Biomedical subjects

R A Mueller

Publications and source records attributed to R A Mueller.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

PubMed1991

Doxorubicin toxicity in perfused rat heart. Decreased cell death at low oxygen tension.

The purpose of these studies was to test whether O2 tension influences cardiotoxicity due to doxorubicin. Isolated hearts were perfused by the method of Langendorff at constant pressure with Krebs-Henseleit buffer saturated with 5% CO2 and either 95% or 20% O2. Toxicity due to doxorubicin was evaluated from changes in heart rate and from uptake of trypan blue by nonviable nuclei. Heart rate was stable in control hearts perfused at 95% O2 for 30 minutes but decreased in hearts perfused at 20% O2. Doxorubicin (30 microM) increased O2 uptake due to redox cycling by approximately 75 mumol/g/hr at 95% O2 but had no effect in hearts perfused at 20% O2. Heart rate decreased during 30 minutes of perfusion with doxorubicin and 95% or 20% O2, with greater decreases occurring with 95% than 20% O2 compared with values for the respective untreated controls. Irreversible cell damage indexed from uptake of vital dye due to doxorubicin was threefold greater than control at 95% O2 but was not different from control at at 20% O2. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that O2 tension is an important determinant of toxicity due to doxorubicin.

Animals↗

PubMed1990

Long-term D1-dopamine receptor sensitization in neonatal 6-OHDA-lesioned rats is blocked by an NMDA antagonist.

Repeated administration of the D1-dopamine agonist SKF-38393 to adult rats having had dopaminergic neurons destroyed early in development results in an increasing enhancement of the behavioral response to SKF-38393 with each dose until a maximum is reached. This increased sensitivity lasts for at least 6 months. In the present study, this long-lasting change in behavioral responsiveness to repeated treatment with SKF-38393, referred to as D1-dopamine receptor priming, was shown to be dose dependent with smaller doses requiring an increased number of administrations to produce a maximal response when compared to higher doses. In addition, priming occurred equally well when treatment intervals ranged from 1 day to 14 days. These latter data reinforced the view that activation of D1-dopamine receptors results in a prolonged change in neural function. In subsequent experiments, D1-dopamine receptor priming was blocked by pretreatment with the NMDA-receptor antagonist MK-801. This antagonism of priming could not be attributed to a blockade of D1-dopamine receptors by MK-801 or to the induction of interfering behaviors. Because an NMDA antagonist interfered with D1-receptor priming as it does with other long-term neural messages, a common requirement for these diverse forms of neuronal plasticity appears to involve activation of the NMDA receptor. This functional link between NMDA receptors and dopaminergic function and its relationship to neuronal plasticity could have relevance to the biochemical mechanisms involved in learning and to symptoms in central disorders during development that worsen over time, particularly those proposed to involve malfunctioning dopaminergic mechanisms.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

PubMed1990

Opposite alterations in cerebrospinal fluid uridine after severe cerebral ischemia or intrathecal blood injection.

1. Rats which survived hypoglycemia by insulin, hypoxia by 10% O2, or ischemia by carotid ligation and hypotension to 40 mm Hg, evidenced no changes in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) uridine. Animals which died soon after the above interventions or as a result of KCl-induced cardiac arrest had elevated CSF uridine concentrations. 2. Injection of whole blood or the soluble contents of lysed blood cells into the lateral ventricle of rats reduced CSF uridine to less than one-half normal at 24 hrs but values returned to normal 3 days later. Changes in hypoxanthine resembled those of uridine, but were less dramatic, whereas xanthine concentrations were largely unaltered. Intraventricular injection of plasma or saline did not alter CSF uridine. 3. It seems most likely that low CSF uridine concentrations previously reported in head injury patients may be secondary to the effects of blood cell contents in the cerebrospinal fluid, rather than responses to altered metabolism in neurons or glia cells.

Animals↗

PubMed1990

Advances in oral anti-arrhythmic therapy: implications for the anaesthetist.

Surgical patients often are receiving antiarrhythmic therapy. Thus, because anaesthetic agents can affect cardiac function and may interact with concurrent antiarrhythmic medications, the anaesthetist should be aware of the electrophysiology associated with dysrhythmias and their management. Tocainide, flecainide, mexiletine, encainide and amiodarone have been introduced recently and each has an unique pattern of bioavailability, metabolism and toxicity. Patients treated with these drugs need special concern as they have abnormal cardiovascular systems and may be at increased risk for perioperative morbidity. In addition, unexpected untoward reactions and toxicity can result from interactions of anaesthetic agents and these drugs. This review discusses normal cardiac electrophysiology, common dysrhythmias and the electrophysiological effects of the newer oral antiarrhythmic drugs.

