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OBJECTIVE: Determination of antibodies to neuronal membrane proteins in the blood serum of patients is of interest for diagnosis and optimization of treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Authors studied the level of antibodies to acetylcholine receptor alpha 7 protein fragment (AChR), prion protein (РrР) and glycation end-products (RAGE) as well as to intracellular proteins nucleophosmin (Nuc) and survivin (Sur) in the serum of AD patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Serum samples of 26 patients with probable AD and 13 healthy people were studied. Exposed sections of each protein were used for the choice of peptides for antibody visualization. ELIZA was a main method in this study. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Antibodies to several proteins were identified but significant differences were found only for AChR-(173-193). The results demonstrated the involvement of AChR and AChR-antibodies in the development of AD. Determination of antibodies to AChR-(173-193) may be a marker of AD and a method for specifying the diagnosis of AD.

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Survivin is an oncofetal protein involved both in inhibiting of apoptosis and in cell cycle regulation. The functions of survivin are defined by its structural state. Due to nature polymorphism, survivin cancontain either E or K amino acid in 129 residue, and K129 is commonly acetylated. Only the protein having acetylated K129 tends to form dimeric structure. Thus, antibodies detecting the amino acid substitution can be a useful tool for structural and functional research of the protein. To obtain the antibodies specific to amino acid substitution E129/K129 peptide fragments overlapping 129 amino acid residue were synthesized, rabbits were immunized with the peptides and affinity purification of the antibodies on sepharose conjugated with the peptides was carried out. The data of ELISA and western blot showed that antibodies obtained were able to detect amino acid substitution E129/K129 in the recombinant and endogenous survivin.

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Neurotoxic beta-amyloid peptide plays an important role in the pathology of Alzheimer's disease. In aggregated form it binds to several proteins on the surface of the brain cells leading to their death. p75 receptor in- volved in supporting of cell balance is one of the targets for toxic beta-amyloid. We proposed that induction of antibodies against potential binding sites of p75 with beta-amyloid can be a promising approach towards new drug development for Alzheimer's disease therapy. Four potentially immunoactive fragments of p75 were chosen and chemically synthesized. Investigation of immunoprotective effect of the peptide fragments carried out in mice with experimentally induced form of Alzheimer's disease helped to reveal two fragments effectively preserving murine memory from impairment. Results obtained by ELISA biochemical analysis showed that only immunization with fragment p75 155-164 led to significant decrease in beta-amyloid level in the brain of the experimental mice. Thus, immunization with both fragments of p75 receptor is believed to be an effective tool for the development of new drugs against Alzheimer's disease.

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Toxic effect of beta-amyloid on brain cells during Alzheimer's disease pathology is known to be associated with oxidative stress, intracellular Ca2+ increase in neurons and astrocytes and activation of reactive oxygen species production. Prion protein is involved in beta-amyloid toxicity. Here we investigated an effect of affinity purified antibodies to synthetic fragment 95-123 of the prion protein on beta-amyloid induced cell death, Ca(2+)-signal, reactive oxygen species production and caspase 3 activation. We have shown that antibodies to fragment 95-123 are able to protect neurons and astrocytes from beta-amyloid induced cell death with no effect on the intracellular Ca2+ concentration altered by beta-amyloid treatment. However, the antibodies significantly reduced Abeta induced reactive oxygen species production in astrocytes and decreased caspase 3 activation in neurons and astrocytes. Thus, induction of antibodies to synthetic fragment 95-123 of the prion protein provides a new approach to anti-AD vaccine design.

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Tumor-associated protein survivin is the bifunctional protein which can participate either in cell division regulation or in apoptosis inhibition depending on its localization and structure state. The aim of this work was to obtain monospecific antibodies useful for investigation of protein structure and functional features. Six affinity purified antibodies directed to different protein regions were obtained. The ability of antibodies obtained to detect survivin in tumor cells and breast cancer tissues was studied. It was shown that antibodies to (1-22) and (95-105) survivin fragments have the highest specific activity. In western-blot antibodies to (1-22) region predominantly binds with survivin-containing complex, which may be the survivin dimer as we suppose, while antibodies to (95-105) region detects only monomeric form of the protein. Breast cancer tissues study demonstrated that survivin monomer presents only in the tumor core tissues, while survivin-containing complex is expressed both in tumor core and tumor periphery tissues. It was shown that antibodies to (1-22) fragment detect predominantly nuclear survivin, which participates in mitosis regulation, while antibodies to (95-105) fragment gave nucleoplasm and cytoplasm staining at all stages of cell cycle. Thereby antibodies obtained are the useful tool for structure-functional study of survivin.

