Losses of leaf area owing to herbivory and early senescence in three tree species along a winter temperature gradient

In temperate climates, evergreen leaves have to survive throughout low temperature winter periods. Freezing and chilling injuries can lead to accelerated senescence of part of the leaf surface, which contributes to a reduction of the lifespan of the photosynthetic machinery and of leaf lifetime carbon gain. Low temperatures are also associated with changes in foliar chemistry and morphology that affect consumption by herbivores. Therefore, the severity of foliar area losses caused by accelerated senescence and herbivory can change along winter temperature gradients. The aim of this study is to analyse such responses in the leaves of three evergreen species (Quercus ilex, Q. suber and Pinus pinaster) along a climatic gradient. The leaves of all three species presented increased leaf mass per area (LMA) and higher concentrations of structural carbohydrates in cooler areas. Only the two oak species showed visible symptoms of damage caused by herbivory, this being less intense at the coldest sites. The leaves of all three species presented chlorotic and necrotic spots that increased in size with leaf age. The foliar surface affected by chlorosis and necrosis was larger at the sites with the coldest winters. Therefore, the effects of the winter cold on the lifespan of the photosynthetic machinery were contradictory: losses of leaf area due to accelerated senescence increased, but there was a decrease in losses caused by herbivory. The final consequences for carbon assimilation strongly depend on the exact timing of the appearance of the damage resulting from low temperature and grazing by herbivores.

Residual enzymatic activity as a prognostic factor in patients with Gaucher disease type 1: correlation with Zimran and GAUSS-I index and the severity of bone disease

BACKGROUND

Gaucher disease (GD) is an autosomal recessive disorder produced by mutations in the glucocerebrosidase gene (GBA), causing storage of glucosylceramide in reticuloendothelial cells in multiple organs. Traditionally, the prediction of the phenotype based on the genotype has been reported to be limited.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

We investigated the correlation between the enzymatic residual activity (ERA) and the phenotype at diagnosis of the disease in 45 GD Spanish patients (44 with type I and 1 with type III GD). The genotype involved two of the following previously expressed proteins: c.517A > C (T134P), 1%; c.721G > A (G202R), 17%; c.1090G > T (G325W), 13.9%; c.1208G > A (S364N), 4.1%; c.1226A > G (N370S), 17.8%; c.1246G > A (G377S), 17.6%; c.1289C > T (P391L), 8.5%; c.1448T > C (L444P), 3%; and c.1504C > T (R463C), 24.5%. Recombinant alleles, deletion of 55 bp in exon 9 and 84GG mutation were considered as mutations with no residual enzymatic activity.

RESULTS

The ERA showed a statistically significant correlation with chitotriosidase (P < 0.001), age (P < 0.001), spleen size (P < 0.001), 'Zimran's Severity Score Index' (P < 0.01) and the 'Gaucher Disease Severity Score Index-Type I' (P <  0.0001) at diagnosis of the disorder. Previous to any medical intervention, a comparison between the ERA and bone involvement, demonstrated a statistically significant relationship (P < 0.01) between the two variables.

CONCLUSIONS

This study data allowed us to define a new criterion for prognostic assessment of the disease at diagnosis, called Protein Severity Index, which expresses the theoretical severity of the genotype presented by patients, according to the corresponding ERA.

CD203c is overexpressed on neoplastic mast cells in systemic mastocytosis and is upregulated upon IgE receptor cross-linking

The ectoenzyme E-NPP3 (CD203c) has recently been identified as a novel activation-linked cell surface antigen on basophils. In the present study, we examined expression of CD203c on normal mast cells (MC)and bone marrow (bm) MC derived from 85 patients with systemic mastocytosis (SM), including cases with indolent SM (ISM, n=72), SM with associated clonal hematologic non-MC-lineage disease (SM-AHNMD, n=6), aggressive SM (ASM, n=3), and mast cell leukemia (MCL, n=4). Surface expression of CD203c was analyzed by multicolor flow cytometry. In patients with SM, bm MC expressed significantly higher amounts of CD203c compared to normal bm MC (median MFI in controls: 260 versus median MFI in SM: 516, p<0.05). Slightly lower amounts of CD203c were detected on MC in SM-AHNMD and ASM compared to ISM. To demonstrate CD203c expression in MC at the mRNA level, neoplastic MC were highly enriched by cell sorting, and were found to express CD203c mRNA in RT-PCR analysis. Cross-linking of the IgE receptor on MC resulted in a substantial upregulation of CD203c, whereas the KIT-ligand stem cell factor (SCF) showed no significant effects. In conclusion, CD203c is a novel activation-linked surface antigen on MC that is upregulated in response to IgE receptor cross-linking and is overexpressed on neoplastic MC in patients with SM.

