Professional Educational Opportunities

Sexuality and Disability -     

From the Editor of Sexuality and Disability: The More We Listen to What is Being Said,the More We Can Learn

Sexuality and Disability -     

Phospholipase A2-catalyzed conversion of hepatic cytochrome P450 to P420 in microsomal membranes prepared from young and old rats

Previous studies from this Laboratory have revealed few significant age-related changes in either hepatic microsomal cytochrome P₄₅₀ content or NADPH-cytochrome P₄₅₀ reductase activity, prompting the suggestion that the nearly ubiquitous age-associated decline in the hepatic metabolism of xenobiotics by the mixed-function oxidases is a result of alterations in the lipid matrix in which the macromolecular components are organized. In order to examine this postulate, the membrane microenvironment surrounding hepatic microsomal cytochrome P₄₅₀ was enzymatically digested with snake venom phospholipase A₂, and the kinetics of conversion of cytochrome P₄₅₀ to cytochrome P₄₂₀ determined for preparations obtained from rats of varying age. There were no significant differences in the kinetics of conversion of cytochrome P₄₅₀ to cytochrome P₄₂₀, suggesting that there are no significant age-related changes in the lipid microenvironment immediately adjacent to cytochrome P₄₅₀. However, there was a slight difference, independent of age, in the rate of conversion of cytochrome P₄₅₀ to cytochrome P₄₂₀ between smooth and rough microsomes. The results are discussed in terms of general experimental approaches toward understanding drug metabolism in senescent organisms.     

Neurobiology of Bipolar Illness: Implications for Future Study and Therapeutics

Many findings implicating prefrontal cortical and limbic areas of the brain and endocrine systems in the neuropathology and pathophysiology of bipolar illness have greatly increased our understanding of the neurobiology of the illness. New imaging techniques such as PET, MRI, SPECT, and MRS have detailed more evidence of specific regional alterations in the brains of bipolar patients than was thought possible just 20 years ago. These methods are beginning to be used to help predict response to treatment. Examining the mechanisms of action of mood stabilizers (such as lithium, carbamazepine, and valproate) has provided clues to potential underlying neurobiological abnormalities in the illness. Recent studies of postmortem brain tissue have begun to confirm prefrontal cortical and limbic neurochemical and microstructural alterations in patients with bipolar illness compared with controls. It is postulated that it is the balance between primary pathological versus secondary adaptive alterations in gene expression in the illness and their enhancement or dampening by pharmacotherapy, that may determine the episodic course of mood fluctuations and remissions. Further examination of the pathophysiology and neurobiology of bipolar illness should lead to both more effective treatments and, potentially, secondary and even primary episode prevention.     

A leg ulcer as manifestation of metastatic squamous cell vaginal carcinoma

Cutaneous metastasis of vaginal carcinoma is extremely rare. So far, the total number of reported skin metastasis of vaginal carcinoma is only one. We present another case with an unusual manifestation of vagina carcinoma metastasis: skin metastasis presenting as a leg ulcer on the lower leg.