PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

C Colombo

Publications and source records attributed to C Colombo.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

IDDM and early infant feeding. Sardinian case-control study.

OBJECTIVE: To further investigate the association between the type of feeding in infancy and the development of IDDM. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We have carried out a case-control study in the area of Sassari (northern Sardinia, Italy), which is characterized by an ethnically homogenous population at high risk of IDDM. The study subjects comprised 100 IDDM patients and 100 control subjects, matched for sex and age and selected from children admitted at the Department of Pediatrics of the University of Sassari. Diabetic children (53 boys, 47 girls) had been diagnosed between 1983 and 1994, and their age at diagnosis ranged between 1 and 15 years. Information on feeding patterns during the 1st year of life was collected through questionnaires administered to the mothers. The questionnaire was designed to evaluate the duration of complete or partial breast-feeding and the age at which dietary products containing cow's milk were introduced into the diet. RESULTS: A larger proportion of the diabetic children rather than the control children had been breast-fed, and the risk of IDDM among children who had not been breast-fed was below unity (odds ratio [OR] 0.41; 95% CI 0.19-0.91). No clear difference was observed between diabetic and control subjects in the duration of breast-feeding (medians: 3 and 2 months, respectively), even if, overall, the data suggested a slight increase in the risk of IDDM with longer duration of breast-feeding (OR 1.10; 95% CI 0.99-1.22 per month). Although a larger proportion of control children rather than diabetic children had been given cow's milk-derived formula and solid food before the age of 3 months, there was no time-risk relationship. CONCLUSIONS: Our data do not support the existence of a protective effect of breast-feeding on the risk of IDDM, nor do the data indicate that early exposure to cow's milk and dairy products has any influence on the development of IDDM in a high-risk population.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Effects of simvastatin on the metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids and on glycerolipid, cholesterol, and de novo lipid synthesis in THP-1 cells.

In the monocytic THP-1 cells, the 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase inhibitor simvastatin (5 microM) enhances the conversion of exogenous linoleic (18:2 n-6) and eicosapentaenoic (20:5 n-3) acids to their long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LC-PUFA) derivatives, and this effect is associated with changes in the desaturation steps. In addition, formation of monounsaturated fatty acids from endogenously synthesized precursors is increased. These metabolic changes lead to elevated LC-PUFA and fatty acid (FA) unsaturation in cells. The effects of simvastatin on FA metabolism are associated with increased synthesis of triglycerides from glycerol. The dose-effect relationships for the activity of simvastatin on total linoleic acid (LA) conversion and cholesterol synthesis reveal that enhancement of PUFA metabolism is already maximal at 0.5 microM simvastatin, whereas cholesterol synthesis is further inhibited by concentrations of simvastatin up to 5 microM. The effects of 5 microM simvastatin on PUFA metabolism are partially prevented by mevalonate (1 mM) and geranylgeraniol (5 microM) but not by farnesol (10 microM). These data indicate that HMG-CoA inhibitors have profound effects on PUFA metabolism, and that the pathways for cholesterol and PUFA synthesis are mutually modulated.

Acetates↗
PubMed1996

Dopamine agonist amineptine prevents the antidepressant effect of sleep deprivation.

In a double-blind study, the effects of the interaction between the administration of amineptine versus placebo and repeated cycles of total sleep deprivation (TSD), which is thought to act through an enhancement in dopaminergic transmission, were analyzed. Twenty-two consecutively admitted patients with bipolar depression formed the study group. Repeated administrations of TSD significantly enhanced perceived mood levels in placebo-treated patients, while amineptine administration blocked the antidepressant action of TSD. Hypothesized changes in brain dopaminergic transmission attributable to amineptine pretreatment are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Infradian mood fluctuations during a Major Depressive episode.

