Browsing by Author "Djukanovic, B. (6507409280)"

Background: Procalcitonin (PCT) is a marker for sepsis diagnosis, identification of bacterial infection and monitoring of antibiotic therapy. It has been shown that PCT is not a good choice in patients with hemodialysis. Therefore, we have explored two biomarkers: a) presepsin, and, b) midregion-proadrenomedullin (MR-proADM) in patients having End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). Patients and Methods: We prospectively enlisted 20 patients, who underwent cardiovascular surgery and had been on dialysis. The diagnosis of sepsis has been established clinically and confirmed by PCT. Blood samples were taken before and after dialysis. Additionally, plasma and sera of 10 healthy blood donors without any complications were used as controls. Results: Presepsin plasma concentrations (4368 ± 3088 vs. 694.1 ± 239.1 pg/mL) were significantly higher in patients with sepsis compared with controls (p<0.0001), but without significance between survivors and nonsurvivors (p=0.77). Circulating levels of MR-proADM (4.15 ± 2.72 vs. 0.294 ± 0.03 nmol/L) were also elevated in ESRD patients (p>0.05) with no significance between alive and deceased (p=0.53) patients. Adjustments have shown that the difference for MR-proADM level is due to the random sampling variability (p=0.989), whereas difference for presepsin remained highly significant (p<0.001). Conclusions: Our results indicate that the accuracy of new biomarkers is equal to that of PCT in patients with ESRD. Presepsin might be as good marker in repeated measurements, before and after dialysis, as it is PCT. © 2014 Maravic-Stojkovic V, et al.

To investigate whether the antivasoconstrictor effect of P1075, a potassium channel openers, could be partly due to modulation of neurotransmitter release from adrenergic nerve endings we analysed the presynaptic and postsynaptic effects of P1075 on the isolated human saphenous vein (HSV). The HSV rings were contracted by electrical field stimulation (EFS) or by exogenous noradrenaline (10 μM; NA). The repetitive transmural EFS was carried out at 20 Hz with square wave pulses of 0.3 ms duration and supramaximal voltage. The contraction of the HSV in response to transmural EFS recorded in our experiments are neurogenic in nature, as this effect was abolished by tetrodotoxin (1 μM). We have also found that phentolamine (1 μM) inhibited almost completly (90 ″ 2%) the HSV contractions to EFS suggesting that this response was mediated by NA release from perivascular sympathetic nerve endings activating postjuncional α adrenoceptors. P1075 (0.01-10 μM) induced a concentration-dependent inhibition of both neurogenic contractions, and contractions evoked by exogenous NA of the HSV with pEC 50 values of of 6.48 ″ 0.05 and 6.36″ 0.08. The difference between the pEC 50 values (r) was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). These results suggest that the antivasoconstrictor effect of P1075 on the HSV might be postsynaptic, and associated with opening of the smooth muscle potassium channels.