Biomedical subjects

G Bartolucci

Publications and source records attributed to G Bartolucci.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Solid-state study of mepivacaine hydrochloride.

Different crystalline forms of the local anaesthetic mepivacaine hydrochloride (MH) were revealed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), not by conventional differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The existence of two polymorphic anhydrous modifications was discovered and further characterized by X-ray powder diffraction and thermal analysis: Form II, the commercial one, and the more stable Form I, obtained by re-crystallization from Form II. Two pseudopolymorphs were also obtained: Form III, a solvate crystallized from ethanol and Form IV, a solvate crystallized from methanol. Single crystal X-ray diffraction data for both solvates were collected and their structures were determined. Form II, metastable and monotropically related to Form I, generates through desolvation of Form III, very often present in industrial processing, where crystallization from ethanol solution is a common practice. For the sake of clarity, the presence of polymorphic forms should be reported in the drug master files of MH. However, since MH is readily water soluble, the observed polymorphism has no relevance to its typical clinical use as aqueous solutions.

Anesthetics, Local↗

PubMed2001

Cognitive-behavioral management of patients with bipolar disorder who relapsed while on lithium prophylaxis.

BACKGROUND: The application of cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) to patients with bipolar disorder who had an affective episode while on lithium prophylaxis has received little research attention. The aim of this preliminary study was to test whether reduction of residual symptomatology by cognitive-behavioral methods could yield long-term beneficial effects in patients with bipolar disorder, as was found to be the case in recurrent unipolar depression. METHOD: Fifteen patients with RDC bipolar disorder, type I, who relapsed while on lithium prophylaxis despite initial response and adequate compliance were treated by cognitive-behavioral methods in an open trial. A 2- to 9-year follow-up was performed. RESULTS: Five of the 15 patients had a new affective episode during follow-up. CBT was associated with a significant reduction of residual symptomatology. CONCLUSION: These preliminary results suggest that a trial of CBT may enhance lithium prophylaxis and improve long-term outcome of bipolar disorder.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Determination of phenoxyalkanoic acids and other herbicides at the ng/ml level in water by solid-phase extraction with poly(divinylbenzene-co-N-vinylpyrrolidone) sorbent and high-performance liquid chromatography--diode-array detection.

A method for the determination of phenoxyalkanoic acids and other polar compounds in environmental water samples without pH adjustment before extraction has been developed. Recoveries were calculated from 500 ml of milliQ water spiked at the level of 0.5 ng/ml using solid-phase extraction (SPE) and HPLC-DAD. Different SPE materials (RP-C18, ENV+, ENV+-C8, SAX and Oasis HLB) were tested. After method optimization, 15 of the 16 compounds studied could be extracted with recoveries better than 70% on the most suitable copolymeric poly(divinylbenzene-co-N-vinylpyrrolidone) material (Oasis HLB cartridges).

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗

PubMed2000

Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometric quantitation of sulfamethazine and its metabolites: direct analysis of swine urine by triple quadrupole and by ion trap mass spectrometry.

This work describes a new method for the quantitation of trace amounts of sulfamethazine (SMZ) and its main metabolite, N4-acetylsulfamethazine (Ac-SMZ), in swine urine, using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) tandem mass spectrometric analysis of crude urine after addition of internal standard and simple dilution with water. The aim was to determine whether residues of this sulfamidic drug, normally administered to swine in order to prevent infectious diseases, were present in urine at levels lower than those permitted by regulatory authorities before human consumption (EU Project SMT, contract number CT 96-2092). A 10 microL volume of diluted urine was injected into a very short, narrow-bore chromatographic column (Zorbax SB-C18 2.1 i. d. x30 mm length, 3.5 microm pore size). Elution of the analytes of interest was achieved in less than seven minutes using a rapid gradient (from 20 to 80% methanol in 3 minutes). Either a PE Sciex API 365 triple quadrupole (QqQ), operated in the selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode, or a Finnigan LCQ ion trap (IT) mass spectrometer, operated in narrow-range product ion scan, was used as the final detector. Electrospray (ESI) was used as the ionization technique. A comparison of the two tandem mass spectrometers was performed by analyzing the same set of test samples, at three concentration levels, on three different days. Linearity of responses of the calibration standards, intra- and inter-assay precision of the samples, specificity and limits of detection were evaluated for both systems. Both the QqQ and the IT instrument was suitable for rapid, sensitive and specific determination of the analytes, although the overall performance of the QqQ was slightly superior in terms of linearity, precision and sensitivity.

