Biomedical subjects

J Gavaler

Publications and source records attributed to J Gavaler.

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed1987

Does oral enzyme replacement therapy reverse intestinal lactose malabsorption?

The effects of oral enzyme replacement therapy on breath hydrogen excretion and symptoms after milk ingestion were studied in lactase-deficient patients. Sixteen symptomatic patients underwent interval hydrogen breath tests using whole milk as substrate. Each study was repeated with the addition of 250 mg of beta-D-galactosidase derived from Aspergillus oryzae (Lactrase) given orally with the milk. Subsequently seven of those 11 patients who did not normalize their hydrogen excretion with 250 mg of Lactrase were available to be restudied with a 500-mg dose. Mean cumulative and peak hydrogen excretions were calculated for the baseline (milk alone), 250 mg, and 500 mg Lactrase groups. Significant (p less than or equal to 0.05) decreases in cumulative and peak hydrogen excretion were noted between the 500 mg Lactrase versus the baseline group, but not between the 250 mg versus baseline group. Five of the 16 (31%) symptomatic lactase-deficient patients normalized their hydrogen excretion after 250 mg of Lactrase; four of seven (57%) who had not normalized on 250 mg, normalized their hydrogen excretion with 500 mg of Lactrase. A different pattern was observed in the incidence of symptoms. Five of the nine patients (56%) whose hydrogen excretion normalized with the addition of Lactrase at either dosage became asymptomatic after milk ingestion; in addition, three patients who did not normalize their hydrogen also became asymptomatic. We conclude that oral Lactrase in sufficient dosage temporarily reverses lactose malabsorption in some patients.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1986

Neuropsychological capacity of Prader-Willi children: general and specific aspects of impairment.

Although most Prader-Willi syndrome children perform in the mentally retarded ranges on standardized IQ tests, it is not known if their cognitive impairments are global in nature or if they exhibit a particular pattern of strengths and weaknesses in their psychological capacities. To examine this question, a cohort of children suffering from Prader-Willi syndrome was administered a battery of neuropsychological tests. The results indicated that, relative to other cognitive capacities assessed, particularly severe deficits were noted on tasks that involved information processing using the auditory modality. No differences in cognitive capacity were found between children with a number 15 chromosome defect and those with a normal karyotype configuration. Based on these initial findings, it appears that the clinical diagnosis of Prader-Willi syndrome is more important than a karyotype configuration in understanding these youngsters' manifest cognitive deficits.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1985

Comparative hematology and coagulation: studies on rodentia (rats).

Blood from adult male Wistar rats clotted rapidly in glass or siliconized tubes; the clots retracted and did not lyse. The serum prothrombin, plasma prothrombin and activated partial thromboplastin times were shorter than those of normal humans. In contrast, the thrombin and reptilase times were longer than those of normal human plasma, due apparently to the presence of a low-grade thrombin inhibitor in rat plasma. Coagulation factors, X, VIIIR:vW and IX assayed lower in rat than human plasma, while factors VIII:C and anti-thrombin III were higher. Values for other coagulation factors (II, V, VII, XI, XII and Fletcher) fell within the human range. Platelets were small and numerous. They aggregated well with ADP but poorly or not at all with collagen, ristocetin, thrombin, epinephrine, arachidonic acid and pig or bovine plasmas. Leukocytes numbered 4-8 X 10(3) cells/mm3, a near human range and were predominantly lymphocytic. Erythrocytes were small (MCV = 56-60 fl) and numerous (5.5-6.4 X 10(6) cells/mm3).

Animals↗

PubMed1983

Skin tags: a cutaneous marker for colonic polyps.

The relation between adenomatous colonic polyps and the development of adenocarcinoma of the colon is well established. An association between skin tags and colonic polyps in patients with acromegaly has also been reported. To ascertain if skin tags are a cutaneous marker for colonic polyps independent of the presence of acromegaly, 100 men referred for colonoscopy were studied. Forty-six patients had colonic polyps and 37 also had skin tags; the correlation was highly significant (p less than 0.005). The sensitivity and specificity of the presence of skin tags serving as a cutaneous marker for adenomatous colonic polyps were both greater than 75%. Thus, at least in this population, skin tags may serve as a means for identifying patients at increased risk for having colonic polyps.

Colonic Neoplasms↗

PubMed1974

Ethanol inhibition of vitamin A metabolism in the testes: possible mechanism for sterility in alcoholics.

Vitanin A (retinol) is essential for spermatogenesis. Alcohol dehydrogenase, the enzyme responsible for ethanol metabolism, is also required for the conversion of retinol to bioactive retinal at the end organ site. Ethanol inhibits the oxidation of retinol by testicular homogenates containing alcohol dehydrogenase. Thus, a possible biochemnical mechanism for the sterility of chronic alcoholics is identified.

Alcohol Oxidoreductases↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The effect of hepatic stimulatory substance, isolated from regenerating hepatic cytosol, and 50,000 and 300,000 subfractions in enhancing survival in experimental acute hepatic failure in rats treated with D-galactosamine.

Galactosamine induces a dose-dependent hepatic injury in rats and many other animals. The toxicity of D-galactosamine appears to be a consequence of the loss of hepatic UTP. It has previously been reported that regenerating liver cytosol is able to prevent, at least in part, the lethal effect of this substance by stimulating hepatic regeneration. Recently, we have separated a fraction using alcohol precipitation (80%) from regenerating liver cytosol and from weanling rat liver cytosol prepared in acetate buffer (100 mM, pH 6.5). We named this fraction hepatic stimulatory substance because of its ability to stimulate DNA synthesis in vivo when injected intraperitoneally in 40% hepatectomized rats and in vitro in the presence of hepatocytes isolated and maintained in monolayer cultures. The stimulatory activity of the hepatic stimulatory substance is fully evident in subfractions of molecular weight up to 300,000 and 50,000 daltons of the crude material obtained using Amicon Ultra membrane filters. The present report describes the ability of hepatic stimulatory substance and its subfractions to stimulate hepatocyte proliferation and the application of these hepatic extracts in successfully reversing the lethality of D-galactosamine-induced hepatic necrosis in rats.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of in utero exposure to alcohol upon male rats.

Ethanol ingestion by pregnant women can result in the development of the fetal alcohol syndrome in their progeny. To investigate the late consequences of maternal ethanol ingestion upon male progeny, pregnant dams were administered ethanol-containing liquid diets from the 12th day of gestation to 10 days postpartum and their male progeny were compared to those of offspring obtained from dams isocalorically fed a liquid diet without alcohol in which Dextri-Maltose isocalorically replaced the ethanol of the ethanol-containing diet and those of dams fed a standard rat chow ad libitum. A significant decrease in body weight at birth (p less than 0.0001), at weaning, and at 55 days of age (postpuberty) (p less than 0.005) was found for the in utero ethanol-exposed animals as compared to that of the animals obtained from the two control groups. Anogenital distances and indices (measures of masculinity) in the male progeny were reduced (p less than 0.001) on days 1 and 5 in the alcohol-exposed animals as compared to those of the two control groups. Testes and prostate-seminal vesicle weights of the alcohol-exposed animals were reduced on day 55 (p less than 0.05) and again on day 110 (p less than 0.01) as compared to those of the two control groups. Similarly, serum testosterone and luteinizing hormone levels were reduced significantly on day 55 (p less than 0.05) in the alcohol-exposed animals but not in the controls. No difference was noted at 110 days of age in testosterone and LH (luteinizing hormone) levels between the various groups.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