Flow cytometric assessment of drug susceptibility in Leishmania infantum promastigotes

Flow cytometry can be a valuable tool for parasitology in studies of parasite-drug interaction and cellular toxicity. This unit presents protocols for assessment of Leishmania promastigote proliferation, viability, and cellular protein content. The cytometric approach permits one to detect, differentiate, and quantify cellular changes in these parasites resulting from drug treatment, in this case allopurinol, as well as demonstrate differences in drug susceptibility between promastigote forms. Rapid and relatively simple flow cytometry replaces incorporation of [3H]-thymidine, hitherto the most common method for determining cell division.

Transduction of Vero cells and bovine monocytes with a herpes simplex virus-1 based amplicon carrying the gene for the bovine herpesvirus-1 Circ protein

Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) based amplicon vectors are promising gene delivery vehicles because they have a large transgene capacity and can efficiently transduce many different cell types, including non-dividing cells, of various animal species. The Circ protein of bovine herpesvirus-1 (BHV-1) is a myristylated virion component of unknown function. Preliminary experiments with a circ gene deletion mutant indicated that Circ may influence the host's immune response by downregulating MHC-II expression in bovine monocytes. To get more insight into the function of Circ, amplicon vectors were constructed with various open reading frames (ORFs) under the control of the HSV-1 IE4/5 promoter: (i) the Circ ORF alone, (ii) a fusion ORF encoding an N-terminal Circ fused to the enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP), (iii) the eGFP ORF alone, and (iv) the Circ ORF in the inverted orientation. Upon helpervirus-free packaging into HSV-1 amplicon particles and transduction of Vero cells, both Circ alone and the Circ-eGFP fusion protein produced a punctate pattern within the cytoplasm, suggesting membrane association of the myristylated protein. In contrast, eGFP alone was evenly distributed over the cytoplasm of transduced cells. Upon infection of bovine buffy-coat cells, it was observed that cells of the monocyte lineage but not lymphocytes were transduced. Transgene expression reached a peak around 20h after transduction and lasted for at least 90h. Transduced monocytes underwent specific morphological changes, which may be attributed to Circ synthesis.

Expression, epitope analysis, and functional role of the LFA-2 antigen detectable on neoplastic mast cells

Recent data suggest that mast cells (MCs) in patients with systemic mastocytosis or mast cell leukemia express a CD2-reactive antigen. To explore the biochemical nature and function of this antigen, primary MCs as well as the MC line HMC-1 derived from a patient with mast cell leukemia were examined. Northern blot experiments revealed expression of CD2 messenger RNA in HMC-1, whereas primary nonneoplastic MCs did not express transcripts for CD2. In cell surface staining experiments, bone marrow (BM) MCs in systemic mastocytosis (n = 12) as well as HMC-1 cells (30%-80%) were found to express the T11-1 and T11-2 (but not T11-3) epitopes of CD2. By contrast, BM MCs in myelodysplastic syndromes and nonhematologic disorders (bronchiogenic carcinoma, foreskin phimosis, uterine myeomata ) were consistently CD2(-). All MC species analyzed including HMC-1 were found to express LFA-3 (CD58), the natural ligand of CD2. To study the functional role of CD2 on neoplastic MCs, CD2(+) and CD2(-) HMC-1 cells were separated by cell sorting. CD2(+) HMC-1 cells were found to form spontaneous aggregates and rosettes with sheep erythrocytes in excess over CD2(-) cells, and a T11-1 antibody inhibited both the aggregation and rosette formation. Moreover, exposure of CD2(+) HMC-1 cells to T11-1 or T11-2 antibody was followed by expression of T11-3. In addition, stimulation of neoplastic MCs through T11-3 and a second CD2 epitope resulted in histamine release. These data show that neoplastic MCs express functionally active CD2. It is hypothesized that expression of CD2 is associated with pathologic accumulation and function of MCs in systemic mastocytosis.

