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Biomedical subjects

E Campana

Publications and source records attributed to E Campana.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Met-enkephalin levels during PTCA-induced myocardial ischemia.

Met-enkephalin (Met-enk) has been demonstrated to modulate myocardial-ischemia mechanisms via the opioid receptors, but no studies are now available on Met-enk levels in the coronary circulation. In this experience Met-enk levels were evaluated in aortic root and in coronary sinus at baseline (T0), during PTCA induced transient ischemia (T1) and during reperfusion (T2). No significant differences were found at any time. Thus, it appears that there is no Met-enk extraction from the coronary circulation during provoked myocardial ischemia and no Met-enk release from the ischemic heart.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

ET-1 levels in cardioischemic patients undergoing atrial pacing.

Atrial pacing (AP) procedure was carried out in 11 cardioischemic patients to reproduce tachycardia-induced myocardial ischemia. Six control subjects underwent the same procedure until the maximum pacing rate was reached. During the procedure, endothelin-1 (ET-1) and plasma lactate levels were measured in the coronary sinus and in the aortic root. In all the patients, atrial pacing provoked electrocardiographic signs and metabolic evidence of myocardial ischemia and a significant decrease (p<0.001) in left ventricular ejection fraction. At AP-induced ischemia, coronary sinus (17.31 +/- 4.20 pg/mL) and arterial (9.60 +/- 3.31 pg/mL) ET-1 plasma levels were significantly different (p<0.001) in the patients. On the contrary, at maximum pacing rate, no significant difference (p=0.186) emerged between coronary sinus (9.72 +/- 1.09 pg/mL) and arterial (8.95 +/- 0.75 pg/mL) plasma ET-1 levels in the control group. These results suggest that, in cardioischemic patients, tachycardia can induce the coronary endothelium to release significant amounts of ET-1.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

The role of met-enkephalin in silent myocardial ischemia in diabetic patients.

Met-enkephalin plasma levels were evaluated in 20 cardioischemic diabetic patients. All the patients had ECG ischemic signs. Ten patients with diabetic autonomic neuropathy, experienced no pain during myocarial ischemia. Met-enkephalin levels in the diabetic patients with silent myiocardial ischemia were significantly lower compared to those in the symptomatic patients. This demonstrates that the absence of myocardial ischemic pain in neuropathic diabetic patients is not accounted for by met-enkephalin action.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Are elevated levels of soluble ICAM-1 a marker of chronic graft disease in heart transplant recipients?

Positivity for circulating intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in heart transplant recipients has been claimed to predict the development of coronary artery disease and risk of graft failure. Soluble ICAM-1 were evaluated in 32 heart transplant recipients. Five of these patients, who had undergone transplantation several years before, were positive for soluble ICAM-1 but did not present any clinical sign of graft rejection. Furthermore, although heart graft coronary disease was diagnosed in 15 of the 32 patients, they did not show significantly higher titres of soluble ICAM-1 compared to the remaining patients. These findings suggest that major caution is necessary when considering ICAM-1 positivity as a marker of graft disease.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Mitral prolapse. A heart anomaly in a clinical neuroendocrine context.

Mitral valve prolapse was identified as a separate nosological entity by Barlow in 1963. A characteristic of this cardiac anomaly is blood reflux into the left atrium during the systole owing to the lack of adhesion between valve flaps. The presence of symptoms linked to neuroendocrine dysfunctions or to the autonomic nervous system lead to the onset of the pathology known as mitral valve prolapse syndrome (MVPs). It is usually diagnosed by chance in asymptomatic patients during routine tests. MVPs includes complex alterations to the neurovegetative system and a high clinical incidence of neuropsychiatric symptoms, like anxiety and panic attacks. A neuroendocrine mechanism thought to underlie panic attacks was recently proposed based on a biological model. In general, the cardiovascular anomaly manifested by patients with MVPs could be defined in neuroendocrine-constitutional terms.

Humans↗
PubMed1999

The relationship between glycated hemoglobin and polymorphonuclear leukocyte leukotriene B4 release in people with diabetes mellitus.

In order to evaluate polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) activity in diabetes mellitus, leukotriene B4 (LTB4) levels were measured in sixty patients, 31 affected with Type 1 diabetes mellitus and 29 affected with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. The LTB4 levels (12.1+/-0.2 pg/100 microl) in diabetic patients were higher compared to those of the control group (7.9+/-0.1 pg/100 microl) (P < 0.001), and remained significantly higher (P < 0.001) (12.8+/-0.2 pg/100 microl) than in the control group (11.0+/-0.2 pg/100 microl) after stimulation with calcium ionophore. A significant and positive correlation between glycated hemoglobin and LTB4 was demonstrated (P < 0.001, r = 0.80). This study demonstrates that in diabetic patients there is a PMN activation and that this activation is correlated to glycated hemoglobin level.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Increased plasma concentration of atrial natriuretic hormone in myotonic dystrophy.

