Mechanisms of antipsychotic-induced weight gain.

The estimated percentage of persons with schizophrenia who are overweight is higher than the percentage of persons in the general population who are overweight. The increased mortality rate for persons with schizophrenia is largely due to obesity-related diseases. The atypical antipsychotics offer an improved therapeutic index when compared with the conventional agents, but may impart serious adverse events such as weight gain. This brief review is intended to provide the practicing clinician with an update of disparate research paradigms under investigation in an attempt to delineate the biological mechanisms that presage weight gain. Research success in this area may invite novel prevention strategies and hint at potential mechanisms of antipsychotic drug action.

Lithium revisited.

OBJECTIVE: To review lithium's utility in the treatment of mood disorders. METHOD: We reviewed the safety, tolerability, teratogenicity, optimal dosing regimens, and mortality-lowering effects of lithium. Clinical relevance and scientific rigour determined which articles we selected for review. RESULTS: Lithium is the paradigmatic treatment for bipolar disorder (BD). In treating BD, optimal maintenance plasma levels may be approximately 0.75 to 0.85 mEq/L. Although nephrogenic diabetes insipidus is not uncommon, irreversible renal failure due to lithium appears to be a rare, idiosyncratic event. Lithium-induced cardiovascular teratology appears to be less common than previously thought. Optimal lithium dosing may be once daily, this agent appears to bestow a robust suicide-lowering effect, and emerging data hint at neurotrophic and neuroprotective effects. CONCLUSION: Lithium remains an effective and integral agent in the treatment of BD. Its ability to lower suicide rates in persons with BD warrants clinical attention.

Immune response to vaccine against influenza in smokers, non-smokers and, in individuals holding respiratory complications.

Levels of antibody against influenza virus were evaluated in serum pairing samples from individuals immunized against influenza by Hemagglutination Inhibition and Single Radial Hemolysis tests. For this purpose, groups of smokers, non-smokers and, of those holding respiratory complications, were formed. Results of serologic titrations pointed out to an increase in the level of antibodies for the smoker and non-smoker groups, with significant degrees of difference up to P < 0.001 difference between both averages after immunization. However, in the group of respiratory complications no significant differences (P > 0.05) were found out between the averages antibody levels for the subtype A (H1N1) and the Type B (vaccine components); an increase only at the level of antibodies was registered, with differences among the averages of the antibody levels, for the subtype A (H3N2) (vaccine component) at degrees of P < 0.01 and P < 0.001 on the titration of the SRH and HI tests, respectively. It can demonstrate that immunization against influenza presents a good protection for the smoker and non-smoker groups; however, in the group of respiratory complications it only occurred with the subtype A (H3N2), indicating that this subtype presents good antigenicity since it has induced better formation of antibodies, even in defective organisms.

Antioxidant activity of cinnamon (Cinnamomum Zeylanicum, Breyne) extracts.

JUSTIFICATION: Lipid oxidation is one of the major changes that can occur during processing, distribution, storage and final preparation of foods. The oxidation could be prevented by adding synthetic or natural antioxidants in spite of safety of synthetic ones has been questioned. This situation promotes increasing demand for food additives of natural origin. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant activity of cinnamon extracts. METHODS: Cinnamon samples were obtained at local market, milled (32 mesh sieve) and submitted to sequential extraction using as solvents: ether, methanol and water. The antioxidant activity in the extracts was measured by the b-carotene/linoleic acid system, at 50 degrees C and absorbances reading at 470 nm every 15 min intervals for 120 min. Two controls were used in this determination: one with synthetic antioxidant (BHT, 100 ppm) and other without antioxidant. The water extract was fraccionated using silica Gel 60 and 60G and through chromatographic processes: thin layer, (T.L.C.) and column, using BAW as mobile phase and ethylacetate, petroleum ether, methanol and water as eluent, respectively. RESULTS: The etheric (0.69 mg), methanolic (0.88 mg) and aqueous (0.44 mg) cinnamon extracts, inhibited the oxidative process in 68%; 95.5% and 87.5% respectively. The BHT control inhibited 80% oxidation. The spray reagents (1) beta-carotene/linoleic acid and (2) Fe Cl3/K3 Fe (CN)4 1% sol, showed spots in T.L.C. with antioxidant activity (1) and blue color (2), indicating the presence of phenolic compounds with Rf values of 0.50. Five fractions were obtained by column partition with antioxidant activity and the presence of phenolic compounds. SIGNIFICANCE: These results suggest that the cinnamon extracts can be used as food antioxidant together with the improvement of food palatability. Further studies are in processing of analysing the sinergic association of extracts with synthetic antioxidant and to identify compounds with antioxidant activity in cinnamon extracts.

