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Biomedical subjects

B Hultberg

Publications and source records attributed to B Hultberg.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Diagnostic potential of urinary enzymes and beta 2-microglobulin in acute urinary tract infection.

Urinary excretions of beta 2-microglobulin (beta 2M), N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG), alanine aminopeptidase, beta-glucuronidase, acid and neutral alpha-glucosidase as indicators of proximal tubular dysfunction were measured in patients with acute upper and lower urinary tract infection (UTI) and fever of non-renal origin. The sensitivity of beta 2M was 67% and of NAG 49% as assessed in more than 100 episodes of acute pyelonephritis. Combined use of beta 2M and NAG increased the sensitivity to 75%. The degree of beta 2-microglobulinuria and enzymuria was comparable in patients with acute pyelonephritis and fever due to non-renal infections. The excretion of beta 2M and the various enzymes was too variable and unpredictable in individual cases to be useful as diagnostic indicator. In localizing an acute UTI, tests for proximal tubular dysfunction seem to be of no more clinical value than properly measured body temperature.

Acetylglucosaminidase↗
PubMed1986

Metabolism of the human serum beta-hexosaminidase isoenzymes in the rat: an in vivo and in vitro study.

Plasma clearance of purified human serum beta-hexosaminidase isoenzymes was studied in the rat. The serum beta-hexosaminidase isoenzymes (A, B and P) showed a slow clearance from circulation compared to their tissue counterparts. After desialylation, the clearance rate of all serum isoenzymes was markedly enhanced. The uptake of native as well as desialylated serum beta-hexosaminidase isoenzymes was studied in rat liver nonparenchymal cells and hepatocytes. No detectable uptake of any native serum isoenzyme was noticed in either cell type. However, when these isoenzymes were desialylated by neuraminidase treatment, isoenzymes A and B were taken up by the nonparenchymal cells. No uptake was observed for the P form. None of the desialylated serum forms was taken up by hepatocytes.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Portal-systemic encephalopathy. Influence of shunt surgery and relations to serum amino acids.

Fifty patients with liver cirrhosis, portal hypertension, and a history of bleeding oesophageal varices underwent 15 different cognitive psychometric tests to evaluate the presence of subclinical portal-systemic encephalopathy. None of the patients were clinically encephalopathic. The patients were compared with 50 healthy control subjects. Twenty-three patients showed definite signs of encephalopathy in the psychometric tests, 17 were normal, and 10 were borderline cases. The most pronounced abnormalities were seen in tests reflecting logic inductive capacity, visual spatial performance, cognitive flexibility, perceptual speed, spatial perceptive ability, and psychomotor performance. Tests reflecting word memory were less affected. Serum liver function tests did not differ between patients with deranged and normal brain functions. The serum isoleucine concentration was, however, significantly lower in the encephalopathic patients. The psychometric test results did not differ between patients with alcoholic and nonalcoholic liver cirrhosis, and no change was noted 2 years after shunt surgery.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1986

Radiolabelled colloid uptake distribution and pulmonary contents and localization of lysosomal enzymes in cholestatic rats.

Studies of the activity uptake of radiolabelled 99mTc2S7 colloid in different tissues showed a moderately increased uptake in the lung 1 week and a greatly increased uptake 3 weeks after permanent bile duct occlusion. Three weeks after bile duct occlusion the activity uptake was also slightly increased in the spleen and moderately reduced in the liver. In pulmonary tissue of cholestatic rats, the levels of alkaline and acid phosphatase, beta-glucuronidase, and beta-hexosaminidase were determined after 6 weeks. The pulmonary contents of beta-glucuronidase was increased tenfold, and that of beta-hexosaminidase was increased fourfold in cholestasis. Histochemical investigation showed that the lysosomal enzymes were located in the macrophages, which in cholestasis were abundant in alveolar walls and inside alveoli. Macrophages were also frequently seen to engorge pulmonary veins.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Tissue content and localization of lysosomal enzymes in cholestatic rats.

Levels of the lysosomal enzymes beta-glucuronidase and beta-hexosaminidase were determined in tissues from rats at 1-7 weeks after permanent bile duct occlusion (28 animals) and sham operation (16 animals). With increasing duration of bile duct occlusion, increasing levels were found in the liver and spleen, whereas levels were unaffected in the pancreas, kidneys, brain, muscle, and skin. Histochemical investigation showed that the lysosomal enzymes accumulated in the hepatocytes and in the increasing numbers of reticuloendothelial cells of the liver and spleen during cholestasis. No significant accumulation of lysosomal enzymes was seen in the pancreas. In preparations of isolated hepatocytes and non-parenchymal cells increased specific activity of lysosomal enzymes in cholestasis appeared in both cellular fractions. It is assumed that the serum increase of lysosomal enzymes in late cholestasis is partly due to a release from activated macrophages in the liver and spleen.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Comparative toxicity of gentamicin and cefotetan.

