[The role of Lactobacillus acidophilus in the prevention and adjuvant therapy of certain infectious diseases]. / A Lactobacillus acidophilus szerepe néhány fertözö betegség prevenciójában és adjuváns terápiájában.

Authors call attention to the role of lactic acid bacteria in the prevention and adjuvant therapy of certain infective diseases. It has special importance in the prevention and adjuvant therapy of new-born and childhood enteritis, different urogenital inflammations and antibiotic associated diarrhoea. Administration of lactic acid bacteria create eubiosis between the human organism and the world of bacteria, that is, eubacteriosis is developed instead of a pathogen flora, assuring normal physiologic functions for the well-being of the organism.

Obesity induced by kainic acid microlesion in the ventromedial hypothalamus in rats.

The neurotoxin kainic acid was injected bilaterally into the ventromedial hypothalamus of female rats in doses of 100 or 200 ng. The injections produced microlesions which led to progressive body weight gain and fat deposition in dose dependent manner. The histological examination revealed that the lesions were mainly located in the region between the ventromedial hypothalamic nuclei and the fornix.

High serum bile acid level in obesity: its decrease during and after total fasting.

Elevated serum bile acid levels were observed in overweight subjects as compared to those with an ideal weight. Fasting for 14 days resulted in a gradual decrease to the normal level of serum cholic, chenodeoxycholic and deoxycholic acid concentrations. There was no change in the serum bile acid level during a two days refeeding period. The findings suggest that, in addition to the beneficial weight reduction, normalization of bile acid homeostasis can be achieved by fasting in obesity.

Clinical, enzymological and histological changes in chronic diffuse liver diseases following (+)-cyanidanol-3 (Catergen) treatment.

The effect of (+)-cyanidanol-3 (Catergen) monotherapy was examined in 18 patients with alcoholic liver disease and in 12 patients with chronic active hepatitis. During the administration of the drug the majority of complaints diminished or ceased in both groups. In patients with alcoholic liver disease bromsulphalein retention and gamma glutamyl transferase levels decreased, in chronic active hepatitis serum glutaminic pyruvic acid transaminase (SGPT) and alkaline phosphatase levels increased, pseudocholinesterase level decreased. The histological abnormalities of alcoholic liver injury improved in the majority of cases, on the other hand, it was deteriorated in two third of the cases with chronic active hepatitis. In two cases the histological recovery of acute alcoholic hepatitis was observed. On the basis of this results we conclude that Catergen has an excellent therapeutic effect in alcoholic liver injury while in chronic active liver diseases it can be applied only as a part of combined therapy.

Hepatitis a virus antibody in chronic diffuse liver disease.

175 patients with histological evidence of chronic diffuse liver disease, 67 patients with heart failure, diabetes and atherosclerosis, and 118 healthy adults under 30 years of age engaged in sports were studied for the prevalence of hepatitis A virus antibody (anti-HAV) by radioimmunoassay using a HAVAB (Abbott)-kit. Infection with hepatitis-A virus is highly prevalent in Hungary, anti-HAV having been demonstrated in a very high proportion of controls as well as of patients. Over the age of 40 the incidence is 100% in controls and 98% in patients with chronic liver disease. Infection with hepatitis-A virus must have been asymptomatic in the majority, since no more than 11.4% of the subjects had a history of acute hepatitis. The prevalence of acquired anti-HAV increases with age until it attains 100% in advanced age. The present results lend no support to the possibility that hepatitis-A virus infection might be involved in the production of chronic diffuse liver disease.

Effect of mazindol on feeding behaviour and on noradrenergic function of various parts of the rat brain.

The effect of mazindol on feeding behaviour was investigated in rats fasted for 24 hours. They were then given mazindol i.p. and placed in a new environment. The effect of the drug on the disappearance of 3H-noradrenaline (3H-NA) from various parts of the brain after injection into the cerebral ventricles was also investigated. Mazindol was more potent in suppressing feeding behaviour than in reducing food intake, indicating that a number of aspects of feeding behaviour may be more sensitive indices of the anorectic effect of a drug than food intake per se. Mazindol, in a dose of 30 mg/kg, accelerated the disappearance of 3H-NA from the medial hypothalamus but not from other areas of the brain, suggesting that the drug has a locus-specific action on cerebral noradrenaline metabolism.

Study of antibody to hepatitis-B virus core antigen (anti-HBc) in chronic diffuse liver disease.

