Quantification of mucosal EEC in jejunum. A comparative study of IBS patients and healthy controls

Abstract

Background: Enteroendocrine cells (EEC) have been suggested to have a role in the pathogenesis of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Although many studies have analysed possible numeric changes of EEC in IBS, the results differ between different studies. One reason might be due to difficulties in standardising the morphometric method.

Aim: The aim of this study was to compare two different methods for counting EEC in jejunum biopsies from patients with IBS and healthy controls.

Method: Fifty-one patients with IBS and 35 healthy controls were included in the study. Jejunum mucosa was procured using a Watson capsule. Slides were immunostained for serotonin and chromogranin A and then scanned digitally. The morphometry was done by counting cells per high power field (hpf) and per mm² after defining area of the mucosa. The two methods were compared using Bland Altman analysis.

Results: There was no difference in the number of EEC in patients with IBS compared to healthy controls. The number of cells detected by per mm² area of mucosa were higher than number of cells per hpf. Counting EEC per high power field systematically underestimated the number of cells in the mucosal area.

Conclusions: Counting cells per mm² mucosal area gives a better representation of the number of EEC in small bowel mucosa. The finding of no difference in EEC numbers does not imply an equal function and further studies are needed to evaluate the role, if any of EEC, in IBS.     

3T multiparametric MR imaging,PIRADSv2-based detection of index prostate cancer lesions in the transition zone and the peripheral zone using whole mount histopathology as reference standard

Abdominal Radiology - To evaluate 3T mpMRI characteristics of transition zone and peripheral zone index prostate cancer lesions stratified by Gleason Score and PI-RADSv2 with whole mount...     

Injection of intrathecal normal saline in decreasing postdural puncture headache

Purpose

Postdural puncture headache (PDPH) is the most common and still unresolved postoperative complication of spinal anesthesia. Although there are several positive results of intrathecal saline injection for the treatment of PDPH and prophylaxis after accidental dural puncture, the effect of deliberate intrathecal saline injection before spinal anesthesia has not been examined. The objective of our study was to evaluate the effect of prophylactic administration of intrathecal normal saline in decreasing PDPH.

Methods

One hundred healthy women (ASA physical status I) of age between 18 and 35 years scheduled for elective term cesarean delivery under spinal anesthesia were included. Patients were randomly divided into two equal groups. Group C received 2.5 ml (12.5 mg) hyperbaric bupivacaine 0.5 % as a control, and group S received intrathecal normal saline 5 ml before intrathecal injection of 2.5 ml (12.5 mg) hyperbaric bupivacaine 0.5 %. The incidence and severity of PDPH were assessed after 48 h and again 3–7 days after operation.

Results

Basal characteristics were statistically similar in both groups (P > 0.05). The incidences of moderate and severe PDPH during first postoperative 48 h were not different between the groups (P = 0.24). However, the frequency of PDPH after 3–7 days was statistically higher in group C in compared with group S (16 vs. 2 %, P = 0.03). Totally the frequency of PDPH was higher in group C (24 vs. 2 %, P = 0.002).

Conclusion

Administration of normal saline (5 ml) before intrathecal administration of hyperbaric bupivacaine as a preventive approach is an effective and simple way to minimize PDPH in patients undergoing cesarean section.     

Brucella canis-induced anterior uveitis in companion dogs in Ahvaz,Iran

Canine brucellosis, caused by Brucella canis, is an important cause of abortions, stillbirths, uveitis, epididymitis, orchitis, and sperm abnormalities in dogs. Anterior uveitis is one of the most common ocular diseases in dogs. The aim of this study was to describe the clinical and diagnostic features of anterior uveitis in dogs affected with B. canis in the Ahvaz district, southwestern Iran. A total of 243 blood samples were obtained from urban dogs between 2006 and 2010 and examined by immuno-chromatography assay (Anigen Rapid C. Brucella Ab Test Kit). Prevalence to B. canis antibodies was 6.58 % (16 out of 243) in the studied dogs. B. canis-induced anterior uveitis was seen in two German Shepherd dogs (12.5 %; 2 out of 16), the first was a 3.5-year-old male and the second was a 2.5-year-old female. Clinical ophthalmologic abnormalities included moderate anterior uveitis, mild conjunctival hyperemia, and iris hyperpigmentation. Following routine treatment (a median of 9 weeks from the onset of therapy), ocular inflammation resolved and serological tests were negative. The present study shows that ocular inflammation due to B. canis is present among the urban dog population in the Ahvaz district, Iran. B. canis infection should be included in the differential diagnosis for dogs with intraocular inflammation, regardless of previous history.     

