Morbid obesity treated by gastroplasty: radionuclide gastric emptying studies

Mechanisms by which gastroplasty for morbid obesity causes weight loss are poorly understood. We studied the role of altered gastric emptying in 50 patients before surgery, 1-4 weeks after surgery, and 2-24 months after surgery using technetium-99m pentetate in water for liquid meals and a Tc-99m styrene divinylbenzene copolymer resin in oatmeal for semisolid meals. We determined the emptying half-times of the stomach before and after surgery in the proximal and distal compartments. The proximal compartment emptied promptly in the early and late postoperative periods. The distal compartment emptied liquids at rates similar to those before surgery, while the late postoperative emptying of semisolids was significantly faster. The stoma connecting the two compartments thus permits rapid transit of liquids and semisolids without delay of distal compartment emptying. No correlation was seen between the emptying half-times or changes thereof and eventual weight loss. Delayed gastric emptying is therefore not the mechanism for satiety and weight loss after gastroplasty has been performed.     

Patterns of dermal exposure to hazardous substances in European union workplaces

Workplace dermal exposure assessment is a complex task that aims to understand the dynamic interaction between the skin and the hazardous substances present in the surrounding environment. A European project known as RISKOFDERM gathered dermal exposure data in 85 workplaces (industrial and other types) in five countries in Europe. In order to optimize data collection and to develop a representative picture of dermal exposure, scenarios (tasks made up of a series of activities) were grouped together into dermal exposure operation units (DEOs). The allocation of scenarios to relevant DEOs was achieved on the basis of similarities of exposure routes, tasks and professional judgement. Sampling and quantification procedures were based on the approaches recommended by the OECD protocol. The laboratories involved in the analysis of the samples participated in quality assurance programmes. This exercise resulted in 419 body measurements and 437 measurements on hands expressed in terms of formulation (product) in use. Exposures for a given scenario varied by several orders of magnitude. The extent and patterns of exposure were found to be dependent on various exposure determinants, including inter- and intra-scenario variations. Hands were found to be the most contaminated parts of the body. Exposure patterns for liquid and solid contaminants were different. On the basis of the analysis of the data presented here, the averaged results (median and 95th percentile) for a given DEO unit should not be used as a representative measure of dermal exposure for all scenarios within that DEO without taking the exposure determinants into account. However, the data could be used to develop an exposure matrix (indicative exposure distributions) for different types of scenario and workplace, using determinants of exposure and a Bayesian approach to integrating expert opinion.     

PARC/CCL18 is a plasma CC chemokine with increased levels in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Chemokines play an important role in leukocyte mobilization, hematopoiesis, and angiogenesis. Tissue-specific expression of particular chemokines also influences tumor growth and metastasis. Here, the CC chemokine pulmonary and activation-regulated chemokine (PARC)/CCL18 was measured in pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Surprisingly, PARC immunoreactivity was consistently detected in plasma from healthy donors. After purification to homogeneity, the presence of intact PARC (1-69) and processed PARC (1-68) in normal human plasma was confirmed by sequence and mass spectrometry analysis. Furthermore, PARC serum levels were significantly increased in children with T-ALL and prepreB-ALL compared to control serum samples, whereas serum levels in AML and preB-ALL patients were not significantly different from controls. In contrast, the hemofiltrate CC chemokine-1 (HCC-1)/CCL14 was not found to be a biomarker in any of these patients' strata, whereas the cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) was significantly decreased in AML and prepreB-ALL. Stimulated leukocytic cell lines or lymphoblasts from patients produced IL-8/CXCL8 or macrophage inflammatory protein-1alpha (MIP-1alpha/CCL3) but not PARC, not even after IL-4 or IL-10 treatment. However, PARC was produced by superantigen or IL-4 stimulated monocytes co-cultured with lymphocytes or lymphoblastic cells. Serum PARC levels thus constitute a novel leukemia marker, possibly reflecting tumor/host cell interactions in the circulation.     

A comparison of memory for induced ischaemic pain and chronic rheumatoid pain

Ischaemic pain was induced in two groups of subjects. The pain was initially assessed using the McGill Pain Questionnaire and then by recall 7 days later. The pain experienced by a group of patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis was similarly assessed before and after rehabilitatory surgery. Memory for the single episode of ischaemic pain was superior to that for the chronic rheumatoid pain.     

