Clostridium difficile diarrhea in patients with AIDS versus non-AIDS controls. Methods of treatment and clinical response to treatment.

We reviewed the hospital charts of 17 patients with AIDS and Clostridium difficile diarrhea to determine antibiotic use before C. difficile infection, methods of treatment for C. difficile diarrhea, and response of diarrhea to treatment.

Malpractice litigation against child and adolescent psychiatry residency programs, 1981-1991.

A national survey was conducted to investigate malpractice litigation at United States child and adolescent psychiatry residency programs between 1981 and 1991. Fourteen percent of the directors of child and adolescent psychiatry reported at least one malpractice claim during this period. The highest percentage of lawsuits reported was in the northeast.

Antitumor mechanisms of Z-100, an immunomodulatory arabinomannan extracted from Mycobacterium tuberculosis: the importance of lymphocytes infiltrated into tumor sites.

The mechanisms of increased host resistance to tumors following treatment with Z-100, an arabinomannan extracted from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, were investigated in mice bearing syngeneic solid tumors. When BALB/c mice bearing Meth-A solid tumors were treated intralesionally (i.l.

Demonstrations of a B-cell population that regulates the immune response in spleens of mice infected with herpes simplex virus type I.

A population of B cells that regulates the immune response was demonstrated in splenic mononuclear cells (SMNC) from mice infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV). SMNC, obtained from mice 3 days after HSV infection at a dose of 100 LD50, exhibited a reduction in the proliferative response of naive SMNC stimulated with various lectins or allogeneic lymphocytes in a 5-day mixed lymphocyte reaction. Cocultivation of naive SMNC with phagocytic cell-free SMNC (M phi-MNC) from infected mice resulted in the inhibition of lymphocytic blast transformation stimulated with various lectins.

Immunomodulating activities of orally administered SMANCS, a polymer-conjugated derivative of the proteinaceous antibiotic neocarzinostatin, in an oily formulation.

Immunomodulatory effects of oily formulated SMANCS, a polymer conjugated derivative of the proteinaceous antibiotic neocarzinostatin, after oral administrations to mice was investigated. The oral administrations of SMANCS, dissolved in medium-chain triglyceride containing phosphatidylcholine and polyglycerine dioleate (oily SMANCS), resulted in: (1) augmentation of NK cell activity in naive mice, (2) activation of macrophage cytostasis in naive mice, (3) enhancement of the generation of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes in mice immunized with allogeneic lymphocytes, (4) production of circulating interferon in naive mice, and (5) increase of delayed-type hypersensitivity response in mice immunized with sheep red blood cells. The degree of immunomodulation orally stimulated with oily SMANCS was similar to that of the immunomodulation induced by i.

Stimulation of host resistance against tumors by glycyrrhizin, an active component of licorice roots.

The effect of glycyrrhizin (GR), a Chinese herbal drug extracted from licorice roots, on the host resistance to tumors was investigated in a murine system. Administration of GR to BALB/c mice, which were inoculated s.c.

Antitumor activity of orally administered SMANCS, a polymer-conjugated protein drug, in mice bearing various murine tumors.

The antitumor activity of an oily formulation of SMANCS (oily SMANCS), which is a product of conjugation between a proteinaceous antitumor antibiotic neocarzinostatin and poly (styrene-co-maleic acid), after oral administration to mice inoculated with various murine tumors was investigated. BALB/c mice, inoculated either s.c.

Antiviral effects of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-alpha in combination with natural interferon-beta in mice infected with herpes simplex virus type 1.

The protective effects of combination therapy utilizing recombinant human TNF-alpha (rTNF-alpha) and natural murine interferon-beta (IFN-beta) in mice infected with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) was investigated. Mice treated with rTNF-alpha alone at all of the doses tested (a single i.v.

Grading secondary vocational education students with disabilities: a national perspective.

A nationwide purposive sample of secondary vocational educators completed a questionnaire that examined practices and perceptions toward grading students with disabilities. A variety of grading methods was reportedly used, but over two-thirds of respondents included a competency-based grading component. An overwhelming majority believed that student effort should be used to determine grades.

Human immunodeficiency virus replication: modulation by cellular levels of cAMP.

HIV infection is associated with qualitative and functional immune deficiencies. It has been shown that the in vitro infection of CD4+ cells with HIV was associated with sustained elevation of cAMP and cGMP. In the present report the role of cAMP on HIV replication in MT-4 cells was investigated.

X-irradiation enhances in vitro human immunodeficiency virus replication correlation with cellular levels of cAMP.

