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Biomedical subjects

A Achiron

Publications and source records attributed to A Achiron.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

T cell subsets in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Stress can produce immunosuppression leading to increased susceptibility to infection, tumor growth or autoimmune disease. It has been recently noted, however, that certain kinds of stress need not increase the risk of immune pathology. The present study looked for immune pathology in an anxiety-related disorder. Acute exacerbation of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), an anxiety spectrum disorder, served as a model for stress. Seven OCD subjects in acute exacerbation, and 9 healthy age-matched control subjects participated in the study. T cell subsets were determined at baseline in both OCD and control groups, and after 6 weeks on clomipramine in the OCD group. No statistically significant changes in lymphocyte subsets were found between the control and the untreated patient groups. Likewise, no statistically significant changes were found in patients before and after treatment. The negative findings of the present study supports the view that stress need not compromise immunologic function. Various aspects of stress, which may turn the immune system vulnerable, are discussed as well.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Fatigue in multiple sclerosis compared with chronic fatigue syndrome: A quantitative assessment.

Fatigue, a common complaint among patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), is poorly characterized. We developed a computerized method that quantitatively measures fatigue, and defined a fatigue index (FI), which is the ratio between the integral of muscle strength decay over time and maximal voluntary contraction. Thirty patients (mean age, 37.4 +/- 10.3 years) were examined - 20 patients with pyramidal tract involvement and 10 patients with involvement of other neurological systems. We evaluated 10 patients during relapse and 3 months afterwards, and compared their results with those of four patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and 13 age-matched health subjects. The FI was significantly higher in the MS patients as compared with the CFS patients and normal controls: 34.2 +/- 6.4% versus 27.5 +/- 1.0% and 23.6 +/- 6.8%, p < 0.05. Within the MS group, the FI correlated with the presence of pyramidal signs- 43.5% compared with 33% in patients without pyramidal signs, p < 0.01. In MS patients, fatigue worsened during a relapse affecting the pyramidal tract, but not during a relapse in other systems. These results demonstrate that fatigue can be quantitatively measured in MS patients, and that pyramidal dysfunction leads to increased fatigability.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Intravenous immune globulin in multiple sclerosis: clinical and neuroradiological results and implications for possible mechanisms of action.

Extensive evidence exists indicating that immunoregulatory mechanisms are involved in the pathogenesis of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Several possible mechanisms by which intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) modulates the course of the disease are related to limiting the inflammatory process and repairing the damage by enhancing remyelination. Presently, the evidence for the effect of IVIG in MS is based on the results of small open trials, some of which have been encouraging. In the current study, the positive impact of IVIG treatment on arresting disease progression was evident by decreased brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scores of the lesion area. In an effort to extend these findings, the authors initiated a multicentre, prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. The trial was designed to compare the efficacy of IVIG treatment with placebo in relapsing-remitting patients (ages 20-55 years) with definite MS, disease duration of 2-10 years and frequency of exacerbations 1-3/year during the 2 years prior to the study. Patients were examined monthly and brain MRI studies scheduled at entry, and after the first and second years of the trial. The primary endpoints included the number of acute exacerbations and neurological disability. The secondary endpoints included change in the MRI lesion burden, evaluated by the number and area of lesions. The trial ended in June 1995.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Sexual dysfunction in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis: magnetic resonance imaging, clinical, and psychological correlates.

The purpose of this study was to examine the sexual complaints and severity of sexual dysfunction in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients and to correlate them with psychological, neurological, and radiological variables. Frequency and characteristics of sexual disturbances were reported by 41 multiple sclerosis patients (32 females, 9 males; mean age 35.4 +/- 10.2 y). Clinical neurologic variables tested were disease duration, exacerbation rate, and disability; psychological variables tested were anxiety and depression. All patients underwent a brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan at the time of this study. The sexual dysfunction questionnaire included items based on the 3 phases of human sexual response: loss of libido, excitement (arousal difficulties, impotence, premature ejaculation), and anorgasmia. Five males (55.5%) and 16 females (50.0%) reported at least 1 sexual disturbance. The most frequent dysfunctions were loss of libido (26.8%) and arousal difficulties (19.5%). Females rated their difficulties as more severe. Sexual dysfunctions correlated with depression, (r = 0.68, P = 0.001). No correlation between MRI score and depression was found. Anorgasmia correlated with brain stem and pyramidal abnormalities (r = 0.56, P = 0.011; r = 0.56, P = 0.012, respectively). The total area of lesions (plaques) on the brain MRI scan also correlated with anorgasmia (r = 0.41, P = 0.02). Sexual dysfunctions in multiple sclerosis patients are frequent, are mild to moderate in severity, correlate with depression and in some cases central nervous system (CNS) demyelinating process, and thus may be related either to the psychological impact of this disease or to specific organic lesions in the brain.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Intracranial meningiomas: correlation of peritumoral edema and psychiatric disturbances.