抗角蛋白抗体、抗核周因子和抗环瓜氨酸肽抗体联合检测幼年类风湿关节炎：早期诊断及治疗评估意义

目的:评价抗角蛋白抗体、抗核周因子和抗环瓜氨酸肽抗体联合检测在幼年类风湿关节炎诊断及病情评估中的意义。方法:①观察对象及分组:选择2003-01/2005-12首都医科大学附属北京儿童医院风湿免疫病房住院治疗的76例幼年类风湿关节炎患儿及54例非幼年类风湿关节炎患儿,正常对照30例(家属均知情同意)。②检测上述人员血清抗角蛋白抗体、抗核周因子抗体和抗环瓜氨酸肽抗体水平;观察两组患儿出现临床症状、体征例数及实验室检测数据。③对幼年类风湿关节炎诊断的敏感性、特异性,阳性似然比、阴性似然比进行评价,并对幼年类风湿关节炎患儿中3种抗体联合检测阳性组阴性组的临床症状、体征及实验室检查方面的指标进行比较,资料作统计学分析。结果:两组患儿130例,正常儿童30例,全部进入结果分析。①两组患儿临床症状、体征例数及实验室检测值差异没有显著性意义。②抗角蛋白抗体、抗核周因子抗体和抗环瓜氨酸肽抗体联合检测对幼年类风湿关节炎组早期诊断缺乏有效性。③抗角蛋白抗体( )/抗核周因子抗体( )/抗环瓜氨酸肽抗体( )病例与抗角蛋白抗体(-)/抗核周因子抗体(-)/抗环瓜氨酸肽抗体(-)病例相比,关节强直病例明显增多,差异有显著性(较正χ2=3.902,P=0.048),抗链球菌溶血素“O”和C-反应蛋白均显著增高,差异有显著性(χ2=2.616,3.557,P=0.025,0.001)。结论:抗角蛋白抗体、抗核周因子抗体、抗环瓜氨酸肽抗体联合检测对幼年类风湿关节炎缺乏早期诊断意义及特异性,联合检测对判断疾病的活动性、病理损害程度和预后有临床意义。     

丹参酮ⅡA对神经祖细胞系C17．2的保护作用

目的:了解丹参酮ⅡA对神经祖细胞系C17.2的保护作用,探讨其可能的作用机制。方法:本实验于2005年起在广州血液中心器官移植配型中心实验室进行。C17.2祖细胞系由澳大利亚新南威尔士大学解剖教研室David Walsh博士惠赠。将C17.2细胞以1×109L-1的密度接种,用含10%胎牛血清IMDM,37℃、体积分数为0.05CO2、饱和湿度的CO2培养箱培养,接近融合的C17.2细胞用含0.1mmol/LEDTA的胰酶室温消化,按1∶3的比例传代。C17.2细胞以5×107L-1的密度接种于96孔板或25cm2的培养瓶中,用含10%胎牛血清IMDM培养过夜后,加入含4g/L AAPH(水溶性偶氮引发剂2,2'-偶氮二(2-脒基丙烷)二盐酸盐)无血清的IMDM培养基培养建立神经细胞凋亡模型。C17.2细胞以5×103/孔的密度接种于96孔板中,用含10%胎牛血清IMDM培养过夜后,加入含4g/LAAPH无血清的IMDM培养基培养。对照组不加入丹参酮ⅡA,实验组分别加入0.02,0.05,0.1,0.2mg/L丹参酮ⅡA培养8h,噻唑蓝法检测细胞活性:细胞活性的相对值=(实验组吸光度值/对照组吸光度值)×100%,流式细胞仪检测细胞凋亡。结果:①AAPH处理8h后,C17.2细胞被过氧化损害,大多数细胞失去正常的形态,细胞呈圆形,脱落。加入丹参酮ⅡA后,细胞形态基本保持正常,少数细胞呈圆形。②C17.2细胞在IMDM的培养液中,细胞数量是含4g/L AAPH无血清的IMDM培养基条件下的2.5～3倍。浓度为0.02,0.05,0.1mg/L的丹参酮ⅡA对C17.2细胞有保护作用,质量浓度大于0.2mg/L丹参酮ⅡA对C17.2细胞保护作用降低。③AAPH作用前大部分C17.2细胞的线粒体完整,有少量的早期凋亡细胞和凋亡细胞,AAPH作用后凋亡细胞总数、凋亡细胞明显增加。丹参酮ⅡA处理组可以明显减少早期凋亡细胞。结论:在体外丹参酮ⅡA对神经细胞具有抗凋亡的作用,可以保护神经细胞。