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Biomedical subjects

L Mata

Publications and source records attributed to L Mata.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Distribution of serotypes of human rotavirus in different populations.

Serotyping is a useful tool to study the epidemiologic characteristics of rotaviruses in large populations and to assess the need for a vaccine to protect against all strains. By using an enzyme immunoassay with serotype-specific monoclonal antibodies to the four most common rotavirus serotypes, we analyzed 1,183 rotavirus-positive specimens from 16 stool collections in eight countries on four continents that were obtained from 1978 to 1989. Of the 926 strains (78%) that could be serotyped, 48% were serotype 1, 8% were serotype 2, 15% were serotype 3, and 7% were serotype 4. Twenty-two percent had insufficient numbers of double-shelled virus particles to react with the monoclonal antibody of the VP4 rotavirus protein and therefore could not be serotyped. Our results indicate that vaccines being developed must provide the greatest coverage against serotype 1 and that the serotype distribution cannot be predicted currently by the geographic area or prevalence in the preceding year.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗
PubMed1992

Prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in rural and urban Costa Rica.

BACKGROUND: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is becoming more prevalent in developing countries, particularly in the urban areas, in contrast to the CAD mortality trends observed in some industrialized nations. METHODS AND RESULTS: We determined the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, smoking, obesity, total cholesterol greater than or equal to 240 mg/dl and greater than or equal to 200 less than or equal to 239 mg/dl, low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol greater than or equal to 160 mg/dl and greater than 130 less than or equal to 159 mg/dl, and high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol less than 35 mg/dl) in 222 men and 243 women from rural and urban areas of Puriscal, Costa Rica, using the American Cholesterol Education Program guidelines. Urban Puriscal men had a significantly (p less than 0.05) higher prevalence of borderline high-risk total cholesterol (26% versus 14%), borderline high-risk LDL cholesterol (21% versus 11%), smoking (32% versus 13%), and higher prevalence of low HDL cholesterol (34% versus 24%), hypertension (16% versus 13%), diabetes (4.5% versus 2.7%), obesity (21% versus 14%), and saturated fat intake greater than 15% of calories (14% versus 7%) than rural men from Puriscal. No significant differences between rural and urban women were found for any of the cardiovascular risk factors. Urban Puriscal residents were also more sedentary than rural Puriscal residents. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that modifiable risk factors are more prevalent in urban than in rural Puriscal, Costa Rica, particularly in men.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Diarrheal disease as a cause of malnutrition.

Although long associated with infectious diseases, malnutrition is recognized as a major effect of specific infections, especially those of the gastrointestinal tract. Synergistic exacerbation of infections and nutritional deficiency commonly begin with weaning, where the impact of repeated infections and possible monocyte mediator release may have an even greater effect on malnutrition of young children than that of deficient diets in many areas. Reviewed here are the detailed host alterations seen with specific enteric infections that lead to malnutrition. These include mucosal dysfunction, systemic metabolic responses, impaired intake, digestion and absorption, nutrient losses, altered immune responses, and ultimately, impaired growth, development, and nutrition. The tremendous health impact of diarrhea on both morbidity and mortality in many developing areas must be recognized and controlled along with correction of food shortages in order to improve the nutrition, growth, and survival of impoverished children.

Anorexia↗
PubMed1992

Sexual abuse and corporal punishment during childhood: a pilot retrospective survey of university students in Costa Rica.

A sample of 497 students at the University of Costa Rica completed a survey on perceptions and experiences with various forms of punishment and experiences with sexual abuse during childhood. Spanking was shown to be the most widely accepted and most common form of discipline. The majority of the students considered most types of punishment forms of abuse. This study lacks a comparison group and cannot be generalized to the entire Costa Rican population. The section on sexual abuse demonstrated that 32% of the women and 13% of the men experienced some type of sexual abuse during childhood. The abuse mainly occurred between the ages of 5 and 10, and men were most often perpetrators.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

[Paralytic shellfish poisoning by Spondylus calcifer contaminated with Pyrodinium bahamense, Costa Rica, 1989-1990].

This paper describes an outbreak of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), affecting human populations on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica in October 1989. Numbness in arms, face and legs occurred 30 to 45 minutes after ingestion of the large clam Spondylus calcifer. Paralysis of legs and respiratory symptoms followed, often persisting for one week. Large amounts of the dinoflagellate Pyrodinium bahamense were found in the intestine of the mollusk. A toxin was detected in crude or filtered and heated macerates of intestine, muscle, mantle and hepatopancreas of S. calcifer, and to a lesser extent Tagelus sp., by injection of its crude or diluted extracts in white mice. The effects in mice consisted in paralysis and asphyxia generally leading to death in less than 5 minutes, compatible with saxitoxin. Mice were killed by the toxin in macerates diluted 1:100 to 1:1000. No toxin was detected in Anadara tuberculosa (Bivalvia) or in peneids. Prevention rests on intersectoral actions between state and private sectors in charge of fishing, distribution and marketing of shellfish, as well as on education of the population at large.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Diarrhoea and AIDS.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1987

Relationship of upper body fat distribution to serum glucose and lipids in a Costa Rican population.

