Haemolysis due to formaldehyde-induced anti-N-like antibodies in haemodialysis patients.

During reuse of formaldehyde sterilized Kiil-dialysers, red cell survival, measured by means of 51Cr t/2, was significantly reduced (p less than 0.001) in 16 patients with anti-N-like positive sera, when compared with 19 antibody negative control patients (mean +/- SD: 16.5 +/- 2.7 versus 22.4 +/- 3.1 days.) In antibody negative patients (n = 10) replacement of formaldehyde sterilized dialysers by ethylene-oxide sterilized disposable dialysers resulted in a significant increase (p less than 0.002) of 51Cr t/2 (Mean +/- SD, days: Kiildialyser 16.3 +/- 1.9; disposable dialyser 20.3 +/- 3.5). This improvement took place, although antibody titres persisted during the 51Cr-measurements and declined thereafter only slowly. In antibody negative patients (n = 6) red cell survival did not increase, when formaldehyde as a sterilant was avoided. In antibody positive patients mean haematocrit rose significantly (p less than 0.05), whereas in none of the antibody negative patients a definite change of haematocrit occurred. The data demonstrate, that formaldehyde sterilisation of dialysers may cause antibody-mediated haemolysis contributing to the extent of renal anaemia. This immunohaemolysis may be corrected, in spite of continuing antibody persistance, when formaldehyde exposure is totally avoided, or possibly when minimized.


Instant nutritional assessment.

Instant nutritional assessment of the hospitalized patient is described based upon admission serum albumin levels and total lymphocyte counts. Abnormalities of these parameters are associated with markedly increased morbidity and mortality in a series of 500 consecutively admitted patient. It is suggested that instant nutritional assessment be performed on all hospitalized patients with appropriate alterations and therapy being made to allow for nutritional repletion.


Body composition changes in the critically ill patient: emphasis on water balance.

The moisture contents of foods, fluids, and parenteral solutions taken in and of all samples excreted, the water of oxidation of fuel mixtures burned, and the evaporative water loss must be determined in order to obtain a quantitative picture of water balance. Because there is a tendency to retain water after trauma, surgery, or an acute illness, changes in the water compartment of the body may lead to changes in body weight that may be considered erroneously as changes in energy or protein stores. Measurement of water balance, in addition to calorie and nitrogen balance is one of the most accurate means of accounting for these changes in body composition. Fluid and electrolyte therapy and nutritional supplementation can be tailored to meet the patient's specific needs by utilizing this information. Application of these principles to the care of hospitalized patients outside of the research setting will be discussed.


[Ultrastructure of tumor-stroma junction of invasive laryngeal carcinoma (author's transl)].

The tumor-stroma junction of invasive squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx was examined electron microscopically. Polymorphic cytoplasmic protrusions (blebs) with a diameter ranging from 2--4 micron to 8--10 micron were observed on the basal and lateral surfaces of the malignant keratinocytes. A system of cytoplasmic 6--8 nm microfilaments can be seen consistently at the base of the blebs. The microfilaments possibly serve as a contractile ring during the pinching-off process of the blebs from the malignant keratinocytes. The blebs were observed at various stages of development until the pinching-off process occurred. They have varying shapes, sizes, and electron density and are plasmamembrane bounded. They contain hyaline ectoplasm, ribosome particles, a fine filamentous and fine granular material as well as some lysosomes. The blebbing phenomenon is discussed in respect to the cellular locomotion of malignant keratinocytes and interpreted as a possible temporary invasion mechanism in the preliminary stages of the tumor growth.


Longitudinal assessment of Eustachian tube function in children.

Eustachian tube function was evaluated in 27 children (32 ears) with tympanostomy tubes at 6-week intervals for 12 to 30 months. Using a modified inflation-deflation test of passive and active ventilatory function, it was found that the ears had persistent functional obstruction. Most ears exhibited no significant change in tubal function throughout the observation period. There was no difference in the ventilatory function when the nasal airway was congested (other than due to purulent upper respiratory tract infection) and not congested. However, significant seasonal effects on Eustachian tube ventilatory function were recorded: function was poorer in the winter than in the summer. No relationship was found between Eustachian tube ventilatory function and the age of the child.


Bacteriocinogeny and antibiotic resistance of naturally occurring strains of Streptococcus mutans.

We studied bacteriocinogenies and antibiotic resistances of naturally occurring strains of Streptococcus mutans isolated from different sources. It was found that naturally occurring strains from humans and rats were distinguished by their bacteriocin susceptibilities and production. We had a few incidences of tetracycline resistant strains only among those isolated from rats. It is quite interesting that none of the resistant strains we collected produced bacteriocins.


[Cyanide-resistant respiration in Torulopsis candida].

The effect of cyanide and the inhibitors of cyanide-resistant oxidase--hydroxamic acids on endogenous respiration and oxidation of a number of substrates by Torulopsis candida resting cells taken at different stages of growth on glucose and hexadecane was studied and made it possible to arrive at the following conclusions. 1. The effect of cyanide on endogenous respiration of T. candida differs during its growth on glucose and hexadecane. On hexadecane, irrespective of the growth phage, cyanide inhibits endogenous respiration by 70--75%. On glucose, cyanide inhibits endogenous respiration not more than by 35% and only at the exponential growth phase whereas it stimulates endogenous respiration in the course of other growth stages. 2. The effect of cyanide on respiration of the resting cells of T. candida which oxidize glucose, hexadecane, primary alcohols and tetradecanoic acid hardly depends on the growth stage. It is determined mainly by the nature of a substrate to be oxidized. 3. Hydroxamic acid have no effect on the cell respiration in the absence of cyanide. However, in its presence, they entirely inhibit both endogenous respiration and oxidation of the aforementioned substrates. 4. Under almost all above experimental conditions, the sensitivity of cell respiration to cyanide changes only slightly at different stages of growth on either glucose or hexadecane. This feature markedly distinguishes T. candida among other cyanide-resistant yeasts.


Skin test-active substance prepared from culture filtrate of Fonsecaea pedrosoi.

Ethanol-precipitated substance (EP) was prepared from culture filtrate of Fonsecaea pedrosoi. EP was separated into two components by passing through a Sephadex G-50 column; the faster passing component was referred to as EP-1, the slower as EP-2. EP-1 and EP-2 were evaluated as an antigen for detecting cutaneous delayed hypersensitivity in patients with chromomycosis. EP-1 elicited positive delayed skin reactions in all of 8 patients with chromomycosis, of which 7 caused by F. pedrosoi and one by Exophiala jeunselmei. Healthy subjects, patients with sporotrichosis and patients with tinea barbae failed to react to EP-1. These results indicate that EP-1 is a useful tool for detecting cutaneous delayed hypersensitivity in patients with chromomycosis caused by F. pedrosoi. It was found that precipitin test using EP-1 as an antigen had little diagnostic value in chromomycosis. EP-2 did not show antigenic activity in both skin and precipitin reactions.


[Effect of the lipid component of the medium on lipase biosynthesis by fungi].

The lipolytic activity of the fungi Aspergillus and Rhizopus was studied on a medium with soybean flour. The lipolytic activity of the Aspergillus fungi was low or absent whereas many of the cultures belonging to the Rhizopus genus possessed the lipolytic activity. The effect of soybean flour components on lipase biosynthesis was studied with Geotrichum asteroides and Rhizopus cohnii AUCMF-597. The lipid component was shown to be necessary for lipase biosynthesis by G. asteroides and to stimulate lipase synthesis by Rh. cohnii AUCMF-597. Oleic acid is presumed to activate lipase biosynthesis by G. asteroides.


Experimental cerebral lesions produced by inoculation with Basidiobolus strains.

Two Basidiobolus strains produced progressive chronic granulomatous lesions in the brain following intracerebral inoculation of mice with hyphal material. Large septate hyphal bodies, together with sperical structures and granular material presumed to be of fungal origin, were present in the granuloma tissue surrounding the IIIrd and lateral ventricles. No progressive lesions developed when Basidiobolus mycelium was inoculated at extra-cerebral sites.


Anti-inflammatory effect of warfarin and vitamin K1.

1. Sodium warfarin, given by oral or by parenteral route, displays a pronounced anti-inflammatory effect in the formaldehyde and carrageenan induced rat paw edema. This effect becomes patent not only when the warfarin application precedes the local injection of the irritant substance (prophylactic effect), but also when it is given to animals with already developed inflammatory reactions (therapeutic effect). 2. The active doses of Na warfarin lie between 0.5 and 5.0 mg/kg. Smaller as well as higher doses show a reduced anti-inflammatory effect. 3. A marked anti-inflammatory effect can be noted already 90 min after drug injection at a still normal prothrombin level. 4. Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone), given by oral or parenteral route, in doses from 1.6 mg/kg upwards, shows a marked anti-inflammatory effect both in the prophylactic and the therapeutic rat paw test. Vitamin K3 is devoid of any anti-inflammatory activity. 5. The anti-inflammatory effect of both sodium warfarin and of vitamin K1 in rats, is not interfered with by previous adrenalectomy.


Echocardiogram analysis in a pattern recognition framework.

Echocardiogram analysis is treated in a pattern recognition framework. Anterior mitral leaflet waveforms are classified for the four-class problem consisting of the classes "normal," "mitral stenosis," "mitral valve prolapse," and "idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis." In addition, aortic root waveforms and left ventricular wall waveforms are classified for the two-class problem consisting of the classes "normal" and "idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis." One common method of analysis (Fourier analysis) underlies each classification scheme. Classification accuracy is sufficiently good to warrant the inference that successful automated decision-making based on the algorithms investigated is feasible.


Cerebral amyloid angiopathy: possible relationship to rheumatoid vasculitis.

In three cases of cerebral amyloid angiopathy there was also a chronic cerebral vasculitis characterized by segmental fibrinoid necrosis, chronic adventitial inflammatory infiltrates, obliterative "endarteritis" and hyaline arteriolar change, resembling rheumatoid vasculitis. Two of these cases had rheumatoid arthritis, and one had unspecified "arthritis" at the onset of dementia. Both vasculitis and amyloidosis involved the leptomeningeal and cerebral cortical vessels. In the two autopsy-verified cases, the vascular disease was limited to the brain. In the third case, only a brain biopsy was available. Amyloid-containing neuritic plaques were present in the cerebral cortex in all three cases, but they were abundant only in one, which also showed numerous Alzheimer tangles.


Myopathy and primary aldosteronism: electronmicroscopic study.

