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Biomedical subjects

E Pozio

Publications and source records attributed to E Pozio.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Electrophoretic studies on two Phlebotomus species (Diptera: Psychodidae) from Italy.

Two sandfly species of the genus Phlebotomus from three different regions of Italy were examined by horizontal starch gel electrophoresis. Eleven loci were used for allozyme analysis. Data showed that there are two diagnostic loci, Idh and Lap-1, (for which different alleles are fixed in the two species) useful for the identification of these species. The degree of polymorphism for both species is low, with only Mpi and Pgm showing a relatively high polymorphism in P. perniciosus and P. perfiliewi respectively. Estimates of genetic variability are discussed.

Alleles↗
PubMed1991

[Microsporida infections in immunocompetent and immunosuppressed subjects].

Parasites of the phylum Microspora are obligatory intracellular protoza with a widespread host range among invertebrates and vertebrates. Species from Nosema, Encephalitozoon, Enterocytozoon and Pleistophora genera can infect immunocompetent and immunosuppressed patients. The emergency of the AIDS epidemic has recently highlighted the role of these parasites in human pathology, microsporidian species being a frequent cause of diarrhoea and ocular infections. Recent acquisitions in the taxonomy and life cycle of this parasite group, as well as pathogenesis, immunopathology, clinical aspects, diagnosis, therapy and epidemiology of human microsporidiosis are reviewed and discussed.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗
PubMed1990

Epidemiological research on trichinellosis in Apulia and Basilicata (southern Italy).

Trichinellosis is a zoonotic infection and has a worldwide distribution. In Italy numerous sporadic cases and outbreaks of human trichinellosis have been reported. The authors report an epidemiological survey of trichinellosis in Apulia and Basilicata, two regions of southern Italy, where two outbreaks of human trichinellosi (about one hundred cases) have recently occurred, due to ingestion of wild boar meat (sausages). Serological and/or parasitological research was carried out in the trichinellosis patients, in uninfected people (control group), and in wild and synantropic animals. The incidence of infection found in various animal species (sylvatic trichinellosis) in these two regions is high and can represent a serious health risk.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Experimental cryptosporidiosis in hamsters.

A new laboratory animal model for experimental cryptosporidiosis is described. Adult immunosuppressed hamsters were infected per os with 0.5 x 10(5) and 1 x 10(5) Cryptosporidium oocysts of calf origin. The mean numbers of oocysts shed per gram of feces per day and the patterns of infection are described. The susceptibility to Cryptosporidium infection, the total number of oocysts shed (a thousand times the infective dose), and the ease of handling in laboratory conditions make hamsters a good animal model for cryptosporidiosis.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Parasite-specific antibody response in Trichinella sp. 3 human infection: a one year follow-up.

Sera from patients with confirmed or suspected trichinellosis were examined for 1 year to detect the presence of parasite-specific antibodies (IgG, IgM, and IgE) using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The indirect ELISA was used to detect specific IgG (ELISA-IgG) and specific IgM (ELISA-IgM); an amplified technique proved the most reliable for detection of specific IgE (a-ELISA-IgE). The immunofluorescence (IF) test was used to detect specific IgG (IF-IgG). The patients were from an outbreak of trichinellosis in Salsomaggiore (northern Italy) in 1986. The parasite was isolated and isoenzymatically typed as Trichinella sp. 3. The specificity of our tests was greater than 95%. During the 1st period of infection, all tests used gave practically the same positivity rate (78.2-86.9%). One year after infection, ELISA-IgG gave the highest positivity rate (55%). With the other tests, the positivity rate was 20-38.5%. At the 2nd month of infection, the IF-IgG test was the most discriminating in patients with confirmed and suspected trichinellosis, but ELISA-IgG proved the most reliable test for detecting specific immunoglobulins in late human trichinellosis infection.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Inhibition of leukocyte function by serum from patients with trichinellosis.