Patterns of abnormal FDG uptake by various histological types of non-small cell lung cancer at initial staging by PET

The aim of this study was to identify useful patterns of abnormal fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake by different types of non-small cell (NSC) lung cancer and to assess their clinical implications. One hundred and three sequential patients with newly diagnosed, pathology-proven NSC lung cancer were included. FDG positron emission tomography (PET) images were acquired using a dedicated PET scanner. There were 35 squamous cell carcinomas (SQC), 17 large cell cancers (LGC), 38 adenocarcinomas (ADC), 1 bronchioloalveolar carcinoma (BAC) and 12 non-classified NSC cancers. PET images were categorized into detectable patterns of necrotic center in the primary tumor, satellite lesions (T4), hilar lymph nodes (N1), and N2, N3, and M1 lesions by visual interpretation of PET images for SQC, LGC, and ADC (n=90; BAC and non-classified NSC cancers were excluded). The PET lesions were correlated with surgical pathology and with CT findings in inoperable cases. Necrosis was more commonly present in the primary tumors of LGC (53%) and SQC (43%) than in those of ADC (26%) (P<0.0001 and <0.01, respectively). The frequencies of nodal uptake in ADC, SQC and LGC were similar (71%, 60%, and 59%, respectively). However, M1 lesions were present significantly more often in LGC (41%) and ADC (34%) than in SQC (3%) (both P<0.0001). Significantly more surgically inoperable cases were found by PET (T4, N3, M1) in ADC (50%) and LGC (41%) than in SQC (26%) (P<0.001 and <0.02, respectively). Our results suggest a wide variation of PET findings for different types of NSC lung cancer. Identification of these patterns is useful in clinical PET interpretation, in that knowledge of the most probable association between the PET patterns and the histological types will facilitate initial staging and planning of management.

Assessment of surface markers and functionality of dendritic cells (DCs)

Dendritic cells are a complex group of mainly bone marrow derived cells that possess significant ability to take up, process, and present soluble antigens to responder cells in the lymphoid tissues. Characterization of DC surface markers has been a difficult task owing to the lack of appropriate reagents of sufficient specificity. Molecules closely associated with dendritic cells are being identified and investigated and flow cytometric approaches to evaluation of monoclonal antibodies against DC populations are being developed. This informative unit describes assays for determination of the existence of subsets within two DC populations, the kinetics of antigen expression, and the identification of specific markers for DC subsets. A Support Protocol presents an approach for generating dendritic cells and Langerhans cells (a skin-derived DC) from blood monocytes.

Diagnostic criteria and classification of mastocytosis: a consensus proposal

The term 'mastocytosis' denotes a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by abnormal growth and accumulation of mast cells (MC) in one or more organ systems. Over the last 20 years, there has been an evolution in accepted classification systems for this disease. In light of such developments and novel useful markers, it seems appropriate now to re-evaluate and update the classification of mastocytosis. Here, we propose criteria to delineate categories of mastocytosis together with an updated consensus classification system. In this proposal, the diagnosis cutaneous mastocytosis (CM) is based on typical clinical and histological skin lesions and absence of definitive signs (criteria) of systemic involvement. Most patients with CM are children and present with maculopapular cutaneous mastocytosis (=urticaria pigmentosa, UP). Other less frequent forms of CM are diffuse cutaneous mastocytosis (DCM) and mastocytoma of skin. Systemic mastocytosis (SM) is commonly seen in adults and defined by multifocal histological lesions in the bone marrow (affected almost invariably) or other extracutaneous organs (major criteria) together with cytological and biochemical signs (minor criteria) of systemic disease (SM-criteria). SM is further divided into the following categories: indolent systemic mastocytosis (ISM), SM with an associated clonal hematologic non-mast cell lineage disease (AHNMD), aggressive systemic mastocytosis (ASM), and mast cell leukemia (MCL). Patients with ISM usually have maculopapular skin lesions and a good prognosis. In the group with associated hematologic disease, the AHNMD should be classified according to FAB/WHO criteria. ASM is characterized by impaired organ-function due to infiltration of the bone marrow, liver, spleen, GI-tract, or skeletal system, by pathologic MC. MCL is a 'high-grade' leukemic disease defined by increased numbers of MC in bone marrow smears (>or=20%) and peripheral blood, absence of skin lesions, multiorgan failure, and a short survival. In typical cases, circulating MC amount to >or=10% of leukocytes (classical form of MCL). Mast cell sarcoma is a unifocal tumor that consists of atypical MC and shows a destructive growth without (primary) systemic involvement. This high-grade malignant MC disease has to be distinguished from a localized benign mastocytoma in either extracutaneous organs (=extracutaneous mastocytoma) or skin. Depending on the clinical course of mastocytosis and development of an AHNMD, patients can shift from one category of MC disease into another. In all categories, mediator-related symptoms may occur and may represent a serious clinical problem. All categories of mastocytosis should be distinctively separated from reactive MC hyperplasia, MC activation syndromes, and a more or less pronounced increase in MC in myelogenous malignancies other than mastocytosis. Criteria proposed in this article should be helpful in this regard.

