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Biomedical subjects

F Sala

Publications and source records attributed to F Sala.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Dihydropyridine BAY-K-8644 activates chromaffin cell calcium channels.

Douglas and Rubin suggested that "the role of acetylcholine as a transmitter at the adrenal medulla is to cause some brief change in medullary cells which allows Ca ions to penetrate them and trigger the catecholamine ejection process". The Ca2+-channel blocking agents, verapamil, nifedipine and nitrendipine, have been used widely to investigate the properties of slow Ca2+ channels in a variety of tissues, including the adrenomedullary chromaffin cell. Recently, small modifications to the nifedipine molecule produced a derivative, BAY-K-8644 (methyl-1,4-dihydro-2, 6-dimethyl-3-nitro-4-(2-trifluoromethylphenyl)-pyridine-5-carboxylate), that in contrast to the Ca2+-channel blocking agents, stimulated cardiac and vascular smooth muscle contractility. We have tested whether this compound behaves as a Ca2+-channel activator at the chromaffin cell membrane as shown by Schramm et al. in smooth muscle cells. The experiments described here strongly suggest that it does so.

3-Pyridinecarboxylic acid, 1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethy↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Bbr 2778, an aza-anthracenedione endowed with preclinical anticancer activity and lack of delayed cardiotoxicity.

With the aim to provide second-generation anthracenedione analogues endowed with reduced side effects and a wider spectrum of action than mitoxantrone and doxorubicin, a large number of new molecules bearing nitrogen atoms in the chromophore was synthesized and screened in vitro and in vivo. From this screening, BBR 2778 (6,9-bis[(2-aminoethyl)amino] benzo[g]isoquinoline-5,10-dione dimaleate) emerged as the most interesting compound. BBR 2778 was tested in vitro on several murine and human tumor cell lines and showed cytotoxic potency lower than that of mitoxantrone and doxorubicin. BBR 2778 was more cytotoxic in leukemia and lymphoma cell lines than in solid tumor cell lines. Although against in vivo models BBR 2778 was less potent than mitoxantrone and doxorubicin, its antitumor activity was equal or superior (in certain tumor models) to that of the above standard compounds. In particular, BBR 2778 was curative against L1210 murine leukemia and YC-8 murine lymphoma. Moreover, it showed an antitumor activity comparable to that of mitoxantrone and doxorubicin on solid tumors. No cardiotoxic effect of BBR 2778 in animals not pretreated with anthracyclines was observed compared to standards. In light of its spectrum of activity and marked efficacy against lymphomas and leukemias over a wide dose range, together with its lack of delayed cardiotoxicity, BBR 2778 has been entered in clinical studies.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Anterior gonalgic syndrome after intramedullary nailing: ultrasound and radiologic study.

A total of 33 patients submitted to tibial intramedullary osteosynthesis for fracture (27 cases) and non-union were assessed by ultrasound and x-rays an average of 10.9 months after surgery. The route of access was patellar transtendineal in each case; the means of synthesis used was the Marchetti Vicenzi nail. In 19 patients (57.6%) there was anterior gonalgia. Radiologic assessment evaluated prominence of the nail, while nail-tendon impingement was examined by ultrasound. Nail-tendon impingement was frequently observed (24 cases, 72.7%); in cases such as these anterior pain in the knee was present in 17 patients: however, this fact did not achieve statistical significance. The patellar tendon was thickened as compared to the contralateral one, with disorganization of the fibrillar echotexture, but it was not shortened. The tendinous morphostructure did not reveal any relationship with anterior gonalgia. In none of the cases did we observe the formation of scarring nuromas. In the area of the Hoffa body reactive synovitis phenomena with structural hyperechogenicity, an unclear aspect of the posterior tendinous profile and calcifications were observed. Radiographic prominence of the nail was correlated with echographic impingement, but not with clinical findings. Removal of the instrumentation carried out in 8 patients characterized by anterior gonalgia did not lead to resolution of symptoms in 2 cases in which MRI study showed patellar tendinitis and in 1 case patellar chondropathy with irregularity of the Hoffa body in the second.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Osteomyelitis of the pubic symphysis, abscess and late disjunction after delivery. A case report.

Infection of the pubic symphysis after delivery is rare, and probably occurs through a small vaginal laceration and is usually silent in the early phase: as the disease progresses, bone infection, sequestra formation and septicemia man occur. This report presents one case of staphylococcal osteomyelitis of the symphysis in a twenty five years old woman, with onset of symptoms 2 months after delivery. Staphylococcus Aureus was collected from pus and blood. Bone sequestra and a large abscess extending in the rectus abdominis fascia were present. Drainage and curettage resolved infection, but sourapubic pain persisted because of symphysis disjunction, and was treated by external pelvic fixation.

Abscess↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The Marchetti-Vincenzi universal bundle nail for the treatment of tibial nonunion.

