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A novel and simple procedure for the controlled-rate cryopreservation of peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPCs) was introduced. A freezing bag housed in a protective aluminum canister was placed on top of a styrene foam box in the -85˚C electric freezer. A second set of samples was kept in cryotubes placed in a double styrene foam box in the same electric freezer. Measurement of the freezing rate in the PB bags and cryotubes demonstrated that this simple method for PBPC cryopreservation provided optimal conditions for both large-scale and small-scale cryopreservation. Within several days after autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation, we thawed the cells in the small sample tubes and evaluated the cell viability, the cell recovery, and the recovery rates of hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs), such as CD34 + cells and colonyforming unit-granulocyte/macrophage (CFU-GM) colonies. The median duration of cryopreservation was 59 days (range, 14 -365 days). According to our analysis, infusions of more than 2 × 10 6 CD34 + cells/kg body weight and 0.5 × 10 6 CFU-GM colonies/kg body weight after thawing had favorable influences on the neutrophil engraftment. We have therefore established a simple freezing method for cryopreservation of human PBPCs, which ensures the transplantability of hematopoietic progenitors even after thawing. In vitro HPC assay after thawing is important to evaluate the quality of cryopreservation procedures.peripheral blood progenitor cell; CD34 + cell; CFU-GM colony; cryopreservation

BackgroundPsychotic major depression is a clinical subtype of major depressive disorder. A number of clinical studies have demonstrated the efficacy of the combination of an antidepressant (for example, a tricyclic antidepressant or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)) and an atypical antipsychotic or electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in treating psychotic major depression. In several studies, monotherapy of SSRIs such as fluvoxamine has been shown to be effective in the treatment of psychotic major depression.MethodsWe report on a 36-year-old Japanese woman in whom fluvoxamine (a SSRI with sigma-1 receptor agonist) and sertraline (a SSRI with sigma-1 receptor antagonist) showed the opposite effects on psychotic symptoms in the treatment of psychotic major depression.ResultsSymptoms of depression and psychosis in the patient who was non-respondent to antipsychotic drugs improved after fluvoxamine monotherapy. At 3 years later, a switch to sertraline from fluvoxamine dramatically worsened the psychotic symptoms in the patient. Then, a switch back to fluvoxamine from sertraline improved these symptoms 1 week after fluvoxamine treatment.ConclusionDoctors should consider the monotherapy of sigma-1 receptor agonist fluvoxamine as an alternative approach to treating psychotic major depression.

The populations of activated T-cell subsets [HLA-DR(+)-Leu 4+ cells, interleukin 2 receptor positive (IL-2R+)-Leu 4+ cells] in the peripheral blood of patients with alopecia areata (AA) were investigated using double direct immunofluorescence staining. Fifty-eight patients with AA were classified into one of three types: those with inactive single AA (type 1) lesions, active multiple alopecia areata (MAA) lesions and active alopecia totalis (AT) (type 2) and chronic alopecia universalis (AU) (type 3). Compared to normal controls, high percentages of HLA-DR(+)-Leu4+ cells were detected in types 2 and 3 AA patients, but not in type 1 AA patients. These findings suggest that T cells are activated in the peripheral blood of active MAA, AT and chronic AU.

Forty-five overweight patients (12 male, 33 female) were prescribed a very-low-calorie diet (VLCD) or a supplemental low-calorie diet (LCD), randomly, at an outpatient clinic. Twenty obese patients [31.6 +/- 13.1 y; body mass index (BMI) 32.9 +/- 6.1] were treated with a VLCD of 1757 kJ/d for 1-2 mo (five packages of Optifast 70/d; Sandoz Nutrition, Minneapolis). Another 25 patients (35.3 +/- 11.7 y; BMI 31.9 +/- 4.4) were treated by a supplemental LCD of 3515-5021 kJ/d for 1-2 months, which consisted of two to three packages of Optifast 70 and 2678-3682 kJ of conventional balanced meals. By the fourth week, the weight reduction obtained by the VLCD was significantly greater than that achieved by the supplemental LCD (P less than 0.01). At the eighth week, however, effect of the VLCD and the supplemental LCD in terms of weight reduction did not differ significantly. No serious side effects were observed in either treatment group. However, remarkable elevation of serum uric acid concentration was detected in seven patients on the VLCD. The treatment period of the VLCD is limited to less than or equal to 3 mo. On the other hand, obese patients can be treated with the supplemental LCD for greater than 3 mo. Therefore, the supplemental LCD is considered to be useful in the treatment of moderately obese Japanese patients on an outpatient basis.