Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to R Nora.
The paper presents a study of the associated effect of acyclovir and a plant extract from Calendula officinalis, Actium lappa and Geranium robertianum. We studied a number of 52 patients suffering of herpetic keratitis. Better results in resolving complains and faster healing of ulceration were obtained using the associated treatment then the usual acyclovir treatment only.
The IIIa and IIIb electrophoretic variants of arylsulfatase A (EC 3.1.6.8) are 12 times more prevalent in alcoholic than in nonalcoholic populations. These variant enzymes, found in a subset of alcoholics, possess the pseudodeficient Asn350-Ser mutation of arylsulfatase A and, consequently, lack an N-linked glycan unit. These genetically determined variants of arylsulfatase A show reduced intracellular half-life, and cells from such individuals possess reduced enzymic activity. We propose that this polymorphism is an underlying genetic and biochemical factor contributing to the neuropathology and/or addiction pathway of this disease.
Fifty-nine elderly residents of long-term care facilities who had DSM-III diagnoses of dementia were studied in an 8-week randomized, double-blind comparison trial of haloperidol, oxazepam, and diphenhydramine to test the efficacy of these agents in the treatment of clinically significant behavioral disturbances in patients with dementia. All three agents demonstrated modest but significant efficacy as measured by clinician ratings of agitated behavior and activities of daily living. The absolute magnitude of improvement was greater for haloperidol and diphenhydramine than for oxazepam, but differences among groups did not approach statistical significance. Frequencies of acute adverse events during the trial were similar across the drug treatment groups. Although these drugs may differ in terms of long-term safety and efficacy, they appear to be equivalent for short-term management of agitated behavior in severely demented patients.
Arterial and pulmonary artery catheters were used to monitor the cardiopulmonary effects of recombinant interleukin-2 (rIL-2) given iv at a dose of 100,000 U/kg every 8 hours on days 1-5 to 10 patients with metastatic solid tumors. As anticipated, a severe capillary leak syndrome developed in all patients. Myocardial infarction (MI) occurred unexpectedly in three patients, as evidenced by a focal injury pattern on ECG and elevations of creatinine phosphokinase myocardial band fractions. All patients receiving rIL-2 exhibited major reductions in their left ventricular stroke work index (47 +/- 11 g.m/m2 to 29 +/- g.m/m2), an index of cardiac contractility. It remains uncertain whether the MIs were a byproduct of the capillary leak syndrome in patients with underlying coronary artery disease or whether rIL-2 directly or indirectly damages cardiac muscle.
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Previous work in this laboratory has identified electrophoretic variant forms of arylsulfatase A in leucocyte plus platelets. During a study to replicate and extend these findings, a new seven-band variant of arylsulfatase A has been identified. Purified platelets gave a clearer, more distinct electrophoretic banding pattern than the leucocyte and platelet preparations.
The authors compared 21 "Kraepelinian" schizophrenic patients who had been ill and dependent on others for the past 5 years with 76 chronic schizophrenic patients in remission or with exacerbations requiring hospitalization. The Kraepelinian patients met the criteria for schizophrenia by more diagnostic systems than the exacerbated patients, were less responsive to haloperidol, had more severe negative symptoms, and had similarly severe positive symptoms. They had cerebral ventricles that were more asymmetrical and a greater family history of schizophrenia spectrum disorders than the other chronic patients. These data suggest that patients with 5 years of illness and complete dependency on others may represent a subgroup of schizophrenia.
To examine the possibility that pathological gambling is related to the deficits in impulse control associated with attention deficit disorder, 14 pathological gamblers and 16 controls were administered questionnaires concerning their childhood behaviors. These self-reports indicated a strong correlation between pathological gambling and childhood behaviors related to attention deficit disorder.
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Leukocytes from 200 mentally ill patients and 100 normal controls were analyzed for electrophoretic variants of arylsulfatase A. Four different variant forms were found in 15 subjects. There is a relatively high occurrence of the arylsulfatase A variants in patients with alcoholism. Twenty-one per cent (12/56) of patients with alcoholism have a variant enzyme. Only one of the 100 normal controls has a variant enzyme. (This single subject was considered normal by the criteria of the study, namely, a self-report of no current medical problem or psychiatric history. However, upon further testing, it was found that this subject has neurological and neuropsychological deficits). The hypothesis is presented that chronic alcohol intake and abnormal arylsulfatase A act in concert to elevate sulfatide levels which results in abnormalities of brain function. If this hypothesis is correct, persons in whom abnormal arylsulfatase A is expressed may be at risk to the neuropathological effects of alcohol.