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Biomedical subjects

C Rangel

Publications and source records attributed to C Rangel.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Product angular distribution for the H + CD4 --> HD + CD3 reaction.

Using an analytical potential energy surface previously developed by our group, namely PES-2002, we analyzed the gas-phase reaction between a hydrogen atom and perdeuterated methane. We studied the effect of quasiclassical trajectory (QCT) and reduced dimensionality quantum-scattering (QM) calculations, with their respective limitations, on CD3 product angular distributions in the collision energy range 16.1-46.1 kcal x mol(-1). It was found that at low collision energy, 16.1 kcal x mol(-1), both the QCT and QM calculations yielded forward scattered CD3 products, i.e., a rebound mechanism. However, at high energies only the QM calculations on the PES-2002 surface reproduced the angular scattering found experimentally.

Journal Article↗

Quasi-classical trajectory calculations analyzing the role of bending mode excitations of methane in the Cl + CH4 reaction.

The effects of the methane torsional (nu(2)), umbrella (nu(4)), and the combination nu(2)+nu(4) bending mode excitations on the reactivity and dynamics of the gas-phase Cl + CH(4) --> HCl + CH(3) reaction were analyzed. Quasi-classical trajectory (QCT) calculations, including corrections to avoid zero-point energy leakage along the trajectories, were used on an analytical potential energy surface previously developed by our group. With respect to the reactivity, we found that excitation of either bending mode independently gave similar increases in the reactivity, while the increase observed upon excitation of both modes was larger than the sum of the effect of exciting them independently. Both results agree with recent experimental measures. With respect to the dynamics (rotovibrational and angular distributions of the products), the two bending modes and their combination gave very similar pictures, reproducing the experimental behavior. The satisfactory agreement obtained with a great variety of experimental data (always qualitatively acceptable and sometimes even quantitatively) of the present QCT study lends confidence to the potential energy surface constructed by our group.

Journal Article↗

L-DOPA inhibits depolarization-induced [3H]GABA release in the dopamine-denervated globus pallidus of the rat: the effect is dopamine independent and mediated by D2-like receptors.

The effect of L-DOPA on [(3)H]GABA release in slices of globus pallidus from 6-OHDA-lesioned rats was studied. Release was evoked by high (15 mM) K(+). The lesion reduced dopamine content and dopamine synthesized from L-DOPA. The inhibition of DOPA decarboxylase blocked dopamine synthesis. Endogenous dopamine released by high K(+) inhibited [(3)H]GABA release in normal but not in lesioned slices. L-DOPA inhibited (IC(50) = 0.44 microM) evoked [(3)H]GABA release. The inhibition was via D2-like receptors but not mediated by dopamine. The turning behavior induced by L-DOPA methyl ester (25 mg/kg, i.p.) was not abolished by the DOPA decarboxylase inhibitor 3-hydroxybenzylhydrazine but in this condition it was abolished by sulpiride. Results suggest that L-DOPA acting as D2-like agonist inhibits GABA release in the rat globus pallidus and induces turning behavior in rats with unilateral lesions of the dopamine innervation. L-DOPA could control Parkinson's disease symptoms acting not only as dopamine precursor but also by itself.

Animals↗

Quasiclassical trajectory calculations comparing the reactivity and dynamics of symmetric and asymmetric stretch and the role of the bending mode excitations of methane in the Cl + CH4 reaction.

