Sorption,cellular distribution,and cytotoxicity of imidazolium ionic liquids in mammalian cells – influence of lipophilicity

In order to assist an integrated development of ionic liquids (ILs), a study on the sorption, distribution, and cytotoxicity of a series of 1-alkyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborates with C6 rat glioma cells has been performed. Cellular sorption and distribution among three cellular fractions (cytosol, nuclei, and membranes) were analysed by reversed-phase HPLC (RP-HPLC). Compounds with longer 1-alkyl substituents were sorbed with higher enrichment factors and sorption coefficients per protein than those with shorter 1-alkyl chains. The 1-octyl-3-methyl imidazolium cation (C₈MIM) was enriched 17-folds whereas C₆MIM and C₄MIM were enriched by factors of 3.5 and 2.3, respectively. After fractionation of cells by centrifugation, about 8% of C₈MIM was found in the nuclear fractions. The cytotoxicity as estimated by the tetrazolium reductase assay was increasing with the lengths of the 1-alkyl chains from C₄MIM to C₁₀MIM. Consistently, cell proliferation rates were decreasing with increasing lengths of the 1-alkyl chains. The results reveal the correlations between lipophilicity, cellular sorption, and cytotoxicity.     

A case of mosaicism involving an unstable 13/14 Robertsonian translocation

Prenatal diagnosis of mosaicism involving an apparently unstable 13/14 Robertsonian trans-location is reported. This illustrates the difficulties encountered in counselling when mosaicism is ascertained prenatally. Other reported examples of apparently unstable Robertsonian translocations are discussed.     

Contribution of a New PCR assay to the prenatal diagnosis of congenital toxoplasmosis

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay has been developed for the detection of Toxoplasma gondii. The target sequence (88 bp) is part of a rDNA repetitive gene. A signal can be observed with only one parasite. It is directly and rapidly detected by electrophoresis and ethidium bromide staining. We report a prospective study of 80 documented cases of toxoplasmic seroconversions during pregnancy. The PCR assay of the amniotic fluids was compared with the current standard methods for diagnosis of fetal infection. Seventy specimens gave no PCR signal, and were negative according to prenatal tests and postnatal examinations. The presence of T. gondii was detected in ten specimens by PCR analysis. Four were confirmed by isolation of the parasite from the amniotic fluid; four by biological study of the fetal blood. For the remaining two, infection was diagnosed after birth. Together with ultrasonographic and biological data, this technique permits prenatal diagnosis within 1 day.     

The predictive value of cytogenetic diagnosis after CVS based on 4860 cases with both direct and culture methods

Cytogenetic analysis was performed in 4860 chorionic villus samples by means of both direct preparation and long-term culture. The results of the analysis were compared with a classification including all theoretical types of combinations between the chromosomal constitution of the cytotrophoblast, extraembryonal mesoderm, and fetus, with the aim of evaluating the cytogenetic variability along the trophoblast—embryo axis. Eighteen of 29 possible combinations were found demonstrating a considerable heterogeneity. A mosaic conceptus was found in 1·5 per cent of cases, with generalized mosaicisms and confined mosaicisms in 0·2 and 1·3 per cent, respectively. Cytogenetic variability along the trophoblast—embryo axis was found in 1·42 per cent of cases. Results possibly leading to diagnostic errors (false-positive and false-negative results) were found in only 1·38 per cent. False-positive results of direct preparation were the most commonly observed discrepancy (0·8 per cent), while the incidence of false-positive results of the culture method and of both methods was 0·31 and 0·16 per cent respectively. The incidence of false-negative results was 0·1 per cent, with false-negative results of direct preparation 0·08 per cent and false-negative results of both methods 0·02 per cent. False-negative results of the culture method were not found. Our data confirm the high diagnostic accuracy of chorionic villus sampling and the utility of the combined use of the two methods in minimizing diagnostic errors and in reducing the need for follow-up amniocentesis.     

Maternal age and amniocentesis: Should this be lowered to 30 years?

We have reviewed the results of 10000 2nd trimester amniocenteses performed at our centre. Over 80 per cent of these were done only because of maternal age (MA); there were three times as many < 35 year-old women in 1984 compared to 1975. Of women aged 30–34 years at delivery 0·69 per cent were found to have a MA-related chromosome abnormality compared to 0·94 per cent in those aged 35–40 years. Because only about 7 per cent of births occurred to women ⩾ 35 years and 18·6 per cent between 30–34 years, and a practical utilization rate of 50 per cent, we recommend that amniocentesis be made available to women aged ⩾ 30 years. We believe that 27 per cent of Down syndrome (DS) pregnancies could be identified if 50 per cent of pregnant women in this age category availed themselves of the test. With the same utilization rate, about three times as many amniocenteses would be required in California as performed here in 1983.     

Abnormal amniotic fluid levels of CA 125 in second-trimester Down syndrome pregnancies

The aim of this study was to evaluate the concentration of CA 125 in second trimester amniotic fluid from Down syndrome pregnancies. CA 125 was measured in stored amniotic fluid samples from pregnancies of 14–19 weeks' gestation with and without Down syndrome fetuses. CA 125 levels were expressed in multiples of the median (MOM) for normal pregnancies of the same gestational age. Twenty-one pregnancies with Down syndrome fetuses and 63 unaffected controls matched for maternal age, gestational age, and duration of storage were studied. The median MOM values of the affected pregnancies were significantly higher than those of the controls (1·41 MOM versus 0·99 MOM). These findings show that there is an increased concentration of CA 125 in second-trimester amniotic fluid from Down syndrome pregnancies.