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Biomedical subjects

G Verme

Publications and source records attributed to G Verme.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1977

[Cimetidine in the treatment of peptic ulcer].

Cimetidine, a non-thiourea-containing histamine H2-receptor antagonist, has been employed in the treatment of peptic ulcer. We studied 50 patients, partly with double-blind method, and partly in a free trial. Duodenal ulcers were completely healed in 80% of the cases, at the control endoscopy after a 4-week period of treatment with cimetidine (1000 mg/day). Peptic ulcer in general healed in 76% of the cases. Gastric secretion was significantly reduced after cimetidine. An important improvement in subjective symptoms was noted in every patient. No toxic effect was noted.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

A trichrome stain for the intrahepatic localization of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg).

A modified trichrome stain is described for the intrahepatic localization of the hepatitis B surface antigen; HBsAg containing cells exhibit specific green metachromasia contrasting with the granular brown colour of non infected hepatocytes and with the deep eosinophilic colour of ground glass cells of HBsAg-negative alcoholic or drug hepatitis. The technique is simple and reliable for routine screening of HBsAg positive material; its sensitivity is greater than H & E, similar orcein and inferior to immunohistochemistry as performed on frozen sections. Histological diagnosis can be made on the same slide, since several other morphological details are provided in the trichrome stained preparations. With this technique 387 biopsies from HBsAg seronegative individuals were negative; full cytoplasms metachromasia was mostly seen in asymptomatic HBsAg carriers, focal or partial staining in patients with histological evidence of liver cell necrosis. The presence and the staining pattern of HBsAg were of no help in predicting transition to chronicity or a transition from chronic persistent to chronic active hepatitis.

Azo Compounds↗
PubMed1977

Immunofluorescence detection of new antigen-antibody system (delta/anti-delta) associated to hepatitis B virus in liver and in serum of HBsAg carriers.

A new antigen-antibody system associated with the hepatitis B virus and immunologically distinct from the HB surface, core, and e systems is reported. The new antigen, termed delta, was detected by direct immunofluorescence only in the liver cell nuclei of patients with HBsAg positive chronic liver disease. At present, the intrahepatic expression of HBcAg and delta antigen appears to be mutually exclusive. No ultrastructural aspect corresponding to the delta antigen could be identified under the electron microscope. delta antibody was found in the serum of chronic HBsAg carriers, with a higher prevalence in patients with liver damage. The nuclear fluorescence patterns of HBcAg and delta antigen were similar; it is only possible to discriminate between the two antigens by using the respective specific antisera.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

G-cell counts in antral endoscopic biopsies by immunofluorescence.

Antral gastrin-producing cell (G-cells) were counted by an immunofluorescence technique in the antral biopsies obtained at endoscopy from 67 subjects; they included patients with duodenal ulcer, gastritis, and individuals with a normal gastric mucosa. The G-cell count was significantly lower (P less than 0.01) in patients with duodenal ulcer (142 G cells per mm2) in comparison to normal subjects (327 G cells per mm2). No statistically significant correlation was found between the G-cell number and any of the other parameters tested (pentagastrin test, basal serum gastrin and its response to a standard meal).

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

Prognostic significance of in-vitro complement fixation in liver biopsy specimens from patients with acute viral hepatitis type B.

The prognostic significance of in-vitro complement fixation (V.C.F.) by hepatitis-B core antigen/antibody immunocomplexes in hepatitis-B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive liver biopsy specimens was prospectively evaluated in 47 patients presenting with acute viral hepatitis type B. 34 of 37 V.C.F.-negative patients made an uneventful recovery and became HBsAg negative; in all patients with a V.C.F.-positive test chronic hepatitis and persistent antigenaemia developed. The V.C.F. test is a simple and reliable prognostic indicator of persistent infection and of progression of apparently acute hepatitis to a chronic liver disorder.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1976

Complement fixing hepatitis B core antigen immune complexes in the liver of patients with HBs antigen positive chronic disease.

