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Selected AbstractsOntogeny of energy homeostatic pathways via neuroendocrine signaling in Atlantic salmonDEVELOPMENTAL NEUROBIOLOGY, Issue 9 2010Anne-Grethe Gamst Moen Abstract Leptin and ghrelin are known to regulate energy homeostasis via hypothalamic neuropeptide signaling in mammals. Recent studies have discovered that these hormones exist in teleosts, however, very little is known concerning their role during teleost ontogeny. Here, we have examined the steady state levels of leptins, ghrelins, their target neuropetides and several growth factors during Atlantic salmon development. Initial experiments revealed differential expression of leptin genes and ghrelin isoforms during embryogenesis. In larvae, equal upregulation of ghrl1 and ghrl2 was observed just prior to exogenous feeding while a surge of lepa1 occurred one week after first-feeding. Subsequent dissection of the embryos and larvae showed that lepa1, cart, pomca1, and agrp are supplied as maternal transcripts. The earliest zygotic expression was observed for lepa1 and cart at 320 day degrees. By 400 day degrees, this expression was localized to the head and coincided with upregulation of ghrl2 and npy. Over the hatching period growth factor signaling predominated. The ghrelin surge prior to first-feeding was exclusively localized in the internal organs and coincided with upregulation of npy and agrp in the head and agrp in the trunk. One week after exogenous feeding was established major peaks were detected in the head for lepa1 and pomca1 with increasing levels of cart, while lepa1 was also significantly expressed in the trunk. By integrating theses data into an ontogenetic model, we suggest that the mediation of Atlantic salmon energy homeostatic pathways via endocrine and neuropeptide signaling retains putative features of the mammalian system. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 70: 649,658, 2010 [source] Effect of pantoprazole in patients with chronic laryngitis and pharyngitis related to gastroesophageal reflux disease: clinical, proximal, and distal pH monitoring resultsDISEASES OF THE ESOPHAGUS, Issue 4 2010S. Karoui SUMMARY Few studies had evaluated the results of proton pump inhibitors on distal and proximal pH recording using a dual-channel probe. The aim of this study was to determine the clinical and pH-metric effect of treatment with pantoprazole 80 mg for 8 weeks in patients with ear, nose, and throat (ENT) manifestations of gastroesophageal reflux disease associated with pathological proximal acid exposure. We conducted a prospective open study. Patients included had to have chronic pharyngitis or laryngitis, and a pathological gastroesophagopharyngeal reflux. All patients received treatment with pantoprazole 80 mg daily for 8 weeks. One week after the end treatment, patients had a second ENT examination and a 24-hour pH monitoring using dual-channel probe. We included 33 patients (11 men, 22 women). A pathological distal acid reflux was found in 30 patients (91%). After treatment, the improvement of ENT symptoms was found in 51.5% of patients. Normalization of 24-hour proximal esophageal pH monitoring was observed in 22 patients (66%). After treatment, the overall distal acid exposure, the number of distal reflux events, and the number of reflux during more than 5 minutes were significantly decreased (respectively: 19.4% vs 7.2% [P < 0.0001], 62.7 vs 28.4 [P < 0.0001], and 10.4 vs 3.9 [P < 0.0001] ). Similarly, in proximal level, the same parameters were significantly decreased after treatment (respectively: 6.8% vs 1.6% [P < 0.0001], 32.6 vs 8.1 [P < 0.0001], and 3.4 vs 0.6 [P= 0.005] ). Treatment with pantoprazole reduced the frequency and severity of gastroesophagopharyngeal acid reflux in patients with chronic pharyngitis and laryngitis. [source] Resistance to Propagation of Amygdaloid Kindling Seizures in Rats with Genetic Absence EpilepsyEPILEPSIA, Issue 10 2002Esat E, kazan Summary: ,Purpose: The existence of absence epilepsy and temporal partial seizure pattern in the same patient is an uncommon state. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate whether the process of kindling as a model of complex partial seizures with secondary generalization is altered in rats with genetic absence epilepsy. Methods: Six- to 12-month-old nonepileptic control Wistar rats and genetic absence epileptic rats from Strasbourg (GAERS) were used in the experiments. One week before the experiments, bilateral stimulation and recording electrodes were implanted stereotaxically into the basolateral amygdala and cortex, respectively. Animals were stimulated at their afterdischarge threshold current twice daily for the process of kindling and accepted as fully kindled after the occurrence of five grade 5 seizures. Bilateral EEGs from amygdala and cortex were recorded continuously during 20 min before and 40 min after each stimulus. Results: All control Wistar rats were fully kindled after stimulus 12 to 15. Although the maximal number of stimulations had been applied, GAERS remained at stage 2, and no motor seizures were observed. The afterdischarge duration in bilateral amygdala and the cortex after the kindling stimulus was shorter in GAERS when compared with control rats. Conclusions: Occurrence of only grade 2 seizures and no observation of grade 3,5 seizures in GAERS with the maximal number of stimulations would suggest that the generalized absence seizures may be the reason of the resistance in the secondary generalization of limbic seizures during amygdala kindling. [source] Seizure Suppression by Adenosine-releasing Cells Is Independent of Seizure FrequencyEPILEPSIA, Issue 8 2002Detlev Boison Summary: ,Purpose: Intraventricular cellular delivery of adenosine was recently shown to be transiently efficient in the suppression of seizure activity in the rat kindling model of epilepsy. We tested whether the suppression of seizures by adenosine-releasing grafts was independent of seizure frequency. Methods: Adenosine-releasing cells were encapsulated and grafted into the lateral brain ventricle of rats kindled in the hippocampus. During 4 weeks after grafting, electric test stimulations were delivered at a frequency of either once a week or 3 times per week. Seizure activity was evaluated by visual scoring of seizure severity and by the recording of EEGs. Results: Adenosine released from encapsulated cells exerted potent antiepileptic activity for ,2 weeks. One week after grafting, treated rats displayed a complete protection from clonic seizures, and a protection from focal seizures was observed in the majority of animals. Seizure suppression was accompanied by a reduction of afterdischarges in EEG recordings. The protective efficacy of the grafted cells was the same irrespective of whether electrical test stimulations were delivered 1 or 3 times per week. Rats receiving control grafts continued to display full clonic convulsions. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that the frequency of test stimulations did not influence the seizure-suppressive potential of adenosine-releasing grafts. Thus the local delivery of adenosine is likely to be effective in seizure control over a threefold range of seizure-discharge frequency. [source] A comparison of different models of stroke on behaviour and brain morphologyEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 7 2003C.L.R. Gonzalez Abstract We compared the effects of three models of permanent ischemia, as well as cortical aspiration, on behaviour and brain morphology. Rats received a stroke either by devascularization or by two different procedures of medial cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO; small vs. large). Animals were trained in a reaching task, forepaw asymmetry, forepaw inhibition, sunflower seed task and tongue extension. Behaviour was assessed 1 week after the lesion and at 2-week intervals for a total of 9 weeks. One week after the surgery all animals were severely impaired on all tasks and although they improved over time they only reached preoperative base lines on tongue extension. Animals with small MCAOs performed better in reaching and sunflower tasks; no other behavioural differences were detected among the groups. Pyramidal cells in forelimb and cingulate areas as well as spiny neurons of the striatum were examined for dendritic branching and