A comparative study of the effects of brinzolamide and dorzolamide on retinal oxygen saturation and ocular microcirculation in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma

To access publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links fieldAIMS: To assess the effects of brinzolamide and dorzolamide on ocular haemodynamics and retinal oxygen saturation in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (OAG). METHODS: Fifteen patients with OAG were evaluated in a randomised, cross-over, double-blind study. They were treated with either brinzolamide or dorzolamide for 3 months and then crossed-over after a 4-week washout period. They were given timolol during a 4-week run-in period and during washout. The following were performed after run-in, after washout and after each treatment period: adverse events check, measurement of visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, blood pressure, heart rate, and intraocular pressure, and fundus examination. Ocular blood flow was assessed using confocal scanning laser Doppler flowmetry (HRF) and colour Doppler imaging (CDI). Retinal oxygenation levels were determined using a non-invasive measurement of haemoglobin oxygen saturation by digital photographic fundus oximetry. RESULTS: Both brinzolamide and dorzolamide reduced the number of zero-flow pixels in the retina as measured by HRF, suggesting an increase in retinal blood flow (-6.86 and -0.452 respectively) with brinzolamide treatment resulting in fewer zero-flow pixels than dorzolamide (-6.41) (p = 0.024). Both brinzolamide and dorzolamide increased oxygen saturation in the retina as measured by photographic retinal oximetry in the superior (0.82 (p = 0.002) and 0.87 (p = 0.005)) and inferior (0.88 (p = 0.035) and 0.82 (p = 0.002)) retinal veins. No significant changes were found in CDI measurements of the retrobulbar blood supply during either treatment. CONCLUSION: This pilot study suggests that brinzolamide and dorzolamide may increase retinal oxygen saturation in patients with OAG

Investigation of the role of interleukin-6 and hepcidin antimicrobial peptide in the development of anemia with age

Anemia is common in older adults and associated with adverse health outcomes in epidemiological studies. A thorough understanding of the complex pathophysiological mechanisms driving anemia in the elderly is lacking; but inflammation, iron restriction, and impaired erythroid maturation are thought to influence the phenotype. We hypothesized that interleukin-6 contributes to this anemia, given its pro-inflammatory activities, its ability to induce hepcidin antimicrobial peptide, and its negative impact on several tissues in older adults. We tested this hypothesis by comparing changes in indices of inflammation, iron metabolism and erythropoiesis in aged C57BL/6 mice to aged mice with targeted deletions of interleukin-6 or hepcidin antimicrobial peptide. Circulating neutrophil and monocyte numbers and inflammatory cytokines increased with age. Decline in hemoglobin concentration and red blood cell number indicated that C57BL/6, interleukin-6 knockout mice, and hepcidin antimicrobial peptide knockout mice all demonstrated impaired erythropoiesis by 24 months. However, the interleukin-6 knock out genotype and the hepcidin antimicrobial peptide knock out genotype resulted in improved erythropoiesis in aged mice. Increased erythropoietic activity in the spleen suggested that the erythroid compartment was stressed in aged C57BL/6 mice compared to aged interleukin-6 knockout mice. Our data suggest C57BL/6 mice are an appropriate mammalian model for the study of anemia with age. Furthermore, although interleukin-6 and hepcidin antimicrobial peptide are not required, they can participate in the development of anemia in aging mice, and could be targeted, pre-clinically, with existing interventions to determine the feasibility of such agents for the treatment of anemia in older adults

Lipid-Lowering Effects of Ethyl 2-Phenacyl-3-aryl-1H-pyrrole- 4-carboxylates in Rodents

Abstract- A series of substituted 2-phenacyl-3-phenyl-1H-pyrrole-4-carboxylates were prepared from substituted acetophenones in 6 steps. The final condensations between a chloroenal and an aminoketone were carried out under neutral conditions in parallel to yield the series listed below. Selected pyrrole derivatives proved to be potent hypolipidemic agents lowering serum triglyceride concentrations in CF-1 male mice after 14 days of I.P. administration. One agent orally lowered serum cholesterol in Sprague-Dawley male rats at 2mg/kg/day after 14 days. The agents demonstrated a lowering of mouse serum LDLcholesterol levels and selected compounds showed an elevation of serum HDL-cholesterol levels. The cholesterol concentrations in the liver were raised while the cholesterol and triglyceride contents of the aorta were significantly lowered by the selected trisubstituted pyrrole