No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Placental alkaline phosphatase (PLAP) is a membrane bound enzyme normally synthesized by the syncytiotrophoblasts in the human placenta. Recent studies have indicated that trace amounts of placental-like alkaline phosphatases also are present in several normal organs like testes and endocervix. PLAP and PLAP-1ike enzymes are furthermore synthesized by some tumors and can be detected in sera of approximately 12 % of patients with any type of cancer, more often in patients with genital tumors. This synthesis has been considered to be ectopic.PLAP is known to be electrophoretically highly polymorphic. Both poly- and monoclonal antibodies were used to study this enzyme. One of the monoclonal antibodies was able to discriminate between different phenotypes of PLAP and thus immunochemical approaches to elucidate enzyme polymorphism were established.To evaluate the potential clinical use of PLAP as a tumor marker serum levels of the enzyme were measured by a radioimmunoassay in 100 patients with the testicular tumor seminoma. Elevated levels of PLAP were found in 43 % of the patients with primary tumors and in 75 % of the patients with recurrent or metastatic disease. After successful treatment of seminoma the PLAP levels decreased. This indicates that measuring PLAP give useful information during follow up of treatment of seminomas.The content of PLAP-like enzymes in seminoma tumors was determined in 13 typical seminomas. The levels, of enzyme found in the tumor tissue ranged from 870-13 404 ng/g wet weight, which should be compared to around 100 ng/g in normal testes. Analysis using monoclonal antibodies and enzyme inhibitors showed the PLAP-like enzymes present in seminomas to be similar to the enzymes in normal testes. This suggests that the increased expression of PLAP-like enzymes in seminomas results from an enhanced eutopic expression of enzymes found in normal testis.A sensitive catalytic assay was used to quantify enzyme levels in sera from women with malignant gynaecological tumors. In the group of patients with cervical carcinoma 68 % had values exceeding the normal limit. For patients with ovarian cancer and carcinoma of the breast the percentages were 35 and 23 respectively.Monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies against PLAP were evaluated for tumor immunolocalization of human PLAP-producing tumors in nude mice.The antibodies were labeled with "125j and injected into mice with tumors. The distribution of 25j_an-ti-PLAP in various tissues showed that the labeled antibodies were enriched in the tumors, with a mean concentration ratio of 7. This indicates that there is a potential use of PLAP in localizing tumors in humans. / <p>S. 1-37: sammanfattning, s. 39-88: 5 uppsatser</p> / digitalisering@umu

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INTRODUCTION: In this study, we identified the association of Vitamin D with orthodontic tooth movement and the impact of Vitamin D 1,25OHD and 25OHD forms on osteoblast function. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study is comprised of two parts; a clinical and a laboratory part. In part I, saliva samples were collected from orthodontic patients each month for the first six months of orthodontic treatment along with casts at the beginning and the end of the study period. The samples were measured for Vitamin D binding protein (VitDBP) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and correlated with clinical tooth movement using absolute change in irregularity index (II). In part II, osteoblasts were collected from the calvaria of 3-5 day old healthy wild-type mice and cultured with differing concentrations of 1,25OHD (1, 10 and 100nmol) and 25OHD (100, 200, 400 nmol). ALP, OPG, and RANKL were measured as outcomes of Vitamin D treatment of osteoblasts. Intracellular signaling in response to Vitamin D was assessed by identifying the phosphorylation of ERK 1/2, p38 and NLK in primary osteoblasts. RESULTS: Measurement of salivary Vitamin D binding protein (VitDBP) showed that both low (<2.75 ng/ml) and high (>6.48 ng/ml) logVitDBP were associated with reduced tooth movement. There was no significant correlation between ALP levels and orthodontic treatment. Significant seasonal changes in VitDBP using a two-season year model were found with lower levels noticed in the summer (Mar-Sept) than in the winter (Oct-Feb) at p<0.05. A decrease in OPG production with higher concentrations of 1,25OHD and 25OHD with a corresponding increase in RANKL levels in primary osteoblast cultures was found. Similar to the clinical findings, ALP levels were not significantly affected by increasing concentrations of both 1,25OHD and 25OHD. The ERK 1/2 showed upregulation in response to treatment with 1,25OHD and downregulation in response to treatment with 25OHD concentrations. Meanwhile, p38 and NLK were affected by 1,25OHD and not by 25OHD. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical outcomes of orthodontic treatment are associated with a range of optimal Vitamin D binding protein (VitDBP) as detected in saliva. Different forms of Vitamin D affect osteoblast response and signaling differently.