Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0026918 (Mycobacterium)
 52,428 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Skin biopsies from patients with leprosy across the spectrum from tuberculoid (TT) to lepromatous (LL), including histoid lepromas and erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) reactions, were stained immunohistochemically for the presence of C-reactive protein (CRP) and the apolipoprotein, apoB. Mycobacterium leprae bacillary material comprising cell walls, cytoplasmic and soluble components was present with increasing abundance towards the lepromatous end of the spectrum and always stained positively with anti-CRP. M. leprae from armadillos did not stain with anti-human CRP indicating that the staining of M. leprae in human tissues was not due to a cross-reaction between anti-CRP and the organism itself. When CRP was present in large amounts apoB was also demonstrated in the same distribution. CRP was detected on bacilli and their degradation products within the cytoplasm of macrophages even in the absence of a raised serum CRP level in some ENL patients and also in two cases of advanced resolving lepromas. These findings demonstrate remarkable persistence of CRP in association with M. leprae in vivo, and raise intriguing questions about the possible role of CRP in relation to the handling of leprosy bacilli.
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PMID:C-reactive protein and apoB containing lipoproteins are associated with Mycobacterium leprae in lesions of human leprosy. 637 53

The levels of 8 acute phase reactants (alpha 1-antitrypsin, alpha 2-macroglobulin, transferrin, alpha 1-acid glycoprotein, C-reactive protein, ceruloplasmin, haptoglobin and the third component of complement) and immunoglobulin in the IgG, IgM and IgA classes were assayed, by laser nephelometry, in sera from 107 East Japanese patients with smear-positive pulmonary tuberculosis and 144 healthy subjects. These levels were correlated with clinical, haematological and radiological features, the levels of antibody to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and the diameters of the tuberculin skin test read at various times. Levels of all acute phase reactants increased significantly in tuberculosis except for that of transferrin which was lowered. The correlations between the various acute phase reactants in health and disease were calculated. In general, the correlations were lower in disease than in health, except for the third component of complement and a greatly increased correlation between the levels of alpha 1-antitrypsin and ceruloplasmin. There was a significant correlation between levels of some of the acute phase reactants and those of antibodies to M. tuberculosis, mainly with IgG, less with IgA and least with IgM antibodies. By contrast correlations between acute phase protein and total immunoglobulin levels were most evident in the IgM class, less with IgA and not at all with IgG. Although there were some associations between protein levels and age, sex and weight of controls and patients, these were not great enough to account for the differences between the two groups. There was a tendency for patients, but not controls, with intestinal helminthiasis to have higher levels of total IgM than those without evidence of parasites. In general, the levels of proteins bore very little relation to the clinical and radiological features of disease and were, with the exception of the antimycobacterial antibodies, of no diagnostic value. Likewise, protein levels were not associated with the extent of disease; better correlations were found with the ESR and leucocyte count. Transferrin levels tended to be higher in those with chronic disease and showed a correlation with the diameters of the dermal reactions to tuberculin at 24 hours, which were also significantly larger in chronic disease. Among the haematological findings, the most significant was a negative correlation between the lymphocyte count and haptoglobin levels in disease, suggesting a possible regulatory role for this protein.
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PMID:A study of acute-phase reactant proteins in Indonesian patients with pulmonary tuberculosis. 642 16

C-reactive protein and serum amyloid A protein levels were measured in 54 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis. The primary tuberculous complex was associated with an insignificant acute phase response, while post-primary tuberculosis without evidence of lung destruction caused modest increases in C-reactive protein and serum amyloid A protein. In most patients with post-primary pulmonary tuberculosis with significant pulmonary destruction there was a major acute phase response, with very high serum amyloid A protein and C-reactive protein levels. The response in these patients is most likely to be due to secondary bacterial infection in addition to infection by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Patients with miliary tuberculosis showed a major acute phase response. Serum amyloid A protein and C-reactive protein levels decreased rapidly after initiation of treatment in the patients with post-primary tuberculosis without significant pulmonary destruction.
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PMID:Serum amyloid A protein and C-reactive protein levels in pulmonary tuberculosis: relationship to amyloidosis. 671 Apr 28

