Brunner's gland metaplasia of residual jejunum developed long after wide resection of the small intestine

We report a rare case in which mucous glands, similar to pyloric or Brunner's glands, developed in the residual jejunum (46 cm in length) long after wide resection of the small intestine. The mucous glands were observed in the mucosal and submucosal layers near the duodenum, and the mucin showed a positive reaction by paradoxical concanavalin A staining and immunoreactivity for HIK-1083, which were histochemically the same as those in the pyloric/Brunner's glands. This type of metaplasia in the small intestine without ulceration has not been described in the literature so far. It was speculated that these glands developed as a defense response or adaptation against relatively excessive acid due to the short small intestine.     

Electrolyte Medium Effects on Measurements of Palmar Skin Potential

Two experiments with 12 subjects each compared skin potential recordings taken simultaneously with four different electrolytes. These were polyethylene glycol, hydrated agar (at a site presoaked with water), fresh agar (i.e., not presoaked), and Unibase. The glycol controlled epidermal hydration at a minimal level, while presoaking produced a high level of hydration at the hydrated agar site. Fresh agar and Unibase represented normal recording conditions for these two electrolytes which have been recommended as “standard” for electrodermal measurements. This design permitted a comparison of two standard electrolytes with each other and with recordings from hydrated and unhydrated sites. These comparisons were made for both monophasic negative SPRs and positive SPRs and the prestimulus levels associated with each. The results replicated previous studies in showing a large effect of epidermal hydration on skin potential measurements. Recordings with agar and Unibase did not differ significantly. The effects of hydration were interpreted in terms of a reduction in the resistance of the stratum corneum and of alterations in the functioning of the dermal and epidermal membranes as a result of blockage of the sweat gland pore. In the light of this interpretation, it was suggested that both agar and Unibase substantially alter the functioning of the sweat glands under some conditions, and neither may be entirely suitable for skin potential measurements.     

Effects of selective α1 and α2 adrenoceptor active drugs on 86Rb+ efflux from pieces of rat parotid gland

Minute pieces of rat parotid gland were used in studies of adrenergic regulation of K+ efflux using ⁸⁶Rb+ as a probe for K+. Noradrenaline induced a concentration-dependent Rb+ efflux, whereas the β₁-selective agonist prenalterol was without effect. On the other hand, the β₂-selective drug, terbutaline, at high concentrations displayed a small enhancement of Rb+ -secretion. The selective α₁-adrenoceptor drug, phenylephrine, was as potent as noradrenaline, whereas the α₂-agonist clonidine had only a small effect. The noradrenaline-induced Rb+-efflux was effectively inhibited in the presence of prazosin, an α₁-blocker, whereas the α₂-antagonist, yohimbine, was roughly 50 times less potent. The results suggest that catecholamine-induced K+-secretion from the rat parotid gland is mediated via activation of post-synaptic α-adrenoceptors of the α₁-subtype.     

Absence of the left inferior thyroid artery: clinical implications

Dissection of an adult male cadaver revealed an absence of the left inferior thyroid artery; its usual area of distribution to the thyroid gland was supplied by the right inferior thyroid artery. Absence of the left inferior thyroid artery occurs in 1-6% of cases. The inferior thyroid artery arises commonly from the thyrocervical trunk, passes posterior to the carotid sheath and supplies the inferior pole of the corresponding lobe of the thyroid gland; its branches can course anterior or posterior to or between branches of the recurrent laryngeal nerve. During thyroid surgery it is imperative to identify the relationship of the inferior thyroid artery to the recurrent laryngeal nerve or to establish its absence because injury to the nerve can be a major complication; awareness of significant variations of the surgical anatomy of the thyroid gland is vital for preserving the integrity of important structures.     

Effectiveness and limits of antimicrobial treatment on seminal leukocyte concentration and related reactive oxygen species production in patients with male accessory gland infection

To evaluate whether bacteriological cure, sperm outcome, spontaneous pregnancy rate and white blood cell (WBC)-related reactive oxygen species (ROS) production were related to the extent of the infection and to an intermittent and repetitive antimicrobial treatment, 122 patients with bacterial [>10(5) colony-forming units (CFU)/ml] male accessory gland infections (MAGI) were studied. According to ultrasound criteria, patients had prostatitis (PR, n = 52), prostatovesiculitis (PV, n = 32) or prostatovesiculoepididymitis (PVE, n = 38). Each group was further subdivided into two subsets: one subset (PR, n = 40; PV, n = 20; PVE, n = 25) was given ofloxacin or doxycycline for 14 consecutive days per month for 3 months; the other subset (PR, n = 12; PV, n = 12; PVE, n = 13) received no treatment. The female partners were also treated. All patients were evaluated before, during (1 and 3 months) and after (3 months) treatment. The bacteriological cure rate was the highest (92.5%) after the third antibiotic course in PR, followed by PV (70.4%), and the lowest in PVE (52.0%). At 3 months after therapy discontinuation, some sperm parameters, seminal WBC concentration and ROS generation (assessed in the 45% Percoll fraction) were ameliorated in PR and PV, whereas no improvement occurred in patients with PVE, except for the percentage of coiled tails. Antibiotic treatment in PR and PV patients led to positive effects on sperm output and spontaneous pregnancy rate (40%) by removing pro-oxidant noxae (microbial and/or WBC-related ROS production). The persistent infertility, dyspermia and sperm-derived ROS overproduction in PVE may relate to a significant percentage of antibiotic-independent re-infection and/or to low antioxidative epididymal properties, which persisted following antimicrobial treatment.     

