Use of intraoperative ultrasonography during hepatic transplantation.

The aim of this study was to evaluate if intraoperative vascular ultrasonography is of clinical value in the perioperative management of hepatic transplant patients. Fifteen intraoperative ultrasonographic examinations were performed on 13 patients (five female, eight male) during transplantation. These patients had clinically suspected vascular compromise. Among the 13 patients studied intraoperatively, five were correctly diagnosed as having hemodynamically significant vascular compromise. Of the intraoperative vascular sonographic examinations, the results of 13 were in concordance with the surgical impression as to whether further intervention was necessary or if the procedure could be terminated. Intraoperative sonography demonstrates potential to be of aid to the surgeon in recognition of vascular compromise.     

C2H2-171 : A novel human cDNA representing a developmentally regulated poz domain/zinc finger protein preferentially expressed in brain

We describe a novel human zinc finger cNDA, C2H2-171. This cDNA represents an mRNA which encodes a protein of 484 amino acids and a calculated molecular weight of 54 kD. Four zinc finger-like domains are found in the C-terminal end of the protein. At the N-terminus, C2H2-171 contains a POZ/tramtrack-like domain similar to that found in the tumor associated zinc finger proteins LAZ-3/BCL-6 and PLZ-F, as well as in non-zinc finger proteins. C2H2-171 RNA is preferentially expressed in the brain, and increases during the course of murine development, with maximal expression in the adult. C2H2-171 RNA is differentially expressed in brain regions, with the highest level of expression in the cerebellum. C2H2-171 RNA was expressed at high levels in primary cerebellar granule cell neurons compared to astrocytes. The gene encoding C2H2-171 is highly conserved in vertebrates, and maps to the terminus of human chromosome 1 (1q44-ter). This chromosomal location is associated with a number of cytogenetic aberrations including those involving brain developmental anomalies and tumorigenesis. These data suggest that C2H2-171 may play an important role in vertebrate brain development and function.     

The role of office hysteroscopy in in vitro fertilization.

Twenty-eight patients participated prospectively in a study to evaluate the impact of hysteroscopically detected uterine and cervical anomalies on the success rate of ET in an IVF-ET program. All participants had a normal intrauterine cavity by standard HSG. All the patients had a diagnostic office hysteroscopy under paracervical block before commencing COH. Because our IVF program does not include hysteroscopy as a requirement before undergoing IVF and because the significance of mild intrauterine abnormalities is not yet known, the hysteroscopic findings were not relayed to the personnel involved in the IVF-ET procedure. Sixteen patients (group I) had a normal hysteroscopic evaluation. Twelve patients (group II) had abnormal hysteroscopic findings including small uterine septa, small submucous fibroids, uterine hypoplasia and cervical ridges. Although no difference in patients or cycle characteristics was present, there was a significant difference in the clinical PR between patients in groups I and II. In conclusion, in an IVF-ET program patients with normal hysterography but abnormal hysteroscopic findings had a significantly lower clinical PR, demonstrating the importance of performing hysteroscopy before IVF-ET.     

Isolation and analysis of nephritic-producing immune complexes in Plasmodium berghei-infected mice.

A nephritic condition was developed by infecting Swiss Webster albino mice with the malarial parasite Plasmodium berghei NK 65. These animals were tested for urinary protein and the presence of circulating immune complexes using reagent strips and a polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation assay. The circulating immune complexes were isolated from the sera using both affinity chromatography and PEG precipitation and from the kidney by acid elution. The isolated complexes were dissociated into their individual components and analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The components of the complexes were transferred to nitrocellulose sheets and probed for the presence of malarial antigens using a rabbit anti-P berghei antisera. The overall humoral response to the malarial parasite was evaluated using a radial immunodiffusion assay. The present study confirmed that the malarial-infected animals not only developed the nephritic condition (as evident by the high levels of proteinuria) but also, as indicated by the PEG assay, have the presence of high levels of circulating immune complexes in their serum. The apparent absence in the SDS gels of any abnormal protein bands followed by the inability of the Western blot to reveal any malarial antigens provides some of the strongest evidence to date that these malarial proteins are not directly involved in the circulating immune complexes believed to be responsible for producing this nephritic condition.     

Evaluation and treatment of a male factor component to unexplained infertility

The standard semen analysis frequently fails to identify subfertile males even when findings are normal and conversely often fails to identify fertile males with subnormal semen analyses. This has created the need to produce other tests of sperm physiology that will better distinguish a fertile from a subfertile specimen. Understanding more about the nature of the sperm defect should lead to the establishment of more specific and effective therapies. Until that time, it would still be reasonable to try some of the available empirical therapies even though they may work merely by a placebo mechanism.     

