A model for recovery-from-extinction effects in Pavlovian conditioning and exposure therapy

Exposure therapy is an effective intervention for anxiety-related problems. The mechanism of this intervention has been the extinction procedure in Pavlovian conditioning, and this application has provided many successful instances for the prevention of relapse. However, traditional associative theories cannot comprehensively explain many findings. In particular, it is difficult to explain the recovery-from-extinction effects, which is the reappearance of the conditioned response following extinction. In this paper, we propose an associative model that is a mathematical extension of Bouton's (1993, Psychological Bulletin, 114, 80-99) model for the extinction procedure. The core of our model is that the asymptotic strength of the inhibitory association depends on the degree of excitatory association retrieved in a context in which a conditioned stimulus (CS) is presented and that the retrieval is determined by the similarity between contexts during both reinforcement and non-reinforcement and the retrieval context. Our model provides an explanation of the recovery-from-extinction effects, and implications for exposure therapy.

Intraday Activity Levels May Better Reflect the Differences Between Major Depressive Disorder and Bipolar Disorder Than Average Daily Activity Levels

It is important to establish an objective index to differentiate mood disorders (i.e., bipolar disorder; BD and major depressive disorder; MDD). The present study focused on the pattern of changes of physical activity in the amount of activity intraday, and examined the relationship between activity patterns and mood disorders. One hundred and eighteen inpatients with MDD or BD in a depressive state provided the activity data by using wearable activity trackers for 3 weeks. In order to illuminate the characteristic patterns of intraday activities, Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was adopted to extract the main components of intraday activity changes. We found that some of the PCs reflected the differences between the types of mood disorder. BD participants showed high activity pattern in the morning and low activity pattern in evenings. However, MDD showed the opposite. Our results suggest that activity tracking focused on daytime activity patterns may provide objective auxiliary diagnostic information.

Use of redundant sets of landmark information by humans (Homo sapiens) in a goal-searching task in an open field and on a computer screen

Landmark-based goal-searching tasks that were similar to those for pigeons (Ushitani & Jitsumori, 2011) were provided to human participants to investigate whether they could learn and use multiple sources of spatial information that redundantly indicate the position of a hidden target in both an open field (Experiment 1) and on a computer screen (Experiments 2 and 3). During the training in each experiment, participants learned to locate a target in 1 of 25 objects arranged in a 5 × 5 grid, using two differently colored, arrow-shaped (Experiments 1 and 2) or asymmetrically shaped (Experiment 3) landmarks placed adjacent to the goal and pointing to the goal location. The absolute location and directions of the landmarks varied across trials, but the constant configuration of the goal and the landmarks enabled participants to find the goal using both global configural information and local vector information (pointing to the goal by each individual landmark). On subsequent test trials, the direction was changed for one of the landmarks to conflict with the global configural information. Results of Experiment 1 indicated that participants used vector information from a single landmark but not configural information. Further examinations revealed that the use of global (metric) information was enhanced remarkably by goal searching with nonarrow-shaped landmarks on the computer monitor (Experiment 3) but much less so with arrow-shaped landmarks (Experiment 2). The General Discussion focuses on a comparison between humans in the current study and pigeons in the previous study. (PsycINFO Database Record

The effect of temporal information among events on Bayesian causal inference in rats

A temporal relationship between events of potential cause and effect is critical to generate a causal relationship because the cause has to be followed by the effect. The present study investigated the role of temporal relationships between events in causal inference in rats via Pavlovian pairings. In Experiment 1A, subjects in Group Successive received training trials whereby Event 1 (tone or light) was followed by Events 2 (light or tone) and 3 (sucrose solution), whereas those in Group Simultaneous received simultaneous pairings of Events 1 and 2, and Events 1 and 3. During testing, a lever was inserted into the experimental chamber, where subjects were allowed to press the lever which produced the occurrence of Event 2 without reward. By measuring nose-poke responses during the presentation of Event 2, assumingly based on the prediction of occurrence of sucrose solution, subjects in Group Successive showed a relatively lower response rate than did those in Group Simultaneous. In Experiment 1B, this difference was not observed if subjects received the presentations of Event 2 which was irrelevant to their lever pressing during testing. These results suggest that rats can differentiate their response based on the elemental temporal information even when the integrated temporal map was the same, and implied that rats use temporal information as well as conditional probability based on causal Bayesian network account.

