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Biomedical subjects

S Monti

Publications and source records attributed to S Monti.

63 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Insulin-like growth factor-I and -II in human benign prostatic hyperplasia: relationship with binding proteins 2 and 3 and androgens.

In prostatic tissue, androgen action may be mediated by growth factors such as insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and II (IGF-II), which are mitogenic for prostatic cells and modulate the stroma-epithelium interaction. IGF-binding proteins (IGFBPs) have an autocrine and/or paracrine role in regulating the local actions of the IGFs. In this study, testosterone, dihydrotestosterone (DHT), 3 alpha androstanediol (3 alpha diol), IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFBP2, and IGFBP3 concentrations were evaluated in human benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) tissue. Samples of prostate tissue were removed by suprapubic prostatectomy from twelve BPH patients. Androgen tissue levels were determined by radioimmunoassay after purification on celite microcolumns. IGF-I, IGFBP2, and IGFBP3 were measured by radioimmunoassay, and IGF-II by immunoradio metric assay, after acidification and chromatography on Sep-pak C18 Cartridges for IGF-I and IGF-II. Androgen concentrations, expressed in ng/g tissue (mean +/- SE), were 0.51 +/- 0.05 for testosterone, 5.3 +/- 0.16 for DHT, and 1.1 +/- 0.07 for 3 alpha diol. IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFBP2, and IGFBP3 levels were 24 +/- 3.7, 121 +/- 14 ng/g tissue and 0.44 +/- 0.05 and 1.2 +/- 0.17 micrograms/g tissue, respectively. No correlation between IGF-I, androgens, and IGFBPs was found. IGF-II was positively correlated with DHT (r = 0.78; p = 0.003) and 3 alpha diol (r = 0.66; p = 0.021) but not with IGFBPs. These data suggest that in BPH, DHT modulates the IGF system by increasing IGF-II without modifying IGFBPs. Therefore, the stroma-epithelium interaction, which plays an important role in prostatic growth, may be regulated by DHT through IGF-II.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Tracking the drift of a human body in the coastal ocean using numerical prediction models of the oceanic, atmospheric and wave conditions.

This paper describes the use of numerical models to infer the path of a floating human body in the Ligurian Sea (north-west Mediterranean) during the month of January 2001. The prevailing oceanic currents were obtained from a state-of-the-art real-time nowcast/forecast ocean circulation model, while the sea state was inferred from a numerical model of the surface gravity waves, both driven by regional atmospheric models. The surface currents (from the ocean model) and the drift ones at the ocean surface, as inferred from the wave model, were used to drive a Lagrangian model of the drifting body to deduce its plausible trajectory along the Ligurian coast. The inferred path is reasonably consistent with location and time of the discovery on the French coast. This note illustrates the utility of numerical prediction models at the disposal of modern forensic science in the fields of ocean sciences.

Journal Article↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Variation of chromogranin A serum levels after radical retropubic prostatectomy for prostate adenocarcinoma.

This study evaluated perioperative and postoperative variations in serum CgA levels induced by radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP) and their relationship with serum PSA levels in prostate cancer patients. Thirty consecutive patients with clinically localized adenocarcinoma of the prostate undergoing RRP were prospectively analyzed. Serum levels of CgA and total PSA were analyzed in each case preoperatively (time 0), at removal of the prostate (time 1), 1 h after the end of RRP (time 2) and then at regular postoperative intervals till 12 weeks (time 14). During the postoperative period no adjuvant therapies were performed and none of the 30 cases showed biochemical (PSA > 0.2 ng/mL) and/or clinical progression. Mean preoperative serum levels of CgA were 57 +/- 14 ng/mL. Immediately after the surgical removal of the prostate gland (time 1), in all 30 cases there was a significant (time 0-time 1: p = .001) increase in serum PSA, but a nonsignificant modification in serum CgA levels (60 +/- 15 ng/mL). After time 1, serum PSA levels progressively decreased to below the detection limit of 0.2 ng/mL. On the contrary, at time 2, serum CgA levels were postoperatively increased (time 2 = 145 +/- 47) and they remained significantly higher than preoperative values (time 0) till the 21-day postoperative interval (time 11). Moreover, at the last control (time 14) mean and median CgA levels were very similar to those shown preoperatively (time 14: 58 +/- 18 ng/mL). In patients with untreated clinically localized adenocarcinoma of the prostate submitted to RRP, surgical and postoperative stress, more than surgical manipulation of the prostate gland, could produce a significant increase in serum CgA levels maintained for a longer period when compared to the increase in serum PSA levels.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Iron deficiency in children with celiac disease.

To evaluate the incidence of either evident anemia or a subclinical status of iron deficiency in celiac disease (CD), we studied 80 celiac children aged 6 months to 18 years. They were subdivided into various groups according to morphology of gut mucosa and diet. Only eight of 47 celiac children had an evident anemia at the time of the first peroral bowel biopsy. In addition, 51% of the patients with atrophic mucosa and 56% of the children on a gluten-containing diet had serum iron levels less than 50 micrograms/dl; 35% of patients of both groups had serum ferritin levels less than 12 micrograms/L. On the contrary, only a small number of children with normal mucosa on a gluten-free diet showed a laboratory, subclinical picture of iron deficiency. The results of our study can therefore be summarized in three major items: (a) Low levels of both serum iron and ferritin can frequently be found during active CD. (b) Regular determination of serum iron levels appears to be useful in controlling the state of iron stores in such patients, as well as in deciding whether and when to recommend temporary iron supplementation. (c) Serum ferritin tests did not offer more information than the easier and cheaper serum iron determinations.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) in the study of biomaterials used in dentistry. 3].