Total body x-irradiation has been utilized in the treatment of several human diseases, including leukemia, where it is followed by bone marrow transplantation, and in some autoimmune disorders. Recently, it was reported that total body irradiation appeared useful in the treatment of Friend leukemia virus infection in mice. In this report, the effect of x-irradiation on the replication of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in vitro in CD4+ cells was examined.

Disseminated herpes zoster in the immunocompromised host: a comparative trial of acyclovir and vidarabine. The NIAID Collaborative Antiviral Study Group.

Seventy-three immunocompromised patients with disseminated herpes zoster were evaluated in a double-blind controlled trial of acyclovir (n = 37) versus vidarabine (n = 36) therapy. Acyclovir was administered at 30 mg/kg/day at 8-h intervals and vidarabine was given as a continuous 12-h infusion at 10 mg/kg/day for 7 days (longer if resolution of cutaneous or visceral disease was incomplete). No demographic differences existed between treatment groups.

Inhibition of tumor growth by the intralesional administration of interleukin-3 into mice implanted with solid tumors.

The antitumor activity of three interleukin-3 (IL-3) preparations administered intralesionally into mice bearing syngeneic solid tumors was investigated. IL-3 preparations used in this study included S-IL-3, which was isolated from the culture fluid of murine inguinal lymph node cells stimulated with an arabinomannan extracted from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (SSM), the culture fluid of WEHI-3 cells (W-IL-3) and recombinant IL-3 (rIL-3). When a 1,500 U/kg dose of S-IL-3 or W-IL-3 was injected intralesionally into BALB/c mice bearing Meth-A solid tumors three time per week beginning 3 days after tumor inoculation, tumor growth was inhibited by 60% or 74% at 24 days after tumor inoculation, respectively.

Preventive effect of a synthetic immunomodulator, 2-carboxyethylgermanium sesquioxide, on the generation of suppressor macrophages in mice immunized with allogeneic lymphocytes.

The effect of 2-carboxyethylgermanium sesquioxide (Ge-132) on the generation of splenic suppressor macrophages (S-M phi) in C3H/He mice (H-2k) immunized with allogeneic spleen cells from C57Bl/6 mice (H-2b) was investigated. We have previously demonstrated that S-M phi expressing I-J antigen, which appeared during alloimmunization, inhibited cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) generation in the MLR and the elimination of these S-M phi before subjection to the MLR resulted in more effective generation of CTL. The CTL activity, which was determined in vivo by the Winn's test, was markedly enhanced when immunized mice received a 100 mg/kg dose of Ge-132.

Recombinant human interferon beta ser protects against zidovudine-induced genetic damage in AIDS patients.

This study was conducted to evaluate the in vivo genotoxicity of zidovudine (ZDV) in patients with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Patients with this disease who were non-smokers and on ZDV (1200 mg/day) as their only medication for 4 weeks to 7 months were studied. Patients with AIDS who had not received ZDV served as a negative control.

Metabolic interaction of recombinant interferon-beta and zidovudine in AIDS patients.

Zidovudine (AZT), the only currently approved drug for treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in AIDS, is known to be metabolized by mammalian systems to a variety of metabolites including 3'-azido-3'-deoxy-5'-O-glucuronide (GAZT). Interferons (IFNs) are known to alter the microsomal enzyme system responsible for the metabolism of some compounds. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of combination therapy of recombinant (r) IFN-beta and AZT on the rates of metabolism of AZT in AIDS patients.

In vivo administration of tumor necrosis factor-alpha is associated with antiviral activity in human peripheral mononuclear cells.

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) has a spectrum of biologic effects and has been shown to exert antiviral effects in fibroblasts in vitro. The in vivo administration of TNF-alpha (40-160 micrograms/m2 intravenously over 2 hr) and its effects on vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) replication in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from patients with malignancy was investigated. Blood was obtained before, during, and after infusion.

Comparative disposition and whole-body autoradiographic distribution of [2-14C]azidothymidine and [2-14C]thymidine in mice.

Azidothymidine (AZT) is the only approved drug for treatment of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome caused by human immunodeficiency virus. The drug is known to be metabolized by mammalian systems. The objectives of this study were: 1) to investigate the biologic fate of AZT using whole-body autoradiography; and 2) to compare the biologic fate of AZT with that of the parent molecule thymidine (dThd).

Human immunodeficiency virus infection: association with altered intracellular levels of cAMP and cGMP in MT-4 cells.

T-cells from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients are characterized by a number of qualitative deficiencies including defective T-cell activation. The latter has previously been shown to be normally regulated by cAMP. In this study the patterns of cAMP and cGMP induction in MT-4 cells following HIV infection were investigated.