spine density using a Golgi,Cox procedure. Each lesion type had a different impact on cell morphology. Overall, different changes (atrophy or hypertrophy) were observed with each kind of lesion and these changes were specific for the region (forelimb, cingulate, striatum) and the condition (intact vs. damaged hemisphere). These results suggest that: (i) different lesions to the motor cortex produce subtle differences in behaviour, and (ii) the method used to induce the lesion produces striking differences in cortical and subcortical plasticity. [source] Differentiation and migration of astrocytes in the spinal cord following dorsal root injury in the adult ratEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 4 2003Elena N. Kozlova Abstract Nerve fibre degeneration in the spinal cord is accompanied by astroglial proliferation. It is not known whether these cells proliferate in situ or are recruited from specific regions harbouring astroglial precursors. We found cells expressing nestin, characteristic of astroglial precursors, at the dorsal surface of the spinal cord on the operated side from 30 h after dorsal root injury. Nestin-expressing cells dispersed to deeper areas of the dorsal funiculus and dorsal horn on the operated side during the first few days after injury. Injection of bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) 2 h before the end of the experiment, at 30 h after injury, revealed numerous BrdU-labelled, nestin-positive cells in the dorsal superficial region. In animals surviving 20 h after BrdU injection at 28 h postlesion, cells double-labelled with BrdU and nestin were also found in deeper areas. Labeling with BrdU 2 h before perfusion showed proliferation of microglia and radial astrocytes in the ventral and lateral funiculi on both sides of the spinal cord 30 h after injury. Nestin-positive cells coexpressed the calcium-binding protein Mts1, a marker for white matter astrocytes, in the dorsal funiculus, and were positive for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), but negative for Mts1 in the dorsal horn. One week after injury the level of nestin expression decreased and was undetectable after 3 months. Taken together, our data indicate that after dorsal root injury newly formed astrocytes in the degenerating white and grey matter first appear at the dorsal surface of the spinal cord from where some of them subsequently migrate ventrally, and differentiate into white- or grey-matter astrocytes. [source] Guidelines for the Management of Helicobacter pylori Infection in Japan: 2009 Revised EditionHELICOBACTER, Issue 1 2010Masahiro Asaka Abstract Background:, Over the past few years, the profile of Helicobacter pylori infection has changed in Japan. In particular, the relationship between H. pylori and gastric cancer has been demonstrated more clearly. Accordingly, the committee of the Japanese Society for Helicobacter Research has revised the guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of H. pylori infection in Japan. Materials and Methods:, Four meetings of guidelines preparation committee were held from July 2007 to December 2008. In the new guidelines, recommendations for treatment have been classified into five grades according to the Minds Recommendation Grades, while the level of evidence has been classified into six grades. The Japanese national health insurance system was not taken into consideration when preparing these guidelines. Results:,Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy achieved a Grade A recommendation, being useful for the treatment of gastric or duodenal ulcer, for the treatment and prevention of H. pylori -associated diseases such as gastric cancer, and for inhibiting the spread of H. pylori infection. Levels of evidence were determined for each disease associated with H. pylori infection. For the diagnosis of H. pylori infection, measurement of H. pylori antigen in the feces was added to the tests not requiring biopsy. One week of proton-pump inhibitor-based triple therapy (including amoxicillin and metronidazole) was recommended as second-line therapy after failure of first-line eradication therapy. Conclusion:, The revised Japanese guidelines for H. pylori are based on scientific evidence and avoid the administrative restraints that applied to earlier versions. [source] Impact of Furazolidone-Based Quadruple Therapy for Eradication of Helicobacter pylori after Previous Treatment FailuresHELICOBACTER, Issue 4 2002G. Treiber Abstract Background. One week of quadruple therapy including metronidazole is recommended for Helicobacter pylori treatment failures after first line therapy regardless of resistance status. This study investigated whether a quadruple regimen containing furazolidone could be effective as a third-line (salvage) therapy. Methods. All patients with previous H. pylori treatment failure after a clarithromycin-metronidazole ± amoxicillin combination plus acid suppression were given lansoprazole 30 mg twice a day (bid), tripotassiumdicitratobismuthate 240 mg bid, tetracycline 1 g bid, metronidazole 400 mg (PPI-B-T-M) three times a day (tid) for 1 week. In the case of treatment failure with this second-line therapy, the same regimen was applied for 1 week except for using furazolidone 200 mg bid (PPI-B-T-F) instead of metronidazole (sequential study design). Results. Eighteen consecutive patients were treated with PPI-B-T-M. Eleven of those 18 remained H. pylori positive (38.9% cured). Pretherapeutic metronidazole resistance was associated with a lower probability of eradication success (10% vs. 75%, p= .04). Ten of these 11 patients agreed to be retreated by PPI-B-T-F. Final cure of H. pylori with PPI-B-T-F was achieved in 9/10 patients (90%) nonresponsive to PPI-B-T-M. Conclusions. In the presence of metronidazole resistance, PPI-B-T-M as a recommended second-line therapy by the Maastricht consensus conference achieved unacceptable low cure rates in our metronidazole pretreated population. In this population, metronidazole based second-line quadruple therapy may be best suited in case of a metronidazole-free first line-regimen (e.g. PPI-clarithromycin-amoxicillin) or a low prevalence of metronidazole resistance. Furazolidone in the PPI-B-T-F combination does not have a cross-resistance potential to metronidazole and is a promising salvage option after a failed PPI-B-T-M regimen. [source] Disseminated cutaneous Fusarium moniliforme infections in a leukemic childINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2007Ching-Chi Chi MD A 5-year-old boy had a 10-month remission of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) after chemotherapy. Re-induction chemotherapy was performed for relapse of ALL. Thereafter, he suffered from an episode of neutropenic fever with pneumonia. One week following control of the condition with antibiotics, a 1 × 1-cm, red, painful nodule appeared on the left thigh, which was initially suspected to be Pseudomonas infection. Parenteral ceftazidime and amikacin were administered, but persistent high fever, mild cough, and a few painful erythematous papulonodules on the face and lower extremities appeared several days later (Fig. 1). These lesions increased insidiously in diameter up to 2,5 cm with central necrosis. Hemogram showed neutropenia with a shift to the left [white blood cell (WBC) count, 2.1 × 109/L; neutrophil count, 0.21 × 109/L]. A skin biopsy showed heavy growth of hyaline branching septate hyphae in the deep dermis and subcutis, together with fat necrosis (Fig. 2). Invasion of molds into vessels and sweat glands was also seen. A culture from a lesion yielded Fusarium moniliforme, but no fungi were isolated from blood specimens. Only mild infiltrations on bilateral lower lung fields were detected by chest roentgenography. The skin lesions gradually healed and the fever subsided 2 weeks after the initiation of therapy with amphotericin B 30 mg and itraconazole 200 mg daily. Figure 1. A few painful erythematous papulonodules appeared on the face and lower extremities Figure 2. Skin biopsy showed heavy growth of hyaline branching septate hyphae in the deep dermis and subcutis along with fat necrosis (hematoxylin and eosin, ×400) Meanwhile, relapse of leukemia was detected by hemogram showing atypical leukocytosis (WBC count of 24,400 × 109/L, with blast cells representing 78%). A course of chemotherapy with cytarabine, mitoxantrone, and VP-16 was prescribed, subsequently resulting in neutropenia (WBC count, < 0.1 × 109/L; neutrophil count, 0/L) and spiking fever. Although the aforementioned antifungal therapy was continued, the centers of the originally healed lesions turned dusky red, swollen, necrotic, and ulcerative. There were more than 10 such ecthymiform lesions. After administration for 22 days, itraconazole was discontinued because of no appreciable effects. Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) salvage was used, and the neutropenia gradually subsided 20 days later. In addition, the ecthymiform lesions gradually resolved. Amphotericin B was discontinued 1 week following neutrophil recovery. The patient died of Acinetobacter baumannii and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia sepsis 8 months later. [source] Cutaneous and neurologic manifestations of biotinidase deficiencyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2000Paloma Cornejo Navarro A male newborn with no obstetric or familial antecedents, except that his parents were cousins, developed hypotonia, lethargy, and feeding problems from birth. Analysis revealed a marked metabolic acidosis and hyperammonemia. Three weeks later, he was admitted to hospital in order to receive parenteral nutrition and to undertake a study for metabolic diseases. The boy did not improve in spite of the use of parenteral nutrition and began to present with inspiratory stridor and tachypnea. One week later, he presented with an erythematous scaling eruption, which was especially intense in the lumbosacral region ( Fig. 1a,b). The scalp was only slightly affected. Figure 1. Erythematous scaling eruption, more intense in the lumbosacral region Laboratory findings were compatible with biotinidase deficiency diagnosed by demonstrating absent enzyme activity. His parents were also studied and they were found to have partial biotinidase deficiency (30% of enzyme activity). After 37 days of life, the baby was given a treatment consisting of 20 mg of biotin per day intravenously. Biochemical and neurologic alterations improved quickly. Meckel's diverticulum and a duodenal membrane were detected at the second month of life after a gastroduodenal survey, and both were operated on. The skin lesions did not improve, however, and intravenous biotin had to be increased to 40 mg/day. The eruption disappeared after 10 days. On his first birthday, he remained asymptomatic with 40 mg of oral biotin. [source] Autologous bone-marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell transplantation into injured rat urethral sphincterINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF UROLOGY, Issue 4 2010Yoshiaki Kinebuchi Objectives: To evaluate the functional and histological recovery by autologous bone-marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC) transplantation into injured rat urethral sphincters. Methods: BMSC were harvested from female Sprague,Dawley retired breeder rats for later transplantation. The cells were cultured, and transfected with the green fluorescence protein gene. The urethral sphincters were injured by combined urethrolysis and cardiotoxin injection. One week after injury, the cultured BMSC were injected autologously into the periurethral tissues. Controls included sham-operated rats and injured rats injected with cell-free medium (CFM). Abdominal leak point pressures (LPP) were measured before and after surgery during the following 13 weeks. The urethras were then retrieved for histological evaluation. The presence of green-fluorescence-protein-labeled cells and the regeneration of skeletal muscles, smooth muscles, and peripheral nerves were evaluated by immunohistochemical staining. Results: LPP was significantly reduced in the injured rats. It increased gradually after transplantation, but there was no significant difference between the BMSC and CFM groups. In the BMSC group, transplanted cells survived and differentiated into striated muscle cells and peripheral nerve cells. The proportions of skeletal muscle cells and peripheral nerves in the urethra were significantly greater in the BMSC group compared to the CFM group. Conclusions: Despite a clear trend towards recovery of LPP in BMSC-transplanted urethras, no significant effect was detected. Further study is required for clinical applications for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence. [source] Ultrastructural changes of posterior lingual glands after hypoglossal denervation in hamstersJOURNAL OF ANATOMY, Issue 1 2009S. J. Cheng Abstract Posterior lingual glands consist of two sets of minor salivary glands that serve important functions in oral physiology. To investigate the hypothesis that the hypoglossal nerve provides sympathetic innervation to the posterior lingual glands, we examined ultrastructural changes in the glands following hypoglossal denervation. In the posterior deep lingual glands (of von Ebner), the serous acinar cells showed a decrease in the number of secretory granules and an increase in lipofuscin accumulation. The ratios of cells containing lipofuscin granules were 11.39, 36.49 and 50.46%, respectively, of the control, 3- and 7-day post-axotomy glands (P < 0.001). Intraepithelial phagocytotic activity was increased. The mucous acinar cells in the posterior superficial lingual glands (of Weber) also showed degenerative changes after hypoglossal denervation. One week after nerve transection, marked cytoplasmic vacuolation and fragmentation of organelles were frequently observed. Degenerative changes were also found in unmyelinated axons associated with the glands. We provide the first evidence of the structural and functional connections between the sympathetic component of the hypoglossal nerve and posterior lingual glands. [source] Retention, Distribution, and Effects of Intraosseously Administered Ibandronate in the Infarcted Femoral Head,JOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 1 2007James Aya-ay Abstract The local distribution, retention, and effects of intraosseous administration of ibandronate in the infarcted femoral heads were studied. Intraosseous administration effectively delivered and distributed ibandronate in the infarcted femoral heads and decreased the femoral head deformity in a large animal model of Legg-Calve-Perthes disease. Introduction: Bisphosphonate therapy has gained significant attention for the treatment of ischemic osteonecrosis of the femoral head (IOFH) because of its ability to inhibit osteoclastic bone resorption, which has been shown to contribute to the pathogenesis of femoral head deformity. Because IOFH is a localized condition, there is a need to explore the therapeutic potential of local, intraosseous administration of bisphosphonate to prevent the femoral head deformity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the distribution, retention, and effects of intraosseous administration of ibandronate in the infarcted head. Materials and Methods: IOFH was surgically induced in the right femoral head of 27 piglets. One week later, a second operation was performed to inject 14C-labeled or unlabeled ibandronate directly into the infarcted head. 14C-ibandronate injected heads were assessed after 48 h, 3 weeks, or 7 weeks later to determine the distribution and retention of the drug using autoradiography and liquid scintillation analysis. Femoral heads injected with unlabeled ibandronate were assessed at 7 weeks to determine the degree of deformity using radiography and histomorphometry. Results: Autoradiography showed that 14C-Ibandronate was widely distributed in three of the four heads examined at 48 h after the injection. Liquid scintillation analysis showed that most of the drug was retained in the injected head, and almost negligible amount of radioactivity was present in the bone and organs elsewhere at 48 h. At 3 and 7 weeks, 50% and 30% of the 14C-drug were found to be retained in the infarcted heads, respectively. Radiographic and histomorphometric assessments showed significantly better preservation of the infarcted heads treated with intraosseous administration of ibandronate compared with saline (p < 0.001). Conclusions: This study provides for the first time the evidence that local intraosseous administration is an effective route to deliver and distribute ibandronate in the infarcted femoral head to preserve the femoral head structure after ischemic