Glutamine transaminase K(GTK) excretion assessed in urine and by kidney histology was evaluated in rats after single treatment with 1.0 mg/kg i.p. of mercuric chloride, 100 mg/kg i.p. of hexachloro-1:3-butadiene (both S3, pars recta, segment-specific nephrotoxicants) and 25 mg/kg s.c. of potassium dichromate (S1-S2, pars convoluta, segment-specific nephrotoxicant). The aim was to correlate segment-specific injury and enzyme excretion in order to assess, using non-vasive methods, localization of GTK along the proximal tubule. Mercuric chloride and hexachloro-1:3-butadiene produced early focal damage in the pars recta (focal necrosis was shown 10 h after treatment, and diffuse necrosis appeared later at 34 and 24 h after treatment). Changes of the pars convoluta were occasional and delayed (72 h after treatment for both substances). On the contrary, potassium dichromate induced damage of the pars convoluta (vacuolar degeneration and focal necrosis were evident 24 h and 48 h after treatment, respectively), whereas the pars recta was affected later (focal vacuolar degeneration was observed 72 h after treatment). Increase urinary GTK excretion was early after treatment with mercuric chloride and hexachloro-1:3-butadiene (significant increase was observed within 10 h), with a peak for both substances 24 h after treatment, in agreement with the necrosis of the pars recta. Potassium dichromate induced a significant increase of enzyme excretion in urine also 24 h after injection, according to histological features showing vacuolar degeneration of the pars convoluta; the peak of excretion was reached 48 h after treatment (delay was due, probably, to s.c. administration). The results show that GTK increased in urine after treatment with S3 and S1-S2 specific nephrotoxicants; the combination of histological examination and urinary enzyme supports the evidence that the enzyme is distributed along the whole of the proximal tubule.

The results confirm that hepatitis A virus is not a risk for employees in the biomedical field, but the presence of hepatitis A virus antibodies suggests a possible, though not clinically evident, liver involvement.

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Background. Palmitoylethanolamide is reported to solve pain and neuroinflammation in different models of chronic and neurodegenerative diseases. Some concerns have been illustrated for cautiously interpreting the available literature on the topic. Specifically, there is a lack of evidence about palmitoylethanolamide and female chronic pelvic pain. Concerns will be best solved by randomized trials. The present study was aimed at finding the best responders to micronized palmitoylethanolamide in female patient with chronic pelvic pain, using the existing literature at individual patient level, to help further randomized trial planning. Methods. After a systematic research, eligible studies (the ones enrolled female patients treated for chronic pelvic pain or for dyspareunia, dysuria, dyschezia, and dysmenorrhea with or without chronic pelvic pain) were assessed at individual patient data level. Conditional probabilities were calculated to assess variables conditioning the rates of good responders (pain score points more or equal to 3 reduction), poor responders (2 pain score reduction), and nonresponders at a three-month follow-up. Results. Only cases treated with palmitoylethanolamide comicronized with polydatin for a short period can be assessed. Good responders are more than 50%. In chronic pelvic pain, there is a 19.0% conditional probability to find good responders among patients with pain score at enrolment of 6 to 8 and of 6.8% to find poor responders among patients with a pain score at enrolment of 6 to 8. Painful disease does not matter on responders’ rates. Conclusion. Best responders to comicronized palmitoylethanolamide/polydatin are patients with pain score higher than 6 at enrolment, irrespective of other variables.