Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to M A Kaplan.
Bark of Annona salzmanii D.C. (Annonaceae), used in Brazilian folk medicine, was found to contain four benzylisoquinoline alkaloids, namely reticuline, anonaine, laurelliptine and isoboldine. Only anonaine possesses some antibacterial property while all four alkaloids show some antifungal activity.
A patient with primary extranodal lymphoma arising in the trachea presented with severe upper airway obstruction. The tumor was localized at presentation. The patient has remained disease-free for 12 months following surgical resection and local radiation treatment. The tumor had distinctive morphologic features characteristic of low-grade lymphomas of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT), including a diffuse infiltrate of small lymphocytes and centrocyte-like cells surrounding reactive follicles, with plasmacytoid differentiation, and lymphoepithelial lesions. The tumor cells expressed monotypic immunoglobulin but not CD5 or CD10. This case provides evidence that primary lymphomas of the trachea in some cases are tumors of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue.
Infrared laser therapy using an arsenide-gallium laser was used in 54 patients aged 30-75 years who suffered from coronary heart disease. A positive clinical effect was achieved in 47 (87%) of 54 patients, as evidenced by the reduced number of nitroglycerin tablets used and improved bicycle ergometric, echo- and electrocardiographic parameters in the patients.
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In contrast to China where vegetation is predominantly herbaceous, vegetation in Brazil is commonly arboreous. This fact may explain why Chinese drugs are usually acetate derived, while actual and potential natural therapeutic agents from Brazil are mostly shikimate derived. Only relatively few compounds isolated from Brazilian plants have been submitted to adequate pharmacological testing.
Two cases of rare, peripheral, soft tissue odontomas, in different growth phases, are reported. Case one, discovered in an early, rapid growth phase, had no radiographic appearance, was presumed to be a periodontal abscess, and presented a diagnostic challenge. Case two was diagnosed radiographically in its mature phase. Both were treated successfully by excisional biopsy and did not recur. Comparisons are made to the classic intrabony odontomas.
Results are presented applying an enteral nutrition by means of probes with Cosilat in complex therapy of patients with radiotherapeutic late effects of the colon. This nutrition was prescribed with the intention to gave the colon a functional recovery and to guarantee optimal conditions for repair of radiation injuries. Good results were seen in 27 of 28 patients (96.7%), the situation of one patient (3.3%) continued without any change. Cosilat has a high nutritive value, good organoleptic qualities and is digested well. In use complications did not appear.
The adult primary murine plaque-forming cell (PFC) response to hen egg-white lysozyme (HEL) is characterized by a predominant idiotype (IdXE) (congruent to 50% of population) and a predominant specificity (congruent to 50% of population) for a determinant dependent on the 3 amino-terminal residues of HEL (TIP-dependent PFC). IdXE and TIP specificity, however, are not congruent: approximately 1/3 of each population do not overlap (1). To determine whether these characteristics result from a prolonged selection process during development, we compared the neonatal A/J response profile to HEL-CFA with the adult A/J response and found that the adult pattern was present for mice immunized as early as 5 days of age. At 5 days, A/J splenic PFC were 80% TIP dependent, 71% IdXE positive compared to the adult levels of 56% (+/- 14) TIP dependent, 43% (+/- 19) IdXE positive. To attempt to address the B cells directly and avoid the need for antigen-specific T-dependent processes, we studied the PFC response to HEL-LPS conjugates in adult and 12-day-old A/J mice. At the earliest age studied (12 days), the indirect splenic PFC had similar idiotypy and specificity as the adult, and the response was similar to that induced by HEL-CFA. Although the absolute IgM PFC level was equal in adult and neonate, only 11% of the adult PFC response was IgM while a large proportion of the 12-day-old HEL-LPS response was IgM. This IgM PFC response was also characterized by the same idiotypy and specificity as the IgG PFC response. These results suggest that the characteristic adult mosaic of specificity and idiotypy in the anti-HEL response may exist prior to antigenic stimulation since it occurs as early as 5 days after immunization and in the IgM PFC responses. Although IdXE predominance may merely reflect the germ line repertoire, T cells may also be involved in an idiotype-based selection, the mechanism of which has not been determined.
