The effect of stimulation on the myoelectrical activity of the rectosigmoid in man. (33/39)

The myoelectrical activity of the rectosigmoid has been studied in 66 subjects at rest and after stimulation with either pentagastrin 6.0 mug/kg hr intravenously in 21 cases, neostigmine 0.5 mg intramuscularly in 20 cases, or two bisacodyl suppositories in 19 cases. Two electrical rhythms were present at rest. A faster rhythm (frequency 6-9 cycles/min) predominated and its incidence was significantly increased by neostigmine at all levels in the rectosigmoid and by bisacodyl in the rectum only. The incidence of the slower rhythm (frequency 2.5-4.0 cycles/min) was significantly increased by pentagastrin which had no effect on the faster rhythm. The amplitude of each basic electrical rhythm rose when its incidence was increased. Motor waves were augmented corresponding to which of the two electrical rhythms was increased after stimulation.  (+info)

Value of bowel preparation in adrenocortical scintigraphy with NP-59. (34/39)

The use of radiolabeled cholesterol derivatives for functional imaging of the adrenal cortex may be rendered inaccurate or impossible because of the excretion of activity by the liver and its subsequent appearance in the colon. A simple bowel preparation (bisacodyl 5 or 10 mg nightly) significantly reduced bowel background activity during 6 beta-[I-131]iodomethyl-19-norcholesterol (NP-59) adrenal cortical scintigraphy. Activity interfering with image interpretability was present less frequently in patients taking bisacodyl: three days after injection 22% compared with 59%; five days after injection 23% compared with 35%. As bisacodyl acts only on the colon and does not disturb the enterohepatic circulation of cholesterol or bile acids, it is ideal for use with a tracer of cholesterol metabolism.  (+info)

A screening method for establishing laxative abuse. (35/39)

Abuse of laxatives, most of them belonging to the group of colonic stimulants or cathartics, can cause various disorders. Extensive diagnostic work can be avoided by early toxicological screening of the suspected patients with respect to laxatives. Because no screening method of this kind was available, we developed a procedure with which all phenolic and anthraquinone laxatives--except sodium picosulfate--can be detected in urine. This method is based on high-performance thin-layer chromatography in two systems after pretreatment of a 20-mL urine sample with beta-glucuronidase and subsequent column extraction. The procedure is very sensitive: at least 32 h after a single dose of bisacodyl, danthron, phenolphthalein, or sennoside, the drug can be detected in the urine. Bisoxatin and oxyphenisatin are still detectable in the urine 18 h after intake. The method is also highly specific; none of 73 other drugs interfered in either of the two chromatographic systems. This procedure can be helpful for the early diagnosis of laxative abuse.  (+info)

Effects of the adenosine A1-receptor antagonist on defecation, small intestinal propulsion and gastric emptying in rats. (36/39)

We examined the effects of 1,3-dipropyl-8-cyclopentylxanthine (DPCPX) and (R)-7,8-dihydro-8-ethyl-2-(3-noradamantyl)-4-propyl-1H-imidazo[2,1 -i]purin- 5(4H)-one (KF20274), selective adenosine A1-receptor antagonists, on the gastrointestinal propulsion in rats, as compared with those of the laxative bisacodyl. DPCPX and KF20274 (p.o.) dose-dependently increased the fecal pellet output, whereas these drugs at the dose that increased defecation did not affect small intestinal propulsion or gastric emptying. Bisacodyl increased defecation and slowed gastric emptying without any influence on small intestinal propulsion. Bisacodyl, but not DPCPX or KF20274, induced diarrhea at the dose inducing defecation. The present results suggest that the adenosine A1-receptor antagonist selectively enhances the lower gastrointestinal propulsion, resulting in defecation without diarrhea.  (+info)

Preparing the bowel for colonoscopy. (37/39)