We studied two patients with myopathy and primary aldosteronism. Necrosis and vacuolation of muscle fibers were found on light microscopy. Ultrastructurally, the necrotic areas were characterized by dissolution of myofilaments with degenerative vacuoles. In muscle fibers that did not show necrosis, there were membrane-bound vacuoles, dilation of the sarcoplasmic reticulum, widening of the T-system, and a "honeycomb" appearance of T-tubules. These ultrastructural features suggest that the necrosis of muscle fibers may originate from membrane vulnerability of the sarcoplasmic reticulum and the T-system.


[Effect of tweens on the lipase activity of Oospora lactis].

Oospora lactis was found to use Tweens 20, 40, 60 and 80 as a source of carbon in a nutrient medium for lipase biosynthesis. The highest production of lipase was registered in the medium with Tween-80. The lipase activity of the culture increased if even small quantities of Tweens 40, 60 and, particularly, 80 (0.05--1.0%) were added to the medium containing cottonseed oil. All the tested Tweens stimulating the biosynthesis of lipase were also, at a particular concentration, the inhibitors of this enzyme.


Genetic susceptibility to multiple sclerosis.

Previous studies of histocompatibility (HLA) types in multiple sclerosis (MS) families did not provide convincing proof of an HLA-linked susceptibility factor. In 12 families we studied, all MS cases in each family shared at least one chromosome. The probability of this occurring in the absence of genetic linkage is approximately 0.001. The estimated penetrance is 5 percent, implying that the genetic susceptibility factor may be a necessary but not a sufficient cause of MS. Additional studies are needed to identify other differences between affected and unaffected susceptible individuals.


Malignant cells in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF): the meaning of a positive CSF cytology.

We reviewed the correlation between malignant cells in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) (positive cytology) and pathologic findings at autopsy. The purpose was to discover: (1) the incidence of negative CSF cytology in patients with CNS malignancy, (2) the incidence of false-positive cytology, and (3) the relationship between a true-positive cytology and the distribution of malignant tumor at autopsy. Of 117 patients with CNS tumor and premortem cytologic examination of the CSF, 31 (26 percent) were positive and 86 (74 percent) were negative. Only 1 of 66 patients with tumor that did not reach the leptomeninges had a positive cytology. Of 51 patients with leptomeningeal tumor at autopsy, cytology was positive in 30 (59 percent) and negative in 21 (41 percent). Five potentially "false-positive" cytologies were encountered: three patients were treated, and tumor may have been eradicated; in two patients with lymphoma, inflammatory cells associated with infection were apparently mistaken for malignant cells. These data indicate that a positive CSF cytology is a reliable indicator of CNS malignancy and almost always reflects leptomeningeal tumor.


No morphometric abnormality recurrent laryngeal nerve in spastic dysphonia.

Spastic dysphonia is a disorder of phonation that is usually markedly improved by surgical resection of one recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN). In this study, biopsies of the RLN were obtained at surgery from nine patients with spastic dysphonia (disease group) and eight patients with laryngeal cancer (control group). The RLN was found to be composed of several nerve regions having characteristic fiber compositions. For the various nerve regions and for the whole nerve, we evaluated morphology, median fiber diameter, density, and size distribution of fibers. The morphologies of teased fibers were also evaluated. We found no significant differences between the nerves of the disease and control groups. Therefore, we were unable to verify previous reports of neuropathic abnormality of the RLN in spastic dysphonia.


Computed tomography in Herpes simplex encephalitis.

Eight patients with Herpes simplex encephalitis had computed cranial tomography (CT). In every case, areas of decreased attenuation were found in the temporal lobe(s); these areas extended to the insular cortex and often to the frontal or parietal lobes. This change developed between the third and the eleventh day of illness. It was present, sometimes only in retrospect, in patients who were alert as well as patients who were comatose. Compared to the isotopic brain scan, electroencephalogram, and cerebral angiogram, CT demonstrates changes that are indicative of H simplex early enough in the course of the illness to be therapeutically useful.


Carbamazepine: prevention of alcohol withdrawal seizures.

Effects of carbamazepine on alcohol withdrawal seizures and symptoms were studied in rats. Carbamazepine was administered during alcohol feeding and continued during alcohol withdrawal. When carbamazepine serum levels were above 3 micrograms per milliliter, alcohol withdrawal seizures were not observed. Carbamazepine also alleviated alcohol withdrawal symptoms, especially heightened spontaneous activity, startle to noise, stereotyped chewing movements, and intermittent body stiffening.


Cerebral arteritis in cat-scratch disease.

Acute right hemiplegia and transient expressive aphasia occurred in a 7-year-old girl a few days after nonspecific constitutional symptoms and the appearance of a large right submandibular lymph node. Biopsy of this node and lack of other evident cause suggested a diagnosis of cat-scratch disease. Carotid arteriography showed a localized arteritis of the supraclinoid part of the left internal carotid artery and the left middle cerebral artery, involving also some lenticulostriate vessels. Computerized tomography demonstrated infarction in the left internal capsule. The size of this infarct and the angiographic abnormalities improved 6 weeks after onset, and coincided with clinical recovery. Cat-scratch disease may have caused the localized arteritis.


Lymphocyte capping in muscular dystrophy.

We investigated lymphocyte capping in nine patients with muscular dystrophy (seven with Duchenne dystrophy and two with limb-girdle dystrophy), nine carriers, and five normal controls. No differences between the groups were observed. Thus, we have been unable to confirm a recent report that patients with muscular dystrophy, as well as carriers, have a defect in lymphocyte capping.


No association between oligoclonal immunoglobulins in cerebrospinal fluid and HLA antigens in acute aseptic meningitis.

The frequencies of the HLA antigens A3, B7, and Dw2, previously related with multiple sclerosis, were investigated in 26 patients with acute aseptic meningitis and oligoclonal immunoglobulins in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), but not in serum when investigated by agarose gel electrophoresis. HLA antigen frequencies were similar in patients with aseptic meningitis and controls. The oligoclonal immune response within the central nervous system in aseptic meningitis is not associated with the same HLA antigens found in patients with multiple sclerosis.


Carrier detection in Duchenne muscular dystropy.

We investigated the number of echinocytes, the serum hemopexin level, and spectrin band II phosphorylation in the blood of normal subjects, patients, and carriers of Duchenne dystrophy. The patients and carriers exhibited quantitatively significant differences with respect to controls.


Dementia in Parkinson disease: a neuropathologic study.

Thirty-four autopsy cases conforming to the standard neuropathologic criteria of Parkinson disease were sex- and age-matched with controls who had died of infarct or trauma. All brains were reviewed for changes compatible with Alzheimer disease, and available clinical data were retrospectively reviewed. Nineteen (56 percent) of the Parkinson cases had shown some degree of dementia. The average parkinsonian brain weight was 1281 gm; it was 1365 gm for the controls (p less than 0.02). Plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, granulovacuolar degeneration, and cortical cell loss were present in all but one of the parkinsonian brains; these pathologic changes were present in fewer controls and to a lesser degree. The higher incidence of dementia in patients with Parkinson disease may be explained by the simultaneous presence of Alzheimer disease.


Epidemiology of multiple sclerosis in U.S. veterans: 1. Race, sex, and geographic distribution.

Five thousand three hundred five World War II and Korean conflict veterans who have been compensated by the Veterans Administration for multiple sclerosis (MS) were matched to controls on the basis of age, date of entry into military service, and branch of service. Case/control ratios for white males, white females, and black males were 1.04, 1.86, and 0.45, respectively. The coterminous 48 states, divided into three tiers on the basis of latitude, exhibited the well-known north-south gradient in risk: For all races and both sexes, case/control ratios were 1.41, 1.00, and 0.53 for the North, Middle, and South tiers. Both white females and black males showed this same north-to-south variation in risk. The case/control ratio for males of races other than black or white was 0.23, with possible deficits in risk for American Indians and Japanese-Americans. Filipinos and Hawaiian Japanese were significantly low-risk groups. These findings suggest that both a racial and a possibly genetic predisposition, as well as a geographically determined differential exposure to an environmental agent, are related to the risk of MS.


Mechanically and electrically evoked somatosensory potentials in normal humans.

Somatosensory potentials evoked by mechanical stimulation of the fingernail and electrical stimulation of the nerve in the finger and at the wrist were recorded by surface electrodes over; (1) the digital nerve in the index finger, (2) the median nerve at the wrist, (3) the median nerve at the axilla, (4) the brachial plexus at Erb's point, (5) the cervical cord at C2, and (6) the scalp overlying the somatosensory cortex. Nerve conduction velocities were computed for two portions of the median nerve. Conduction times along the somatosensory pathway between spinal cord and cerebral cortex were also defined. The mechanically evoked potentials had less temporal dispersion, were of lower amplitude, and occasionally consisted of fewer components than the electrically evoked potentials. Electrical stimulation of the nerve trunk at the wrist evoked some additional components not detected by the other stimulation methods. Nerve conduction velocities and conduction times were comparable among the three methods of stimulation.


Delayed postischemic hypoperfusion: a potentially damaging consequence of stroke.

Cerebral blood flow (CBF) was assessed with radioactive butanol and antipyrine during and after 1 hour of unilateral carotid artery occlusion in gerbils. Animals with clinical evidence of stroke demonstrated a marked fall in ipsilateral CBF during occlusion "no-reflow" phenomenon did not develop; instead, blood flow returned to normal 5 minutes after the termination of carotid occlusion. Flow subsequently fell to half the control value, however, and remained depressed for several hours despite local metabolic demands. This delayed imbalance in energy supply and demand creates a potential for additional brain damage that might be prevented by appropriate therapeutic intervention.


Analysis of the clinical problems in parkinsonism and the complications of long-term levodopa therapy.

We evaluated the current status of 131 patients with idiopathic parkinsonism who were receiving levodopa therapy. The residual parkinsonian symptoms and signs were tabulated, as were the adverse effects from medication. Response to therapy was correlated with duration of the disease and with duration of treatment. Patients with on-off or wearing-off effects were likely to have been treated for 4 years or longer. Patients treated with levodopa for 4 to 8 years were significantly more impaired with parkinsonism than patients treated for 0 to 3 years, even when patients were matched for total duration of disease. These data suggest that the deterioration of responsiveness after several years of levodopa therapy may be due to the therapy itself. Our findings support the concept that utilization of levodopa therapy should be delayed until a patient becomes significantly impaired in occupational or social situations.


Hemifacial spasm: clinical and electrophysiologic observations.

