Plasma renin activity in primary and secondary depression

Plasma renin activity (PRA), both in supine and standing position, was investigated in primary and secondary depressed patients. After orthostatic stimulation (standing position) primary depressed patients showed PRA values significantly lower than did those with secondary depression. The authors stress the importance of the peripheral sympathetic system in the control of renin release and discuss the data obtained in the light of some evidence in the literature indicating a possible impairment of transmitter turnover in central and peripheral noradrenergic synapses in the pathogenesis of primary depression.

A genetic study of affective disorders

First and second degree relatives of 99 probands with affective disorders (49 unipolar and 50 bipolar subjects) were studied. The high risk values obtained for affective disorders were shown to be compatible with those found by other authors, although the prevalence of the illness in the population of Lombardy appears to be much lower than in other countries. Very low rates of suicide and alcoholism were found in our sample. Data obtained by analysis of the affected pairs of relatives rule out the hypothesis of a dominant X-linked gene if the bipolar and the unipolar forms are considered genetically separated entities. Results compatible with a polygenic condition, partially shared by bipolar patients, were found using Slater's and Smith & Falconer's methods. Our data, however, cannot rule out the dominant hypothesis.

Plasma and intracellular kinetics of lithium after oral administration of various lithium salts

Five healthy volunteers were treated orally with lithium carbonate, sulphate, or chloride. There were no significant differences in area under time-concentration curves, half-lives, total body clearance or apparent distribution volumes between the various salts, either in plasma or in the RBC compartment. The carbonate salt did show a higher RBC/plasma distribution ratio than the other salts, which might possibly imply greater therapeutic effectiveness of this salt. Some considerations on the tolerability of various lithium salts are discussed.

Further studies on the major histocompatibility complex as a genetic marker for schizophrenia

Our results seem to indicate the existence of a locus in the major histocompatibity complex (MHC) region, correlated to schizophrenic illness and strictly linked to the loci HL-A and MLR. The associations found between these last loci and the disease can probably be explained by a linkage disequilibrium or a selective pressure between the allelles of the three loci. Our results also indicate that the genetic systems investigated may be useful diagnostically as a genetic marker for schizophrenia. But the real meaning of their relationships to the illness has to be further investigated.

The HLA system and the clinical response to treatment with chlorpromazine

A group of 33 schizophrenic patients were typed for HLA-SD antigens and their qualitative clinical responses to chlorpromazine therapy determined. A highly significant positive correlation was found between response to chlorpromazine and HLA-AI positive, while HLA-A2 positive subjects showed a significant negative correlation to chlorpromazine treatment. In a second group of 17 patients the clinical response to chlorpromazine were evaluated quantitatively, by WPRS, in HLA-AI positive and HLA-AI negative patients. There were no pre-treatment differences in the scores. After treatment the scores of positive patients were significantly lower, indicating that they responded to a greater degree. Since the frequency of HLA-AI in hebephrenic patients is higher than that in other schizophrenics this may explain our earlier finding that hebephrenics, as a group, respond better to chlorpromazine than do other schizophrenics.

HLA-SD antigens and schizophrenia: statistical and genetical considerations

The HLA-SD phenotype distributions of hebephrenic and paranoid schizophrenics, and of the two groups combined, in an Italian population and in a combined group from the Swedish population have been analyzed statistically. There is a significantly decreased frequency of HLA-A10 in all of these. Theae are some preliminary indications of an increased frequency (a positive association) for some of the other antigens of the HLA-SD series, but there is insufficient data at present for evaluating the significance of these findings. Differences between hebephrenic and paranoid schizophrenics have been detected.

N-methylnicotinamide excretion and affective disorders

N-Methylnicotinamide urinary output is examined in 38 healthy volunteers, 52 patients with secondary affective disorders (SAD), 55 patients with primary affective disorders (PAD) and 46 healthy first-degree relatives of PAD patients. The results indicate (1) that in PAD patients and their first-degree relatives the frequency of low N1-MN excretion was significantly higher (P less than 0-001) than in healthy controls and in patients with secondary affective disorders, and (2) that PAD patients have a consistently low N1-MN output, at all times constant and independent of the clinical phases of the disease. These findings provide evidence that the low N1-MN levels may represent an index of a biological background linked to a high morbidity risk for primary affective disorders. The theoretical implications deriving from these data are briefly discussed.