Sixteen out of 45 (36%) leprosy patients with clinical features of acute erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) did not show the characteristic presence of neutrophils (polymorphs) in histology of the ENL lesion. The acute-phase reactants, serum amyloid A (SAA) and C-reactive protein (CRP) which are systemic markers of inflammation, and IgM and IgG antibody to Mycobacterium leprae were determined in these patients in order to understand the differences in histological diagnosis. Both SAA and CRP were elevated in ENL patients, irrespective of the presence of polymorph infiltrates, as compared to nonreactional lepromatous patients, patients with histologically confirmed reversal reactions and endemic controls, indicating that all clinically diagnosed ENL patients had ongoing inflammatory reactions. On the other hand, IgM and IgG antibodies were significantly lower (> 70%) in ENL patients as compared to nonreactional lepromatous patients. When the two ENL groups [ENL-PMN+ve (positive for neutrophils) and ENL-PMN-ve (negative for neutrophils)] were compared, there were no significant differences in the mean SAA, IgM or IgG antibody concentrations, but CRP was eightfold lower in ENL-PMN-ve as compared to the ENL-PMN+ve group. This may indicate that the timing or modulation of the reaction was different in the two ENL groups. Thus, measurement of the acute-phase response and the ratio of SAA/CRP in particular are helpful in the clinical diagnosis of ENL reactions in leprosy.
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PMID:Clinical and histological discrepancies in diagnosis of ENL reactions classified by assessment of acute phase proteins SAA and CRP. 760 17

The diagnosis and treatment of acute meningitis is a challenge for the primary care physician. Differentiating between bacterial meningitis and aseptic meningitis is not always straightforward. The aseptic meningitis syndrome is usually viral in origin, and enteroviruses account for most cases. The aseptic syndrome also may be caused by unusual bacterial organisms such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Leptospira species, Brucella species, Borrelia burgdorferi and others. The classic presentation consists of the acute onset of meningismus, headache, fever, malaise with pleocytosis and normal glucose and slightly elevated protein in the cerebrospinal fluid. Cerebrospinal fluid lactate and serum C-reactive protein measurements may be helpful in differentiating aseptic meningitis from treatable bacterial meningitis. Aseptic meningitis of viral origin usually responds to expectant care. Other causes of aseptic meningitis must be searched for and treated if present.
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PMID:The aseptic meningitis syndrome. 821 11

Administration of antigen suspended in incomplete Freund's adjuvant supplemented with either heat-killed Mycobacterium tuberculosis (complete Freund's adjuvant, CFA) or Bordetella pertussis toxin sensitizes animals so that subsequent antigen challenge leads to delayed-type (DTH) or immediate type hypersensitivity (ITH) responses, named type IV and type I, respectively. Appropriate timing of administration of drugs with respect to immunization or antigen challenge allowed to detect predominantly immunosuppressive, antiinflammatory or antianaphylactic activities. Among the reference drugs tested, only cyclosporin A (CsA) and dexamethasone (Dex) markedly inhibited DTH reaction, due to their immunosuppressive and antiinflammatory activities, respectively, whereas leflunomide and indomethacin resulted less potent. On the other hand, only dexchlorpheniramine, a histamine-receptor antagonist, afforded significant protection against anaphylactic shock, a form of ITH. Two new chemical entities were studied according to this protocol: ITF 1697, a chemically stabilized C-reactive protein-derived tetrapeptide, and ITF 2018, a leflunomide analogue. Data obtained with these new compounds showed that ITF 1697 has antianaphylactic activity, while ITF 2018 is endowed, mainly, with antiinflammatory activity. These results show that, through appropriate timing of administration, established in vivo models of immunologically mediated disease states allow an accurate profiling of the effects of pharmacologically active molecules and the detection of unsuspected activities for new drugs.
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PMID:Use of type I and type IV hypersensitivity responses to define the immunopharmacological profile of drugs. 917 84