We investigated the predictability of infradian mood fluctuations during acute depressive episodes in patients affected by mood disorders. Previous findings showed that in a subgroup of patients the depressive symptomathology fluctuates with day-to-day changes which follow cyclical patterns (termed "minicycles'). We applied time series analysis, by means of autocorrelation techniques, to time lagged serial recordings of perceived mood levels of 22 inpatients (13 Major Depressive Recurrent and 9 Bipolar Depressive Disorders). Five patients (22.7%) were shown to exhibit predictable cyclical patterns in their perceived symptomathology, ranging in length from 6 to 14 days. Our study confirms the existence and the predictability, in a subgroup of patients, of cyclical mood patterns. Preliminary evidence suggests that patients with minicycles receive more medication changes than patients without, and thus that cyclical mood fluctuations strongly interacts with both the clinical decision making process and the outcome of acute depressive episodes.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1996

Sleep loss, a possible factor in augmenting manic episode.

Several reports suggest the role of sleep-wake rhythm in mood disorders. Sleep loss may be a possible trigger or augmenting factor in mania. In a group of 34 manic bipolar inpatients, we analyzed the correlation between night-time sleep duration and the intensity of manic symptomatology rated consecutively for 3 days with the Young Rating Scale for Mania and the Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation (NOSIE). We found significant correlations between sleep duration and NOSIE cluster scores (cooperation and irritability).

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Ursodeoxycholic acid for liver disease associated with cystic fibrosis: a double-blind multicenter trial. The Italian Group for the Study of Ursodeoxycholic Acid in Cystic Fibrosis.

Liver disease is increasingly recognized as a major cause of morbidity in cystic fibrosis (CF). Preliminary data suggest that ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) may be beneficial for treatment of this manifestation. We performed a double-blind, multicenter trial in these patients to establish efficacy and safety of UDCA in terms of the improvement of clinical and nutritional indicators besides standard liver function tests. We also intended to establish whether taurine supplementation has a beneficial effect in patients receiving UDCA. From June to December 1990, we enrolled in 12 centers 55 CF patients with liver disease (39 male subjects; median age, 13.8 years). They were randomly assigned to receive for 1 year one of the following treatments: UDCA (15 mg/kg body weight daily) plus taurine (30 mg/kg body weight daily), UDCA plus placebo, placebo plus taurine, or double placebo. Clinical and laboratory evaluations were performed every 3 months. After 1 year, deterioration of overall clinical conditions, as indicated by the Shwachman-Kulczycki score (SKS), occurred in patients who received placebo but not in those who received UDCA (P = .025). Patients treated with UDCA also showed an improvement in gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) (P = .004) and 5'-nucleotidase (P = .006) levels. Treatment with taurine was followed by a significant increase in serum prealbumin levels (P = .053), a trend toward a reduction in fat malabsorption, and no effect on the biochemical profile. No severe side effects occurred with any treatment. Thus, we concluded that UDCA administration improves clinical and biochemical parameters in CF patients with liver disease. Taurine supplementation may be indicated in patients with severe pancreatic insufficiency and poor nutritional status.

5'-Nucleotidase↗
PubMed1996

Clinical and biochemical screening for Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome. Italian SLOS Collaborative Group.

Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome (SLOS) is a multiple congenital anomalies/mental retardation disorder possibly due to a defect of delta 7-sterol reductase, leading to low plasma cholesterol levels and to the accumulation of 7-dehydrocholesterol (7-DHC) and other cholesterol precursors. This study aimed to identify clinical features that could potentially be specific indicators for the clinical diagnosis of SLOS, and to test the reliability of ultraviolet spectrophotometry (UVS) as a biochemical screening procedure for the syndrome. Twenty patients with clinical suspicion of SLOS, referred to 11 Italian paediatric and clinical genetic centres, were collected during 1994. In 10 patients the diagnosis was confirmed biochemically by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis of serum sterols, whereas in the other 10 patients the serum sterol profiles were normal. A comparison between confirmed SLOS patients and biochemically negative subjects did not show clinical signs specific for the syndrome. UVS measurement of 7-DHC correlated well with GC/MS profiles, showing 100% sensitivity and specificity. Four out of five patients had serum bile acid concentrations below the normal range of controls.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Lactose absorption in patients with glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency with and without favism.

