Actions of nitric oxide on the acute gastrointestinal damage induced by PAF in the rat

The actions of nitric oxide (NO) on the acute gastrointestinal damage induced by platelet-activating factor (PAF) have been investigated in the rat.S-nitroso-N-acetyl penicillamine, which spontaneously generates NO, dose-dependently inhibited PAF-induced gastrointestinal plasma leakage, a measure of the initiation of vascular damage. The inhibitor of NO synthase,N^G-monomethyl-l-arginine substantially potentiated gastrointestinal damage and plasma leakage induced byE. coli endotoxin, but had no effect on that induced by intravenous infusion of PAF.Endogenous NO may thus have a protective role in the gastrointestinal vascular that can be mimicked by generators of NO. The protection afforded by endogenous NO may, however, be dependent on the nature of the inflammatory stimulus used to induce gastrointestinal damage.     

Enhanced cerebrovascular permeability by Metrazol: significance for brain metastases

Metrazol enhanced the penetration of two proteins (¹²⁵I human serum albumin and horseradish peroxidase), and the anticancer agent, razoxane, into the central nervous system of anaesthetized rats. Penetration was increased throughout the whole brain. With the exception of the bladder, no peripheral tissue was affected. The increase in brain permeability was temporary and reversed within 4 hours; brain levels of drug and protein were increased by up to three times.[/p]     

Follicular epithelial cell hypertrophy induced by chronic oral administration of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin in female Harlan Sprague-Dawley rats

2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) affects the thyroid morphologically and/or functionally in adult animals. Recently, the National Toxicology Program conducted a 2-year gavage study of TCDD in female Harlan Sprague-Dawley rats. The only treatment-related alterations found in thyroid follicles were decreased luminal size and increased height of the follicular epithelial cells, without prominent protrusion into the lumen. The present study elucidated the nature of these follicular lesions. Thyroid glands of 10 rats each from the control, high (100 ng/kg/day)-dose, and stop-study (100 ng/kg/day, 30 weeks; vehicle to study termination) groups in the 2-year study were evaluated microscopically. Twenty randomly selected follicles were measured morphometrically in each animal. TCDD treatment significantly decreased the mean ratio of luminal/epithelial areas and increased the mean sectional epithelial height of the high-dose group compared to controls. Thyroid sections were immunostained with antibody against minichromosome maintenance (MCM) proteins, a novel cell-cycle biomarker. The MCM labeling index of the high-dose group was significantly higher than that of the control; however, the TUNEL labeling index was also higher in the high-dose group than the control. All data from the stop group were comparable to those from controls. These results indicate that the follicular cell response was hypertrophic and reversible. This information should contribute to diagnosis of nonneoplastic thyroid follicular lesions in rats.     

Continuing bonds and adjustment at 5 years after the death of a spouse

Thirty-nine bereaved individuals completed the Continuing Bonds Scale (CBS), assessing various aspects of the ongoing attachment to the deceased, at 60 months postloss in a longitudinal conjugal bereavement study. They also completed symptom measures at 6, 14, 25, and 60 months postloss. Higher CBS scores were associated with a more elevated grief-specific symptom pattern over the 5-year postloss period. Moreover, those who expressed greater helplessness and less blame toward the deceased during a monologue role-play involving their deceased spouse at 6 months postloss had higher CBS scores. Finally, greater satisfaction in the past relationship with the spouse was predictive of higher CBS scores. The results were discussed in relation to existing literature on the adaptiveness of continuing bonds.     

Incidences of selected lesions in control female Harlan Sprague-Dawley rats from two-year studies performed by the National Toxicology Program

The NTP has a long history of using Fischer rats and has compiled a large database of incidences of lesions seen in control animals. Such a database is lacking for Harlan Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. The intention of this paper is to report spontaneous lesions observed in female vehicle control Harlan SD rats, and to compare the incidence in 2 strains of rats (Fischer and Harlan SD) used in NTP studies. Female Harlan SD rats served as the test animals for a special series of 2-year studies. Male rats were not used in these studies. Complete histopathology was performed on all animals, and the pathology results underwent comprehensive NTP pathology peer review. The most commonly observed neoplasms in these female control Harlan SD rats were mammary gland fibroadenoma (71%), tumors of the pars distalis of the pituitary (41%) and thyroid gland C-cell tumors (30%). Female Fischer rats had incidences of 44% for mammary gland fibroadenomas, 34% for tumors of the pars distalis, and 16% for thyroid gland C-cell tumors. Fischer rats had a 15% incidence of clitoral gland tumors, while the Harlan SD rats had an incidence of < 1%. In contrast to Fischer F344 rats, the Harlan SD rats had a high incidence of squamous metaplasia of the uterus (44.2%). Squamous metaplasia is not a lesion commonly observed in NTP control Fischer rats. The Harlan SD rats had a very low incidence of mononuclear cell leukemia (0.5%), compared with an incidence of 24% in female Fischer rats.     

Role for mannose binding lectin in the prevention of Mycoplasma infection

Polymorphisms in exon 1 of the MBL-2 gene, resulting in reduced plasma levels of mannose binding lectin, were significantly overrepresented in 23 patients with primary antibody deficiency and culture-proven mycoplasma infections (P = 0.0038). This association persisted with the inclusion of a further nine suspected (doxycycline-responsive) cases (P = 0.0087). The lectin was shown to bind to three strains of mycoplasma.