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V Ruocco

Publications and source records attributed to V Ruocco.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Enalapril: a powerful in vitro non-thiol acantholytic agent.

Drugs containing sulfhydryl groups (thiol drugs) (e.g., penicillamine, captopril, thiopronine) can induce pemphigus in vivo and provoke acantholysis in vitro. Enalapril, like captopril, is an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor largely used as an antihypertensive drug; it has recently been reported to induce pemphigus, though it is not a thiol drug. In this study we investigated the possible in vitro acantholytic effect of enalapril on normal human skin from donors. The drug induced severe acantholytic changes of keratinocytes and complete suprabasal splitting at one tenth the concentration required by thiol drugs in similar experiments, even after a shorter period of culture. All skin samples from different donors was highly susceptible to the acantholytic effect of enalapril. In our experience, enalapril is the most powerful acantholytic drug in vitro.

Acantholysis↗
PubMed1992

"Two-step" pemphigus induction by ACE-inhibitors.

Pemphigus lesions appeared in a 58-year-old man who was taking captopril for his hypertension. Drug withdrawal resulted in complete remission of the eruption. The subsequent use of enalapril as an antihypertensive agent caused a recurrence of pemphigus lesions along with onset of itching and dermographism. Intercellular antibodies were not found. Discontinuance of enalapril therapy had no effect on the clinical course. Steroid treatment was needed to resolve the eruption. Recently repeated immunofluorescent studies disclosed intercellular IgG antibodies in the serum at a low titer. Pemphigus induction could be initially related to the thiol acantholytic property of captopril. Subsequent production of intercellular antibodies and drug-activation of the kinin system could be responsible for relapsing.

Anti-Inflammatory Agents↗
PubMed1992

Drug-triggered pemphigus in a predisposed woman.

A 31-year-old woman with three pemphigus-prone antigens in her HLA haplotype (B7, DR4, DQw7) developed the disease soon after taking a pyrazolone derivative, viz. feprazone. The pemphigus lesions persisted despite withdrawal of the drug and worsened appreciably when she used ceftriaxone (a new cephalosporin with three sulphur atoms) for a bout of acute pharyngitis. Thiol groups formed from the metabolic breakdown of ceftriaxone are thought to have promoted acantholysis via a biochemical route. Genetic predisposition alone ('the soil') may be essential, though not per se sufficient for outbreak of pemphigus; the intervention of exogenous, heterogeneous factors ('the seed') often seems decisive in triggering full-blown disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

[A case of idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome].

Idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome (IHS) is reported in a 59-year-old farmer. Skin manifestations were represented by pruritic erythemato-squamous and papulonodular lesions, the heart was affected by endomyocardic fibrosis, and periodic intestinal colics denoted a possible gut involvement. A mild and transient beneficial effect was achieved by treatment with antihistamines, sodium-chromoglycate, steroids. Recent studies indicate that IHS hypereosinophilia is caused by interleukins 3 and 5, cytokines able to activate circulating eosinophils and to enhance the survival of these cells.

Eosinophilia↗
PubMed1990

[Porokeratosis palmaris et plantaris disseminata with squamous cell carcinoma].

A 53-year-old man presented porokeratosis palmaris, plantaris et disseminata with some features (exacerbation of lesions, in the sun light, zosteriform fashion of them on the trunk and extremities) distinctive of other variants of porokeratosis. Lately, four squamous cell carcinomas had arisen on the areas involved by disease. Histologic study of porokeratosis lesions showed epidermal changes typical of the disease ("cornoid lamella"), but also a mild disorder of malpighian stratification. Neoplasms were removed surgically and the patient was given etretinate orally (75 mg/day for a week, 50 mg/day for a month, 25 mg/day for six months, i.e. up to now), which proved to be effective in improving porokeratosis lesions and preventing the occurrence of other squamous cell carcinomas.

Carcinoma, Squamous Cell↗
PubMed1989

Fine-needle aspiration cytology of angiolymphoid hyperplasia with eosinophilia: a case report with electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry.

