Treatments targeting metabolic abnormalities in children with autism are limited. Previously we reported that a nutritional treatment significantly improved glutathione metabolism in children with autistic disorder. In this study we evaluated changes in adaptive behaviors in this cohort and determined whether such changes are related to changes in glutathione metabolism. Thirty-seven children diagnosed with autistic disorder and abnormal glutathione and methylation metabolism were treated with twice weekly 75 µg/Kg methylcobalamin and twice daily 400 µg folinic acid for 3 months in an open-label fashion. The Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale (VABS) and glutathione redox metabolites were measured at baseline and at the end of the treatment period. Over the treatment period, all VABS subscales significantly improved with an average effect size of 0.59, and an average improvement in skills of 7.7 months. A greater improvement in glutathione redox status was associated with a greater improvement in expressive communication, personal and domestic daily living skills, and interpersonal, play-leisure, and coping social skills. Age, gender, and history of regression did not influence treatment response. The significant behavioral improvements observed and the relationship between these improvements to glutathione redox status suggest that nutritional interventions targeting redox metabolism may benefit some children with autism.
The pharmacokinetic behavior of ceftazidime was assessed after single bolus intravenous injections of 1 g to 12 male and 12 female volunteers. The kinetic handling of the drug was essentially identical in the two sexes, exhibiting twocompartment model characteristics. However, the peripheral compartment volume of distribution of ceftazidime was smaller in the females (mean 3.95 liters, compared with 6.15 liters), and this was attributed to a smaller extracellular fluid volume. Eight volunteers in each group also received single 1-g doses of ceftazidime into the vastus lateralis and gluteus maximus muscles. The time to peak concentration was longer in the women, and it was longer after injection into the gluteus maximus in both sexes, presumably because of differences in local blood flow. The bioavailability of ceftazidime may have been slightly reduced by delays in absorption. Again, body and renal clearances were similar for both sexes when allowance was made for differences in distribution volume.Ceftazidime is a new semisynthetic cephalosporin with a broad spectrum of activity (9). It is highly active, particularly against Pseudomonas sPP., Serratia spp., and indole-positive Proteus spp., organisms which have been resistant to earlier cephalosporins. It is highly stable to ,Blactamases from gram-negative organisms and to staphylococcal penicillinases. The pharmacokinetics in healthy male volunteers have been extensively studied after both intravenous (i.v.) and intramuscular (i.m.) administration (1,8,11). The present study was designed to investigate possible differences between males and females in the handling of the drug. Since more precise kinetic data are obtained after i.v. bolus injection, the main part of the study involved comparisons between groups of 12 male and 12 female volunteers after dosing by this route. In the assessment of the handling of ceftazidime after i.m. administration, eight volunteers in each group received the drug after injection into the vastus lateralis and gluteus maximus. Ceftazidime kinetics have been shown in males to be independent of dose (1, 8), and this study was carried out at one dose, 1 g, the dose size which is likely to have the widest clinical application.MATERIALS AND METHODS Subjects and trial design. A total of 12 male and 12 female healthy volunteers participated in the study. Their mean ages were 26 years (men) and 23 years (women); mean weight's, 79 kg (men) and 58 kg (women); and mean height's, 181 cm (men) and 165 cm (women). The study was carried out in the Glaxo Institute for Clinical Pharmacology after ethical approval and written informed consent had been obtained. Volunteers underwent full physical examinations to exclude those with any abnormality; hematology, biochemistry, and urinalysis screening tests were performed.The volunteers were studied in groups of four, with an interval of 1 week between each study day. All 24 volunteers were given 1 g of ceftazidime as a bolus i.v. injection, and 8 volunteers of each sex subsequently received 1 g of c...
Integrating electron microscopy into undergraduate education is an exciting way to engage students in serious research. An ongoing study at the Electron Microscopy Center of mineral inclusions in alluvial sapphires from Montana provides an interesting opportunity of for undergraduate research. Sample preparation, and the electron beam techniques used in the study, SEM/BSE and EDS microanalysis, are straight-forward enough for senior undergraduates to master quickly. This communication presents initial results of one of the author's (Walters) Senior Directed Study Project.Long famous for the cornflower blue Yogo dike sapphires, Montana has also produced numerous multicolored alluvial sapphires [ Fig. 1]. Since their discovery in 1865, the source for these Montana alluvial sapphires has remained a mystery; one of continuing interest to mineralogists and geologists. In this study, sapphire specimens collected from gravel bar deposits around western Montana were studied by SEM/BSE and EDS x-ray microbeam analysis. The goal: identify mineral inclusions hosted in the sapphires and use this information to provide insight into the original source-rock for the sapphires.The sapphire specimens used in this study were clear, yellow, or purple to pale blue in color with fractured, pitted, and frosted surfaces. Shapes were generally irregular with some specimens forming rough hexagonal tablets with a distinct 0001 parting. The sapphires were examined by optical microscopy to identify specimens containing inclusions for chemical analysis by the SEM/EDS. Selected specimens were mounted on glass slides utilizing the 0001 surface then ground, polished, and carbon-coated. Sapphire specimens are durable and stable under the beam thus allowing the student to work with varying accelerating voltages, beam currents, condenser lens settings etc. Specimens were imaged and analyzed on an AMRAY 1830 SEM equipped with an Oxford Link Tetra BSE detector and a Noran System Six EDS. Inclusions were mapped by SEM/BSE and then identified chemically using EDS microanalysis.Inclusions in sapphires occur as solitary phases, composite phases [i.e. lithic fragments], and multi-phase clots, and are sub-rounded to rounded with distinct contacts between inclusions and host sapphires [Fig 2]. Mineral phases identified in various specimens include biotite, apatite, Na-feldspar, K-feldspar, rutile, ilmenite, Cr-Fe spinel, and zircon [ Fig. 2]. The variety of minerals phase observed in different sapphire specimens indicates multiple potential source rocks and a complex petrologic evolution for these alluvial sapphires. High-grade metamorphic or felsic igneous rocks are both alternatives for parent/rocks for these sapphires specimens. However, one interesting composite inclusion from a single specimen stands out [ Fig 3]; a series of solitary Fe-aluminosilicate minerals-tentatively identified as almandine garnet-with a coexisting high Z-1124 CD
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