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Biomedical subjects

F Cava

Publications and source records attributed to F Cava.

17 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Biological variation of interleukin-1beta, interleukin-8 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in serum of healthy individuals.

Components of biological variation can be used to assess the usefulness of reference values, to evaluate the significance of changes in serial results from an individual and to define objective analytical goals. The aim of the study was to assess, in 15 healthy subjects studied at regular monthly intervals over a period of 6 consecutive months, the biological variation of interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta), interleukin-8 (IL-8), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). Biological variation data (within-subject and between-subject coefficient of variation (CV)) were determined using a simple nested analysis of variance. Derived parameters (index of individuality, reliability coefficient and critical diferences) were calculated from within-subject and between-subject CV. The mean and standard deviation (SD), within-subject CV, between-subject CV, index of individuality and reliability coefficient were as follows: for IL-1beta, 0.67 (0.32) pg/ml, 30%, 36%, 0.85, and 0.76; for IL-8, 3.68 (1.45) pg/ml, 24%, 31%, 0.85 and 0.75; and for TNF-alpha, 3.14 (1.87) pg/ml, 43%, 29%, 1.56 and 0.50, respectively. We conclude that between-subject variation and within-subject variation are quite similar for IL-1beta and IL-8 and are relatively high for the three cytokines studied. Index of individuality is less than 1.4 for IL-1beta and IL-8, and thus reference intervals based on population studies are of limited value. On the contrary, the index of individuality for TNF-alpha is greater than 1.4 and reference values can be used for diagnosis. Quality goals for imprecision are easily achieved for the three cytokines with current methodology.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Biological variation of interleukin 6 (IL-6) and soluble interleukin 2 receptor (sIL2R) in serum of healthy individuals.

The biological variation of interleukin 6 (IL-6) and soluble interleukin 2 receptor (sIL2R), measured by automated enzyme immunoassay, in fifteen subjects studied at regular monthly intervals over a period of 6 consecutive months was measured. The mean and standard deviation (SD), within-subject CV, between-subject CV, individuality index (II) and reliability coefficient (R) were as follow: for sIL2R 571 (231) U/ml, 5.84%, 38.81%, 0.21 and 0.93; and for IL-6 1.43 (0.9) pg/ml, 48.48%, 39.38%, 1.44, and 0.37. The data indicate a relatively high between-subject CV, quite similar in both cases, and a within-subject CV much higher for IL-6 than for sIL2R. Thus, reference values can be used for diagnosis for IL6 (high II), while not for sIL2R (low II). However, the low R for IL-6 implies that more than one measurement are needed. sIL2R has a very high R and a relatively small critical differences, a circumstance appropriate for follow-up.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

[The self-measurement of blood glucose and mean glycemias in patients with diabetes mellitus].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the influence that self-measurement of capillary blood glucose (SMBG) has on glucaemia control in patients with diabetes mellitus. DESIGN: Quasi-experimental before and after study. SETTING: Semi-urban health centre. PATIENTS: All diabetic patients, with at least two years of evolution, who used reactive strips for SMBG in 1996. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Mean values of base glucaemia in the SMBG study year were compared with those of the year before in 85 patients, 33 men and 52 women, with average age 62.38. Thirteen were type 1 and 72 type 2 diabetics, with a mean 15.61 years of evolution of the disease. A drop of -11.47 mg/dl (SD 44.32) was observed, which was significant (p < 0.05, CI 95%) in the overall results. In all the subgroups, except those treated with non-pharmacological measures, there were drops, ranging between -2.17 mg/dl and -17.01 mg/dl, which were significant in women, in patients with type 2 diabetes, in those who had received health education and in those treated with non-pharmacological measures plus insulin. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the limitations of this kind of study, our findings point towards a slightly better control of glucaemia levels in diabetic patients after SMBG. It is very doubtful whether it signifies any real improvement in managing the illness.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Current databases on biological variation: pros, cons and progress.

A database with reliable information to derive definitive analytical quality specifications for a large number of clinical laboratory tests was prepared in this work. This was achieved by comparing and correlating descriptive data and relevant observations with the biological variation information, an approach that had not been used in the previous efforts of this type. The material compiled in the database was obtained from published articles referenced in BIOS, CURRENT CONTENTS, EMBASE and MEDLINE using "biological variation & laboratory medicine" as key words, as well as books and doctoral theses provided by their authors. The database covers 316 quantities and reviews 191 articles, fewer than 10 of which had to be rejected. The within- and between-subject coefficients of variation and the subsequent desirable quality specifications for precision, bias and total error for all the quantities accepted are presented. Sex-related stratification of results was justified for only four quantities and, in these cases, quality specifications were derived from the group with lower within-subject variation. For certain quantities, biological variation in pathological states was higher than in the healthy state. In these cases, quality specifications were derived only from the healthy population (most stringent). Several quantities (particularly hormones) have been treated in very few articles and the results found are highly discrepant. Therefore, professionals in laboratory medicine should be strongly encouraged to study the quantities for which results are discrepant, the 90 quantities described in only one paper and the numerous quantities that have not been the subject of study.

