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Biomedical subjects

B Carlsson

Publications and source records attributed to B Carlsson.

280 records · Page 16Linked to original sources

Intestinal colonization with Enterobacteriaceae in Pakistani and Swedish hospital-delivered infants.

Rectal cultures from Swedish and Pakistani hospital-delivered newborn infants were analysed regarding the early acquisition of enterobacteria. Swedish infants were delivered vaginally, Pakistani infants were delivered either vaginally or by caesarean section. The Swedish infants were all breast-fed, whereas breastfeeding was incomplete and often started late among the Pakistani infants. Both groups of Pakistani infants were more rapidly colonized with enterobacteria than were the Swedish infants. Cultures from Swedish infants seldom yielded more than one kind of enterobacteria; E. coli and Klebsiella were most frequently isolated. E. coli dominated in both Pakistani groups, but especially caesarean section delivered infants were in addition often colonized with Proteus, Klebsiella, Enterobacter or Citrobacter species. Breastfeeding from the first day of life reduced colonization with Klebsiella/Enterobacter/Citrobacter. The results suggest that environmental exposure, delivery mode and early feeding habits all influence the early intestinal colonization with enterobacteria.

Breast Feeding↗

Avidity and titers of the antibody response to two inactivated poliovirus vaccines with different antigen content.

The inactivated poliovirus vaccine is heat stabile, gives high serum IgG concentrations but less pronounced mucosal immunity and must be given as repeated injections. A new enhanced-potency Dutch inactivated vaccine could circumvent these difficulties. We compared antibody concentrations measured as neutralization or ELISA titers, and avidity of serum and salivary antibodies in children vaccinated with three doses of the earlier Swedish vaccine given over nine months or the new antigen-rich vaccine. After three doses, but not after two, serum neutralization titers for type 1 and type 3 poliovirus were higher using the new vaccine but secretory IgA levels in saliva were similar. The avidity of the serum IgG antibodies was significantly higher after two doses of the new vaccine than after three doses of the old. Thus the new vaccine gives excellent antibody responses of high titers and avidities, but should preferably be given in three doses.

Antibodies, Viral↗

Protease inhibitors in middle ear effusions.

As the presence of granulocytes in middle ear fluid in serous otitis media implicates a potential risk of extracellular release of granulocyte proteases, the main protease inhibitors in serum, alpha 1-antitrypsin, alpha 1-antichymotrypsin and alpha 2-macroglobulin, were immunochemically quantitated in such effusions. The mean concentration of alpha 1-antitrypsin was found to be higher in middle ear effusion and the mean concentration of alpha 1-antichymotrypsin slightly lower than in plasma. On comparison with albumin, however, lower values than expected were found in the middle ear fluid for the two inhibitors. The high molecular weight alpha 2-macroglobulin was significantly lower than in plasma. Furthermore a low molecular weight protease inhibitor, which is thought to be locally produced in the respiratory epithelium, was demonstrated in the effusion.

Adolescent↗

Middle ear disorders in patients with alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency.

As it is not known whether individuals with alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency show increased sequelae following otitis media, 52 patients with alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency were studied with respect to history of middle ear disease, presence of irreversible pathologic changes of the tympanic membranes, and hearing ability. The middle ear status was determined on otomicroscopy, tympanometry, and pure-tone audiometry. The frequency of individuals with a history of otitis media was 50%. The frequency of individuals with pathologic tympanic membrane changes was no different from that shown in the results obtained in a Swedish normal population study. Minor conductive hearing losses were found in three patients of which only one was related to a history of middle ear disease. However, the history of acute severe complications from otitis media revealed a higher frequency in those individuals with alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency as compared to normals.

Adolescent↗

Localization of antileukoprotease in middle ear mucosa.

The localization of antileukoprotease was studied immunohistologically in normal middle ear mucosa specimens obtained at autopsy and in chronically inflamed middle ear mucosa specimens obtained at middle ear surgery for chronic otitis media. In the sections of normal as well as in the sections of chronically inflamed middle ear mucosa, antileukoprotease localization was confined to PAS-positive goblet cells of surface epithelium and to PAS-positive goblet-like cells of submucosal glands and crypts, whereas ciliated mucosal cells and stratified squamous epithelial cells were devoid of anti-leukoprotease. In comparison with normal middle ear mucosa, an increased number of goblet cells--and thus an increased number of cells containing antileukoprotease--was present in the chronically inflamed middle ear mucosa. Since antileukoprotease is a potent inhibitor of granulocyte elastase and Cathepsin G, it was concluded that this proliferation of the respiratory epithelium during inflammatory processes in the middle ear indicates an increased activity of the biologic defence system against the action of granulocyte proteases.

