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Case Reports 2009; 30(4): 437-449 PubMed PMID: 20010503 Citation  Keywords:  Antioxidants:therapeutic use, Drug Therapy, Combination, Humans, Infant, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Melatonin:therapeutic use, Neuroblastoma:diagnostic imaging, Positron-Emission Tomography, Remission Induction, Retinoids:therapeutic use, Retroperi.   

OBJECTIVES: The combined use (MDB) of Somatostatin, Melatonin, Retinoids, Vitamins E, C, and D3, with Calcium, Chondroitin sulfate, and microdoses of Cyclophosphamide in a seven-month old baby affected by a voluminous retroperitoneal neuroblastoma measuring 4 x 8 cm produced a 50% objective response in six months, an almost total response in one year and a complete response at 14 months, with cure and absence of disease for over ten years.r />r /> RESULTS: This paper discusses the rationale and the molecular mechanisms of action of the treatment which has a differentiating, apoptotic and antiproliferative effect, preserving and enhancing both the trophism and functionality of organs and tissues, and the neuroimmunoendocrine and antiblastic homeostasis. This result is in agreement with the positive results already published on the use of the MDB in lymphoproliferative diseases, in stage III and IV lung cancer, in breast cancer and in cancers of the upper aerodigestive epithelia. Without the need for hospitalisation and with no toxicity, the MDB rapidly reduced and then eliminated the voluminous tumoral mass, allowing a normal quality of life and a perfectly normal psychophysical development.r />r /> CONCLUSIONS: We believe it is of use to report this case in order to invite greater interest in the oncological possibilities offered by the immunoneuroendocrine and biological-receptorial properties of the MDB treatment....

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Journal Article 2009; 30(4): 540-546 PubMed PMID: 20010502 Citation  Keywords:  Aged, Bone Density:genetics, Bone Diseases, Metabolic:epidemiology, Female, Genetic Predisposition to Disease:epidemiology, Genotype, Humans, Middle Aged, Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal:epidemiology, Poland:epidemiology, Polymerase Chain Reaction, Polymorph.   

OBJECTIVE: Recently the significance of genetic traits, influencing hormonal and environmental factors, in susceptibility to osteopenia and osteoporosis development has been indicated. Much attention to the polymorphic variants of vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene was paid. The restriction polymorphisms in VDR gene could be involved in the modulation of vitamin D action and modulate the level of bone mineral density (BMD) and the risk to develop osteopenia and osteoporosis.r />r /> MATERIALS AND METHODS: Total 321 postmenopausal women (mean age 63.26 +/- 8.90 years), including women with osteoporosis (163 patients) and osteopenia (95) have been compared to 63 women with normal t-score value. For detection of VDR polymorphisms PCR/RFLP (polymerase chain reaction/restriction fragment length polymorphism) assay have been used.r />r /> RESULTS: The frequency of BsmI, ApaI, and TaqI polymorphic variants of VDR gene detected in investigated groups was not statistically different. The slight, not significant tendency to prevalence of a allele (ApaI polymorphism) in the controls comparing to women with osteoporosis and osteopenia have been noted. Higher prevalence of homozygous TT genotype (TaqI polymorphism) the in the both groups with lower BMD value (47.9 : 49.5 vs. 34.9% in the controls) and higher prevalence of T allele in these both groups (65.9 : 68.4 vs. 57.9) was been also observed.r />r /> CONCLUSIONS: The presence of T allele of TaqI polymorphism could predict the higher risk to develop osteoporosis in postmenopausal woman; consequently t allele could have protective effect. The presence of A allele (ApaI polymprphism) seems to be weakly connected with osteoporosis susceptibility....

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Journal Article 2009; 30(4): 501-505 PubMed PMID: 20010501 Citation  Keywords:  Adenosine, Birth Weight:genetics, Body Height:genetics, Child Development:physiology, Cytosine, Female, Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Infant, Small for Gestational Age:growth & development, Insulin-Like Growth Factor I:genetics, Male, Polymorphism, Gen.   

BACKGROUND: IGF-I gene polymorphisms might alter IGF-I level resulting in decreased foetal and postnatal growth and increased risk for diabetes mellitus type 2 and cardiovascular diseases in adulthood.r />r /> OBJECTIVES: We analyzed the association between Cytosine-Adenosine (CA)10-24 repeats polymorphism in promoter region of the IGF-I gene and early growth in infants with birth weight appropriate for gestational age (AGA) and small for gestational age (SGA).r />r /> DESIGN AND METHODS: All neonates were born at term, 196 of them were AGA and 26 SGA. Blood for DNA analyses was obtained from placental part of umbilical vein. Genotyping was performed using fragment analyses of IGF-I gene promoter region. The data about postnatal growth in the group of AGA children were obtained at the age of 18 months, in SGA children at 12 months.r />r /> RESULTS: No differences in the frequency of wild type allele with (CA)19 repeats and polymorphisms with (CA)<19 or (CA)>19 repeats were observed between AGA and SGA children. The average birth weight and length in AGA wild type (CA)19 homozygotes were lower in comparison with AGA carriers of various (CA)n polymorphisms but all observed anthropometric differences disappeared at the age of 18 months. In SGA children, no differences were found between number of (CA)n repeats and anthropometric parameters both at birth and at the age of 12 months.r />r /> CONCLUSIONS: Although (CA)n repeats polymorphism in IGF-I gene might affect prenatal growth in AGA children, our results have not shown any impact of variable number of (CA) n repeats in IGF-I gene on postnatal growth....

