Superoxide anion production and dietary treatment in chronic renal failure.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to G Carulli.
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The effect of lithium treatment on the impaired neutrophil chemotactic function of a patient affected by Shwachman-Diamond syndrome is reported. We found that (1) a cytoskeletal cellular defect seems to be involved in the impairment of neutrophil function (and perhaps of cellular secretion and chondrocyte function) in the syndrome; (2) intermittent neutropenia is always present in the syndrome, and (3) lithium seems capable, in addition to its capacity of inducing leukocytosis, of modulating leukocyte functions by modulating the microtubular system. The drug, at usual therapeutic dosage, was able to normalize neutrophil functions without side effects. As no therapy is available in this syndrome to date, our data suggest the therapeutic use of lithium in order to improve these cytoskeleton-mediated functions and the degree of neutropenia.
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Lithium (Li) has been shown to increase the platelet number after chemotherapy. The present paper suggests that Li may increase the platelet aggregation induced by sub-optimal concentrations of ADP. Conversely, rubidium does not modify platelet aggregation in the present experiments.
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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.
The aim of this work was to evaluate the phytohaemagglutinin-induced aggregation of circulating neutrophils isolated from 25 patients affected by chronic myeloproliferative syndromes (polycythaemia vera, chronic myeloid leukaemia in chronic phase, and essential thrombocythaemia). The results showed a lesser aggregating capacity in chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) and an opposite behaviour in polycythaemia vera and essential thrombocythaemia. Patients with polycythaemia vera whose neutrophils showed a greater aggregating capacity were shown to have had various vascular complications.
Serum levels of total cholesterol and triglycerides were studied in 202 patients affected by various hematological malignancies at the time of diagnosis. A hypocholesterolemia was found in 44% of patients affected by lymphoproliferative diseases and acute lymphoblastic leukemia, with an evident correlation with the clinical stage (5.7% of patients in nonadvanced stages, 67.8% in advanced stages). In acute and chronic myeloproliferative diseases, the overall incidence of hypocholesterolemia was 71%. In particular, a greater incidence of low cholesterol values was found in chronic myeloid leukemia and in idiopathic myelofibrosis than in polycythemia vera. No significant correlation was found in this group of diseases between the values of cholesterol and the main hematological parameters studied (WBC, number of circulating blasts, degree of splenomegaly, levels of hemoglobin, hematocrit). The incidence of significant alterations of triglycerides appeared negligible. It is thus possible to affirm that hypocholesterolemia constitutes an interesting biological aspect in hematological malignancies, and that total cholesterol could represent a parameter, even though secondary, in the follow-up of hematological neoplastic pathologies.
Many parasites are able to modify the host response through different mechanisms, for example host leukocyte function modification. Since granulocytes represent the most important effector cells against Trichinella spiralis, we evaluated the effects of supernatants of T. spiralis sensu stricto muscle larvae cultured for at least 18 hours (T. Sup.) on some human neutrophil functions, i.e. chemotaxis, phagocytosis and Nitroblue tetrazolium dye reduction. The cells from blood donors were tested in the presence of T. Sup. at different concentrations (1, 5, 10, 20%). The results show no effect of T. Sup. on neutrophil phagocytosis. On the contrary, random migration of cells is increased at concentrations of 10-20%, while stimulated migration is significantly decreased at concentrations of 5-10% but not at 20%. We found a significant decrease of Nitroblue tetrazolium reduction at 5-10% concentrations of T. Sup. It is concluded that T. spiralis culture supernatants contain some factors capable of modifying human neutrophil chemotaxis, oxidative metabolism, but not phagocytosis.
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The present paper describes the case of a patient who developed a B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) 15 months after the diagnosis of polycythemia vera, which had been treated only with phlebotomies. In spite of lymphocytosis and the clinical signs and symptoms of leukemia, the patient exhibited at the same time presumptive elements of polycythemia (high LAP index levels, a high number of neutrophils). Cytogenetic investigations, carried out after the appearance of B-CLL, revealed the presence of an unusual abnormality (18 p+) both in bone marrow not stimulated by mitogens and in PWM-stimulated circulating lymphocytes. This case, which is the ninth of its kind described in the literature, offers some interesting observations about the association between myeloproliferative and lymphoproliferative syndromes.
Diacerhein (DAR), a new drug which is particularly suitable for the treatment of osteoarthritis, was studied for its interference with the phagocytic capacity of cells coming from exudates of subcutaneous carrageenan oedema and from the peripheral blood of Sprague-Dawley rats. DAR was found to inhibit phagocytosis in both types of cells examined. This finding indicates that DAR may exert its action by means of a direct effect on the cells involved in the inflammatory process.
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Rubidium ions added at 0.5 mEq to liquid cultures of human mononuclear cells stimulated the differentiation of monocyte and particularly of granulocyte cell lines.
The modifications in the concentration of circulating myoglobin have been studied by means of a radioimmunoassay in 15 cancer patients undergoing polychemotherapy including adriamycin. In 8 patients significant increases in myoglobin levels were found after injection of low doses of the drug (25-50 mg/m2). Moreover, a disturbance of the normal biorhythm of the protein was evident in 12 patients. Creatine kinase-MB was evaluated by means of a radioimmunoassay, but there was no relation between an increase in the isoenzyme and an increase in myoglobin. No ECG modifications were detected. These data indicate that the measurement of myoglobin may offer an indication of myocardial or skeletal muscle damage caused by adriamycin.