Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0016382 (flushing)
 6,387 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Serotonin (5-HT) and substance P (SP) were assayed in peripheral blood in patients with known midgut carcinoids and hepatic metastases. All patients had supranormal basal levels of 5-HT and SP. The clinical and hormonal response was evaluated by two provocation tests, pentagastrin (PG) injection or calcium infusion. Pentagastrin caused flushing and gastrointestinal symptoms and elevated levels of circulating 5-HT, but not of SP. Pretreatment with a 5-HT2 receptor blocking agent (ketanserin) alleviated gastrointestinal symptoms but had no influence on either 5-HT release or PG-induced flushing. Calcium infusion induced carcinoid symptoms in only two of six patients, which were associated with elevated 5-HT levels (whereas elevated SP levels were seen in only one patient). We conclude that 5-HT is important for the development of gastrointestinal symptoms but not of flushing. Ketanserin may alleviate gastrointestinal symptoms but does not influence PG-induced release of 5-HT. Substance P and 5-HT do not seem to share a common release mechanism. It appears that PG testing is superior to calcium infusion as a provocative test in patients with the carcinoid syndrome.
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PMID:The pentagastrin test in the diagnosis of the carcinoid syndrome. 241 67

The effects of endotoxin (ET) on spontaneous contractility and of carbachol- and alpha-methyl-5-hydroxytryptamine-(alpha-M-5-HT; 5-HT2 receptor agonist) induced contractions of smooth muscle preparations from the bovine abomasal antrum were investigated in vitro. Preparations from the abomasal antrum of freshly slaughtered healthy dairy cows were cut parallel to the longitudinal and circular fibres, suspended in isolated organ baths, and contractility was recorded and analyzed, using digitalized data. The traits maximum amplitude, time till maximum amplitude, frequency, basal tone, and area under curve were calculated. The contractile effect of Carbachol (CH) was concentration dependent. Repeated administration of CH (3.75 x 10(-6) M), each time interrupted by flushing of the organ baths, did not reveal any significant effect on contractility traits of CH-induced contractions. Endotoxin (10 micrograms/ml; lipopolysaccharide from E. coli, O26:B6) significantly reduced some of the spontaneously occurring contractility traits and of carbachol-(3.75 x 10(-6) M) and alpha-M-5-HT-induced (2.14 x 10(-5) M) contractions. The effects of higher and lower concentrations of ET occurred less consistently. The inhibitory effect of endotoxin was more pronounced after 6 hours as compared to 2 hours of incubation. The results of the present study (i) support the hypothesis of a possible role of endotoxin in reducing motility of the abomasum during the development of spontaneous abomasal displacement in dairy cows, and (ii) may serve as the basis for the development of an in vitro model of abomasal displacement with endotoxemia for future studies on the effect of motility modulating drugs.
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PMID:Effect of endotoxins on contractility of smooth muscle preparations from the bovine abomasal antrum. 1498 52