Colorectal hemangioma: radiologic findings

The authors correlated radiographs with the clinical and histologic data of 12 patients with colorectal hemangioma. All patients presented with rectal bleeding, which was chronic in seven. Phleboliths were also visible in seven cases, which correlated with chronic bleeding in five. On barium studies, three masses were soft and three produced rigid narrowing. The atypical features of rigid luminal narrowing, which might mimic a carcinoma, and hypovascularity correlated with chronic bleeding or visible phleboliths, which suggest the correct diagnosis of colorectal hemangioma.     

Soccer injuries among youth

This study reports the quantitative and qualitative aspects of sports injuries in a 5-day youth soccer tournament with 12,907 players. A total of 132 injuries that resulted in at least one days' absence from soccer playing were of special interest. The overall injury rate was 3.6 for boys and 4.4 injuries per 1000 hours of play for girls. Statistically significantly higher injury rates between players in puberty and differences in type and location of injuries between boys and girls were found. In 77% of the cases, the injury happened while the injured player was in physical contact with another player, 59% had ball contact and 7% had no contact with any person or ball at all. Five months later a questionnaire was send out to the serious injured players. Of 85 injured players, 10 were absent from school or work on average 11.5 days. Five had surgery. Injury prophylaxis in soccer tournaments is proposed.     

Early human thymocyte proliferation is regulated by an externally controlled autocrine transforming growth factor-beta 1 mechanism

Early thymocytes undergo extensive proliferation after their entry into the thymus, but cellular interactions and cytokines regulating this intrathymic step remain to be determined. We analyzed the effects of various T-cell growth factors and cellular interactions on in vitro proliferation of early CD2+CD3/TCR-CD4-CD8- (triple negative [TN]) human thymocytes. Freshly isolated TN cells were then assayed for their growth capacity after incubation with CD2I+III-monoclonal antibody (MoAb), recombinant human interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-7, and/or IL-4. These cells displayed significant proliferative responses with IL-4, IL- 7, or CD2-MoAb+IL-2. The addition of recombinant transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta) or autologous irradiated CD3+CD8+CD4- cells to TN cell cultures dramatically decreased their growth responses to IL-2 and IL-7, whereas IL-4-induced proliferation was less sensitive to growth inhibition. We thus asked whether the CD8+ cell-derived inhibitory effect was due to TGF beta. The addition of neutralizing anti-TGF beta MoAb completely abolished CD8+ cell-derived inhibition of TN cell growth. Analysis of CD8+ cell-derived supernatants indicated that these cells had low TGF beta 1 production capacity, whereas TN cells secrete significantly high levels of TGF beta 1. Cell fixation studies showed that TN cells were the source of the TGF beta. TGF beta 1 released from TN cells was in the latent form that became the active inhibitory form through interaction of TN cells with CD8+ cells. Together, these data suggest a role for TGF beta 1 as an externally controlled, autocrine inhibitory factor for human early thymocytes, with a regulatory role in thymic T-cell output.     

Protein Binding of Phenprocoumon in the Absence and Presence of Furosemide

Abstract A modification of a fluorometric assay for phenprocoumon is described. The sensitivity of the method has been increased so that the lower limit is 5 ng/ml. By an ultrafiltration technique, phenprocoumon (PPC), in therapeutic concentrations, was bound to the extent of 99.9%, both in undiluted plasma and in Krebs–Henseleit (K–H) solutions containing 4 g human serum albumin (HSA)/100 ml. An increase in the pH from 6.05 to 8.02 in phosphate buffers containing 0.2 g HSA/100 ml yielded an increase in the apparent association constant for PPC binding to HSA from 0.562–10⁶ 1/mol to 1.195–10⁶1/mol, while the number of PPC mol bound per mol albumin remain unchainged (1.05 and 1.03 respectively). A reduced binding of PPC in undiluted plasma containing increasing concentrations of furosemide have been observed. Scatchard plots based on binding studies in K–H solutions containing 0.2 g HSA/100 ml indicate a competitive nature of the albumin binding of PPC and furosemide.     

FOLIC ACID AND THE HALF-LIFE OF DIPHENYLHYDANTOIN IN MAN

The half-life of diphenylhydantoin in man was investigated before and after treatment with high doses of folic acid and no significant changes were found. It thus seems unlikely that the possible influence of folic acid on diphenylhydantoin metabolism is mediated by an increased liver metabolism; the possibility, however, remains that the pattern of diphenylhydantoin-metabolites are altered.     

Subgroups of Alzheimer's disease based on cerebrospinal fluid molecular markers

Alzheimer's disease, the most common cause of dementia, is multifactorial and heterogeneous; its diagnosis remains probable. We postulated that more than one disease mechanism yielded Alzheimer's histopathology, and that subgroups of the disease might be identified by the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of proteins associated with senile (neuritic) plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. We immunoassayed levels of tau, ubiquitin, and Abeta(1-42) in retrospectively collected CSF samples of 468 clinically diagnosed Alzheimer's disease patients (N = 353) or non-Alzheimer's subjects (N = 115). Latent profile analysis assigned each subject to a cluster based on the levels of these molecular markers. Alzheimer's disease was subdivided into at least five subgroups based on CSF levels of Abeta(1-42), tau, and ubiquitin; each subgroup presented a different clinical profile. These subgroups, which can be identified by CSF analysis, might benefit differently from different therapeutic drugs.