Microsomal metabolism of N,N-diethylacetamide and N,N-dimethylacetamide and their effects on drug-metabolizing enzymes of rat liver.

This study was undertaken to investigate: (1) the effect of N,N-diethylacetamide (DEAC) and N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAC) administration to rats on drug-metabolizing enzymes in the liver; (2) the in vitro dealkylation of DEAC and DMAC by hepatic microsomes from rats treated with various P450 inducers and purified P450 (2B1 and 2E1). DEAC administration at doses of 100-300 mg/kg i.p.

Frequent RET protooncogene mutations in multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A.

The occurrence of mutations in the RET protooncogene has been investigated in 12 multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A families and 18 cases of sporadic thyroid medullary carcinomas and pheochromocytomas. Ten of 12 families showed single base substitutions in the RET protooncogene exons 10 and 11, coding for the extracellular domain of the protein. Tumor tissues from 2 multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A patients were analyzed at the DNA and ribonucleic acid levels and revealed the same heterozygous mutations found in the peripheral blood lymphocytes.

Vitamin D status in Paget's bone disease. Effects of calcitonin therapy.

In 15 patients suffering from Paget's disease, the serum levels of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25OHD3), 24,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (24,25 [OH] 2D3), 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (1,25 [OH] 2D3), and parathormone (PTH) as well as urinary excretion of hydroxyproline (HP) have been determined before and after three-month calcitonin therapy. Before therapy, high concentrations of serum ALP and urinary HP excretion had been observed, whereas serum levels of 24,25 (OH) 2D3 were below the lower limit of the normal range. Calcitonin therapy caused a 31% reduction in ALP and a 50% reduction in HP, as well as a significant increase in serum levels of 24,25 (OH) 2D3; the levels of 25OHD3, 1,25 (OH) 2D3, and PTH remained unchanged after treatment.

Modulation of non-adrenergic non-cholinergic inhibitory transmission in rat duodenum: role of opiates and 5-hydroxytryptamine.

In rat duodenal segments in vitro, electrical field stimulation induced a TTX-sensitive relaxation in the presence of atropine and guanethidine. A correlation between the amplitude of the evoked response and stimulus frequency was observed. Opioid peptides DAGO, DPDPE and DYN caused a dose-dependent increase in the amplitude of the response to EFS.

Characterization of the clinical features of five families with hereditary primary cutaneous lichen amyloidosis and multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2.

The hereditary conditions of primary cutaneous lichen amyloidosis and multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN 2) are rare clinical entities. The initial reports of two families in which the two conditions coincided have led to the identification of at least eight additional families with this clinical syndrome. In this report we describe the clinical features in five of these eight families.

Recurrent kidney stones: causes and diagnostic criteria in patients from Campania (southern Italy).

A study was carried out on 180 recurrent kidney stone formers from the Campania region of southern Italy. The data showed that this hypercalciuric population was similar to that in previous studies; however, there was no difference in terms of parathyroid activity when compared with normal controls. The slightly depressed serum levels of vitamin D in hypercalciurics indicate that gut calcium absorption is not directly related to vitamin D levels.

High turnover osteoporosis in acro-osteolysis (Hajdu-Cheney syndrome).

Acro-osteolysis with diffuse osteoporosis in the absence of other associated diseases is named Hajdu-Cheney syndrome. Reduced bone formation rather than enhanced bone resorption has been indicated as the mechanism of osteoporosis. On the assumption that in this syndrome the active bone resorption which produces distal osteolysis must also predominate in generalized osteoporosis, we investigated bone histology, calcium kinetics, calciotropic hormones and bone markers in a patient suffering from sporadic Hajdu-Cheney syndrome.

[Mathematic evaluation of the deterioration of the renal function in chronic progressive kidney diseases].

The progression of chronic renal failure has been claimed to be predictable by means of mathematical models. The study shows that the logarithm of serum creatinine is less accurate than the reciprocal method for predicting the course of renal insufficiency. The fact that the reciprocal of serum creatinine decline linearly with time suggests that glomerular function is lost at a constant rate.

Altered kinetics of an intravenous calcium load in idiopathic hypercalciuria.

Increased gut calcium absorption or reduced renal tubular calcium reabsorption have been alternatively reported in idiopathic hypercalciuria with kidney calculi. The present study aimed to investigate the handling of an exogenous calcium load in hypercalciuric stone formers to detect possible differences with regard to tissue calcium metabolism in vivo. A constant rate intravenous calcium infusion (0.

Cutaneous lichen amyloidosis associated with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A.

We have previously described a kindred with hereditary medullary thyroid carcinoma and pheochromocytoma (multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A [MEN 2A]) with localized pruritic cutaneous manifestations present only in affected members. Although the initial skin biopsies reported did not show amyloidosis, subsequent skin biopsy results reported here have demonstrated amyloid which stained for keratin but not for calcitonin and established that this family represents an association of a rare autosomal dominant form of lichen amyloidosis with MEN 2A.

Hereditary localized pruritus in affected members of a kindred with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A (Sipple's syndrome).

We describe a kindred with medullary thyroid carcinoma and phaeochromocytoma (MEN 2A or Sipple's syndrome) in which a cutaneous manifestation is only present in affected members. These members felt an intense itching in an area 5-10 cm in length and passing through the scapular region where, after long-term scratching, the skin appears hyperkeratotic and pigmented. Cutaneous biopsies proved negative for dermis nerve abnormality.

Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (Sipple's syndrome): clinical and cytogenetic analysis of a kindred.

This report describes the clinical and cytogenetic analysis of a kindred with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN-2 or Sipple's syndrome) in two generations. Medullary thyroid carcinoma was present in five members either as a large or as an occult tumour. Phaeochromocytoma was demonstrated in one severely hypertensive relative and urine vanillylmandelic acid (VMA) was increased in one normotensive member.