Twenty-three patients with hemifacial spasm were studied clinically and electrodiagnostically. Seven patients had mild facial weakness. All patients had clinical evidence of synkinesis, which often varied considerably. Facial nerve conduction and blink reflex latencies were normal. Facial synkinesis could be measured objectively on the involved side in all patients by simultaneously recording from the orbicularis oculi and orbicularis oris muscles at the time of supraorbital nerve stimulation. Using this procedure, synkinesis was also observed in association with aberrant regeneration after Bell palsy but was not seen in other movement disorders involving the face. The demonstration of synkinesis and its variability in hemifacial spasm can be of value in differentiating hemifacial spasm from other movement disorders affecting the face and provides further insight into its pathogenesis.


Cerebral atrophy, EEG slowing age, education, and cognitive functioning in suspected dementia.

Seventy-eight hospital patients, 50 years of age or older, were selected for suspected changes in mentation and for the absence of focal or other organic brain disease. They were studied in relation to education, age, cerebral atrophy (by computerized tomography), electroencephalographic (EEG) slowing, and performance in several neuropsychologic tests. Adequate test-retest reliability of the cognitive measures and interjudge reliability of the cerebral atrophy and EEG measures were demonstrated. Stepwise multiple regression analyses suggested the following: (1) EEG slowing is the strongest and most general pathologic influence on cognition in elderly persons without overt brain disease. (2) Cerebral atrophy independently affects primarily the verbal recall of recent and remote information. (3) Age independently affects primarily recent memory for both verbal and nonverbal material. (4) Formal education is a powerful influence that must be accounted for in all studies of the effects of age on cognition.


Enhancement of CNS penetration of methotrexate by hyperosmolar intracarotid mannitol or carcinomatous meningitis.

Intracarotid (i.c.) hyperosmolar mannitol enhances central nervous system (CNS) penetration of intravenous (i.v.) methotrexate (MTX) in normal adult rats. A fivefold augmentation in the CSF:serum and ipsilateral brain:serum MTX concentration ratios was observed 1 hour after drug administration. Intravenous mannitol had no such effect. Rats with meningeal carcinomatosis have a partial defect in blood-brain barrier function, and the CSF:serum MTX concentration ratio was 4.6 times higher in these animals than in normal rats prior to mannitol therapy. Intracarotid hyperosmolar mannitol further augmented the blood-brain barrier permeability to intravenous MTX. Intracarotid mannitol increased the therapeutic effect of MTX, since rats with meningeal carcinomatosis that received i.v. MTX and i.c. mannitol experienced a slight enhancement in survival.


Sleep apnea: treatment with protriptyline.

Fourteen patients with an average of more than 60 episodes of upper airway obstruction during night sleep were treated with a nonsedating tricyclic antidepressant, protriptyline. Frequency and duration of recorded apneas decreased in 11 cases, and satisfactory control of sleep apnea was maintained with medical therapy alone in 8 of these 11 patients for 7 to 15 months. Potential adverse effects of protriptyline, particularly on the cardiovascular system, limit its use in this illness. These results indicate the possibility of pharmacologic reversal of sleep-induced incoordination of the upper airway.


Extending neurologic services to rural children.

The University of Kentucky provides neurologic services to rural children by a traveling clinic. In 1978, 438 children (including 231 new patients) made 646 clinic visits. The primary diagnoses were appropriate for a neurology clinic; epilepsy was the most common (74 of 231) among new patients. A community survey of school-age children found the clinic serving 45 percent of "active epileptics." Clinic patients had a higher seizure frequency and came from a more disadvantaged background that nonclinic patients. These data show that an urban-based traveling clinic can identify and care for rural children with neurologic disorders.


The flexion-adduction sign in neuralgic amyotrophy.

In the "flexion-adduction" sign, the arm is maintained in a posture of flexion at the elbow and adduction at the shoulder. Abduction and lateral rotation of the arm, with the elbow in extension, may result in radicular pain. These signs may be useful in the evaluation of patients with cervical root or brachial plexus lesions.


Bilateral facial palsy associated with Stevens-Johnson syndrome.

A 22-year-old man developed acute bilateral peripheral facial paralysis in association with Stevens-Johnson syndrome, probably as a result of ampicillin allergy. All symptoms cleared except the facial paralysis. He is the first patient in whom acute facial palsy and Stevens-Johnson syndrome have occurred simultaneously.


Amplitude of the F wave: a potential means of documenting spasticity.

The amplitude of 32 averaged F responses (F32) recorded with surface electrodes was 1 percent of the amplitude of the M wave. The largest F response (Fmax) was 4.5 percent of the M wave. In spasticity, Fmax did not increase in amplitude but became more persistent, resulting in a significant increase of F32. There was a positive correlation between the amplitude of F32 and the M wave, and this relationship was abnormal in 60 percent of the studies of patients with spasticity.


Spatially oriented movements in the absence of proprioception.

Four patients, each with a cerebrovascular accident in a different arterial supply, had unilaterally impaired somatosensory function that included eficits in the perception of touch and proprioception. In spite of central nervous system lesions and absent proprioception, all patients accurately performed spatially oriented movements with the deafferented hand. These observations suggest that execution of certain motor programs can proceed effectively without peripheral feedback.


[Sensitivity of fragmented and stratified sea urchin embryos to cytotoxic neuropharmacological preparations].

The red half embryos and related quarter embryos (yolk and pigment) of Arbacia lixula, obtained by means of centrifugation of the eggs in sucrose gradient, retain the normal level of sensitivity and supersensitivity to cytotoxic neuropharmaca, antagonists of biogenic monoamines. The white half embryos and clear quarter embryos practically lack supersensitivity whereas the granular quarter embryos restore it to the initial level. The non-pigmented blastomers of stratified embryos are characterized by somewhat weakened supersensitivity. A suggestion is put forward that the supersensitive embryos of A. lixula possess a sensibilizing factor which couples the supersensitivity receptors with the processes of cell division and moves together with the yolk granules upon centrifugation. This factor is not observed in the Strongylocentrotus granularis embryos lacking evident supersensitivity.


Recurrent trichiasis: treatment with laser photocoagulation.

Treatment of recurrent trichiasis with argon laser photocoagulation is discussed. The laser cutting light is guided into the depths of the eyelid to cauterize the diseased follicles. Eight treated cases have been followed for over six months with satisfactory results.


Familial anterior and posterior lenticonus.

A pedigree showing anterior lenticonus, posterior lenticonus and deafness with sex-linked inheritance and the probable gene locus in the short-arm of X chromosome is described.


Eye movements associated with eye closure. I. Normal subjects.

Eye movements associated with eye closure were studied in 36 normal adults, and they were recorded by DC amplifiers of ENG. (1) Eyes moved 64 +/- 17 degrees upward and were adducted 15 +/- 7 degrees when eyes were closed. (2) The vertical eye position was held upwards in 33 persons and slightly turned down in 3 persons. (3) The superior rectus and inferior oblique muscles worked together during eye closure.


Eye movements associated with eye closure. II. Down turning of eye ball elevation.

DC recordings of horizontal and vertical eye movements of various neurological patients were made in an attempt to specify the mechanism underlying sustained eye ball elevation associated with eye closure. Sudden or gradual down turning of vertical eye ball elevation was seen in the following groups: (1) acute stage of inner ear hypo- or afunction; (2) lateral lesions of the cerebellum; (3) acute stage of cerebellar inflammation, and (4) some cases of cerebral lesions. The following pathway seems to be the simplest which would account for these findings: anterior semicircular canal leads to superior vestibular nucleus leads to brachium conjunctivum leads to oculomotor nucleus leads to superior rectus muscle (ipsilateral) and inferior oblique muscle (contralateral).


Allergy in otorhinolaryngology.

The authors discuss briefly the definition of allergy. Then step by step all the stages of a thorough allergic examination of patients with mainly ENT complaints are described with special emphasis on: history, ENT examination, routine laboratory tests (total eosinophil count, nasal smear, skin tests, RIST, RAST) and nose challenge tests. The results of these investigations allow the authors to propose a useful scheme in allergic diagnosis. Finally the therapeutic possibilities in allergic rhinopathy are discussed.


Treatment of postinflammatory acquired atresia of the external auditory canal.

In 11 patients postinflammatory acquired atresia of the auditory canal, 7-15 mm thick, was excised, the drum and auditory canal covered with a Thiersch graft alone or by fascia and a Thiersch graft. 2.5-5 years after the operation there was no case of recurrence of the atresia. The functional result was most favourable in cases with atresia of minor thickness. Early operation is recommended, especially as cholesteatoma was found behind the atresia in 2 patients.


Myasthenia gravis: the effect of Tensilon on the caloric nystagmus response. Photoelectronystagmographic study.

The nystagmus response evoked by thermic vestibular stimulation on 25 patients with myasthenia gravis and on 10 control persons was investigated using the photoelectronystagmographic method before and after administration of Tensilon. On the basis of 19 nystagmograms (capable of being evaluated) it was found that the test is of diagnostic value when combined with abstinence from drugs, furthermore, it may indicate under- or overtreatment of patients taking drugs. Excluding the drug-resistant, "burned out" cases, a certain correlation may be observed between the magnitude of the reaction evoked by Tensilon and the severity of the clinical condition independent from the existence of ocular symptoms. The advantage of the test, apart from being numerically measurable, is that it can be repeated because of its non-invasive nature causing no physical burden to the patient. Its disadvantage is that it cannot be applied in cases with a pre-existent difference in vestibular tonus - 20% in the material tested.


A study on dermatoses due to tonsillar focal infection using a nation-wide questionnaire in Japan.

The relation of the infected to nephritis, rheumatic and heart diseases has been recognized but that to dermatoses has not been fully established nor applied clinically by dermatogists or otolaryngologists in the treatment of such patients. In order to assess to attitude of dermatologists as regards the dermatoses due to focal tonsillar infection, a questionnaire was sent to the departments of dermatology of 72 universities in Japan: 44 (61.1%) have replied. There were 40 dermatoses listed as possibly associated with a focal infection. About 60% of the universities endeavoured to detect the focus although the focus was not always removed when identified.


Diagnostic ultrasonography in paranasal sinus diseases. A 5-year review.

Ultrasonography is a useful diagnostic tool in the evaluation of patients with paranasal sinus disease. It is a simple, reliable method with a failure rate of approximately 10%. The increasing use of this diagnostic tool requires the reemphasis and prevention of possible errors in establishing the correct diagnosis.


