Distribution of taste buds on fungiform and circumvallate papillae of bovine tongue

The distribution of taste buds on the fungiform and circumvallate papillae of the cow tongue has been determined. The two tongues studied were from Holstein-Friesian cows four to six years of age; they contained 14,765 and 21,691 taste buds, respectively. The tip of the tongue is well supplied with fungiform papillae, and the posterior portion contains the circumvallate papillae. The midportion of the tongue contains relatively few taste papillae. The fungiform papillae contained 1,580 and 1,838 taste buds on the two tongues, respectively, and the circumvallate papillae were estimated to contain 13,185 and 19,853 taste buds. The highest concentration of taste buds therefore occurs in the circumvallate papillae; these relatively few papillae contain approximately 90% of the taste buds. On a circumvallate papilla, taste buds are found only on the papillary sidewall, with none either on the apical surface of the papilla or on the outer wall of the moat.     

Is Lauren's histopathological classification of importance in patients with stomach cancer? A national experience. Norwegian Stomach Cancer Trial.

This study was performed to investigate the association between Lauren's histopathological classification system and different clinico-pathological characteristics in patients with gastric carcinoma. We revealed that the percentage of intestinal type tumour (ITT) increased with advancing age (52% in patients less than 60 years compared to 73% of octogenarians (P less than 0.001)). The male:female ratio was 1.7 for ITT versus 1.3 for diffuse type tumour (DTT (P = 0.12)). ITT was more common in proximally (fundus) localized tumours than in distal lesions (77% vs 65%; P less than 0.05). The proportion of patients with ITT decreased with advancing stages of the disease (70% in stage I and II vs 52% in stage IV (P less than 0.0001)). More patients with DTT had tumour infiltration in the resection margin (21% vs 9%; P less than 0.001). Intestinal metaplasia was found in 48% of those with ITT compared with 28% of those with DTT (P less than 0.001). No association was found between Lauren's classification and the ABO blood group or between the tumour types and infiltration in lymphatic or blood vessels. We conclude that gastric adenocarcinoma occurs in at least two different biological forms and that differentiation between the two is of relevance for treatment.     

Effects of unpalatable diets and food restriction on feed efficiency in growing rats

During a 15-day experiment, weanling rats fed a 10% casein diet adulterated daily by one of four aversive taste stimuli ate 12–16% less than their controls fed ad lib on the unadulterated diet. They also demonstrated an inhibition in feed efficiency (g body weight gain/g food intake) during the first 8 days. A second control group, pair-fed to the group receiving the adulterated diet, also showed a reduction in feed efficiency. By Day 9, a compensatory process was evident in the rats fed the unpalatable diet such that feed efficiency increased above that observed for the ad lib control group. By the end of the experiment all three groups exhibited the same efficiency. The ratio of urinary nitrogen to total nitrogen intake was higher in rats fed the unpalatable diet ad lib compared to those offered the unadulterated diet ad lib. This observation suggests that the rats on the unpalatable diet were using more of the dietary protein as a caloric source than were their controls.     

Genetics of the low density lipoprotein receptor:

Fibroblast low density lipoprotein (LDL) plasma membrane receptor activity, measured as 125I-LDL association (plasma membrane binding plus intracellular accumulation) and degradation was determined in cell strains from 14 monozygotic (MZ) and 21 like-sexed dizygotic (DZ) normolipidemic twin pairs. The twins were between 57 and 62 years old and had liver apart for an average of 38 years (range 0-60). The intrapair differences were significantly smaller in MZ than in DZ twin pairs in fibroblast 125I-LDL association as well as degradation assays (P less than 0.05). These findings suggest a genetic influence on normal variation in LDL receptor activity in vitro. In two MZ pairs discordant for psoriasis, the psoriatic twin had markedly lower LDL receptor activity than the cotwin.     

Preference of rats for food flavors and texture in nutritionally controlled semi-purified diets

Preference for nutritionally controlled, semi-purified diets modified by the addition of potent food flavors was determined for Sprague Dawley rats using two-choice diet preference tests. Intake of each food cup was monitored after 1 hr and for each 24 hr period thereafter up to 5 days. Preference was also determined for the flavored diets prepared in three forms differing in texture: powdered, and pellets of two sizes. Rats easily detected minor amounts of the food flavors, and the tests provided a catalog of 12 preferred flavors. Exposure time to the diets altered preference for a minority of flavors; diets initially avoided in the first hour test were likely to become less aversive upon continued exposure. Whether or not a specific flavored diet was preferred, total food intake was not affected during the 5 day period monitored. Rats displayed strong preference for diets of a pelleted texture compared to the same diets in a powdered form.     

