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Biomedical subjects

M Vidailhet

Publications and source records attributed to M Vidailhet.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

[Iodine nutrition in the infant. Committee on Nutrition of the French Society of Pediatrics].

Iodine is a trace element essential for the synthesis of thyroid hormones. It is present in the human body in minute amounts (15-20 mg in adults). The thyroid is very sensitive to iodine deficiency in newborns and infants because of its very low iodine content. Daily iodine requirements in humans vary from 40 micrograms in neonates to 150 micrograms in adults. Iodine deficiency represents the first cause of avoidable mental deficiency in developed countries; it has not yet disappeared in Europe, especially in the East, where it is responsible for a high prevalence of goiter. Iodine deficiency during pregnancy increases the risk of neonatal transient hypothyroidism, with a high recall rate in programs of systematic screening for congenital hypothyroidism. Data available in France suggest that screening for iodine deficiency should be performed during pregnancy, and that the minimal iodine concentration in formula milk should be increased to 10 micrograms/100 kcal for term infants and 20 micrograms/100 kcal for premature infants. Iodine deficiency is ideally prevented by the use of iodized salt. Because of the risk of iodine overexposure and secondary transient hypothyroidism, the use of iodinated antiseptics must be avoided in premature babies and neonates as well as in pregnant and lactating women. The fight against iodine deficiency, associated with oral stable preventive iodine administration, decreases sharply the risk of thyroid cancer in case of nuclear exposure, by diminishing thyroid uptake of iodine radioactive isotopes.

Adult↗

Concentrations of riboflavin and related organic acids in children with protein-energy malnutrition.

BACKGROUND: Riboflavin, flavin mononucleotide (FMN), and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) concentrations have been little studied in cases of malnutrition. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to investigate the effects of malnutrition on riboflavin status and riboflavin's relation with thyroid hormones and concentrations of urinary organic acids. DESIGN: Malnourished children from the savannah in Benin (group S, n = 30) and the coast in Togo (group C, n = 30), as well as 24 control subjects from both regions, were studied. Blood riboflavin, FMN, and FAD were analyzed by HPLC; urinary organic acids were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. RESULTS: Children in group S were more severely malnourished than children in group C. Triiodothyronine concentrations were lower in group S than in group C or the control group (1.12 +/- 0.24 compared with 1.74 +/- 0.18 and 2.92 +/- 0.19 nmol/L, respectively; P < 0.0001). Plasma riboflavin concentrations in group S were higher than those in group C or the control group (66.90 +/- 12.75 compared with 28.09 +/- 9.12 and 20.08 +/- 3.03 nmol/L, respectively; P < 0.001). Plasma FAD concentrations in group S were lower than those in group C or the control group (31.57 +/- 10.19 compared with 59.02 +/- 5.60 and 65.35 +/- 5.23 nmol/L, respectively; P < 0.0001). Dicarboxylic aciduria was higher in group C than in group S or the control subjects. CONCLUSIONS: Children in group S had low triiodothyronine concentrations and low conversion of plasma riboflavin into its cofactors, leading to a plasma FAD deficiency. Plasma FAD was not correlated with urinary dicarboxylic acid concentrations.

Benin↗

Abnormal reciprocal inhibition between antagonist muscles in Parkinson's disease.

Disynaptic Ia reciprocal inhibition acts, at the spinal level, by actively inhibiting antagonist motor neurons and reducing the inhibition of agonist motor neurons. The deactivation of this pathway in Parkinson's disease is still debated. Disynaptic reciprocal inhibition of H reflexes in the forearm flexor muscles was examined in 15 control subjects and 16 treated parkinsonian patients at rest and at the onset of a voluntary wrist flexion. Two patients were reassessed 18 h after withdrawal of antiparkinsonian medication. At rest, the level of Ia reciprocal inhibition between the wrist antagonist muscles was not significantly different between patients and controls. In contrast, clear abnormalities of this inhibition were revealed by voluntary movements in the patients. In normal subjects, at the onset of a wrist flexion, Ia reciprocal inhibition showed a large decrease, and we argue that this decrease is supraspinal in origin. On the less affected sides of the patients the descending modulation was still present but lower than in controls; on the more affected sides this modulation had vanished almost completely. These movement-induced abnormalities of disynaptic Ia reciprocal inhibition were closely associated with Parkinson's disease but were probably not dependent on L-dopa. They could play a role in the disturbances of precise voluntary movements observed in Parkinson's disease.

Adult↗

Levodopa-responsive dystonia. GTP cyclohydrolase I or parkin mutations?

