Biomedical subjects

Tina Palmieri

Publications and source records attributed to Tina Palmieri.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Norepinephrine modulates the inflammatory and proliferative phases of wound healing.

BACKGROUND: Injury results in the massive release of norepinephrine (NE) into the peripheral circulation. Recent investigations have demonstrated functional adrenoreceptors on the cellular mediators of cutaneous wound healing and NE-induced phenotypic alterations in immune cells have been demonstrated in vitro. Despite this, there is little description of how NE might alter the phases of wound healing in vivo. The purpose of this study was to compare cutaneous wound healing in norepinephrine-intact and norepinephrine-depleted mice. METHODS: Norepinephrine-depleted (NED) mice were generated by chemical axotomy with 6-hydroxydopamine and compared with norepinephrine-intact (NEI) animals (n = 6-12 per group, per time point). Using an excisional wound model, neutrophil recruitment was measured by myeloperoxidase assay. Macrophage recruitment and angiogenesis were measured by immunohistochemistry and re-epithelialization was determined histologically. The development of incisional wound disruption strength was determined over time. Finally, macrophage scavenger function was assessed by an in vitro latex bead phagocytosis assay. RESULTS: Wounds from NEI mice demonstrated greater neutrophil infiltration than NED wounds (24, 72 hours; p < 0.05). Wound macrophage recruitment was initially higher in NEI animals (24 hours, p < 0.05), but was eventually surpassed by that of NED animals (120 hours, p < 0.05). Angiogenesis was decreased while re-epithelialization was accelerated in NEI animals (p < 0.05). Wound disruption strength and macrophage scavenger function were unaltered between NED and NEI mice. CONCLUSIONS: Norepinephrine modulates the inflammatory and proliferative phases of wound healing in a temporally defined, cell-specific manner. By increasing recruitment of innate immune cells and expediting wound closure, norepinephrine appears to play a protective role in defense against infection.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

CD14-dependent alterations in c-Jun expression in the liver after burn injury.

BACKGROUND: Burn injury-triggered activation of lipopolysaccharide signaling via the CD14 pathway alters the expression of a variety of downstream genes contributing to pathogenic changes in distant organs. The regulation of CD14 and its role in the immediate-early response of c-Jun in the liver after burn injury were investigated in this study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An incidental identification of the differential induction of CD14 mRNA after an approximately 18% TBSA burn injury in mice was confirmed by RT-PCR and immunohistochemical analyses of CD14 expression. Subsequently, CD14's role in the immediate-early regulation of c-Jun expression in the liver after injury was examined by Western blot analysis using CD14 knockout (KO) mice. RESULTS: RT-PCR analysis demonstrated a rapid and transient induction of CD14 mRNA in the liver and lungs of mice after injury. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed a peak induction of CD14 reactivity in cells appearing to be Kupffer cells at day 1 after injury. Furthermore, an augmented and delayed induction of c-Jun mRNA was observed in the liver of CD14 KO mice after injury compared to wild-type controls. The induction of phosphorylated (serine 63 or serine 73) forms of c-Jun after injury was lower in the livers of CD14 KO mice than that in WT controls. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that injury elicits CD14 induction as well as hyperphosphorylation of the c-Jun N-terminus activation domain and that CD14 is involved in the modulation of c-Jun's transactivation potential via phosphorylation, which may be associated with hepatic pathogenesis after injury.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The development, validation, and testing of a health outcomes burn questionnaire for infants and children 5 years of age and younger: American Burn Association/Shriners Hospitals for Children.

The 12-member American Burn Association/Shriners Hospitals for Children Outcomes Task Force was charged with developing a health outcomes questionnaire for use in children 5 years of age and younger that was clinically based and valid. A 55-item form was tested using a cross-sectional design on the basis of a range of 184 infants and children between 0 and 5 years of age at 8 burn centers, nationally. A total of 131 subjects completed a follow-up health outcomes questionnaire 6 months after the baseline assessment. A comparison group of 285 normal nonburn children was also obtained. Internal consistency reliability of the scales ranged from 0.74 to 0.94. Tests of clinical validity were significant in the hypothesized direction for the majority of scales for length of hospital stay, duration since the burn, percent of body surface area burned, overall clinician assessment of severity of burn injury, and number of comorbidities. The criterion validity of the instrument was supported using the Child Developmental Inventories for Burn Children in early childhood and preschool stages of development comparing normal vs abnormal children. The instrument was sensitive to changes over time following a clinical course observed by physicians in practice. The Health Outcomes Burn Questionnaire for Infants and Children 5 years of age and younger is a clinically based reliable and valid assessment tool that is sensitive to change over time for assessing burn outcomes in this age group.

Burns↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Prophylactic intravenous immune globulin and polymixin B decrease the incidence of septic episodes and hospital length of stay in severely burned children.

After burn shock resuscitation, serum gamma globulin levels decrease well below normal before slowly recovering over the course of 1 to 2 months. During this period, patients are vulnerable to further insult as a result of this immunocompromise. We hypothesized that intravenous immune globulin and subtherapeutic polymixin B (IVIG-B) could decrease the incidence and/or severity of sepsis after major thermal injury. A retrospective chart review from 1997 through 2003 at two hospitals compared patients who received IVIG-B (Hospital A) with those who did not (Hospital B). Patients with burns 40% or greater TBSA were included, whereas patients with nonsurvivable injuries were excluded from data analysis. A total of 152 patients were included in the study. One hundred two patients received IVIG-B, and 50 did not. Total burn size was 63.4% TBSA at Hospital A and 63.1% TBSA at Hospital B, with full-thickness burns of 54.4 and 61.7% TBSA, respectively (P < .05). Patients treated at Hospital A had a 51.9% incidence of inhalation injury compared with 28% of the patients at Hospital B (P < .05). There was an average of 1.2 and 1.9 septic episodes for patients treated at Hospital A and Hospital B, respectively (P < .05). Length of hospital stay was 77.1 days at Hospital A compared with 103.8 days at Hospital B (P < .05). Mortality was 17.6% and 18% at Hospitals A and B, respectively, and was not significantly different. Our data suggest that prophylactic IVIG-B is associated with a reduction in the incidence of septic episodes and decreased hospital length of stay following major thermal injury.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