Effects of the presentation of false heart-rate feedback on the performance of two common heartbeat-detection tasks.

Research has indicated that performance on heartbeat counting tasks may be influenced by beliefs about heart rate. Sixty male subjects were administered the Schandry heartbeat counting task after viewing fast, slow, or no heart rate feedback. Subjects were also administered the Whitehead signal-detection type task. Results indicated that subjects who received fast or no heartbeat feedback performed better on the Schandry task than subjects who received slow feedback. Feedback presentation did not affect performance on the Whitehead task. These results suggest that the Schandry task is influenced by external variables (expectations, beliefs) beyond pure awareness of "discrete" visceral sensations and, thus, may not be as powerful a method for determining awareness of individual heartbeats as some other paradigms.     

Expression of cyclooxygenase-2 in osteosarcoma of bone.

Several studies indicate that cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is overexpressed in human malignancies, where it produces high levels of prostaglandins and contributes to tumor growth. In this study we have analyzed the expression of COX-2 in a series of 48 skeletal osteosarcomas of different subtypes by immunohistochemistry. In addition, we examined the effects of the specific COX-2 inhibitor Celecoxib on the growth of the human osteosarcoma cell line SaOS-2. Immunoreactivity for COX-2 was observed in 39 out of 48 tumors (81.2%), 30 (76.9%) of which showed a moderate or diffuse immunostaining. Considering the group of 42 primary osteosarcomas, COX-2 immunoreactivity was significantly higher in high grade osteosarcomas, where moderate or diffuse expression was detected in 23 out of 32 cases (71.8%), than in low grade osteosarcomas, where moderate or diffuse expression was detected in 2 out of 10 cases (20%) (P = 0.008, Fisher exact test). In addition, low COX-2 expression was always associated with a good response to chemotherapy (5 out of 5 cases), whereas moderate or diffuse COX-2 expression was associated with a good response in 11 out of 20 cases (55%) (P = 0.12, Fisher exact test). In SaOS-2 osteosarcoma cells, which express COX-2, treatment with Celecoxib determined inhibition of cell proliferation and induction of apoptosis. These results indicate that COX-2 is expressed at high levels in high grade osteosarcomas and support the use of COX-2 inhibitors to improve both the tumor response to chemotherapy and the outcome of osteosarcoma patients.     

Pulmonary tuberculosis due to bacille Calmette-Guérin

Summary Immunotherapy using bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) has gained increasing acceptance in the management of superficial bladder cancer. Systemic reactions after intravesical instillation of BCG are rare. However, when the therapy is complicated, the lung often becomes involved. Since the pathogenesis of lung infiltrates after immunotherapy is unknown, we report on a patient who developed a lung infiltrate after receiving BCG immunotherapy for bladder cancer. The infectious etiology was established by culture confirmation of a BCG strain in the broncheoalveolar lavage fluid.Abbreviation BCG bacille Calmette-Guérin     

Localization of neurons projecting into the extrinsic penile smooth musculature of the pig: an experimental study on the retractor penis muscle

The aim of this study was to locate in male pigs the sensory and autonomic ganglia innervating the retractor penis muscle (RPM), which was taken as an experimental model of the genital smooth musculature. The retrograde neuronal tracers horseradish peroxidase (HRP), Fast Blue (FB), and diamidino yellow (DY) were injected into the bulbopenile portion of the left RPM. The tracers highlighted a different affinity for the neuronal structures, although labelled cells supplying the RPM were generally found in bilateral dorsal root ganglia (DRGs, S1-S3), in bilateral paravertebral ganglia (PaGs, L2-S3), and in the left and right caudal mesenteric ganglia (CMGs). The mean number of labelled FB cells was 795 (range, 645-952) in DRGs, 16046.25 (range, 10226-18742) in PaGs, and 635.25 (range, 333-786) in CMGs. The mean diameter of pseudounipolar DRG cells was 60-75 microm, while the multipolar neurons of PaGs and CMGs had dimensions varying between 20-50 microm and 20-30 microm, respectively.     

Molecular and serological evaluation of surface antigen negative hepatitis B virus infection in blood donors from Venezuela

Surface antigen negative hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection was evaluated in Venezuela, by molecular characterization of blood samples positive for antibodies to core antigen (anti-HBc) and negative for surface antigen (HBsAg) in blood donors (residual infections). HBV DNA was found in 11/258 samples (4.3%), and was significantly associated with high levels of anti-HBc antibodies (>25 UI/ml, P < 0.05), while no correlation was found between the presence of HBV DNA and the levels of anti-HBs. Synonymous and non-synonymous mutations were found in the HBV surface region (but not vaccine escape mutants) and in the precore/core region (precore mutants in 2/7 samples and 33-45 bp deletions near the N-terminal core region in 4/19 samples). While HBV genotype F prevails among HBsAg positive samples from blood donors in Venezuela, residual infection isolates were mainly genotypes A and D. Phylogenetic analysis of viral surface and core region revealed discrepancies in genotype designation in 6/9 samples, suggesting the presence of mixed infection or recombination. In conclusion, HBV residual infection in Venezuela does not seem to be frequently observed in HBV genotype F. This type of infection is frequently associated with variants exhibiting mutations in the surface gene that might be affecting the correct recognition by commercial tests, with precore mutants and with core internal deletions. These variants do not seem to cause severe liver disease, and on the contrary, were found circulating at low viremia.     

Coordinated multivesicular release at a mammalian ribbon synapse

Traditional models of synaptic transmission hold that release sites within an active zone operate independently. Although the release of multiple vesicles (multivesicular release; MVR) from single active zones occurs at some central synapses, MVR is not thought to require coordination among release sites. Ribbon synapses seem to be optimized to release many vesicles over an extended period, but the dynamics of MVR at ribbon synapses is unknown. We examined MVR at a ribbon synapse in a retinal slice preparation using paired recordings from presynaptic rod bipolar and postsynaptic AII amacrine cells. When evoked release was highly desynchronized, discrete postsynaptic events were larger than quantal miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents (mEPSCs) but had the same time course. The amplitude of these multiquantal mEPSCs, which seem to arise from the essentially simultaneous release of multiple vesicles, was reduced by lowering release probability. The release synchrony reflected in these multivesicular events suggests that release within an active zone is coordinated during MVR.