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S Toro

Publications and source records attributed to S Toro.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Air pollution and cardiovascular admissions association in Spain: results within the EMECAS project.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the short term effect of air pollution on cardiovascular admissions in 14 Spanish cities METHODS: The period under study was from 1995 to 1999. Daily emergency admissions for all cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and heart diseases (HD) were obtained from hospital records, and the corresponding daily levels of particulates, SO2, NO2, CO, and ozone were recorded. The magnitude of association was estimated using Poisson generalised additive models controlling for confounding and overdispersion. For each cause, lagged effects, up to three days, of each pollutant were examined and combined estimates were obtained. For ozone the analyses were restricted to the warm period. One and two pollutant models were performed. RESULTS: Associations were more consistent in lag 0 (concurrent day) and 1 (lag 0-1), except in the case of ozone where there was a more delayed relation (lag 2-3). For combined estimates an increase of 10 microg/m3 in the PM10 levels in lag 0-1 was associated with an increase of 0.9% (95% CI: 0.4 to 1.5%) in the number of hospital admissions for CVD, and 1.6% (0.8 to 2.3%) for HD. For ozone the corresponding estimates for lag 2-3 were 0.7% (0.3 to 1.0) for CVD, and 0.7% (0.1 to 1.2) for HD. An increase of 1 mg/m3 in CO levels was associated with an increase of 2.1% (0.7 to 3.5%) in CVD admissions, and 4.2% (1.3 to 7.1%) in HD admissions. SO2 and NO2 estimates were more sensitive in two pollutant models CONCLUSIONS: A short term association between increases in daily levels of air pollutants and the number of daily admissions for cardiovascular diseases, with specificity for heart diseases, has been described in Spanish cities.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

The molecular epidemiology of tuberculosis in Caracas, Venezuela, with IS6110 DNA fingerprinting.

In this retrospective study we asses the molecular epidemiological situation of Tuberculosis of the city of Caracas, Venezuela in the year 1994, applying IS6110 DNA Fingerprinting of clinical isolates. Fingerprinting of Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains of sixty-four patients TB patients from all the 5 districts of the city revealed fifty-one distinct IS6110 patterns. Isolates from 20 patients (30%) had fingerprints that were shared with at least one other patient. Based on this sampling we conclude that at least a third of the tuberculosis cases in Caracas in the year 1994 were the result of recent and ongoing transmission, indicating micro-epidemics in the town.

Bacterial Typing Techniques↗
PubMed2000

GABAergic presynaptic inhibition of rat neostriatal afferents is mediated by Q-type Ca(2+) channels.

Population spikes associated with the paired pulse facilitation paradigm have been successfully used to measure presynaptic inhibition in several systems. In the present work, this paradigm was used to evaluate the action of baclofen on neostriatal glutamatergic transmission. Baclofen enhanced synaptic facilitation with an EC(50)=0.57 microM and a maximal effect of 457%. Selective antagonists for N-, P- and Q-type Ca(2+)-channels enhanced paired pulse facilitation; suggesting that these channel types participate in the release of transmitter. Nevertheless, neither 1 microM omega-conotoxin GVIA, nor 20 nM omega-agatoxinTK occluded the action of baclofen. Baclofen's action was occluded only by 400 nM omega-agatoxinTK. These data suggest that Q-type Ca(2+)-channels mediate gamma-aminobutyric acid(B) presynaptic inhibition of neostriatal afferents.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

An update on the discovery, pathophysiological actions, clinical manifestations and possible physiology of parathyroid related peptide.