Autopsy↗

Granulocyte protease inhibition in acute and chronic middle ear effusion.

A comparative study was made of granulocyte proteases and protease inhibitors in middle ear effusions (MEE) from patients with acute otitis media (OMA) and serous otitis media (SOM). The mean concentrations of the granulocyte proteases, neutral protease and elastase were three- to fourfold higher in OMA as compared to SOM effusions. The mean concentration of granulocyte elastase in SOM effusions was approximately 1 400, and in OMA effusions 5 500 times higher than the corresponding plasma concentrations. In OMA patients the individual MEE/plasma ratios of the main plasma protease inhibitors, alpha 1-antitrypsin, antichymotrypsin and alpha 2-macroglobulin, showed a positive uniform correlation with corresponding albumin MEE/plasma ratios. In SOM effusions, the concentration of alpha 2-macroglobulin was low, indicating a restricted membrane passage in SOM. In SOM effusions both alpha 1-antitrypsin and the locally produced antileukoprotease showed a residual inhibitory capacity. In OMA effusions the inhibitory capacity of anti-leukoprotease was saturated, whereas there was a residual inhibitory capacity of alpha 1-antitrypsin. However, in those OMA effusions, where large amounts of alpha 1-antitrypsin complexes with granulocyte proteases were found, most of the remaining free alpha 1-antitrypsin was inactive.

Adolescent↗

Application of a novel method for the comparison of DNA binding parameters of the two human thyroid hormone receptor subtypes hTR alpha 1 and hTR beta 1.

DNA-binding characteristics of the two human thyroid hormone receptors alpha 1 and beta 1 (hTR alpha 1 and hTR beta 1) were studied by applying the recently developed solid-phase scintillation technique. Biotinylated double stranded oligonucleotides containing thyroid hormone response elements (TRE) were immobilized to streptavidin coated scintillating microtiter plates. The TRE:s consisted of variants of the consensus core sequence AGGTCA as monomers or as dimers in direct repeats. Equilibrium binding of radioactive labelled hTR alpha 1 and hTR beta 1 were studied. Metabolically 35S-labelled hTR (in vitro translated cDNA) as well as hTR expressed in the baculovirus-system and labelled with 125I-triiodothyronine (125I-T3) were used. In binding saturation experiments, the affinity for the TRE:s investigated did not differ greatly between hTR alpha 1 and hTR beta 1. No significant effects of T3 on the amplitude of DNA binding of either hTR alpha 1 or hTR beta 1 to the single site response elements could be demonstrated. Receptor binding to direct repeats was stimulated by the hormone in the case of the hTR beta 1. The hTR alpha 1 binding to direct repeats was not significantly altered by T3. The single site octameric variant of a TRE, TAAGGTCA, was observed to bind tighter to the hTR:s as compared to the hexameric variant AGGTCA. In the binding competition format, with one response element immobilized and other (un-biotinylated) added to the reaction mixture, there was a larger dynamic range for the affinity constants (IC50) as compared to the affinity constants (Kd) obtained in the binding saturation experiments. The present quantitative results confirm previous reports obtained with qualitative methods like gel shift assays. The method described here is applicable in basic research concerning characterisation of DNA binding of nuclear receptors. It also lends itself to automatization in high capacity formats.

Base Sequence↗

Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic responses to chronic administration of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor citalopram in rats.

The number of drugs used to treat affective disorders such as depression is rapidly increasing. Citalopram (CIT), an antidepressant, is a selective serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). In the present study, rats were treated with 10 mg/kg/d racemic CIT for two weeks with use of osmotic pumps, and the following were monitored: open-field behavior, racemic and enantioselective concentrations of CIT and metabolites in blood, brain parenchyma, and extracellular space, and the brain extracellular monoamine levels. The racemic CIT concentration in serum was estimated about tenfold lower than in brain parenchyma but much higher than in brain extracellular fluid. The major CIT metabolites, demethylcitalopram (DCIT) and didemethylcitalopram (DDCIT) were 20% and 30%, respectively, of the amounts of CIT in serum and even lower in the brain parenchyma. The S-enantiomer/R-enantiomer ratios for CIT and DCIT were about 1.01 and 0.31, respectively, in blood and brain. There was a clear correlation between the different drug components within and between blood and brain compartments. Citalopram had no measured effect on open-field behavior, but it elevated extracellular 5-HT and decreased 5-HIAA levels. No correlations between any of the drug components and the brain monoamines were found. In summary, the drug components after chronic dosing correlated well between the periphery and the brain, but not with the brain monoamine concentrations. Further studies investigating the combined pharmacokinetic/dynamic effects could take advantage of blood drug monitoring for the commonly used novel antidepressant drugs.

Animals↗