Administration, Oral↗

PubMed1990

Nifedipine enhances the cardiac toxicity of magnesium sulfate in the isolated perfused Sprague-Dawley rat heart.

Magnesium sulfate is commonly used in tocolytic regimens and as prophylaxis against seizures. Nifedipine may be used simultaneously in either situation. With the isolated perfused rat heart model (Sprague-Dawley rats), we investigated the effects of these agents on cardiac function. Whereas each agent alone depressed cardiac performance, the two drugs together had maximal depressive effects on the heart.

Animals↗

PubMed1990

Evidence that lack of brain dopamine during development can increase the susceptibility for aggression and self-injurious behavior by influencing D1-dopamine receptor function.

1. Lesch-Nyhan disease has a defined neurological lesion that is accompanied by abnormal motor function, aggression and self-injurious behavior. 2. The dopamine deficiency in Lesch-Nyhan disease has been modelled by destroying dopamine-containing neurons in neonatal rats with 6-hydroxydopamine. 3. Because D1-dopamine antagonists will block self-injurious behavior induced by L-DOPA in neonatal-6-OHDA-lesioned rats, D1-dopamine antagonists are proposed as a potential therapy for aggression and self-injurious behavior in patients with these symptoms. 4. The determination that the drug SCH-12679, which exhibited effectiveness against aggressiveness in mentally retarded patients, is a D1-dopamine antagonist supports the view that new D1-dopamine antagonists being developed will be an effective therapy for some types of aberrant behavior in this population.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

PubMed1990

A dopamine deficiency model of Lesch-Nyhan disease--the neonatal-6-OHDA-lesioned rat.

Lesch-Nyhan syndrome is characterized by a deficiency of the enzyme hypoxanthine phosphoribosyl transferase (HPRT), compulsive self-mutilatory behavior (SMB), and a loss of central dopaminergic neurons. In order to model the loss of central dopamine-containing neurons in this developmental disorder, neonatal rat pups 3 days of age were given the neurotoxin 6-OHDA intracisternally to reduce brain dopamine. Accompanying the profound loss of dopamine produced by this treatment was an increase in striatal serotonin content. When these neonatally lesioned rats were challenged as adults with systemically administered L-DOPA or with muscimol administration into substantia nigra reticulata (SNR), SMB was observed, a response not observed in unlesioned rats. Thus, the neonatally lesioned rats exhibit increased susceptibility for SMB. Since a D1-dopamine antagonist blocked the SMB response to L-DOPA, it was proposed that D1-dopamine receptors were critical to this behavioral response. Basic investigations concerning D1-dopamine receptor mechanisms in the lesioned rats have been performed and these are reviewed. The data in the neonatally lesioned rats provide convincing evidence that the absence of central dopaminergic neurons is responsible for at least some of the neurological symptoms of the Lesch-Nyhan syndrome, a finding consistent with data collected in mice with an HPRT deficiency.

Animals↗

PubMed1990

Pharmacological evaluation of SCH-12679: evidence for an in vivo antagonism of D1-dopamine receptors.

The benzazepine compound SCH-12679 has been shown to have clinical efficacy against aggressive behavior in mentally deficient patients. The purpose of the present investigation was to evaluate the potential mechanism of action of SCH-12679. Because of the structural similarity of SCH-12679 to compounds influencing D1-dopamine receptors, even though in vitro studies indicated no direct action on this receptor, investigations focused on the possibility that in vivo SCH-12679 antagonizes the function of this dopamine receptor subtype. After i.p. administration to neonatal-6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-lesioned rats, SCH-12679 reduced, dose-dependently, the locomotor activity induced by SKF-38393, a D1-dopamine agonist. A dose of SCH-12679 that antagonized the activity induced by SKF-38393 in neonatally lesioned rats also blocked various behaviors observed after administration of this D1-dopamine agonist. SCH-12679 did not alter the activity or behavioral responses induced by quinpirole, a D2-dopamine agonist, when administered to 6-OHDA-lesioned rats. SCH-12679 antagonized the self-mutilation behavior and behavioral responses induced by L-dihydroxyphenylalanine in neonatal-6-OHDA lesioned rats in a manner similar to the prototypic D1-dopamine antagonist SCH-23390 and, like SCH-23390, produced a deficit in avoidance responding in unlesioned rats. SCH-12679 produced a small, transient activation of locomotor activity immediately after administration to neonatal-6-OHDA-lesioned rats that was not observed in unlesioned or adult-6-OHDA-lesioned rats.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

PubMed1990

Neural adaptation in imipramine-treated rats processed in forced swim test: assessment of time course, handling, rat strain and amine uptake.