Utility of flow cytometric analysis of mast cells in the diagnosis and classification of adult mastocytosis

The diagnosis of bone marrow (BM) involvement in mastocytosis has mainly been based on conventional histology. Nevertheless, in recent years, three major methodological advances have been made: the measurement of serum tryptase levels, the immunohistochemical assessment of mast cell (MC) tryptase, and the immunophenotypical characterization of BMMC using flow cytometry (FCM). The most characteristic immunophenotypic feature in mastocytosis is the coexpression of CD2 and CD25 antigens, which are never present in normal BMMC and constitute a phenotypic hallmark of BMMC in adult mastocytosis. Such observations would support the need to include the immunophenotypic analysis of MC in the diagnosis of mastocytosis.

Comparison of montelukast versus budesonide in the treatment of exercise-induced bronchoconstriction

BACKGROUND

Previous studies in which leukotriene-receptor antagonist and corticosteroids were used have suggested a possible role for these anti-inflammatory drugs in the prevention of exercise-induced bronchoconstriction, but no direct comparisons have been made.

OBJECTIVE

A crossover study was undertaken to compare the ability of both montelukast and budesonide to protect patients from exercise-induced bronchoconstriction.

METHODS

A total of 20 patients (median age, 17 years; range, 8 to 36 years), who had clinical exercise-induced bronchoconstriction for 1 year and decreased FEV1 of at least 20% after exercise on two occasions, were enrolled in this study. To compare the therapies in each patient, we administered, consecutively, 10 mg of montelukast once daily at bedtime for 3 days and, later, 400 microg of budesonide twice daily for 15 days, or vice versa, with a 15-day intervening washout period during which no patient received treatment. Exercise challenges were performed at baseline (no therapy) and after each treatment. The percentage of FEV1 declines at 2, 7, and 12 minutes after exercise and the area under the curve (summarizing the extent and modification of FEV1 decreases relative to time) were measured and compared.

RESULTS

Both budesonide and montelukast significantly reduced the decrease in FEV1 (area under the curve) after exercise with respect to the baseline condition of no therapy (P = 0.0001). Overall, budesonide offered better protection (area under the curve) than did montelukast (P = 0.01), particularly in the short-term evaluation (2 minutes after exercise; P = 0.003); however, considerable individual variations in the responses to both budesonide and montelukast were observed. The degree of protection against decreases in FEV1 ranged from 0% to almost 100% for both treatments. In 16 of 20 patients, budesonide therapy offered better protection than did montelukast, and in the other 4 patients, montelukast showed better protection than did budesonide. No side effects of either montelukast or budesonide were detected during the study.

CONCLUSIONS

Treatment with budesonide or montelukast prevents exercise-induced bronchoconstriction. Because substantial variation in the response may be present among patients, both drugs should be tested in each patient before long-term therapy is chosen.

Lymphoscintigraphy and sentinel node localization in breast cancer patients: a comparison between 1-day and 2-day protocols

The purpose of this study was to compare the results of isotope injection the morning of surgery (1-d protocol) with isotope injection the day before surgery (2-d protocol) in patients having sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy for breast cancer.

METHODS

The 1-d (protocol 1) and 2-d (protocol 2) protocols included 514 and 152 patients, respectively, treated contemporaneously by surgeons experienced with the SLN biopsy technique. All had preoperative lymphoscintigraphy (LSG) and SLN biopsy using both blue dye and (99m)Tc-sulfur colloid. All patients had a single-site intradermal injection of unfiltered (99m)Tc-sulfur colloid in 0.05 mL normal saline: 3.7 MBq (0.1 mCi) on the morning of surgery for protocol 1 and 18.5 MBq (0.5 mCi) on the afternoon before surgery for protocol 2.