osteonecrosis. In a localized ischemic condition such as IOFH, local administration of bisphosphonate may be preferable to oral or systemic administration because it minimizes the distribution of the drug to the rest of the skeleton and bypasses the need for having a restored blood flow to the infarcted head for the delivery of the drug. [source] A Vacuolar ATPase Inhibitor, FR167356, Prevents Bone Resorption in Ovariectomized Rats With High Potency and Specificity: Potential for Clinical Application,JOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 9 2005Kazuaki Niikura MS Abstract FR167356, a novel inhibitor of vacuolar ATPase, has high potency against osteoclast V-ATPase and low potency against lysosomal V-ATPase. FR167356 is the first compound of this nature to be tested. It has the potential to be useful for clinical application. Introduction: It has been suggested that the key issue regarding the therapeutic usefulness of V-ATPase inhibitors is their selectivity. Materials and Methods: In in vitro and in vivo studies, we compared FR167356 with other vacuolar ATPase (V-ATPase) inhibitors, bafilomycin A1 and SB242784. H+ transport by various membrane vesicles was assayed by measuring uptake of acridine orange. Inhibitory activity against in vitro bone resorption was examined by measuring the Ca2+ release from cultured calvariae. In vivo, hypercalcemia was induced by retinoic acid in thyroparathyroidectomized-ovariectomized rats, and the effect on serum Ca2+ level was assessed. Ovariectomized rats were treated with FR167356 or SB242784. One week after surgery, free deoxypyridinoline levels in 24-h urine samples, which were collected from 6 h after administration of FR167356, were measured by ELISA. After 4 weeks of treatment, plasma biochemical parameters were analyzed. BMD of the distal femur metaphysis was measured with pQCT. Histomorphometric analysis of the proximal tibias was performed. Blood gases of rats treated with FR167356 were measured with a blood gas analyzer for estimating the effect of FR167356 on in vivo function of renal V-ATPase. Results: FR167356, which is distinctly different from other V-ATPase inhibitors, has a high potency against osteoclast V-ATPase and low potency against lysosomal V-ATPase. Similarly, FR167356 inhibited bone resorption in vitro when stimulated by PTH, IL-1, and IL-6. FR167356 reduced retinoic acid-induced hypercalcemia in thyroparathyroidectomized-ovariectomized rats in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, FR167356 was shown to restore BMD of ovariectomized rats caused by the inhibition of bone resorption. Ovariectomized rats treated with FR167356 did not show adverse symptoms, whereas SB242784 caused a decrease in body weight gain and significant changes in two plasma biochemical parameters. Interestingly, FR167356 treatment did not affect blood acid-base balance; however, FR167356 inhibited renal V-ATPase with a similar potency as for osteoclast V-ATPase inhibition. Conclusion: Comparison of FR167356 with SB242784 implies that the characteristics of FR167356 may be more appropriate for clinical application as a V-ATPase inhibitor. [source] The Pathology of Adulterated Injected Cosmetic Filler MaterialsJOURNAL OF CUTANEOUS PATHOLOGY, Issue 1 2005M. Pulitzer MD We report five cases of illicit injections of filler-substances for cosmetic purposes in non-medical clinics. The first two patients, a mother and 30-year-old daughter, presented with skin lesions in both legs after calf-augmentation by paraffin injection 4 years prior. One week later calf hyperpigmentation and induration developed, with progression up the legs, and eventual purulent draining ulceration (daughter). The third patient, a 34-year-old female, presented with pink-brown macules on both buttocks after receiving silicone injections 9 months earlier. The fourth patient, a 31-year-old female, developed skin lesions on the buttocks after silicone injections. The fifth patient, a 43-year-old female, developed sclerodermoid plaques on the buttocks after silicone injection. The first two biopsies showed large spaces in tissue, calcinosis cutis, dermal sclerosis, granulation tissue, and lymphedema. The third biopsy revealed foreign body reaction to non-polarizing material, the fourth lipogranulomatous reaction, and the fifth microvacuolar change with scar. Biopsies post-injection of cosmetic filler materials typically show macrovacuolar "swiss cheese" changes, and later microvacuolar changes with considerable granulomatous reaction. The reactions here were clinically severe, and may reflect adulteration of injected materials. We believe these cases augur a public health epidemic given a proliferation of non-medical cosmetic "mills" which offer illicit cosmetic procedures. [source] Macrophage contribution to the response of the rat organ of Corti to amikacinJOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE RESEARCH, Issue 9 2007Sabine Ladrech Abstract Transdifferentiation of nonsensory supporting cells into sensory hair cells occurs naturally in the damaged avian inner ear. Such transdifferentiation was achieved experimentally in the cochlea of deaf guinea pigs through Atoh 1 gene transfection. Supporting cells may therefore serve as targets for transdifferentiation therapy. Supporting cells rapidly degenerate after hair cell disappearance, however, limiting the therapeutic window for gene transfer. We studied the time course of ultrastructural and phenotypical changes occurring in Deiters cells (hair cell supporting cells) after ototoxic treatment in the rat. The presence of macrophages in the cochlea was also investigated, to study any deleterious effects they may have on pathologic tissues. One week after treatment most hair cells had disappeared. Deiters cells no longer expressed the glial marker vimentin but instead displayed typical hair cell markers, the calcium binding proteins calbindin and parvalbumin. This suggests that a process of transdifferentiation of Deiters cells into hair cells was activated. By 3 weeks post-treatment, however, the Deiters cells began to degenerate and by 10 weeks post-treatment the organ of Corti was degraded fully. Interestingly, a marked increase in macrophage density was seen after the end of amikacin treatment to 10 weeks post-treatment. This suggests chronic inflammation is involved in epithelium degeneration. Consequently, early treatments with anti-inflammatory factors might promote supporting cell survival, thus improving the efficacy of more specific strategies aimed to regenerate hair cells from nonsensory cells. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] DISAPPEARANCE OF MALE MITOCHONDRIAL DNA AFTER THE FOUR-CELL STAGE IN SPOROPHYTES OF THE ISOGAMOUS BROWN ALGA SCYTOSIPHON LOMENTARIA (SCYTOSIPHONACEAE, PHAEOPHYCEAE),JOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY, Issue 1 2010Kei Kimura Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of the isogamous brown alga Scytosiphon lomentaria (Lyngb.) Link is inherited maternally. We used molecular biological and morphological analyses to investigate the fate of male mitochondria. Ultrastructural observations showed that the number of 25 mitochondria in a zygote coincided with the number of mitochondria derived from male and female gametes. This number remained almost constant during the first cell division. Strain-specific PCR in single germlings suggested that mtDNA derived from the female gamete remained in the germling during development, while the male mtDNA gradually and selectively disappeared after the four-cell stage. One week after fertilization, male mtDNA had disappeared in sporophytic cells. Using bisulfite DNA modification and methylation mapping assays, we found that the degree of methylation on three analyzed sites of mtDNA was not different between male and female gametes, suggesting that maternal inheritance of mtDNA is not defined by its methylation. This study indicates that the mechanism of selective elimination of male mtDNA is present in each cell of a four-celled sporophyte and that it does not depend on different degrees of DNA methylation between male and female mtDNA. [source] Smoke Exposure and Ethanol Ingestion Modulate Intrapulmonary Polymorphonuclear Leukocyte Killing, but Not Recruitment or PhagocytosisALCOHOLISM, Issue 9 2006Elizabeth A. Vander Top Background: People who smoke and abuse alcohol are uniquely susceptible