Present models of the relation between subcutaneous fat distribution and serum biochemistries have been based largely on U.S. White populations. To determine interpopulational differences in that relation, we measured 68 clinically normal adult Costa Ricans aged 17-32. Data collected included six skinfolds: triceps, subscapular, suprailiac, umbilical, anterior mid-thigh, and medial calf; height, weight, and four fasting serum parameters: glucose, triglyceride, cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Correlations between standardized skinfold ratios and biochemistries were highest--on the order of 0.40-0.50--for upper-lower body contrasts to triglyceride and cholesterol in males and to glucose and HDL in females. Canonical correlation analysis, with body mass index partialed out, found significant correlations for the first male variate and the first two female variates. The first male variate was positively weighted on subscapular fatness and on triglyceride and cholesterol, respectively. The two female skinfold variates were positively weighted on subscapular and on outer limbs, respectively, while their corresponding biochemical variates were weighted on glucose and triglyceride and on cholesterol and HDL, respectively. These findings are generally consistent with those based on U.S. populations but suggest that in non-Anglo populations, upper trunk fatness may be more relevant than anterior waist fatness to biochemical dysfunction.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1987

Efficacy comparison of oral rehydration solutions containing either 90 or 75 millimoles of sodium per liter.

In a randomized trial, 62 infants 2 to 35 months of age with dehydration due to acute watery diarrhea were allocated to one of two groups: group A received solution A (World Health Organization-recommended oral rehydration solution), which contained (mmol/L): Na+ 90, K+ 20, Cl- 80, citrate3- 10, and glucose 110; group B received solution B (Pedialyte RS; Abbott Laboratories, North Chicago), which contained (in mmol/L): Na+ 75, K+ 20, Cl- 65, citrate3- 10, and glucose 139. Oral therapy was given until clinical signs of hydration status were normal. During the 48-hour trial, the following laboratory data were collected: blood gases, serum electrolytes, glucose, urea, and creatinine values and sodium and potassium concentrations in stool and urine; serial weights and clinical signs were also reported. Six of the 62 infants, three in each group, required intravenous fluids because of high stool output. Results of clinical outcome and normalization of altered serum electrolyte values were similar in both groups. During the 48-hour trial, eight patients in group A and four in group B had mild, asymptomatic hypernatremia. Pedialyte RS was found to be a safe glucose/electrolyte solution for oral rehydration therapy.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1986

Natural history of Giardia infection of infants and children in rural Guatemala and its impact on physical growth.

Longitudinal data on Giardia excretion, diarrheal disease, and physical growth during the first 3 yr of life collected more than 20 yr ago in 45 Guatemalan children were analyzed. This report describes the natural history of this infection and estimates its effects on growth. All children had at least one Giardia infection, prevalence and incidence rates reaching 20.2% and 5.3%, respectively by the end of the third year. The mean number of Giardia infections per child increased from 0.7 in the first to 3.6 in the third year. More than 40% of these infections lasted 2-6 wk or more and were commonly associated with diarrhea. Weight velocity was significantly lower in the second year of life in Giardia-infected than in Giardia-negative children (p = 0.03). The duration of Giardia episodes and their association with diarrhea appeared to be the most important factors associated with growth disturbance. Although simultaneous infection with other enteropathogens occurred in many children, our findings suggest that Giardia infection may have independent deleterious effects on children's growth.

Body Height↗
PubMed1986

Endocytosis in guinea pig seminal vesicle epithelial cells cultivated in chemically defined medium.

We have developed a chemically defined monolayer culture system for guinea pig seminal vesicle epithelial cells (SVEP). The cells appeared as a polarized monolayer with apical microvilli, tight junctions and desmosome-like junctions, and often dilated intercellular spaces. SVEP expressed epithelial-specific cytokeratins as detected immunocytochemically. Growth was obtained during the first week of culture. In this period, the cells were exposed to unconjugated horseradish peroxidase (HRP), a ricin-peroxidase conjugate (Ri-HRP), or cationized ferritin (CF). HRP was endocytosed without binding to the SVEP surface (fluid-phase endocytosis) and was found mainly in multivesicular endosomes and lysosomes. Ri-HRP and CF, however, were endocytosed following binding to the cell surface. Initially these markers were present in multivesicular endosomes, but later also in smaller tubular and vesicular endosomes, some Golgi-associated elements (but not Golgi stacks), and lysosomes. We conclude that our SVEP culture system may be useful in further studies, on e.g. hormonal regulation of endocytosis and other processes of importance for SVEP maintenance and modulation of the seminal fluid in vivo.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Serum cholesterol, triglyceride, and high-density-lipoprotein concentrations in men with different dietary and exercise regimens in Puriscal, Costa Rica.

Mean serum cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were higher for two groups of sedentary middle-aged and elderly men than for a group of physically-active, middle-aged farmers, all from rural Puriscal, Costa Rica. The mean serum cholesterol, triglyceride, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-risk factor levels of the three groups were all higher than the comparable US means. Dietary fat and cholesterol intake were also greater for the Puriscal men than for the comparable US counterpart. No correlations were found between dietary fat or cholesterol and the corresponding serum levels. Age was correlated with serum cholesterol and HDL-risk factor values. Weight was also correlated with these variables as well as with serum triglyceride concentrations. A high prevalence of obesity was found among the middle-aged sedentary men.

Adult↗