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Biomedical subjects

H Schulze

Publications and source records attributed to H Schulze.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Immunocytochemical localisation of some lysosomal hydrolases, their presence in luminal fluid and their directional secretion by human epididymal cells in culture.

The way in which the human epididymis modifies spermatozoa during their sojourn in this structure might be clarified by knowledge of the nature of its secretions. We have examined the presence of several lysosomal hydrolases in human epididymal tissue and fluids, and their synthesis and secretion by monolayer cultures. Tissues were obtained from men undergoing orchidectomy for prostatic carcinoma. The enzymes cathepsin D and acid alpha-glucosidase were localised in the lysosomes of epithelial cells from the corpus epididymidis, by an immunocytochemical technique. Cathepsin D was also found in epithelial cells of the efferent ducts within lysosomes, apical vesicles and multivesicular bodies. No immunolocalisation of acid glucosidase in the efferent ducts or on the microvilli of the corpus was demonstrable. Cathepsin D, beta-hexosaminidase (N-acetylglucosaminidase) and alpha-glucosidase were measurable in the luminal fluid from the human corpus epididymidis; beta-hexosaminidase was secreted into the culture medium by confluent monolayers of epididymal and efferent duct cells. Immunoprecipitation of cell extracts and culture medium of these cultures incubated with 35S-methionine revealed that the precursors of cathepsin D and beta-hexosaminidase were synthesized and secreted by such monolayers. Thus, active lytic enzymes are secreted by the human epididymis and could modify sperm membranes.

Adult↗

Transurethral ultrasound-guided laser-induced prostatectomy: clinical outcome and data analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To analyze efficacy and side effects of the transurethral ultrasound-guided laser-induced prostatectomy (TULIP) procedure for the treatment of bladder outlet obstruction due to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Based on the results obtained so far, the influence of preoperative and intraoperative parameters on clinical outcome is analyzed. METHODS: Between May 1991 and March 1994, 89 men with symptomatic and obstructive BPH underwent a TULIP procedure and were followed after 3 and 6 weeks, and 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. RESULTS: On average, mean urinary peak flow increased from 7 to 15 mL/s, postvoidal residual urine decreased from 215 to 40 mL and symptoms (assessed by modified Boyarsky score) decreased from 17 to 5 at 12 months after TULIP: In about half of the patients peak flow increased to more than 20 mL/s on average, and approximately 85% of all men reported that their symptoms improved on average 80% during this time. Because of insufficient micturition, 7 patients subsequently underwent conventional transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) and 1 had an open prostatectomy. Either partial or complete retrograde ejaculation was reported by 13 of 58 sexually active men. No blood transfusion was required and no post-transurethral resection syndrome occurred in any case. Analyses of preoperative and intraoperative parameters and clinical outcome with respect to prostate volume, urinary retention, type of BPH enlargement, sleeve size, and good and poor responders did not reveal any significant influence of any factor. There is, however, a trend toward a lower laser energy delivered in patients who failed or may be considered to be poor responders. CONCLUSIONS: In this unselected group of patients with BPH, who otherwise would have been TURP candidates, the TULIP procedure demonstrated the efficacy of this technique to relieve bladder outlet obstruction. Compared with TURP, the TULIP procedure proved to be advantageous in regard to less blood loss and rate of retrograde ejaculation. In addition, TULIP can be performed under analgesic sedation, which is especially advantageous in high-risk patients. Disadvantages, however, are that it takes a considerably longer time to obtain substantial improvements in subjective and objective symptoms and there are more irritative symptoms in the early postoperative phase.

Aged↗

The nutritional significance of endogenous N-losses along the gastro-intestinal tract of farm animals.

In animal production, endogenous protein losses associated with the digestion process are important losses, but difficult to measure. Measuring methods include feeding N-free diets, regression techniques based on amino acid profiles, and separating feed protein and endogenous protein by markers like homoarginine, hydrolysed casein or stable isotopes like 15N. Endogenous losses arise from saliva, digestive enzymes, bile, shedded epithelial cells and mucins and may be extra stimulated by the presence in feeds of antinutritional factors (ANF) such as lectins, trypsin inhibitors (TI), tannins and fibre. The impact of such factors may differ between non-ruminants and ruminants. The magnitude of the effect of the different factors is quantified and some of the consequences for protein deposition and nitrogen losses to the environment are discussed.

Amino Acids↗

The Lithovac: new suction device for the Swiss Lithoclast.

