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Biomedical subjects

M A Castellano

Publications and source records attributed to M A Castellano.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Results of noncomparative studies of cefotetan in the treatment of obstetric and gynecologic infections.

In a multicenter trial involving 11 centers, 160 women were enrolled to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of 1 or 2 gm of cefotetan administered every 12 hours in the treatment of obstetric and gynecologic infections. The 133 evaluable patients generally were under 25 years of age, were nonwhite, and had hospital-acquired endometritis or pelvic inflammatory disease caused by both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria. Escherichia coli, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, group D streptococci, Bacteroides sp., and Peptococcus sp. were among the most frequently isolated pathogens. The patients were treated for a mean of 5.6 +/- 1.6 days and received a total dose of 19.27 gm. The signs and symptoms of infection were cleared or improved in 93% of the 133 patients evaluable for clinical response. Of the 116 evaluated bacteriologically, 95% had a satisfactory or presumed satisfactory response; only six patients (5%) were considered to be bacteriologic failures. Differences in the results of several clinical laboratory tests performed before and after treatment were statistically, but not clinically, significant (p less than 0.05). Safety was evaluated in the 158 patients who received cefotetan, and only four (3%) had adverse reactions considered related to the drug. Cefotetan was clearly effective and produced no untoward reactions in these women with obstetric and gynecologic infections caused by both aerobic and anaerobic organisms when administered at 1 or 2 gm every 12 hours.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Sulbactam/ampicillin in the treatment of lower respiratory infections.

The increasing number of beta-lactam antibiotic-resistant infections has led to the development of an alternative treatment: the combination of a beta-lactam antibiotic with an irreversible, suicide-type, beta-lactamase inhibitor. Such a combination, sulbactam/ampicillin, was used in clinical trials at 4 European and 1 American centres to treat severely ill patients with lower respiratory tract infections including bronchiectasis, pneumonia and purulent tracheobronchitis. The sulbactam/ampicillin combination was assessed for safety, efficacy and tolerance in a total of 91 patients. Investigators from all 5 centres reported satisfactory bacteriological and clinical results. The combination agent either cured or improved the condition of virtually all patients who were evaluated. The few side effects reported mainly involved pain at the injection site. A review of these studies indicates that therapy with sulbactam/ampicillin effectively treats lower respiratory tract infections in severely ill patients without causing serious adverse reactions.

Ampicillin↗
PubMed1987

Lateralization in male rats and dopaminergic system: evidence of right-side population bias.

Recent studies have reported population right-biased lateralization in rats, although with low percentages (between 54-59%). The present study investigated the spatial preference of rats in an electrified T-maze during successive days and the influence of ascending dopaminergic systems using apomorphine, a dopamine agonist, as well as ipsilateral and contralateral lesions on the side preference. Results showed a marked right-biased lateralization at both individual and population levels (85.71% of the rats presented a behavioral asymmetry, being 80% right-biased and 20% left-biased within the lateralized group). Also, the results suggest that there is a presynaptic dominance in the contralateral dopaminergic system to the spatial preference in the T-maze and postsynaptic dominance in the ipsilateral side.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Tonal hierarchies in the music of north India.

