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Biomedical subjects

C Gillet

Publications and source records attributed to C Gillet.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

Financial costs of alcoholism treatment programs: a longitudinal and comparative evaluation among four specialized centers.

BACKGROUND: Alcoholism is a worldwide problem. Many strategies for alcohol detoxification and relapse prevention exist, but each alcohol treatment center has its own program. The objective of this study was to analyze and compare the financial cost and effectiveness of alcohol treatment programs from inpatient stay to follow-up 1 year later. This was a prospective, open, nonrandomized study of 4 specialized alcohol treatment centers and 267 patients admitted for alcohol detoxification. METHODS: We recorded all medical and nonmedical interventions related to the program during patient stay in the hospital and every 3 months after discharge for 1 year and recorded the occurrence of alcohol relapse. Financial evaluation was based on the prices of refund from the French national health insurance service. RESULTS: The mean cost of hospitalization ranged from 1326 euros to 1917 euros(p = 0.001), a variation mainly due to the difference in the length of hospital stay but also to the cost of the inpatient program, routine medical checkups, and drugs administered. The mean cost of 1 year of follow-up per patient ranged from 419 euros to 1704 euros (p = 0.001). The efficiency, corresponding to the money spent to prevent the relapse of one patient during 1 month, was approximately 500 euros/month in three centers and 658 euros in the fourth. However, for a similar efficiency, the effectiveness, assessed by the mean time without relapse, was significantly (p = 0.001) different; center 1, which had the highest total cost, had an effectiveness 1.56 times higher than center 3, which had the lowest cost. CONCLUSIONS: This work emphasizes the heterogeneity of the costs and effectiveness of alcoholism treatment programs and suggests that research should be conducted to determine which program is the most rational, cost-efficient, and beneficial for patients and the public health office economy.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Decrease in ovalbumin-induced pulmonary allergic response by benzaldehyde but not acetaldehyde exposure in a Guinea pig model.

The pulmonary effects of two environmentally relevant aldehydes were investigated in nonsensitized or ovalbumin (OA)-sensitized guineapigs (GPs). Four-week-old male Hartley GPs, weighing about 400 g, were intraperitoneally injected with 1 ml of an NaCl solution containing 100 microg OA and 100 mg Al(OH)(3). They were then exposed to either acetaldehyde (200 ppb) or benzaldehyde (500 ppb) for 4 wk (6 h/d, 5 d/wk). At the end of exposure, GPs were challenged with an OA aerosol (0.1% in NaCl) and pulmonary functions were measured. The day after, guinea pigs were anesthetized and several endpoints related to inflammatory and allergic responses were assessed in blood, whole-lung histology, and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). Sensitized nonexposed GPs showed bronchial hyperresponsiveness to OA and an increased number of eosinophils in blood and BAL, together with a rise in total protein and leukotrienes (LTB(4) and LTC(4)/D(4)/E(4)) in BAL. In nonsensitized GPs, exposure to acetaldehyde or benzaldehyde did not induce any change in the tested parameters, with the exception of irritation of the respiratory tract as detected by histology and an increased number of alveolar macrophages in animals exposed to acetaldehyde. In sensitized GPs, exposure to acetaldehyde induced a moderate irritation of the respiratory tract but no change in biological parameters linked to the inflammatory and allergic responses. In contrast, exposure to benzaldehyde induced a decrease both in OA-induced bronchoconstriction and in eosinophil and neutrophil numbers in BAL, an increase in the bronchodilatator mediator prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)), and a decrease in the bronchoconstrictor mediators LTC(4)/D(4)/E(4). Further investigations are needed to determine if the attenuated response observed in sensitized GPs exposed to benzaldehyde is due to an alteration of the mechanism of sensitization or to a more direct effect on various mechanisms of the allergic response.

Acetaldehyde↗
PubMed2002

Zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) as indicators of freshwater contamination with lindane.

