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M Leichsenring

Publications and source records attributed to M Leichsenring.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1995

Fatty acid composition of the milk of well-nourished Sudanese women.

The fatty acid (FA) composition of samples of breast milk obtained from well-nourished Sudanese women was determined by capillary gas chromatography. Saturated fatty acids (SFA) constituted 46%, monoenoic acids (MONOENE) 33% and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) accounted for 21% of total fatty acids. The mean value (18.28%) of the essential fatty acid linoleic acid was comparable to the levels reported for well-nourished mothers from industrialised countries. The proportions of fatty acids synthesised de novo in the mammary gland (10:0, 12:0, 14:0) were less than expected from published studies of mothers consuming low fat diet averaging 17.4%. The amount of 22:6 n-3 which is synthesised from 18:3 n-3 and also taken up by consumption of fish were found to be low. The possible nutritional implications of the low n-3 fatty acids for the infants should therefore be investigated.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Use of BCG in high prevalence areas for HIV.

Recommendations state that, where the risk of tuberculosis is high, BCG should be administered to infants as early in life as possible, even if the mother is known to be HIV-infected. BCG should be withheld from individuals with symptomatic HIV infections. However, continuing reports from sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere of BCG complications in HIV-infected persons call for a re-assessment of current vaccination policies. For HIV-infected infants any benefit of BCG vaccination may be marginal because the prognosis is very poor. It is however not possible to exclude HIV-infected children from BCG vaccination at birth. HIV-uninfected infants born to HIV-infected mothers are at great risk of tuberculosis infection, which justifies routine vaccination. BCG rarely causes serious complications. Theoretically, persons with asymptomatic HIV infection may be at greater risk of complications from BCG vaccines, but available data are inconclusive in that respect. To vaccinate children with BCG at one year of age does not seem feasible and would increase the risk of tuberculosis especially for uninfected infants of HIV seropositive mothers. Available data seem to indicate that routine vaccination of newborns is indeed safe, even in areas with high prevalence of HIV infection.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗
PubMed1994

The diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis by gaschromatographic detection of tuberculostearic acid using flame ionisation detectors.

It has been shown that the detection of tuberculostearic acid (TBSA) with gas chromatography-mass-spectrometry provides a highly specific, sensitive and rapid method for the diagnosis of various forms of tuberculosis. However, the need for complex and expensive equipment prevented the more widespread use of this method. We report on the application of conventional gas chromatography with flame ionization detectors in the detection of TBSA in sputum samples. TBSA was detected in all patients with proven pulmonary tuberculosis before treatment or under treatment for less than 4 weeks (n = 18). Six of these patients (33%) had a negative microscopy result at the time of the study. Sputum samples from patients under therapy for longer than 4 weeks (n = 20) were TBSA-positive in 15 cases (75%). Only in two cases was the diagnosis by microscopy and/or culture not met by TBSA-detection. All sputa of 20 control patients with lung diseases other than tuberculosis were TBSA negative. Additional analysis of patients' data showed a significant relationship (P < 0.005) between the relative amounts of TBSA detectable in the sputum samples and the duration of therapy. It is concluded that conventional capillary gaschromatography may be sensitive and specific enough to be used for the detection of TBSA in sputum of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis.

Chromatography, Gas↗
PubMed1994

Evaluation of ultrasonography for the detection of drug-induced changes in onchocercal nodules.

Clinical trials of macrofilaricidal drugs against Onchocerca volvulus are impeded due to the lack of means for assessing in vivo drug-induced changes in the onchocercomas. The application of ultrasonography in the sequential monitoring of morphologic alterations of onchocercal nodules after six weeks of suramin therapy was evaluated in 20 male patients from Ghana with a total of 64 nodule sites. After each follow-up session, a number of onchocercal nodules were extirpated so that by the end of one year, all nodules had been removed for histologic examination. The sonomorphologic changes observed and their time of appearance correlated well with the histologic findings of the onchocercomas. Eighty-three percent of the onchocercal nodules became hyperechogenic and 22% developed echo-free areas at the end of the follow-up period. Absence of the lateral acoustic shadow increased by more than 30% and the lack of differentiation of the worm center from the capsule and the nodule from its surrounding tissue increased by the end of one-year posttreatment to 100% and 91%, respectively. A mean reduction of nodule size of 27% was also documented. The histologic studies revealed that the proportion of the dead female worms increased from 17% at the end of the suramin therapy to 48% six months later and reached 61% at one year. It is concluded that ultrasonographic monitoring of onchocercomas can provide essential information on drug effects and facilitate clinical trials of macrofilaricidal drugs, limiting histologic evaluation to a few objectively selected onchocercomas.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Antioxidant vitamins in malnourished Nigerian children.

