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Biomedical subjects

N Hunzelmann

Publications and source records attributed to N Hunzelmann.

83 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in the skin of patients with systemic scleroderma.

The expression and tissue distribution of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in skin biopsies from 12 patients with systemic (SSc) and localized (LS) scleroderma was studied and compared to the biopsies from patients with lupus erythematosus (LE) and normal individuals. In normal human skin ICAM-1 expression was restricted to the vascular endothelium, infiltrating mononuclear cells (MNC), and to few individual keratinocytes. In the inflammatory stage of SSc, however, the expression of ICAM-1 was dramatically increased at the site of MNC infiltrates and could also be detected on fibroblast-like cells lying well apart from these infiltrates in the deep dermis. In contrast, in LS ICAM-1 was expressed mainly at the sites of MNC infiltrates. In LE ICAM-1 expression was confined to the keratinocytes, endothelial cells, and mononuclear cells in the upper parts of the dermis. Analysis of serial tissue sections from patients with SSc demonstrated also colocalization of staining of ICAM-1 around blood vessels with LFA-1-positive lymphocytes. Increased expression of ICAM-1 in the dermis of patients with SSc may represent an important mechanism by which MNC become localized and retained at a site of connective tissue inflammation, leading to the activation of fibroblasts.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

TGF beta-1 and TNF alpha expression in the epidermis of patients with epidermodysplasia verruciformis.

In epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV), the infection with specific human papillomaviruses (HPV) might be under control of the local immunosurveillance mechanisms related to cytokines produced by epidermal cells. We have investigated by in situ hybridization the expression of mRNA coding for TGF beta-1 and TNF alpha in the skin of patients with EV (n = 4) as compared to the skin lesions of patients with other premalignant (actinic keratosis; n = 5) or malignant (squamous cell carcinoma; n = 4) skin lesions, and to the skin of healthy individuals (n = 5). The expression of TGF beta-1 and TNF alpha mRNA was higher in the epidermis of EV patients as compared to the control skin from healthy individuals. The increased expression of mRNA for both cytokines was confirmed by northern blot analysis of RNA isolated from the skin lesions of the patient with EV. No specific signals for TGF beta-1 and TNF alpha were detected in actinic keratosis, and in cases of squamous cell carcinomas only single neoplastic cells were positive for TGF beta-1. It is conceivable that in EV TGF beta-1 and TNF alpha can be involved in the regulation of the growth and differentiation of HPV-infected keratinocytes and in the persistence of HPV-induced skin lesions.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Movement adaptation in the peripheral retina.

With strict fixation, the eye quickly adapts to moving periodic stimuli presented to the peripheral retina. A slowly spinning sector disk, 7 degrees in diameter, will rapidly appear to slow down and come to a standstill (within 5-25 sec). The time required for this full motion adaptation decreases with (a) increasing retinal eccentricity (30-70 degrees); (b) increasing number of sectors (16-60); and (c) decreasing speed of rotation (0.3-0.5 rev/sec). After the standstill, the disk fades from view in much the same way as a stationary stimulus (Troxler effect). A spinning disk presented to the temporal retina appears to stop about 2.5 times faster than a disk presented to the nasal side. Adapting one eye reduces the time of adaptation for the other eye by 70%. If an aperiodic sector disk is used, no standstill is perceived.

Adaptation, Ocular↗
PubMedDate not supplied

New insights into the pathomechanisms of contact dermatitis by the use of transgenic mouse models.

Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is one of the most common skin diseases with a great socioeconomic impact. Although extensively studied, its pathophysiology and the interaction of different cells and factors which lead to sensitization and elicitation reaction are still not completely understood. The advent of transgenic mouse technology has considerably changed the study of ACD. This technology has been used extensively to investigate biomedically important issues in such diverse areas as mammalian development, neurophysiology and immunology. This new approach has already led to fascinating results which are confirmatory but also contradictory to previous thinking on the role of certain cytokines, adhesion and cell surface molecules in the complex pathophysiologic process of ACD. This review will describe how recent experiments employing mice carrying cytokine and accessory molecule transgenes change our current understanding of contact dermatitis which may lead to improved therapeutic strategies.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Stevens-Johnson syndrome-like exanthema secondary to methotrexate histologically simulating acute graft-versus-host disease.

