Psychometric analysis in children with mental retardation due to perinatal hypoxia treated with fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and showing improvement in mental development

Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) has shown a neurotrophic effect in the neurons of several CNS areas. In vivo, it contributes to restore neurochemical and morphological deficits in different rodent models of brain damage, including rats with brain damage induced by hypoxia/ischemia when FGF was intramuscularly (i.m.) administered. Toxicological and immunological studies performed in rats, mice and volunteers showed no evidence of side-effects. Bovine FGF was i.m. administered in children with mental retardation caused by perinatal hypoxia, aged 1-15 years, at dosages of 0.4 or 0.28 microgram kg-1, once or twice a month, over 7-12 months. Group A [n = 12; 6 treated (T), 6 controls (Ct)], group B (n = 16; 8 T, 8 Ct) and group C (n = 67; 45 T, 22 Ct) were evaluated with the P. A. R. scale, the WISC-RM and the Gesell scale, respectively. Development increased significantly in treated children from groups A (P < 0.02) and C (P < 0.001), and IQ rose by more than 10 points (P < 0.001) in group B patients.

[Characterization of an experimental model of monosodium- glutamate-induced convulsions in the amphibian Bufo spp]

In previous reports, Feria-Velasco et al. characterized an experimental model of convulsions in rats induced by monosodium glutamate (MSG) with evaluation of the motor behavior and neurochemical parameters. In the present work, MSG injected in toads (Bufo spp) reproduced the model of convulsions with some peculiarities. The electrocorticographic recordings in toads after MSG injection were similar to those obtained in rats after administration of convulsant agents. Most of the toads injected with MSG (81.8%) showed convulsions preceded by an episode of stereotyped movements and signs of hyperexcitability. Latency for convulsions and frequency of convulsive episodes were similar to what has been reported in rats injected with MSG. However, the duration of convulsive period was larger than that seen in rats, and no deaths were recorded in toads. The peculiar feature of amphibia regarding their cerebral structures and their blood-brain barrier (BBB) make the amphibian model, an interesting and valuable one in studying experimentally induced convulsions, as well as the role of BBB in these phenomena.