Effects of denervation on resting membrane and action potentials of neonate rat fast and slow twitch muscles.

During the first 20 days postpartum of the rat, a period of rapid muscle growth, resting potentials and maximum rate of rise and overshoot of action potentials recorded from fast and slow twitch muscle fibres all increased, although did not reach adult values. The action potential of fast twitch muscle fibres had a greater maximum rate of rise and overshoot than that of slow twitch muscle fibres of the same age. Innervation had a marked influence upon maintenance of the electrical properties of muscle fibres in the neonate since denervation reduced the value of the resting potential and maximum rate of rise and overshoot of the action potential. Neverthless, some differences between action potentials recorded from the two fibre types remained 4 days after denervation.


Model experiments on the effect of bifurcations on capillary blood flow and oxygen transport.

O2-delivery by a single capillary is a function of the flow rate and the fraction of flow made up of red blood cells. Capillary flow rate in turn depends upon flow resistance which is determined by the fraction of capillary volume occupied by red blood cells. Experiments were carried out to study the relationship between these parameters in an in vitro model consisting of glass capillaries (I.D. 3.3--11.0 micrometer) branching from a large bore feeding channel which was perfused at variable flow rates with suspensions of human red cells with different hematocrits. Capillary flow rates ranged from 0--10(-4) mm3s-1. The results indicate that the red cell flow fraction increases with increasing capillary flow rate and with decreasing feeding vessel flow rate. Capillary volume fraction occupied by red cells similarly depends on these two parameters, but is consistently lower than the red cell flow fraction. Capillary flow resistance increases with flow rate due to increasing volume fraction of cells. If the results obtained with the model system are applicable to in vivo capillaries it must be concluded that O2-delivery by a single capillary is not linearly related to flow rate but increases more than proportionately with flow rate. Due to alteration of resistance with flow rate another type of "autoregulation" of capillary flow is proposed which tends to keep flow rate constant despite changes of driving pressure.


Exocrine ductal pCO2 in the rabbit pancreas.

An improved pCO2 microelectrode has been evaluated and used to investigate whether a significant barrier to diffusion of CO2 exists in the rabbit pancreas. The results of this study show the improved Carter and Caflisch pCO2 microelectrode to be an accurate and reliable tool for measuring pancreatic venous and ductal pCO2. The similarities between pCO2 values from the pancreatic ducts and small pancreatic veins suggest that there is no barrier to CO2 diffusion between small veins and exocrine ducts in the rabbit pancreas, and that ductal pCO2 is probably strongly influenced by the CO2 tension of the small pancreatic blood vessels.


The effect of various stimulated altitudes on the turnover of norepinephrine and dopamine in the central nervous system of rats.

The elimination rate constant, half-life and turnover time of dopamine (DA) and norepinephrine (NE) were determined, after inhibiting their biosynthesis by alpha-methyl-para-tyrosine (alpha MT), in the hypothalamus, striatum and the remainder of the brain of rats exposed to different degrees of hypobaric hypoxia, corresponding to altitudes of 1,800, 3,800, 5,200 and 7,000 meters. The effects varied as a function of the degree of hypoxia and the brain region studied. The turnover time of NE in the hypothalamus remained unchanged, regardless of the altitude, while in the rest of the brain the rate constant of neurotransmitter elimination decreased inversely as a linear function of the degree of hypoxia. On the contrary, the changes of the DA turnover time in the striatum and the rest of the brain, were biphasic, being accelerated by moderate altitudes (1,800 m) and retarded by the two highest simulated altitudes studied as a function of hypoxia. The differential effects of hypoxia on NE and DA turnovers are attributed to different sensitivities of the respective enzyme systems.


Time course of the enhanced blood pressure response to reinduction of renal artery stenosis in unclipped renal hypertensive rats.

Moderate or severe hypertension was induced in rats by application of a clip 0.25 or 0.20 mm internal diameter) to the left renal artery leaving the contralateral kidney intact. Removal of the clip 6, 13 or 24 days after the induction of the hypertension was followed by a rapid decrease in blood pressure. A near normotensive level was reached after 2--6 h. Reapplication of the clip to the unclipped renal artery after 1 day caused an enhanced blood pressure response. The preoperative hypertensive levels were reached within 2 h. This enhanced response was related to the level of blood pressure before the removal of the clip. Lengthening the interval between removal and reapplication of the clip gradually reduced the enhanced response of blood pressure, which had disappeared 8 days after the removal of the clip. Reapplication of the clip to the contralateral renal artery was not followed by an enhanced response in rats with previous moderate or severe hypertension.


The influence of the surface electrogram on the rising phase of the mammalian cardiac action potential.

1. When guinea pig cardiac tissue is stimulated, the rising phase of the action potential is influenced by the shape of the concomitant local surface electrogram. This, in turn, depends on the direction of the wave of excitation passing the recording microelectrode. 2. A symmetrical biphasic surface electrogram yields sigmoid upstrokes with masimum upstroke velocity (Vmax) lower than when it is either zero or uniphasic and negative. 3. When the main direction of the depolarization wave in guinea pig ventricular myocardium is receding from the recording microelectrode, giving rise to negative uniphasic extracellular potentials, a notch might distort the registration of the rising phase of the action potential. 4. When the main direction of the depolarization wave is approaching the recording microelectrode, giving rise to positive uniphasic extracellular potentials, Vmax is transferred to less negative membrane potentials. 5. The extracellular surface electrogram influences the overshoot of the action potentials of the normal atrial and depressed (D-600) ventricular myocardium and is changed, depending on how the wave of excitation passes the recording microelectrode.


A micropuncture study of the renal handling of lithium.

Although clearance studies in man and experimental animals indicate that filtered lithium is reabsorbed primarily in the proximal tubule, it is unclear whether lithium is also reabsorbed in distal portions of the nephron. Micropuncture studies were, therefore, performed to determine the nephron sites involved in lithium transport during free flow. A method was established to estimate the concentration of lithium in nanoliter samples, using the Helium Glow photometer, which permitted the accurate measurement of lithium in tubular fluid samples over a range from 0.5--30.0 mM. Approximately 56% of filtered lithium and tubular fluid was reabsorbed at the end of the proximal convolution, while at the early distal tubule 75% of filtered lithium and water was reabsorbed. There was no change in net transepithelial movement of lithium beyond the loop of Henle. These data suggest that lithium transport is localized to the proximal tubule, including the pars recta. Lithium reabsorption does not occur in distal tubule or collecting duct. Beyond the early distal tubule net movement of lithium and sodium is dissociated.


Action potentials can propagate along small strands of smooth muscle.

Bundles of taenia coli muscle as small as 25 micrometers in diameter were dissected from guinea pigs and incubated in an organ culture media for several days. We found that use of an organ-culture bathing solution greatly extended the in vitro responsiveness as well as survival of such small bundles. Electronmicrographs showed that surviving strands of cells constituted only a very small fraction of the cross section of these bundles. Nonetheless, still they supported propagating nondecrementing action potentials. This means that in some cases strands, only a few cells in cross section, supported propagating action potentials. The long length constant and parallel orientation of cells provide a basis assuming cells act as parallel core conductor segments. For these reasons we have called into question the notion that for propagation to occur there must be a facilitating cooperation between large numbers of smooth muscle cells in parallel. Indeed we suggest that the limiting size for propagation is a strand of single cells.


Lifelong variations in heart rates in SPF Sprague Dawley rats of both sexes. Statistical correlations with body weights.

In unanesthetized Sprague Dawleys, SPF, of both sexes, housed in DL12:12 (100lux), at a temperature of 18--23 degrees C and a hygrometry of 60--75%, the measurements of heart frequencies during most part of their life point out a continuous decrease with age and an always higher (40--20 c.min-1) heart rate in females than in males. Significant correlations between heart rate and body weight can account for these heart rates variations. Between the ages of 72 and 589 days, which corresponds to the growth period, a linear relationship was established between Log heart rate (y; c. min-1) and Log body weight (x; gram); for males: Log y = 0.122 Log X +Log 938 and for females: Log y = -0.166 Log X + Log 1217. After the age of 600 days, which corresponds to senescence, decreases in heart rate as well as in body weight were observed in both sexes.


Cold-sensitive afferents from the abdomen.

In cats afferent impulses from splanchnic and vagus nerve preparations were studied. In each splanchnic nerve serving the stomach or the adjacent part of the duodenum, cold-sensitive afferents could be recorded. There were also numerous mechanosensitive fibers originating from stomach, intestine, mesentery and the region of blood vessels. No thermal afferents were found in the vagus nerve. The cardiovascular and respiratory myelinated afferents were insensitive to thermal stimuli.


Computerised image analysis of split-drop micropuncture data.

A technique is described for rapid and reproducible analysis of split-drop micropuncture sequences recorded on film. Automatic identification of the droplet menisci in each cine frame, and subsequent evaluation is performed by a computerised T.V. image analysis system. In comparison with a more conventional technique, the improvement in reproducibility of the analysis is achieved without loss of accuracy and is accompanied by a three fold increase in speed.


The role of the vagus nerves in the ventilatory response to lowered PaO2 with intact and eliminated carotid chemoreflexes.

In anaesthetized rabbits the influence of vagal cold-block on the ventilatory response to lowered arterial oxygen pressure was investigated. With intact carotid chemoreflexes, lowered PaO2 caused hyperventilation, which was progressively intensified with the degree of hypoxia, regardless of whether the alveolar PCO2 was uncontrolled or kept constant at the hyperoxic control. The V-PaO2 response was to a greater extent due to an increase of respiratory rate than to one of tidal volume. During hyperoxia, vagal cold-block caused a distinct increase in ventilation provided the alveolar PCO2 was not allowed to decrease. During moderate hypoxia, vagal block caused only a slight increase in ventilation, when PACO2 was not controlled, but a distinct decrease in ventilation, when PACO2 was maintained at the hyperoxic level. Without carotid chemoreflexes, lowered PaO2 did not change ventilation at any level, provided the vagus nerves were left intact. This was due to a substantial increase in respiratory rate counteracting a corresponding decrease in tidal volume. Then vagal block led to a ventilatory depression depending on the degree of hypoxia, which was due to a simultaneous decline in respiratory rate and tidal volume. It is concluded that during hypocapnic hypoxia the vagal stretch reflex primarily inhibits the carotid chemoreflex drive of ventilation. During normocapnic hypoxia, however, the mode of interaction between the peripheral and the central chemical drive has to be considered, which without vagal feed-back is occlusive. This occlusion appears to be counteracted by a vagal mechanism sensitive to CO2 in the airways--and possibly also to a lack of O2--, mainly shortening respiratory cycle duration.