Patients with proven intracranial meningioma were reexamined for psychiatric morbidity. Distribution according to type of meningioma was as follows: 72% convexity meningiomas and 28% base-of-skull meningiomas. No psychiatric disorders were diagnosed in the nonconvexity group in contrast to 44% in the convexity meningiomas. Among the convexity meningiomas, no difference between right- and left-hemispheric locations was found. Psychiatric comorbidity in the right-hemisphere group was found only in patients with frontal lobe meningiomas. Edema width was measured on all computed tomographic scan slices on which it appeared, and the average of all the slices was calculated. No correlation was found between neurological symptoms and edema severity. A statistically significant correlation was found between edema volume and the presence of coexisting psychiatric disorders, but not between the tumor's mass volume and the psychiatric symptoms.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I in Iranian-born Mashhadi Jews: genetic and phylogenetic evidence for common source of infection.

High prevalence of human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) infection and disease has been identified among Iranian-born Mashhadi Jews, an ethnically segregated, highly inbred population. To determine the origin and genetic diversity of HTLV-I in this group, 1,039 bp spanning selected regions of the HTLV-I gag, pol, env and pX genes were enzymatically amplified and sequenced directly from DNA of five Mashhadi Jews (three with spastic myelopathy and two asymptomatic carriers). Alignment and comparison of these sequences with cosmopolitan and Australo-Melanesian topotypes of HTLV-I indicated that the HTLV-I strains from Mashhadi Jews, which were > or = 99.9% identical among themselves, exhibited considerable sequence similarity (> or = 99%) to HTLV-I strains from southern India, suggesting a common source of infection. Phylogenetic analysis, using the maximum parsimony method, was consistent with a single-source introduction of HTLV-I into the Mashhadi Jewish community.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Effect of cisapride on response fluctuations in Parkinson's disease.

Impaired gastric emptying may be the cause for some response fluctuations in Parkinson's disease (PD), especially the "delayed-on" and "no-on" phenomena. Cisapride is a prokinetic drug that enhances gastric emptying by releasing acetylcholine from the myenteric plexus. Tolerability and safety as well as efficacy of cisapride was studied in an open-label trial on 15 fluctuating PD patients. Twelve patients had "delayed-on" and six had "no-no" phenomena. They filled out daily diaries on times of levodopa intake and of turning "on" and "off" for 1 week on levodopa alone and for an additional week of pretreatment with cisapride, 30 min before early morning, early afternoon, and late evening doses of levodopa. Cisapride significantly shortened latency to "on" from 60 +/- 20 to 45 +/- 19 min after the morning dose and from 63 +/- 17 to 47 +/- 22 min after the evening doses. Patients with "no-no" phenomenon had a decreased number of dose failures from 23 before to nine during cisapride treatment. The drug was well tolerated, with no important side effects. Our study supports the role of impaired gastric emptying in some subtypes of motor fluctuations and indicates that they may be improved by prokinetic drugs.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

HTLV-I from Iranian Mashhadi Jews in Israel is phylogenetically related to that of Japan, India, and South America rather than to that of Africa and Melanesia.

A new endemic focus of human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) was recently reported among Mashhadi Jews, a group of immigrants from northeastern Iran to Israel. We extracted DNAs from fresh peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and/or gargle mouthwash from 10 HTLV-I carriers, who consisted of members of one family, and HTLV-I-associated myelopathy (HAM) and adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) patients. Long terminal repeat (LTR) regions of proviral DNAs were sequenced and analyzed phylogenetically. In a phylogenetic tree, all the Mashhadi HTLV-I isolates belonged to subtype A, one of the three subtypes of the cosmopolitan type of HTLV-I, and made a tight cluster distinct from the other isolates of subtype A from Japan, India, the Caribbean Basin, and South America. Although a few nucleotide substitutions were observed among the clones sequenced, no characteristic sequence variation was found in different disease manifestations, even in one family or different sources of DNA preparation.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Lymphocyte ultrastructure in patients with multiple sclerosis.