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Whether the expression of the apoptosis inhibitor survivin was correlated with the degree of differentiation and the stage of transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder was studied. Sixty samples of surgical specimens from patients with urothelial carcinomas of various degrees of differentiation and different stages were examined. An immunohistochemical study using the monoclonal antibodies obtained by the authors was conducted. The high expression of survivin was shown to be correlated with the lower-grade differentiation of a tumor and its higher stage.

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An objective of the study was to search for new biologically significant markers of brain damage. Levels of blood serum autoantibodies (aAB) to different fragments of α7-subunit of acetylcholine receptor (ACR) were studied in children with traumatic brain injury of different severity. The more severe was trauma, the higher was the level of aAB to fragments of α7-subunit of ACR in the first week after trauma. The data obtained suggest that α7-subunits of ACR and aAB to them are involved in the pathogenesis of traumatic brain lesions and, probably, play a significant role in the course of post traumatic period.

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Background: Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GIST) have a mesenchymal origin and correspond to 1 percent of all gastrointestinal tumors. They have a benign behavior in approximately 75 percent of cases. They express CD117, CD34, smooth muscle actin, S-100 and desmin, markers that are useful in the differential diagnosis of smooth muscle tumors and those of neurogenic origin. Aim: To report our experience with GIST. Material and Methods: A retrospective, observational study. The pathology reports of GIST in the period 2004-2008 were reviewed. Immunohistochemical expression, pathological grade, mitotic index and histological patterns were reviewed. The medical records of patients were reviewed to obtain age and gender, location, size and presence of metastases. Results: A total of 51 GIST were identified, coming from 21 males and 30 females. Nineteen tumors were located in the small bowel, 18 in the stomach, four in the rectum, two in the colon and in five, the location was not specified. In 28 cases, the pathological pattern was spindle cell, in 12 mixed, in six epithelioid, in three pleomorphic, in one signet ring cell and giant cell in one. Forty nine percent of tumors were of high grade. Metastases were found in the liver in two cases, in the omentum in two and in the spleen, kidney, retroperitoneum and pancreas, in one case each. Two had lymph node involvement. Conclusions: GIST tumor corresponded to a 0.12 percent of all pathology reports during the study period. Most tumors in this series were of high grade.

Introducción: Los Tumores del Estroma Gastrointestinal (TEGI) son de origen mesenquimal comprendiendo el 1 por ciento de todos los tumores GI. Son benignos del 70 a 80 por ciento. Expresan CD117, CD34, actina de músculo liso, S-100 y desmina, marcadores útiles en el diagnóstico diferencial de tumores de músculo liso y tumores de origen neurogénico. Material y Método: Es un estudio retrospectivo y descriptivo. Se revisaron los reportes en el período 2004-2008 registrados como TEGI, valorando la expresión Inmunohistoquímica, grado histológico, índice mitótico, y patrones histológicos. Del reporte histológico se obtuvo la edad y sexo del paciente, localización, tamaño y metástasis. Resultados: Se recolectaron 51 casos corroborados como TEGI. Encontrando una prevalencia del sexo femenino (30) y una edad media de 52 años. Las localizaciones fueron: Intestino delgado (19), estómago (18), no especificado (5), recto (4), colon (2), retroperitoneo (2), no encontramos en esófago. Los patrones encontrados fueron el fusocelular (28), mixto (12), epitelioide (6), pleomórfico (3), células en anillo de sello (1), células gigantes (1). La mayoría (49 por ciento) fue de alto grado, presentando metástasis a hígado (2), ganglios (2), epiplón (2), bazo (1), riñón (1), retroperitoneo (1) y páncreas (1). Discusión: Se realizaron un total de 41.035 estudios histopatológicos, de los cuales 51 casos corresponden a LEGI, esto equivale al 0,12 por ciento. Encontramos tumores en los que su morfología, tamaño e índice mitótico fueron de bajo grado y presentaron metástasis y recidivas al momento del diagnóstico. Veinticinco casos fueron de alto grado (49 por ciento), lo cual es mayor a lo reportado por la literatura 20-30 por ciento, probablemente porque este es un hospital de concentración y generalmente los pacientes acuden a atención médica en una etapa avanzada de la enfermedad.

