Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0011570 (depression)
 172,036 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Phagocytosis of Cryptococcus neoformans by normal and thioglycolate-activated mouse peritoneal macrophages was studied. Thioglycolate-activated macrophages exhibited a lower percent phagocytosis than did normal macrophages. Differences in phagocytosis could not be attributed to differences in macrophage viability, minor variations in the concentration of adherent macrophages, or a general depression in activated macrophage phagocytosis. Thioglycolate-activated macrophages required heat-labile opsonins for optimal phagocytosis of non-encapsulated cryptococci, whereas nonactivated macrophages did not require heat-labile opsonins for phagocytosis of the yeast. Both types of macrophages exhibited similar sensitivity to the phagocytosis-inhibiting properties of cryptococcal polysaccharide. The results show that depletion of heat-labile opsonins from serum or inactivation of yeast-bound, heat-labile opsonins by polysaccharide cannot account for the phagocytosis-inhibiting properties of cryptococcal polysaccharide.
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PMID:Phagocytosis of Cryptococcus neoformans by normal and thioglycolate-activated macrophages. 36 75

Severe forms of paracoccidioidomycosis (Pcm) are accompanied by intense immunological involvement characterized by depression of the cell-mediated immune response and by high levels of antibodies in serum with no protective function. These changes can be reversed by antifungal treatment. It has been suggested that antigens of Paracoccidioides brasiliensis released into the circulation during the active phase of the disease may be involved in the genesis of the changes in the immune response. In the present study, we evaluated the antigenemia of patients with Pcm using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA-c) capable of detecting 6 ng of antigen per ml of serum. Twenty-seven of 88 serum samples tested gave positive results, with the highest frequency of positivity being detected in patients with the severe acute form of the disease; these patients had the highest antigen levels (0.03 to 3.4 micrograms/ml). Follow-up of one case showed a correlation between antigen levels in serum and evolution of the disease. False-positive reactions were observed in sera from patients with histoplasmosis, aspergillosis, and cryptococcosis. The results indicate that the described method has potential for clinical application, especially with respect to the evaluation of disease activity. Quantification of fungal antigens in the serum of patients with active Pcm represents an objective parameter for the study of the physiopathology of the disease.
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PMID:Antigenemia in paracoccidioidomycosis. 153 6

In the 6-year period 1984-1989, 101 liver biopsies or 'needle necropsies' from human immunodeficiency virus positive patients were examined histologically. Of these, only nine showed no abnormality whatsoever. The commonest histological findings were either fatty change or changes related to co-existent chronic viral hepatitis. Granulomas were seen in 15 cases, four of which were positive for acid-fast bacilli. A range of organisms were recorded: cytomegalovirus (4); Histoplasma capsulatum (1); Pneumocystis carinii (2); Cryptococcus neoformans (1); and Leishmania donovani (1). There were two cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, but no cases of Kaposi's sarcoma. Marked iron deposition, which correlated with multiple blood transfusions was seen in nine biopsies. We were unable to identify any histological feature in the liver as being specific for HIV infection. The high incidence of liver abnormalities reflects: (i) the coincident exposure to hepatotropic viruses; (ii) the presence of opportunistic infections and neoplasms, usually part of a disseminated multi-organ process arising in the setting of profound immune depression; (iii) iatrogenic causes, in particular iron overload related to multiple blood transfusions received for treatment of zidovudine-induced anaemia; and (iv) non-specific changes associated with chronic debilitating disease.
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PMID:Surgical pathology of the liver in HIV infection. 165 81

In acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) the pulmonary opportunistic infections are due to the depression of cellular immunity and they are found in more than 50% of patients. Most frequently the infection is due to Pneumocystis carinii, Cytomegalovirus, Cryptococcus neoformans and Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare. Non-opportunistic infections in AIDS are mostly due to the Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Legionella pneumophila. In Kaposi sarcoma in AIDS the lungs may be involved into pulmonary manifestations of the syndrome. In this paper the diagnostics of pulmonary disturbances in AIDS is briefly evaluated together with the therapy of most frequent pulmonary infections.
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PMID:[Pulmonary manifestations in patients with AIDS]. 279 62

This article discusses clinical, immunologic, and etiologic considerations in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and the relationship of AIDS to other immunodeficiency diseases. The outstanding clinical feature of AIDS is the occurrence of opportunistic infections in individuals with no prior known cause of immunodeficiency. Such infections have included Pneumocystis carinii, oral thrush from Candida albicans, cytomegalovirus, atypical mycobacteria, cryptosporidium, and Herpes simplex virus. Central nervous system invasion by Cryptococcus neoformans and Toxoplasma gondi has also been reported. Persistent quantitative and functional depression of T4 cells is the immunologic hallmark of full-blown AIDS. Another prominent feature is in vitro spontaneous hyperactivity of B cells. AIDS patients lose cutaneous delayed hypersensitivity reactions both to recall and to new antigens, and T-cell-mediated cytotoxicity is diminished. The mounting number of T8 cells and diminution in T4 cells causes an inversion in the normal T4:T8 ratio. It has been hypothesized that the host defense mechanism is the attempt of the cytotoxic T8 cells to destroy the virus-infected T4 cells. 2 groups of investigators have discovered a lymphocytotropic retrovirus from blood and node lymphocytes of AIDS patients: lymphadenopathy-associated virus (LAV) or human T-lymphotropic virus type III (HTLV-III). Among the primary immunodeficiencies, AIDS most closely resembles the defect observed in purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency, an inherited autosomal recessive phenomenon. There is evidence that multiple infections or antigen overload characterize all the risk groups for AIDS. Moreover, antigen overload in experimental animals and man has been shown to suppress immune responses and to down-regulate Ia antigen expression on monocytes. This may prove to be a necessary precondition for the development of AIDS.
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PMID:The acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). 315 26

