Assessment of mineral elements and heavy metals in leaves of indigenous cypress of High Atlas Mountains.

An inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was developed to determine 20 mineral elements and heavy metals in leaves of Cupressus atlantica Gaussen, a traditional Moroccan medicinal herb from five environmentally different sites in N'Fis valley (High Atlas Mountains). The results showed in the leaves that Ca, K, P, Mg, Na and Fe were the most abundant of the elements in all samples of the studied locality. The concentrations of trace metals from the leaves of this plant were in the order Ca>K > P > Mg>Na>Fe. The results of the mineral composition were analysed by hierarchical cluster and principal component analysis that established three statistically significant clusters.

Quantitative analysis of some oligo-elements and heavy metals in some species of Thymus from Morocco.

In order to valorise natural substances, concentrations of 20 mineral elements were evaluated in five species of Moroccan thyme. These species which belong to the Lamiaceae family are Thymus leptobotrys, Thymus broussonetii, Thymus maroccanus, Thymus pallidus and Thymus satureioïdes growing in different regions of central and southern Morocco. Samples of plants were subjected to digestion and heavy metals were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The highest concentrations of calcium, iron, zinc, cobalt and chromium were registered in T. broussonetii, T. pallidus, T. leptobotrys, T. maroccanus and T. satureioïdes with respective values of 1991, 423, 73, 6 and 11 mg/kg. Furthermore, silicium and boron were analysed only for the species T. broussonetii and their respective concentrations were found to be 112 and 43 mg/kg. The ultra trace elements Si, B, Ni, Ni, As, Li, V and toxic elements Cd and Pb were also evaluated. The results were treated by the method of principal components analysis.

Riñón «en herradura», adenocarcinoma renal / No disponible

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Enemas en paciente con insuficiencia renal: una causa de hiperfosforemia severa / No disponible

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[Cholinergic hypothesis in psychosis following traumatic brain injury and cholinergic hypothesis in schizophrenia: a link?]. / Théorie cholinergique dans les psychoses après un traumatisme crânien et dans la schizophrénie: un lien?

INTRODUCTION: While traumatic brain injury is a major public health issue, schizophrenia-like psychosis following traumatic brain injury is relatively rare and poorly studied. Yet the risk of developing schizophrenia-like psychosis after traumatic brain injury is 3 times more important than in the general population. LITERATURE FINDINGS: Risk factors associated with onset of psychosis after traumatic brain injury include: left hemispheric lesions, closed head injury and coma of duration superior to 24 hours. Most patients develop symptoms of psychosis after a moderate to severe traumatic brain injury and often have lesions of the frontal and temporal lobes. CHOLINERGIC HYPOTHESIS: ARGUMENTS: Neuropathologic, electrophysiological and pharmacologic evidence show that cognitive impairment including attention, memory and executive functioning impairment may be related with cholinergic dysfunction in patients with traumatic brain injury. The cholinergic hypothesis is also incriminated in the genesis of schizophrenia. The same biochemical disorders found in schizophrenia which imply many neurotransmitters are often present immediately after traumatic brain injury. However in chronic cognitive disorders secondary to traumatic brain injury, the cholinergic system alone seems to be specifically implied. This is due to the fragility of the cholinergic fibres and a chronic yet reversible reduction of the cholinergic reserves after traumatic brain injury. Cholinergic function can be studied by the P50 evoked response to paired auditory stimuli.While this is disturbed in patients presenting with cognitive impairment after traumatic brain injury its normalisation can be obtained after administration of an acetylcholine esterase inhibitor. In schizophrenic patients there is also an abnormal P50 evoked response due in part to a low number of alpha 7 nicotinic receptors which are implicated in sensory filtering in the frontal lobe. Moreover in schizophrenia, post-mortem studies show a negative correlation between the activity of acetylcholine transferase in the parietal cortex and the severity of the cognitive deficits, as well as a lesser density of the muscarinic M1 and M4 receptors in the frontal lobe. The lower concentration of M1 receptors in the frontal cortex is correlated with the severity of the positive symptoms. THERAPEUTICAL PERSPECTIVES: Antipsychotics have emerged as the first line treatment of psychotic disorders. In research, their ability for enhancing cognitive function could result in the increase of acetylcholine in the medial prefrontal cortex. Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors have been widely used for treatment of cognitive impairment in Alzheimer's disease. Galantamine could be interesting in schizophrenia and psychosis following traumatic brain injury because it has a dual mechanism of action: selective competitive inhibition of acetylcholinesterase and allosteric potentialisation of nicotinic receptor response. Therefore Galantamine remains active in nicotine addicted schizophrenic patients who may smoke as an auto treatment. Galantamine has shown efficacy in adjunction to Risperidone in one patient presenting with psychosis following traumatic brain injury and in 3 case reports of schizophrenic patients. CONCLUSION: Further systematic studies are needed to confirm this hypothesis.