Autosomal dominant DOPA-responsive dystonia (DRD) is usually caused by mutation in the gene encoding guanosine triphosphate-cyclohydrolase I (GTPCH I). We studied 22 families with a phenotype of levodopa-responsive dystonia by sequencing the six coding exons, the 5'-untranslated region and the exon-intron boundaries of the GTPCH I gene. Eleven heterozygous mutations were identified, including five missense mutations, one splice site mutation, two small deletions and two nonsense mutations, in 12 families that included 27 patients and 13 asymptomatic carriers. Six mutations were new and five had already been reported. Four of the mutations caused truncation of the GTPCH I protein. One family carried a base-pair change in the 5'-untranslated region, not detected in controls, that could be responsible for the phenotype. Three of the remaining 10 families had deletions in the parkin gene on chromosome 6, underlining how difficult it is to distinguish, in some cases, between DRD and parkin mutations. No mutations were identified in seven families. The clinical spectrum extended from the classical DRD phenotype to parkinsonism with levodopa-induced dyskinesias, and included spastic paraplegia as well as the absence of dystonia.

Adolescent↗

Paroxysmal dyskinesias as a paradigm of paroxysmal movement disorders.

Paroxysmal dyskinesias are genetically and clinically heterogeneous. Paroxysmal kinesigenic choreoathetosis is frequently familial, with autosomal-dominant transmission. Benign infantile convulsions can be observed in these families and both diseases as linked to the pericentromeric region of chromosome 16. Two different forms of paroxysmal dystonic choreoathetosis are distinguished on clinical grounds, by the presence or absence of spasticity, and genetically, as they are linked with loci on different chromosomes. Among the paroxysmal disorders, these diseases may belong to the group of channelopathies.

Athetosis↗

[Facial palsy, enhancement of cranial nerves and Lyme disease].

Lyme disease involves multiple organ systems including in 10-15% of cases, the nervous system. Cranial neuropathies are observed in the second stage of the disease. The facial nerve is the most frequently affected nerve (20-30%). Facial nerve enhancement may be associated with cochleovestibular nerve abnormalities and can mimick an intracanalicular pseudomass. We present post-gadolinium enhancement of multiple cranial nerves associated to an intracanicular enhancement illustrated in a patient referred for a facial nerve palsy and presenting a Lyme disease. We discuss the differential diagnosis.

Adult↗

Alteration of substrate specificity by a naturally-occurring aldolase B mutation (Ala337-->Val) in fructose intolerance.

A molecular analysis of human aldolase B genes in two newborn infants and a 4-year-old child with hereditary fructose intolerance, the offspring of a consanguineous union, has identified the novel mutation Ala337-->Val in homozygous form. This mutation was also detected independently in two other affected individuals who were compound heterozygotes for the prevalent aldolase B allele, Ala149-->Pro, indicating that the mutation causes aldolase B deficiency. To test for the effect of the mutation, catalytically active wild-type human aldolase B and the Val337 variant enzyme were expressed in Escherichia coli. The specific activities of the wild-type recombinant enzyme were 4.8 units/mg and 4.5 units/mg towards fructose 1,6-bisphosphate (FBP) and fructose 1-phosphate (F-1-P) as substrates with Michaelis constants of 4 microM and 2.4 mM respectively. The specific activities of purified tetrameric Val337 aldolase B, which affects an invariant residue in the C-terminal region, were 4.2 units/mg and 2.6 units/mg towards FBP and F-1-P as substrates respectively; the corresponding Michaelis constants were 22 microM and 24 mM. The FBP-to-F-1-P substrate activity ratios were 0.98 and 1.63 for wild-type and Val337 variant enzymes respectively. The Val337 mutant aldolase had an increased susceptibility to proteolytic cleavage in E. coli and rapidly lost activity on storage. Comparative CD determinations showed that the Val337 protein had a distinct thermal denaturation profile with markedly decreased enthalpy, indicating that the mutant protein is partly unfolded. The undegraded mutant had preferentially decreased affinity and activity towards its specific F-1-P substrate and maintained appreciable activity towards FBP. In contrast, fluorescence studies of the mutant showed an increased binding affinity for products of the aldolase reaction, indicating a role for the C-terminus in mediating product release. These findings in a rare but widespread naturally occurring mutant implicate the C-terminus in the activity of human aldolase B towards its specific substrates and demonstrate its role in maintaining the overall stability of the enzyme tetramer.

Amino Acid Substitution↗

[Secondary dystonias. Clinical analysis and diagnostic approach].

DEFINITIONS: Dystonia is a muscle contraction disorder marked by sustained involuntary clonic contortions or abnormal posture. Primary dystonias can be divided into familial forms related to genetic anomalies and idiopathic forms. Secondary dystonias are related to an underlying neurological disease. METABOLIC DISEASES: Secondary dystonias related to metabolic diseases generally occur early before puberty although late onset forms have been described. Other signs, in association with the dystonia, include mental retardation, epilepsy, cerebellous or pyramidal signs, oculomotor disorders, or a neuropathy. Occasionally, extraneurological signs suggest the diagnosis. Biological markers are known for most of these dystonias. EVENT-RELATED DISEASES: In some cases, the dystonia is the only sign and develops as a sequela to an earlier neurological event such as neonatal anoxia, trauma, vascular event or adverse effect of neuroleptics. HEMI-DYSTONIAS: Dystonias limited to one side are generally secondary.

