[Indicators of prostaglandin synthase activity in thrombocytes of patients with schizophrenia with positive and negative disorders].

A study was made of the activity of prostaglandin-synthetase in isolated platelets from the 2 groups of schizophrenic patients: with the predominance of positive (group I) and negative (group II) disorders. It has been demonstrated that the activity of prostaglandin-synthetase in isolated platelets from patients with hallucinatory delirium++ disorders is considerably higher (p less than 0.01) than the activity of prostaglandin-synthetase in isolated platelets from patients with the predominance of negative symptoms.

[Methodological approaches to evaluation of prostaglandin synthesis by isolated human thrombocytes].

Individual steps of prostaglandin-synthetase activity evaluation in human platelets are considered in detail, involving isolation of platelets, incubation of washed cells with labelled arachidonic or dihomo-gamma-linolenic acids, extraction of prostaglandins from incubation medium and their separation as well as quantitative estimation of the prostaglandins developed (nmoles/10(9) platelets/10 min). The methodical approaches suggested enabled not only to avoid some errors during estimation of the prostaglandin-synthetase activity in individual platelets but also to increase accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of the procedure as compared with similar methods.

Is prostacyclin a major prostaglandin produced by endothelial cells in culture?

Prostaglandin biosynthetic activity of cultured human aortic and umbilical vein endothelial cells (passages 3-9) and of human aortic subendothelial cells (passage 0) was studied. Labelled arachidonic acid or endoperoxide H2 (final concentrations, 10 microM and 3.5 microM, respectively) were used as prostaglandin synthesis precursors.

Regression of atherosclerotic manifestations in primary culture of human aortic cells: effects of prostaglandins.

The effect of different prostaglandins on cell proliferation and intracellular lipid content in primary culture of human aortic cells has been studied. It was demonstrated that prostacyclin, its stable analogues (carbacyclin and 6 beta-PGI1), and prostaglandins E1, E2, D2 taken in the concentration of 0.5 micrograms/ml and 10 micrograms/ml decreased the 3H-thymidine uptake into cultured intimal smooth muscle cells by 2-3-fold.