Female gender is a significant independent favorable prognostic factor in lung cancer. To study the possible role of sex hormones in lung cancer, the expression of sex-steroid receptors and the glucocorticoid receptor was investigated in 29 lung-cancer cell lines stemming from small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) and non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by means of immunocytochemistry, ligand-binding assays and RNA expression via polymerase chain reaction. In at least 2 methods of investigation, NSCLC cell lines showed a low expression of estrogen receptor in 6, progesterone receptor in 13 and androgen receptor in I2 out of 17 cases examined; sex-steroidreceptor expression was virtually absent in SCLC cell lines. The glucocorticoid receptor was expressed in all 29 cell lines studied. Additionally, 52 tumor samples from primary lung cancer were investigated for their receptor expression by means of immunohistochernistry. Among patients with primary lung-cancer sex-steroid-receptor expression in tumor biopsies was detected most frequently in female patients (in 69% of I6 cases, vs. 42% of 36 tumors from men) and in patients with adenocarcinoma. Further research will focus on these subgroups. lmmunohistology is a feasible method of studying steroid-receptor expression in lung cancer.o 1996 Wiley-Lhs, Inc.Analyses of large clinical trials have shown that female gender is a significant independent favorable prognostic factor in small-cell lung cancer (Albain et al., 1990;Johnson et al., 1988). Further multivariate analysis of a German multicenter study comprising 766 patients revealed significance only for women under the age of 60 years (Wolf et al., 1991). Two studies of patients with unresectable non-small-cell lung cancer who were treated with chemotherapy also showed a longer survival rate for women (O'Connell et al., 1986;Finkelstein et al., 1986).To determine the influence and possible therapeutical value of sex hormones in lung cancer, we decided to study the expression of their receptors in lung-cancer cell lines and tumor biopsies, since these are a prerequisite for steroid action. There are basically 3 methods for the detection of steroid-hormone receptors: gene expression, binding assays and immunohistochemistry. The gene expression of receptors has not been investigated in lung cancer so far. Binding assays which use radioactive ligands in whole-cell or cytosolic assays are the standard method for studying receptor expression. Immunohistochemistry uses monoclonal antibodies and has been well established for the detection of estrogen receptors and progesterone receptors in breast cancer. Numerous studies have shown a close correlation between immunocytochemical methods and binding assays in mammary carcinoma (Charpin et UL, 1986).The diagnosis of lung cancer is made predominantly on small bronchoscopic biopsies or cytological specimens. Therefore binding assays for which large amounts of fresh tissue have to be provided cannot readily be performed. Immunohistochemistry may overcome this problem, since this method ...

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

The Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR) in Darmstadt, Germany, provides unique possibilities for a new generation of hadron-, nuclear- and atomic physics experiments. The future antiProton ANnihilations at DArmstadt (PANDA or $$\overline{\mathrm{P}}$$ P ¯ ANDA) experiment at FAIR will offer a broad physics programme, covering different aspects of the strong interaction. Understanding the latter in the non-perturbative regime remains one of the greatest challenges in contemporary physics. The antiproton–nucleon interaction studied with PANDA provides crucial tests in this area. Furthermore, the high-intensity, low-energy domain of PANDA allows for searches for physics beyond the Standard Model, e.g. through high precision symmetry tests. This paper takes into account a staged approach for the detector setup and for the delivered luminosity from the accelerator. The available detector setup at the time of the delivery of the first antiproton beams in the HESR storage ring is referred to as the Phase One setup. The physics programme that is achievable during Phase One is outlined in this paper.

The proliferation of three mammary carcinoma cell lines was explored for the effectiveness of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and the antiandrogenic substances cyproterone acetate (CPA) or hydroxyflutamide. The cell growth, determined in multiple experimental cultures of the estrogen-sensitive lines MCF-7 and EFM-19, was stimulated by 10(-9) M to 10(-6) M DHT, whereas estrogen-resistant MFM-21 cells were unresponsive to the hormonal factors applied. Growth-promoting effects of 10(-8) M to 10(-6) M CPA were detected in cultures of those cell lines which were sensitive to estrogen and androgen. Competition experiments with DHT and the antiandrogens suggested involvement of the androgen receptor in the stimulation of cell growth by CPA. Participation of the estrogen receptor was excluded by lack of competition between CPA and the enhancement of proliferation by estradiol-17 beta. At the receptor level the antiandrogens were able to compete with androgen binding. The results of the study demonstrate androgenic properties of CPA in regard to the growth of human mammary carcinoma cells.

MHC class I positive/negative CC modulate the cytokine production of decidual LGL in different ways.