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D Fumarola

Publications and source records attributed to D Fumarola.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

The epidemiology of Lyme borreliosis in Italy.

Erythema migrans was described in Italy only in 1971 although Italian dermatologists were familiar with it a long time before. In 1983, the first case of Lyme borreliosis with multisystem involvement was identified. The endemic areas in Italy are the Ligurian coast, the province of Friuli Venezia Giulia, and the region surrounding the town of Bologna. In Liguria, the incidence of Lyme disease is about 17/100,000 inhabitants per year. Serosurveys of the general population and of sentinel animals were useless in determining the diffusion of Lyme borreliosis whereas evaluation of people at risk of tick bites and patients with suggestive signs or symptoms was more effective. Among the clinical manifestations of Lyme borreliosis, cutaneous involvement is four times more frequent than neuroborreliosis and arthritis is less frequent in Italy than in the USA.

Humans↗
PubMed1990

[Permeability of dialysis membranes for endotoxins. Clinical and experimental results].

In the presented investigation in 20 endotoxaemic patients 70 haemodialyses were performed. It was revealed that the prehaemodialyzation LAL positivity in 50 haemodialyses (71%) declined, while no differences were observed in the effectiveness of cuprophan and AN 69 membranes. Research in vitro revealed that LAL positivity of blood which contains endotoxins and is subjected for 300 minutes to haemofiltration remains unaltered; in ultrafiltrates LAL is permanently negative. This is due to a mechanism of endotoxin fragmentation as a result of interaction of blood and membrane. Moreover, the LAL positivity of blood containing lipid A declines gradually when subjected to 80 minutes haemofiltration; the dialyzation permeability for lipid A is then proved by the fact that LAL positivity appears in the ultrafiltrate. From the submitted results ensues that reduction of LAL positivity by haemodialysis occurs as a result of elimination of filtrable endotoxin fragments (lipid A) which are released in the body.

Acute Kidney Injury↗
PubMed1990

Articular involvement in European patients with Lyme disease. A report of 32 Italian patients.

Lyme disease (LD) is a well recognized multisystem disorder, caused by the spirochaete Borrelia burgdorferi. It involves the skin, nervous system and heart. Arthritis is described in 50-60% of American patients but seems to be less common in Europe. We studied the pattern of articular involvement in a group of 67 Italian patients with LD. Thirty-two (48%) of 67 had rheumatological manifestations. The prevalence of arthritis in our patients was 16/67 (24%), the remaining 16 experiencing only arthralgia. The pattern of articular involvement did not differ from the literature and was most often mono- or oligoarthritis with polyarticular arthralgia. We noted an early onset of articular symptoms (range 1-3 months). Incidence of early and late manifestations of LD were in keeping with previous reports. In addition, interpreting serological tests for antibodies against B. burgdorferi and the real prevalence of arthritis in LD is complicated by the possible existence of seronegative LD and by the effect of early antibiotic treatment.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Inhibition of neutrophil functions by scrapie prion protein: description of some inhibitory properties.

The effect of scrapie prion protein (PrP) either in the native or in the denatured form was studied on in vitro responses of human neutrophils. Incubation of neutrophils with native PrP caused an inhibition of their aggregation induced by cytochalasin B. Moreover, the denatured form was in itself a strong aggregation inducer. When evaluating the effect on generation of neutrophil superoxide anion (O2) we found that neutrophils released O2 in response to the denatured from only but the native form was ineffective. Similarly, neutrophil discharge of beta-glucuronidase which represents the azurophilic granule marker was stimulated in a dose-dependent form by the denatured PrP 27-30 whereas the native form was almost completely devoid of any activity. These results indicate that several aspects of neutrophil function can be altered by the native form of prion protein PrP 27-30. This might be responsible for the impaired phagocytic cell activity explaining, at least in part, the absence of any inflammatory reaction during scrapie infection.

Cell Aggregation↗
PubMed1989

The ability of mononuclear cells to coagulate blood in response to Coxiella burnetii.

Endocarditis is a rather frequent complication of Q fever caused by Coxiella burnetii. We examined the ability of phase I (virulent) or phase II (avirulent) C. burnetii to coagulate blood in the presence of human blood mononuclear cells in vitro. After incubation for 4 h, virulent phase I C. burnetii was an effective stimulant for mononuclear cells. Since this interaction is a potent trigger of blood coagulation through the extrinsic pathway, it could be responsible for the local deposition of fibrin on the surface of infected valves and the development of large vegetations in cases of endocarditis complicating Q fever.

Blood Coagulation↗
PubMed1989

The permeability of dialytic membranes to endotoxins: clinical and experimental findings.

This study of 20 endotoxemic patients submitted to 70 hemodialyses (HD) found a reduction of the pre-HD limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) positivity in 50 HD (71%), without appreciable differences in terms of effectiveness between cuprophan and AN 69 membranes. To define the mechanisms responsible for the reduction in LAL positivity during HD, the membranes were used in two in vitro studies, the first of which showed that the LAL positivity of blood containing lipopolysaccharide (LPS), submitted to hemofiltration (HF) for 300 min, remained unchanged and the ultrafiltrate remained constantly LAL negative. These results suggest that the reduction in LAL positivity observed in HD in vivo, an expression of reduced endotoxemia, cannot be attributed either to the filtration of the LPS as such or to its fragmentation following blood-membrane interaction into theoretically less filtrable molecules or to mechanisms of LPS adsorption on the membrane. The in vivo reduction of LAL positivity is more likely due to removal of the filtrable endotoxin fragments already released in the body, like lipid A, the biologically active component of LPS, known to react to LAL. This hypothesis was borne out by the second in vitro study, where the LAL positivity of blood containing lipid A, treated by HF for 80 min, gradually decreased, and dialytic permeability to lipid A was confirmed by the appearance of LAL positivity in the ultrafiltrate.

Clinical Trials as Topic↗
PubMed1988

Evaluation of procoagulant activity production and other coagulative functions in cancer patients receiving acid treated Salmonella minnesota R 595 (Re).

Blood clotting parameters were measured in six patients with gynecologic tumors following i.v. administration of acetic acid-treated Salmonella minnesota R595 (Re), which has been previously demonstrated to enhance impaired immune functions in the same patients. Although these bacteria possess a more exposed lipid A at their surface which has the potential to stimulate the coagulative cascade, no evidence of plasma hypercoagulative state was detected. In fact, procoagulant activity generated by patients' mononuclear cells after Salmonella treatment was not significantly higher than that produced by patients' cells before treatment. Moreover, other haemostatic laboratory parameters were unaffected by in vivo treatment with bacteria.

Acetates↗