Longitudinal ABR in the NICU infant

To assess the reliability of ABR testing of NICU infants, longitudinal ABR testing was accomplished on 50 NICU infants while hospitalized and subsequently at 4 and at 20–24 months of age. The results indicate that ABR testing in the NICU may be a poor predictor of subsequent permanent hearing loss. The implications of these findings are discussed with the recommendation that ABR testing in the NICU be used in concert with follow-up testing.     

Interaction of epidermal growth factor with vasoactive hormones in the regulation of phospholipase A2.

The interaction of growth factors with their receptors initiates a series of intracellular events that are of critical importance in the control of normal cell proliferation. In this regard considerable attention has focused on the coupling of phospholipase C-gamma to growth factor receptor tyrosine kinases. In contrast, the interaction of growth factors with phospholipase A2 has received less attention, most likely because the arachidonic acid release response has been considered to be an accompaniment of phospholipase C activation. Work from our laboratory using a well defined model system demonstrated a distinct coupling relationship of epidermal growth factor to phospholipase A2. This review focuses on the interaction of the epidermal growth factor receptor with phospholipases involved in both mitogenic and non-mitogenic responses and discusses their possible relation with vasoactive hormones.     

Scales for the measurement of attitudes toward blood donation

Attitudes toward blood donation are frequently assumed to vary along a single dimension from unfavorable to favorable. In contrast, theories of attitude structure specify three distinct attitude components: affect, cognition, and behavior. This article describes the development of three new scales for the measurement of affective, cognitive, and behavioral components of attitudes toward blood donation. The scales were developed using the method of equal-appearing intervals and were administered to both donors of blood and nondonors. Correlations among the scales were relatively small and supported the three-component distinction. Affect was more strongly correlated with the number of prior donations than was cognition, which suggested an important role for emotional factors in blood donation. Scores on all three scales showed the attitudes of blood donors to be more favorable than those of nondonors.     

Formation of C3-IgG complexes in serum by aggregated IgG and by non-immunoglobulin activators of complement.

We studied the generation of C3-IgG complexes during the activation of C3 in serum by aggregated human IgG (AHG), zymosan or cobra venom factor (CVF). C3-IgG complexes were detected by specific radioimmunoassays: samples to be tested were incubated with anti-IgG Sepharose, and complexes that had bound to the Sepharose were detected by incubation with either 125I-anti-C3c or 125I-anti-C3d, g. Incubation of serum with as little as 6 micrograms AHG per ml, for 30 min at 37 degrees, resulted in the generation of C3-IgG complexes. When serum was incubated with zymosan or CVF, C3-IgG complexes were also generated. AHG appeared to be more effective in the generation of C3-IgG complexes than CVF. We calculated that AHG (2 mg/ml) caused about 36% of the C3 to be fixed to IgG, CVF (400 micrograms/ml) about 14%. Finally, the presence of C3 fixed to IgG in serum incubated with CVF was demonstrated by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), followed by immunoblotting. This study indicates that the formation of C3-IgG complexes in serum is not only induced by immune complexes but also by non-immunoglobulin activators. Therefore, C3-IgG complexes might be considered as complement activation products, and their detection in patients' samples should not be considered as conclusive evidence for the presence of immune complexes.     

Methylprednisolone induces activation of the contact system in a dose-dependent manner. An in vitro study

The effect of methylprednisolone sodium succinate (MP) on the contact system of plasma was studied in human citrated pool plasma. Contact activation was demonstrated by the presence of plasma kallikrein (KK) activity and activated Hageman factor (FXIIa) and/or KK in complex with Cl inhibitor (Clinh), detected by chromogenic peptide substrates or radio immunoassays, using monoclonal antibodies directed to neodeterminants exposed on complexed Clinh, respectively.

When plasma and different doses of MP were incubated for a period of 24 hours, the highest dose of MP (10 mg/ml) gave rapid and marked increases in KK activities and concentrations of Clinh complexes. MP at 5 mg/ml plasma also induced activation of the contact system, although this activation was less pronounced. Even the lower dose of MP (1 mg/ml), which is equivalent to doses used in humans, increased plasma concentrations of KK-Clinh complexes.

In conclusion, this study shows that MP in a dose-dependent way activates the contact system of plasma.     

A Localizing Circumferential Compression Device Delayed Death After Artificial Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake Envenomation to the Torso of an Animal Model in a Pilot Study

Nearly all prior studies to delay onset of systemic toxicity and death after snake bite use a model of distal extremity envenomation. In the first of a series of planned studies using snake venoms with different toxicity profiles, the application of a novel device in a new model of torso envenomation in the setting of Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) venom (a potent neurotoxin) envenomation showed promise by delaying systemic intoxication. In this pilot study, we investigated this novel localizing circumferential compression (LoCC) device’s ability to delay onset of life threatening systemic toxicity after Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake (Crotalus adamanteus) envenomation, a potent hemotoxic and myotoxic venom. With university approval, four juvenile female pigs (22–25 kg) were anesthetized, sedated, and intubated but not paralyzed to allow for spontaneous respirations. Each animal was injected subcutaneously with 50 mg of C. adamanteus venom in identical preselected areas of the trunk. After 1 min, two treatment animals had the LoCC device applied; two control animals had no intervention. Vital signs were recorded every 10 min for the first 2 h and every 30 min thereafter. Endpoints included cardiovascular collapse (fatal arrhythmia, loss of mean arterial pressure, or pulse) or respiratory arrest (<3 breaths/min, saturation < 80%) or survival to 7 h. The pigs in the treatment group reached an endpoint at an average time of 355 (±65) min compared with control 32 (±3.5) min (p < 0.04). In this pilot study, the LoCC device significantly delayed onset of systemic symptoms and death after torso envenomation with Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake venom in this model.