Minimal invasiveness characterizes modern stone therapy. Several years ago, we presented the Swiss Lithoclast, a ballistic system for endoscopic stone therapy. Its disintegrational power is superior to that of the other intracorporeal lithotripsy devices, and it has gained great recognition. Now, special probes (Lithovac) have been developed to combine lithotripsy with suction. These probes differ in width (1.6, 3.5, or 4 mm) and length depending on the intended location of use (kidney, ureter, bladder). The probes were tested in a standardized stone model. The variable suction energy counteracts the propulsive energy of the Lithoclast. Clinical experience could be gained with stones in the urinary bladder, Kock pouches, the ureter, and the kidney. There were no complications related to either the Lithoclast or the Lithovac. In staghorn stones, small (< 2 mm) pieces could be removed easily during lithotripsy. Fragments as large as 3.5 mm could be evacuated with the Lithovac after removing the Lithoclast probe. Using the suction, clear vision could be achieved (especially useful in struvite stones). In the ureter, a learning curve had to be overcome to balance fluid inflow and suction pressure. Otherwise, the ureter may collapse. However, this was possible in all patients. Using the single-shot mechanism, stones were broken up fast. The fragments could be dragged to the Lithoclast probe with the Lithovac. No pushback happened. In bladder and Kock pouch stones, suction may not be enough to hold the stone to the probe, but it is of great value to keep a small volume in the bladder/pouch and still have excellent visibility. The Lithovac is a useful tool in all endoscopic applications of the Lithoclast.

Endoscopy↗

Dietary level and source of neutral detergent fiber and ileal endogenous nitrogen flow in pigs.

Two experiments were conducted to study the effect of dietary level and source of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) on ileal dry matter flow and on total and endogenous N flow at the terminal ileum. Twenty-two crossbred 6-wk-old castrated male pigs with an average BW of 9 kg were used. The pigs were fitted with a post-valvular T-cecal cannula and two indwelling blood catheters. During the experimental period of 10 d, the pigs were 11 wk of age with an average BW of 14 kg. They were fed 2.6 times their maintenance requirement for energy of a corn starch-based, semisynthetic diet. The diets contained 178 g of soy isolate/kg as the only source of nitrogen (N). In diets of Exp. 1, purified NDF was included at 0 and 200 g/kg of feed at the expense of glucose. The diets of Exp. 2 contained one of the three different NDF sources (purified NDF, wheat bran, or sunflower hulls) at a level of 144 g of NDF/kg of DM. The purified NDF (pNDF) was isolated from the same batch as the wheat bran (WB) used in Exp. 2. The endogenous N flow at the terminal ileum of these pigs was determined with the 15N-isotope dilution method. The inclusion of NDF in the experimental diets increased (P < .05) the daily DM flow at the terminal ileum. Dry matter flow was increased .697 g for every g/kg increase in NDF in the diet. The different sources of dietary NDF gave similar (P > .05) ileal DM flows.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animal Feed↗

[TULIP (transurethral ultrasound-controlled laser-induced prostatectomy)--experiences with over 80 patients].

Of the many methods currently under investigation for the treatment of symptomatic and obstructive benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), laser treatment seems the most likely to yield results comparable to those achieved with transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP). Between May 1991 and December 1993 a total of 83 men were treated in our department with the TULIP (transurethral ultrasound-guided laser-induced prostatectomy) device. Within the first year of follow-up there was a marked improvement in both signs and symptoms. The average urinary peak flow increased from 6 to 16 ml/s, the residual urine volume decreased from 218 ml to 36 ml, and the symptom score (assessed against a modified Boyarsky score) decreased from 17 to 4 points. Our experience so far indicates that the advantages of TULIP are minimal blood loss, no post-transurethral resection syndrome, and a low rate of retrograde ejaculation postoperatively. In addition, the procedure can be performed with analgosedation. Disadvantages are the delayed onset of improvement, combined with irritative symptoms in the early weeks after the procedure. In addition, no tissue can be obtained for histological examination, which may be important in the long-term. Randomized prospective studies, including cost-benefit analyses, are needed to check for advantages of TULIP over TURP.

Aged↗

[Quality assurance in tumor surgery--the effect of tumor surgery interventions on the quality of life of patients with urologic tumors].

