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Biomedical subjects

A Mauri

Publications and source records attributed to A Mauri.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1993

alpha-Melanocyte-stimulating hormone during human perinatal life.

To obtain information on human pituitary intermediate lobe activity throughout the perinatal period, plasma alpha MSH immunoreactivity (IR) was measured in 106 newborns at delivery and during the first week of postnatal life. Subjects were divided into groups according to gestational age at birth, mode of parturition, and antenatal state of health. Plasma alpha MSH IR decreased progressively from severe preterm to fullterm neonates born by vaginal delivery (VD; P < 0.001) or cesarean section (CS) with and without prenatal distress (P < or = 0.001 in both cases). alpha MSH IR was due, in all studied conditions, to three major forms: desacetyl alpha MSH, alpha MSH, and diacetyl alpha MSH. Desacetyl alpha MSH was always the most represented form, but it decreased from 75-80% of the total in severe premature to 40-45% in mature infants. In term neonates, total alpha MSH IR values were higher in subjects born by normal VD than by elective CS (P < or = 0.05), in complicated than in normal VD (P < or = 0.01), and in CS performed because of fetal distress than in elective CS (P < or = 0.01). No significant difference was detectable in mature subjects in the percentages of the three alpha MSH forms in relation to the mode of delivery and fetal state during antenatal life or at parturition. Twelve hours after birth, total alpha MSH IR significantly decreased in all groups of term newborns, reaching a plateau of 0.8-1.4 pmol/L. In premature infants, similar concentrations were detectable by the fourth postnatal day. We conclude that 1) alpha MSH IR intermediate lobe secretion progressively decreases throughout the third trimester of pregnancy; 2) stress, including that pertinent to parturition, stimulates alpha MSH IR release; and 3) pituitary intermediate lobe activity declines shortly after birth independently of the maturity reached by the fetus, the mode of parturition, and the presence of antenatal chronic distress, although the process is slightly retarded in premature newborns.

Cesarean Section↗
PubMed1992

Beta-endorphin in amniotic fluid in normal and hypertensive gestations: relationship with maternal blood pressure parameters.

beta-Endorphin (beta-E) immunoreactivity was measured in the amniotic compartment of 52 normotensive and 45 hypertensive gestations. All the fetuses of the normal group were healthy and showed appropriate intrauterine growth, whereas only suffering and growth-retarded fetuses were included in the pathological group. As expected, amniotic beta-E concentration was found to be significantly higher in hypertensive than in normotensive pregnancies (mean +/- SEM: 129.1 +/- 8.15 vs. 59.1 +/- 2.68 pg/ml; p < or = 0.005). A positive correlation between the hormone levels and the diastolic as well as the mean maternal blood pressure (r: 0.554; p < or = 0.05 and r: 0.525; p < or = 0.05, respectively) was present only in pregnancies complicated by hypertension. Furthermore, a negative correlation (r: -0.555; p < or = 0.05) linked amniotic beta-E and the pulse pressure in normal but not in complicated pregnancies. Unless beta-E in the amniotic compartment is also of amniochorial origin, our results suggest that the fetal endorphinergic tone is either activated by elevated diastolic and mean maternal pressure levels or lowered by increased pulse pressure values in normally elapsing pregnancies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

[Choleperitoneum following Kehr's T-tube removal: conservative treatment with culdocentesis associated with sphincterotomy and endoscopic drainage of the bile ducts].

The Authors present a case of bile peritonitis due to a biliary fistula developed after T tube removal from the common bile duct. Highlighting poor clinical manifestations they report an alternative conservative treatment, by drainage of the bile leakage with culdocenthesis and successive endoscopic spincterotomy and transpapillary drainage.

