Cytochrome system of myocardial mitochondria in patients with mitral valve insufficiency

A determination was made of the immunoglobulin G, M and A concentration in the blood serum of women suffering from dysentery and other acute intestinal diseases, those who sustained the disease and healthy persons (259 in all). Probability of detection of low IgA concentrations in the patients was 7-12 times greater during the first days of the disease than in healthy persons; IgG And IgM levels in the patients who sustained the disease and in healthy individuals showed no significant difference. Possible relationship between the synthesis of the secretory IgA in the intestine and the blood serum IgA level was discussed; however, a conclusion on a possibility of detection of persons most susceptible to dysentery and other acute intestinal diseases by the low serum IgA level could be made only after further investigations.     

Clastogenic factors in plasma of HIV-1 infected patients

The objective of this study was to investigate the clastogenic activity of plasma ultrafiltrates from HIV-1 infected patients. Clastogenic factors are chromosome-damaging agents with low molecular weight (< 10,000 daltons) which cause chromosome aberrations, sister chromatid exchanges, DNA strand breakage, and gene mutation. They have first been described in the plasma of irradiated persons, but they are also found in hereditary breakage syndromes and chronic inflammatory diseases with autoimmune reactions. Their formation and their clastogenic effects are modulated by superoxide anion radicals. We analyzed a total of 22 HIV-1 positive patients in comparison to 20 reference plasma samples from healthy HIV negative blood donors of similar age. The plasma ultrafiltrates (filter cutoff 10,000 daltons) from patients induced a statistically significant increase in chromosomal breakage in the cytogenetic test system (20.5 +/- 6.8 aberrations per 100 cells), while no increase was observed in test cultures exposed to plasma ultrafiltrates from healthy blood donors (6.3 +/- 2.9 aberrations per 100 cells). The breakage values were slightly, but not significantly, lower in the 10 patients with more than 200 T-helper cells/ml (18 +/- 4 aberrations per 100 cells), than in the 12 patients with less than 200 T-helper cells/ml (22.3 +/- 7.9 aberrations per 100 cells). HIV patients with high clastogenic activity (induction of more than 20 aberrations per 100 cells, range 20 to 39) showed higher plasma levels for malondialdehyde than those with lower clastogenic activity (less than 20 aberrations per 100 cells, range 12 to 18). However, the difference was statistically not significant. Another lipid peroxidation product, 4-hydroxynonenal, was increased equally in both groups. There were no significant differences in water- and lipid-soluble plasma antioxidants between the low- and high-breakage group. In agreement with previous findings, the clastogenic effects of plasma ultrafiltrates in the test cultures were reduced by the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase. The presence of clastogenic factors in the plasma of HIV patients is further evidence for a prooxidant state in these persons. Since clastogenic factor formation appears to occur at an early stage of the disease, it may be significant for virus release or activation, because of the superoxide anion stimulating effects of clastogenic factors. From a practical standpoint, clastogenic factors may be useful for evaluation of promising drugs.     

Adaptation to the sleep laboratory in normal subjects and neuropsychiatric patients (author''s transl)

In 86 subjects (11 healthy persons, 8 suffering from autonomic instability, 11 from endogenous psychosis, 30 from cerebral circulatory disturbances, 26 parkinsonian patients) the problem of adaptation to the sleep laboratory and the persistence of adaptation was investigated. In healthy subjects, less pronounced in patients suffering from autonomic instability, marked, statistically significant differences could be found between the first and second night. In addition there was a further increase in the amount of rapid eye movement (REM)-sleep from the second to the third night. In the other groups a very retarded, or even an absence of, adaptation could be revealed. Adaptation, once gained, outlives an interruption of registration of several weeks and is more marked in healthy subjects than in other groups.     

