RADIOACTIVE IRON AND ITS METABOLISM IN ANEMIA : ITS ABSORPTION,TRANSPORTATION, AND UTILIZATION

Artificially produced radioactive iron is an extremely sensitive agent for use in following iron in the course of its changes in body metabolism, lending itself to studies of absorption, transport, exchange, mobilization, and excretion. The need of the body for iron in some manner determines the absorption of this element. In the normal dog when there is no need for the element, it is absorbed in negligible amounts. In the anemic animal iron is quite promptly assimilated. The plasma is clearly the means of transport of iron from the gastrointestinal tract to its point of mobilization for fabrication into hemoglobin. The speed of absorption and transfer of iron to the red cell is spectacular. The importance of the liver and bone marrow in iron metabolism is confirmed.     

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Ohne Zusammenfassung     

A comparison of the potencies and activities of progestogens used in contraceptives

The potencies and activities of six progestational agents, norethindrone, levonorgestrel, desogestrel, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), progesterone (P) and norgestimate have been evaluated using standard laboratory bioassays. The endocrine activities measured are those most closely related to the clinically important actions of contraceptives. Relative potencies varied with parameter measured, route of administration and species showing clearly that each progestogen is a distinct pharmacological entity. The order of potency using oral administration for either ovulation inhibition or endometrial stimulation in rabbits was desogestrel greater than levonorgestrel greater than MPA greater than norgestimate greater than norethindrone. Levonorgestrel was more androgenic than desogestrel, and P, norethindrone, norgestimate and MPA were essentially devoid of androgen activity. This profile demonstrates clear differences in the potencies and activities of these progestogens and in their selectivity for target organs.     

Application of a Modified Healthy Eating Index (HEI-Flex) to Compare the Diet Quality of Flexitarians,Vegans and Omnivores in Germany

Interest in plant-based nutrition has steadily increased in the western world in the recent years. The number of people following a meat-reduced, flexitarian diet is growing continuously. However, little is known about the diet quality of flexitarians compared to vegans or omnivores. Therefore, in this cross-sectional study, the food intake of 94 participants aged between 25–45 years was recorded via a validated food frequency questionnaire and 28 self-designed questions about the consumption of plant-based alternatives. An adapted Healthy Eating Index, HEI-flex, was developed to evaluate the diet quality of flexitarians, vegans and omnivores. Higher score points (SP) of the HEI-flex are associated with higher compliance with the official diet recommendations (V_max = 100 SP). Finally, flexitarians scored significantly more highly when compared to omnivores (54 ± 8 vs. 47 ± 9 SP; p = 0.008) but lower than vegans (54 ± 8 vs. 61 ± 10 SP; p = 0.010). The results showed that the HEI-flex is a useful tool for assessing and comparing the diet quality of flexitarians, vegans and omnivores. Despite the consumption of highly processed plant-based alternatives, reduction in meat and meat products seems to be accompanied by increased overall diet quality.     

Phosphodiesterase-5 gene (PDE5A) polymorphisms are associated with progression of childhood IgA nephropathy

The phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE-5) gene is highly specific to cyclic GMP (cGMP) and several experimental studies have shown that the nitric oxide/cGMP pathway plays an important role in the pathogenesis of glomerulonephritis, including IgA nephropathy (IgAN). The present study was conducted to investigate the association among 16 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of PDE5A and childhood IgAN. The genotyping data from 160 patients with childhood IgAN and 454 controls showed a significant difference in rs13124532 (codominant, P = 0.005; dominant, P = 0.005). Furthermore, patient subgroup analysis revealed an association between the development of proteinuria (>4 and ≤4 mg/m²/h) and rs13124532 (codominant, P = 0.008; dominant, P = 0.011), and between the nephrotic range proteinuria (> 40 mg/m²/h) and rs11734241 (dominant, P = 0.035), rs12510138 (dominant, P = 0.028), rs13134665 (dominant, P = 0.025), rs3822192 (dominant, P = 0.027), rs10013305 (dominant, P = 0.020), rs1480940 (dominant, P = 0.020), rs1480936 (dominant, P = 0.019), rs11947234 (dominant, P = 0.019), and rs2127823 (dominant, P = 0.026). The pathological findings showed that rs13124532 had an association with podocyte foot process effacement (codominant, P = 0.035; dominant, P = 0.044) and with pathological progression (codominant, P = 0.046). Our results suggest that PDE5A is associated with increased disease susceptibility, pathological progression, and development of proteinuria in childhood IgAN.     

