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To characterize recombinant human macrophage-colony stimulating factor (rhM-CSF)-associated thrombocytopenia (TCP), in vivo studies were performed in dogs, including the biodistributions and recoveries of radiolabelled autologous and allogeneic platelets. rhM-CSF induced a reversible, dose-dependent decrease in platelet counts. The number of megakaryocytes in spleen and marrow of rhM-CSF-treated dogs was increased two to threefold. Recoveries of allogeneic platelets transfused from rhM-CSF-treated donors into tolerized recipients (n = 3) were not significantly different from allogeneic baseline studies (93 +/- 10% of baseline values at 24 h and 90 +/- 1% at 40 h), whereas autologous platelets infused back into rhM-CSF-treated donors had decreased recoveries (45 +/- 2% of baseline values at 24 h, P = 0.03 and 20 +/- 4% at 40 h, P = 0.001). Platelet biodistribution studies showed increased accumulation of radiolabelled platelets over the spleens and livers of rhM-CSF-treated dogs. Histochemistry showed increased levels of platelet-specific antigen (CD41; glycoprotein IIb) associated with Kupffer cells. The sensitivity of platelets from rhM-CSF-treated dogs to activation from thrombin, as measured by expression of P-selectin (CD62P), was not significantly different when compared with baseline studies (P = 0.18; n = 4). These results support the concept that rhM-CSF induces an activation of the monocyte-macrophage system (MMS), which causes a reversible TCP in a dog model.

Graft-versus-host (GVH) reactions contribute to stable engraftment of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplants. It was hypothesized that the in vivo expansion of recipient dendritic cells (DC) with the administration of ligand for Flt3 (FL) could promote allogeneic engraftment after reduced-intensity conditioning by enhancing the GVH effect.FL was first administered to three nonirradiated healthy dogs for 13 days at a dosage of 100 microg/kg/day. Next, nine dogs received 4.5 Gy total-body irradiation (TBI) and unmodified marrow grafts from dog leukocyte antigen (DLA)-identical littermates without posttransplant immunosuppression. FL was administered to the recipients at a dosage of 100 microg/kg/day from day -7 until day +5.In normal dogs, FL produced significant increases in monocytes (CD14+) and neutrophils in the peripheral blood, a marked increase in CD1c+ cells with DC-type morphology in lymph nodes, and increased alloreactivity of third-party responders to peripheral blood mononuclear cells in mixed lymphocyte reactions (P0.001). Sustained engraftment was observed in eight of nine (89%) FL-treated dogs compared with 14 of 37 (38%) controls (P=0.02, logistic regression). All engrafted FL-treated dogs became stable complete (n=2) or mixed (n=6) hematopoietic chimeras without significant graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Recipient chimeric dogs (n=4) were tolerant to skin transplants from their marrow donors but rejected skin grafts from unrelated dogs within 7 to 9 days (median, 8 days).In this study, the authors showed that FL administered to recipients promotes stable engraftment of allogeneic marrow from DLA-identical littermates after 4.5 Gy TBI without significant GVHD.

Background Stable mixed-donor-host-hematopoietic chimerism can serve as a platform for adoptive immunotherapy. Infusions of donor lymphocytes (DLI) sensitized against hematopoietic cells converted mixed hematopoietic into full-donor chimerism in dog-leukocyte antigen (DLA)-identical littermates. Whether sensitization against tissue of solid organs leads to organ-specific immunity that can be transferred by DLI was unknown and was investigated in these experiments using the kidney as target. Methods. DLA-identical recipients with established stable mixed-donor-host-hematopoietic chimerism were used. In five pairs, hematopoietic stem-cell transplant (HSCT) donors were sensitized by kidney transplantation from the respective chimeras. In a second group, five HSCT donors received vaccinations that were generated from kidney cells of the respective mixed chimeras. Twenty-eight days after sensitization, DLI were administered to the mixed-hematopoietic chimeras. Results. All HSCT donors rejected their kidney grafts from their mixed-chimeric recipients within 22 to 45 days. DLI caused no sustained graft-versus-kidney effects in the mixed-chimeric recipients. However, DLI donors sensitized by kidney transplantation converted 4 of 5 mixed chimeras into virtually complete (>95%) donor-type chimeras, compared with 1 of 5 mixed chimeras given DLI by vaccination from sensitized donors. Conclusion. Although DLA-identical kidney grafts from mixed-hematopoietic chimeras were readily rejected by their HSCT donors, subsequent transfusions of sensitized-donor lymphocytes into mixed chimeras converted mixed to all-donor chimerism but failed to induce graft-versus-kidney effects. Vaccination strategies in lieu of kidney grafts failed to convert mixed chimerism.

