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Biomedical subjects

J Varga

Publications and source records attributed to J Varga.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Prevention of Rhodococcus equi pneumonia of foals using two different inactivated vaccines.

Two different, inactivated, aluminium salt adsorbed vaccines, one containing a R. equi strain (serotype 1, 10(9) CFU/ml and equine herpesvirus 2 (EHV-2) (1.5 x 10(7) PFU/ml) and another containing R. equi only were used on three studfarms to determine whether the disease can be prevented by vaccination of both pregnant mares and their foals. Pregnant mares received two 3 ml doses of vaccine intramuscularly 6 and 2 weeks before parturition and their foals were vaccinated on two or three occasions at 3, 5 or 7 weeks of age. The efficacy of the vaccines was evaluated on the basis of the clinical signs, serological response (indirect haemagglutination and virus neutralisation tests) and culture of R. equi from sick or dead foals. On studs A and B where the bivalent vaccine was used, 24 and 14 foals were born respectively to the vaccinated mares but no clinical case or death occurred due to R. equi pneumonia, while out of the 10 nonvaccinated control foals (stud B) two succumbed to R. equi pneumonia and 4 other foals had to be treated with antibiotics because of fever, coughing and dyspnea. In stud C, where the vaccine containing R. equi strain alone was used, all 15 vaccinated foals remained healthy but one of the 11 control foals died of suppurative R. equi pneumonia and one foal had to be treated due to R. equi pneumonia. R. equi strains (serotype 1) were isolated from the lungs of all dead foals. The serological response was very weak to both R. equi and the EHV-2 strain. Antibody titres in the colostrum of the vaccinated mares against R. equi (in studs A and B, geometric mean 3.79 +/- 1.63 and 4.14 +/- 1.46, respectively) were practically not higher than titres in the controls (in stud B geometric mean 2.12 +/- 1.96). More antibody was present in the colostrum samples against EHV-2 (geometric mean 6.1 + 1.4 compared to 2.5 +/- 1.2). In all foals antibody levels were hardly detectable against both R. equi and EHV-2 until five weeks of age. From the fifth week, antibody levels gradually increased and by the ninth week their reached a titre of 5.5 +/- 1.8 (2.7 +/- 1.2 in the control foals) against R. equi and 5.2 +/- 1.4 against EHV-2. The favorable clinical results and the low antibody titres in the sera of the vaccinated foals during the first week of life suggest that protection probably was due to repeated vaccination of young foals rather than to vaccination of mares.

Actinomycetales Infections↗
PubMed1997

Recombination of mitochondrial DNAs following transmission of mitochondria among incompatible strains of black Aspergilli.

Successful intra- and interspecific mitochondrial transfers were performed by polyethylene glycol (PEG)-induced protoplast fusion among incompatible strains belonging to the Aspergillus niger species aggregate. The mitochondrial DNAs (mtDNAs) of the strains examined were of three main types based on their restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) profiles. mtDNA types 1 and 2 correspond to A. niger and A. tubingensis species, respectively, while type 3 is represented by some Brazilian wild-type isolates (possibly a distinct species or subspecies). mtDNA types 1 and 2 could be further divided into several subgroups (1a-1e and 2a-2f). All these strains, representing different RFLP groups or subgroups, were fully incompatible with respect to nuclear complementation. The transfer experiments were carried out under selection pressure, using a mitochondrial oligomycin-resistant mutant of mtDNA type 1a as donor. Following fusion mitochondrial oligomycin-resistant progenies were recovered in the presence of oligomycin by selecting for the nuclear phenotypes of the oligomycin-sensitive recipient strains. All attempted transfers were successful, and resulted in different varieties of resistant recombinant mitochondrial progenies at various frequencies. Within the group of strains of mtDNA type 1, the transfer of oligomycin-resistant mitochondria resulted in the appearance of a single recombinant type of RFLP profile in each case. The recombination events were more complex when the transfer of oligomycin resistance occurred between strains representing different species (mtDNA groups 1a-->2 and 1a-->3). A great variety of recombinant mtDNA RFLP profiles appeared. Explanation for this phenomenon are discussed on the basis of preliminary physical mapping data.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed1997

[Cytokines in experimental acute pancreatitis].

The authors induced acute necrotizing pancreatitis in Wistar rat by intraductal injection of taurocholic acid (150 microliters or 200 microliters 6%). Plasma values of amylase, TNF, IL-6 levels and wet pancreas weight/body weight ratio have been determined. Histologic analysis of pancreas proved severe acute necrotizing pancreatitis with microabscess formation and beginning respiratory distress syndrome was observed in the lungs, TNF and IL-6 levels increased significantly after administration of 200 microliters 6% taurocholic acid. The authors emphasise the importance of cytokines in the development of acute necrotizing pancreatitis.

