Sural nerve biopsies in Guillain-Barre syndrome: axonal degeneration and macrophage-associated demyelination and absence of cytomegalovirus genome.

T-cell infiltration was detected by immunohistochemistry in only 2 of 10 sural nerve biopsies from patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). The number of endoneurial macrophages, identified by the monoclonal antibody MAC 387, was increased, compared with the number in 10 cases of axonal neuropathy. Macrophage-associated demyelination was identified in 7 and axonal degeneration in 8 cases. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) genome was not detected with the polymerase chain reaction.     

Ketotifen — a therapeutic agent of eosinophilic fasciitis?

A 30-year-old male with eosinophilic fasciitis (EF) associated with morphoea and vitiligo is described. The patient showed a partial response to prednisone, but did not respond to hydroxychloroquine, D-penicillamine and cimetidine. In the light of reports of increased plasma histamine levels, and a putative role of mast cells in the pathogenesis of EF, ketotifen (a mast cell stabilizer) was prescribed. This non-toxic drug has allowed the patient to continue hard physical labour without further relapses and without corticosteroid therapy.     

Multiple sclerosis: genetic versus environmental aetiology: epidemiology in Israel updated

The incidence and prevalence of multiple sclerosis (MS) were compared, controlling for age, in native-born Israelis of different origins and in immigrants to Israel. This comparison was carried out in two populations, countrywide and in Jerusalem. In the countrywide population, ascertainment was based mainly on hospitalizations; it included 252 patients who were native-born and 150 who had immigrated from Africa-Asia (AA immigrants). The 89 MS patients of Jerusalem also included patients diagnosed in outpatient clinics. In native-born Israelis whose father was born in Europe-America (I-EA), the incidence and prevalence of MS were found to be as high as or even higher than that found previously in immigrants from Europe-America. Among native-born Israelis whose father was born in Africa or Asia (I-AA), the yearly age-adjusted incidence and prevalence rates were found to be 1.4- to 1.8-fold higher than among AA immigrants, pointing to environmental factors. The incidence and prevalence rates in the I-EA were 1.2- to 1.6-fold higher than in the I-AA, pointing to genetic factors. These results seem to point to both environmental and genetic factors in the aetiology of MS. Further research is needed, however, to disentangle the genetic factors from possible environmental differences in the two ethnic groups.     

Bioavailability and corneal anti-inflammatory effect of topical suprofen

The bioavailability in rabbit cornea and aqueous humor of an ophthalmic formulation of suprofen, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, was evaluated following topical administration of a single dose to the eye. The drug penetrated rapidly into the uninflamed cornea with intact epithelium; highest levels occurred during the first 30 to 45 min after instillation and decreased thereafter. The bioavailability of suprofen in cornea and aqueous humor following administration of a 1.0% concentration was twice that produced by a 0.5% concentration of the drug. Topical application of multiple doses of suprofen failed to suppress polymorphonuclear leukocyte invasion of the cornea if treatment was started after the induction of inflammation. Suprofen therapy initiated prior to the induction of corneal inflammation and maintained into the post-inflammation period did produce a significant (P less than 0.01) decrease in the numbers of PMNs that invaded the inflamed cornea. There was no significant difference (P greater than 0.05) in the corneal anti-inflammatory effect achieved by the 0.5% and 1.0% concentrations of suprofen when administered according to this regimen.     

Role of protein synthesis in the replication of the killer virus of yeast

Summary Growth of yeast in the presence of the protein synthesis inhibitors cycloheximide and cryptopleurine results in elimination (curing) of the cytoplasmically-inherited killer virus. Yeast mutants with ribosomal subunits resistant to the translational effects of one of these antibiotics are specifically resistant to curing by that antibiotic, indicating that these substances act on the virus by their effect on protein synthesis.     

Novel multi-component nanopharmaceuticals derived from poly(ethylene) glycol, retro-inverso-Tat nonapeptide and saquinavir demonstrate combined anti-HIV effects

Background  

Current anti-AIDS therapeutic agents and treatment regimens can provide a dramatically improved quality of life for HIV-positive people, many of whom have no detectable viral load for prolonged periods of time. Despite this, curing AIDS remains an elusive goal, partially due to the occurrence of drug resistance. Since the development of resistance is linked to, among other things, fluctuating drug levels, our long-term goal has been to develop nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems that can improve therapy by more precisely controlling drug concentrations in target cells. The theme of the current study is to investigate the value of combining AIDS drugs and modifiers of cellular uptake into macromolecular conjugates having novel pharmacological properties.     

Two modes of processing visual information: implications for assessing visual impairment

The recognition of visual detail and the ability to orient spatially to visual stimuli are apparently subserved by distinct modes of processing, termed "focal" and "ambient," respectively. Current clinical techniques are well suited to evaluate aspects of focal vision, but do little to evaluate ambient visual functions. As a result, the impairment of ambient functions may be difficult to specify or may be overestimated. Implications for the development of assessment techniques for ambient functions are discussed.     

Amphetamine-induced anorexia: analysis with hypothalamic lesions and knife cuts

The present study examined the hypotheses that the midlateral perifornical region of the hypothalamus (PFH), at the level of the ventromedial nucleus, plays a crucial role in amphetamine (AMPH)-induced anorexia and that mediating fibers ascending to this brain region follow a midlateral course through the caudal hypothalamus. Electrolytic lesions that destroyed the PFH region attenuated the feeding suppression induced by intraperitoneal administration of AMPH. Lesions placed anterior, dorsal, or medial to this region, in contrast, did not decrease AMPH's effect. The medially-placed paraventricular nucleus lesion, in fact, enhanced drug response. Midlateral coronal wire-knife cuts in the caudal hypothalamus also attenuated AMPH anorexia. The crucial midlateral caudal hypothalamic cut also disrupted anorexia induced by direct injection of AMPH into the PFH area. The results obtained from the lesion data support the hypothesis that the PFH region is essential to AMPH's suppressive effect upon feeding, and the KC data suggest that crucial catecholamine fibers mediating this drug response ascend specifically through the midlateral portion of the hypothalamus.