Human Fallopian tubal epithelial cells in vitro:establishment of polarity and potential role of intracellular calcium and extracellular ATP in fluid secretion

A pure population of human Fallopian tubal epithelial cellshas been isolated by enzyme digestion, grown in primary cultureand used to explore the biochemical basis of oviduct fluid secretion.Confluence was achieved in 3–7 days. Immunocytochemicallabelling for cytokeratins indicated that the cells were epithelialin nature and formed extensive desmosomal contacts, producingapolarized layer in culture. By growing the cells on collagen-impregnatedfilters, a small transepithelial electrical potential differencecould be recorded, with the apical side of the cells negativewith respect to the basal side. In addition, the consumptionof glucose and the appearance of lactate were greater on thebasal than on the apical side of the cells. Because intracellularCa²⁺ ([Ca²⁺]1) is well established as a signal transductionagent in epithelial fluid secretion, the effect of a wide rangeof agonists on [Ca²⁺]1 in isolated tubal epithelial cells wasstudied using Fura-2. The only agent which induced a changein [Ca²⁺]1 was extracellular ATP. The transients induced weredependent on both intracellular and extracellular calcium. ATPadded to the basal side of the cells of the polarized layerinduced a transient increase in the potential difference. Thedata are consistent with a potential role for extracellularATP in the regulation of human tubal fluid formation.     

A comparison of four culture methods for diagnosing infection in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis

Dialysate effluent from 41 patients presenting with 54 episodes of CAPD peritonitis was examined by four culture techniques, three employing methods for the lysis of peritoneal leucocytes. The most efficient method employed a distilled water lysis-centrifugation technique (81% of episodes culture-positive). Filtration (without leucocyte lysis) was less effective (74% culture-positive). The results of a mechanical leucocyte lysis technique were less satisfactory still, the culture positive rate of 74% being compromised by the recovery of the infecting organism in low numbers, and by an association with a high incidence of plate contamination. The results of a bile-salt lysis technique were the least satisfactory (67% culture-positive).     

Human rights to safe motherhood.

Each year an estimated 515000 women die of complications of pregnancy and childbirth, 7 million more suffer serious health problems and 50 million suffer adverse health effects. Over 98% of deaths occur in resource-poor countries. However, poverty alone neither justifies nor necessarily explains death rates. The Inter-Agency Group for Safe Motherhood, composed of six leading international agencies, has identified major medical causes of unsafe motherhood, and their origins in medical and health system failures, and in the failures of social justice that underlie them. These include women's 'inadequate education, low social status, and lack of income and employment opportunities.' This paper addresses the role of human rights to redress inequities that condition unsafe motherhood, and identifies five critical rights the observance of which would facilitate safe motherhood. These are women's rights to life, to liberty and security of the person, and to health, maternity protection and non-discrimination.     

Physiology: Human tubal fluid: formation and composition during vascular perfusion of the Fallopian tube

A vascularly perfused preparation of the Fallopian tube hasbeen developed as a model to study the formation and compositionof human tubal fluid. An artery serving the tube was cannulatedand perfused at a rate of 0.7 ml/min for 1 h with Medium 199supplemented with bovine serum albumin, heparin and antibiotics.A cannula was also inserted into the lumen. Light and scanningelectron micrographs of control and perfused tubes showed thatthe epithelial lining was intact after perfusion. Tubal fluidwas collected in 13 out of 19 experiments. Fluid could alwaysbe collected from patients who were in the follicular phaseof their ovarian cycle. The mean rate of appearance was 48 µl/h.The glucose, lactate and pyruvate concentrations in the tubalfluid, as assessed by fluorescence microanalysis, were 0.53,8.58 and 0.17 mM respectively. There were no correlations betweenmetabolite concentration and the length of perfusion, cannulationtime, patient's age or condition. This technique provides acontrolled method with which to access and examine human tubalfluid and will allow the physiology of both healthy and diseasedtubes to be studied.     

The effects of desipramine (DMI) and electroconvulsive shock (ECS) on the function of the hypothalamo-pituitary-thyroid axis in the rat

Monoaminergic systems influence the hypothalamo-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis. Since two different antidepressant treatments, desipramine (DMI) and electroconvulsive shock (ECS), are known to alter monoaminergic function in the rat central nervous system (CNS), the effects of DMI and ECS on the function of the HPT axis in the rat were examined. Animals were treated with either DMI (5 mg/kg) twice daily for 14 days (DMI x 14) or once only (DMI x 1) or ECS five times in 10 days (ECS x 5) or once only (ECS x 1). Three and 24 hours after the final treatment, blood samples were taken for measurement of plasma total thyroxine (TT4), total tri-iodothyronine (TT3), free thyroxine (FT4), free tri-iodothyronine (FT3) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). Plasma TSH concentrations were decreased by the DMI x 14 and increased by the ECS x 5 regimen. Small decreases in thyroid hormones (T3 and T4) occurred after DMI x 14. No other consistent changes were observed in the animals treated with ECS. The effect of DMI or ECS treatment on the responsiveness of pituitary thyrotrophs was assessed in vitro. Isolated superfused pituitary glands from rats treated in vivo with either DMI x 14 or ECS x 5 were exposed to a pulse of thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH; 1 ng/ml). No significant change in TSH secretion was observed in response to TRH in either case. Therefore, the changes observed in circulating plasma TSH levels are unlikely to have resulted from either direct or indirect effects on pituitary thyrotroph TRH receptor sensitivity.