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La exostosis múltiple hereditaria es una enfermedad genética rara de transmisión autosómica dominante, que se caracteriza por una alteración cromosómica de los genes EXT1 (8q24.1), EXT2(11p11-p13) y EXT3 (cromosoma 19), se manifiesta predominantemente por desarrollar desde temprana edad lesiones óseas (osteocondromas) con tendencia a la malignización, con un gran horizonte clínico, dependiendo del número, tamaño y localización. Resumen Se presenta el caso clínico de una paciente femenina de 27 años de edad, que cursa con embarazo a término y el antecedente de exostosis múltiple hereditaria. Primer caso documentado de esta asociación a nivel mundial (AU)

Hereditary multiple exostosis is a rare genetic disease with autosomal dominant transmission characterized by chromosomal alteration of the EXT1 (8q24.1), EXT2 (11p11-p13) and EXT3 (chromosome 19) genes. The main manifestations of this disease are the development of bony lesions (osteochondromas) from an early age, with a tendency to malignant transformation and a wide clinical spectrum, depending on the number, size and localization of the lesions. We present the case of a 27-year-old woman with term pregnancy and a history of hereditary multiple exostosis. There are no previous reports of this association worldwide (AU)

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Survivin, an endogenous protein, is a promising marker for the diagnosis of cancer. The aim of the present work was to obtain antibodies specific to survivin and capable of detecting this protein in tumor tissues. Four peptides corresponding to fragments (1-22), (54-74), (80-88)-(153-165), and (118-144) of the survivin-2B sequence were selected and synthesized. Rabbits were immunized with the synthetic peptides. It has been shown that all peptides in a free state, without conjugation with a high-molecular-weight carrier, stimulate the production of antibodies capable of binding with recombinant survivin. Antipeptide antibodies were isolated from sera and their performance in the immunohistochemical detection of survivin in human tumor tissues was studied. It was shown that only antibodies to the (80-88)-(153-165) peptide bind to the survivin present in breast and bladder tumors. The ability of antibodies to this peptide to detect survivin in tumor tissue lysates was demonstrated by immunoblotting. The part of the sequence targeted by the antibodies against the (80-88)-(153-165) peptide was localized using truncated peptide fragments.

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Immunoactive fragments corresponding to the N-terminal (19-36) and C-terminal (283-294) regions of the NPM1.1 isoform of nucleophosmin and their shortened fragments were chosen and synthesized. Rabbits were immunized with free full-size peptides and their protein conjugates. Antibodies produced against the 19-36 and 283-294 peptides were purified by affinity chromatography on bromocyanogen-activated sepharose that was preliminary conjugated with the synthetic peptides. An analysis of immunoblots of lysates of the HeLa and Ramos cells demonstrated that the antibodies produced against the 19-36 peptide detected the monomeric form of nucleophosmin, whereas the antibodies against the 283-294 peptide predominantly revealed its oligomeric form. It was established by immunocytochemical analysis that the antibodies induced by the 19-36 peptide stained the nucleoplasm and perinuclear space of the cytoplasm of the HeLa and Ramos cells, but did not stain the nucleoli, while the antibodies against the 283-294 peptide stained only the nucleoli of the same cells. On the basis of these results, one could propose that the monomeric and oligomeric forms of nucleophosmin were located in the nucleoplasm and nucleoli of the examined cells, respectively. Thus, antibodies which can predominantly detect monomeric and oligomeric forms of nucleophosmin were produced for the first time. An analysis of the monomeric-oligomeric state and the location of the nucleophosmin in tumor cells could be performed using these antibodies.

