Physico-chemical properties and degradability of non-woven hyaluronan benzylic esters as tissue engineering scaffolds.

The development of biocompatible materials which can be processed into three-dimensional scaffolds and the design of appropriate configurations in order to enable the cellular infiltration and proliferation is a major issue in the tissue engineering. The hyaluronan total benzyl ester (Hyaff 11) has been found to be suitable substrate to grow a variety of cell types. Since structural, physical, chemical and biological data can help for tailoring appropriate scaffold for tissue engineering, information on chemicophysical properties on degradability of hyaluronan total benzyl ester non-woven has been obtained. The thermal analysis, the evaluation of the surface chemical composition, the morphology, the mechanical behaviour and the swelling tests were carried out on these materials. The hyaluronan total benzyl ester non-woven showed a thermal stability up to 220 degrees C and the surface composition differed from that of the bulk for C-O and C-C contribution. No contaminant were detected. The non-woven swelled in culture medium. Moreover the mechanical tests showed that when submitted to a press treatment, the samples have best mechanical properties. The pressed Hyaff 11 non-woven undergoes degradation when exposed to DMEM. The frying and breaking of the fibres, a decrease of the mechanical properties and a molecular weight loss have been observed. First, the ester bond of the Hyaff 11 non-woven is hydrolysed and the benzylic alcohol is released and the low molecular weight values indicate that a cleavage of the polymer is promoted by the components of the culture medium. After 11 days, some fragments, constituted by hyaluronic acid with a molecular weight of 23,000 Da became soluble in the medium. No oligomer was detected.

Value of antigliadin antibodies (AGA) in latent coeliac disease (CD).

BACKGROUND: The term latent coeliac disease (CD) is applied to patients who were previously shown to have a normal jejunal mucosa on a free diet. The aim of this study was to determine whether a high AGA value in the serum of patients with coeliac symptoms can also be regarded by itself, without typical mucosal atrophy, as a marker of latent CD, as some authors suggest in relatives of celiac patients. METHODS: We observed 31 patients with suspected CD and pathological values of serum IgA ang IgG AGA. In all we performed intestinal biopsy, assayed antiendomisium antibodies (AEA) in serum, AGA IgA, IgG, and IgM in duodenal jejunal fluid and in some of the lymphocytcs CD3+ gamma/delta+ in the lamina propria of the intestinal mucosa. RESULTS: In this study only pathological values of serum AGA without mucosa atrophy don't seem to be markers of latent CD, but an aspecific allergic response. CONCLUSIONS: As shown by other authors serum AEA, intestinal fluid AGA IgM and lamina propria lymphocytes CD3+ gamma/delta+ seem markers of latent CD.

Association between insulin dependent diabetes mellitus and coeliac disease. A study on 175 diabetes patients.

BACKGROUND: The association between diabetes mellitus and coeliac disease has been known for many years. In a random group of 175 insulin dependent diabetes mellitus patients of varying ages the following tests have been carried out: serum antigliadin antibodies (AGA) of IgA and IgG class, antireticulin antibodies (ARA) and antiendomisyum antibodies (AEA), both of IgA class. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The patients, 85 males and 90 females, had ages ranging from 1 yr to 30 yrs (102 in paediatric age--mainly between 6 and 14 years--and 73 adults). Patients with pathological values for AEA and/or ARA underwent an intestinal biopsy. RESULTS: Out of 175 patients studied, 21 had pathological values for AEA with or without pathological values for ARA and AGA, and 2 patients had only pathological values for ARA. 23 patients (21 with pathological values for AEA with or without ARA and AGA, 2 only for ARA ) underwent intestinal biopsy, all patients with pathological values for AEA had villous atrophy. The prevalence of coeliac disease among IDDM patients was 8.8% (95% CI 3.3 to 14.3) for the children and 16.4% (95% CI 7.9 to 24.9) for the adults. In patients with mucous atrophy, ARA, AGA IgA and IgG were pathological in 85%, 71% and 61% respectively. Symptoms and insulin requirements in all patients affected by coeliac disease before and after one year on a gluten free diet were also evaluated. The patients had clinical features with prevalently one or only few atypical symptoms which disappeared on a gluten free diet. Insulin requirements after one year on a gluten free diet appeared unchanged in coeliac patients. CONCLUSIONS: The need to screen all diabetic patients for coeliac disease is underlined.

Impact of modification of diagnostic techniques and criteria on the presentation of celiac disease in the last 16 years. Observation in Rome.

Age of diagnosis and clinical pattern were studied in 97 celiac patients, diagnosed with jejunal biopsy, between 1976-1991. They were selected on the basis of clinical and laboratory patterns. The laboratory tests utilized were steatorrhea and xylose in the first years, while in recent years AGA, ARA and AEA were also utilized. The patients were divided into two groups, based on the year of first biopsy. The first group includes 36 cases diagnosed between 1976-1985, the second one 61 cases diagnosed between 1986-1991. In recent years an increase in the number of cases has been observed in our centre, particularly in patients over 2 years of age, while the number of diagnoses in children under 2 years of age was essentially the same. So-called typical symptoms prevailed in the first group, while so-called atypical symptoms are more frequent in the second. If an increase of incidence of celiac disease within the population is confirmed, a mass screening will be necessary in order to identify the atypical forms, utilizing laboratory tests, for the purpose of selecting patients to be subjected to an intestinal biopsy.