[Frequency and type of adverse drug reactions in two Seine-Saint-Denis departments of pneumology].

The aim of this study was to explore the frequency and type of adverse drug reactions between January and June 2001 in hospitalised patients. A prospective study was conducted in two pneumology departments of public hospitals in the Seine-Saint-Denis area. Adverse drug reactions were collected by hospital pharmacists after spontaneous notification by nurses and physicians, except for deliberate drug overdose.

The poor responsiveness of infiltrating lobular breast carcinomas to neoadjuvant chemotherapy can be explained by their biological profile.

The aim of this study was to determine the chemosensitivity of infiltrating lobular breast carcinoma (ILC) in comparison with infiltrating ductal carcinoma (IDC). Between 1987 and 1995, 457 patients with invasive T2>3 cm-T4 breast carcinomas were treated with primary chemotherapy (CT), surgery, radiation therapy. Clinical response, the possibility of breast preservation, pathological response and survival were evaluated according to the histological type.

Double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a fixed combination containing two plant extracts (Crataegus oxyacantha and Eschscholtzia californica) and magnesium in mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders.

Objective: To assess the clinical efficacy of a neurotonic component containing fixed quantities of two plant extracts (Crataegus oxyacantha and Eschscholtzia californica) and magnesium versus placebo in mild-to-moderate anxiety disorders with associated functional disturbances, under usual general practice prescription conditions.

Research Design And Methods: A total of 264 patients (81% female; mean age: 44.6 years) presenting with generalised anxiety (DSM-III-R) of mild-to-moderate intensity (total Hamilton anxiety scale score between 16 and 28) were included in a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial.

Detection of HER-2/neu-positive circulating epithelial cells in prostate cancer patients.

HER-2/neu may play a role in prostate carcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to use the expression of HER-2/neu as a molecular marker for the detection of circulating tumour cells (CTCs) in the blood of patients with prostate cancer (PC). Blood samples were collected from 42 patients with PC and nine healthy volunteers.

Jun localization in cytosolic and nuclear compartments in brain-pituitary system of the frog, Rana esculenta: an analysis carried out in parallel with GnRH molecular forms during the annual reproductive cycle.

The presence of c-jun like mRNA was assessed in the brain of the frog, Rana esculenta, during the annual sexual cycle. In parallel, Jun protein and GnRH molecular form (mammalian and chicken II also indicated as GnRH1 and GnRH2, respectively) activity was studied in order to establish possible relationships. Northern blot analysis of total RNA reveals the presence of a 2.

[Home chemotherapy for lung cancer: a five year retrospective study].

Introduction: We present the results of a five year retrospective study of chemotherapy delivered at home for patients suffering from non-small cell lung cancer.

Methods: In partnership with "hospital at home" we have developed mechanisms to improve safety: secured prescriptions, treatments confirmations transmitted by fax, designed specific chemotherapy file and approval of family doctor prior to administration.

Results: We treated 74 patients and administered 401 injections of which 72% were for Vinorelbine and 28% for Gemcitabine.

Early activation of cardiac and renal endothelin systems in experimental heart failure.

We investigated the time course of the expression of cardiac and renal endothelin systems in tachycardia-induced heart failure in dogs. Eleven beagles underwent rapid pacing at a progressively increased rate over a period of 5 wk, with a weekly clinical examination, echocardiography, measurement of circulating and urinary endothelin-1 (ET-1), and myocardial and renal tissue biopsies. Real-time quantitative PCR was used for determinations of tissue prepro-ET-1 (ppET-1), ET-1-converting enzyme (ECE-1), and ETA and ETB receptor mRNA.

Prediction of bone mass density variation by bone remodeling markers in postmenopausal women with vitamin D insufficiency treated with calcium and vitamin D supplementation.