Clinical Laboratory Techniques↗
PubMed1996

Acid-base disturbances in the rabbit during experimental hepatic parasitosis.

Acid-base disturbances were examined during experimentally induced infection in the rabbit with Eimeria stiedai, a parasite that profoundly modifies liver morphology and physiology, resulting in anatomical and functional alterations similar to those appearing in different human hepatic diseases. Over 28 days of infection, bicarbonate and lactate concentrations, partial pressures of O2 and CO2, and pH values were determined in the blood and bile of infected animals and compared with the values obtained in noninfected rabbits. The plasma activity of several liver-indicator enzymes was also evaluated. Under our experimental conditions we observed an uncompensated metabolic acidosis that developed with elevated levels of lactate and reduced concentrations of bicarbonate in blood and bile and tended to be compensated by respiratory and biliary mechanisms.

Acid-Base Imbalance↗
PubMed1995

Olive oil- and sunflower oil-fried sardines in the prevention of rat hypercholesterolemia.

The effect of diets containing olive-oil-fried sardines (diet 1) or sunflower-oil-fried sardines (diet 3) upon the serum cholesterol-raise induced by dietary cholesterol was studied after a 4-week experiment in growing Wistar rats. Results of diet 1 were compared to those obtained in diets containing casein plus olive oil (diet 2), whereas results of diet 3 were compared to those obtained with casein plus sunflower oil (diet 4). All diets contained cholesterol and bovine bile as a cholesterol-raising agent. The hypercholesterolemic effect of dietary cholesterol in fried-sardine groups (a total cholesterol (TC) increase of 0.9 mmol/L (p < 0.05 and 0.4 mmol/L (not significant) in groups 1 and 3, respectively) was markedly lower than in groups 2 and 4 (a TC increase of 13.9 mmol/L (p < 0.01) and 18.2 mmol/L (p < 0.01), respectively). Serum triglyceride levels decreased in fried-sardine diets (p < 0.05) while they increased in casein diets (p < 0.05). HDL-cholesterol levels appear lower in diet 1 than in diet 2 (p < 0.05), but similar in diets 3 and 4. However, HDL-fraction carries in diets 1, 2, 3 and 4, 13%, 4%, 53% and 5% of TC, respectively. Results showed that fried-sardine diets exert a powerful check effect on the cholesterol-raising effect induced by dietary cholesterol.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Inhibition of biliary lipid and protein secretion by cyclosporine A in the rat.

We investigated the effect of cyclosporine A (CyA) administered as a single i.v. dose of 20 and 40 mg/kg body wt, on biliary secretion of cholesterol, phospholipid, bile acid, and lysosomal marker and canalicular plasma membrane marker enzymes in anaesthetized Wistar rats. CyA reduced the concentration and biliary secretion of cholesterol, phospholipid and bile acid to a considerable extent; the inhibitory effect of CyA on the biliary secretion of phospholipid and bile acid was greater than that on cholesterol. The biliary outputs of acid phosphatase (AcP) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (gamma-GT) were also diminished by the drug, all these effects being dose-dependent. Maximum decreases in bile acid secretion were observed 10 min after administration, whereas those of cholesterol and phospholipid were delayed. Bile acid concentrations and secretion returned to pretest values at 30-50 min after CyA injection whereas those of cholesterol and phospholipid remained significantly reduced at this time point. The greater inhibitory effect of CyA on the biliary outputs of phospholipid and bile acid relative to cholesterol secretion together with the asynchronous fall and recovery of bile acid, cholesterol and phospholipid concentrations and secretion alter the cholesterol/bile acid, phospholipid/bile acid and cholesterol/phospholipid molar ratios as well as the lithogenic index, thus suggesting that CyA would uncouple biliary lipid secretion from bile acid secretion. Since under physiological conditions biliary lipid and gamma-GT secretion is related to and dependent upon bile acid secretion, we propose that the CyA-induced inhibition on lipid and gamma-GT secretion is, at least partly, secondary to the fall in bile acid output caused by the drug. However, since CyA inhibits secretory processes independent of the hepatobiliary flux of bile acid, such as the exocytic discharge of AcP, and because it also uncouples biliary lipid from bile acid secretion, other mechanisms and factors involved in lipid and protein secretion (such as intracellular transport, canalicular membrane fluidity and/or intracanalicular events) might also be altered by this drug.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Inhibition of biliary cholesterol and phospholipid secretion by cefmetazole. The role of vesicular transport and of canalicular events.

A number of organic anions selectively inhibit the biliary secretion of cholesterol and phospholipids without affecting bile acid secretion. We studied the effect of cefmetazole, a third-generation cephalosporin, on biliary lipid secretion in the rat. Injection of cefmetazole at a dose of 200 mumol/kg body wt. induced a choleretic effect and a significant decrease in the biliary output of cholesterol and phospholipid, without changes in bile acid secretion. The decrease was more marked for cholesterol than for phospholipid secretion, with a significant decrease in their molar ratio in bile. The effects were apparently unrelated to an inhibition of intracellular vesicular transport because, after injection of horseradish peroxidase, both the time course and total amount secreted of the protein did not significantly differ between control animals and those receiving cefmetazole. The secretory rate of the lysosomal marker acid phosphatase was not affected by cefmetazole administration. Biliary outputs of the plasma-membrane enzymes alkaline phosphatase and gamma-glutamyltransferase were significantly decreased by the antibiotic. These results point to an effect of cefmetazole at the level of the canalicular membrane.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗
PubMed1991

Carbohydrate antigen 15-3 and mucinous carbohydrate antigen immunoreactivities in human seminal plasma.

