大鼠脑内心钠素的免疫组织化学观察

本文用兔抗心钠素Ⅲ特异血清,用ABC法观察了大鼠脑内心钠素的分布。结果表明心钠素在脑内广泛存在。密集的心钠素免疫反应阳性神经元,主要见于下丘脑视前区、室周核及下丘脑前核等处。密集的心钠素免疫反应阳性纤维布于下丘脑室旁核,终纹床核及终板血管器官等处。心钠素在脑内的分布状态提示心纳素可能具有中枢性调节水电解质平衡及心、血管的功能,此外,亦可能参与下丘脑—垂体系神经内分泌调节的作用。     

Socio—cultural factors influencing insecticide treated bed net utilization in a malaria endemic city in north—central Nigeria

ObjectiveTo ascertain the socio-cultural factors influencing the rate of utilization of insecticide treated bed nets (ITNs) in a malaria endemic city of Makurdi, north central Nigeria.MethodsThe study was cross-sectional in nature using systematic sampling method to identify households. Both quantitative and qualitative data was generated from adult women using structured and semi structured questionnaires, and focused group discussions (FGDs) to obtain information on rate and patterns of utilization of ITNs. Information such as age, educational level, marital status, awareness or otherwise of the existence of malaria, and factors influencing rate of ownership and utilization of ITNs were obtained. FGDs were used to obtain qualitative information on rate of utilization of ITNs not captured in the questionnaires. Data obtained was analysed using Epi Info 6 statistical software.ResultsAmong the respondents interviewed, 97.0% (2 013/2 075) were aware of existence of malaria and 87.0% of these (1 751/2 013) would associate it with mosquitoes. The rate of ownership of any bed net, ITNs and untreated bed nets (UTNs) was 25.1%, 17.0% and 8.3%, respectively. Utilization of ITNs among children was 30.0% (112/373) and UTNs 12.9% (48/373). Positive contributors to ITNs utilization were literacy, enhanced economy, experience of marriage, and being gainfully employed (P<0.05); while negative contributors were ignorance, poverty and some cultural beliefs and values.ConclusionsA more synchronized advocacy should be carried out on the potential benefits of ITNs utilization and sustained. Also ITNs should be made available to the people of the community at minimal or no cost.     

High maternal vitamin E intake by diet or supplements is associated with congenital heart defects in the offspring

Objective  To study associations between maternal dietary and supplement intake of antioxidants vitamin E, retinol and congenital heart defects (CHDs).
Design  Case–control study.
Setting  Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Population  Participants were 276 case mothers of a child with CHD and 324 control mothers with their children.
Methods  Food frequency questionnaires covering the intake of the previous 4 weeks were filled out at 16 months after the index pregnancy. Data were compared between cases and controls using the Mann–Whitney U test. Risk estimates for the association between CHD and dietary intake of vitamin E and retinol were estimated in a multivariable logistic regression model.
Main outcome measures  Medians (5–95th percentile) and odds ratios with 95% CI.
Results  Dietary vitamin E intake was higher in case mothers than in controls, 13.3 (8.1–20.4) and 12.6 (8.5–19.8) mg/day ( P = 0.05). CHD risk increased with rising dietary vitamin E intakes ( P -trend = 0.01). Periconception use of vitamin E supplements in addition to a high dietary vitamin E intake above 14.9 mg/day up to nine-fold increased CHD risk. Retinol intakes were not significantly different between the groups and not associated with CHD risk.
Conclusions  High maternal vitamin E by diet and supplements is associated with an increased risk of CHD offspring.     

CD80 expression is decreased in hyperplastic lymph nodes of HIV+ patients

A centrofollicular hyperplasia is present within secondary lymphoid organs during all the asymptomatic phase of the HIV disease. Although this hyperplasia has been well characterized by histological studies, the nature of the phenotypic alterations in B cell populations occurring within HIV+ lymphoid organs remains to be established. By immunohistochemistry, we thus investigated whether a particular germinal center (GC) B cell population was increased during HIV-induced hyperplasia and whether any phenotypic change was specific to HIV-1 infection. As compared to normal tonsils (three cases) and HIV- hyperplastic lymph nodes (eight patients), we observed a loss of GC polarization in all HIV+ sections (11 patients), with no more delineation between dark and light zones, as shown by Ki67, CD10, CD77, CD95 and CD86 staining. In contrast to CD86 expression which remained as intensive in HIV+ as in HIV- lymph nodes, CD80 staining was strongly decreased in GC of HIV+ lymph nodes but not in their extrafollicular zones. The loss of CD80 expression from CD19+ B cells was also observed by cytometric analysis of cell suspensions of three HIV+ patients. Although we found no evidence of an increase in a particular GC B cell subset in HIV-1-induced hyperplasia, the strong GC disorganization observed may induce impaired cell-cell interactions and thus participate in the loss of CD80 antigen. In contrast to HIV- situations where CD80 and CD86 was similarly expressed on B cells, the lower level of CD80 expression in HIV+ GC may favor Th2 T cell responses through CD86-CD28 interactions.