Systemic hematologic effects of PEG-rHuMGDF-induced megakaryocyte hyperplasia in mice

PEG-rHuMGDF injected daily in normal mice causes a rapid dose-dependent increase in megakaryocytes and platelets. At the same time that platelet numbers are increased, the mean platelet volume (MPV) and platelet distribution width (PDW) can be either decreased, normal, or increased depending on the dose and time after administration. Thus, PEG-rHuMGDF at a low dose causes decreases in MPV and PDW, MGDF at an intermediate dose causes an initial increase followed by a decrease in MPV and PDW, and PEG-rHuMGDF at higher doses causes an increase in MPV and PDW followed by a gradual normalization of these platelet indices. In addition to the expected thrombocytosis after 7 to 10 days of daily injection of high doses of PEG-rHuMGDF, a transient decrease in peripheral red blood cell numbers and hemoglobin is noted accompanied in the bone marrow by megakaryocytic hyperplasia, myeloid hyperplasia, erythroid and lymphoid hypoplasia, and deposition of a fine network of reticulin fibers. Splenomegaly, an increase in splenic megakaryocytes, and extramedullary hematopoiesis accompany the hematologic changes in the peripheral blood and marrow to complete a spectrum of pathologic features similar to those reported in patients with myelofibrosis and megakaryocyte hyperplasia. However, all the PEG-rHuMGDF-initiated hematopathology including the increase in marrow reticulin is completely and rapidly reversible upon the cessation of administration of PEG-rHuMGDF. Thus, transient hyperplastic proliferation of megakaryocytes does not cause irreversible tissue injury. Furthermore, PEG-rHuMGDF completely ameliorates carboplatin-induced thrombocytopenia at a low-dose that does not cause the hematopathology associated with myelofibrosis.     

Effect of the antiandrogen flutamide on pituitary LH content and release

Flutamide is a nonsteroidal antiandrogen that blocks androgen receptors, with a consequent increase in serum immunoreactive LH (I-LH) in the presence of high testosterone concentrations. Several studies suggested that the gonadal steroids also play an important role in the regulation of LH bioactivity (B-LH). Therefore, it seems difficult to understand how the blockade of pituitary androgen receptors leads to the increase in testosterone levels. The present study was designed to elucidate the effect of flutamide on serum I-LH, B-LH and testosterone, as well as on in vitro stimulation of pituitaries by gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), in intact and androgen-treated castrated rats. In intact animals, a dose of flutamide as low as 0.5 mg/day provoked a 7- to 8-fold increase in serum I-LH levels over the vehicle-injected controls, whereas B-LH and testosterone were unaffected. However, higher doses significantly increased serum B-LH to values similar to those obtained in vehicle-injected castrated animals, resulting in high testosterone levels. Flutamide treatment provoked a decrease in I-LH and B-LH pituitary content; this effect was significantly higher under in vitro GnRH stimulation. The releasable I-LH under GnRH stimulation was not affected by flutamide treatment; however, a marked decrease was observed in B-LH.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Can lessons be learned from history? The origins of the British imperial nurse labour market: a discussion paper

The British government's involvement in overseas nurse recruitment originated in its imperial past when the Colonial Nursing Service was established in 1940 by the Colonial Office to unify the administration of British nurse appointments across the Empire. The Colonial Office unified recruitment arrangements for colonial nursing posts, effectively creating an imperial market in nursing labour, which arguably set the historical precedent for the greater flow of international nurse recruitment from and to the United Kingdom (UK). The recent implementation of the Nursing and Midwifery Council's Overseas Nurses Programme to regulate the registration route for international nurse recruits to the UK is symptomatic of growing international nurse migration. In a globalising marketplace, overseas nurse recruitment remains a significant supply factor in meeting the staffing needs of the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK. The continuities between the historical case of the Colonial Nursing Service and the current prevalence of transnational nurse migration highlight a pervading tension between the professional agenda of nursing and recruiters' and governments' responses to market pressures.     

Histogram analysis of MR imaging-derived cerebral blood volume maps： combined glioma grading and identification of low-grade oligodendroglial subtypes

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE： Inclusion of oligodendroglial tumors may confound the utility of MR based glioma grading. Our aim was, first, to assess retrospectively whether a histogram-analysis method of MR peifusion images may both grade gliomas and differentiate between low-grade oligodendroglial tumors with or without loss of heterozygosity （LOH） on 1p/19q and, second, to assess retrospectively whether low-grade oligodendroglial subtypes can be identified in a population of patients with high-grade and low-grade astrocytic and oligodendroglial tumors.     

Quinine ocular toxicity: treatment of blindness using therapy for vasospasm

A case of ocular toxicity with vasospasm secondary to quinine poisoning is described. Therapy for vasospasm using nimodipine, hypertension, haemodilution and hypervolaemia was instituted with subsequent resolution of symptoms.