Carbohydrate antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3) and mucinous carbohydrate antigen (MCA) immunoreactivities were detected in human seminal plasma. Mean values for CA 15-3 (8.2 +/- 3.7 U/ml, range 2.6 - 18.4 U/ml) and MCA (13.8 +/- 8.2 U/ml, range 2.1-31.9 U/ml) in the seminal plasma were of the same magnitude as that found in serum. No correlation was obtained between seminal plasma, either CA 15-3 or MCA immunoreactivities, and volume of seminal plasma, sperm count or percent of motile spermatozoa. Seminal plasma CA 15-3 and MCA levels were significantly (p less than 0.001) correlated (r = 0.55). The nature and origin of CA 15-3 and MCA immunoreactivities in human plasma are unknown.

Antigens, Neoplasm↗
PubMed1990

Vitamin B6 status in uremia.

We have studied vitamin B6 status in 26 uremic patients, 18 on maintenance hemodialysis and 8 nonhemodialyzed. The vitamin B6 status was estimated by an assay of erythrocyte aspartate aminotransferase and coenzyme stimulation. Hemodialyzed uremic patients were found to have vitamin B6 deficiency. Patients were treated with 150 mg pyridoxine hydrochloride daily for 4 weeks. Erythrocyte aspartate aminotransferase increased significantly in both groups of uremic patients, the increase being greater in hemodialyzed patients. In vitro pyridoxal phosphate stimulation produces an erythrocyte aspartate aminotransferase activity greater than that obtained before pyridoxine hydrochloride administration. After cessation of pyridoxine hydrochloride treatment, erythrocyte aspartate aminotransferase decreases in hemodialyzed patients, while it remains elevated in nonhemodialyzed patients. The data obtained appear to indicate that vitamin B6 administration to patients with chronic renal insufficiency must be appraised not only for correcting the deficit but also for increasing the intracellular pyridoxal phosphate concentration, which could modify the possible functional impairment at the level of apoenzymes that use pyridoxal phosphate.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Choleretic mechanism and effects of cyclobutyrol in the rat: dose-response relationship.

Although there is general agreement on the hydrocholeretic properties of the so-called "synthetic choleretics" on biliary secretion, related simply to the kinetics of excretion, recent studies suggest that some of these drugs also have a pharmacodynamic effect; mainly, stimulation of bile acid secretion. In the present work, we studied the biliary response to different doses of cyclobutyrol (CB) in order to determine whether this agent stimulates the secretion of bile acids and to establish the relationships between dose and the choleretic effects in anaesthetized rats. Biliary bile flow, sodium, potassium, chloride and bicarbonate outputs were found to be increased and bile acid concentrations reduced in a dose-dependent fashion after 0.40, 0.54, 0.80, 1.08 and 2.16 mmol/kg b.wt. of CB administration. All assayed doses had no effect on the bile acids secretion rate. These findings suggest that a) CB-induced choleresis is unrelated to bile acids; b) CB and bile acids do not compete for the hepatobiliar transport mechanisms, despite the anionic character of both compounds, and c) in the rat the active mechanisms involved in the biliary elimination of CB are not saturated even at the large doses employed.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1989

Inhibition of biliary cholesterol and phospholipid secretion during cyclobutyrol-induced hydrocholeresis.

The effects of sodium cyclobutyrate, a synthetic hydrocholeretic drug, on biliary lipid secretion and on the biliary outputs of several plasma-membrane enzymes were investigated in anaesthetized rats. Administration of a single oral dose of cyclobutyrol (0.72 mmol/kg body wt.) reduced biliary concentration and output of cholesterol and phospholipid. However, bile acid secretion was not significantly modified. This uncoupling effect of lipid secretion remained even when the choleretic response to the drug had ceased. It additionally led to a statistically significant decrease in the cholesterol/bile acid and phospholipid/bile acid molar ratios and in the lithogenic index of the bile. The biliary outputs of the plasma-membrane enzymes alkaline phosphatase and gamma-glutamyltransferase were markedly reduced by the drug. When cyclobutyrol was administered to rats which had been previously fed with a high-cholesterol diet, the effects of cyclobutyrol persisted, but were less marked. Our results demonstrate that the bile acid-independent choleresis induced by cyclobutyrol (related to its pharmacokinetic effect) is accompanied by a pharmacodynamic action that selectively reduces the secretion of biliary lipids. This is due to an uncoupling of the secretion of cholesterol and phospholipids from that of bile acids. Possible explanations for the biliary response to cyclobutyrol are discussed.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