Time-course changes in arteriolar and venular portions of capillary in young treadmill-trained rats

This study was designed to examine the time-course changes in capillarity, especially the distribution of arteriolar and venular capillaries, in skeletal muscles during endurance training by running in young female Wistar rats. Exercise training by running started at the age of 5 weeks and lasted for 5 weeks at 25 m min(-1) on a 25% gradient, 10-60 min day(-1), 5 days per week. Morphological findings were obtained from the soleus (SOL) and deep portions of the medial gastrocnemius (GASd) muscles. In SOL, the training significantly increased the capillary-to-fibre ratio (C:F), total capillary density, and density of venular capillaries at Week 1. Significant increases in the C:F and total capillary density were also observed at Weeks 4 and 5. The capillary domain area (CDA) values for total capillary and arteriolar and venular capillaries were significantly decreased after 4 weeks of training. In GASd, the training significantly increased the C:F at Week 1 and from Week 3 onwards. It also significantly increased cross-sectional area of all fibre types. Total capillary density and the CDA values showed no significant difference between control and training groups at all points of time. Significant increases in succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) activity were first noted after 2 weeks in GASd and after 3 weeks in SOL. These findings suggest that, in young growing rats, adaptive changes in the oxygen transport system occurred within 1 week after the onset of training mainly in highly oxidative muscles. The changes in arteriolar and venular capillary densities may help to clarify the growth pattern of the capillary network associated with endurance running training.     

Immunolocalization of aquaporin-8 in rat digestive organs and testis.

Expression of aquaporin-8 mRNA has previously been shown in hepatocytes, pancreatic acinar cells, colon epithelial cells and seminiferous tubules of the testis in the rat by in situ hybridization technique. However, immunolocalization of this water channel has not yet been demonstrated. In the present study, the localization of immunoreactive aquaporin-8 and expression of the mRNA were examined in rat organs (cerebrum, cerebellum, eye, salivary gland, heart, lung, liver, pancreas, esophagus, stomach, jejunum, ileum, colon, testis, ovary, kidney, spleen and lymphnode) by immunohistochemistry using an antibody against aquaporin-8 and ribonuclease protection assay. Aquaporin-8 was distinctly immunolocalized on the apical membranes of pancreatic acinar cells and mucosal epithelium of the colon and jejunum. In the liver, the bile canalicular membrane of hepatocytes was immunostained. In the testis, immunoreactive aquaporin-8 was demonstrated on the luminal side of the seminiferous tubules. At high magnification, the peroxidase reaction products appeared on the ramified cytoplasmic membrane of Sertoli cells surrounding the residual bodies or spermatogenic cells. Specificity of the antibody was verified by Western blot analysis showing a minor approximately 28 kDa band (deduced deglycosylated form of aquaporin-8) and a major approximately 30 kDa band (glycosylated form) in these organs. The intensity of aquaporin-8 immunoreactivity was approximately comparable to that of aquaporin-8 mRNA expression in the liver, pancreas, colon, jejunum and testis. The aquaporin-8 mRNA expression in the hepatocytes was presumed to be closely associated with the structure of bile canaliculi since the message was detected in hepatocytes immediately after isolation from the liver but not in cells following cultivation for three days. The localization of immunoreactive aquaporin-8 indicated functions for this water channel in the secretion of bile and pancreatic juice, and the secretion or absorption of water in the colon and jejunum, and the maturation or liberation of spermatogenic cells in the testis.     

Radionuclide assessment of left ventricular function during dobutamine infusion in patients with coronary artery disease: comparison with ergometer exercise

The effects of dobutamine on left ventricular function were assessed employing radionuclide ventriculography (RNV) in 7 normal subjects (Group 1) and 21 patients with coronary artery disease (Group 2). After routine bicycle ergometer exercise RNV, dobutamine infusion was started at 5 micrograms/kg/min and the dosage was increased by 5 micrograms/kg/min every 4 minutes to a total of 15 micrograms/kg/min. In Group 1, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) increased by both ergometer exercise and dobutamine infusion. In Group 2, LVEF did not increase during exercise, but increased during dobutamine infusion without evidence of significant myocardial ischemia. Only 2 patients in Group 2 had new regional wall motion abnormality. Left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV) in Group 2 increased from 191 +/- 19 to 210 +/- 18 ml during ergometer exercise, but decreased from 193 +/- 18 to 153 +/- 19 ml during dobutamine infusion. Short-term low-dose infusion of dobutamine may be used in patients without evidence of significant myocardial ischemia, but probably cannot be substituted for exercise testing in patients with mild to moderate coronary artery disease.     

