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Biomedical subjects

G Ciabattoni

Publications and source records attributed to G Ciabattoni.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Thromboxane biosynthesis in cardiovascular diseases.

Sudden fissuring of an atherosclerotic plaque has been suggested as the primary trigger of transient spontaneous ischemia in both the coronary and cerebral circulation. Measurements of urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2 and 2,3-dinor-TXB2, as well as results of Aspirin trials, have suggested that episodic platelet activation at the site of this acute vascular lesion is mediated, at least partly, by enhanced thromboxane (TX) A2 biosynthesis. Thus, episodic increases in metabolite excretion have been detected in unstable angina. Aspirin (75-325 mg/day) prevents about one third of all fatal and nonfatal thrombotic events in this setting. That a similar "dynamic" thrombotic process occurs during the early phase of acute myocardial infarction is suggested by thromboxane metabolite measurements and by the results of the ISIS-2 trial showing a similar impact of short-term Aspirin therapy to that seen in unstable angina. Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty is associated with transiently enhanced TXA2 biosynthesis and Aspirin-suppressable periprocedural thrombotic complications. On the other hand, both non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and type IIa hypercholesterolemia are associated with a relatively reproducible and persisting abnormality of TXA2-dependent platelet function. This association is likely to reflect a systemic rather than localized stimulus to platelet activation and a continuous rather than episodic alteration. Low-dose (50 mg/day) Aspirin can largely suppress thromboxane metabolite excretion in both diseases. Thus, low-dose Aspirin and/or selective prostaglandin H2/TXA2-receptor antagonists may be important tools to test the hypothesis that TXA2-dependent platelet activation represents an important transducer of the enhanced thrombotic risk associated with these metabolic abnormalities.

Aspirin↗
PubMed1989

Fractional conversion of thromboxane B2 to urinary 11-dehydrothromboxane B2 in man.

Thromboxane (TX) B2, the chemically stable hydration product of pro-aggregatory TXA2, undergoes two major pathways of metabolism in man, resulting in the formation of 2.3-dinor-TXB2 and 11-dehydro-TXB2, respectively. We have measured the excretion of the latter during the infusion of exogenous TXB2 over a 50-fold dose range in order to examine the fractional conversion of TXB2 to urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2 and to re-assess the rate of entry of endogenous TXB2 into the circulation. Four healthy male volunteers received 6-h intravenous infusions of the vehicle alone and TXB2 at 0.1, 1.0 and 5.0 ng.kg-1.min-1 in random order. They were pretreated with aspirin 325 mg/d in order to suppress endogenous TXB2 production. Urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2 and 2,3-dinor-TXB2 were measured before, during and up to 24 h after the infusions and in aspirin-free periods, by means of NICI-GC/MS-validated radioimmunoassays. Aspirin treatment suppressed urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2 by 91%. The fractional elimination of 11-dehydro-TXB2 was independent of the rate of TXB2 infusion and averaged 6.8 +/- 0.7%, as compared to 6.4 +/- 0.9% for 2,3-dinor-TXB2. Interpolation of 11-dehydro-TXB2 values obtained in aspirin-free periods onto the linear relationship between the quantities of infused TXB2 and the amount of metabolite excreted in excess of control values (y = 0.0058x, r = 0.94, P less than 0.001) permitted calculation of the mean rate of entry of endogenous TXB2 into the circulation as 0.12 ng.kg-1.min-1. We conclude that: (a) urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2 is at least as abundant a conversion product of exogenously infused TXB2 as 2,3-dinor-TXB2; (b) its excretion increases linearly as a function of the rate of entry of TXB2 into the circulation up to approx. 40-fold the calculated rate of secretion of endogenous TXB2; (c) the latter is consistent with previous estimates based on monitoring of the beta-oxidation pathway of TXB2 metabolism.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Improvement of renal function with selective thromboxane antagonism in lupus nephritis.