Animals↗

PubMed2000

High functioning autism and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder in half brothers.

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder (CDD) is grouped with autism as a subtype of Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) in ICD-10 and DSM-IV. This is the first report of autism and CDD cosegregating within a sibship. J. P. and M. P. are half-brothers with the same mother. J. P. is an 18-year-old with impairments in communication, social reciprocity, and stereotypies and was diagnosed with autism. M. P. is a 7-year-old who developed normally to 2 years 4 months. He then underwent a profound regression, becoming nonverbal and socially withdrawn, and lost adaptive skills. Investigations did not reveal any neurodegenerative process. M. P. was diagnosed with CDD. The rarity of the two conditions suggests a shared transmissible mechanism. The implications for autism/PDD genetic studies are discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2000

The familial aggregation of the lesser variant in biological and nonbiological relatives of PDD probands: a family history study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the risk of the lesser variant (or PDD-like traits) in the biological and nonbiological second- and third-degree relatives of PDD probands using a screening questionnaire and to investigate the extent to which the risk of the lesser variant differs according to various characteristics of the proband. METHOD: The sample consists of a series of 34 nuclear families with 2 affected PDD children (multiplex, MPX), 44 families with a single PDD child (simplex, SPX), and 14 families who adopted a PDD child. Data on characteristics of the lesser variant in 1362 biological and 337 nonbiological second- and third-degree relatives were collected from parents by telephone interview and from several maternal and paternal relatives by questionnaire. RESULTS: All components of the lesser variant were more common in biological relatives (BR) than nonbiological relatives (NBR), confirming the familial aggregation of the traits. Proband characteristics associated with an increased risk of the lesser variant in relatives were a higher level of functioning and coming from a MPX family. CONCLUSIONS: These findings on the familial aggregation of the lesser variant suggest that the genes for PDD also confer susceptibility to the lesser variant and that PDD may be a genetically heterogeneous disorder.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Development of a solid phase microextraction method for detection of the use of banned azo dyes in coloured textiles and leather

A new method to detect the use of banned azo dyes in the manufacture and treatment of coloured textiles and leather is described. The determination of the azo dyes was made by quantification of aromatic amines generated by reductive cleavage in a citrate buffer medium. The aromatic amines were then extracted from 1 mL of the reaction solution by means of solid phase microextraction (SPME) and determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). We also evaluate accuracy, precision, range of linearity and limit of detection for the eighteen aromatic amines investigated, and show that the method is comparable with current established methods. Copyright 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1999

Familial factors influence level of functioning in pervasive developmental disorder.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether siblings with pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) tend to have the same type and number of PDD symptoms or a similar level of functioning. METHOD: The familial correlations for PDD subtype, symptom totals, adaptive behaviors, and nonverbal IQ were calculated for 94 children with PDD from 46 families. RESULTS: On variables measuring PDD symptoms, only impairments in nonverbal communication and verbal/nonverbal status tended to run true within families. There was no familial aggregation of PDD subtype. In contrast, measures of nonverbal IQ and adaptive behaviors in socialization and communication showed a moderate degree of familial resemblance. The degree of familial resemblance did not change if the analysis was restricted only to those families in which both affected children met criteria for autism. CONCLUSION: Insofar as the familial resemblance seen in PDD is due to genetic factors, these data provide some evidence that higher- and lower-functioning PDD children may arise from separate genetic mechanisms. Current gene-mapping studies of PDD may need to take this evidence of genetic heterogeneity into account.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1998

Inter-laboratory validation of solid-phase microextraction for the determination of triazine herbicides and their degradation products at ng/l level in water samples.

The accuracy and precision of solid-phase microextraction (SPME) were validated in an inter-laboratory study including ten laboratories for the analysis of triazine herbicides and their metabolites at ng/l level in aqueous samples. The SPME conditions were optimised in order to obtain maximum sensitivity. Especially, salt addition and choice of the SPME fibre coated with Carbowax-divinylbenzene increased the sensitivity. The average detection limits were in the range from 4 to 24 ng/l for the triazine herbicides, and 20 and 40 ng/l for desisopropylatrazine and desethylatrazine, respectively. The average r2 values of the calibration curves were above 0.99 for all of the analytes. The statistical data treatment was performed in accordance with the International Standardisation Organisation (ISO) standard 5725. Relative repeatability standard deviations between 6 and 14% and relative reproducibility standard deviations between 10 and 17% were found. The determined concentrations of the reference sample compared well to the "true" values, thus proving the good accuracy of the method. It is concluded that SPME is a reliable technique for the quantitative analysis of water samples containing triazine herbicides in concentrations around the European limit of 100 ng/l for individual pesticides in drinking water.