Angiolymphoid hyperplasia with eosinophilia (ALHE) is an uncommon vascular inflammatory lesion usually involving the dermis or subcutaneous tissue of the head-neck region of middle-aged women. Histologically, this lesion shows a florid proliferation of vessels lined by particular endothelial cells and an inflammatory infiltrate composed of lymphocytes and eosinophils. The fine-needle aspiration (FNA) cytology of a nodular lesion in the retroauricolar region of a 18-yr-old woman showed spindle-shaped and polygonal cells with vesicular nuclei and deeply eosinophilic cytoplasm containing well-defined vacuoles in a background of eosinophils and lymphocytes. These features were consistent with a proliferation of epithelioid endothelial cells, and a diagnosis of ALHE was suggested. The histology confirmed the preoperatory diagnosis, and ultrastructural and immunohistochemical studies further demonstrated the endothelial nature of epithelial-appearing cells. Because the clinical appearance of the lesion may mimic a large number of benign and malignant diseases, a preoperatory diagnosis of ALHE is rarely made. The FNA cytology may represent a simple and reliable method with which to study and diagnose proliferations of epithelioid endothelial cells.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Neopterin and alpha-interferon in patients affected by Kaposi's sarcoma from Africa.

The presence of circulating alpha-interferon and neopterin was investigated in sera of 47 patients affected by African Kaposi's sarcoma, both HIV-seropositive (13 patients) and HIV-seronegative (34 patients). For comparison, analyses were also performed in 20 HIV-seropositive symptomatic African subjects as well as in 20 African and 20 Italian healthy individuals. Alpha-interferon and neopterin levels appeared significantly higher in comparison with healthy control groups (P less than 0.001) but not with HIV-seropositve African individuals without Kaposi's sarcoma. Moreover, alpha-interferon and neopterin levels were significantly higher in progressive Kaposi's sarcoma (27 patients) than in regressive Kaposi's sarcoma (20 patients) (P less than 0.001). A significant correlation between alpha-interferon and neopterin was observed (r = 0.57; P less than 0.01). Furthermore, alpha-interferon levels of HIV-seropositive Kaposi's sarcoma patients resulted significantly higher in comparison with the seronegative ones (P less than 0.05). It is concluded that alpha-interferon and neopterin may be reliable prognostic markers in Kaposi's sarcoma patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

An unusual case of trimethylaminuria.

A case is reported of trimethylaminuria that first developed in adulthood without any apparent cause. The patient developed a characteristic fish odour of his sweat, urine and to his breath after the consumption of choline-rich foods. Elevated levels of trimethylamine were present in the urine after dietary tests and identified by means of gas chromatography.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

In vitro acantholysis by captopril and thiopronine.

The possible acantholytic property of captopril and thiopronine has been investigated using in vitro tissue cultures. Normal human breast skin explants have been cultured in Hanks' balanced salt solution containing 40% normal inactivated human serum with the addition of L-cysteine, or reduced glutathione (GSH), or captopril, or thiopronine, at four different concentrations (1, 5, 10, 15 mM). Patterns of diffuse, mainly suprabasal acantholysis, with formation of bullae, were observed in the skin explants cultured with captopril or thiopronine at a 15-mM concentration after 5 days of culture; intraepidermal splits were present also at a 10-mM concentration. Focal acantholysis was seen in specimens cultured with L-cysteine or GSH at a 15-mM concentration. No lesions occurred in the samples treated with lower concentrations of the above substances, nor in controls. The results show a biochemical acantholytic potential of both captopril and thiopronine, resembling that of penicillamine in similar experimental conditions, and consonant with clinical observations of pemphigus induced by drugs containing thiol groups in their molecule (SH drugs).

Acantholysis↗
PubMed1988

[AIDS].

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1988

Neuroendocrine (Merkel cell) tumor of the skin: fine-needle aspiration cytology, histology, electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry of 12 cases.

A series of 12 cases of neuroendocrine (Merkel cell) tumor of the skin, observed in the last 4 years, is reported. The mean age of the patients, 10 females and 2 males, was 62.4 years. The head, buttocks and extremities were the primary locations. The recurrence rate was 33.3% and 2 patients died of their disease. The histology is characterized by small round cells growing in solid sheets, nests or trabeculae. Ultrastructural study showed cytoplasmic membrane-bound granules of neurosecretory type and collections of perinuclear intermediate filaments as constant findings. The presence of cytoskeletal proteins was studied with monoclonal antibodies against cytokeratin and neurofilaments, as well as neuron-specific enolase reactivity, by the immunoperoxidase technique in 7 cases. Cytokeratin was demonstrated in 5 tumors and neurofilaments in 3, whereas the neuron-specific enolase was positive in all tested cases. In 4 patients a fine-needle aspiration biopsy of the primary, skin recurrences or lymph node metastasis was performed, showing the reliability of this technique in the diagnosis and staging of the disease.

Adenocarcinoma↗