Atrial natriuretic hormone (ANH) concentrations were measured in 16 patients affected with myotonic dystrophy (MyD) undergoing 24-hour Holter ECG and in 15 age-matched normal subjects. Although the MyD patients did not show overt left ventricular function impairment, their plasma ANH levels were found to be higher (183.76 +/- 113.25 pg/ml) compared to those of the control subjects (39.73 +/- 9.95 pg/ml, p < 0.001). Nine patients with arrhythmias and some echocardiographic alterations formed subgroup A. Seven patients without cardiac alterations formed subgroup B. No significant difference in ANH emerged between the two subgroups. This evidence suggests that high plasma ANH levels in MyD cannot always be related to overt or latent heart failure and to arrhythmias.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Plasma atrial natriuretic hormone in hyperthyroidism.

In 22 hyperthyroid patients, atrial natriuretic hormone (ANH) levels (71.91 +/- 21.03 pg/ml), measured during a 3-h-Holter, were found to be significantly higher (p < 0.001) than those in 20 age-matched normal subjects (37.22 +/- 8.73 pg/ml). We have demonstrated that the presence of tachiarrhythmias does not influence ANH release. The positive and significant correlation of FT3 with both ANH and heart rate confirms the hypothesis of a direct action of thyroid hormones on ANH release.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Coronary sinus plasma beta endorphin levels in cardioischemic patients undergoing PTCA.

Plasma beta-endorphin levels were studied in the coronary sinus of 8 patients undergoing percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA). All the patients had ECG ischemic signs and pain during the inflation of the balloon. No significant changes in plasma beta-endorphin levels were observed during PTCA-induced ischemia. Baseline coronary sinus plasma beta-endorphin levels were found to be elevated when compared with peripheral ones which would suggest an accumulation of beta-endorphin in the ischemic heart.

Aged↗
PubMed1997

ET-1 plasma levels during cold stress test in sclerodermic patients.

Endothelial cell injury in blood vessels of small arteries and capillaries is considered the primary event in the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc). Because endothelin-1 (ET-1) is mainly released in the site of endothelial cell damage, thereby inducing a potent vasoconstriction, it was our intention to study ET-1 release in a group of SSc patients during a cold pressor test (CPT). Twelve SSc patients and a control group of 10 healthy subjects underwent CPT. Blood samples for ET-1 assay were collected at 90 and 180 seconds of exposure to cold stress. Heart rate and blood pressure were recorded at the same intervals. A capillaroscopic examination was performed in both groups before and after CPT. We observed significantly higher levels of plasma ET-1 in SSc patients compared with those of the control group at baseline (P=0.007) and at 90 (P=0.006) and 180 seconds (P=0.03) of CPT. During the test, the capillaroscopic examination showed a dramatic worsening of the vascular picture that was parallel to the increase in ET-1 plasma levels. This suggests that higher ET-1 plasma levels can have a part in the acute vascular reactivity of SSc patients undergoing CPT.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Mesolimbic dopaminergic neurons innervating the hippocampal formation in the rat: a combined retrograde tracing and immunohistochemical study.

A major mesolimbic projection towards the hippocampal formation (HF) has been extensively described, but no clear evidence of its dopaminergic content has been demonstrated. In order to evaluate the percentage of dopaminergic (DA) cells of ventral tegmental area (VTA-A10) and adjacent substantia nigra (SN-A9) projecting to the HF, the retrograde neuronal tracer technique was combined with the tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) immunocytochemistry. Fluoro-gold (FG) was injected in several areas (subiculum, CA1, CA3, dentate gyrus) of either septal and temporal HF. Sections containing retrogradely FG labeled neurons were either mounted directly as controls or incubated with TH antiserum and revealed with rhodamine. The quantitative evaluation of retrogradely labeled and TH-IR stained cells showed that both VTA and SN projections towards the HF are partially (15-18%) dopaminergic. Ten percent of the DA neurons of the VTA projected to contralateral HF, whereas none did in the SN. In conclusion, the temporal HF (mainly subiculum and adjacent CA1) appears to receive the main DA afferents from both VTA cells and medial half of SN, pars compacta, whereas the septal HF (particularly CA1) receives its DA input from neurons located in the ventral half and in the upper and lower borders of the VTA.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Anterograde and retrograde tracing of projections from the ventral tegmental area to the hippocampal formation in the rat.

