Worms and allergy

Worms and asthma are associated with a type 2 immune response, but evidence has accumulated that helminth infection is negatively associated with atopy, prevalence of allergic diseases and severity of asthma. One important difference between these polarized type 2 responses is that in allergy modulation of the immunological response is not appropriate, whereas in infection with helminths, several host mechanisms down-regulate the host immune response. As a result, patients infected with worms have a decrease in both type 1 and type 2 responses. The main mechanism involved in this down-modulation is increased production of IL-10, but expansion of regulatory T cells and NKT cells may also participate. Regarding the interaction between worms and allergy, a few variables need to be taken in account: phase (acute or chronic) of helminth infection, parasite load and species of helminth. In animals and humans, acute helminth infection may increase manifestations of allergy, whereas chronic infection with parasites decreases atopy. The modulation of the immune response by helminths is dependent on having an adequate parasite load. Moreover, although several helminth species have been shown to modulate immune responses, most in vitro and in vivo studies have focused on the importance of Schistosoma mansoni in down-modulating allergic reactions.     

Smoking, aging and the centenarians

The smoke of cigarettes represents an important accelerator of the aging process, both directly through complex mechanisms mediated prevalently by excessive formation of free radicals, and indirectly by favoring the appearance of various pathologies in which smoke is a recognized risk factor. This means that smoke compromises not only life expectancy, but also the quality of the life, favoring the occurrence of non-autosufficiency. Smoking is an important risk factor for many diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. These are also the main causes of death in the industrialized Countries, where the habit of smoking is also largely diffused. Non-smokers have a much higher life expectancy than smokers, and the suspension of smoking is accompanied, even in the elderly, by an increase in the survival time due to the reduction of smoke-induced biological damage. Therefore, cigarette smoking is opposing the longevity, particularly the extreme one, as it is confirmed by the observations obtained on centenarians. Among them, smoking is extremely rare, and even when it occurs among them, it is correlated almost exclusively to bad health conditions and non-autosufficiency, indicating that it compromises health status and the quality of life even in extremely long living subjects. Considering the demonstrated beneficial effects of suspension of smoking, all practitioners and geriatricians in particular, should promote the abstinence from smoking as a behavioral norm for a correct life style. Non-smokers can delay the appearance of diseases and of the aging process, thus attaining longevity; further, non-smoking habit allows genetically predisposed subjects to reach the extreme longevity and maintain an acceptable health status and autosufficiency.     

骨髓增生异常综合征MIC异常和临床特点

目的：研究骨髓增生异常综合征（MDS）形态学、免疫学、遗传学（MIC）异常变化及临床特点.方法：对65例MDS患者的血液学、免疫学、遗传学异常改变资料进行了回顾性分析.结果：65例中外周血象全血细胞减少36例（55.4%），2系细胞减少19例（29.2%），分类可见幼红细胞35例（53.8%），幼粒细胞27例（41.5%）.贫血60例（92.3%），以中重度为主58例（89.2%），表现为大细胞或正细胞性贫血.白细胞异常56例（86.2%），以减少为主45例（69.2%）.血小板减少41例（63.1%）.65例行骨髓细胞学检查：增生活跃至极度活跃55例（84.6%），1系或1系以上病态造血54例（83.1%），11例难治性质血患者病态造血不明显（16.9%）.59例行骨髓病理学检查：3系不同程度病态造血30例（50.8%），粒系幼稚前体细胞异常定位（ALIP）29例（49.2%）.45例行骨髓细胞流式细胞仪（FCM）免疫表型测定，表现2系或2系以上异常40例（88.9%）.41例做FCM-DNA倍体分析，检出DNA非整倍体26例（63.4%）.32例做骨髓细胞染色体分析，发现异常克隆13例（40.6%）.结论：MDS临床表现不典型，血液学改变复杂，缺乏特异性，部分RA病态造血不明显，仅依靠形态学难以做出正确诊断，应提倡MIC分型诊断。     

中等卫生职业教育微生物与寄生虫学科教材探讨

目前我国中等卫生职业教学微生物与寄生虫学科教材版本繁多,名称各异,内容编排不一,不利教学。本文就以上问题进行初步探讨。     

Alcohol and trauma

Available evidence implicates alcohol consumption as a major risk factor for almost all types of injury. An exceptionally strong relationship is noted between alcohol and motor vehicle accidents--particularly single-vehicle crashes. Recognition of the association between alcohol and trauma is important not only for proper care and for treatment of the underlying alcoholism, but to stimulate enactment of preventive measures aimed at reducing the risk of alcohol-associated injuries.     