A 61 year old male patient suffering from psoriasis vulgaris developed a severe skin reaction with toxic myelosuppression three days after administration of 20 mg methotrexate (MTX) p.o. per week and concomitant 100 mg acetylic salicylic acid (ASA) per day. The skin lesions simulated Stevens-Johnson syndrome with ulcerations of the oral mucosa and erythema multiforme-like target lesions. The histology of the epidermis resembled an acute graft-versus-host reaction. The increased toxic effect of MTX on keratinocytes in our patient was most likely caused by a lowered plasma binding capacity and reduced renal excretion of MTX due to concomitant administration of ASA. Thus in the treatment of severe forms of psoriasis with MTX, the combined administration of drugs aggravating MTX toxicity, particularly of ASA, should be carefully considered, due to the increased toxicity and risk of severe skin reactions.

Diagnosis, Differential↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Localized and systemic forms of scleroderma in adults and children .

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) presents a great deal of variability in the extent and severity of skin and internal organ involvement. The diagnostic and prognostic significance of autoantibodies in SSc is undisputed and the patient's autoantibody profile represents a fundamental tool for clinicians. Scleroderma is a rare condition in children. Unlike adults, localized scleroderma is more frequent than the systemic sclerosis, nevertheless it represents a disabling condition. In both conditions, no validated outcome measures and proven effective treatment is available to date.Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) is one the most common and significant clinical symptoms of SSc and therefore in patients with RP a capillaroscopic analysis should be carried out as soon as possible. The actual and select advantage of the early nailfold videocapillaroscopic (NVC) analysis is to distinguish between the primary RP and the secondary RP and to allow the early detection of SSc.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Safety and efficacy of local administration of contractubex to hypertrophic scars in comparison to corticosteroid treatment. Results of a multicenter, comparative epidemiological cohort study in Germany.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the safety and efficacy of Contractubex administration to hypertrophic scars in routine out-patient practice and to compare it to corticosteroid treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was a multicenter, retrospective cohort study, based on 38 randomly selected practices representatively distributed in Germany, including dermatologists and general practitioners. Data from 859 patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria were assessed and analyzed. Of these, 771 patients were eligible for the per protocol treatment with Contractubex (n=555) and corticosteroid (n=216). The safety and efficacy of local administration of Contractubex to hypertrophic scars was compared to corticosteroid treatment. RESULTS: At the end of defined treatment periods (minimum 28 days for local therapy with 1 intralesional corticosteroid application), normalization of the pre-treatment pathological parameters (erythema, pruritus, consistency) of hypertrophic scars was more frequent (42.5%) after Contractubex per protocol treatment as compared to corticosteroid per protocol treatment (22.2%). After adjusting imbalances of baseline characterisics between the treatment groups by the propensity score, the odds ratio was 2.274, demonstrating a significant superiority (p<0.001) of Contractubex treatment as compared to corticosteroid treatment. The time to normalization of erythema, pruritus and consistency was significantly (p=0.034) shorter with Contractubex treatment (median 344 days) than with corticosteroids (median 507 days). No unexpected or severe adverse events occurred in the Contractubex-treated patients. Apart from moderate pruritus (10% Contractubex vs. 1% corticosteroids), adverse events were significantly (p<0.001) more frequent in corticosteroid-treated patients (teleangiectasias 15% vs. 7% Contractubex; cutaneous atrophy of scars 10% vs. 2% Contractubex; cutaneous atrophy of scar surrounding skin tissue 11% vs. 1% Contractubex). CONCLUSION: For the primary aim of this study (assessment of normalization of erythema, pruritus, and consistency of hypertrophic scars) and for time to normalization, local administration of Contractubex was significantly more effective than corticosteroid treatment. Concerning safety, Contractubex treatment was associated with significantly less adverse events (e.g. teleangiectasias, cutaneous atrophy of scars and surrounding skin tissue) than topical corticosteroid application.

Administration, Cutaneous↗