Laparoscopic Repair of a Post-Myomectomy Spontaneous Uterine Perforation Accompanied by a Bizarre Tumor Resembling Polypoid Endometriosis

Among various long-term complications after previous myomectomy, increasing risk of uterine rupture or dehiscence during pregnancy, and in particular during labor, has been widely recognized. In contrast, the world literature includes no case report of spontaneous uterine perforation or rupture after myomectomy in a nonpregnant woman, and only 1 case of iatrogenic uterine perforation after uterine artery embolization has been reported. Recently, we encountered an extremely rare case of spontaneous uterine perforation after previous myomectomy accompanied by a bizarre tumor resembling polypoid endometriosis, which was successfully treated via laparoscopic surgery. The patient reported genital bleeding and lower abdominal pain. Preoperative magnetic resonance imaging and intraoperative findings clearly demonstrated the presence of a uterine wall defect and a multicystic tumor that had developed from the perforated portion of the uterus. The patient underwent successful laparoscopic surgery for repair of the perforated uterus and resection of the tumor. The clinicopathologic diagnosis of the tumor was tentatively confirmed as an endometriosis-like lesion resembling polypoid endometriosis. We speculate that the cause of the tumor was retrograde menstruation, as in the pathogenesis of endometriosis.     

Safety and efficacy of long-term diflunisal administration in hereditary transthyretin (ATTR) amyloidosis

Background: A recent 2-year randomized controlled trial indicated that the transthyretin (TTR) tetramer stabilizer, diflunisal, inhibits polyneuropathy progression and preserves quality of life in hereditary ATTR amyloidosis. However, its long-term outcomes are unknown. Here, we report tolerance and efficacy of long-term diflunisal administration in hereditary ATTR amyloidosis.

Methods: Diflunisal was administered orally at 500?mg/day to 40 Japanese hereditary ATTR amyloidosis patents who were not candidates for liver transplantation. The observation period ranged from 2 to 116 months (mean?±?SD: 38.0?±?31.2 months).

Results: Diflunisal-related adverse events included deterioration of renal function and thrombocytopenia resulting in discontinuation of the drug in three patients. Orally administered diflunisal significantly increased serum TTR concentration (p?=?0.001) and stabilized TTR tetramer structure in each patient. Longitudinal analyses of data collected at baseline, 24 months, and after 24 months confirmed sustaining effects of diflunisal on both neurological and cardiac functions. Notably, ulnar compound muscle action potential amplitude, cardiac wall thickness, and ejection fraction were not deteriorated after 24 months of treatment.

Conclusions: Diflunisal was tolerated well by most hereditary ATTR amyloidosis patients, although renal function and blood cell counts must be carefully monitored. Clinical effects of diflunisal were sustained after 2 years of treatment.     

Disappearance of body fat in normal rats induced by adenovirus-mediated leptin gene therapy

Sustained hyperleptinemia of 8 ng/ml was induced for 28 days in normal Wistar rats by infusing a recombinant adenovirus containing the rat leptin cDNA (AdCMV-leptin). Hyperleptinemic rats exhibited a 30–50% reduction in food intake and gained only 22 g over the experimental period versus 115–132 g in control animals that received saline infusions or a recombinant virus containing the β-galactosidase gene (AdCMV-βGal). Body fat was absent in hyperleptinemic rats, whereas control rats pair-fed to the hyperleptinemic rats retained ≈50% body fat. Further, plasma triglycerides and insulin levels were significantly lower in hyperleptinemic versus pair-fed controls, while fatty acid and glucose levels were similar in the two groups, suggestive of enhanced insulin sensitivity in the hyperleptinemic animals. Thus, despite equivalent reductions in food intake and weight gain in hyperleptinemic and pair-fed animals, identifiable fat tissue was completely ablated only in the former group, raising the possibility of a specific lipoatrophic activity for leptin.     

