The effect of different diets or mineral oil on liver pathology and polybrominated biphenyl concentration in tissues

Groups of 10 adult (3.5 months) male Sherman strain rats were given 0 or a single dose of 500 mg polybrominated biphenyls (PBB) in corn oil/kg by stomach tube. Three weeks later, groups of 10 rats each that had received 500 mg/kg and groups of 10 rats each that had been given corn oil were started on a purified 20% fiber or 4% fiber diet. Ten rats each that had received 500 mg/kg or corn oil were continued on Purina Chow. An additional group of 10 rats given 500 mg/kg was also continued on Purina Chow but was given 2 ml mineral oil/kg three times a week. All rats were given the different diets or the mineral oil for 3 months. Chemical analysis of blood, liver, and adipose tissue by gas chromatography for PBBs showed no statistically significant difference in the PBB concentrations in blood and adipose tissue among the different groups. The PBB concentrations in the liver of rats fed Purina Chow were significantly lower than in the other groups if they were calculated on a wet weight basis. When PBB concentrations in liver were calculated on a lipid basis, the differences were not statistically significant. Total liver lipids showed statistically significant increases in rats given 500 mg/kg followed by 4 or 20% purified fiber diet or by Purina Chow and 2 ml of mineral oil/kg every other day. Microscopic examination of the livers showed essentially normal parenchyma in all rats that had not received PBBs. The rats given a single oral dose of 500 mg/kg which was followed by Purina Chow or Purina Chow and mineral oil showed some centrolobular vacuolated hepatocytes and enlarged hepatocytes around the central veins. The vacuolation was more pronounced in rats receiving Purina Chow and mineral oil also. Rats given 500 mg/kg followed by 4 or 20% purified fiber diet showed severe steatosis of the liver with megalo-hepatocytes, areas of cell necrosis and interstitial fibrosis. The interstitial fibrosis was more pronounced in rats given the 20% purified fiber diet. These results indicate a pronounced additive effect on PBB liver toxicity in rats by the 4 or 20% purified fiber diets which may be deficient in some nutrients or may prevent absorption of important nutrients.     

Health-related quality of life of Southern Chinese with chronic hepatitis B infection

Background  

Few studies have evaluated the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of Southern Chinese with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection.     

Cue-conditioned alcohol seeking in rats following abstinence: involvement of metabotropic glutamate 5 receptors

Background and purpose:

The current study was designed to: (i) examine whether functional interactions occur between receptors known to regulate alcohol self-administration; and (ii) characterize relapse to alcohol seeking following abstinence.

Experimental approach:

The selective cannabinoid CB₁ receptor antagonist SR141716A (0.03–1.0 mg·kg⁻¹ i.p.) resulted in a dose-dependent reduction in ethanol self-administration in ethanol-preferring Indiana-preferring rats. SR141716A was then co-administered with either the selective glutamate metabotropic glutamate 5 (mGlu₅) receptor antagonist 3-[(2-methyl-1,3-thiazol-4-yl)ethynyl]pyridine (MTEP) or the selective adenosine A_2A receptor antagonist {"type":"entrez-protein","attrs":{"text":"SCH58261","term_id":"1052882304","term_text":"SCH58261"}}SCH58261.

Key results:

When administered at individually sub-threshold doses, a combination of SR141716A (0.1 mg·kg⁻¹) and {"type":"entrez-protein","attrs":{"text":"SCH58261","term_id":"1052882304","term_text":"SCH58261"}}SCH58261 (0.5 mg·kg⁻¹ i.p.) produced a reduction (28%) in ethanol self-administration. Combinations of threshold doses of SR141716A (0.3 mg·kg⁻¹) and {"type":"entrez-protein","attrs":{"text":"SCH58261","term_id":"1052882304","term_text":"SCH58261"}}SCH58261 (2.0 mg·kg⁻¹, i.p.) caused an essentially additive reduction (68%) in alcohol self-administration. A combination of individually sub-threshold doses of CB₁ and mGlu₅ receptor antagonists did not affect alcohol self-administration; however, combined threshold doses of SR141716A (0.3 mg·kg⁻¹) and MTEP (1.0 mg·kg⁻¹ i.p.) did reduce ethanol self-administration markedly (80%). Cue-conditioned alcohol seeking was attenuated by pretreatment with MTEP (1.0 mg·kg⁻¹) co-administered with SR141716A (0.3 mg·kg⁻¹ i.p.). In contrast, {"type":"entrez-protein","attrs":{"text":"SCH58261","term_id":"1052882304","term_text":"SCH58261"}}SCH58261 (2.0 mg·kg⁻¹) co-administered with SR141716A (0.3 mg·kg⁻¹ i.p.) did not reduce cue-conditioned alcohol seeking.

Conclusions and implications:

Adenosine A_2A and cannabinoid CB₁ receptors regulated alcohol self-administration additively, but combined low-dose antagonism of these receptors did not prevent cue-conditioned alcohol seeking after abstinence. In contrast, combined low-dose antagonism of mGlu₅ and CB₁ receptors did prevent relapse-like alcohol seeking after abstinence, suggesting a prominent role for mGlu₅ receptors in this paradigm.     

