Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

A N Elias

Publications and source records attributed to A N Elias.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

Serum hormonal concentrations following transcendental meditation--potential role of gamma aminobutyric acid.

Transcendental mediation (TM) is a stylized form of physical and mental relaxation which is associated with changes in the secretion and release of several pituitary hormones. The hormonal changes induced by TM mimic the effects of the inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA). It is hypothesized that TM produces changes in pituitary hormone secretion by enhancing hypothalamic GABAergic tone, and its anxiolytic effects by promoting GABAergic tone in specific areas of the brain. This mechanism is similar to the effects of synthetic anxiolytic and tranquilizing agents such as benzodiazepines that bind to components of the GABA-A (GABAA) receptor. TM, therefore, may produce relaxation by enhancing the effects of an endogenous neurotransmitter analogous to the effects of endorphins in runners who reportedly experience a 'runner's high'.

Arginine Vasopressin↗
PubMed1995

Effect of orally administered antithyroid thioureylenes on PCNA and P53 expression in psoriatic lesions.

BACKGROUND: Antithyroid thioureylenes are effective agents in the oral and topical treatment of patients with chronic plaque psoriasis. METHOD: The effect of oral treatment with 6-n-propyl 2-thiouracil (propylthiouracil, PTU) and 2-mercapto 1-methyl imidazole (methimazole, MMI) on proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and p53 protein expression was studied in patients with stable plaque psoriasis. RESULTS: Following treatment with PTU and MMI, PCNA staining in psoriatic epidermis was significantly decreased. P53 was minimally expressed in untreated lesions, and treatment with PTU and MMI did not enhance p53 expression in the psoriatic lesions. CONCLUSIONS: Since PCNA is a marker of cellular proliferation and p53 inhibits cellular cycling, some of the beneficial effects of PTU and MMI in psoriasis may depend on the ability of the drugs to impair cellular turnover, perhaps by binding to the triiodothyronine (T3) receptor. These effects may be in addition to the previously described effects of PTU and MMI as immune modulators and free radical scavengers.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1994

A controlled trial of topical propylthiouracil in the treatment of patients with psoriasis.

BACKGROUND: Propylthiouracil (PTU, 6-n-propyl 2-thiouracil) is an antithyroid thioureylene, which, in addition to its ability to decrease thyroid hormone synthesis, also has immune modulatory and free radical scavenging abilities. We have previously shown that oral PTU and another antithyroid thioureylene are effective in the treatment of plaque psoriasis. OBJECTIVE: The current study was performed to determine the efficacy of topical PTU in psoriasis. METHODS: Topical PTU and placebo were administered, in a double-blind fashion, three times daily for 4 to 8 weeks to nine volunteers with long-standing plaque psoriasis. The patients had biopsy specimens of their lesions taken at the start and end of the study. Clinical response was monitored with a scoring system based on scale, erythema, and thickness of the plaques. Complete blood cell count and thyroid function studies were obtained in each patient at the beginning and at 2-week intervals thereafter until completion of the study. RESULTS: Topically applied PTU produced significant clearing of the lesions (clinical scores 8.0 +/- 0.6 vs 3.7 +/- 0.3, p < 0.0001 at 4 weeks, and 4.0 +/- 0.6, p < 0.02 at 8 weeks); two patients demonstrated nearly complete clearing. Placebo-treated and untreated "control" areas showed no significant change during the study. None of the subjects had hypothyroidism or cytopenia. CONCLUSION: Topical applied PTU is effective in the treatment of patients with stable plaque psoriasis and has low toxicity.

Administration, Topical↗
PubMed1993

Propylthiouracil in psoriasis: results of an open trial.

BACKGROUND: Propylthiouracil (PTU) is an antithyroid thioureylene that has immune modulatory and free radical scavenging abilities. In view of the immunomodulatory effects of PTU, we decided to study the therapeutic response of patients with psoriasis to oral PTU. OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to study the effect of oral PTU in patients with stable plaque psoriasis. METHODS: Oral PTU, 100 mg, was administered every 8 hours for 8 weeks to 10 patients with long-standing psoriasis. Skin biopsy specimens were taken from the lesions before and at the end of the study. Clinical response was monitored with the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index scoring system. Histologic scores were graded with a 5-point grading scale. Complete blood cell count was obtained at the beginning and at the end of the study. Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) was obtained at the beginning and every 2 weeks thereafter until completion of the study. RESULTS: Three patients dropped out of the study. Of the remaining seven, two showed near-complete resolution of their psoriatic lesions, whereas the remainder showed moderate improvement in their clinical scores. Histologic scores were significantly improved in the group with all but one patient showing improvement or no change. Thyroid function tests were unchanged in all but one patient who showed a slight increase in serum TSH at the sixth week of therapy. CONCLUSION: Because of its low toxicity relative to other oral treatments of psoriasis, PTU may have a role in the treatment of patients with this disorder.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1993

Exercise and gonadal function.

