Cystic craniopharyngioma: intratumoral chemotherapy with alpha interferon / Craniofaringioma cístico: quimioterapia intratumoral com interferon alfa

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether the cystic craniopharyngiomas can be controlled with the use of intratumoral applications of interferon alpha. METHOD: Nineteen patients with the diagnosis of cystic craniopharyngioma were treated with intratumoral chemotherapy with interferon alpha from January 2002 to April 2006. All patients underwent placement of an intracystic catheter connected to an Ommaya reservoir. Through this reservoir were made applications during chemotherapy cycles. Each cycle corresponded to application of 3,000,000 units of interferon alpha three times per week on alternate days totalizing 36,000,000 units. Response to treatment was evaluated by calculating the tumor volume on MRI control after one, three and six months after the end of each cycle. Patients who developed worsening of symptoms or who had insignificant reduction in tumor volume during follow-up underwent repeat cycle chemotherapy. RESULTS: Four patients received four cycles of chemotherapy, three patients received three cycles, six patients received two cycles and six patients received one. The lower percentage of reduction in tumor volume was 60 percent and the bigger reduction was 98.37 percent. Eleven patients had a reduction greater than 90 percent. Five patients had a tumor reduction between 75 and 90 percent and in three patients the tumors were reduced by less than 75 percent. No deaths occurred during treatment and side effects of interferon alpha were well tolerated. No treatment was discontinued. Follow-up after the last application ranged from one year and five months to three years and nine months. CONCLUSION: The intratumoral chemotherapy with interferon alpha decreases the volume of cystic craniopharyngiomas and so far can be considered a new therapeutic alternative.

OBJETIVO: Avaliar se os craniofaringiomas císticos podem ser controlados com aplicações intratumorais de interferon alfa. MÉTODO: De janeiro de 2002 a abril de 2006, 19 pacientes foram submetidos à colocação de um cateter intracístico conectado a reservatório de Ommaya para aplicações intratumorais de ciclos de 36.000.000 de unidades de interferon alfa. A resposta ao tratamento foi avaliada pelo cálculo do volume tumoral na ressonância magnética de controle ao término de cada ciclo. RESULTADOS: Os pacientes receberam de um a quatro ciclos de quimioterapia. Onze pacientes apresentaram uma redução do volume tumoral maior que 90 por cento; cinco pacientes apresentaram uma redução entre 75 por cento e 90 por cento e três pacientes uma redução menor de 75 por cento. Não houve óbitos durante o tratamento e os efeitos colaterais do inferferon alfa foram bem tolerados. Nenhum tratamento foi interrompido. CONCLUSÃO: A quimioterapia intratumoral com interferon alfa diminui o volume dos craniofaringeomas císticos e pode ser considerada uma nova alternativa terapêutica.

Detection of Toxoplasma gondii DNA in sera samples of mice experimentally infected

Detection of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) DNA in blood can help to diagnose the disease in its acute phase; however, it must be considered that hemoglobin, present in blood, can inhibit polymerase activity, making impracticable the detection of DNA in samples. Mice were experimentally infected via oral route with ME49 and BTU2 strains cysts and RH strain tachyzoites; polymerase chain reaction was used to detect T. gondii DNA in mice sera 18, 24, 48, 96, and 192 hours post infection (PI). Toxoplama gondii DNA was detected in only one animal infected with BTU2 strain, genotype III (isolated from a dog with neurological signs) 18 hours PI. The agent’s DNA was not detected in any sample of the other experimental groups. New studies must be carried out to verify the technique sensitivity in researches on this agent’s genetic material using sera samples of acute-phase toxoplasmosis patients, especially in cases of immunosuppression

Vancomycin monitoring in term newborns: comparison of peak and trough serum concentrations determined by high performance liquid chromatography and fluorescence polarization immunoassay

INTRODUCTION: Peak and trough serum concentrations of vancomycin were determined in term newborn infants with confirmed or suspected Staphylococcus sp sepsis by high performance liquid chromatography and flourescence polarization immunoassay. OBJECTIVE: To statistically compare the results of the high performance liquid chromatography and flourescence polarization immunoassay techniques for measuring serum vancomycin concentrations. METHODS: Eighteen peak and 20 trough serum samples were assayed for vancomycin concentrations using high performance liquid chromatography and flourescence polarization immunoassay from October 1995 to October 1997. RESULTS: The linear correlation coefficients for high performance liquid chromatography and flourescence polarization immunoassay were 0.27 (peak, P = 0.110) and 0.26 (trough, P = 0.1045) respectively, which were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: There was wide variation in serum vancomycin concentrations determined by high performance liquid chromatography as compared with those determined by flourescence polarization immunoassay. There was no recognizable pattern in the variability; in an apparently random fashion, the high performance liquid chromatography measurement was sometimes substantially higher than the flourescence polarization immunoassay measurement, and at other times it was substantially lower

