Bronchial artery embolization: monitoring with somatosensory evoked potentials. Work in progress

Surgery remains the treatment of choice for massive and recurrent hemoptysis. In some instances, however, immediate surgical intervention is contraindicated. In these situations, bronchial artery embolization (BAE) has proved to be a successful definitive treatment for non-surgical candidates and a palliative therapy in patients requiring hemodynamic stabilization prior to surgery. The most serious complication of BAE is spinal cord ischemia. This relates directly to the potential anastomotic connections between the bronchial circulation and the anterior spinal artery. Somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEPs) have been used in the past to monitor spinal cord ischemia during procedures that threaten the vascularity of the spinal cord. The authors report two cases in which SSEPs were employed to monitor spinal cord ischemia during bronchial artery embolization.     

大花紫玉盘中新多氧取代环己烯类的结构鉴定

从番荔枝科紫玉盘属植物大花紫玉盘( Uvaria grandiflora Roxb.)根茎中分得4种新的多氧取代环己烯及已知化合物zeylenol,应用波谱分析、X-射线衍射、园二色谱和 Mosher 酯制备等手段确定了全部新化合物的结构及其绝对构型,分别命名为大花紫玉盘醇A(1),B(2),E(3)和F(4)。     

Problems and advantages of continuous renal replacement therapy*

SUMMARY: The continuous replacement of renal function must facilitate fluid and solute homeostasis, nutrition and vital organ function, and, where possible, hasten the recovery of renal function. Difficulties with anticoagulation, biocompatibility, mobility and cost remain obstacles to be overcome. the use of continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) to remove systemic inflammatory mediators is yet to be confirmed. Although survival benefits of CRRT over intermittent dialysis remain controversial, the slow continuous removal of fluid, acid and solute has a number of advantages, especially where patients are haemodynamically unstable.     

Human burst-forming units-erythroid need direct interaction with stem cell factor for further development

To understand the factors that regulate the early growth and development of immature erythroid progenitor cells, the burst-forming units-erythroid (BFU-E), it is necessary to have both highly purified target cells and a medium free of serum. When highly purified human blood BFU-E were cultured in a serum-free medium adequate for the growth of later erythroid progenitors, BFU-E would not grow even with the addition of recombinant human interleukin-3 (rIL-3), known to be essential for these cells. However, the addition of recombinant human stem cell factor (rSCF), which supports germ cell and pluripotential stem cell growth, stimulated BFU-E to grow equally well in serum-free as in serum-containing medium. Limiting dilution studies showed that rSCF acts directly on the BFU-E that do not require accessory cells for growth. Furthermore, rSCF was necessary for BFU-E development during the initial 7 days of culture, until these cells reached the stage of the late progenitors, the colony-forming units-erythroid (CFU-E). These studies indicate that early erythropoiesis is dependent on the direct action of SCF that not only affects early stem cells but is continually necessary for the further development of committed erythroid progenitor cells until the CFU-E stage of maturation.     

A central mechanism of acute baroreflex resetting in the conscious dog

The role of the central nervous system in the mechanism(s) involved in acute carotid baroreflex resetting was studied in six conscious, chronically instrumented, aortic-denervated dogs. Dogs were prepared for reversible vascular isolation of the carotid sinuses. Acute baroreflex resetting was induced by holding the left carotid sinus pressure (LCcsp) at a given value for 20 minutes using a pulsatile pressure control system while at the same time keeping the right carotid sinus pressure (RCSP) at a subthreshold level (approximately 40 mm Hg). At the end of the 20 minutes, the LCcsp) was reduced to approximately 20 mm Hg, and a baroreflex (RCSP-mean arterial pressure [MAP]) curve was generated on the right carotid sinus using static-step increases in carotid sinus pressure. At the control LCcsp of 100 mm Hg, the RCSP-MAP baroreflex had a threshold pressure (Pth) of 86.6 +/- 3.1 mm Hg and a set point pressure (Psp) of 104.7 +/- 2.5 mm Hg. Increasing LCcsp) to 140 mm Hg for 20 minutes caused these parameters for the right carotid baroreflex to increase. Pth and Psp increased by 18.4 +/- 4.0 and 14.2 +/- 3.0 mm Hg, respectively (p less than 0.05). The baroreflex curve, therefore, was shifted upward and to the right. Decreasing LCcsp to 60 mm Hg caused Pth and Psp to decrease by 24.7 +/- 5.0 and 18.1 +/- 2 mm Hg, respectively (p less than 0.05). The baroreflex curve was therefore shift downward and to the left. The percent of resetting of Pth and Psp was 46 +/- 9% and 36 +/- 8%, respectively, when LCcsp was 140 mm Hg.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

丹酚酸A对大鼠半乳糖性白内障形成的抑制作用

业已证明,丹酚酸A有较强的抗氧化和清除自由基等多方面的作用。本实验用大鼠半乳糖性白内障模型,研究局部应用丹酚酸A对白内障形成的影响。结果表明,局部用0.05%的丹酚酸A(每日滴眼两次)对白内障的形成有一定的抑制作用,使白内障形成过程减缓。而且给药组动物晶体内过氧化氢和脂质过氧化产物(MDA)含量减少,蛋白巯基和总巯基增加。体外实验表明,丹酚酸A对醛糖还原酶有一定抑制作用。以上结果提示,丹酚酸A可通过不同途径抑制白内障的形成,对糖性白内障的防治有一定意义。