Zebra mussels are common freshwater mollusks in many European lakes and rivers. Their abundance, wide distribution, and filtering activity make them good candidates to evaluate the contamination of freshwaters with environmental contaminants. The purpose of this work was to determine the kinetics of lindane in zebra mussels and compare laboratory results with in situ measurements. Exposure was conducted in small tanks, under controlled experimental conditions. Our results indicated that mussels accumulated lindane with a bioconcentration factor around 10. They generally reached equilibrium within 4 days. Elimination was rapid but biphasic and the terminal elimination half-life was long (> 168 h). Age of the mussels and temperature also affected the kinetics of lindane in mussels. In the Lake of Geneva, zebra mussels were sampled and showed that mussels accumulated it to significant values (up to 900 ng/g fresh weight) depending on the site and period of sampling. The in situ results, together with the laboratory exposures, showed that freshwater mussels could be used to monitor point sources of pollutants such as lindane over short periods of time (< 1 week).

Animals↗
PubMed2000

APC mutations are sufficient for the growth of early colorectal adenomas.

It is not clear whether APC mutations are sufficient for early colorectal adenomas to grow or whether additional mutations at other loci are required. We previously have screened 210 early colorectal adenomas from familial adenomatous polyposis patients for mutations and allelic loss at APC. Here, we determined whether allelic loss at APC had any effect on the nearby alpha-catenin gene. However, loss on 5q in familial adenomatous polyposis adenomas rarely extended as far as alpha-catenin, and no differences in alpha-catenin protein expression were found in tumors that showed loss encompassing both APC and alpha-catenin. We then screened all 210 tumors for mutations at candidate loci other than APC (K-ras, beta-catenin, and allelic loss at 1p33-p35 and 1p36) and for microsatellite instability (MSI). Each of these loci has been implicated previously in early colorectal tumorigenesis. One tumor harbored a beta-catenin mutation and another MSI, but none showed K-ras mutation or allelic loss at 1p33-p35 or 1p36. These data support the following hypotheses derived from sporadic colorectal tumors: beta-catenin mutations are generally an alternative to mutations at APC, MSI is not usually an early phenomenon in colorectal tumorigenesis, and K-ras mutations are more typical of large- and moderate-sized adenomas. Contrary to some previous reports, chromosome 1p allelic loss is infrequent in very early adenomas. APC mutations are generally sufficient for colorectal tumors to grow to about 1-cm diameter, although chance mutations at other loci can provide these early colorectal adenomas with a selective advantage, and some colorectal tumors may develop along a pathway not involving APC.

Adenoma↗
PubMed2000

Objective diagnosis of alcohol abuse: compared values of carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and mean corpuscular volume (MCV).

BACKGROUND: Alcohol abuse is roughly twice as common as alcohol dependence. Subjects with alcohol problems are usually diagnosed only when medical complications are present. Therefore, both doctors and patients need a method for early diagnosis of alcohol abuse. METHODS: The mean corpuscular volume, gamma-glutamyl transferase, and carbohydrate-deficient transferrin in alcohol abusers, alcohol-dependent patients, and "nonalcohol hospital" individuals were compared. RESULTS: For objective diagnosis of alcohol abuse, we found a sensitivity of 24%, a specificity of 96%, and a global predictive value of 63% for mean corpuscular volume; a sensitivity of 42%, a specificity of 76%, and a global predictive value of 61% for gamma-glutamyl transferase; and a sensitivity of 67%, a specificity of 97%, and a global predictive value of 84% for carbohydrate-deficient transferrin. CONCLUSIONS: Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin proves to be the best marker of alcohol abuse. It allows objective detection so that therapeutic action can be started early, which is easier and more effective than in alcohol dependence.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Cloning and expression of a new HOXC6 transcript encoding a repressing protein.