Isolation, purification and characterization of the virus responsible for vaginitis, in cows, associated with infertility.

A virus isolated from vaginal exudate of cows with vaginitis showed molecular weight around 92 to 143 x 10(3) KD, density between 1.168 and 1.203 g/ml and physical, chemical and morphological properties characteristic of virus belonging to the herpes group. This virus was not reagent with the fluorescent antibodies of Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) or Parainfluenza-3 (PI-3) viruses, frequently detected in cows with vaginitis.

Influenza eqüina: avaliaçäo da resposta imune humoral, através das reaçöes de inibiçäo da hemaglutinaçäo e de hemólise radial simples, em soro de animais vacinados com vacina comercial e experimental / Equine influenza: evaluation of the humoral immune response through the hemagglutination inhibition and single radial haemolysis, in vaccinated horses with commercial and experimental vaccines

Foram avaliadas, através de testes de inibiçäo da hemaglutinaçäo (HI) e da hemólise radial simples (HRS), as respostas de anticorpos contra influenza em 4 lotes de eqüinos adultos. O grupo do lote 01 recebeu a imunizaçäo com 2 doses de vacina contra influenza, preparada experimentalmente no Instituto Butantan. Nos lotes 02 e 03, regularmente imunizados contra a influenza, foram administradas doses de reforço anual com a vacina comercial e com a vacina experimental, respectivamente. O lote 04 foi o grupo controle da avaliaçäo. Os resultados dos testes demonstraram que as médias de títulos de HRS e IH do lote 01 apresentaram diferenças ao nível de p < 0,001, com significante aumento das médias de títulos detectados nos soros após a 2a. imunizaçäo. Näo foram observadas diferenças significantes entre as médias de títulos de anticorpos em soros obtidos antes e após a dose de reforço anual dos eqüinos dos lotes 02 e 03, atribuindo-se a persistência de nível de anticorpos protetores mantida após 1 ano da imunizaçäo regular com vacina comercial. A conversäo sorológica dos eqüinos do lote 01, à persistência dos títulos de anticorpos nos eqüinos dos lotes 02 e 03 e, ainda, os baixos títulos de anticorpos verificados nos eqüinos näo vacinados do lote 04 comprovam o resultado da resposta sorológica das duas vacinas, a experimental e a comercial, avaliadas neste trabalho

[Serological investigation of influenza type A and B in university students, Brazil]. / Investigação sorológica da influenza tipos A e B em estudantes universitários, Brasil.

Wide serological prevalence of influenza A and B was verified by the serological survey covering 200 students of the University of S. Paulo during the 1984-1985 period. The humoral antibodies were detected by the single radial haemolysis technique, whose arithmetic titres averages were greater for both subtypes, (H1N1) and (H3N2) of the influenza A virus strains recently isolated from the population. However, the situation of this type B virus was not the same as that of type A seeing that the B/Engl/847/73, although an older strain, showed better reactogenicity than the other strains evaluated. It is possible that is was responsible for the primo infection of most of the components of the group surveyed, as the phenomenon of the "Original Antigenic Sin" explains. The antibody responses to subtypes of influenza A and B in this survey demonstrated levels with low SRH titres (2.5 to 3.5 mm) and high SRH titres (> or = 4.0 mm) related to the lowest and highest levels of suggest protection against infection. Individual immunity and persistence of antibody are related to frequency and recent occurrence of exposition to influenza. As concerns the formulation of influenza vaccine it was established that this preserves the antigen selection of the new strains isolated from the population, mainly due to the behavior of the influenza A virus.

A ocorrencia de riquetsioses do grupo Rickettsia rickettsii. / The occurrence of ruckettsiosis of the group Rickettsia rickettsii

Foi realizada revisao da literatura com objetivo de atualizar as informacoes sobre a ocorrencia de riquetsioses do grupo Rickettsia rickettsii. Verificou-se que nos EUA e Europa, a incidencia da febre maculosa, vem aumentando desde 1970 ate hoje. No Brasil, foi relatado um caso presuntivo, no estado da Bahia, em 1979. Com relacao a prevencao, controle e tratamento dessa doenca e salientada a importancia de informacoes relacionadas com individuos expostos a picadas de carrapatos, notificacao de novos casos, fatores ecologicos, tecnicas laboratoriais mais especificas para a identificacao do agente etiologico, e a antibioticoterapia mais eficiente. A vacinacao e ainda referida como meio mais favoravel na prevencao da doenca, devendo ser administrada aos individuos de alto risco. No Brasil, faltam informacoes precisas sobre a ocorrencia de R. rickettsii