to pulmonary infections caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, the pneumococcus. The primary cellular defense against pneumococci within the lungs is the polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN). Cigarette smoke and ethanol (EtOH) are known to alter certain PMN functions, but little is known about their concurrent effects. Methods: Male Sprague,Dawley rats were exposed twice daily for 8 weeks to cigarette smoke (smoke-exposed) or room air (sham-exposed). During the final week of exposure, the rats were pair-fed a liquid diet containing either 36 or 0% EtOH calories. Polymorphonuclear leukocytes were prerecruited into the rats' lungs by transtracheal injection of lipopolysaccharide. Five hours later, the rats were infected transtracheally with S. pneumoniae, and PMN recruitment, phagocytosis, and bactericidal activity were quantified within their lungs. Chemokine levels were also measured in bronchoalveolar lavage fluids, lung homogenates, and sera. Results: Neither PMN recruitment nor phagocytic uptake of pneumococci was altered by EtOH ingestion or smoke exposure. Killing of the organisms, however, was significantly decreased in sham-exposed, but not smoke-exposed, rats ingesting EtOH. Parallel results were determined for serum cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant-1 (CINC-1), with EtOH ingestion significantly decreasing the levels in sham-exposed, but not smoke-exposed, rats. Pulmonary levels of macrophage inflammatory protein-2 (MIP-2) and CINC-1 were highly elevated by the combination of EtOH and smoke. Conclusions: One week of EtOH ingestion by rats impaired the ability of their PMNs to kill S. pneumoniae within their lungs. This was not due to decreased recruitment of the PMNs to the lungs or to diminished phagocytosis of intrapulmonary pneumococci. The addition of twice-daily cigarette smoke exposure to this short-term EtOH ingestion model restored PMN bactericidal ability to levels observed in the absence of either treatment. These EtOH-induced and smoke-induced alterations in PMN killing may be related to alterations in both pulmonary and systemic inflammatory chemokine levels. [source] Treatment of canine pyoderma with ibafloxacin and marbofloxacin , fluoroquinolones with different pharmacokinetic profilesJOURNAL OF VETERINARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 3 2004L. J. I. Horspool Dogs with superficial or deep pyoderma (n = 228) presented to first opinion veterinarians (n = 20) were treated orally with either ibafloxacin, at a dosage of 15 mg/kg, or marbofloxacin, at a dosage of 2 mg/kg, once daily for 3,16 weeks. On initial presentation, 35% of the cases were classified as having recurrent pyoderma and 40% as having deep pyoderma. Staphylococci (mainly Staphylococcus intermedius) were isolated from over 90% of the cases. The average treatment periods were 41 ± 26 and 38 ± 21 days in the ibafloxacin and marbofloxacin groups, respectively. One week after the cessation of treatment, 74 and 81% of dogs (P > 0.05) in the ibafloxacin and marbofloxacin groups, respectively, were classified as having responded to treatment. One month after the cessation of treatment, 70% of the dogs in each group were still classified as cured or improved, and 3 and 11% (P < 0.05) in the ibafloxacin and marbofloxacin groups, respectively, were classified as having relapsed. Despite having different pharmacokinetic profiles, ibafloxacin and marbofloxacin produced similar results when used under field conditions at the recommended dosages. [source] Diode laser hair removal does not interfere with botulinum toxin A treatment against axillary hyperhidrosisLASERS IN SURGERY AND MEDICINE, Issue 3 2010Anna Paul MD Abstract Background and Objective The possible interference of combined laser hair removal and Botulinum toxin A (BoNT/A) injections in the treatment of axillary hyperhidrosis has not previously been explored. In order to examine this potential interference, we assessed the effect of BoNT/A on axillary hyperhidrosis with and without concomitant diode laser axillary hair removal. Study Design/Materials and Methods In a prospective, double blind, randomized cross over trial, nine patients suffering from primary axillary hyperhidrosis were laser-treated on one randomly assigned axilla. One week later, both axillas were injected intradermally with BoNT/A (100,MU per axilla). During the same session, the previously untreated axilla was lasered. Axillary sweat rates (in g/5,minutes.) were determined by gravimetry and compared at rest, during mental exercise, and during physical exercise. Additionally, subjective outcome measures were assessed by a visual analogue scale, Dermatology Life Quality Index, and Global Clinical Impression score. Results No differences were found regarding the effect of BoNT/A on previously laser-treated and laser co-treated sides over time course for any of the outcome parameters. Sweat production was reduced 3 weeks after BoNT/A treatment by 93.5% at rest, 96.5% during mental exercise, and 67% during physical exercise. Conclusions Concomitant laser hair removal does not interfere with BoNT/A treatment on axillary hyperhidrosis. Lasers Surg. Med. 42:211,214, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Hypertrophic scarring of the neck following ablative fractional carbon dioxide laser resurfacingLASERS IN SURGERY AND MEDICINE, Issue 3 2009Mathew M. Avram MD Abstract Background Ablative fractional carbon dioxide (CO2) laser treatments have gained popularity due to their efficacy, shortened downtime, and decreased potential for scarring in comparison to traditional ablative CO2 resurfacing. To date, scarring with fractional CO2 lasers has not been reported. Objective Five patients treated with the same fractional CO2 laser technology for photodamage of the neck were referred to our practices 1,3 months after treatment. Each patient developed scarring. Of the five cases, two are discussed in detail. The first was treated under general anesthesia on the face and anterior neck at a pulse energy of 30 mJ (859 µm depth) with 25% coverage. Eleven days after treatment, three non-healing areas along the horizontal skin folds of the anterior neck were noted. At 2 weeks after CO2 ablative fractional resurfacing, these areas had become thickened. These raised areas were treated with a non-ablative fractionated 1,550 nm laser to modify the wound healing milieu. One week later, distinct firm pale papules in linear arrays with mild hypopigmentation had developed along involved neck skin folds. Skin biopsy was performed. For the second patient, the neck was treated at a pulse energy of 20 mJ (630 µm depth) with 30% coverage of the exposed skin, with a total treatment energy of 5.0 kJ. Minimal crusting was noted on the neck throughout the initial healing phase of 2 weeks. She then experienced tightness on her neck. Approximately 3 weeks after treatment, she developed multiple vertical and horizontal hypertrophic scars (HS). Results Histopathology for the first case confirmed the presence of a hypertrophic scar. The papules in this case completely resolved with mild residual hypopigmentation after treatment with topical corticosteroids. HS failed to resolve in the second case to date after 1 month. Conclusion As with traditional ablative CO2 laser resurfacing, HS is a potential complication of ablative fractional CO2 laser resurfacing, particularly on the neck. With early diagnosis and appropriate treatment HS of neck skin may be reversible. We urge caution when treating the neck with this device and close attention to wound care in the post-operative period. Lasers Surg. Med. 41:185,188, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Comparison of efficacies of dual therapy and triple therapy using rabeprazole in second-line eradication of Helicobacter pylori in JapanALIMENTARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 2006T. KAWAI Summary Background The only authorized second-line Helicobacter pylori regimen in Japan is proton pump inhibitor + amoxycillin + clarithromycin. However, it has been reported that this second-line regimen is not effective. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of dual and triple eradication therapies using rabeprazole as second-line H. pylori eradication regimens. Aim To evaluate the efficacy of dual and triple eradication therapies using rabeprazole as second-line H. pylori eradication therapy. Methods Sixty-two H. pylori -positive patients with first-line eradication failure were randomly assigned to two groups. The RAM group was administered rabeprazole 20 mg + amoxycillin 1500 mg + metronidazole 500 mg daily for 1 week. The RA group was administered rabeprazole 40 mg + amoxycillin 2000 mg daily for 2 weeks. Eradication of H. pylori infection was determined by 13C-urea breath testing at 8 weeks after completion of treatment. Prior to treatment, amoxycillin, clarithromycin and metronidazole susceptibility, and CYP2C19 phenotype status were determined. Results Eradication rates for the RAM and RA groups were 97% and 74%, respectively. Eradication rates were not influenced by CYP2C19 phenotype in either group. Eradication rates for clarithromycin-resistant patients were 100% in the RAM group and 77% in the RA group. Conclusions One week with RAM therapy and 2 weeks with RA therapy were effective as second-line eradication therapy for H. pylori infection; moreover, RAM was more effective than RA therapy. [source] Teaching & Learning Guide for: Victorian Life WritingLITERATURE COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 5 2007Valerie Sanders Author's Introduction The Victorian period was one of the great ages for life-writing. Though traditionally renowned for its monumental ,lives and letters', mainly of great men, this was also a time of self-conscious anxiety about the genre. Critics and practitioners alike were unsure who should be writing autobiography, and whether its inherent assertiveness ruled out all but public men as appropriate subjects. It was also a period of experimentation in the different genres of life-writing , whether autobiography, journals, letters, autobiographical novels, and narratives of lives combined with extracts from correspondence and diaries. Victorian life-writing therefore provides rich and complex insights into the relationship between narrative, identity, and the definition of the self. Recent advances in criticism have highlighted the more radical and non-canonical aspects of life-writing. Already a latecomer to the literary-critical tradition (life-writing was for a long time the ,poor relation' of critical theory), auto/biography stresses the hidden and silent as much as the mainstream and vocal. For that reason, study of Victorian life-writing appeals to those with an interest in gender issues, postcolonialism, ethnicity, working-class culture, the history of religion, and family and childhood studies , to name but a few of the fields with which the genre has a natural connection. Author Recommends A good place to start is the two canonical texts for Victorian life-writing: George P. Landow's edited collection, Approaches to Victorian Autobiography (Athens, OH: Ohio University Press, 1979) and Avrom Fleishman's Figures of Autobiography: The Language of Self-Writing in Victorian and Modern England (Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press, 1983). These two re-ignited interest in Victorian life-writing and in effect opened the debate about extending the canon, though both focus on the firmly canonical Ruskin and Newman, among others. By contrast, David Amigoni's recently edited collection of essays, Life-Writing and Victorian Culture (Aldershot: Ashgate 2006) shows how far the canon has exploded and expanded: it begins with a useful overview of the relationship between lives, life-writing, and literary genres, while subsequent chapters by different authors focus on a particular individual or family and their cultural interaction with the tensions of life-writing. As this volume is fairly male-dominated, readers with an interest in women's life-writing might prefer to start with Linda Peterson's chapter, ,Women Writers and Self-Writing' in Women and Literature in Britain 1800,1900, ed. Joanne Shattock (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001), 209,230. This examines the shift from the eighteenth-century tradition of the chroniques scandaleuses to the professional artist's life, domestic memoir, and spiritual autobiography. Mary Jean Corbett's Representing Femininity: Middle-Class Subjectivity in Victorian and Edwardian Women's Autobiographies (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1992) begins with material on Wordsworth and Carlyle, but ,aims to contest the boundaries of genre, gender, and the autobiographical tradition by piecing together a partial history of middle-class women's subjectivities in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries' (3). Corbett is particularly interested in the life-writing of actresses and suffragettes as well as Martineau and Oliphant, the first two women autobiographers to be welcomed into the canon in the 1980s and 90s. Laura Marcus's Auto/biographical Discourses, Theory, Criticism, Practice (Manchester and New York, NY: Manchester University Press, 1994) revises and updates the theoretical approaches to the study of life-writing, stressing both the genre's hybrid qualities, and its inherent instability: in her view, it ,comes into being as a category to be questioned' (37). Another of her fruitful suggestions is that autobiography functions as a ,site of struggle' (9), an idea that can be applied to aesthetic or ideological issues. Her book is divided between specific textual examples (such as the debate about autobiography in Victorian periodicals), and an overview of developments in critical approaches to life-writing. Her second chapter includes material on Leslie Stephen, who is also the first subject of Trev Lynn Broughton's Men of Letters, Writing Lives: Masculinity and Literary Auto/biography in the Late Victorian Period (London: Routledge, 1999) , her other being Froude's controversial Life of Carlyle. With the advent of gender studies and masculinities, there is now a return to male forms of life-writing, of which Martin A. Danahay's A Community of One: Masculine Autobiography and Autonomy in Nineteenth-Century Britain (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1993) is a good example. Danahay argues that nineteenth-century male autobiographers present themselves as ,autonomous individuals' free of the constraints of social and familial contexts, thus emphasizing the autonomy of the self at the expense of family and community. Online Materials My impression is that Victorian life-writing is currently better served by books than by online resources. There seem to be few general Web sites other than University module outlines and reading lists; for specific authors, on the other hand, there are too many to list here. So the only site I'd recommend is The Victorian Web: http://.victorianweb.org/genre/autobioov.html This Web site has a section called ,Autobiography Overview', which begins with an essay, ,Autobiography, Autobiographicality and Self-Representation', by George P. Landow. There are sections on other aspects of Victorian autobiography, including ,Childhood as a Personal Myth', autobiography in Dickens and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and a list of ,Suggested Readings'. Each section is quite short, but summarizes the core issues succinctly. Sample Syllabus This sample syllabus takes students through the landmarks of Victorian life-writing, and demonstrates the development of a counter-culture away from the mainstream ,classic male life' (if there ever was such a thing) , culminating in the paired diaries of Arthur Munby (civil servant) and Hannah Cullwick (servant). Numerous other examples could have been chosen, but for those new to the genre, this is a fairly classic syllabus. One week only could be spent on the ,classic male texts' if students are more interested in pursuing other areas. Opening Session Open debate about the definition of Victorian ,life-writing' and its many varieties; differences between autobiography, autobiographical fiction, diary, letters, biography, collective biography, and memoir; the class could discuss samples of selected types, such as David Copperfield, Father and Son, Ruskin's Praeterita, and Gaskell's Life of Charlotte Brontė. Alternatively, why not just begin with Stave Two of Dickens's A Christmas Carol (1843), in which the First Spirit takes Scrooge back through his childhood and youth? This is a pretty unique type of life-writing, with Scrooge ,laughing and crying' as his childhood and youth are revealed to him in a