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Journal Article 2009; 30(4): 506-510 PubMed PMID: 20010500 Citation  Keywords:  Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide:metabolism, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2:metabolism, Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Glucagon:metabolism, Glutamate Decarboxylase:metabolism, Humans, Insulin:metabolism, Insulin-Secreting Cells:cytology, Pancreatectomy, Pancre.   

OBJECTIVES: The pattern of distribution of calcitonin-gene related peptide (CGRP), a neuropeptide, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a neurotransmitter and GABA-converting enzyme, glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) in the pancreas of diabetic patients was investigated to determine whether diabetes mellitus influences the expression of these biological transmitters.r />r /> METHODS: Pancreatic tissue samples retrieved, during pancreatectomy, from cancer patients with and without Type 2 diabetes were paraffin embedded. The expression of CGRP, GABA and GAD was examined in pancreatic tissue using immunofluorescence techniques.r />r /> RESULTS: CGRP, GABA and GAD were observed in many cells located in the central as well as the peripheral regions of pancreatic islet. The expression of CGRP, GABA and GAD decreased dramatically in pancreatic islet cells of diabetic patients compared to control. CGRP and GABA co-localized with glucagon in some pancreatic islet cells of both normal and diabetic patients. The pattern of distribution of CGRP, GABA and GAD in normal and Type 2 diabetic patients was similar to that of insulin.r />r /> CONCLUSION: The number of human pancreatic islet cells expressing CGRP, GABA and GAD decreased significantly after the onset of Type 2 diabetes. These neuropeptides and neurotransmitters may play a role in the regulation of pancreatic beta cell function....

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Journal Article 2009; 30(4): 511-514 PubMed PMID: 20010499 Citation  Keywords:  Adrenocorticotropic Hormone:blood, Animals, Blood Glucose:drug effects, Cholinergic Fibers:drug effects, Cholinesterase Inhibitors:pharmacology, Hippocampus:cytology, Male, Microinjections, Motor Activity, Neostigmine:pharmacology, Neural Pathways, Rats, .   

OBJECTIVE: In our previous study, a lesion in the lateral bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNSTL) was found to significantly attenuate the elevation of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) in plasma during microinjectin of neostigmine, an inhibitor of acetylcholine esterase, into the rat hippocampus. The current study was designed to examine the role of the BNSTL in regulation of blood glucose elevation induced by hippocampal neostigmine injection.r />r /> MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ibotenic acid (15 microg/microl) was stereotaxically bilaterally injected into the BNSTL of rats. Two weeks after the injections, neostigmine methylsulfate (sigma, 5 x 10-8 mol) was microinjected into the rat hippocampus in a volume of 1 microl for 1 min using a CMA/100 microinjection pump. Plasma ACTH and glucose concentrations were examined using radioimmunoassay and immobilized enzyme casing/H2O2 method techniques, respectively.r />r /> RESULTS: Compared with sham-operated control rats, rats with BNSTL lesions produced by ibotenic acid showed significantly attenuated the elevations of plasma ACTH evoked by the microinjection of neostigmine into the hippocampus. However, no significant difference of blood glucose in response to the injection was observed between the BNSTL-lesioned rats and controls.r />r /> CONCLUSION: The results of the present study indicate that the BNSTL plays a role in ACTH regulation and not in blood glucose regulation when the hippocampal cholinergic system is activated....

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Journal Article 2009; 30(4): 515-524 PubMed PMID: 20010498 Citation  Keywords:  Androgens:pharmacology, Animals, Catalase:metabolism, Cell Division:drug effects, Cell Line, Transformed, Cell Survival:drug effects, Down-Regulation:drug effects, Drug Interactions, Glioma, Glucose:pharmacology, Mice, Microtubules:drug effects, Neuroblas.   