Bowel preparation methods for total colonoscopy in children generally involve whole gut irrigation with electrolyte lavage solutions, which in most children will require hospitalisation for nasogastric tube administration. The aim of the study was to determine the efficacy of oral bisacodyl combined with a single phosphate enema as a bowel preparation regimen in children. In an open prospective trial, 30 children (aged 18 months-15 years) were given oral bisacodyl on each morning of the two days before colonoscopy. The children were maintained on a normal diet. A phosphate enema was administered on the morning of the procedure. The adequacy of bowel preparation was graded as grade I if no faecal material was encountered, grade II if small amounts of faecal material were present in scattered locations, and grade III if there was poor preparation with faecal material precluding satisfactory visualisation of the bowel mucosa. Eight children (26.6%) had minor abdominal cramps when taking bisacodyl, but all had a previous history of similar pain. Five children (16.6%), all under 5 years of age, cried during the administration of phosphate enema. Bowel preparation was considered excellent (grade I) in 26 (86.6%) and good (grade II) in four (13.3%). In all patients adequate visualisation of the bowel mucosa was obtained. Oral bisacodyl combined with a single phosphate enema provides an ideal method of preparing the bowel for total colonoscopy. This preparation allows colonoscopy to be carried out as a day case procedure in children while maintaining them on a normal diet.  (+info)

Structural changes in subdomain 2 of G-actin observed by fluorescence spectroscopy. (38/39)

The influence of DNase I binding to Ca-ATP-G-actin and of Ca2+/Mg2+ and ATP/ADP exchange on the conformation of G-actin were investigated by measuring the fluorescence of dansyl cadaverine (DC) conjugated to Gln41 in subdomain 2 of the protein. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between this probe and N-[4-(dimethylamino)-3,5-dinitrophenyl]maleimide (DDPM) attached to Cys374 in subdomain 1 was also measured. Contrary to an earlier report [dos Remedios, Kiessling and Hambly (1994) in Synchrotron Radiation in the Biosciences (Chance, B., Deisenhofer, J., Ebashi, S., Goodhead, D. T., Helliwell, J. R., Huxley, H. E., Iizuka, T., Kirz, J., Mitsui, T., Rubenstein, E. et al., eds.), pp. 418-425, Oxford University Press, Oxford], the distance between these probes did not change significantly when DNase I was bound to actin. A small but reproducible increase in the quantum yield and a blue shift of the DC fluorescence maximum were observed when bound Ca2+ was replaced by Mg2+. A large increase (about 70%) in the quantum yield and an approx. 12 nm blue shift of the emission spectrum occurred when ATP in Mg-G-actin was replaced by ADP. These changes were not accompanied by any significant change in the FRET distance between the dansyl donor and DDPM acceptor probes. A substantial change in the fluorescence of DC-actin was observed after proteolytic removal of the last three residues of actin, in accordance with earlier evidence suggesting that there is a conformational coupling between subdomain 2 and the C-terminal segment in subdomain 1 of actin. The results are discussed in relation to recently published data obtained with another fluorescent probe and to earlier observations based on limited cleavage using proteolytic enzymes.  (+info)

Laxative poisoning: toxicological analysis of bisacodyl and its metabolite in urine, serum, and stool. (39/39)

An 11-year-old boy was hospitalized because of severe diarrhea (over 5 L/day). The child survived; however, the diarrhea continued while he was given intravenous fluids and his electrolyte balance was closely supervised. Based on observation of the patient and his family in the hospital, surreptitious administration of a poison by his mother was suspected, and toxicological analysis was carried out on stools from the boy and on medicine administered to him by his mother. Bisacodyl, a cathartic with a direct effect on the colon, was detected in the medicine, and a metabolite of bisacodyl was present in the stool. We devised a sensitive and reliable method to quantitate the bisacodyl metabolite in urine and serum. The sample was incubated with beta-glucuronidase at 37 degrees C for 2 h; bisacodyl metabolite was extracted with tert-butyl methyl ether, then derivatized by methylation, and subjected to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Bisphenol A was used as an internal standard. The calibration curve was linear in the concentration range from 2 to 1000 ng/0.2 mL, and the lower limits of detection were 1 ng/0.2 mL for the urine and 2 ng/0.2 mL for the serum. As concentrations of bisacodyl metabolite in the urine and serum of the patient were clearly defined, perhaps such investigations are warranted before extensive clinical therapy is prescribed.  (+info)