series of flashbacks (a Victorian version of ,This is Your Life?'). The dual emotions are important to note at this stage and will prompt subsequent discussions of sentimentality and writing for comic effect later in the course. Week 2 Critical landmarks: discussion of important stages in the evolution of critical approaches to life-writing, including classics such as Georges Gusdorf's ,Conditions and Limits of Autobiography', in Autobiography: Essays Theoretical and Critical, ed. James Olney (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1980), 28,47; Philippe Lejeune's ,The Autobiographical Pact', in On Autobiography, ed. Paul John Eakin, trans. Katherine Leary (original essay 1973; Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1989), 3,30; and Paul De Man's ,Autobiography as De-Facement', Modern Language Notes 94 (1979): 919,30. This will provide a critical framework for the rest of the course. Weeks 3,4 Extracts from the ,male classics' of Victorian life-writing: J. S. Mill's Autobiography (1873), Ruskin's Praeterita (1885,89), and Newman's Apologia pro Vita Sua (1864). What do they think is important and what do they miss out? How open or otherwise are they about their family and personal lives? Are these essentially ,lives of the mind'? How self-aware are they of autobiographical structures? Are there already signs that the ,classic male life' is fissured and unconventional? An option here would be to spend the first week focusing on male childhoods, and the second on career trajectories. Perhaps use Martin Danahay's theory of the ,autonomous individual' (see above) to provide a critical framework here: how is the ,Other' (parents, Harriet Taylor) treated in these texts? Weeks 5,6 Victorian women's autobiography: Harriet Martineau's Autobiography (1877) and Margaret Oliphant's Autobiography (1899): in many ways these are completely unalike, Martineau's being ordered around the idea of steady mental growth and public recognition, while Oliphant's is deeply emotional and disordered. Can we therefore generalize about ,women's autobiography'? What impact did they have on Victorian theories of life-writing? Students might like to reconsider Jane Eyre as an ,autobiography' alongside these and compare scenes of outright rebellion. The way each text handles time and chronology is also fascinating: Martineau's arranged to highlight stages of philosophical development, while Oliphant's switches back and forth in a series of ,flashbacks' to her happier youth as her surviving two sons die ,in the text', interrupting her story. Week 7 Black women's autobiography: how does Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands (1857) differ from the Martineau and Oliphant autobiographies? What new issues and genre influences are introduced by a Caribbean/travelogue perspective? Another key text would be Harriet Jacobs's Incidents in the Life of a Slave-Girl (1861). How representative and how individual are these texts? Do these authors see themselves as representing their race as well as their class and sex? Week 8 Working-class autobiography: Possible texts here could be John Burnett's Useful Toil (Allen Lane, 1974, Penguin reprint); Carolyn Steedman's edition of John Pearman's The Radical Soldier's Tale (Routledge, 1988) and the mini oral biographies in Henry Mayhew's London Labour and the London Poor (1861,62) (e.g., the Water-Cress Seller). There is also a new Broadview edition of Factory Lives (2007) edited by James R. Simmons, with an introduction by Janice Carlisle. This contains four substantial autobiographical texts (three male, one female) from the mid-nineteenth century, with supportive materials. Samuel Bamford's Passages in the Life of a Radical (1839,42; 1844) and Early Days (1847,48) are further options. Students should also read Regenia Gagnier's Subjectivities: A History of Self-Representation in Britain 1832,1910 (Oxford University Press, 1991). Week 9 Biography: Victorian Scandal: focus on two scandals emerging from Victorian life-writing: Gaskell's Life of Charlotte Brontė (1857) (the Branwell Brontė/Lady Scott adultery scandal), and Froude's allegations of impotence in his Life of Carlyle (1884). See Trev Broughton's ,Impotence, Biography, and the Froude-Carlyle Controversy: ,Revelations on Ticklish Topics', Journal of the History of Sexuality, 7.4 (Apr. 1997): 502,36 (in addition to her Men of Letters cited above). The biographies of the Benson family written about and by each other, especially E. F. Benson's Our Family Affairs 1867,1896 (London: Cassell, 1920) reveal the domestic unhappiness of the family of Gladstone's Archbishop of Canterbury, Edward White Benson, whose children and wife were all to some extent homosexual or lesbian. Another option would be Edmund Gosse's Father and Son (1907) in which the son's critical stance towards his father is uneasy and complex in its mixture of comedy, pity, shame, and resentment. Week 10 Diaries: Arthur Munby's and Hannah Cullwick's relationship (they were secretly married, but lived as master and servant) and diaries, Munby: Man of Two Worlds: The Life and Diaries of Arthur Munby, ed. Derek Hudson (John Murray, 1972), and The Diaries of Hannah Cullwick: Victorian Maidservant, ed. Liz Stanley (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1984): issues of gender and class identity; the idealization of the working woman; the two diaries compared. Half the class could read one diary and half the other and engage in a debate about the social and sexual fantasies adopted by each diarist. It would also be sensible to leave time for an overview debate about the key issues of Victorian life-writing which have emerged from this module, future directions for research, and current critical developments. Focus Questions 1To what extent does Victorian autobiography tell an individual success story? Discuss with reference to two or three contrasting examples. 2,All life writing is time writing' (Jens Brockmeier). Examine the way in which Victorian life-writers handle the interplay of narrative, memory, and time. 3To what extent do you agree with the view that Victorian life-writing was ,a form of communication that appeared intimate and confessional, but which was in fact distant and controlled' (Donna Loftus)? 4,Bamford was an autobiographer who did not write an autobiography' (Martin Hewitt). If autobiography is unshaped and uninterpreted, what alternative purposes does it have in narrating a life to the reader? 5,Victorian life-writing is essentially experimental, unstable, and unpredictable.' How helpful is this comment in helping you to understand the genre? [source] Recanalization of the Collecting Lymphatics in Rabbit Hind LegMICROCIRCULATION, Issue 5 2006FUMITAKA IKOMI ABSTRACT Objective: This study was designed to examine whether mature collecting lymphatics can regenerate in the adult tissue or not. Materials and Methods: The X-ray lymphograms were used to detect network of the collecting lymphatics in rabbit hind leg. Regeneration of the lymphatics was observed after surgical removal of the popliteal lymph node or a part of the popliteal afferent lymphatic. Structure and mechanical properties of the lymphatics were also examined by light and electron microscopes and in vitro functional experiments. Results: One week after removal of the lymph node, only an afferent lymphatic and a deposit of the contrast medium at the popliteal region were observed. Four weeks after the removal, the connection of the afferent and efferent lymphatics at the popliteal region, and collateral lymphatics were present in the leg. Further, 4 weeks after 1-mm excisions of a part of the lymphatic, recanalization was observed between the central and peripheral cut ends of the lymphatic but not after 3- and 10-mm excisions. Endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells could be observed by electron microscope, and contractile proteins, and alpha-smooth muscle actin SM1 and SM2 were immunofluorescently detected in both intact and the regenerated lymphatic walls. In both lymphatics, norepinephrine and acetylcholine induced dose-dependent constriction and dilation of the vessels, respectively. Conclusion: The present study demonstrated that mature collecting lymphatics are able to regenerate in the adult tissues. [source] Murine fetal small-intestine grafts: Morphometric and immunohistochemical evaluationMICROSURGERY, Issue 1 2006Carlos Eduardo Saldanha De Almeida We investigated histopathological changes following murine fetal intestinal transplantation. Fetal intestine, obtained from a pregnant C57BL/6 mouse, was transplanted into BALB/c and C57Bl/6 mice. Recipients were divided into three groups: isogeneic, and allogeneic treated with 3 mg/kg/day gangliosides (Allo-a) or 9 mg/kg/day (Allo-b). One week after transplant, all grafts showed good viability, confirmed by cellular mitosis in the mucosa and a well-defined propria muscular layer. Isogeneic grafts showed a thicker muscular layer than in the Allo-a (P = 0.02) and Allo-b (P = 0.004) groups. There was no difference in number of mitotic cells among groups. Goblet cells were significantly reduced in allografts treated with 3 mg gangliosides (P = 0.013) or 9 mg gangliosides (P = 0.002) compared to isografts. Villi height was similar in all studied groups. There was no difference in positivity of the enteric nervous system among groups. Atrophy was more common in the allogeneic groups, suggesting that isografts had better development than allografts treated with gangliosides. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Microsurgery 26: 61,64, 2006. [source] The role of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells on antibody production by murine Peyer's patch cells following mucosal presentation of Actinomyces viscosusMOLECULAR ORAL MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 6 2006W. Sosroseno The aim of this study was to determine the role of CD4 and CD8 cells on specific antibody production by murine Peyer's patch (PP) cells after oral immunization with Actinomyces viscosus in mice. Female DBA/2 mice were orally immunized with three low doses of heat-killed A. viscosus. Sham-immunized mice served as a control group. Mice were depleted of CD4 or CD8 cells by intraperitoneal injection of anti-CD4 or anti-CD8 antibodies daily for 3 days before oral immunization. One week after the last oral immunization, PPs were removed and cell suspensions were cultured with A. viscosus. Specific antibody production in the culture supernatants was assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The results showed that oral immunization with A. viscosus induced a predominant specific immunoglobulin A (IgA) response by PP cells and, to a lesser extent, IgM antibodies. Depletion of CD4 but not CD8 cells suppressed the production of specific antibodies. These results suggest that oral immunization with low doses of A. viscosus may induce the production of specific antibodies by murine PP cells in a CD4-cell-dependent fashion. [source] The Self-report Standardized Assessment of Personality-abbreviated Scale: Preliminary results of a brief screening test for personality disordersPERSONALITY AND MENTAL HEALTH, Issue 2 2008Sara Germans Objective,The internal consistency, test,retest reliability and validity of the Self-report Standardized Assessment of Personality-abbreviated Scale (SAPAS-SR) as a screening instrument for personality disorders were studied in a random sample of 195 Dutch psychiatric outpatients, using the Structured Clinical Interviews for DSM-IV Personality Disorders (SCID-II) as a gold standard. Method,All patients completed a self-report version of the SAPAS. One week later, they were interviewed with the SCID-II. Two weeks later, the SAPAS-SR was re-administered. Results,According to the SCID-II, 97 patients (50%) were suffering from a personality disorder. The SAPAS-SR correctly classified 81% of all participants. Sensitivity (0.83) and specificity (0.80) were slightly lower compared with the original English version. This difference may be explained by the lower prevalence and severity of personality disorders in the study population. Conclusion,The results provide evidence for the usefulness of the SAPAS as a self-administered instrument for screening personality disorders in clinical populations. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Plasma Progesterone Profile in Ovariectomized Beef Cows after Intra-vaginal Insertion of New, Once-used or Twice-used CIDRREPRODUCTION IN DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Issue 1 2009ST Long Contents Objective of this study was to show plasma progesterone concentrations in ovariectomized beef cows after treatment with new, once-used and twice-used controlled internal drug-releasing devices (CIDRs). Four ovariectomized beef cows were used for the experiment. Plasma concentrations of progesterone were quantified using a validated ELISA. The CIDR was inserted into vagina of cows by using a standard CIDR applicator and then removed 7 days after insertion. One week later, once-used CIDR was inserted and removed on day 7. Twice-used CIDR was, then inserted at an interval of 7 days. Mean plasma concentrations of progesterone 24 h after new CIDR insertion was 4.0 ± 0.1 ng/ml, which thereafter decreased gradually to 1.4 ± 0.1 ng/ml at day 7. In cows treated with once-used CIDR or twice-used CIDR, mean plasma progesterone concentrations at day 1 were 2.4 ± 0.2 or 1.8 ± 0.2 ng/ml and 1.0 ± 0 or 0.9 ± 0.1 ng/ml at day 7 respectively. The results suggest that once-used CIDR may be still effective to produce luteal phase progesterone concentrations in plasma in non-suckling beef cows. [source] Transient detection of E1-containing adenovirus in saliva after the delivery of a first-generation adenoviral vector to human parotid gland,THE JOURNAL OF GENE MEDICINE, Issue 1 2010Changyu Zheng Abstract Background Radiation-induced salivary hypofunction is a common side-effect of treatment for head and neck cancers. Patients suffer significant morbidity and there is no suitable conventional therapy. We are conducting a Phase I clinical trial, using a first-generation serotype 5 adenoviral (Ad5) vector encoding human aquaporin-1 (AdhAQP1) to treat such patients. One week after the administration of AdhAQP1 to an enrolled, generally healthy patient, E1-containing adenovirus was detected in parotid saliva. Methods The real-time quantitative polymerase chain reactuion (PCR) was used to measure the Ad5 E1 gene and AdhAQP1 in saliva and serum. PCR and sequencing were used to characterize viral/vector DNA extracted from saliva. The presence of infectious adenovirus was assessed by the inoculation of A549 cells with aliquots of saliva. Serum Ad5 neutralizing antibodies were measured by the inhibition of 293-cell transduction with an Ad5 vector encoding luciferase. Multiple clinical evaluations were performed. Results On day 7 after AdhAQP1 delivery, low levels of the Ad5 E1 gene were detected in parotid saliva (82 copies/µl). In addition, significant levels of AdhAQP1 were also detected (1.5 × 103 copies/µl). The patient was asymptomatic and subsequent analysis of parotid saliva samples prior to day 7 and after day 7 until day 42 was negative for both virus and vector. No virus or vector was detected in serum at any time. Detailed PCR analyses of DNA extracted from the day 7 parotid saliva sample suggested the absence of a recombination event, and no infectious virus was found. Conclusions The patient most likely had a latent Ad5 infection in the targeted parotid gland that was activated after gene transfer and was without clinical consequence. Published in 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Children's knowledge acquisition through film: influence of programme characteristicsAPPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 9 2008Eva Michel Several characteristics of educational programmes for children are discussed to influence learning of content. In the present study, positive effects of a preview and inserted summaries in educational films for learning are examined. A total of 127 6-and 8-year-old participating children watched one of the four educational film versions: The original film (without preview and summaries), a version with a preview, with inserted summaries or with a verbal ,preview'. One week later, children's recollection of facts was tested in a memory interview. Results show that previews and summaries in educational films can enhance learning, and that visual scene repetition appears to further boost knowledge acquisition. Formal and content characteristics of educational programmes are discussed in terms of the underlying mechanisms influencing children's cognitive processing and learning. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||