Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to M Leichsenring.
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The nutritional status of an unselected group of 111 children from the village of Bouansa, People's Republic of the Congo, was studied. Comprehensive clinical examinations, anthropometrical measurements and analysis of albumin, prealbumin, ferritin, C-reactive protein (CRP), IgA, IgG, IgM, IgE, IgG- and IgM-circulating immune complexes (CIC) were carried out. The results show, by anthropometrical classification, a high prevalence of moderate malnutrition. Low levels of plasma proteins and high levels of immunoglobulins and CIC were found. No correlation between anthropometrical classification and plasma proteins was established. Children with increased levels of CRP showed low prealbumin values and increased levels of ferritin. Patterns of immunoglobulins and CIC were close to those found in other studies in tropical countries. To evaluate the anthropometrical and biochemical findings it is necessary to take into consideration the apparently healthy appearance of the children, which shows the degree of adaptation to the limited availability of food and the high rate of acute and chronic infections.
The fatty acid status of an unselected group of 84 Congolese children was determined by estimating the fatty acid composition of the plasma phospholipid (PL) and cholesterolester (CE) fractions using capillary gas chromatography. In comparison with North American and European children a wide range of values and low mean percentages (related to the fatty acids of a chain length of 14-24 carbon atoms) were found for the following fatty acids (mean +/- SD): linoleic acid (LA) (PL: 17.19 +/- 3.85; CE: 40.13 +/- 7.72); arachidonic acid (AA) (PL: 6.60 +/- 2.28; CE 4.32 +/- 1.71); dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (DHLA) (PL: 1.80 +/- 0.68; CE 0.41 +/- 0.22). On average, omega 3 fatty acids were higher than in reference groups, while similar values were found for the monoenoic and omega 9 fatty acids. No sample contained eicosatrienoic acid, 20:3 omega 9 (ETA) which, dependent on analytical methods, may be difficult to separate from behenic acid (22:0). Changes in the relation between the two lipid fractions occurred when the LA content in CE was less than 35%. Also the correlation between LA and AA in CE, which was significant below 35% LA (r = 0.84), changed with higher values for LA (r = 0.01). These findings may indicate that alterations in fatty acid metabolism occur when LA values in CE--which are supposed to be directly related to the dietary intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids--fall below 35% of all fatty acids in this lipid fraction.
The status of essential fatty acids has been evaluated in 75 well-nourished Sudanese women of two villages of the irrigated Gezira area. All were consuming local Sudanese food. The fatty acid composition of the plasma cholesterolester and phospholipid fractions was estimated by capillary gas chromatography. Compared to values published from healthy American controls (Holman et al., 1979) their values of linoleic acid, dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid, and arachidonic acid were adequate. Eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid were found to be lower. Trans fatty acids were very low. With increasing levels of linoleic acid in the phospholipid fraction the arachidonic acid levels decreased, thus showing a regulation of the phospholipid arachidonic acid content. The ratio linoleic acid/dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid, reflecting the delta 6-desaturation and the following elongation step, increased with rising linoleic acid values.
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In the present study eicosanoid synthesis was studied in macrophages of guinea pigs fed different amounts of (n-6)- and (n-3)-polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Three groups of weanling guinea pigs were fed by isocaloric diets differing only in their contents of PUFA: controls with 2.8 Cal% of linoleic acid (LA; 18:2(n-6)); (n-6)-rich fed animals with 15.4 Cal% of LA; and (n-3)-rich fed animals with 10.1 Cal% of LA, 1.4 Cal% of eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5(n-3)) and docosahexaenoic acid (22:6(n-3)). After 13 weeks half the number of animals from each group was infected i.m. by 180 colony forming units of Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain H37Rv. Seven weeks after infection the release of leukotriene (LT)B4 and prostaglandin (PG)E2 was quantified in calcium ionophore stimulated whole blood, peritoneal macrophage cultures and alveolar macrophages by immunoassays after high performance liquid chromatography. Synthesis of LTB4 and PGE2 was found to be reduced in (n-3)-rich fed guinea pigs (p < 0.05), and equivalent between controls and (n-6)-rich fed animals. Controls and (n-6)-rich fed animals showed the same mycobacterial counts in the spleen whereas (n-3)-rich fed guinea pigs demonstrated an increased number of mycobacteria (p < 0.05). Our results demonstrate that an increased dietary intake of (n-3)-PUFA suppress LTB4 and PGE2 synthesis. The increased number of M. tuberculosis found in the spleens of (n-3)-rich fed animals could represent persistence of the experimental infection. It may be speculated that a functional relationship exists between the two findings.
UNLABELLED: Carotenoids have various biological functions including their role as antioxidants. For humans fruits and vegetables are the only source of carotenoids. In the first months breast milk and/or formula preparations are the only nutrition for infants. To study the influence of nutrition on the plasma carotenoid profile in newborns, breast milk, different formula preparations, and the plasma of breast-fed (BF) and formula-fed (FF) newborns were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. The method used allowed beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, lycopene, and beta-cryptoxanthine to be detected and all four were found in breast milk. In colostrum carotenoids were up to five times higher than in mature breast milk (P<0.05). In contrast, not all carotenoids could be found in formula preparations. Beta-carotene was detected in four out of eight, and beta-cryptoxanthine in three out of eight formula preparations. Lycopene and alpha-carotene were not detectable in any of the formula preparations. Four formula preparations did not contain any carotenoids. FF infants had different plasma carotenoid profiles compared to BF infants. beta-carotene was significantly lower in FF infants [14 (0-32) microg/l, median and interquartile ranges] than in infants after birth [24 (19-310) microg/l, P<0.05], and BF infants [32 (22-63) microg/l, P<0.05]. While newborns after birth had measurable plasma concentrations of lycopene (16 [14-18] microg/l) and of alpha-carotene [5 (0-8) microg/l), these carotenoids were no longer detectable in FF infants after day 14. CONCLUSION: FF and BF infants show significant biochemical differences in plasma carotenoid concentrations.
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Gas-liquid chromatography was used to analyse the fatty acid composition of whole-cell hydrolysates of 40 yeast strains representing 5 Candida species and Torulopsis glabrata, T. glabrata could be easily distinguished from all other Candida spp. by the absence of C18:3. Candida albicans, C. krusei, C. parapsilosis, C. pseudotropicalis and C. tropicalis showed 10 major peaks in characteristic proportions. C. parapsilosis showed a high C16:0/C16:1 ratio (greater than 4.5), whereas C. pseudotropicalis was characterized by a C18:1/C16:0 ratio of less than 2.0. A high C18:3 concentration (greater than 10%) was typical for C. krusei (C18:2/C18:3 ratio less than or equal to 1.0). Our data reveal characteristic patterns of cellular fatty acid composition of T. glabrata, C. krusei, C. parapsilosis and C. pseudotropicalis which can be used for laboratory identification.
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