5-Hydroxytryptamine binding to butanol extracts from myelin fragments

The myelin fraction of rat brain stem was treated with butanol-water mixtures, and the extracted proteolipids were separated by Sephadex LH20 column chromatography. 2 peaks of proteolipids eluted in chloroform-methanol 4/1 showed the binding capacity for C14 - 5-HT. This finding suggests the necessity of the more careful investigations for the probability of proteolipids as receptor proteins in the central nervous system.

Adjuvanticity (immunity-inducing property) of cord factor in mice and rats

Cord factor, a glycolipid in mycobacteria, was found to make a tolerogenic protein antigen immunogenic when injected 0 to 2 days before tolerogen injection in mice and rats. Cord factor was also found to increase phagocytic function of the reticuloendothelial system of mice, and the relationship between the immunity-inducing capacity and the phagocytic function is discussed.

A peculiar acantholytic dermatosis

This paper reports a peculiar case seen in a 36-year-old woman who every summer since the age of 30 has developed numerous solitary vesicles or crusted papules with intense pruritus in the seborrheic zones. There are no general symptoms and no hereditary relations. The individual rash disappears completely in a week to a month and there is no eruption in winter. The clinical picture resembles that of Darier's disease, but histopathological tests reveal intraepidermal cleft or bulla formation due to acantholysis but no dyskeratosis. Clinicopathological consideration indicates a disease akin to familial benign chronic pemphigus, but as our case does not correspond to any known disease, it is therefore reported as a peculiar acantholytic dermatosis.

Adjuvant activity of synthetic N-acetylmuramyl peptides in rats

The minimal adjuvant-active structure in bacterial cell wall peptidoglycan for the induction of delayed hypersensitivity in rats (WKA) was the N-acetylmuramyl dipeptides (N-acetylmuramyl L-alanyl-D-isoglutamine and N-acetylmuramyl L-alanyl-D-glutamic acid).

Tissue reaction to middle ear prostheses: in vivo observation (rabbit ear lobe) of polyethylene tube, stainless steel wire and absorbable gelatin sponge used in middle ear surgery

Over the past ten years, polyethylene tube, stainless steel wire and absorbable gelatin sponge have come to be used in middle ear surgery. A modified Williams' steel chamber with a transparent central area was embedded in a rabbit ear lobe surgically, and cross-sectioned polyethylene tube, stainless steel wire or absorbable gelatin sponge were inserted respectively. The in vivo tissue reaction to each of these installed materials was observed daily microscopically. Finally, in the case of both the cross-sectioned polyethylene tube and the stainless steel wire, the chambers were fixed with 10% formalin solution and the contents stained for histological study. The results were as follows: Absorbable gelatin sponge was absorbed completely by phagocytosis in 62 days. Polyethylene tube was encapsulated by a layer of fibroblasts by day 110 in one case and by day 140 in another case; these findings were confirmed histologically on day 110 and 281. Almost all the surface of the stainless steel wire was encapsulated by a layer consisting of giant cells, on which a dense fibrous layer was superimposed by day 82. It is concluded that polyethylene tube, stainless steel wire, and absorbable gelatin sponge should be well tolerated in middle ear surgery.

Fine structure of a diffuse undifferentiated small-cell carcinoma of the thyroid

Differentiating diffuse undifferentiated small-cell carcinoma of the thyroid from malignant lymphoma is difficult. A case of small-cell carcinoma was studied by electron microscopy and is reported here to illustrate the value of electron microscopy in separating epithelial thyroid tumor from lymphoma. Ultrastructurally, the tumor was composed of cells possessing occasional intercellularjunctional complexes and spaces with microvilli. There were abundant free ribosomes and well-developed rough endoplasmic reticulum in the cytoplasm. Golgi apparatus, smooth endoplasmic reticulum, membrane-bound cytosomes, and centrioles were also evident. Numerous swollen mitochondria were seen in some tumor cells. A few large tumor cells characterized by abundant cytoplasm containing few mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum and numerous microfibrils were also observed. A few collagen fibers, lymphocytes and plasma cells were present among tumor cells. No basement membranes nor virus-like particles were seen.

