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Biomedical subjects

E Douek

Publications and source records attributed to E Douek.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Intracranial germ cell tumours: I. Experience with platinum based chemotherapy and implications for curative chemoradiotherapy.

The results of treatment with platinum based combination chemotherapy in ten patients with intracranial germ cell tumours (GCT) are presented. Two patients, treated for relapse within the central nervous system (CNS), attained partial responses of short duration. One patient with systemic relapse was successfully salvaged with chemotherapy. Seven patients received primary chemotherapy, six of whom received a 'CNS friendly' regimen consisting of vincristine, etoposide, carboplatin (VEJ) prior to craniospinal axis (CSA) irradiation. Three complete and three partial responses, and one patient with stable disease, were seen prior to irradiation. All seven patients are alive and remain disease-free at a median time of 12 months after treatment. Current treatment policy for germinomas attaining complete response to two courses of VEJ is a lowered CSA dose prescription, while non-germinomatous germ cell tumours (NGGCT) receive standard total dose CSA irradiation.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

The generation of DNA probes to chromosome 11q23 by Alu PCR on small numbers of flow-sorted 22q- derivative chromosomes.

A strategy for the isolation of DNA probes from small numbers of flow-sorted human chromosomes has been developed. A lymphoblastoid cell line carrying the 22q- derivative chromosome product of the constitutional t(11;22) translocation was used as the source of chromosomes. Synthetic oligonucleotide primers, based on the consensus Alu sequence, were used to amplify inter-Alu sequence from 500 flow-sorted 22q- derivative chromosomes. The amplified sequences were cloned into a plasmid vector by blunt-end ligation, yielding clones with inserts in the range of 400 to 1000 bp. Approximately 70% of these clones hybridized to human DNA as single-copy probes. To identify clones derived from chromosome 11, the library was screened with a heterogeneous probe prepared by Alu-PCR amplification from the DNA of a somatic cell hybrid containing one homology of chromosome 11. All the positive clones found were mapped to within the q23-q25 region of chromosome 11 known to be translocated onto the 22q- derivative chromosome. Further mapping studies showed that most of these probes (7/8) lay between the breakpoints for the t(4;11) translocation of acute lymphocytic leukemia and the t(11;22) of Ewing sarcoma. Thus, the use of Alu-PCR on the small derivative chromosome 22q- has provided a greatly enriched source of probes to region 11q23, a part of the genome that is currently of great interest. This approach will be particularly appropriate to small numbers of chromosomes when high specificity rather than total representation is required.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Platinum-based chemotherapy for recurrent CNS tumours in young patients.

Twenty nine patients (median age 12 years) with a CNS tumour, received platinum-based chemotherapy for assessable disease. In 23 patients there was an objective response with improvement lasting for a median duration of 11 months. There was little difference in the response to cisplatinum or carboplatin therapy. The response rates in specific disease groups were: medulloblastoma 8/10, two with a complete response (CR) and six with a partial response (PR); ependymoma 1/5 PR; pineal retinoblastoma 5/5 with three CR and two PR; primitive neurectodermal tumours (PNET) 2/2 PR and pineal germ cell tumours 6/6 with four CR and two PR. It is concluded that platinum-based chemotherapy has a beneficial effect on CNS tumours of the CNS, especially medulloblastoma, ectopic intracranial retino-blastoma and pineal germ cell tumours.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

Effects of incubator noise on the cochlea of the newborn.

The possible effects of incubator noise on the hearing of premature babies have long been debated. The type of hearing loss found in 12 low-birthweight children was examined; and the variable noise level in regularly used incubators was measured. This noise, applied to guinea pigs continuously during their second week after birth, was shown histologically to destroy a proportion of the sensory cells in the cochlea. Adult guinea pigs, however, were not vulnerable in this way. The conclusion is that there is definite circumstantial evidence of the damaging effect of many incubators on the hearing of premature infants.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

A single average crossed acoustic response.

Although the Crossed Acoustic Response is the simplest objective test of hearing acuity, as it can be used without an anaesthetic in the mobile child, a serious obstacle to its wide use has been cost. This was because two averagers have been necessary. This paper describes a modification of the equipment which is not only cheap but which can be used to adapt any existing electrocochleograph or cortical evoked response recorder.

Amplifiers, Electronic↗