In a prospective, randomized, comparative study, the renal, hepatic and gastrointestinal toxicity and effects on the vitamin K dependent coagulation factors of gentamicin and cefotetan were compared. Gentamicin, which in all but one patient was combined with a penicillin, was found to cause a significant decrease of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) after 1 week of treatment. In 6/14 patients a further decrease of GFR was found during the week following the last treatment day. The renal proximal tubular cells were affected by gentamicin, as evident from significant increases in urinary activity of 2 tubular enzymes, alanine aminopeptidase (AAP) and N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG), as well as rises of urinary beta 2-microglobulin. Changes in GFR and tubular function were reversible. No statistically significant changes of these variables were seen with cefotetan. One cefotetan treated patient developed diarrhoea of moderate severity and 2 patients in the same group developed minor increases of liver transaminases. A small but statistically significant decrease of the activity of the vitamin K dependent coagulation factors occurred during cefotetan treatment. No gastrointestinal or hepatic adverse reactions were observed in the gentamicin treated patients.

Aged↗
PubMed1985

Detection of recurrent cancer of the colon and rectum.

Outpatient follow-up in patients operated upon due to carcinoma of the colon and rectum is usually performed, due to a high rate of recurrence and with the aim of finding a curable recurrence. Due to the enormous cost of an extended follow-up system, a careful evaluation of the benefit is needed. The aim of the present investigation was to study the efficacy of the different tools in an extended follow-up. One hundred ninety patients with carcinoma of the colon and rectum were--apart from traditional clinical follow-up--followed with an extensive laboratory battery including carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), hemoglobin (Hb), electrophoresis, ALP, and GT. Forty-seven recurrences were found. Thirty-one of these recurrences were first detected by a rise in CEA. Seven cases were detected at clinical follow-up and six cases due to symptoms suggestive of recurrence. The predictive value of a positive test was 79.4% for CEA but very low for the other tests studied. A negative value for any of the tests in the battery was usually accurate. Follow-up after colorectal carcinoma should include CEA as the only laboratory parameter. Postoperative colonoscopy for removal of missed synchronous lesions, chest X-ray, and endoscopic investigations of the anastomotic region also seem to be of value.

Aged↗
PubMed1985

A sensitive urine pregnancy test as an aid in the diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy.

A highly sensitive 2-hour tube test for the detection of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in urine was compared with the more resource-demanding radioimmunoassay for hCG in serum as an aid in the diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy. In a first series of 107 patients with the possibility of ectopic pregnancy, the urine test was positive in 31 patients, including all 15 patients shown to have an ectopic pregnancy. In a second series of 113 consecutive patients with ectopic pregnancy, the highly sensitive test was performed in 94 patients. It was positive in 90 (96%). The median time of amenorrhea at diagnosis was 7 weeks, and only 15 patients suffered a rupture of the fallopian tube. A highly sensitive urinary test for hCG is recommended as a screening method for patients giving even the smallest indication of ectopic pregnancy.

Chorionic Gonadotropin↗
PubMed1985

Release of fibronectin, sulfated glycosaminoglycans and beta-hexosaminidase from injured smooth muscle cells and fibroblasts in culture--possible transferable effects on new cultures.

The effect of injury to the bovine arterial smooth muscle cell in vitro was studied. Injury was caused by dimethylsulphoxide-soluble particles from cigarette smoke. The release of fibronectin was studied with human skin fibroblasts, but all other experiments on bovine myocytes. Fibronectin release was increased from injured cells, while that of sulfated glycosaminoglycans was decreased. These changes in release were evident already during the first hour after injury, while the increased release of the lysosomal enzyme beta-hexosaminidase was manifest 1-24 hours after injury, but not during the first hour. Conditioned medium from injured cells was toxic to new cultures. This toxicity could be prevented by including the protease inhibitor alpha 1-antitrypsin to the cultures exposed to smoke particles. When alpha 1-antitrypsin was added first after the cells had been exposed to the smoke particles it was without effect. The free radical scavenger vitamin E was without effect. Cell detachment was a good index of cell death after exposure to cigarette smoke particles, as judged from the simultaneous measurement of DNA content and trypan blue uptake. During the period 24 hours after the toxic influence of cigarette smoke particles on original cultures, or 24 hours after the action of conditioned medium on new cultures, the injured cells revealed an augmented DNA synthesis compared to controls. The injured cells were, however, less responsive to growth-stimulating activity from platelets.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Activity of lysosomal hydrolases in human placenta, amnion, decidua and myometrium in the 2nd and 3rd trimester.

