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Biomedical subjects

C Biermann

Publications and source records attributed to C Biermann.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Isolation of Abiotrophia adiacens from a brain abscess which developed in a patient after neurosurgery.

We report the case of a patient who developed a large brain abscess after neurosurgery. Cerebrospinal fluid from the abscess drainage yielded Abiotrophia adiacens-specific PCR products and microorganisms that were identified by conventional microbiological methods and by 16S ribosomal DNA analysis as Abiotrophia adiacens, which was formerly classified as a member of nutritionally variant streptococci.

Astrocytoma↗
PubMed1997

Mode of primary binding to target membranes and pore formation induced by Vibrio cholerae cytolysin (hemolysin).

Vibrio cholerae cytolysin (VCC) is produced by many non-choleratoxigenic strains of V. cholerae, and possibly represents a relevant pathogenicity determinant of these bacteria. The protein is secreted as a pro-toxin that is proteolytically cleaved to yield the active toxin with a molecular mass of approximately 63 kDa. We here describe a simple procedure for preparative isolation of mature VCC from bacterial culture supernatants, and present information on its mode of binding and pore formation in biological membranes. At low concentrations, toxin monomers interact with a high-affinity binding site on highly susceptible rabbit erythrocytes. This as yet unidentified binding site is absent on human erythrocytes, which are less susceptible to the toxin action. At higher concentrations, binding of the toxin occurs to both rabbit and human erythrocytes in a non-saturable manner. Cell-bound toxin monomers oligomerize to form supramolecular structures that are seen in the electron microscope as apparently hollow funnels, and oligomerization correlates functionally with the appearance of small transmembrane pores. Osmotic protection experiments indicate that the toxin channels are of finite size with a diameter of 1-2 nm. The mode of action of VCC closely resembles that of classical pore-forming toxins such as staphylococcal alpha-toxin and the aerolysin of Aeromonas hydrophila.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

How is quality of life in prostate cancer patients influenced by modern treatment? The Wallenberg Symposium.

OBJECTIVES: To identify complications of various forms of treatments for prostate cancer and their influence on patients' quality of life with the ultimate goal of suggesting a Quality of Life Questionnaire specific for prostate cancer for further validation. METHODS: The literature was screened for reports on the more common complications following various forms of therapy for prostate cancer. Frequencies were summarized. The scarce literature reporting on quality of life in prostate cancer was reviewed and conflicting data were discussed and reassessed. Suggested questionnaires used in other studies were critically scrutinized and the various questions recorded. RESULTS: Following radical surgery, impotence and incontinence were the most common complications reducing patients' quality of life. The literature was not uniform with regard to whether loss of sexual function was regarded as a worse complication than loss of urinary control. Following radiotherapy, intestinal problems and sexual dysfunction were the dominating side effects. Quality of life was best preserved in surveillance-only series. Following endocrine therapy, not only impotence and hot flushes were focused upon, but also mental dysfunction and intestinal dysfunction from nonsteroidal antiandrogens, additionally, the importance of effective palliation was highlighted. A Quality of Life Questionnaire should contain general domains relevant to cancer patients, cancer-specific questions, and prostate-cancer-specific questions. The latter group includes: worry for prostate cancer and its prognosis, bone/pelvic pain, lower urinary tract symptoms, urinary incontinence, urinary diversion, bowel function, sexual function, endocrine effects, and satisfaction with medical care for prostate cancer. CONCLUSIONS: A modern trial of prostate cancer treatment should be regarded as insufficient without including a validated Quality of Life Questionnaire.

Costs and Cost Analysis↗
PubMed1996

Expression of active streptolysin O in Escherichia coli as a maltose-binding-protein--streptolysin-O fusion protein. The N-terminal 70 amino acids are not required for hemolytic activity.

Streptolysin 0 (SLO) is the prototype of a family of cytolysins that consists of proteins which bind to cholesterol and form very large transmembrane pores. Structure/function studies on the pore-forming cytolysin SLO have been complicated by the proteolytic inactivation of a substantial portion of recombinant SLO (rSLO) expressed in Escherichia coli. To overcome this problem, translational fusions between the E. coli maltose-binding protein (MBP) gene and SLO were constructed, using the vectors pMAL-p2 and pMAL-c2. MBP-SLO fusion proteins were degraded if secreted into the E. coli periplasm, but intact, soluble MBP-SLO fusion proteins were produced at high levels in the cytoplasm. Active SLO with the expected N-terminus was separated from the MBP carrier by cleavage with factor Xa. Cleavage with plasmin or trypsin also yielded active, but slightly smaller forms of SLO. Surprisingly, uncleaved MBP-SLO was also hemolytic and cytotoxic to human fibroblasts and keratinocytes. The MBP-SLO fusion protein displayed equal activities to SLO. Sucrose density gradient analyses showed that the fusion protein assembled into polymers, and no difference in structure was discerned compared with polymers formed by native SLO. These studies show that the N-terminal 70 residues of mature (secreted) SLO are not required for pore formation and that the N-terminus of the molecule is probably not inserted into the bilayer. In addition, they provide a simple means for producing mutants for structure/function studies and highly purified SLO for use as a permeabilising reagent in cell biology research.

ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters↗
PubMed1992

Intake of intense sweeteners in Germany.

The dietary intake of aspartame, cyclamate, and saccharin was evaluated in Germany (FRG) in 1988/89. In the first part of the study the sweetener intake was evaluated in a representative sample of the population. Complete 24-h records of the amount and type of all foods and drinks consumed were obtained from 2,291 individuals. The total daily intake was calculated for each person from the sweetener content of each product and was expressed in mg/kg body weight (bw). 35.9% of the participants ingested one or more sweeteners on the examination day. Cyclamate and saccharin were the prominent sweeteners because aspartame was at that time permitted only under special regulatory exemption, and products containing acesulfame were not yet available. For users of intense sweeteners the mean intakes of aspartame, cyclamate, and saccharin were 0.15, 2.62, and 0.250 mg/kg bw/day, respectively. At the 90th percentile of intake, i.e., for the heavy consumer, the ingestion of cyclamate and saccharin was about 2.5 times higher. Persons who adhered to a diet (diabetes, weight control) did not ingest sweeteners in substantially higher amounts. Tabletop sweeteners and beverages were the most important sources of sweeteners, and they contributed more than 80% of the total intake. Consumption of sweeteners in excess of the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) was rarely observed (saccharin: one person, cyclamate: 16 persons). In the second part of the study, the sweetener intake was further evaluated during a 7-day period in those subjects who in the 1-day study ingested any of the sweeteners in excess of 75% of the ADI. Complete 7-day food records were available from 40 out of the 41 subjects who fulfilled this criterium. In this selected subgroup in which 19 subjects were less than 19 years old, the mean daily intakes of aspartame, cyclamate, and saccharin were 0.13, 4.53, and 0.42 mg/kg body weight (bw), respectively. These levels correspond to 0.33, 41 and 17% of the corresponding ADI values. No subject exceeded the ADI of aspartame or saccharin on any day of the study. For cyclamate, the mean daily intake over the 7-day period exceeded the ADI in 4 subjects. The results indicate that at the time of the study the then valid German sweetener regulation protected the consumer adequately, and that the sweetener intake was in 99.8% of all examined persons within recommended limits.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Phenoxymethylpenicillin two or three times daily for tonsillitis with beta-haemolytic streptococci group A: a blinded, randomized and controlled clinical study.

In relation to compliance problems it was investigated whether phenoxymethylpenicillin dosed twice or 3 times daily was equally effective in tonsillitis due to beta-haemolytic streptococci group A. In a randomized, controlled and single blind multicentre study 206 patients older than 5 years with a positive culture of group A streptococci were treated with phenoxymethylpenicillin for 7 days. 101 patients received the daily dosage divided in 2 doses and 105 patients divided in 3 doses a day. The cure rate (a combination of bacteriological and clinical cure) was 82.0% in the 2-dosage regimen, and 88.2% in the 3-dosage regimen. The difference was not statistically significant. In conclusion, phenoxymethylpenicillin dosed 2 or 3 times daily seems to be equally effective in tonsillitis due to group A streptococci.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

[Prognosis and treatment of advanced breast cancer from the surgical viewpoint].

Twenty-four patients with advanced mammary carcinoma (stage T4) were treated between 1983-1986 at the Department of Surgery of the University of Bochum, Marienhospital Herne 1. The primary surgical treatment was supported in 18 cases by an ablatio modified from Patey, the ablatio simplex were performed on 4 patients; while a thoracical-epigastric flap was applied to one patient. Because of the high percentage (16.6%) of advanced breast cancer on all our breast cancer patients, we feel obliged to show the survival time of different under-groups by an interdisciplinary making follow up examination. So we believe to give a better and more different statement on the prognosis of the advanced breast cancer.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Comparison of spiramycin and doxycycline in the treatment of lower respiratory infections in general practice.

A total of 221 patients from 21 general practitioners was entered in a double-blind comparative study of spiramycin and doxycycline in the treatment of pneumonia and acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis. One-hundred-and-five patients were randomized to treatment with spiramycin tablets for 5 1/2 days and 116 patients were randomized to treatment with doxycycline tablets for nine days. The efficacy and side effects of the two treatment regimens were observed. Of the 221 patients included, 191 were acceptable for evaluation, 91 in the spiramycin group and 100 in the doxycycline group. Three patients in the spiramycin group withdrew because of lack of efficacy and one patient in the doxycycline group withdrew because of side effects (feeling unwell and blurred vision). No significant differences in efficacy or safety were found between the two treatments.

Bronchitis↗