BACKGROUND: It has recently been suggested that primary lactase deficiency might have been selected for by malaria, as has been previously shown to occur for thalasaemia and glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. AIMS: To test this hypothesis, the prevalence of primary lactase deficiency in G6PD deficient subjects and in controls from the area of Sassari (Northern Sardinia) was determined, which in the past was characterised by an intermediate malarial endemicity. SUBJECTS: 70 adult subjects with G6PD deficiency, 34 of whom had a past history of favism, and 50 age matched control subjects. METHODS: The capacity to absorb lactose was assessed by measuring breath hydrogen production after oral administration of lactose (50 g) by a gas chromatographic method. RESULTS: Twenty per cent of G6PD deficient subjects with a positive history of favism and 22% of G6PD deficient subjects without a positive history of favism were lactose absorbers compared with 14% lactose absorbers in the control group. The differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: These data show that the prevalence of primary lactase deficiency in the area of Sassari is relatively high, but comparable to that seen in the adult population from another area of southern Italy (Naples) where malaria was less endemic.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Hepatobiliary manifestations of cystic fibrosis.

Cystic fibrosis is the most common, potentially lethal genetic defect in the Caucasian population. During recent years it has been increasingly associated with a number of hepatic and biliary abnormalities, of which chronic cholestatic liver disease is by far the most relevant. Plugging of intrahepatic bile ducts with inspissated secretions is thought to play a major role in the pathogenesis. Attempts have been made to provide uniform criteria to identify patients with early, possibly reversible, hepatic lesions, as well as to assess severity of liver disease. It has been estimated that bout 13% of cystic fibrosis patients present serum liver enzyme abnormalities, but prevalence of liver involvement is likely to be higher. Due to decreasing mortality from extrahepatic causes in cystic fibrosis and to the widespread use of laboratory tests and ultrasound examination, patients with minor degree of liver involvement will be increasingly represented in future. Oral bile acid therapy is promising, but its long-term benefits in terms of survival and prevention of major complications of liver cirrhosis remain to be established. Liver transplantation is the only potentially curative treatment for patients with advanced stage liver disease and mild pulmonary involvement.

Bile Ducts↗
PubMed1995

HLA-A, B, C, DR and DQ expression and hepatocellular carcinoma: study of 205 Italian subjects.

We have evaluated the frequency of HLA class I and II antigens in 205 Italian patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and 749 blood donors (controls). Moreover, we have looked for correlations between HLA antigen frequencies and HBV and/or HCV infections in HCC patients. We found great differences in HLA antigen frequencies considering only two groups: HCC patients and controls. The polymorphism is smaller when we consider the different groups of HCC patients in regard to the previous viral infections (HBV and/or HCV). The most interesting finding is the higher frequency of Cw7, B8 and DR3 in almost all groups of HCC patients. It is well known, that the HLA A1, Cw7, B8, DR3 antigen haplotype is associated with a rapid decline of CD4 cells, and HLA B8, DR3 positive subjects may display some changes in immune parameters and are prone to develop several immunological diseases. Thus HCC might be the result of a lower sensitivity (genetically given) to mitogenic stimuli of HBV and HCV.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

[18F]FDG PET study in obsessive-compulsive disorder. A clinical/metabolic correlation study after treatment.

BACKGROUND: We used [18F]FDG and PET in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) to evaluate cerebral metabolic involvement before and after treatment with serotonin-specific reuptake inhibitors. METHOD: In 11 untreated, drug-free adults, regional cerebral metabolic rate for glucose (rCMRglu) was compared with that of 15 age-matched normal controls. RESULTS: rCMRglu values were significantly increased in the cingulate cortex, thalamus and pallidum/putamen complex. After treatment a significant improvement in obsessive-compulsive symptoms on the Y-BOC scale (t = 3.59, P < 0.01) was associated with a significant bilateral decrease of metabolism in the whole cingulate cortex (P < 0.001). Clinical and metabolic data were significantly intercorrelated (Kendall's tau = 0.65; P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that OCD is associated with functional hyperactivity of a selected neuronal network and that treatment to reduce symptoms may have a selective neuromodulatory effect on cingulate cortex.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Effects of insulin reduction with benfluorex on serum dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), DHEA sulfate, and blood pressure in hypertensive middle-aged and elderly men.