Effects of extended context discrimination training and context extinction on transfer of context dependency of conditioned flavor aversion

We trained rats in a context discrimination paradigm by pairing a sucrose solution with lithium chloride in one context (conditioning context) and simple exposure to the same fluid in a second (neutral) context to establish a context-dependent aversion to the conditioned fluid. We then investigated whether transfer of the context dependency to a test fluid (a sodium chloride solution) was affected by two post-discrimination training treatments, an extended context discrimination training, and non-reinforced exposure to the conditioning context (context extinction). We found that the context-dependent flavor aversion that had been specific to sucrose transferred to the test fluid after the extensive training (Experiment 1). Context extinction eliminated the transfer effect that had been observed immediately after the context discrimination training (Experiment 2). In addition, an aversion acquired by sucrose through a simple conditioning of sucrose-LiCl pairings did not generalize to the test fluid (Experiment 3). These results emphasize the importance of a Pavlovian excitatory association between the conditioning context and nausea as a primary source of transfer of the context dependency, rather than a generalization of aversion acquired by the conditioned fluid to the test fluid.

Conditioned Flavor Preference and the US Postexposure Effect in the House Musk Shrew (Suncus Murinus)

The house musk shrew (Suncus murinus) is the only species of mammalian insectivore that can be domesticated and used as a laboratory animal, and is an interesting subject in terms of evolutionary and comparative aspects. The present study on the learning faculties of shrews examines the possibility of acquiring a conditioned flavor preference and the effects of US postexposure. Subjects were allowed to a drink sucrose solution with flavor A and tap water with flavor B during training. Two extinction tests were administered after every four conditioning trials, and a significant preference for flavor A was observed. After each test, the animals were divided into two groups. Subjects in Group US were presented with a sucrose solution without flavor, while those in Group Water were given tap water. After these trials, all subjects received choice tests where they were presented with water containing the two flavors. The preference ratio was lower in Group US than in Group Water, suggesting a postexposure effect. The findings were discussed in terms of habituation to the US.

Context and the renewal of conditioned taste aversion: the role of rat dorsal hippocampus examined by electrolytic lesion

An extinguished conditioned response can sometimes be restored. Previous research has shown that this renewal effect depends on the context in which conditioning versus extinction takes place. Here we provide evidence that the dorsal hippocampus is critically involved in the representation of context that underscores the renewal effect. We performed electrolytic lesions in dorsal hippocampus, before or after extinction, in a conditioned taste aversion paradigm with rats. Rats that underwent all conditioning, extinction and testing procedures in the same experimental context showed no renewal during testing in the original context. In contrast, rats that underwent extinction procedures in a different experimental context than the one in which they had acquired the conditioned response, showed a reliable renewal effect during testing in the original context. When electrolytic lesion was performed prior to extinction, the context-dependent renewal effect was disrupted. When electrolytic lesion was undertaken after extinction, we observed a complex pattern of data including the blockage of the conventional renewal effect, and the appearance of an unconventional renewal effect. The implications of these results are discussed with respect to current views on the role of the dorsal hippocampus in processing context information.

Factors that influence negative summation in a spatial-search task with pigeons

A variant of the standard conditioned inhibition procedure was used to evaluate landmark-based spatial search in a touchscreen preparation. Pigeons were given compound trials with one landmark (A) positioned in a consistent spatial relationship to a hidden goal and another landmark (B) positioned randomly with respect to A and the hidden goal (AB+). On half of the non-reinforced inhibitory trials, A was paired with landmark X (AX-) and on the remaining trials B was paired with Y (BY-). All subjects were also given reinforced trials with a transfer excitor (T+). During conditioned inhibition training, subjects showed no change in overall responding during AX- trials but did show a decrease in the number of pecks to the goal location signaled by A. During non-reinforced summation tests with landmark T, X had a greater suppressive effect than did Y on overall responding but the percentage of pecks at the goal did not differ unless X was positioned near the expected goal signaled by T. These data demonstrate that the effectiveness of a stimulus trained as an inhibitor is dependent on the strength of the association between its training excitor (A) and the US, as well as, the spatial arrangement of stimuli during testing.

