Circulating adipocytokines in non-diabetic and Type 1 diabetic children: relationship to insulin therapy, glycaemic control and pubertal development.

AIM: To determine the influence of Type 1 diabetes mellitus on circulating adipocytokines in children. METHODS: The circulating concentrations of leptin, adiponectin, resistin and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha were measured in 91 children, aged 11.1 +/- 2.7 years, with Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Ninety-one healthy children were selected as control subjects. RESULTS: Body mass index-adjusted leptin concentrations were higher in the pubertal diabetic children compared with the control children. There was a significant positive correlation between leptin and daily insulin dose in the diabetic group. Circulating adiponectin concentrations were higher in the prepubertal diabetic children and were positively associated with HbA(1c). Resistin concentrations were lower in the prepubertal non-diabetic subjects compared with the pubertal non-diabetic children, whose values were higher than those of the diabetic children. TNF-alpha concentrations were similar in non-diabetic and diabetic children. CONCLUSIONS: Circulating concentrations of adipocytokines are abnormal in Type 1 diabetic children, although the direction of change differs by cytokine. Pubertal development, in addition to insulin treatment and glycaemic control, also influences the concentrations.     

Fusimotor reflexes to antagonistic muscles simultaneously assessed by multi-afferent recordings from muscle spindle afferents

Several single agonist/antagonist primary muscle spindle afferents were simultaneously recorded in chloralose anaesthetized cats. It was shown that their dynamic and static sensitivity to sinusoidal muscle stretches could be increased or decreased via the fusimotor system by extension and flexion of the contralateral hind limb as well as by stretch of ipsilateral muscles and stimulation of ipsilateral skin nerves. The results seem to support the hypothesis that the primary muscle spindle afferents convey complex multisensory messages to the central nervous system (CNS).     

HLA-B*27 subtyping by PCR-RFLP in Spanish patients with ankylosing spondyiitis

Abstract: We describe the use of restriction analysis on PCR-amplified DNA for detecting all B*27 subtypes except B*2710 and B*2711 (i.e. from B*2701 to B*2709). After detecting B*27 by Sty I, double digestions consisting of Sty I plus another informative enzyme led to subtype assignment. We used mismatched primers to create restriction sites when necessary. The method avoids group-specific amplifications and other laborious optimization procedures. It was successfully tested on a panel of well characterized cell lines covering different B*27 subtypes. Then, we studied a group of 57 ankylosing spondyiitis patients and 746 controls from the south of Spain. B*27 showed a very strong association with the disease (OR=211.27, P=\0˜7). B*2702 and B*2705 distribution in controls (20% and 77.1%, respectively) differed from previously reported data in the Spanish population. We unexpectedly found the B*2707 allele in our population (one control).     

Effects of baclofen and phaclofen on receptive field properties of rat whisker barrel neurons

Extracellular single-unit recordings were made in somatosensory cortical barrels of fentanyl-sedated rats. Whiskers were deflected singly or in paired combinations. lontophoretically-applied (−)-baclofen disproportionately reduced weak responses, and phaclofen disproportionately increased them, resulting in more tightly focused or more broadly focused receptive fields, respectively. Both drugs had only minor effects on surround inhibition. In light of previous findings, we conclude that GABA_A and GABA_B mechanisms both act to enhance spatial contrast, but that the former plays a much greater role in enhancing temporal resolution.     

大肠黏膜癌变过程中PTEN和p27的表达及相关性研究

目的 :探讨PTEN及p2 7在大肠黏膜癌变过程中的表达及两者的相关性。方法 :采用免疫组织化学S -P法检测了 5 8例大肠癌 ,15例腺瘤性息肉及 11例配对的癌旁正常组织中抑癌基因PTEN和 p2 7的蛋白表达。分析PTEN和 p2 7的表达情况及与各种临床病理特征的关系及两者的相关性。结果 :在癌旁正常组织、大肠腺瘤性息肉、大肠癌组织中PTEN表达率分别为 (97.3± 4 .3) % ,(85 .2± 16 .8) % ,(13.8± 17.6 ) % ,呈递减趋势。大肠癌DukesA/B期组PTEN蛋白的高表达率为 88.9% ,明显高于DukesC/D期组中的 5 1.6 %。PTEN的高表达率与性别、年龄、肿瘤的大小、部位、分化程度、有无淋巴结转移无关。p2 7主要表达在细胞核 ,也有少量表达在细胞浆。在癌旁正常组织、大肠腺瘤性息肉、大肠癌组织中p2 7高表达率分别为 (98.8± 1.0 8) % ,(86 .0± 13.6 ) % ,(5 6 .8± 2 6 .0 ) % ,呈递减趋势。在大肠癌高、中分化组中 p2 7蛋白的表达率为 71.4 % ,明显高于低分化组中的 2 3.1%。p2 7的高表达率与患者的Dukes分期、性别、年龄、肿瘤的大小、部位及有无淋巴结转移无关。在大肠癌组织中 ,PTEN与 p2 7蛋白的表达呈正相关 (r =0 .6 4 2 )。结论 :PTEN及p2 7表达在癌旁正常组织、大肠腺瘤性息肉、大肠癌组织中均呈递减趋势 ,提示P     

Characterization of “plasma proteins” secreted by cultured rat macroglial cells

The brain is isolated behind a blood-tissue barrier that restricts the access of circulating proteins to neural cells. There is evidence that some of these proteins are synthesized within the central nervous system. The present study examines the synthesis and secretion of such proteins by cultured macroglial cells. Primary glial cultures were derived from cortical and subcortical regions of neonatal rat brains, and subsequent secondary cultures were enriched in type-1 astrocytes, type-2 astrocytes, or oligodendrocytes. Newly synthesized proteins were immunoprecipitated from the culture media using antisera directed against whole rat serum. All three types of glial cells secreted a range of plasma proteins. In general, type-1 astrocytes secreted more of these proteins than did type-2 astrocytes or oligodendrocytes, although the one-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) profiles were specific for each cell type. Antisera directed against specific plasma proteins identified three of the most abundant proteins secreted by type-1 astrocytes as transferrin, α-2-macroglobulin, and ceruloplasmin. Northern blot analysis of cellular RNA confirmed that type-1 astrocytes contained transferrin mRNA, and that it was more abundant in cultures derived from subcortical regions than from cortical regions. In situ hybridization studies revealed that virtually all type-1 and type-2 astrocytes contained transferrin mRNA. Since the proteins identified in this study have been proposed to have a variety of neurotrophic roles in the central nervous system, these data further extend the range of possible functions that glial cells may serve in the CNS.     

Detection of cytoplasmic IL-1 beta in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from intensive care unit (ICU) patients.

Cytokines including IL-1 beta have been implicated in the pathophysiology of sepsis and the systemic inflammatory response. It is believed that certain critically ill patients may be 'primed' with respect to cytokine production, and that subsequent 'triggers' may cause exaggerated cytokine production in these patients with exacerbation of their clinical condition; however, no means of identifying 'primed' patients has been described. The presence of cytoplasmic IL-1 beta within peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from patients in the ICU was investigated as a means of identifying 'primed' patients, using fluorescent antibody labelling and flow cytometry. The study revealed that PBMC from ICU patients had a different staining pattern for IL-1 beta than those from healthy subjects, and that PBMC from certain ICU patients did indeed stain strongly for IL-1 beta; however, the presence of these strongly staining cells was not associated with clinical condition or outcome. It is concluded that whilst it might be possible to identify 'primed' patients in the ICU using this technique, this is of no clinical value as a predictor of clinical course.