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 -     

AMPK在妊娠期糖尿病发病机制中的作用

腺苷酸活化蛋白激酶是一种重要的蛋白激酶,主要作用是协调代谢和能量平衡.腺苷酸活化蛋白激酶被激活后,在增加骨骼肌对葡萄糖摄取、增强胰岛素敏感性、增加脂肪酸氧化以及调节基因转录等方面发挥重要作用.已经证实脂联素有调节糖脂代谢的作用,但其作用机制尚不十分清楚,很可能是通过腺苷酸活化蛋白激酶介导,对脂联素信号转导通路的研究将成为进一步理解脂联素作用的关键所在.而脂联素又是妊娠期糖尿病的预测因子,所以腺苷酸活化蛋白激酶逐渐成为对妊娠期糖尿病研究中的焦点.     

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.     

臂丛神经根性损伤膈神经移位术对青壮年患者早期呼吸功能的影响

目的研究臂丛神经损伤膈神经移位术对青壮年患者早期呼吸功能的影响.方法对16例接受膈神经移位治疗的患者,在术前、术后（10 d）进行肺功能指标的比较,同时定期进行门诊随访,观察呼吸系统自觉症状程度.结果13例术后出现了不同程度的供氧不足症状,16例全部出现一侧膈肌抬高,术后第10天肺活量（VC）、肺活量预计值百分数（VC%）分别比术前减少37.98%和26.88%,两者差异有统计学意义（tvc=11.532、tvc%=0,P＜0.01）.其它项目如残气量（RV）较术前轻度下降,肺总量（TLC）下降值达到术前肺总量的36.49%,残气量/肺总量比值（RV/TLC%）较术前上升了4.75%,上述各指标的差值均有统计学意义.1 s用力呼气量/用力肺活量比值（FEV1/FVC）和术前比基本无改变,但其差值有统计学意义.膈神经移位右侧（10例）与左侧（6例）术前、术后肺活量比较差异有统计学意义.术后随访8个月～2年,所有患者均无明显呼吸困难和胸闷等症状.结论膈神经移位术后对青壮年患者肺容量有较大的丧失,肺通气功能减弱和小气道阻力增加,但其丧失程度在机体自身代偿耐受范围内,不会导致急剧发生的严重呼吸功能障碍.建议对右侧臂丛神经根性损伤的患者,术前进行严格的肺、心功能检查,避免发生较为严重的并发症.     

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.     

The need for a standard national immunization record

Perhaps the most significant link in achieving the nation's immunization objectives is the extent of parental knowledge. Admittedly, this is a weak link. The 1990 federal objectives calling for an official format using common guidelines for completion of immunizations, though well-conceived, has not been used exclusively by health care givers. The lack of accord has permitted the proliferation of many different immunization records that are not only confusing to parents, but also to health care providers at times. A standard national immunization record could be an essential element in strengthening the weak link of parental knowledge of immunizations and stressing the importance of preserving such a record for a lifetime.     

Potentiation of 2-deoxy-D-glucose antinociception, but not hyperphagia by zolantidine, a histamine (H2) receptor antagonist.

Antagonism of the histamine (H2) receptor reduces antinociception induced by naloxone-resistant foot-shock, naloxone-sensitive foot-shock, and morphine with a rank-order potency similar to their H2 antagonism. The antimetabolic glucose analog 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG) produces antinociceptive and hyperphagic responses that dissociate from each other and are in part mediated by opioid systems. The present study determined the effects of the brain-penetrating H2 receptor antagonist zolantidine (ZOL) on 2DG antinociception on the tail-flick and jump tests, as well as on 2DG hyperphagia, in rats. ZOL (0.01-1 mg/kg) potentiated the antinociceptive responses induced by a moderate (450 mg/kg) dose of 2DG, but had lesser effects upon antinociception induced by a lower (100 mg/kg) 2DG dose. ZOL itself slightly increased jump thresholds, but not tail-flick latencies. Combinations of ZOL and 2DG produced supraadditive antinociception, even though ZOL failed to significantly shift the 2DG dose-response curve to the left. In contrast, ZOL failed to alter basal intake or 2DG hyperphagia, supporting previous evidence implicating the H1 but not the H2 receptor in these effects. These results further dissociate the antinociceptive and hyperphagic effects of 2DG, and also support previous results indicating both pro- and antinociceptive roles for H2 receptors.