Uricogenic potential of selected cooked foods in rats

Samples of beefsteak, beef liver, haddock, and mushrooms were cooked by two methods: boiling and broiling. Growth and purine metabolism in rats fed diets containing 20% protein (N x 6.25) were studied for a period of 26 days. The cooked meats and fish were used as the sole source of dietary protein, while cooked mushrooms provided 5% protein in mushroom-casein diets. Body weight, and food and water intakes were recorded weekly while total urine was collected during the last 6 days of the feeding period. Levels of purine metabolites (uric acid and allantoin) in blood and urine were determined by enzymatic methods and reverse-phase HPLC techniques. Dietary treatments had no significant effects on weight gain and food consumption. Compared with animals fed the casein control diet, rats fed the broiled liver, broiled haddock, and boiled mushroom diets had significantly (p less than 0.05) higher concentrations of serum allantoin, suggesting that uricogenicity of these foods was influenced by the method of cooking. The renal excretion of purine metabolites was significantly correlated with purine intake, the renal excretion of allantoin and uric acid being the highest in rats fed the liver diets.     

Effects of supplemental cystine or methionine on growth and lifespan of stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats

Stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive (SHRSP) rats are considered a suitable model for studying the effects of dietary and other environmental factors on human essential hypertension and haemorrhagic stroke. To investigate the suitability of a control diet for this strain of rats, we studied the effects of supplementing casein and soya protein isolate (SPI) with two sulphur amino acids (methionine and cystine) on the growth and lifespan of SHRSP rats. The source of dietary protein and the type of supplemental sulphur amino acid had significant (P < 0.05) effects on food intake and weight gain measured after 31 d of the feeding study, while only the type of supplemental sulphur amino acid had significant effects on mean survival times and the survival rates. On average, the casein groups had higher food intake and weight gain compared with the SPI groups. The methionine-supplemented groups had lower food intake but higher weight gain than the cystine-supplemented groups. Similarly, the methionine-supplemented groups had higher mean survival times and survival rates compared with the cystine-supplemented groups. The data would suggest that a control diet based on cystine-supplemented casein (as recommended for normal healthy rats by the American Institute of Nutrition), may not meet the sulphur amino acid requirements for SHRSP rats, and that the methionine-supplemented casein would be an appropriate control diet for this animal model.     

Metal Distribution in Pakistani and Foreign Brands of Cigarette Ash

No abstract available.     

Hernia uterine inguinale

A case of hernia uterine inguinale (HUI) is reported in a middle aged man, who had presented with an inguinal hernia. On exploration, a uterus with cervix, fallopian tubes and ovotestes were detected and confirmed on histopathology. Chromosomal analysis revealed 46 XY.     

Intracerebral pneumatocele: CT findings

Two cases of intracerebral pneumatocele following trauma are presented. One to two months after initial treatment both patients had deteriorating neurologic status. The diagnosis was made by radiography. When a pneumatocele is suspected clinically, computed tomography can play a vital role in determining the precise location of the gas collection, its relationship to the fracture site, and the amount of mass effect on the brain.     

Ventriculographic features of ascending transtentorial herniation

Summary The ventriculographic findings of a severe ascending transtentorial herniation that occurred after shunting in an infant with a posterior fossa tumour are described.     

Abducens nerve paralysis due to giant aneurysm in the medial carotid canal. Case report.

A case of a giant aneurysm located in the medial part of the carotid canal is reported. The patient had isolated abducens nerve paralysis that completely resolved after common carotid ligation in the neck.