69 research outputs found
Cyclosporine A reduces microvascular obstruction and preserves left ventricular function deterioration following myocardial ischemia and reperfusion
Postconditioning and cyclosporine A prevent
mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening providing
cardioprotection during ischemia/reperfusion.
Whether microvascular obstruction is affected by these
interventions is largely unknown. Pigs subjected to coronary
occlusion for 1 h followed by 3 h of reperfusion were
assigned to control (n = 8), postconditioning (n = 9) or
cyclosporine A intravenous infusion 10-15 min before the
end of ischemia (n = 8). Postconditioning was induced by
8 cycles of repeated 30-s balloon inflation and deflation.
After 3 h of reperfusion magnetic resonance imaging,
triphenyltetrazolium chloride/Evans blue staining and histopathology
were performed. Microvascular obstruction
(MVO, percentage of gadolinium-hyperenhanced area) was
measured early (3 min) and late (12 min) after contrast
injection. Infarct size with double staining was smaller in
cyclosporine (46.2 ± 3.1 %, P = 0.016) and postconditioning
pigs (47.6 ± 3.9 %, P = 0.008) versus controls
(53.8 ± 4.1 %). Late MVO was significantly reduced by
cyclosporine (13.9 ± 9.6 %, P = 0.047) but not postconditioning
(23.6 ± 11.7 %, P = 0.66) when compared with
controls (32.0 ± 16.9 %). Myocardial blood flow in the
late MVO was improved with cyclosporine versus controls
(0.30 ± 0.06 vs 0.21 ± 0.03 ml/g/min, P = 0.002) and
was inversely correlated with late-MVO extent ( = 0.93,
P\0.0001). Deterioration of left ventricular ejection
fraction (LVEF) between baseline and 3 h of reperfusion
was smaller with cyclosporine (-7.9 ± 2.4 %, P = 0.008)
but not postconditioning (-12.0 ± 5.5 %, P = 0.22) when
compared with controls (-16.4 ± 5.5 %). In the three
groups, infarct size (\beta = -0.69, P\0.001) and late MVO
(\beta = -0.33, P = 0.02) were independent predictors of
LVEF deterioration following ischemia/reperfusion
(R^{2} = 0.73, P\0.001). Despite both cyclosporine A and
postconditioning reduce infarct size, only cyclosporine A
infusion had a beneficial effect on microvascular damage
and was associated with better preserved LV function when
compared with controls
Limitations in chloroplast multiplication in Acetabularia mediterranea
SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe
Peroxidases in Acetabularia: Their possible role in development
[No abstract available
Chronobiology of
Detailed total and differential parasitaemia curves of asexual Plasmodium chabaudi chabaudi erythrocytic stages were recorded and analysed. Female, inbred, CBA/Ca mice were infected with the virulent IP-PC 1 strain after in vitro synchronization of the parasites. Thin blood smears were made on an hourly basis, and the total and differential parasitaemia of ring forms, trophozoites and schizonts were counted after Giemsa staining. These curves reveal information that remains hidden when less detailed curves are examined: the duration and periodicity of the schizogonic cycle, the existence of a plateau, indications of a schizont withdrawal from the peripheral blood, the timing of the rise of the parasitaemia at each schizogony, and the invasion rate of the merozoites. In the perspective of developing a rational and efficient strategy for chronotherapy of malaria, such information should be taken into account
Changes in ascorbic acid content and ascorbate peroxidase activity during the development of Acetabularia mediterranea
[No abstract available
Lentiviral vectors containing the human immunodeficiency virus type-1 central polypurine tract can efficiently transduce nondividing hepatocytes and antigen-presenting cells in vivo
High-titer self-inactivating human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1)-based vectors expressing the green fluorescent protein reporter gene that contained the central polypurine and termination tract and the woodchuck hepatitis virus posttranscriptional regulatory element were constructed. Transduction efficiency and biodistribution were determined, following systemic administration of these improved lentiviral vectors. In adult severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) mice, efficient stable gene transfer was achieved in the liver (8.0% +/- 6.0%) and spleen (24% +/- 3%). Most transduced hepatocytes and nonhepatocytes were nondividing, thereby obviating the need to induce liver cell proliferation. In vivo gene transfer with this improved lentiviral vector was relatively safe since liver enzyme concentration in the plasma was only moderately and transiently elevated. In addition, nondividing major histocompatibility complex class II-positive splenic antigen-presenting cells (APCs) were efficiently transduced in SCID and normal mice. Furthermore, B cells were efficiently transduced, whereas T cells were refractory to lentiviral transduction in vivo. However, in neonatal recipients, lentiviral transduction was more widespread and included not only hepatocytes and splenic APCs but also cardiomyocytes. The present study suggests potential uses of improved lentiviral vectors for gene therapy of genetic blood disorders resulting from serum protein deficiencies, such as hemophilia, and hepatic disease. However, the use of liver-specific promoters may be warranted to circumvent inadvertent transgene expression in APCs. In addition, these improved lentiviral vectors could potentially be useful for genetic vaccination and treatment of perinatal cardiac disorders
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