Biomedical subjects

E Papanikolaou

Publications and source records attributed to E Papanikolaou.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Addition of estradiol to progesterone for luteal supplementation in patients stimulated with GnRH antagonist/rFSH for IVF: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: The role of progesterone for luteal support in stimulated cycles for IVF is well established. However, controversy still surrounds the benefit of additional supplementation with estradiol (E2) in GnRH agonist (GnRHa) cycles, while no such data are available for GnRH antagonists. The aim of this randomized controlled trial (RCT) was to compare ongoing pregnancy rates in patients stimulated with recombinant FSH (rFSH) and GnRH antagonist for IVF, who received micronized progesterone for luteal phase supplementation, with or without the addition of E2. METHODS: Two hundred and one patients underwent ovarian stimulation with a fixed dose of 200 IU rFSH and GnRH antagonist. Patients were randomized to receive, for luteal phase supplementation, either 600 mg of micronized progesterone vaginally (n=100, progesterone group) or 600 mg of micronized progesterone and 4 mg of E2 valerate orally (n=101, progesterone/E2 group). The main outcome measure was ongoing pregnancy at 12 weeks per patient randomized. RESULTS: Demographics, stimulation parameters and embryological data were comparable for the two groups compared. Twenty-six ongoing pregnancies were achieved in the progesterone (26%) and 30 in the progesterone/E2 group (29.7%). (Difference: 3.7 and 95%, CI: -15.8 to 8.6%). CONCLUSION: It appears that the addition of E2 to progesterone in the luteal phase after stimulation with rFSH and GnRH antagonist does not enhance the probability of pregnancy.

Chorionic Gonadotropin↗

PubMed2005

Are endogenous LH levels during ovarian stimulation for IVF using GnRH analogues associated with the probability of ongoing pregnancy? A systematic review.

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate, among women with normal ovulation or World Health Organization (WHO) II oligoanovulation who undergo ovarian stimulation for IVF using GnRH analogues, whether endogenous LH levels predict the likelihood of ongoing pregnancy beyond 12 weeks. A literature search identified six studies that answered the research question, among which two were prospective studies (one in GnRH agonist and one in GnRH antagonist cycles). None of the retrospective studies suggest that low endogenous LH levels are associated with a significantly decreased probability of ongoing pregnancy beyond 12 weeks in such patients. In the two prospective studies high endogenous LH levels during down-regulation were associated with a decreased probability of ongoing pregnancy beyond 12 weeks. Until further prospective studies modify the existing evidence summarized here, an adverse effect of low endogenous LH levels on the probability of ongoing pregnancy beyond 12 weeks is not a sensible rationale for LH supplementation during ovarian stimulation for IVF using GnRH analogues.

Female↗

PubMed1999

Antiviral properties of isoborneol, a potent inhibitor of herpes simplex virus type 1.

Isoborneol, a monoterpene and a component of several plant essential oils, showed dual viricidal activity against herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1). First, it inactivated HSV-1 by almost 4 log10 values within 30 min of exposure, and second, isoborneol at a concentration of 0.06% completely inhibited viral replication, without affecting viral adsorption. Isoborneol did not exhibit significant cytotoxicity at concentrations ranging between 0.016% and 0.08% when tested against human and monkey cell lines. Isoborneol specifically inhibited glycosylation of viral polypeptides based on the following data: (1) the mature fully glycosylated forms of two viral glycoproteins gB and gD were not detected when the virus was replicated in the presence of isoborneol, (2) no major changes were observed in the glycosylation pattern of cellular polypeptides between untreated and isoborneol treated Vero cells, (3) isoborneol did not affect the glycosylation of gB produced from a copy of the gB gene resident in the cellular genome, and (4) other monoterpenes such as 1,8-cineole and borneol, a stereoisomer of isoborneol, did not inhibit HSV-1 glycosylation.

Animals↗

PubMed1998

Use of non-linear EEG analysis to study abnormal brain dynamics in deaf human subjects.

We compared the cortical dynamics of deaf subjects to those of control subjects at rest with eyes closed and during reading with the help of a non-linear prediction statistic. This method is suitable for short-term noisy time series such as electroencephalographic signals. Furthermore, we used surrogate data to test for non-linear dynamics underlying the electroencephalographic time series recorded. Our results indicate that significant non-linearity accompanies cortical activation during reading. This is more diffuse in deaf subjects and could be due to the widespread reorganization of their cerebral cortex. Predictability was lower in deaf subjects at rest, which indicates their increased 'readiness' in the resting condition. Finally, our results indicate that normal and deaf subjects differ significantly in terms of cortical dynamics.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Usefulness of non-linear EEG analysis.

Spectral analysis methods are useful for the evaluation of EEG signals. Nevertheless, they refer only to the frequency domain and ignore any potentially interesting phase information. Analytical methods based upon the theory of nonlinear dynamics provides this and additional information. We used both methods to evaluate the EEG signals of volunteers performing two distinct mental arithmetic tasks. We extracted the power spectrum, the coherence and nonlinear parameters (dimension, the first Lyapunov exponent, the Kolmogorov entropy, the mutual dimension and the dimensions based upon spatial embedding of the original data as well as their surrogates). We found that 1) the spatial embedding dimension differed from that of the surrogates, indicating nonlinearity, 2) there were differences between the two arithmetic tasks, and 3) the spectral and nonlinear methods differ in terms of the information they provide. Our results indicate that nonlinear analysis methods can be useful despite the fact that they are still at an early stage of development.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Electroencephalographic signal analysis and desynchronization effect caused by two differing mental arithmetic skills.

Using several electroencephalographic signal analysis methods, it is possible to detect activated cortical areas during cognitive processes. These methods are of interest for neuropsychological studies and in an attempt to develop neurophysiological methods that can be used in the clinic. We used two distinct methods to study two different mental arithmetic tasks. Our purpose was to test the hypothesis that there are different desynchronization effects during the two distinct cognitive processes and to compare the two methods used. The first method concerned EEG signal band reactivity changes. The bands were obtained using spectral analysis. The second method is a new one for estimation of the whole EEG signal complexity (ASE = Acceleration Spectrum Entropy). We estimated the EEG signal bands and the ASE changes during two arithmetical tasks in 24 subjects and compared them with the values of the resting state. The ASE method and the EEG band reactivity method could distinguish between the resting condition and the tasks thus demonstrating the usefulness of the ASE method to study cognitive processes. Furthermore, the two tasks affected differently the power spectrum values of the delta, theta and the alpha bands thus indicating the involvement of different brain mechanisms.

Adult↗