Malignant tumors occur with greater frequency in patients with kidney transplants. Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), a rare vascular neoformation, represents approximately 3% of them. Its uncertain etiology appears to respond to: a chronic antigen stimulation by the transplanted tissue, to a depression of immune responsiveness, to the direct oncogenic action of the immunosuppressive agents, to the activation of oncogenic viruses or to a genetic predisposition of other possible factors. The clinical evolution is presented in two immunosuppressed kidney transplant patients with this pathology in the digestive tract. One had remission of the lesion following the suspension of the immunosuppressive agent. The relationship of this tumor with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome which occurred primarily (75%) in homosexuals shows a mortality rate of 30% due to KS. The first case showed signs of digestive hemorrhage and the typical nodule of KS was found in the esophagus on endoscopy. She also suffered a severe mixed infection due to Streptococcus faecalis and Cryptococcus neoformans with neurological complications and a new endoscopy 4 months after suspension of azathioprine showed the disappearance of the esophageal as well as the skin lesions. In the second patient, the suspicion of the digestive tract involvement could only be proved at autopsy. We insist on the importance of immunosuppression as a predisposing factor for the appearance of KS and infections in transplanted patients. It should also be remembered in cases with mucocutaneous lesions, that any digestive hemorrhage must primarily be attributed to KS and that the suspension of the immunosuppressive therapy constitutes the most effective treatment for the tumor.
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PMID:[Digestive Kaposi's sarcoma in patients with kidney transplantation--report of 2 cases]. 391 16

Littman Oxgall Agar was modified by adding an extract of Guizotia abyssinica seeds with a water diluent for rehydration. In this medium, colonies of Cryptococcus neoformans became brown, but the color failed to develop in eight other yeasts and yeast phases of diphasic organisms. The depression of saprophytic fungi noted on Littman Oxgall Agar was not lost in the modification.
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PMID:Modified Littman oxgall agar to isolate Cryptococcus neoformans. 565 62

Male rats were fed vitamin E-adequate, Torula yeast-based diets for 30 days to assess the influence of dietary selenium (0, 0.1, or 1.0 ppm) on the toxicity of dietary cadmium (0, 30, or 60 ppm). At all selenium levels, increased cadmium intake depressed feed consumption, reduced feed efficiency and lowered body weight gain. In liver, concentrations of cadmium and zinc increased, and iron concentration decreased with increased intake of cadmium. Dietary selenium did not affect concentrations of cadmium, zinc, iron or copper in liver. Blood hemoglobin level declined and relative heart weight (g/100 g body wt) increased with increased intake of cadmium. Increased selenium intake partially alleviated the cadmium-induced depression in blood hemoglobin levels in rats fed diets that contained 30 ppm cadmium, and partially ameliorated the cadmium-induced increase in heart size in rats fed either 30 or 60 ppm cadmium. Hepatic and renal glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity increased with increased selenium intake. Increased cadmium intake did not affect renal GSH-Px activity. Hepatic GSH-Px activity in rats fed diets that contained 0.1 ppm selenium decreased with increased cadmium intake; however, hepatic GSH-Px activity was not affected by dietary cadmium in rats fed diets that contained 1.0 ppm selenium. Interactions between nontoxic levels of dietary selenium and relatively high levels of dietary cadmium apparently resulted in an antagonism of selenium metabolism by cadmium in some systems, and partial amelioration of cadmium toxicity by selenium in other systems
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PMID:Some metabolic interrelationships between toxic levels of cadmium and nontoxic levels of selenium fed to rats. 707 26

Invasive fungal infections occur in 5% to 45% of solid organ transplant recipients, and are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the immunocompromised population. The net depression of host defenses and environmental factors, such as preoperative exposures to endemic mycoses or nosocomial and specific surgery-associated exposures, affect the development of invasive infection. Most fungal infections in solid organ transplant recipients occur within the first 2 months after transplantation. The most common pathogens in the majority of solid organ transplant recipients are Candida spp, followed by Aspergillus sp. Diagnosis is best made by a high index of suspicion and aggressive acquisition of specimens for culture; serologic tests are useful for infections due to Cryptococcus neoformans and Histoplasma capsulatum. Amphotericin B is the drug of choice for life-threatening infections. The triazoles, fluconazole and itraconazole, may be effective alternatives for less serious infections due to susceptible organisms. Prophylactic and preemptive treatment strategies require further study.
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PMID:Fungal infections in solid organ transplant recipients. 874 78

The three-dimensional structure of 2H1, a protective monoclonal antibody to Cryptococcus neoformans, has been solved at 2.4 A resolution, in both its unbound form and in complex with the 12 amino acid residue peptide PA1 (GLQYTPSWMLVG). PA1 was previously identified as a potential mimotope of the cryptococcal capsular polysaccharide by screening of a phage display peptide library. Peptide binding is associated with only minor rearrangements of some side-chains and a small shift in the H2 loop of the antibody. The peptide assumes a tightly coiled conformation consisting of one inverse gamma-turn and one type II beta-turn that serves to place the entire peptide motif, consisting of ThrP5, ProP6, TrpP8, MetP9 and LeuP10, into a depression in the antibody combining site. A small number of H-bonds between peptide and antibody contribute to the affinity and specificity. Poor steric complementarity between PA1 and the antibody heavy chain along with the fact that the majority of the interactions between 2H1 and PA1 involve van der Waals interactions with the light chain may explain why this peptide acts as only a partial mimotope of the capsular polysaccharide epitope.
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PMID:The three-dimensional structures of a polysaccharide binding antibody to Cryptococcus neoformans and its complex with a peptide from a phage display library: implications for the identification of peptide mimotopes. 941 40


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