Factors related to the practice of breast self examination (BSE) and Pap smear screening among Malaysian women workers in selected electronics factories

Background  

The Malaysian Ministry of Health promotes breast self-examination (BSE) for all women, and Pap smear screening every three years for all sexually active women ages 20 years and above. The objectives of this paper were to examine the practice of these two screening tests among women production workers in electronics factories, and to identify factors related to practice.     

Cytotoxic effect of conjugates of doxorubicin and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in breast cancer cells

Cytotoxic activity of drug conjugates of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) and doxorubicin alone was investigated compared to doxorubicin in breast cancer cells with and without expression of hCG receptors. Expression of hCG receptor was determined in MCF-7 and MB231 breast cancer cell line using a multiplex nested rt-PCR approach. The entire sequence of mRNA encoding for hCG receptor was detected in MCF-7 but not in MB231 breast cancer cell line. Cytostatic effect of doxorubicin–hCG conjugates was investigated in these cell lines in comparison to unconjugated doxorubicin. The number of viable cells was determined after 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 h. To exclude non-specific uptake of the carrier hCG from the culture media, a similar experiment was performed with albumin–doxorubicin conjugates. The number of viable cells decreased in a concentration depending manner after doxorubicin and hCG–doxorubicin conjugate treatment. However, the cytotoxic effect of hCG–doxorubicin conjugate was 10-fold increased compared to unconjugated doxorubin in hCG-receptor positive MCF-7 but not in hCG-receptor negative MB231 cells. Albumin–doxorubicin conjugates showed no increased toxicity compared to doxorubicin. We conclude that the cytotoxic effect of hCG–doxorubicin conjugates is mediated specifically via the hCG receptor. By using hCG conjugates, the development of more selective cytostatics can be achieved.     

Time course of intranasally administered cholecystokinin-8 on central nervous effects

The gut and brain peptide cholecystokinin (CCK) exerts a number of central nervous effects. Among them are effects on attention and stimulus processing as revealed by modulations of event-related potentials (ERPs). In the present study the time course of central nervous effects after an intranasal administration of CCK-8 was investigated by means of ERPs. ERPs were recorded in an oddball paradigm 15, 30, 60, 90, 120, and 240 min after administration. Following the double-blind intranasal administration of CCK-8 and placebo, the late positive complex (LPC) of the ERP was significantly increased following CCK-8 compared to placebo. This effect was more pronounced in women than in men. The enhancement of the LPC by intranasal CCK-8 was not restricted to a specific recording time but reached its maximum 120 min after administration in men and women. Moreover, results tentatively indicate that 30 min after administration of CCK-8 the LPC increased only in women but not in men. The early effect of intranasal CCK-8 on LPC in women is unlikely to be caused by changes in plasma CCK-8 levels and suggests a direct nose-brain pathway.     

Manipulating neuropeptidergic pathways in humans: a novel approach to neuropharmacology?

Given the tremendous number of neuropeptides, which are synthesized in the central nervous system, the brain can be viewed as one of the most prominent endocrine organs. Elucidation of the functions of these peptides is hampered by the facts that after intravenous administration access to brain receptors is prevented or impaired by the blood-brain barrier. Here, we provide evidence that intranasal administration can be a way to circumvent the blood-brain barrier. Selected experiments will be reported indicating that peptides after intranasal administration in humans can specifically alter a great variety of brain functions. For vasopressin, we demonstrated improving effects of long-term intranasal treatment on sleep in elderly people. Insulin showed improving effects of short-term memory functions. For adrenocorticotropin/melanocyte stimulating hormone, ACTH/MSH-(4-10), a twofold action was isolated: The melanocortin fragment diminished selective attention and, with subchronic administration, reduced body fat. These results could provide the basis for developing a new, specific, and "soft" neuropharmacology.     

Excretory urography with iohexol: evaluation in children

A multicenter clinical study was conducted using iohexol, a second-generation nonionic contrast medium, for excretory urography performed in 130 children. Doses of iohexol (300 mg iodine/ml) ranged between 150 and 660 mgI/kg (0.5 and 2.2 ml/kg). Iohexol was tolerated well, and no significant adverse reactions occurred. Sixty-five iohexol urograms were evaluated to determine the minimum dose for adequate visualization of the kidneys and collecting systems. A dose greater than 300 mgI/kg (1.0 ml/kg) always resulted in a urogram of diagnostic quality, while visualization was insufficient for diagnosis in 10% of studies done with doses of 150-300 mgI/kg (0.5-1.0 ml/kg). Another 65 iohexol urograms were compared in a blinded manner with a similar number of studies performed using iothalamate meglumine at comparable iodine concentration and dose. Visualization of calyces and pelvoinfundibular structures achieved with iohexol was rated better with statistical significance, but there was no difference in visualization of the renal parenchyma or ureters. Use of iohexol in excretory urography may be advantageous in children who are at greatest risk for an adverse reaction to contrast media or in those most likely to benefit from use of a low osmolality contrast agent.     