Reward prediction based on stimulus categorization in primate lateral prefrontal cortex

To adapt to changeable or unfamiliar environments, it is important that animals develop strategies for goal-directed behaviors that meet the new challenges. We used a sequential paired-association task with asymmetric reward schedule to investigate how prefrontal neurons integrate multiple already-acquired associations to predict reward. Two types of reward-related neurons were observed in the lateral prefrontal cortex: one type predicted reward independent of physical properties of visual stimuli and the other encoded the reward value specific to a category of stimuli defined by the task requirements. Neurons of the latter type were able to predict reward on the basis of stimuli that had not yet been associated with reward, provided that another stimulus from the same category was paired with reward. The results suggest that prefrontal neurons can represent reward information on the basis of category and propagate this information to category members that have not been linked directly with any experience of reward.

Temporal integration in Pavlovian appetitive conditioning in rats

We used an appetitive sensory preconditioning procedure to investigate temporal integration in rats in two experiments. In Phase 1, rats were presented with simultaneous compound trials on which a 10-sec conditioned stimulus (CS) X was embedded within a 60-sec CS A. In Group Early, CS X occurred during the early portion of CS A, whereas in Group Late, CS X occurred during the latter portion of CS A. In Phase 2, CS X was paired simultaneously with sucrose. On a subsequent test with CS A, the rate of magazine entries peaked during the early portions of the stimulus in Group Early and during the latter portions of the stimulus in Group Late (Experiments 1 and 2). Similar response peaks were not observed on tests with a control stimulus that had been presented in compound with a stimulus that did not signal reward (Experiment 2).

Causal reasoning in rats

Empirical research with nonhuman primates appears to support the view that causal reasoning is a key cognitive faculty that divides humans from animals. The claim is that animals approximate causal learning using associative processes. The present results cast doubt on that conclusion. Rats made causal inferences in a basic task that taps into core features of causal reasoning without requiring complex physical knowledge. They derived predictions of the outcomes of interventions after passive observational learning of different kinds of causal models. These competencies cannot be explained by current associative theories but are consistent with causal Bayes net theories.

Sensory Preconditioning in Spatial Learning Using a Touch Screen Task in Pigeons

The authors used a touch screen-based visual-search task to investigate spatial integration in pigeons. First, pigeons were presented with a consistent spatial relationship between compound visual landmarks (LMs) A-X and B-Y, separately. Next, pigeons learned to find a hidden goal on the monitor in the presence of LMs A and B. The goal bore a consistent spatial relationship to LM A, but not to LM B. On nonreinforced probe tests, the peak and distribution of responses to LM X suggest that pigeons computed a novel X-goal spatial relationship on the basis of X-A and A-goal spatial vectors. Responses to LM Y, however, revealed no evidence of spatial integration. These results replicate and extend those of A. P. Blaisdell and R. G. Cook (2005) using an open-field task.

Acquired equivalence of flavour cues with a common antecedent in rats

Equivalence of flavour cues, each of which had been paired with a common antecedent, was demonstrated with rats in a three-stage design. In the first stage, a group of thirsty rats were given each of two target flavour cues after a common antecedent flavour (Xright arrowA and Xright arrowB), while a second group of rats were given A and B after differential antecedent flavours (Xright arrowA and Yright arrowB). Another group of rats was allowed to drink A and B after familiar tap water. In the second stage, aversion to A was established by a lithium chloride injection after drinking A. The acquired equivalence effect was verified in the third stage by strong aversion to B in the group trained with the common antecedent compared with the remaining two groups. The representation-mediation, rather than response-mediation, hypothesis seems to fit the backward acquired equivalence effect obtained here.

Comparison of c-fos-like immunoreactivity in the brainstem following intraoral and intragastric infusions of chemical solutions in rats

To examine whether the activation of brainstem neurons during ingestion is due to orosensory afferents or post-ingestive factors, neuronal activation in response to intraoral and intragastric infusions of taste stimuli was compared in the area postrema (AP), nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) and parabrachial nucleus (PBN) by the c-fos immunohistochemical method. An aliquot (7.5 ml) of 0.5 M sucrose, 5 mM sodium saccharin, 1 mM quinine hydrochloride and distilled water was delivered into the oral cavity or the stomach in each rat, which had been deprived of water and food overnight. Water induced little c-Fos-like immunoreactivity (c-FLI), but both intraoral and intragastric infusions of sucrose, but not non-caloric saccharin, induced strong c-FLI in the AP, caudal NTS and the external lateral subnucleus of the rostral PBN, suggesting that these areas receive general visceral inputs. Other areas in the NTS and PBN may receive gustatory inputs since more dominant c-FLI was detected by intraoral rather than intragastric infusions of the stimuli. Functional segregation of neurons reflecting qualitative and hedonic aspects of sweeteners (sucrose and saccharin) and bitter-tasting substance (quinine) was suggested in the PBN, but less evident in the NTS. These results indicate that c-fos induction in brainstem neurons during ingestion reflects gustatory inputs and postingestional factors depending on the kind of food ingested.

