Structure-activity relationship of polyisoprenyl benzophenones from Garcinia pyrifera on the tubulin/microtubule system.

Microtubule disassembly inhibitory properties have been established for the known polyisoprenylated benzophenones xanthochymol (1a) and guttiferone E (1b). The compounds were isolated from the fruits of Garcinia pyrifera collected in Malaysia. A structure-activity relationship study, including natural and semisynthetic derivatives, delineated some structural features necessary for the interaction with tubulin within this compound class.

Chondrosarcoma and myositis ossificans.

OBJECTIVE: To discuss the clinical radiographic findings in a 70-yr-old woman suffering from chondrosarcoma. CLINICAL FEATURES: The patient experienced right SI pain present initially only at night. She later developed morning numbness. An X-ray examination revealed a flocculent calcification in the right buttock region. Computed tomographic scans confirmed the diagnosis. INTERVENTION AND OUTCOME: Initial palliative care continued until surgery was performed to resect the area. CONCLUSION: Chondrosarcoma is a severe disease that must be differentiated from myositis ossificans.

A new method for the treatment of fibromas: interstitial laser hyperthermia using the Nd:YAG laser. Preliminary study.

Operative laparoscopy can replace hysterectomy in the treatment of submucous and subserosal uterine fibromyomas. Interstitial myomas are still treated using traditional methods. Using an Nd:YAG laser with a quartz fibre which diffuses the ray, we induced delayed necrosis of myoma secondary to the hyperthermia produced by this method-interstitial laser hyperthermia. We present an experimental study of fibromas from excised tissue. Optimal efficiency is achieved with continuous delivery at 5 W of power for 10 min. The temperature reaches 50 degrees C within a radius of 20 mm around the fibre. A clinical study was undertaken with the approval of the Ethics Committee. Seven patients suffering from symptomatic fibromas were treated by laparoscopy. Preliminary results at 12 months show that their symptoms have disappeared and the size of the fibromas has been reduced. A larger study is in progress.

Adaptive control of therapeutic drug regimens relations between clinical situations: outcomes and simulations using nonlinear dynamic models.

With Bayesian modeling and adaptive control of drug dosage regimens, serum and peripheral drug concentrations can be predicted in clinical situations using linear pharmacokinetic compartmental models (PK). Recently, several pathophysiologic and pharmacodynamic nonlinear models (PD) have been developed. The present report illustrates both their utility and limits for the computation of effects in clinical situations in the setting of actual routine and acute patient care. Patients who received therapy with aminoglycosides or/and vancomycin were selected. For each patient, after estimation of individual pharmacokinetic parameters, the computed outputs of the linear compartmental pharmacokinetic model were used as inputs for 2 different a priori nonlinear dynamic models: 1) the EFFECT modeling program, using a Hill model, and 2) the BACTCIDE program, which is a combination of a simple growth model for the organism and a Hill effect model considering both the microorganism, the antibiotic, and the patient's minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC). The programs (1) and (2) can use as inputs the computed concentrations from any of three compartments: central, peripheral, or a spherical diffusion compartment to compute drug diffusion into endocardial vegetations or abscesses. The EFFECT program can be used alone for the evaluation of drug effects. The BACTCIDE program illustrates differences in activity between concentration-dependent and time-dependent antibiotics. Such nonlinear programs are very sensitive to the MIC values.