Greater hypertrophy in right than left ventricles is associated with pulmonary vasculopathy in sinoaortic-denervated Wistar-Kyoto rats

1. Biventricular hypertrophy has been described in a high blood pressure variability (BPV) model of sinoaortic-denervated (SAD) rats without systemic hypertension. To explore the possible involvement of the lung in SAD-induced right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH), we examined lung morphology, in addition to systemic haemodynamics and ventricle morphology, in Wistar-Kyoto rats 32 weeks after SAD. 2. In Wistar-Kyoto rats 32 weeks after SAD, there existed a substantial elevation in BPV, with no change in the average level of arterial pressure. Biventricular hypertrophy following SAD was characterized by a greater hypertrophy in right than left ventricles; both absolute and normalized right ventricular weights were significantly increased by 22 and 27％, respectively, and only normalized left ventricular weight was significantly increased by 12％. No infarcts were found in any ventricles examined. 3. In the lung, the most prominent change following SAD was pulmonary vasculopathy, including wall thickening, perivascular fibrosis and cell infiltration. In pulmonary arteries with an internal diameter of 70-130 microm, the external diameter, wall thickness and wall thickness to internal diameter ratio were increased in SAD compared with control rats. 4. There was no correlation between right and left ventricular weights. In contrast with BPV-correlated left ventricular weight, right ventricular weight was correlated with the wall thickness of the pulmonary artery, but not with BPV. 5. These findings suggest that greater RVH following SAD is associated with pulmonary vasculopathy, but is not secondary to the left ventricular problems or high BPV.     

昆明白小鼠胎鼠成纤维细胞不同接种密度对人胚胎干细胞的影响

目的:以昆明白小鼠胎鼠成纤维细胞作为饲养细胞,观察其不同接种密度对人胚胎干细胞的克隆生长情况及分化率的影响。方法:实验于2003-07/2005-03华中科技大学同济医学院附属同济医院完成。首先进行小鼠胚胎成纤维细胞的分离培养。选取2～5代的小鼠胚胎成纤维细胞,待其至对数生长期倒掉或吸掉培养基,加入含10mg/L丝裂霉素C的细胞全培养液5mL,置37℃,体积分数0.05的CO2饱和湿度温箱中培养二三小时,在6孔板中加入0.1%明胶包被,放置30min以上,倒掉或吸掉含丝裂霉素C的培养基,磷酸盐缓冲液(-)清洗5遍,尽量除去丝裂霉素C,加入2mL0.05%的胰蛋白酶消化细胞,镜下观察,当细胞间出现裂隙,细胞变圆时(约2～4min),立即加入等量的全培养液终止消化,并用吸管反复吹打,使之成为单细胞悬液,在细胞计数板中央放置专用的盖玻片,用玻璃虹吸管吸取细胞,让虹吸管在盖玻片上或下侧的计数板凹槽处流出悬液,至盖玻片下被液体充满为止。用细胞计数板计算活细胞数,并分别按3×108、5×108、1×109L-1密度接种,机械法平均分人胚胎干细胞克隆,5个克隆/孔接种于不同密度的小鼠胚胎成纤维细胞上。观察克隆的生长情况及分化率,分化率=(完全分化克隆数 部分分化克隆数)/(完全分化克隆数 部分分化克隆数 未分化的克隆数)。结果:胚胎干细胞克隆在3×108L-1密度的小鼠胚胎成纤维细胞上生长极易分化,贴壁48h后无生长,72～96h分化率(98.0±2.0)%;接种于5×108L-1的小鼠胚胎成纤维细胞上后,胚胎干细胞生长与分化共存,贴壁后48h部分克隆生长,下次传代前分化率分化效率为(30.0±5.0)%;在1×109L-1小鼠胚胎成纤维细胞上,胚胎干细胞克隆贴壁后48h即开始生长,分化率为(1.0±0.2)%。3组之间分化率差异有显著性意义(P<0.05)。结论:以昆明白小鼠胎鼠成纤维细胞作为饲养细胞,1×109L-1可以起到促进胚胎干细胞的增殖,并抑制其分化的作用。     

A randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of the EMLA® patch for the reduction of pain associated with intramuscular injection in four to six-year-old children

The effectiveness of a eutectic mixture lidocaine-prilocaine topical anaesthetic cream (EMLA) patch compared with a placebo patch in the reduction of pain associated with intramuscular immunization was evaluated. As part of the study, 161 children (aged 4-6-y) undergoing routine diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus and polio (DPTP) immunization in five urban and five rural private office settings were randomly assigned to an EMLA patch (n = 83) or a placebo patch control group (n = 78). Pain measurements included: child's self-report on a Faces Pain Scale; facial action on the Child Facial Coding System; the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Pain Scale and parent and technician ratings on a Visual Analogue Scale. Parents also rated their own and their child's immunization-related anxiety on a Visual Analogue Scale. The EMLA patch group had significantly less pain on all four pain measures compared with the placebo group. Of the children in the placebo group, 43% had clinically significant pain, compared with 17% of children in the EMLA patch group. No severe adverse symptoms occurred as a result of either EMLA or placebo patch application. CONCLUSION: The EMLA patch reduced immunization pain in 4 to 6-y-old children during needle injection.     

