Biomedical subjects

S Sehgal

Publications and source records attributed to S Sehgal.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

PubMed1992

Secondary immune defects in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Changes in the humoral, cellular and phagocytic components of the immune system were investigated in 44 biopsy proven, untreated patients of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). There was significant decrease in the total lymphocyte number, their subsets (T and B) and the T helper (T mu) population. Impaired leukocyte migration inhibition response and DNA synthesis following stimulation by phytohaemagglutinin were noted. Significant reduction of serum IgA was found in patients of both diffuse and nodular NHL. Phagocytic activity and nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT) reduction were unaltered, but chemotaxis was significantly reduced and bactericidal activity showed variable results.

Antibody Formation↗

PubMed1991

Use of in vitro method to assess different brands of anti-leishmanial drugs.

Reports in the literature indicate the use of animal models for testing newer anti-leishmanial drugs in vivo. However, in certain established cell lines and macrophages in vitro models have the advantage over the in vivo system of simplicity and speed with which the results can be obtained. A simple in vitro system using peritoneal exudate macrophages of BALB/c mice infected with Leishmania donovani promastigotes has been tested for its use in determining the efficacy of several new drugs. Two well-established drugs, amphotericin B and sodium stibogluconate, as expected, could kill the intracellular parasites effectively. Two relatively new drugs not routinely used against leishmania, rifampicin and metronidazole at concentrations of 20 micrograms/ml and 10 micrograms/ml, respectively, were also able to kill the intracellular leishmania parasites effectively. Critical factors for drug testing in vitro have been elucidated: the most important being the temperature of incubation after infection.

Animals↗

PubMed1991

Development, acceptability and nutritional value of weaning mixtures.

Low cost weaning mixtures were prepared by mixing (i) malted pearl millet (Penicitum typhidium L), roasted amaranth (Amaranthus sp.); roasted green gram (Vigna radiata); jaggery and (ii) malted barley (Dehusked barley); roasted amaranth grain; roasted green gram; jaggery in proportion 60:20:40:45 wt/wt and were nutritionally evaluated. Both the blends had a nutrient composition within the range prescribed by the Indian Standard Institute (ISI) for processed weaning foods. The processing of grains resulted in lower levels of phytic acid, polyphenols and saponins and higher in vitro protein digestibility than those of the raw grains used for preparing mixtures. Both the mixtures were acceptable to trained panelists and children.

Amaranthus↗

PubMed1991

Correlation of HPV antigen and type of genital warts with atypia.

Five clinical types of genital warts were identified, studied histopathologically and stained for human papilloma virus (HPV) antigen. HPV antigen was found in all degrees of koilocytosis and it was present more often in the hyperplastic warts than in other types of genital warts. However, as reported earlier, the presence of HPV antigen did not decrease proportionately as the degree of atypia increased.

Antigens, Viral↗

PubMed1991

Immunohistochemical demonstration of mycobacterial antigens in intracranial tuberculoma.

Mycobacterial antigens have been demonstrated immunohistochemically in the paraffin sections of 10 intracranial tuberculous granulomas and the results were compared with the detection of acid fast bacilli by conventional Ziehl-Neelsen method. In none of the 10 specimens, acid fast bacilli were demonstrated while mycobacterial antigens were characterised as diffusely staining granular brownish-pink material within the cytoplasm of giant cells and macrophages. In 14 specimens of granulomatous lesions due to non-tuberculous aetiology, immunohistochemical stains were negative for mycobacterial antigen. Thus demonstration of mycobacterial antigen will be not only useful in establishing mycobacterial aetiology of a caseating intracranial granuloma but also can be used as an alternative method to the conventional Ziehl-Neelsen method.

Antigens, Bacterial↗

PubMed1991

An association of acute myeloid leukaemia and multiple myeloma: a case study.

A case of denovo presentation of acute myeloid leukaemia with multiple myeloma is reported in a 32 years old male. He presented with pancytopenia and aleukaemic leukaemia. Bone marrow examination revealed presence of acute myeloid leukaemia and sheets of plasma cells. Serum electrophoresis showed a M protein which was characterised to be Ig lambda with decrease in normal immunoglobulin levels.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

Circulating immune complexes in cerebrospinal fluid of patients with tuberculous meningitis.

Circulating immune complexes (ICs) were isolated from cerebrospinal fluids (CSFs) of patients with tuberculous meningitis (TBM), non-tuberculous neurological diseases by a polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation method. Mycobacterium tuberculosis antigen 5 was detected in CICs of 30% patients with TBM, by sandwich ELISA. CIC level decreases during antituberculosis chemotherapy and therefore its detection can provide a method to monitor the therapeutic schedule in patients with TBM.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Histopathological studies in relation to protection induced by using MDP as an adjuvant in malaria.

