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Biomedical subjects

A Merli

Publications and source records attributed to A Merli.

30 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1983

Sensitive micro in situ fluorescent focus assay for detection of murine xenotropic retroviruses.

A sensitive micro in situ fluorescent focus assay (mISFA), which utilizes cell monolayers fixed on a plastic surface, was developed for the detection of NZB xenotropic type C retroviruses grown in mammalian cell lines. The mISFA technique is an easier, more rapid and less expensive assay than other biological tests used to detect these viruses; it gives a more precise viral titer and is slightly more sensitive. This technique allows extension of host-range investigations to include any growing cell cultures and is applicable to various virus-host cell systems.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Home treatment of seizures as a strategy for the long-term management of febrile convulsions in children.

A cooperative study evaluating compliance and efficacy of Diazepam clisma in home treatment of febrile seizures in children was conducted from January 1979 to June 1981. Parents of 601 children admitted to hospital for a febrile convulsion were taught to use Diazepam clisma in the eventuality of a new seizure and asked to record the length of the episode. Complete follow-up was possible in 564 cases for an average time of 16.7 months. During the research period 109 convulsive episodes were registered in 76 children. Four of these children presented a seizure without fever. Diazepam clisma was administered correctly in 70 episodes (64.2%). In 26 of the remaining 39 cases, therapy was not administered because the seizure ended before the treatment was started. Prolonged seizures (greater than 15 min) have been reported in 8 cases. Six were in the non-treated group and 2 in the treated group. In both these last cases Diazepam was expelled immediately after being administered. The results of the study suggest that home treatment of febrile convulsions by Diazepam clisma represents a well accepted and useful strategy for prevention of prolonged seizures, provided that continuous contact and complete understanding between family and physician can be ensured.

Child↗
PubMed1977

Polypeptides in the succinate-coenzyme Q reductase segment of the respiratory chain.

Complex II (succinate-coenzyme Q reductase) was resolved into ten different polypeptides by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Four polypeptides, CII-1, CII-2, CII-3, and CII-4 with molecular weights of 70 000, 24 000, 13 500, and 7000, were present in large amounts in all preparations examined. CII-1 and CII-2 are the flavoprotein and iron-sulfur protein, respectively, of succinate dehydrogenase; CII-3 and CII-4 have not been functionally indentified. Six polypeptides were present in much smaller amoumts as judged by staining intensity, and each of these comigrated with components in complex III. The amino acid compositions of several of the minor components in complex II were identical with that of an equivalently migrating polypeptide in complex III. We conclude that succinate-coenzyme Q reductase contains four different polypeptides and is contaminated with variable amounts of complex III when isolated as complex II.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1976

[Frontal vertebral cleft in the newborn].

In the newborn and foetus in the last months of gestation it is possible to see in lateral radiography of the spine, a longitudinal radiotransparent band which may divide the bone nucleus of the vertebral body into two portions. This front vertebral separation should be considered an expression of a reversible abnormality rather than a malformation to the extent that it almost always concerns a differentiation delay in the vertebral structures. The literature and personal cases show, in fact, that the finding disappears more or less rapidly.

Diagnosis, Differential↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Both the precursors and the effectors of human lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) cells may belong to T lymphocytes.

The present experiments were designed to perform a further investigation of the cell lineage of lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) cells. In the presence of adherent cells both T and not-T cells, separated on the basis of rosette formation with sheep erythrocytes (E rosettes), generated LAK activity after short-term culture in recombinant interleukin-2 in 5 different individuals tested. Since at the termination of the culture more than 98% of cells were T11-positive, it is evident that both LAK precursor and effector cells may belong to the T cell lineage. By applying a culture technique which allows the clonal expansion of virtually all T cells, we further selected and analyzed T cell clones with LAK activity. Under the culture conditions used, LAK clones represented approximately 4% of all proliferating clones. All had cytolytic activity against K562 target cells as well and also released large amounts of gamma-interferon following phytohemagglutinin stimulation.

Antigens, Surface↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Anti-human thyroglobulin autoantibodies assayed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

A rapid and simple enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for anti-thyroglobulin IgG antibodies is described. The method is based on a 'sandwich' using purified human thyroglobulin adsorbed to polystyrene microplates, human serum and anti-human IgG antiserum conjugated to alkaline phosphatase. The sensitivity of the method is about 8 ng/ml, as evaluated with a purified anti-thyroglobulin antibody preparation. High concentrations of antibodies were observed, as expected, in autoimmune thyroid disease; however, the majority of normal subjects have detectable, although very low, antibody levels. We conclude the method is suitable for current clinical use.

Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Interleukin-2-induced proliferation of CD4-CD8- human thymocytes. In vitro expression of CD3 and CD8 antigens and cytolytic activity.

Human thymocytes lacking both CD4 and CD8 differentiation antigens were prepared by treating total thymocyte suspensions with a mixture of anti-CD4 and anti-CD8 monoclonal antibodies and complement. The resulting populations contained less than 2% CD4+, CD8+ or WT31+ cells and variable percentages (less than 20%) of CD3+ cells. These cell populations were cultured in recombinant IL-2 in the presence of peripheral blood mononuclear cells as feeder cells. Cells underwent extensive proliferation accompanied by a progressive increase of CD3+ and CD8+ cells. On the other hand, appearance of neither WT31+, alpha/beta-positive T cell receptor (TCR), nor CD4+ cells could be observed in several independent experiments. Functional analyses revealed the appearance and the progressive increase of cytolytic activity against the natural killer (NK)-sensitive K562 cells as well as the NK-resistant fresh melanoma cells. Experiments of T cell cloning indicated that both the expression of CD8 and CD3 antigens and the appearance of cytolytic activity were consequent to cell maturation occurring at the level of CD4-CD8- non-cytolytic cell precursors. In these experiments, more than 30% of cells underwent clonal expansion and all the clonal progenies obtained displayed cytolytic activity and expressed the CD3+WT31- surface phenotype. The expression of CD8 was variable, whereas no CD4+ clones could be obtained. Cells expressing such surface phenotype are known to belong to the TCR gamma-positive T lymphocyte subset lacking the typical alpha/beta TCR and thus appear to be the only T cell type capable of in vitro proliferation and maturation under easily reproducible culture conditions.

Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Phenotypic and functional heterogeneity of human T cell clones producing gamma-interferon.

Human T cell clones were derived from peripheral blood and screened for their ability to release gamma-interferon (gamma-IF) following PHA stimulation. Nine clones producing more than 20 U/ml of gamma-IF were expanded and analyzed for cytolytic activity in a lectin-dependent assay and for the ability to release interleukin-2 (IL-2). In addition, clones were analyzed for T4 and T8 antigen expression. Five out of nine clones had cytolytic T lymphocyte activity, while four released relatively large amounts of IL-2. Five clones were T4+ while the remaining expressed the T8+ phenotype. These results clearly indicate that gamma-IF production is not restricted to T cell subsets defined according to either functional or phenotypic criteria.

Clone Cells↗