Impact of Psychosocial Stress on Pineal Structure of Male Gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus, Cricetidae)

Stress responses were investigated in 5-month-old male gerbils. Breeders having no pubescent litters served as controls. The first experimental group never left their parents' cage and were thereby fought by higher-ranking males; the second and third groups were stressed for a week by four daily 1-minute encounters with trained fighters, the second group during daytime, the third during the dark period. The first and second groups developed signs of gonadal regression, the third did not. The adrenals of the first group weighed the same as those of controls; the adrenals of both other groups were increased in weight. In the adrenal medulla of all experimental groups, a large number of cells were densely packed with noradrenaline-containing vesicles. In each experimental group the pineal changes included a remarkable decrease in nuclear size of pinealocytes, an increased number of colloidal cysts, and a reduction of that portion of the plasmalemma that is lined by subsurface cisterns. All these changes are interpreted in terms of pineal activation, as are the increased number of membrane whirls found in the first group. The third group exhibited an additional decrease in the size of mitochondria and in the number of "synaptic" structures. This finding and the day-night differences in the gonadal response indicate that stress interferes with the metabolic cyclicity of the pineal gland. However, it remains indiscernible whether the pineal stress reaction signals a general activation of the gland or a change in it's temporal activity patterns.     

Electrophysiological investigations on the central innervation of the rat and guinea-pig pineal gland

Summary The possible influence of central nervous structures on the electrical activity of single pineal cells was investigated in rat and guinea-pig.In the rat electrical stimulation of the hippocampal formation elicited both single cell responses with different latencies and mostly long-term excitations in single pineal cells, while stimulation of the habenular nuclei caused clear orthodromical responses with different latencies, alterations in the rate of spontaneous electrical activity and evoked discharges of silent units.In the guinea-pig electrical stimulation of the paraventricular nucleus influenced predominantly cells in the deeper layers of the posterior part of the pineal gland. Electrical stimulation of both the superior and inferior colliculi elicited field potentials with a constant latency, indicating a functional relationship between the corpora quadrigemina and the pineal organ.Intrapineal stimulation and recording in the guinea-pig indicate functional connections between anterior and posterior parts of the pineal organ and that information can be conducted in both directions of the pineal axis.The data from the rat pineal gland are part of a thesis presented by St. Reuss in partial fulfillment for the degree of Dr. rer. nat. Preliminary data have been presented at the NATO Symposion The pineal gland and its endocrine role, Sicily 1982 (cf. Semm, 1983) and at the 6th European Neuroscience Congress, Malaga 1982 (cf. Reuss andSemm, 1982). — Financial support of the Stiftung Volkswagenwerk is gratefully acknowledged.     

Immunohistochemistry of folliculo-stellate cells in normal human adenohypophyses and in pituitary adenomas

Summary Presence and distribution of S-100 protein (S-100), neuron-specific enolase (NSE), cytokeratin polypeptides, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), vimentin, actin, lysozyme and pituitary hormones (prolactin, hGH, ACTH, -FSH, -LH, -TSH, alpha subunit) in folliculo-stellate cells (FSC) were studied in seven normal human pituitary glands and 28 pituitary adenomas using peroxidase-antiperoxidase and the avidin-biotin immunohistochemical techniques. Approximately 5% of the cells of the adenohypophysis were agranular, non-hormon-producing FSC most of which showed a conspicuous and strong reaction with S-100 antibodies but some were, in addition, GFAP- and vimentin-positive. In contrast to endocrine cells (EC), FSC were not decorated by antibodies to NSE or cytokeratins. In addition to supportive functions, these cells, due to their close special relationship to EC, seem to have transport and other metabolic functions yet to be elucidated. By their S-100 reactivity and their distribution FSC are comparable to glial cells of the central and schwann and satellite cells of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) as well as to supportive cells in neuroendocrine organs and related tumors (e.g., pheochromocytomas, paragangliomas, carcinoids). With one exception, S-100 reactive FSC were not found in pituitary adenomas. The immunohistochemical demonstration of S-100 protein in pituitary tissue is, therefore, a reliable aid in the discrimination between adenomas and normal pituitary tissue, particularly in small and poorly preserved specimens. In one adenoma FSC were found in addition to ACTH-producing tumor cells. This seems to be an extremely rare event suggesting a combination tumor.Supported in part by Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung (no. 4708) to H. Denk     

肾上腺节细胞神经瘤8例的诊断和治疗

目的：回顾分析8例肾上腺节细胞神经瘤的临床资料,以提高其诊断的水平,方法：8例病例行CT平扫肾上腺区,其中4例加行CT增强扫描,2例加做肾区磁共振成像MRI检查,对其影像学特点进行总结。结果：8例经病理证实的肿瘤中,7例CT平扫呈密度均匀,低于肌肉密度的肿块,增强扫描4例呈密度均匀或销不均匀肿块,低于或等于肌肉强化密度,MRI2例在冠状位T1加权像表现为均匀低信号,轴位T2加权介呈不均匀高信号（相对于正常肝脏信号）。结论：（1）CT和MRI检查在肾上腺节细胞神经瘤术前诊断中有重要价值。（2）治疗主要领先外科手术。