Biomedical subjects

I Ros

Publications and source records attributed to I Ros.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2003

Serum osteoprotegerin and its ligand in Paget's disease of bone: relationship to disease activity and effect of treatment with bisphosphonates.

OBJECTIVE: To test the following hypotheses: 1) osteoprotegerin (OPG) and receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa B ligand (RANKL) serum levels in patients with Paget's disease are related to disease activity and are different from those in healthy individuals; 2) interleukin-6 (IL-6), a cytokine that has been shown to have higher levels in Paget's disease, modulates these factors; and 3) the antiresorptive effect of bisphosphonates in Paget's disease of bone may be mediated through these local factors. METHODS: The study group comprised 31 patients with Paget's disease who received 400 mg/day of oral tiludronate for 3 months. Serum levels of OPG, RANKL, IL-6, bone alkaline phosphatase (AP), N-terminal type I procollagen propeptide, urinary N-terminal crosslinking telopeptide of type I collagen, and urinary alpha-C-terminal crosslinking telopeptide of type I collagen were measured at baseline and 1 month after the end of therapy. In addition, the RANKL:OPG ratio was calculated, and disease activity was evaluated at baseline by quantitative bone scintigraphy. RESULTS: Mean baseline OPG values were higher in patients with Paget's disease than in healthy control subjects (P < 0.005), but RANKL and IL-6 values and RANKL:OPG ratios in the 2 groups were similar. OPG concentrations decreased significantly after treatment with tiludronate (P < 0.005), whereas no significant changes were observed in serum RANKL values. No correlation was found between either bone markers or quantitative scintigraphic indices and serum levels of OPG, RANKL, IL-6, and RANKL:OPG ratios. Serum OPG decreased significantly only in those patients with baseline OPG values >4.1 pM/liter. CONCLUSION: Serum OPG increases in Paget's disease and decreases after treatment with tiludronate, especially in patients with the highest OPG values. In contrast, RANKL serum levels and RANKL:OPG ratios are unmodified in patients with Paget's disease. Although serum OPG, RANKL, and IL-6 values were unrelated to disease activity, the increase in OPG may reflect a protective mechanism of the skeleton to compensate for increased bone resorption.

Adult↗

PubMed2001

Usefulness of biochemical markers of bone turnover in assessing response to the treatment of Paget's disease.

The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of biochemical markers of bone turnover for monitoring treatment efficacy of Paget's disease of bone, and also to evaluate the utility of biological variation data in choosing the best markers for assessment of biochemical response to therapy. Thirty-eight patients with Paget's disease were included in a prospective study. All received 400 mg/day of oral tiludronate for 3 months. In 31 patients that completed treatment, biochemical markers were measured at baseline and at 1 and 6 months after treatment ended. In serum we determined the levels of total alkaline phosphatase (tAP), bone alkaline phosphatase (bAP), procollagen type I N-terminal propeptide (PINP), and C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen (sCTx). Urine samples were analyzed for hydroxyproline (Hyp) and for C- and N-terminal telopeptides of type I collagen (CTx and NTx, respectively). Quantitative bone scintigraphy was performed at baseline and at 6 months after discontinuation of therapy. A ratio for monitoring response to treatment was obtained for each marker. This ratio reflected the size of treatment response of the marker in relation to the value of its critical difference. Thus, ratio values of >1 indicated a significant decrease of the marker after therapy. In addition, response to therapy was evaluated according to disease activity. Mean values of all markers of bone turnover decreased significantly after therapy. Serum bAP and PINP and urinary NTx showed the highest percentage reduction (between 58% and 68%). Furthermore, serum bAP and PINP showed the highest ratios for monitoring changes induced by treatment, followed by serum tAP and urinary NTx. sCTx and urinary CTx as well as Hyp showed mean ratios for monitoring changes of <1, indicating a low sensitivity for monitoring treatment. Patients with polyostotic disease showed a continuous decrease in mean values for all markers at 6 months from the end of therapy, whereas, in monostotic patients, there was a trend toward increased levels at this timepoint. In conclusion, serum bAP and PINP were the most sensitive markers for monitoring treatment efficacy in Paget's disease, although serum tAP and urinary NTx were also sensitive markers for monitoring changes. Data on biological variation are useful for assessing actual changes induced by treatment.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Kin protein expression: laminar specificity during rat cerebral cortex development.