RESULTS

The patients in protocols 1 and 2 were comparable in terms of age, tumor size, tumor location, histologic type, node positivity, and frequency of a previous surgical biopsy. Comparing protocols 1 and 2, early (30 min) LSG images found the SLN equally often (69% vs. 68%). Isotope identified the SLN equally often at surgery (93% vs. 97%) as did isotope plus dye (98% vs. 99%). A comparable number of SLNs was found (2.5 vs. 2.8 per axilla), and the concordance between isotope and dye in the SLN was also comparable (97% vs. 95%). Late LSG images (at 2 h, possible only for protocol 2) identified the SLN in significantly more patients compared with early images (86% vs. 68%).

CONCLUSION

With unfiltered (99m)Tc-sulfur colloid injected intradermally, the results of SLN biopsy under the 1-d and 2-d protocols are virtually identical. A 2-d protocol allows increased efficiency in scheduling, both for nuclear medicine physicians and for the operating room, with no compromise in the effectiveness of SLN mapping.

Trisomy/ tetrasomy of chromosome 8 and +i(8q) as the sole chromosome abnormality in three adult patients with myelomonocytic leukemia

We report three cases of tetrasomy 8 associated with myeloid disease. Two patients had chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMMoL) and the other had acute monocytic leukemia (AML M5 FAB). Two patients had trisomy/tetrasomy chromosome 8 as the sole abnormality. The other patient with CMMoL had two normal 8 chromosomes plus one isochromosome 8q; this is the first case of long arm chromosome 8 tetrasomy without short arm 8 monosomy. This cytogenetic finding suggests the importance of the genes located in the long arms of chromosome 8.

The CD69 early activation molecule is overexpressed in human bone marrow mast cells from adults with indolent systemic mast cell disease

We have analysed the quantitative expression of surface CD69 antigen on human mast cells (MC), from both normal and pathological bone marrow (BM) samples, using flow cytometry. Our major aim was to analyse whether CD69 is constitutively expressed by normal BMMC and to explore the possible differences between CD69 expression by BMMC from normal controls and patients suffering from different pathological conditions. The constitutive expression of surface CD69 was clearly demonstrated in BMMC; however, systemic mast cell disease (SMCD) patients showed significantly higher levels of surface CD69 expression than healthy controls (P < 0.001), chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (P = 0.001), monoclonal gammopathy of unknown significance (P < 0.001), multiple myeloma (P < 0.001) patients, and myelodysplastic syndromes (P = 0.002). Furthermore, almost no overlap between the levels of CD69 expression on BMMC was observed between SMCD cases and the remaining groups of individuals except for the paediatric mastocytosis group (P > 0.05). From the other groups of patients, monoclonal gammopathy of unknown significance (P = 0.04), myelodysplastic syndromes (P = 0.03) and paediatric mastocytosis (P = 0.003) cases showed a significantly higher expression of surface CD69 as compared to normal subjects. In summary, our findings show that the CD69 antigen is overexpressed in SMCD patients.

Construction and characterization of a stably transformed HeLa cell line in which the expression of bovine herpesvirus 1 ICP0 (BICP0) is induced by tetracycline

To explore the effects BICP0 (a principal transactivator of BHV-1 gene expression) on viral promoter elements, we established a cell line in which the expression of BICP0 is regulated by tetracycline. A hybrid promoter containing reiterated copies of the tet-operator (tet-O) and a minimal herpesviral alpha gene transinducing factor (alpha TIF) responsive element (minimal human cytomegalovirus immediate early promoter) was fused to the BICP0 gene and used to transform a HeLa cell line which expressed a fusion protein consisting of the repressor of the tet-O and the transactivating domain of alpha TIF. Simultaneously, the hygromycin resistance gene was transfected to select cells in media containing either hygromycin alone or both hygromycin and tetracycline. Immunofluorescent assays indicated that BICP0 was synthesised in the transformed cell lines solely upon induction of the gene by tetracycline removal. Only cells which had been kept constantly in medium containing tetracycline were able to synthesise BICP0 upon induction. Induced cell lines transactivated the native BICP0 promoter as well as the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase promoter and the long terminal repeat sequences of human immunodeficiency virus in a dose dependent manner. These cell lines may help to further explore the functions of BICP0 as well as to investigate the molecular basis of interactions between herpes- and retroviruses.