Modification of leukocytic function has been reported in only a few human parasitic diseases. In this study we evaluated the effects of the sera from patients infected with Trichinella on chemotactic and phagocytic responses in leukocytes. Leukocyte chemotaxis was tested by the agarose method and phagocytosis by the technique of Yamamura, modified for Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Sera were acquired from patients during a trichinellosis outbreak that occurred in northern Italy in 1986. The parasite was isolated from 1 patient and isoenzymatically typed as Trichinella sp. 3, a new taxon, previously considered Trichinella nelsoni. The results indicated that sera from Trichinella-infected humans inhibited both chemotaxis and phagocytic responses in leukocytes. These findings suggest the existence of serum factor(s) in trichinellosis patients that modify host leukocytic functions. The source and nature of active serum components and the mechanism by which they modulate leukocyte function remain to be clarified.

Cell Migration Inhibition↗
PubMed1990

Characterization of a Trichinella isolate from polar bear.

An isolate of Trichinella of polar bear origin was studied by isoenzymatic typing. It was found referable to Trichinella nativa. While the Wistar rats proved nearly refractory to this isolate, the Swiss albino mice were highly susceptible. Ninety-one per cent of the cystic lesions in the diaphragm of the polar bear contained viable larvae after over 20 years of acquisition of the infection by the host which is a case of extreme adaptability of the parasite to its host. The anatomo-pathological aspects of these lesions are studied and the zoonotic significance of this isolate examined.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

[Clinico-biological aspects of myositis due to Trichinella T3 with special regard to a rheumatologic study].

One hundred and fifty patients living in Salsomaggiore Terme developed signs and symptoms of trichinellosis after eating infected horse meat. The etiological agent was identified as Trichinella T3. This large outbreak gave us the opportunity of studying the rheumatic manifestations during this kind of parasitic disease. Myositis was observed in 62% of the entire series whereas arthralgias were recorded in only 20% of the patients. The muscle pain was described in several ways, but in the majority it appeared during isokinetic movements. The scapular girdle was involved much more than the pelvic girdle. Arthralgias correlated with the degree of myositis, thus allowing us to conclude that the involvement of the muscle groups proximal to the joint clearly determined a painful sensation in the joint itself. Our histopathologic data suggest that the eosinophils may play an important role in the myositis process.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

[Present knowledge of the taxonomy, distribution and biology of genera of Trichinella (Nematoda, Trichinellidae)].

The Trichinella genus, considered monospecific till 1972, is now composed of at least seven gene pools. The Soviet authors identified four of them as good species: T. spiralis, T. nativa, T. nelsoni and T. pseudospiralis. The biochemical approach identified three new taxonomic groups called Trichinella T3, T5, T6 on the operational level. Each gene pool has a well-defined distribution. T. spiralis only has a ubiquitous distribution due to passive importation caused by man. The life cycle of these nematodes unfolds inside of a single warm blood host. The ingested muscle larvae penetrate inside the columnar cells of the small intestine epithelium and develop into adult worms in four days. The females mate and produce 200-1500 larvae (newborn) according to the species from the 5th-6th day. Through the lymphatic vessels, the newborn larvae reach the thoracic duct and get to the parenteral niche. The larvae, reaching the striated skeletal muscles, penetrate the muscle cells and begin a parenteral life. During the first 20 days the larvae increase from 80 microns to 1 mm. After this rapid growth, the larvae, growing infectious, survive in the muscle cell awaiting ingestion into a new host.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Survival of Trichinella muscle larvae in frozen wolf tissue in Italy.

Living larvae were collected in central Italy from the masseters of a wolf frozen for 6 mo. These parasites were identified as a southern Palearctic species (Trichinella sp. 3) through gene-enzyme analysis. At the second passage in laboratory mice, the muscle larvae were unable to survive at - 10 C for 5 days. Biological and epidemiological implications are discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Trichinellosis in Thailand: epidemiology and biochemical identification of the aethiological agent.