Employing anterograde tracing with Phaseolus vulgaris-leucoagglutinin (PHA-L), and a triple labeling protocol using retrogradely transported fluorescent tracers, we examined the projections from the ventral tegmental area (VTA-A10) to the hippocampal formation (HF) in the rat. Injections of PHA-L into VTA resulted in labeling in the ventral subiculum (stratum oriens and molecular layer) and in the adjacent CA1 field (stratum oriens, pyramidal, suprapyramidal and molecular layers) of HF. Additional labeling was observed in the stratum oriens of CA3 and in the hilus of fascia dentata. In the dorsal HF labeling was present in the subicular and CA1 field polymorphic layers. The distribution of VTA neurons projecting to the HF was also examined by injecting retrograde fluorescent tracers (Fluoro Gold, Fast Blue, and Nuclear Yellow) in several hippocampal areas. The most abundant VTA-HF projections originate from the upper and lower edges and the lower half of the VTA. These terminal fields in the HF match with the hippocampal areas projecting to the nucleus accumbens. The VTA, via projections to interconnected regions of the HF and nucleus accumbens, may modulate the hypothesized functional link between the limbic system and basal ganglia.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Organization of the projections from the ventral tegmental area of Tsai to the hippocampal formation in the rat.

The projection from the ventral tegmental area of Tsai (VTA-A10) to the hippocampal formation (HF) has been investigated in the rat by means of the Fink-Heimer technique, after VTA destruction by electrolytic lesions or local injections of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA, 1 microgram/0.5 microliters). Degenerated axons prevail in the ventral subiculum and adjacent CA1 field. Some degenerated fibers are also observed in the dorsal subiculum and a few in the stratum oriens of the CA3, in the hilus of fascia dentata and in the fimbria. The distribution of VTA neurons projecting to the HF has also been examined by injecting retrograde fluorescent tracers in different combinations (Fast Blue, 2% and Nuclear Yellow, 1%) in several hippocampal areas. The most abundant VTA-HF projections originate from the lower third, the upper and lower edges and the lower half of the VTA. The major terminal fields of VTA projections in the HF (i.e. the ventral subiculum, the adjacent CA1 field and the dorsal subiculum) match with the HF area projecting to the nucleus accumbens. Thus, the dopaminergic meso-limbic pathway could modulate the HF-striatal projection which provides a link between the limbic and motor systems.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

[Projections of the Tsai tegmental ventral area to the hippocampus: a study of the rat using the Fink-Heimer technic].

The projection from the ventral tegmental area of Tsai (VTA-A10) to the hippocampal formation was investigated in the rat by means of the Fink-Heimer technique, after VTA destruction by electrolytic lesion or local injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA, 1 micrograms/0.5 microliters). Degenerated fibers are prevalently present in the ventral subiculum and CA1 field. These areas match with the area projecting towards the nucleus accumbens. Thus the dopaminergic meso-cortico-limbic pathway could modulate the HF-striatal projection which represents a link between the limbic and central motor systems.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

[Organization of the direct projections of the Tsai ventral tegmental area to the hippocampus].

In this report we have examined the distribution in the ventral tegmental area of Tsai (VTA-A10) of the neurons projecting to the hippocampal formation (HF) by injecting, in different combinations, retrograde fluorescent tracers (Fast Blue, 2% and Nuclear Yellow, 1%) in several hippocampal areas. The distribution of the VTA labeled neurons suggest a topographic organization of the VTA efferent pathway towards the HF. These results are in agreement with the concept that precise topography of the projections is a distinctive feature of the dopaminergic systems in general.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

The organization of nucleus tegmenti pedunculopontinus neurons projecting to basal ganglia and thalamus: a retrograde fluorescent double labeling study in the rat.

The organization of nucleus tegmenti pedunculopontinus (PPN) projections to the basal ganglia and thalamus was studied in the rat by using retrograde transport of fluorescent dyes. Fast blue was injected into the substantia nigra (SN) while Nuclear yellow was delivered to one of the following nuclei: globus pallidus (GP), entopeduncular nucleus, subthalamic nucleus (STN) or parafascicular nucleus of the thalamus. Retrogradely labeled cells were observed throughout the PPN without topographical arrangement. The cells labeled from the SN outnumbered those labeled from other structures. In all cases the majority of cells were single labeled and only a few cells double labeled from SN-GP or SN-STN were found. Labeled cells were either fusiform or multipolar in shape. These data suggest that distinct PPN cells project to their basal ganglia and thalamic targets without a prominent branched organization.

Amidines↗