Biomedical subjects

F Biagi

Publications and source records attributed to F Biagi.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1994

The effects of levosulpiride on gastric and gall-bladder emptying in functional dyspepsia.

BACKGROUND: 50% of patients with functional dyspepsia have delayed gastric emptying. Levosulpiride is an orthopramide drug that stimulates gastrointestinal motility. Aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of levosulpiride on symptoms and gastric and gall-bladder emptying, in dyspeptic patients. METHODS: Thirty adult patients, treated for 20 days with levosulpiride (75 mg/day) or placebo, were evaluated in a randomized double-blind study. Symptoms were assessed by a cumulative index and overall intensity (visual analogue line). Gastric and gall-bladder emptying were evaluated by epigastric impedance (liquid meal) and real-time ultrasonography (mixed meal). RESULTS: Levosulpiride, with respect to placebo, accelerated the mean gastric half-emptying time of liquids (P < 0.05), gastric emptying (P < 0.001 at 180 min; P < 0.05 at 240 min), and gall-bladder emptying (P < 0.05 at 60 and 120 min) emptying after a solid-liquid mixed meal. Both the mean cumulative index (P < 0.05) and the overall intensity (P < 0.025) of dyspeptic symptoms were reduced significantly by levosulpiride. CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that levosulpiride can be usefully employed in patients affected by functional dyspepsia.

Adult↗

PubMed1989

DNA hybridization probe for clinical diagnosis of Entamoeba histolytica.

As an alternative to microscopic identification of Entamoeba histolytica parasites isolated from stool, a sensitive and species-specific DNA hybridization probe was made for rapid diagnosis of E. histolytica parasites in clinical samples directly applied to nylon membranes. The DNA hybridization probe was made by screening a genomic library of a virulent HM-1:IMSS strain of E. histolytica to detect recombinant plasmids containing highly repeated parasite DNA sequences. Four plasmid clones that reacted across Entamoeba species coded for highly repeated rRNA genes of E. histolytica. Four other plasmid clones were E. histolytica specific in that they bound to four axenized and nine xenic strains of E. histolytica but did not recognize closely related E. histolytica-like Laredo, Entamoeba moshkovskii, or Entamoeba invadens parasites. The diagnostic clones detected as few as eight cultured amoebae and did not distinguish between pathogenic and nonpathogenic zymodemes of E. histolytica. The diagnostic clones were sequenced and contained 145-base-pair sequences which appear to be tandemly repeated in the genome. No stable transcript which is homologous to the diagnostic DNA was detected. In a study of stool samples from Mexico City shown by microscopy to contain E. histolytica, Entamoeba coli, Giardia lamblia, Endolimax nana, Trichuris trichiuria, and Chilomastix mesnili parasites, the DNA hybridization probe demonstrated a sensitivity of 1.0 and a specificity of 0.93. We conclude that the DNA hybridization probe can be used for rapid and accurate diagnosis of E. histolytica parasites.

Animals↗

PubMed1981