The intent of the present series of experiments was to better understand the events that produce a rapid adaptation of beta adrenergic and serotonin-2 (5-HT2) receptors when imipramine treatment and forced swim are combined in Sprague-Dawley rats. Beta adrenergic and 5-HT2 receptors were evaluated at specific stages of the forced swim test with and without imipramine treatment. Rapid changes in receptor binding were observed in saline-treated rats during specific stages of the test. The changes observed during forced swim could not be attributed to the transport-novelty that occurs during forced swim. Binding for both monoamine receptors was reduced in hippocampus and frontal cortex before the test swim in imipramine-treated rats as they were 10 min, 3 hr and 24 hr after the test swim. The increase in corticosterone induced by the second forced swim was not altered by imipramine, indicating that imipramine was not interfering with this measure of the stress response. In the Fisher-344 rat strain, imipramine did not produce a behavioral change during the test swim. In contrast to this lack of a behavioral change in the Fischer-344 rats, beta adrenergic and 5-HT2 receptor down-regulation was facilitated in this rat strain, similar to that found in imipramine-treated Sprague-Dawley rats subjected to swim. This latter finding suggests that beta adrenergic or 5-HT2 receptor adaptation alone is insufficient to cause an imipramine-induced behavioral change in the swim test. Studies with specific norepinephrine- and serotonin-uptake inhibitors, nisoxetine and fluoxetine, respectively, indicate that the behavioral effects of imipramine in the forced swim test are dependent upon norepinephrine uptake inhibition.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed1989

Cotransmitters: differential effects of serotonin (5-HT)-depleting drugs on levels of 5-HT and TRH and their receptors in rat brain and spinal cord.

Following codepletion of endogenous serotonin (5-HT, greater than 90%) and thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH, 66%) by neonatal treatment with the serotonergic neurotoxin, 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (DHT), a 33% (n = 12, P less than 0.01) increase in specific TRH receptor binding was observed in adult rat spinal cord (SC) homogenates. A 20-21% increase in TRH receptors was also observed in the medulla/pons (MP) (n = 12, P less than 0.05) and midbrain (MB) (n = 12, P less than 0.02), but no changes were detected in 6 rostral brain regions. The depletion of 5-HT after DHT-treatment was also accompanied by a 34-42% increase in 5-HT1 binding in the SC, MP and MB. Eadie-Hofstee analysis revealed that the changes in TRH receptor levels observed after DHT-lesions were due to an increase in receptor number rather than any significant changes in receptor affinity. Chronic treatment of adult rats with the 5-HT-depleting drugs, p-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA) and reserpine, produced a 90-97% decrease in 5-HT in the SC, MP and MB and elevated 5-HT1 binding above controls in these tissues. However, neither drug treatment caused any significant alterations in the levels of TRH or its receptors in any of these tissues. In conclusion, these results have provided further support for the coexistence of 5-HT and TRH in the MP and SC and revealed possible new areas of such colocalization in the MB. Furthermore, these data have demonstrated that only DHT-treatment, as apposed to PCPA or reserpine, can produce long-lasting codepletion of 5-HT and TRH with simultaneous compensatory up-regulation of their receptor systems in the SC and other caudal tissues.

5,7-Dihydroxytryptamine↗

PubMed1989

Clozapine antagonism of D-1 and D-2 dopamine receptor-mediated behaviors.

When tested in rats supersensitive to dopamine agonists, the atypical neuroleptic clozapine displayed pharmacological properties expected of both a D-1 and D-2 receptor antagonist. The locomotor response induced by the D-1 receptor agonist SKF-38393 in neonatal-6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-lesioned rats was reversed in a dose-related fashion, although a complete blockade of this behavior was not observed indicative for only a partial antagonism of D-1 receptor function. Clozapine also blocked the self mutilation resulting from L-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) administration to neonatal-6-OHDA-lesioned rats, an effect previously linked to D-1 receptor activation. At higher doses, clozapine blocked the locomotor activity elicited by the D-2 agonist LY-171555 in adult-6-OHDA-lesioned rats. Therefore, the action of clozapine on D-1 as well as D-2 receptor-mediated behaviors contributes to its pharmacological effects. The ability of clozapine to stop self-mutilatory behavior in neonatal-6-OHDA-lesioned rats suggests that this drug might be an effective treatment for self-injurious behavior associated with the Lesch-Nyhan syndrome and mental retardation.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

PubMed1989

Serotonergic innervation of the rat caudate following a neonatal 6-hydroxydopamine lesion: an anatomical, biochemical and pharmacological study.