c-Fos-like immunoreactivity in the brainstem following gastric loads of various chemical solutions in rats

The distribution of c-Fos-like immunoreactivity (c-FLI) in the lower brainstem especially in the area postrema (AP), nucleus of the tractus solitarius (NTS) and parabrachial nucleus (PBN) was examined following gastric loads of various chemical solutions in rats. An aliquot of 7.5 ml of each stimulus was intragastrically infused, and c-FLI was detected. The most remarkable c-FLI was induced by LiCl, lactose and ethanol which are known to be effective unconditioned stimuli in conditioned taste aversions. Polycose and disaccharides such as sucrose and maltose induced more c-FLI than monosaccharides such as glucose, fructose and galactose. Relatively low levels of c-FLI were observed for other sweeteners such as saccharin, glycine and alanine, and other basic taste stimuli such as NaCl, HCl, quinine and umami substances. Each stimulus induced a similar proportion of c-FLI among the subnuclei of the NTS, but not in the PBN, where chemicals effective in inducing conditioned taste aversions elicited stronger c-FLI in the external lateral subnucleus, and those in inducing conditioned taste preferences such as Polycose and glucose elicited stronger c-FLI in the dorsal lateral subnucleus. Vagotomy reduced c-FLI to about 50% for LiCl stimulation and to about 30% for sucrose stimulation, suggesting that LiCl has a larger proportion of extravagal inputs than sucrose.

Establishment of T-helper type 2 clone-induced eosinophilia in mouse conjunctiva

Eosinophil infiltration is one of the aspects of the inflammatory response to an allergen. The aim of this study was to establish T-helper type-2 (Th2)-induced conjunctival eosinophilia in mice to evaluate the effect of anti-allergic drugs. Th2 clone, D10.G4.1. (D10) with its specific antigen, conalbumin was co-injected into conjunctival tissue in mice. At 3-6 hr after D10 injection, eosinophil and neutrophil recruitment into conjunctival tissue was observed. Cellular infiltration into conjunctival tissue reached a maximum level between 24-48 hr after D10 injection. The number of eosinophils which infiltrated after 24 hr was dose dependent on T cell injection titer from 1x10(4), 1x10(5)to 1x10(6)cells site-1. The ratio of eosinophils to neutrophils at 24 hr after D10 cell (1x10(5)cells site-1) injection was about 9 to 1. The eosinophil infiltration into conjunctival tissue was significantly reduced by the intraperitoneal administration of anti-IL-5 monoclonal antibody (100 micrograms animal-1). Anti-IL-4 monoclonal antibody (500 micrograms animal-1) partially inhibited eosinophilia. The combined inhibitory effect of anti-IL-4 and anti-IL-5 monoclonal antibodies was larger than the inhibitory effect of anti-IL-5 monoclonal antibody alone. In conclusion, a Th2-induced mouse conjunctival eosinophilia model was established in which D10 activation results in IL-4 and IL-5 release. These cytokines elicit eosiniophil infiltration. This response shows that the model will be effective for screening candidates of anti-allergic drugs.

The effects of betamethasone derivatives on endotoxin-induced uveitis in guinea pigs

OBJECTIVE AND DESIGN

We reported previously that the betamethasone derivative betamethasone dipropionate behaves as an anti-glucocorticoid in rat endotoxin-induced uveitis (EIU). In the present study, we produced EIU in guinea pigs and investigated the effects of betamethasone dipropionate on the EIU.

MATERIAL

Male Hartley guinea pigs were used.

TREATMENT

Glucocorticoids were instilled into the eye.

METHOD

To elicit EIU, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was injected into the anterior chamber of the eye. Cell numbers in the aqueous humor after LPS injection were determined by flow cytometry. Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production after LPS injection into the anterior chamber was also examined.