Homeodomain-containing proteins are transcription factors that regulate the co-ordinated expression of multiple genes involved in development, differentiation and malignant transformation. In an attempt to characterize expressed homeobox (HOX) genes in breast cancer cells, we cloned two distinct HOXC6 transcripts from an MCF7 cDNA library, Interestingly, one of them represents a new HOXC6 mRNA encoding a homeodomain-containing protein harbouring a unique N-terminal sequence. Moreover we demonstrate that this HOXC6 transcript is less abundant in human breast cancer cells than in non-tumorigenic cell lines, is detected in breast carcinomas and adjacent tissues and is expressed in a variety of human tumours. In addition, transient co-transfection experiments illustrated that both HOXC6 transcripts encode gene products that repress transcription from a HOX binding sequence in MDA-MB231 cells and co-operate with other HOX gene products such as HOXB7 on their target genes. Taken together, our results suggest that HOXC6 proteins might contribute to the breast cell phenotype through co-operative interactions with other HOX-derived proteins and repression of their target genes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Decreased expression of galectin-3 is associated with progression of human breast cancer.

Galectin-3, a member of the beta-galactoside-binding lectin family, is involved in several biological events including binding to the basement membrane glycoprotein laminin. Although the exact role of galectin-3 during the interactions between cells and laminin is not yet known, it has recently been observed that its expression is down-regulated at both the protein and the mRNA level in colon cancer tissues in correlation with progression of the disease. This study investigated the possibility that breast cancer cells might also exhibit decreased galectin-3 expression in association with their aggressiveness. The expression of galectin-3 was examined by immunoperoxidase staining, using a polyclonal antibody raised against recombinant galectin-3, in a collection of 98 human breast lesions including 12 fibroadenomas, 15 fibrocystic disease lesions, 22 in situ carcinomas, and 49 infiltrating ductal carcinomas, 19 of which had positive axillary lymph nodes. Normal breast tissue adjacent to the lesions was present in 59 biopsies. Normal breast tissue expressed high levels (3+) of galectin-3. High expression (2+ to 3+) was also found in most benign lesions examined. The expression of galectin-3 was significantly decreased in in situ carcinoma and this down-regulation was more pronounced in invasive ductal carcinoma, particularly when associated with infiltration of axillary lymph nodes. These data constitute the first observation that galectin-3 is down-regulated in breast cancer and suggest the decreased expression of this galactoside-binding lectin is associated with the acquisition of the invasive and metastatic phenotype.

Antibody Specificity↗
PubMed1994

Paget's disease of bone: five regimens of pamidronate treatment.

The efficacy of five therapeutic regimens using (3-amino-1-hydroxypropylidene)-1,1- bisphosphonate (APD or pamidronate) was assessed in patients with Paget's disease of bone. These regimens were as follows: (a) pamidronate 600 mg/day given orally during six months; (b) iv infusion of 20 mg daily for 10 days; (c) iv infusion of 40 mg daily for 5 days; (d) iv infusion of 10 mg daily for 4 days and (e) a single iv infusion of 10 mg. Six months after the initiation of therapy, urinary excretion of hydroxyproline and serum alkaline phosphatase activity (expressed as percent of their initial value) were: Group a: 30 +/- 10 (mean +/- SE) and 30 +/- 6, Group b: 55 +/- 8 and 46 +/- 6, Group c: 54 +/- 7 and 57 +/- 6, Group d: 53 +/- 7 and 69 +/- 4, and Group e: 85 +/- 10 and 98 +/- 4 respectively. Oral route was accompanied by digestive intolerance. On the contrary, except for rare and transient "flu-like syndromes", the iv treatment was not associated with any serious secondary effect. Intravenous infusion of pamidronate, 20 mg for 10 days or 40 mg for 5 days, appears as an interesting alternative to the oral route in the treatment of Paget's disease of bone.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1994

Serial evaluation of dilated cardiomyopathy with exercise thallium-201 tomography: correlation with the evolution of left ventricular parameters.