Computer program for intestinal spike bursts recognition.

A FORTRAN program has been developed for locating intestinal spike bursts and for estimating their strength. Tested against human scanning, the reliability rate was 92% and the misrecognition rate was 2.5%. This program was applied to the automatisation of the Migrating Myoelectric Complex analysis. A first method computed the percentage of Basic Electrical Rhythm (BER) cycles with superimposed spike bursts. A second one was based on the evaluation of spike bursts strength.


Volumetric assessment of the capillary filtration coefficient in the cat small intestine.

The capillary filtration coefficient of the cat small intestine was measured in four ways; the conventional measurement was compared with the "zero time extrapolation" technique, and with two methods designed to assess the end of the blood volume shift due to venous pressure elevation. If the capillary filtration coefficient (CFC) was determined using small elevations of venous pressure (10 mm Hg or less), there was good agreement between the techniques. Larger elevations of venous pressure resulted in apparent over-estimates of CFC measured by the conventional technique, probably because of increased "smearing" of the blood volume shift into the component of the response measured as the CFC. In general, larger elevations of venous pressure gave smaller CFC's, and using venous pressure elevations of 10 mm Hg or less, the CFC was greater if the final elevated venous pressure was 10 mm Hg than if it was 20 or 30 mm Hg. Changes in CFC due to noradrenaline and isoprenaline (about 15 ng/ml arterial blood concentration) were in agreement when small venous pressure elevations were used and CFC measured in three different ways.


Cerebral potentials during smooth goal-directed hand movements in right-handed and left-handed subjects.

During smooth goal-directed hand movements a negative potential shift can be recorded from the human scalp. This goal-directed movement potential (GDMP) is preponderant over central areas with a maximum at the vertex and, over the motor cortex, contralaterally larger than ipsilaterally to the moving hand. In 11 right-handed and 6 left-handed subjects, the morphology and distribution of these potential shifts were studied in relation to task differences, moving hand and handedness. The results show a functional differentiation of two components of the GDMP: (1), a lateralized, slow negative wave, restricted to the precentral area and selectively varying with the hand used, and (2), a widespread, bilateral symmetrical component, selectively influenced by task-specific and individual factors. Two effects reflect an influence of the subject's handedness on the GDMP: (A) averaged for both hand conditions, there are larger amplitudes over the hemisphere contralateral to the dominant hand, and (b), averaged for both hemispheres, larger amplitudes result from using the non-dominant hand.


Initiation of muscle activity in spinalized pigeons during spinal cord cooling and warming.

1. The effect of spinal cord temperature changes on muscle activity was investigated in unanaesthetized intact and chronically spinalized pigeons and in acutely spinalized pigeons which were artifically respirated and lightly anaesthetized with ether. 2. Spinal cord cooling regularly produced an increase in muscle activity and visible muscle tremor in intact and spinalized pigeons. This motor cold defence reaction was less intensive in spinalized animals, but was qualitatively identical in all groups with regard to spindle shaped firing patterns and grouped discharges. 3. Intravenous injection of 60-100 mg/kg L-Dopa enhanced the motor response to spinal cord cooling in acutely spinalized pigeons. It is suggested that L-Dopa may act on dopaminergic or noradrenergic neurones in the spinal cord. 4. The results demonstrate that the generation of the motor cold defence response to cooling of the spinal cord in pigeons is basically independent from supra-spinal nervous mechanisms. The decreased intensity of cold induced muscle activity in spinalized animals may be attributed to the loss of excitatory or disinhibitory descending inputs to the spinal cord. 5. Spinal cord warming above normal body temperature (41.5 degrees C) produced an increase in muscle activity and slow muscle movements. The pattern was qualitatively different from that of the cold induced tremor.


Characterization of Ca2+- and Sr2+-activated tension in functionally skinned chicken fibers of normal and dystrophic skeletal and normal cardiac muscle.

The Ca2+ and Sr2+ activation of tension in functionally skinned chicken fibers of normal and dystrophic skeletal and normal cardiac muscle were studied. The muscles studied can be separated into two groups based upon their Ca2+ and Sr2+ sensitivities: those which are significantly more sensitive to Ca2+ than to Sr2+, pectoralis and posterior latissimus dorsi (PLD), and those which show no Ca2+/Sr2+ sensitivity difference, cardiac and anterior latissimus dorsi (ALD). This suggests that there is more than one type of Ca2+ site involved in Ca2+ control of muscle contraction in different muscle types and suggests that ALD and cardiac muscle may be controlled by a different type of binding site than PLD and pectoralis muscle. Dystrophic ALD and PLD muscles showed little change in their Ca2+ and Sr2+ sensitivities from those of normal muscles in contrast to the pectoralis which showed a decrease in both Ca2+ and Sr2+ sensitivity (approaching that of PLD) with the onset of dystrophy. Similarly, upon SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, dystrophic ALD and PLD muscles showed no difference in contractile proteins from those of normal muscles, in contrast to pectoralis muscle where the appearance of a 36,000 dalton protein band correlated with the onset of dystrophy and the changes in the Ca2+/Sr2+ activation properties of this muscle. The contractile protein band pattern of normal and dystrophic PLD and dystrophic pectoralis muscle were similar including the presence of the 36,000 dalton protein.


Activation of contraction of arterial smooth muscle in the presence of nitrate and other anions.

Contraction strength was measured in ear artery and aorta of the rabbit and coronary artery of the pig during replacement of chloride with anions of the lyotrophic series. Contractions induced by depolarization with elevated external potassium were potentiated in the presence of foreign anions, while those induced by noradrenaline were affected only at higher concentrations of the drug. Drug induced contractions in calcium-free solutions were not affected by the anions. In the presence of nitrate and excess K the change of membrane potential per tenfold change in (K)o was 56mV in chloride and 50 mV in nitrate solution. Enhancement of contraction strength by nitrate was not associated with alterations in membrane potential. Stimulation of aorta with 29.5 mM K resulted in a larger net uptake of 45Ca in nitrate than in chloride. K-stimulated 45Ca efflux was greater in the ear artery in NO3 solution than Cl solution while 45Ca efflux induced by noradrenaline was not effected by anion replacement. These results suggest that in these arteries anions potentiate contraction by enhancing the influx of external calcium, and do not modify the release of internal stores of calcium.


The role of intrinsic, non-adrenergic, non-cholinergic inhibitory nerves in the regulation of distensibility of the guinea-pig colon.

1. The lengthening responses of segments of distal colon of guinea-pigs to applied weights were measured. 2. Distensibility was reduced by tetrodotoxin and quinidine; increased by atropine and hyoscine, and unaffected by guanethidine and phentolamine. 3. Tension changes produced by controlled stretches were increased by tetrodotoxin. 4. These results suggest that there is a net, inhibitory, non-adrenergic, non-cholinergic influence acting on the muscle during stretch against a background of cholinergic excitatory tone. This inhibitory activity may be activated reflexly by stretch.


Lack of effect of ouabain on sodium transport across the rat placenta.

The umbilical vascular bed of the rat placenta was perfused in situ. Ouabain (10(-4)M) in the perfusion fluid had no effect on the unidirectional flux of Na+ from the maternal (electrically negative) to the foetal (electrically positive) side of the placenta, or on the transplacental potential difference. This was taken to indicate that there is no significant active transport of Na+ across the placenta of the rat.


Stimulation of proximal tubular sodium reabsorption by ile5 angiotensin II in the rat kidney.

A direct dose-dependent stimulation or inhibition by val5-angiotensin II of sodium reabsorption in the rat proximal nephron has been shown using stationary microperfusion combined with perfusion of the peritubular capilaries. Since the circulating form of the hormone in the rat has been suggested to be the ile5-analogue these experiments have been repeated using the ile5-peptide at peritubular concentrations covering the normal physiological range (10-10 -10-13M). Comparison of the results with the previously published data shows no significant difference between the actions of these two analogues. At the concentrations tested both caused significant stimulation of sodium reabsorption with a maximum effect at 10(-11)M.


A multiple regression model for blood lactate removal in man.

After exercise the lactate (La) removal from blood occurs significantly faster during moderate exercise than at rest. However, under both conditions there are considerable inter-individual differences in La removal. These differences in man may depend on the slow-twitch (ST) fiber content of muscle (X1), the La concentration in blood (X2), and the intensity of the recovery exercise (X3). Therefore, multiple regression models were obtained to describe La removal rates with these variables. In 10 women La concentrations were increased via a 6 min bicycle ergometer ride (87% VO2max) and blood La concentrations were measured every 5 min during 20 min resting and active recovery periods (29--49% VO2max). For resting recovery only the initial La concentration after the 6 min exercise provided a significant description for La removal in 8 subjects (P = 0.03). However, for the active recovery a highly significant description for La removal was obtained: La removal rate (mM/1 . min) = 0.773 x 10-2X1 + 0.321 x 10-1X2 - 0.120 x 10-1X3 + 0.202 (R = 0.91; P = 0.01). The statistical independence (P greater than 0.010) of each of these variables in the model suggests that each is contributing uniquely to the total removal rate of La observed during an active recovery period. The relationship between La removal and %ST fibers may be related to the metabolic and anatomical features of these fibers, the La concentration probably reflects the significance of the mass action effect of La, and the intensity of exercise reflects the role of the muscle's metabolic rate. The present results illustrate that the removal of blood lactate is influenced by the interactive effects of the intensity of the recovery exercise, blood lactate concentration and the ST fiber content of muscle.


Regulation of myocardial oxygen consumption by perfusion pressure in isolated fibrillating canine heart.

In order to evaluate whether perfusion pressure or coronary flow affect myocardial oxygen metabolism, oxygen consumption of the isolated fibrillating blood-perfused canine heart was investigated at perfusion pressures of 100, 150, and 200 mm Hg. To obtain different coronary flow rates at a given coronary perfusion pressure, alpha-adrenergic blockade by phenoxybenzamine (10 mg/kg b.w.) was applied, resulting in an increase in coronary flow and a decrease in myocardial oxygen extration. Myocardial oxygen consumption was increased by elevation of perfusion pressure in both the control and phenoxybenzamine-pretreated group. At the same level of perfusion pressure there was no significant difference between the oxygen consumption of control and phenoxybenzamine-pretreated preparations. It can be concluded that in the isolated fibrillating canine heart oxygen consumption is primarily regulated by perfusion pressure, and is independent from coronary blood flow.