One hundred and fifty-two biopsies from serologically HBsAg positive and negative patients with liver disease were studied in immunofluorescence: for the presence of the surface (HBs) and the core (HBc) antigenic determinants foeterminants of the hepatitis B virus, of immunoglobulins and complement (C) deposits, and for the capacity to fix human C. Circumstantial evidence is presented suggesting that HBc immune-complexes are a relevant feature in the establishment and progression of chronic HBSAg liver disease. C fixation by liver cells was shown in all HBC positive patients with chronic hepatitis; an active form was present in every case, except two with a persistent hepatitis, an inverse ratio of HBc to C binding fluorescence being noted between active chronic hepatitis and cirrhotic patients. HBc without C fixation was observed in only three patients in the incubation phase of infectious hepatitis. IgG deposits were often found in HBc containing, C fixing nuclei. No C binding or IgG deposits were observed in acute self-limited type B hepatitis, in serologically positive patients with normal liver or minimal histological lesions, with and without HBs cytoplasmic fluorescence in their biopsy, or in serologically negative individuals.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1975

[Chronic hepatitis: diagnostic and therapeutic problems].

The morphological criteria for diagnosing chronic hepatitis are discussed and criticised. A classification closer to clinical reality than that of De Groote et al 1968 is then proposed. Personal experience in differential laboratory diagnosis between the various forms of chronic hepatitis by means of comparative evaluation of an enzymogram and the measurement of certain proteins in the serum is then reported. Case examples are given to emphasise the possibilities of the immunological approach to the problem of active chronic hepatitis. Finally, the cardinal points of therapy are reviewed.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Hepatitis B virus DNA in the sera of HBsAg carriers: a marker of active hepatitis B virus replication in the liver.

Sera and liver biopsies from 30 Italian patients, carriers of HBsAg for at least 3 years, were examined for markers of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection by serological assays and immunofluorescence. Biopsies were analyzed for HBcAg, HBsAg, and delta antigen by immunofluorescence; sera were assayed for HBsAg/anti-HBs, HBcAg/anti-HBc, HBeAg/anti-HBe, delta/anti-delta, HBV-specific DNA polymerase activity and the presence of HBV DNA. HBcAg, HBeAg, and DNA polymerase tests were positive in the sera of 71, 86, and 57%, respectively, of carriers with intrahepatic HBcAg. HBV DNA was detected in 100% of patients expressing HBcAg in the liver with a strong correlation between the concentration of serum DNA and the intensity of HBcAg immunofluorescence in the liver. HBV DNA was detected in the sera of 63% of carriers with intrahepatic delta where the other markers of HBV replication (HBeAg, DNA polymerase) were undetectable. The assay for serum HBV DNA appears to be an excellent noninvasive method for detecting active replication of HBV in HBsAg carriers.

Carrier State↗
PubMedDate not supplied

HLA-DR antigens in HBsAg-positive chronic active liver disease with and without associated delta infection.

The A, B, C and DR locus specificities of the human leukocyte antigens system (HLA) were determined in 45 delta-positive and 44 delta-negative Italian patients, all with HBsAg-positive chronic active liver disease; controls were 526 healthy Italian blood donors matched for age, sex and geographical origin. HLA-A, B, C gene frequencies were not significantly changed. In delta-positive patients, the frequencies of the DR locus specificities were: DR2, 37.8%; DR3, 20%; DR4, 11.1%. In the delta-negative patients, the frequencies were: DR2, 13.6%; DR3, 36.4%; DR4, 0%. Control frequencies were: DR2, 19.4%; DR3, 17.1%; DR4, 18.5%. The corrected p values of the differences between controls and delta-positive patients were: DR2, pc = 0.046; DR3, pc = NS (not significant); DR4, pc = NS. The corrected p values of the differences between controls and delta-negative patients were: DR2, pc = NS; DR3, pc = 0.03; DR4, pc = 0.002. These findings show that: (a) DR3, a genetic marker of autoimmunity, might assist the establishment of chronic HBsAg liver disease in the absence of delta superinfection; (b) DR2 is linked with failure to clear the delta agent, and (c) DR4 may protect from virus B persistence. Identification of adventitious factors such as delta may help uncover a subgroup of HBsAg carriers who are genetically predisposed to develop chronic liver disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Type D hepatitis: the clinical significance of hepatitis D virus RNA in serum as detected by a hybridization-based assay.

