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Biomedical subjects

M Carli

Publications and source records attributed to M Carli.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

The effects of d-amphetamine, alpha-flupenthixol, and mesolimbic dopamine depletion on a test of attentional switching in the rat.

A test of attentional switching was devised for the rat in which it obtained sucrose reinforcement by an appropriate nose-poke response that discriminated which of two visual events terminated first, in a specially designed chamber. The effect of mesolimbic dopamine depletion (to 20% of control values) produced by infusions of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the nucleus accumbens (N. Acc) on stable discrimination was measured alone and in the presence of a range of doses of d-amphetamine (0.4-2.3 mg/kg IP). The 6-OHDA lesion of the N. Acc impaired postoperative performance transiently by reducing choice accuracy and slowing response latency. By post-operative days 12-16, however, performance recovered to control levels and was not differentially affected by a manipulation of task difficulty. d-Amphetamine produced dose-dependent performance impairments, which were antagonised by the 6-OHDA treatment. In a second group of N. Acc lesioned rats, the neuroleptic alpha-flupenthixol (0.1-1.0 mg/kg) led to fewer trials being completed and longer latencies than in the sham-operated control group. The results are discussed in terms of the possible attentional mechanisms underlying the d-amphetamine-induced disruption of performance mediated by the N. Acc and of the implications for psychopathology resulting from possible dysfunction of this region.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Embryonic myosin heavy chain as a differentiation marker of developing human skeletal muscle and rhabdomyosarcoma. A monoclonal antibody study.

Hybridoma cell lines were obtained from the fusion of NS-O myeloma cells with spleen cells of mice immunized with bovine fetal skeletal myosin. A stable hybridoma clone, BF-G6, produced immunoglobulin G1 k antibodies reacting specifically with embryonic-type myosin heavy chains present in fetal but not in neonatal or adult human skeletal muscle, as determined by enzyme immunoassay and immunoblot analysis. Fetal but not adult skeletal muscle fibers were stained by this monoclonal antibody in indirect immunofluorescence assays; smooth muscle cells and cardiac muscle cells, as well as non-muscle cells were also unreactive. Solid tumors of infants and children were tested for reactivity with BF-G6 by immunofluorescence and immunoperoxidase staining. Embryonic myosin heavy chain was expressed in rhabdomyosarcomas but not in other types of tumor, except for Wilms' tumor. Rhabdomyosarcoma cells isolated from a bone marrow metastasis and grown in vitro for several months were also labelled by BF-G6. Embryonic myosin heavy chain can thus be used as a specific differentiation marker of normal and neoplastic skeletal muscle tissue.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Abdominal recurrences in Wilms' tumours: a report from the SIOP Wilms' tumour trials and studies.

The Wilms' tumour trials and studies conducted from 1971 to 1980 registered 1042 patients. Of these, 82 patients developed an abdominal recurrence. Particulars of these were studied. Half of the recurrences occurred in stage III patients. Often several untoward prognostic factors could be identified, such as large tumour size, difficult operation, incomplete excision, peritoneal adhesions or metastases, tumour extending to renal vein or vena cava. A tumour rupture increases the chance for an abdominal recurrence, especially if appropriate radiotherapy is not given. In many of these cases, postoperative radiotherapy seems to have been insufficiently tailored to the operative findings. For stage III cases, a careful discussion between surgeon, radiotherapist, and pathologist should lead to the optimal radiotherapy field size and dose for each individual patient, so that the risk of abdominal recurrence can be reduced.

Abdominal Neoplasms↗
PubMed1986

Longitudinal evaluations of psychological distress in parents of children with malignancies.

The authors evaluated the psychological distress in 41 parents of children with acute lymphocytic leukaemia or with Hodgkin's disease using the Symptom Distress Checklist (SCL-90). The subjects were tested three times: within the first few days after the child's admission to hospital and 8 months and 20 months later. The experimental population was compared with a control group of 25 subjects matched for age, sex, marital status and social class. At the first evaluation the experimental group had higher mean scores than the controls for obsession, depression, anxiety and sleep disturbances. Seventy-eight % of the subjects (65.8% excluding the sleep disturbances (SlDi) subscale) scored moderate distress on at least one of the SCL-90 subscales. The 8 month and 20 month follow-ups confirmed the presence of high scores of psychological distress particularly in the sleep disturbances and depression subscales, with 78% (58.4% excluding SlDi) and 82.3% (70% excluding SlDi) of the subjects gaining scores of moderate distress in at least one of the subscales of the SCL-90.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Social support and psychological distress of parents of children with acute lymphocytic leukaemia.

