Biomedical subjects

Carlo Vicentini

Publications and source records attributed to Carlo Vicentini.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2002

Bombesin-dependent pro-MMP-9 activation in prostatic cancer cells requires beta1 integrin engagement.

Bombesin-like peptides, including the mammalian homologue gastrin-releasing peptide, are highly expressed and secreted by neuroendocrine cells in prostate carcinoma tissues and are likely to be related to the progression of this neoplastic disease. Previously, we demonstrated that bombesin increased migration and protease expression in androgen-independent cells. In this work we show that bombesin is able to activate pro-MMP-9 through a mechanism involving the beta1 integrin subunit. In fact, MMP-9 processing was evident only when beta1 integrin was engaged with specific adhesive substrates, such as type I collagen, or when cells were seeded on dishes coated with antibodies against beta1 integrin, resulting in activation of the surface ligand. When exogenous pro-MMP-9 was added to PC3 cells, MMP-9 active forms were produced within 30 min by bombesin-treated cultures while control cultures expressed activated forms only after a longer time and at lower levels. MMP-9 activation required cytoskeleton integrity since this effect was abolished by cytochalasin D. Engagement of beta1 integrin caused an increased membrane-linked uPA activity which was required for MMP-9 activation. The cross talk between bombesin- and beta1-integrin-engaged signals seems to be crucial for the modulation of both membrane-linked uPA activity and MMP-9 activation and triggers complex intracellular signaling pathways requiring activation of tyrosine kinase activity, including that of src and PI3K. The beta1 integrin may be considered an important mechanism by which bombesin induces MMP-9 activation. This finding supports the idea that cellular responses to growth factors may be driven by cell-matrix interactions and stresses the role of neuroendocrine factors in prostate carcinoma progression.

Bombesin↗

PubMed2002

[Percutaneous treatment of varicocele: considerations and our experience].

UNLABELLED: Due to its high incidence and its affecting male infertility, varicocele is an important disease. Consequently, it is essential to choose the best treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Since 1999 to 2000, 75 patients affected by varicocele (mean age 25 years) underwent percutaneous retrograde sclerotherapy through a right transfemoral approach. Pre-operative tests included physical examination, sperm analysis and colour Doppler sonography. According to Dubin and Amelar classification, 59% of patients were affected by Grade 3 varicocele. According to Hirsh classification, grade III-IV varicocele was diagnosed with colour Doppler sonography in 77.3% of patients. Mean operative time was 30 minutes with only 5 minutes of exposure to radiation. All patients were followed-up with colour Doppler ultrasound and sperm analysis 1, 4 and 12 months after the treatment. RESULTS: In 6 of 75 patients (8%) sclerotherapy was unsuccessful because it was not possible to catheterize the spermatic vein. No significant complications were observed pre and post-operatively. 3 patients complained of mild testicular pain and 1 case had a transient hydrocele. The patients were dismissed during the next 24 hours after the procedure. During follow-up, physical examination was unremarkable in all patients, while occlusion of spermatic veins showed by Doppler ultrasound at 4 and 12 months was achieved in 94% of patients. CONCLUSIONS: Retrograde sclerotherapy through trans-femoral approach is a safe and effective treatment. In our opinion it should be considered as the treatment of choice, especially if we consider the costs, hospitalization and complications of conventional surgery and laparoscopy.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

[Ultrasonographic assessment of bladder volume].

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study is to evaluate intra and inter-observatory variability in the sonography measurement of bladder volume. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We have evaluated 138 patients (128 men and 10 women) affected by lower urinary tract symptoms with a mean age of 64 years (range 36-75) between December 2000 and June 2001. Sonography measurement of bladder volume was obtained at the end of a pressure/flow study with the double lumen catheter in situ. Measurement of bladder volume was performed by the same operator in 113 patients by calculating the transverse, longitudinal and anterior-posterior diameter; each measurement was repeated three times. In the remaining 25 patients examination was performed by three different operators for every patients, with a single evaluation for each operator. The real volume was measured by emptying the bladder using the urethral catheter. RESULTS: The real bladder volume in the intra and inter-observatory group was 240 +/- 130 and 145 +/- 97, respectively. First, second and third measurement in the intra-observatory group were 229 +/- 113, 231 +/- 112, 234 +/- 127, respectively. On the other hand, first, second and third measurement in the inter-observatory group were 131 +/- 73, 129 +/- 66, 143 +/- 94, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Looking at our results, it is clear that there is no significant difference between every single measurement in the intra and inter-observatory group. In addition, the estimation of bladder volume by ultrasound was quite similar to the real volume. We conclude that ultrasound is a precise, non invasive and highly reproducible technique to calculate the bladder volume.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Bicalutamide dose-dependently inhibits proliferation in human prostatic carcinoma cell lines and primary cultures.

OBJECTIVE: Androgen antagonists inhibit prostatic cell proliferation in normal and pathological conditions and are useful antitumor agents in prostatic carcinoma (PCa). Bicalutamide (BCLT) is a well-known non-steroidal antiandrogenic agent able to interfere with androgen receptor (AR). We tested the efficacy of BCLT in inhibiting proliferation of human PCa cell lines and of primary cultures from biopsies of PCa patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Human prostatic carcinoma cell lines (PC3, DU145, LNCaP ALVA 31 and ND1) and short-term primary tissue cultures from PCa patients were treated with BCLT. Cell proliferation and orange acridine and ethidium bromide fluorescence staining studies were performed. RESULTS: BCLT was able to inhibit, significantly and dose-dependently, cell proliferation in AR-positive human PCa cell lines and in 10 cases of primary cultures with Gleason grades 4 to 8. Its action appears to be mainly apoptotic in AR-positive cells and cytotoxic in AR-negative cells. CONCLUSION: BCLT, which inhibits growth in both human PCa cell lines and PCa primary cultures from patients with medium and low-grade tumors, deserves attention as a potential widely effective antiandrogenic monotherapy in prostatic carcinoma. However, its efficacy in AR-negative cells requires further research.

Acridine Orange↗

PubMedDate not supplied

In vitro study of Human Dermal Fibroblasts seeded on two kinds of surgical meshes: monofilamented Polypropylene and multifilamented Polyestere.

Many different synthetic biomaterials have been recently proposed in the majority of the techniques for hernioplasty and pelvic floor surgery. Required qualities of an implantable prosthetic material have been well established in the past and today the biomaterials better performing to this purpose are the monofilamented Polypropylene (Marlex) and the multifilamented Polyestere (Mersilene). But, in spite of a wide surgical use of these two kinds of meshes, many failures of these implantations are reported leading to removal of the prosthetic implanted material. If some of these failures are due to errors in surgical technique, others seem to be due to inadequacy of the selected material, too much soft or too much stiff, or too much or too little incorporated into the host tissue. This experiment investigated the different behaviour of in vitro cultured Human Dermal Fibroblasts, seeded on specimens of both meshes and then observed by Light (LM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Around the multifilamented threads of Polyestere mesh, fibroblasts could grow very well, filling the holes and making a continous cell layer completely envelopping the mesh. At the same culture time, around the Polypropylene mesh only big groups of fibroblasts were evident at the thread interlacing points. Therefore, it could be concluded that both meshes stimulate good fibroblast attachment and proliferation but in a very different way and amount; it will be up to the surgeon to select the appropriate mesh according to the specific surgical purpose.

Biocompatible Materials↗