PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

C Masse

Publications and source records attributed to C Masse.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Effects of gamma irradiation on mechanical properties of defatted trabecular bone allografts assessed by speed-of-sound measurement.

New sterilization methods for human bone allografts may lead to alterations in bone mechanical properties, which strongly influence short- and medium-term outcomes. In many sterilization procedures, bone allografts are subjected to gamma irradiation, usually with 25 KGy, after treatment and packaging. We used speed-of-sound (SOS) measurements to evaluate the effects of gamma irradiation on bone. All bone specimens were subjected to the same microbial inactivation procedure. They were then separated into three groups, of which one was treated and not irradiated and two were exposed to 10 and 25 KGy of gamma radiation, respectively. SOS was measured using high- and low-frequency ultrasound beams in each orthogonal direction. SOS and Young modulus were altered significantly in the three groups, compared to native untreated bone. Exposure to 10 or 25 KGy had no noticeable effect on the study variables. The impact of irradiation was small compared to the effects of physical or chemical defatting. Reducing the radiation dose used in everyday practice failed to improve graft mechanical properties in this study.

Acoustics↗

Do people combine the parity- and five-rule checking strategies in product verification?

The basic question of the present experiment was whether people use a combination of arithmetic problem solving strategies to reject false products to multiplication problems or whether they simply use the single most efficient strategy. People had to verify true and false, five and non-five arithmetic problems. Compared with no-rule violation problems, people were faster with (a) five problems that violated the five rule (i.e., N x 5 = number with 5 or 0 as the final digit; e.g., 15 x 4 = 62), (b) problems that violated the parity rule (i.e., to be true, a product must be even if either or both of its multipliers is even; otherwise, it must be odd; 4 x 38 = 149), and (c) problems that violated both the parity and five rules (e.g., 29 x 5 = 142). Finally, people were equally fast and accurate when they solved two-rule violation problems than when they solved five-rule violation problems, and faster for those two types of problems than for parity-rule violation problems. Clearly, people use the single most efficient strategy when they reject false product to multiplication problems. This result has implications for our understanding of strategy selection in both arithmetic in particular and human cognition in general.

Adolescent↗

Pretreatment with cationic lipid-mediated transfer of the Na+K+-ATPase pump in a mouse model in vivo augments resolution of high permeability pulmonary oedema.

Resolution of pulmonary oedema is mediated by active absorption of liquid across the alveolar epithelium. A key component of this process is the sodium-potassium ATPase (Na+K+-ATPase) enzyme located on the basolateral surface of epithelial cells and up-regulated during oedema resolution. We hypothesised that lung liquid clearance could be further up-regulated by lipid-mediated transfer and expression of exogenous Na+K+-ATPase cDNA. We demonstrate proof of this principle in a model of high permeability pulmonary oedema induced by intraperitoneal injection of thiourea (2.5 mg/kg) in C57/BL6 mice. Pretreatment of mice (24 h before thiourea) by nasal sniffing of cationic liposome (lipid #67)-DNA complexes encoding the alpha and beta subunits of Na+K+-ATPase (160 microg per mouse), significantly (P<0.01) decreased the wet:dry weight ratios measured 2 h after thiourea injection compared with control animals, pretreated with an equivalent dose of an irrelevant gene. Whole lung Na+K+-ATPase activity was significantly (P<0.05) increased in mice pretreated with Na+K+-ATPase cDNA compared both with untreated control animals as well as animals pretreated with the irrelevant gene. Nested RT-PCR on whole lung homogenates confirmed gene transfer by detection of vector-specific mRNA in three of four mice studied 24 h after gene transfer. This demonstration of a significant reduction in pulmonary oedema following in vivo gene transfer raises the possibility of gene therapy as a novel, localised approach for pulmonary oedema in clinical settings such as ARDS and lung transplantation.

Animals↗

The increased susceptibility of women to multiple sclerosis.