The authors report the results obtained in the treatment of 9 cases of uninfected hypertrophic or atrophic nonunion of the tibial diaphysis, using the Marchetti-Vicenzi Universal Bundle Nai. Lesions consisted in the sequelae of different types of diaphyseal fractures treated by means of several surgical procedures. Former fixation material was removed in all of the cases, the tibial medullary canal was reamed, and the Marchetti-Vicenzi Universal Bundle Nail was used for internal fixation. In some cases, additional procedures were used such as Osteomuscular Decortication (DOM) according to Judet, autologous bone grafting. All of the cases healed after a mean time of 22 weeks. The authors suggest that intramedullary nailing using the universal bundle nail is a reliable and safe procedure for the treatment of uninfected tibial nonunion.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Internal fixation by bundle nailing in the elderly patient.

Between November 1992 and July 1999, a total of 27 fractures and 1 non-union, including 15 tibias, 8 femurs, and 5 humeri in geriatric patients were treated using Marchetti-Vicenzi bundle nail internal fixation. Reaming of the medullary canal was never used in any of the fractures, while it was used in the case of non-union. The results suggest that flexible intramedullary nailing provides adequate stability and is responsible for earlier weight-bearing, facilitating bone healing and early functional recovery in the elderly patient. Automatic distal locking allows for a reduction in the amount of time required for surgery.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The current and effective use of the dynamic axial fixator in the treatment of exposed fractures of the leg.

The authors observed rapid, practical, effective, and excellent tolerance in the use of the Orthofix dynamic axial fixator in the treatment of leg fractures. Good, stable reduction performed in an emergency situation, with respect for tissues that had been exposed to trauma, with fragments in compression when possible, and correct postsurgical management using early dynamization, are the goals to be attained for the physiological development of the bone callus.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Closed humeral shaft fractures treated by elastic intramedullary retrograde nail.

25 humeral shaft fractures operated on at our institute with the intramedullary elastic Marchetti-Vicenzi nail were reviewed. Three were pathologic fractures. Patients mean age was 48 ranging from 13 to 95 years. The patients were followed until consolidation and shoulder and elbow function were evaluated with respectively the Constant and the Mayo Clinic score. All the fractures eventually healed with good clinical results. There were no major complications during nail insertion. The M-V nail has been shown to be a practical and reliable device, characterised by both an easy technique and a stable fixation, with a low complication rate and low X-rays exposure times. The choice of an elastic unreamed intramedullary nail, with a retrograde insertion, that allows a solid for proximal fixation by means of a bundle of divergent pins, has proven to be useful and safe for shoulder function.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Extracorporeal photochemotherapy reduces the severity of Lewis rat experimental allergic encephalomyelitis through a modulation of the function of peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Extra corporeal photochemotherapy (ECP) is an immunomodulating procedure used in several nonneurological diseases which, similarly to multiple sclerosis, are likely to be due to T-cell-mediated autoimmunity and it is probable that ECP can modulate the normal activity of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Using the Lewis rat experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) model of human multiple sclerosis (MS) we examined the effect of extracorporeal UV-A irradiation on psoralen-activated PBMC. In our experiment the comparison between the two groups of animals (ECP or sham-treatment) evidenced that the ECP treatment reduced the severity of EAE on clinical grounds and this result was confirmed by the pathological examination. The changes in the titers of anti-myelin antigen antibodies typical of EAE were also modulated by the procedure. Ex vivo examination evidenced a significant reduction in tumor-necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) released by PBMC after lipopolysaccharides (LPS) stimulation in culture. We conclude that ECP modifies the normal activity of PBMC during the course of EAE and it is possible that one of the anti-inflammatory mechanisms of action of ECP is correlated to a down-regulation of T-helper 1 lymphocytes activity.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[A nutrition survey of a group of athletes with particular reference to magnesium, zinc and copper intake, and to the relative intra- and extra-cellular levels].

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the dietary habits in a group of athletes (footballers) compared with sedentary subjects matched for sex, age and body mass index. All subjects kept a record of food eaten for seven consecutive days using various models for portion sizes. Daily nutrient intake was then computed and was expressed as either total intake, or percent of the recommended daily dietary allowances (LARN). For each subject, a 20-ml blood sample and a 24h urine sample was collected for analysis of magnesium, zinc and copper. The three elements were measured both in plasma and in erythrocytes, monocytes and neutrophils. The athletes eat significantly more sheets than controls (22.5% of total kcal vs 15.2%, p less than 0.01) and significantly less cereals (22.5% vs 31.7%, p less than 0.01). Concerning the nutrient composition, in both groups the lipid intake was higher than that recommended and this trend was more pronounced in the athletes (+ 43.2% vs + 16.1% in the controls). In addition, the diet was particularly rich in animal fats with a mean intake of 21.0% of total kcal in the athletes and 20.9% in the sedentary group (recommended value was 12.5% and 14%, respectively). A parallel reduction in vegetal protein intake was observed in the trained group, and the difference was significant (4.3% of kcal in the athletes and 5.2% in the controls, p less than 0.01). Furthermore, in the athletes the soluble carbohydrate intake was higher than the recommended levels (+ 110%) and significantly higher than that eaten by the controls (21.0% vs 16.4% of kcal, p less than 0.01), with parallel decrease of polysaccharides intake.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