Lack of effects of a lyposterolic extract of Serenoa repens on plasma levels of testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone

Twenty men, aged 50 to 75 years (mean, 67 years), suffering from benign prostatic hypertrophy received 160 mg of a lyposterolic extract of Serenoa repens, twice daily for 30 days. Before and at the end of treatment, plasma levels of testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone were determined. No changes in plasma hormone levels occurred as a result of treatment. It is concluded that Serenoa extract, which is useful in the treatment of benign prostatic hypertrophy, does not act via systemic changes of hormone levels.     

新的质粒介导的碳青霉烯酶IMI-3传播机制研究

目的明确新的质粒介导的碳青霉烯酶IMI-3传播机制.方法采用E试验测定抗菌药物MIC,接合试验、酶切克隆筛选及鸟枪法测序对编码基因IMI-3传播机制进行研究.结果发现阳性克隆菌E.coli pT103有5个开放读码框（ORF）.在编码基因IMI-3的两侧各有一相同的插入序列,氨基酸序列与IS903有71%的同源性.鸟枪法测序显示IMI-3与染色体介导的IMI-有99%的同源性.结论IMI-3编码基因是由位于染色体上的IMI-1经点突变通过转座酶Tn903转移至可接合性质粒上.     

Successful surgical correction of persistent truncus arteriosus by an aortic homograft]

After palliative procedure a 2 years old girl with congenital heart disease was corrected with aortic homograft. Truncus arteriosus is a rare congenital heart disease and this is the first successfully corrected case in our country. Using homograft in this age group improves the early and late result of this type of corrective surgery.     

Postoperative echocardiographic study of patients following valvulotomy for critical valvular aortic stenosis

Authors report on long term follow up of 12 patients operated with critical valvular aortic stenosis. They could perform control echocardiography in 11 patients 4-83 (mean 29) months after valvulotomy. The size and function of the left ventricle was found to be satisfactory, with elevated ejection fraction. The cause of the significant pressure gradient between the left ventricle and the aorta is discussed emphasizing the importance of echocardiography in determining the optimal time for valve replacement or homograft implantation.     

间接荧光抗体试验检测日本血吸虫感染家兔血清中特异性抗体水平的动态变化

用尾蚴、雌虫、雄虫和血吸虫感染兔肝组织内虫卵冰冻切片抗原进行间接荧光抗体试验（ＩＦＡＴ），观察日本血吸虫感染家兔血清中特异性抗体的动态变化。抗尾蚴、成虫（雌、雄虫）、虫卵抗体检出的最早时间分别为３ｗｋ、３ｗｋ、４ｗｋ，其抗体滴度高峰分别在感染后７ｗｋ、１０～１２ｗｋ和１０ｗｋ。以抗尾蚴抗体水平最高，抗虫卵抗体次之，抗雌、雄虫抗体较低。这为全面了解感染宿主对血吸虫各期抗原（尾蚴、雌、雄虫、虫卵）的免疫反应及免疫学诊断提供了新的资料     

Internal and external information processing by lateral hypothalamic glucose-sensitive and insensitive neurons during bar press feeding in the monkey

Single neuron activities in the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) were recorded during bar press feeding task in the monkey. First registered neurons were sorted into 2 groups, glucose-sensitive (GS) and glucose-insensitive (GIS) neurons, depending on their glucose sensitivity. Then firing variations to feeding, electrophoretically applied catecholamines and opiate, and to odor and taste stimuli were investigated. GS neurons responded to dopamine, noradrenaline and morphine more often than GIS neurons. In feeding task GS neurons responded during bar press (BP) and reward (RW) periods with long-lasting inhibition of firing and at cue tone (CT) with transient inhibition, while GIS neurons responded during BP and RW periods mainly with excitation and at cue light (CL) with excitation. A majority of GS neurons responded to both odor and taste stimuli more often than GIS neurons. Data suggest that these two kinds of neurons in the LHA may be involved in different functional aspects of feeding: GS neurons, mainly in internal information processing and reward mechanism, and GIS neurons, in external information processing and motor aspects.     

Transglutaminase in cell proliferation and transformation

Transglutaminase (TGase) activity was reduced in intact mitogen-stimulated human peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) when compared to intact resting PBL. Moreover, a treatment of the same quiescent immunocompetent cells with purified liver TGase and Ca²⁺ completely suppressed the mitogen-induced blast transformation. A decrease in TGase activity in neoplastically transformed seminal vesicle epithelial cells with respect to their normal parent counterpart was also observed. Our data support the notion of a possible implication of TGase in cell proliferation and transformation.     

High blood alcohol levels in women. The role of decreased gastric alcohol dehydrogenase activity and first-pass metabolism

After consuming comparable amounts of ethanol, women have higher blood ethanol concentrations than men, even with allowance for differences in size, and are more susceptible to alcoholic liver disease. Recently, we documented significant "first-pass metabolism" of ethanol due to its oxidation by gastric tissue. We report a study of the possible contribution of this metabolism to the sex-related difference in blood alcohol concentrations in 20 men and 23 women. Six in each group were alcoholics. The first-pass metabolism was determined on the basis of the difference in areas under the curves of blood alcohol concentrations after intravenous and oral administration of ethanol (0.3 g per kilogram of body weight). Alcohol dehydrogenase activity was also measured in endoscopic gastric biopsies. In nonalcoholic subjects, the first-pass metabolism and gastric alcohol dehydrogenase activity of the women were 23 and 59 percent, respectively, of those in the men, and there was a significant correlation (rs = 0.659) between first-pass metabolism and gastric mucosal alcohol dehydrogenase activity. In the alcoholic men, the first-pass metabolism and gastric alcohol dehydrogenase activity were about half those in the nonalcoholic men; in the alcoholic women, the gastric mucosal alcohol dehydrogenase activity was even lower than in the alcoholic men, and first-pass metabolism was virtually abolished. We conclude that the increased bioavailability of ethanol resulting from decreased gastric oxidation of ethanol may contribute to the enhanced vulnerability of women to acute and chronic complications of alcoholism.