To determine whether a reduction in insulinemia would be associated with a rise in serum dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) sulfate in insulin-resistant men, 29 middle-aged (30-59 yr old) and 28 elderly (60-80 yr old) hypertensive men were enrolled into a single blind, placebo-controlled study, in which benfluorex was administered to improve insulin sensitivity and reduce circulating insulin. Men in each age group received either benfluorex (150 mg) or placebo three times daily for 6 weeks, and fasting serum insulin, glucose, DHEA, DHEA sulfate, and cortisol were determined before and after treatment. Glucose tolerance was also assessed by an oral glucose tolerance test. Benfluorex treatment lowered diastolic and systolic blood pressures and improved glucose tolerance in both age groups. In middle-aged men, benfluorex (n = 12) reduced both the area under the curve for glucose (AUCGLUCOSE; from 977 +/- 27 to 814 +/- 27 mmol/L.min; P = 0.0001) and the AUCINSULIN (from 78.1 +/- 7.9 to 44.5 +/- 5.7 nmol/L.min; P < 0.0001) during the oral glucose tolerance test. In elderly men, benfluorex (n = 15) also reduced both the AUCGLUCOSE (from 1100 +/- 60 to 864 +/- 26 mmol/L.min; P < 0.0001) and the AUCINSULIN (from 88.9 +/- 5.6 to 44.8 +/- 5.8 nmol/L.min; P < 0.0001). Concurrent with the reduction in insulinemia, benfluorex treatment was associated with rises in both serum DHEA sulfate and unconjugated DHEA. In middle-aged men, serum DHEA sulfate and DHEA rose from 6.80 +/- 0.75 to 10.52 +/- 1.02 mumol/L (P < 0.015) and from 13.69 +/- 1.95 to 22.78 +/- 2.90 nmol/L (P < 0.03), respectively. In elderly men, serum DHEA sulfate and DHEA rose from 5.16 +/- 0.67 to 8.36 +/- 1.21 mumol/L (P < 0.015) and from 8.47 +/- 0.99 to 22.61 +/- 3.24 nmol/L (P < 0.0005), respectively. In neither middle-aged nor elderly men did serum cortisol change with benfluorex treatment. Neither glucose tolerance nor serum DHEA, DHEA sulfate, or cortisol levels changed in either middle-aged (n = 17) or elderly (n = 13) men treated with placebo. We conclude that benfluorex treatment lowers blood pressure, improves glucose tolerance, reduces the glucose-stimulated insulin response, and increases serum DHEA and DHEA sulfate in both middle-aged and elderly men.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Aged↗
PubMed1995

Treatment of homozygous and double heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemic children with LDL-apheresis.

Within the framework of a seven-year clinical experience on treatment of severe hyperlipoproteinemia with/without associated coronary heart disease, with therapeutic plasmapheresis (APO B-100-containing lipoprotein-apheresis), we focused the present report on two young patients aged 7 and 11 years, respectively. The older patient is a boy treated since 1990 by plasma-exchange, cascade filtration-low density lipoprotein apheresis (LDL-apheresis), and dextrane sulphate-LDL apheresis. Over the treatment period the patient was submitted to three consecutive coronary angiographies. The second is a girl first submitted to a coronary angiography and then treated with dextrane sulphate-LDL apheresis. Up to now, a total of one-hundred therapeutic plasmaphereses have been performed. The interval of treatment was of fifteen days, and a volume of 2-3000 ml of plasma was processed at each session. The systems used were the following: DIDECO Vivacell BT 798-A, DIDECO Vivacell BT 798-A + BT 803, DIDECO BT 985 (Dideco, Mirandola, Italy), KANEKA MA-01 (Kanegafuchi, Osaka, Japan). Mean (SD) plasma apo B-100-containing major lipoprotein-LDL, Lp(a)-levels during treatment, are reported below: [table: see text] The treatment was very well tolerated. Rare, moderate hypotensive events occurred. Nevertheless, all procedures were regularly completed. A mild hypochromic anemia, regressed using drug treatment, was observed in the boy. Along with the improvement of plasma atherogenic profile, a regression of skin xanthomas and unchanged favourable coronary angiograms, were obtained in the above mentioned patient.

Apolipoproteins A↗
PubMed1994

Eicosanoid and inositol phosphate response to platelet-activating factor (PAF) and to a PAF antagonist in rat astroglial cells.

