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Biomedical subjects

H Gerber

Publications and source records attributed to H Gerber.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

[Anaphylactoid reaction to Physiogel SRK 4%--a contribution to the controversy about plasma substitutes].

Allergic reactions caused by colloid plasma substitutes are a well known complication in infusion therapy. The incidence of these adverse effects depends on the type of colloid used. Severe anaphylactic or anaphylactoid reactions are generally rare. Nevertheless, the risk of adverse allergic effects is an important aspect of the crystalloid-versus-colloid controversy. The exact pathophysiologic mechanisms remain as yet unclear; reliable prophylactic measures are not universally available. To draw attention to these problems we report a case of severe anaphylactoid reaction to Physiogel SRK.

Anaphylaxis↗
PubMed1991

[Acute cervical syndrome in chondrocalcinosis. 3 elderly patients with calcifications of the transverse atlantis ligament].

Articular chondrocalcinosis, or pseudogout, is characterized by the deposition of calcium pyrophosphate dehydrate (CPPD) crystals. Vertebral involvement in CPPD crystal deposition disease is known and includes in particular the ligamentum flavum, the posterior longitudinal ligament and the intervertebral disc. We report on 3 elderly patients with peracute cervical syndrome. Plain radiographs showed the usual degenerations. Computerized tomography scans revealed a calcified transverse atlas ligament. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate was elevated. Plain radiographs showed chondrocalcinosis of the hands and knees. The symptoms subsided after 2 days' therapy with antiinflammatory drugs. We conclude that chondrocalcinosis may often be an undetected cause of acute cervical vertebral pain in the elderly patient.

Aged↗
PubMed1991

[Clinical examination of the shoulder].

As a consequence of the capacious mobility and great strain, the glenohumeral joint happens to be a frequent site of tenderness or pain. The physician is used to consider the differential diagnosis of "shoulder-arm-pain". Unfortunately he is hardly ever capable to practise himself the special techniques required for the examination of the glenohumeral joint. By a precise clinical examination the exact anatomical localisation of the painful structure can be found in almost every case.

Humans↗
PubMed1991

Different forms of chronic childhood thrombocytopenic purpura defined by antiplatelet autoantibodies.

To determine whether detection of antiplatelet autoantibodies (AAb) to glycoproteins IIb/IIIa and Ib/IX may be useful in defining different forms of chronic thrombocytopenic purpura (TP) in children, we analyzed for AAb the platelet and plasma samples from 36 children with chronic TP (mean duration 4.4 years), from 31 children with normal platelet counts at the time of blood sampling but with chronic TP in the past (mean duration 2.9 years), and from 23 adults with chronic TP; the results were correlated with the clinical data. Antiplatelet autoantibodies were detected in 26 (72.2%) of 36 children with ongoing TP, 15 (48.4%) of 31 children with TP in the past, and 12 (66.7%) of 18 adults with TP. All children with high AAb ratios (greater than 5 times the control mean + 3 SD) were more than 8 years of age at diagnosis (mean age 12.4 years compared with 7.1 years in children with moderate or negative AAb levels; p = 0.003). The results suggest that the outcome for adolescents with high platelet-associated AAb levels may be similar to that of adults, whereas younger children may have a greater chance of spontaneous remission. The children with chronic TP in the past and elevated platelet-associated AAb levels may have a "compensated" TP and therefore may be at risk for relapses. Future studies aimed at serial AAb determination throughout the patients' courses may further define TP subgroups.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Autonomous growth and function of cultured thyroid follicles from cats with spontaneous hyperthyroidism.

Spontaneous feline hyperthyroidism is a unique experimental model of toxic nodular goiter. To determine whether feline toxic goiter is caused by extrathyroidal stimulating factors or by the intrinsic autonomy of follicular cells, primary cultures of enzymatically dissociated follicles from 15 hyperthyroid cat goiters and from 3 normal cat thyroid glands were embedded in collagen gels. Growth and function in chemically defined media were assessed by autoradiography after double labeling with 3H-thymidine and 131I-Na. Iodine organification in follicles from normal glands was TSH dependent, but intense radioiodine organification occurred in follicles from hyperfunctioning goiters even in the absence of TSH. Similarly, twice as many follicular cells of hyperfunctioning thyroid tissue, maintained without TSH in the medium, were labeled after exposure to 3H-thymidine than in follicles from normal glands. The results strongly suggest that intrinsic alterations of cell function lead to autonomy of follicular growth and function and subsequently to the development of hyperplastic nodules, causing thyrotoxicosis. The reason for the focal nature of the disease remains an unresolved challenge. Further investigation using this model may further understanding of the growth of autonomous endocrine tumors.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

The genetic basis of equine allergic diseases. 1. Chronic hypersensitivity bronchitis.

