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Biomedical subjects

E Sacchetti

Publications and source records attributed to E Sacchetti.

50 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1977

Pituitary-gonadal function in heroin addicts.

The present study deals with pituitary-gonadal function in male heroin addicts, 6 patients with schizophrenia and 31 with mild personality disorders. We examined the serum follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH) and testosterone levels at the moment of hospitalization (at the maximum of heroin addiction), and 48 h and 10 days later. FSH levels were definitely reduced in all the patients and did not change during the period of heroin withdrawal. The LH levels were reduced to a lesser extent, but significantly, and did not change after 10 days of abstinence from the drug. Testosterone levels were very low and increased in the schizophrenics during withdrawal, but not in the other addicts. The possible influence of heroin addiction on catecholamine metabolism in the central nervous system and, therefore, on the hypothalamic releasing factor and pituitary gonadotrophins, and the peripheral effect on testicular function are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

Histocompatibility antigens and effects of neuroactive drugs on phytohaemagglutinin stimulation of lymphocytes in vitro.

The effects of a psychopharmacological agent, sulpiride, and of some neuromediators, dopamine, norepinephrine and propranolol, on the uptake of 3H-thymidine by lymphocytes stimulated in vitro with phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) were studied. The lymphoctes were obtained from two populations of subjects, one with HLA-AL CRAG antigens of the HLA-SD series and one without. We found that the presence of the CRAG antigens in the lymphocytes led in the presence of the various drugs to behaviour different from what was seen when the antigens were not present. When the two groups were pooled, PHA lymphocytes activation was inhibited by dopamine, sulpiride, and propranolol and was not effected by norepinephrine.

Cross Reactions↗
PubMed1976

N-methylnicotinamide excretion and affective disorders.

N-Methylnicotinamide urinary output is examined in 38 healthy volunteers, 52 patients with secondary affective disorders (SAD), 55 patients with primary affective disorders (PAD) and 46 healthy first-degree relatives of PAD patients. The results indicate (1) that in PAD patients and their first-degree relatives the frequency of low N1-MN excretion was significantly higher (P less than 0-001) than in healthy controls and in patients with secondary affective disorders, and (2) that PAD patients have a consistently low N1-MN output, at all times constant and independent of the clinical phases of the disease. These findings provide evidence that the low N1-MN levels may represent an index of a biological background linked to a high morbidity risk for primary affective disorders. The theoretical implications deriving from these data are briefly discussed.

Adjustment Disorders↗
PubMed1976

HLA-SD antigens and schizophrenia: statistical and genetical considerations.

The HLA-SD phenotype distributions of hebephrenic and paranoid schizophrenics, and of the two groups combined, in an Italian population and in a combined group from the Swedish population have been analyzed statistically. There is a significantly decreased frequency of HLA-A10 in all of these. Theae are some preliminary indications of an increased frequency (a positive association) for some of the other antigens of the HLA-SD series, but there is insufficient data at present for evaluating the significance of these findings. Differences between hebephrenic and paranoid schizophrenics have been detected.

Diagnosis, Differential↗
PubMed1976

MHPG, amitriptyline and affective disorders. A longitudinal study.

The daily urinary excretion of 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) were studied longitudinally in five unipolar depressed patients. The patients were followed first during a pretreatment period, and then during a treatment period in which amitriptyline was administered. The data we have obtained suggest that: (1) there is a wide individual variability in MHPG pretreatment levels: (2) amitriptyline modifies MHPG levels in a way which seems to be related to the pretreatment MHPG; (3) amitriptyline may produce a sustained improvement in depressive symptoms, independent of the pretreatment MHPG values, and (4) the time course of modifications in MHPG excretion is shorter than the time course of improvement in depression. Some theoretical implication of these findings are discussed in terms of the catecholamine hypothesis of affective disorders.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

The HLA system and the clinical response to treatment with chlorpromazine.