Bile↗
PubMed1990

Plasma alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone during the menstrual cycle in women.

alpha-Melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) and adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) immunoreactivity (IR) was measured in the blood of 22 healthy women with normal ovulatory process in the early and late follicular (near to ovulation) phases and in the early luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Plasma alpha-MSH IR ranged from undetectable values to 81.3 pg/ml, the highest levels being found in the late follicular phase (15.52 +/- 4.16 pg/ml). In contrast, plasma ACTH IR was always detectable (range: 18.5-63.2 pg/ml), but its concentration did not differ significantly between the 3 phases of the menstrual cycle. High-pressure liquid chromatography fractionation of Sep pak C18-purified alpha-MSH IR revealed in all 3 phases the presence of 3 major peaks of alpha-MSH IR, coeluting with desacetyl-alpha-MSH, alpha-MSH and diacetyl-alpha-MSH, respectively. The most abundant peak always coeluted with authentic desacetyl-alpha-MSH, and the ratio between this deacetylated and the other 2 acetylated forms was similar in the 2 follicular phases (1:1.25 and 1:1.16 in the early and late phase, respectively), but significantly different in the luteal phase (1:0.48). The fluctuations in plasma concentration of the above MSH-related peptides suggest that different rates of alpha-MSH acetylation and release take place in the pituitary gland depending on the phase of the menstrual cycle.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Correlation between amniotic levels of alpha-MSH, ACTH and beta-endorphin in late gestation and labour in normal and complicated pregnancies.

alpha-MSH, ACTH and beta-endorphin were measured by radioimmunoassay in samples of amniotic fluid collected from the 32nd to the 38th gestational week and at labour from normal pregnancies and pregnancies complicated by gestosis. In normal pregnancies, the concentration of alpha-MSH, ACTH and beta-endorphin remained relatively constant during the last 7 gestational weeks, but increased at labour above the values of the 38th week by 88, 143 and 96%, respectively. A positive correlation between beta-endorphin and alpha-MSH (r = 0.92) or ACTH (r = 0.76) levels was found when labour values were considered in the regression analysis. In contrast, when labour values were excluded, only a poor positive correlation between beta-endorphin and alpha-MSH (r = 0.52) was found. In complicated pregnancies, alpha-MSH and ACTH concentrations were similar to those found in normal pregnancies: on the other hand, the level of beta-endorphin, was found to be 130% higher than normal. As in normal pregnancies, alpha-MSH, ACTH and beta-endorphin levels increased at labour, but only by 46, 44 and 23%, respectively. In contrast to in normal pregnancies, the correlation between beta-endorphin and alpha-MSH or ACTH was not significantly modified by labour values. The present results confirm and extend previous studies showing that beta-endorphin may be considered a marker of fetal distress and that the fetal pituitary is capable of reacting to stressful stimuli in normal and suffering fetuses.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

[Retrospective analysis of 1354 autopsies in cases of death caused by trauma].

1,354 deaths due to traumatic causes arising in 1976-1985 among patients admitted to the Molinette Hospital, Turin were analysed. The causes were divided into 5 major groups with to monitoring the course of the pathologies concerned over time. The results confirm an increase in deaths from septic shock that reflects increased recourse to surgery and the application of resuscitation manoeuvres and equipment, but a decrease in death due to haemorrhagic shock. These two pathologies represent the major lines for future research aimed at improving the prognosis in traumatic lesions.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Oxytocin-induced penile erection and yawning in male rats: effect of neonatal monosodium glutamate and hypophysectomy.

Penile erection and yawning induced by the intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of oxytocin (10-1000 ng) was studied in hypophysectomized rats and in rats neonatally treated with monosodium glutamate (MSG), a treatment that depletes hypothalamic opiomelanocorticotropin-derived peptides without altering their pituitary and circulating concentration. Oxytocin effect was strongly reduced by hypophysectomy, but not by neonatal MSG. Testosterone replacement (50 micrograms/kg/day for 23 days) partially reversed the effect of hypophysectomy on penile erection, but not on yawning. The present results suggest that oxytocin does not induce penile erection and yawning by releasing an ACTH-derived peptide from hypothalamic opiomelanotropinergic neurons, and that the pituitary gland exerts a permissive role on the expression of the above behavioural responses induced by oxytocin.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Des-acetyl-alpha-MSH and not alpha-MSH is the major form of alpha-MSH in amniotic fluid.