The antioxidant capacity in malnutrition--as far as it is related to vitamins--was studied by determining the plasma concentrations of the most prominent antioxidant vitamins (retinol, tocopherols, carotenoids, cryptoxanthine, lycopene, and ubiquinone-10) in marasmic (M; n = 15), severe marasmic (SM; n = 8), kwashiorkor (KW; n = 12), and normally nourished (CO; n = 18) children in Nigeria. Retinol was found to be reduced in severe marasmic children when compared to local controls (medians and interquartile ranges; SM: 155 micrograms/l, 117-178 micrograms/l; CO: 281 micrograms/l 209-413 micrograms/l; p < 0.005). A strong correlation between plasma retinol and retinol binding protein could be found in all groups (SM: r = 0.79; M: r = 0.93; KW: r = 0.80; CO: r = 0.70). The tocopherol/lipid-ratio was lowered in kwashiorkor (median 0.48 mg/g, interquartile range 0.41-0.66 mg/g). A sufficient tocopherol status was only found in one child with kwashiorkor. alpha-Carotene, beta-carotene, cryptoxanthine and lycopene were below the detection limits in most of the malnourished children. Plasma ubiquinone-10 was significantly higher in kwashiorkor (median 1.05 micrograms/ml, interquartile range 0.88-1.17 micrograms/ml) than in all other groups (CO: 0.71 micrograms/ml, 0.55-0.99 micrograms/ml: M: 0.72 micrograms/ml, 0.65-0.83 micrograms/ml; SM: 0.89 micrograms/ml, 0.61-0.83 micrograms/ml). It is concluded that a depletion of antioxidant vitamins is present in malnourished Nigerian children, especially pronounced in the kwashiorkor syndrome. The mechanisms leading to elevated plasma ubiquinone-10 in kwashiorkor require further studies.

Antioxidants↗
PubMed1994

The fatty acid composition of plasma and erythrocytes in Schistosoma mansoni-infected mice.

The fatty acid status of mice six weeks after infection with Schistosoma mansoni was investigated and compared with the status of uninfected mice. Fatty acids of several plasma and erythrocyte lipid fractions were determined by capillary gas-chromatography. Major fatty acids including linoleic acid, arachidonic acid and dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid, were significantly reduced in the plasma phospholipids of infected mice. Arachidonic acid was also reduced in plasma cholesterolesters. The degree of the plasma arachidonic acid reduction in infected animals correlated neither with the worm load nor with the liver weight. The plasma fatty acid changes were not reflected in the lipids of the red blood cells. Since the observed changes in the plasma fatty acid composition occurred early after infection, they are unlikely to be a consequence of portal hypertension. It is speculated that an activation of the eicosanoid metabolism may contribute to these changes.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Leukotrienes in the pathophysiology of kwashiorkor.

The actions of cysteinyl leukotrienes include production of oedema. We investigated whether these mediators might be involved in the oedematous malnutrition syndrome kwashiorkor. The capacity of leukotriene (LT) synthesis by stimulated whole blood and urinary LTE4 excretion was measured in 12 children with kwashiorkor, and compared with that in 24 marasmic and 12 control children. Urinary LTE4 excretion was significantly higher in patients with kwashiorkor than in controls (118.8 [SD 28.5] vs 31.1 [19.3] nmol/mol creatinine; p < 0.01). Whole blood LTE4 synthesis was increased in kwashiorkor patients by a factor of 3.5 (p < 0.01). In marasmic children, LTE4 excretion and synthesis did not differ from those in controls. Although glutathione, known to participate in LTC4 synthesis, was subnormal in erythrocytes of all malnourished patients, whole-blood LTC4 synthesis was higher in kwashiorkor patients than in controls (28.1 [5.0] ng/mL; p < 0.05), and close to control values (9.8 [1.5] ng/mL) in marasmic children. LTB4 synthesis, however, was greatly reduced in kwashiorkor patients (11.5 [2.4] vs 46.5 [6.4] ng/mL; p < 0.01). Inability to synthesise the immunoregulator LTB4 may lead to inefficient chemoattraction of phagocytes and an inadequate inflammatory response in kwashiorkor. The increased endogenous cysteinyl LT generation in kwashiorkor suggests that these lipid mediators are involved in the pathophysiology of the syndrome, particularly in oedema formation.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1993

Scaly skin alterations and plasma fatty acids in Congolese children.

Scaly skin alterations on the surface of the legs are frequently found in African children. Because similar signs occur in essential fatty acid deficiency, the fatty acid status of a group of African children with (n = 10) and without (n = 27) such skin alterations was determined. Analysis of the fatty acid composition of the plasma phospholipid and cholesterol ester fractions as well as clinical examinations were performed. Constantly low levels of linoleic acid and arachidonic acid were not associated with the occurrence of scaly skin alterations, which were also found in children with normal values for these polyunsaturated fatty acids. It is suggested that scaly skin alterations in Congolese children are not a sign of essential fatty acid deficiency.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

Clinical and biochemical phenotype in 11 patients with mevalonic aciduria.