Gastrointestinal dysfunction among intensive care unit patients

This study used the Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) system to select two groups of ICU patients with comparable risk of hospital death to evaluate the importance of GI dysfunction, defined as failure to tolerate enteral nutrition (EN), as a prognostic factor. In our ICU, patients who have not undergone recent bowel surgery are treated by EN. Those patients who cannot tolerate EN are treated by total parenteral nutrition (TPN). One hundred and eleven patients who tolerated EN (functioning gut) and 97 TPN patients who failed to tolerate EN (GI dysfunction) were studied. The mean APACHE II scores of the two groups were 17.7 +/- 6.5 (SD) and 17.7 +/- 5.1, respectively. The observed mortality of patients with GI dysfunction (51%) was significantly higher (p less than .0005) than that of patients with a functioning gut (25%). This was associated with significantly poorer APACHE II mean BP, oxygenation, and creatinine scores among the GI dysfunction patients. Our results suggest that shock, ischemia, and hypoxemia, in addition to causing impairment of renal function, may bring about changes in the GI tract, evident clinically only as a failure to tolerate EN, which have an adverse effect on the prognosis of ICU patients so affected.     

ACTIVIT OF HUMAN PLACENTAL GAMMA GLOBULININ BLOCKING IMMUNE FUNCTIONS IN VITRO AND IN ABROGATING THE XENOGENEIC, LOCAL GRAFT-VERSUS-HOST-REEACTEON

In order to understand the mechanism of immunosuppression caused by infusion of placental gamma globulin (PGG) in patients with renal allografts, rheumatoid arthritis, and graft – versus –host disease (GCHD) following bone marrow transplantation (BMT) ,we have examined the effect of PGG in vitro and in a model of the xenogeneic , local graft –ver- sus – host reaction (LGVHR) .PGG inhibited lymphocyte proliferation in mixed lymphocyte cultures (MLC) (P<0.005) and depressed interleukin -2 (IL-2) levels in such cultures at 72 hours (P<0.01) . In contrast phytohemagglutinin (PHA) –and pokeweed mitogen (PWM) –induced T and B lymphocyte blastogenesis was not affected by such PGG treatment .PGG treatment .PGG neither decreased the [3H] TdR pulse incorporation in unstimulated lymphocytes nor affected cell viability .Cell cycle analysis by flow cytometry showed that PGG reduced the percentage of cells in S and G2, M phases during the MLC, but did not alter cell cycling during PWM-stimulated proliferation . An immunosuppressive effect of PGG on the LGCHR was tested in a model of intracutaneous transplantation of PGG –treat human lymphocytes into cyclophosphamide – immunosuppressed rats. Lymphoprep – separated human tonsillar lymphocytes were incubated with RPMI-1640 buffer containing：（1）PGG,4mg/ml,(2) human plasma albumin,4mg/ml,(3)mitomycin-C,25ug/ml, or (4) no additive. Cell of each preparation (3x107cells in 0.1ml) were injected intracutaneously into cyclophosphamide-treated male rats at separate abdominal locations. A fifth site received only the buffer solution. Five days after injection of cells ,each rat received [125 I]IUdR (10uCi) intraperitoneally and was killed after 5 hours. For each site of injection, the diameters of induration were measured and 125 I was counted . There was no difference between buffer – treated and a ibumin – treated groups either in the diameter of the area of induration (t=0.66;P>0.5)or in radioactive counts(t=0.22;P>0.05).In the PGG –treated group, the induration and radioactivity measurements were significantly less than in control groups (t=3.72 and P<0.1;t=2.62 and P<0.02,respectively ) Cytophilic antibodies in PGG were thought to inhibit an early phase of T cell activation, and not to be cytotoxicity .In the LGVHR, the immune response might be abrogated either by immuno- regulatory suppression of T cell function or by toxicity to the infused lymphoid cells. For some clinical purposes, immuno- modulating, human antibodies might be preferred to murine, monoclonal antibodies.     

Framework for interactive million-neuron simulation.

SUMMARY: Large simulations have become increasingly complex in many fields, tending to incorporate scale-dependent modeling and algorithms and wide-ranging physical influences. This scale of simulation sophistication has not yet been matched in neuroscience. The authors describe a framework aimed at enabling natural interaction with complex simulations: their configuration, initial conditions, monitoring, and analysis. The architecture is built on three cornerstone components: active probes, adaptive data capture, and visual interface. The resulting synthesis will enable interactive exploration of live simulations running on supercomputing platforms.