Cancer cell line identification by short tandem repeat profiling: power and limitations

 Published in 2005

Parson,W.; Kirchebner,R.; Mühlmann,R.; Renner,K.; Kofler,A.; Schmidt,S.; Kofler,R.; Cancer cell lines are used worldwide in biological research, and data interpretation depends on unambiguous attribution of the respective cell line to its original source. Short-tandem-repeat (STR) profiling (DNA fingerprinting) is the method of choice for this purpose; however, the genetic stability of cell lines under various experimental conditions is not well defined. We tested the effect of long-term culture, subcloning, and generation of drug-resistant subclones on fingerprinting profiles in four widely used leukemia cell lines. [Read More]

CD25-expressing CD8+ T cells are potent memory cells in old age

 Published in 2005

Herndler-Brandstetter,D.; Schwaiger,S.; Veel,E.; Fehrer,C.; Cioca,D.P.; Almanzar,G.; Keller,M.; Pfister,G.; Parson,W.; Wurzner,R.; Schonitzer,D.; Henson,S.M.; Aspinall,R.; Lepperdinger,G.; Grubeck-Loebenstein,B.; We have recently described an IL-2/IL-4-producing CD8+CD25+ non-regulatory memory T cell population that occurs in a subgroup of healthy elderly persons who characteristically still have a good humoral response after vaccination. The present study addresses this specific T cell subset and investigates its origin, clonal composition, Ag specificity, and replicative history. We demonstrate that CD8+CD25+ memory T cells frequently exhibit a CD4+CD8+ double-positive phenotype. [Read More]

Characterization of Mycobacterium caprae Isolates from Europe by Mycobacterial Interspersed Repetitive Unit Genotyping

 Published in 2005

Prodinger,W.M.; Brandstätter,A.; Naumann,L.; Pacciarini,M.; Kubica,T.; Boschiroli,M.L.; Aranaz,A.; Nagy,G.; Cvetnic,Z.; Ocepek,M.; Skrypnyk,A.; Erler,W.; Niemann,S.; Pavlik,I.; Moser,I.; Mycobacterium caprae, a recently defined member of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, causes tuberculosis among animals and, to a limited extent, in humans in several European countries. To characterize M. caprae in comparison with other Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex members and to evaluate genotyping methods for this species, we analyzed 232 M. caprae isolates by mycobacterial interspersed repetitive unit (MIRU) genotyping and by spoligotyping. [Read More]

Characterization of synthetic nucleic acids by electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry

 Published in 2005

Oberacher,H.; Niederstätter,H.; Parson,W.; The potential of electrospray ionization quadrupole-quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI-QqTOF-MS) for the characterization of synthetic nucleic acids was evaluated. Oligonucleotides ranging in size from 12 up to 51 nucleotides were analyzed via direct infusion MS as well as via liquid chromatography (LC) online hyphenated to MS. These experiments proved the outstanding mass spectrometric performance of the TOF mass analyzer in regard of accuracy, reproducibility, resolution, and sensitivity. During a 1-min run, the monoisotopic mass of (dT)(24) was measured with a maximum relative mass deviation of 7. [Read More]