Characterization and trypanocidal activity of nifurtimox-containing and empty nanoparticles of polyethylcyanoacrylates

The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of nanoparticles of polyalkylcyanoacrylate as a targeted delivery system for nifurtimox against Trypanosoma cruzi, responsible for Chagas' disease. Ethylcyanoacrylate nanoparticles were prepared by an emulsion polymerization process and formulations containing different concentrations of nifurtimox, polyethylcyanoacrylates and surfactants were investigated and analysed for size and drug content. The nanoparticles obtained were less than 200 nm in size, as measured by electron microscopy and cytometry. The peak percentage of nifurtimox uptake into the nanoparticles was 33.4% for use of 500 microL polyethylcyanoacrylate, 200 microL surfactant (Tween 20) and 10 mg nifurtimox in 50 mL polymerization medium. The highest release of nifurtimox from the nanoparticles was 65.4% after 6-h incubation at pH 7.4. In-vitro studies using cultures of T. cruzi epimastigotes revealed considerably increased trypanocidal activity compared with a standard solution of nifurtimox. Studies of cell cultures previously infected with metacyclic forms of the parasite showed that only 2-h treatment with solutions of 0.001% of the nanoparticle suspension reduced parasitism by 87-94% both when the nanoparticles were loaded with nifurtimox and when unloaded. Electron-microscopic examination revealed processes of degeneration and lysis, suggesting apoptotic processes, in intracellular amastigotes and free amastigotes treated with the nanoparticles. It was demonstrated that unloaded nanoparticles, by mechanisms not completely elucidated, have trypanocide activity similar to that of a standard solution of nifurtimox. It is concluded that the nanoparticles loaded with nifurtimox constitutes a good carrier of the drug against T. cruzi. The loaded-nanoparticles significantly increase trypanocidal activity.

How accurately can videokeratographic systems measure surface elevation?

INTRODUCTION

Surface topography, as opposed to dioptric topography, defines the corneal surface in simple terms without assumptions. Accordingly, it is important to know how well surface topography can be measured with current videokeratometric machines.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this paper is to quantify the accuracy with which the TMS-1 Corneal Modeling System can measure the surface topography of calibrated spherical, elliptical, and bicurve surfaces.

METHODS

The Computed Anatomy TMS-1 videokeratometer was used to measure three spherical, three elliptical, and two bicurve surfaces with known characteristics. Surface characteristics were either back-calculated from the dioptric files or directly obtained from the TMS-1 elevation file for each of 6400 points (256 points in each of 25 rings). The accuracy with which each method determined the true surface was quantified by calculating the root mean squared error (RMSE) of the 6400 measured surface elevations from the known surface elevation at each sampling point.

RESULTS

(1) For spherical and elliptical surfaces, back-calculation of surface elevation from the dioptric file can be made with RMSE of 5 mu or less. (2) For spheres but not elliptical surfaces the TMS-1 elevation file defines the surface with RMSE 5 mu or less. (3) The surface area measured by placido-based videokeratometers varies with surface curvature. (4) RMSE in measured surface elevation increase as the distance from the videokeratometric axis increases. (5) For bicurves, the dioptric maps are smoothed by the TMS-1 over abrupt transitions and for large transitions never recover. Additionally, our back-calculation methods further smooth abrupt transitions, making the RMSE of the bicurve surface that is back-calculated from the dioptric file larger than the RMSE of the surface generated from the TMS-1 elevation file.

CONCLUSIONS

Surface elevations can be back-calculated from dioptric files with RMSE of 5 microns or less for spheres and elliptical surfaces as long as there are no areas of abrupt transition. If areas of abrupt transition exist, the TMS-1 elevation file provides more accurate surface profile data.

Fulminant hepatic failure after Lepiota mushroom poisoning

We present ten patients who suffered from a cyclopeptide syndrome from two different foci, one caused by Lepiota helveola (seven cases) and the other by Lepiota brunneoincarnata (three cases). Of the ten victims, five recovered completely after the intestinal stage and the other five developed a phase of visceral involvement with alterations of liver function. In two patients, hepatic function became normal after the 7th day after ingestion. Three patients developed fulminant hepatitis and two of these died of adult respiratory distress syndrome. The fulminant hepatitis patient who later improved developed active chronic hepatitis 1 year later. Finally, five patients developed mixed polyneuropathy. In this paper the indications for orthotopic liver transplant (OLTx) are discussed and the development of late complications such as active chronic hepatitis and mixed polyneuropathy are considered.

