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V Andersen

Publications and source records attributed to V Andersen.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

On the transfer of serum proteins to the rat intestinal juice.

The in vivo pattern of serum proteins in the rat small-intestinal juice was characterized by crossed immunoelectrophoresis. Immunoglobulins and albumin, alpha-1-antitrypsin, transferrin, and orosomucoid were present. Larger serum proteins were absent (ceruloplasmin, haptoglobin, alpha-1-macroglobulin, alpha and beta lipoproteins). Thus, apart from immunoglobulins, only serum proteins with a molecular mass less than approximately 100 kDa were demonstrated. The origin and epithelial transfer were further characterized, using albumin as a model. No sign of local synthesis of albumin by the enterocytes was found by Northern blotting, and no albumin was found in the Golgi complex by immunogold electron microscopy. By immunogold electron microscopy a heavy labelling of albumin was observed in the interstitial spaces between the villus enterocytes. Where the enterocytes disintegrated, albumin was seen to leak out into the intestinal lumen from the opened interstitial spaces. A weak labelling was also found in the lysosomal/endosomal-like structures, especially in the crypt enterocytes, indicating pinocytosis of albumin. We conclude that the main reason for the occurrence of certain serum proteins in the intestinal juice is a selective passage through the capillary wall followed by passive intercellular transport via delivery of the serum in the interstitial space during disintegration of the enterocytes.

Animals↗

Changes in fat free mass in overweight patients with rheumatoid arthritis on a weight reducing regimen. A comparison of eight different body composition methods.

The aim of this work was to compare and validate seven different methods for estimating changes in fat free mass, in patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. Measurements were made of fat and fat free mass before and after 12 weeks on an energy restricted, protein rich diet and physical training. The subjects were sixteen female and three male overweight out-patients (mean body mass index at baseline: 30 kg/m2) suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, according to the criteria of the American Rheumatism Association. Fat free mass was estimated by eight different body composition methods (a four-compartment model, total body water, total body potassium, impedance, near infrared interactance, creatinine excretion, body mass index and skinfold measurements). Mean weight loss was 2.7 kg fat and 1.7 kg fat free mass. There was no difference between measurements of mean change in fat free mass by the four-compartment model and the other methods, except for the creatinine method (P = 0.03). Compared to the four-compartment method, the total body water method gave the most accurate estimate of individual fat free mass changes (residual Mean Square: 0.4 kg), second to this method, the impedance method, seemed most valid (residual Mean Square: 0.8 kg). Accuracies of the other methods were lower (residual Mean Square between 4.2 and 8.2 kg [corrected]). Of eight methods for estimating changes in FFM, the TBW method gave the most accurate estimate of individual FFM changes, compared to a four-compartment model used as reference.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗

Chronic fatigue syndrome--a controlled cross sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: To look for signs of immunodeficiencies and/or longstanding infections underlying chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). METHODS: Twenty-one patients fulfilling the Centers for Disease Control criteria for CFS were compared to 21 age and sex matched controls. A number of viral antibodies as well as the following tests evaluating the immune system were studied: autoantibody profile, cell surface markers on isolated blood mononuclear cells, cytokine production, lymphocyte proliferative responses, natural killer cell activity and quantitation of immunoglobulin secreting cells. RESULTS: Production in vitro of the predominantly T cell derived cytokines interleukin 2 and interferon gamma was significantly higher in patients with CFS compared to the control group. Furthermore, the serum concentrations of IgA and IgE were lower in patients with CFS; however, this difference was caused by a larger number with values of IgA and IgE above the upper limit of the normal range among the controls than among the patients with CFS. All other variables were similar in the 2 groups. CONCLUSION: A pathogenically significant imbalance of the immune system in patients with CFS cannot be excluded. However, evidence of a causal link between abnormal immunity and CFS was not obtained.

Adolescent↗

[Drug costs].

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Cost Control↗

[Chronic fatigue].

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Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic↗

[Surgical treatment of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy. A retrospective study].

