Labyrinth Exploration, Emotional Reactivity, and Conditioned Fear in Young Roman/Verh Inbred Rats

An inbreeding program has been carried out with the Swiss sublines of Roman high- and low-avoidance rats since 1993. The present study reports the first experiments conducted with young animals of those inbred strains (RHA-I/Verh and RLA-I/Verh, respectively) from the sixth and seventh inbreeding generations. The results confirmed expected behavioral profiles. Compared to the RHA-I/Verh strain, RLA-I/Verh rats showed decreased entries into the illuminated central arena of an hexagonal tunnel maze, as well as decreased spontaneous locomotor activity and increased defecations, in two independent experiments. Young RLA-I/Verh females explored less than did their RHA-I/Verh counterparts during session 1 of a conditioned-fear experiment preceding shock administration, and in session 2 (conducted 24 h after the application of three footshocks), they showed greater conditioned behavioral inhibition (i.e., reduced amount of rearing), as well as higher defecation scores, than did RHA-I/Verh females.Karl Bättig tragically and unexpectedly died on December 27, 1996     

Cerebrospinal fluid purine metabolites after complex febrile convulsions

Adenosine monophosphate, inosine monophosphate, inosine, adenosine, guanosine, adenine, guanine, hypoxanthine, xanthine and uric acid were determined in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 15 children after complex febrile seizures (CFS) and in 27 after simple febrile seizures (SFS), and compared with those in a control group of 63 children. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups for any of these metabolites, suggesting that CFS and SFS neither significantly disturb the metabolism of nucleotides, nucleosides or bases nor significantly deplete neuron adenosine triphosphate levels.     

Alterations in the ultrastructure of cardiac autonomic nervous system triggered by crotoxin from rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus cumanensis) venom.

This study explored the toxic effects of crotoxin isolated from Crotalus durissus cumanensis venom on the ultrastructure of mice cardiac autonomic nervous system. Mice were intravenously injected with saline (control group) and crotoxin diluted in saline venom (study group) at a dose of 0.107 mg/kg mouse body weight. Samples from the inter-ventricular septum were prepared for electron microscopy after 6 h (G1), 12 h (G2), 24 h (G3) and 48 h (G4). The G1 group showed some cardiomyocyte with pleomorphic mitochondria. Capillary swollen walls, nerve cholinergic endings with depleted acetylcholine vesicles in their interior and other depletions were observed. A space completely lacking in contractile elements was noticed. The G2 group demonstrated a myelinic figure, a subsarcolemic region with few myofibrils and nervous cholinergic terminal with scarce vacuoles in their interior. The G3 group demonstrated a structure with a depleted axonic terminal, mitochondrias varying in size and enhanced electron density. In addition, muscular fibers with myofibrillar structure disorganization, a depleted nervous structure surrounded by a Schwann cell along with an abundance of natriuretic peptides, were seen. An amyelinic terminal with depleted Schwann cell and with scarce vesicles was also observed. Finally, axonic lysis with autophagic vacuoles in their interior and condensed mitochondria was observed in the G4 group. This work describes the first report of ultrastructural damage caused by crotoxin on mice cardiac autonomic nervous system.     

Galea and subgalea graft for lip augmentation revision

In this paper we will review the results obtained during the last 2 years with the aponeurotic galea and subgalea for vermillion lip augmentation. The survey was carried out on 42 patients who displayed either an absence of or reduction in the vermillion of one or both lips or a senile lip. In all cases the surgical procedure introduced aponeurotic galea and subgalea in the space found between the orbicular lip muscle and the vestibular mucus, just behind the vermillion. All the operations were performed under local anaesthetic. The size of the aponeurotic galea fragment removed varied in length between 10 and 12 cms. and in width between 1 and 2 cms., using the following parameters for its dimensions: the previous volume of the lips, and the distance between the two buccal commissures when in the “smile position.”     

Enzymatic synthesis of penicillins

Different penicillins (phenylacetyl, 2-hydroxyphenylacetyl, 4-hydroxyphenylacetyl, phenoxyacetyl and 2-thiopheneacetylpenicillin) have been synthesized "in vitro" by direct N-acylation of 6-aminopenicillanic acid (6-APA) with the acyl group of several acyl-CoA derivatives. The enzyme that catalyzes these reactions, acyl-CoA: 6-APA acyltransferase of Penicillium chrysogenum, was purified to homogeneity (374-fold) and its amino acid composition is given. This protein accepts as substrates several aliphatic acids and different aromatic acids with the only requirement that an acetyl-CoA moiety must be present in the substrate molecule. Shortening or lengthening of the acyl moiety prevents the 6-APA-N-acylation reaction. The presence of an amino group in the alpha-position of the acetyl group does not allow this molecule to be used as substrate. However, different substitutions in the phenyl group (hydroxylation of the carbons 2 and 4) or its replacement by another aromatic ring (thiophene) were accepted with varying reactions rates in the acylation reaction when a 176-fold purified acyltransferase was employed. The homogeneity pure enzyme accepts as substrate thiophene acetyl-CoA but it did not 2-hydroxyphenyl and 4-hydroxyphenylacetyl-CoA. The presence of an oxygen atom between the aromatic and the acetyl moieties did not affect the catalysis.     

Determination of a buspirone metabolite in plasma samples

A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method is described for the assay of the active metabolite [1-(2-pyrimidinyl)piperazinel of buspirone, an anxiolytic agent, in rat plasma.

The method is based on the use of ion-pair HPLC coupled to a liquid—solid extraction scheme. Samples of rat plasma (2 ml) with internal standard (1-phenylpiperazine), adjusted to pH 10.5 with borate buffer, were loaded on to a preactivated C-18 cartridge. The metabolite and the internal standard were eluted with 5 ml of methanol and injected on to a reversed-phase 10-μm Spherisorb ODS-2 column. The column was eluted with a mobile phase of 0.005 M sodium lauryl sulphate in citrate buffer (pH 3.6)-acetonitrile (65:35, v/v) at 2 ml min⁻¹. Detection was carried out at 248 nm. The recovery of the metabolite was 55%. The method was applied to the determination of the metabolite in rat plasma after oral dosing (25 mg kg⁻¹) of the parent compound.     

Retention and biomechanics of "retention complexes" 2. Retention complexes of Akers, Roach and Ney

The authors describe the different "retentive complexes" proposed by the Akers, Roach and Ney schools and analyse their biomechanical validity.     

Portal hypertension in Williams syndrome: report of two patients

Williams or Williams-Beuren syndrome (WBS) is a developmental disorder with multisystemic manifestations characterized by distinctive facial features, mental disability with unique cognitive and personality profiles, vascular stenoses, growth retardation, and occasional infantile hypercalcemia, caused by haploinsufficiency for genes deleted in chromosome band 7q11.23. However, with the exception of arterial stenoses caused by haploinsufficiency for the elastin gene (ELN), no specific implication of any other gene in the phenotype has been established. We present two patients with portal hypertension leading to splenomegaly and pancytopenia carrying the common 1.5 Mb WBS deletion. We propose this is an additional severe vascular complication of ELN deficiency and discuss the specific characteristics of the portal venous tract that could explain the impact of ELN deficiency in that venous territory. This complication is potentially lethal and should thus be considered in any patient with WBS and splenomegaly.