A study of metabolism of sodium, water and body components in male patients suffering from essential hypertension, with normal body mass and alimentary obesity, has shown an increase in the space of sodium distribution both in absolute and relative values, a decrease in sodium excretion from the body and blood, change in sodium distribution between the vascular and interstitial parts of the space, "dry retention" of sodium in the body. The detected disturbances have been shown to play an important role in the pathogenesis of essential hypertension.
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A total of 122 patients with subacute infectious endocarditis (SIE) were examined. Of these, 33 patients demonstrated an extremely severe disease course. In spite of adequate antibacterial treatment, the lethal outcome ensued within the first 2-2.5 years of the disease. A rapidly progressing variant of SIE was characterized by persistent fever, predominance of aortal heart diseases, renal injuries with an early development of renal failure, hemorrhagic vasculitis, relapsing thromboembolism, refractory heart failure, persistent anemia, lymphopenia, and by the presence of large movable vegetations discovered on echocardiography.
Removal of just the three N-terminal residues Lys-Val-Phe (TIP) on hen egg white lysozyme (HEL), by aminopeptidase cleavage, eliminates an antigenic determinant which is a recurrent and dominant focus of primary but not secondary antibody responses to HEL in a variety of mouse strains. We have generated an anti-idiotypic rabbit antiserum against such a TIP-dependent monoclonal antibody (mAb). This antiserum reacts with many different primary anti-HEL mAb, but fails to react with all of a variety of secondary anti-HEL mAb. The idiotype defined by this antiserum, termed IdXE, is a common feature of early anti-HEL antibody responses but does not appear in secondary responses. Although the presence of IdXE and TIP dependence is correlated in primary responses, studies of idiotype expression on mAb and on plaque-forming cells (PFC) using mixed erythrocyte monolayers clearly show that at the single-cell level the properties are separable, i.e., not all TIP-recognizing PFC display IdXE and a sizable proportion of cells producing non-TIP-dependent antibodies are IdXE+. The restricted idiotypy and specificity of early antibody responses to HEL occur in each of eight diverse mouse strains tested: it is not associated with a particular MHC haplotype, heavy chain allotype or light chain allotype. The finding of such strain-independent restriction in the early response pattern to a typical protein antigen is novel and suggests the involvement of highly conserved, potent regulatory mechanisms which are manifested as a limitation in the initial expression of the available repertoire.
Thirteen of 43 patients (30%) with inflammatory bowel disease referred for psychiatric consultation were found to be drug dependent, most commonly on oral narcotics. Drug dependence was more frequent in patients with Crohn's disease than ulcerative colitis and many had a borderline personality disorder. The study suggests that drug dependence is not recognized often enough in patients with inflammatory bowel disease and that patients with certain psychiatric disorders are at higher risk of developing it. Recognition of drug dependence is aided by interviewing family members. It is best prevented by seeking and treating the specific cause of pain and by having only one physician assigned to prescribe and manage narcotics.
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Body constituents (cellular and extracellular mass, fat, extracellular fluid) were examined by means of K-40 whole-body radiometry in male essential hypertension patients with normal body weight and alimentary obesity. Second-stage essential hypertension was associated with a reduction of body cell mass, its relative parameters in particular. This fall was even more pronounced in patients with alimentary obesity. Apparently, increased proportion of fat in relation to body cell mass, which is more active metabolically, alters water-salt balance and, consequently, arterial blood pressure.
The paper is concerned with the results of investigation of the body composition and albumin circulation using a method of whole-body radiometry, extracellular liquid volume--by a 40K-RP, the level of cortisol, T3, insulin, C-peptide in the blood plasma by a radioimmunoassay in 30 breast cancer patients. A decrease in cellular body mass, an increase in extracellular body mass and total body fat, a decrease in the sizes of all pools and albumin synthesis rate were revealed before the initiation of specific cancer therapy. Ten days after the discontinuation of therapy the above indices returned to normal.