Changes in erythrocyte morphology induced by imipramine and chlorpromazine

Chlorpromazine (CPZ), a phenothiazine derivative, is a potent antipsychotic agent and imipramine (IP) is a widely used tricyclic antidepressant. The interaction between these molecules and erythrocyte membranes is of particular interest considering the role of these cells in the transport and release of these drugs at the central nervous system. In the present paper, we intend to study the effects of IP on erythrocyte membranes and to compare these effects with those of CPZ. Erythrocytes from adult Sprague-Dawley rats were incubated separately with different concentrations of IP or CPZ for 1 h at room temperature, fixed and stained by Giemsa. Changes in erythrocyte morphology were quantified by an image analysis system. The interaction of both drugs, CPZ and IP, with the erythrocyte membrane causes similar changes in cell shape. Increasing concentrations of both drugs induces the formation of stomatocytes, spherostomatocytes and spherocytes, because of an irreversible loss of area and volume, probably due to endovesiculation. Our results also show that the CPZ is more potent than IP (AU)

La clorpromazina (CPZ), un derivado de las fenotiazinas, es un potente agente antipsicótico y la imipramina (IP) es un antidepresivo tricíclico extensamente utilizado. La interacción entre estas moléculas y las membranas de los eritrocitos es de particular interés considerando la importancia de estas células en el transporte y liberación de estos fármacos en el sistema nervioso central. En este trabajo, nos proponemos estudiar los efectos de la IP en las membranas de los eritrocitos y comparar esos efectos con los de CPZ. Los eritrocitos de ratas Sprague-Dawley adultas fueron incubados por separado con varias concentraciones de IP o CPZ durante 1h a temperatura ambiente, fijados y teñidos con Giemsa. Los cambios en morfología de los eritrocitos fueron cuantificados mediante un sistema de análisis de imagen. La interacción de ambos productos, CPZ e IP, con la membrana de los eritrocitos provoca cambios similares en forma de la célula. El aumento de la concentración de ambos fármacos induce la formación de estomatocitos, esferoestomatocitos y esferocitos, debido a una pérdida irreversible de área y de volumen, probablemente debido a la endovesiculación, siendo la CPZ más potente que la IP (AU)

Changes in erythrocyte morphology induced by imipramine and chlorpromazine.

Chlorpromazine (CPZ), a phenothiazine derivative, is a potent antipsychotic agent and imipramine (IP) is a widely used tricyclic antidepressant. The interaction between these molecules and erythrocyte membranes is of particular interest considering the role of these cells in the transport and release of these drugs at the central nervous system. In the present paper, we intend to study the effects of IP on erythrocyte membranes and to compare these effects with those of CPZ. Erythrocytes from adult Sprague-Dawley rats were incubated separately with different concentrations of IP or CPZ for lh at room temperature, fixed and stained by Giemsa. Changes in erythrocyte morphology were quantified by an image analysis system. The interaction of both drugs, CPZ and IP, with the erythrocyte membrane causes similar changes in cell shape. Increasing concentrations of both drugs induces the formation of stomatocytes, spherostomatocytes and spherocytes, because of an irreversible loss of area and volume, probably due to endovesiculation. Our results also show that the CPZ is more potent than IP.

Lipid-Drug Interaction and Colligative Properties in Phospholipid Vesicles.

Imipramine penetration into the lipid core of a membrane was demonstrated through measurements on lipid monolayers (surface pressure and surface potential). The surface pressure measurements allow us to calculate the intrinsic binding constant (partition coefficient) for the lipid-Imipramine interaction. This latter value is in correct agreement with the results obtained by electrophoretic mobility measurements on liposomes. In addition, it was observed that the same mole fraction of "lipid-soluble drug" (Chlorpromazine or Imipramine) incorporated in a given lipidic phase (DPPC) induced the same shift in the transition temperature. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.

Interaction of chlorpromazine and imipramine with model membranes.

The aim of the present study is to examine the effect of phospholipids on the lipid destabilization induced by chlorpromazine (CPZ) and imipramine (IP) at different levels of pH. The large unilamellar vesicles (LUV) are formed in the presence of calcein (60 mM). The vesicles containing calcein have been incubated in the presence of CPZ and IP at pH 4.5 and pH 8. At pH 4.5 CPZ and IP induce a rapid release of the calcein encapsulated in the liposomes. Calcein release, at equal concentrations of pharmacological agent, is more important by CPZ than by IP. At pH 8, the calcein release was more important than at pH 4.5; this effect appears to be more significant for the CPZ than for the IP. In conclusion, the insertion of chlorpromazine and imipramine into large unilamellar vesicles is accompanied by a strong destabilization of the vesicles. These effects appear more significant for chlorpromazine than for imipramine.

[Mucopolysaccharidosis type I, Hurler-Scheie phenotype with ocular involvement. Clinical and ultrastructural study]. / Mucopolysaccharidose de type I, phénotype Hurler-Scheie avec atteinte oculaire. Etude clinique et ultrastructurale.

The authors report the case of a 37 year-old male who presented with type I Hurler-Scheie (H-S) mucopolysaccharidosis revealed by ocular complications including bilateral corneal opacification and glaucoma. These complications are identical to those seen in Scheie's mucopolysaccharidosis. The patient underwent a trabeculectomy and a penetrating keratoplasty in both eyes. The corneal storage material was shown on the histological and ultrastructural examination of the buttons. These ocular complications result from excessive tissular storage of acid mucopolysaccharides due to an enzymatic alpha-L-iduronidase deficiency which was proved in our patient. H-S mucopolysaccharidosis is also characterized by dysmorphia and altered intellectual functions like in Hurler's disease in which the prognosis is however. The characteristics of the disease are discussed as well as the different therapeutical strategies which rely on leucocyte injections, skin fibroblast or bone marrow transplantation.