Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

F Ahmed

Publications and source records attributed to F Ahmed.

162 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1978

Thrombohemolytic thrombocytopenic purpura during penicillamine therapy.

Penicillamine therapy was associated with the development of thrombohemolytic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) in a 23-year-old woman. The immunological and hematological toxicity of penicillamine, as well as the occurrence of TTP with parent penicillin compounds, indicates a probable etiological role of this drug.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Platelet aggregation as a sign of septicemia in thermal injury. A prospective study.

Serial measurements of coagulation activity, platelet counts, and platelet aggregation were done in patients with full-thickness burns involving 25% or more of body surface area to detect specific changes that might correlate with the onset of septicemia. Mean and maximal values for prothrombin time, partial thromboplastin time, thrombin time, activities of factor V and factor VIII, and concentrations of fibrinogen and fibrinogen-related antigens observed in the presence of bacterial septicemia did not differ significantly from those observed in the absence of septicemia. Mean platelet counts were significantly less with sepsis, but values in individual subjects were not indicative of the presence of septicemia. By contrast, platelet aggregation in response to adenosine diphosphate, epinephrine, and collagen always became severely abnormal with the onset of septicemia but not in the absence of sepsis.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1975

Effect of oral contraceptive agents on vitamin nutrition status.

Effects of low estrogen combination type oral contraceptives on some of the biochemical parameters used for assessing vitamin nutritional status were investigated in a group of women who had used the pill for 6 to 12 months. Another group of women was examined initially and then at one or more points of time within the first 6 months of treatment. Following changes were observed in women treated with oral contraceptives: 1) increased excretion of kynurenic acid and xanthurenic acid following tryptophan load; 2) increased EGOT activity and also an increase in vitro stimulation of EGOT with added PALP; 3) increased plasma vitamin A levels; 4) fall in erythrocyte folate levels; 5) fall in erythrocyte transketolase activity with no change in vitro stimulation with TPP; and 6) fall in erythrocyte riboflavin concentration associated with a decrease in erythrocyte glutathione reductase activity and increase in vitro stimulation with FAD. Most of these changes were observed during the first few cycles of oral contraceptive treatment.

Aspartate Aminotransferases↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Immunoregulation of murine leishmaniasis by interleukin-12.

Distinct phenotypic outcomes following infection of mice with Leishmania major are closely linked to the emergence of functionally dissimilar Th1 or Th2 CD4+ T-cell responses early in the course of disease. This model of T-cell-dependent microbial pathology has proven useful for the study of cytokine regulatory and effector functions in vivo. To this end, the causal relationships linking synthesis of IFN gamma to cure and of IL4 to disease exacerbation have already been well characterized. IL12 also has a defined role in shaping the immune response against L. major. Early treatment with recombinant IL12, or vaccination using IL12 as an adjuvant, protects genetically susceptible hosts from progressive infection. Protective mechanisms include both suppression of deleterious Th2 cell responses and amplification of beneficial Th1 cell activities. Although Leishmania are poor stimuli for macrophage-derived IL12 when compared to bacteria and other protozoa, in vivo production during infection can be indirectly demonstrated by the worsening of leishmaniasis that follows anti-IL12 injection in normally resistant mice. Whether IL12 production during infection represents constitutive or regulated synthesis by infected macrophages is unresolved and deserves further exploration.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Lysosomal mutations inhibit lipofuscinosis of the spleen in C57BL mice.

Beige, bg, and reduced pigmentation, rp, are recessive mutations affecting lysosomal function. Homozygosity for beige prevented lipofuscinosis of the spleen in C57BL mice and its incidence was greatly reduced by homozygosity for rp. Dilute (d) homozygotes, with normal lysosomes, were susceptible to lipofuscinosis even though their melanosomes were more severely affected than those of beige mice.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

In vitro activation of irinotecan to SN-38 by human liver and intestine.

