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Biomedical subjects

R van Furth

Publications and source records attributed to R van Furth.

393 records · Page 22Linked to original sources
PubMed1965

The immunological development of the human fetus.

The immunogenesis of the human fetus has been investigated by means of the formation of immunoglobulins in vitro, immunofluorescence, morphological studies, and analysis of the immunoglobulins in the serum. Twenty fetuses which were born alive but died soon after delivery, were studied; their ages ranged from 13 to 31 weeks. The results of the spleen cultures demonstrated the synthesis of IgG and IgM, which starts at about the twentieth week of gestation. In the serum, IgM could be detected at about the same period. The immunofluorescent staining of the spleen tissue showed that medium sized and large lymphoid cells as well as plasma cells, even with Russell bodies, were positive for either IgG or IgM. The peripheral blood was also found to contain a small number of medium sized IgG and IgM-positive cells. Both the spleen and the peripheral blood showed a considerable number of fluorescent small lymphocytes which exclusively contained IgM. The relatively high ratio of IgM to IgG production prenatally as compared to the postnatal situation, agrees with a predominantly primary antibody response in fetal life. In general, the fetal thymus did not synthesize immunoglobulins. No indications for the synthesis of IgA and IgD during fetal life were found.

Fetus↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Successful single antibiotic therapy in Actinomyces septicemia and liver abscess.

We are reporting on a 36-year-old man with septicemia and a liver abscess due to Actinomyces sp. The infection was most probably acquired while eviscerating a deer he had shot. The possibility of an infection involving Actinomyces bovis is discussed. The liver abscess was diagnosed on the basis of non-invasive procedures. Therapy consisted of high-dose penicillin without surgical drainage of the abscess. The infection did not recur during the three-and-a-half year follow-up period. No previous reports of successful antibiotic therapy for actinomycotic liver abscess without surgical procedures are known.

Actinomyces↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Quantitative determination of the effect of granulocytes on the course of experimental infections during antibiotic treatment.

We are presenting a quantitative determination of the effect of granulocytes, monocytes and lymphocytes on the course of infection during antibiotic treatment. The animal model was a short-term infection of the thigh muscle in normal or irradiated mice. Two kinds of antibiotics were used: tobramycin for Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections and ampicillin for Escherichia coli infections. The number of granulocytes was changed by irradiating the mice before they were infected. The dose-effect relations for both combinations of bacteria and antibiotics were determined on various days after irradiation. Analysis of the results shows that the effect of an antibiotic was predominantly potentiated by granulocytes. This means that under the conditions of granulopenia, the dose of an antibiotic must be increased to obtain the same antibacterial effect. The present results indicate that the interrelation between host factors, bacterial proliferation and antibiotic treatment can be quantitated and may offer a useful model for screening antimicrobial drugs before they are clinically applied.

Agranulocytosis↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Respiratory failure elicited by streptococcal septicaemia in patients treated with cytosine arabinoside, and its prevention by penicillin.

In order to prevent septicaemia with streptococci, 20 consecutive selectively decontaminated patients on intermediate high-dose Ara-C treatment for malignant haematological diseases were given penicillin G. The incidence of infection with streptococci decreased from 0.76 per episode (14 patients, 17 episodes) for controls who did not receive penicillin G to 0.11 per episode in the prophylaxis group (20 patients, 26 episodes). Simultaneously, a decrease in the incidence of respiratory failure was observed, i.e. 0.52 per episode for controls and 0.19 per episode for patients on penicillin G. The results suggest that septicaemia with streptococci triggers the development of noncardiogenic pulmonary oedema in patients with pre-existing damage of the lung due to aggressive cytotoxic treatment. This suggestion is supported by the sequence of events, regarding the occurrence of infection and respiratory failure and the results of measurements of antileukoprotease serum concentrations, a parameter for pulmonary capillary leakage. Taking into account the data in the literature and the results of the present study, the conclusion is drawn that in patients treated with (intermediate) high dose Ara-C, prevention of streptococcal septicaemia is associated with a decrease in the incidence of respiratory failure.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Clinical infections and nonsurgical treatment of parapharyngeal space infections complicating throat infection.

The clinical features and management of eight patients with parapharyngeal space infection who presented with swelling of the neck subsequent to sore throat are described. In four patients the interval between the initial throat symptoms and swelling was 2 days or less, and the disease was rapidly progressive with stridor or a descending mediastinitis. In the other four cases, this interval was longer (4 to 14 days) and the infection was fairly localized. Computed tomography was useful for making the diagnosis, establishing that the infection had spread into other deep neck spaces and the mediastinum, distinguishing abscesses from diffuse cellulitis, guiding drainage aspiration, and assessing the response to therapy. None of the patients underwent extensive surgical drainage of the deep neck spaces. A nonsurgical approach with antibiotics, including high doses of benzylpenicillin, and computed tomography-guided selective needle aspirations proved successful. Even patients with distinct abscesses were completely cured.

Abscess↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Growth characteristics of cultured human macrovascular venous and arterial and microvascular endothelial cells.

The morphological and growth characteristics of human macrovascular endothelial cells (ECs) from venous and arterial umbilical cord vessels and microvascular ECs from foreskin were compared during cultivation. By means of time-lapse microcinematography and phase-contrast microscopy, differences in cell morphology and migratory activity between the different types of ECs were found. Growth characteristics were dependent on the type of EC, the nature of the substrates on which the ECs were grown and the presence of growth factors. For all types of ECs optimal growth and formation of a monolayer were observed when the ECs were cultured on fibronectin or gelatin substrates in the presence of EC growth factor and heparin. Under these conditions confluent cultures of macrovascular ECs reached maximal cell densities of 1,400-1,900 ECs/mm2, whereas microvascular ECs reached maximal cell densities of about 700-900 ECs/mm2. The cell cycle times calculated from the population-doubling time and the stathmokinetic index, respectively, amounted to 63 and 83 h for microvascular ECs, 33 and 35 h for venous macrovascular ECs, and 29 and 35 h for arterial macrovascular ECs.

Capillaries↗