PULMONARY OEDEMA FOLLOWING AIRWAY OBSTRUCTIN IN A PATIENT WITH HODGKIN'S DISEASE

We report a case of pulmonary oedema follwing airway obstructionin a patient who underwent biopsy of a tumo ur in volving theanterior mediastinum and neck. The occurrence of airway obstructionin patients with anterior mediastinal masses, and the pathogenesisof pulmonary oedema occurring in association with airway obstruction,are discussed.     

Higher risk of infantile atopic dermatitis from maternal atopy than from paternal atopy

The risk of infantile atopic dermatitis (AD) posed by maternal atopy and paternal atopy, respectively, were compared in the infants from a birth cohort in whom one of the parents had been designated atopic by skin prick testing. Nineteen with atopic mothers were compared with 20 with atopic fathers. AD, other atopic manifestations and potentially influential factors such as breast-feeding were documented prospectively during the first year in all infants. At 3, 6 and 12 month assessments skin prick sensitivity and total serum IgE concentration were determined. Nine of 19 infants with atopic mothers and two of 20 with atopic fathers had AD (P = 0.023) giving a relative risk of 4.7 (95% confidence interval 2.5 to 9.0). Seven of 19 with atopic mothers and none with atopic fathers had AD with onset before 6 months (P = 0.007). When all types of disease evidence (AD, recurrent wheeze and food reactions) were analysed together no significant difference was apparent between the groups. The two groups were found to be well matched with regard to breast-feeding, time of starting cow's milk, solids and egg, sex, month of birth, parental AD and smoking, race, household pets and neonatal IgE concentration. IgE concentrations at each age and the prevalence of skin prick positivity were similar between the groups. Maternal atopy poses a higher risk for infantile AD and paternal atopy. Whether this may be due to genetic or congenital factors or both is uncertain, but clearly the finding is of relevance in the prediction of allergy in childhood.     

T cell clones from a Sjögren's syndrome salivary gland biopsy produce high levels of IL-10

Sjögren''s syndrome (SS) is characterized by a focal periductal salivary gland infiltrate consisting mainly of T and B lymphocytes. Most of the T cells bear the memory of CD4⁺ Th-1-like phenotype and express high levels of class II, though CD8⁺ cells are also present. We have studied 17 labial salivary gland and 15 peripheral blood T cell clones from a patient with primary SS. The tissue clones were 71% CD8⁺ and 29% CD4⁺, and the peripheral blood-derived clones were 60% CD8⁺ and 40% CD4⁺. The CD4⁺ T cell clones from both the salivary gland and autologous peripheral blood were of the Th1 phenotype, in that they produced interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and IL-2 but very little IL-4 after 24 h stimulation with phorbol myristate acetate and anti-CD3 antibody. The salivary gland-derived CD4⁺ clones produced 15 times more IL-10 (7·92 ng/ml) than peripheral blood-derived CD4⁺ clones (0·52 ng/ml, P≤0·02). The tissue CD8⁺ clones produced 1·2 times (P<0·04) more IFN-γ and CD4⁺ clones produced 3·5 times less IL-2 (P<0·02) than the respective PBM-derived clones. The accumulation of Th1-type cells producing high levels of IL-10 in the salivary gland suggests a specific immunoregulatory function at the site of inflammation in SS.     

The IgG subclass antibody response to an inhalant antigen (Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus) during the first year of life: evidence for early stimulation of the immune system following natural exposure

This study investigates the early humoral immune response following natural exposure to an inhalant antigen (Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus) in 36 babies, from birth until 1 year of age. The total IgG and subclass 1 and 4 D. pteronyssinus-specific antibody levels were assayed in sera collected at 7 days, 3 and 12 months by ELISA. After an initial fall, due to the progressive loss of maternal antibodies, an IgG specific response to D. pteronyssinus was seen between 3 and 12 months. This was restricted to the IgG1 subclass when the values at 12 months were significantly higher than those detected at the third month (P less than 0.001, paired t test). No D. pteronyssinus-specific IgG4 antibody was detected in any subject at any of the time points tested. The present study demonstrates that inhalant as well as food antigens are able to stimulate the immune system during the first year of life and that the antibodies produced are of the IgG1 subclass.     