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Johannesburg, 2004 / Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is a ubiquitously expressed enzyme, that has been shown to play a role in cell differentiation and organogenesis. One study has also demonstrated ALP activity in rat adipocytes. The purpose of the present study was therefore to determine whether ALP is expressed in preadipocytes and what role it may have in adipogenesis. ALP activity was detected in the murine preadipocyte cell line, 3T3-L1, and in human preadipocytes isolated from mammary tissue, and from subcutaneous abdominal fat depots. In all the cell types studied ALP activity increased in parallel with adipogenesis. In the 3T3 -L1 cell line the tissue- non -specific ALP inhibitors, levamisole and histidine inhibited ALP activity, and adipogenesis, whereas the tissue specific ALP inhibitor Phe- Gly-Gly did not inhibit ALP or adipogenesis. In human preadipocytes, histidine inhibited adipogenesis and ALP activity, whereas levamisole inhibited adipogenesis, but did not block ALP activity in intact cells. However, levamisole did inhibit ALP activity by 50% in cell extracts. Levamisole was able to inhibit adipogenesis in human preadipocytes. The tissue specific ALP inhibitor, Phe Gly Gly, did not inhibit ALP activity or adipogenesis in human preadipocytes. ALP activity and adipogenesis, were compared in preadipocytes isolated from mammary tissue taken from black (13) and white (15) female subjects. Both ALP activity and adipogenesis, were lower in white compared to black female subjects. iii Immunocytochemical, analysis of the 3T3-L1 cell line and human preadipocytes demonstrated that ALP activity was restricted to the lipid droplets of these cells. ALP activity was also measured in serum samples obtained from 100 African subjects (74 females and 26 males) of varying BMI. ALP activity was found to be higher in obese than lean subjects, whereas, the other liver enzymes or products measured in serum were not. In fact these variables correlated to varying degrees with waist-hip ratio, whereas ALP levels did not. This suggest that liver function is predominantly influenced by abdominal obesity whereas serum ALP levels are more influenced by overall body adiposity. In conclusion, ALP, may be involved in the control of adipogenesis, in the 3T3- L1 preadipocyte cell line and in human preadipocytes isolated from mammary adipose tissue and subcutaneous abdominal adipose tisssue. The presence of ALP activity in lipid droplets in 3T3-L1 cells and human preadipocytes, and the ability of ALP inhibitors to block adipogenesis strongly suggest that ALP plays a role in the control of adipogenesis. / IT2017

Suitable orchard land in regions of high elevation, arid climates, and alkaline soil conditions is becoming more limited due to urban sprawl. With the loss of suitable farmland, increasing input costs, and the lack of sound fertility information for these regions, fruit growers face challenges in producing high quality fruit to meet local and general market demand. The question that arises is whether fruit growers can supply sufficient quantities of quality fruit to take full advantage of local and global demand. Government data for population, fruit production, and fruit consumption in Utah were reviewed to determine the potential size of the local market, and determine whether growers have opportunities to increase production to meet unsatisfied demand for high quality local produce. In addition to market analysis, fertility-based management strategies are needed to optimize yield and fruit quality in production areas of high elevation, arid climates, and alkaline soils. Three different approaches were used to investigate the effect of phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) on tart cherry fruit quality and yield at high elevations, arid climate conditions, and in alkaline soils. The approaches of this study include: a rate-response evaluation using the industry-standard Triple-16 fertilizer (16-16-16), and comparison of P and K fertilizer formulations to determine the most cost effective sources of these nutrients with regard to yield and fruit quality. Additions of P and K maintained adequate yield and fruit quality, but showed no significant difference among treatments, where historically aggressive nutrient management had been practiced. Fertilizer additions did result in a significant increase in yield and fruit quality where nutrient management programs were historically much less aggressive. There is no advantage of higher cost fertilizer formulations over standard low-cost sources (i.e.; Triple-16). Moreover, there is no significant advantage to splitting fertilizer application over time during the growing season. An analysis of government data indicates that, over the past 40 years, Utah has become a net importer of apples (1997), peaches (1987), and sweet cherries (2005), indicating increased local market opportunities. Increasing the fruit supply to the local market can best be accomplished by increasing yields and fruit quality on existing orchard acreage. Optimizing annual P and K nutrient management is an important key to maximizing yield and fruit quality. The results provide foundational guidelines of nutrient management for optimizing tart cherry production and fruit quality under regionally specific conditions.

