Cytotoxic constituents fromSolanum lyratum

Activity-guided fractionation of the ethanol extract of the whole plant from Solanum lyratum resulted in the isolation of a new pregnane derivative glycoside, 16-dehydropregnenolone 3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 --> 2)-beta-D-glucopyranosid uronic acid (2), as well as other six known compounds: 16-dehydropregnenolone (1), allopregenolone (3), protocatechuic acid (4), vanillic acid (5), caffeic acid (6), and scopoletin (7). The structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated on the basis of their spectral data and chemical evidences. Compounds 1, 3, 4 were isolated for the first time from this plant. Cytotoxic activities of the isolated compounds were evaluated. Compound 1 exhibited significant cytotoxic activity against A375-S2, HeLa, SGC-7901, and Bel-7402 with IC50 values of 13.1 +/- 0.9, 21.5 +/- 1.0, 40.2 +/- 0.7, and 49.8 +/- 1.2 microg/mL, respectively.     

Quantification of left-to-right shunts using aP o 2-electrode cardiac catheter

Summary A rapid, simple and low-cost method is presented for intracardiac left-to-right shunt quantification in children with congenital heart disease. The percentage of shunt is calculated from data obtained by continuousP o ₂ measurement during oxygen inhalation, using a nondisposable intravascularP o ₂-electrode cardiac catheter.These values are compared with those obtained by the dye-dilution method (correlation coefficientr=0.89) and the Fick method (correlation coefficientr=0.98).TheP o ₂ measurement proved reliable for small, medium, and large sized shunts.     

Demethylation of l-3-methoxytyrosine in vivo

Summary After administration of purified l-¹⁴C-3-methoxytyrosine (l-¹⁴C-3-MTO) to rats, the fractions of labelled amino acids, catecholamines and phenolcarboxylic acids of urine and brain have been separated by column chromatography. Prior to performing the quantitative determinations, the individual metabolites of each urinary fraction and of the cerebral catecholamine fraction were isolated by paper chromatography using different systems. Susbtantial amounts of ¹⁴C-3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (¹⁴C-DOPAC) as well as some ¹⁴C-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (¹⁴C-DOPA) and traces of dopamine (DA) appeared in the urine. Furthermore, small amounts of ¹⁴C-DA and ¹⁴C-norepinephrine were found in the brain with two different chromatographic systems. The urinary excretion of ¹⁴C-DOPAC and ¹⁴C-DA was increased by pretreatment with dopacetamide, an inhibitor of catechol-3-O-methyl-transferase. A possible contamination of the l-¹⁴C-3-MTO with traces of l-¹⁴C-DOPA as a major source of the dihydroxylated metabolites has been ruled out. It is concluded that part of l-3-MTO undergoes demethylation in vivo and that the finding of DA in brain and urine after administration of l-3-MTO is not an artifact.     

Effects of a brief worksite stress management program on coping skills, psychological distress and physical complaints: a controlled trial

Objectives: To examine the effects of single-session, small-group stress management program on knowledge about stress, coping skills, and psychological and physical distress. Methods: A total of 300 employees from a company in western Japan were invited to participate in the study. Those who consented to enter the study were assigned to an intervention (n=149) or waiting list control group (n=151). Participants in the intervention group received a small-group stress management program. The program was primarily aimed at increasing knowledge about stress and improving coping skills. To investigate the intervention effect, change scores in outcome variables were calculated by subtracting the scores at pre-intervention from those at post-intervention (8 weeks after the pre-intervention survey). Next, the difference in the scores between groups was examined using analyses of covariance (ANCOVA) with the pre-intervention score as the covariate. Results: Favorable intervention effects were found on knowledge about stress and on coping skills (P<0.001 and P=0.012, respectively) and adverse effects on psychological distress (P=0.022). However, this adverse effect on psychological distress did not exist among those who initially perceived higher levels of job control. Conclusion: The single-session stress management program was effective on improving knowledge about stress, and coping skills, where job control moderated the effect of the program on psychological distress.     

Health-related quality of life in breast cancer: A cross-cultural survey of German, Japanese, and South Korean patients

Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in breast cancer patients across countries, and to cross-culturally examine the impact of psychosocial factors on HRQOL.Patients and methods A total of 413 women with breast cancer from Germany (n=195), Japan (n=112), and Korea (n=106) completed a survey assessing HRQOL and HRQOL-related factors. HRQOL was measured using the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-8). Measures of psychological distress (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and Impact of Event Scale-Revised), coping (Dealing with Illness Inventory-German Revised), and social support (Illness-Specific Social Support Scale-German Revised) were included.Results The effect of the factor country on physical QOL was seen to be significant, but small (P=0.049, ES=0.018). The scales of General Health (P=0.023), Vitality (P=0.004), and Role Emotional (P=0.003) differed across countries, with the South Korean patients having lower scores compared to the German and Japanese patients. The nature of the impact of psychosocial factors on HRQOL did not differ greatly across countries except with regard to avoidance, however, the degree to which these factors influence HRQOL did differ greatly. Overall, depression, depressive coping, and problematic support showed a strong detrimental effect on the HRQOL of breast cancer patients.Conclusions Results from this study suggest that strategies which target an improvement of HRQOL in cancer patients should also consider the patients’ cultural and healthcare system contexts. Interventions are needed to improve detrimental psychosocial factors.     

