Interventional radiologic procedures in the renal transplant

Percutaneous interventional procedures can be valuable in the evaluation and treatment of urologic complications of renal transplantation. Thirty-three patients underwent percutaneous procedures, including relief of obstruction by catheter nephrostomy, diagnostic antegrade pyelography with Whitaker testing, aspiration of various fluid collections (lymphocele, hematoma, urinoma, and abscess), and renal artery angioplasty, during a three year period at three institutions, to provide temporizing treatment and anatomic data. Surgical intervention was sometimes avoided, but more often it could be deferred to allow the patient to stabilize prior to surgery. Complications that required surgery occurred in two patients.     

Generation of hemolytic activity in ozone-treated phosphatidylcholine

When liposomes prepared from purified soybean phosphatidylcholine were treated with ozone, at least two types of hemolytic agents were formed. One type was stable at 0 degree C but was destroyed rapidly at 37 degrees C. A second type was evolved during storage of ozone-treated phosphatidylcholine at 37 degrees C in the absence of EDTA. This study is concerned mainly with the heat-labile type. The hemolytic activity was not associated with lipid hydroperoxides. A number of substances were shown to inhibit the hemolytic activity and these may be divided into two classes. The first included cysteine, polyamines, n-heptylamine, semicarbazide, and tryptophan. Preincubation of the ozone-treated phosphatidylcholine was necessary with a Class 1 inhibitor, presumably for the interaction of the inhibitor with a functional group of the hemolytic agents. The Class II inhibitors, including BHT and vitamin C, required no preincubation. These possibly abolished the hemolytic activity by scavenging free radicals in the process.     

Phencyclidine and behavior: I. Sensory-motor function,activity level,taste aversion and water intake

Phencyclidine (PCP) injections in rats at doses of 4 mg/kg increased activity level, which might have been a function of impaired habituation. At doses of 8 mg/kg PCP produced a marked reduction in activity level. At doses of 12 mg/kg and above there were profound disruptive effects in detection of odors, visual square and touch measures, and performance of placing reflexes requiring visuo-motor coordination, righting, grasping reflexes, and equilibrium. Decreases in water intake occurred only at higher dose levels of PCP (16 and 24 mg/kg). On a qualitative basis the changes observed in rats are similar to changes described for humans.     

Effects of caudate nucleus stimulation upon initiation and performance of a complex motor task

Stimulation of the caudate nucleus at either, 7 Hz or 100 Hz impaired performance of a complex motor task. The disruptive effects on execution of the task occurred at low amperages and appeared to involve interference with temporal programming of response components. Task initiation was impaired by stimulation at higher amperages. Electrical stimulation of anterior sites in the caudate nucleus resulted in impairment of performance at lower stimulation intensities than did stimulation of posterior sites. Although stimulation (7 Hz) of hippocampus, nonspecific thalamic nuclei, or mesencephalic reticular formation also resulted in performance deficits, the topography of interference effects and the threshold intensities required for disruption were different from those resulting from stimulation of the caudate nucleus.