The epidemiological picture of trichinellosis in Thailand is reported. In the last 25 years, about 3000 people have been affected with Trichinella and 85 patients died. The hill-tribe pig has been the main source of human infections. Parasites isolated from a patient in 1986 were shown, through isoenzymatic typing of 10 gene-enzyme systems, to be T. spiralis s.str. The epidemiological and zoogeographical implications are discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Studies on the cryopreservation of Trichinella species.

Methods for the cryopreservation of different stages of Trichinella parasites have been studied. For the cryopreservation of muscle stage larvae (MSL) of T. spiralis s.str. and T. nativa, four cryoprotectants were tested: dimethylsulfoxide, ethanediol, hydroxyethyl starch, and polyvinylpyrrolidone at different concentrations, times, and temperatures of incubation. The cooling rate was approximately 0.6 C min-1. After thawing and an incubation period of 3 hr, a high percentage (80%) of cryopreserved MSL were motile but were not infective for mice. For the cryopreservation of newborn larvae (NBL) of T. spiralis s.str., T. nativa, T. nelsoni, and T. pseudospiralis, 10% dimethylsulfoxide was used as cryoprotectant incubated at 37 C for 15 min. The cooling rate was also 0.6 C min-1. After storage in liquid nitrogen, thawing, and incubation of NBL in culture medium for 3 hr, 80% of NBL were motile. An average of 8% of T. spiralis, 6% T. nativa, and 0.5% T. pseudospiralis developed into MSL in mice. No cryopreserved NBL of T. nelsoni developed into MSL. Compared to unfrozen control groups NBL infectivity was 33% for T. spiralis, 21% for T. nativa, and 2% for T. pseudospiralis.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Third outbreak of trichinellosis caused by consumption of horse meat in Italy.

The clinical and epidemiological aspects of the largest Italian outbreak of human trichinellosis which occurred in Northern Italy in August 1986 are reported. About 300 people who ate raw horse meat were involved. The clinical and biological aspects of 161 patients were studied. None died. The causal parasite, isolated from a patient, was identified through isoenzymatic typing as Trichinella nelsoni. Fever, oedema, myalgia and headache were the most common signs and symptoms. The Fluorescent Antibody Test (FAT) proved positive for 96 percent of the patients showing clinical manifestations. Essential laboratory data are reported.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

[First aid and treatment of bites by snakes of the genus Vipera].

The amount of injected snake venom, the seriousness of the poisoning, the local and general clinical manifestations are influenced by several causes, which are analysed here. The most recent discoveries suggest the tight binding the bitten limb, extending the bandages as high as possible and applying a splint to the limb, in the first aid. The main steps of treatment, the laboratory tests, which may help the physician to follow the course of the poisoning, are then reported.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗
PubMed1988

Prospective rheumatological study of muscle and joint symptoms during Trichinella nelsoni infection.

One hundred and fifty patients were assessed during an outbreak of Trichinella infection in Northern Italy. The aetiological agent was proved to be T. nelsoni. A detailed prospective rheumatological study was carried out. Myalgia was observed in 88 per cent, muscle weakness in 60 per cent, myositis in 62 per cent and arthralgia in 20 per cent of the patients. The arthralgia score was strictly related to myalgias-myositis. The degree of myositis correlated with the degree of hypereosinophilia. Muscle damage in tissue samples was often observed in areas where eosinophils were the major cell population infiltrating the tissue. No relationship was seen between IgG antibody titers against Trichinella or IgE levels and clinical manifestations. Steroids, thiabendazole or mebendazole were not administered. We observed no CNS or heart involvement nor did we see vasculitis. After six months 18 patients, with the highest degree of myositis and hypereosinophilia had all improved. None showed abnormalities in laboratory tests and only four were still complaining of muscle aches. T. nelsoni-related infection appears to induce musculoskeletal symptoms in the majority of patients, but the long term course and prognosis is favourable.

Adolescent↗