During the last 20 years important improvements in diagnosis, staging and indications as well as in operative and conservative treatments of urological malignancies have been achieved. In consequence the prognoses of patients with these cancers have been improved. One remaining question concerns the impact of curative radical surgery on the individual's quality of life and life perspective. The purpose of this prospective study was to obtain relevant data upon which to develop tumor-specific modules according to the guidelines of the EORTC, so that this question can be studied. Between July, 1993 and July, 1994 data from 106 cancer patients with non metastatic urological malignancies (prostate, kidney and bladder) were gathered for analysis. Patients include 37 with prostatic cancer, who were treated by a radical prostatovesicalectomy. Fourty-two patients with renal cell carcinoma underwent radical nephrectomy. In 30 bladder cancer patients radical cystoprostatovesicalectomy with an ileum conduit was carried out. The first step was to describe the symptomatology in these patients by means of open interviews. In addition, one day postoperatively, the day before discharge and one year after surgery the patients completed self-administered symptomatic and psychological questionnaires. The symptomatic questionnaire contained 20 items, each with six response choices. For evaluating subjective well-being, we selected the "Basler Befindlichkeitsbogen" (Basler Psychological Balance), which has four dimensions: Vitality, vigilance, social extrovertivity and psychological balance. Descriptive and comparative analyses were performed with an SPSS programme. Comparing the preoperative and one year postoperative values, all patients groups showed a significant deterioration in the four dimensions of the psychological parameters. The data from the present study were the basis for the development of EORTC-specific tumor modules for urological cancer according to the guidelines of the EORTC.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

[Diagnosis and therapy of primary malignant fibrous histiocytoma of the kidney].

Malignant Fibrous Histiocytoma (MFH) is an unfrequent mesenchymal tumor first described by O'Brian in 1964 [1, 16]. The most common site of this malignancy is the limbs area and the retroperitoneum. Primary involvement of the kidney is extremely rare. Only thirteen cases are well documented in the literature. We report an additional case of such primary renal tumor.

Aged↗

The carbon monoxide stretching modes in camphor-bound cytochrome P-450cam. The effect of solvent conditions, temperature, and pressure.

The effect of pH, monovalent cations, glycerol, temperature, and pressure on the carbonmonoxy (CO) stretching mode of camphor-bound cytochrome P-450cam (CYP 101) was studied. Two effects, band overlap and frequency shift, have been observed. The CO stretch infrared band located at about 1940 cm-1 is asymmetric because of the overlap of three bands at about 1931 cm-1, 1939 cm-1, and 1942 cm-1 with strongly different populations. Reducing the temperature or increasing the pressure leads to splitting the band or switching the asymmetry from the lower energy side to the higher energy side of the infrared band. The overlap of several CO stretch bands indicates conformational substates within the heme pocket. A frequency shift of the predominantly populated band is observed by changing all the parameters mentioned. The pH-induced frequency shift follows an S-shape with the pK at 6.2, which matches the pK observed for the pH-induced high-spin/low-spin transition. Conformational changes on the proximal heme side are suggested to be the origin. Monovalent cations at saturating concentration induce a small frequency shift depending on the ion radius. The potassium ion is the one that induces a CO stretch frequency with the highest wave-number while sodium and lithium (smaller radii) and rubidium and caesium ion (larger radii) have diminished values, which is supporting evidence for the special function of the potassium ion within the structure. Glycerol and hydrostatic pressure induce a red shift of the CO stretching frequency. Forced contact of the polar hydroxyl group of Thr252 of the I helix induced by pressure and indirectly by glycerol is suggested to change the CO dipole moment, reflecting in the decreased CO stretching frequency.

Camphor↗

The proton activity at cryogenic temperatures--a possible influence on the spin state of the heme iron of cytochrome P-450cam in supercooled buffered solutions.

The electronic absorption spectra for camphor-bound cytochrome P-450cam have been analysed in the temperature range between 78 K and 298 K. The well-known high-spin/low-spin equilibrium has been detected between 298 K and 220 K. Depending on the cooling rate, below 220 K a new species was found in the absorption spectra. In contrast, the electronic absorption spectra for camphor-free cytochrome P-450cam between 78 K and 295 K show no significant spectral changes. The conversion between the spin states of camphor-bound cytochrome P-450cam and the appearance of the new species do not correspond to the temperature-induced change in the paH value of the aqueous glycerol mixture containing phosphate or cacodylate buffer (paH 7.0). For this study a spectroscopic procedure for the determination of the temperature dependence of the paH value of the solvent for the range 78-295 K is presented using dyes as pH-indicators. It is shown that the state of the acid-base equilibrium frozen in is strongly dependent on the cooling rate of the mixture.

Buffers↗

Molecular analysis of a leu2-mutant of Candida maltosa demonstrates the presence of multiple alleles.