To test the hypothesis that the vasoconstrictor thromboxane A2 may affect renal hemodynamics in lupus nephritis, we examined the short-term effects of a selective thromboxane-receptor antagonist, BM 13,177, and of low-dose aspirin. In a randomized, double-blind, crossover study, 10 patients with biopsy-proved lupus nephritis were given a 48-hour continuous infusion of BM 13,177 or placebo. At base line, seven patients had markedly elevated urinary levels of thromboxane B2, the breakdown product of thromboxane A2. During the infusion of BM 13,177, the inulin clearance rate, which was 68 ml per minute per 1.73 m2 of body-surface area at base line, increased by an average of 24 percent (range, 12 to 47 percent; P less than 0.01). Para-aminohippurate clearance was increased to the same extent, with no change in the filtration fraction. The bleeding time doubled, indicating an occupancy of platelet thromboxane receptors of more than 95 percent. The hemodynamic changes were associated with a significant increase in sodium excretion from 76 to 118 mmol per day (P less than 0.01) but with no change in arterial blood pressure. In another study, 10 additional patients with lupus nephritis were randomly assigned to receive either placebo or 20 mg of aspirin twice daily for four weeks. The aspirin regimen produced a selective, cumulative inhibition of platelet cyclooxygenase activity and a doubling of bleeding time. However, there was no change in the inulin clearance rate and no change in urinary levels of thromboxane B2 or 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha, which are indicators of renal synthesis of thromboxane A2 and prostacyclin, respectively. We conclude that in lupus nephritis, impairment of renal function is at least in part mediated hemodynamically and is reversible with a thromboxane antagonist. Platelets, however, are not a major source of thromboxane A2 synthesis and action within the kidney.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Effects of hydrodynamic forces on coronary production of prostacyclin and purines.

Prostacyclin and purine efflux rates from the isolated rabbit heart in response to variations of flow rate or perfusion pressure were investigated. Increases in coronary flow by 25, 50, and 100% augmented the effluxes of 6-ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha (6-keto-PGF1 alpha) and purines equally, by up to four times. Increases in coronary pressure by 25, 50, and 100% augmented the outflow of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha by up to 20 times, whereas the outflow of purines increased no more than 6.5 times. Neither reduction of perfusate Ca2+ by 50% nor administration of quinacrine (1 microM) affected the basal efflux of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha or its response to an increase in coronary pressure. Both interventions did, however, reduce the pressure-induced purine efflux by approximately 50%. Pulsatile flow did not affect either the outflow of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha or that of purines, in comparison to steady flow at the same rate. The data demonstrate that an increase in coronary pressure activates a specific mechanism for prostacyclin production that appears independent of extracellular Ca2+ and of phospholipase activity.

6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha↗
PubMed1988

In vitro effects of beta-interferon on steroid receptors and prostaglandin output in human endometrial adenocarcinoma.

The effect of natural beta-interferon (beta-IFN) on steroid receptor levels and output of prostaglandins (PGs) was investigated in human endometrial cancer. beta-IFN determines in endometrial adenocarcinoma explants an increase of cytosolic estradiol (ER) and progesterone (PR) receptors at concentrations ranging from 10 to 1000 IU/ml of culture medium. Only cases in which there was an enhancement of at least 50% with respect to control values were considered. Low concentrations of beta-IFN (10 IU/ml of culture medium) produce an enhancement of ER in 60% and of PR in 42% of cases, while higher concentrations of beta-IFN (1000 IU/ml of culture medium) produce an enhancement of ER in 32%, and of PR in 82% of cases. Since PGs are involved in proliferation control in a large variety of tumors, we evaluated the ratio between PGF2-alpha and PGE2 levels in culture medium. This ratio increased, in our experimental model, after treatment with 10 and 1000 IU/ml of beta-IFN in 38% and 58% of cases respectively. Our data suggest that beta-IFN could affect cellular hormone sensitivity through a modification of ER and PR and it can also determine a variation of PG output in human endometrial cancer.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1988

Effect of adenosine on the formation of prostacyclin in the rabbit isolated heart.