Different immunomodulators were tried for their efficacy to protect against the lethal infection of Plasmodium berghei in mice. Since MDP was the most effective non-FCA adjuvant imparting a significant degree of protection, histopathological studies were undertaken in mice protected by using this adjuvant in comparison with mice suffering from acute malaria. The malarious mice revealed abnormalities of the liver, spleen and kidney, whereas these abnormalities were minimal in the MDP-immunized mice. The results are consistent with the degree of protection induced by MDP, and are significant with respect to the effectiveness of the non-FCA adjuvant in causing minimal histopathological abnormalities.

Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine↗

PubMed1991

Elevated plasma norepinephrine levels in infants of substance-abusing mothers.

Infants of substance-abusing mothers (ISAM) have significant growth and neurodevelopmental abnormalities. The origin of these abnormalities is unknown. We postulated that ISAM have increased sympathetic nervous system tone and altered catecholamine levels. Therefore, we measured plasma norepinephrine, epinephrine, and dopamine levels and the number and receptor affinity of beta-adrenoreceptor binding sites on lymphocytes and alpha-adrenoreceptor binding sites on thrombocytes in 22 otherwise healthy ISAM (age, 2.1 +/- 0.5 months; mean +/- SD) and 15 healthy controls (age, 2.5 +/- 0.8 months). Norepinephrine levels in venous blood were 1.8-fold higher in ISAM than in control infants (6.30 +/- 3.85 nmol/L vs 3.55 +/- 2.45 nmol/L). There were no differences in plasma epinephrine or dopamine levels. There were no differences in the number of binding sites or receptor affinity for beta- and alpha-adrenoreceptors. We conclude that ISAM have elevated circulating norepinephrine levels compared with controls. We speculate that this is associated with increased sympathetic nervous system tone in ISAM and that the absence of adrenoreceptor down-regulation may create catecholamine suprasensitivity.

Blood Platelets↗

PubMed1991

Assays for lupus anticoagulant: the sensitivity of different assays.

Fifty patients with systemic lupus erythematosus were studied for the presence of lupus anticoagulant using three different assays--kaolin clotting time, platelet neutralization test, and tissue thromboplastin inhibition test. Lupus anticoagulant could be detected in seven cases (14%) with the use of one test in cases with a partial prothrombin time with kaolin more than five seconds greater than normal. The detection rate rose to 20% (10 cases) when using all three tests, so a panel of three assays could identify lupus patients apparently at risk for thrombotic complications.

Blood Coagulation Factors↗

PubMed1991

Immune status in ataxia telangiectasia.

Immune status of 22 patients of ataxia telangiectasia was studied over a period of 8 yr (mean age of patients: 9.5 +/- 3 yr; 9 of 22 were siblings). Low T-cell number was observed in 14 of 19 patients but the response to PHA challenge done in 10 patients was normal and migration inhibition to BCG antigen was positive in 6 of 6 patients. IgM defect was seen in 2 out of 18 patients and serum IgA was deficient in 10 out of 18 patients. Salivary IgA was also absent in these children. Four children had high spontaneous NBT reduction. None of the patients had lymphoma, leukemia or any other malignancy at the time of presentation. Candida killing was normal in all patients. The presenting feature related to the CNS in almost all children and gross infections were not seen.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Serodiagnosis of Indian kala-azar: evaluation of IFA, ELISA and CIEP tests.

The sensitivity and specificity of three serological tests viz. indirect immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT), enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and counterimmunoelectrophoresis (CIEP) for the diagnosis of Indian kala-azar were evaluated. Of the 209 patients in whom Leishmania donovani parasite could be demonstrated in bone marrow, 207 (99.04 per cent) could be diagnosed with IFAT, 203 (96.6 per cent) with CIEP and 208 (99.5 per cent) with ELISA. None of these serological tests was positive in 40 healthy individuals and 10 patients each with tuberculosis, toxoplasmosis and malaria. In only one out of 10 patients with malaria ELISA alone gave false positive result. Of the 119 patients who had clinical features simulating kala-azar but were negative for Leishmania donovani in bone marrow and responded to treatment other than that for Indian Kala-azar, IFAT, CIEP and ELISA were false positive in three (2.5 per cent), nil and three (2.5 per cent) cases, respectively. The use of serodiagnostic tests like ELISA for mass screening and CIEP in less well equipped peripheral laboratories is suggested.

Counterimmunoelectrophoresis↗

PubMed1991

Demographic features of sporadic acute hepatitis as determined by viral hepatitis markers.