Methods for determining phosphorus in turbid lake and river water using heating with an autoclave or a microwave and employing alkaline peroxodisulphate digestion have been investigated. Suspensions (up to 100 ugP/L) of two standard reference materials (NIES No. 3 Chlorella and NEES No. 2 Pond Sediment) were used to optimised procedures. Quantitative recoveries of phosphorus were achieved when the final solution to be digested contained 0.045 M potassium peroxodisulphate and 0.04 M sodium hydroxide and solutions were autoclaved at 120°C for 60 min. or microwaved at 450 Watts for 5-10 min. Complete recoveries of phosphorus (99- 103%) from 20 ugP/U 50 ugP/L and 100 ugP/L Chlorella suspensions were obtained using autoclave and microwave heating. For the Pond Sediment suspensions complete recoveries of phosphorus (99-104%) from the 20 ugP/L and 50 ugP/L were obtained using both heating methods. Higher recoveries from the 100 u.gP/L Pond Sediment suspensions were obtained using microwave heating (96±1%) than autoclaving (88±5%). Further analysis of Pond Sediment suspensions using the autoclave heating showed that complete recovery of phosphorus (98±l%) from 60 ngP/L suspensions was achieved with incomplete recoveries (92.3±0.7%, 91�2% and 91�1%) from 70 ugP/L, 80 ugP/L and 90 ug P/L suspensions respectively. Recoveries of phosphorus compounds (orthophosphate and phosphonates) added to distilled water and turbid lake water were near quantitative (91-117%) for both digestion methods. A range of turbid lake and river water (TP = 57-106 ugP/L; Turbidity = 16-200 NTU) were analysed for total phosphorus (TP) using the optimised alkaline peroxodisulphate digestion procedures and the APHA AWWA WPCF, sulphuric acid - nitric acid digestion procedure. No difference in total phosphorus measurements were found between the microwave digestion procedure and the APHA AWWA WPCF, nitric acid - sulphuric acid procedure. The autoclave procedure gave significantly lower recoveries of phosphorus (p<0.01), however, differences were only 2-8%. The effect of freezing (-20�C) water samples without or with the addition of 1% hydrochloric acid before determination of total phosphorus (TP) and total dissolved phosphorus (TDP) was also investigated. No significant change in total phosphorus occurred when samples were stored frozen without the addition of 1% hydrochloric acid in high and low density polyethylene bottles for up to 20 weeks and 2 weeks respectively after collection. Significant changes were found in total dissolved phosphorus when samples were stored frozen without the addition of 1% hydrochloric acid in high and low density polyethylene bottles after 1 day and 2 weeks respectively.

Dietary factors have been implicated in the risk of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Much interest has been placed upon the effects of suspected chemopreventative agents found in fruit and vegetables associated with low HNSCC risk. However, studies investigating specific uptake of these agents have failed to show positive results. The possibility exists that single chemopreventative agents fail to provide the same beneficial effect as the various compounds found in a fruits and vegetables is examined. Curatively treated head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients ingested Juice Plus, a F&V extract supplement containing multiple chemopreventative agents, for 12 weeks. Lymphocyte samples of participants were collect pre- and post- treatment and examined in pairs. Despite the study currently still blinded, surrogate endpoint biomarkers were evaluated to observer any modification between pre- and post treatment samples. Although a paired t-test showed no significant difference between pre- and post treatment samples on surrogate endpoint biomarkers, there is a significant difference in population distribution between treatment times signifying a modification of the surrogate endpoint biomarkers. The exact nature of this difference is pending due to the blinded status of the study.