PTHrP has had an unidentified role in medicine since 1930, when Albright described a patient with renal cortical cell carcinoma with hypercalcemia. Since then hypercalcemia has been recognized as the most common paraneoplastic syndrome. At that time the concept of "ectopic PTH syndrome" was introduced, and remained in literature until the true etiology was finally described. In the early 1970's Roof and Benson presented evidence that PTH in humoral hypercalcemia differed from "authentic" PTH. This marked the starting point for researchers to try identifying the molecule that mimicked PTH action and structure. This molecule, named parathyroid-related peptide, has been associated to hypercalcemia seen with solid tumors, such as squamous cell carcinoma of the lung and renal cortical cell carcinoma. PTHrP has been demonstrated to have similar actions to PTH but to differ in decreasing osteoblastic activity while increasing osteoclastic activity. The more fascinating finding was the presence of the PTHrP genes throughout the body, mostly the lactating breast as well as the heart, lungs and skin among others. Despite its identification, finding its physiological roles on normal tissue still remains to be clarified.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

[A clone of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup C was responsible in 1994 of an unusual high rate of strains with a moderate resistance to penicillin in Caracas (Venezuela)].

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to analyse meningococcal strains isolated from patients in Caracas (Venezuela) with epidemiological markers and to determine their susceptibility to antimicrobial agents. METHODS: We analyzed 29 meningococcal clinical strains isolated during 1994 in Caracas by serogrouping, serotyping and subserotyping, multilocus enzyme analysis (MEE), ribotyping and pulse field electrophoresis (PFGE) profile. We also determined the Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) to 5 antimicrobial agents. RESULTS: Twenty four (82.7%) were group C meningococcal strains. All group C meningococci were characterized as C: 2b: P1.5, belonging to the same electrophoretic type (ET) by MEE and showing the same profile by PFGE by using Bg/II endonuclease restriction enzyme. These group C meningococci showed two different patterns by ribotyping, with only one band difference. All Group C and one group B N. meningitidis isolates were moderately resistant to penicillin (MIC > or = 0.12 mg/l). CONCLUSIONS: During 1994 an unusual high incidence of meningococcal strains moderately resistant to penicillin (PenMR) was detected in Caracas (Venezuela). A clone of C: 2b: P1.5 meningococci seem to be responsable for this high incidence of PenMR isolates.

Cross Infection↗
PubMed1990

Isolation and characterization of mutants affected in the expression of the nar operon Escherichia coli.

In the nitrate reductase system of Escherichia coli, the maximal expression of the nar operon is obtained under anaerobiosis in the presence of nitrate. Mudl (Ap,lac) insertion mutants, which only grew on lactose anaerobically if supplemented with nitrate were mapped at the chlC locus at min 27 of the map. In these fusion strains which lack benzyl viologen dependent nitrate reductase (NR) activity as well as the formiate-linked NR activity, the synthesis of beta-galactosidase reflects the regulation of the wild type nar operon at the transcriptional level. From these strains, two classes of spontaneous regulatory mutants were isolated: class I mutants which synthesized beta-galactosidase in anaerobiosis in the absence of nitrate and class II mutants in which the synthesis of that enzyme was partially independent of nitrate and it was no longer repressed by oxygen. The class I regulatory mutation was tightly linked to the nar operon as shown by bacteriophage P1 transductions. It probably affects either a closely linked cis-active element or a gene coding for a negative regulatory protein.

Chromosome Mapping↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[The incidence of Trypanosoma cruzi antibodies in patients with dilated myocardiopathy at the Instituto Nacional de Cardiología Ignacio Chávez].

Our objective was to measure the incidence of humoral immune response against Trypanosoma cruzi among patients with a definitive diagnosis of dilated cardiomyopathy at the Instituto Nacional de Cardiología "I. Chávez" over a year. Thirty seven patients were collected, 15 of them (40%) had antibodies against T. cruzi in two different tests, indirect immunofluorescence and ELISA, the presence of IgG antibody was confirmed through Western blot. There was not differences in clinical picture of cardiomyopathy nor on paraclinical studies. However, there was a significant difference in regard socio economical indexes between the group with positive anti T. cruzi antibodies. They had a predominant rural origin, poor housing and were aware of the vector bug. Also they recalled primary infection in their childhood--American trypanosomiasis could be on important etiologic factor for dilated cardiomyopathy in our country.

Academies and Institutes↗