Twelve patients, three male and nine female, suffering from hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy were operated during the period 1976 to 1991. Operative methods were myotomy-myectomy (Morrow-procedure), mitral valve implantation or both. During the perioperative period two patients developed conduction disturbances requiring pacemaker implantation, five patients had left bundle branch block, and one died. The NYHA class was significantly reduced postoperatively (p = 0.0002). Five of eleven patients surviving the perioperative period died postoperatively after a mean follow-up of 6.3 years. It is the authors' opinion, that operation should be considered in patients suffering from hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, who have a left ventricle outflow gradient of 50 mmHg or more, and who despite medical treatment have symptoms placing them in NYHA class III-IV.

Adult↗

Effect of 8 wk of bicycle training on the immune system of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

The effect of 8 wk of progressive bicycle training on the immune system was evaluated in a controlled study on 18 patients with rheumatoid arthritis and moderate disease activity. Maximal O2 uptake increased significantly, whereas heart rate at stage 2 and rate of perceived exertion decreased significantly, in the training group compared with the controls. Resting levels of a number of immune parameters were measured before and after 4 and 8 wk of training. Training did not induce changes in blood mononuclear cell subpopulations, proliferative response, or natural killer cell activity. Furthermore the plasma concentrations of interleukin-1 alpha, interleukin-1 beta, and interleukin-6 did not change in response to training. It is concluded that 8 wk of bicycle training does not influence the immune system of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Aged↗

Anti-cardiolipin antibodies (IgG and IgA) in women with recurrent fetal loss correlate to clinical and serological characteristics of SLE.

AIM OF STUDY: We investigated to which degree IgG, IgA and IgM anti-cardiolipin antibodies (aCL) are associated in recurrent abortion or late fetal death with other signs of autoimmune disease and in particular SLE. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Serological variables typical of SLE and of the anti-phospholipid antibody syndrome were measured once eight to 16 weeks after the last fetal loss in 158 women with recurrent abortion or late fetal death; women with manifest autoimmune rheumatic disease were excluded. RESULTS: (1) Positive values, i.e. above the 99th percentile of reference material, of IgG aCL and IgA aCL were observed in 4% and 7%, respectively, whereas 26% had positive values of IgM aCL. (2) IgG aCL and IgA aCL but not IgM aCL correlated to anti-nuclear antibodies and to anti-double stranded DNA. (3) Anti-double stranded DNA, IgG aCL and IgA aCL but not IgM aCL correlated to previous occurrence of thrombosis. (4) ANA correlated to lower blood platelet concentrations and higher erythrocyte sedimentation rates. CONCLUSIONS: Women with recurrent abortion or late fetal death who have higher but not necessarily abnormally high levels of IgG aCL or IgA aCL constitute a group with increased occurrence of clinical and serological characteristics of SLE. We suggest that these women be kept under surveillance for future development of autoimmune disease especially SLE. The women with high IgM aCL constitute another group without these characteristics.

Abortion, Habitual↗

Interferon-alpha prevents endotoxin-induced mortality in mice.

Endotoxins, the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) moieties on the bacterial cell wall, cause many of the pathological features of Gram-negative septicemia. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF), primarily a product of monocyte/macrophages, has been shown to mediate many of the pathophysiological effects of endotoxin. Kupffer cells, the largest macrophage population in the body, release TNF when stimulated by LPS in vitro. A recombinant human hybrid interferon-alpha A/D (rIFN-alpha) markedly inhibited this LPS-elicited TNF production by Kupffer cells. The effects of rIFN-alpha were further tested in C57BL/6 mice receiving a lethal dose (400 micrograms/mouse) of LPS. All LPS-treated mice died within 2 days. Pretreatment with rIFN-alpha 1 h before LPS challenge improved the survival at 3 days to 22% (5/23, p < 0.04). In contrast, rIFN-alpha was more effective when administered 20 min after LPS injection, increasing the survival rate to 81% (13/16, p < 0.0001). TNF mRNA expression in the liver and spleen 50 min after LPS challenge, and plasma TNF 1.5 h after LPS were also reduced by either pretreatment or post-treatment with rIFN-alpha. Subsequently, experiments were carried out to test the efficacy of delayed rIFN-alpha treatment. A significant protective effect was still apparent when rIFN-alpha was administered 6, 10 and even 14 h (81%, 62% and 28% survival, respectively) after LPS challenge when serum TNF levels had already returned to near baseline. These experimental results suggest that rIFN-alpha might have a therapeutic potential for the prevention and treatment of the deleterious effects associated with endotoxemia besides mechanisms initially blocking TNF production.