RESULTS

Intracameral injection of LPS (1 microgram/eye) induced cell infiltration into the anterior chamber and PGE2 production. Betamethasone dipropionate inhibited cell infiltration and PGE2 production more strongly than betamethasone. These results suggest that betamethasone dipropionate is a potent glucocorticoid in guinea pigs.

CONCLUSIONS

Structure-activity relationships of glucocorticoids in the guinea pig EIL model may differ from those in the rat EIU model.

Effects of bucillamine and antigen-presenting cells in experimental autoimmune uveitis in rats

Bucillamine, an anti-rheumatic drug, was compared with cyclosporine (CYA) in its effects on the antigen-presentation activity of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and the antigen-specific proliferation of T cells from S-antigen-immunized rats. In vitro assay showed that bucillamine did not affect the proliferative response of T cells, but suppressed the antigen-presenting activity of APCs, such as macrophages and retinal pigment epithelial cells. On the other hand, CYA suppressed both T cell proliferation and the antigen-presenting activity of macrophages. However, the doses of CYA required to produce significant suppression of antigen presentation were higher than those needed to inhibit T cell proliferation. Daily systemic administration of bucillamine for 14 days after immunizing rats with S-antigen suppressed the intensity of experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU) and the antigen-presenting activity of macrophages in treated rats, but not the antigen-specific proliferation of the T cells. EAU intensity was completely suppressed by CYA for 14 days post-immunization, and antigen-specific proliferation of T cells was suppressed, but the antigen-presenting activity of macrophages was not affected. These results suggested that the suppressive effects of bucillamine on the antigen-presenting activity of APCs contributed to its suppressive effects on EAU; whereas, the suppressive effects of CYA on EAU resulted principally from its suppression of the T-cell function.

[Rapid identification of Bilophila wadsworthia]

Biophila wadsworthia is a recently recognized nonspore-forming anaerobic gram-negative rod and is reported to be associated with various infections such as gangrenous perforated appendicitis, peritonitis, osteomyelitis and bacteremia. Although the isolation of B. wadsworthia seems to be facilitated by using Bacteroides bile esculin (BBE) agar, the reliable scheme of identification of this species has been published. This study was conducted to find simple, rapid, and reliable measures for identification of B. wadsworthia. A total of 32 B. wadsworthia-suspected clinical isolates as well as B. wadsworthia WAL 7959 and Desulfomonas pigra DSM 749, which is the species that shows bacteriological characteristics similar to B. wadsworthia, were used. Through the study of various biochemical and enzymatic tests and culture on selective media, it is indicated that a nonspore-forming, gram-negative anaerobic rod that is nonmotile, forms "black-eyed" colonies on BBE agar, and demonstrates strongly positive catalase test, positive acid phosphatase test, and no-growth on Bacterides medium or to be susceptible to colistin (10 micrograms disk) can be identified as B. wadsworthia.

16 beta-Methyl-17 alpha,21-diesterified glucocorticoids as partial agonists of glucocorticoid in rat endotoxin-induced inflammation

OBJECTIVE AND DESIGN

We investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of 16 beta-methyl-17 alpha,21-diesterified glucocorticoids which are well known as potent topical glucocorticoids in man on endotoxin-induced uveitis (EIU) in rats.

MATERIAL

Female Lewis rats were used.

TREATMENT

Glucocorticoids were instilled (0.01%-1.0%) or subcutaneously injected (0.1-10 mg/kg) to rats.

METHODS

To elicit EIU, LPS (500 micrograms/kg) was injected into the footpad of rats. Twelve hours after LPS injection, cell number in aqueous humor was counted by flow cytometry. Endotoxin-induced in vivo tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) production was also examined.

RESULTS

16 beta-methyl-17 alpha,21-diesterified glucocorticoids showed no effects or some enhancement of cell infiltration into the aqueous humor in EIU by topical instillation. Systemic injection of these glucocorticoids showed only weak inhibition of cell infiltration and TNF-alpha production. On the other hand, betamethasone phosphate strongly inhibited the cell infiltration and TNF-alpha production. Combined systemic injection of 16 beta-methyl-17 alpha,21-diesterified glucocorticoids and betamethasone phosphate reduced the inhibitory effects of the latter.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that 16 beta-methyl-17 alpha,21-diesterified glucocorticoids might act as partial agonists of glucocorticoid in rats.