Exercise is associated with release of a number of pituitary and hypothalamic hormones and a decline in the concentration of luteinizing hormone (LH). Follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) is generally not influenced by exercise. Serum inhibin concentrations, which are reciprocally influenced by serum FSH concentrations, are increased in some animals but are unchanged after acute exercise in human males. Teleologically, the decline in gonadotrophic hormone (LH) secretion after exercise may be geared to enhance individual survival over species propagation in times of stress, analogous to the postulated 'fight or flight' reaction. The decrease in gonadotrophic hormone (LH) secretion is believed to be due to changes in gonadotrophin releasing hormone (GnRH) pulse frequency and amplitude, particularly in women, who often develop amenorrhoea. Males have less dramatic changes in their hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, although a significant decrease in serum testosterone in physically conditioned males can usually be demonstrated. In this update possible mechanisms for the decline in gonadotrophin secretion with exercise are briefly discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Serum ICAM-1 concentrations in patients with psoriasis treated with antithyroid thioureylenes.

Serum concentrations of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), a marker of early T-cell activation were measured in 14 patients with stable plaque psoriasis who received treatment for 8 weeks with the antithyroid thioureylenes, propylthiouracil (PTU) or methimazole (MMI) which have been previously shown to produce significant improvement in such patients. Baseline serum concentrations of ICAM-1 were significantly higher in the patients with psoriasis compared with normal control volunteers. Following therapy with either PTU (300 mg daily) or MMI (40 mg daily) serum ICAM-1 concentrations did not decline significantly. Since ICAM-1 expression on vascular endothelium increases in active psoriasis, and is postulated to promote T-cell migration to and retention at these sites, it is hypothesized that the beneficial therapeutic effects of thioureylenes in psoriasis occur distal to the events that lead to lymphocyte migration to vascular structures in the dermis.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Effect of propylthiouracil and methimazole on serum levels of interleukin-2 receptors in patients with psoriasis.

BACKGROUND: We have previously reported clinical improvement in patients with psoriasis who received orally administered antithyroid thioureylenes, propylthiouracil (PTU), and methimazole (MMI). The antithyroid drugs are believed to exert immunomodulatory effects based on the results of studies in patients with Graves' disease, the only disease in which they are clinically used. The potential of these drugs to mediate clinical improvement in patients with psoriasis by reducing expression of the interleukin-2 receptor (IL2R), a marker of early T and B cell activation, was addressed in the present study. METHODS: Baseline serum concentrations of IL2R were measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA) in 15 patients with stable plaque psoriasis and in the same patients after 8 weeks of oral therapy with either 300 mg of propylthiouracil (n = 7) or 40 mg methimazole (n = 8) given daily. Baseline values were compared with normal controls. RESULTS: Serum IL2R concentrations in the psoriatic patients were significantly higher than in normal controls. After treatment with PTU or MMI, IL2R serum concentrations were not significantly reduced either in the group as a whole or separately in the PTU and MMI treated patients. CONCLUSIONS: Since elevated serum concentrations of IL2R often reflect T and B cell activation, and elevated IL2R serum levels are seen in several autoimmune diseases, it is speculated that the beneficial effect of thioureylenes in patients with psoriasis is mediated by some mechanism(s) other than reduction of IL2R expression in activated lymphocytes.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Methimazole (2-mercapto 1-methyl imidazole) in psoriasis--results of an open trial.

Methimazole, an antithyroid drug, was orally administered, in an open trial, in a dose of 20 mg every 12 h for 8 weeks to 8 volunteers with long-standing psoriasis. 3-mm punch biopsies were taken from the lesions at the start and at the end of the study. Clinical response was assessed using the Psoriasis Areas Severity Index score. Methimazole produced marked to moderate improvement in the clinical scores in the majority of patients. Histological scores were also significantly improved in all patients. Unexpectedly, thyroid function tests were not affected by methimazole therapy in all but one patient, and none of the patients developed drug-induced cytopenia. Methimazole may be an effective therapeutic agent in the management of psoriasis; it most probably exerts its therapeutic effect by acting on the immune system.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Effective portal insulin delivery with enzyme-protected capsules in pancreatectomized pigs.