The relationship between psychological distress and social support was evaluated in 26 parents of children with acute lymphocytic leukaemia during the diagnostic phase. The Symptom Distress Checklist and the Social Support Questionnaire were used. A high percentage of subjects reported a score of moderate psychological distress in four subscales of the Symptom Checklist: Obsessiveness-Compulsiveness (46 per cent), Depression (61.5 per cent), Anxiety (65 per cent) and Sleep Disturbances (57.5 per cent). Social support for parents was found to have a "buffering' effect on the impact of the stress occasioned by the diagnosis of acute lymphocytic leukaemia in a child.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Randomized multicentric Italian study on two treatment regimens for marrow relapse in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

This paper reports the results of a multicentric randomized clinical trial on the treatment of first hematological relapse in childhood ALL. Induction treatment consisted of vincristine, adriamycin, L-asparaginase, and prednisone. Patients achieving complete remission were randomized to two maintenance regimens (A and B). Regimen A consisted of five different drug associations including VM26 and IDMTX in a sequential schedule; Regimen B was essentially classical Spiers schedule for the first year, followed by a milder treatment. Eighty-four of 102 evaluable patients (82%) achieved second complete remission. The two maintenance regimens were similar as regards duration of second complete remission (median duration A, 32 weeks; B, 37 weeks) and toxicity. Better results were obtained in patients relapsing after 12 months from suspension of treatment in first complete remission than in those relapsing within the first year off therapy (82.8% vs. 31.4%). In group A fewer CNS relapses were reported. The two regimens produced results similar to those reported by other authors. The good prognosis in patients relapsing at least 1 year after treatment suspension in first complete remission must be emphasized.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols↗
PubMed1986

Long-term results in childhood rhabdomyosarcoma: a retrospective study in Italy.

This paper reviews a series of 70 consecutive children with rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) diagnosed during 1971-1978 and treated in five Italian institutions. Thirteen were classified as group I, 12 as group II, 37 as group III, and 8 as group IV according to the Intergroup RMS Study staging system. Survival was influenced by tumor extension at diagnosis, primary site, and response to therapy. The 5-year-survival rate was 92% for group I patients, 67% for group II, 44% for group III, and 0% for group IV. Thirty-four children had all therapy stopped after 12-32 months of complete remission, 7 had late recurrences, and 3 died from disease. Musculoskeletal sequelae were diagnosed in 11 children, short stature in 3, corneal opacity in 2, and cardiac failure in 1.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Congenital mesoblastic nephroma with hypercalcemia. Pathogenetic role of prostaglandins.

A case of mesoblastic nephroma, hypercalcemia, and raised levels of prostaglandins in a 2-month-old female infant is reported. Plasma parathyroid hormone (PTH) was normal and urinary prostaglandins were raised. During surgery a prostaglandin arteriovenous gradient was demonstrated. A large quantity of PGE was extracted from the tumor by radioimmunoassay after incubation. Both blood calcium and urinary prostaglandins returned to normal after nephrectomy. These results show that this tumor produced prostaglandins, the mediators of hypercalcemia in this patient.

Calcium↗
PubMed1985

Risk factors in long-term sequelae of central nervous system prophylaxis in successfully treated children with acute lymphocytic leukemia.

Seventy-two successfully treated patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia, all in first complete remission and all off therapy, who had received CNS prophylaxis (radiotherapy, 2,400 rad, plus intrathecal methotrexate), were studied by computed tomography (CT) of the brain, EEGs, and neurologic evaluations 3 to 9 years after the end of prophylaxis. Thirty-five patients showed CT brain scan abnormalities: intracranial calcifications (twelve); widening of the subarachnoid spaces (eight); isolated dilatation of ventricular spaces (three) and with frontal periventricular hypodensity (two); dilatation of ventricular and subarachnoid spaces (nine); and a hypodense area (one). Only 17 patients showed aspecific EEG abnormalities which were never linked to CT scan findings. None of our patients presented major motor deficits at the neurologic examination. A stepwise logistic regression technique showed that age less than 5 years at the time of prophylaxis was the most important risk factor (p = 0.008) of CT brain scan abnormalities followed by neurets (p = 0.037) and sex (p = 0.10). Furthermore, the multivariate analysis pointed out that the interactions between these variables were not significant and the effects were only of the first order.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1985

The effects of 6-hydroxydopamine lesions of the nucleus accumbens and caudate nucleus of rats on feeding in a novel environment.