The influence of a vasopressin-analogue (DGAVP) on event-related potentials in a stimulus-mismatch paradigm

To assess the influence of DGAVP (des-glycinamide-arginine-8-vasopressin, a synthetic vasopressin analogue) on the processing of stimuli and stimulus deviance in humans in a double-blind cross-over experiment, 13 subjects received 60 IU DGAVP versus placebo intranasally 48, 24, and 1 h prior to the experimental session. Auditory event-related potentials (ERPs) were taken as a tool to investigate central nervous processing in an experimental task that required the subjects to count different kinds of rare tone pips deviating in pitch and probability compared to frequent standard tones. Direction of attention was manipulated by instructing the subject to count a different class of deviating tone pips in each attention condition. DGAVP enhanced the N2 of the ERP to tone pips deviating extremely in pitch from standard tones, whether or not the extremely deviating pips were to be attended to by the subjects. This influence suggests an intensified mismatch processing under DGAVP that may result from a general excitatory effect of this substance on cortical activity.     

红外光谱法和X-射线粉末衍射法研究棉酚的多晶型

棉酚是棉子中的一种色素,具有广泛生理活性。棉酚、醋酸棉酚、甲酸棉酚曾初步试用于男性节育,但有一定毒副作用,影响了临床进一步试用。目前国内外学者仍在进一步研究。棉酚的结构式如下:     

Breast and axillary tissue MR imaging: correlation of signal intensities and relaxation times with pathologic findings

We tested a variety of inversion-recovery (IR) and spin-echo (SE) sequences by imaging the breast masses of 22 patients before surgery and 23 tissue specimens with magnetic resonance (MR) imaging at 0.6 T to determine the most effective pulse sequences to evaluate breast disease. An SE pulse sequence using a long repetition time (TR) of 1,600 msec and a long echo time (TE) of 90 msec was found to be the most sensitive in depicting carcinoma in the excised tissue specimens, with all of the carcinomas (n = 15) demonstrating irregular areas of higher signal intensity (SI) than that of the adjacent fat. However, only five of 11 breast carcinomas present in the preoperative patients produced a higher SI than that produced by fat on the same T2-weighted sequence. Five of the remaining six carcinomas in the preoperative patients appeared as localized distortions of fibroductular architecture on both T2-weighted SE and IR sequences. In axillary tissue specimens, both metastatic carcinoma and hyperplastic lymph nodes produced a high SI on T2-weighted SE sequences. However, metastatic carcinoma had a significantly longer T2 relaxation time than did hyperplastic lymph nodes.     

Eighty-year-old men without cardiovascular disease in the community of Malmö.: Part II. Smoking characteristics and ultrasound findings,with special reference to glutathione transferase and pyridoxal-5-phosphate

Abstract. A total of 1280 80-year-old men in the community of Malmö were questioned about smoking habits and the occurrence of cardiovascular disease (CVD). After a careful medical and duplex ultrasound examination, four groups were selected for further studies: (1) no CVD, non-smokers; (2) no CVD, smokers; (3) CVD, smokers; (4) CVD, non-smokers. In total 122 individuals participated. The average tobacco consumption by smokers was 13 g d^?1 for 59 years. In the CVD group 45% of subjects had atherosclerotic symptoms at more than one site. Smoking was found to be correlated with lower extremity atherosclerosis, cholesterol and LDL cholesterol were correlated with carotid artery lesions and pathological ankle/arm index, and blood pressure was correlated with lower extremity lesions. In contrast with middle-aged populations, individuals with an increasing degree of lesions in the lower extremities had a larger percentage of high glutathione transferase activity than subjects without CVD. Smokers had significantly lower pyridoxal-5-phosphate levels than non-smokers. It is concluded that some heavy smokers might reach an advanced age in good health. Smoking was also operative as a risk indicator for lower extremity atherosclerosis in 80-year-old individuals.