The prevalence of Toxoplasma antibody in patients with various ocular diseases in central Japan

BACKGROUND: Ocular toxoplasmosis has been considered to be a largely asymptomatic infection because of the high seroprevalence of Toxoplasma antibodies and the low rate of clinical diagnosis. On the other hand, Toxoplasma infection has been reported to be associated with the other ocular disease. To investigate the association of Toxoplasma infection with the development of various ocular diseases, we studied Toxoplasma seroprevalence in patients with various ocular diseases. METHODS: We investigated Toxoplasma seroprevalence in 982 patients with various ocular diseases in central Japan. Then we compared the seroprevalence of anti-Toxoplasma antibodies. RESULTS: Of 982 patients with various ocular diseases, 122 (12.4%) had serological evidence of previous exposure to Toxoplasma gondii. There were no statistically significant differences among the patients with various ocular diseases. However, the seroprevalence in patients aged 40 to 99 years with macular degenerative lesions was significantly higher than that in patients without these lesions (P < 0.05, Yates' correction). CONCLUSION: This result suggests that Toxoplasma infection could play some role in the development of a type of macular degenerative lesion.     

Forgetting rates in neuropsychiatric disorders

OBJECTIVE: Previous studies have attributed accelerated forgetting rates on recognition memory tasks to temporal lobe pathology, but findings in some patient groups may have been attributable to metabolic disruption. Findings in psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia are conflicting. The purpose of the present study was to compare forgetting rates in patients with confusional states (post-electroconvulsive therapy (post-ECT), delirium), with those obtained in schizophrenic patients (with putative temporal lobe pathology), non-ECT depressed patients, and healthy controls. The findings could also be compared with previous reports in patients with head injury, focal structural lesions, and Alzheimer's dementia. METHODS: Two studies employed a picture recognition task to examine forgetting rates, the first between delays of 1 minute, 15 minutes, and 30 minutes, and the second between delays of 10 minutes, 2 hours, and 24 hours. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in forgetting rates between 1 minute and 30 minutes, but the ECT group showed accelerated forgetting between 10 minutes and 2 hours compared with healthy controls, associated with a rapid decline in "hit rate". This was not attributable to differential changes in either depression or severity of memory impairment. There were no differences in forgetting rates across the other subject groups. CONCLUSION: Post-ECT confusional state patients (similarly to "within post-traumatic amnesia" patients with head injury) show accelerated forgetting on a recognition memory task and, in this, they contrast with patients who have focal structural lesions or widespread cortical atrophy. Accelerated forgetting may reflect the effect of disrupted cerebral metabolism on either "consolidation" or memory "binding" processes.     

Cloning and characterization of a maize cDNA encoding phytoene desaturase, an enzyme of the carotenoid biosynthetic pathway

The work presents the results of researches of binding and degradation of 125I-Insulin by erythrocyte receptors in the patients with essential hypertension and healthy patients after glucose intake. In order to obtain full representation of the pattern of changes the serum IRI and glucose concentrations were assayed. Binding and degradation of 125I-Insulin by erythrocyte receptors were determined with the method described by Gambhir (1977), modified by the authors. The modification consisted in usage of constant concentrations of iodized insulin (0.9 pg/0.1 ml) and bovine insulin (2.4 I.U./0.1 ml). Before administration of glucose and in 30, 60 and 120 minutes after, venous blood was collected from ulnar vein. All examined persons were in sitting position during the trial of glucose intake. Obtained results show, that blood insulin level in the patients with essential hypertension is statistically significantly higher than in healthy persons of similar anthropometric characteristics. Binding of 125I-Insulin to erythrocyte receptors in fasting state is statistically significantly lower. Degradation after glucose intake in the patients shows decreasing tendency, while in healthy persons--growing tendency.     

Event-related potentials (P300) in primary headache in childhood and adolescence

There is strong evidence for a loss of habituation during cognitive processing in migraine as measured by P300 and contingent negative variation in adults. Event-related potentials evoked by an oddball paradigm have not yet been studied in children and adolescents suffering from different primary headache types. We recorded visually evoked event-related potentials (two consecutive trials, 200 stimuli each) in 48 children and adolescents suffering from migraine without or with aura, from episodic tension-type headache, and from ergotamine-induced headache and analyzed the latencies, amplitudes, and reaction times. No statistically significant differences were noted between all headache types and healthy controls analyzing the averaged parameters for the whole measurement. However, a highly significant loss of cortical habituation as measured by P300 amplitude and latency could be observed in migraine without and with aura by analyzing the first and the second trial of measurement separately. This phenomenon increased with age and could not be seen in healthy controls, or patients with tension-type headache or ergotamine-induced headache. Our data suggest a specific cognitive processing in migraine even in children and adolescents. Measurement of the habituation effect in P300 latency and amplitude provides a specific method to differentiate between primary headache types in childhood and adolescence.     