Animals↗

Effects of immunomodulators on ecto-5'-nucleotidase activity on blood mononuclear cells in vitro.

In this study the effects of immunomodulators on the ecto-5'-nucleotidase (ecto-5'-NT) activity on blood mononuclear cells (BMC) were examined in vitro. Interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) decreased the level of ecto-5'-NT activity on BMC whereas prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) increased the ecto-5'-NT level. All three immunomodulators influenced the ecto-5'-NT activity of isolated monocytes whereas only IL-4 and PGE2 had an effect on the enzyme level on isolated lymphocytes. The effect was dependent upon protein synthesis. The effect was dose dependent: IL-4 was effective at concentrations down to 0.5 U/ml, IFN-gamma down to 40 U/ml and PGE2 at nanomolar concentrations. These data indicate that immunomodulators may also take part in the regulation of ecto-5'-NT activity on BMC in vivo. BMC from 7 patients with different immunodeficiency syndromes showed decreased ecto-5'-NT activity on freshly isolated cells. However, following culture ecto-5'-NT activity was increased above the level found on freshly isolated BMC from healthy persons. On BMC from 3 patients with hypogammaglobulinaemia, the effect of IL-4 on the level of ecto-5'-NT activity was identical to that found on BMC from healthy donors, whereas PGE2 increased ecto-5'-NT activity on BMC from only 1 of the 3 patients investigated. The decreased ecto-5'-NT activity of BMC from patients with immunodeficiency may thus be due to a defective regulation of ecto-5'-NT activity in vivo.

5'-Nucleotidase↗

Soluble interleukin-2 receptor and soluble CD8 antigen levels in serum from patients with non-resectable lung cancer.

In a preliminary longitudinal study two women with histologically verified adenocarcinoma of the lung, without simultaneous infectious or inflammatory conditions, were seen every 2 weeks until death. In one of the patients serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) levels rose progressively while the levels for the other patient increased during the second half of the observation period. Serum soluble CD8 antigen (sCD8 Ag) showed a pattern dissimilar to the one for sIL-2R. In a retrospective cross-sectional study circulating levels of sIL-2R and sCD8 Ag were measured before explorative thoracotomy in a total of 65 patients with histologically proven non-resectable carcinoma of the lung. The sIL-2R levels were significantly increased independently of histological subclassification while sCD8 Ag was increased only in patients with small-cell lung cancer. There was no correlation between pre-operative values and length of survival.

Aged↗

Restriction fragment length polymorphism of two HLA-B-associated transcripts genes in five autoimmune diseases.

The restriction fragment length polymorphism of the two human HLA-B-associated transcripts (BATs) genes, BAT1 and BAT2, identifying polymorphic bands of 12, 8, 2.5, and 1.1 kb, and at 3.3, 2.7, 2.3, and 0.9 kb, respectively, was investigated in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), pauciarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (P-JRA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS), and in healthy Danes. The BAT2/RsaI 2.7-kb band fragment was more frequent in PBC, pSS, and SLE than in controls, but the p values did not reach significance when corrected for multiple comparisons. For pSS and SLE, the associations may be secondary to primary associations with HLA-B8 because the BAT2/RsaI 2.3-kb band, which is allelic to the BAT2/RsaI 2.7-kb band, is strongly negatively associated with HLA-B8 and HLA-DR3. The only significance obtained shows that the HLA-B8 frequency is increased in BAT2/RsaI 2.7-kb positive pSS patients as compared to the corresponding controls indicating that the HLA-B8 association may be strongest. No missing or extra DNA fragments were observed in the disease groups when compared with controls indicating that gross deletions or duplications of the BAT1 and BAT2 genes in the patients are unlikely. In conclusions, it cannot be excluded that the BAT2/RsaI 2.7-kb band may contribute to the susceptibility to PBC, pSS, and SLE.