Kin is a mammalian nuclear protein involved in DNA recombination-repair and the regulation of gene expression. The present study explored the expression of the Kin nuclear protein during postnatal development of the rat cerebral cortex, using immunocytochemistry with anti-RecA antibodies. The immunostaining of the Kin protein preferentially occurs within layers IV-V and VIb of the cortex in early postnatal developing brain, whereas in the adult rat this expression is observed unequivocally in all cortical layers. 35S-isotopic in situ hybridization for Kin-17 mRNA confirmed this Kin protein expression pattern and demonstrated its transcription in cortical neurons. This gradual age-related expression during development may have functional implications in the maturation processes of the cortex.

Aging↗

PubMed1999

Idiopathic hypoparathyroidism associated with adult rheumatoid arthritis.

A 48-year-old female patient with adult onset idiopathic hypoparathyroidism diagnosed at the age of 28 years developed a typical seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at 46 years of age after several years of evolution of a palindromic rheumatism. Only one case of an association between idiopathic hypoparathyroidism and RA has been described in the medical literature. Autoimmunity seems to play a pivotal role in the aetiopathogenesis of both diseases, and could explain the nature of this association; nevertheless, a chance association could not be excluded.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗

PubMed1995

Clinical features of the 1992 outbreak of equine viral arteritis in Spain.

During 1992, a widespread outbreak of Equine viral arteritis (EVA) occurred at a riding establishment near Barcelona, Spain. A total of 31 out of 186 horses on the premises displayed clinical signs, most frequently, fever, depression, mild ventral and limb oedema and a vesicular-erosive stomatitis, with hypersalivation, petechiations and small ulcerations. Affected horses developed illness of varying severity with only a few exhibiting a severe form of the disease and no mortality was recorded. Haematological and blood biochemical examination the most severely affected horses revealed a thrombocytopenia, slight leucocytosis with neutrophilia, lymphopenia and eosinopenia, an increase in plasma fibrinogen and a small rise in serum proteins and indirect bilirubin values. Diagnosis was confirmed by demonstration of seroconversion to equine arteritis virus in acute and convalescent phase sera. Attempted isolation of the virus from citrated blood samples proved unsuccessful.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1988

Plasma and CSF levels of immunoreactive beta-endorphin in algic peaks of patients with herniated intervertebral discs.

Plasma and CSF levels of beta-Endorphin (beta-End) were measured by radioimmunoassay in three groups of human subjects. The first group consisted of healthy adults, and only plasma beta-End was determined. The second group consisted of patients showing non-painful neurological diseases. The third group consisted of patients suffering from acute pain due to herniated intervertebral discs. In the last two groups, beta-End levels were measured in plasma and CSF. The results showed that plasma levels of beta-End were similar in the first two groups of patients. In contrast, patients with acute pain showed significantly increased levels of beta-End in plasma. CSF levels of beta-End did not show significant differences among the groups. The results suggest that the increase in plasma levels of beta-End was a consequence of the stress produced by acute pain.

Humans↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Pregnancy associated osteoporosis: the familial effect.

OBJECTIVE: The etiology and pathogenesis of pregnancy associated osteoporosis is unclear. Whether pregnancy has simply been an aggravating factor or is a direct etiologic cause responsible for severe bone loss needs to be elucidated. METHODS: In order to evaluate the contribution of familial factors to pregnancy osteoporosis, we analyzed the bone mass of 15 relatives of 5 women with pregnancy osteoporosis. Most of the patients suffered from severe back pain associated with vertebral fractures in their first pregnancy. Extensive clinical, laboratory and radiological investigations were performed to exclude secondary causes of osteoporosis. Bone mineral density measurements were performed on 15 first order family members and the results were compared with those of a control group of 20 healthy members of 5 families. RESULTS: Osteoporosis was present in 53% of the relatives of patients with pregnancy osteoporosis and in 15% of the controls (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These results highly suggest that some patients with pregnancy associated osteoporosis have a genetic determination of low peak bone mass, and gestation, due to its association with physiological metabolic disturbances, constitutes a risk factor for the development of skeletal fractures in these patients.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