An instrumented test pile was installed at the Bayou Zourie bridge reconstruction site as part of a Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LADOTD) research initiative to study the setup phenomenon of piles driven in Louisiana soils. Pile instrumentation included pressure cells to measure the total pressure at the pile face, piezometers to monitor the excess pore water pressure at the pile face, and “sister bar” strain gauges to measure the strain distribution along the pile. Additional instrumentation consisted of multilevel piezometers installed within soils at different locations/depths from the pile and accelerometers attached to the piles during dynamic load testing. A total of two static load tests and four dynamic load tests were conducted on the test pile. During the static load tests, the strains within the pile were measured by the strain gauges, which were used to calculate the distribution of load transfer along the pile. Both static and dynamic load tests demonstrated the increase in pile resistance with time (setup). Results of dynamic load tests confirmed that pile setup occurs at a logarithmic rate after the end of driving (EOD) and is mainly attributed to the increase in side resistance. Good correlation was observed in this study between the pile setup and the percentage of dissipated excess pore water pressure with time. The measured excess pore water pressure suggested that the surrounding soil, along the pile (within distance 2B), is significantly influenced during pile driving. Results indicated that the changes in side resistance are directly related to the changes in the horizontal effective stress acting on the pile face.

Hypertrophic scarring is devastating for the patient, however the pathophysiology and treatment remain unknown after decades of research. The process follows deep dermal injury, occurs only on certain body parts, does not occur in the early fetus or in animals, and is a localized event. This suggests that an anatomic structure in human, deep dermis may be involved. The dermis is a matrix perforated by cones containing many structures including skin appendages and fat domes. We hypothesized that studying the cones might reveal a structure related to scarring. We examined tangential wounds from various body parts on human cadavers along with skin histology from various human body parts, the early fetus, partial thickness burns, hypertrophic scars, and two other species-rats and rabbits. We found that the cones may in fact be the structure. They exist where hypertrophic scar occurs-cheek, neck, chest, abdomen, back, buttock, arm, forearm, dorsal hand, thigh, leg, dorsal foot, helix and ear lobe. They do not exist where hypertrophic scar does not occur-scalp, forehead, concha, eyelid, palm, early fetus, and in rat, or rabbit. It also became apparent that the cones have been omitted from most considerations of skin histology. We suggest that the cones need to be studied in relation to hypertrophic scarring and restored to skin diagrams.

This paper presents a probabilistic CPT method to estimate the ultimate capacity of driven friction piles utilizing CPT data. A database of 35 square PPC piles that were loaded to failure and their adjacent CPT were used to develop this method. Backcalculation was carried out to calibrate the correlation factors needed to determine the unit end bearing (qb) and unit skin friction (f) of the pile from CPT data (qc, fs) based on the probability of having each soil type. The ultimate pile capacities (QP) of the investigated piles estimated by the proposed method, three other CPT methods, and static α and β methods were compared with the measured pile capacities obtained from pile load tests. Statistical analyses were carried out to evaluate the reliability of the probabilistic CPT method and the results showed that the proposed method can predict the ultimate capacity of the piles with good accuracy. The capability of the proposed method was further verified by predicting the capacities of an additional 17 pile load tests. The probabilistic CPT method, in addition to Schmertmann, α, and β methods were calibrated to evaluate the resistance factors needed for the design of single driven piles based on the LRFD method.

The association between stable hematopoietic chimerism and donor specific tolerance (DST) for solid organ grafts was demonstrated clinically and in different experimental models. However, the existing data also demonstrate that the establishment of hematopoietic chimerism does not always correlate with the development of DST, especially for skin grafts. As these issues could have major implications for organ transplantation in general, the present study was undertaken to assess DST in recipients with transient or stable hematopoietic cell (HC) chimerism established after nonmyeloablative conditioning regimens. In a canine model of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) after nonmyeloablative conditioning, DST to skin grafts was evaluated in DLA-identical recipients with stable mixed hematopoietic chimerism (MC) (n=11), or following transient HC engraftment (n=22). There was a significant improvement in the survival of DLA-identical HC donor-derived skin grafts in recipients with stable MC compared to normal recipients (n=7; P15 days) was predictive of subsequent stable engraftment at second HCT in recipients with previous graft rejection after first HCT. Five of 6 dogs with extended survival of the skin graft beyond day 15 became stable MC after second HCT compared to 0/9 dogs with skin grafts surviving less than 11 days (P=0.0008). In this model, DST to skin grafts in recipients with stable MC after nonmyeloablative HCT may not be complete, and chronic inflammation may develop without loss of that graft. Partial DST may persist after rejection of HC grafts established with nonmyeloablative conditioning. Further investigations are required to understand the mechanisms responsible for DST after allogeneic HCT.