Diurnal behaviour of some salivary parameters in patients with diabetes mellitus (protein concentration, amylase activity, density)--note I

The study was carried out on 31 diabetic patients of both sexes hospitalised in the Clinical Hospital of Diabetes and Nutritional Diseases "Dr. I. Cantacuzino". They were divided in 2 groups: patients with insulin-dependent diabetes (IDDM) and noninsulin-dependent diabetes (NIDDM) and compared with a group of control non-diabetic subjects. Total mixed saliva was sampled in the morning (07:30-08:00) and in the afternoon (17:30-18:00) without stimulation and tested for amylase activity, proteins and density. The study revealed that the density and the amylase activity have the same diurnal behaviour for the diabetic patients and healthy control subjects either. The only difference was the amplitude of maximal activity (in the morning for density and in the afternoon for the amylase activity). Salivary proteins have a similar diurnal behaviour for both diabetic groups (maximal values in the morning and minimal values in the afternoon) in contrast to healthy control subjects that presented less obvious diurnal changes.

Diurnal behaviour of some salivary parameters in patients with diabetes mellitus (flow rate, pH, thiocianat, LDH activity)--note II

The study was performed on 31 diabetic patients of both sexes, divided in 2 groups: group I--17 patients with insulin-dependent diabetes (IDDM) and group II--14 patients with noninsulin-dependent diabetes (NIDDM) and compared with a control group of 16 non-diabetic subjects. Mixed saliva was sampled without stimulation during 2 periods of the day: 07:30-08:00 before breakfast and 17:30-18:00 before dinner. We determined: salivary flow rate, pH with Merck indicator and, after homogenization, the thiocianat with the FeCl3 method and LDH activity (the Norbert method adapted in our laboratory for saliva). Our study showed the same diurnal changes in flow rate and salivary pH in both diabetic and control groups: minimal values in the morning and maximal ones in the afternoon. In non-smoking diabetic patients the salivary thiocianat had maximal values in the morning and minimal ones in the afternoon; similar behaviour, but less obvious was observed in smoking diabetic patients and in the control group regardless of the smoking habit. LDH activity showed unsignificant diurnal variations in the diabetic patients. In the control group we found a significant decrease of LDH activity in the afternoon. The discussion is about the implication of these salivary parameters in the pathology of oral cavity: gingivitis, periodontitis and caries in diabetic patients.

Oxidative stress and antioxidant protection in degenerative psychoorganic syndrome in old agers

Changes of the redox balance are reflected at the blood level in old agers--chronically intoxicated with alcohol--presenting degenerative psycho-organic syndromes (DPOS). The parameters investigated were lipid peroxidation reduced glutathione and the total SH groups. The changes of the antioxidant enzymatic system expressed by the activity of superoxide dysmutase, of glutathione peroxidase and of catalase were also followed up. It was observed that compared with the control group the lipid peroxides increased by 70.69% and the blood concentration of G-SH and of the total SH groups decreased by 46.7% and 24.76%, respectively. Likewise enzymes such as GPx and CAT presented increases of 70.4% and respectively 68.3% associated with a decrease of 23.9% of SOD activity.

Lipid peroxidase and erythrocyte redox system in systemic vasculitides treated with corticoids. Effect of vitamin E administration

The level of plasma lipid peroxidation was followed up in 66 patients with systemic vasculitides with autoimmune pathogeny (SLE and SV) treated with corticoid compounds. The effect of vitamin E associated to this treatment was also studied. The change of the redox cycle, of the red cell glutathione, and of the glutathione peroxidase activity, an enzyme supplying antioxidant protection, were studied in parallel. The results obtained demonstrated: an increased level of lipid peroxidation in the patients treated with corticoid substances, an increase that can be explained by the dyslipidemias induced by these compounds; a decrease of the red cell G-SH concentration owing to the continuous oxidative stress in this group of diseases. This decrease was associated with a concomitant increase of oxidated glutathione. The decrease of GSH, a substrate for glutathione peroxidase, induces an inhibition of this enzyme activity. The GSH/GSSH ratio may represent a useful marker of the evolution of disease. Administration of vitamin E in association with corticotherapy has a relatively reduced effect due to the complex metabolic disturbances with a continuous character in the autoimmune pathogenic processes. The chronic disturbance of the oxidants-antioxidants balance in patients with systemic vasculitides seems to create favourable conditions for the early onset of a process of atherogenesis with severe vascular effects.