The present study was undertaken to examine the ultrastructure of the lymphocytes of patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and to compare it to that of the lymphocytes of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients treated with intravenously administered immunoglobulin 0.4 mg/kg of body weight for 5 consecutive days followed by booster doses of immunoglobulin 0.4 mg/kg every two months for a total of 12 months. Peripheral blood lymphocytes of healthy volunteers served as control. The results indicate that lymphocytes of untreated patients differ markedly by both ultrastructure, as well as the number and size of their mitochondria. Since most of these changes disappeared following treatment, it is suggested that they are an expression of lymphocyte activation in this disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Peripheral neuropathy in multiple sclerosis: a clinical and electrophysiologic study.

Peripheral nerve abnormalities are uncommon in multiple sclerosis (MS). When present, they are usually attributed to factors associated with advanced disease, such as malnutrition or cytotoxic drugs. We prospectively evaluated 22 mildly disabled MS patients with sensory complaints for evidence of neuropathy using the Neuropathy Symptom Score (NSS), clinical examination, and electrophysiologic studies of peripheral nerves. Distal latency, F-wave response, and nerve conduction velocity (NCV) and amplitude in the ulnar, median, tibial, peroneal and sural nerves were examined. Neuropathy was recorded if electrophysiologic abnormalities were detected in at least two peripheral nerves in the same patient. The most frequent electrophysiologic abnormalities noted were prolonged F-wave response and low motor amplitude in the peroneal nerve, slow sensory conduction velocities of the ulnar and sural nerves, and prolonged distal latencies in the sensory ulnar and sural nerves. Electrophysiologic abnormalities were found in 33 of 244 nerves examined (14.7%) and occurred in 10 patients (45.5%). Neuropathic symptoms were mild and did not correlate with electrophysiologic abnormalities. Age, disease duration, disease course and neurologic disability as evaluated by the Kurtzke Expanded Disability Status Scale, were not associated with the presence of neuropathy. Our findings indicate a high frequency of sensory-motor neuropathy in a selected group of MS patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

IL-3-LA production by mononuclear cells of patients with multiple sclerosis: effect of treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins.

IL-3-like activity (IL-3-LA) is a growth factor that stimulates stem cell maturation. We examined the production of IL-3-LA by peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 10 patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) following one year of treatment with intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIG). The results were compared with those obtained in 13 age- and sex-matched untreated patients with relapsing-remitting MS and in 14 healthy controls. IL-3-LA was assayed using the IL-3-dependent 32-D-cl-23 murine cell line. IL-3-LA production was 60% higher in untreated MS patients than in healthy controls (134 +/- 19 u/ml and 78.7 +/- 15.9 u/ml, respectively; p < 0.01), and lower in patients treated with IVIG than in untreated patients (101.4 +/- 4.9 u/ml; p < 0.02). IL-3-LA production also decreased after incubation of mononuclear cells with IVIG of both untreated MS patients and controls. This study indicates a possible beneficial effect of IVIG on the immunological status of MS patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Fluoxetine induced weight loss: a pilot study in postpartum women.

Twelve women who developed an average postpartum weight gain of 18.3kgs (SD +/- 6.09) entered an open trial, for three months, of fluoxetine 20 mg daily. The weight gain during their pregnancies was nearly twice that recommended by the treating gynecologists. Seventy-five percent success rate was achieved -8/12 were +/- 5% of their pre-pregnancy weights upon completion of the trial. Mean weight upon entering the trial was 82.25kgs (SD +/- 13.39), and at termination, 65.75kgs (SD +/- 8.59), P < 0.001. Anorexia and weight loss (more than 5% of body weight) have been reported in the literature in 9% and 13%, respectively, of depressed patients treated with fluoxetine. The use of this drug to promote weight loss is here reported in a selected population of women without signs or symptoms of depression, whose weight gain during pregnancy was excessive.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Dopamine induces apoptosis-like cell death in cultured chick sympathetic neurons--a possible novel pathogenetic mechanism in Parkinson's disease.

We report that exposure of cultured, postmitotic chick-embryo sympathetic neurons, to physiological concentrations of dopamine (0.1-1 mM) for 24 h initiates a cellular death process characteristic of apoptosis (= programmed-cell-death, PCD). Dopamine caused marked morphological alterations, mainly axonal disintegration and severe shrinkage and condensation of cell bodies. Flow-cytometric analysis of propidium-iodide-stained cell nuclei revealed the characteristic apoptotic nuclear fragmentation: increase in nuclear granularity and emergence of a large, distinct population of nuclei with reduced DNA content (subdiploid, apoptotic peak). These alterations were similar to changes induced by nerve growth factor (NGF) deprivation, a model of sympathetic neuronal PCD. Alterations were inhibited by the anti-oxidative agent DTT. Inappropriate, dopamine-induced activation of PCD might have a role in nigral neuronal degeneration in Parkinson's disease.

Animals↗