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Biomedical subjects

G Carta

Publications and source records attributed to G Carta.

104 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Modulation of lipid metabolism and vitamin A by conjugated linoleic acid.

The term conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) refers to a collection of positional and geometrical isomers of octadeca- dienoic acid with conjugated double bonds. CLA has been shown to possess several beneficial activities in different experimental models, however, out of 28 isomers only two, c9, t11 and t10, c12 have been thus far demonstrated to be biologically active. The discovery that it can be elongated and desaturated as a regular fatty acid in human and animal tissues brought a new possibility that its activity may be related to its properties as a peculiar unsaturated fatty acid. In fact, CLA is able to be incorporated in lipid classes as oleic acid, accumulating in those tissues rich in neutral lipids; to be metabolized as linoleic acid and so influencing linoleic acid desaturation and elongation; and to be beta oxidized in peroxisomes which may account for, through activation of PPARs, its ability to increase free retinol levels and influence gene expression. These activities are amplified where CLA accumulates more such as mammary and adipose tissues and may explain its peculiar beneficial properties, at relative low dietary concentrations, in these tissues. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that CLA can be endogenously formed by delta 9 desaturation of vaccenic acid (t11 18:1) thus forming the isomer c9, t11. Either endogenously formed or through dietary intake, CLA showed to be metabolized in the same way and to exert the same biological properties. We may conclude that a regular intake of CLA, or/and vaccenic acid as its precursor, should work as an excellent preventive agent by modulating lipid metabolism in target tissues thus conferring protection against the attack of insults of different type.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Injectable progesterone in hormone replacement therapy in menopause].

PURPOSE: To evaluate activity and tolerability of intramuscular administration of 17-alpha-hydroxyprogesterone caproate (Lentogest-Amsa) in hormone replacement therapy in menopause. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Intramuscular slow releasing 17-alpha-hydroxyprogesterone caproate was given to 30 postmenopausal women. Patients were divided into two groups according to the number of monthly doses (1 or 2). RESULTS: In both groups of patients a regular monthly bleeding was obtained. Echographic assessment did not show abnormal endometrial thickness. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study have pointed out the efficacy of intramuscular progesterone-caproate administration with a better compliance in the single dose group.

17 alpha-Hydroxyprogesterone Caproate↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Patient training in peritoneal dialysis: 1. Training in self care, cognitive study].

Authors consider education for dialytic patients a tool for patients' self-care and better quality of their life. In our Country the peritoneal dialysis involve 10% of the total dialytic population where the patient assumes a quite emerging role. The educational process is called training and the responsibility of the nurse is primarily important due to the trust and the consequential nurse-patient relationship. The article is divided in two parts: in the first, we explore the importance of the training as teaching methodology and in the second, we present the results of a national survey to better understand the role of the nurse and the methodology utilised in different Centers.

Humans↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Lifestyle and drinking habits during pregnancy].

BACKGROUND: It has been reported that a high consumption of alcohol during pregnancy is correlated to fetal alcohol syndrome and other perinatal problems. Less is known about the effects linked to moderate and limited drinking during pregnancy. METHODS: A study was carried out in 140 pregnant women: the mean age was 33.05 +/- 5.22, whereas the gestational age was 28.56 +/- 12.1 weeks (range 5-42). Each woman was asked to compile a form giving personal details and details of psychosocial behaviour, a lifestyle questionnaire (CAGE) and a form entitled "How much do you drink" based on SQQ. RESULTS: 22.2% of women reported that they had drunk alcohol during the month prior to the interview. Of these, 15% had not altered their habits, 0.8% had increased their alcohol consumption and 6.4% had reduced it. Wine was the form of alcohol most frequently consumed. Only one woman was positive to the SQQ test, and only one pregnant woman was positive to CAGE. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that dietary behaviour was correct in the majority of cases.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Maternal smoking in pregnancy].

