Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P01178 (oxytocin)
 15,767 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A report of 2 cases of acute renal insufficiency in african women, 8 months pregnant and suffering of malignant malaria. In both cases labor has been induced by artificial breaking of the membranes and use of oxytocin. One of the children was still-born and the other died 3 days later. Delivery has been followed by a resumption of the urinary flow, facilitated by high dosages of furosemide. This diuretic drug when associated with hypoprotidic diet, hypercaloric intravenous infusions of glucose hypertonic solutions supplemented with amino-acids gives a good chance of recovery without extra-renal dialysis.
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PMID:[Acute renal insufficiency caused by Plasmodium falciparum malaria in the last period of pregnancy (2 cases) (author's transl)]. 36 41

According to the World Health Organization, between 1980 and 1985 the total fertility rate was 2.0 in the wealthy countries and 4.1 in the less developed countries. The highest rate was found in Kenya with 8.1. The risk of maternal mortality in connection with pregnancy and childbirth was 1/10,000 in Northern Europe, but 1/21 in Africa. Every year about 500,000 women die because of complications before, during, or after delivery. The maternal mortality rate (30/100,000 live births in Europe) is still 500-800/100,000 in the developing countries, although Tanzania has succeeded in cutting its rate from 450/100,000 to 170/100,000. The main causes of maternal mortality are: 1) unrecognized obstructed labor, 2) postpartum bleeding that could be managed by massaging the uterus, administration of oxytocin or by the manual removal of the placenta, 3) postpartum infections that could be treated by timely administration of antibiotics, 4) preeclampsia that could be detected and treated, and 5) abortion complications requiring effective treatment. Among indirect causes of death is anemia: 66% of pregnant women in developing countries are anemic, compared to 14% in industrialized countries. So far the cause of the reduction of partial immunity against malaria parasites in primiparas has not been explained. A significant percentage of deaths (11-47%) can be traced to unqualified and negligent personnel, especially in the slums and rural areas. Only 52% of deliveries are attended by well-trained health personnel, although in 10% of pregnancies complications arise. Young age is another factor: in 1989 in Tanzania the first pregnancy occurred on the average at age 17.6 years compared to 27 years in England. In the beginning of the 1990s there were an estimated 3 million HIV-infected women, therefore maternal mortality as a consequence of AIDS is going to increase. In high prevalence areas the population growth rate will decline from 3% to 2.4%. Traditional birth attendants could be trained and used effectively to reduce maternal mortality by 3-11% as part of a functioning referral system.
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PMID:[Obstetrics in the Third World]. 811 19

It is now largely established that the immune and neuroendocrine systems cross-talk by using similar ligands and receptors. In this context, the thymus-hypothalamus/pituitary axis can be regarded as a paradigm of connectivity in both normal and pathological conditions. For example, cytokines and thymic hormones modulate hypothalamic-pituitary functions: (a) interleukin (IL)-1 seems to upregulate the production of corticotropin-releasing factor and by adrenocorticotropin by hypothalamic neurons and pituitary cells, respectively; (b) thymulin enhances LH secretion. Conversely, a great deal of data strongly indicate that the hypothalamic-pituitary axis plays a role in the control of thymus physiology. Growth hormone (GH) for example, enhances thymulin secretion by thymic epithelial cells (TEC), both in vivo and in vitro, also increasing extracellular matrix-mediated TEC/thymocyte interactions. Additionally, gap junction-mediated cell coupling among TEC is upregulated by ACTH. In a second vein, it was shown that GH injections in aging mice increased total thymocyte numbers and the percentage of CD3-bearing cells, as well concanavalin-A mitogenic response and IL-6 production. In addition to mutual effects, thymus-pituitary similarities for cytokine and hormone production have been demonstrated. Cytokines such as IL-1, IL-2, IL-6, interferon-gamma, transforming growth factor-beta and others can be produced by hypothalamic and/or pituitary cells. Conversely, hormones including GH, PRL, LH, oxytocin, vasopressin and somatostatin can be produced intrathymically. Moreover, receptors for various cytokines and hormones are expressed in both the thymus and the hypothalamus/pituitary axis. Lastly, it is noteworthy that a thymus-pituitary connectivity can also be seen under pathological situations. In this regard, an altered HPA axis has been reported in AIDS, human falciparum malaria and murine rabies, that also show a severe thymic atrophy.
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PMID:Immunoneuroendocrine connectivity: the paradigm of the thymus-hypothalamus/pituitary axis. 987 43