Current status of robotic colorectal surgery

To keep pace with the rapidly growing incidence of colorectal cancer, substantial progress has been made in colorectal cancer management in recent decades. Minimally invasive surgery is rapidly gaining acceptance for surgical management of colorectal cancer; however, laparoscopic colorectal surgery is technically demanding and has a steep learning curve. Although many colorectal surgeons have great expectations of the robotic surgical system to overcome the pitfalls of laparoscopic surgery, the application of robots in colorectal cancer surgery seems to be delayed when compared with other surgical fields. However, in recent years, there has been an increasing number of reports on robotic colorectal surgery and much attention is given to it in the colorectal community. Most of the interest has been in robotic total mesorectal excision for rectal cancer. In contrast, the use of robotics for colon resections does not confer significant advantages. We summarize the current evidence on clinical and oncologic outcomes of robotic colorectal surgery.     

In vivo effects of olanzapine on striatal dopamine D(2)/D(3) receptor binding in schizophrenic patients: an iodine-123 iodobenzamide single-photon emission tomography study.

Olanzapine is a new atypical antipsychotic agent that belongs to the same chemical class as clozapine. The pharmacological efficacy of olanzapine (in contrast to that of risperidone) has been shown to be comparable to that of clozapine, but olanzapine has the advantage of producing a less pronounced bone marrow depressing effect than clozapine. The specific aims of this study were (a) to assess dopamine D(2)/D(3) receptor availability in patients treated with olanzapine by means of iodine-123 iodobenzamide [(123)I]IBZM single-photon emission tomography (SPET), (b) to compare the results with findings of [(123)I]IBZM SPET in patients under treatment with risperidone and (c) to correlate the results with the occurrence of extrapyramidal side-effects (EPMS). Brain SPET scans were performed in 20 schizophrenic patients (DSM III R) at 2 h after i.v. administration of 185 MBq [(123)I]IBZM. Images were acquired using a triple-head gamma camera (Picker Prism 3000 XP). For semiquantitative evaluation of D(2)/D(3) receptor binding, transverse slices corrected for attenuation were used to calculate specific uptake values [STR-BKG]/BKG (STR=striatum; BKG=background). The mean daily dose of olanzapine ranged from 0.05 to 0.6 mg/kg body weight. The dopamine D(2)/D(3) receptor binding was reduced in all patients treated with olanzapine. Specific IBZM binding [STR-BKG]/BKG ranged from 0.13 to 0.61 (normal controls >0.95). The decreased D(2)/D(3) receptor availability revealed an exponential dose-response relationship (r=-0.85, P<0.001). The slope of the curve was similar to that of risperidone and considerably higher than that of clozapine as compared with the results of a previously published study. EPMS were observed in only one patient, presenting with the lowest D(2)/D(3) availability. The frequency of EPMS induced by olanzapine (5%) was considerably lower than the frequency under risperidone treatment (40%). Our findings suggest an exponential relationship between the daily dose of olanzapine striatal and decreased D(2)/D(3) striatal binding availability. The results are consistent with the findings of in vitro experiments reporting a higher D(2)/D(3) receptor affinity and a similar 5HT(2) receptor affinity of olanzapine as compared with clozapine. Thus, the decreased tendency to induce EPMS at therapeutic doses is not due to the limited occupancy of striatal D(2)/D(3) receptors in vivo. Patients are protected from EPMS by other intrinsic effects of the drug, i.e. the combination of both D(2)/D(3) and 5HT(2) receptor antagonism.