Dystonia↗

Dopaminergic dysfunction in midbrain dystonia: anatomoclinical study using 3-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging and fluorodopa F 18 positron emission tomography.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the role of damage to neuronal systems, especially the dopaminergic system, in patients with symptomatic dystonia and mesencephalic lesions. DESIGN: Stereotaxic magnetic resonance imaging analysis and positron emission tomography after the administration of fluorodopa F 18. PATIENTS: Of a group of 48 patients with unilateral dystonia following a stroke, 7 patients with a well-defined midbrain lesion were selected. RESULTS: All patients had unilateral dystonic posture of an upper extremity and cerebellar dysmetria or hypotonia. Cerebellar tremor was present in 1 patient. Two patients had resting and postural tremor, which showed a marked improvement with treatment with levodopa. In patients with dystonia only, dopaminergic lesions were mostly confined to the ventromesial mesencephalon and red nucleus area, including the substantia nigra and nigrostriatal and cerebellothalamic fibers. Dystonia was severe and did not resolve with time in patients with lesions involving the nigrostriatal pathway, and the degree of dopaminergic denervation revealed by positron emission tomography was correlated with the severity of dystonia. In patients with resting and postural tremor, lesions of the dopaminergic structures were larger and located more laterally and dorsally in the pars compacta, the perirubral and retrorubral areas, and extending to the central tegmental tract. CONCLUSIONS: Dopaminergic dysfunction plays a role in the occurrence and severity of midbrain dystonia, and additional lesions to dopaminergic neurons in the perirubral and retrorubral areas result in tremor that responds to levodopa treatment.

Adolescent↗

Worsening of levodopa-induced dyskinesias by motor and mental tasks.

Ten patients who had Parkinson's disease with disabling dyskinesia were included in this study to evaluate the role of mental (mental calculation) and motor (flexion/extension of right fingers, flexion/extension of left fingers, flexion/extension of the neck, speaking aloud) tasks on the worsening of peak-dose dyskinesia following administration of an effective single dose of apomorphine. Compared with the score at rest (1.3+/-0.3), a significant aggravation of the dyskinesia score was observed during speaking aloud (5.2+/-1.1, p<0.05), movements of right (4.5+/-1.0, p<0.05) and left (3.7+/-0.8, p<0.05) fingers, movements of the neck (5.1+/-1.0, p<0.05), and mental calculation (3.1+/-1.0, p<0.05). These results suggest that activation tasks such as "speaking aloud" could be used for objective assessment of dyskinesia severity.

Analysis of Variance↗

Necrotizing encephalopathy and macrocephaly with mitochondrial complex I deficiency.

A neonate presented in the first weeks after birth with vomiting. He was unresponsive, with hypotonia, macrocephaly, and lactic acidosis. The cranial computed tomographic scan revealed a hypodense brain, with increased brain volume and extensive cerebral edema. He died at 6 weeks of age; postmortem examination revealed necrotizing encephalopathy with marked brain edema, spongiosis, thalamic necrosis, and basal ganglia calcifications. Enzyme studies of the mitochondrial respiratory chain revealed complex I deficiency in both muscle and liver.

Acidosis, Lactic↗

[Value of pulmonary gas exchange study during exercise in the diagnosis of a muscular glycogenosis].

BACKGROUND: The diagnosis of muscular glycogen storage disease is usually difficult to demonstrate as symptoms normally consist of muscular cramps and exercise intolerance. Informations obtained from the study of the pulmonary gas exchange during exercise in a young patient with a glycogen storage disease are reported. CASE REPORT: The ventilatory and gas exchange responses to a cyclo-ergometer exercise were studied in a 17-year-old girl during a ramp-like test (5 W/min). The temporal profile of CO2 production (VCO2) response was clearly abnormal: VCO2 was always lower than oxygen consumption throughout the test, reflecting the lack of lactate buffering by the bicarbonates due to the absence of lactate production. The respiratory ratio was still around 0.75 at the peak of the test. In contrast, responses were perfectly normal in the other members of the family, allowing rejection of the diagnosis of glycogen storage disease without any blood sampling. CONCLUSION: This case illustrates the benefit of studying pulmonary gas exchange during exercise for a non-invasive diagnosis of muscular glycogen storage disease and detection of the disease in the other members of family.

Adolescent↗

[Use of anthropometric measures in practice].

Regular measurement of anthropometric parameters are necessary for studying growth and nutritional status of children. Among the many parameters for which reference standards are available, weight, length an height, statural growth velocity and body mass index are the most useful in pediatric daily practice. Besides to be regularly measured, anthropometric data must be noted on the child health record and confronted with the standard curves.

Adolescent↗