Antibodies to interleukin-1 inhibit cytokine-induced proliferation of neonatal rat Schwann cells in vitro

Unfractionated cytokines have been shown to induce in vitro proliferation of neonatal rat Schwann cells but the nature of the mitogen(s) is not known. A mixture of rabbit antibodies specific for recombinant interleukin-1α (IL-1α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) inhibited Schwann cell proliferation induced by unfractionated human cytokines whereas antibodies to interleukin-2 (IL-2) and control IgG did not. However, purified human IL-1 and recombinant human IL-1α or β did not induce Schwann cell proliferation on their own.     

Cervical intramedullary cavernous angioma with MRI-proven haemorrhages

Summary Two contrasting cases of cervical intramedullary cavernous angioma in young female patients are reported. One patient had a 3-year course of step-wise progressive tetraparesis; at each of the five events intramedullary bleeding from a cryptic vascular malformation at C6–7 level was diagnosed by MRI. The other patient presented with one episode which led to MRI diagnosis of a vascular malformation at the C2 level. Both patients eventually underwent complete surgical excision of the angioma with subsequent steady improvement of the neurological deficit.     

Use of sonography to evaluate carotid atherosclerosis in the elderly. The Cardiovascular Health Study. CHS Collaborative Research Group

Carotid sonography is being performed on more than 5,000 participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study, a prospective, multicenter study of cardiovascular disease in men and women aged 65 years and older. The sonographic methods used to examine and measure the extracranial carotid arteries are described. Initial validation studies were performed on 61 subjects with a mean age of 68.6 years. Analysis of within- and between-sonographer differences and between-reader differences were performed for selected variables. In general, the mean absolute differences for within- and between-sonographer comparisons were small, with even less variability between readers. Variability was less for the common carotid artery than for the internal carotid artery. These data suggest that carotid sonography is a reliable and reproducible method for use in the study of carotid atherosclerosis in population studies.     

Bilateral anterior cerebral artery infarction resulting from explosion-type injury to the head and neck

A 43-year-old woman suffered a blast-type injury to the head and neck. She subsequently developed bilateral internal carotid artery occlusion and bilateral anterior cerebral artery infarction not demonstrated by magnetic resonance imaging scan 24 hours after the explosion, but confirmed by a second scan 8 days after the explosion. In patients with blast-type injury to the head and neck who develop coma with a nonfocal neurological exam, the possibility of bilateral carotid artery occlusion and bilateral ischemic infarction should be considered.     

Characterization of unique ADTN-catecholamine binding sites in the iris root-ciliary body of rabbits

A binding site for tritiated 2-amino-6, 7-dihydroxy-1, 2,3,4-tetrahydronaphthalene (ADTN) has been partially characterized in the rabbit iris root-ciliary body. Binding of ADTN is proportional to protein content and requires at least 60 minutes to reach equilibrium. Binding is saturable, with a Kd of 27 +/- 1 nM and a Bmax of 2.1 +/- .3 pmol/mg protein (mean +/- SEM). Dopamine competes for this site with a Ki of 100 nM and apomorphine with a Ki of 180 nM. This site is not blocked by L-timolol, phenoxybenzamine, or by several DA1 and DA2 antagonists. It appears to be a new type of catecholamine binding site, of a type not observed outside the anterior eye. It is possible that some of the effects of dopamine on intraocular pressure are mediated through this binding site.     

Additional myocardial salvage by coadministration of the epoprostenol analog taprostene to recombinant single-chain urokinase-type plasminogen activator in a canine coronary thrombosis model

In open chest dogs myocardial ischemia was induced by formation of an occlusive thrombus in the left anterior circumflex artery (LCX). Reperfusion of the LCX was achieved by infusion of the fibrin specific recombinant single-chain urokinase-type plasminogen activator (r-scu-PA). The myocardial salvage by r-scu-PA alone and in combination with the epoprostenol (prostacyclin) analog taprostene (CG 4203) was compared. There were four experimental groups: group 1 (n = 4) did not receive any treatment after LCX thrombosis; in group 2 (n = 9) at 100 min after LCX thrombosis r-scu-PA (20 micrograms.kg-1.min-1 i.v. for 30 min) was infused; in groups 3 and 4 treatment with taprostene started concomitantly with r-scu-PA infusion. The taprostene infusions lasted for 120 min and the doses were 0.1 microgram.kg-1.min-1 in group 3 (n = 6) and 0.215 microgram.kg-1.min-1 in group 4 (n = 6). Time to r-scu-PA-induced recanalisation ranged from 18-22 min with no significant difference between groups 2-4. Percent of left ventricle at risk did not differ between the groups. Infarct size as percent of the risk zone was 48.3 +/- 7.7 in group 1, 25.3 +/- 3.7 in group 2, 21.3 +/- 6.5 in group 3 and 17.1 +/- 3.5 in group 4 (p less than 0.05 groups 2-4 vs group 1). Incidence of ectopic beats increased after r-scu-PA-induced reperfusion in groups 2-4, but was significantly reduced by taprostene.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Lack of tolerance to nicotine-induced dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens

The extent to which repeated administration produces tolerance to nicotine-induced increases in dopamine transmission in the nucleus accumbens was investigated in rats. In vivo microdialysis was used to sample extracellular dopamine and metabolites after a nicotine challenge (0.35 mg/kg) in (1) naive rats, (2) acutely pretreated rats (1 prior nicotine injection), and (3) chronically pretreated rats (12-15 prior daily nicotine injections, 0.35 mg/kg per injection). Nicotine increased extracellular DA and its metabolites, and these increases were not significantly altered by either acute or chronic prior exposure to the drug. The failure to find evidence of tolerance is compatible with the hypothesis that the mesolimbic dopaminergic system is a substrate for the reinforcing properties of chronically administered nicotine.