OBJECTIVE: Mevalonic aciduria is a consequence of the deficiency of mevalonate kinase, the first enzyme after 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase in the biosynthesis of cholesterol and nonsterol isoprenes. To establish the clinical and biochemical phenotype of mevalonic aciduria, the authors assembled their experience with 11 patients including attempts at therapeutic interventions. METHODS: Mevalonic acid in body fluids was determined by stable isotope dilution gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy with selected ion monitoring, ubiquinone-10 concentrations by reversed-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography. RESULTS: Varying degrees of severity of clinical illness were observed despite uniform, virtual absence of residual activity of the enzyme. The most severely affected patients have had profound developmental delay, dysmorphic features, cataracts, hepatosplenomegaly, lymphadenopathy, and anemia, as well as diarrhea and malabsorption, and have died in infancy. Less severely affected patients have had psychomotor retardation, hypotonia, myopathy, and ataxia. All patients have had recurrent crises in which there was fever, lymphadenopathy, increase in size of liver and spleen, arthralgia, edema, and a morbilliform rash. Neuroimaging studies revealed selective and progressive atrophy of the cerebellum. Mevalonic acid concentrations were found to be grossly elevated in body fluids of all patients. Concentrations of plasma cholesterol were normal or only slightly reduced. Concentrations of ubiquinone-10 in plasma were found to be decreased in most patients. Abnormalities such as hypoglycemia, metabolic acidosis, or lactic acidemia, the usual concomitants of disorders of organic acid metabolism, were conspicuously absent. CONCLUSIONS: These observations establish the broad range of clinical symptoms and biochemical findings in mevalonic aciduria. It is concluded that although patients with mevalonic aciduria have a recognizable phenotype of serious clinical manifestations, some patients are likely to remain undiagnosed and may be found in a variety of subspecialty clinics, including neurology, gastroenterology, cardiology, and genetics.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗
PubMed1992

The fatty acid composition of subcutaneous fat in German adults.

The fatty acid (FA) composition of subcutaneous fat (SCF) was analyzed in 47 German adults. No influences of sex or age on the FA status of the probands could be detected. SCF consisted mainly of monoenoic fatty acids. Linoleic acid was the major polyunsaturated fatty acid. Linoleic acid metabolites were found in small quantities only. In comparison to the results of studies in the USA and the Netherlands the FA composition of SCF in German probands was characterized by lower levels of linoleic acid and higher contents of palmitic acid. The trans-FA content was similar to that in Dutch women, but lower than in American male probands. However, in evaluating the differences in the FA composition of SCF in different countries, it has to be noted that there are wide ranges in the proportions of the major FA in all populations studied.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1992

Relationship among the fatty acid composition of various lipid fractions in normally nourished German adults.

The relationship among the fatty acid (FA) composition of plasma cholesteryl esters (CE), plasma phospholipids (PL), total erythrocyte lipids, erythrocyte phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), erythrocyte phosphatidylcholine (PC), and total lipids of the subcutaneous fat (SCF) was investigated by parallel analyses of samples from 47 normally nourished German adults. Each lipid fraction revealed a characteristic FA pattern. A close relation between major FA in plasma lipids, especially in CE, and those in PC was found. The FA composition of PE, however, appeared to be more independent from plasma values. Of all FA in SCF only linoleic acid values showed a correlation to the values in CE and PC. It is concluded that, in clinical studies, FA analyses of total plasma lipids or total erythrocyte lipids fractions should be avoided in favour of separate analyses of various lipid fractions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Heparin binding lectin of human placenta as a tool for histochemical ligand localization and isolation.

Biotinylated heparin has been used to detect the presence of specific binding sites in sections of human placenta, which has prompted demonstration of expression of lectin activity for this proteoglycan. Purification of this lectin from full-term placenta facilitates the synthesis of its biotinylated derivative, using biotin-amidocaproyl hydrazide, without affecting its activity. It also enables immunization to obtain antibodies. The labeled lectin is shown to bind specifically to nuclear and cytoplasmic locations in various cell types of human placenta, nuclear expression of lectin binding sites being more pronounced at the full-term stage than after 8 weeks of development. The structurally related histone H2B exhibits obvious differences in its binding pattern. The presence of ligands accessible to the lectin whose binding activity can be inhibited by addition of an excess of heparin correlates in most instances with the level of lectin expression detected immunohistochemically. Biochemical information on the nature of the glycohistochemically inferred lectin-specific ligand(s) is obtained by affinity chromatography on resin-immobilized lectin. It leads to isolation of a proteoglycan with similar electrophoretic mobility in agarose-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis relative to the independently purified heparan sulfate-containing fibronectin binding proteoglycan from human placenta. Both fractions inhibit binding of heparin to the lectin and contain immunologically detected co-purified lectin, emphasizing their ligand properties. Application of labeled tissue lectins in conjunction with lectin-specific antibodies is proposed to obtain valuable insights into the expression of the receptor as well as the ligand part of protein-carbohydrate recognition.