Three different alleles of the beta-isopropylmalate dehydrogenase gene were cloned and sequenced from a leucine auxotrophic mutant, G587, of Candida maltosa. The cloning of functionally-intact wild-type genes from this mutant strain suggests the presence of silent gene copies. An interallelic-divergence comparison has provided evidence for new regulatory mechanisms. Sequence data and karyotype analysis argue for a highly-aneuploid genome of C. maltosa. An interpretation for the spontaneous auxotrophy-prototrophy-auxotrophy sequence of mutations in C. maltosa is suggested.

3-Isopropylmalate Dehydrogenase↗

Basal cells of the human epididymis--antigenic and ultrastructural similarities to tissue-fixed macrophages.

Very little is known about the basal cells in the epididymal epithelium. Their function is unclear, although they are present in all mammalian epididymides studied. The corpus epididymides from five patients undergoing castration because of prostatic carcinoma were fixed and processed for electron microscopy. Basal cells were characterized by a slightly heterochromatic nucleus with prominent nucleolus, pale round mitochondria, dispersed endoplasmic reticulum, and sparse Golgi apparatus; they were often rich in lipofuscin inclusions, possibly originating from principal cells. Some peritubular macrophages in close proximity to the epithelium were structurally similar to basal cells. Immunohistochemical staining revealed in the epididymides of another ten patients that the basal cells were recognized by the monoclonal antibody (mAb) 25F9 against mature, tissue-fixed macrophages but not by mAbs 27E10 or RM3/1, which were against activated macrophages usually found in acute or late inflammation, respectively. On the basis of the present findings, as a working hypothesis a scavenging role of the basal cells in a local immune defense mechanism is proposed, in which antigenic products (possibly of sperm degradation), taken up by the principal cells, would be phagocytosed by the basal cells. It could be inferred that when the basal cells are overloaded, they would leave the epithelium to be replenished by tissue-fixed macrophages.

Aged↗

Stuttering in childhood: a five-year longitudinal study in progress.

The actual state of research in childhood stuttering is presented and certain points open to criticism are discussed. We want to find answers to some of the open questions by means of a longitudinal study that starts at an early stage. In this study the prognostic validity of various dimensions of behaviour can be determined with regard to the development of stuttering. Thus, the conditions for the development of a valid and reliable instrument for early diagnosis are created that enable the specialist to estimate the probability of chronicity and to determine whether to treat or not to treat childhood stuttering. Furthermore, the study aims to develop a screening procedure which is easy to use for the persons in the child's surroundings (parents, teachers, physicians) so that stuttering children can be referred to a specialist at an earlier stage.

Age of Onset↗

[Stuttering in childhood: etiology and follow-up. Initial results of a 5-year longitudinal study].

For about 15 months a multifactorial longitudinal study on the development of stuttering in preschool children has been conducted at the Phoniatric Outpatient Department of the University of Ulm. The main subject of the study is to determine valid indicators to estimate the risk of future chronicity or remission of stuttering and to find out whether and how it is possible to differentiate normal developmental dysfluencies from chronic abnormal dysfluencies. Preliminary results are presented and discussed.

Child↗

Effect of level of dietary neutral detergent fiber on ileal apparent digestibility and ileal nitrogen losses in pigs.

A study was conducted with 20 barrows (average BW 25 kg) to determine the effect of various levels of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) in the diet on the apparent ileal nutrient digestibility and ileal diaminopimelic acid (DAPA) content, and consequently on the amount of ileal endogenous nitrogen. The pigs were fitted with a post-valvular T-cecal cannula. They were fed .8 kg/d of a corn starch-based semisynthetic diet formulated to contain equal amounts of protein and starch and 0, 60, 120, or 180 g of purified NDF/kg of diet, included at the expense of glucose. The purified NDF (pNDF) was isolated from wheat bran using an incubation procedure with pancreatin. Ileal digestibility of NDF was approximately 17% and was independent of the pNDF level in the diet. By increasing the amount of pNDF in the diets, apparent ileal digestibilities of dry matter (DM), nitrogen (N), neutral detergent insoluble N (NDF-N), and ash decreased linearly (P < .05). The DAPA content of the ileal digesta (g/d) was not affected by the percentage of pNDF in the diets. Calculation of the ileal bacterial N excretion indicated that more than 50% of the ileal N was of bacterial origin. With increased percentage of dietary pNDF, both endogenous and exogenous N in ileal chyme were linearly increased (P < .05). Thus, an increase in the dietary fiber content leads to a decreased apparent ileal protein digestibility due to increased ileal losses of both endogenous and exogenous protein.

Animal Feed↗