The sera of 211 patients with histological evidence of chronic diffuse liver disease were studied for antibody to hepatitis-B virus core antigen (anti-HBc), hepatitis-B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) and antibody to the latter antigen (anti-HBs) by radioimmunoassay, using Abbott-RIA kits. The frequency of anti-HBc-positivity was found to be six times as high as HBsAg-positivity and twice as high as anti-HBs-positivity. In 20 of the patients with chronic liver disease the anti-HBc-positivity was the only indicator of past infection with HB-virus. The detection-rate of HB-viral infection provided by the highly sensitive radioimmunoassays was 59 per cent in liver cirrhosis of 45 per cent in chronic hepatitis, 26 per cent in fatty degeneration of the liver. Anti-HBc having been found to be the most sensitive indicator of HB-viral infection, the importance of its assay is therefore emphasized.

Dehydroepiandrosterone concentration in adipose tissue of normal and overweight subjects.

Unconjugated dehydroepiandrosterone has been isolated from human abdominal adipose tissue and identified by double isotope derivatization and recrystallization to constant isotope ratio. Gas chromatography with electron capture detection revealed an actual dehydroepiandrosterone concentration between 0.32 to 2.82 mug/g in adipose tissue of normal and overweight subjects. The approximate dehydroepiandrosterone content of the total adipose tissue mass varied between 30 and 173 mg in subjects with severe obesity.

Dynamic appearance of [4-14C] dehydroepiandrosterone and [7 alpha-3H] dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate metabolites in urine of normal and obese female subjects.

[4-14C]-Dehydroepiandrosterone and [7 alpha-3H]-Dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate were injected simultaneously to normal and obese female subjects. The percentage recovery of 14C and 3H radioactivies in dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate, androsterone sulphate, etiocholanolone sulphate, androsterone glucuronoside and etiocholanolone glucuronoside was determined in the day-to-day urine collections for 72 hr. Results showed a normal total 3H recovery and a poor 14C recovery in urinary conjugates of obese patients. The rate of appearance of 3H activity was not identical in the individual metabolites of normal subjects, and it was not normal in obesity. Overweight subjects exhibited an acceleration in [7 alpha-3H]-Dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate metabolism to androsterone glucuronoside. The observation regarding the rate of appearance of urinary conjugates bearing 14C isotope correlate with our previous finding in which a glandular overproduction of free dehydroepiandrosterone was found and an uptake of this steroid by the adipose tissue was suggested. Our results showed that the poor recovery of 14C radioactivity in urine of obese female subjects was not an aspecific consequence of illness.

Growth hormone and prolactin content of hyperplastic anterior pituitary of dehydroepiandrosterone treated rats.

30 days after implantation of 80 mg dehydroepiandrosterone (androst-5-en-3betaol-17-one) hyperplastic enlargement of the anterior pituitary has been observed in about 80 per cent of the female rats. There was an important increase of prolactin content, growth hormone content remained unchanged. The mentioned alterations were found to be reversible, since regression was observed after DEA treatment exceeding 30 days. In females developing no hyperplasia pituitary growth hormone contentration and content has been decreased, prolactin content remained unchanged. In male rats on identical treatment no change of pituitary weight, growth hormone and prolactin concent has been found. The results suggest that, under physiological conditions, DEA does not affect pituitary growth hormone and prolactin content, however response to pharmacological doses was different in male and female rats.

Dehydroepiandrosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate dynamics in obesity.

Dehydroepiandrosterone (D) and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DS) dynamics were studied in three obese female subjects following a single injection of [4-14-CA1D and [7 alpha-3-H]-DS tracers. Dynamic parameters were calculated simultaneously by both the urinary and blood method of compartmentalization; Estimates for the urinary secretion and production rates of D were found to be high, and those of DS varied within normal range. Calculation of the conversion factors, rho DDS and rho DSD, by the urinary method revealed a noraml extraglandular DS yields D conversion, while that for D yields DS appeared deficient in obese female subjects. Estimates of inner and outer pool distribution volumes were extremely increased for free D; in contrast to this, moderately increased inner and decreased outer pool volumes of DS were observed. The metabolic clearance rates of D were normal or decreased and those for DS were greater than normal. The blood production rates of both B and DS were higher in obese female subjects than those estimated for normal women in our previous study; These observations suggest a considerable uptake of unconjugated D by adipose tissue, an overall poor D yields DS conversion and an accelerated DS metabolism in obese female subjects.