OBJECTIVE: In the last years has been a progressive increase of tabagism in the female sex. This study wanted to examine the influence of the pregnancy on voluntary practices and especially on smoking. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 140 women with a mean age of 33.05 years and with a mean gestational age of 28.56 weeks (range 5-42) were interviewed. Each one received a questionnaire about social and psychosocial status, a schedule about style of living (CAGE), a questionnaire "How much do you drink" (from SQQ) and a series of questions about smoking. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the tabagism decreases in the greatest part of pregnant women, and them increases again after child birth. Pregnancy gets women both to finish and to decrease smoking apart from social status and any variant contemplated.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Effects of estradiol on in vitro cultures of human fibroblasts].

This paper assesses the effect of estradiol on the in vitro growth of fibroblast taken from human breast skin. It was observed that estrogens stimulate the proliferation of phenotypically adult fibroblasts; that there is a threshold increase of hormonal concentration which can trigger off this process; and that the size of the single dose is more important than the number of doses of hormone received.

Estradiol↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Insulin secretion and hepatic extraction in juvenile non-insulin-dependent diabetes].

Beta-cell secretion is still a point of controversy. As the liver is the major site of insulin metabolism, evaluation of hepatic insulin extraction is crucial for correct measurement of beta-cell secretion. Methods for calculating the secretion and hepatic extraction of insulin indirectly from peripheral C-peptide concentration have been proposed by some investigators. To characterize the low insulin response of a group of young non-insulin-dependent diabetics we evaluated secretion and hepatic insulin extraction during an oral glucose tolerance test by peripheral IRCP determination and IRCP/IRI molar ratio. Our data show that in this population of young non-insulin-dependent diabetics, the low peripheral insulin response to an oral glucose challenge is a possible consequence of diminished beta-cell secretion, as hepatic insulin extraction is at near normal value.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Bacterial vaginosis during chemotherapy for gynecological neoplasms. A therapeutic proposal].

Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a well characterized disease, defined Amsel's criteria, whose incidence is significantly increased during chemotherapy for gynecologic malignancies, as previously reported by the authors. Nine patients out of 14 (64%) who were receiving adjuvant chemotherapy for gynecologic tumors showed a clinical and laboratory evidence of bacterial vaginosis and were treated with cetyltrimethilammonium naproxenate vaginal douches. Results were analyzed up to the completion of oncologic chemotherapy: a high efficacy and tolerability for the topical treatment was demonstrated in all cases.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Evaluation of the endometrium by vaginal ultrasonography].

A group of 131 women aged between 35 and 70 years old were examined using endo-vaginal ultrasonography. Of the patients examined, 45 had been in menopause for at least 2 years and 86 were pre-menopause. 48.9% of the post-menopause patients reported loss of blood and 69.8% of pre-menopause patients reported alterations in the menstrual cycle. Ultrasonography was performed using an endo-vaginal 5 MHz (Ansaldo 600) probe with the patient in a dorsosacral position. During the course of ultrasonography the appearance of the endometrium, in particular its thickness, dyshomogeneity and, in pre-menopause women, its correspondence with the stage of the ovarian cycle, were examined. Taking these parameters into account, the type of endometrial echo patterns were classified, separating the cases into pre- and post-menopause groups. Of the women in menopause, 22 underwent curettage due to symptoms, independently of endometrial thickness which was over 4 mm in 50% of cases, 3 women underwent curettage following ultrasonographic indications, whereas the remaining 20 underwent hysterectomy due to other pathologies. Of the pre-menopausal group, 10 underwent curettage following ultrasonographic indications and 42 due to symptoms; the remaining patients underwent hysterectomy due to pathologies not related to the endometrium. A clearly defined role of endovaginal ultrasonography in the diagnosis of endometrial pathologies emerges if ultrasonographic findings are correlated with histological ones. In the group of post-menopausal women (45), all those cases which were histologically classified as endometrial carcinoma (4) were associated with an endometrial thickness over or equal to 4 mm.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