Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0017160 (gastroenteritis)
 11,398 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Bladder stones, which have almost disappeared from much of the world, still occur frequently in developing countries. Kuwait has become a very wealthy nation over the past 25 years, having previously been among the poorest, and many of its people are adopting a "western" life style in relation to their dietary habits, sanitation and control of the environmental temperature within their houses and public buildings. Over a 2-year period, 34 children presented with bladder urethral stones. Their ages ranged from 8 months to 11 years and two-thirds of them were under 4 years. There were 31 males and 3 females. Twenty-six of the 34 patients were from nomadic families living in the rural periphery of Kuwait, although such families represent less than 12% of the total population of the country. The aetiology of bladder stones is complex and no single factor accounts for all, but we found evidence that lifestyle, environment, diet and the incidence of gastroenteritis all can play a part in the formation of stones within the urinary tract. In contrast to other published series, we found considerable evidence for the formation of the stones within the kidneys, with later enlargement in the bladder. Also, in contrast to other series, we found that urate, as opposed to oxylate, is the predominant substance that we suggest crystallizes out onto a mucopolysaccharide matrix in highly concentrated urine when rates of excretion of ammonia and calcium are high and the urinary phosphate buffer is low. Such conditions readily occur in malnourished, dehydrated infants with gastroenteritis.
 ...
PMID:Vesical calculi in children in Kuwait. 714 44

We provide a global assessment, with detailed multi-scale data, of the ecological and toxicological effects generated by inorganic nitrogen pollution in aquatic ecosystems. Our synthesis of the published scientific literature shows three major environmental problems: (1) it can increase the concentration of hydrogen ions in freshwater ecosystems without much acid-neutralizing capacity, resulting in acidification of those systems; (2) it can stimulate or enhance the development, maintenance and proliferation of primary producers, resulting in eutrophication of aquatic ecosystems; (3) it can reach toxic levels that impair the ability of aquatic animals to survive, grow and reproduce. Inorganic nitrogen pollution of ground and surface waters can also induce adverse effects on human health and economy. Because reductions in SO2 emissions have reduced the atmospheric deposition of H2SO4 across large portions of North America and Europe, while emissions of NOx have gone unchecked, HNO3 is now playing an increasing role in the acidification of freshwater ecosystems. This acidification process has caused several adverse effects on primary and secondary producers, with significant biotic impoverishments, particularly concerning invertebrates and fishes, in many atmospherically acidified lakes and streams. The cultural eutrophication of freshwater, estuarine, and coastal marine ecosystems can cause ecological and toxicological effects that are either directly or indirectly related to the proliferation of primary producers. Extensive kills of both invertebrates and fishes are probably the most dramatic manifestation of hypoxia (or anoxia) in eutrophic and hypereutrophic aquatic ecosystems with low water turnover rates. The decline in dissolved oxygen concentrations can also promote the formation of reduced compounds, such as hydrogen sulphide, resulting in higher adverse (toxic) effects on aquatic animals. Additionally, the occurrence of toxic algae can significantly contribute to the extensive kills of aquatic animals. Cyanobacteria, dinoflagellates and diatoms appear to be major responsible that may be stimulated by inorganic nitrogen pollution. Among the different inorganic nitrogenous compounds (NH4+, NH3, NO2-, HNO2NO3-) that aquatic animals can take up directly from the ambient water, unionized ammonia is the most toxic, while ammonium and nitrate ions are the least toxic. In general, seawater animals seem to be more tolerant to the toxicity of inorganic nitrogenous compounds than freshwater animals, probably because of the ameliorating effect of water salinity (sodium, chloride, calcium and other ions) on the tolerance of aquatic animals. Ingested nitrites and nitrates from polluted drinking waters can induce methemoglobinemia in humans, particularly in young infants, by blocking the oxygen-carrying capacity of hemoglobin. Ingested nitrites and nitrates also have a potential role in developing cancers of the digestive tract through their contribution to the formation of nitrosamines. In addition, some scientific evidences suggest that ingested nitrites and nitrates might result in mutagenicity, teratogenicity and birth defects, contribute to the risks of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and bladder and ovarian cancers, play a role in the etiology of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus and in the development of thyroid hypertrophy, or cause spontaneous abortions and respiratory tract infections. Indirect health hazards can occur as a consequence of algal toxins, causing nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, pneumonia, gastroenteritis, hepatoenteritis, muscular cramps, and several poisoning syndromes (paralytic shellfish poisoning, neurotoxic shellfish poisoning, amnesic shellfish poisoning). Other indirect health hazards can also come from the potential relationship between inorganic nitrogen pollution and human infectious diseases (malaria, cholera). Human sickness and death, extensive kills of aquatic animals, and other negative effects, can have elevated costs on human economy, with the recreation and tourism industry suffering the most important economic impacts, at least locally. It is concluded that levels of total nitrogen lower than 0.5-1.0 mg TN/L could prevent aquatic ecosystems (excluding those ecosystems with naturally high N levels) from developing acidification and eutrophication, at least by inorganic nitrogen pollution. Those relatively low TN levels could also protect aquatic animals against the toxicity of inorganic nitrogenous compounds since, in the absence of eutrophication, surface waters usually present relatively high concentrations of dissolved oxygen, most inorganic reactive nitrogen being in the form of nitrate. Additionally, human health and economy would be safer from the adverse effects of inorganic nitrogen pollution.
 ...
PMID:Ecological and toxicological effects of inorganic nitrogen pollution in aquatic ecosystems: A global assessment. 1678 74

Ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency is the commonest urea cycle disorder which is transmitted in X-linked inheritance. It is mainly characterized in males by acute encephalopathy and hyperammonaemia with fatal outcomes in both classical neonatal and late-onset types. We report a 3-year-old healthy Hong Kong Chinese boy who presented with acute encephalopathy and coma after three days of gastroenteritis. He had no focal neurological deficit and brain CT imaging was normal. His plasma ammonia (54 micromol/L) and glutamine (747 micromol/L) concentrations were normal. The only biochemical abnormalities detected were marked orotic aciduria (700 micromol/mmol creatinine) and elevated urinary uracil. He regained consciousness spontaneously after three days under intensive care with parenteral fluid therapy. He recovered completely without any neurological deficits. Five months after discharge, urinary uracil concentration remained elevated despite normalized orotic acid concentration. Finally, ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency was diagnosed by DNA analysis. A missense mutation of arginine-to-glutamine substitution on amino acid 277 (p.R277Q) was revealed to be a late-onset mutant. Our case strengthens the argument that in any child with coma or acute encephalopathy of undetermined cause, genetic analysis of the OTC gene and the measurement of urinary uracil concentration remain the most reliable indicators of late-onset OTCD during acute and even quiescent phases. Existing neonatal screening programmes for inheritable metabolic disorders fail to detect late-onset variants. Therefore, a high clinical suspicion is a key to correct and timely diagnosis, especially in those patients with atypical presentations.
 ...
PMID:Complete recovery from acute encephalopathy of late-onset ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency in a 3-year-old boy. 1792 16

Ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency is the most common inborn error in the metabolism of the urea cycle with an incidence of 1 in 14,000 live births. Pregnancy can trigger potentially fatal hyperammonemic crises. We report a successful pregnancy in a 29-year-old primiparous patient with a known diagnosis of OTC deficiency since infancy. Hyperammonemic complications were avoided due to careful multidisciplinary management which included a detailed antenatal, intrapartum and postnatal plan. Management principles include avoidance of triggers, a low-protein diet and medications which promote the removal of nitrogen by alternative pathways. Triggers include metabolic stress such as febrile illness, particularly gastroenteritis, fasting and any protein loading. In our case the patient, in addition to a restricted protein intake, was prescribed sodium benzoate 4 g four times a day, sodium phenylbutyrate 2 g four times a day and arginine 500 mg four times a day to aid excretion of ammonia and reduce flux through the urea cycle.
 ...
PMID:Multidisciplinary management of ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) deficiency in pregnancy: essential to prevent hyperammonemic complications. 2328 8

Nutrition plays a key role in the management of gastrointestinal disease, and some patients may be managed by dietary therapy alone. Dietary ingredients can have a negative or positive effect on the bowel. Negative factors in a diet may include toxins, allergens, toxic dietary excesses, or nutritional deficiencies. Diet also has a direct effect on intestinal physiology, affecting motility, cell renewal rate, intestinal microbiome, enzyme production, ammonia production, and volatile fatty acid content. This article discusses dietary therapy of acute gastroenteritis, chronic gastroenteropathies, and feline constipation.
 ...
PMID:Focus on nutrition: dietary management of gastrointestinal disease. 2367 20