The genetic influence on chronic hypersensitivity bronchitis (CB) was investigated in families at two studs and among half-siblings of three affected and three non-affected sires at several farms. The family members at the two studs were born and raised under the same conditions, whereas the half-siblings were kept individually under very different conditions and were exposed to various environmental factors. The diagnosis was based on long-term observations and multiple clinical examinations at each of the two studs. In the half-sibling group, the diagnosis was based on the individual history and on a thorough clinical examination. The history of all horses suggested the disease was caused by allergies (symptoms provoked by hay). Statistical analysis of the data in the first study showed that a greater percentage of off-spring of two affected parents developed CB (9 of 13) than those with only one affected parent (23 of 48) and those with two healthy parents (5 of 29). The distributions of the affected offspring in these three categories (none, one or both parents affected) differed significantly (P less than 0.005) from what would have been expected without a genetic effect. The tendency to develop the disease was inherited equally from dams or sires. In the second stud fewer animals (n = 42) were included in the study, but the results were similar. Parents without a history of CB produced off-spring with a low incidence of disease (1 of 16) compared with a higher incidence among descendants of one or two affected parents (10 of 26; P = 0.02).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Comparison of FRTL-5 cell growth in vitro with that of xenotransplanted cells and the thyroid of the recipient mouse.

The present work was designed to compare in vitro cell growth kinetics with in vivo growth under conditions as similar as possible using labeling with [3H]thymidine. To this purpose, FRTL-5 cells were cultured as monolayers and as three-dimensional spheroids embedded in collagen gels and transplanted simultaneously into nude mice treated with perchlorate and a low iodine diet. The growth of the transplants was compared to that of the thyroids in host mice. In the intact thyroid, the fraction of [3H]thymidine-labeled follicular cells (FLC; 24-h labeling) increased sluggishly to a maximum of 10% after 3 weeks of goitrogen exposure, with a subsequent autoregulatory decrease to 3% at 7 weeks. A 4-fold higher FLC was found in six adenomas, indicating focal failure of growth-restraining mechanisms. In nonconfluent monolayer cultures the FLC was as high as 90%, even within large individual clusters where cells are in tight mutual contact. Solid, highly cellular grafts growing from transplanted monodispersed cells showed an average FLC of 20%, which is 5 times higher than the FLC in the identically stimulated mouse thyroid. In collagen-embedded cells, forming three-dimensional spheroids, the mean FLC decreased from 70% at 1 week in vitro (40% in vivo) to 20% at 3 weeks both in vitro and in vivo, suggesting effective auto-regulation of excessive growth in both conditions. However, these FLC were again much higher than the 3% FLC in simultaneously assessed host thyroids. The difference remained throughout the 45-day period studied. We conclude that FRTL-5 cells growing as monolayers and as three-dimensional spheroids in vitro or after xenotransplantation in vivo invariably show much higher proliferation rates under comparable environmental conditions than the normal follicular epithelium in the thyroids of host mice. The one exception is the confluent monolayer with near-zero growth, while densely packed three-dimensional transplants still grow intensively. Although growth-retarding cell to cell interactions are also clearly operative in growing FRTL-5 cells, they are less effective than those dampening the replication rate of the thyrocytes within the monolayer hull of normal follicles. A local failure of these mechanisms, allowing growth rates comparable to those of grafted FRTL-5 cells results in adenoma formation in normal thyroids. These observations call for caution in the transfer of in vitro growth studies with FRTL-5 cells to in vivo conditions prevailing in the normal thyroid.

Adenoma↗
PubMed1991

Thyroid cell lines in research on goitrogenesis.