Open field activity and feeding behavior were studied in separate groups of rats 1 or 6 weeks after infusions of the neurotoxin, 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the nucleus accumbens or caudate nucleus. These infusions resulted in a specific destruction of the catecholamine innervation of the injected area. When compared with rats which received infusions of vehicle alone, both lesions resulted in a relative reduction in locomotor activity 1 week, but not 6 weeks, after the operation. Both lesions also resulted in a more rapid onset of feeding from wire baskets containing familiar laboratory chow. Rats with lesions of the nucleus accumbens also fed for longer, consumed more food, and fed in longer bouts than did sham-lesioned animals, but rats with lesions of the caudate nucleus did not. These data show changes in feeding behaviour produced by 6-OHDA infusions into the dopamine terminal fields which were long lasting in comparison with the locomotor impairments, and did not arise as a result of locomotor impairment. The differences in feeding behaviour may result from more general changes in behaviour such as an impairment in the reactivity to novel environmental stimuli or switching between types of behaviour.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Immunocytochemical evidence of common-ALL antigen in null-ALL.

4 cases of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), diagnosed as null-ALL by indirect immunofluorescence using monoclonal antibodies, were similarly investigated using a sensitive immunoperoxidase method. The Avidin-Biotin system was employed. The immunoenzymatic results were in agreement with those obtained with immunofluorescence techniques for all antigens except common-ALL (C-ALL). The C-ALL antigen, recognized by the J5 antibody, was detected only by the immunoperoxidase method on cell membranes of the 4 ALL. This paper discusses the possibility of false negative results in testing for C-ALL antigen by conventional indirect immunofluorescence as suggested by refined immunocytochemical screening. Moreover, the ability of the immunoperoxidase system to identify antigens on cell membranes, even at very low density, is discussed. The clinical significance of the presence of C-ALL antigen at weak intensity in cases of null-ALL is also considered.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗
PubMed1984

IV-S neuroblastoma: a cooperative study of 30 children.

The clinical features of 30 children with IV-S neuroblastoma have been reviewed. They were treated at 11 Italian pediatric institutions in the period 1970-1981. Patients with IV-S neuroblastoma comprise 6.1% of all the neuroblastoma cases observed during that period. The age at diagnosis ranged from birth to 11 months (mean, 3 months). The distribution of "primary" lesions was of interest. The adrenal gland was affected most often (57% of patients), but tumors of the chest and neck were also encountered. No specific "primary" lesion was identified in ten children. The most frequent site of widespread disease was the liver (87%). Neither the size of the "primary" tumor, nor the number or size of subcutaneous nodules was of prognostic significance. Unfavorable features were age less than 2 months and clinical signs of pulmonary, renal, or hepatic embarrassment. These data confirm the need for prompt intervention in the infant who is suffering from compression of these vital structures by the enlarged liver. Radiation therapy is to be preferred for this purpose, because of the often severe toxicity that is associated with chemotherapy in infants. One, and possibly two babies in this series died of chemotherapy-related complications.

Adrenal Gland Neoplasms↗
PubMed1984

Peptichemio in neuroblastoma at relapse.

Peptichemio (PTC), a multipeptidic complex of m-L-phenyl-alanine mustard, was administered to 39 children with neuroblastoma at relapse. The compound was given in two 5-day cycles at dosages varying from 1.0-1.5 mg/kg/day. We were able to evaluate 29 of the initial 39 children for PTC effect; 21 of them had received PTC as first therapy following diagnosis. Ten patients underwent other chemotherapy for relapse before PTC. Three patients were off therapy when relapse occurred. Subjective improvement was observed in 18 cases (62%). Eleven patients (38%) experienced an objective regression, which was scored as complete response in three cases, partial response in two, mixed response in six. In ten children no significant disease change was observed; the remaining eight had a progression of their disease while receiving PTC. The incidence of responses has been higher in patients off therapy at moment of relapse, and lower in those pretreated for their relapse. Previous administration of PTC did not reduce the chance of response at relapse. Major toxic effects were transient, mostly moderate myelodepression and phlebosclerosis. Allergic reactions, nausea, and vomiting, occurred in a few patients. These data indicate that PTC may exert objective antitumor activity in approximately one-third of neuroblastoma patients at relapse.

