Sensory, motor somatic, and autonomic neurons projecting to the porcine cremaster muscle

The location of sensory, somatic, and autonomic neurons projecting to the pig cremaster muscle (CM) was studied by means of the retrograde neuronal tracer Fast Blue (FB) technique. FB was randomly injected in the left CM of four impuberal pigs and serial sections of sensory and autonomic ganglia and spinal cord were examined under a fluorescence microscope. Additionally, some indications about the number and size of labeled neurons were given. Sensory pseudounipolar somata were located ipsilaterally in the L2-L6 and S1-S2 dorsal root ganglia, their total number ranging between 125 and 194, their mean diameter between 24 and 89 microm. Somatic multipolar motoneurons were located ipsilaterally in the L2-L4 neuromeres of the spinal cord, their total number ranging between 53 and 169, their mean diameter between 29 and 53 microm. Autonomic multipolar paravertebral ganglia neurons were located ipsilaterally from L1 to S4 and contralaterally from L2 to S2. Their total number ranged from 2,015 to 3,067 and their mean diameter between 25 and 55 microm. The multipolar caudal mesenteric ganglia neurons were located bilaterally, their total number ranging between 14 and 1,408 and their diameter from 22 to 39 microm. In two subjects only, multipolar neurons were also found ipsilaterally in the microganglia of pelvic plexus (2 and 13 neurons). Their mean diameter ranged between 28 and 54 microm. Our study documented that the CM-projecting neurons were located at different neural levels, with a predominance in the autonomic ganglia.     

Features of ST segment and T-wave in exercise-induced myocardial ischemia evaluated with multichannel magnetocardiography

BACKGROUND AND AIM. Magnetocardiography (MCG) is a novel, non-contact mapping technique to record cardiac magnetic field. We evaluated MCG criteria for myocardial ischemia in stress testing. METHODS. Multichannel MCG over frontal chest was performed in 44 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and 26 healthy controls during supine bicycle exercise test. Of the 44 patients 16 had anterior, 15 posterior, and 13 inferior ischemia documented by coronary angiography and exercise thallium scintigraphy. ST amplitude, ST slope, T-wave amplitude, and ST-T integral were measured. The optimal sites for detecting the ischemiainduced changes on MCG were sought. The orientation of the magnetic field was also determined. RESULTS. The optimal sites for the decrease of ST slope, ST amplitude, T-wave amplitude, and ST-T integral were over the abdomen. The reciprocal increase of these parameters was found over the left parasternal area. The optimal sites were approximately the same for all patient groups. In single-vessel disease patients without previous myocardial infarction (MI), ST slope increase and ST elevation performed the best (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve 92% and 90%, respectively). In post-MI patients with triple-vessel disease the decrease of T-wave amplitude and ST slope performed the best (area under curve 91%, for both). The magnetic field orientation at ST segment performed equally well as the other ST parameters. In stepwise logistic regression analysis, by use of the presence of CAD as the dependent parameter, ST slope increase and ST peak gradient orientation entered the model. CONCLUSIONS: Various ST segment and T-wave parameters detect ischemia in MCG. ST amplitude performs especially well in non-MI patients with less severe CAD. In advanced CAD late development of T-wave amplitude might be more sensitive to ischemia than ST amplitude.     

Cytokines and immunodeficiency diseases: critical roles of the γc-dependent cytokines interleukins 2, 4, 7, 9, 15, and 21, and their signaling pathways

Summary: In this review, we discuss the role of cytokines and their signaling pathways in immunodeficiency. We focus primarily on severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) diseases as the most severe forms of primary immunodeficiencies, reviewing the different genetic causes of these diseases. We focus in particular on the range of forms of SCID that result from defects in cytokine‐signaling pathways. The most common form of SCID, X‐linked SCID, results from mutations in the common cytokine receptor γ‐chain, which is shared by the receptors for interleukin (IL)‐2, IL‐4, IL‐7, IL‐9, IL‐15, and IL‐21, underscoring that X‐linked SCID is indeed a disease of defective cytokine signaling. We also review the signaling pathways used by these cytokines and the phenotypes in humans and mice with defects in the cytokines or signaling pathways. We also briefly discuss other cytokines, such as interferon‐γ and IL‐12, where mutations in the ligand or receptor or signaling components also cause clinical disease in humans.     

Asbestos exposure: A potential cause of retroperitoneal fibrosis

The etiology of retroperitoneal fibrosis is unknown in 70% of the cases. The aim of our study was to examine the possible association between occupational asbestos exposure and retroperitoneal fibrosis; only two cases have been reported in the literature. We gathered all the cases of retroperitoneal fibrosis diagnosed in the Tampere University Hospital between 1987 and 1995. We examined their hospital records to evaluate the possible etiology of the disease. We also sent a structured questionnaire to all living patients (10/13) to obtain information on their asbestos exposure. The chest radiographs of the patients were re-read to evaluate possible changes resulting from asbestos exposure. We found 13 cases of idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis. Seven patients (all male) had been exposed to asbestos in the past. The chest radiographs of the four most-exposed patients showed characteristic asbestos-related abnormalities, including bilateral pleural plaques, round atelectasis and small irregular lung opacities. In our study, we found that asbestos exposure and asbestos-induced changes in the lung and pleura were common among male retroperitoneal fibrosis patients. We suggest that occupational exposure to asbestos may be an important etiological factor for retroperitoneal fibrosis. Am. J. Ind. Med. 33:418–421, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Smoking and social interaction

We study the social interaction of non-smokers and smokers as a sequential game, incorporating insights from social psychology and experimental economics into an economic model. Social norms affect human behavior such that non-smokers do not ask smokers in their midst to stop smoking, even though the disutility from smoking exceeds the utility from social interaction. Overall, the level of smoking is inefficient when tolerating smoking is the social norm. The introduction of smoking and non-smoking areas does not overcome this specific inefficiency. We conclude that smoking bans may represent a required (second-best) policy.