Sympathetic Nervous System Does Not Mediate Reflex Pupillary Dilation during Desflurane Anesthesia

Background: Pupil size is determined by an interaction between the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system. Noxious stimulation dilates the pupil in both unanesthetized and anesthetized humans. In the absence of anesthesia, dilation is primarily mediated by the sympathetic nervous system. In contrast, pupillary dilation in cats given barbiturate or cloralose anesthesia is mediated solely by inhibition of the midbrain parasympathetic nucleus. The mechanism by which noxious stimuli dilate pupils during anesthesia in humans remains unknown. Accordingly, the authors tested the hypothesis that the pupillary dilation in response to noxious stimulation during desflurane anesthesia is primarily a parasympathetic reflex.

Methods: In six volunteers, the alpha-1 adrenergic receptors of the iris musculature were blocked by unilateral administration of topical dapiprazole; six other volunteers were given unilateral topical tropicamide to block the muscarinic receptors in the iris. Desflurane anesthesia was subsequently induced in all volunteers. Sympathetic nervous system activation, with reflex dilation of the pupil, was produced by noxious electrical stimulation during 4% and 8% end-tidal desflurane, and by a rapid 4%-to-8% step-up in the desflurane concentration. Pupil diameter and the change in pupil size induced by a light stimulus (light reflex amplitude) were measured with infrared pupillometry.

Results: Dapiprazole drops produced a Horner's miosis, but pupils were equally small after induction of anesthesia. Pupillary dilation after noxious stimulation and desflurane step-up was identical in the unblocked and dapiprazole-blocked pupils. After tropicamide administration, the pupil was dilated and the light reflex was completely inhibited. Noxious stimulation nonetheless produced a slight additional dilation.     

Antinociceptive Effect of Intracerebroventricular Administration of Cholecystokinin Receptor Agonist and Antagonist in Nerve‐Ligated Mice

In the present study we investigated the effects of intracerebroventricular injection of caerulein, the cholecystokinin receptor agonist and proglumide, the receptor antagonist on morphine response in the sciatic nerve ligation in mice. Subcutaneous administration of morphine induced antinociception in the both intact and ligated mice, however, the response of the opioid was lower in the ligated mice as compared with the intact animals. Caerulein induced antinociception in the non‐ligated but not in the nerve‐ligated animals. Combination of caerulein with morphine elicited higher response in ligated animals, however, the response induced in ligated animals was much more prominent. Proglumide alone did not elicit any response in both animal groups. The antagonist decreased the response of caerulein in the non‐ligated mice. Low doses of proglumide in the combination with caerulein induced antinociception in the ligated mice. We conclude that cholecystokinin receptor mechanism(s) may alter morphine resistance induced by nerve ligation.     

Compensation for effects of linear motion in MR imaging

Various compensation methods for different types of motion during MR image acquisition have been proposed. Presented here is a postprocessing scheme for eliminating artifacts due to linear, intra-slice motion of known velocity. The data for each phase encoding or "view" acquired from a moving object are shown to differ from those which would be measured from the stationary object by a phase factor which depends on the object's displacement from a reference point. This derivation is then used to propose a correction scheme for linear motion in which all phase encodings measured at different positions of the moving object are collapsed onto the same reference position. After subsequent reconstruction, the object appears perfectly "focused." By selection of different reference positions, the method permits positioning of the compensated object as desired within the field of view of the image. This property allows the method to be extended to create sequences of corrected images with smooth object motion between frames of the sequence. The basic correction scheme and its variations were tested experimentally in phantom studies with velocities as large as 8 cm/s.     