Hepatitis D virus is a defective human pathogen that requires hepatitis B virus for its replication. A hybridization-based assay for the 1.75 kb RNA genome of hepatitis D virus was developed using as probe a radiolabeled transcript of a cloned cDNA fragment (pKD3 hepatitis D virus DNA). Sera from 120 chronic carriers of HBsAg with confirmed hepatitis D virus infection were analyzed for the presence of hepatitis D virus RNA. Serum hepatitis D virus RNA was detected in 43 of 74 (58%) patients with chronic liver disease; some patients were positive for hepatitis D virus RNA in multiple samples over a period of several years. Serum hepatitis D virus RNA was present in 17 of 28 (61%) patients during the acute phase of clinical hepatitis and was not detected after recovery from acute disease or in 18 asymptomatic chronic HBsAg carriers with antibody to hepatitis D virus. The presence of hepatitis D virus RNA correlated with other known markers of active hepatitis D virus replication; all chronic active liver disease patients with serum hepatitis D virus RNA were positive for antihepatitis D antigen IgM, and 34 of 37 (92%) had hepatitis D antigen in their liver biopsy specimens. The assay for hepatitis D virus RNA provides a direct and noninvasive method for the detection of hepatitis D virus in serum and will be useful in the study of the natural history of type D hepatitis, the identification of chronic hepatitis D virus carriers likely to transmit hepatitis D virus and the selection and monitoring of patients for potential antiviral therapy.

Acute Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A histological study of hepatitis delta virus liver disease.

The histopathology of hepatitis delta virus disease was studied in carriers of HBsAg with chronic hepatitis delta antigen-positive hepatitis and in serial biopsies of patients with acute hepatitis delta virus hepatitis that progressed to chronicity. There was no histologic feature distinctive of hepatitis delta virus from other types of viral hepatitis. Biopsy specimens of patients with chronic disease exhibited portal and periportal inflammation with piecemeal necrosis, conforming to a picture of aggressive hepatitis often accompanied by cirrhosis. Characteristic was a marked intralobular infiltration by mononuclear cells and a degenerative eosinophilic change of the hepatocytic cytoplasms conducive to the formation of acidophilic bodies. Liver specimens from patients with hepatitis delta virus hepatitis exhibited aspects of focal, confluent and bridging necrosis. The disease progressed to chronicity irrespective of the original histological features. The expression of intrahepatic hepatitis delta antigen was reduced in the phase of the acute hepatitis but increased in parallel with the development of chronic active liver disease. In late-stage cirrhosis, expression of hepatitis delta antigen was usually low.

Acute Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Intrahepatic localization of the surface (HBsAg) and core (HBcAg) antigenic determinants associated with hepatitis B virus in biopsy samples from patients with liver disease.

109 biopsy samples from 35 HBAg serologically positive and 74 negative patients were examined by IFL for the presence of the surface and core antigenic determinants associated with the Dane particle. In no serologically negative case was specific IFL detected. Different patterns were observed in serologically positive patients: negative in acute hepatitis, strongly positive cytoplasmic HBs fluorescence in chronic HBAg carriers with normal liver, and discrete HBsAg parenchymal and mesenchymal staining and variable HBcAg staining in chronic liver disease, with HBsAg appearing more frequently in active and HBcAg in active disease. These results are compared with recent reports in this field and the clinical significance of the intrahepatic localization of HBAg is discussed.

Acute Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Antibodies against the human pancreas in acute and chronic liver disease.

Different immunofluorescence reactions in the exocrine pancreas were observed with the sera of patients with acute and chronic liver disease. In the majority of cases the antibody, frequently associated with the antibody against the smooth muscle, reacted with diffuse organ-specific antigens in the cytoplasm; in one patient it reacted with fibrillar antigens in the cells, while in another case the fluorescence was due to antibodies against non-specific ribosomal antigens. The occurrence, nature and significance of these reactions are discussed.

Acute Disease↗