Transneuronal degeneration of thalamic neurons following deafferentation: quantitative studies using [3H]thymidine autoradiography.

Transneuronal degeneration of thalamic neurons following partial deafferentation was studied using [3H]thymidine autoradiography. Timed-pregnant female Sprague-Dawley rats received systemic injections of [3H]thymidine on embryonic day (E) 13, 14 and/or 15. On the day of birth, pups were anesthetized by hypothermia and subjected to unilateral enucleation, unilateral removal of the inferior colliculus or sham lesion. Animals were sacrificed on postnatal day 10 or 30 and the brains processed for autoradiography. Material from sham-lesioned animals demonstrates that neurons destined for the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (LGd) undergo final mitoses on E13, 14 and 15. Neurons in the ventral medial geniculate nucleus (MGv) undergo final mitoses on E13 and 14. Thirty days following neonatal unilateral eye removal, the contralateral LGd displays a loss of approximately 30-35% of [3H]thymidine labeled neurons. Neonatal unilateral removal of the inferior colliculus results in a loss of approximately 30-40% of labeled neurons in MGv. For both LGd and MGv, shorter survival times reveal less severe cell loss. Late generated (E15) LGd neurons show less severe loss following enucleation than do earlier generated neurons. These results document the degree of cell loss in sensory thalamic nuclei following deafferentation and demonstrate that [3H]thymidine autoradiography provides a useful quantitative method for assessing anterograde transneuronal cell loss in targeted populations of neurons in the developing central nervous system.     

Hypoxia effects on vascular endothelial growth factor derived epithelial cells of nasal polyps]

OBJECTIVE: To understand the role of nasal mucous epithelial cells to hypoxia in early stage of nasal polyps(NP) formation. METHODS: Epithelial cells of NP and inferior turbinate (IT) were cultured without serum under normal oxygen and hypoxia, and stimulus of inflammatory cytokines. Erythropoietin (EPO) was regarded as hypoxia mark, and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF) mRNA and protein derived from epithelial cells were detected respectively by in situ hybridization and ELISA. RESULTS: 1. Under hypoxia, EPO mRNA was expressed intensely in epithelial cells from NP and IT, and there was no significant difference between both of them. This result suggested that EPO might be regarded as a hypoxic mark. 2. The ability of producing VEGF mRNA increased with cytokines stimulation, especially under hypoxia. Protein level of VEGF from epithelial cells of NP and IT increased with cytokines stimulation, especially in hypoxia and was time-dependent. CONCLUSION: Epithelial cells actively produce vast VEGF under hypoxia. The VEGF induced by hypoxia of the mucosa in middle meatus is of importance in the formation of nasal polyps(NP) in early stage, which may be the major cause of NP formation in middle meatus.     

Calcium, network activity, and the role of NMDA channels in synaptic plasticity in vitro.

Functionally effective neuronal circuits are constructed through a competitive process that requires patterned neuronal activity elicited by structured input from the environment. To explore the mechanisms of this activity-dependent synaptic restructuring, we have developed an in vitro preparation of mouse spinal cord neurons maintained in a 3-chambered cell-culture system. Sensory afferents that received chronic electrical stimulation for 3-5 d developed stronger synaptic connections than unstimulated afferents converging onto the same postsynaptic spinal cord neuron. Exposure to 100 microM DL-2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (APV), an antagonist of the NMDA channel, during the stimulation period prevented the competitive advantage associated with electric stimulation. However, when APV was applied with a higher concentration of calcium (3 mM), activity-dependent synaptic plasticity was no longer inhibited by the NMDA receptor antagonist. This reversal of APV block of the plasticity was not impaired by reducing transmitter release with 3 mM magnesium (in addition to 3 mM calcium and APV). A suppressant effect of APV on spontaneous activity was observed, which was attributed to loss of the NMDA component of the EPSP. Activity-dependent plasticity was also blocked if spontaneous activity was suppressed with dilute tetrodotoxin (TTX; 5-10 nM), a dosage that reduces excitability of neurons but is insufficient to block sodium-dependent action potentials. These experiments bring into question how NMDA channel activation is involved in the processes of synaptic remodeling during development. The data suggest that postsynaptic activity is required for synaptic remodeling, but this activity need not involve NMDA receptor activation specifically for activity-evoked synaptic plasticity. Instead, the mechanism for plasticity appears to operate through calcium-dependent processes in general.     

气管切开术的并发症(附213例病例分析)

本文报道了气管切开术各种并发症的发病率,并对术中或术后并发症的病的病因、发病机理、治疗和预防进行了讨论。     

Plasma proteins in a standardised skin mini-erosion (II): effects of extraction pressure

Background  

A standardised suction technique has been used to sample plasma proteins in dermal interstitial fluid (IF) serially for 5 to 6 days from a suction-induced skin mini-erosion. Increased protein concentrations ascribed to inflammation have been shown from day 1 onward. In this study, we assessed the effect of two different extraction pressures on IF sample composition.