The Developmental Toxicity of Diethylene Glycol Dimethyl Ether in Mice

The Developmental Toxicity of Diethylene Glycol Dimethyl Etherin Mice. PRICE, C. J., KIMMEL, C. A., GEORGE, J. D., AND MARR,M. C. (1987). Fundam. Appl. Toxicol. 8, 115–126. Diethyleneglycol dimethyl ether (diEGdiME) is structurally related toseveral compounds which produce reproductive and developmentaltoxicity, including teratogenicity in laboratory animals. Inthe present study, diEGdiME (0, 62.5, 125, 250, or 500 mg/kg/day)was administered by gavage in distilled water to timed-pregnantCD-1 mice during major organogenesis [gestational days (gd)6–15]. Clinical status of treated females was monitoreddaily during treatment and on gd 17. At sacrifice (gd 17), pregnancywas confirmed by uterine examination for 20–24 dams pergroup; each live fetus was examined for external, visceral,and skeletal malformations. No maternal deaths, morbidity, ortreatment-related clinical signs were observed. Reduced maternalweight gain during treatment at 250 mg/kg/day was primarilyattributed to compromised pregnancy status resulting in reducedgravid uterine weight. Maternal weight gain during gestationcorrected for gravid uterine weight, and relative liver weight(% body weight) were not affected. Average fetal body weight/litterwas significantly reduced at 125 mg/kg/day. The percentageof postimplantation loss/litter (5, 8, 7, 12, and 50% for controlthrough high dose) and the percentage of malformed live fetuses/litter(0.4, 0, 2, 24, and 96%) were significantly increased at 250mg/kg/day. Developmental defects involved primarily the neuraltube, limbs and digits, craniofacial structures, abdominal wall,cardiovascular system, urogenital organs, and both the axialand appendicular skeleton. In summary, oral administration ofdiEGdiME during major organogenesis did not produce any distinctivesigns of maternal toxicity, but did produce selective and profoundadverse effects upon fetal growth, viability, and morphologicaldevelopment at 125 mg/kg/day.     

Developmental Toxicity Evaluation of Ethylene Glycol by Gavage in New Zealand White Rabbits

Artificially inseminated New Zealand white (NZW) rabbits wereadministered ethylene glycol (EG) by gavage on Gestational Days(GD) 6 through 19 at doses of 0, 100, 500, 1000, or 2000 mg/kg/day,with 23–24 inseminated animals per group. Clinical signswere recorded and water consumption was measured daily; doeswere weighed on GD 0, 6–19, 25, and 30. At necropsy (GD30), maternal liver, kidney, and gravid uterine weights wererecorded. Histopathologic examination was performed on kidneysfrom 10 does/dose and for all unscheduled deaths. Ovarian corporalutea were counted and uterine implantation sites (total sites,resorptions, dead and live fetuses) were recorded. All livefetuses were weighed, sexed, and examined for external, visceral,and skeletal malformations and variations. EG resulted in profoundmaternal toxicity at 2000 mg/kg/day (42% mortality; three earlydeliveries and one spontaneous abortion) associated with renalpathology and unaccompanied by any other indicators of maternaltoxicity. Renal lesions at 2000 mg/kg/day involved the corticalrenal tubules and included intraluminal oxalate crystals, epithelialnecrosis, and tubular dilatation and degeneration. No dose-relatedmaternal toxicity occurred at 100–1000 mg/kg/day. Therewas no indication of developmental toxicity at any dose tested,including no effects on pre- or postimplantation loss, numberof fetuses, fetal body weight, or sex ratio (% male fetuses)per litter, and no evidence of teratogenicity. The "no observableadverse effect level" (NOAEL) for maternal toxicity was therefore1000 mg/kg/day and the NOAEL for developmental toxicity wasat least 2000 mg/kg/day in this study. The sensitivity of NZWrabbits relative to that of Sprague—Dawley rats and Swissmice for maternal and developmental toxicity from gavage administrationof EG during organogenesis can be determined for maternal toxicity:rabbits>mice>rats, and for developmental toxicity, mice>>rats >> rabbits.