ABSTRACT
The present work reviews the evidence for an involvement of free radicals in the pathophysiology of chronic pancreatitis and the potential of treatment with antioxidant and scavenger substances. Preliminary results indicate that exposure of isolated pancreatic acinar cells to a reaction mixture containing hypoxanthine, xanthine oxidase, and chelated iron causes cell damage and death probably due to generation of superoxide anion and hydrogen peroxide. It still needs to be analyzed which scavengers and antioxidants are able to ameliorate the damage due to oxidant stress in cell models. Such knowledge from cellular studies might help to plan therapeutical trials to evaluate potentially effective antioxidants and scavengers in the experimental animal and in patients with pancreatitis. As yet there are no published studies about the role of free radicals in animal models of chronic pancreatitis. This fact is probably due to the shortcomings of the animal models available. Recent studies presented evidence that activation of oxygen-derived free radicals occurs in patients with chronic pancreatitis. There is also some evidence that the dietary intake of antioxidants may be reduced in patients with chronic pancreatitis. It was suggested that such reduction of antioxidant defenses in the face of an increased demand due to heightened induction of P450 activities may facilitate lipid peroxidation. However, as yet, there is no direct evidence that a reduction of dietary antioxidants with a simultaneous increase in P450 activity is the primary mechanism which initiates chronic pancreatitis without contribution of other factors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Subject(s)
Antioxidants/therapeutic use , Oxygen/physiology , Pancreatitis/physiopathology , Animals , Chronic Disease , Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System/physiology , Free Radicals , Humans , Lipid Peroxidation/drug effects , Lipid Peroxidation/physiology , Pancreas/physiopathology , Pancreatitis/drug therapy , Vitamins/therapeutic useABSTRACT
Our experience with the determination of theophylline in serum using a monoclonal immunoassay reagent strip test is reported. The day-to-day precision of a series of drug assay controls (n = 74) was investigated with a mean theophylline value of 15,3 +/- 1,2 mg/l. Interference and/or cross reactivity of structurally related compounds and metabolites of theophylline was tested. Serum samples from 148 asthmatic patients who were treated with theophylline were analyzed by the SERALYZER ARIS*) reagent strip test and by high pressure liquid chromatography. A correlation coefficient of 0.99 was found between these techniques using a linear regression analysis.