Antiepileptic drugs in clinical development.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J D Slater.
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Measurements of plasma atrial natriuretic peptide concentrations at 8 AM showed raised levels in 21 patients with cirrhosis and ascites (10.5 +/- 0.8 pmol/L) compared with levels in 10 age-matched controls (4.1 +/- 0.64 pmol/L; p less than 0.0001). In eight patients and 10 controls, atrial natriuretic peptide, plasma renin activity, plasma aldosterone and urinary sodium excretion were measured every 4 hr for 24 hr. Subjects were mobile between 8 AM and 11 PM and supine from 11 PM to 8 AM. In controls, urinary sodium excretion was highest between 4 PM and 11 PM (19.34 +/- 3.74 mumol/min) and lowest between midnight and 8 AM (7.06 +/- 1.23 mumol/min; p less than 0.001). In patients, urinary sodium excretion was 0.63 +/- 0.14 mumol/min between 4 PM and midnight and 1.85 +/- 0.71 mumol/min (p less than 0.08) between midnight and 8 AM. In patients during the day, mean plasma atrial natriuretic peptide concentration did not change despite large individual variation, but large, sustained rises in plasma renin activity and plasma aldosterone were seen. Correlations were noted between atrial natriuretic peptide and urinary sodium excretion between midnight and 8 AM (r = 0.65; p less than 0.02) and 4 PM and midnight (r = 0.54; p less than 0.05) but not between 8 AM and 4 PM. Plasma renin activity dropped from 12.54 +/- 2.49 at midnight to 7.41 +/- 0.88 pmol/hr/ml at 8 AM (p less than 0.05); plasma aldosterone decreased from 1,032 +/- 101 to 798 +/- 56 pmol/L (p less than 0.05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Six specific pathogen-free foals shown to be free of equine herpesvirus-1 and 4 (EHV-1 and -4) and lacking in maternally-derived antibodies were used to investigate the pathogenesis of EHV-1 in horses. Following primary intranasal inoculation with EHV-1 all foals showed signs of a mild, self-limiting upper respiratory tract infection. A leucopenia was observed, comprising both a lymphopenia and neutropenia. Virus was isolated from nasal mucus and buffy coat cells over several days during the clinical episode and after the animals became clinically normal. Notwithstanding the mildness of the clinical disease, virus was not eliminated completely and intravenous administration of dexamethasone resulted in reactivation of latent EHV-1 in animals which had received only a single dose of the virus. In a second infection given to four foals, 61 days after the primary inoculation, no clinical signs were observed, haematological changes were minimal and viraemia was absent.
The sequencing of the genome of equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) is reported in Elizabeth A. R. Telford, Moira S. Watson, Kathryn McBride, and Andrew J. Davison, 1992, Virology, 189, 304-316. The sequence was derived using a plaque-purified clone of EHV-1 strain Ab4 (designated Ab4p). To ensure that Ab4p shares the pathogenic characteristics of parental Ab4 (hereafter Ab4), both were inoculated intranasally into foals, specifically free from EHV-1 and EHV-4. Clinical signs, including rectal temperature, were similar for both viruses. In addition, nasal shedding of virus was observed over a 1- to 2-week period postinfection, and viremia was established with both Ab4 and Ab4p. Isolation of virus from one foal following intravenous administration of steroids indicates that Ab4p can establish latency and undergo reactivation. Finally, retinal lesions were observed and these were similar to those seen with Ab4. In conclusion, several pathogenic characteristics of Ab4 are retained in the plaque-purified clone, Ab4p.
The activity of the nucleotide analogue, (S)-1-[(3-hydroxy-2-phosphonyl methoxy) propyl] cytosine (HPMPC), against equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) was tested in cell culture, mice and foals. The ED50 for plaque reduction was found to be 0.07 and 0.03 microgram/ml in RK-13 and EEL cells respectively. In mice, a single administration of HPMPC (20 mg/kg, s.c.) was very effective at reducing clinical signs and virus replication if given on the day before intranasal inoculation with EHV-1. Treatment on the day of infection or day 1 p.i. was less effective, but still significantly reduced clinical signs and virus titres in the target organs (lungs and nasal tissue). Furthermore, HPMPC was found to protect mice partially from an intracerebral inoculation with EHV-1. Experiments in the horse suggested that HPMPC was also very active against EHV-1 in the natural host. Thus a single administration of HPMPC at 20 mg/kg, s.c., on the day of infection, markedly reduced clinical signs and nasal excretion of virus following intranasal inoculation with EHV-1. HPMPC given as a divided dose of 1 mg/kg on day 0 and day 3 p.i. had no effect on clinical signs but did reduce nasal excretion of virus. The significance of these results is discussed.