1. Plasma concentrations of insulin, C-peptide, glucagon and glucose were measured in surgically pancreatectomized pigs given insulin into the colon directly and in enteric peptidase-resistant (methacrylic acid copolymer-encapsulated) form. 2. Following introduction of insulin-containing capsules, plasma insulin concentration rose from 2.7 +/- 0.1 microU/ml to 110.9 +/- 51.9 microU/ml in the portal vein, and from 2.6 +/- 0.1 microU/ml to 26.9 +/- 7.3 microU/ml in the systemic circulation. Corresponding portal and systemic values after direct (non-encapsulated) insulin instillation were 28.2 +/- 15.9 microU/ml to 44.8 +/- 13.0 microU/ml and 7.5 +/- 2.6 microU/ml to 15.2 +/- 2.5 microU/ml respectively. Insulin concentrations peaked at 75 min in the group as a whole and between 60-90 min in individual animals. Absorption was most pronounced in pigs given aprotinin (a trypsin inhibitor) with insulin. 3. Plasma portal vein glucose concentrations fell from 76.2 +/- 8.9 mg/dl to 31.1 +/- 3.2 mg/dl 150 min after encapsulated insulin administration. Corresponding systemic glucose levels were 84.5 +/- 11.0 mg/dl and 37.0 +/- 1.4 mg/dl. 4. Colonic administration of insulin in methacrylic acid coated capsules results in peak portal and systemic insulin levels 60-90 min after administration. Co-administration of aprotinin enhances the fraction of insulin absorbed.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Are all males equal? Anatomic and functional basis for sexual orientation in males.

In non-human primates anterior hypothalamic nuclei are closely involved in heterosexual activity in males. In humans, hypothalamic nuclei which correspond to these nuclei in non-human primates have been shown to have a neuronal density in homosexual men that is approximately half of that seen in heterosexual men. In addition, homosexual men exhibit a positive luteinizing hormone response to acutely administered estrogen that is intermediate between women (flat response) and heterosexual men (exaggerated response). Furthermore, on the basis of serum testosterone concentrations in similarly feminized transsexual males on estrogen/progestogen treatment 3 distinct groups can be identified. It is postulated that anatomic differences in the anterior hypothalamic nuclei that regulate sexual orientation in males may lead to alteration in the gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) pulse/frequency leading to a more female-type pattern of gonadotropin secretion in homosexual males. Based on data in transsexual males this pattern may be more or less of the female-type in subsets of male homosexuals.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Immobilization osteoporosis in paraplegia.

The pathophysiology of osteoporosis as it relates to immobilization or disuse osteoporosis in paraplegics is briefly reviewed. The physiology of bone formation and resorption is discussed, and the influence of piezoelectric forces on bone integrity and the consequences of the loss of this effect in paraplegics is addressed. When bone is stressed, negative charges accumulate on the side from which the stress is applied and positive charges accumulate on the opposite side. Presumably the collagenous component of bone plays the major role in the generation of electrical potentials. Another mechanism important in the generation of electrical potentials is created by liquid planes streaming past solid planes. Diminished forces acting on bone, as in paraplegia, are translated into changes in the activity of bone remodeling units which can be assessed by histomorphic and histoenzymatic techniques. Other biochemical and endocrine consequences of immobilization involve increased serum calcium, decreased serum parathyroid hormone (PTH), and decreased dihydroxy-vitamin D synthesis. Urinary hydroxyproline and calcium excretion are increased, as is stool calcium. The bone loss that follows immobilization may produce an increased susceptibility to fractures involving long bones more than the spinal column, and is due more to decreased bone formation than to accelerated bone resorption. The treatment of immobilization osteoporosis primarily involves early remobilization, but other treatments, including the use of electrical fields and the administration of bisphosphonates, calcitonin, and a growth hormone are being actively investigated.

Bone and Bones↗
PubMed1992

Nelson's syndrome.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1992

The pituitary-gonadal axis in experimental nephrotic syndrome in male rats.

