Truncus Arteriosus With Patent Ductus Arteriosus and Normal Aortic Arch

In hearts with a common arterial trunk (truncus arteriosus), there is almost always an inverse development of the aortic arch and the ductus arteriosus. Truncus with a normal aortic arch and a patent ductus is a rare echocardiographic and surgical finding. In this report, we describe 2 neonates in whom truncus arteriosus with a normal aortic arch and a medium or large patent ductus was diagnosed by preoperative echocardiography (without catheterization) and confirmed intraoperatively.     

Determination of the cut-off value of serum alanine aminotransferase in patients undergoing hemodialysis, to identify biochemical activity in patients with hepatitis C viremia.

BACKGROUND: Elevated liver enzymes are infrequent in patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection undergoing chronic hemodialysis (HD), suggesting that the alanine aminotransferase (ALT) is a poor predictor of hepatocellular damage in this population. OBJECTIVE: To establish a more appropriate cut-off value of ALT to identify biochemical activity due to HCV infection in HD patients. STUDY DESIGN: A total of 217 patients, with an average age of 51.2 years, were evaluated between January and October 2002; 130 were males (60%). Serum ALT was measured by a kinetic method in five consecutive monthly blood samples, from which an average was obtained and divided by the upper limit of normal (ULN). HCV antibodies were determined using an enzyme immunoassay, the serum HCV-RNA by nested-PCR and HCV genotype by hybridization of the amplified sequence from the 5'-non-coding region. The cut-off value of ALT was obtained from a ROC curve. RESULTS: Within the 217 patients, 18 (8.3%) were anti-HCV-positive, 17 (7.8%) of whom were also HCV-RNA-positive. Genotype distribution was: 1a=47%; 1b=18%; 3a=35%. Mean ALT/ULN (0.77+/-0.57) of the 18 anti-HCV-positive cases was higher (p<0.001) than the negative group (0.38+/-0.23). The mean ALT/ULN (0.81+/-0.57) of the 17 HCV-RNA-positive cases was also higher (p<0.0001) than the negative cases (0.37+/-0.23). The cut-off value of ALT to distinguish the anti-HCV-positive from negative patients was 0.50% or 50% of the ULN (sensitivity=67%; specificity=83%). According to the HCV-RNA, the cut-off value of ALT was 0.45% or 45% of the ULN (sensitivity=71%; specificity=80%). CONCLUSION: Reducing the cut-off of ALT by half, enables a better identification of biochemical activity in patients with HCV infection on chronic HD.     

Myoid hamartomas of the breast: report of 3 cases and review of the literature

Hamartomas were first described by Albrecht in 1904, who defined them as tumor-like malformations in which there was abnormal blending of the normal components of an organ. The myoid hamartoma is a rare benign lesion of the breast and has an uncertain origin, possibly in the walls of the blood vessels, muscularis mammillae of the areolae, and mainly in myoepithelium. We report 3 cases of myoid hamartomas of the breast, with the clinical, radiologic, and histopathological findings, and review the literature. The 3 lesions showed normal breast ducts and lobules, entrapped by a muscular stroma and some foci of mature adipose tissue. The muscular origin of part of the stroma was confirmed by strong reactiveness with smooth-muscle actin.     

Heterogeneity of the polyribocytidilic acid tract in aphthovirus: changes in the size of the poly(C) of viruses recovered from persistently infected cattle

A sample of aphthovirus type C3 strain Resende carrying two polyribocytidilic acid [poly(C)] tracts was cloned in tissue culture. One clone with a poly(C)-rich tract of about 145 nucleotides long (clone 3B) and another with a poly(C)-rich tract of about 230 nucleotides long (clone 12) and a mixture of both were injected intralingually into three steers. Samples from all three animals were recovered during the acute phase of the disease, from the blood and from the feet, and at various days after inoculation from the oesophageal-pharyngeal (OP) fluids. Analysis of the viral RNAs of the positive samples by means of RNase T1 maps on one- and two-dimensional gels showed (1) changes in the electrophoretic mobility of the poly(C)-rich tracts of viruses recovered from the OP fluids at various times after infection; (2) selection of virus populations with poly(C)-rich tracts of increased size; (3) later on, changes in the patterns of oligonucleotides of persistent viruses. These variations may lead to the production of new strains with altered biological properties that may contribute to the maintenance and spread of these viruses in the field.     

Potentiation of FMD vaccines with polycationic-nucleic acid complexes

Summary The effect of various polycations on the immune response potentiated with poly I:C was studied. It was found that low molecular weight polycations had no potentiating effect. Polylysine was ineffective whereas protamine was superior to lysozyme, poly-arginine, poly-histidine, DEAE-Dextran and histone.A foot-and-mouth disease trivalent vaccine composed of strains A₂₄ Cruzeiro, O₁ Caseros and C₂ Resende elicited no immune response in swine when adjuvanted with aluminium hydroxide but was effective when emulsified in oil. In general, the immune response was potentiated ten-fold when the emulsion contained poly I:C. The antibody production was in most cases further potentiated by a factor of ten when the nucleic acid double-strand was complexed with 1:10 (w/w) DEAE-Dextran. Protamine was as effective, or perhaps even more, than DEAE-Dextran to this effect.Guinea pigs vaccinated with a water-in-oil emulsion type monovalent C₃ vaccine showed an increase in antibody production when the vaccine contained poly I:C or poly I:C complexed with 1:10 (w/w) protamine.With 4 Figures     

Role of macrophages,interferon gamma and procoagulant activity in the resistance of genetic heterogeneous mouse populations to mouse hepatitis virus infection

Summary Genetic heterogeneous mouse populations selected for high (H_III) and low (L_III) antibody response were used to study some aspects of mouse hepatitis virus 3 (MHV3) infection, such as the resistance pattern, virus replication in the liver and peritoneal exudate or in cultured peritoneal macrophages, the interferon (IFN) synthesis in the serum and peritoneal exudate and the procoagulant activity (PCA) of the peritoneal exudate (PEC) and spleen cells (SC). The H_III mice, when compared to their L_III mice counterparts, were susceptible to MHV3 infection showing higher virus titres in the liver and peritoneal exudate, comparable IFN alpha/beta or IFN gamma titres in the peritoneal exudate or in the serum, and higher levels of PCA of PEC and SC. A higher virus titre was detected in the supernatants of H_III mouse macrophages infected with MHV3. The activation of H_III mouse macrophages with LPS, IFN alpha/beta or IFN gamma, in contrast to that of L_III mouse macrophages, did not induce an antiviral effect with partial restriction of the MHV3 replication. The LPS antiviral activity was shown to be partially exerted by IFN alpha/beta synthesis. The IFN gamma was shown to be more effective in inducing an antiviral state in L_III macrophages, when compared to IFN alpha/beta. The data obtained are consistent with the notion that the resistance mechanisms to the MHV3 infection involve the PCA and the sensitivity of macrophages to IFN.