Thyroid cell lines have contributed a lot to the understanding of goitrogenesis. The cell lines mostly used in thyroid research are briefly discussed, namely the rat thyroid cell lines FRTL and FRTL-5, the porcine thyroid cell lines PORTHOS and ARTHOS, The sheep thyroid cell lines OVNIS 5H and 6H, the cat thyroid cell lines PETCAT 1 to 4 and ROMCAT, and the human thyroid cell lines FTC-133 and HTh 74. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells and COS-7 cells, stably transfected with TSH receptor cDNA and expressing a functional TSH receptor, are discussed as examples for non-thyroidal cells, transfected with thyroid genes.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

[Abnormal hormone values: do drugs play a role? Abnormal prolactin, TSH and thyroid hormone values].

Whenever abnormal hormone values are found in a patient, it is necessary to inquire whether medicaments may be implicated. Some of the mechanisms of drug induced hormonal alterations are presented, and drugs which affect and alter prolactin, TSH, thyroid hormones and (in brief) GH and ACTH are summarized and discussed for the non-specialist. Hyperprolactinemia is caused by estrogens, neuroleptics and other dopaminantagonists, antidepressants, opioids, reserpine, a-methyl-dopa, H2-receptor blockers, etc. Serum TSH is decreased by glucocorticoids, somatostatin, dopaminergic agents, a-adrenergic blockers, etc., and increased by neuroleptics and other dopamin antagonists, cimetidine, clomiphene, spironolactone, etc. Thyroid hormones are altered by agents which inhibit thyroid hormone synthesis or secretion (thionamides, some sulfonamides; lithium), which increase (estrogens, methadon) or decrease (androgens, glucocorticoids) the concentration of TBG (thyroxine binding globulin), which competitively inhibit thyroid hormone binding to TBG (salicylates, phenytoin, etc.), and which inhibit the conversion of T4 to T3 (beta-adrenergic blockers, amiodarone, glucocorticoids) or stimulate degradation or fecal excretion of thyroid hormones (rifampicin, phenytoin, carbamazepine). For some drugs, in particular those with multiple effects on one or several endocrine systems, the only safe test which definitely allows drug-induced hormonal disturbances to be confirmed or ruled out is withdrawal of the drug and repetition of the hormone measurement.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1990

[Acute unilateral blindness as the initial symptom of meningeosis lymphomatosa].

The development of Meningeosis lymphomatosa is a rare event even in high grade Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, often without any typical clinical signs. We report a case, where a unilateral sudden loss of vision was the first symptom of meningeosis lymphomatosa and indicated a generalized relapse in the patient, who seemed so far to be in complete remission.

Abdominal Neoplasms↗
PubMed1990

[Synovial cyst of the intervertebral joint as cause of a lumboradicular syndrome].

Synovial cysts of various joints and tendon sheaths (knee, elbow, hip, proximal interphalangeal joints are well known. Cysts arising from the zygapophyseal joints however are rare, but not unknown. 3 patients with lumbosciatic pain, due to nerve root compression by a synovial cyst of the zygapophyseal joints are described. The age ranged from 54 to 77 years. There are 2 men and 1 woman. The symptoms and signs involved the fourth (1 patient) and fifth (1 patient) lumbal nerve root and the first sacral nerve root (1 patient). X-rays showed degenerative changes of the facet joints in 2 cases and spondylolisthesis in 1 case. Myelography revealed compression of the fifth lumbar and the first sacral nerve root, but did not allow to make the exact diagnoses. CT scans however made the diagnoses possible in all 3 cases. Treatment was surgical excision of the cyst in 2 cases, 1 patient showed pain relief after steroid-infiltration in the affected facet joint.

Aged↗
PubMed1990

[Atypical sciatica].

A 46-year old patient had suffered from progressive nocturnal sciatica and motor weakness of the left lower extremity for three years. The physical examination revealed a discrete neurologic deficit of the left L5 and S1 root. By CT a small presacral mass between the L5 and S1 roots was found. During the CT-guided fine needle puncture the patient felt an electrifying pain radiating into the left lower extremity. The cytomorphological examination showed benign mesenchymal cells, indicative of a neurinoma. Since progredient neurological deficit is to be expected, exstirpation of the compressing tumor is the therapy of choice. Our patient however decided to postpone the operation because of only mild symptoms.

Diagnosis, Differential↗
PubMed1990

Decay-accelerating factor in the cardiomyocytes of normal individuals and patients with myocardial infarction.

