Transplantation of olfactory mucosa minimizes axonal branching and promotes the recovery of vibrissae motor performance after facial nerve repair in rats.

The occurrence of abnormally associated movements is inevitable after facial nerve transection. The reason for this post-paralytic syndrome is poor guidance of regrowing axons, whereby a given muscle group is reinnervated by misrouted axonal branches. Olfactory ensheathing glia have been shown to reduce axonal sprouting and stimulate axonal regeneration after transplantation into the spinal cord.

Focal application of neutralizing antibodies to soluble neurotrophic factors reduces collateral axonal branching after peripheral nerve lesion.

A major reason for the insufficient recovery of function after motor nerve injury are the numerous axonal branches which often re-innervate muscles with completely different functions. We hypothesized that a neutralization of diffusable neurotrophic factors at the lesion site in rats could reduce the branching of transected axons. Following analysis of local protein expression by immunocytochemistry and by in situ hybridization, we transected the facial nerve trunk of adult rats and inserted both ends into a silicon tube containing (i) collagen gel with neutralizing concentrations of antibodies to NGF, BDNF, bFGF, IGF-I, CNTF and GDNF; (ii) five-fold higher concentrations of the antibodies and (iii) combination of antibodies.

Budesonide but not nedocromil sodium reduces exhaled nitric oxide levels in asthmatic children.

Exhaled nitric oxide (ENO) has been proposed as a marker of airway inflammation in asthma and could be useful to evaluate the response to anti-inflammatory treatment. We investigated the effect of budesonide and nedocromil sodium on ENO levels and lung function in asthmatic children. Twenty stable steroid-naïve asthmatic children were randomized in a single blind, cross-over study to receive inhaled budesonide (group A) or nedocromil sodium (group B) for 6 weeks.

Exhaled nitric oxide concentrations during treatment of wheezing exacerbation in infants and young children.

While it is known that exhaled nitric oxide (ENO) is increased in adults and school children with asthma exacerbation probably as an expression of disease activity, no studies have investigated whether this phenomenon also occurs in infants and young children with recurrent wheeze exacerbation. We measured ENO in 13 young children (mean age 20.2 mo) with recurrent wheeze (Group 1) during an acute episode and after 5 d of oral prednisone therapy.

Reference values of exhaled nitric oxide for healthy children 6-15 years old.

Nitric oxide (NO) can be detected in human exhaled air, and its endogenous production is increased in patients with asthma. It may provide a noninvasive means for measuring airway inflammation. The aim of this study was to establish reference values for exhaled NO concentrations in a large number of healthy school-age children.

Effect of natural grass pollen exposure on exhaled nitric oxide in asthmatic children.

Exhaled nitiric oxide (NO) is increased in exhaled breath of asthmatic patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the longitudinal changes of exhaled NO outside and during the pollen season in pollen-allergic asthmatic children. Twenty-one children (age 6 to 16 yr), with a seasonal allergic asthma sensitive to grass pollen, underwent measurements of exhaled NO and pulmonary function before (March), during (May), and after (November) the pollen season.

Effect of atmospheric nitric oxide (NO) on measurements of exhaled NO in asthmatic children.

The measurement of exhaled nitric oxide concentrations [NO] may provide a simple, noninvasive means for measuring airway inflammation. However, several measurement conditions may influence exhaled NO levels, and ambient NO may be one of these. We measured exhaled NO levels in 47 stable asthmatic children age 5 to 17 years and in 47 healthy children, gender and age matched.

Effect of topical steroids on nasal nitric oxide production in children with perennial allergic rhinitis: a pilot study.

It has been hypothesized that concentrations of exhaled nitric oxide (NO) may be related to the extent of cytokine-mediated airway inflammation. Recent findings indicate the nasal airways as an important site of NO production. Our objective was to evaluate whether children with allergic rhinitis show different nasal NO levels when compared with normal healthy subjects and the effect of topical steroids and anti-histamine therapy.

Corticosteroids decrease exhaled nitric oxide in children with acute asthma.

Objectives: Nitric oxide (NO) produced in human airways seems to have both homeostatic and proinflammatory actions in the respiratory system. NO production has been shown to be higher in the exhaled air of asthmatic adults than in normal subjects. The aim of this study was to evaluate exhaled NO production during asthma exacerbation in children and the effect of a rescue course of oral steroid therapy.

Effect of antibiotic therapy on nasal nitric oxide concentration in children with acute sinusitis.

Recently, it has been demonstrated that paranasal sinuses are an important site of nitric oxide (NO) production in the upper airways. The aim of this study was to evaluate the NO nasal concentration in children with acute maxillary sinusitis before and after treatment with antibiotic therapy. We performed NO nasal measurements in 16 children 4 to 13 yr of age with acute maxillary sinusitis and compared values with 16 age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects.