Correction of hypercholesterolemia and dyslipoproteinemia by plasmapheresis in patients with stenocardia resistant to drug therapy

Plasmapheresis was used to correct blood lipid composition in patients with angina at rest and angina of effort (functional classes 3-4). In addition to a drop in total cholesterol and triglycerides, cholesterol in low and very-low-density lipoproteins fell abruptly, while high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol, on the contrary, increased considerably. Clinical improvement of the patients was also recorded.     

Isolated leukemic choroidal relapse in a child with acute lymphoblastic leukemia one year off therapy, diagnosed through transvitreal retino-choroidal biopsy

A serous retinal detachment and choroidal hemorrhagic infiltration developed in a 17-year-old girl with acute lymphoblastic leukemia one year after cessation of therapy without concurrent bone marrow (BM) or central nervous system relapse. A choroidal biopsy through a sclerotomy with simultaneous release of subretinal fluid revealed no malignant cells. Accordingly, she was treated with prednisone, topical corticosteroid and atropine with normalisation of vision and clinical findings. Five months later the retinal detachment and choroidal infiltration recurred. In order to re-attach the retina once more and obtain a representative choroidal biopsy, a pars plana vitrectomy followed by a retinotomy with removal of subretinal tissue was done revealing leukemic infiltration of the choroid. Simultaneously a BM relapse was diagnosed.     

Soluble CD30 in pediatric patients with atopic dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic, inflammatory skin disease in which a pathogenetic role of Th2 cells has been supposed. This study investigated the presence of soluble CD30 (sCD30), an activation marker of T-cell clones able to produce Th2-type cytokines, in sera from pediatric patients affected by AD ( n =25) with no symptoms of asthma or rhinitis. The severity of the disease was graded by both the SCORAD and Costa et al. clinical scoring systems. Serum levels of sCD30 were significantly higher in patients with AD in respect to both normal donors ( n =20) and urticaria patients ( n = 10), and a positive correlation between serum sCD30 and clinical score was found ( r =0.508; P =0.01) when AD patients were evaluated by Costa et al.'s method. Furthermore, a significant association ( r -=0.443; P =0.027) between sCD30 and serum levels of the soluble interleukin (IL)-2 receptor (sIL-2R) was observed in AD. The presence of high amounts of sCD30 in atopic patients seems to confirm the role of this molecule as an activation marker useful for in vivo evaluation of a Th2 immune response, and the correlation observed with both clinical score and sIL-2R levels indicates the role of sCD30 as an additional marker of disease activity in pediatric patients with AD.     

Action of 2-hydroxy-4,6-dimethoxyacetophenone isolated from Sebastiania schottiana

The inhibitory action of the major constituent of Sebastiania schottiana (Euphorbiaceae), 2-hydroxy-4,6-dimethoxyacetophenone (xanthoxyline) on contractions induced by agonists and electrical stimulation of smooth and cardiac muscle preparations was analysed. Xanthoxyline (30 to 300 microM) inhibited contractions of the rat uterus, guinea-pig ileum, and urinary bladder induced by several agonists in a non-competitive, non-selective, concentration-related manner, with the IC50's ranging between 47 and 190 microM. Twitches evoked by electrical-stimulation of strips of guinea-pig longitudinal ileum, urinary bladder, dog ureter, and rat left atrium were also inhibited dose-dependently by cumulative additions of xanthoxyline (IC50's between 50 and 480 microM). Xanthoxyline was found to be a potent inhibitor of spontaneous contractions of the circular smooth muscle layer of the dog ureter, yielding an IC50 of 54 microM. Repeated washing of all preparations completely reversed the inhibitory effects of xanthoxyline. Therefore, it appears that xanthoxyline induces a direct and non-selective inhibition of contractions triggered by agonists or electrical stimulation of smooth and cardiac muscle preparations. The elucidation of the mechanism(s) by which xanthoxyline induced muscle relaxation requires further investigations.     

Interaction of myeloperoxidase with diclofenac. Inhibition of the chlorinating activity of myeloperoxidase by diclofenac and oxidation of diclofenac to dihydroxyazobenzene by myeloperoxidase

The chlorinating activity of myeloperoxidase, isolated from human polymorphonuclear neutrophils, was inhibited by the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac (Voltaren). The concentration of diclofenac needed for 50% inhibition was 20 microM, a value comparable with IC50 values found for other drugs. Diclofenac did not react with HOCl nor with H2O2 but was oxidized in the presence of myeloperoxidase and H2O2 to an orange-coloured unstable product. The rate of oxidation was proportional to the enzyme concentration and to the concentration of diclofenac. but independent of the H2O2 concentration. Presumably both Compound I and Compound II, two intermediates formed during the reaction cycle of myeloperoxidase with H2O2 are able to oxidize diclofenac. In these redox reactions, the active short-living Compound I is reduced to Compound II, thereby inhibiting the chlorinating activity of the enzyme. Analysis by Fast Atom Bombardment mass spectrometry showed that in the presence of H2O2 myeloperoxidase oxidizes diclofenac to dihydroxyazobenzene.