BACKGROUND: Irinotecan (CPT-11) is hydrolyzed by carboxyl esterase to the active metabolite SN-38 and oral irinotecan could undergo intestinal and hepatic activation. MATERNALS AND METHODS: Irinotecan was incubated with S9 fractions of human liver and intestinal tissues and the specific activity was determined based on the formation rate of SN-38. RESULTS: Irinotecan was hydrolyzed to SN-38 by hepatic and intestinal S9 fractions with mean (+/- SD) specific activities (pmoles/min/mg) of: liver (8.57 +/- 10.4, n = 8), duodenum (5.06 +/- 3.7, n = 4), jejunum (6.44 +/- 2.8, n = 5), ileum (4.81 +/- 2.4, n = 5), colon (1.93 +/- 1.5, n = 6) and rectum (0.82, n = 1). When incubated with S9 fractions obtained from tumor tissues, there appeared to be a decrease in SN-38 formation compared to matched normal liver and colon tissues. CONCLUSION: Irinotecan undergoes conversion to its active metabolite in human intestinal S9 fractions and there is variability in the extent of SN-38 formation. The localized intestinal activation of irinotecan to SN-38 may provide a rationale for the development of oral irinotecan for gastrointestinal malignancies but could also cause mucosal damage leading to toxicity.

Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Evaluation of the routine hepatitis B immunization programme in Palestine, 1996.

The objectives of this study were to evaluate routine hepatitis B immunization in Palestine. Blood samples of 119 children (89 fully immunized and 30 non-immunized) were analysed. The protective antibody levels among immunized children were greater than the non-immunized children. Antibody levels among the immunized children were lower in the older age group (> 36 months), but no sex differences in antibody level were apparent. Thus, hepatitis B immunization had an excellent impact on preventing hepatitis B transmission (85% preventive). The non-responders constituted 14.6% of the sample, which is higher than other studies.

Child↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Results of a phase II protocol for evaluation of new chemotherapeutic regimens in patients with inoperable non-small cell lung carcinoma (EST-2575, generation I).

Two hundred and eighty-four patients with inoperable non-small cell lung carcinoma were randomized by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group to receive one of seven primary chemotherapy regimens: cyclophosphamide and methotrexate; Baker's antifol; vincristine, bleomycin, and methotrexate; melphalan; cyclophosphamide and CCNU (control arm); 5-FU procarbazine; and hexamethylmelamine, doxorubicin, and methotrexate (HAM). Patients with disease progression were eligible for treatment with VM-26 or ascorbic acid. HAM resulted in higher response rates than cyclophosphamide and CCNU in patients with adenocarcinoma (32%) and large cell carcinoma (23%). It was not tested in patients with squamous cell carcinoma. In terms of survival, HAM was significantly better than cyclophosphamide and CCNU in patients with limited disease. Its toxicity was predominantly hematologic and gastrointestinal. This regimen is being further evaluated by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group in patients with inoperable non-small cell lung carcinoma. Crossover therapy with VM-26 or ascorbic acid had no therapeutic benefit.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The cost of a preventable disease: estimated U.S. national medical expenditures for congenital syphilis, 1990.

Reported cases of congenital syphilis have increased rapidly in recent years. The purpose of this study was to estimate first-year medical care expenditures among 1990 incident cases of infants diagnosed with congenital syphilis. The authors used a synthetic estimation model to calculate expenditures for congenital syphilis as the number of treated cases multiplied by cost per case. The number of cases was derived from surveillance data adjusted for underreporting and presumptive (false-positive) treatment. Cost per case was based on expected hospital and physician charges applied to case treatment protocols appropriate to case severity. Base-case estimated first-year medical expenditure for 1990 treated cases (N = 4,400) in 1990 was +12.5 million. In sensitivity analysis, estimates ranged from +6.2 million to +47 million. Substantial reduction in congenital syphilis treatment costs could be achieved through targeted public health interventions consisting of prenatal maternal screening and contact tracing of males testing positive for syphilis. Physicians should be aggressive in presumptive treatment of newborns, since this usually prevents future disability but represents a small portion of total national expenditure for congenital syphilis. More precise data on severe cases resulting in long-term disability are needed to make reliable cost estimates.

Female↗