The application of tissue-engineered preputial matrix and fibrin sealant for urethral reconstruction in rabbit model

Background

To introduce the role of fibrin sealant and preputial acellular matrix (PAM) as a new source of inert collagen matrix for urethral reconstruction.

Methods

A ventral urethral segmental defect was created in 24 male rabbits divided into four groups. In group 1 (G1), urethrotomy was closed in layers. In group 2 (G2), closure was followed by applying fibrin sealant. In groups 3 (G3) and 4 (G4), urethroplasty was performed with a patch graft of PAM, and in G4, fibrin sealant was also applied. Serial urethrography was performed before and after the operation. Then, the animals were euthanized, and their urethra was excised 1, 3, and 9 months postoperatively for further electron microscopic examination, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) technique, and immunohistochemical (IHC) staining with CD34, CD31, desmin, SMA, and α-actin.

Results

In G1 and G2, the fistula repair failed in all the time points. In G3 and G4, serial urethrography confirmed the maintenance of a wide urethral caliber without signs of strictures or extravasations. Satisfactory vascularity was observed in G3 and G4 during the whole study, which was more significant in G4 after 9 months of follow-up. The presence of a complete transitional cell layer was confirmed over the graft in G3 and G4 in all time points. IHC staining confirmed the effectiveness of fistula repair in G3 and G4, 3 months postoperatively.

Conclusion

This rabbit model showed that PAM combined with fibrin sealant may herald a reliable option for repairing segmental urethral defects.     

Incidence and predictors of treatment‐related conjugated hyperbilirubinemia during early treatment phases for children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Conjugated hyperbilirubinemia (CHB) and liver transaminase elevation are known complications of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) therapy, but host risk factors are poorly understood. Among 373 children diagnosed with ALL between 2011 and 2016, clinically significant CHB and transaminase elevation were observed in 15 (4.0%) and 12 (3.2%) children, respectively, during induction and consolidation. Body mass index ≥95th percentile (odds ratio 9.20, 95% confidence interval 2.56–32.96) was the only host factor independently associated with CHB, and no host factors were associated with transaminase elevation. Obese patients warrant closer monitoring of hepatic function to facilitate early intervention prior to the development of severe, adverse hepatic events.     

Inhibition by simulated ischemia or hypoxia of delayed afterdepolarizations provoked by cyclic AMP: significance for ischemic and reperfusion arrhythmias

Controversy exists about the role of an increased level of tissue cyclic adenosine 3'-5' monophosphate (cAMP) in the genesis of early ischemic ventricular arrhythmias. Evidence for an arrhythmogenic role for cAMP was proposed by Podzuweit et al. (1978) and Opie et al. (1979) who argued that ischemic ventricular fibrillation was associated with increased levels of tissue cAMP in the ischemic zone. Lubbe et al. (1978) found that infusion of dibutyryl (dBcAMP), or the beta-adrenergic stimulant epinephrine, or the phosphodiesterase inhibitor theophylline, all produced a marked fall in the ventricular fibrillation threshold and an increase in the duration of the vulnerable period of the isolated perfused rat heart. In contrast, Muller et al. (1986) recently showed that prevention of ventricular fibrillation by beta-adrenergic blockade is not directly associated with decreased levels of cAMP, while Manning et al. (1985) used forskolin to stimulate adenylate cyclase and found that the markedly elevated tissue cAMP levels in the rat heart did not promote ischemic or reperfusion arrhythmias. Some of these contradictions could be resolved if the electrophysiological mechanisms by which increased levels of cAMP might predispose to arrhythmias were better understood. It is known that intracellular injection of cAMP into cardiac myocytes can enhance delayed afterdepolarizations (DADs; Matsuda et al. 1982) and that DADs may explain certain arrhythmias such as those evoked by digitalis toxicity (Ferrier, 1977) or reperfusion (Ferrier et al. 1985).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)