1.Peripheral Nerve Dysfunction in Middle-Aged Subjects Born with Thalidomide Embryopathy.
Nicotra A1, Newman C2, Johnson M2, Eremin O3, Friede T4, Malik O1, Nicholas R1,5. PLoS One. 2016 Apr 21;11(4):e0152902. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0152902. eCollection 2016.
BACKGROUND: Phocomelia is an extremely rare congenital malformation that emerged as one extreme of a range of defects resulting from in utero exposure to thalidomide. Individuals with thalidomide embryopathy (TE) have reported developing symptoms suggestive of peripheral nervous system dysfunction in the mal-developed limbs in later life.
2.In vivo screening and discovery of novel candidate thalidomide analogs in the zebrafish embryo and chicken embryo model systems.
Beedie SL1,2, Rore HM1, Barnett S1,3, Chau CH2, Luo W4, Greig NH4, Figg WD2, Vargesson N1. Oncotarget. 2016 Apr 22. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.8909. [Epub ahead of print]
Thalidomide, a drug known for its teratogenic side-effects, is used successfully to treat a variety of clinical conditions including leprosy and multiple myeloma. Intense efforts are underway to synthesize and identify safer, clinically relevant analogs. Here, we conduct a preliminary in vivo screen of a library of new thalidomide analogs to determine which agents demonstrate activity, and describe a cohort of compounds with anti-angiogenic properties, anti-inflammatory properties and some compounds which exhibited both. The combination of the in vivo zebrafish and chicken embryo model systems allows for the accelerated discovery of new, potential therapies for cancerous and inflammatory conditions.
3.Therapeutic failure with thalidomide in patients with recurrent intestinal bleeding due to angiodysplasias.
Izquierdo Navarro MD1, Hernando Verdugo M2, Cardaba Garcia E3, Sanchez Sanchez MT4. Farm Hosp. 2016 May 1;40(n03):230-232.
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English, SpanishUna de las causas de sangrado a nivel gastrointestinal son las angiodisplasias, cuyo origen suele deberse a malformaciones a nivel vascular. Existen distintos tipos de terapias para las angiodisplasias, como son las técnicas endoscópicas, angiográficas y farmacológicas. Dentro de estas últimas existe poca variedad de fármacos efectivos para dicha patología. Se describe el fracaso terapéutico con talidomida en un varón con sangrado gastrointestinal recurrente debido a angiodisplasias. Se le realiza un diagnóstico completo, incluyendo gastroscopia, enteroscopia, angiografía y cápsula endoscópica. A pesar del tratamiento con análogos de la somatostatina a altas dosis y hierro oral, el paciente continuó sangrando. El paciente recibió talidomida durante tres meses sin respuesta clínica. La talidomida tuvo que ser retirada debido a los efectos adversos y a la falta de eficacia.