Amylases↗
PubMed1997

Adenoid cystic carcinomas of the lacrimal gland in childhood and adolescence.

OBJECTIVE: To see if there is a correlation between histologic features of these tumors and final outcome. DESIGN: A small series of cases of adenoid cystic carcinomas of the lacrimal gland in patients 18 years of age or younger were evaluated. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 11 cases of adenoid cystic carcinoma of the lacrimal gland in patients 18 years of age or younger found in the registry of Ophthalmic Pathology at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology were studied. INTERVENTION: Histologic material obtained by excision of lacrimal gland tumors was evaluated for different morphologic parameters. Clinical follow-up information was reviewed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: All cases were evaluated for proportion of a basaloid histologic pattern: necrosis, hemorrhage, mitotic count, and perineural, vascular, intraosseous, leptomeningeal, and optic nerve invasion. These parameters were examined for an association with the clinical follow-up that was obtained for eight of the patients (mean follow-up, 10 years; range, 2-14 years). RESULTS: Most of the patients were female (M:F = 2:9). Mean age was 14 years (range, 6.5-18 years). Of the patients with follow-up, 5 (62.5%) of 8 survived. Estimated survival rate at 15 years was 58% (Kaplan-Meier analysis). Survivors had 25% or less basaloid histology. Necrosis, hemorrhage, perineural invasion, and mitotic count were less prominent in survivors than in those who died of disease. Vascular invasion was seen only in fatal cases. CONCLUSIONS: Young patients with adenoid cystic carcinomas have a better prognosis than do adult patients, which may be due to their tumors having less aggressive histologic features.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Increased activity of the alpha 1(I) procollagen promoter in skin fibroblasts from patients with chronic eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome.

Eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome (EMS), a novel L-tryptophan-associated disease, which occurred as an epidemic in 1989, is characterized by diffuse fibrosis of the skin. The objective of these studies was to compare the in vitro expression of the gene encoding the human alpha 1(I) procollagen (COL1A1) in dermal fibroblasts derived from patients with long-standing EMS and from healthy controls. Early passage fibroblasts in culture were transiently transfected with a series of progressively 5' deleted human COL1A1 promoter-CAT reporter gene DNA constructs. Resultant CAT activity was assayed in the cytoplasmic extracts. Following transient transfection, COL1A1 promoter activity in 4/5 fibroblast cell lines derived from patients with EMS was two-to threefold greater than in matched normal fibroblasts. Deletion analysis indicated that CAT activity was highest, and displayed the greatest increase in EMS vs normal fibroblasts, with promoter constructs spanning 174 bp upstream from the COL1A1 transcription start site. The study shows increased CAT activity driven by a 174 bp fragment of COL1A1 in transiently transfected skin fibroblasts from patients with EMS even in the chronic stage of disease. These findings expand on previous observations indicating increased type I collagen gene expression in EMS fibroblasts, and suggest that fibrosis in L-tryptophan-induced EMS is associated with transcriptional activation of type I collagen gene expression, which persists even following cessation of L-tryptophan use.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Molecular and phenotypic characterization of Aspergillus japonicus and Aspergillus aculeatus strains with special regard to their mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms.

Forty Aspergillus japonicus and A. aculeatus strains, most of them wild-type isolates, were examined using various molecular and phenotypic techniques. The rDNAs proved to be invariable (even strains of the species A. aculeatus exhibited the same restriction profile), while the strains could be classified into seven different mtDNA RFLP groups. Hybridisation data suggest that six of these mtDNA types have certain common restriction sites, while mtDNA type 7, which was exhibited by some A. aculeatus strains, probably has quite different mtDNA organisation and their size was smallest among the strains studied. The RAPD technique and isoenzyme analysis revealed some variabilities within these RFLP groups and strain specific features could also be recognised. Carbon source assimilation spectra were found to be very distinctive for strains of A. japonicus, A. aculeatus and A. niger, providing a useful tool for pre-characterising new wild-type isolates of black Aspergilli. Only a limited correlation was observed between the dendrograms based on genotypic and phenotypic characters.

Aspergillus↗
PubMed1997

Eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome, eosinophilic fasciitis, and related fibrosing disorders.