Calibration↗

PubMed1998

Reliability and accuracy of differentiating pervasive developmental disorder subtypes.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the ability of the DSM-IV criteria for the pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) to reliably and accurately differentiate PDD subtypes. METHOD: The sample consisted of 143 children with various types of developmental disabilities. A diagnosis of PDD and PDD subtype was made by one clinician using information obtained from the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule. The raw data from the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised, clinical notes (excluding diagnostic opinion), Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, IQ, and other available data were independently assessed by three experienced raters, each of whom then made a separate, blind diagnosis. If there was any disagreement, a consensus best-estimate (CBE) diagnosis was made after discussion. To assess reliability, the agreement between the three raters was calculated using k. Accuracy was assessed by calculating the agreement between the clinician's diagnosis and the CBE and by calculating the error rates associated with the three raters using latent class analysis. RESULTS: The current DSM-IV criteria show good to excellent reliability for the diagnosis of PDD, Asperger's disorder (AsD), and autism, but they show poor reliability for the diagnosis of atypical autism. The clinician (compared to the CBE) had little difficulty differentiating PDD from non-PDD children and autism from AsD but had more difficulty identifying children with atypical autism. The latent class analysis also showed that the average error rates of the three raters for a differentiation of atypical autism from autism were unacceptably high. CONCLUSIONS: Although the psychometric properties of the current DSM-IV criteria for autism and AsD appear quite acceptable, there is likely to be a high rate of misclassification of children given a diagnosis of atypical autism.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

High phenotypic correlations among siblings with autism and pervasive developmental disorders.

The objective of this study was to examine familial factors influencing clinical variation in sibships that contained at least 2 children affected with autism or another form of pervasive developmental disorder (PDD). The sample included a total of 60 families, 23 with multiple cases of PDD and 37 with a single affected child. Measurements of IQ, adaptive behaviors in socialization and communication, and autistic symptoms were taken on all affected children. A high intraclass correlation, especially on IQ and an index of social behaviors, was observed between affected children from the same family. In contrast, low correlations were observed on measurements of IQ and adaptive behavior between affected and unaffected children from the same family. These data indicate that variation in severity of PDD is influenced by familial, and probably genetic, mechanisms. The results are discussed in relation to current theories on the genetics of autism and the heritable mechanisms underlying variations in clinical severity.

Autistic Disorder↗

PubMed1995

Synthesis of 5,6,6-[2H3]finasteride and quantitative determination of finasteride in human plasma at picogram level by an isotope-dilution mass spectrometric method.

Finasteride is a potent inhibitor of the enzyme steroid 5 alpha-reductase now approved as a drug for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia. We describe an original method for the quantitative determination of finasteride at picogram level in human plasma by isotope-dilution gas chromatography mass spectrometry. 5,6,6-[2H3]Finasteride was synthesized with an high ratio of trideuteration (finasteride/[2H3]finasteride = 0.007) allowing its optimal use as internal standard. Plasma samples were purified in a single-step procedure on solid-phase extraction C18 columns with a recovery > or = 90%. Samples were injected in the GC-MS instrument without any derivatization and the minimum detection level of finasteride was 50 pg with a signal-to-noise ratio of 6:1. The coefficients of variation for the 5 and 10 ng/ml (plasma) concentrations were 5.8% and 4%, respectively. The method has been applied to the determination of the plasma pharmacokinetic of finasteride in five male volunteers treated with a single 5-mg dose of the drug, affording kinetic parameters which are in good agreement with the values previously reported with a different methodology. The present method results accurate, specific, sensible and reliable for a routinely determination of finasteride at picogram levels.

Deuterium↗

PubMed1995

Parents and collateral relatives of children with pervasive developmental disorders: a family history study.

The objective of this study was to see whether, using the family history method, the risk for pervasive developmental disorder (PDD), cognitive impairments, and other psychiatric symptoms is greater in the parents and collateral relatives of probands with PDD compared to a control group. A semistructured family history interview was carried out with the parents of 52 probands with PDD and 33 parents of controls. Rates of cognitive impairments and psychiatric problems were not found more frequently in parents or relatives of PDD probands compared to relatives of controls, but four cases of PDD were reported among the extended families of the PDD probands. The relatives with PDD were related to the probands through the maternal line, possibly suggesting some form of maternal influence on inheritance or reduced penetrance in females with the PDD genotype.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1995

A case of experiential hallucinations of unknown origins, or the mystery of the mime.