Adjuvant effect of cord factor, a mycobacterial lipid

Cord factor was a good adjuvant in mice and rats but exerted little if any adjuvant effect in guinea pigs. In rats, cord factor not only enhanced antibody production but also induced delayed hypersensitivity. Wax D was a weak adjuvant in mice. Cord factor caused a marked inflammatory swelling at the sites of injection in mice, but it caused no such swelling in rats and guinea pigs.

Comparative studies of parasympatholytic drugs on stomach (double blind test) and analysis of relation between gastric form and tonus

Effects of 3 kinds of parasympatholytic drugs (timepidiumbromide, hyoscine-N-butylbromide and prifinium-bromide) and placebo (physiological saline solution) on the gastrointestinal tract were evaluated roentgenographically by double blind technique in a total of 101 male human subjects. The results may briefly be summarized as follows: 1. There were significant differences on hypotonic rate being one of the indexes of the gastric tonus between timepidium-bromide and placebo. The effects of 3 experimental drugs were significantly high as compared with that of placebo on peristaltic movement of the stomach. The effect of timepidium-bromide was significantly different from that of placebo on the site of arrival of barium. 2. The comparison of degrees of the gastric tonus between main and control tests revealed that the effect of placebo obtained in the main test was significantly inferior to that of hyoscine-N-butylbromide obtained in the control test, whereas there existed no significant differences of the effects among 3 active drugs. 3. Effects of each drug on the gastric tonus which was scored by hypertonic, normotonic and hypotonic state were evaluated by stratification. The result showed that the effect of timepidium-bromide was significantly greater than that of placebo. 4. All active drugs were not significantly different in terms of 7 observed values each on the gastric form.

Cord factor not toxic in rats

Systemic toxicity and local inflammatory activity of cord factor were compared between mice and rats. In mice, repeated intraperitoneal injection of cord factor caused a marked worsening of general condition and high mortality. The swelling of footpads injected with cord factor was also marked in mice. In contrast, injection of cord factor produced no such toxic reactions in rats, except that repeated intraperitoneal injections of high doses of cord factor induced an accumulation of ascites.

Reduced response to phenobarbital by the liver of rats fed a choline-deficient diet

1. The response of the liver to phenobarbital administration was compared in rats fed either laboratory chow, a semipurified choline-supplemented diet or a semipurified choline-deficient diet. 2. The liver contents of proteins, lipids and cytochrome P-450, as well as the activity of aminopyrine and ethylmorphine demethylases, were measured after 5 days of feeding and five daily injections of phenobarbital. Liver sections were examined electron microscopically. 3. In rats fed the choline-supplemented diet, phenobarbital administration caused increases in cellular constituents, enzyme activities and smooth endoplasmic reticulum membranes as great as those seen in rats fed laboratory chow. However, in rats fed the choline-deficient diet, the response of the liver to phenobarbital administration was severely reduced in comparison to that in rats fed the other diets. 4. It is concluded that dietary choline and an adequate synthesis of lecithins are necessary for the induction of microsomal mixed-function oxidases and the concomitant accumulation of smooth endoplasmic reticulum in hepatocytes.

Changes in plasma insulin and glucose tolerance in stable diabetes in a young woman

In a seventeen-year-old woman with a strong family history of diabetes mellitus, changes in glucose tolerance and plasma insulin response to oral glucose were followed from the early stage of diabetes through exacerbations and remissions of the disease. At the first glucose tolerance test which revealed normal fasting and elevated postprandial blood sugar values, the plasma insulin level at thirty minutes was subnormal but the peak level, which was delayed to ninety minutes, was above normal. During the exacerbation when fasting blood sugar values were elevated, insulin response was markedly diminished. In the stage of improvement following treatment with oral drugs and insulin, plasma insulin response to oral glucose improved remarkably. During the course of subsequent exacerbation and improvement, the degree of plasma insulin response changed in a similar inverse manner with the blood sugar level. The observations suggest that the diminished insulinsecretory capacity in severe diabetes does not always indicate irreversible damage of insulin releasing mechanisms.