6-Hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) treatment of neonatal rats resulted in a dose-related loss of striatal dopamine (DA). These reductions corresponded closely with the loss of tyrosine hydroxylase-containing terminals at this brain site. Striatal serotonin (5-HT) concentration increased only after DA was maximally depleted by the highest dose of 6-OHDA. Quantitative immunohistochemistry revealed that the increased 5-HT content after neonatal 6-OHDA lesioning was due to a proliferation of 5-HT nerve terminals. The density of immunoreactive 5-HT-containing terminals appeared to increase more than did the 5-HT content. The present study examined whether 5-HT hyperinnervation was playing a role in behavioral responses induced by D1-DA agonists and antagonists in neonatally lesioned rats, because reports have suggested that these drugs may interact with 5-HT receptors. However, SCH-23390, the D1-DA antagonist (0.3 mg/kg), did not alter behavioral responses to 5-HTP and SKF-38393 (3 mg/kg), a D1-DA agonist did not produce any signs of activating 5-HT receptors in 5,7-DHT-lesioned rats. These data indicate that these compounds affecting D1-DA receptors do not have a significant effect on 5-HT function at doses which have maximal effects on D1-DA receptor function. Pretreatment with the 5-HT antagonist methysergide did not produce a change in apomorphine-induced locomotion and did not antagonize the self-mutilation or the other behaviors produced by L-DOPA or SKF-38393 in neonatally lesioned rats, suggesting that 5-HT hyperinnervation is not responsible for these drug-induced changes in neonatal 6-OHDA-lesioned rats.

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

PubMed1989

Priming of D1-dopamine receptor responses: long-lasting behavioral supersensitivity to a D1-dopamine agonist following repeated administration to neonatal 6-OHDA-lesioned rats.

The present study demonstrates that repeated administration of SKF-38393, a D1-dopamine agonist, is necessary for maximal behavioral supersensitivity of D1-dopamine receptor responses in neonatal 6-OHDA-lesioned rats, confirming earlier work. This repeated administration of SKF-38393, which is referred to as priming of D1-dopamine receptor responses, resulted in a progressive increase in locomotor activity, as well as several other behaviors. This priming phenomenon lasted at least 6 months. Repeated administration of the D2-dopamine agonist LY-171555 also increased behavioral responses to the D1-dopamine agonist. However, previous administration of a D2-dopamine agonist was not necessary for priming of D1-dopamine receptor responses, because D1-dopamine receptor priming could be produced in the presence of a D2-dopamine receptor antagonist. Blockade of D1-dopamine receptors with SCH-23390 prior to injection of SKF-38393 prevented the increasing responsiveness following repeated administration of this D1-dopamine agonist. Selective neonatal destruction of dopamine-containing neurons produced the same result as did destruction of catecholamine-containing neurons, indicating that the noradrenergic system is not involved in this phenomenon. Priming of D1-dopamine receptor responses by repeated administration of SKF-38393 was not observed in unlesioned controls or in rats that received catecholamine-depleting lesions as adults. Repeated administration of scopolamine also was able to prime behavioral responses to SKF-38393 in neonatal 6-OHDA-lesioned rats, indicating that endogenous release of dopamine can prime D1-dopamine receptor responses in neonatally lesioned rats. In addition, responses to indirect-acting agonists were enhanced in rats that had been primed with a D1-dopamine agonist when compared wit responses in unprimed animals.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

2,3,4,5-Tetrahydro-7,8-dihydroxy-1-phenyl-1H-3-ben↗

PubMed1989

Dopamine deficiency in self-injurious behavior.

