Biomedical subjects
C Ferraro
Publications and source records attributed to C Ferraro.
Plasma postheparin diamine oxidase in patients with small intestinal lymphoma.
Diamine oxidase (DAO) is an enzyme located almost exclusively in villus tip enterocytes. Its plasma activity is enhanced by intravenous heparin which releases the enzymes from small bowel enterocytes into the blood. Plasma postheparin DAO (PHD) values have been shown to be significantly lower in patients with malabsorption and villous atrophy, thus suggesting that PHD reflects the mature enterocytic mass. In this study we have assayed PHD in five patients with small bowel lymphoma (two with immunoproliferative small intestinal disease [IPSID] and three with non-IPSID lymphoma) associated with malabsorption syndrome and small bowel mucosa atrophy. The PHD test was performed at diagnosis, after partial or complete remission induced by chemotherapy, and during the follow-up. The PHD values, very low at diagnosis (0.66 +/- 0.12 U/ml), increased during chemotherapy and reached the normal range (greater than 3.7 U/ml) when complete remission occurred. The PHD values rapidly and consistently decreased whenever the disease relapsed. Our data indicate that in patients with small bowel lymphoma PHD test is a sensitive marker of small bowel mucosa damage and suggest that it could be useful in monitoring the recovery of mucosal lesions induced by chemotherapy.
Postheparin plasma diamine oxidase values in the follow up of patients with small bowel Crohn's disease.
Measurement of postheparin plasma diamine oxidase (PHD) activity has been proposed to assess mucosal integrity in several diseases of the small intestine. In Crohn's disease, PHD values identify a group of patients with predominantly small bowel mucosal damage. To determine the role of mucosal involvement in the progression of small bowel Crohn's disease and whether different PHD values can predict different outcomes the changes in PHD values in 41 patients with small bowel Crohn's disease admitted consecutively to our department were investigated. The test was performed during periods of active disease and after either medical or surgical treatment had resulted in improvement. PHD values were significantly lower than in normal subjects (normal range 3.7-7.7 U/ml). In 35 patients with active disease (Crohn's disease activity index (CDAI) greater than 150) two groups were identified by choosing a cut off value of 2 U/ml: 93% of the 15 patients with PHD values lower than 2 U/ml (mean (SD) 1.36 (0.46) U/ml) relapsed at least once in the following year, while only the 20% of the 20 whose values were higher than 2 U/ml (mean (SD) 3.69 (1.50)) relapsed in the same period. The data were statistically significant (Yates's corrected chi 2 = 15.63; p less than 0.0001). The positive and negative predictive values of the test were 93% and 80%, respectively. During relapses, PHD values were consistently lower than previous values, and increased significantly after effective medical or surgical treatment. In the six patients in whom there were no changes in disease activity (CDAI persistently less than 150), there was no change in PHD values. This test may be useful for identifying Crohn's disease patients who are likely to relapse. Furthermore, the data indicate that mucosal damage is common in active small bowel Crohn's disease and improves at least in part after treatment.
Polyamine uptake by human colon carcinoma cell line CaCo-2.
The intracellular concentrations of the polyamines are highly regulated and high polyamine concentrations are associated with rapidly proliferating cells. Hormones, nutrients and growth factors that stimulate the proliferation of the intestinal epithelium, increase the intracellular polyamine concentration mainly by activating ODC expression. Other cell types stimulated to proliferate satisfy their requirement for polyamines by increasing polyamine uptake. In the present study, we investigated polyamine uptake by a human colon carcinoma cell line, CaCo-2. Uptake of putrescine, spermidine and spermine by CaCo-2 cells was saturable and temperature dependent and all polyamines appear to share a common carrier. The carrier of differentiated cells had an apparently higher affinity and lower activity than the carrier of replicating cells. Culture of CaCo-2 cells on porous filters showed that polyamine accumulation occurred mainly through the basolateral membrane in replicating cells, while an increase in the rate of apical uptake was observed after differentiation. A significant increase in polyamine uptake and in ODC expression resulted from fresh medium replacement, a well-known stimulus to proliferation; no change in uptake occurred after ODC inhibition by DFMO. We conclude that CaCo-2 cells are able to increase their polyamine concentration by both enhanced synthesis and increased polyamine uptake.
Regulation of diamine oxidase expression by ornithine decarboxylase in isolated rat small bowel enterocytes.
Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) and diamine oxidase (DAO), enzymes involved in polyamine metabolism, are highly expressed by small bowel enterocytes. Modulation of ODC expression is mediated through cellular concentration of polyamines that inhibits the enzyme synthesis and also induces the synthesis of an inhibitory protein, the antizyme, which in turn binds to ODC and inhibits its activity. DAO is an important regulator of intracellular concentration of polyamines because it catalyzes the degradation of putrescine into gamma-aminobutyraldehyde. Change in intracellular polyamine concentration has been suggested to represent a regulatory factor for DAO expression. In order to investigate a possible regulation of DAO expression by ODC, we studied the effect of difluoromethylornithine (DFMO), a selective, irreversible inhibitor of ODC, on DAO activity in isolated rat small bowel enterocytes. Our data demonstrate that in isolated small bowel enterocytes ODC inhibition by 10 mM DFMO reduced DAO activity by 53%, suggesting that, in our experimental conditions, ODC plays a regulatory role on DAO expression.
Release of diamine oxidase into plasma by glycosaminoglycans in rats.
Plasma diamine oxidase (DAO) values are enhanced by intravenous injection of heparin which releases the enzyme, synthesized in small bowel enterocytes, from binding sites located on endothelial cells of the intestinal microvasculature. Intestinal DAO, in analogy with lipoprotein lipase (another heparin-released enzyme), is believed to be electrostatically linked to endothelial binding sites composed of a glycosaminoglycan (GAG) which is presumably heparan sulphate, but the complete mechanism of enzyme release is not known. In this study we assayed in rats the DAO-releasing capability of heparan sulphate, dermatan sulphate, chondroitin sulphate A and hyaluronic acid, all heparin related compounds. Heparan sulphate, a compound with the same hexosamine as heparin but with a lower concentration of sulphated iduronic acid, induced a very high release of DAO (3-fold less than heparin), while the other tested GAGs, composed of higher proportions of non sulphated uronic acid and with galactosamine instead of glucosamine, induced a significantly lower release. In rats treated with 60 mg heparan sulphate the significant decrease in ileal mucosal DAO activity indicates that, in analogy with heparin, the high plasma enzymatic activity induced is of enterocytic origin. It is suggested that the high charge density of the compounds tested, due to the degree of sulphatation, is the decisive factor in promoting the release of intestinal DAO.
[The pancreatico-respiratory syndrome. Problems of intensive therapy and illustration of 5 clinical cases].
A short account of the mechanisms responsible for pleuropulmonary affections in the course of pancreatitis is followed by the presentation of personal cases observed over the previous four years and reference is made to the relatively high frequency of pleuropneumopathy. Lastly, mention is made of the treatment of pancreatitis. Recent criteria lay down that this should be conservative and medico-intensive in the acute stage. Surgery should be left for cases of peritonitic abdomen (exploratory laparotomy) and chronic pancreatitis.
[Case reports of emergency exeresis for intractable pulmonary hemorrhages].
Five cases of surgically treated unrestrainable pulmonary haemorrhage are described. The satisfactory results obtained show that pulmonary exeresis, in some cases of haemorrhages, is the only effective method for saving the patient's life and removing the anatomic cause of the haemorrhage.
Effects of Solanum malacoxylon on calcium metabolism in patients with chronic renal failure.
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[Surgical treatment of scoliosis using the Risser method].
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Intestinal absorption of phosphate: action of protein synthesis inhibitors and glucocorticoids in the rat.
The effect of actinomycin D, cycloheximide and glucocorticoids on the intestinal absorption of phosphate was studied. The effective intestinal absorption of 32P and 47Ca was determined simultaneously in intact rats in vivo using a whole body counter. Both, actinomycin D and cycloheximide caused a significant diminution of the intestinal absorption of phosphate whereas calcium absorption was not altered. Experiments with the in situ ligated loop technique were performed to eliminate the possibility that the action of the protein synthesis inhibitors could be due to an altered intestinal motility effect. Phosphate absorption was also significantly diminished under this condition. On the other hand, the administration of glucocorticoids produced a significant inhibition of phosphate and calcium absorption in the rat in vivo. The reported results indicate that proteins and/or enzymes with a rapid turn-over are involved in the mechanism of phosphate intestinal absorption, and confirm previous observations that phosphate and calcium are transported across the intestine by different mechanisms.
Serum parathyroid hormone levels in patients with hyperthyroidism.
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[Clinical and statistical considerations apropos of spontaneous pneumothorax cases observed during the 2 last years].
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