Poverty, household food insecurity and nutrition: coping strategies in an informal settlement in the Vaal Triangle, South Africa

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to determine household food security and coping strategies of an informal settlement in the Vaal Triangle. STUDY DESIGN: A survey study design was used. METHODS: Pre-tested socio-demographic questionnaires were administered to 357 randomly selected caregivers and 149 children aged 9-13 years old. A validated quantified food frequency questionnaire (QFFQ) and 24-h recall were used to measure dietary intake and food consumption patterns and the Cornell hunger scale to determine coping strategies. Data were statistically analysed for means and standard deviations. RESULTS: The results indicated that the majority of caregivers (68.8%) had an income of 相似文献   

Who benefits? Outcome following a coping skills group intervention for traumatically brain injured individuals

Primary objective: To investigate the variables associated with positive psychological outcome following a group intervention for 33 individuals with traumatic brain injury.

Research design: Evaluation study which used multiple regression analysis to examine the variables associated with change in psychological adjustment following a 10-session cognitive behaviour therapy-based group.

Methods and procedures: The predictor variables were age at injury, time since injury, injury severity, self-awareness, pre-morbid intellectual function, memory function, executive function and level of depression and anxiety prior to intervention.

Main outcomes and results: The predictor variables contributed a significant proportion of the variance in percentage change in depression. The major finding was that better outcomes following intervention were associated with greater self-awareness of injury-related deficits.

Conclusions: The present study identified a number of variables that were associated with improvement in depression following psychological intervention and may assist future treatment resources to be directed most effectively.     

18F-2-Fluoro-2-Deoxy-D-Glucose Positron Emission Tomography Scanning Affects Surgical Management in Selected Patients With High-Risk, Operable Breast Carcinoma

Background The role of positron emission tomography (PET) scanning in determining the extent of disease in patients with breast cancer has not been defined. We investigated the utility of ¹⁸F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG)-PET scanning compared with conventional imaging with computed tomographic scanning and bone scanning in determining the extent of disease in patients with high-risk, operable breast cancer. Methods This was a prospective study of patients who presented to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center for operative treatment of breast cancer. Eighty eligible patients were enrolled and underwent computed tomographic chest, abdomen, pelvis, and bone scans, followed by FDG-PET. Changes in treatment based on scan findings were recorded by the operating surgeons. Imaging findings were verified by biopsy or long-term follow-up. Results Eight (10%) of 80 patients were found to have metastatic disease that was seen on both conventional imaging and PET. Four additional patients (5%) had additional foci of disease on PET that affected treatment decisions. No patient had findings on conventional imaging alone. Conventional imaging studies resulted in a higher number of findings that generated additional tests and biopsies that ultimately had negative results (17% vs. 5% for PET). There was a statistically significant difference in specificity for PET compared with conventional imaging (P = .01). Conclusions Conventional imaging and PET were equally sensitive in detecting metastatic disease in patients with high-risk, operable breast cancer, but PET generated fewer false-positive results. FDG-PET scanning should be further studied in this setting and considered in the preoperative evaluation of selected patients with breast cancer.     

Treatment of Parkinson's disease with l-DOPA and decarboxylase inhibitor

Summary Clinical trials on the effect of l-DOPA and decarboxylase inhibitor, Ro 4-4602, in the long-term treatment of Parkinson's disease were carried out and compared with l-DOPA alone. Altogether 59 parkinsonian patietns were treated for 3 to 9 months. For correlative studies the plasma level of DOPA and the concentration of homovanillic acid (HVA) and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was analysed.A daily dosage of 800 to 1000 mg of l-DOPA combined with 200 to 250 mg of decarboxylase inhibitor induced during long-term treatment a significant therapeutic response which was equal to that induced by 4 to 5 g of l-DOPA alone. During combined treatment there was a significant reduction of nausea and especially of vomiting. However, in the dosage range used the frequency of abnormal involuntary movements was equal to that with l-DOPA alone.There were only a few transient laboratory abnormalities during l-DOPA and decarboxylase inhibitor treatment. Liver biopsy studies on 10 volunteer parkinsonian patients did not show any light or electron microscopic changes which could be related to the treatment.The maximum plasma level of l-DOPA after 200 mg of l-DOPA and 50 mg of Ro 4-4602 was equal to that of 1000 mg of l-DOPA alone.During l-DOPA and decarboxylase inhibitor treatment the concentration of HVA in the CSF increased significantly and correlated significantly with the dosage but not with the degree of clinical improvement. On the other hand, the concentration of 5-HIAA in the CSF decreased significantly during treatment. l-DOPA and decarboxylase inhibitor seems to be an effective, well-tolerated and safe drug in the treatment of parkinsonian patients. The decrease in gastro-intestinal side-effects affords a considerable advantage over l-DOPA alone.Supported by a grant from the Signe and Ane Gyllenberg's Foundation.     

Dopaminergic hypersensitivity and cholinergic hypofunction in the pathophysiology of tardive dyskinesia

The so-called counterbalancing dopaminergic-cholinergic system has been studied in a clinical pharmacological investigation of neuroleptic-induced tardive dyskinesia. Eight hospitalized patients between the ages of 20 and 69 years were treated with -methyl-para-tyrosine (AMPT), l-Dopa, physostigmine, scopolamine and biperiden. The results were evaluated blind with the help of video-technique. AMPT (3 g daily for 3 days) significantly reduced, while l-Dopa (1200 mg daily together with a peripheral decarboxylase inhibitor for 14 days) and biperiden (18 mg daily for 14 days) significantly precipitated/aggravated the dyskinesia. The effects of physostigmine and scopolamine have varied, which is discussed in relation to the existence of both hypo- and hypercholinergic stereotype.It is concluded that dopaminergic hypersensitivity, cholinergic hypofunction and a reduced biological buffer capacity comprise important elements in the pathophysiology of tardive dyskinesia. Simple prophylactic and therapeutic directions are given based upon this conclusion.