Propanil-chloracne and methomyl toxicity in workers of a pesticide manufacturing plant.

In a survey of occupationally acquired disease in workers at a pesticide plant, we found that 11 (11%) of 102 workers had been hospitalized for illness related to chemical exposures; highest hospitalization rates occurred in packaging (27%), production (22%), and maintenance (9%) workers. Commonest causes of hospitalization were intoxication by the carbamate pesticide methomyl [1-(methylthio)ethylideneamino methyl carbamate], a reversible cholinesterase inhibitor, and methemoglobinemia following exposure to 3,4-dichloroaniline. On clinical evaluation, five (46%) of 11 packaging workers, the group with the highest exposure to methomyl, had experienced blurred vision or pupillary constriction. Seventeen (61%) of 28 production workers with exposure to dichloroaniline and propanil (3'4'-dichloropropionanilide) had chloracne, an acne-form dermatosis caused by the contaminant tetrachlorazobenzene in propanil and dichloroaniline. The chloracnegenic potentials of propanil and dichloroaniline were verified by rabbit ear tests. These findings reemphasize the hazards inherent in the the manufacture and formulation of pesticides and herbicides.     

Comparison of the effectiveness of potential marrow donors recruited from apheresis donors or whole blood donors and through appeals to the general public

Marrow transplants with phenotypically HLA-matched, unrelated donors have been used effectively to treat a number of diseases. Many blood centers have recruited HLA-typed apheresis blood donors into marrow donor registries. However, to build larger registries so that more patients may be treated with unrelated donor marrow transplants, whole blood donors and people who do not donate blood have been added to the registries. The marrow donor program at our blood center had 2844 potential donors, of whom 1725 were also apheresis donors, 608 were whole blood donors, and 511 were recruited from the general public as a result of community appeals for marrow donors for a specific patient. Over a 9-month period, 297 potential donors were asked to donate blood samples for HLA-DR typing or mixed lymphocyte culture (MLC) testing or to participate in an informational session, undergo a medical evaluation, and sign a statement indicating an intention to donate marrow for a specific patient. Overall, these requests were successfully completed by 75.5 percent of apheresis donors, 87.2 percent of whole blood donors, and 78.1 percent of the potential donors recruited through community appeals. Furthermore, there was no difference among the three groups in the portion of people who donated blood samples for HLA-DR typing or MLC testing. Fifteen of 18 apheresis donors who were found to match a specific donor signed a statement of intent to donate marrow, 2 apheresis donors were deferred for medical reasons, and 1 decided not to donate.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Growth hormone attenuates the abnormal distribution of body water in critically ill surgical patients.

BACKGROUND. Catabolic illness is associated with fluid retention and extracellular space expansion. To determine the effect of human growth hormone (GH) on body water compartments, critically ill surgical patients were studied for a 2-week period during which they either continued to receive standard intensive care unit support, or in addition, received GH, 10 mg/day. METHODS. Body water compartments were measured at the beginning and end of the period by the indicator dilution technique with sodium bromide and heavy water used as the indicators of extracellular (ECW) and total body water (TBW), respectively; intracellular water (ICW) was calculated by subtraction. RESULTS. Neither group lost significant amounts of weight or TBW. A marked ECW expansion and disturbance of the ECW/TBW ratio occurred in the patients receiving standard care, which was associated with a dramatic reduction in ICW, a critical component of the body cell mass (BCM). In contrast, GH-treated patients maintained ECW and ICW, indicating a preservation of BCM, and their ECW/TBW ratio normalized. CONCLUSIONS. GH administration prevents ECW retention and stabilizes or normalizes fluid distribution during critical illness. Taken together with its known anabolic effects under these conditions, the maintenance of ICW demonstrates that GH can be used to preserve BCM in complex surgical patients.     

Acute and chronic effects of the trichothecene mycotoxin T-2 on rat brain regional concentrations of serotonin, tryptophan, and tyrosine

Female rats were given 1 acute dose or chronic doses (once every 48 hr for 28 days) of T-2 toxin (10 micrograms/kg ip) or vehicle. At necropsy, each brain was subdivided into cerebellum, cerebral cortex (including telencephalon and diencephalon), and brainstem (including mesencephalon, metencephalon, and myelencephalon). Acute systemic T-2 toxin administration increased cerebellar and brainstem tryptophan while serotonin, a tryptophan metabolite, was decreased correspondingly in these same brain regions. Chronic T-2 administration increased cerebellar tyrosine and serotonin concentrations, while cortical tryptophan concentrations were also increased. These results indicate that both acute and chronic administration of T-2 toxin cause differential changes in regional distribution levels of tyrosine, tryptophan, and serotonin.     

84例霍乱患者流行病学及临床特点

０引言１９９５－０８～１９９５－１０在沈阳市传染病院收治霍乱患者８４例,现将其流行病学和临床特点报道如下．１临床资料８４（男４３,女４１）例患者均为住院患者,平均年龄３７．７（３～７４）岁,＜１５岁者７例（（８．３％）,＞６０岁２例（２．４％）．成人...