Immunosuppression in paracoccidioidomycosis: T cell hyporesponsiveness to two Paracoccidioides brasiliensis glycoproteins that elicit strong humoral immune response

To assess human cellular immune response to paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM), lymphocyte proliferative responses to purified antigens from Paracoccidioides brasiliensis were determined in healthy persons previously infected by the fungus (positive donors), in healthy noninfected persons (controls), and in PCM patients. Affinity-purified gp70 and gp43, the two major antigens in humoral immune responses, were used. Both induced lymphocyte proliferation (gp43 species-specific) in positive donors but not in controls; healthy persons previously infected by Histoplasma capsulatum reacted to gp70 and not to gp43. A similar cross-reactivity in antibody response to gp70 was previously reported; however, antibody response to gp43 has been considered specific. Lymphocytes from PCM patients, who, unlike positive donors, have high levels of anti-gp43 and anti-gp70 antibodies, proliferated poorly with gp70 and gp43 but better with other stimuli. This dichotomy between humoral and cellular antigen-specific responses suggests a Th2 immune response in PCM, which may be related to failure to control the infection.     

Auto-antibody against adenine nucleotide translocator in dilated cardiomyopathy and myocarditis--incidence and relation to cardiac function and morphology

Using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, we measured anti-adenine nucleotide translocater (ANT) antibody in control subjects and in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), myocarditis, and other heart disease. Analysis with sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, Western blotting, and immunoabsorption tests confirmed accurate purification of the ANT protein and correct measurement of anti-ANT auto-antibody. Anti-ANT antibody was detected in 6 of 37 cases (16%) of DCM and in 5 of 12 cases (42%) of myocarditis. This antibody was not positive in other heart diseases or in apparently healthy controls. There were no differences between anti-ANT autoantibody-positive and -negative DCM or myocarditis patients in any of the cardiac parameters examined (left ventricular ejection fraction, LVEF; left ventricular end-diastolic dimension, LVDd; and cardiothoracic ratio, CTR). Moreover, in patients who were positive for anti-ANT auto-antibody, no positive correlations were found between the parameters and anti-ANT antibody titers in either DCM or myocarditis. Although these results indicate that the detection of anti-ANT antibody was achieved at a high specificity and could have certain diagnostic value in DCM and myocarditis, there was no statistically significant relationship between the cardiac parameters (LVEF, LVDd, and CTR) and anti-ANT antibody titers in either DCM or myocarditis. Some compensatory mechanism of ventricular function may mask the effects of the anti-ANT auto-antibody or alternatively, this auto-antibody may have mimic effects on the pathogenesis and/or progression of DCM and myocarditis.     

Level of sensitivity of pain in patients with obesity

Our aim was to find out the presence of differences in pain sensitivity level depending on body weight. 206 healthy persons at the age of 18 to 84 were the objects of the research with the help of the special instrument which action was based on the principle of dosage pressure by a needle on the forearm skin and by registration of indecis pressure extents when the patients felt no pain, when they felt slight pain and when they felt violent pain. The patients with normal body weight didn't feel pain when the pressure of a needle was 28.53 g; persons with surplus body weight and fatness of the 1 degree-46.5 g and persons with fatness of the 2-3 degrees-61.55 g. Slight pain was registered when the pressure was 40.5 g; 57.6 g and 72.9 g conformably. And the violent pain-76.5 g; 91.3 g and 116.2 g. Thus the patients with fatness have higher pain sensitivity threshold then people of other categories, so they feel less pain. The older a person is the higher pain sensitivity threshold is.     

Clinical and serological responses to an inactivated influenza vaccine in adults with HIV infection, diabetes, obstructive airways disease, elderly adults and healthy volunteers