1. The effect of adenosine on cardiac biosynthesis of prostacyclin (PGI2) was investigated. Rabbit hearts were perfused according to Langendorff at controlled pressure (with or without theophylline), or at controlled flow. The content of 6-keto-prostaglandin1 alpha (6-keto-PGF1 alpha, metabolite of PGI2) in the coronary effluent under basal conditions and during infusion of adenosine was determined using a highly specific radioimmunoassay. 2. In other experiments, rings of rabbit aorta were incubated with or without adenosine and the production of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha was analysed as above. 3. Administration of adenosine (10 micron) to hearts perfused at controlled pressure increased the coronary flow by up to 38%. The peak concentration of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha in the effluent exceeded the control by 177% (P less than 0.01), and the total efflux of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha exceeded the control by 179% (P less than 0.001). Theophylline (50 micron) reduced these effects of adenosine by 23%, 43% and 51%, respectively, without influencing the uptake of adenosine into the heart. 4. When adenosine (1-10 micron) was administered to hearts perfused at controlled flow, a dose-dependent decrease in the perfusion pressure, by 27% and 44% respectively, was observed. In parallel, the resulting increase in 6-keto-PGF1 alpha efflux was considerably lower (49% (P less than 0.05) and 43% (NS), respectively). A similar decrease in perfusion pressure induced in the absence of adenosine decreased the efflux of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha, by 15% (P less than 0.01) and 32% (P less than 0.001), respectively. 5. Addition of adenosine (1-10 microM) to incubates of rabbit aortic rings did not significantly affect the concentration of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha in the incubation medium in comparison with control. 6. We conclude that adenosine stimulates rabbit heart PGI2 formation, mainly by an action related to the vasodilator effect of the nucleoside.

6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha↗
PubMed1987

Radioimmunoassay of 11-dehydrothromboxane B2 in human plasma and urine.

Because of the discrepancy between the capacity of platelets to synthesize thromboxane B2 ex vivo and the actual synthetic rate in vivo, measurement of thromboxane B2 in plasma is highly influenced by sampling-related artifacts. We have developed and validated a radioimmunoassay for a major enzymatic derivative of thromboxane B2 with an extended plasma half-life, i.e., 11-dehydrothromboxane B2. The binding of the tracer is displaced by as low as 1 pg/ml of the homologous ligand, with a high degree of specificity for the open ring structure as well as for the omega side-chain. This method can detect changes in the plasma concentration and urinary excretion of 11-dehydrothromboxane B2 associated with stimulated short-term increases of thromboxane B2 secretion in the human circulation.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Acid rain: effects on arachidonic acid metabolism in perfused and ventilated guinea-pig lung.

Isolated, perfused and ventilated guinea-pig lungs were exposed for 10 min to acid (sulphuric + nitric acid) aerosol mimicking acid rain at pH 4.5 or 2.5, as well as to a control distilled water aerosol (pH 6.0-6.5). Lung perfusing solution was recovered and thromboxane (TX) B2 and leukotriene (LT) B4 were measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA) techniques. In a series of experiments TXB2 release averaged 0.43 +/- 0.18 (+/- SD) ng/min during exposure to distilled water aerosol and increased to 0.70 +/- 0.30 ng/min during exposure to acid aerosol at pH 4.5 (P less than 0.05). In a second series of experiments TXB2 release was 0.46 +/- 0.18 ng/min and increased to 1.07 +/- 0.51 ng/min (P less than 0.01) after acid aerosol at pH 2.5. In both cases LTB4 release, reflecting lipoxygenase activity, was unchanged. LTC4 levels were not measurable under basal conditions as well as after exposure to acid aerosol. A pneumoconstriction was also observed, being more pronounced after acid aerosol at pH 2.5. Individual sulphuric and nitric acid aerosol component solutions at pH 2.5 evoked TXB2 and airway resistance changes corresponding to those observed with the mixed acid aerosol. LTB4 was not modified. Acid rain inhalation may directly stimulate pathways leading to the bronchoconstrictor and pro-aggregating TXA2 synthesis in isolated guinea-pig lung, without affecting the lipoxygenase pathway of arachidonic acid metabolism.

Aerosols↗
PubMed1986

Long-lived enzymatic metabolites of thromboxane B2 in the human circulation.