The aim of this study was to determine whether early changes in bone markers could predict long-term response in bone mineral density (BMD) after calcium (500 mg) and vitamin D (400 IU) supplementation twice daily in ambulatory elderly women with vitamin D insufficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin D, <12 ng/ml). One hundred and ninety-two women (mean age, 75 +/- 7 yr) were randomized to receive either the supplementation (n = 95) or a placebo (n = 97) in a double-blind, controlled clinical trial for 1 yr. In comparison with the placebo group, supplementation significantly increased BMD, normalized 25-hydroxyvitamin D and significantly decreased intact PTH and bone remodeling markers.

Nicolaides-Baraitser syndrome: confirmatory report of a syndrome with sparse hair, mental retardation, and short stature and metacarpals.

In 1993, Nicolaides and Baraitser reported a new condition consisting of short stature, hypotrichosis, brachydactyly with cone-shaped epiphyses, epilepsy and severe mental delay. We report here two unrelated patients with identical features, thus confirming the status of this rare disorder of unknown aetiology.

Insulin-like system and growth regulation in the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas: hrIGF-1 effect on protein synthesis of mantle edge cells and expression of an homologous insulin receptor-related receptor.

The involvement of molecules belonging to the insulin/IGF family in regulation of growth has been investigated in the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. In vitro biological effects of human recombinant IGF-1 (hrIGF-1) on mantle edge cells, involved in oyster shell and soft body growth, were studied over an annual cycle. In mantle edge cells hrIGF-1 stimulates protein synthesis of 56+/-5.

Functional expression and characterization of Schistosoma mansoni cathepsin B and its trans-activation by an endogenous asparaginyl endopeptidase.

Peptidases are essential for the establishment and survival of the medically important parasite, Schistosoma mansoni. This helminth expresses a number of gut-associated peptidases that degrade host blood proteins, including hemoglobin, as a means of nutrition. Using irreversible affinity probes, we demonstrate that S.

Persistent activation of nuclear factor-kappaB signaling pathway in severe uncontrolled asthma.

The transcription factor nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) is inactive when bound to its inhibitory protein IkappaBalpha. On cell stimulation with inflammatory signals, IkappaBalpha is phosphorylated by IkappaB kinases and subsequently degraded. Freed NF-kappaB then induces expression of cytokines such as granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, interleukin-8, and regulated upon activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted.

[Compliance with hormone replacement therapy in menopausal women: results of a two-year prospective French study comparing transdermal treatment with fixed oral combination therapy].

Objectives: To evaluate rates of continuation with hormone replacement therapy (HRT) at 2 years in 2 cohorts of female patients, one of which was treated with a set combination of oral oestradiol valerate and medroxyprogesterone acetate and the other with percutaneous 17 beta-oestradiol gel combined with an oral progestogen selected by the prescribing doctor.

Patients And Methods: A prospective, randomised, open study, including 885 patients followed for 2 years whose 477 were in the oral HRT cohort and 408 were in the dermal cohort. Randomisation was done by group with prescription of the selected HRT for the cohort.

Fluticasone propionate and mometasone furoate have equivalent transcriptional potencies.

Background: Glucocorticoids exert their anti-inflammatory effects mainly through transrepression of the transcription factors activator protein-1 (AP-1) and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappaB). Certain adverse effects of glucocorticoids are mediated through gene transactivation. Fluticasone propionate (FP) and mometasone furoate (MF) are the most recently developed topical glucocorticoids for the treatment of airway disorders.

Breast metastasis from lung adenocarcinoma: a case report.

We report the case of a 54-year-old female patient with a stage IV lung adenocarcinoma who developed a breast mass during the course of her disease. The breast tumor was proved to be of pulmonary origin. Mammary metastases from non-small cell lung cancer are extremely rare and accurate diagnosis is essential to rule out primary breast carcinoma.

Effects on bone mineral density of calcium and vitamin D supplementation in elderly women with vitamin D deficiency.

Objective: Calcium and vitamin D deficiency is common in older individuals, particularly those who live in nursing homes, and increases the risk of osteoporosis and fractures.

Methods: We conducted a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study of combined supplementation with 500 mg of elemental calcium, as carbonate, and 400 IU of vitamin D bid for 12 months in women older than 65 years of age with vitamin D deficiency, defined as serum 25(OH)D concentrations
Results: Mean patient age was 75 +/- 7 years, and median daily dietary intakes of calcium and vitamin D were 697 mg and 66.

