Search results for "Techniques"
showing 10 items of 4426 documents
Cannabinoid type 1 receptor modulates intestinal propulsion by an attenuation of intestinal motor responses within the myenteric part of the peristal…
2007
Cannabinoid-1 (CB1) receptor activation affects gastrointestinal propulsion in vivo. It was our aim to further characterize the involved myenteric mechanisms in vivo and in vitro. In CB1(-/-) mice and wild-type littermates we performed in vivo transit experiments by charcoal feeding and in vitro electrophysiological recordings in mouse small intestinal smooth muscle. Ascending neuronal contraction (ANC) following electrical field stimulation was studied in rat ileum in a partitioned organ bath separating the aboral stimulation site from the oral recording site. The knockout animals displayed an accelerated upper gastrointestinal transit compared to control animals. The CB1 receptor antagoni…
Anorectal malformations and pregnancy-related disorders: a registry-based case-control study in 17 European regions
2013
Objective To identify pregnancy-related risk factors for different manifestations of congenital anorectal malformations (ARMs).Design A population-based case-control study.Setting Seventeen EUROCAT (European Surveillance of Congenital Anomalies) registries, 1980-2008.Population The study population consisted of 1417 cases with ARM, including 648 cases of isolated ARM, 601 cases of ARM with additional congenital anomalies, and 168 cases of ARM-VACTERL (vertebral, anal, cardiac, tracheo-esophageal, renal, and limb defects), along with 13371 controls with recognised syndromes or chromosomal abnormalities.Methods Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to calculate adjusted odds ratios …
Safety and immunomodulatory effects of three probiotic strains isolated from the feces of breast-fed infants in healthy adults: SETOPROB study.
2013
We previously described the isolation and characterization of three probiotic strains from the feces of exclusively breast-fed newborn infants: Lactobacillus paracasei CNCM I-4034, Bifidobacterium breve CNCM I-4035 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus CNCM I-4036. These strains were shown to adhere to intestinal mucus in vitro, to be sensitive to antibiotics and to resist biliary salts and low pH. In the present study, a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with 100 healthy volunteers in three Spanish cities was carried out to evaluate the tolerance, safety, gut colonization and immunomodulatory effects of these three probiotics. Volunteers underwent a 15-day washout perio…
Cytotoxicity of the indole alkaloid reserpine from Rauwolfia serpentina against drug-resistant tumor cells.
2015
Abstract Background: The antihypertensive reserpine is an indole alkaloid from Rauwolfia serpentina and exerts also profound activity against cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. The present investigation was undertaken to investigate possible modes of action to explain its activity toward drug-resistant tumor cells. Material and methods: Sensitive and drug-resistant tumor cell lines overexpressing P-glycoprotein (ABCB1/MDR1), breast cancer resistance protein (ABCG2/BCRP), mutation-activated epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), wild-type and p53-knockout cells as well as the NCI panel of cell lines from different tumor origin were analyzed. Reserpine's cytotoxicity was investigated by res…
Cytotoxicity of cucurbitacin E from Citrullus colocynthis against multidrug-resistant cancer cells
2019
Abstract Background Cucurbitacin E (CuE) is an oxygenated tetracyclic triterpenoid isolated from the fruits of Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad. Purpose This study outlines CuE's cytotoxic activity against drug-resistant tumor cell lines. Three members of ABC transporters superfamily, P-glycoprotein (P-gp), breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) and ABCB5 were investigated, whose overexpression in tumors is tightly linked to multidrug resistance. Further factors of drug resistance studied were the tumor suppressor TP53 and the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Methods Cytotoxicity assays (resazurin assays) were used to investigate the activity of Citrullus colocynthis and CuE towar…
Analysis of the morphology and composition of tooth apices apicectomized using three different ablation techniques.
2011
Objectives: To investigate apicectomies performed using burs, a CO2 laser or an Er:YAG laser and to evaluate the following aspects: morphology of apicectomized surfaces, presence of failures at the dentin/obturation material interface (marginal fit) of the apical portions of the root canals, and the proportions of chemical elements in the apicectomized surfaces. Study design: Twenty-four teeth were divided into three groups of eight and each group underwent apicectomy by one of three different ablation techniques: bur, CO2 laser or Er:YAG laser. The morphology of the apicectomized surfaces was then analyzed using scanning electron microscopy and their chemical composition was analyzed by en…
The Intention-to-Treat Effect of Bridging Treatments in the Setting of Milan Criteria–In Patients Waiting for Liver Transplantation
2019
In patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) meeting the Milan criteria (MC), the benefit of locoregional therapies (LRTs) in the context of liver transplantation (LT) is still debated. Initial biases in the selection between treated and untreated patients have yielded conflicting reported results. The study aimed to identify, using a competing risk analysis, risk factors for HCC-dependent LT failure, defined as pretransplant tumor-related delisting or posttransplant recurrence. The study was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov (identification number NCT03723304). In order to offset the initial limitations of the investigated population, an inverse probability of treatment weighting (IP…
Pattern of macrovascular invasion in hepatocellular carcinoma
2021
Background and aims: In patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), macrovascular invasion (MaVI) limits treatment options and decreases survival. Detailed data on the relationship between MaVI extension and patients' characteristics, and its impact on patients' outcome are limited. We evaluated the prevalence and extension of MaVI in a large cohort of consecutive HCC patients, analysing its association with liver disease and tumour characteristics, as well as with treatments performed and patients' survival. Methods: We analysed data of 4774 patients diagnosed with HCC recorded in the Italian Liver Cancer (ITA.LI.CA) database (2008-2018). Recursive partition analysis (RPA) was performed …
Release kinetics of early ischaemic biomarkers in a clinical model of acute myocardial infarction
2014
ObjectiveTo determine the release kinetics of different biomarkers with potential as novel early ischaemic biomarkers in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS); it is difficult to establish the detailed release kinetics in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI).MethodsWe analysed the release kinetics of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase (sFlt-1), ischaemia modified albumin (IMA), and heart-type fatty acid binding protein (hFABP) in patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy who were undergoing transcoronary ablation of septal hypertrophy (TASH), a procedure mimicking AMI. Consecutive patients (n=21) undergoing TASH were included. Blood samples were collected before T…
Factors affecting basket catheter detection of real and phantom rotors in the atria: A computational study
2018
[EN] Anatomically based procedures to ablate atrial fibrillation (AF) are often successful in terminating paroxysmal AF. However, the ability to terminate persistent AF remains disappointing. New mechanistic approaches use multiple-electrode basket catheter mapping to localize and target AF drivers in the form of rotors but significant concerns remain about their accuracy. We aimed to evaluate how electrode-endocardium distance, far-field sources and inter-electrode distance affect the accuracy of localizing rotors. Sustained rotor activation of the atria was simulated numerically and mapped using a virtual basket catheter with varying electrode densities placed at different positions withi…