Thromboxane A2, a potent vasoconstrictor and platelet agonist, is an evanescent cyclooxygenase product of arachidonic acid. Assessment of thromboxane biosynthesis commonly relies upon analysis of the stable but biologically inactive hydration product, thromboxane B2. However, measurement of this compound in plasma is readily confounded by platelet activation ex vivo. We have identified 11-dehydro-thromboxane B2, 11-dehydro-13,14-dihydro-15-keto-thromboxane B2, and 2,3-dinor-thromboxane B2 as enzymatic products of infused thromboxane B2 in the human circulation. Biosynthesis of deuterated standards permitted the development of quantitative analyses for these compounds, employing capillary gas chromatography-negative ion chemical ionization-mass spectrometry. We thus established that the postinfusion half-lives of 11-dehydro-thromboxane B2 and the keto-dihydro metabolite approximated 1 hour, while that of the dinor metabolite ranged from 15 to 17 min. Combined analysis of short- and long-lived enzymatic metabolites of thromboxane B2 promises to bypass the problem of ex vivo platelet activation and enhance the likelihood of relating a discreet clinical event to an alteration in the biosynthesis of thromboxane A2 in the human circulation.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Perfused and ventilated guinea-pig lung: a method for evaluating xenobiotic effects on arachidonic acid using formaldehyde.

Lipoxygenase as well as cyclooxygenase pathways of arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism are involved in antigen-induced bronchoconstriction in ovalbumin-sensitized guinea-pig lungs. Chemical lung challenge induced by aerosol containing formaldehyde (5 ppm up to 20 ppm) was effective in increasing thromboxane (TX) B2 release in a dose-dependent manner, without affecting leukotriene (LT) release. This suggests that xenobiotics acting by non-immunologic mechanisms on bronchial mucosa may stimulate the cyclooxygenase pathway of AA metabolism, which, in turn, might cause bronchial and/or lung parenchymal effects of pathophysiological relevance.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Altered renal and platelet arachidonic acid metabolism in cirrhosis.

Urinary excretion rates of prostaglandin (PG) E2, PGF2 alpha, 6-keto-PGF1 alpha, and thromboxane (TX) B2 were evaluated in three groups of cirrhotic patients [without ascites (group 1, 13 cases), with ascites and normal renal function (group 2, 15 cases), and with ascites and renal failure (group 3, 5 cases)] and in 14 healthy controls. All urinary arachidonate metabolites were significantly increased in group 2 patients. Patients with renal failure showed lower PGE2, PGF2 alpha, and TXB2 values than those from group 2; PGF2 alpha values were also lower than controls. Platelet TXA2 production during whole blood clotting was significantly reduced in all groups of patients. Administration of low-dose aspirin and sulindac, two cyclooxygenase inhibitors selectively sparing renal cyclooxygenase activity, effectively inhibited platelet TXA2 production without affecting urinary TXB2 excretion, thus ruling out platelets as a possible source of urinary TXB2. We conclude that patients with ascites and normal renal function show an overall activation of the renal PG system. Renal production of vasodilating PGE2 and PGI2 may be involved in supporting renal function in these patients. A reduced platelet synthesis of proaggregatory TXA2 also occurs in cirrhotic patients. This may play a role in the bleeding tendency of cirrhosis.

6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha↗
PubMed1986

Effect of prostacyclin on renal kallikrein release in man.

The aim of this research was to study exogenous prostacyclin effect on urinary kallikrein excretion (UKK) in man, to define whether prostacyclin-induced renin release and/or endogenously released cyclooxygenase products were responsible for prostacyclin-induced enhancement of UKK, to determine furosemide effect on UKK. Prostacyclin was infused in eight healthy men and repeated after propranolol and indomethacin treatment. Prostacyclin caused a dose-dependent increase of UKK. Pretreatment with propranolol and indomethacin did not affect prostacyclin-induced enhancement of UKK, although it reduced absolute values of plasma renin activity. Furosemide increased UKK and simultaneously urinary 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha. We conclude that prostacyclin induces an increase in UKK in a dose-dependent manner; furosemide-induced renal prostacyclin synthesis is temporally related to enhancement of UKK; partial dissociation of UKK from plasma renin activity under propranolol and indomethacin treatment and in response to furosemide might suggest a direct effect of prostacyclin on UKK.