Clonal identification of Burkitt's Lymphoma Arising from Lymphocyte-Predominant Hodgkin's Disease

The occurrence of large cell lymphomas subsequent to, or concurrent with, lymphocyte predominant Hodgkin's disease (LPHD) is a well-documented phenomenon. We present a case of Burkitt's lymphoma of the bladder, occurring after the successful treatment of LPHD of a cervical lymph node. To evaluate the clonal relationship of the two tumours, we amplified the complementarity-determining-region 3 of two samples from paraffin-embedded slides, using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The sequences of the PCR products showed 96% homology to each other. These results indicate that the malignant clone of Burkitt's lymphoma arose from the corresponding LPHD.     

Allodynia and hyperalgesia in adjuvant-induced arthritic rats: time course of progression and efficacy of analgesics

The complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA)-induced arthritic rat model has extensively served as a laboratory model in the study of arthritic pain. However, the time courses of allodynia and hyperalgesia and the efficacies of different analgesics have not fully been analyzed in this model. Mechanical allodynia, thermal and joint hyperalgesia, and other disease development parameters (body weight, mobility, paw volume, and joint stiffness) were measured on postinoculation days (PIDs) 0 to 28 in rats. Acute analgesic efficacies of drugs were evaluated on PID 9 when degrees of allodynia, hyperalgesia, and joint stiffness in the ipsilateral paw reached almost the maximum, although those in the contralateral paw changed only slightly. In the ipsilateral paw, thermal hyperalgesia reached the maximum on PID 1, whereas mechanical allodynia and joint hyperalgesia progressively developed during the first 7 or 8 days, being tuned in to arthritis development. In the contralateral paw, thermal hyperalgesia never occurred, whereas mechanical allodynia and joint hyperalgesia developed after PID 11. Morphine and tramadol had full efficacies for all the pain parameters tested at sedation-inducing doses. Indomethacin and diclofenac significantly but partially improved thermal and joint hyperalgesia. Amitriptyline significantly reduced thermal and joint hyperalgesia only at sedation-inducing dose. Acetaminophen, carbamazepine, and gabapentin had, at the most, very small efficacies. In conclusion, the present study provided integrated information about the time course of pain and other disease development parameters in the CFA-induced arthritic rats, and clarified acute efficacies of different categories of analgesics for the allodynia and hyperalgesia.     

Manganese-containing superoxide dismutase in blood and urine during open-heart surgery.

Concentrations of Manganese-containing superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD) were measured perioperatively by enzyme immunoassay in serial samples of arterial and coronary sinus blood and urine taken from 18 patients undergoing mitral valve surgery. The mean Mn-SOD concentration in the arterial blood samples was 66.2 (SD 16.1 ng/ml) at induction of anesthesia, increased gradually after reperfusion and peaked on the 2nd post-operative day [150 (SD 58.3) ng/ml]. The mean concentration of Mn-SOD in the coronary sinus blood samples was significantly higher than in the arterial samples only at the 6th hour after reperfusion [97 (SD 21.8) ng/ml vs 90.3 (SD 20.9) ng/ml, p < 0.05]. Although concentrations of Mn-SOD in blood did not increase in 8 patients who underwent midline sternotomy for a mediastinal tumor, they increased dramatically in 3 patients who sustained a perioperative myocardial infarction. During open heart surgery the peak values of plasma Mn-SOD concentrations were correlated to that of plasma creatine kinase-MB concentrations (r = 0.5532, n = 18, p < 05) and cardiac ischemic period (r = 0.5186, n = 18, p < 05). Although the meaning of an increase in plasma Mn-SOD concentrations during open heart surgery is not clarified, it may be released from the heart and anywhere also in the body damaged during cardiopulmonary bypass.     

近海鱼类异尖科幼线虫形态分类学研究——Ⅱ.北部湾部分

在对从北部湾捕获海鱼的异尖科(Anisakidae)幼线虫感染状况进行初步调查的基础上,作了形态分类学研究。共检海鱼29种,134只标本,其中简单异尖线虫3期幼虫的感染率达30.6％,且大部分阳性鱼种的感染率在50％以上。此外尚检获宫脂线虫(Hysterothylacium)属3期幼虫2型:C_1型和C_5型,其中C_1型为初次报告。另检出伪新地蛔线虫(Pseudoterranova)属幼虫1型。