Attempt of preventive treatment of striae gravidarum using preventive massage ointment administration]

Striae distensae are an appreciable cosmetic problem for many pregnant women. Preventive application of a water/oil massage cream was tested in a group of 24 gravidae (control group: 26 patients). In the untreated control group striae distensae were observed in two-thirds of the patients, whereas the prophylactically-treated gravidae showed development of striae in only one third of the group given the test preparation. Better results were obtained in women with a favourable constitutional predisposition than in patients with a tendency to overweight. The massage cream was well tolerated by all gravidae.     

Partial patellectomy in treatment of fresh fractures of the patella]

The late results of partial patellectomy in treatment of fracture of the apex or the 1/3 of the peripheral patella have been presented. Fourteen patients were evaluated. Attention was paid to the dependence of the result on the correct surgical technique. Full painless range of movements in the operated on knee was achieved in 7 persons. In the other 7 patients, extension of the knee was full but flexion was moderately limited. Periodical pain occurs in 3 persons.     

Expression of the mitochondrial uncoupling protein gene from the aP2 gene promoter prevents genetic obesity.

The brown fat-specific mitochondrial uncoupling protein (UCP) provides a mechanism for generating heat by uncoupling respiration and oxidative phosphorylation. It has been suggested that this system of thermogenesis can provide a defense against obesity. To test this idea, we created a transgenic mouse in which the fat-specific aP2 gene promoter directed Ucp expression in white fat and provided for the constitutive expression of Ucp in brown fat. Transgenic mice showed both Ucp mRNA and immunoreactive UCP in white fat at 2-10% the level normally measured in brown fat. A reduction in subcutaneous fat of aP2-Ucp C57BL/6J mice was observed at 3 mo of age. When the transgene was expressed in Avy genetically obese mice reductions in total body weight and subcutaneous fat stores were observed. Female transgenic Avy mice at 13 mo of age weighed 35 grams, a weight indistinguishable from nontransgenic C57BL/6J mice. Gonadal fat showed an increase in a novel adipocyte derivative that did not accumulate lipids and that constituted approximately 80% of the mass of the tissue in Avy transgenic. A major effect of aP2-Ucp in brown fat was to reduce endogenous gene expression by as much as 95%. The results suggest that UCP synthesized from the aP2 gene promoter is thermogenically active and capable of reducing fat stores.     

Retinal detachment in pseudophakia

Retinal detachment in an aphakic eye is a grave therapeutical problem. There exists some fears that cataract extraction with implantation of an artificial lens may increase the number of these complications. Three hundred and seventy cases of cataract extraction with implantation of an artificial lens performed in our department were analysed from the point of view of the incidence of retinal detachment. The cataract was extracted extra- and intracapsularly and the artificial lens was implanted in the anterior as well as in the posterior chamber. During the period of observation--4 months to 3 years--it was established that the number of the retinal detachment in pseudophakia was not larger than in aphakic eyes without implant.     

Genetic hypothyroid mice: normal cerebellar morphology but altered glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase in Bergmann glia

The present study was undertaken to investigate the effects of thyroid deficiency on cerebellar development with mouse endocrine genetic models. Four types of mutant mice, the growth hormone- and thyroid hormone-deficient Snell dwarf mouse (dw/dw), the growth hormone-deficient little mouse (lit/lit), the primary hypothyroid mouse (hyt/hyt), and the congenital genital goiter mouse (cog/cog) were analyzed for expression of the glial enzyme marker glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) and several other marker proteins. GPDH expression, as determined by enzyme activity and Northern blot analysis, was reduced by about 50% in the cerebellum and brainstem of the three hypothyroid mutant mice. No reduced expression was found in any region of the brain of the growth hormone-deficient lit/lit mutant. Visualization of GPDH by immunohistology showed that the immunoreactive enzyme was strikingly reduced in the Bergmann glial cells of dw/dw, hyt/hyt, and cog/cog mutant mice, particularly in the radial glial processes. To evaluate the specificity of the effect on GPDH expression, we also examined the expression of the glial cell-specific S-100 protein by immunohistology. In all mutant cerebella, both the intensity and pattern of staining of the Bergmann glial cells were indistinguishable from that of normal controls, suggesting that the Bergmann glial cells are morphologically normal in the hypothyroid mice. The morphology of the Purkinje cell neurons was similarly visualized by immunohistology using an antiserum specific for the microtubule-associated proteins. Surprisingly, the morphology of the Purkinje cell dendritic arborization also appeared unaltered in the hypothyroid mice. The results suggest that the morphological development of the mouse cerebellum is relatively unaffected by hypothyroidism.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Effects of MK-801 and Phenytoin on Flurothyl-Induced Seizures During Development

Summary We determined the effects of the N-methyl-Daspartate (NMDA) receptor blocker MK-801 (0.05, 0.1, and 0.5 mg/kg intraperitoneally, i.p.) and phenytoin (PHT, 5, 10, and 20 mg/kg i.p.) on flurothyl-induced clonic and tonic-clonic seizures in 9-, 1 5, 30-, and 60-day-old male rats. Both agents had seizure-, age-, and dose-specific effects. The highest dose of MK-801 was anticonvulsant against clonic flurothyl-induced seizures only in 9- and 60-day-old rats, but suppressed tonic-clonic seizures in all ages. The lowest dose of MK-801 (0.05 mg/kg) produced significant anticonvulsant effects only in 15 day old rats. PHT did not have any effect on clonic seizures throughout development. Both doses of PHT (10 and 20 mg/kg) were anticonvulsant against tonic-clonic seizures in adult rats but not in any other age group. The results indicate that NMDA receptors play an important role in tonic-clonic flurothyl-induced seizures throughout development (especially in 15-day-old rats) and that the anticonvulsant effects of PHT may vary at different stages of brain development.     

Age-Specific Effects of Baclofen on Pentylenetetrazol-Induced Seizures in Developing Rats

Summary: Purpose : To determine whether seizures have age-specific features, we studied the role of γ-aminobutyric acid, (GABAB) transmission in rats of various ages (9, 15, 30, and 60 postnatal days). Methods: We used a GABA, receptor agonist baclofen (2 or 5 mg/kg intraperitoneally, i.p.) and a GABA_B receptor antagonist CGP 35348 (100 or 600 mg/kg i.p.) in the pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced model of clonic and tonic-clonic seizures (100 mg/kg subcutaneously, s.c.).
Results : Whereas baclofen was anticonvulsant and CGP 35348 proconvulsant in most animals, there were distinct age-related differences in the effectiveness of these drugs and the antagonist had some anticonvulsant activity in adults. Furthermore, the two drugs acting at GABA_B receptors had a different profile of action in clonic seizures as compared with tonic-clonic seizures.
Conclusions : The differences in the age-specific action of the GABA_B agonist and antagonist suggest that different GABA_B receptor subsets may mediate the drug effects. The results indicate that putative antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) must be tested during development because it may not be possible to extrapolate age-specific anticonvulsant effects from studies in adult animals.