The purpose of this prospective study was to correlate (1) the initial findings of exercise thallium-201 tomography with the evolution of left ventricular parameters at long term follow-up in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and (2) the changes of exercise thallium-201 tomography repeated 1 year later. We studied 19 men with dilated cardiomyopathy and normal coronary angiogram. Two patients died and three patients had heart transplantation during follow-up. The other 14 patients were assessed at baseline and 1-year follow-up. Thallium-201 tomograms were divided into 20 segments for each patient. Two groups were defined according to the evolution of left ventricular ejection fraction: group 1 (n = 7) had unchanged or decreased ejection fraction at follow-up (24 +/- 11% at baseline versus 22 +/- 11% at follow-up, ns) and group 2 (n = 7) had improved ejection fraction at follow-up (25 +/- 9% at baseline versus 49 +/- 8% at follow-up, P < 0.03). The number of total abnormal segments at stress were not statistically different at baseline between groups 1 and 2, and in group 1 between baseline and follow-up. Group 2 at follow-up had a reduced number of total abnormal segments (P < 0.03). The percentage of reversibility was similar in both groups at baseline and follow-up. On exercise thallium-201 tomography, neither the presence nor the reversibility of stress myocardial perfusion abnormalities can predict improvement of left ventricular ejection fraction in dilated cardiomyopathy. However, regression of dilated cardiomyopathy is accompanied by a reduction of stress myocardial perfusion abnormalities.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Site-specific counterion binding: application of the standard Poisson-Boltzmann cell model to ionic polysaccharides of the plant cell wall.

A numerical method is presented for analysing the effects of the competitive processes of dissociation and complexation that occur at the level of the functional groups of charged polysaccharides during ion exchange experiments carried out on plant cell walls. The interactions between the exchange sites and the mobile ions are handled by the standard Poisson-Boltzmann cell model. The dissociation and the complexation are described by mass-action laws. Uncomplexed counterions are involved in the formation of a cylindrical double layer. This latter type of interaction determines the dissociation degree of the polyion. A least-squares algorithm is used to evaluate the complexation constants of the counterions from experimental data. The need of introduction of the complexation constant of the divalent counterions has been clarified by a comparison between theoretical titration curves calculated with and without specific site binding. The fraction of complexed sites does not agree with that predicted from Oosawa's theory of the condensation. The accumulation coefficients, calculated from the optimised theoretical titration curves, clearly demonstrate the competition between the protonation and the complexation processes at the level of the pectic acids of the wall.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1994

Differential expression of the 67-kD laminin receptor and 31-kD human laminin-binding protein in human ovarian carcinomas.

The expression of the 67-kD laminin receptor (67LR) and the 31-kD human laminin-binding protein (HLBP31), two proteins involved in cancer cell laminin interaction, was evaluated on 30 ovarian cancer specimens. Expression of the 67LR was increased (up to 2.5-fold, in 87% of the patients), while HLBP31 expression was downregulated in cancer cells compared with the normal tissue, as detected by northern blotting and immunohistochemistry. The immunohistochemical study demonstrated that the 67LR was significantly overexpressed (P < 0.05) in the group of patients whose cytoreductive surgery was suboptimal, and those with poor clinical outcome. No correlation was observed between HLBP31 expression and clinicopathological features. Increased expression of the 67LR appears to correlate with the invasive phenotype of ovarian cancer cells and suggests a role of the latter in ovarian cancer invasion.

Carrier Proteins↗
PubMed1993

[Physiopathology of acute alcoholic intoxication and alcoholic withdrawal].

Ethanol blood levels are the result of alcohol absorption and the process of its distribution, metabolism and excretion. Kinetics are complex and not yet well known. They can be influenced by acquired factors (type of alcohol ingested, association with fasting or eating, induction or inhibition of ethanol metabolism) or by genetically determined differences in the activity of alcohol and of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. The presence of ethanol in the organism leads to various consequences. On the one hand, hydropic changes on membranes modify their function and thus that of membrane proteins (particularly receptors); on the other, ethanol can affect neurotransmitter metabolism. Such modification of the major neurotransmitter systems (cholinergic, aminergic and GABA) in some cerebral regions explains the pharmacologic consequences of acute alcohol ingestion. In chronic alcohol dependence, adaptation phenomena occur, in both the membranes (increased rigidity) and the neurotransmitter systems. They are reflected by the hyperexcitability (catecholaminergic hyperactivity and GABA hypoactivity) observed after disappearance of the tranquilizing effect of ethanol and are clinically expressed by the withdrawal syndrome.

Alcohol Withdrawal Delirium↗
PubMed1993

[Alcohol consumption and primary dilated cardiomyopathy. Comparison with a population of patients with coronary disease].

