Persistent platelet activation in patients with type 2 diabetes treated with low doses of aspirin

BACKGROUND: The percentage of diabetic patients who do not benefit from the protective effect of aspirin is larger than in other populations at cardiovascular risk. OBJECTIVE: We compared the ability of aspirin to suppress TxA2 and platelet activation in vivo, in type-2 diabetics vs. high-risk non-diabetic patients. METHODS: Urinary 11-dehydro-TXB2, plasma sCD40 L, and sP-selectin were measured, together with indices of low-grade inflammation, glycemic control, and lipid profile, in 82 patients with type-2 diabetes and 39 without diabetes, treated with low doses of aspirin. RESULTS: Urinary 11-dehydro-TxB2, plasma sCD40L and sP-selectin were significantly higher in diabetics than in controls: [38.9 (27.8-63.3) vs. 28.5 (22.5-43.9) ng mmol(-1) of creatinine, P = 0.02], [1.06 (0.42-3.06) vs. 0.35 (0.22-0.95) ng mL(-1); P = 0.0001], [37.0 (16.8-85.6) vs. 20.0 (11.2-35.6) ng mL(-1), P = 0.0001], respectively. The proportion of individuals with diabetes increased across quartiles of 11-dehydro-TxB2, sCD40L, and sP-selectin, with the highest quartiles of 11-dehydro-TxB2, sCD40L and sP-selectin, including 66%, 93.3%, and 93.3% of individuals with diabetes. Markers of platelet activation positively correlated with indices of glycemic control but not with markers of low-grade inflammation. CONCLUSIONS: Platelet dysfunction associated with insufficient glycemic control, may mediate persistent platelet activation under aspirin treatment.     

Paternal lineage of alcoholism, cohort effects, and alcoholism criteria

Adoption studies have led to the suggestion that there may be two distinct subgroups of alcoholics with differing genetic contributions. Among 249 male alcoholics we used discriminant analysis to relate the features of type 1 and type 2 alcoholism it the presence or absence of a family history of alcoholism in male paternal relatives. We found that guilt and hinging, features usually attributed to type 1 (milieu-limited) alcoholism, were in fact more prevalent m the family history positive group. An additional cohort analysis found cohort-related variations in type 1/type 2 characteristics. The possible implications of these findings are discussed.     

Effect of Policosanol on Foam-cell Formation in Carrageenan-induced Granulomas in Rats

Policosanol is a new cholesterol-lowering drug isolated and purified from sugar-cane wax. which prevents the development of lipofundin-induced lesions and foam-cell formation in New Zealand rabbits and Wistar rats. This study was conducted to examine the effects of policosanol on foam-cell formation in carrageenan-induced granulomas in rats. Eighteen Wistar rats were randomly distributed in three experimental groups which received orally for 20 days Tween 20 H₂O as vehicle (control group) or policosanol at 2.5 or 25 mg kg^?1. At the 11th day. lipofundin was injected intrapcritoneally for 8 days to induce formation of foam cells in the granuloma. At day 13, carrageenan was injected subcutaneously for granuloma induction and seven days later animals were killed. A significant reduction of the foam-cell formation in granulomas of policosanol-treated rats was observed. It is concluded that policosanol prevents the development of foam cells in carrageenan-induced granulomas (extravascular medium) in rats.     

EFFECTS OF ACUTE AND CHRONIC ADMINISTRATION OF TWO ANTIBIOTICS, AZTREONAM AND GENTAMICIN, ALONE OR IN COMBINATION, ON "OPEN-FIELD TEST" IN MICE

A study aimed at investigating the behavioural effects of aztreonam and gentamicin, given separately or in combination, was carried out in mice. Animals were randomly assigned to two test conditions: acute and chronic treatment. Those receiving acute treatment had a single IP injection 60 min before the test. Those receiving chronic treatment had IP injections once daily for 5 successive days prior to the test. Behavioural patterns (ambulation, rearing, grooming and defecation) were assessed using the "open-field" test. The results indicate that, both after single and multiple dosing, aztreonam (10, 40 and 80 mg/kg IP) and/or gentamicin (10 mg/kg IP) do produce changes in the behaviour of animals. A rate increasing effect for certain behaviours (rearing, grooming and defecation) and a reduction in other behaviours (ambulation) seems to occur.     

Computer-assisted radiology resident rotation scheduling

The author developed a method for computer-assisted scheduling of resident rotations in which the chief resident determines the most desirable set of rotations for each resident, disregarding specific month assignments except as required or requested, and the computer generates the schedule by assigning months to rotations. The computer uses an efficient search algorithm to find a schedule that satisfies all requirements. The method satisfies training goals, staffing needs, and residents' desires more effectively than manual scheduling. Although fixed staffing levels for every rotation are required, flexibility is achieved through "dummy" assignments of rotations to residents.     

Individual Differences in Plasma Catecholamine and Corticosterone Stress Responses of Wild-Type Rats: Relationship With Aggression

Plasma noradrenaline (NA), adrenaline (A), and corticosterone (CS) responses to social and nonsocial stressors were studied in male members of a strain of wild-type rats, widely differing in their level of aggression. The aggressiveness was preliminarily established by measuring the latency time to attack (ALT) a male intruder in a standard resident-intruder test. Animals were then provided with a jugular vein cannula for blood sampling during stress exposure. Implanted rats were randomly assigned to 3 experimental treatments: social stress (defeat experience, SD), nonsocial stress (presentation of a shock-prod, SP) and control (animals undisturbed in their home cages, CTR). A significant correlation was found between ALT and the amount of time spent in burying the probe in SP rats: the more aggressive the animal, the higher the rate of burying behavior. SD induced a much stronger effect on plasma NA, A, and CS concentrations than SP. A significant negative correlation was found between ALT scores and values of the area under the response time curve for NA and A, in both SD and SP situations: the more aggressive the animal, the higher the catecholaminergic reactivity to the stressors. On the contrary, no evidence of a correlation between aggressiveness and plasma corticosterone responses was found, neither in SD nor in SP rats. These findings in an unselected strain of wild-type rats confirmed that an aggressive/active coping strategy is associated with a high sympathetic-adrenomedullary activation and support the concept of individual differentiation in coping styles as a coherent set of behavioral and neuroendocrine characteristics.