The majority of deaths associated with complex emergencies are attributed to infants and children under the age of five years. Most of these deaths are related to preventable diseases such as malnutrition, diarrhea, and malaria. Infant feeding emergencies have emerged as a major factor in complex emergencies. This paper reviews the current information relative to infant feeding, and uses four case studies as educational tools for the management of infant feeding emergencies. Child mortality rates in refugee population have been linked directly to protein-energy malnutrition (PEM). Breast feeding has many advantages over all other forms of feeding for children up to the age of two years of age. These advantages are discussed in detail in this paper. In addition, the appropriate and inappropriate uses of breast-milk substitutes (BMS) are discussed. Breast feeding also may play a role in the spread of HIV infections from the mother to the infant. However, in the setting of complex emergencies in the developing world, the risk of an infant dying of malnutrition and infection when not breastfed is likely to be greater than is the risk of death due to HIV acquisition through breastfeeding. The physiology of lactation is reviewed with particular reference to the roles of prolactin, oxytocin, and the feedback inhibitor of lactation (FIL) hormone. No medications have been demonstrated to augment milk production that can be used in a practical sense in complex emergencies. Lastly, the principles promulgated by the WHO and UNHCR for the feeding of infants and children in emergencies and for milk powder distribution are summarized.
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PMID:Infant feeding practices in complex emergencies: a case study approach. 1209 Feb 3

Artemether, highly effective in multi-drug-resistant malaria is not routinely available for use in pregnancy due to the lack of adequate research data in animals and man. This study was therefore aimed at investigating some pregnancy-related effects of artemether. Artemether (1.5, 7.5 and 15 mg/kg i.p. daily for 7 days) did not produce changes in rat oestrous cycle. The drug did not prevent or prolong the rate of conception or parturition, cause pre-term delivery and affect litter size. Birth weight and growth rate of pups from artemether-pretreated dams were within the normal range. Artemether (48-480 microg/ml) had no agonist effect on the isolated uterine smooth muscles of both non-pregnant and pregnant rats and guinea pigs. However, the drug (24- 240 microg/ml) reduced oxytocin-induced contraction of uterine tissues concentration-dependently, particularly in pregnant uteri.
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PMID:Some pregnancy-related effects of artemether in laboratory animals. 1683 80

Chloroquine (CQ) remains the household drug for the treatment of malaria especially among pregnant women. However, there are reports that CQ inhibits the contractile process in non-pregnant rat's uterus. The aim of this study is to compare responses to CQ between non-pregnant and pregnant mice and identify some mechanisms involved. Experiments were carried out in non-pregnant and pregnant mice pretreated 24 hours before with 1.5 mg/kg-body weight stilboesterol given orally. Strips of uterine smooth muscle, approximately 5 mm in diameter, were mounted in a 20 ml organ bath containing De Jalon solution bubbled with a 95% O2-5% CO2 gas mixture. Responses of the strips to graded concentration of acetylcholine (ACh) (10(-9) to 10(-5) mol/L), oxytocin (OXY) (10(-5) to 10(-2) IU/ml) and CQ (10(-6) to 4 x 10(-4) mol/L) were investigated. The strips were then incubated in 4 x 10(-4) mol/L CQ for 15 mins and the cumulative dose responses for OXY were repeated. To investigate mechanism of action, the strips were incubated for 15 mins in N(w)-nitro L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) and the cumulative responses to CQ repeated. Each investigation was carried out in fresh tissue mounted on Grass Model FT03 force transducer coupled unto a 4-channel Grass Model 7D Polygraph. CQ (low to moderate level), ACh and OXY led to increases in contractile responses in the uteri. There were greater contractile responses in non-pregnant than pregnant mice to CQ and ACh. At high doses, CQ had an inhibitory effect on the uterine contraction. Incubating in CQ led to abolition of contractile responses to OXY and ACh. In the presence of L-NAME, inhibitory effect of CQ at high doses was attenuated in pregnant mice only. The results suggest that CQ at high doses inhibits contractile responses in non-pregnant and pregnant mice. Enhanced nitric oxide bioactivity attenuated this inhibitory effect.
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PMID:Effect of chloroquine on strips of non-pregnant and pregnant mice uteri in-vitro. 1768 66

