The 11 th meeting in "Modern Trends in Human Leukemia" took place from June 19 to 21, 1994 in Wilsede in the middle of the Liineburger Heide, South of Hamburg. Interwoven with the Leukemia program was the Nato-sponsored Symposium of the ASI-Series "Gene Technology in Analysis of Malignant and Inherited Human Diseases Related to Development" . The Wilsede meeting was continued on a ship of the Neva leading through lake Ladoga and lake Onega. The topics of both meetings included discussion on recent progress isolation and development of hematopoietic stem cells, genes crucial for development and diseases, methods of gene transfer, application of gene transfer; oncogenes and anti-oncogenes as targets for gene therapy; receptors and their ligands in normal development and diseases, immunology and immunotherapy, radiation biology, clinical leukemias and bone marrow transplantation. The Nato workshop concentrated not only on analysis of cell systems useful for somatic gene therapy, but also on actual themes directly related to correction of human diseases. The latter aspects emphasized themes related to biotechnology, the first part was by nature more general. We also included a few contributions that discussed perspectives for the future of gene therapy and possible relationships to evolution.

Inhalt

1 Stem Cells.- Hematopoietic Differentiation of Embryonal Stem Cells in Vitro.- Post-irradiated Canine Serum (PICS-J) Stimulates Megakaryocyte (MK) Progenitors and Thrombopoiesis in Vitro.- The Adhesion Molecules, PECAM-1, ICAM-3 and CD33, on CD34+ Hematopoietic Progenitor Cells.- Hematopoietic Stem Cell: Developmental Potential and Proliferative Activity.- The Effect of Methylprednisolone on Bone Marrow and Spleen Clonogenic Fibroblasts in Humans.- Umbilical Cord Blood: Morphological Composition and Functional Characteristics.- Stroma Cell Dependent Leukemias Growth of PGM-1 Leukemia cells on Stromal Layers.- 2 Genes Crucial for Development and Disease.- The Role of Non-Receptor Protein Tyrosine Kinases in Receptor Mediated Cellular Activition and Immunodeficiency Disease.- Directed Gene Trapping in Embryonic Stem Cells.- Molecular Basis of Genetic Disorders of Pigmentation in Humans and Mice.- MDR-1 Gene Expression in Chronic Myelogeneous Leukemia : Prognostic Marker of the Disease.- 3 Methods of Gene Transfer, Applications for Gene Therapy.- Towards Gene Therapy for Haemophilia B.- Inhibition of Autocrine TGF-f3 in CD34+ Human Progenitor Cells Reveals Their Potentiality to Engraft Adults and Improves Gene Transfer Efficiency.- Gene Transfer into Hematopoietic Progenitors: Implications for Bone Marrow Transplantation.- Erythropoietin and the ENV gp55 of the Spleen Focus Forming Virus (SFFV) Interact Differently with Erythroid Cells in the Mouse and in Tissue Culture.- Contribution of the Retroviral Leader to Gene Transfer and Expression in Packaging Cells and Myeloid Stem and Progenitor Cells.- Site-directed Mutagenesis of the cGMP Phosphodiesterase InhibitoryTSubunit from Bovine Rods: New Mechanisms of Catalytic Subunits Inhibition and Activation.- 4 Oncogenes and Antioncogenes as Targets for Gene Therapy.- Genetic Approaches to Defining Signaling by the CMLAssociated Tyrosine Kinase BCR-ABL.- Analysis of Oncosuppressor Gene Function in the Mouse by Gene Targeting.- 5 Receptors and Their Ligands in Normal Development and Disease.- Cloning of Retroviral Insertion Sites Possibly Involved in Growth-Factor Autonomy.- Function of the IL-3 Receptor System in Human Hematopoiesis.- Altered Growth Factor Response in Myeloid Progenitor Cell Mutants Derived After Retroviral Insertional Mutagenesis.- Signaling by the Erythropoietin Receptor in Retrovirally Transduced Normal Hematopoietic Progenitors: A Conserved Proline-Rich Motif Is Required for Association with JAK2.- Spontaneous Knockout of CSF-1 Gene in the Mouse as a Model to Study the Organization of the Macrophage System.- 6 Immunology and Immunotherapy.- Lifting a Tip of the Veil of Human Minor Histocompatibility Antigens.- Immune Escape Through T-cell Antagonism?.- The Privilege of Expressing CD44v - Used by Immune Cells, Misused by Tumor Cells.- Transplantation Immunology: Peptides in the Groove Cause Histoincompatibility.- 7 Radiation Biology.- Coupling of Membrane Pathology and DNA Damage in Irradiated Lymphoid Cell Populations.- Effects of Radiation on the Plasma Membrane and Expression of Membrane Bound Hematopoietic Cytokines.- 8 Clinical Leukemias.- Prognostic Value of Day 8 Peripheral Blood Response for Children with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia.- GM-CSF in Addition to Chemotherapy of ALL for Kinetics Based Protection of Stem Cells and Stimulation of Haemopoiesis. A Randomized Study.- Cytogenetic Abnormalities and Their Clinical and Prognostic Value in Acute Leukemia.- Production of lnterleukin-2 and Natural Killer (NK) Activity in Patients with Multiple Myeloma.- Multiple Myeloma Associated with Amyloidosis.- Distribution of HLA-DRB1 Alleles in Patients with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia Differs from That in Healthy Donors.- The Relationship of MDR-1 Gene Expression and Chemotherapy Regimens in Acute Leukemia.- Immunophenotyping of Blast Crisis During the Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia.- The Treatment of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Children According to BFM Protocols.- 9 Bone Marrow Transplantation.- Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA) in Blood Serum of Patients with Bone Marrow Transplantation.- Cytogenetic Monitoring in the Post BMT Period.- First Experience in the Field of Bone Marrow Transplantation at the St. Petersburg BMT Center.- Immunoglobulin E Levels in Allogenic BMT.- Prognostic Factors and Indications for Haemopoietic Stem Cells Transplantation in Patients with Multiple Myeloma.- Mobilization of Progenitor Cells for Autologous and Allogeneic Transplantation.- Transfusion Problems of Allogenic Bone Marrow Transplantation (BMT).