Nerve conduction changes in patients with mitochondrial diseases treated with dichloroacetate.

Serial measurements of nerve conduction velocities and amplitudes were performed in 27 patients with congenital lactic acidemia over 1 year of sodium dichloroacetate (DCA) administration. Patients were treated with oral thiamine (100 mg) and DCA (initial dose of 50 mg/kg) daily. Nerve conduction velocity and response amplitude were measured in the median, radial, tibial, and sural nerves at 0, 3, 6, and 12 months, and plasma DCA pharmacokinetics were measured at 3 and 12 months. Baseline electrophysiologic parameters in this population were generally below normal but as a group were within 2 standard deviations of normal means. Although symptoms of neuropathy were reported by only three patients or their families, nerve conduction declined in 12 patients with normal baseline studies, and worsening of nerve conduction occurred in the two who had abnormalities at baseline. Peripheral neuropathy appears to be a common side effect during chronic DCA treatment, even with coadministration of oral thiamine. Nerve conduction should be monitored during DCA treatment.

Laminins and human disease.

The laminin protein family has diverse tissue expression patterns and is involved in the pathology of a number of organs, including skin, muscle, and nerve. In the skin, laminins 5 and 6 contribute to dermal-epidermal cohesion, and mutations in the constituent chains result in the blistering phenotype observed in patients with junctional epidermolysis bullosa (JEB). Allelic heterogeneity is observed in patients with JEB: mutations that results in premature stop codons produce a more severe phenotype than do missense mutations. Gene therapy approaches are currently being studied in the treatment of this disease. A blistering phenotype is also observed in patients with acquired cicatricial pemphigoid (CP). Autoantibodies targeted against laminins 5 and 6 destabilize epithelial adhesion and are pathogenic. In muscle cells, laminin alpha 2 is a component of the bridge that links the actin cytoskeleton to the extracellular matrix. In patients with laminin alpha 2 mutations, the bridge is disrupted and mature muscle cells apoptose. Congenital muscular dystrophy (CMD) results. The role of laminin in diseases of the nervous system is less well defined, but the extracellular protein has been shown to serve an important role in peripheral nerve regeneration. The adhesive molecule influences neurite outgrowth, neural differentiation, and synapse formation. The broad spatial distribution of laminin gene products suggests that laminin may be involved in a number of diseases for which pathogenic mechanisms are still being unraveled.

Organismal effects of mitochondrial dysfunction.

Mitochondrial disease can lead to clinical abnormalities in any organ system. Both inherited and spontaneous disorders are known. The spontaneous forms can occur as a mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutation early in embryogenesis or, later in life, as somatic mutations that accumulate with age. The inherited forms may arise from any of >100 characterized mutations in mtDNA or from >200 nuclear gene defects that affect proteins required for mitochondrial function. Most dividing cells survive and interact normally despite their mitochondrial defects. Thus post-mitotic, terminally differentiated cells are preferentially affected in mitochondrial disease. This review emphasizes cellular metabolic co-operation and the structural and biochemical diversity of mitochondria as the framework for understanding the clinical spectrum of mitochondrial disease. The principles of the mitochondrial clinical assessment scale I (MCAS-I) are presented to assist in the development of diagnostic spectra of mitochondrial disease.

Kearns-Sayre syndrome presenting as 2-oxoadipic aciduria.

A patient with 2-oxoadipic aciduria and 2-aminoadipic aciduria presented at 2 years of age with manifestations typical of organic acidemia, episodes of ketosis and acidosis, progressive to coma. This resolved and the key metabolites disappeared from the urine and blood. At 9 years of age she developed typical Kearns-Sayre syndrome with complete heart block, retinopathy, and ophthalmoplegia. Southern blot revealed a deletion in the mitochondrial genome.

Expression of an estrogen receptor by human coronary artery and umbilical vein endothelial cells.

BACKGROUND: Premenopausal women have much lower susceptibility to coronary artery disease than do men or postmenopausal women. It has been proposed that estrogen plays a role in cardioprotection, but little information is available regarding the mechanism by which estrogen may help to protect the vasculature. Here, we describe an estrogen receptor (ER) in human coronary artery and umbilical vein endothelial cells. METHODS AND RESULTS: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells and human coronary artery endothelial cells were cultured in hormone-free medium for 48 hours before experiments. Estradiol (3.7 nmol/L) added to cultures promoted proliferation by a mechanism that is inhibited by the specific ER antagonist ICI182,780. Estradiol-treated cells incorporated twice the [3H]thymidine of hormone-free cells; this increase was prevented by ICI182,780. Endothelial cells from both sources stained in a nuclear pattern with an ER-specific antibody. Ribonuclease protection assay detected mRNA for the ER. Ligand-binding studies estimated 2 x 10(4) to 8 x 10(4) receptors per cell and a Kd of approximately 5 nmol/L. Interaction of ERs with a consensus estrogen response element was shown by an electrophoretic mobility shift assay. In addition, an antibody against the ER supershifted the protein-DNA complex. CONCLUSIONS: These studies define the presence of an ER in human coronary artery and umbilical vein endothelial cells. They support the hypothesis that cardioprotective effects of estrogen are mediated, at least in part, through a classic steroid hormone receptor mechanism.

Oestrogen and endothelial cell angiogenic activity.