The effects of betamethasone derivatives on endotoxin-induced uveitis in rats

The anti-inflammatory effects of betamethasone and its derivatives (betamethasone 21-phosphate, betamethasone 21-acetate, betamethasone 17-valerate, clobetasol 17-propionate and betamethasone dipropionate) on endotoxin-induced uveitis (EIU) in rats was investigated. Among the compounds examined, betamethasone, betamethasone 21-phosphate, betamethasone 21-acetate and clobetasol 17-propionate strongly inhibited cell infiltration into the aqueous humor in the EIU by instillation into the eye in a dose-dependent manner (0.01-1.0%) and by systemic administration (1 mg kg-1). On the other hand, betamethasone 17-valerate and betamethasone dipropionate showed only weak inhibitory effects or enhancement of cell infiltration by instillation into the eye (0.01-1.0%) and by systemic administration (1 mg kg-1). Combined systemic administration of betamethasone dipropionate and betamethasone reduced the inhibitory effect of betamethasone on cell infiltration and gene expression of IL-1 beta. In an in vitro interleukin-8 (IL-8) release assay, betamethasone showed stronger inhibition of the IL-8 release from rat peritoneal exudate cells (PEC) than betamethasone dipropionate, and simultaneous addition of betamethasone dipropionate with betamethasone reduced the inhibitory effect of the latter. These results suggest that the betamethasone derivative betamethasone dipropionate might behave as an anti-glucocorticoid in rats.

Promoter region of the rat phosphoribosylpyrophosphate synthetase-associated protein 39

The 5' region of the 39-kDa rat phosphoribosylpyrophosphate synthetase-associated protein (PAP39) gene was isolated and sequenced. The promoter region of the rat PAP39 is GC-rich and contains potential binding sites for regulatory factors. Its promoter activity was demonstrated by transfection of the promoter region in fusion with the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene into rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cell.

Cloning and sequencing of human complementary DNA for the phosphoribosylpyrophosphate synthetase-associated protein 39

A human cDNA encoding a human homologue of the rat phosphoribosylpyrophosphate synthetase-associated protein of 39 kDa was isolated. The deduced protein contains 356 amino acids and has calculated molecular mass of 38561. The amino acid sequence is 98% identical to that of the rat. The corresponding mRNA is present in all human tissues examined.

A canine case of profound granulomatosis due to Paecillomyces fungus

A 5-year-old dog showed remarkable edematous swelling of the left hock with lameness and local cellulitis, and paecillomyces fungus was isolated from ulcerative lesion of the hock joint and mediastinum. At autopsy severe effusive pleuritis was shown and numerous necrotizing and granulomatous lesions with fungal elements were seen in the liver, pancreas, kidney and mediastinal lymph nodes.

Promoter region of the mouse cyclin-dependent kinase 5-encoding gene

While cyclin-dependent kinases, such as CDC2 and CDK2, are key regulators of cell-cycle progression, cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (CDK5) is highly expressed in mature neurons with no evident cell-cycle regulation. The 5'-region of the mouse CDK5 gene was isolated and sequenced. The isolated clone included exons 1 through 7. The 5'-flanking region has a high G+C content. There is no TATA box around the transcriptional start points (tsp), as determined by primer extension analysis. One CCAAT box, one AP-1-binding site, two AP-2-binding sites, and one cAMP-responsive element are located upstream from the tsp. Promoter/cat fusion assays showed that the 5.8-kb fragment of this 5'-flanking sequence possessed the promoter activities expressing cat in rat PC12 pheochromocytoma cells. The effect of deletions of the promoter suggested the presence of two negative control elements located from -2.9 kb to -546 bp, and from -212 to -155 upstream from the 5' end of the tsp. Two positive elements from bp -300 to -212 and from -155 to -41 were also detected. In the element from bp -300 to -212, there was a putative NF-IL6-binding sequence. Thus, the CDK5 promoter region contains multiple positive and negative cis-acting regulatory elements, an arrangement which suggests that the regulation of transcription of CDK5 is under complex control.

