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Biomedical subjects

G Benzi

Publications and source records attributed to G Benzi.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1983

Action of testosterone on some biochemical parameters related to the energy metabolism of the skeletal muscle.

The effect of intramuscular administration of testosterone propionate was studied on rat gastrocnemius muscle. Muscular glycolytic substrates and Krebs' cycle metabolites (glycogen, glucose, glucose-6-phosphate, pyruvate, lactate, citrate, alpha-ketoglutarate, succinate, malate), related aminoacids (glutamate, alanine, ammonia), energy store and mediators (creatine phosphate, ATP, ADP, AMP) and the energy charge potential were evaluated. The influence of the factors: testosterone dose, time course of treatment and sex of animals was investigated, no relevant changes being noticed.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1983

Synaptic and non-synaptic mitochondria from rat cerebral cortex. Characterization and effect of pharmacological treatment on some enzyme activities related to energy transduction.

By a cellular subfractionation technique, synaptic and non-synaptic mitochondria from a single rat cerebral cortex were obtained. In these different mitochondrial populations the activity of citrate synthase, malate dehydrogenase, total NADH-cytochrome c reductase, cytochrome oxidase and glutamate dehydrogenase were evaluated. Except for glutamate dehydrogenase, the enzyme specific activities evaluated in the "free" mitochondrial fraction were higher than those evaluated in the "synaptic" SM1 and SM2 mitochondrial fractions, the differences between SM1 and SM2 fractions being significant. The effect of the in vivo administration of naftidrofuryl given at different doses and at different times was studied. The treatment induced few but different changes in the various mitochondrial populations.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Relationships between gamma-aminobutyrate and succinate cycles during and after cerebral ischemia.

Some metabolites (glycogen, glucose, glucose-6-phosphate, pyruvate, lactate, citrate, alpha-ketoglutarate, succinate, fumarate, malate, glutamate, aspartate, gamma-aminobutyrate, glutamine, alanine, NH+4) were measured in rat cerebral cortex after 5 minutes of complete compression ischemia, as well as after 5, 15, or 30 minutes of recirculation following 5 minutes of ischemia. Complete ischemia induced a drop of glycolytic substrates and intermediates, consistent with the increase of lactate, succinate, alanine, and gamma-aminobutyrate, and with the decrease of malate, fumarate, and alpha-ketoglutarate. These events may be regarded as an expression of the activation of the gamma-aminobutyrate cycle and of the succinate cycle, where succinate itself, in the absence of O2, acts as a terminal electron acceptor. During post-ischemic recovery, cerebral parameters tended to normalize, except for the further increase of alanine and the still higher than normal content of both succinate and gamma-aminobutyrate, as an expression of the possible activation of the gamma-glutamyl and gamma-aminobutyrate cycles during recovery.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Influence of age upon the cerebral metabolic changes induced by acute hypoxia on the synaptosomes from dog brain.

The synaptosomal fraction obtained from the motor area of the cerebral cortex of normocapnic, normoxic or hypoxic "young adult," "mature" and "senescent" beagle dogs is incubated and analyzed for : ATP, ADP, AMP, creatine phosphate, pyruvate and lactate. The data are compared with those obtained from the whole controlateral cortical motor area, by the surface freezing technique. After hypoxic hypoxia /15 min; PaO2 = 17-19 mm Hg), the metabolite contents and ratios are differently affected by ageing when the evaluations are performed in the incubated synaptosomal preparation or in the controlateral whole cerebral tissue. In fact, ageing does not affect so much the cerebral changes that occur in the overall energetic state during the hypoxic assault in vivo, but rather those that the synaptosomes remember the tend to reverse during the subsequent incubation in vitro. The protective action of several drugs on the synaptosomal phosphorylation state is tested. Phenobarbital shows a quite broad, age-independent spectrum of action. (-)Eburnamonine and dihydroergocristine exhibits a more limited, age-dependent effectiveness, but are devoid of anesthetic action. Papaverine proves unable to affect the tested biochemical parameters.

Adenine Nucleotides↗
PubMed1982

Drug action on the metabolic changes induced by acute hypoxia on synaptosomes from the cerebral cortex.