The demographic features of acute x sporadic viral hepatitis as diagnosed by specific markers of viral infection in four different cities in north and north-east India, were examined. Of 405 patients examined, 26 per cent had HB,Ag, 5.9 per cent IgM-anti-HAV antibody, and 8.4 per cent IgM-anti-HBc antibody. Hepatitis B occurred more frequently in male patients (76 per cent) compared to hepatitis A (54 per cent), and in the young adult age group (21-30 years), compared to the latter, which occurred predominantly in children (0-10 years). By using tests to detect HbsAg and IgM-anti-HBc antibody, this study found that hepatitis B accounted for 3 per cent and 8.8 per cent of clinically detected acute sporadic hepatitis in patients less than and older than 10 years of age respectively, which is in contrast with previously-reported rates from India. This study also suggests that many of the infections thought to have been due to HBV, may be due to NANB hepatitis virus. This study emphasizes the importance of specific laboratory tests to draw epidemiologic conclusions regarding hepatitis.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1991

Comparison between indirect fluorescent antibody and Weil-Felix tests for detecting antibodies against rickettsia.

Comparative evaluation of indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and Weil-Felix test (WFT) was carried out for detecting rickettsial antibodies in 102 patients with pyrexia of unknown origin (P.U.O.), 20 brucellosis cases and 20 normal healthy controls (N.H.C.). Of 102 sera of cases with P.U.O., antibodies against rickettsia could be detected in 11 (10.7 per cent) cases by IFAT and in 10 (9.8 per cent) cases by WFT, but amongst these 10 sera, antibodies could be detected only in six by IFAT. All 20 brucella positive sera were negative for rickettsia by IFAT but by WFT in 6 sera antibodies against rickettsia could be detected and 20 N.H.C. sera were negative by both the tests. Thus the advantages of IFAT over WFT in detecting antibodies against rickettsia in terms of sensitivity and specificity make it a more reliable test.

Agglutination Tests↗

PubMed1990

Correlation between culture of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and detection of mycobacterial antigens in cerebrospinal fluid of patients with tuberculous meningitis.

A retrospective study was done to correlate culture of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and detection of mycobacterial antigen in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) by an inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). M. tuberculosis was cultured from CSF of 14 out of 70 patients with a clinical diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis (TBM). Mycobacterial antigens were demonstrated in CSF specimens by inhibition ELISA in all 14 culture-positive patients with antigen concentrations of 14.5-295 ng/ml (mean 158.8 ng/ml). Thus there was positive correlation between the detection of mycobacterial antigen and isolation of M. tuberculosis. Based on this observation, 56 CSF specimens from culture-negative patients with clinically diagnosed TBM were examined for mycobacterial antigen and the data were compared with those from culture positive patients. ELISA gave positive results in 38 specimens, with antigen levels of 12.5-280 ng/ml (mean 152.6 ng/ml). In 70 CSF specimens from patients with non-tuberculous neurological disease (control group), ELISA results were negative. Thus, detection of mycobacterial antigen in CSF specimens by inhibition ELISA had a specificity of 100% and a sensitivity of 67.8% for the diagnosis of TBM and is of potential value in the laboratory diagnosis of TBM.

Antigens, Bacterial↗

PubMed1990

Syphilis serology and human immunodeficiency virus positivity in Chandigarh.

AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases are interlinked. VDRL positivity may indicate that the individual has an increased risk of being HIV positive as the epidemiological risk factors for developing syphilis and AIDS are similar. We analysed 323 (5.8%) VDRL positive serum samples (out of 5592 screened) for HIV positivity. All were HIV negative. While syphilitic infection in India at present is not commonly associated with HIV infection, experience in other countries indicates caution.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

HIV-I antibodies in health and disease.

Antibodies to human immune deficiency (HIV) virus were studied in 2000 individuals including cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), leprosy, chronic renal failure on haemodialysis and patients attending STD clinics. A group of blood donors was also screened, ELISA kits provided by Wellcome Diagnostics were used. Results indicate that the ELISA values were far above the cut off figure in all except in a couple where the husband who had stayed in Uganda for several years, and had features of full blown AIDS died 4 months after the diagnosis. The spouse contacted AIDS within a relatively short incubation period and died within 6 months of diagnosis. The North Indian population thus appears to be free of this virus so far. This observation will be an important lead mark in the future epidemiology of HIV infection in India.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Prevalence of toxoplasma antibodies among women with BOH and general population in Delhi.

One thousand and thirty-six serum samples obtained from women with bad obstetric history (BOH) were subjected to detection of toxoplasma antibody by indirect immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT) using whole promastigotes of Rh strain of Toxoplasma gondii as antigen. Thirtyone (2.99 per cent) samples were found to be positive (titre greater than or equal to 1:64). Of these 31 patients' sera 27 (87.09 per cent) showed rising titre of antibody when second samples were drawn after 4 weeks. Two hundred serum samples from general population were also assayed and only 2 (1 per cent) were found to be having toxoplasma antibodies in titre of 1:64. The observations suggest low prevalence of toxoplasmosis in and around Delhi which is in consonance with the food habits of local people and their infrequent contact/association with cats.

Antibodies, Protozoan↗