Spinal cord infarction post cardiac arrest in STEMI: A potential complication of intra-aortic balloon pump use

Intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) is commonly used as a cardiac assist device in various clinical situations: cardiogenic shock, mechanical complications of acute myocardial infarction, high risk percutaneous coronary interventions, coronary artery bypass graft surgery and refractory unstable angina and ventricular arrhythmias as bridge to therapy. Although current data support its safety, there is limited or no support for its efficacy. We present the case of spinal cord infarction after IABP use in a patient who presented with ST elevation myocardial infarction and cardiac arrest and we discuss the potential mechanism of such a devastating complication.     

Energy intake, weight gain and fat deposition in rats fed flavored, nutritionally controlled diets in a multichoice ("cafeteria") design

The effect of flavor variety on diet selection, energy intake, weight gain and fat deposition was studied in male rats fed flavored, nutritionally controlled, purified diets in a multichoice "cafeteria" (CAF) arrangement. Serum insulin, L-3,3',5-triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) levels were also determined. Rats fed nutritionally balanced diets containing a variety of preferred flavors and textural forms ad libitum in a CAF design did not consume more energy nor did they gain more weight than rats fed a single choice of nutritionally balanced diet with no modifications in flavor or texture. Feeding high fat, high sucrose diets containing a variety of flavors in a CAF arrangement resulted in higher energy intake, body weight gain, lipid content in fat pads and serum T3 levels than did feeding the nutritionally balanced diet. However, the high fat diet with no added flavors also resulted in an energy intake, body weight gain and lipid content of fat pads at a level equal or close to that produced by the CAF feeding of the flavored, high fat, high sucrose diet. It is therefore concluded that the effect of a variety of food flavors on hyperphagia and fat deposition is of minor importance in purified diets compared to the stimulating effect of the fat in the diet.     

Periodontal diseases and association with atherosclerotic disease

Cardiovascular diseases still account for the majority of deaths worldwide, although significant improvements in survival, after being affected by cardiovascular disease, have been achieved in the last decades. Periodontal diseases are also a common global burden. Several studies have shown a link between cardiovascular disease and periodontitis, although evidence is still lacking regarding the direct cause-effect relation. During the 2012 “Periodontitis and systemic diseases” workshop, the available evidence on the association between cardiovascular and periodontal diseases was discussed, covering biologic plausibility and clinical studies. The objective of the present narrative review was to update the previous reviews presented at the 2012 workshop, following similar methodological approaches, aiming to critically assess the available evidence. With regard to biologic plausibility, two aspects were reviewed: (a) for microbiologic mechanisms, assessing periodontal bacteria as a contributing factor to atherosclerosis based on seven “proofs,” substantial evidence was found for Proofs 1 through 6, but not for Proof 7 (periodontal bacteria obtained from human atheromas can cause atherosclerosis in animal models), concluding that periodontal pathogens can contribute to atherosclerosis; (b) mechanistic studies, addressing five different inflammatory pathways that could explain the links between periodontitis and cardiovascular disease with the addition of some extra pathways , suggest an association between both entities, based on the presence of higher levels of these inflammatory markers in patients with periodontitis and cardiovascular disease, vs healthy controls, as well as on the evidence that periodontal treatment reduces serum levels of these mediators. When evidence from clinical studies was analyzed, two aspects were covered: (a) epidemiologic studies support the estimation that the incidence of atherosclerotic disease is higher in individuals with periodontitis than in individuals with no reported periodontitis, irrespective of many common risk factors, but with a substantial variability in the definitions used in reporting of exposure to periodontal diseases in different studies; (b) intervention trials have shown that periodontal therapy can reduce serum inflammatory mediators, improve the lipids profile, and induce positive changes in other cardiovascular disease surrogate measures, but no evidence is available to support that adequate periodontal therapy is able to reduce the risk for cardiovascular diseases, or the incidence of cardiovascular disease events in periodontitis patients.