To analyze the effects of the symmetric (nu(1)) and asymmetric (nu(3)) stretch mode excitations and the role played by the "umbrella" bending (nu(4)) mode excitation in the reactivity and the dynamics of the gas-phase Cl+CH(4) reaction, an exhaustive dynamics study was performed. Quasiclassical trajectory (QCT) calculations, including corrections to avoid zero-point energy leakage along the trajectories, were used in this work on an analytical potential energy surface previously developed by Espinosa-Garcia et al. [J. Chem. Phys. (to be published)]. First, with respect to the reactivity, we found that the nu(1) mode excitation is more reactive than the nu(3) mode by a factor of 1.20, in agreement with the experimental tendency between these modes. The inclusion of the nu(4) bending mode practically does not affect this relative reactivity, (nu(1+)nu(4))(nu(3+)nu(4)) = 1.16. Second, with respect to the dynamics (rotovibrational and angular distributions of the products), the two stretch modes, nu(1) and nu(3), give very similar pictures, reproducing the experimental behavior, and the nu(4) "umbrella" mode does not affect the dynamics. The satisfactory reproduction (always qualitatively acceptable and sometimes even quantitatively) of a great variety of experimental data by the QCT study presented here lends confidence to the potential energy surface constructed by Espinosa-Garcia et al. [J. Chem. Phys. (to be published)].

Journal Article↗

Trapping of the OH radical by alpha-tocopherol: a theoretical study.

The antioxidant activity of alpha-tocopherol against the damaging hydroxyl radical was analyzed theoretically by hybrid density functional theory, following the direct dynamics method, where the thermal rate constants were calculated using variational transition-state theory with multidimensional tunneling. We found that the OH radical is only slightly or not at all selective, attacking by different mechanisms at several positions of the alpha-tocopherol molecule, giving competitive reactions. The most favorable pathways are the hydrogen abstraction reaction from the phenolic hydrogen and the electrophilic addition onto the aromatic ring. We propose a final rate constant, the sum of the competitive hydrogen abstraction and addition reactions, > or =2.7 x 10(8) M(-1) s(-1) at 298 K, where the hydrogen abstraction reaction represents only 20% of the total OH radical reaction. This result indicates that, molecule by molecule, in an apolar environment, alpha-tocopherol is less effective than coenzyme Q (which presents a rate constant of 6.2 x 10(10) M(-1) s(-1) at 298 K) as a scavenger of OH radicals. It was also found that both mechanisms are not direct but pass through intermediates in the entry channel, with little or no influence on the dynamics of the reactions. The hydrogen abstraction reaction also presents another intermediate in the exit channel, which may have a significant role in preventing the pro-oxidant effects of alpha-tocopherol, although less important than with free radicals other than OH.

Antioxidants↗

Potential energy surface for the CCl4 + H --> CCl3 + ClH reaction: kinetics and dynamics study.

An analytical potential energy surface for the gas-phase CCl4 + H --> CCl3 + ClH reaction was constructed with suitable functional forms to represent vibrational modes. This surface is completely symmetric with respect to the permutation of the four chlorine atoms and is calibrated with respect to experimental thermal rate constants available over the temperature range 297-904 K. On this surface, the thermal rate constants were calculated using variational transition-state theory with semiclassical transmission coefficients over a wider temperature range 300-2500 K, therefore obtaining kinetics information at higher temperatures than are experimentally available. This surface was also used to analyze dynamical features, such as tunneling and reaction-path curvature. In the first case, the influence of the tunneling factor is very small since a heavy chlorine atom has to pass through the barrier. In the second, it was found that vibrational excitation of the Cl-H stretching mode can be expected in the exit channel.

Journal Article↗

Clustering protein sequence and structure space with infinite Gaussian mixture models.

We describe a novel approach to the problem of automatically clustering protein sequences and discovering protein families, subfamilies etc., based on the theory of infinite Gaussian mixtures models. This method allows the data itself to dictate how many mixture components are required to model it, and provides a measure of the probability that two proteins belong to the same cluster. We illustrate our methods with application to three data sets: globin sequences, globin sequences with known three-dimensional structures and G-protein coupled receptor sequences. The consistency of the clusters indicate that our method is producing biologically meaningful results, which provide a very good indication of the underlying families and subfamilies. With the inclusion of secondary structure and residue solvent accessibility information, we obtain a classification of sequences of known structure which both reflects and extends their SCOP classifications. A supplementray web site containing larger versions of the figures is available at http://public.kgi.edu/approximately wid/PSB04/index.html

Amino Acid Sequence↗

[Microsurgical reconstruction of the head and neck: experience of 63 free flaps].