Experimentally induced nasal irritation

The aim of this study was to develop a method that is suited for the induction of nasal irritation. For this purpose inflammatory responses were analysed after challenging the nasal mucosa with experimentally induced cold, dry air (8 l/min, 22 degrees C, 20 %RH). To assess inflammatory effects we determined inflammatory mediators (prostaglandin E2 [PGE2], thromboxane B2 TXB2[, peptide leukotrienes pLT: LTC4, LTD4, LTE4[) in nasal lavage fluid which was sampled before, immediately after suprathreshold stimulation, and one hour after termination of the stimulation. In addition, subjects estimated the intensity of pain during the stimulation. Cold, dry air produced strong painful sensations which increased throughout the stimulation period. A significant increase of the inflammatory mediator pLT was observed after stimulation; mean concentrations of PGE2 and TXB2 also showed a tendency to increase. One hour after termination of the stimulation the concentration of these inflammatory mediators returned to baseline which indicates the reversibility of the effects of nasal irritation. These data suggest, that this model may be a useful tool in investigations of mucosal irritation as, for example, induced by environmental agents.     

Effects of azapropazone on pain-related brain activity in human subjects.

1. The dose-related effects of azapropazone on (i) event-related and spontaneous EEG-activity and (ii) the subjects' pain ratings were investigated using an experimental human pain model based on both chemo-somatosensory event-related potentials (CSSERP) and subjects' pain ratings. 2. Healthy subjects (n = 20) participated in a placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind, four-way cross-over study. Single doses of azapropazone (300 mg, 600 mg and 1200 mg) and placebo were administered intravenously. Each experiment consisted of five sessions (before and 1, 2, 4 and 8 h after administration of the medication). Each session lasted for approximately 40 min. In the first 20 min, pain was induced by short CO2-stimuli presented to the right nostril (phasic pain; interstimulus interval 30 s) and EEG was recorded from five positions. CSSERPs were obtained in response to painful CO2-stimuli. In the following 20 min period, tonic pain was induced by a constant stream of dry air introduced in the left nostril. Subjects rated the intensity of both phasic and tonic pain by means of a visual analogue scale. Additionally, a frequency analysis of the spontaneous EEG was performed. 3. Azapropazone reduced the pain-related CSSERP-amplitudes at frontal and parietal recording positions. This topographical pattern was observed in previous studies with opioids, while NSAIDs such as flurbiprofen and ketoprofen exerted effects at frontal and central positions. In contrast to other NSAIDs, administration of azapropazone resulted in a reduction of the frequency bands alpha 1, delta and theta of the spontaneous EEG. At the subjective level, analgesic effects of azapropazone were observed in the ratings of tonic pain. 4. Analgesic properties of azapropazone were demonstrated in man. The topographical pattern of the changes in the CSSERPs and the effects on EEG background activity suggest a central component of the analgesic action of azapropazone.     

A comparison of the effect of lead nitrate on rat liver chromatin, DNA and histone proteins in solution

Although lead is widely recognized as a toxic substance in the environment and directly damage DNA, no studies are available on lead interaction with chromatin and histone proteins. In this work, we have examined the effect of lead nitrate on EDTA-soluble chromatin (SE chromatin), DNA and histones in solution using absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy, thermal denaturation and gel electrophoresis techniques. The results demonstrate that lead nitrate binds with higher affinity to chromatin than to DNA and produces an insoluble complex as monitored at 400 nm. Binding of lead to DNA decreases its Tm, increases its fluorescence intensity and exhibits hypochromicity at 210 nm which reveal that both DNA bases and the backbone participate in the lead–DNA interaction. Lead also binds strongly to histone proteins in the absence of DNA. The results suggest that although lead destabilizes DNA structure, in the chromatin, the binding of lead introduces some sort of compaction and aggregation, and the histone proteins play a key role in this aspect. This chromatin condensation, upon lead exposure, in turn may decrease fidelity of DNA, and inhibits DNA and RNA synthesis, the process that introduces lead toxicity at the chromatin level.     

Flavanols are potential anti-obesity agents,a systematic review and meta-analysis of controlled clinical trials

Background

The anti-obesity potential of flavonoids has been shown by animal and human studies. In this meta-analysis, we systematically reviewed controlled clinical trials and quantified the effects of flavonoids and flavonoid subclasses on obesity-related anthropometric measures.