Cyclic and non-cyclic variations of spinal cord temperature related with temperature regulation in pigeons.

1. The temperature of the spinal cord (Tvc) was measured in unanaesthetized pigeons at different ambient temperatures (Ta). 2. In short-term experiments spontaneous or noncyclic variations of Tvc at constant (20 and 10 degrees C) and changing Ta were correlated with the amplitude of the electromyogram EMG) which indicates shivering, i.e., heat production. At constant Ta no unequivocal correlation between Tvc (and also Tskin) and EMG was found. During ambient cooling there was often an increase of Tvc which resulted in a positive correlation whereas there was a negative correlation to Tskin. 3. In long-term experiments (24h, LD 12:12Y cyclic variations of Tvc were measured at different Ta and ocrrelated with O2-consumption, i.e., heat production. As with body temperature Tvc was lowered during the dark phase of the diurnal cycle. In the light phase both Tvc and heat production increased with decreasing Ta which results in a positive correlation. In the dark phase there was a smaller increase in heat production but a decrease in Tvc, i.e., a negative correlation. 4. The results show that natural variations of Tvc are often positively ocrrelated with heat production. This is in contrast to experimental changes of Tvc where a clear negative correlation to heat production can be observed.


Separate determination of the pulsatile elastic and viscous forces developed in the arterial wall in vivo.

The viscoelastic behaviour of arteries in vivo is analyzed by separate representation of the purely elastic and the purely viscous properties, using natural pressure and diameter pulses of various dog arteries recorded under steady-state conditions. The circumferential wall stress (sigma) and the radius (r) of the mean wall layer are calculated as functions of time and the hysteresis of the sigma-r diagram is represented. The stress is regarded as the sum of an elastic stress (sigma el) which is a function of r, and a viscous stress (sigma vis) which is a function of dr/dt. Thus sigma el = sigma - sigma vis. Since the sigma el-r diagram must be free from hysteresis, the disappearance of the loop is the criterion that indicates that sigma el has been found. sigma vis is formulated as a second degree polynomial of dr/dt whose coefficients are determined using that criterion. The sigma el-r curve is always nonlinear and the elastic modulus increases with increasing radius. The sigma vis-dr/dt curve, too, is nonlinear. Its slope decreases with increasing dr/dt. The same applies to the wall viscosity (pseudoplastic behaviour). The nonlinear properties can be represented adequately by processing the experimental data in the time domain. Problems inherent in investigations based on the frequency domain, as reported in the literature, are pointed out.


Thermoregulation in the diabetic-obese (db/db) mouse. The role of non-shivering thermogenesis in energy balance.

1. Thermoregulation and non-shivering thermogenesis have been studied in the genetically diabetic obese (db/db) mouse. 2. At all environmental temperatures between 33 and 10 degrees C the body temperature of the diabetic mice was lower than that of the normal littermates, the difference varying from 1.1 degrees C at 33 degrees C to 4.5 degrees C at 10 degrees C. 3. At 4 degrees C the diabetic mice rapidly died (3.2h) of hypothermia while the normal mice maintained their body temperature within the normal range. 4. At 23 degrees C the diabetic animals exhibited a diurnal rhythm in body temperature which was similar in both phase and amplitude to the controls, but at every point throughout the 24h cycle the temperature of the mutants was lower by 1--2 degrees C. 5. The resting metabolic rate at thermoneutrality (33 degrees C) was higher per whole animal for the diabetics than for the normals. However, at temperatures below thermoneutrality the converse was observed; between 30 and 4 degrees C the RMR of the mutants was lower than the controls by approximately 25%. 6. The capacity for non-shivering thermogenesis in diabetic mice was only one-half that found in normal animals. 7. The diabetic mouse has abnormalities in thermoregulation and non-shivering thermogenesis which are similar to those found in the genetically obese (ob/ob) mouse. It is concluded that the high metabolic efficiency of the diabetic mouse, like that of the ob/ob mouse, can be explained by a reduced energy expenditure on thermoregulatory thermogenesis; this may represent a primary mechanism for the operation of the "thirfty genotype" associated with obesity and diabetes.


The early phase of experimental acute renal failure. V. The influence of suppressing the renin-angiotensin system.

Experiments were conducted to determine whether suppression of the renin-angiotensin-system and inhibition of the tubuloglomerular feedback response offer protection from acute renal failure, as found in chronically-salt loaded animals. The juxtaglomerular renin activity and tubuloglomerular feedback response were inhibited acutely, by saline expansion, or chronically, by DOCA-treatment with saline drinking fluid or salt diet, by high salt diet alone, or by inducing two-kidney Goldblatt hypertension. The chronic pretreatment procedures depressed juxtaglomerular renin to 16, 7, 13 and 4% of control, respectively, inhibited the feedback response to 53, 37, 56, and 38% of control, respectively, but conferred no benefit in the first hours following a nephrotoxin or ischaemia. In contrast, the acute treatment procedure reduced juxtaglomerular renin activity to only 56% and lowered the feedback response to only 71%, but improved renal function after the nephrotoxin, although not after ischaemia. It is concluded that since severe restrictions of renin activity and tubuloglomerular feedback are not protective, neither is primarily involved in generating the functional restrictions early in acute renal failure. The restoration of renal function by saline expansion accompanied only a modest depression of these two systems and suggests that the beneficial effect may result more from volume expansion or diuresis than from suppression of renal renin or inhibition of tubuloglomerular feedback.


Functional and metabolic features of an isolated perfused guinea pig heart performing pressure-volume work.

Cardiac performance and some parameters of glycolytic and oxidative metabolism were analyzed in isolated perfused guinea pig hearts performing pressure-volume work. Perfusion medium was an oxygenated Krebs-Henseleit bicarbonate buffer (pH 7.4) which contained glucose and physiological concentrations of pyruvate and insulin. The pressure-flow relationship in the coronary vascular bed indicated autoregulation of coronary flow. Left ventricular function was influenced by aortic pressure (Pa) and venous filling pressure (Pv) in accordance with the Frank-Starling principle, i.e. stroke work increased as a function of Pa or Pv to a certain maximum and then decreased. Myocardial oxygen consumption (MVO2), on the other hand, was linearly correlated with Pa and Pv, respectively, over the entire pressure range. Efficiency of the left ventricle, therefore, increased to an optimum (16%) and decreased at higher pressures. Myocardial contents of glycogen, ATP and creatine phosphate were not markedly influenced by a change in Pa or Pv. L-Noradrenaline (0.08 micrometer, NA) stimulated stroke work and MVO2 at a all Pv tested; efficiencies reached physiologic values (21%) at high volume loads. The increased MVO2 was associated with an acceleration of pyruvate decarboxylation and lactate release up to 10- and 15-fold, respectively, at elevated but physiological NA concentrations (0.2 micrometer). Our results demonstrate that the isolated perfused working guinea pig heart compares favourably with the non-failing Starling heart-lung preparation and hearts in situ, as far as coronary function, left ventricular performance and oxidative metabolism are concerned.


Direct visualization of cell to cell coupling: transfer of fluorescent probes in living mammalian pancreatic acini.

A technique whereby it is possible directly to observe the movement of organic molecules from cell to cell in living mammalian exocrine glands is described. Thin translucent segments of mouse pancreas are mounted in a superfusion bath. Fluorescent probes are injected intracellularly via fine micropipettes and fluorescence observed. Both fluorescein (mol. wt. 332) and procion yellow (mol. wt. 697) are shown to be transferred from the injection cell to neighbouring acinar cells. This shows directly the existence of intercellular communicating pathways.


Production of elastic electrodes for nerve stimulation.

For better evoking and monitoring electrical activities of visceral nerves, a elastic electrode made of conductive plastic and silicone gum is developed.


Pyometra in the dog. II.--A pathophysiological investigation. II. Anamnestic, clinical and reproductive aspects.

The article deals with the anamnesis and clinical status of pyometra patients at the time of admission for treatment. The average age of 119 pyometra bitches was 7.8 years. About 80 patients were examined for clinical signs of dehydration and hypoperfusion. Such signs were present in up to 80% of the patients, although only about 1/3 seemed weak and in a poor condition. Previous treatment with oral gestagens did not seem to influence the pyometra incidence. However, 14% of the bitches had been given oestrogens (stillbestrol) during the pyometra-associated season.


Cloning of human satellite III DNA: different components are on different chromosomes.

Two fragments cloned from purified human satellite III DNA do not cross-react with each other. One fragment, for which a partial sequence is reported, hybridises to satellite II as well as III and is shown to originate on chromosome 1. The other cloned fragment originates from the Y chromosome. This fragment has undergone considerable changes in size when cloned in lambda gt WES lambda B. Human satellite III is shown to consist of a number of non-cross-reacting sequences which nevertheless are related by the presence of closely spaced Hin F1 sites.


Functional development of dopamine receptors in the rat forebrain.

Dopamine (DA) was injected unilaterally into the dorsal caudate-putamen (D-CPU), ventral caudate-putamen (V-CPU), piriform cortex (PIR), olfactory tubercle (OTU) and frontal cortex (FC) of two day old rats and rotational behavior observed. Injection of DA into D-CPU, PIR, and OTU produced a contralateral postural deviation which differed significantly from the ipsilateral deviation produced by control injections. Only DA injections into PIR and OTU produced contralateral turning differing significantly from the effects of control injections. These results suggest that the DA receptors in C-CPU, PIR, and OTU involved in rotational behavior are functionally mature at two days of age and that the two components of rotation, postural deviation (direction) and turning (locomotion), involve different neural systems at this age. The developing rat is suggested as a valuable tool for understanding the neural circuitry and pharmacology of rotational behavior.


The effect of baclofen and aminooxyacetic acid on the action of drugs stimulating the dopaminergic system.

Baclofen and aminooxyacetic acid (AOAA) depressed the explorative and locomotor activity in rats. Baclofen, but not AOAA, decreased the locomotor stimulation, produced by apomorphine. Both compounds did not affect hyperactivity, induced by D, L-amphetamine, amantadine and methylphenidate. Neither baclofen nor AOAA influenced stereotypy induced by the above four substances.


Effects of neonatal lead exposure on apomorphine-induced aggression and stereotypy in the rat.