The authors present the experience of 63 clinical cases of microsurgical reconstruction of the head and neck. These reconstructions were accomplished by different microvascular free flaps which were selected according to the type, size and location of the defects. Fasciocutaneous, osteofasciocutaneous, adipofascial, myo, myocutaneous, myosseous, jejunum and great omentum flaps were applied. The etiology was traumatic in 10 cases, tumoral in 41 cases, congenital in 7 cases, iatrogenic in 3 cases and infectious in 2 cases. The reconstructed anatomical regions were the scalp in 6 cases, the skull base in 1 case, the orbit in 3 cases, the nose in 1 case, the hemiface in 7 cases, the lips in 1 case, the intraoral cavity in 21 cases, the mandible in 8 cases, the intraoral cavity plus mandible in 11 cases and the cervical esophagus in 1 cases. An analysis was made of surgical times, selection and survival rate of the free flaps and the morphofunctional quality of the reconstructions. Considering the good quality of reconstructions, the amelioration of quality of life and the low morbidity in these patients, microvascular free flaps are considered a first choice technique for head and neck reconstruction when the size and location of the defect prevents the use of local flaps.

Adult↗

[Open rhinoplasty. 5-years experience].

The principle advantages of open rhinoplasty concern diagnosis as well as technical facilities. The transcolumelar approach, initially described by Rheti in 1934 for surgical corrections of the cleft lip nose, was adopted by us since 1992 in 48 patients. We have systematically made a "staggered incision" at the collumella's narrowest point, that allows a great view of nasal structures. The results were considered good, even in difficult rhinoplasties. The scars were inconspicous, without cicatricial hypertrophies or deformities.

Esthetics↗

Taxol and taxotere in bladder cancer: in vitro activity and urine stability.

In this study the antimicrotubular agents taxol, taxotere, and vinblastine were compared for their ability to inhibit the clonal growth of human bladder tumor cell lines using a soft-agar clonogenic assay. The stability of taxol and taxotere was evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography over a range of pH in human urine. Both taxol and taxotere were shown to maximally inhibit the clonal growth of human bladder cell lines within 1 h of drug incubation. The most active agent in the panel of tumor lines was taxotere, with 6 of 12 lines being sensitive to the agent at 0.01 microM and all cell lines being sensitive at 0.1 microM. Taxol was active in 1 of 12 lines at 0.01 microM and in 11 of 12 at 0.1 microM. Only 2 of 12 cell lines were sensitive to vinblastine over the 0.01- to 0.1-microM dose range. Taxol and taxotere were found to be stable in human urine for 4 h over a pH range of 5-7. At least 85% of both drugs were present during this period of drug incubation. Our findings suggest that both taxol and taxotere may be clinically useful agents for systemic and intravesical use in bladder cancer.

Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic↗

Experience with weekly doxorubicin (adriamycin) in hormone-refractory stage D2 prostate cancer.

One hundred eleven patients with endocrine-refractory Stage D prostate cancer were treated with weekly administration of 20 mg/m2 body surface area of doxorubicin hydrochloride (Adriamycin). Fifty-seven were part of a randomized study comparing doxorubicin and prednisone to prednisone alone. There were significantly more subjective responders in the doxorubicin group than in the prednisone group (p less than 0.01). The number of patients with evidence of stable disease was also higher during the chemotherapy arm compared with prednisone alone (p = 0.02). Patients taking doxorubicin had a slightly longer period of stable disease than did those taking prednisone (p = 0.08). Overall survival, however, was not prolonged (p = 0.26). Fifty-four patients took part in an open trial and 69 percent responded to treatment. All of these had clinical improvement. Side effects were minimal with cardiotoxicity noted in less than 15 percent among patients with side effects. Over 35 percent had no side effects. Thus single agent, weekly doxorubicin therapy as evaluated in our experience, while well tolerated and of subjective benefit, does not provide the patient with a significant longer progression-free survival or improved overall survival.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Cutaneous myiasis. Immunohistologic and ultrastructural morphometric features of a human botfly lesion.

