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Zoology and wildlife conservation

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High risk of squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix for women with HLA-DQw3

Article Abstract:

It has long been known that experimentally induced cancers in laboratory animals can in some cases be recognized and destroyed by the immune system. This is especially evident for cancers which are caused by viruses. While it is presumed that similar processes are possible in people, there is little or no direct evidence for this. If an immune response against cancer cells occurs, it almost certainly involves cell surface molecules of the MHC, or major histocompatibility complex. These MHC antigens were first discovered for the role they play in the rejection of tissue transplants. However, it is now known that they play a critical part in the initiation of many aspects of the immune response. These antigens, also called HLA because they are found on human leukocytes, exist in a wide variety of types as well as two major classes, I and II. Research on a variety of diseases in recent years has documented the correlation between different types of HLA antigens and different diseases. Now, researchers have found that the DQw3 antigen may result in greater susceptibility to one form of cervical cancer. Squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix is a form of cervical cancer thought to result from a virus, and therefore it may be considered a prime candidate for a cancer which occurs with some involvement of the immune system. The class I antigens (which include HLA-A, -B, and -C) and the class II antigens (which include HLA-DR and -DQ) were determined for 66 women with cervical cancer. The specific HLA-DQ type called HLA-DQw3 is relatively common, and would be expected to be found in about half of a random sample of patients. However, 88 percent of the patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix were found to have the HLA-DQw3, far more than would be expected by chance. About one in 63 newborn girls is likely to develop this cancer at some point in her life. The evidence of the present study suggests that features of the immune system may predispose some women to a greater risk of this cancer. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Author: Wank, Rudolf, Thomssen, Christoph
Publisher: Macmillan Publishing Ltd.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1991
Health aspects, Risk factors, Cervical cancer, HLA histocompatibility antigens, HLA antigens, Major histocompatibility complex

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Volcanic aerosols implicated

Article Abstract:

Two reports support the hypothesis that volcanic eruptions contribute to the thinning of the stratospheric ozone layer. W.B. Grant and colleagues report in situ measurements by balloons and satellites indicating that Mount Pinatubo's eruption in the Philippines in Jun 1991 brought on low ozone levels in the mid-latitudes. D.J. Hofmann and colleagues believe that the surprising shifts in the Antarctic ozone hole were triggered by aerosols from the eruption of Chile's Mount Hudson in Aug 1991.

Author: Brasseur, Guy
Publisher: Macmillan Publishing Ltd.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1992
Causes of, Environmental aspects, Volcanoes, Ozone layer depletion, Mount Pinatubo

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