A study of urinary and intracellular sodium and potassium, renin, aldosterone, and hypertension in blacks and indians in natal

The prevalence of hypertension in the urban black population in Sub-Saharan Africa is high and varies from 20% to 25%. In contrast, the prevalence of hypertension in the rural black is relatively low. In Natal the prevalence of hypertension in a large metropolitan city, Durban, is 25% in the adult Zulu, 17.2% in whites, and 14.2% in Indians. The prevalence of hypertension in the rural Zulu of Natal is 10%. Work on the pathogenesis of hypertension in the Zulu and Indian ethnic groups related to renin, aldosterone, dietary sodium and potassium, and intracellular sodium and potassium was virtually nonexistent. This review paper summarizes the salient features that were found. This paper is a summary of the work undertaken by Dr. S. Hoosen in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Medicine in the University of Natal, 1988.     

Effect of actinomycin D and cycloheximide on the release and biosynthesis of gonadotropins by pituitary cell cultures

The effect of actinomycin D and cycloheximide on the release and biosynthesis of gonadotropins has been studied using pituitary cells in monolayer cultures. Both cycloheximide (1 mM) and actinomycin D (0.15 nM) inhibited partially but significantly, the GnRH-stimulated release of LH and FSH. However, these two antibiotics had no effect on the basal release of gonadotropins. The release of LH and FSH in the presence of high K⁺ (59 mM) concentration was not inhibited by actinomycin D or cycloheximide. It is probable that the release of gonadotropins in a high K⁺ medium, but not that induced by GnRH, results from the alteration of the ion permeability characteristics of the plasma membrane on which the two antibiotics have no effect. Cycloheximide profoundly inhibited incorporation of [¹⁴C]amino acids (AA) into LH and FSH by the cells and GnRH-induced release of AA-LH and AA-FSH. It only partially inhibited the incorporation of [³H]glucosamine (GLN) into LH and FSH at 2 h of incubation but had no effect or a small effect on the GnRH-induced release of GLN-LH and GLN-FSH. These results suggest, on the one hand, that cycloheximide inhibited the synthesis of polypeptide chains of LH and FSH and, on the other hand, that gonadotropic cells contain some non-glycosylated or nascent subunits of LH and FSH that can be glycosylated even in the presence of cycloheximide. Actinomycin D had no effect on the incorporation of either GLN or AA into LH and FSH, but did completely inhibit the GnRH-induced release of labeled gonadotropins and the GnRH-induced incorporation of labeled precursors. These results support the hypothesis that messenger RNA of the gonadotropic cells is stable enough to allow synthesis of the polypeptide chains of LH and FSH during 6 h of incubation. They also support the finding of many authors that the GnRH-induced release of LH and FSH proceeds first through an acute effect that is not affected by antibiotics and then through a priming effect, dependent on protein or RNA synthesis (or both), that is inhibited by antibiotics.     

益气健脾清热解毒疗法对胃粘膜合成前列腺素的影响

本文报告了临床及实验研究两方面的结果。以益气健脾、清热解毒中药治疗消化性溃疡及糜烂性胃炎患者６２例，并观察治疗前后胃粘膜ＰＧｓ的动态变化。结果显示经治疗后ＰＧＥ２，ＰＧＦ１ａ，６－ｋｅｔｏ—ＰＧＦ１ａ呈上升趋势，但无统计学意义（Ｐ＞０．０５），而ＴｘＢ２较治疗前显著下降（Ｐ＜０．０１）。此外，还观察到治疗前的湿热型患者的ＴｘＢ２比其他证型患者高（Ｐ＜０．０１）。将上述中药用于吲哚美辛诱发的大鼠实验性溃疡，其结果表明，对ＰＧｓ的影响与临床观察一致。     

急性胰腺炎诊治的新理念、新技术及临床面临的难点与困惑

急性胰腺炎（AP）是最常见的消化系统急腹症之一,其中约20%为重症急性胰腺炎（SAP）,病情凶险,治疗棘 手。按病程分期进行个体化治疗的治疗理念和多学科诊治（MDT）的治疗模式的应用,显著降低了SAP的病死率。重 视AP合并症和并发症的治疗,及时选择外科手术治疗,开展高质量的临床研究,将有益于降低病死率,改善患者预后。 关键词：急性胰腺炎;多学科诊治;合并症与并发症     

Interplay between economic empowerment and sexual behaviour and practices of migrant workers within the context of HIV and AIDS in the Lesotho textile industry