Animal models for evaluation of behavior and molecular neurobiological changes with emphasis on spatial memory and cholinergic system impairments in chronic alcohol abuse

In this article we outline the use of experimental animal models to study aspects of memory processes. We describe some results obtained by our group and other laboratories in studies on memory aspects, using rats chronically treated with alcohol. At behavioral and biochemical levels, we focused respectively, on retrograde amnesia and central nervous cholinergic system. We also compare, at both levels, the direct and indirect (those related to thiamine deficiency) effects induced by chronic alcohol treatment.

Níveis séricos de teofilina e velocidade de administraçäo por vía endovenosa / Serum theophylline levels and intravenous administration velocity

Com o objetivo de avaliar a influência da velocidade de administraçäo de aminofilina por via endovenosa sobre a concentraçäo sanguínea inicial de teofilina, foram avaliados 21 voluntários normais divididos em dois grupos. Grupo I - Dez indivíduos quais foi administrada aminofilina (5,6 mg/kg) diluída em 100ml de soro fisiológico em 20 minutos. Grupo II - Onze voluntários em que a mesma dose foi injetada diluída em 10ml de soro, em cinco minutos. Amostras sanguíneas para dosagem da teofilina sérica foram colhidas imediatamente após a injeçäo (tempo 0) e após 3 e 5 minutos. Os valores médios obtidos nos grupos I e II, foram respectivamente (microng/ml): 0' - 9,70 ñ 2,07 e 33,87 ñ 13,09; 3' - 9,41 ñ 2,45 e 22,39 ñ 8,03; 5' - 8,82 ñ 2,21 e 18.01 ñ 6,02. O nível máximo de teofilinemia no grupo I foi de 13,7 microng/ml e no grupo II 57,1 microng/ml. Somente em dois indivíduos deste grupo os níveis foram inferiores a 20microng/ml no tempo zero. Como a distribuiçäo da teofilina do compartimento vascular para o extravascular é rápida, pode-se assumir que a concentraçäo sanguínea reflita os valores teciduais. Assim a administraçäo endovenosa rápida coloca os pacientes por um curto período sob risco de efeitos colaterais potencialmente graves. Concluímos que a dose de ataque de aminofilina deve ser administrada por via endovenosa em 20 minutos, eliminando-se o perigoso hábito das injeçöes rápidas

Avaliaçäo experimental das variaçöes dos níveis de glicogênio, lípides totais, triglicérides e água no miocárdio submetido a parada anóxica hipotérmica / Experimental evaluation of the variations of glycogen, total lipids, triglycerides and water levels in the myocardium subjected to anoxic hypothermic arrest

Analisam-se as variaçöes tissulares miocárdicas de glicogênio, lípides, triglicérides e teores de água que ocorreram em dois grupos de cäes submetidos a parada cardíaca anóxica sob circulaçäo extracorpórea, respectivamente em normotermia e hipotermia sistêmica de 28-C. Houve quedas dos níveis de glicogênio nos dois grupos sem diferenças significativas entre eles. Os níveis miocárdicos de lípideos totais apresentaram-se relativamente estáveis nos cäes a 28-C e apresentaram quedas expressivas no grupo sob normotermia. Os níveis de triglicérides mantiveram-se relativamente estáveis nos primeiros 30 minutos de anóxia, apresentando a partir daí quedas expressivas. Os teores de água decresceram em ambos os grupos, particularmente nos cäes operados sob normotermia

Ketoconazole: tratamento da paracoccidioidomicose no período de dois anos / Ketoconazole: treatment of paracoccidioidomysosis in a 2 year

Nove pacientes de paracoccidioidomicose foram tratados com ketoconazole. A dose de ataque foi de 400mg/dia por um mês e a de manutençäo 200mg por 23 meses. Ao final do tratamento, seis pacientes (66,6%) apresentavam-se sem atividade clínica, radiológica e sorológica e três pacientes (33,3%) apenas atividade sorológica. Näo foram evidenciados efeitos colaterais subjetivos ou objetivos e laboratorialmente houve elevaçöes discretas e transitórias de colesterol, triglicérides e transaminases. Conclui-se que o ketoconazole é de ótima tolerância e eficaz no tratamento da paracoccidioidomicose. Contudo, estudos com maior número de pacientes e prolongados follow-up permitiräo melhor estabelecer a real eficácia do ketoconazole no tratamento da paracoccidioidomicose