Cognitive functioning in female patients with 21-hydroxylase deficiency

The cognitive functioning of 27 female patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) (aged 11–41 yrs) and 13 of their healthy sisters (13–31 yrs) was compared using short versions of age-appropriate Wechsler scales. In contrast to other studies, neither a higher than average IQ level for CAH patients (mean: 99.0) nor for their sisters (97.7) was found. Unexpectedly, and in contrast to other reports, the subgroup of salt-wasting (SW) patients>16 yrs (N=6; mean score: 111.5) differed from their sisters as well as from simple-virilizing (SV) patients in full IQ (p<0.05) and subtest scorings for Information, Similarities, and Picture Completion (p<0.05–<0.10). SW patients displayed more masculine behaviour (vs. SV patients and sisters) which, in turn, was related to differential prenatal hormonal influences. No clear-cut relationships between IQ/cognitive (subtest) findings and gender-role behaviour were found.

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Zusammenfassung 27 Patientinnen mit dem Adrenogenitalen Syndrom (AGS) (11–41 J.) und 13 ihrer Schwestern (13–31 J.) wurden hinsichtlich intellektueller Funktionen verglichen (Kurzformen von HAWIK, HAWIE). Im Unterschied zu den meisten früheren Untersuchungen wurden weder für Patientinnen (mean: 99.0) noch für Kontrollen (97.7) über dem Durchschnitt liegende IQ-Werte gefunden. Im Gegensatz zur Literatur unterschied sich die Teilgruppe der Salzverlust-Patientinnen (SW)>16 J. (N=6, mean: 111.5) von den Schwestern und den Patientinnen mit einfachem AGS (SV) im Gesamt-IQ (p<0.05) und in den Untertests Allgemeines Wissen, Gemeinsamkeiten und Bilderergänzen (p<0.05–<0.10). SW-Patientinnen hatten signifikant männlichere Verhaltensmuster gezeigt (vs. SV-Patientinnen und Schwestern), die auf differentielle Hormoneffekte pränatal bezogen worden waren. Es fanden sich aber keine klaren Zusammenhänge zwischen IQ-bzw. Untertest-Resultaten und Ergebnissen für Geschlechtsrollenverhalten.

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Résumé Le fonctionnement cognitif de 21 patientes avec une hyperplasie congénitale surrénale (âgée de 11 à 41 ans) et de 13 de leurs soeurs saines (13–31 ans) a été comparé au moyen de versions raccourcies de l'échelle de Wechsler appropriée à l'âge. En contraste avec d'autres études, il n'a été retrouvé un Q.I. plus haut que la moyenne ni pour les patientes (moyenne 99.0) ni pour leurs soeurs (moyenne 97.7). De façon inattendue, et en contraste avec d'autres études, le sous-groupe de patientes déprivées en sel (SW)>16 ans (N=6), moyenne score: 111.5) différait de leurs soeurs aussi bien en tant que patientes présentant des signes de virilsation (SV) pour le Q.I. complet (p<0.05) et les scores aux subtests d'information, de similarité et de complément d'images (p<0.05–0.10). Les patientes déprivées en sel (SW) montraient un comportement plus masculin (vs. SV et leurs soeurs) qui en retour était relié aux influences hormonales prénatales différentes. Il n'y avait pas de relation de différences nettes entre les résultats aux sous-tests cognitifs du Q.I. et le comportement de genre.

     

Preventive and curative effect of melatonin on mammary carcinogenesis induced by dimethylbenz[a]anthracene in the female Sprague-Dawley rat

Introduction  

It has been well documented that the pineal hormone, melatonin, which plays a major role in the control of reproduction in mammals, also plays a role in the incidence and growth of breast and mammary cancer. The curative effect of melatonin on the growth of dimethylbenz [a]anthracene-induced (DMBA-induced) mammary adenocarcinoma (ADK) has been previously well documented in the female Sprague-Dawley rat. However, the preventive effect of melatonin in limiting the frequency of cancer initiation has not been well documented.     

Simultaneous blockade of adenosine A2A and metabotropic glutamate mGlu5 receptors increase their efficacy in reversing Parkinsonian deficits in rats.

Recent evidence suggest that antagonism of adenosine A2A receptors represent an alternative therapeutic approach to Parkinson's disease (PD). Coactivation of A2A and the glutamate subtype 5 metabotropic receptors (mGlu5) synergistically stimulates DARPP-32 phosphorylation and c-fos expression in the striatum. This study therefore tested the effects of a joint blockade of these receptors to alleviate the motor dysfunction in a rat model of PD. 6-Hydroxydopamine infusions in the striatum produced akinetic deficits in rats trained to release a lever after a stimulus in a reaction time (RT) task. At 2 weeks after the lesion, A2A and mGlu5 receptors selective antagonists 8-(3-chlorostyryl)caffeine (CSC) and 2-methyl-6-(phenylethynyl)-pyridine (MPEP) were administered daily for 3 weeks either as a single or joint treatment. Injections of CSC (1.25 mg/kg) and MPEP (1.5 mg/kg) separately or in combination reduced the increase of delayed responses and RTs induced by 6-OHDA lesions, while the same treatment had no effect in controls. Furthermore, coadministration of lower doses of 0.625 mg/kg CSC and 0.375 mg/kg MPEP noneffective as a single treatment promoted a full and immediate recovery of akinesia, which was found to be more efficient than the separate blockade of these receptors. These results demonstrate that the combined inactivation of A2A and mGlu5 receptor potentiate their beneficial effects supporting this pharmacological strategy as a promising anti-Parkinsonian therapy.     

Estimation of particle number by stereology: an update.

Sampling designs dictated by stereology have proven very useful in recent years to estimate in situ the total number of deposited particles, or of macrophages, in different lung compartments at the light microscopical level. The sampling methods are based on parallel slabs which are subsequently subsampled by disectors. The resulting number estimators are unbiased irrespective of tissue shrinkage or swelling, and they are readily applicable in other contexts (notably in neuroscience). Several variants of the design are available, however, and, although they all yield the same number estimates, their precision, and the mathematical prediction of it, vary among the different estimators and are subjected to theoretical improvement. The present paper constitutes a detailed survey of the latest advances, and it illustrates methods and formulae alike by way of a real example stemming from an earlier study on particle retention and clearance.