Clinically distinct fibrosing processes affecting the skin, selected internal organs, or both in a characteristic pattern are a common cause of morbidity. In addition to systemic sclerosis, the prototype idiopathic fibrosing disorder, these conditions include the eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome, epidemic toxic oil syndrome, eosinophilic fasciitis, localized forms of scleroderma, keloid, and the newly described entity of fibrosing colonopathy. The pathogenesis of these disorders, although still incompletely understood, appears to share similarities with that of systemic sclerosis. Insights into these diseases have recently emerged from epidemiologic and toxicoepidemiologic investigations, in situ hybridization and polymerase chain reaction amplification of target genomes, and in vivo and in vitro experimental research. Minor contaminants in food supplements, activation and degranulation of eosinophils, altered expression of CD34 antigen on dendritic cells, disordered regulation of fibroblast apoptosis and proliferation, infection with Borrelia organisms, and cytokines such as transforming growth factor-beta, interleukin-4, and connective tissue growth factor are implicated in inducing an accentuated and persistent fibrogenic host response to injury, resulting in tissue fibrosis. In addition, humoral and cellular autoimmunity may also be implicated.

Colonic Diseases↗
PubMed1997

Evaluation of pre- and post-reconstruction count-dependent Metz filters for brain PET studies.

In this study we evaluated pre- (PR-R) and post-reconstruction (PO-R) count-dependent Metz filters for PET brain studies in order to increase signal-to-noise ratio. A set of studies using a 3D Hoffman brain phantom was performed at various count levels, and a reference image set was created from extremely high count images. Several combinations of PR-R and PO-R filtering were considered to find the optimal means of processing, including: Hann filter alone; PR-R Metz filter without or with a PO-R low pass filter; and PO-R Metz filter without or with a PR-R low pass filter. A formula was established to correlate the optimal PO-R Metz filter order with the net counts. Resolution [full width at half-maximum (FWHM) and fill width at tenth maximum (FWTM)], normalized residual mean square differences (NRMSD) between the ideal and the processed images, noise reduction and contrast were used as parameters for the evaluation of the different filter combinations. Resolution is decreased by all filter combinations that can effectively control noise; however, FWTM increases less than FWHM. NRMSD indicates that the use of Hann and (optimal) PO-R Metz filter is the most powerful combination from among those tested. A close correlation (r = 0.969) was found between the net counts and the optimal order of the PO-R Metz filter. At the count levels of clinical studies the PO-R Metz filter was found to control noise much more effectively and enhance the contrast when compared to the routinely used Hann filter alone, and produced images of better quality.

Biophysical Phenomena↗
PubMed1997

Carbon source utilization and isoenzyme analysis as taxonomic aids for toxigenic Neosartorya species and their relatives.

Collection strains representing species belonging to the genus Neosartorya and its relatives from section Fumigati of the genus Aspergillus were compared for some of their phenotypic features. The examination of both the carbon source utilization and isoenzyme patterns provided a useful tool for clustering these strains. Many species (e.g. Neosartorya hiratsukae, N. quadricincta, N. spinosa, N. aurata, N. aureola) could readily be distinguished from other species based on their specific isoenzyme and carbon source utilization spectra. Close relationship was observed between the A. fumigatus and N. fischeri strains. Aspergillus strain FRR 1266, which also revealed distinct mitochondrial DNA and nuclear DNA patterns, and amplified DNA profiles, was the closest relative of the recently described N. pseudofischeri species, and could also be distinguished from the A. fumigatus strains by its specific carbon source utilization patterns. High levels of variability were detected among N. glabra and A. viridinutans strains; most of the strains of Australian origin formed distinct clusters.

Ascomycota↗
PubMed1997

The values of detection of free radical mediated reactions in patients.

The peroxidative processes and individual antioxidant protection were measured in patients with different cardiovascular diseases. We concluded that monitoring of this system we were able to detect not only the actual changes of lipid peroxidation and antioxidant defence mechanisms, but additionally the therapeutic efficacy of the treatment.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗
PubMed1997

The effects of glucocorticoids and a glucocorticoid antagonist (RU 38486) on experimental acute pancreatitis in rat.

The effects of glucocorticoids on acute pancreatitis are a matter of dispute. In animal experiments, dexamethasone and hydrocortisone significantly decreased the serum amylase activities 8 hours after the induction of pancreatitis. In the dexamethasone treated group, the serum IL-6 level was significantly decreased at 4 and 8 hours, while in the hydrocortisone treated group, all the IL-6 values were significantly diminished vs. the control group. As compared to the control, a glucocorticoid antagonist (RU 38486) did not influence the serum amylase activity, but significantly increased the serum IL-6 level. These results suggest that glucocorticoids may play a role in the control of pancreatitis caused by inhibition of cytokine production.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1997

Plasma levels of TNF and IL-6 following induction of acute pancreatitis and pentoxifylline treatment in rats.