Six lysosomal hydrolases were studied in tissues of human placenta, amnion, decidua, and myometrium obtained in the 2nd and 3rd trimester. No significant increase in the activity of any lysosomal hydrolase was found in the 3rd-trimester values compared with those obtained in the 2nd trimester. Thus, the increased activity of lysosomal hydrolases in maternal serum at term, previously described in several studies, seems not to be paralleled by a corresponding increase in the activity of these enzymes in the tissues of the pregnant uterus. We speculate that the increase in maternal serum towards term may reflect a macrophage activation initiated by elevated estrogen concentrations in the 3rd trimester.

Amnion↗
PubMed1985

Lysosomal enzymes in plasma, liver and spleen from rats with carbon tetrachloride-induced liver cirrhosis.

Plasma levels of the lysosomal enzymes, beta-hexosaminidase and beta-glucuronidase, were analyzed in rats with carbon tetrachloride induced liver cirrhosis. Out of 22 animals, 15 showed cirrhotic and 4 pre-cirrhotic livers. 4 cirrhotic animals exhibited cholestatic features with increased bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT) in plasma. The remaining 15 pre-cirrhotic and cirrhotic rats showed clear significant changes only in ASAT levels. These 15 rats showed no consistent increase in plasma, spleen or liver lysosomal enzyme activities, whereas the 4 rats with cholestatic features exhibited considerable increases of lysosomal enzymes. The increased activities might be attributed to decreased biliary excretion and/or increased production of lysosomal enzymes by activated macrophages.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗
PubMed1985

Influence of ethanol on the human serum level of beta-hexosaminidase.

Serum activities of the lysosomal enzymes beta-hexosaminidase, alpha-fucosidase and alpha-mannosidase in teetotalers, healthy persons with 'ordinary' alcohol consumption, chronic alcoholics and patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis were compared. There was no difference between controls and teetotalers, whereas serum from chronic alcoholics and patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis showed a significant increase of lysosomal enzymes compared to controls and teetotalers. The effect of daily alcohol ingestion on the serum activity of lysosomal enzymes was studied in 9 healthy volunteers. A minor but significant increase was found for beta-hexosaminidase. It is concluded that the increase of lysosomal enzyme activity in serum from alcoholics is due to the liver dysfunction.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

The effects of glucose and insulin on beta-hexosaminidase in cultured fibroblasts from diabetic and non-diabetic subjects.

The effects of glucose and insulin in culture medium on the release and cellular content of beta-hexosaminidase were studied in fibroblast cultures obtained from patients with type II diabetes and from control subjects. The release of beta-hexosaminidase was (positively) correlated to extracellular glucose concentration. The cellular activity was not influenced by glucose. Insulin had no effect on the cellular activity or the release of beta-hexosaminidase. The results were similar for both cell types. It is proposed that increased plasma levels of lysosomal hydrolases (e.g. beta-hexosaminidase) from human diabetics might be due to increased release from cells exposed to elevated glucose concentrations.

Cells, Cultured↗
PubMed1985

Lysosomal enzymes, alkaline phosphatase, and bilirubin in plasma after bile duct transection in the rat.

Plasma levels of the lysosomal enzymes beta-glucuronidase and beta-hexosaminidase were studied for 6 weeks after permanent bile duct occlusion (19 animals) or sham operation (5 animals). The bile duct-occluded animals had a stable bilirubinemia throughout the observation period. The median level of beta-glucuronidase in controls was 0.45 U/l. In jaundiced animals the median level was 1.09 at 0.5 weeks, 1.28 at 2 weeks, and 1.58 at 6 weeks after bile duct occlusion. The median level of beta-hexosaminidase in controls was 18.5 U/l. In jaundiced animals the median level was 18.0 at 0.5 weeks, 20.8 at 2 weeks, and 53.3 at 6 weeks after operation. Compared with beta-glucuronidase, prominent elevation of the beta-hexosaminidase level appeared much later after bile duct obstruction, which might suggest a closer association with reticuloendothelial system function for the latter enzyme.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗
PubMed1984

Total fasting serum bile acids and beta-hexosaminidase in alcoholic liver disease.

Total serum bile acid levels and beta-hexosaminidase activity were studied in 22 normal subjects, 35 non-cirrhotic patients with acute alcohol intoxication, 45 patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis and 11 patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis and surgical portal-systemic shunts. Comparison was made with traditional liver function tests. beta-Hexosaminidase was most frequently elevated in acute alcohol intoxication (94%) while total serum bile acids were elevated in all patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis. Total serum bile acid levels were found to discriminate most efficiently between acute alcohol intoxication and liver cirrhosis. The combined determination of serum beta-hexosaminidase and total serum bile acids is proposed for evaluating alcoholic liver disease.

Alcoholic Intoxication↗