Peptide growth factors and wound healing

An analysis of peptide growth factors and wound healing should not fail to give credit to its foundations in cancer research. Add the recent advances in peptide chemistry and molecular genetics that have permitted complete definitions and in vivo studies for the first time. The result is an enormous break-through in wound healing research. The potential for understanding and then using the growth factors to enhance healing in the aged or debilitated is incalculable.     

VASOCONSTRICTION IN THE RENAL VASCULAR BED DURING EXERCISE: STUDIES IN CONTROL AND HEART FAILURE RABBITS

1. The effects of graded treadmill exercise on renal blood flow (RBF) were examined in seven rabbits, in which congestive heart failure (CHF) was produced by the administration of doxorubicin, 1 mg/kg, twice weekly for 8 weeks, and in seven controls. A third group of five rabbits underwent doxorubicin treatment with the addition of surgical section of the left renal sympathetic nerve. 2. During submaximal exercise, there was a small reduction in RBF in controls, which was greatly exaggerated in CHF. 3. In both control and heart failure rabbits, there was a precipitous fall in RBF as exercise fatigue developed. 4. Renal sympathectomy ablated these changes in RBF during exercise. 5. It is concluded that in heart failure there is an exaggerated, sympathetically mediated, diversion of blood flow away from the kidney. The onset of exercise fatigue in both normal and heart failure rabbits is accompanied by a marked intensification of this process.     

Immediate and delayed cord clamping in infants born between 24 and 32 weeks: a pilot randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: This pilot study's aim was to establish feasibility of a protocol for delayed cord clamping (DCC) versus immediate cord clamping (ICC) at preterm birth and to examine its effects on initial blood pressure and other outcomes. STUDY DESIGN: A randomized controlled trial recruited 32 infants between 24 and 32 weeks. Immediately before delivery, mothers were randomized to ICC (cord clamped at 5 to 10 seconds) or DCC (30- to 45-second delay in cord clamping) groups. RESULTS: Intention-to-treat analyses revealed that the DCC group were more likely to have higher initial mean blood pressures (adjusted OR 3.4) and less likely to be discharged on oxygen (adjusted OR 8.6). DCC group infants had higher initial glucose levels (ICC=36 mg/dl, DCC=73.1 mg/dl; p=0.02). CONCLUSION: The research design is feasible. The immediate benefit of improved blood pressure was confirmed and other findings deserve consideration for further study.     

载脂蛋白E基因多态性与脑梗死的相关性分析

目的　探讨载脂蛋白 E基因多态性与脑梗死的关系。方法　通过聚合酶链反应 -限制性片段长度多态性 (PCR- RFL P)分析结合 DNA直接银染技术检测 6 6例脑梗死 (CI)患者的载脂蛋白 E(Apo E)基因型 (其中家系中有明确脑梗死先证者的家族聚集性脑梗死 (FMACI)亚组 2 6例 ,家系中无脑卒中史的非家族聚集性脑梗死 (NF-MACI)亚组 4 0例 ) ,并与 90例健康对照组比较 ,同时检测血脂、脂蛋白 (a) [L P(a) ]及部分载脂蛋白。结果　脑梗死组ε3/4基因型频率明显高于对照组 (P<0 .0 1) ,ε3/3基因型频率明显低于对照组 (P<0 .0 1) ;两脑梗死亚组之间的ε3/4/ε3/3基因型频率虽有上升 /下降趋势 ,但未发现明显的统计学差异 ;FMACI组高密度脂蛋白 (HDL )水平明显低于 NFMACI组 (P<0 .0 5 )。结论　 Apo E基因多态性与脑梗死的发生有关 ,ε4等位基因是脑梗死的易感因子 ,ε3等位基因对脑梗死的发生有保护作用 ;Apo E基因多态性和 HDL水平双重作用于家族聚集性脑梗死的发生。     

Season of birth interacts with measures of inbreeding in multiplex schizophrenia pedigrees: evidence from genetic isolates in Daghestan

While the season-of-birth effect is one of the most consistent epidemiological features of schizophrenia, there is a lack of consistency with respect to the interaction between season of birth and family history of schizophrenia. Apart from family history, measures related to consanguinity can be used as proxy markers of genomic heterogeneity. Thus, these measures may provide an alternate, indirect index of genetic susceptibility. We had the opportunity to explore the interaction between season of birth and measure of consanguinity in well-described genetic isolates in Daghestan, some of which are known for their relatively high prevalence of schizophrenia. Our previous population-genetic study showed Daghestan has an extremely high genetic diversity between the ethnic populations and a low genetic diversity within them. The isolates selected for this study include some with more than 200 and some with less than 100 generations of demographical history since their founding. Based on pedigrees of multiply-affected families, we found that among individuals with schizophrenia, the measure of consanguinity was significantly higher in the parents of those born in winter/spring compared to those born in summer/autumn. Furthermore, compared to summer/autumn born, winter/spring born individuals with schizophrenia had an earlier age-of-onset, and more prominent auditory hallucinations. Our results suggest that the offspring of consanguineous marriages, and thus those with reduced allelic heterogeneity, may be more susceptible to the environmental factor(s) underpinning the season-of-the effect in schizophrenia.     

Vasodilating effects of carbon monoxide

The vasodilator effects of carbon monoxide (CO) were studied in an isolated perfused rat thoracic aorta preparation. Thoracic aortas from male Sprague-Dawley laboratory rats were dissected free of surrounding tissue, cannulated proximally, and tethered to in situ length. The vessels were perfused with oxygenated Krebs-Henseleit (KH) solution at 37 degrees C in a constant flow system with a circumferentially-applied, pulsatile (300/min), basal "systolic" pressure of 100 mm Hg. Aortas were precontracted with high-potassium (K+) or norepinephrine (NE). Changes in perfusion pressure were indicative of changes in vascular resistance induced by the test gas mixtures. Oxygen (O2) content of the perfusate was kept constant, while CO and nitrogen (N2) were altered. CO (2.5, 5 and 10%) dilated both K+-contracted and NE-contracted aortas in a dose-dependent manner. A significant vasodilation in response to 5% CO (24.5% of maximal), but not to 5% N2, was obtained in the K+-contracted aortas. After the endothelium was removed chemically, the aortas continued to dilate in response to CO. These results suggest that CO has a direct vasorelaxant effect on vascular smooth muscle which is nonspecific and is not endothelium-dependent.