Activation of cytokine cascade is a decisive factor in determining the pathobiology of different inflammatory processes including acute pancreatitis. The purposes of this study were to determine the TNF and IL-6 levels after the induction of acute necrotizing pancreatitis, and to establish the effects of pentoxifylline on the cytokine production and the severity of pancreatitis. Acute necrotizing pancreatitis was induced by the retrograde injection of 200 microliters taurocholic acid into the pancreatic duct in male Wistar rats. TNF was titrated in a bioassay on cell line WEHI clone 164. IL-6 was measured via its proliferative action on the IL-6 dependent mouse hybridoma cell line B-9. Seven mg/kg pentoxifylline was administered intraperitoneally at the time of operation and/or 24 hours later. Rats were sacrificed, 48 or 72 hours after the operation. The TNF bioassay revealed high levels of TNF (36.6 +/- 6.0 U/ml) in the control group whereas levels decreased to zero in the pentoxifylline-treated group. The IL-6 bioassay likewise demonstrated high levels of IL-6 in the control group and markedly decreased levels in the pentoxifylline treated group (7083 +/- 2844 pg/ml, 6463 +/- 1307 pg/ml vs. 137.5 +/- 85.5 pg/ml, respectively, p < 0.05). The high mortality observed in the control group (43%) was sharply decreased by pentoxifylline administration to 11%. The data suggest that pentoxifylline is capable of modifying the cytokine production after 48 hours of induction of acute pancreatitis.

Amylases↗
PubMed1997

The importance of incision-planning and operation technique during organ-preserving and radical operations in the case of patients with mammary cancer.

The authors place a great deal of emphasis on the application of plastic surgery principles in the course of all their operations, especially mammary operations: the incision planning respecting the lines of strength, the atraumatic operation technique (sharp preparation, high-frequency electrocoagulation, tensionless wound closure, and suction drainage from a separate opening). In their organ-preserving operations the radial incision recommended by Veronese is avoided, and the axilla is exposed separately. They do not perform their radical mammary operations according to the customary method (Auchincloss, Patey) either. If necessary they accomplish the tensionless closure of the wound by means of individual incision planning and the preservation (rotation and sliding) of the intact skin of the breast, which is the precondition of the reconstruction that might be performed subsequently. In the course of the follow-up of 295 operations carried out in this manner excellent or good results were obtained in 83% as far as aesthetics and functionality were concerned. Lymphedema did not develop in a single case on account of operation technique.

Axilla↗
PubMed1997

Surgical treatment of diverticulitis of the sigmoid.

This study demonstrates that elective colon surgery for diverticular disease is benign, with a low mortality and morbidity. The acute severe complications of the colonic diverticular disease are characterized by a large mortality and morbidity. The results reported here, as all those published recently on the same subject, are in favor of broadening the indications of colectomy in diverticular disease, before the occurrence of a severe acute complication.

Abscess↗
PubMed1996

Gastric antral vascular ectasia (watermelon stomach) in patients with systemic sclerosis.

This report describes 5 patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) who developed severe, recurrent upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding due to gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE). The clinical records, the endoscopic findings, and the histologic appearance of biopsy specimens and surgically resected gastric tissue from the patients were reviewed. All 5 patients developed severe and recurrent episodes of upper GI bleeding leading to severe anemia requiring multiple transfusions. The cutaneous involvement was diffuse in 3 patients and limited in 2. All but 1 had cutaneous telangiectasias. The diagnosis of GAVE was established by endoscopy within 3 years of the diagnosis of SSc in all cases. One patient required heater probe cautery, 2 required laser coagulation, and 2 underwent surgical resection of the gastric antrum for control of the GI bleeding. The possibility of GAVE should be considered in SSc patients who have recurrent upper GI bleeding. It is suggested that the antral vascular lesions in these patients may represent a component of the spectrum of vascular alterations of SSc.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Control of extracellular matrix degradation by interferon-gamma. The tryptophan connection.

Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta) is a potent signal for the induction of the matrix-degrading enzymes collagenase and stromelysin. These metalloproteinases (MMP) play a critical role in physiologic and pathologic connective tissue remodeling, and are potential targets for therapeutic manipulation. Treatment of human dermal fibroblasts with interferon-gamma inhibited. Type I collagen gene expression, and abrogated the effect of IL-1 beta on MMP expression. Interferon-gamma also caused a dramatic dose-dependent increase in indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase mRNA, with consequent depletion of tryptophan and accumulation of kynurenine in the culture media. To examine the role of tryptophan metabolism in the effects of interferon-gamma on matrix-degrading enzymes, exogenous tryptophan was added to tryptophan-depleted media, followed by stimulation of the cultures with IL-1 beta. Supplementation with tryptophan completely overcame the inhibitory effects of interferon-gamma on MMP mRNA expression and metalloproteinase secretion into the media. In contrast mRNA levels for Type I collagen remained profoundly depressed in interferon-gamma-treated cultures in spite of addition of exogenous tryptophan. These results indicate that oxidative tryptophan metabolism mediates the effects of interferon-gamma on MMP gene expression in human fibroblasts.

Adult↗