[Therapeutic use of nitric oxide: implications for nursing]. / Utilização do óxido nítrico como terapêutica: implicações para a enfermagem.

Nitric oxide (NO) is a gas that transmits signals in the organism. Such signal transmission takes place by means of the gas synthesis and release in different cell types. After it is released, the gas penetrates the membrane of a neighboring cell and regulates its function. Such mechanism represents an entirely new signaling principle in biological systems. The discoverers of NO as a signaling molecule were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology in 1998. This discovery has revolutionized medicine and originated new treatments for old problems. In this study, we review the role of NO in some pathologies such as sepsis, arterial hypertension and pulmonary hypertension and Nitric Oxide is explained in terms of its current merit for treatment and its impact on nursing care.

Treatment of chronic experimental Trypanosoma cruzi infections in mice with MK-436, a 2-substituted 5-nitroimidazole.

The antiprotozoal drug 3-(1-methyl-5-nitroimidazol-2-yl)-3a, 4,5,6,7,7a-hexahydro-1,2-benzisoxazole (MK-436) is highly efficacious for treating mice chronically infected with different strains of Trypanosoma cruzi. The compound was administered by gavage in two daily doses of 250 mg per kg body weight to 130 mice that had been infected for 90 to 400 days with either type II or III strains of T. cruzi. The following parasitological cure tests were carried out: xenodiagnosis, haemoculture, and inoculation of blood into newborn mice. Indirect immunofluorescence tests and histopathological studies were also performed. The results indicate that the drug is highly efficacious against chronic infection caused by both type II (cure rate, 90%) and type III strains (cure rate, 95.7%). Histopathological examinations showed complete clearance of the cardiac and muscular lesions in 36% of the mice infected with type II strains and a decrease in the intensity and extension of the lesions in mice infected with type III strains. Indirect immunofluorescence tests were persistently positive for all the mice 3-6 months after the treatment.

[Isoenzymatic pattern of Trypanosoma cruzi Y strain after specific chemotherapy]. / Padrao isoenzimático da cepa Y do Trypanosoma cruzi após quimioterapia especifica.

The isoenzyme pattern of the Trypanosoma cruzi Y strain recovered from mice inoculated with 15 x 10(4) blood trypomastigotes and previously treated with either Bay 2502 (Nifurtimox) or Ro 7-1051 (Benzonidazol) was analyzed in the following situations: a) strain resistant to Bay 2502 and again treated with the same drug; b) strain resistant to Bay 2502 and treated with Ro 7-1051; c) strain resistant to Ro 7-1051 and treated with that same drug. Although marked drug resistance was noted in all cases, the isoenzyme pattern of the Y strain for GPI, PGM, ALAT and ASAT remained throughout the same. The pattern was similar to that of the Peruvian strain, which also belongs to the same strain Type of the Y strain, but differed from those of the 21 SF (Type II) and Colombian (Type III) strains. Thus, the appearance of drug resistance in T. cruzi strain was not associated with a change in its isoenzymatic pattern.

Treatment of chronic experimental Trypanosoma cruzi infections in mice with MK-436, a 2-substituted 5-nitroimidazole

The antiprotozoal drug 3-(1-methyl-5-nitroimidazol-2-yl)3a, 4,5,6,7,7a-hexahydro-1,2-benzisoxazole (MK-436) is highly efficacious for treating mice chronically infected with different strains of Trypanosoma cruzi. The compound was administered by gavage in two daily doses of 250 mg per kg body weight to 130 mice that had been infected for 90 to 400 days with either type II or III strains of T. cruzi. The following parasitological cure tests were carried out: xenodiagnosis, haemoculture, and inoculation of blood into newborn mice. Indirect immunofluorescence tests and histopathological studies were also performed

The results indicate that the drug is highly efficacious against chronic infection caused by both type II (cure rate, 90 percent) and type III strains (cure rate, 95.7 percent). Histopathological examinations showed complete clearance of the cardiac and muscular lesions in 36 percent of the mice infected with type II strains and a decrease in the intensity and extension of the lesions in mice infected with type III strains. Indirect immunofluorescence tests were persistently positive for all the mice 3-6 months after the treatment(AU)

Therapeutic action of MK-436 (2,5-nitroimidazole) on Trypanosoma cruzi infections in mice: a parasitological, serological, histopathological, and ultrastructural study.

The anti-protozoal drug MK-436 (3-(1-methyl-5-nitroimidazol-2-yl)-3a,4,5,6,7,7a-hexahydro-1,2-benzisoxazole) was found to be effective against Trypanosoma cruzi infections in mice (2 daily doses of 250 mg per kg body weight). Parasitaemia disappeared within 24 hours of treatment which was commenced during the early or late stages of acute infection. Intracellular T. cruzi parasites were also affected by the drug, ultrastructural findings showing severe cytoplasmic vacuolization and membrane alterations. Positive serological responses persisted in the majority of treated and parasitologically cured mice in the study. Cure rates varied from 72% to 100% and were similar regardless of the T. cruzi strain used (Y strain, type I; 12 SF strain, type II; or Colombian strain, type III). However, the proportion of positive serological tests and the frequency of inflammatory lesions were greatest for mice that were infected with the Colombian strain of the parasite.