Altogether 40 patients aged 13-91 y (average 58 y) with vertebral osteomyelitis were treated at the Bergen University Hospital between July 1987 and June 1997. All patients presented with back pain, 33 (83%) had vertebral tenderness, and 26 (65%) patients were febrile. The duration of symptoms before diagnosis was < 3 weeks in 13 patients, and from 3 to 16 weeks in the remaining 27 patients. C-reactive protein (CRP) level and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) were elevated in 39 and 38 patients, respectively. Staphylococcus aureus was the most frequent cause of osteomyelitis followed by Streptococcus spp., Escherichia coli and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Magnetic resonance imaging was superior to other radiological methods and demonstrated changes consistent with osteomyelitis in all 23 patients examined with this method. 35 patients survived. 18/35 surviving patients had pareses and 17 underwent surgery with drainage of abscesses or laminectomy. All 35 patients made a good recovery and only 3 patients experienced permanent pareses. The diagnosis of vertebral osteomyelitis is easily missed, and treatment is often delayed, particularly in the elderly in whom signs of sepsis may not manifest. However, persisting localized pain and tenderness over the spine together with elevated CRP and ESR should prompt the physician to consider vertebral osteomyelitis. Fever and leukocytosis may support the diagnosis, but may not always be present.
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PMID:Vertebral osteomyelitis at a Norwegian university hospital 1987-97: clinical features, laboratory findings and outcome. 973 Mar 1

To predict the natural history of pulmonary Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare (MAI) infection with nodular bronchiectasis, we retrospectively evaluated clinical manifestations, laboratory data, and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) findings in 57 patients. The patients received follow-up chest computed tomographic scans and testing for sputum bacteriology between intervals of at least 12 mo. They were divided into two groups after observation for 28 +/- 13 mo: deteriorated (n = 34) and not-deteriorated (n = 23). There were no patients with spontaneous improvement. At the start of observation, the mean age was greater in the deteriorated group (69 +/- 9 yr) than in the not-deteriorated group (57 +/- 9 yr). The mean body-mass index was lower in the deteriorated group (19.2 +/- 3.1 kg/m(2)) than in the not-deteriorated group (21.5 +/- 1.5 kg/m(2)). C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 were significantly elevated in the deteriorated group. The BALF findings of the deteriorated group showed that the neutrophil cell counts were significantly increased. Thirty-four of 57 patients with pulmonary MAI infection with nodular bronchiectasis had progressive clinical and/or radiographic disease. The older and thinner patients tended to become worse. Neutrophil-related inflammation associated with a decrease in CD4+ lymphocyte might reflect the progression of pulmonary MAI infection with nodular bronchiectasis.
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PMID:Markers indicating deterioration of pulmonary Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare infection. 1058 96

A 15-year-old boy was hospitalized with a 1-month history lumbago and fever. His family history was noncontributory for tuberculosis, and the findings of the physical examination were normal. The sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein level were 55 mm/hour and 48 mg/l, respectively. The result of a purified protein derivative test was 11 x 10 mm. Results of other tests, including rheumatologic studies, serum agglutination for brucellosis, chest radiography, abdominal ultrasonography, and myelography, were normal. The bone biopsy revealed chronic active inflammation. Mycobacterium tuberculosis was not cultured from clinical specimens. However, the patient's symptoms improved after antituberculosis drugs were begun.
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PMID:Pott's disease. 1113 56

It is generally considered that tuberculosis (TB) is a disease which upregulates Th1 cell function. There is a hypothesis that infection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis may prevent allergic disorders such as bronchial asthma. However, our clinical experience of patients with TB somewhat conflicts this hypothesis. Hence, we investigated Th1/Th2 balance in the peripheral blood of patients with active TB by measuring serum levels of IgE antibody and by intracellular cytokine assay. We found that serum levels of IgE in the patients with active TB were significantly higher than in those with lung cancer or with COPD. In the TB patients, titers of IgE tended to correlate with disease severity. Intracellular cytokine assay demonstrated that IFN-gamma-positive cells were significantly decreased in the patients with active TB compared to normal controls. The ratio of IFN-gamma-positive (Th1-like)/IL-4-positive (Th2-like) cells was remarkably reduced in the TB patients (p < 0.0001). This ratio showed a significant negative correlation with erythrocyte sedimentation rate and with C-reactive protein. Therapy against TB for 2-3 months did not result in significant changes of the Th1/Th2 ratio. These findings suggest that infection of M. tuberculosis does not systematically upregulate Th1 cells in some patients, and is unlikely to prevent allergic disorders like asthma.
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PMID:Can Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection prevent asthma and other allergic disorders? 1130 44


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