[The sentinel lymph node in cancer of the breast: clinical aspects].

Sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy is effective to assess axillary nodal status and avoiding axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) in patients with clinically node-negative early stage breast cancer. No standardization of the technique has yet been established. This review discusses the feasibility, the accuracy and the different techniques for this procedure.

Agreement between chromogenic in situ hybridisation (CISH) and FISH in the determination of HER2 status in breast cancer.

Determination of the HER2/neu (HER2) status in breast carcinoma has become necessary for the selection of breast cancer patients for trastuzumab therapy. Amplification of the gene analysed by fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) or overexpression of the protein determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC) are the two major methods to establish this status. A strong correlation has been previously demonstrated between these two methods.

Evidence for long-lasting cholinergic control of gap junctional communication between adrenal chromaffin cells.

We investigated long-lasting interactions that may occur between two forms of intercellular signaling: cholinergic synaptic transmission and gap junction-mediated coupling in the rat adrenal medulla. The junctional coupling between chromaffin cells was studied during reduced or blocked synaptic transmission in adrenal slices. First, cholinergic synaptic activity was reduced by pharmacological treatment.

Sentinel lymphadenectomy without systematic axillary dissection in breast cancer patients: predictors of non-sentinel lymph node metastasis.

Aims: To identify factors predicting metastatic involvement of non sentinel axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer patients who underwent sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy followed by complete axillary dissection only in case of metastatic sentinel lymph node.

Methods: A prospective database including 165 breast cancer patients who underwent SLN biopsy without further complete axillary dissection in case of non-metastatic SLN was reviewed. Primary tumor size, pathologic grade, lymphatic invasion in the primary tumor, estrogen receptor status, tumor size in the SLN and number of metastatic SLNs were tested as possible predictors of metastatic involvement of non-SLN.

[Unusual retinal anomaly: the double papilla].

Background: It is not clear whether doubling of the papilla occurs in connection with congenital ocular malformations or whether there is a double anlage of a real papilla. A double optic nerve close to the globe has never been observed.

Patient: A 87-year old woman had high-grade myopia and amblyopia of her right eye together with an esotropia from early childhood.

[Value of karyotyping women patients of couples referred for sterility].

It has been known for some 25 years that there is a causal relation between chromosomal aberrations and male infertility and that the major indication for karyotyping an infertile man is still usually an abnormal sperm analysis. The value of karyotyping women in the routine work-up of couples referred for sterility has long been debated. A French recent cytogenetic study found an overall increased frequency of chromosomal aberrations in the female and confirmed that in some cases of poor reproductive outcome there may be a contribution of maternal chromosome aberrations.

Cloning of a pine germin-like protein (GLP) gene promoter and analysis of its activity in transgenic tobacco Bright Yellow 2 cells.

Germins and germin-like proteins (GLPs) constitute a large and highly diverse family of ubiquitous plant cell wall proteins. These proteins seem to be involved in many developmental stages and stress-related processes, but their exact participation in these processes generally remains obscure. In Pinus caribaea Morelet, the PcGER1 gene is expressed uniquely in embryo tissues, and encodes a GLP ionically bound to the walls of pine embryo cells maintained in 2,4-D-containing medium.

Calibration of immunohistochemistry for assessment of HER2 in breast cancer: results of the French multicentre GEFPICS study.

Aims: HER2 protein is over-expressed in 15-30% of breast carcinomas. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) is a common and inexpensive method able to specifically detect HER2 protein. However, lack of standardization of IHC has been considered responsible for discrepancies in HER2 status assessment performed by IHC and fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH).

Discovery of a potent and selective agonist of the prostaglandin EP4 receptor.

Analogues of PGE(2) wherein the hydroxycyclopentanone ring has been replaced by a lactam have been prepared and evaluated as ligands for the EP(4) receptor. An optimized compound (19a) shows high potency and agonist efficacy at the EP(4) receptor and is highly selective over the other seven known prostaglandin receptors.