Many diseases with an auto-immune etiology have a skewed sex distribution. In the majority of instances, women are affected more frequently than men. A review of population studies demonstrates that the preponderance of women in multiple sclerosis (MS) is almost constant. We show that this preponderance is further increased in early as well as in late-onset cases, in familial cases as well as in MS twin pairs and that the HLA-DR2 allele, which has been associated with MS in Caucasian populations, is significantly more frequent in women than in men with MS. "Rules" have been established for multifactorial diseases; MS contravenes most of those rules. The skewed sex distribution in MS could be attributed to the known hormonal and gender influences on the immune response, as well as to genetic influences.

Diseases in Twins↗

[Cardiac toxicity of bupivacaine and diazepam. Experimental study in the anesthetized dog].

The use of diazepam has been suggested for the treatment of convulsions resulting from accidental high plasma levels of local anaesthetics. However, it has been reported that this drug may increase the cardiac effects of bupivacaine in dogs. The present study aimed to assess the effects of diazepam on the electrophysiological signs of a high-dose intravenous bolus of bupivacaine in fourteen dogs, divided into two groups, and anaesthetized with thiopentone and ventilated. All the animals were given a bolus dose of 4 mg.kg-1 bupivacaine. Immediately afterwards, group I (n = 7) received 0.8 ml.kg-1 normal saline solution and group II (n = 7) was given 4 mg.kg-1 diazepam over 1 min. The parameters measured on lead II of the electrocardiogram were: cycle length (R-R interval), QRS length (QRS) and QT interval corrected for heart rate (cQT). Intranodal (AH) and His-Purkinje (HV) conduction times were measured with recording bipolar stimulation electrodes (USCI 6F). Mean aortic pressure (Pao) was measured via a femoral arterial line. In the two groups, the parameters were recorded before and 2, 5, 10 and 15 min after the bupivacaine bolus. Arterial blood samples for measurement of bupivacaine and diazepam serum levels were obtained before and 3, 15 and 30 min after the bupivacaine bolus. There was no significant difference between the two groups in the electrophysiological or haemodynamic parameters at any time. However, the increase in HV and QRS length was a little higher in group I than in group II.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Anesthesia, Intravenous↗

Electrophysiological effects of the new cardioactive drug CERM 4205: a comparative study in an animal model and in man.

The cardiac electrophysiological effects of CERM 4205, a new cardioactive agent, were studied by means of intracardiac electrodes in man and in anaesthetized dogs. The results show that CERM 4205 is a cardioactive drug with a main inhibitory effect on slow-response structures (sinus and atrioventricular node) with an associated effect on fast-response structures (atrial, His-Purkinje and ventricular tissues). No qualitative differences were observed between the effects observed in man and dogs. In conclusion, the present study confirms that CERM 4205 is a compound with combined class IV and class I electrophysiological effects in dogs and man. The anaesthetized dog appears to be a satisfactory model for the evaluation of the electrophysiological effects of cardioactive drugs.

Adult↗

Effects of quinidine on ventricular repolarization.

The possibility that an asynchronous increase in the ventricular monophasic action potential duration is the basis of the quinidine-induced torsade de pointes, has led us to study the electrophysiological effects of increasing doses of intravenous quinidine. We measured the monophasic action potential duration and the ventricular effective refractory period at several right ventricular myocardial sites in the anaesthetized dog. Our results showed that quinidine induces a dose-dependent prolongation in ventricular effective refractory period and in ventricular monophasic action potential duration. These increases were uniform throughout the right ventricle. No variations in repolarization or in refractoriness were observed between the four ventricular sites studied. The results suggest that quinidine does not have a direct effect on dispersion of repolarization, and that mechanisms other than its direct electrophysiological action are involved in the development of torsade de pointes.

Animals↗

Electrophysiological effects of penticainide in the anaesthetized dog.

The cardiac electrophysiological effects of Penticainide, a new antiarrhythmic agent, were studied by means of intracardiac electrodes in the anaesthetized dog. Intravenous administration of 5 mg/kg of Penticainide reduced the sinus rate and prolonged the sinus node recovery time. Atrial refractory periods increased. Anterograde intranodal conduction slowed and nodal refractoriness increased. Conduction time in the His-Purkinje tissue and ventricle increased, as did the ventricular refractory periods. Monophasic action potential duration was not altered by the drug in the atrium or the ventricle. The mechanism of action of Penticainide as an antiarrhythmic drug seems to be correlated to its membrane effects: inhibition of the fast-inward current, responsible for the marked effects on His-Purkinje and ventricular tissues; and inhibition of the slow-inward current, suggested by its effects on sinus node and atrio-ventricular node.