Alcohol consumption was compared between 23 men admitted to hospital with idiopathic dilated myocardiopathy (DCM) and 46 men with coronary artery disease. Duration of regular daily alcohol, heavy daily alcohol, mean daily alcohol consumption, in particular consumption of wine were higher in patients with DCM. Among the biological markers, only serum levels of immunoglobulin A and bilirubin were increased in pts with DCM.

Alcohol Drinking↗
PubMed1993

Radionuclide assessment of regional differences in left ventricular wall motion and myocardial perfusion in idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy.

Regional variations in left ventricular contractility and myocardial perfusion are frequent in idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy and might result from an increase in left ventricular wall stress responsible for regional wall motion abnormalities. The aim of the study was to perform radionuclide studies in patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy to assess regional left ventricular wall motion and myocardial perfusion abnormalities in this myocardial disease. We studied 29 men referred with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy and normal coronary angiograms. Rest radionuclide left ventriculography and exercise thallium-201 tomography were performed in all patients. The thallium-201 tomograms were divided into 20 segments for each patient. Mean left ventricular ejection fraction was 27 +/- 11%; 17 patients had diffuse hypokinesia (mean left ventricular ejection fraction: 24 +/- 9%) and 12 patients had predominant regional hypokinesia (mean left ventricular ejection fraction: 32 +/- 12%). Of all 580 tomographic segments, 186 had a reduction of thallium-201 uptake at exercise. Among them, reversibility was found in 53%. On the whole, 68% (158/232) of anterior, inferior and apical segments had a perfusion abnormality, compared with 8% (28/348) of septal and lateral segments (P < 0.0001). Left ventricular wall motion and myocardial perfusion abnormalities are heterogeneous and not evenly distributed in dilated cardiomyopathy. The alterations are predominant on the myocardial regions delineating the antero-posterior axis of the left ventricle. These findings suggest the possible role of increased left ventricular wall stress on this axis.

Cardiomyopathy, Dilated↗
PubMed1992

Calcium and vitamin D metabolism in granulomatous diseases.

Overproduction of the active metabolite of vitamin D 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D) has been described in sarcoidosis and other granulomatous diseases. High circulating concentrations of 1,25(OH)2D lead to increased intestinal absorption of calcium, possibly to enhanced bone resorption, and may result in hypercalcaemia and/or hypercalciuria. Data obtained in vivo and in vitro demonstrated that the unregulated production of 1,25(OH)2D lies within the granulomatous tissue and is controlled by glucocorticoids. This abnormal production of 1,25(OH)2D seems to be a general phenomenon of granulomatous processes, which is not exceptional in sarcoidosis, but appears seldom in tuberculosis. These abnormalities, however, are not pathognomonic of granulomatous processes, since they have been described in other diseases such as lymphomas.

Calcium↗
PubMed1992

Release of Small Polyuronides from Nitella Cell Walls during Ionic Exchange.

Mono-divalent ion exchange in isolated cell walls of Nitella flexilis (L.) Ag. induces a marked loss of wall polymers and a decrease in the wall cationic exchange capacity. These data correlate with the replacement in the walls of adsorbed Mn(2+) by Na(+) ions. Boiling wall samples in methanol for 1 h or keeping the ionic solutions chilled to 4 degrees C does not inhibit the cell wall polymer leakage but modifies the kinetics both of the ionic exchange and of the released polymers. These data are more compatible with physical rather than enzymic induced processes. The extracted polymers in the successively renewed NaCl solutions initially belong to the wall protein and pectin fractions and mainly to pectic fractions subsequently. Determination of the average degree of polymerization shows that the average molecular size of the lost acidic polysaccharides increases with extraction time up an average polymerization degree of 25. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay inhibition tests show the presence of homopolymer blocks equal to or higher than 10 in the released polymer fragments. Compositional analysis of released polysaccharides suggests that the pectin lost by action of monovalent ions was largely composed of rhamnogalacturonans whose acidic residue fraction is approximately 60% in association with galactose chains. Small quantities of glucuronylated xylans are also found.

Journal Article↗