The synaptosomal fractions obtained from the motor area of the cerebral cortex of normocapnic, normoxic, or hypoxic, untreated beagle dogs and of pentobarbital (Nembutal)- or cytidine diphosphate (CDP)-choline-treated dogs were incubated and analyzed for ATP, ADP, AMP, creatine phosphate, pyruvate, and lactate. The data were compared with data obtained by the surface freezing technique from the whole contralateral cortical area. The in vivo intracarotid perfusion of the drug differentially affected the content of the metabolites and their ratio. This occurred whether the evaluations were performed in the incubated synaptosomal preparations or in whole cerebral tissue, both during normoxia and after hypoxia (15 min; PaO2 = 17-19 mm Hg). Thus, intracarotid perfusion of nembutal increased the synaptosomal phosphorylation state both in normoxic and in hypoxic animals, whereas the effect on the metabolism of the contralateral cortical motor area as a whole was in all cases less than that observed in the synaptosomal fraction. Perfusion with CDP-choline increased synaptosomal phosphorylation after the hypoxic condition, but had no effect in normoxia or on the whole cortical tissue of the motor area. The possibility of obtaining a cerebral sparing action by utilizing molecules devoid of anesthetic action is suggested.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1982

Effects of ischemia and pharmacological treatment on subcellular fractions from neonatal rat brain.

The effects of complete ischemia and of in vivo pharmacological treatment with trimetazidine were studied on some enzymatic activities related to energy transduction: lactate dehydrogenase for anaerobic glycolysis; citrate synthase and malate dehydrogenase for the Krebs' cycle; total NADH-cytochrome c reductase and cytochrome oxidase for the electron transport chain; glutamate dehydrogenase for amino acid metabolism and acetylcholine esterase for acetylcholine metabolism. These enzymatic activities were evaluated in brains of 10-day-old rats, at three different subcellular levels: homogenate in toto, purified mitochondrial fraction, crude, synaptosomal fraction. Complete normothermic post-decapitative ischemia of 30 min duration increased the activity of cytochrome oxidase in the homogenate in toto and increased the activities of citrate synthase and malate dehydrogenase in the purified mitochondrial fraction, the activities of the enzymes evaluated in the crude synaptosomal fraction being unaffected. The i.p. treatment with trimetazidine (at the dose level of 50 mg . kg-1) was without any significant effect on the tested enzymatic activities.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Metabolic changes induced by acute hypoxia on the synaptosomes from dog brain.

Synaptosomal preparations from the motor area of the cerebral cortex of normocapnic, normoxic or hypoxic untreated beagle dogs and phenobarbital-, papaverine-, and (-) eburnamonine-treated dogs were incubated for 10 min at 24 degrees C and analyzed for ATP, ADP, AMP creatine phosphate, pyruvate, and lactate. The data were compared with those obtained from the whole controlateral cortical motor area, by the surface-freezing technique. Both during normoxia and after hypoxic hypoxia (15 min, at PaO2 equal to 17-19 mm Hg) the metabolite contents and ratios were very different in the incubated synaptosomal preparations and in the whole cerebral tissues. As concerns the drug treatment, papaverine was always inactive, while (1) eburnamonine increased the synaptosomal phosphorylation state in hypoxic dogs, being ineffective on the glycolytic metabolites evaluated. Phenobarbital increased the synaptosomal phosphorylation state both in normoxic and in hypoxic animals, and was effective also on the glycolytic metabolites studied.

Adenine Nucleotides↗
PubMed1981

Effect of vincamine on some enzymatic activities from various areas of the beagle dog cerebral cortex.

The effect of a chronic (3 months) treatment with vincamine on the enzymatic activities related to energy transduction was studied on several areas of the cerebral cortex of dog brain. About enzymatic activities of the four different cortical areas, in controls, no difference was observed between the enzymatic activities evaluated in the crude mitochondrial fraction, with regard to both the tricarboxylic acid cycle (citrate synthase, malate dehydrogenase) and the electron transport chain (total NADH-cytochrome c reductase, cytochrome oxidase). On the contrary, in the homogenate, lactate dehydrogenase, malate dehydrogenase and acetylcholine esterase showed different maximal activities. In the crude mitochondrial fraction the intravenous treatment with the three different doses of vincamine failed to cause any significant change as compared to controls. On the contrary, with regard to the enzymatic activities evaluated in the homogenate in toto, the analysis of variance revealed an effect on cytochrome oxidase at the dose of 3 mg/kg intravenously.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

Acetylcholine esterase sensitivity to chronic administration of diphenylhydantoin and effects on cerebral enzymatic activities related to energy metabolism.

