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Biomedical subjects

K Zwingenberger

Publications and source records attributed to K Zwingenberger.

46 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Lymphadenopathy and antibodies to HTLV-III in homosexual men. Clinical, laboratory and epidemiological features.

The study provides information on the epidemiology of HTLV-III infection and the lymphadenopathy syndrome (LAP) in 374 German homosexual men. Sexual contacts in the USA and rectal enemas before receptive anal intercourse are the main risk factors associated with virus transmission. HTLV-III seropositivity is significantly correlated with LAP. Prominent clinical signs are infrequent. Immunological and haematological abnormalities are prevalent, and the retrovirus infection is frequently associated with serological markers of other viruses (hepatitis B, herpes group viruses). Lymphadenopathy as a manifestation of HTLV-III infection is discussed within the context of AIDS-related disorders.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1981

Praziquantel compared to niridazole in schistosomiasis intercalatum therapy.

Praziquantel was compared to niridazole in schistosomiasis intercalatum in the Gabon. In a pilot study, 45 patients were randomly allocated to the two treatment groups. After treatment, 36 of these patients could be evaluated. Though the seven-day niridazole treatment showed significant reduction of egg excretion in all patients, cure rate was rather low. 9 out of 17 patients (53%) still excreted viable eggs of Schistosoma intercalatum. In contrast, patients treated with praziquantel in a one-day treatment (2 x 30 mg per kg) showed a persistent excretion of viable eggs in 3 out of 19 cases (16%). This difference was significant (p less than 0.025). Although the number of patients observed is rather small, results indicate that praziquantel is superior to niridazole in the treatment of schistosomiasis intercalatum both in view of application and side effects as well as curative potential.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

Diagnostic value of rectal biopsy and concentration methods in Schistosomiasis intercalatum: quantitative comparison of three techniques.

The diagnostic value of the rectal biopsy was compared to a quantitative stool filtration and the MIF concentration technique in schistosomiasis intercalatum in the Gabon. The rectal biopsy was significantly more sensitive in proving the presence of ova of Schistosoma intercalatum than the stool filtration (p less than 0.001). However, if the two techniques were compared on the basis of the capability to detect viable eggs in rectal mucosa or stool, no difference in sensitivity could be found. The MIF concentration technique was significantly less sensitive than the stool filtration (p less than 0.01) and seems only of minor diagnostic value in schistosomiasis intercalatum. It could be shown that the relative sensitivities of the three techniques in detecting S. intercalatum eggs depended on the age of the examined population, as presence of viable eggs in rectal mucosa and excretion of eggs in stool was inversely correlated to the age of the patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Praziquantel in the treatment of hepatosplenic schistosomiasis: biochemical disease markers indicate deceleration of fibrogenesis and diminution of portal flow obstruction.

Serological indicators for disease activity and portal vein obstruction and/or deviation were assessed in 23 patients with hepatosplenic schistosomiasis before, and up to 18 months after, praziquantel treatment, as well as in 25 matched local controls. Cessation of egg-induced immunopathology was reflected by the return to normal of serum procollagen-III-propeptide and neopterin concentrations. Reversibility of portal vein pathology was indicated by normal clearance of cholylglycine in cases without signs of decompensating portal hypertension. In most patients with a history of ascites and/or haemorrhage, serum cholylglycine concentration remained pathological. The results provide evidence that the fibrogenic process ceases after specific chemotherapy, and that portal vein pathology regresses in a substantial proportion of hepatosplenic schistosomiasis cases.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of a new immunotherapeutic agent (CG5601) on endotoxin-induced uveitis.

CG5601 is a novel immunomodulatory substance showing anti-inflammatory properties comparable to thalidomide. To investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of CG5601 in endotoxin-induced uveitis (EIU) and to evaluate its influence on leukocyte-endothelium interaction, the anterior chamber inflammatory reaction was assessed and intravital fluorescence microscopy was carried out at 2, 4, 8 and 24 h. Lewis rats received an intraperitoneal injection of CG5601 (200 mg/kg b.w.) at the time of lipopolysaccharide injection. At 8 and 24 h, CG5601 inhibited the cell migration and protein concentration in the aqueous humor compared to untreated EIU (p < 0.0001). There was no significant difference between nontreated animals and vehicle controls. The treatment of CG5601 reduced the number of rolling leukocytes. At early time points (2 and 4 h), inhibition of rolling leukocyte flux was significant (p < 0.005). The rise of serum TNF-alpha levels in EIU at 2 h was reduced. CG5601 exerts potent anti-inflammatory effects in EIU.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Immunomodulation by thalidomide: systematic review of the literature and of unpublished observations.

Three decades of immunological investigations using thalidomide are reviewed. Both in vitro and in vivo investigations are in accordance with the clinical finding that thalidomide does not impede T-cell competence in the control of infection by mycobacteriae. The term immunosuppressant does not apply. The immunomodulatory effects of thalidomide are evident in a myriad of phenomenological changes, and a molecularly defined common denominator of these activities is not known at present. Critical assessment with the objective to account for the clinical activity of thalidomide in specific human diseases leads to a focus on effects of thalidomide on phagocytic leukocytes and endothelia. The former are responsive to thalidomide by modulation of cytokine synthesis in vitro and in vivo; this activity can be shown using monocyte-specific stimuli in peripheral blood mononuclear cells but also in other phagocytic cells like microglia. For technical reasons, endothelial cells have until now been tested primarily in vitro. However, there is solid evidence now from intravital microscopy that the induction of adhesivity in postcapillary venules by LPS is modulated by thalidomide. Altered surface antigen expression has been described on leukocytes obtained from humans and experimental animals treated with thalidomide, but convincing evidence is lacking for in vitro modulation of surface antigen expression on leukocytes (as opposed to the modulation of adhesion antigens on endothelial cells stimulated by LPS or exogenous TNF alpha in the presence of thalidomide). Therefore, in vivo redistribution is likely to account for some, if not all, changes in circulating leukocyte phenotypes. The immunopathological conditions most clearly responsive to thalidomide are vasculitic alterations of post-capillary venules either in the context of mycobacterial infection (in the case of erythema nodosum leprosum) or mucocutaneous aphths. In both instances (as in the majority of focal inflammatory lesions), leukocyte infiltration and cytokine responses, in particular TNF alpha, are present. Thalidomide acts clinically not only by palliation of existing lesions but also by prevention of recurrence. The mechanism operates in skin, mucosa and parts of the nervous system and is most readily explained by synergism of TNF alpha modulation and a separate point of action on leukocyte migration patterns.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