Action Potentials↗

Electrophysiologic effects of bepridil in the anesthetized dog studied by endocardiac electrodes.

The electrophysiologic effects of bepridil in the anesthetized closed-chest dog were studied with intracardiac electrodes using the extrastimulus technique to measure the refractory periods of atria, atrioventricular (AV) junction and ventricles. Intravenous administration of 5 mg/kg of bepridil caused a reduction in sinus node rate and prolonged the sinus node recovery time. Refractory periods in the atrium, especially the effective refractory period, increased. Anterograde AV nodal conduction was slowed and refractoriness increased, often resulting in AV nodal Wenckebach periods, during atrial pacing, and retrograde conduction was always completely abolished. Refractory periods of the AV junction were altered in a comparable fashion to conduction through the AV node. No significant actions on conduction or the refractory period were noticed in the His-Purkinje system or the ventricle. The mechanism of action of bepridil seems to be correlated to its membrane effects, namely, inhibition of pathways responsible for the slow inward current, which explains its selective action on myocardial sites where this current is particularly involved.

Action Potentials↗

Effects of cibenzoline, a novel antiarrhythmic drug, on action potential and transmembrane currents in frog atrial muscle.

The mechanisms of action of cibenzoline upon the electrical activity of the cardiac membrane in vitro, were studied using frog auricular preparations. Action potentials and transmembrane currents were examined using the double sucrose gap technique. Cibenzoline 2.6 X 10(-6) M reduced the amplitude and rate of depolarization of the action potential, slightly prolonged its duration and increased the refractory period. Voltage clamp analysis revealed a notable decrease in the amplitude of sodium rapid inward current, accompanied by a decrease in the kinetics of activation and inactivation, time to peak of the current was increased, as was the inactivation time constant. Cibenzoline delayed recovery from inactivation, reactivation time constants were increased. Cibenzoline also reduced the slow kinetic current due to calcium and sodium ions. The calcium portion of this current was less affected. These data lead to the conclusion that cibenzoline has the characteristics of class I and some class IV anti-arrhythmic action, but cibenzoline is not another quinidine because it would not appear to influence outward potassium current.

Action Potentials↗

Electrophysiological properties of butoprozine studied by multiple intracardiac recordings on the anaesthetized dog.

Electrophysiological effects of butoprozine (L 9394 Labaz) were investigated on the anaesthetized dog by programmed electrical stimulation of the heart and simultaneous recording of the His bundle electrogram and monophasic action potentials from the auricular and ventricular endocardial wall. Butoprozine injected intravenously depressed sino-atrial node function, lengthened A-V nodal conduction time and the A-V nodal refractory period, and prolonged the atrial refractory period. Thus butoprozine acted preferentially on parts of the myocardial tissue where the slow inward current seems to be particularly involved. In this respect, butoprozine was more active than amiodarone, but in contrast to this drug, butoprozine did neither prolong the ventricular monophasic action potential duration nor the ventricular refractory period. In the anaesthetized dog both drugs have practically analogous actions except at the ventricular level, which suggests that their effect on ionic currents at this level may be different.

Amiodarone↗

[The supernormal phase of cardiac conduction. An experimental study in the dog].

The existence of a cardiac phase of supernormal excitability is not fully proved at the cellular level. As far as the whole heart is concerned, the phenomenon of supernormal conduction is still under discussion. Intracardiac conduction has been studied both in the right atrium (13 dogs) and in the right ventricle (14 dogs) by programmed stimulation (extrastimulus technique), while monophasic action potential (MAP) was recorded. The phenomenon of supernormal conduction was noted in 67.7% of cases, starting at 59.0% and ending at 78.0% of the basic cycle, hence occuring shortly after phase 3 of the MAP. In the ventricle, a phase of supernormal conduction was present in 52.4% of cases, starting at 66.1% and ending at 77.9% of the basic cycle. After ajmaline, the supernormal conduction was moved towards the end of the cycle. The mechanism of supernormal conduction, and its implications in the study of arrhythmias are discussed.

Action Potentials↗