Search results for "Coco"
showing 10 items of 402 documents
Microscopic Study of Injectable Steroids: Effects of Postmixing Time on Particle Aggregation
2020
Background: Epidural steroid injection (ESI) is a common practice for pain treatment since 1953. In 2014, the FDA issued a warning about ESI. Studies have focused on the effect of the particle size and their ability to generate harmful aggregates. Although steroid aggregates provide longer times for reabsorption, therefore a longer anti-inflammatory effect, they are potentially harmful to the central nervous system via embolic mechanisms. Previous studies have established that steroidal aggregates with asizes over 100 μm are potentially able to occlude blood vessels. Studies by Tiso et al and Benzon et al addressed the role of steroids on CNS adverse events, with similar outcomes. The main …
Increased immunosuppressive function of CD4(+)CD25(+)Foxp3(+)GITR+ T regulatory cells from NFATc2((-/-)) mice controls allergen-induced experimental …
2012
The expansion of effector T cells is tightly controlled by transcription factors like nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) family members that mediate early intracellular responses to T cell receptor-mediated signals. In this study we show that, after allergen challenge, NFATc2((-/-)) mice had augmented number of functionally intact CD4(+)CD25(++)GITR(++) T regulatory (T regs) cells in the lung. Anti-GITR antibody treatment inhibited T regulatory cell function and enhanced the number of activated lung CD4(+) T cells associated with increased IL-2 and pSTAT-5 in the airways of NFATc2((-/-)) mice in experimental allergic asthma. This agonistic treatment led to increased inflammation in …
Non-eosinophilic Airway Hyper-reactivity in Mice, Induced by IFN-γProducing CD4+and CD8+Lung T cells, is Responsive to Steroid Treatment
2014
Non-eosinophilic asthma is characterized by infiltration of neutrophils into the lung and variable responsiveness to glucocorticoids. The pathophysiological mechanisms have not been characterized in detail. Here, we present an experimental asthma model in mice associated with non-eosinophilic airway inflammation and airway hyper-responsiveness (AHR). For this, BALB/c mice were sensitized by biolistic DNA immunization with a plasmid encoding the model antigen β-galactosidase (pFascin-βGal mice). For comparison, eosinophilic airway inflammation was induced by subcutaneous injection of βGal protein (βGal mice). Intranasal challenge of mice in both groups induced AHR to a comparable extent as w…
Very Low-Calorie Ketogenic Diet: A Potential Application in the Treatment of Hypercortisolism Comorbidities
2022
A very low-calorie ketogenic diet (VLCKD) is characterized by low daily caloric intake (less than 800 kcal/day), low carbohydrate intake (<50 g/day) and normoproteic (1–1.5 g of protein/kg of ideal body weight) contents. It induces a significant weight loss and an improvement in lipid parameters, blood pressure, glycaemic indices and insulin sensitivity in patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Cushing’s syndrome (CS) is characterized by an endogenous or exogenous excess of glucocorticoids and shows many comorbidities including cardiovascular disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus and lipid disorders. The aim of this speculative review is to provide an overview on nutrit…
Targeting the Stress System During Gestation: Is Early Handling a Protective Strategy for the Offspring?
2020
The perinatal window is a critical developmental time when abnormal gestational stimuli may alter the development of the stress system that, in turn, influences behavioral and physiological responses in the newborns. Individual differences in stress reactivity are also determined by variations in maternal care, resulting from environmental manipulations. Despite glucocorticoids are the primary programming factor for the offspring's stress response, therapeutic corticosteroids are commonly used during late gestation to prevent preterm negative outcomes, exposing the offspring to potentially aberrant stress reactivity later in life. Thus, in this study, we investigated the consequences of one…
Dexamethasone desensitizes hepatocellular and colorectal tumours toward cytotoxic therapy
2005
The glucocorticoid dexamethasone is frequently used as co-treatment in cytotoxic cancer therapy, e.g. to prevent nausea, to protect normal tissue or for other reasons. While the potent pro-apoptotic properties and the supportive effects of glucocorticoids to tumour therapy in lymphoid cells are well studied, the impact to cytotoxic treatment of colorectal and hepatocellular carcinoma is unknown. We tested apoptosis-induction, viability, tumour growth and protein expression using 8 established cell lines, 18 surgical specimen and a xenograft on nude mice. In the presence of dexamethasone we found strong inhibition of apoptosis in response to 5-FU, cisplatin, gemcitabine or gamma-irradiation,…
Treatment of skeletal impairment in patients with endogenous hypercortisolism: when and how?
2014
Guidelines for the management of osteoporosis induced by endogenous hypercortisolism are not available. Both the American College of Rheumatology and the International Osteoporosis Foundation recommend to modulate the treatment of exogenous glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO) based on the individual fracture risk profile (calculated by FRAX) and dose of glucocorticoid used, but it is difficult to translate corticosteroid dosages to different degrees of endogenous hypercortisolism, and there are no data on validation of FRAX stratification method in patients with endogenous hypercortisolism. Consequently, it is unclear whether such recommendations may be adapted to patients with endoge…
Sialic acid-containing glycoproteins on renal cells determine nucleation of calcium oxalate dihydrate crystals
2001
Sialic acid-containing glycoproteins on renal cells determine nucleation of calcium oxalate dihydrate crystals. Background The interaction between the surfaces of renal epithelial cells and calcium oxalate dihydrate (COD), the most common crystal in human urine, was studied to identify critical determinants of kidney stone formation. Methods A novel technique utilizing vapor diffusion of oxalic acid was employed to nucleate COD crystals onto the apical surface of living cells. Confluent monolayers were grown in the inner 4 wells of 24-well culture plates. To identify cell surface molecules that regulate crystal nucleation, cells were pretreated with a protease (trypsin or proteinase K) to a…
Exogenous ochronosis and striae atrophicae following the use of bleaching creams.
2005
Exogenous ochronosis is a paradoxical hyper-pigmentation of the skin caused by the long-term use of hydroquinone-containing bleaching creams. Ochronosis is an uncommon condition characterized by yellow-brown pigmented deposits in the dermis. We report two cases of exogenous ochronosis in two female patients of the sub-Saharan African population. The lesions were characterized by an asymptomatic hyper-pigmentation of the face with gradually progressive blue-black macular patches, and in case no. 2, in addition to dyschromic lesions, striae atrophicae were present. This phenomenon is the outcome of the use of skin care products containing high concentrations of hydroquinone- and glucocorticoi…
In vivo optical coherence tomography imaging in a case of mucous membrane pemphigoid and a negative Nikolsky's sign.
2017
There is currently a growing interest in new diagnostic tools of the oral cavity and mucosa which are non-invasive, repeatable and reliable. A diagnosis of a suspected, autoimmune pathology was made regarding a 57-year-old patient with desquamative gingivitis. However, a negative Nikolsky's sign did not seem to indicate a diagnosis of mucous membrane pemphigoid neither was there any indication as to the optimum location for an incisional biopsy. As an imaging method, the use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) has enabled the obtaining of tomographic (cross-sectional) scans of tissue. Such images are acquired prior to and after verifying Nikolsky's sign, thereby enabling the clinician to …