Lipid peroxidation and change of plasma lipids in acute ischemic stroke

An estimation was made of the changes of the plasma lipid components and of the level of lipid peroxidation in acute ischemic stroke either as a transient accident (TLA) or as a cerebral vascular accident (CVA). The level of serum triglycerides was found significantly increased in the patients with CVA, in correlation with a decrease of the total HDL values due to the decrease of the HDL subfraction. As compared with the control group the LDL/HDL ratio presented increased values due to the decrease of the serum HDL concentration (respectively of the HDL2). The lipid peroxidation presented a more marked increase in patients with transient ischemic accident.

Lipid peroxidation and the activity of some antioxidant enzymes in patients with systemic vasculitides treated with corticoids

The level of lipid peroxidation and the activity of superoxide dismutase and of catalase as antioxidant enzymes were studied in 54 patients with systemic vasculitides with autoimmune pathogeny as well as in a control group of patients of the same age and sex. The patients were distributed into a group without treatment, a group treated with prednisone and a group treated with prednisone and vitamin E. Lipid peroxidation is attenuated by the addition of vitamin E while the activity of the antioxidant enzymes studied in the same groups of patients is not significantly changed. The treatment with prednisone did not change the level of peroxides neither the activity of the antioxidant enzymes studied.

Circulating immune complexes and low density lipoproteins--a molecular complex or the summation of the atherogenic risk of two separate entities?

The correlation between the circulating immune complexes (CIC) and dyslipidemia was studied in a group of 150 patients with acute ischemic stroke and 50 normal controls. The object of the study was also to find out whether these two components represent a macromolecular complex with increased atherogenic capacity or only two risk factors acting separately but achieving a summation of their atherogenic power. It can be considered that in acute ischemic stroke the presence of the two risk factors constitutes a condition of acceleration of the atherogenic process, i.e., the appearance of the vascular accident. The decrease of HDL-cholesterol detected in all the subgroups studied is probably due to the decrease of the cholesterol "reverse transport" process which favours the atherogenic process. It was found that CIC and low density lipoproteins (LDL) are risk factors which act separately determining by the effects they generate a summation of their atherogenic capacity. Cholesterol and triglycerides apparently contained in the CIC structure, can be considered as a methodologic artefact due to the use of a common reagent (PEG-6000).

Effect of calcium blocking agents of the verapamil series on the myocardium mitochondrial activity in experimentally induced arterial hypertension

Some mitochondrial biochemical parameters were determined in Wistar rats with experimentally induced arterial hypertension (AHT) treated with calcium blocking agents of the Verapamil series. The results obtained showed that succinic dehydrogenase (SDH) activity increased, in the group with AHT, by 23.4% as compared with the control group while in the group with AHT treated with Verapamil the activity of this enzyme increased by 46.7%. The NAD+ dehydrogenase activity showed a moderate increase (15.7%) in the group with AHT and an increase by 22.3% after administration of Verapamil. The mitochondrial content in thiolic groups presented an increase of 12.5% in the group with AHT and of 24.4% in the treated group. The kinetics of the mitochondrial swelling-contraction also presented changes in as much as the cycle period, first increased then partially returned to normal values after Verapamil treatment. The strongly stimulating effect of Verapamil on the enzymatic activity in the Krebs cycle was also demonstrated.

[Level of functional mitochondrial activity of the preserved kidney]

The authors investigated the activity of mitochondria from cells of the cortical and of the medullar structures of the dog kidney perfused in pulsatile flow and under hypothermia for a duration of 12 hours, as well as for 24 hours. The swelling-contraction process was determined, and the thiol (T-SH) groups in mitochondrial suspensions. The kinetics of the mitochondrial swelling showed moderate reduction of the activity, differentiated in the medullary and in the cortical areas, and depending on the duration of the perfusion. The energetic processes in the medullary layer were less affected than in the cortical. There was correlation of mitochondrial function and the contents in thiol groups.

[Research on the immunological and biochemical structure of tumors of the prostate gland]

The study of IgA, IgG and IgM immunoglobulins obtained from tissues of prostate adenoma and adenocarcinoma, as well as of homogenates by electrophoresis in polyacrylamide gels, revealed the presence, the amount and the different conformation of protein fractions in the adenoma and in the adenocarcinoma. Inflammatory processes do not play a significant role. Comparative measures of nucleic acids and of SH groups suggest the existence of molecular mechanisms interpreted in the light of ageing processes.