Based on the report that patients with Lesch-Nyhan Syndrome (LNS) have a central deficiency of dopamine similar in magnitude to that seen in Parkinsonism, the age at which dopaminergic neurons are disrupted was proposed to explain the differing symptoms observed in these two disorders. To investigate this hypothesis, brain dopaminergic neurons were lesioned in neonatal and adult rats with 6-hydroxy-dopamine (6-OHDA). Results demonstrated that neonatally lesioned rats had learning deficits and elevated levels of serotonin in the striatum--characteristics observed in LNS. Administration of L-dopa produced self-injurious behavior (SIB) in neonatally lesioned but not adult lesioned rats. Subsequent studies revealed that the SIB induced by L-dopa was dependent upon activation of D1 receptors. The elevated susceptibility of neonatally lesioned rats for SIB was demonstrated further by the enhanced occurrence of SIB when muscimol was administered into the substantia nigra reticulata (SNR). Other studies demonstrated that adenosine agonists could antagonize SIB, suggesting that the reduced adenosine observed in LNS may contribute to this symptom. The basic work being performed should be relevant to LNS and to other developmental disorders exhibiting SIB.

Animals↗

PubMed1988

Inhibitors of collagenase IV and cell adhesion reduce the invasive activity of malignant tumour cells.

The invasive activities of some malignant cells appear to be activated by contact with laminin. This protein occurs solely in basement membranes and the binding of malignant cells to the surface of this extracellular matrix initiates the invasion process. Passage of the cells across basement membrane requires degradative activity and laminin induces the production of collagenase IV which lyses the collagen IV network. The motility of the cells is enhanced by chemo-attractants and by matrix molecules. Peptides that inhibit the binding of tumour cells to laminin, inhibitors of collagenase IV, and inhibitors of specific pathways of arachidonic acid metabolism prevent invasion as well as the metastasis of malignant cells and could be employed to stop the spread of cancer.

Animals↗

PubMed1988

Alterations in cerebrospinal fluid uridine, hypoxanthine, and xanthine in head-injured patients.

1. Examination of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of head-injured patients reveals that the concentration of intraventricular xanthine is elevated and that of uridine is decreased relative to those of adult lumbar CSF. 2. No correlations were observed between CSF lactate and CSF hypoxanthine, xanthine, or uridine, suggesting that changes in purine metabolites and the pyrimidine nucleoside do not index similar cellular events as does lactic acid production. 3. Ventricular CSF from hydrocephalic infants had uridine and hypoxanthine concentrations not significantly different from those of normal adult lumbar CSF, but xanthine was significantly elevated. 4. Since uridine has anticonvulsant properties and is a crucial substrate for cerebral metabolism, it may be useful to evaluate this pyrimidine for use in the management of patients with head injury.

Adult↗

PubMed1988

(Acyloxy)benzophenones and (acyloxy)-4-pyrones. A new class of inhibitors of human neutrophil elastase.

A series of 4-(acyloxy)- and 4,4'-bis(acyloxy)benzophenones were synthesized. Some of them, pivalates (trimethylacetates) and isobutyrates in particular, were found to be potent and selective inhibitors of human neutrophil (leukocyte) elastase. A series of 2-[(acyloxy)methyl]-5-(acyloxy)-4-pyrones were synthesized regioselectively from kojic acid. The 4-pyrones bearing a long chain acyl group at the 2-position and either pivaloyloxy or isobutyryloxy at the 5-position were potent and selective inhibitors of the human elastase. A number of analogues and derivatives in both series were synthesized in order to study the structure-activity relationship as summarized in Tables I-VI and in Tables IX and X. The inhibition was selective to human neutrophil elastase. No inhibition of porcine pancreatic elastase or bovine pancreatic chymotrypsin (Tables VII and XI) was observed. The most likely mechanism of inhibition is discussed. The implication of these findings for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and emphysema is outlined.

Benzophenones↗

PubMed1988

Glucose metabolism in obesity: influence of body fat distribution.

The dose-response relationships between portal venous insulin concentrations and hepatic glucose production and between peripheral insulin concentrations and peripheral glucose utilization were determined in 8 nonobese and 17 obese premenopausal women with either upper or lower body fat localization. The glucose production dose-response curves for the two obese groups were shifted to the right at all levels of portal insulinemia. The upper body obese women had a greater rightward shift compared to the lower body obese women. The peripheral glucose utilization dose-response curve was shifted to the right in the lower body obese women, but maximal glucose utilization was normal. The upper body obese women had both a greater rightward shift and a marked reduction in maximal glucose utilization. The insulin concentrations that had half-maximal effects on glucose production and utilization were similar in each group. These results indicate that the liver is not inherently more sensitive to insulin than peripheral tissues. Obesity is associated with a moderate diminution of hepatic and peripheral insulin sensitivity. Upper body fat localization in obese women is characterized by a greater diminution in insulin sensitivity and decline in peripheral insulin responsivity than is lower body fat localization. The marked peripheral insulin resistance in the former group may account for the increased prevalence of glucose intolerance.

Adult↗