Although patients with HCC and CP class B liver function have poorer outcomes than those with CP class A function, data suggest that patients with CP class B liver function can tolerate treatment and may still benefit from sorafenib.

Lactadherin, a major glycoprotein of the human milk fat globule membrane, is abundant in human breast milk and expressed in human breast carcinomas. Previously, we have shown that the mature protein, formerly known as BA46, has three domains: an epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like domain containing an Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) cell adhesion sequence and C1 and C2 domains similar to those found in coagulation factors V and VIII. An alignment of lactadherin with its bovine (MGP57/53) and murine (MFG-E8) homologs shows that the RGD sequence has been conserved during evolution, suggesting that the RGD sequence is not fortuitous. We demonstrate that lactadherin purified using Triton X-114 phase partitioning promotes RGD-dependent cell attachment of green monkey kidney cells (MA104), mouse fibroblast cells (3T3-L1), and breast carcinoma cells (ELL-G). A lactadherin-specific monoclonal antibody, Mc3, inhibits attachment to purified lactadherin, suggesting that contaminants in the purification are not responsible for binding. In addition, the anti-integrin alpha(v)beta3 monoclonal antibody LM609 inhibits cell attachment of MA104 cells to lactadherin. These results demonstrate that lactadherin promotes RGD-dependent cell adhesion via integrins. Denaturation of lactadherin with heat and reducing conditions diminished cell attachment, suggesting that optimal cell attachment to RGD is dependent on the structural presentation of the sequence.

Stereotactic body radiation therapy is a safe and effective therapeutic option for HCC lesions unsuitable to standard loco-regional therapies, with acceptable local control rates and low treatment-related toxicity. The significant correlation between LC and higher doses and between LC and OS supports the clinical value of SBRT in these patients.

Rabbit antibodies against components of the human milk fat globule bind specifically to normal human breast epithelial cells and cell lines derived from breast carcinomas, as well as to the outer surface of the human milk fat globule. Variation in indirect immunofluorescence staining in both intensity per cell and percentage of cells stained is observed for the different breast cell lines. Cells derived from other epithelial and other ectodermal tissues, fetal fibroblasts, cells of the blood buffy coat, and even fibroblasts of the breast itself do not bind the antibodies. This suggests that these antibodies are detecting cell-type-specific antigens. These normal breast epithelial cell antigens are on the cell surface and their exptession is stable in long-term cultured cell lines, even after much chromosomal variation in a given line. By affinity chromatography, three distinct antigenic components can be isolated from the milk fat globule, one of which contains carbohydrate. These differentiation antigens of the human breast epithelial cell are not only useful as specific cel-ype markers, but also can provide a tool to study the role of the cell surface in normal and neoplastic mammary development. The production of antibodies directed solely against outer cell surface components is hindered by-the difficulties inherent in purifying such cell membranes. Plasma membrane constituents amount to about 2-3% of the total cell protein (5); thus, separation from other cellular components present in much greater amounts is difficult. Moreover, when a source of normal human tissue, other than blood, is needed for purification of normal cell surface antigens, one is faced with an unresolved problem. Because the milk fat globules are secreted into milk by the breast epithelial cell-by envelopment of fat droplets by the plasma membrane (6)-they represent an accessible source of enriched plasma membrane. Additional information that enzyme markers of the plasma membrane are found in the milk fat globule membrane (7) and the fact that churned milk fat globules appear as an almost pure membrane fraction when examined by electron microscopy (8) make this material the immunogen of choice.Here we describe the production of an anti-human mammary epithelial cell antiserum (anti-HMEC) raised against the defatted human milk fat globule (HMFG), which specifically identifies mammary epithelial cells from both the normal breast and from human breast carcinoma cell lines. Also, we describe characteristics of the antigenic components present on the HMFG, and procedures for their separation. MATERIALS AND METHODSFor the preparation of defatted HMFG, the washed cream fraction of human milk (8) was extracted twice with two volumes of chloroform and twice with 1 volume of ether, and then lyophilized. Electrophoresis was performed in 5% polyacrylamide gels (12 cm long and 0.6 cm in diameter) in the presence of 0.1% sodium dodecyl sulfate, 7 M urea, and 0.1 M sodium phosphate buffer, pH 7.2, with samples dissolved in 1% sodium dodecyl su...

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