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Biomedical subjects

M Chevrier

Publications and source records attributed to M Chevrier.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

[Measurement of the quality of life in chronic hepatitis C: validation of a general index and specific index. First French results].

OBJECTIVES: To report the validation of 2 questionnaires of quality of life in chronic hepatitis C and the first results in 100 patients. METHODS: The questionnaire included 118 items and took 30 to 45 minutes to answer. It included a general index, the Nottingham Health Profile, with 38 items in 6 themes (physical mobility, social isolation, emotional reactions, pain, sleep and energy) and a specific index, the Montpellier Specific Index, with 80 items in 7 themes: symptoms, food, alcohol and tobacco, work, relations with other people, perception of disease. RESULTS: The questionnaires were self-administered to the 100 first patients with chronic hepatitis C without cirrhosis before treatment; 55 men, 45 women, average age 40 year-old, median Knodell's score 8 and median METAVIR score A2 F1. Reduction in the quality of life was frequent and was not highly correlated with biological, virological and histological parameters; it was associated with psychological disorders, reduced sexuality and apprehension of the future. CONCLUSION: This study showed the feasibility, validation, sensitivity and agreement of a quality of life questionnaire, which included a general index and a specific index of chronic hepatitis C in France. These initial results must be confirmed in studies during antiviral treatment of patients.

Adult↗

Comparison of the effects of propylthiouracil, amiodarone, diphenylhydantoin, phenobarbital, and 3-methylcholanthrene on hepatic and renal T4 metabolism and thyroid gland function in rats.

We studied the effects of propylthiouracil (PTU), amiodarone (AMIO), diphenylhydantoin (DPH), phenobarbital (PB), and 3-methylcholanthrene (MC) on thyroid histomorphology, on the hepatic and renal enzymes involved in endogenous and exogenous metabolism, and on the plasma levels and pharmacokinetics of thyroid hormones after 7 and 14 days of treatment. PTU and PB, by decreasing both serum tetraiodothyronine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3), induced a massive increase in serum thyrotropin (TSH) and thus induced thyroid hypertrophy. AMIO and MC, by decreasing respectively serum T3 and T4, also induced an increase of TSH, but to a lesser extent, not sufficient to induce thyroid hypertrophy. Hepatic 5'-deiodinase activity was decreased in all treated rats. Inhibition of this enzyme by PTU was demonstrated in vitro; AMIO also decreased the enzyme activity by a still unelucidated mechanism, which probably requires intact cell plasma membranes, whereas in PB- and MC-treated rats the decrease in enzyme activity certainly resulted from decreased serum concentrations of T4. In PTU-treated rats, and probably in MC-treated rats, decreases in circulating thyroid hormones were primarily due to impairment of synthesis and/or of secretion by the thyroid. In contrast, in PB-treated rats, the decrease in serum thyroid hormone levels seems to be due to increased excretion of these hormones, as T4 serum clearance was significantly increased. PB, a microsomal enzyme inducer, increased the cytochrome b5 and P450 content as well as the cytochrome P450-dependent O-depentylation of pentoxyresorufin. The other type of enzyme inducer, MC, did not affect cytochrome b5 and P450 levels, but did increase the cytochrome P450 dependent O-deethylation of ethoxyresorufin. PB increased the glucuronidation of morphine, whereas MC increased the glucuronidation of 1-naphthol. However, serum T4 clearance, mainly determined by its hepatic conjugation rate, was increased only in PB-treated rats. It appears from this study that the close metabolic relationship between the liver/kidney and the thyroid should be taken into consideration when the findings of chronic toxicology and carcinogenicity studies are interpreted.

Amiodarone↗

Rate of degradation of [alpha]- and [beta]-oligodeoxynucleotides in Xenopus oocytes. Implications for anti-messenger strategies.

End-labelled oligodeoxynucleotides were injected into Xenopus laevis oocytes and their degradation products were analysed by high-performance ion-exchange liquid chromatography after various times of incubation. The oligonucleotides were synthesised with either the natural [beta] anomers or the synthetic [alpha] anomers of deoxynucleotide units. Oligo-[beta] deoxynucleotides are short-lived inside oocytes (half-life approximately equal to 10 min). Covalent attachment of an intercalating agent to the 3'-phosphate and of a methylthiophosphate group at the 5'-end protects oligodeoxynucleotides against 3'- and 5'-exonucleases, respectively. The half-life of such substituted oligodeoxynucleotides is increased to 40 minutes. Oligo-[alpha]-deoxynucleotides are quite resistant to both endo and exonucleases inside Xenopus oocytes. After 8 hours only 40% of a 16-mer oligo-[alpha]-deoxynucleotide were hydrolysed. The rapid degradation of oligo-[beta]-deoxynucleotides suggests that efficient inhibition of translation in Xenopus oocytes involves an RNase H-induced hydrolysis of mRNAs hybridized to oligo-[beta]-deoxynucleotides.

Acridines↗

[A rapid method for continuous flow measurement of cholesterol contained in high density lipoproteins (HDL) (author's transl)].

The authors utilized a reagent containing concanavalin A, a vegetal lecithin, to selectively precipitate lipoproteins containing apoprotein B, a component of VLDL, LDL, and Lp (a) which are well known for their atherogenic risk. During this precipitation "true" high density lipoproteins remain in solution. HDL cholesterol determination which constitutes an indirect indication of HDL activity or concentrations is performed by an enzymatic method using an automated continuous flow technique carried out on an Auto Analyzer II (Technicon Corp.). This rapid, easy determination obtains results comparable to other methods, particularly those chosen by the Société Française de Biologie Clinique (French Society of Clinical Biology). This technique should permit all laboratories to confirm an atherogenic index.

Apolipoproteins↗

[Polygraphic study during hyperpnea tests in elderly subjects (author's transl)].

The incidence of age on the frequency of post-hyperventilation apnea was studied in two randomly chosen distinct populations. The hyperpnea and ventilatory response were recorded during a standard E.E.G. tracing in 1 060 subjects by a thermistor and in 100 other subjects by pneumotachography and capnography. Post-hyperventilation frequency was determined for the two populations taken overall and then for subjects under and over 60 years of age. The results were compared with demographic data (sex, excess bodyweight coefficient, illness), and experimental conditions (alertness, recording technique). In the second population the mean ventilation per minute rate was calculated during a reference rest period and two successive hyperventilation tests. The frequency of post-hyperventilation apnea is higher before 60 years of age in the absence of variations in alertness and/or associated supramedullary lesions. Ventilatory response under 60 years of age is seen as a prolonged phase of hypoventilation. After 60 years of age, in the absence of apnea, ventilation returns immediately to its reference value, while in the presence of apnea the hypoventilatory phase observed is of brief duration and delayed. These results are discussed and compared to those in the published literature.

Aged↗