The ability to vary the proton energy (depth of beam penetration) and modulate the dose distribution at the end of range permits delivery of an increased dose to the designated cancer-containing volume with a reduced dose to overlying normal brain tissue. The evolution of childhood CNS malignancy following therapy is reviewed to identify radiation response variables indicating where the proton dose distribution will improve the therapeutic ratio. The review documents that of the 1262 children expected to develop CNS malignancy in 1989, only 43% will survive 5 years. About 75% of those with medulloblastoma and over 90% with astrocytoma die from persistent (in-field) disease. When the patient has been treated with radiation, it is accepted that disease persistence indicates the cancer dose was insufficient. Potentially 536 children could show an improved incidence of local control and improved survival from an increased cancer dose available from proton irradiation. As the total dose and volume of brain irradiated is increased about 1800 cGy, brain dysfunction increases, producing a spectrum of functional and intellectual deficits which are age and volume related. About 900 irradiated patients would have fewer in-field histologic and functional changes if the dose to normal brain, or the volume of brain irradiated, is reduced by an improved dose distribution. A proton beam treatment plan, delivering a cancer dose of 7400 cGy, is simulated for a thalamic astrocytoma. The dose distribution of this plan is compared with an x-ray plan used to treat a patient, in which a dose of 5400 cGy was delivered to the astrocytoma. Comparative isodose distributions and dose-volume histograms indicate a decreased integral dose to normal brain and a decreased volume of normal brain irradiated, even as the cancer dose is boosted 2000 cGy with protons.
An investigation of treatment results in tonsillar region carcinomas was conducted, with particular attention to local control and morbidity from current therapy. The purpose of the investigation was to identify problems that might be resolvable with a superior treatment modality. A search was made of the National Library of Medicine's MEDLINE database, covering local control, survival, and morbidity from current therapies; dose-response relationships; and prognostic indicators. Three-dimensional radiotherapy plans were developed for representative cases, comparing photon-beam plans with proton-beam plans. Locoregional control is a major problem, and morbidity from standard therapy is high. Comparative treatment plans reveal that proton beams can deliver higher doses to the tumor volume, with significantly reduced radiation to salivary glands and mandible, than can photon-beam irradiation. The absorption and distribution characteristics of protons provide the radiation oncologist with a superior tool for treating patients with tonsillar region carcinomas. The therapeutic advantage accrues from these superior characteristics, not from an inherent biologic advantage.
Advanced cervix cancer has a local failure rate of 40-45% when treated with a combination of external beam irradiation and intracavitary implants, and approximately 60-65% when treated by external beam irradiation alone. Because of the absorption characteristics of protons, there is the potential for improved dose distributions and delivery of greater total doses to cervical neoplasms. Using computer-modelled examples, this theoretical advantage has been tested and the results have been extrapolated to show a therapeutic advantage in local control and morbidity. The first example shows the use of protons and intracavitary implants in advanced cervix tumors. Larger tumor doses are possible with protons than with photons, while the dose-volume to normal structures is decreased. In the second example, external proton beam treatment alone also reveals significantly higher tumor doses and lower normal tissue doses, compared to photon irradiation. With new proton therapy facilities being designed and built in the United States and overseas, protocols are being designed to evaluate the therapeutic potential of proton therapy in locally advanced cervix cancer.
Proton radiation, a continuation of radiation oncology's historic search for an optimum dose distribution, offers superior characteristics for clinical radiation therapy. A complete facility for clinical proton radiation therapy has been designed for and constructed at Loma Linda University Medical Center. To bring about this achievement, a consortium of engineers, physicists, and physicians interested in the clinical applications of protons was necessary. The accelerator, the beam transport and delivery systems, the building, and the personnel who operate the system were all brought together to fully exploit the properties of protons for patient treatments, which are now underway.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether plasma osmolality (Posm)-plasma arginine vasopressin (PAVP) response relationships with particular characteristics of sensitivity, gain or response pattern (linear/non-linear) occur more frequently in hypertensive than normotensive subjects. DESIGN: Analysis of Posm-PAVP curves observed in individual normotensive and hypertensive subjects rather than whole groups was considered appropriate for the described objective. METHODS: A sensitive and precise radioimmunoassay of PAVP in unextracted plasma was developed. Posm was raised in 11 normotensive and 19 hypertensive subjects by infusion of NaCl solution (0.86 mol/l, i.v.), and PAVP assayed at intervals. Best-fitting linear and non-linear equations for the Posm-PAVP relationship were established by computer. RESULTS: The mean rise in osmolality, blood pressure and blood volume was similar in the two groups. Hypertensive subjects showed a tendency towards higher rates of response (pmol AVP/l per mosm per kg) at Posm greater than 290 mosm/kg, leading to a non-linear response pattern compared with the normotensive subjects. CONCLUSIONS: The enhanced PAVP responses found in the hypertensive subjects at Posm greater than 290 mosm/kg may reinforce vascular and central nervous pathogenetic mechanisms.
