Vertical frontal subtotal laryngectomy and immediate reconstruction of larynx with cervical skin flap

Vertical frontal subtotal laryngectomy, a procedure that can remove as much as 90% of the larynx, was used to produce a functionally acceptable neolarynx with adjacent cervical skin flaps. Thirty-four patients with laryngeal carcinoma underwent this operation. All patients were staged according to their physical findings before operation. Of these patients, 1 was lost to follow-up and 2 died from other causes 6 months and 4 years after operation respectively. The remainder are living and well without recurrence. The longest follow-up was 8 years and the shortest 14 months. Laryngeal functions were restored completely in 27 patients and partially in 7. We conclude that the procedure is best suited for the removal of anterior commissure tumor extending from both vocal cords to the anterior 1/3 or the entire length of the true cords and that if the tumor extends to the supraglottis or subglottis, this procedure is adequate as long as the posterior part of the larynx is not involved, leaving a sufficient safety margin.

[Experimental study on myocardial protection with verapamil and salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge cardioplegia]

Myocardial 45Ca sequestration was studied in dogs during 60 minutes of global ischemia and 30 minutes of reperfusion using cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and myocardial function was studied before and after CPB. Group A (n = 5), as a control, received cold hyperkalemic cardioplegic solution, Group B (n = 5) received the same solution plus verapamil (150 micrograms/kg/L) and Group C plus specific activity (TSA = DPM x 10(4)/g) and plasma specific activity (PSA = DPM x 10(4)/ml) were determined by biopsy before and after release of the cross-clamp The results showed that myocardial function in Group B and C were better than that in Group A (P less than 0.01). It is suggested that verapamil and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge effectively control myocardial calcium sequestration during early reperfusion and reduce myocardial reperfusion injury As to myocardial protection, cardioplegia with verapamil and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge were superior to hyperkalemic alone. Verapamil cardioplegia was still better than Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge.

[Intracytoplasmic desmosome in squamous cancer cells of the lung in man]

Ultrastructure of intracytoplasmic (cytoplasmic) desmosomes in the squamous cancer cells of the human lung was studied by electron microscopy. In 17 cases of non-keratosic squamous cell carcinoma of the lung, intracytoplasmic (cytoplasmic) desmosomes were found in 4. In contrast to what previous investigators had proposed that the intracytoplasmic desmosomes are formed by cell fusion with the membrane being deep in the cell and cell digestion under the diffusion of hydrolytic enzymes, our result indicates that the intracytoplasmic desmosomes might be a structure formed by cell intima system itself during cell division. The structure suggests that the desmosomes originate from the cell intima system.

Purification and primary structures of duck fibrinopeptides A and B

Duck fibrinopeptides A and B were purified by Dowex 50 W X 2 ion exchange resin and DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B. The complete primary structures of duck fibrinopeptides A and B were determined by manual Edman Sequence determination. The primary structure of duck fibrinopeptide A is pyr. Asp. Gly. Lys. Ser. Ser. Phe. Gln. Lys. Glu. Gly. Gly. Gly. Val. Arg., and that of duck fibrinopeptide B is Pyr. Ala. Ser. Thr. Asp. Tyr. Asp. Asp. Glu. Asp. Glu. Ser. Thr. Val. Pro. Glu. Ala. Arg.

Transformation of ultrastructural type of fast-twitch muscle fibres after cross-innervation by tetrodotoxin-blocked slow muscle nerve

It is shown in rats that cross-innervation of the fast-twitch muscle extensor digitorum longus (EDL) by the nerve of the slow-twitch muscle soleus (SOL) can cause a complete transformation of the Z-band width from the fast to the slow muscle fibre type within two weeks and that it can still induce such a transformation, though usually less completely, even when impulse activity is excluded by chronical tetrodotoxin (TTX) block of the nerve. This provides a piece of clear-cut evidence for the presence of some activity-independent trophic factor in the neural determination of skeletal muscle fibre type.