To investigate the clinical and serological responses to an inactivated influenza vaccine (split-virion A/Singapore/6/86-like strains H1N1 (15 ug HA), A/Beijing/353/89-like H3N2 (15 ug HA) and B/Yamagata/16/88-like strain (15 ug HA): MFV-JECT, Merieux, UK) in persons with HIV infection, diabetes, obstructive lung diseases, elderly adults and healthy volunteers. Forty-nine HIV-infected persons received 2 doses of the vaccine at one-month intervals; 34 healthy volunteers, 30 elderly persons, 29 with insulin and non-insulin diabetes and 14 with obstructive airways diseases were vaccinated with one single dose between October 1992 to January 1993. Serological testing of antibody responses was done using haemagglutination assay. Beta2-microglobulin in HIV-infected persons was measured using radioimmunodiffusion between 1st and 2nd dose. Fructosamine levels in diabetic persons were assessed for diabetic control and peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) was self monitored in persons with lung diseases. All groups apart from the elderly filled in a symptom score chart for the first 5 days following vaccination. A 4-fold rise in titre equal to or more than 1:64 to all the 3 antigens occurred in 20 (58.8%) of healthy volunteers compared with 13 (44.8%) diabetics, 5 (35.7%) with lung diseases, 10 (33.3%) elderly and 13 (26.5%) with HIV infection. A significant correlation of serological response to number of CD4 count in persons with HIV infection was noted (H1N1 P=0.0013, H3N2 P=0.025, BYAM P=0.0018). Mean beta2-microglobulin levels did not change significantly post 1st and 2nd vaccination. Mean fructosamine level did not change significantly. There was no significant change in PEFR. The vaccine was well tolerated. Persons with HIV infection and low CD4 count do not serologically respond well to influenza vaccine even with 2 doses compared to the other 4 groups. The other 4 groups had adequate protective serologic responses. The vaccine was well tolerated in all groups.     

Levels of serum granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in patients with cerebrovascular diseases

The role of leukocytes in the pathogenesis of cerebrovascular disease, in particular, cerebral ischemic disease has recently become a focus of research. Several studies have reported that a positive correlation between increased functional activities of neutrophils and the risk of cerebral ischemic disease. Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) is known to be not only a granulocyte proliferating factor but also a potent activator of mature neutrophils. In this study, we measured the serum G-CSF levels in 143 patients with cerebrovascular diseases and in 100 patients with other diseases, using our established enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for G-CSF The minimal detection level was 20 pg/ml G-CSF. In patients with cerebral infarction, G-CSF could be detected in 18.3% and in patients with cerebral hemorrhage, it could be detected in 9.8% of analyzed samples. On the other hand, 6% of the patients with other diseases had measurable levels of G-CSF. The differences among these three groups were statistically significant according to the chi 2 test (p < 0.01). Our findings that there was a significantly high frequency of elevated levels of G-CSF among patients with cerebrovascular diseases, may indicate that the action of G-CSF as a potent activator of neutrophils plays some role in the occurrence of cerebrovascular disease, in particular, cerebral infarction.     

Non-random associations between fears, beliefs and behaviors among panic patients

Self-report questionnaires have been used to compare panic patients' fears, anxious thoughts and behaviors with those of a group of controls. Individual items revealed significant differences between groups in all three areas: factor analysis revealed group differences in the pattern of intraquestionnaire associations between items. Correlational analysis of factor scores revealed significant group differences in the pattern of interquestionnaire associations. These findings only partly support a formulation of panic based upon "catastrophic interpretations." On the other hand, they do provide evidence of cognitive rigidity among panic patients which can be interpreted as evidence of impaired effortful processing when anxious.     

Semidry electroblotting of peptides and proteins from acid-urea polyacrylamide gels

BACKGROUND: The authors previously reported a statistically significant effect of psychosocial intervention on survival time of women with metastatic breast carcinoma. In this study, the authors investigated whether this effect could be explained by differences in the medical treatment patients received subsequent to their group participation or differences in causes of death. METHODS: Of the original 86 study participants, medical treatment charts for 61 and death certificates for 83 were available for further analysis. The authors reviewed the course of the medical treatment they received subsequent to their entry into the randomized psychotherapy trial. RESULTS: Although there were no statistically significant differences with regard to chemotherapy and hormone therapy between the control and treatment groups, women in the control group tended to have received more adrenalectomies, although this procedure did not account for the difference in survival time between the control group and the treatment group. Furthermore, women in the control group developed more bone and lung metastases than the women in the treatment group. CONCLUSIONS: Differences in disease course between the control and treatment groups appeared to be independent of any differences in medical treatment received.     

The effectiveness of psychotherapeutic interventions for bereaved persons: A comprehensive quantitative review.