OBJECTIVES: Diabetic complications can often affect the central nervous system since the chronic exposure to hyperglycemia can result in the production of high concentration of reactive oxygen species with subsequent damage of several cell structures such as the cytoskeleton. In order to antagonize the oxidative status many substances have been tested as antioxidants. In the present work attention has been focused on the possible nitrosative effect of hyperglycemia on microtubular network of neuroblastoma and glioma mortalized cell lines, testing the possible neuroprotective effect of testosterone.r />r /> METHODS: Neuroblastoma (C1300) and glioma (C6) cell lines were cultured in the presence of 300 mM (C1300) or 310 mM (C6) D-glucose, with or without 50 nM testosterone. After 72 hrs, morphology, growth rate, cell viability and catalase activity were evaluated. In addition, with the aim to detect any changes in the amount of tubulin isoforms, Western blot analysis was performed.r />r /> RESULTS: In D-glucose-exposed cells, it was found a down-regulation of tubulin isoforms and an increase in 3-nitro-L-tyrosine and subsequent modifications in cell morphology, growth rate, viability and catalase activity. All these changes were more severe in neuroblastoma than in glioma cell line. When testosterone was added to the medium, all the parameters were very similar to controls. This neuroprotective action was well-detectable in C1300 cells, whereas testosterone was not able to recover significantly in C6 cells.r />r /> CONCLUSION: Our results displayed: i) a selective action of high glucose on microtubules; ii) a different sensitivity to oxidative stress in neuronal and glial cells; iii) a different neuroprotective action of testosterone on neuronal and glial cells....

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Journal Article 2009; 30(4): 458-461 PubMed PMID: 20010497 Citation  Keywords:  Animals, Blood Glucose:metabolism, Circadian Rhythm:physiology, Dietary Sucrose:pharmacology, Drinking Behavior:physiology, Eating:physiology, Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated:metabolism, Hyperglycemia:genetics, Lipids:blood, Male, Mice, Mice, Inbred ICR, Obesi.   

BACKGROUND: The environmental light-dark (LD) cycle entrains the circadian clock located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of mammals. Recent studies of genetically impaired animals with clock gene mutations have revealed associations between metabolic disorders and the circadian clock. However, whether such disordered phenotypes are due to a loss of circadian clock function within specific metabolically relevant tissues, or the result of disrupted circadian behavioral activities governed by the SCN remains unknown.r />r /> OBJECTIVES: The present study examines the effect of disrupted LD cycles that might perturb the circadian clock in the SCN and peripheral organs on a high-fat/high-sucrose diet-induced obesity in genetically intact mice.r />r /> METHODS: The behavioral patterns of the mice were disturbed under an ultradian 3 h light-3 h dark cycle (LD 3:3) due to light-induced direct suppression of the behavior (masking effect).r />r /> RESULTS: Obesity with hyperglycemia was significantly enhanced and levels of hemoglobin A1c were significantly higher under LD 3:3 compared with LD 12:12.r />r /> CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide a link between metabolic disorders and the "environmental mutation" in genetically intact animals....

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Clinical Trial 2009; 30(4): 547-551 PubMed PMID: 20010496 Citation  Keywords:  Adult, Aged, Aminolevulinic Acid:administration & dosage, Antigens, CD3:metabolism, Antigens, CD34:metabolism, Antigens, CD44:metabolism, Biopsy, Dermis:blood supply, Epidermis:metabolism, Female, Humans, Immunohistochemistry, Ki-67 Antigen:metabolism, Li.   

BACKGROUND: Vulvar lichen sclerosus (LS) affects primarily women at postmenopausal age and its background remains unknown. One of the treatment modalities is photodynamic therapy (PDT). The aim was to investigate the efficacy of PDT in women with LS and the analysis of protein expression before and after PDT.r />r /> MATERIAL AND METHODS: From 04.2006-01.2008 28 women, with LS underwent photodynamic diagnosis and next PDT: six-courses every second week with using 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) as a photosensitizer. Punch biopsies were taken before and after treatment and immunohistochemistry was done with Ki67,CD44,CD34 and CD3.r />r /> RESULTS: Before PDT all patients suffered from pruritus and after in 89.3% the relief was noted. The histological examination showed that 35.7% patients hadn't LS after therapy completion. Anti-CD44 staining intensities was scored qualitatively - there were no statistical difference at the expression of protein CD44 in the epidermis (p>0.05) before and after therapy. Microvessel density was assessed at the hot spots, marked with anti-CD34. Statistical difference in AVD before and after therapy: (p<0.05). The staining intensity of Ki-67 didn't differ before and after PDT (p>0.05). The expression of CD3 on T lymphocytes showed statistical difference of the lymphocytic infiltration before and after PDT ( p<0.05).r />r /> CONCLUSION: The immunohistochemical staining in vulvar LS showed increasing microvessel density and decreasing lymphocytic infiltration. There were a clinical, and less histological improvement in patients with LS. We suggest that the photodynamic therapy is an effective, alternative treatment in some but not all patients with LS. Therefore, further studies are needed....

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