Rats were exposed to lead via the maternal milk. At 90 days of age, lead-exposed pairs and control pairs were tested for aggression induced by 5.0 mg/kg apomorphine. The large increase in aggression in response to apomorphine seen in controls was markedly attenuated in lead-treated subjects. In contrast, apomorphine-induced stereotypy was not affected. These results provide a further demonstration of persistent behavioral abnormalities resulting from early exposure to lead at levels which do not affect weight gain or mortality.


Synthesis of hexahydro-1,4-thiazepine derivatives with expected pharmacological activity. Part I. N-alkyl(hydroxyalkyl)-hexahydro-1,4-thiazepines and 2-(hexahydro-1,4-thiazepinyl)-ethyl esters of phenoxyacetic acids.

New N-alkyl or N-hydroxyalkyl derivatives of hexahydro-1,4-thiazepine(compounds 1--6, Table 2) were obtained by condensation of 2-chloroethyl-3-chloropropyl sulfide with appropriate primary amines. Estrification of 2-hydroxyethylhexahydro-1,4-thiazepine by chloride of appropriate phenoxyacetic acids yielded 2-(hexahydro-1,4-thiazepinyl)-ethyl esters of phenoxyacetic acids (compounds 7--12, Table 4).


[Oxidative metabolism of main and accessory olfactory bulbs, limpic system and hypothalamus during the estral cycle of the rat (author's transl)].

The in vitro oxidative metabolism of hypothalamus, olfactory and limbic systems from female rats in the estrous cycle have been measured. The accessory olfactory bulb becomes most active during diestrous when the hypothalamus reaches its lowest values.


[Blockade of the pheromonal effects in rat by central deafferentation of the accessory olfactory system].

Female rats reared without sex odours from male rats have a five day stral cycle. With exposure to male odour the estral cycle is shortened from five to four days. This pheromonal effect is blocked on deafferenting the vomeronasal system by electrolytically damaging both accessory olfactory bulbs.


Intestinal brush border enzymes and chronic alcohol ingestion.

The effect of graded (5, 10, 20, and 50%) chronic ethanol administration on the intestinal brush border enzymic activities has been investigated in the rat at three levels of the intestinal tract (duodenum, jejunum, ileum). Ethanol has been administered for 8, 15, 30, and 90 days. A 30% to 50% decrease of sucrase and alkaline phosphatase results, showing that the effect of alcohol appears in the first 8 days of intoxication is not reversible after 8 days of an alcohol-free diet. The effect of ethanol is not limited to disaccharidases. Impairment of alkaline phosphatase, peptidases and also enterokinases is observed. The decrease is more marked in the duodenum and jujunum than the ileum. The decrease of enzymic activity is generally maximal after 30 days of intoxication. There is then little further deterioration or even significant improvement. At the 30th day of ethanol administration, a clearcut dose-response relationship has been established. The results obtained suggest that ethanol exerts an effect on the intestinal mucosa which is not directly correlated to morphological villus changes.


[Recognition of onomatopoeias and animal cries during focalized lesions of the cerebral cortex (author's transl)].

The recognition of animal cries and their onomatopoeias was compared during the course of right or left unilateral cortical lesions. A double dissociation is noted; in left-sided affections there is a more severe deficiency to onomatopoeia than to cries, whereas in right-sided lesions the quality of the performances is reversed. These results suggest that the right hemisphere is dominant in the auditive recognition of familiar sounds, and supply information as to the linguistic value of onomatopoeias.


Long-term analgesic effects of inescapable shock and learned helplessness.

Although exposure to inescapable shocks induced analgesia in rats, the analgesia was not manifest 24 hours later. A brief reexposure to shock, however, restored the analgesia. This reexposure to shock had an analgesic effect only if the rats had been shocked 24 hours previously. Further, long-term analgesic effects depended on the controllability of the original shocks and not on shock exposure per se. Implications of these results for learned helplessness and stress-induced analgesia are discussed.


Treatment of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura with plasma infusions and cyclophosphamide.

Our patient presented with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura. Treatment failed despite splenectomy, corticosteroids, dextran, and antiplatelet drugs. Plasma infusions induced neurologic recovery, but hematologic improvement could not be sustained when they were discontinued. Cyclophosphamide, however, induced a sustained remission.


Schistosomiasis japonica in Barrio San Antonia, Basey Samar, in the Philippines: III. The plasma circumoval precipitin test-procedure and use in epidemiologic studies.

A plasma circumoval precipitin test is proposed as the basic diagnostic tool for epidemiologic studies on schistosomiasis japonica in the Philippines. The collection of plasma, the preparation of the COP test slide, and the reading and interpretation of results are described in detail with pertinent comments. The cost, advantages and usefulness of the test are also discussed.


Schistosoma japonicum-like ova in liver and rectal biopsies of three cases in Sabah, Malaysia.

Three cases of schistosomiasis in 2 Filipinos and one Chinese in Sabah are reported. Diagnosis was based on incidental histological findings of Schistosoma japonicum-like ova in the liver and rectal biopsies. As these 3 patients are immigrants to Sabah, it is assumed that they are imported cases, and that Sabah has been free of the disease from 1970 to 1977.


Paralytic shellfish poisoning. A report of 17 cases in Cape Town.

An outbreak of 17 cases of paralytic shellfish poisoning in humans occurred in Cape Town during May 1978. The clinical features were typical and no deaths occurred. Efforts to correlate the severity of disease with the amount of toxin ingested, to demonstrate a protective effect of alcohol, and to demonstrate the immunogenicity of the toxin proved unsuccessful. The regional ecological effects are described. Continued monitoring for the presence of toxic dinoflagellates must be conducted, and the dangers of the consumption of mussels from the Cape west coast should be widely publicized.


Transmission experiments with hepatitis B surface antigen and the common bedbug (Cimex lectularius L).

Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive blood meals were fed to a colony of the common bedbug (Cimex lectularius L) in a series of 5 experiments. Antigen persisted in the bugs for at least 7 1/2 weeks, but was undetectable after 18 weeks. Trans-stadial transmission was demonstrated through one moult only, and transovarial transmission did not occur. Antigen was successfully transmitted by adult bugs into 3 out of 35 canisters of HBsAg-negative blood. Antibody of HBsAg was detected in the serum from a rabbit on which HBsAg-positive adult bugs had fed as well as in the serum of 2 out of 10 guinea-pigs on which HBsAg-positive 4th and 5th nymphal instars had fed. The results as a whole indicate that biological multiplication and biological transmission do not occur in C. lectularius, but mechanical transmission has been demonstrated. This is probably an important means of hepatitis B virus transmission among humans in South Africa.


Assignment of temperature-sensitive mutations of BHK cells to the X chromosome.

A class of recurring, noncomplementing, recessive, temperature-sensitive mutation of BHK-21 cells has been assigned to the X chromosome. X-linkage was determined by complementation, karyotypic, and enzymatic analyses.


Splenectomy for hematologic disease.

One hundred and thirty splenectomies were performed at the University Hospital in Birmingham for hematologic disorders during a 12 year period. There were seven deaths of which four were related to sepsis in patients with malignant growths which probably impaired immune competence. Splenectomy was found to be uniformly satisfactory for hereditary hemolytic anemia, for hypersplenism complicating rheumatoid arthritis and for the rare instance of primary hypersplenism. Splenectomy was usually salutary in didopathic thrombocytopenic purpura and in antoimmune hemolytic anemia. When done for diagnosis, splenectomy was definitive in about 50 per cent of the instances. Individual patients with thrombotic thrombocyeosinophilia syndrome benefited. Splenectomy for hypoplastic or aplastic anemia in an actual circulation offered only questionable benefit and is rarely necessary for hyperplenism secondary to portal hypertension.


Electron microscopy of the plexiform lesion.

Pulmonary arteries from a case of plexogenic pulmonary arteriopathy were studied with the electron microscope. Many muscular pulmonary arteries showed intimal fibrosis of concentric or "onion-skin" type. The cells embedded within this fibrosis resembled smooth muscle but since they also possessed some features of fibroblasts we refer to them as myofibroblasts. Myofibroblasts also occurred in plexiform lesions together with fibroblasts and "fibrillary cells". These fibrillary cells contained numerous, prominent filaments with a random orientation. They lined the vascular channels of the plexiform lesions as well as being present within the stroma. They appeared to phagocytose fibrin and then to organise the plexiform lesion into a fibrous scar. Fibrillary cells closely resemble vasoformative reserve cells and the cells of the cardiac myxoma and so-called "papillary tumour" of heart valves. They may, therefore, be primitive multipotential cells found throughout the entire cardiovascular system.


[Epidemiological aspects of Uncinaria stenocephala infections in the Netherlands (author's transl)].

A series of experimental infections in a total number of twenty-two dogs showed that transmission of the parasite Uncinaria stenocephala from one dog to another is readily achieved by oral route. Cutaneous infection was only successful when large doses were used. From the topographical distribution of some intestinal U. stenocephala worm populations in dogs it was concluded that the hookworm population is concentrated in the proximal part of the ileum. The expulsion of worms observed may be evidence of the size or persistence of the worm population. The prepatent period was found to be (at least) thirteen days, both in dogs and in foxes. Daily worm-egg counts showed a fluctuating rhythm, particularly during the first 2-3 weeks of the patent period. Relatively high peaks were also recorded in some cases. The maximum number of worms eggs was estimated at well over 5,000 eggs per female U. stenocephala worm (in dogs). U. stenocephala eggs and larvae are capable of surviving at low temperatures. U. stenocephala infection was found to be present in twenty-five (86 per cent) out of twenty-nine foxes obtained and examined in 1975, the worm load varying from one to 176 hookworms and averaging thirty worms per fox. From the preliminary results of a number of experimental transmissions it was concluded that foxes and dogs harbour adapted strains of U. stenocephala, which prevents cross infections between these reservoirs from occurring to more than a limited extent.


[Experimental infection of soft ticks with Dipetalonema witei (author's transl)].

The intermediate host of Dipetalonema witei, the soft tick Ornithodoros moubata, can be infected experimentally with microfilariae. Microfilariae isolated from the blood of infected donor animals were injected into the dorsal haemocoel of the ticks where they developed to infectious filariae within approx. 50 days. The rate of infection of ticks was 100% when more than 100 microfilariae were injected. An average of 23% was recovered as infectious filariae. Up to 450 ticks can be infected with 1000 microfilariae each from a single donor animal within one year, whereas donor animals can only be used for about 1 month if ticks are naturally infected. The method described has advantages compared to natural tick infections with respect to the rate of infection of ticks, the development of microfilariae, and the amount of infectious material produced.