Previous quantitative reviews of research on psychotherapeutic interventions for bereaved persons have yielded divergent findings and have not included many of the available controlled outcome studies. This meta-analysis summarizes results from 61 controlled studies to offer a more comprehensive integration of this literature. This review examined (a) the absolute effectiveness of bereavement interventions immediately following intervention and at follow-up assessments, (b) several of the clinically and theoretically relevant moderators of outcome, and (c) change over time among recipients of the interventions and individuals in no-intervention control groups. Overall, analyses showed that interventions had a small effect at posttreatment but no statistically significant benefit at follow-up. However, interventions that exclusively targeted grievers displaying marked difficulties adapting to loss had outcomes that compare favorably with psychotherapies for other difficulties. Other evidence suggested that the discouraging results for studies failing to screen for indications of distress could be attributed to a tendency among controls to improve naturally over time. The findings of the review underscore the importance of attending to the targeted population in the practice and study of psychotherapeutic interventions for bereaved persons. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Is decision making really impaired in eating disorders?

Objective: Decision making has been reported to be reduced in eating disorders. However, studies are sparse and have been carried out in various selected populations. In the current study we arranged to confirm previous observations and to assess the relationship between decision making and dimensions relevant to eating disorders. Method: Patients suffering from anorexia nervosa (n = 49), bulimia nervosa (n = 38), and healthy controls (n = 83) were assessed using the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). All patients were euthymic and free of psychotropic medication. Self-questionnaires (Eating Disorder Inventory–2; Gardner, 1991; and Eating Attitude Test; Garner & Garfinkel, 1979) were used to assess clinical dimensions relevant to eating disorders. Results: No significant differences in IGT performance were observed between patients and healthy controls or between restrictive and purging types of anorexia nervosa. No correlations were found between IGT performance and eating disorder questionnaires. Conclusion: These results do not support reduced decision making in patients with eating disorders, and suggest that previously reported alterations could be related to other clinical characteristics. This should stimulate new topic-related studies designed to reach a firm conclusion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measles virus-induced migration inhibition in vitro of leukocytes from patients with multiple sclerosis

The migration inhibition in vitro induced by measles virus material on leukocytes from 17 patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) was compared with that of 8 patients with various other central nervous system diseases and that of 12 healthy blood donors. Significant differences could not be demonstrated. The results do not indicate that MS patients' leukocytes show an altered behaviour to measles virus material in the migration inhibition test.     

Tissue regression as occupational disease. Character, causes, and assessment]

The most frequent of the so-called vocational diseases "Attrition of brachial joints after working with compressed-air-tools" and "Change of the miner's menisci" have only a loose causal connection with the occupations they are named for: By far the majority of such workers are not affected-even though they handle compressed-air-tools, or do the labor of miners all during their working life. This study explains, that the cause for these diseases is not to be sought in any external influences typical for these activities but rather in some negative tendency of patient's tissue--a definite morbidity towards tissue-regression. Patients are born with this inclination, with, therefore, is not insurable. The conditions for public accident incurance are fulfilled only if work with compressed-air-tools or labour of miners aggravates these negative tendencies. The somewhat indirect causal connection between diseases and occupations, do bring up certain problems and make it rather difficult, to judge these "tissue-regressions as vocational diseases".     

The pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis. Cytotoxic antibodies against myelin sheath tissue in multiple sclerosis

Cytotoxic antibodies to myelin can be demonstrated by the method of 51Cr-release from chick erythrocytes coated with myelin basic protein. The cytotoxic antibody is inactivated by heating to 56 degrees C and needs complement in order to exert its action. The antibody was determined as IgM and IgG. It has relative specifity and shows cross-reaction with other basic proteins. The cytotoxic antibody was found in only 8% of healthy persons. Patients with multiple sclerosis were positive in 87% of the cases and in acute cases in 94%. In other neurological diseases cytotoxic antibody was present in 64%. The occurrence of cytotoxic antibody to myelin protein is not specific for a particular neurological disorder, especially not for multiple sclerosis. Cytotoxic antibodies arise as a secondary phenomenon, they are not the cause of the disease involved. They appear to be suitable, however, to determine, in association with cellular immunological reactions against myelin which may be regarded as the "primary" immunological processes, the demyelination process in the multiple sclerosis focus.