This study considers X-ray power diffraction (XRD) applied to the study of mineral-based biomaterials used in odontostomatology. By means of this method the following materials were analysed: reabsorbable Dac Blu, non reabsorbable Dac Blu, non reabsorbable atomized Dac Blu, non reabsorbable fine Dac Blu, reabsorbable Biocoral 450, Calcitite 2040-12, Orthogel, Apagen, BTF 65, Calcitite 4060-2, Osprogel, Bio-oss, Biostite, Osprovit, Merck Hydroxyapatite. These analysis allow the identification of the crystalline phases, the study of the crystallinity and the crystal chemistry of the samples prepared as powder mixtures. This method permits the determination of the physical chemical and crystalline characteristics of these mineral based biomaterials formed by powders or transformable in powders. All of this information is indispensable for the evaluation of the functional biocompatibility of a biomaterial when its reaction in a biological environment is already known. This method has a great number of advantages against the traditional methods, marking with solid phases, it does not destroy the sample, it does not modify the physical or chemical characteristics and gives more information.

Biocompatible Materials↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Evaluation of an experimental model of osteoporosis induced in the female rat through ovariectomy.

The present paper intends to check the possibility of improving convenience of the osteoporosis model from ovariectomy in the rat by anticipating the operation to the 40th week rather than the 52nd week of age, thought by some authors to be the optimum model. To this end two parameters have been examined: 1. the bone mass variation determined with the vertebral photon densitometer and weighing of the femur ashes; 2. the chemico-crystallographic characteristics of the bone determined through chemical analysis and X-ray diffractometry. The results obtained induce us to believe that ovariectomy carried out on rats of 40 or 52 weeks of age determine bone mass losses that are statistically comparable. The variations in the dry bone weight/ash bone weight ratio are superposable and the structural chemical characteristics, due to the increase in bone turnover are testified by the increase in osteocalcin. Moreover, it was observed that the most reliable evaluation of bone mass loss can be obtained with the vertebral photon densitometry. Thus, it is thought that the model which foresees ovariectomy of rats 40 weeks after birth compared with those operated 52 weeks after birth, represents a good model of osteoporosis from estrogen deficiency which, due to the evident practical advantages deriving from the use of younger animals it associates a decrease in the use of laboratory animals with statistically reliable results.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Prevalent decrease of the EGF content in the periurethral zone of BPH tissue induced by treatment with finasteride or flutamide.

The aim of the present investigation is to verify whether treatment with Finasteride or Flutamide influences the regional distribution of testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and epidermal growth factor (EGF) in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) tissue. Thirty seven BPH patients were studied: 15 untreated, 9 treated with Flutamide (750 mg/day for 2 months), and 13 treated with Finasteride (5 mg/day for 3 months). Testosterone and DHT were evaluated by radioimmunoassay (RIA) after purification of the extracts on celite columns, and EGF was evaluated by RIA after purification on Sep-pak C18 cartridges in total tissue and in periurethral, subcapsular, and intermediate zone. In the untreated group, T, DHT, and EGF of the periurethral region are higher than those of the subcapsular zone (P < 0.01 for T and P < 0.001 for DHT and EGF). In the Flutamide group, DHT is not modified, T is increased (P = 0.045), and EGF is decreased in total tissue (P < 0.02) and in the periurethral zone (P < 0.01). In the Finasteride group, T is increased (P < 0.001), and DHT and EGF are decreased (P < 0.001), particularly in the periurethral zone. A positive linear correlation between DHT and EGF is observed in the Finasteride and in the untreated groups. In conclusion, in BPH the production of EGF is a DHT-dependent receptor-mediated function. The reduction of this growth factor during both treatments, associated with a fall of DHT in only the Finasteride group, is particularly evident in the periurethral zone. Since Finasteride reduces prostatic volume, mainly of the periurethral zone, we can speculate that DHT is responsible, either directly or indirectly through growth factors such as EGF for the enlargement of this region and thus responsible for urinary obstruction.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Androgen concentrations and their receptors in the periurethral region are higher than those of the subcapsular zone in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is an androgen-dependent disease that initially develops in the inner prostate, where the highest concentrations of testosterone (T) and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) are found. In this study, we have evaluated the cytosolic androgen receptors (ARc), the nuclear androgen receptors (ARn), and the concentrations of T, DHT, and 3alpha-androstanediol (3alphaDiol) in BPH tissue to verify the existence of a possible correlation between androgens and their receptor concentrations. Prostatic samples, removed by suprapubic prostatectomy in 15 untreated patients, were sectioned in periurethral, intermediate, and subcapsular zones. Testosterone, DHT, and 3alphaDiol were evaluated by radioimmunoassay after extraction and purification on celite microcolumns, and ARc and ARn were evaluated by means of dextran-coated charcoal method. In total tissue, mean levels of DHT, T, and 3alphaDiol were 2,531+/-308, 260+/-36, and 403+/-35 pg/mg of DNA (mean+/-SE), respectively. Cytosolic androgen receptors, detectable in all cases, were 16+/-2.8 fmol/mg of protein (mean+/-SE), and ARn, detectable in 12 cases, were 108+/-15 fmol/mg of DNA (mean+/-SE). A linear correlation between DHT and 3alphaDiol, T and DHT, and 3alphaDiol and ARn was found. If the different regions are considered, the periurethral zone, site of the primitive BPH nodule, presents the highest levels of androgens and ARn with respect to the other regions. This relative hyperandrogenism may be responsible for the growth-promoting processes of this area, leading to urinary obstruction.

Aged↗