Chromatography, Affinity↗
PubMed1990

Vitamin E status in Sudanese children with protein-energy malnutrition.

Total tocopherols and alpha-tocopherols were estimated in the plasma of children with severe malnutrition (14 marasmus; 11 marasmic kwashiorkor; five kwashiorkor) and related to the total plasma lipids and different plasma lipid classes. If the mere plasma concentrations were taken as an index of the vitamin E status, five children with marasmus, five children with marasmic kwashiorkor, and two children with kwashiorkor would have been regarded as deficient (less than 500 micrograms/dl). However, if total tocopherols and alpha-tocopherols were related to the total plasma lipids, all malnourished children--except one--showed values within the limits found in healthy American children. The study shows that low tocopherol/lipid ratios are not a constant feature in severely malnourished children.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1990

Ultrasonographical investigations of onchocerciasis in Liberia.

The efficiency of ultrasonography (US) for the diagnosis and clinical characterization of onchocerciasis was evaluated. US was performed on 120 probands in Liberia. Ninety-two patients had generalized onchocerciasis, 21 patients suffered from the chronic hyperreactive form of onchocerciasis (sowda), and 7 probands served as controls. Patients were examined by US with linear (7.5 MHz and 5 MHz) and sector (3.5 MHz) scanners. US results were evaluated by examination of extirpated nodules. The US structure of nodules revealed a typical pattern consisting of a homogeneous echogenicity with small echodense particles and a lateral acoustic shadow, and differentiation from lymph nodes, lipoma, or fibroma was achieved. Within the onchocercomata, calcifications or fluid were identified. Regarding the estimation of the worm burden, it is important to note that in 24 patients, additional nodules not previously palpated were found by US. Also, the number of worm centers in palpable conglomerate nodules were determined more exactly by US than by palpation. In 4 of 16 sowda patients, impalpable nodules were found by US. In 13 patients with positive microfilaria counts, no nodules could be detected. The highly characteristic ultrasonographical pattern of onchocercomata may serve as a basis for further US investigations in onchocerciasis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Vitamin E status of Congolese children in a rural area.

The role of vitamin E in severe malnutrition is controversially discussed. In order to evaluate the vitamin E status of unselected African children the plasma tocopherol levels of 52 children from a village in the People's Republic of Congo were assessed by HPLC and related to the plasma lipid values. Although plasma concentrations of total tocopherols (mean 351.1 +/- 59.4 micrograms/dl) and alpha-tocopherol (mean 313.3 +/- 57.0 micrograms/dl) were found to be low, normal ratios of total tocopherols to total lipids (mean 0.99 +/- 0.17 mg/g) and alpha-tocopherol to total lipids (mean 0.89 +/- 0.09 mg/g) were estimated. It is concluded that plasma vitamin E levels should be related to plasma lipids if populations are monitored in which low lipid concentrations have to be expected. These data on Congolese children may be used for comparison if the vitamin E status in other agrogeographical areas of Africa or in clinically abnormal groups is investigated.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Selenium status in Sudanese children with protein-calorie malnutrition.

In 68 Sudanese children with severe protein-energy malnutrition, age 1-4 years, the selenium status was investigated and the results were compared with those of healthy Sudanese and German children. The median selenium content in plasma of healthy Sudanese children (x = 59 micrograms/L) and with those of marasmus (x = 57 micrograms/L) were found to be in the same range. It was lower than in healthy German children (x = 82 micrograms/L). Patients with marasmic kwashiorkor exhibited still lower values (x = 42 micrograms/L. Within each group of malnourished children (marasmus, marasmic kwashiorkor, kwashiorkor) there were patients with low and with "normal" selenium values (taking the values of healthy German children as normal). Hair selenium values were not different between marasmic Sudanese children and healthy German children, probably due to reduced hair growth in malnourished children. Plasma glutathione peroxidase activity was reduced concomitantly with plasma selenium in the patients with protein-calorie malnutrition. There was a good correlation between plasma selenium and plasma glutathione peroxidase activity. A follow-up study showed that plasma selenium decreased during rehabilitation in those patients who had a "normal" value before treatment. This is probably due to the low selenium content of the two dietary formulae used, which contained 18 and 25 micrograms/L Se of formula,. It remains questionable whether the low selenium states and low selenium intake exhibit a healthy risk inhibiting further rehabilitation of the patients with severe protein-calorie malnutrition.

Child, Preschool↗