Abstract

Economic empowerment brings with it a wide range of consequences, both positive and negative. The objective of this paper was to examine the relationship between economic empowerment and the sexual behaviour and practices of migrant workers within the context of HIV and AIDS in the Lesotho textile industry. Data for this paper were extracted from the findings of a larger study which had been conducted concerning HIV and AIDS in the textile industry in Lesotho. Using in-depth interviews, data were collected from 40 participants who were purposively selected from five factories which had been chosen randomly. Empowerment theory was used as a lens to provide meanings for the experiences of the participants. The findings show that the participants were empowered only in certain respects in terms of Kabeer's empowerment model of ‘power to’ and ‘power within’, on one hand, and in terms of Malhotra's comprehensive empowerment framework at the household level, on the other, as being employed in the industry enabled them to participate in the economy. Employment in the sector provided the participants with the means to be able to acquire basic needs and the ability to participate in household decision-making: for the female participants, the ability to make independent sexual decisions was also enhanced. These improvements were greeted enthusiastically, particularly by the female participants, given their previously disadvantaged status as a result of coming from rural patriarchal villages with gender-defined hegemonic notions of respectability. The findings also indicate that environmental factors and others, such as meagre salaries, encouraged some of the female workers to engage in transactional sex, while some of the male participants tended to increase their sexual relationships as a result of acquiring employment and income from the industry. It is the contention of the authors of this study that true empowerment requires both vital resources and individual and collective participation, particularly for the women, who are more vulnerable than men. Finally, we conclude that the opportunities provided by economic empowerment have given the participants a new social meaning for their situation and an awareness about their place in power relations.     

Insulin and glucagon secretion in diabetic and non-diabetic patients with circulating islet cell antibodies

Summary Thirty-nine patients (14 non-diabetics, 8 chemical diabetics, and 17 overt diabetics) with circulating islet cell antibodies (ICA) were studied. Insulin and glucagon secretion after oral (100 g) and intravenous glucose loading (200 mg/kg bolus injection followed by an infusion of 20 mg/min over 60 min) and arginine infusion (25 g over 30 minutes) were evaluated in these patients and in non diabetic and diabetic ICA-negative controls. In the non-diabetic groups with or without ICA, insulin and glucagon responses to glucose were similar. Moreover, in ICA positive patients the response of these hormones to arginine infusion was reduced. Similar alterations in insulin and glucagon secretion were observed in the ICA positive and negative patients with chemical or overt diabetes. In particular, fasting hyperglucagonaemia and glucagon hyperresponse to arginine are associated with a lack of insulin secretion in the patients with overt diabetes. Hormonal differences between diabetics with and without ICA could not be detected.This work was previously presented at the 12th Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes, Helsinki, September 1976 and published in abstract form in Diabetologia12, 422 (1976)     

HIV-1临床毒株的分离培养及生物学表型和基因型鉴定

目的从晚期艾滋病（AIDS）病人中分离培养艾滋病病毒Ⅰ型（HIV-1）毒株,对其生物学表型和基因型进行鉴定,了解中国临床HIV-1毒株的生物学特征,以期探讨HIV-1生物学特征与疾病进展的关系。方法收集6例AIDS晚期病人的静脉全血,分离血浆和外周血单个核淋巴细胞（PBMCs）;流式细胞仪检测CD4细胞,bDNA法检测病毒载量;PBMCs共培养法分离HIV-1毒株;终点稀释法滴定分离株的感染力;逆转录-聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）扩增分离株的env区;以MT-4细胞检测毒株的融合诱导性。结果6例病例中分离出3株能在PBMCs中连续稳定传代的HIV-1毒株,50%组织培养感染剂量（TCID50/ml）分别为6.3×10^3、10.2×10^3、2.51×10^3;3株毒株均为B亚型,均不能引起MT-4细胞病变。结论共分离出3株感染力相对较高、呈慢/高型复制动力学、M-嗜性、非融合诱导性的HIV-1 B亚型临床分离株。     

过劳死与心血管事件

过劳死是指由过劳促发心血管事件引起的猝死,多种心理行为因素是主要的促发因素;现分析引起过劳死的心血管疾病及其促发机制,以及预防方法。     

下丘脑垂体疾病对糖脂代谢的影响

糖脂代谢紊乱是代谢综合征的重要组成部分,可增加心脑血管疾病发病风险,导致死亡率升高。下丘脑和垂体是机体内分泌系统的中枢,它们不仅在调节靶器官内分泌功能中发挥重要作用,而且还能通过多种机制维持机体糖脂代谢稳态。下丘脑疾病所致下丘脑结构受损或功能异常,直接造成血糖、血脂代谢失衡,也可能通过影响体内各种激素水平导致糖脂代谢紊...