6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha↗
PubMed1986

Estimated rate of thromboxane secretion into the circulation of normal humans.

We have measured the excretion of a major urinary metabolite of thromboxane B2 (TxB2), i.e., 2,3-dinor-TxB2, during the infusion of exogenous TxB2 over a 50-fold dose range to enable estimation of the rate entry of endogenous TxB2 into the bloodstream. Four healthy male volunteers received 6-h i.v. infusions of venhicle alone and TxB2 at 0.1, 1.0, and 5.0 ng/kg X min in random order. They were pretreated with aspirin at a dose of 325 mg/d in order to suppress endogenous TxB2 production. Urinary 2,3-dinor-TxB2 was measured before, during, and up to 24 h after the infusions and in aspirin-free periods, by means of radioimmunoassay. The nature of the extracted immunoreactivity was characterized by thin-layer chromatography and confirmed by negative ion-chemical ionization gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Aspirin treatment suppressed urinary 2,3-dinor-TxB2 excretion by 80%. The fractional elimination of 2,3-dinor-TxB2 was independent of the rate of TxB2 infusion and averaged 5.3 +/- 0.8%. Interpolation of metabolite values obtained in aspirin-free periods onto the linear relationship between the quantities of infused TxB2 and the amount of metabolite excreted in excess of control values (y = 0.0066x, r = 0.975, P less than 0.001) permitted calculation of the mean rate of entry of endogenous TxB2 into the circulation as 0.11 ng/kg X min. The rate of disappearance of immunoreactive TxB2 from the circulation was monoexponential over the first 10 min with an apparent half-life of 7 min. This corresponded to a maximal estimate of the plasma concentration of endogenous TxB2 of 2.0 pg/ml. These results suggest that ex vivo platelet activation and/or analytical problems confound estimates of endogenous thromboxane release based on plasma TxB2 and provide a rationale for seeking longer-lived enzymatic metabolites of TxB2 in plasma.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Adenosine-induced coronary release of prostacyclin at normal and low pH in isolated heart of rabbit.

Rabbit hearts were perfused by the Langendorff method with drug-free perfusion medium or with a medium containing adenosine (10(-7) M-10(-4)M) and the coronary and transmyocardial efflux rates of 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 alpha (6-keto-PGF1 alpha) were measured. Perfusion was performed both at pH 7.4 and 6.9. In other experiments the hearts were pre-labelled with [14C]-arachidonic acid and the coronary efflux of radioactivity and of labelled lipids and 6-keto-PGF1 alpha were determined. The basal coronary flow was elevated by almost 70% during tissue acidosis, in comparison to control. Adenosine induced a dose-dependent increase in the coronary flow, amounting to about 75% at normal pH and a drug concentration of 10(-5)M. The adenosine-induced increase in coronary flow was not facilitated by low pH. The base coronary efflux of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha from the hearts was 2.5--3.6 ng min-1. Adenosine (10(-6)-10(-5)M) significantly facilitated this efflux, up to 6.5 ng min-1. The efflux of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha was not changed by perfusion with acidic medium, either in the basal state or during perfusion with adenosine. The basal interstitial efflux of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha was 4.5-5.5 ng 3 min-1. This efflux was not affected by perfusion of the heart with adenosine-containing medium. In hearts pre-labelled with [14C]-arachidonic acid, adenosine (10 microM) induced a specific liberation of labelled lipid-extractable substances, including 6-keto-PGF1 alpha. 6 From these data we conclude that adenosine stimulates the liberation of 6-keto-PGFI. from the rabbit heart by increasing precursor availability and subsequent formation of prostacyclin in the coronary vessels. Furthermore, the increase in coronary flow induced by tissue acidosis is not related to an augmented formation of prostacyclin.

6-Ketoprostaglandin F1 alpha↗