Cross-culturally, most music is tonal in the sense that one particular tone, called the tonic, provides a focus around which the other tones are organized. The specific organizational structures around the tonic show considerable diversity. Previous studies of the perceptual response to Western tonal music have shown that listeners familiar with this musical tradition have internalized a great deal about its underlying organization. Krumhansl and Shepard (1979) developed a probe tone method for quantifying the perceived hierarchy of stability of tones. When applied to Western tonal contexts, the measured hierarchies were found to be consistent with music-theoretic accounts. In the present study, the probe tone method was used to quantify the perceived hierarchy of tones of North Indian music. Indian music is tonal and has many features in common with Western music. One of the most significant differences is that the primary means of expressing tonality in Indian music is through melody, whereas in Western music it is through harmony (the use of chords). Indian music is based on a standard set of melodic forms (called rags), which are themselves built on a large set of scales (thats). The tones within a rag are thought to be organized in a hierarchy of importance. Probe tone ratings were given by Indian and Western listeners in the context of 10 North Indian rags. These ratings confirmed the predicted hierarchical ordering. Both groups of listeners gave the highest ratings to the tonic and the fifth degree of the scale. These tones are considered by Indian music theorists to be structurally significant, as they are immovable tones around which the scale system is constructed, and they are sounded continuously in the drone. Relatively high ratings were also given to the vadi tone, which is designated for each rag and is given emphasis in the melody. The ratings of both groups of listeners generally reflected the pattern of tone durations in the musical contexts. This result suggests that the distribution of tones in music is a psychologically effective means of conveying the tonal hierarchy to listeners whether they are familiar with the musical tradition. Beyond this, only the Indian listeners were sensitive to the scales (thats) underlying the rags. For Indian listeners, multidimensional scaling of the correlations between the rating profiles recovered the theoretical representation of scales described by theorists of Indian music.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Cross-Cultural Comparison↗
PubMed1984

Estimating the date of bone remains: a multivariate study.

In previous works we have studied the time of death of bone residuals through the following parameters: total lipids, triglicerides , cholesterol, free fatty acids, total proteins, zinc, iron, manganese, and phosphorus. These elements were quantified in groups of recent bones of 1 and 2 years and of 10, 15, 18, and 20 years postmortem. In this present work we are putting these results under statistical analysis consisting of a stepwise regression. This program selects and introduces in the regression the element that shows the highest correlation with the time of death. In successive steps the partial correlations between the date and the elements not already included in the regression are studied, while keeping the effects of the elements already included fixed. As a result we put forward three formulas in which the time of death appears linked with the parameters that define it best. In the first the time of death of the bones Y is estimated according to the protein X1 Y = 40.0014 - 7. 4275X1 In the second formula the time of death Y, is estimated according to proteins X1 and triglicerides X2. Y = 45.5970 - 10. 8096X1 + 0. 4104X2 And in the third formula the time of death Y is estimated according to proteins X1, triglicerides X2, and cholesterol X3. Y = 52.2032 - 7. 8213X1 + 0. 6355X2 - 3.4930 In the three formulas the coefficients of the correlation between the time of death and the variables are improved when the logarithms of the variables are taken, instead of the original measurements.

Anthropology, Physical↗
PubMed1976

Chemical and biological characterization of an active substance of the human placenta.

Acetic acid extracts of human term placenta have been fractionated by pH and salt precipitations and by exclusion chromatography on a Sephadex G-75 column. A partially purified fraction (F-II) possessing uterotropic activity in immature and young mice was obtained. This active fraction was submitted to the action of protein denaturating agents (heat, 8 M urea) and of specific proteolytic enzymes (trypsin, alpha-chymotrypsin and pronase). These treatments completely destroy the uterotropic activity showing that the active substance is of protein nature. The administration of F-II to spayed mice did not produce any increase in their uterine weight suggesting that the uterotropic activity would be due to stimulation of the female gonad.

Female↗
PubMed1976

Biological and immunological studies of a placental gonadotropic protein.

Precocious sexual maturity, ovarian weight increase and stimulation of the sex accessory organs in impuber female mice, was induced by a partially purified protein fraction obtained from human placenta. The relationship between this biologically active protein and HCG was studied by a comparative immuno-double diffusion technique (Ouchterlony) and two agglutination inhibition tests. Results showed that this protein with gonadotropic activity is neither immunologically related to HCG nor contaminated with this hormone.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Effects of iproniazid on chick development.

New Hampshire eggs were injected with iproniazid into the yolk sac at day 2 of incubation by means of a tiny hole in the shell. A control group was injected with normal saline and a second group was left unopened. Iproniazid in the doses we used proved to be lethal for approximately 50% of the chick embryos, while we cannot demonstrate other developmental alterations, either in the macroscopical or in the serial histological study.

Animals↗