Autoimmune Diseases↗

Prophylactic effect of self-administered pump-driven subcutaneous IgG infusion in patients with antibody deficiency: a triple-blind cross-over study comparing P-IgG levels of 3 g l-1 versus 6 g l-1.

Eight adult patients with hypoimmunoglobulinaemia were randomly allocated to initiation of low- or high-level IgG-substitution. IgG was administered subcutaneously, at 50 or 150 mg ml-1, 20 ml per infusion, by means of a pocket-portable electric infusion pump. Infusions were given 2 to 4 times weekly for 24 months, with a change of dose regimen after 12 months. The desired plasma IgG levels were reached after a mean lag phase of 3 months (range 1-5 months). The median (and ranges) of the individual mean plasma IgG levels during the ensuing 9-month periods were as follows: high-level period, 6.5 g l-1 (range 6.2-7.8 g l-1); low-level period, 3.2 g l-1 (range 3.0-4.0 g l-1). During the high-level period, compared to the low-level period, there was a significant decrease in the following parameters: 'days in bed at home', 'days missed work' and 'days with fever'. No serious side-effects were observed. It is concluded that a plasma IgG concentration of 6 g l-1 can readily be achieved by subcutaneous IgG substitution, and the prophylactic effect is superior to that obtained with a plasma IgG concentration of 3 g l-1.

Adult↗

Cyclosporine-induced renal morphologic and immunohistologic changes in patients with chronic uveitis.

Ten long-term cyclosporine-treated patients with chronic uveitis underwent percutaneous renal biopsy in order to evaluate a) abnormalities of renal morphology and b) the nature of lymphocytic infiltrates by immunohistochemistry. Pretransplant renal biopsies from eleven cadaveric donors served as controls. Eight of the ten patients had lymphocytic infiltrates consisting predominantly of T lymphocytes with a CD4+/CD8+ ratio of 1.46, which is identical to that of peripheral blood in healthy donors. Evidence of immune activation as estimated by the presence of interleukin-2 receptors, transferrin receptors or by the expression of MHC class II antigens was not demonstrated in any of the patients. The severity of morphologic alterations did not correlate with any of the clinical or paraclinical data. Percutaneous renal biopsy should be performed within 18 months of treatment to identify patients susceptible to renal side effects of cyclosporine.

Adult↗

[Immunosuppression with cyclosporin induces clinical remission and improved beta cell function in patients with newly diagnosed insulin-dependent diabetes. A national and international multicenter study].

A prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled international multicenter trial including 188 newly diagnosed insulin-dependent diabetic (IDDM) patients was undertaken with the aim of investigating whether immunosuppression for one year with ciklosporin (Cs) could induce and maintain clinical remission and improvement of beta-cell function. The relative odds for non-insulin-requiring remission at one year were increased approximately five times in the Cs-treated group. After three months Cs-treated patients achieved more than a doubling of beta-cell function compared to baseline than did placebo-treated patients, and the Cs-treated group maintained this improvement in beta-cell function for 12 months, whereas the placebo-group lost beta-cell function during the same period. Short duration of disease (less than or equal to six weeks of symptoms, less than or equal to two weeks of insulin treatment) was associated positively with remission, as was an elevated proinsulin/C-peptide ratio, especially in patients with the tissue-type HLA-DR 3,4; 4,X and X,X. Cs-treatment inhibited the formation of antibodies against insulin and islet cell components, but islet cell antibody status at entry was not predictive of remission. Cs-treatment caused a reversible decrement of kidney function as measured with serum creatinine and the calculated creatinine clearance, but studies of renal physiology and kidney biopsies performed on a limited subset of patients indicated that Cs treatment in IDDM patients for one year induced a slight chronic nephropathy in some of these.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adolescent↗