Basal and luteinizing releasing hormone-stimulated gonadotropin secretion were studied in male rats made nephrotic with puromycin, and in pair-fed and normal control animals. In addition, plasma concentrations of testosterone, androstenedione, estradiol, and estrone were measured in the three groups of animals. Urinary testosterone concentrations were also measured in the three experimental groups. The data showed that basal luteinizing hormone concentration was significantly elevated in the nephrotic group compared with the pair-fed and normal control groups. Gonadotropin response to luteinizing releasing hormone stimulation was not significantly different in the three groups, suggesting an intact hypothalamic-pituitary axis in nephrotic syndrome. Urinary testosterone concentration in the nephrotic animals was significantly higher than in the pair-fed and normal control groups. Plasma testosterone, androstenedione, estradiol, and estrone concentrations were significantly lower in the nephrotic and pair-fed animals than in the normal control animals, indicating possibly impaired gonadal steroidogenesis in these two groups that may be related to the catabolic state of the animals. It thus appears that urinary loss of protein-bound (sex hormone binding globulin-bound) testosterone in the nephrotic syndrome leads to increased basal secretion of luteinizing hormone, presumably as a result of increased luteinizing releasing hormone secretion. This occurs to compensate for the abnormal urinary testosterone loss and is an attempt to restore plasma testosterone concentrations to normal. The higher basal plasma luteinizing hormone concentration in the nephrotic group supports this conclusion.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Hormone pattern in pharmacologically feminized male transsexuals in the California State prison system.

The hormonal profile of 40 transsexual inmates from a pool of 86 inmates in the California State prison system was studied before and after therapy with feminizing hormones. Clinical and social data were obtained on all 86 inmates; the incidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) seropositivity was examined in 76 of the 86 individuals. Despite similar degrees of feminization in all 40 individuals in whom hormonal studies were performed, variable suppression of serum testosterone concentrations was present. Based on their testosterone concentrations while on feminizing hormone therapy, the transsexual inmates could be divided into three groups. In Group I (the "suppressed" group), the serum testosterone concentrations were markedly depressed (less than 10 ng/dL); in Group II (the "non-suppressed" group), the values of testosterone were normal (446 to 1072 ng/dL); and in Group III (the "intermediate" group), the testosterone values were between those of the suppressed group and the nonsuppressed group. We speculate that feminizing hormone therapy may induce the development of a state of target hormone resistance to testosterone that results in similar degrees of feminization independent of the circulating concentrations of testosterone. The incidence of HIV seropositivity (3/76) was considerably less than anticipated based on previous studies in populations at high risk for developing the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

The endocrinology and pathophysiology of alcoholic cirrhosis and functional renal failure--a review.

The pathophysiology and characteristics of decompensated alcoholic cirrhosis and functional renal failure are reviewed. The review will be restricted to alcoholic cirrhosis, because most cases of functional renal failure in the United States occur in the setting of alcoholic cirrhosis, which is also the most common cause of ascites in North America and Europe. Moreover, hepatorenal syndrome may complicate other forms of liver disease besides alcoholic cirrhosis, but the pathogenesis in such circumstances may not be the same as in the cirrhotic state.

Ascites↗
PubMed1991

Corticotropin releasing hormone and gonadotropin secretion in physically active males after acute exercise.

Plasma concentrations of corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) and the serum concentrations of luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), testosterone, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol were measured in seven physically active males after acute exercise on a treadmill using the Bruce protocol. Measurements were made in the basal pre-exercise state, immediately after exercise, and at 30-min intervals for 3 h after exercise. Serum LH concentrations declined following exercise reaching nadir values between 60 and 180 min after exercise (90 min post exercise in the group). The nadir values in individual volunteers were significantly lower than both the baseline and post-exercise levels. This fall in serum LH concentration appeared to follow a slight but significant elevation of the plasma concentration of CRH which reached peak levels when measured immediately post exercise. Plasma ACTH concentrations paralleled the rise in CRH, but fell to undetectable levels of below 13.8 nmol.l-1 (less than 5 ng.l-1) 60 min after exercise. Plasma cortisol concentrations peaked approximately 30 min after the rise in ACTH, after which they gradually declined to baseline levels. Plasma testosterone concentrations paralleled the concentrations of LH. The data suggest that CRH, on the basis of its previously described gonadotropin-depressant property, may be the hormone involved in the exercise-mediated decline in serum LH. Alternatively, some as yet unidentified factor(s), may be involved in producing the altered concentrations of both LH and CRH.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