Immunoreactive alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (IR-alpha-MSH)-like activity was measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA) in at term pregnancy amniotic fluid prior and after adsorption on a Sep-pak C18 cartridge. alpha-MSH activity was 3-4 times lower after Sep-pak purification but, unlike the levels of IR-alpha-MSH in the fluid analyzed in toto, increased linearly with the volume of fluid analyzed. Furthermore, fractionation by high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) revealed that IR-alpha-MSH recovered from the Sep-pak was due to several peptides rather than to a single peptide. The most abundant of them (50% of total activity) behaved like authentic des-acetyl-alpha-MSH. Since des-acetyl-alpha-MSH is also the most abundant alpha-MSH-like peptide in the fetal pituitary gland, the present results suggest that the fetal pituitary is a main source of des-acetyl-alpha-MSH in the amniotic fluid.

Amniotic Fluid↗
PubMed1987

Paraventricular nucleus lesion prevents yawning and penile erection induced by apomorphine and oxytocin but not by ACTH in rats.

The effect of electrolytic lesion of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) on yawning and penile erection induced by apomorphine, oxytocin and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH1-24) was studied in male rats. In sham-operated rats, apomorphine (50 micrograms/kg s.c.), oxytocin (30 ng i.c.v.), and ACTH1-24 (10 micrograms i.c.v.) significantly increased the number of yawning and penile erection episodes. In PVN-lesioned rats, apomorphine- and oxytocin-, but not ACTH-induced responses were strongly reduced. These results confirm our previous observations showing that the PVN has a crucial role in the expression of yawning and penile erection induced by dopamino-mimetic drugs and oxytocin, and suggest that ACTH-derived peptides induce the above responses by a mechanism not involving PVN hypothalamic dopamine or oxytocin.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1987

Erythrocyte 3H-ouabain binding and digitalis treatment in ethanol addicted patients.

The binding of 3H-ouabain to human erythrocytes was analyzed in a population of hospitalized male ethanol addicted patients under long term digitalis treatment. In the non-alcoholic patient group the long term digitalis treatment induced an increase in Bmax and Kd values; such modification was not observed in the alcoholic patients. Chronic alcohol intake itself induced an increase in 3H-ouabain kinetic parameters. These observations confirm that ouabain binding to human erythrocytes is subject to pharmacological and toxicological regulation and that adaptive changes in peripheral tissues can be useful in predicting possible parallel modifications in other less accessible tissues.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Monosodium glutamate does not alter ACTH- or apomorphine-induced penile erection and yawning.

The effect of the intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of ACTH 1-24 (1, 5 and 10 micrograms) or the subcutaneous administration of apomorphine (20 and 80 micrograms/kg SC) on spontaneous penile erection and yawning was studied in rats treated with monosodium glutamate (MSG), a treatment that depletes hypothalamic ACTH, alpha-MSH and endorphin-like peptides. Neonatal MSG treatment failed to antagonize either apomorphine- or ACTH-induced yawning in male and female rats, or to alter the number of penile erection episodes induced by the two substances in male rats. In contrast, hypophysectomy, that does not alter the concentration of hypothalamic ACTH and alpha-MSH, caused a marked prevention of apomorphine- and ACTH-induced responses, in agreement with previous studies. The results suggest that the integrity of opiomelanotropinergic neurons in the hypothalamus is not necessary for the induction of yawning and penile erection by ACTH-derived peptides, and that apomorphine and other dopamine agonists apparently do not induce penile erection and yawning by releasing an ACTH-derived peptide in brain.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1987

Alcohol impairs age-dependent adaptation of human lymphocyte beta-adrenergic receptors.

Lymphocyte beta-adrenergic receptor function and norepinephrine (NE) plasma concentration have been compared in normal subjects and in ethanol-addicted patients of different ages. Direct measurement of the density and properties of beta-adrenoceptors in membrane fractions was performed using the radioligand 125I-Iodocyanopindolol (ICYP). In normal subjects beta-receptor density decreased and norepinephrine plasma concentration increased with age. There was a statistically significant negative correlation between plasma norepinephrine and beta-receptor number. In ethanol-addicted patients the age-related modification in beta-receptor number and the correlation between plasma norepinephrine and beta-receptor density were lost, in spite of the fact that the increase of NE plasma concentration was still present. The ethanol-induced effects in lymphocyte beta-receptor may have consequences on immunological function and may be qualitatively similar to alterations in other tissues not routinely accessible in humans.

Adaptation, Physiological↗