A group of 33 schizophrenic patients were typed for HLA-SD antigens and their qualitative clinical responses to chlorpromazine therapy determined. A highly significant positive correlation was found between response to chlorpromazine and HLA-AI positive, while HLA-A2 positive subjects showed a significant negative correlation to chlorpromazine treatment. In a second group of 17 patients the clinical response to chlorpromazine were evaluated quantitatively, by WPRS, in HLA-AI positive and HLA-AI negative patients. There were no pre-treatment differences in the scores. After treatment the scores of positive patients were significantly lower, indicating that they responded to a greater degree. Since the frequency of HLA-AI in hebephrenic patients is higher than that in other schizophrenics this may explain our earlier finding that hebephrenics, as a group, respond better to chlorpromazine than do other schizophrenics.

Anxiety↗
PubMed1976

Interference of sulpiride with the mitogenic activation of lymphocytes cultured in vitro.

The action of a psychotropic substance, N-ethyl-2(2-methoxy-5--sulfamido-benzamidomethyl)-pyrrolidine (sulpiride, Dobren), on cellular metabolism has been studied by means of the in vitro lymphocyte activation technique. The effect of the continuous presence of the compound in the culture, at a concentration permitting cellular vitality was evaluated. Furthermore the effect of the drug on the culture during the lymphocyte stimulating phase and during the incorporation phase of 3H-thymidine was separately evaluated. The results indicate that the sample population can be divided into two different groups depending on the modality of the response to the drug in vitro taken as activity index (A.I.). Whether our conclusion has any practical significance remains to be elucidated.

Cell Survival↗
PubMed1975

N1-Methylnicotinamide urinary output in multiple sclerosis affected patients.

This brief report develops the ideas of some previous works underlying a possible functional disequilibrium of tryptophan metabolism in patients affected by Multiple Sclerosis (M.S.) and in animals with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis. So, the urinary excretion of one of the terminal metabolites of the kynurenine pathway of tryptophan, the N1-Methylnicotinamide has been confronted in M.S. patients and in healthy volunteers, in order to put in evidence a possible alteration of the same in M.S. patients. The A.A. could not find any significant difference of the N1-Methylnicotinamide urinary output between controls and M.S. patients; afterwards they have critically revised this result.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Cortical atrophy in schizophrenia. Prevalence and associated features.

The degree of cortical atrophy as revealed by computed tomographic scans was assessed in 124 patients meeting the DSM III criteria for schizophrenia and in 45 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. 21 patients, i.e., 33% of the entire sample, showed moderate to severe atrophy. The presence of atrophy was not associated with such variables as patients' age, age at onset and duration of illness, diagnostic subtype of schizophrenia, family history of schizophrenia in first degree relatives, history of suicidal behavior, I.Q., employment status, clinical outcome on neuroleptic treatment and HLA antigens distribution. The only variables found to be associated with atrophy were: male sex and cerebral ventricular enlargement. The significance of the CT finding of cortical atrophy in schizophrenia is discussed in the light of these results.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Heterogeneity of major affective disorders. Biological and clinical evidence.

In this paper we summarize the results of our recent and present research focused on analyzing the correlations between neurochemical, pharmacological and clinical parameters in patients with Major Depression. There is evidence that: a) pretreatment urinary MHPG is a useful predictor for clinical response to tricyclic antidepressants and to long-term lithium treatment; b) urinary MHPG is positively correlated to the age at onset of the disease; c) previous responses to tricyclics and age at onset of affective illness are supplementary tools for predicting the effectiveness of lithium and antidepressant drugs; d) platelet alpha-2-adrenoceptor density is inversely correlated with both urinary MHPG and age at onset; e) cerebral ventricular size is positively correlated with urinary MHPG and age at onset and may discriminate between patients with different outcomes on lithium prophylaxis; f) low MHPG excretors are more likely to have suffered from stressful life events in early childhood than normal-to-high excretors. Taken together, these results lend strong support to the hypothesis that Major Affective Disorder is a heterogeneous illness and that inherently different subgroups of affective patients can be recognized.

Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic↗