This study documents the immunohistologic and ultrastructural morphometric features of a case of cutaneous myiasis due to Dermatobia hominis. The mixed host inflammatory response surrounding the larvae included lymphoblasts, eosinophils, activated fibroblasts, mature histiocytes, mast cells, plasma cells, and Langerhans cells, indicating a complex interactive immunologic response to the botfly parasite. Immunotyping revealed that the dominant dermal cells were activated (Ia+) T-helper cells. Although the strikingly elevated T-helper/T-suppressor cell ratio might suggest a monoclonal infiltrate, a mixture of Leu 8+ and Leu 8- T-cells indicates both immunoregulatory subsets of T-helper cells as found in a reactive process. Furthermore, our ultrastructural histogram found the lymphoid nuclear shapes were oval with few nuclear invaginations as found in inflammatory infiltrates. As indicated by electron microscopy, there were abundant activated fibroblasts elaborating collagen which may relate to larval containment.

Central America↗

Immunophenotypes in "well-differentiated" lymphoproliferative disorders, with emphasis on small lymphocytic lymphoma.

The histologic, immunophenotypic, and clinical findings in 24 cases of "well-differentiated" lymphoproliferative disorders are presented, with an emphasis on small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL; well-differentiated lymphocytic lymphoma, WDLL). SLL was diagnosed in 18 patients, Waldenström's macroglobulinemia in one, mantle zone lymphoma (MZL) in four, and intermediate differentiated lymphocytic lymphoma (IDL) in one. Immunophenotypic analysis revealed one SLL to be of T-cell derivation, while a monoclonal B-cell phenotype was found in the remaining 23 patients; 20 of these neoplasms co-expressed the pan-T-cell antigen Leu-1. This included three of the four patients with MZL and the patient with IDL. All SLLs with pseudofollicular growth centers stained for transferrin receptor. Additionally, a survey of 248 non-Hodgkin's lymphomas of all types revealed four of 70 patients with B-cell large cell lymphoma (LCL; diffuse histiocytic lymphoma, DHL) that also co-expressed the same Leu-1 antigen. Immunoperoxidase study of both frozen tissue sections and cytocentrifuge preparations eliminated the limitations of faint antigen expression and/or interstitial immunoglobulin staining. In addition to detailing the immunophenotype of SLL, the immunologic kinship of MZL/IDL to SLL and the uncommon co-expression of Leu-1 in B-cell LCLs are demonstrated.

Aged↗

Immunologic complexity of lymphoblastic lymphoma.

Twelve patients with a histologic diagnosis of lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL) were studied immunologically using the methodologic refinement of comparative serial section immunochemistry. By this means, we demonstrate complex LBL phenotypic profiles, revealing 3 major immunologic subtypes: immature T cell, 7 cases; intermediate or mature T cell, 3 cases; immature B cell (pre-pre-B), 2 cases. This phenotypic diversity challenges the basic belief that all LBL are the same. Our immature T-cell cases with frequent simultaneous Leu 2/3/6/9/CALLA/Tdt expression correspond to cortical thymic phenotypes; our mature T-cell phenotypes with Leu 9/la expression and absent L6/Tdt correspond either to medullary thymocytes or post-thymic T cells; our pre-pre-B phenotypes with simultaneous Tdt/CALLA/B4 expression correspond to common acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) phenotypes. Mature T-LBL phenotypes are similar to "novel" peripheral T-cell lymphoma phenotypes. Scant or absent Tdt expression in mature LBL is not an isolated antigenic change but a complete phenotypic profile difference from immature T-LBL. The major T- and B-cell phenotypes of LBL might have therapeutic significance. Treatment among LBL phenotypes may need to vary as with acute lymphocytic leukemia phenotypes. Further study is needed; in the meantime, comparative serial section immunotyping promises substantial utility in revealing the immunologic complexity of the lymphomas.

Adolescent↗

Immunoarchitecture of the regenerating rat spleen: effects of partial splenectomy and heterotopic autotransplantation.