A case is described of repetitive familiar activities apparently accompanied by a hallucinated physical environment in an older brain-injured man with an amputation of the left temporal lobe. A parallel is drawn to the 'experiential hallucinations' described in psychomotor seizures and direct stimulation of the cortex.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1994

Cohesive discourse in pervasive developmental disorders.

Investigated the use of cohesive links to create a reciprocal conversation in individuals with autism, Asperger syndrome, and a control group of children and adolescents with nonspecific social problems. All subjects engaged in a 10-minute conversation with an examiner that touched on various topics. The conversation was audiotaped, transcribed, and coded blindly for several types of cohesive links. Compared to controls, the higher functioning autistic group referred less to a previous stretch of the conversation and more to an aspect of the physical environment. The Asperger group, on the other hand, was very similar to the controls except they made more unclear references that were difficult to interpret. Implications of these findings for understanding the communicative failure of subjects with pervasive developmental disorder are discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1994

Tentative classification of neuropsychiatric disturbances in Prader-Willi syndrome.

Prader-Willi syndrome presents behavioural characteristics at the temperamental level which can be described as oppositional, explosive and at times antisocial. These traits may fluctuate and be driven by unknown biological anxiety symptoms are also frequent. Delusional psychotic thinking is manifest in some cases, but may be latent in several such patients. A third set of manifestations is a 'refusal-lethargy' syndrome of akinesis, refusal of food and drink, and soiling, which seems to be triggered by environmental circumstances but resembles the hypersomnic, lethargic depressions. These three sets of phenomena are documented through the clinical observation of nine cases and may be useful in the study of the genotype-phenotype relationship in this and other syndromes, particularly those in which similar manifestations are observed and cyclic changes are seen. The use of drugs in this syndrome can also become more rational if this classification is used to identify clearer targets for treatment. The possibility that most manifestations of the syndrome may be an expression of a hyposerotonergic defect is suggested.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Neurocirculatory asthenia: a reassessment using modern psychosomatic criteria.

The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of mental illness and to evaluate the quality of life of patients with neurocirculatory asthenia. A consecutive series of 80 patients who satisfied the diagnostic criteria developed by Kannel et al. for neurocirculatory asthenia was included in this study. Patients underwent a psychiatric diagnostic research interview and extensive psychometric evaluation, with both observer and self-rated scales for depression, anxiety, phobic symptoms, quality of life and abnormal illness behavior. In 47 patients (59%), a psychiatric diagnosis (mainly an anxiety disorder) antedated the onset of neurocirculatory asthenia, which was thus defined as secondary, also because cardiorespiratory symptoms were part of the mental symptoms. In the remaining 33 patients (41%) neurocirculatory asthenia was the primary disorder. Patients with secondary neurocirculatory asthenia reported significantly higher levels of anxiety, depression, social phobia, abnormal illness behavior and an impaired quality of life compared with patients with primary neurocirculatory asthenia. This latter did not significantly differ in these variables (except for depression) from healthy control subjects matched for sociodemographic variables. At a 1-year follow-up, patients with primary neurocirculatory asthenia had a much better prognosis than those with secondary neurocirculatory asthenia. The results indicate the feasibility of the primary/secondary distinction based on the time of onset of mental and cardiorespiratory symptoms in neurocirculatory asthenia. Since only about one quarter of the patients were found to suffer from decreased energy and fatigue according to specified criteria, the terms neurocirculatory asthenia and effort syndrome should probably be discarded.

Adult↗

PubMed1993

Lack of cognitive impairment in first-degree relatives of children with pervasive developmental disorders.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that mild cognitive impairments aggregate in the unaffected first-degree relatives of probands with autism or pervasive developmental disorders (PDD). METHOD: The unaffected siblings and parents of 52 PDD probands and 33 Down syndrome and low birth weight controls were administered a battery of psychometric tests. The tests included measures previously found to be depressed in siblings of autistic children as well as cognitive deficits seen in PDD subjects of normal IQ. In addition, the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales were administered to siblings to measure the social-communication impairments found in PDD. RESULTS: Neither the siblings nor parents of the PDD probands demonstrated lower cognitive or adaptive behavior scores compared with controls. Developmental histories did not reveal greater rates of social, cognitive, or language delays, nor was there evidence to suggest that relatives of subgroups of PDD probands were different from each other. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that, apart from relatives with PDD, cognitive and social impairments do not aggregate in the families of PDD probands.

Adolescent↗