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Antibodies to the prion protein (PrP), particularly, monoclonal antibodies, are necessary tools in the diagnostics and study of prion diseases and potential means of their immunotherapy. For the production of monoclonal antibodies, BALB/c mice were immunized by a recombinant bovine PrP. Three stable hybridomas producing antibodies of IgM class were prepared. The antibodies were bound to PrP in a solid-phase enzyme immunoassay and immunoblotting. The epitope mapping accomplished with the use of synthetic peptides showed that an epitope located in region 25-36 of PrP corresponds to one antibody, and epitopes located in region 222-229, to the other two. The antibodies to fragment 222-229 purified by affinity chromatography recognized with a high specificity conglomerates of a pathogenic prion in the brain tissue of cows suffering from spongiform encephalopathy. Thus, in nontransgenic mice, PrP-specific monoclonal antibodies were produced, useful in studies and diagnostics of prion diseases.

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A new approach to the development of a vaccine against meningococci of serogroups A and B was proposed. It involves the synthesis of conjugates of high-molecular capsule polysaccharides of the serogroup A meningococcus (PsA) with earlier synthesized protective fragments of membrane proteins from serogroup B meningococci. The conjugates were synthesized using a method that consists of the generation of aldehyde groups by oxidizing free vicinal hydroxyl groups of PsA and subsequent reaction of these groups with amino groups of the peptide. The reaction proceeds with the intermediate formation of the Schiff base, which is reduced to the stable secondary amine. The main parameters of the reaction were optimized in the synthesis of a PsA conjugate with a model peptide and methods of their characterization were developed. The reproducibility and efficiency of the synthetic procedure were demonstrated by the example of synthesis of PsA conjugates with fragments of protein PorA from the outer membrane of the serogroup B meningococcus. It was shown that, when administered without adjuvant, a conjugate of PsA with a protective peptide, which represents an exposed conserved fragment 306-332 of protein PorA, stimulates the formation of antibodies to the peptide and polysaccharide moieties of the molecule and is also capable of decreasing the degree of bacteremia in animals infected with serogroup A and serogroup B meningococci. The approach can be applied to the development of a complex vaccine for serogroup A and serogroup B meningococci.

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The endogenous protein survivin is present in tumor cells and inhibits apoptosis. The influence of vaccination of mice by survivin fragments on growth of various types of tumors was studied to examine the possibility of creation of an antitumor vaccinating agent on its basis. Two peptides corresponding to the (118-144) and (80-88)-(153-165) sequences of survivin 2B were chosen and synthesized on the basis of literature data and theoretical calculations. Their ability to stimulate antibody production in mice of the C57BL/6J line (b haplotype) and in BDF1 hybrids (b x d haplotype) was investigated. Both peptides were shown to stimulate production of antibodies that bound the recombinant survivin in the BDF1 mice. Immunization of the BDF1 and C57BL/6J mice with the recombinant survivin resulted in the formation of antibodies that reacted with the (118-144) peptide. The effect of preventive vaccination with the peptides and the recombinant protein on the dynamics of growth of several species of tumors was studied. Vaccination with the (80-88)-(153-165) peptide was found to cause an antitumor effect in BDF1 mice suffering from sarcoma S-37. Thus, the creation of an antitumor agent on the basis of this peptide is a promising area of further studies.

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The effect of immunization with the synthetic fragments of the alpha7 subunit of the acetylcholine nicotine receptor on the spatial memory of mice subjected to olfactory bulbectomy, which causes the development of the neuro-degenetrative disease of Alzheimer's type, was studied. Mice of the NMRI line were immunized with the KLH conjugates of two peptide fragments of the N-terminal fragment of the alpha7 subunit extraxcellular fragment, subjected to olfactory bulbectomy to cause the development of the neurodegenetrative disease of Alzheimer's type, and then the state of the spartial memory was evaluated. It was shown that 20% of bulbectomized mice immunized with the N-terminal 1-23 fragment exhibited good spatial memory after training. Immunization with the peptide construct (159-167)-(179-188) consisting of two hydrophilic exposed regions of alpha7-subunit induced good spatial memory in 50% of bulbectomized mice, while in the control group, which received only KLH, none of the animals were educated. Thus, the development of immunotherapy with peptide (159-167)-(179-188) seems to be a promising approach to prophylaxis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