The effects of different concentrations of exogenous platelet-activating factor (PAF) on the formation of arachidonic acid-cyclooxygenase metabolites and on the production of inositol phosphates have been investigated in a primary culture of rat astroglial cells. The cells were used at confluence and the purity was checked by immunostaining of the culture with specific antibodies against glial fibrillary acidic protein. Incubation of the cells with PAF (range 10(-9) to 10(-6) M) resulted in maximal accumulation of total inositol phosphate (620 +/- 60% increment over basal values, P < 0.001) at the concentration of 10(-8) M, after 1 min of stimulation. Smaller inositol phosphate accumulation occurred at higher concentrations of the agonist and at longer stimulation time. After 1 min of stimulation with PAF, the accumulation of the cyclooxygenase metabolites, thromboxane B2 (630 +/- 58 vs 20 +/- 2 pg/mg protein in non-stimulated samples) and 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha (132 +/- 15 vs 55 +/- 7 pg/mg protein in non-stimulated samples) was also maximal at 10(-8) M concentration of the agonist. When the cultures were stimulated with PAF or Ca(2+)-ionophore after preincubation with equimolar concentration of the PAF inhibitor BN 52021, a significant inhibition in the synthesis of both inositol phosphates and cyclooxygenase metabolites occurred only in the PAF-stimulated cells.

6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha↗
PubMed1994

Anatomical characteristics of the corpus callosum and clinical correlates in schizophrenia.

Nineteen DSM-III-R schizophrenic patients and 15 normal subjects, matched for sex and age, were evaluated according to their clinical and corpus callosum structural characteristics. They were evaluated on their size of callosum by means of Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Neither diagnosis nor sex significantly affects corpus callosum indices. Statistical analysis evidentiates a relationship between DSM-III-R axis-V scores and corpus callosum length in schizophrenics, and between age at onset of the illness and corpus callosum length in schizophrenics.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Analysis of risk factors for the development of liver disease associated with cystic fibrosis.

We prospectively screened for liver disease patients with cystic fibrosis who were more than 3 years of age and who were followed at the cystic fibrosis center of the University of Milan. From January 1991 to December 1992, we screened 189 patients; clinical, biochemical, and echographic abnormalities suggestive of overt liver disease were present in 34 (18%). To define risk factors for the development of liver disease associated with cystic fibrosis, we evaluated the possible role of specific mutations of the CFTR (cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator) gene and of different clinical and demographic characteristics (sex, pancreatic status, meconium ileus or its equivalent) through a comparison of patients with cystic fibrosis and overt liver disease (n = 34) and those without liver disease (n = 155). Genetic analysis failed to reveal any significant difference in the allele frequencies of defined (delta F508, 1717-1G-A, G542X, N1303K, W1282X, R553X) and undefined mutations of the CFTR gene in the two groups of patients; genotype frequencies were also not significantly different. Pancreatic insufficiency was present in all patients with liver disease and in 87.3% of those without liver disease. A male predominance was found in the group with liver disease. The frequency of meconium ileus or its equivalent was significantly higher in patients with cystic fibrosis and liver disease (35.3%) than in patients without liver disease (12.3%) (p = 0.0025). In the 31 patients with a history of meconium ileus or its equivalent, the following hepatic abnormalities occurred more frequently than in the 155 patients with cystic fibrosis who did not have meconium ileus: hepatomegaly, biochemical abnormalities, heterogeneous echographic pattern of the liver, and microgallbladder. Twenty-four patients with a history of meconium ileus or its equivalent underwent hepatobiliary scintigraphy (with technetium-labeled iminodiacetic acid derivatives), which showed morphologic abnormalities suggestive of impaired biliary drainage in 21 patients and abnormalities in function in 11. The risk of acquiring liver disease was increased almost fourfold in patients with a history of meconium ileus or its equivalent, in comparison with patients who had cystic fibrosis but were unaffected by these complications (odds ratio, 3.9043; 95% confidence interval, 1.666 to 9.149). We conclude that patients with cystic fibrosis and meconium ileus or its equivalent may benefit from prophylactic treatment with ursodeoxycholic acid; genetic analysis of the major mutations present in this population failed to provide evidence of the existence of a specific genetic marker for the development of liver disease in patients with cystic fibrosis.

Adolescent↗