Between 1970 and 1982, 102 patients received postoperative radiotherapy after attempted curative resection of bronchogenic carcinoma at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. Surviving patients had a minimum follow-up of 3 years. Eight patients had pathological Stage I disease, 29 Stage II, and 65 Stage III. The 5-year actuarial survivals for patients with stages I, II, and III disease were 83%, 55%, and 38%, respectively (p = .04). Corresponding values for patients with N0, N1, and N2 disease were 74%, 56%, and 28% (p = .01). No significant differences in survival were seen based on T stage or tumor histology. Nine patients had gross residual disease following surgery, and 19 had microscopic residual disease. The 5-year actuarial survival was 78% for 12 patients without nodal disease who had known gross (4 patients) or microscopic (8 patients) residual tumor following attempted curative resection. The pathologic status of the hilar and mediastinal lymph nodes was the most significant factor affecting the frequency of metastatic relapse, with 19% of patients with N0, 33% of those with N1, and 69% of those with N2 disease developing distant disease. The low overall rate of recurrence intrathoracically (16%) confirms that postoperative radiotherapy is effective in preventing local relapse even in patients with proven nodal involvement. The impact of adjuvant radiation therapy on survival cannot be determined from these data, and further data are needed, preferably from well designed prospective studies.
Two patients with severe ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome are described. Increased plasma concentrations of immunoradiometrically determined total renin are shown, together with greatly increased plasma levels of active renin and aldosterone. These very high values for total renin, renin activity and aldosterone were not suppressed when extracellular compartments were greatly expanded; the values subsequently declined to normal levels, despite the use of diuretics. This suggested that the renin was of non-renal origin since its production was apparently unaffected by influences which control juxtaglomerular secretion. The high concentrations of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system suggest that it contributes to the genesis of the ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome.
A hormone is an intrinsic substance carried via the blood to a target organ which is then functionally stimulated. Similar to extrinsically administered medications, the metabolism and function of the hormones may be altered by antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). The proposed mechanisms are (a) enhanced metabolism (natural steroids, synthetic steroids, e.g., decadron and birth control pills, thyroxine, and vitamin D3), (b) altered protein bonding (thyroxine, sex hormones), (c) impaired release into the systemic circulation (calcitonin, insulin, vitamin K clotting factors) and (d) altered end-organ effect. The AEDs most likely to interact with hormones are barbiturates, carbamazepine, and phenytoin.
It has been postulated that deficiency of a putative natriuretic factor, or resistance to such a factor, may contribute to sodium retention in fulminant hepatic failure. Levels of plasma human atrial natriuretic factor (h-ANF), plasma renin activity, and aldosterone concentration were measured in 33 patients with fulminant hepatic failure due to paracetamol overdose, and 12 healthy control subjects. Levels of h-ANF were raised only in patients with evidence of severe renal impairment (serum creatinine greater than 300 mumol/l and urine output less than 100 ml/24 hours). h-ANF values were median 4.15, range 2-9 pmol/l and 10.1, 1-25 pmol/l for the control and severe renal impairment groups respectively (p less than 0.001). In the latter plasma renin activity was raised compared to that in control subjects (median 19.8, range 1.04-41.7 and 2.86, 1.87-5.9 pmol/l/h respectively, p less than 0.02). Plasma aldosterone concentration was also raised in patients (2176, 199-6894 pmol/l compared to 368, 133-578 pmol/l in control subjects, p less than 0.01). Haemodialysis induced changes in circulating h-ANF which correlated with volume and right atrial pressure changes (p less than 0.001 and p less than 0.05 respectively). In six patients with no or mild renal failure infusion of 900 ml 5% human albumin solution caused a significant increase in plasma h-ANF (p less than 0.05) without natriuresis or diuresis, a finding compatible with the hypothesis that there may be resistance to h-ANF in this group. The present findings indicate that there is no deficiency of h-ANF in fulminant hepatic failure and that known mechanisms of h-ANF release are not impaired.
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Hemodynamic changes induced by a single, total paracentesis were evaluated in 21 patients with tense ascites from whom 4 to 16 L of ascites were drained over 2 to 8 hr with no serious complications. At 60 min, compared to baseline, there was an increase in cardiac output (7.7 +/- 0.5 to 8.5 +/- 0.6 L/min, p less than 0.02) and a tendency for right atrial pressure to decrease (9.3 +/- 0.8 to 7.50 +/- 0.8 mm Hg, NS), with no change in pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (10.9 +/- 0.9 to 10.7 +/- 0.9 mm Hg). Between 3 and 12 hr later, there was a drop in right atrial pressure, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure and cardiac output to 5.6 +/- 0.6 (p less than 0.02), 7.2 +/- 0.8 mm Hg (p less than 0.002) and 7.2 +/- 0.6 L/min (NS) respectively, indicative of the development of relative hypovolemia and suggesting that therapeutic plasma expansion is appropriate at this time. Two-dimensional echocardiography before paracentesis (n = 8) showed a reduction in the right to left atrium area ratio as compared with values in patients with minimal ascites (0.54 +/- 0.04 vs 0.82 +/- 0.02, p less than 0.0001). This technique may help in identifying patients with right atrial compression caused by tense ascites.
The effect of pericardiocentesis on the plasma concentration of atrial natriuretic peptide was studied in a patient with cardiac tamponade. Plasma atrial natriuretic peptide concentrations rose sharply from 42 pmol l-1 to a maximum of 150 pmol l-1 with a corresponding fall in mean right atrial pressure from 20 mmHg to 6 mmHg. Our results suggest that atrial 'stretch' (or transmural pressure) rather than atrial pressure per se, is the primary stimulus for atrial natriuretic peptide release in man.