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Five synthetic fragments of the N-terminal domain of the alpha7 subunit of the human nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (alpha7 nAChR) that correspond to theoretically calculated B epitopes and T helper epitopes of the protein and contain from 16 to 29 amino acid residues were tested for the ability to stimulate the formation of antibodies in mice of three lines having H-2d, H-2b, and H-2k haplotypes of the major histocompatibility complex. It was shown that, in the free (unconjugated) form, all the peptides stimulate the formation of antibodies at least in one mouse line. Most of the peptides induced the formation of antibodies in BALB/c mice (haplotype H-2d); therefore, more detailed studies were carried out on these animals. The free peptides and/or their conjugates with keyhole limpet hemocyanin were demonstrated to be capable of stimulating the formation in BALB/c mice of antibodies that bind to the recombinant extracellular N-terminal domain of (alpha7 nAChRalpha). The epitope mapping of antipeptide antibodies carried out using truncated fragments helped reveal antipeptide antibodies to four regions of the alpha7 subunit: 1-23, 98-106, 159-168, and 173-188 (or 179-188).

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Potentially immunoactive regions of the NS1 nonstructural protein of the tick-borne encephalitis virus that can stimulate the antibody formation in vivo and protect animals from this disease were chosen on the basis of theoretical calculations. Eleven 16- to 27-aa peptides containing the chosen regions were synthesized. The ability of the free peptides (without any high-molecular-mass carrier) to stimulate the production of antipeptide antibodies in mice of three lines and ensure the formation of protective immunity was studied. Most of these peptides were shown to exhibit the immunogenic activity in a free state. Five fragments that can protect mice from the infection by a lethal dose of tick-borne encephalitis virus were found.

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Immunization of mice with synthetic peptide fragments of conservative sites of meningococcal outer membrane proteins led to defense formation against infection with virulent serogroup A and B Meningococci. The role of cellular immunity in the formation of defense against meningococcal infection after immunization with the peptides and the possibility of stimulating lymphocyte population with these peptides were demonstrated.

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Potential B epitopes and T-helper epitopes in the N-terminal extracellular domain of the alpha7-subunit of human acetylcholine receptor (AChR) were theoretically calculated in order to reveal peptides that can induce the formation of specific antibodies to this domain. Four peptides structurally corresponding to four alpha7-subunit regions containing 16-23 aa and three of their truncated analogues were synthesized. Rabbits were immunized with both free peptides and protein conjugates of their truncated analogues, and a panel of antibodies to various exposed regions of the N-terminal extracellular domain of the AChR alpha7-subunit was obtained. All of the four predicted peptides were shown to induce the production of antipeptide antibodies in free form, without conjugation with any protein carrier. The free peptides and the protein conjugates of truncated analogues induced the formation of almost equal levels of antibodies. Most of the obtained antisera contained antibodies that bind to the recombinant extracellular N-terminal domain of the rat AChR alpha7-subunit and do not react with the analogous domain of the alpha1-subunit of the ray Torpedo californica AChR.

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The antibodies to the bovine prion protein were produced by immunizing mice of three lines with five synthetic fragments of the protein and their six analogues. The analogues contained the amino acid substitutions that, according to theoretical calculation, should lead to an increase in the immunogenic activity of peptides. All the peptides, except for one, induced the formation of antibodies. All the sera containing the antipeptide antibodies were tested by an immunohistochemical method. The sera that were effectively bound to the brain preparations from the bovine with spongiform encephalopathy were identified; it was shown that they do not interact with the preparations of normal brain. Therefore, it was shown that the immunization of mice with the synthetic fragments of a prion protein helps obtain specific antibodies suitable for the study and diagnostics of prion diseases.

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