The presence of decay-accelerating factor (DAF) was clearly demonstrated on the surface of normal cardiomyocytes. In patients who had died of myocardial infarction (MI) cardiomyocytes displayed different appearances: outside the ischaemically damaged region the myocytes showed no significant variations in DAF expression when compared with controls without MI. Within myocardial zones damaged by ischaemia, however, apparently normal myocytes showed large gaps in surface staining of DAF or formed clusters which were entirely devoid of reactivity with anti-DAF antibodies. The number of DAF-deficient myocytes increased with the extent of necrosis and also with the number of days between onset of MI and death. Even though injury to myocytes is to a large extent related to anoxia and to the presence of free oxygen radicals, the complement system also appears to be involved; DAF may have protective functions against complement-mediated injury. We speculate that phospholipase may be involved in the removal of DAF from the cardiomyocyte surface.

Aged↗
PubMed1990

The red cell antigen JAL in the Swiss population: family studies showing that JAL is an Rh antigen (RH48).

The JAL antigen was found to have an overall frequency of 0.004% in the Swiss population and 0.06% in French-speaking Swiss. Family studies of 5 JAL+ individuals have shown that the JAL antigen is not part of the ABO, MNSs, Fy, Jk and Co blood group systems, or the Se system, nor is it X- or Y-linked. JAL is encoded by the RH locus or by a very closely linked locus. The number RH48 (4.48) has been assigned for JAL by the International Society of Blood Transfusion Working Party on Terminology for Red Cell Surface Antigens.

Female↗
PubMed1990

Generation of intercellular heterogeneity of growth and function in cloned rat thyroid cells (FRTL-5).

The most characteristic hallmarks of human nodular goiters are nodular growth and heterogeneity of structure and function between different areas of the same goiter. In search of the earliest detectable stage of thyroid heterogeneity we have observed doubling times, TSH dependency, and thyroglobulin production in colonies formed from individual FRTL-5 cells growing as monolayers in slide flasks. Single cells and the colonies derived thereof were followed on photographs taken daily until confluence. We observed that each cell had its individual stable multiplication rate throughout the observation period. This was true for all TSH doses tested (0.625-10 mU/ml). A wide range of doubling times (20 h to almost infinite) in the individual cells was observed. The mean growth velocity of subcloned cell lines was highly reproducible in consecutive passages, although a minority of cells escaped this rule. Cells with either high or low thyroglobulin content occurred in clusters, indicating again that specific traits tend to remain stable in the offspring. We conclude that a highly individual growth program, unrelated to mutation, appears to be switched on at the very moment a cell is generated and that this program is passed on to the majority of the offspring, with a minority of cells acquiring qualities differing from those of their sister cell. Therefore, goiter heterogeneity may be the in vivo amplification of a natural phenomenon occurring in all growing cells. Monoclonal adenomas in vivo and nontransformed immortal cell lines in vitro may represent the far end of the large spectrum of individual growth potency among normal thyrocytes.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Intercellular propagation of individually programmed growth bursts in FRTL-5 cells. Implications for interpreting growth factor actions.

Five methods are commonly used to quantify FRTL-5 cells' and other thyrocytes' growth in vitro and the impact of growth inhibiting or stimulating maneuvers: Total cell count, mitotic index, DNA measurement, total [3H]thymidine incorporation, and the fraction of [3H]thymidine labeled cells. All of them assess cell growth as though all cells were homogeneous with an identical response to growth factors. We demonstrate here that this assumption is not valid. Rather, some intrinsically growth-prone cells appear to pass a growth signal to neighboring cells so that variably sized colonies of synchronized cells within each cluster growing from monodispersed cells are formed. This is true for FRTL-5 cells growing in vitro in monolayers and in three-dimensional, collagen embedded spheroids. The pattern is the same when cell suspensions or collagen-embedded spheroids are implanted onto nude mice. Patches with alternating high and low growth become particularly prominent in the large tumor-like organoids grown from monodispersed cells in nude mice. The pattern much reminds of similar observations in growing intact thyroids. Since there is no significant correlation between the fraction of [3H]thymidine labeled cells and the size of two- or three-dimensional clusters in any experiment, growth of signal-spreading cells is assumed to occur in leaps and bounds. Growth velocity in each subclone of a cell population depends on the mean interval between bursts of replications and on the number of cells synchronized by cell-to-cell diffusion of the growth signal emanating from one dividing cell. Thus, growth-promoting and growth-inhibiting factors may not only act on the mean interval between successive growth bursts, but they may also change cell-to-cell spreading of growth signals.

Animals↗