Sexual precocity: sex incidence and aetiology

The aetiology of 197 girls and 16 boys presenting with sexual precocity was reviewed. Ninety one girls and four boys had central precocious puberty (M:F 23:1); a cause was identified in all the boys but in only six girls. All boys with precocious puberty need detailed investigation; in girls investigation should be based on clinical findings, particularly the consonance of puberty.     

Thymic cysts in mediastinal Hodgkin disease

Three cases of proved thymic cysts associated with mediastinal Hodgkin disease are presented. Two illustrate regression of lymphoma with chemotherapy but persistence of thymic cysts. The third case demonstrates a thymic cyst in untreated Hodgkin disease. These cases suggest that such cysts are probably neither coincidental with nor a consequence of therapy but are probably related to initial thymic involvement by Hodgkin disease.     

Cold tolerance: behavioral differences following single or multiple cold exposures

Previous research has demonstrated that repeated exposure to cold water results in cold tolerance. The present set of experiments examined whether spontaneous behavioral activity and the rate of rewarming differed between cold tolerant and nontolerant rats. Animals receiving six cold exposures (one per day) were compared to subjects receiving a single cold exposure but cooled to match the final day temperature of the six-exposure group. Immediately following the final or only cold exposure, activity was measured by an activity monitor (Exp. 1) or was videotaped and scored by an independent observer (Exp. 2). Furthermore, rats' temperatures were monitored for 90 min (Exp. 2) and 60 min (Exp. 3) following the activity measurement. The results indicated that cold-tolerant rats exhibited activity similar to normal, noncooled subjects, whereas the activity in the single exposure group was impeded. Moreover, rats in the multiple exposure groups rewarmed more quickly than subjects in the single exposure condition. The third experiment also examined if the procedures of Experiments 1 and 2 resulted in associative cold tolerance. Experiment 3 replicated earlier findings, which have shown that exposure to the same cold stimulus in an altered context resulted in a loss of tolerance. These findings suggest that the processing of contextual stimuli is necessary for the acquisition of cold tolerance and that behavioral activity and rewarming rates can be used as alternative measures of cold tolerance.     

Lobeline does not serve as a reinforcer in rats

Abstract Rationale. Previous results demonstrated that pretreatment with lobeline attenuates d-methamphetamine self-administration in rats. Objective. The present experiments determined if lobeline serves as a reinforcer, if it decreases d-methamphetamine-induced reinstatement of d-methamphetamine self-administration, and if it activates the mesolimbic and nigrostriatal dopamine (DA) pathways in Sprague-Dawley male rats. Methods. The ability of intravenous (IV) lobeline (0.015–0.15 mg/kg per infusion) to engender responding and the ability of lobeline (0.015 and 0.05 mg/kg per infusion) to substitute for d-methamphetamine was determined using the self-administration paradigm. Experiments were also performed to determine if lobeline (1.0 and 3.0 mg/kg) reinstates responding for d-methamphetamine or alters the ability of d-methamphetamine (1.0 mg/kg per infusion) to reinstate responding following extinction. The effect of lobeline (3.0 mg/kg) or d-methamphetamine (1.0 and 3.0 mg/kg) on DA and dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) levels in the nucleus accumbens and striatum were also determined. Results. Lobeline was not self-administered and did not substitute for d-methamphetamine. Also, lobeline did not reinstate responding for d-methamphetamine following extinction nor did it alter d-methamphetamine-induced reinstatement. Furthermore, lobeline did not alter DA or DOPAC levels in the either the nucleus accumbens or striatum. Conclusions. Taken together, the present results indicate that lobeline decreases d-methamphetamine self-administration by decreasing reward, not by acting as a substitute reinforcer. Electronic Publication     

Molecular characterization of commercial porcine factor VIII concentrate

Commercial porcine factor VIII concentrate (Hyate:C) is effective in treatment of patients with hemophilia A who have circulating antibodies to factor VIII. The molecular forms of factor VIII in the concentrate were identified and evaluated in light of the known properties of porcine and human factor VIII. The factor VIII in the concentrate was isolated by tandem chromatography on gelatin-Sepharose and monoclonal anti-factor VIII-Sepharose. The factor VIII was 1% of the protein mass of the concentrate when calculated by either quantity of protein recovered or by radioimmunoassay. Both functional assay and Western blotting of the crude concentrate indicated that maximum coagulant function was achieved by proteolytic activation of procofactor forms of factor VIII. The factor VIII can be fractionated by cation-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) into two or three species of heterodimers depending on the lot. The specific activity of the purified porcine factor VIII was 550 U/mg using pooled porcine plasma at 1 U/mL as a standard. From this value, a factor VIII concentration in normal pig plasma of 2 micrograms/mL was calculated. This agreed well with a value of 3 micrograms/mL obtained by radioimmunoassay (RIA) of factor VIII in porcine plasma. In contrast, reported values for human factor VIII average 5800 U/mg, resulting in a calculated concentration in plasma of 0.2 microgram/mL. The finding that porcine plasma contains a significantly higher circulating mass of factor VIII than human plasma appears to explain previous difficulties in comparing porcine and human factor VIII in standard assays.     

Effects of low sulfur fuel and a catalyzed particle trap on the composition and toxicity of diesel emissions

In this study we compared a "baseline" condition of uncontrolled diesel engine exhaust (DEE) emissions generated with current (circa 2003) certification fuel to an emissions-reduction (ER) case with low sulfur fuel and a catalyzed particle trap. Lung toxicity assessments (resistance to respiratory viral infection, lung inflammation, and oxidative stress) were performed on mice (C57Bl/6) exposed by inhalation (6 hr/day for 7 days). The engine was operated identically (same engine load) in both cases, and the inhalation exposures were conducted at the same exhaust dilution rate. For baseline DEE, this dilution resulted in a particle mass (PM) concentration of approximately 200 microg/m3 PM, whereas the ER reduced the PM and almost every other measured constituent [except nitrogen oxides (NOx)] to near background levels in the exposure atmospheres. These measurements included PM, PM size distribution, PM composition (carbon, ions, elements), NOx, carbon monoxide, speciated/total volatile hydrocarbons, and several classes of semivolatile organic compounds. After exposure concluded, one group of mice was immediately sacrificed and assessed for inflammation and oxidative stress in lung homogenate. Another group of mice were intratracheally instilled with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and RSV lung clearance and inflammation was assessed 4 days later. Baseline DEE produced statistically significant biological effects for all measured parameters. The use of low sulfur fuel and a catalyzed trap either completely or nearly eliminated the effects.