Complete genomic sequence and phylogenetic relatedness of hepatitis B virus isolates from Iran

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the main etiological agents of acute and chronic liver disease that is still a major public health problem in the world. Numerous HBV isolates have grouped into eight genotypes, A to H, based on the complete genome sequence. To date, no study has been carried out on the complete HBV genome sequence in Iran. The objective of this study was to investigate the complete genome sequence organization and phylogenetic analysis of the five HBV strains, which obtained from Iranian chronic infected patients. Results showed that Iranian strains were closely related to each other, with 97-100% nucleotide similarity. Phylogenetic analysis based on the complete genome sequences and the precore/core gene sequences revealed that all strains were of genotype D, sub-genotype D1 with bootstrap value 100 and 99%, respectively. The S gene encoded Arg122, Pro127, and Lys160 corresponding to subtype ayw2. Iranian HBV isolates had closely related with Turkish HBV strains. All strains had a nucleotide length of 3,182 base pair (bp) except IR-P4 strain, with a 3,185 bp in length and with a unique Phe89 insertion in the X gene. The intragenotypic divergence of the complete genome sequence of Iranian strains was 1.8% and the intergenotypic in genotype D was 3.8% and with the other genotypes was 7.9-15.4%. In conclusion, this study revealed that the HBV genotype D, sub-genotype D1, subtype ayw2 dominates in the Iranian infected patients. A single Phe89 insertion in the X gene of the one Iranian strain with an unforeseen length of 3185 bp was identified.     

Association between early embryo morphokinetics plus cumulus cell gene expression and assisted reproduction outcomes in polycystic ovary syndrome women

Research question

Can a combination of time-lapse morphokinetic parameters and cumulus cell gene expression in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women be used to predict assisted reproductive treatment outcome?

Local versus systemic interleukin-2: tumor formation by wild-type and B7-1-positive murine melanoma cells

Modification of murine K1735 melanoma cells to express the immune costimulator B7-1 had no effect on tumor formation in syngeneic mice. In contrast, <40% of mice inoculated with K1735 cells modified to secrete murine interleukin-2 (IL-2) formed tumors, and no tumors formed when the K1735 cells coexpressed both murine IL-2 and B7-1. However, administration of systemic recombinant human IL-2 had no detectable effect on the formation of tumors by the B7-1-expressing K1735 cells. By contrast, admixtures of IL-2-secreting and B7-1-expressing K1735 cells formed fewer tumors than either cell type alone. Murine IL-2 was effective only when secreted locally, because the IL-2-secreting cells inoculated into the right flank did not affect the growth of the B7-1-expressing cells inoculated into the opposite flank.     

A multicentre cross-sectional study of arm lymphedema four or more years after breast cancer treatment in Iranian patients

Background  

We performed a cross-sectional multicentre study to assess the prevalence of lymphedema after breast cancer treatment in Iran.     

Impact of ASC‐H terminology on the detection of HSILs in medically underserved California women

In this study we evaluated CDP: EWC, a large public health screening program for low‐income women to determine whether the ASC‐H term, introduced in the 2001 revision to the Bethesda System, has facilitated the detection of the most serious precancerous cervical lesions such as CIN‐II–III/CIS, including accuracy of detection and minimizing diagnostic delays. Pap test and biopsy data from the period 2003–2006 were compared with those from 1995–1999, and included analysis of a subset of rarely and never‐screened for each study period. More ASC‐H Pap tests were followed by CIN‐II+ biopsies (20%) than ASCUS Pap tests (5%). Thirteen percent of ASC‐H showed CIN‐III/CIS on follow‐up biopsy. Following the introduction of ASC‐H, negative and LSIL Pap tests followed by CIN‐III/CIS biopsies decreased from 5.6% to 0.37% and 9.2% to 4.4%, respectively. Fewer CIN‐III/CIS cases were preceded by Pap tests with negative and ASCUS results in 2003–2005 as compared with 1995–1999. The number of days from screening to diagnosis for women aged 25–39 years with ASC‐H Pap test results (58 days) was less than for ASCUS results (78 days) for the current study period. In this high‐risk multi‐ethnic population, ASC‐H more effectively communicates equivocal findings likely to represent HSIL leading to more rapid follow‐up. The incidence of CIN‐II or CIN‐III/CIS following ASC‐H Pap tests is lower than generally appreciated for this population, including for rarely or never‐screened high‐risk women. Fewer CIN‐III/CIS lesions were detected following negative and ASCUS Pap results. Compliance with follow‐up is less than ideal for this population. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.