Effects of bucillamine, a new anti-rheumatic drug, on the experimental autoimmune uveitis in rats

The in vitro and in vivo effects of a new immunomodulating agent, bucillamine, on experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU) was studied in the rat. The capacity of S-antigen-sensitized lymphocytes to proliferate in response to the antigen or to produce antigen-specific antibodies was significantly suppressed by bucillamine in culture in a dose-dependent manner. The inhibitory effect of bucillamine was significantly enhanced by adding cyclosporin A (CYA) in the culture. The in vivo effects of bucillamine alone or in combination with CYA were further examined in Lewis rats immunized with S-antigen. All untreated rats developed severe EAU 17 days after S-antigen immunization, while rats treated with either bucillamine (200 mg kg-1 day-1) or CYA (2 mg kg-1 day-1) demonstrated milder symptoms of EAU. A combination therapy with bucillamine (20 or 200 mg kg-1 day-1) and CYA (2 mg kg-1 day-1) exhibited much more significant suppression of EAU induction. Although the in vivo treatment with bucillamine or CYA had no effects on the T-cell populations of spleen cells, the combination therapy significantly decreased the CD4+ T-cell population. As for the immune responses to S-antigen in drug-treated rats, bucillamine suppressed the lymphocyte proliferation to S-antigen, which was further suppressed by combination therapy with CYA. The serum antibody levels specific to S-antigen were not affected by tested dose of bucillamine.

Bacterial flora detected in the uterine endometrial cavity of normal puerperae on the puerperal first day and on the puerperal fifth day after incidental use of cefpodoxime proxetil

In Japan, oral antimicrobial agents are prophylactically used with oxytocics after normal delivery to prevent puerperal infections. The present study was designed to investigate bacterial floras in the endometrial cavity immediately after normal delivery and the effect of prophylactic use of anti-microbial agents on those floras. Sixty-six puerperae who underwent uneventful courses of pregnancy and delivery were subjected for this study. Intrauterine contents were collected on the first day and the fifth day of the puerperium and submitted to microbiological examinations. Cefpodoxime proxetil (CPDX-PR) was orally given to the puerperae for prophylaxis for 5 days after the initial sampling. On the puerperal first day, a total of 98 strains (71 strains of aerobic bacteria, 27 strains of anaerobic bacteria) was detected in the uteri of the 66 subjects. The incidences of aerobic Gram-positive cocci, aerobic Gram-negative bacilli and anaerobic bacteria were 59.2%, 12.2%, 27.6% of the 98 strains, respectively. On the puerperal fifth day, a total of 82 strains (51 strains of aerobic bacteria and 31 strains of anaerobic bacteria) were detected in the uteri of the 66 subjects. The incidences of aerobic Gram-positive cocci, aerobic Gram-negative bacilli and anaerobic bacteria were 52.5%, 8.6% and 37.7% of 82 strains, respectively.

[Incidence of Mobiluncus spp. from the patients with clinical bacterial vaginosis]

Aerobic and anaerobic cultures as well as a Gram stain and wet mount preparations were made of vaginal swabs in twenty patients with clinical bacterial vaginosis. Mobiluncus spp. were detected in 7 cases (35%). Cultures appeared to indicate that mixed abnormal flora between aerobic and anaerobic bacteria are found in bacterial vaginosis, and that Mobiluncus spp. may play a role in bacterial vaginosis.

A comparison of the opacifying effects of carteolol.HCl and 8-hydroxycarteolol.HCl in the isolated porcine cornea

Using an in vitro method the authors have investigated whether 8-hydroxycarteolol.HCl(8-OH carteolol) and 8-OH carteolol with benzalkonium chloride affected intact isolated porcine corneas to the same or to a different degree as carteolol.HCl (carteolol) or carteolol with benzalkonium chloride. These ophthalmically used drugs were applied as solutions of varying concentrations to the epithelial surface only, to the endothelial surface only, or to both surfaces of porcine corneas. The resultant opacities were determined using an opacitometer. In general, 8-OH carteolol and 8-OH carteolol with benzalkonium chloride caused less opacity to develop than carteolol and carteolol with benzalkonium chloride. This suggests that 8-OH carteolol may be a safer drug than carteolol for ophthalmic use. It is very interesting to note that compounds with two nitrogens, e.g., 8-OH carteolol, caused greater opacity in the intact cornea when applied to the endothelial surface than when applied to both the epithelial and endothelial surfaces; however, compounds with none or one nitrogen caused greater opacity in the intact cornea when applied to both surfaces than when applied to the endothelial surface.