Muscarinic and nicotinic synaptic activation of the developing chicken iris

The development of the mechanical characteristics of contraction and the pharmacology of synaptic activation in chick iris and ciliary body were examined from embryonic day 9 through posthatching. The ciliary ganglion-target muscle system has proven to be a useful model for both in vivo and in vitro studies of neuron-target interactions; one such interaction is involved in neuronal cell death, which in the ciliary ganglion occurs from Stage (St) 34 to 40. To understand the mechanism by which cholinergic blocking agents prevent naturally occurring neuronal death in the chick ciliary ganglion (see the following paper, Meriney et al., 1987), it was necessary to determine the effect of these agents on synaptic transmission at target structures during the cell death period. Initially (St 34-36), iris muscle contraction are synaptically mediated via muscarinic ACh receptors (AChRs) on myoepithelial cells, which have the contractile and structural characteristics of smooth muscle. Close apposition of synaptic terminals, similar to that described for mature synapses, was observed on these myoepithelial cells. Subsequently (St 37), the striated muscle fibers that appear are activated by nicotinic receptors, although muscarinic AChRs are also present. Mechanically, this can be seen as gradually changing from a slow-onset contraction, elicited only by 30 Hz stimulation, to a fast-twitch response (St 37-44). Dilator fibers that develop later in the iris (at about St 39) also possess nicotinic and muscarinic receptors. The ciliary body musculature, although not extensively studied, also appears to have dual cholinergic activation during development. The mature iris has predominately striated muscle fibers that have both junctional nicotinic and muscarinic (mostly extrajunctional) AChRs. The dual presence of both receptor types in the same muscle fiber was confirmed with intracellular recordings, in which only the initial portion of the ACh-elicited depolarization was sensitive to alpha bungarotoxin (alpha BTX). In addition, specific muscarinic binding sites were described in the developing, as well as in the mature, iris. The developing chick iris was also shown to contract directly in response to light, this response disappearing after hatching. This unique dual-receptor pharmacology (nicotinic-muscarinic) and light response of a striated muscle may be due to the neural crest origin of these cells.

[Biochemical complications of experimental vesico-sigmoidostomy]

Three experimental models of vesico-sigmoidostomy are studied (model-1, end to side V-S plus urethral ligation, model-2, end to end V-S, in "Y of Rous" plus urethral ligation and model-3, vesico-sigmoidoplasty), with aim of reproducing chemical imbalance observed in human subjects with ureterosigmoidostomy. Authors have evaluated clinical biochemical (serum acido-base balance, Cl, Na+, K+, BUN, creatinine, ammonia and albumin), and histologic variables in the first, third and fifth month after operation in 225 rats. Animal of model-1 presented more frequently than model-2 and model-3, alterations (hyperchloraemic acidosis, uraemia, hyperammonemia and hypoalbumin) as well as affectation of upper urinary system for acute or chronic pyelonephritis.

Autonomic neuropathy and painless myocardial infarction in diabetic patients. Histologic evidence of their relationship

Myocardial infarction is considered the prime cause of death among adult diabetic patients. In a great number of cases, during myocardial infarction the patients don't feel pain or it is atypical. Diagnosis can be neglected, and mortality increases. In search of an explanation for the absence of pain in these patients, the authors studied the autonomic nerve fibers of the heart muscle with argentic and combined techniques, looking for lesions in the sympathetic or parasympathetic nerve fibers that conduct pain. In the five cases of painless myocardial infarction studied, the nerve fibers showed typical lesions of diabetic neuropathy: beaded thickenings, spindle-shaped thickenings, fragmentation of fibers, and diminution of the number of fibers in the nerves. The patients in the control group (five diabetics with painful infarction, five diabetics with infarction, five nondiabetics with painful infarction, and five nondiabetics without infarction) had no lesions. These facts led us to assume that the absence of pain in diabetics with myocardial infarction could be due to a lesion of the afferent nerves that conduct pain.