MHPG, amitriptyline and affective disorders. A longitudinal study

The daily urinary excretion of 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) were studied longitudinally in five unipolar depressed patients. The patients were followed first during a pretreatment period, and then during a treatment period in which amitriptyline was administered. The data we have obtained suggest that: (1) there is a wide individual variability in MHPG pretreatment levels: (2) amitriptyline modifies MHPG levels in a way which seems to be related to the pretreatment MHPG; (3) amitriptyline may produce a sustained improvement in depressive symptoms, independent of the pretreatment MHPG values, and (4) the time course of modifications in MHPG excretion is shorter than the time course of improvement in depression. Some theoretical implication of these findings are discussed in terms of the catecholamine hypothesis of affective disorders.

Immunogenetics of the Lennox-Gastaut syndrome: frequency of HL-A antigens and haplotypes in patients and first-degree relatives

Twenty-two patients with the Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and their families were examined for HL-A antigens by the microlymphocytotoxicity test. The antigen HL-A7 belonging to the HL-A locus showed a significantly increased frequency (p less than 0.0005) both in parents and in patients. The same antigen showed a significantly altered segregation in patients but a normal one in healthy siblings. Another antigen of the second HL-A locus, HL-A12, did not display a normal segregation in our patients, in whom it was nearly not represented.

Multiple sclerosis immunogenetics. A possible correlation with human leukocyte HL-A antigens

To investigate the relationships of genotype to susceptibility to multiple sclerosis, 42 patients hospitalized into Multiple Sclerosis Study Center of The Milan Medical School were typed for 14 HL-A specificities: HL-A1, HL-A2 + W 28, HL-A3, HL-A10 + W 19, HL-A11, HL-A9 of the 1st Series and HL-A5, HL-A7, HL-A8, HL-A12, HL-A13 of the 2nd Series. The increased HL-A9 frequency found in a previous study has been confirmed. Moreover in the total of multiple sclerosis patients this deviation reaches a higher degree of significance (P less than 0.01) and one antigen HL-A10 + W 19 appears to be significantly decreased (P less than 0.01). No variations were found in HL-A3, HL-A7 frequencies.

The leucocyte antigenic system HL-A as a possible genetic marker of schizophrenia

Many inheritance models of schizophrenia have been proposed, in view of its variable age at onset, variable familial occurrence and the relevant influence of a great number of environmental factors (Gottsman and Shields, 1967; Heston, 1970; Ödegård, 1972). However, the real genetic predisposition to schizophrenia has not yet been experimentally verified, and genetic markers have to be looked for, i.e. we need some character, genetically determined, whose transmission is associated with schizophrenia transmission: the more polymorphous the character, the greater will be the probability of finding such associations.

Amyloidosis in neonatally thymectomized and anti-lymphocyte serum treated mice

A marked lymphocyte depletion and a striking impairment of their capacity to form antibodies against sheep erythrocytes was shown by outbred Swiss albino mice thymectomized or sham-thymectomized at birth and later treated with anti-lymphocyte serum.

Ninety-four per cent of allogeneic and 53% of heterogeneic skin grafts applied to the former, and 63% and 0% of those applied to the latter, survived up to the time of killing, i.e. 41 days after transplantation.

The remaining allogeneic and heterogeneic skin grafts were rejected by mice belonging to both experimental groups in a minimum of 18 days and a maximum of 35 days, which is much longer than is usually required by normal recipients (allogeneic grafts = about 10–11 days; heterogeneic grafts = about 7–8 days).

Despite the severe immunological depression caused by anti-lymphocyte serum treatment, either associated or not with neonaial thymectomy, all the mice chronically exposed to casein developed amyloidosis.

The present results are in accordance with previous findings indicating that mechanisms other than immunity may be involved in the pathogenesis of amyloidosis.