a small animal PET scanner being developed at Université de Sherbrooke. Each detection block ...consists of 2 arrays of 4×8 avalanche photodiodes (APD) individually coupled to an 8×8 scintillator array, to form 64 independent and parallel DAQ channels. This new detection block entails an 8-fold increase in pixel density compared to the LabPET™ I. A 64-channel mixed-signal Application Specified Integrated Circuit (ASIC) was designed to extract relevant PET data in real time from the LabPET II detection blocks. The ASIC is expected to support up to 3000 PET events/sec per channel. In order to interface the ASICs forming the PET camera with the storage units, a real-time FPGA-based digital DAQ system was designed. The DAQ system allows event harvesting, processing and transmission to a distant computer for image reconstruction as well as system programming and calibration. Real-time event processing embedded in the DAQ includes energy computation using a time-over-threshold (TOT) conversion scheme, timing corrections and event sorting trees. A real-time coincidence engine analyzes events and only keeps relevant information to minimize data throughput and post-acquisition data processing. The architecture consists of 3 layers of FPGA-based electronics wired through gigabit links: a Front-End board extracts timing and energy along with a pixel address, a Hub board sorts incoming events chronologically and a Coincidence board matches coincident events and copes with randoms estimation. Every FPGA in the different layers is accessible through an Ethernet link. The real-time digital architecture sustains the required throughput of ~111 Mevents/s for a ~37000 channels scanner configuration.
Previous studies indicated that transforming growth factor β
1 (TGFβ
1) is expressed by normal urothelial cells and exerts regulatory autocrine functions in urothelial maintenance and wound healing. ...However, little is known about the expression patterns of TGFβ
1 and its receptors in bladder tumors. Therefore, we studied the protein and mRNA localization of TGFβ
1 and TGFβ receptor types I and II (TGFβRI and TGFβRII) in normal human urothelium and transitional cell carcinomas (TCCs) of different grades and stages. Expression of TGFβ
1 and its receptors was examined by immunocytochemistry and mRNA in situ hybridization in normal urothelium and TCCs using a semiquantitative method. By immunocytochemistry, the expression of TGFβ
1 and TGFβRII was higher in superficial and basal cell layers of normal urothelium than in the intermediate layer. A similar localization was seen in superficial TCCs. TGFβRI was mainly present in basal and intermediate cell layers of normal urothelium and superficial TCCs. In contrast, in muscle invasive TCCs, all tumor cells stained intensely for all three proteins. No correlation was found between immunostaining and TCC grade. In situ hybridization pointed out that all cell layers in normal urothelium exhibit similar TGFβ
1 mRNA levels. Elevated TGFβ
1 mRNA levels were noted in TCCs irrespective of grade or stage. In conclusion, these data indicate that in normal urothelium TGFβ
1, TGFβRI, and TGFβRII expression depend on maturation and differentiation. This pattern is particularly lost in muscle invasive TCCs, in which the expression of the three proteins is enhanced. These data suggest autocrine TGFβ
1 mechanisms in human TCC cells that may be more pronounced in muscle invasive TCC cells.
Keratoconus and Fitness to Fly Delbarre, Maxime; Crepy, Pascale; Froussart-Maille, Françoise
Aerospace medicine and human performance,
2022-Dec-01, Volume:
93, Issue:
12
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Of the body senses, vision is the most important for safe flight. Keratoconus causes progressive blurring and distortion of vision, which threatens the career of a civilian or military aviator. The ...goal of this retrospective study was to describe a series of keratoconus cases in a pilot population and to discuss decisions about their flight waivers.
To assess the impact of keratoconus on flying careers, we reviewed the records of all aviators with keratoconus examined in an Aeromedical Center over the past 5 yr.
The files of 19 pilots 13 line pilots and 6 military pilots (3 fighter pilots) were collected and analyzed. Of the 19 patients, 2 did not obtain flight fitness waivers. Among the 17 who received waivers, correction for defective distant vision (glasses or contact lenses) was imposed on 5 aviators.
Keratoconus is a medical condition with aeromedical significance that should be detected by aeromedical examiners. A flight license can only be considered if the disease is stable and with satisfactory visual quality. Double pass aberrometry may be helpful to determine flight fitness. This study shows that keratoconus is not always a disability for aviators. Most of them are able to continue their flying careers safely. However, it must be analyzed on a case-by-case basis.