The effect of chronic treatment (8 months) with diphenylhydantoin (DPH) on rat brain was studied. The activity of some enzymes related to energy transduction (lactate dehydrogenase, citrate synthase, and malate dehydrogenase; NADH-cytochrome c reductase and cytochrome oxidase) and neurotransmission (acetylcholine esterase) was evaluated both in the whole brain homogenate and/or in the crude mitochondrial fraction. A clear-cut decrease of acetylcholine esterase activity was observed, the decrease continuing even after treatment was discontinued. Effects on energy metabolism and on lactate dehydrogenase, malate dehydrogenase, and cytochrome oxidase are discussed.

Acetylcholinesterase↗
PubMed1980

Drug interference on some biochemical parameters of rat cerebral cortex during post-ischemic recovery.

Glycolytic substrates and metabolites (glycogen, glucose, glucose-6-phosphate, pyruvate, lactate), tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates (citrate, alpha-ketoglutarate, succinate, fumarate, malate), related amino acids (glutamate, glutamine, alanine, gamma-aminobutyrate) and energy mediators (ATP, ADP, AMP, creatine phosphate) were evaluated in the cerebral cortex of rats after 5 min of complete compression ischemia as well as after 3, 15 or 30 min of recirculation following 5 min ischemia. The post-ischemic recovery was studied in control animals or in animals treated (30 min before ischemia and during discovery) by intravenous perfusion of vincamine, theophylline, dihydroergocristine and alanine. Interrelated changes of intermediates of the carbohydrate and the amino acid metabolism have been observed. It is concluded that alanine perfusion induced a partial detour of the lactacid anaerobic process towards the succinate-related alactacid cycle, leading to an increase in the cortical gamma-aminobutyrate content. Vincamine and dihydroergocristine acted in the opposite direction.

Alanine↗
PubMed1980

Dose/action and time/action relationships of some biological molecules evaluated on the cerebral enzymatic activities.

Dose/action and time/action relationships relative to the effect of the in vivo treatment with some biological molecules (cytidine, uridine and glutamine) on several enzymatic activities connected with cerebral metabolism (lactate dehydrogenase, malate dehydrogenase, total NADH cytochrome c reductase, cytochrome oxidase and citrate synthase) were studied in the normal rat brain. While time/action curves were found to be in agreement with classical pharmacodynamic descriptions, dose/action curves exhibited a varying behavior according to the biological substrate tested (brain homogenate in toto or crude mitochondrial fraction from brain in toto). Often enzymatic activity changes as a function of dose failed to show linear correlations, a parabolic pattern being observed. At any rate, the changes affecting several cerebral enzymatic activities may account for some pharmacodynamic properties of the biological molecules tested.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

Effect of alphaxalone-alphadolone on some enzymatic activities from rat brain.

The changes induced by alphaxalone-alphadolone (3:1) in the cerebral enzymatic activities of the Kreb's cycle (citrate synthase, malate dehydrogenase) and electron transfer chain (total NADH-cytochrome c reductase and cytochrome oxidase) were studied. In addition, the activation of lactate dehydrogenase (for the glycolytic pathway) and of acetylcholine esterase (as indicative of transmission) were investigated. These enzymatic activities were evaluated in the homogenate in toto and/or in the crude mitochondrial fraction of rat brain, since these enzymes are variously located in the cytoplasm. Two relationships were studied: a) dose/action (0.5, 1. 2, 4, 8, 16 and 32 mg . kg-1) by measurements carried out 60 min after i.p. administration; b) time/action (16 mg . kg-1 i.p.; measurements 15, 30, 60, 120 and 240 min after administration). The results show that in both kinds of trials alphaxalone-adphadolone reduced only the activity of the enzyme cytochrome oxidase evaluated on the brain homogenate in toto. More specifically, with regard to the dose/action relationship, the effect occurred starting with the dose of 2 mg . kg-1 and did not take place linearly with the higher ones. As to the time/action relationship, the effect began 60 min after administration, the changes being observed also at the subsequent times. The data obtained are discussed with regard to the interactions between alphaxalone -alphadolone and mitochondrial enzymatic systems, and compared with the effects of phenobarbital on the same systems.

Alfaxalone Alfadolone Mixture↗
PubMed1980

Study of a new intrauterine device, the multiload 250 CU.

The multiload 250 CU intrauterine device has been inserted in 298 women. Its effectiveness and the side effects connected with the use have been studied for a total of 3455 months of use. Two pregnancies and 5 expulsions have been observed while twelve devices were removed for pain and bleeding. The data compares quite favourably with those obtained with other IUDs.

Adult↗