Child↗
PubMed1983

The role of surgery in non-localized neuroblastoma. Analysis of 59 cases.

The authors considered 59 stage III and IV neuroblastoma cases, which were observed from January 1967 to June 1979. 13 patients (13/59 = 22%) are surviving in complete remission 3 years after surgery: 9/20 (45%) with stage III and 4/39 (10%) with stage IV disease. The children subjected to complete surgical excision are all alive irregardless of age; the children who were not operated on or subjected to a biopsy, have all died. Of the 33 patients who underwent a reductive excision, 6 (all under 2 years of age) are in complete remission (18%). A better prognosis was found in those patients in whom the site of the primary tumor was at the mediastinal level. These data show the importance of the role of the surgeon in the multidisciplinary treatment of stage III and IV neuroblastomas; our experience is also favorable to the practice of second-look surgery.

Adrenal Gland Neoplasms↗
PubMed1983

Effects of lesions to ascending noradrenergic neurones on performance of a 5-choice serial reaction task in rats; implications for theories of dorsal noradrenergic bundle function based on selective attention and arousal.

Five experiments examined the effects of destruction of the dorsal noradrenergic bundle (DNAB), arising in the locus coeruleus, both on brightness and spatial visual discrimination, and selective attention. An analogue o Leonard's 5-choice serial reaction task for human subjects was used. Hungry rats were trained to detect brief (0.5 sec) flashes of light presented randomly in one of 5 locations with a fixed intertrial interval of 5 sec, paced by the rat. Correct responses were rewarded with food and incorrect responses punished by time-out (darkness + delay). Following training to high levels of accuracy (80%, with less than 20% errors of omission), rats received either 6-OHDA (4 micrograms/2 microliters) injected bilaterally into the trajectory of the dorsal bundle, or injection of vehicle (0.1% ascorbic acid in 0.9% saline). The 6-OHDA lesion was sufficient to reduce cortical NA by 84%. Performance on both the spatial discrimination and brightness (produced by graded reductions in the brightness of the stimuli) discrimination was unaffected by DNAB lesions. However, the DNAB lesion produced significant decreases in accuracy and increases in omissions when the stimuli were presented at faster, unpredictable rates. In addition, although intense white noise failed to produce differential impairments when presented simultaneously with the visual discriminanda, the DNAB lesion significantly impaired accuracy when the noise was presented immediately prior to, but not overlapping, the onset of the visual stimuli. The implications of this pattern of deficits in performance found following DNAB lesions is discussed in terms of disruptive effects of cortical NA depletion upon mechanisms of selective attention and arousal.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Psychological distress in parents of children with acute lymphatic leukemia.

Psychological distress in parents of children with acute lymphatic leukemia was evaluated by means of the Symptom Distress Checklist. This scale was administered twice: within a few days after the child's admission to hospital and 8 months later. Twenty-five consecutive, unselected subjects were compared with controls matched for age, sex, marital status and social class. At the first evaluation the sample presented higher mean scores than the controls for anxiety (P less than 0.005), depression (P less than 0.005), sleep disturbances (P less than 0.005) and obsessions (P less than 0.05). An 8 months' follow-up confirmed the persistence of anxiety (P less than 0.05), sleep disturbances (P less than 0.05) and above all depression (P less than 0.005).

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1983

Effectiveness of preoperative chemotherapy in Wilms' tumor: results of an International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP) clinical trial.

The results of a controlled clinical trial of preoperative radiotherapy compared to chemotherapy in patients with nephroblastoma are presented. Of 397 histologically proven cases of Wilms' tumor registered at 34 centers between January 1977 and July 1979, 164 were eligible for the trial and were randomized to receive preoperative radiotherapy and chemotherapy (group R, 76 patients) or preoperative chemotherapy (group C, 88 patients). The results were evaluated in terms of the number of surgical tumor ruptures and of local tumor extent at pathologic examination, reflecting the effectiveness of the preoperative treatment. Survival and recurrence-free survival in the two treatment groups were also taken into account. The stage distribution was comparable in the two groups, with 52% stage I tumors in group R, and 43% in group C. Significant changes in the pathologic pattern were more frequent in group R than in group C (53% versus 17%). From these data it is concluded that preoperative chemotherapy is as good as preoperative radiotherapy in terms of prevention of tumor rupture. In addition, it was shown that 43% of an unselected population of patients with Wilms' tumor could be treated without any radiotherapy when chemotherapy had been given preoperatively.

Adolescent↗