More than 20 years ago, an oxytocin/vasopressin-like peptide, CLITNCPRGamide, was isolated from the locust, Locusta migratoria [Proux JP, et al. (1987) Identification of an arginine vasopressin-like diuretic hormone from Locusta migratoria. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 149:180-186]. However, no similar peptide could be identified in other insects, nor could its prohormone be cloned, or its physiological actions be established. Here, we report that the recently sequenced genome from the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum contains a gene coding for an oxytocin/vasopressin-like peptide, identical to the locust peptide, which we named inotocin (for insect oxytocin/vasopressin-like peptide) and a gene coding for an inotocin G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR). We cloned the Tribolium inotocin preprohormone and the inotocin GPCR and expressed the GPCR in CHO cells. This GPCR is strongly activated by low concentrations of inotocin (EC(50), 5 x 10(-9) M), demonstrating that it is the inotocin receptor. Quantitative RT-PCR (qPCR) showed that in adult Tribolium, the receptor is mainly expressed in the head and much less in the hindgut and Malpighian tubules, suggesting that the inotocin/receptor couple does not play a role in water homeostasis. Surprisingly, qPCR also showed that the receptor is 30x more expressed in the first larval stages than in adult animals. The inotocin/receptor couple can also be found in the recently sequenced genome from the parasitic wasp Nasonia vitripennis but not in any other holometabolous insect with a completely sequenced genome (12 Drosophila species, the malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae, the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti, the silk worm Bombyx mori, and the honey bee Apis mellifera), suggesting that this neuropeptide system is confined to basal holometabolous insects. Furthermore, we identified an oxytocin/vasopressin-like peptide and receptor in the recently sequenced genome from the water flea Daphnia pulex (Crustacea). To our knowledge, this is the first report on the molecular cloning of an oxytocin/vasopressin-like receptor and its ligand from arthropods.
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PMID:Cloning and identification of an oxytocin/vasopressin-like receptor and its ligand from insects. 1831 33

Genome-wide studies of African populations have the potential to reveal powerful insights into the evolution of our species, as these diverse populations have been exposed to intense selective pressures imposed by infectious diseases, diet, and environmental factors. Within Africa, the Sahel Belt extensively overlaps the geographical center of several endemic infections such as malaria, trypanosomiasis, meningitis, and hemorrhagic fevers. We screened 2.5 million single nucleotide polymorphisms in 161 individuals from 13 Sahelian populations, which together with published data cover Western, Central, and Eastern Sahel, and include both nomadic and sedentary groups. We confirmed the role of this Belt as a main corridor for human migrations across the continent. Strong admixture was observed in both Central and Eastern Sahelian populations, with North Africans and Near Eastern/Arabians, respectively, but it was inexistent in Western Sahelian populations. Genome-wide local ancestry inference in admixed Sahelian populations revealed several candidate regions that were significantly enriched for non-autochthonous haplotypes, and many showed to be under positive selection. The DARC gene region in Arabs and Nubians was enriched for African ancestry, whereas the RAB3GAP1/LCT/MCM6 region in Oromo, the TAS2R gene family in Fulani, and the ALMS1/NAT8 in Turkana and Samburu were enriched for non-African ancestry. Signals of positive selection varied in terms of geographic amplitude. Some genomic regions were selected across the Belt, the most striking example being the malaria-related DARC gene. Others were Western-specific (oxytocin, calcium, and heart pathways), Eastern-specific (lipid pathways), or even population-restricted (TAS2R genes in Fulani, which may reflect sexual selection).
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PMID:Extensive Admixture and Selective Pressure Across the Sahel Belt. 2661 24