Urethral pressure profile using microtip catheter in females.

The use of urethral pressure profilometry in the clinical investigation of dysfunction of the female lower urinary tract is discussed. Included is a description of the use of two-channel microtip profilometry in the urethral syndrome, urinary retention, detrusor hyperreflexia, stress incontinence, and normal females. Dual-channel profilometry improves the diagnostic accuracy of urethral profile studies and aids in the understanding of lower urinary tract pathophysiology.


[Humoral reactions in BALC/c mice with sarcomatous Moloney-induced tumor].

In a progressive course of the blastomatous process induced by MSV-Moloney the antitumor antibodies level in the whole blood serum was practically unchanged, while the level of antibody-forming cells (AFC) in the spleen of these mice was considerably decreased as compared with that in the spleen of intact mice of the same age. If the tumor development was followed by its subsequent resorption, a biphase character of enhancement of the cytotoxic activity both of the whole serum and its fractions was noted. In the utmost developed tumor a reduced AFC level was observed, while in its resorption -- a gradual restoration of the AFC values up to the level characteristic of intact animals of the same age group.


[Animal experimental study on placental passage of testosterone. Experiments in dogs].

There are still open many questions concerning the diaplacentary effect of medicaments. This above all concerns the steroid hormones and their proper and possible conversion. The problems of the placental barrier as to the permeability for sexual hormones are discussed. In an experimental study in dogs may be proved that a male sexual hormone (TTP) given to a pregnant animal passes the placenta. For this pleads the significancy of the biological androgen proof.


[Lipolytic activity from milk isolated strains of the species Thermoactinomyces vulgaris, Tsiklinsky 1899 (author's transl)].

Thirty strains of the species Thermoactinomyces vulgaris (Tsiklinsky, 1988) were isolated from milk and tested for their lipolythic activity. After incubation for 120 hours at 55 degrees C they formed distinct diffusion zones on culture media containing tributyrin and tween-80. In all strains exocellular lipases were found. Their action on the milk fat increased the number of the free fatty acids. Triglycerides, free fatty acids as well as diglycerides and monoglycerides were identified as split products chromatographically. The activity of the endolipases was lower. In four of the most active endolipases cholesterol was identified as split product of milk fat in addition to those mentioned above.


[Probabilities and ethologic analysis of the zoosocial behavior of grouped and isolated mice].

The effectiveness of probabilistic and ethological approaches to the analysis of normal and pathological animal behaviour is shown. The probabilistic analysis of the frequency, duration and sequence of a large variety of behavioural acts and postures permits to single out the most significant events and diad transitions in the interaction between two animals (previously isolated or grouped). Computer and probabilistic analysis reveals sharp differences in the structure of these acts and their interdependence in isolated and in grouped mice. It is noted that in isolation there occur fixation of the program of aggressive behaviour, a sharp narrowing of the spectrum of possible transitions from aggression to other forms of intraspecific behaviour, aggression being little controlled by intraspecific inhibitory factors which is regarded as pathology of behaviour.


[Effect of hippocampal damage on emotional stress in rats].

Motor reactions and ECGs were recorded in rats with lesioned hippocampus and in intact animals during elaboration of conditioned switching over of heterogeneous conditioned reflexes (alimentary and defensive). In hippocampectomized rats, in contrast to intact ones, the formation of this complex conditioned activity is not accompanied by pronounced vegetative reactions and changes in the ECG. The data obtained point to an active involvement of the hippocampus in formation of emotional stress and confirm the concept of the hippocampus as a brain structure, providing for responses to signals of events with low probability.


Therapy of Crohn's disease with metronidazole -- an uncontrolled trial --.

Twelve patients with Crohn's disease (C.D.), in whom there was no improvement of symptoms and signs under protracted corticosteroid and salicylazosulphapyridine medication, were treated with 1 000 mg metronidazole (M.) daily. Crohn's Disease Activity Index (CDAI) was used as a criterion of therapeutic response. Seven patients showed improvement of symptoms with a concomitant fall of the CDAI from 300 +/- 84 to 56 +/- 32 (mean +/- SD) after 10 to 45 days. In one patient, therapeutic success was judged to be doubtful, a negative result being obtained in 4 patients. During follow-up, which was maximally 21 months, patients failed to relapse while receiving a maintenance dose of 250 and 500 mg of M. per day. -- Judicious attempts at drug withdrawal were undertaken during the first 6 months but were invariably followed by a relapse. -- Metronidazole given over a protracted period did not give rise to side-effects. -- A reduction of anaerobic bacterial invaders of the intestine is suggested to underlie the favourable therapeutic effect of M.


Intrauterine progesterone contraceptive system as an alternative in cases where conventional IUD's are unsuitable.

A progesterone intrauterine device (IUD), Progestasert, was prescribed for 25 patients unable to use an ordinary non-hormonal IUD. Both the amount of menstrual bleeding and the discomfort was observed to decrease more often than increase during the period of use of the progesterone IUD. Hemoglobin, hematocrit and the serum iron levels either remained static or increased. Continuation rate was 76 per cent after one year. The authors consider Progestasert a suitable alternative to the ordinary non-hormonal IUD in women with dysmenorrhea or menorrhagia and those in whom a previous IUD had been associated with pain or increased menstruation.


Receptivity of female rats.

Receptivity of female rats has been investigated under chronic experimental conditions. A receptivity index has been worked out for quantitative evaluation. It proved suitable for disclosing stimulatory (2.5 mg noretynodrel, oestradiol propionate) as well as inhibitory (etynodiol diacetate) effects. 2.5 mg noretynodrel has a biphasic effect; causing an inhibition and later an increase in receptivity. Receptivity of untreated female rats is low and can be increased by various steroids; the best treatment was 50 micrograms oestradiol monopropionate administered twice weekly, but this resulted in an inverse mating reaction, with frequent copulations in every phase of the cycle. In untreated females the number of copulations varied widely. Previous deliveries did not influence receptivity and frigidity was also observed.


Myasthenia gravis and Werlhof's disease.

A case of Werlhof's disease (immune thrombocytopenia) associated with myasthenia gravis is described. The two disorders developed within a few months of each other. The immunological and practical aspects of the association are discussed.


Pregnancy in a patient with porcine valve xenografts.

The course of pregnancy and successful vaginal delivery of a healthy infant in a 23-year-old woman with previous aortic and mitral valve replacement with porcine xenografts if presented. Unlike the management of pregnant patients with conventional mechanical prostheses, anti-coagulation may not be necessary with xenografts, particularly when there are no other thrombogenic conditions. Other management issues include congestive heart failure, arrhythmias, prophylaxis against subacute bacterial endocarditis, and expeditious labor and delivery.


Structural changes in a porcine xenograft after implantation for 105 months.

Morphologic studies including light microscopy and transmission and scanning electron microscopy were performed on a formaldehyde-fixed porcine xenograft prosthesis that functioned well for 8 years and had been implanted for 105 months in the tricuspid valve position. It is the oldest implanted valve studied in this manner. Although all leaflets had some gross deterioration, only one had adherent thrombus. The degenerative changes in the connective tissue from all leaflets were similar to those recently reported in glutaraldehyde-fixed porcine valves implanted for shorter periods. The surfaces of the two nonthrombosed leaflets and small portions of the surface of the thrombosed leaflet were endothelized, and the endothelium appeared to have little or no effect on the degenerative changes in the subjacent connective tissue. Further, the endothelium did not extend over the examined portion of the synthetic anulus of the prosthesis, suggesting that its origin was possibly from cells circulating in the blood.


The effect of estrogen on epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation in the crypts of the descending colon of the mouse: a radioautographic study.

The regulatory role of estrogen on cell population kinetics in the descending colon was studied in intact female and ovariectomized mice. In the colonic crypts from intact mice, the crypt size (the number of epithelial cells per crypt column) and the proliferative activity of epithelial cells fluctuated slightly during the estrous cycle. Peak cellularity per crypt column was exhibted during estrus and early diestrus, whereas peaks in labeling index were seen during estrus and late metestrus. While the population size of mucous cells showed a minimal variation, the number of proliferative vacuolated cells per crypt column varied inversely with that of differentiated columnar cells during estrous cycle. The vacuolated cells were increased in number in the preovulatory phase and the columnar cells in the postovulatory phase. Three weeks after bilateral ovariectomy, the colonic crypt appeared to reach a new steady state, which was characterized by a small crypt size, a decrease in the number of differentiated cells, an increase in the relative number of proliferative cells and a relative increase in the proliferative activity of the crypt as compared to intact mice. When ovariectomized mice were treated with estrogen, the number of 3H-thymidine-labeled cells in the crypt was decreased as compared to untreated ovariectomized mice, the decrease being greater after a single injection than after multiple injections of estrogen, and the vacuolated-columnar cell line being affected more than mucous cell line. Meanwhile, the crypt size as well as the population size of differentiated cells in the crypt failed to return to normal after estrogen treatments. Thus, estrogen did not promote differentiation of epithelial cells in the crypt.


Sexual and somatic determinants of the human Y chromosome: studies in a 46,XYp- phenotypic female.

A case of a 46,XYp- phenotypic female provided an opportunity to evaluate both sexual and somatic determinants for the Y chromosome. The patient had multiple stigmata of Turner syndrome, but normal stature. Laparotomy revealed a normal uterus and tubes, with 1.5 cm undifferentiated gonads. Serological tests for H-Y antigen (ostensibly the product of Y-chromosomal testis-determining genes) indicated absence of the H-Y+ phenotype normally associated with the intact Y chromosome. We conclude that genes exist on the short arm of the human Y chromosome which both suppress some of the somatic stigmata of Turner syndrome and determine normal expression of H-Y antigen and testicular differentiation of the primitive gonad. Our data are consistent with the view that H-Y genes comprise a family of testis-determinants, and that loss of a critical moiety is inconsistent with normal development of the male gonad.


The Limulus amebocyte lysate endotoxin assay: current status.

Research conducted during this decade has clearly established the Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) test as the most sensitive assay for bacterial endotoxin. In addition, the assay is easily performed, relatively inexpensive, specific for endotoxin, and can be used to test materials that are toxic to rabbits employed in the rabbit pyrogen test. The LAL test has been used in the diagnosis of meningitis, urinary infection, mastitis, and endotoxemia. Other broad applications of the test include quality assurance of parenteral solutions and medical devices as well as the microbial quality of food and water. A review of recent developments in LAL testing is presented and experimental applications of the assay are discussed.