1. Increasing evidence suggests that oestrogens protect women from cardiovascular disease during their reproductive years. Although most studies by others have examined the effect of oestrogen on vascular smooth muscle cells, we have evaluated the effect of oestrogen on the angiogenic behaviour of endothelial cells. 2. Oestrogen enhances endothelial cell attachment, proliferation, migration and organization into capillary-like structures in vitro. In vivo, oestrogen augments experimental angiogenesis. 3. As the same endothelial cell behaviours that are important in angiogenesis in small vessels are also important in the healing response to injury of large vessels, it is likely that the effect of oestrogen on these endothelial cell functions contributes significantly to the cardioprotective effects of oestrogen in women.

Flow injection analysis chemiluminescence detection of residual ozone.

Chemiluminescent reagents for the determination of residual ozone were compared. Each method was automated using gas diffusion flow injection analysis. The luminol method gave a four order of magnitude working range with an LOD of 0.008 mg O(3)/l. The luminol method has better analytical characteristics than the standard colorimetric Indigo Blue methods.

Estrogen promotes angiogenic activity in human umbilical vein endothelial cells in vitro and in a murine model.

BACKGROUND: Angiogenesis is a critical event in wound healing, tumor growth, and the inflammatory vasculitides. Since women have a higher incidence of many vasculitic diseases, we examined the effects of female sex steroids, particularly estradiol, on human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) behavior in vitro and on angiogenesis in vivo. METHODS AND RESULTS: HUVECs were grown in estrogen-free medium before each assay. Exogenous 17 beta-estradiol (1 to 5 nmol/L) increased cell attachment to laminin, types I and IV collagen, and fibronectin, as well as to tissue culture plastic. After a confluent monolayer of cells was "wounded" by scraping, estradiol-treated (10(-8) mol/L) cells migrated into the wound three times faster than untreated cells. Cell proliferation on plastic and on laminin increased threefold to fivefold, respectively, in the presence of estradiol. Estradiol also enhanced the ability of HUVECs to organize into tubular networks when plated on a reconstituted basement membrane, Matrigel. Estradiol effects on both the "wounding" assay and tube formation were blocked by the specific estrogen receptor antagonist ICI 182,780. Ovariectomy markedly decreased in vivo vascularization of Matrigel plugs coinjected with basic fibroblast growth factor in mice. With estrogen replacement, angiogenesis was increased to the levels observed in nonovariectomized mice. CONCLUSIONS: These studies demonstrate that, in vitro and in vivo, estradiol enhances endothelial cell activities important in neovascularization and suggest a promoting influence of estrogens on angiogenesis.

Localization of type I human skin collagenase in developing embryonic and fetal skin.

Type I human skin collagenase (HSC-1) was localized in developing embryonic and fetal skin ranging from 6 to 20 weeks estimated gestational age using an antigen-specific, affinity-purified, polyclonal antiserum to HSC-1 and an avidin-biotin alkaline phosphatase procedure. Double immunolabeling with monoclonal antibodies for Factor VIII-related antigen, type IV collagen, and the 68-kilodalton neurofilament subunit was performed using a direct peroxidase procedure. By 8 weeks estimated gestational age, HSC-1 localized to the periderm, the basal cell epidermal keratinocytes, dermal fibroblasts, and surrounding extracellular matrix. At 12 weeks estimated gestational age, HSC-1 immunolabeling showed a continued association with the epidermis and dermis. Dermal and subcutaneous blood vessels and the surrounding extracellular matrix were positive for HSC-1 labeling. HSC-1 staining was also found around developing nerves and in association with dermal fibroblasts. In the developing hair follicle, HSC-1 was present in keratinocytes of the pre-germ, germ, hair peg, and bulbous hair peg. HSC-1 immunoreactivity was also found in association with the hair canal, the bulge, and the dermal papillae, but was absent from the fetal sebaceous gland. These data demonstrate the association of HSC-1 with the development of interfollicular epidermis, the dermal collagenous matrix, the process of angiogenesis, the development of nerves, and hair follicle morphogenesis.

The effect of topical indomethacin ophthalmic solution in maintaining mydriasis during cataract surgery.

One hundred six consecutive patients undergoing elective cataract surgery were divided into a control group and treatment group in a double-blinded study to evaluate the non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drug indomethacin as an aid for maintaining pupil dilation during surgery. Both groups received the routine preoperative dilating drops, and the treatment group also received 1% indomethacin. After lens extraction, the change in pupil diameter from the preoperative measurement averaged 0.27 mm in the treatment group and 0.84 mm in the control group. The difference in control groups was significant (p = 0.001), favoring indomethacin for maintaining pupil dilation.

Clinical trial of flurbiprofen to maintain pupillary dilation during cataract surgery.

Thirty-four patients undergoing elective extracapsular cataract extraction were divided into a control group (18 patients) and treatment group (16 patients) in a double-blinded study to evaluate the nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drug flurbiprofen as an aid for maintaining pupil dilation during surgery. Both groups received the routine preoperative dilating drops, and the treatment group also received 0.03% topical flurbiprofen. After lens extraction, the change in pupil diameter from the preoperative measurement averaged -2.5 mm in the treatment group and -3.9 mm in the control group. The difference between groups was significant (p = 0.003), favoring flurbiprofen for maintaining pupil dilation.