Prevalence of antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 among blood donors prior to screening. The Transfusion Safety Study/NHLBI Donor Repository

The Transfusion Safety Study (TSS) and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) established a repository of approximately 200,000 sera from blood donors in late 1984 and early 1985. Collections were made in the four metropolitan areas with the highest prevalence of AIDS. Retrospective testing showed an overall anti-HIV-1 prevalence of 16 cases per 10,000 donations. In this study, the predictive value of a negative initial enzyme-linked immunoassay was estimated from both quality control specimens and the rescreening of 13,461 sera to be greater than 99.99 percent with respect to technical error. Among anti-HIV-1-positive persons, there was a 1.3- to 1.5-fold excess of first-time donors. The anti-HIV-1 prevalence among donors showed that infection was more common among young men than suggested by national reporting of AIDS cases. Anti-HIV-1 prevalence varied among the four metropolitan areas less than did reported AIDS cases, but, by 1987, the differences in the latter had decreased. Anti-HIV-1 prevalence in collection areas outside of the four major cities differed much more widely than that among the cities themselves. The TSS/NHLBI Donor Repository will remain available for the indefinite future for further evaluation of screening procedures for HIV-1 and other viruses for which transfusion is found to be an important route of transmission.     

百部生药学研究——Ⅸ.中国百部属植物块根中总生物碱的测定与评估

百部类中药大多为百部科、百部属Stemona Lour.多种植物的块根,我国约6种,为常用中药,具润肺上气止咳、杀虫之功效。其活性成分之一为百部类生物碱,其个别种总生物碱的含量测定方法是酸碱滴定。尚未见其它方法的报道,本文探讨了用酸性染料比色方法测定中国百部属植物块根中总生物碱,较系统地比较总生物碱与百部属各种间、产地间、药材     

Effects of a Web-Based Intervention on Physical Activity and Metabolism in Older Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial

Background

Lack of physical activity leads to detrimental changes in body composition and metabolism, functional decline, and increased risk of disease in old age. The potential of Web-assisted interventions for increasing physical activity and improving metabolism in older individuals holds great promise but to our knowledge it has not been studied.

Objective

The goal of our study was to assess whether a Web-based intervention increases physical activity and improves metabolic health in inactive older adults.

Methods

We conducted a 3-month randomized, waitlist-controlled trial in a volunteer sample of 235 inactive adults aged 60-70 years without diabetes. The intervention group received the Internet program Philips DirectLife, which was directed at increasing physical activity using monitoring and feedback by accelerometer and digital coaching. The primary outcome was relative increase in physical activity measured objectively using ankle- and wrist-worn accelerometers. Secondary outcomes of metabolic health included anthropometric measures and parameters of glucose metabolism.

Results

In total, 226 participants (97%) completed the study. At the ankle, activity counts increased by 46% (standard error [SE] 7%) in the intervention group, compared to 12% (SE 3%) in the control group (P _difference<.001). Measured at the wrist, activity counts increased by 11% (SE 3%) in the intervention group and 5% (SE 2%) in the control group (P _difference=.11). After processing of the data, this corresponded to a daily increase of 11 minutes in moderate-to-vigorous activity in the intervention group versus 0 minutes in the control group (P _difference=.001). Weight decreased significantly more in the intervention group compared to controls (−1.5 kg vs −0.8 kg respectively, P=.046), as did waist circumference (−2.3 cm vs −1.3 cm respectively, P=.036) and fat mass (−0.6% vs 0.07% respectively, P=.025). Furthermore, insulin and HbA1c levels were significantly more reduced in the intervention group compared to controls (both P<.05).

Conclusions

This was the first study to show that in inactive older adults, a 3-month Web-based physical activity intervention was effective in increasing objectively measured daily physical activity and improving metabolic health. Such Web-based interventions provide novel opportunities for large scale prevention of metabolic deregulation in our rapidly aging population.

Trial Registration

Dutch Trial Registry: NTR 3045; http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=3045 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6KPw52dCc).     

Stabilization of thrombin-activated porcine factor VIII:C by factor IXa phospholipid

The activation of porcine factor X by an enzymatic complex consisting of activated factor IX (factor IXa), thrombin-activated factor VIII:C (factor VIII:Ca), phospholipid vesicles, and calcium was studied in the presence of an irreversible inhibitor of factor Xa, 5-dimethylamino- naphthalene-1-sulfonyl-glutamyl-glycyl-arginyl- chloro met hyl ketone ( DEGR -CK). The formation of factor Xa was measured continuously by monitoring the increase in solution fluorescence intensity that occurs upon formation of DEGR -factor Xa. Omission of any component from the enzymatic complex reduced the reaction rate to a negligible level. In the presence of fixed excess factor IXa, the velocity of factor X activation was linearly dependent on the concentration of factor VIII:C, and thus, provided a plasma-free assay of factor VIII:C. Activation of factor VIII:C by 0.1 NIH U/ml thrombin in the presence of factor IXa, phospholipid vesicles, and calcium, followed at variable time intervals by the addition of factor X and DEGR -CK, was complete within 5 min, as judged by the fluorometric assay, and resulted in little or no loss of factor VIII:C activity over a period of 20 min; whereas, activation in the absence of either IXa or phospholipid vesicles decreased the half-life of factor VIII:C to approximately 5 min. Analysis of 125I-factor VIII:C-derived activation peptides by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel radioelectrophoresis revealed identical results, regardless of whether factor IXa and/or phospholipid vesicles were included in the activation, suggesting that the lability of factor VIII:Ca is not due to a major alteration of its primary structure. We conclude that the activated porcine factor VIII:C molecule is stabilized markedly because of its interaction with factor IXa and phospholipid.