To investigate the microstructure of in situ (eutopic) and autotransplanted (ectopic) splenic remnants, adult Sprague-Dawley rats were studied 60 days after subtotal (approximately 80%) splenectomy, total splenectomy followed by single or multiple remnant intraperitoneal autotransplantation, or sham operation. Total nucleated cell counts were determined in excised splenic remnants, and immunohistochemical staining using monoclonal antibodies to rat B- and T-cell antigens was performed in serial tissue sections. Immunoarchitecture of eutopic remnants was indistinguishable from that of intact spleens and total nucleated cell counts remained proportional to weight. In contrast, ectopic remnants showed sparsity and abnormal mixing of B and T lymphocyte subpopulations with widespread loss of follicles and periarteriolar lymphoid sheaths in addition to lower density and marked reduction of total nucleated cells. These findings provide immunohistologic evidence that preservation of intact vasculature is critical to splenic architecture, which may account in part for the demonstrable functional inferiority of ectopic remnants.

Animals↗

Immunotopographic assessment of lymphoid and plasma cell malignancies in the bone marrow.

To determine the utility of tissue section immunochemistry in the evaluation of bone marrow involved by lymphoid and plasma cell malignancies, snap-frozen, undecalcified bone marrow core and aspirate samples from 23 patients with these disorders were studied with a battery of monoclonal antibodies. With techniques that preserve architecture, difficult diagnostic cases characterized by core but not aspirate involvement, or the reverse, were resolved. By means of an extensive battery of monoclonal antibodies applied to serial sections, complex tumor cell phenotypes were established in all 23 cases. In addition to the identification of straightforward monoclonal surface immunoglobulin expression in small cleaved cell lymphomas (four cases), the battery approach added immunologic certainty in malignancies with unusual or difficult phenotypes: peripheral T-cell lymphomas with idiosyncratic antigen expression, and chronic lymphocytic leukemias and small cell lymphomas with faint surface immunoglobulin expression (four cases). For the chronic lymphocytic leukemias and the small cell lymphomas, the combined IgD+, B2+, B1+, Ia+, Leu-1+ phenotype taken as a whole had greater utility than any isolated marker. The acute lymphocytic leukemias and the myelomas studied demonstrate the wide range of B-cell antigens that must be detected to account for the variety of B-cell neoplasms encountered. Additionally, the previously undescribed phenotypic subset of CALLA+ myelomas, which is of prognostic relevance, was identified. Marrow frozen section immunotyping is a major asset in the evaluation of patients with lymphoma, leukemia, and myeloma when special care is accorded to tissue handling and to treatment of endogenous peroxidase/pseudoperoxidase and interstitial immunoglobulin.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Peripheral T-cell lymphoma: aggressive disease with heterogeneous immunotypes.

Eleven patients with mature or peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTL), other than mycosis fungoides, were identified using an extensive battery of T- and B-cell markers. Eight cases had a histologic diagnosis of either diffuse large cell or mixed lymphoma, three of small cell type. All cases had one or more "mature" T-antigens and an absence of B- and immature T-antigens. Assessment of T-antigens included E-rosettes (Er), anti-Leu 1-7 and Tdt. The authors delineated striking heterogeneity of T-antigen expression: 9 different immunotypes in 11 cases. Subset T-antigen assessment indicated T-helper neoplastic cells in five cases and T-suppressor in two. The remaining four had universal T-antigens alone. Seven cases appeared to have "novel" T-phenotypes not corresponding to normal T-ontogeny phenotypes. Novel or idiosyncratic phenotypes may be a key characteristic of PTL. Since no single T-antigen, including Er and Er receptor (Leu-5), was expressed in all cases, a battery of monoclonal antibodies is necessary to detect PTL. Clinically, the authors found PTL unexpectedly aggressive, despite mature immunotype. Most patients were elderly (median age 69); all had extranodal disease with cutaneous involvement (six cases) most frequent. Responses to chemotherapy frequently proved transient, with median survival of nine months. A fulminant course was noted even with localized presentation. Clinical outcome suggests PTL requires new therapeutic strategies.

Adult↗