Revascularized fibula for tibia replacement in adamantinoma

Adamantinoma of long bones is one of the rarest of malignant bone tumors; it is commonly located in the middle or lower third of the diaphysis of the tibia. A case with multiple occurrences affecting both the tibia and fibula is presented. En bloc resection with wide operative margins was performed, and a large tibial defect of 23 cm was effectively bridged by a revascularized free fibular flap. At 13 months follow-up, there was no sign of local recurrence or metastasis, and the patient was mobile.     

The growth of the second underpotentially deposited silver layer on Pt(100)

The electrodeposition of Ag on Pt(100)-(1 × 1) in perchlorate electrolyte was studied by means of time-resolved in situ scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) and cyclic voltammetry. One monolayer of Ag is deposited underpotentially (upd) ca. 500 mV positive of the Ag⁺/Ag equilibrium potential. Several millivolts positive of the equilibrium potential, a second well defined upd layer forms. Its growth was observed to proceed via island formation and coalescence. This process occurs in two separate stages that manifest themselves in voltammetric peaks as well as in the STM images.     

Interaction of B and T lymphocyte subsets with high endothelial venules in the rat: binding in vitro does not reflect homing in vivo

Lymphocytes continuously migrate through the body, and their efficient extravasation from the blood via high endothelial venules (HEV) is essential for initiating an appropriate immune response. Most investigations have focused on the lymphocyte/HEV interaction in vitro. However, to what extent such systems reflect the situation in vivo is not known. It is also unclear whether lymphocyte subsets immigrate into the HEV in proportion to their presence in the blood, and whether import capacity is limited by the HEV. When rat mesenteric lymph node lymphocytes were incubated in vitro on cryostat sections, the well-known preferential binding of B lymphocytes to HEV of Peyer's patches (PP) and T cells to HEV of axillary lymph nodes (axLN) was observed (axLN vs. PP: B lymphocytes 21.2 ± 5.0% vs. 40.6 ± 11.0%, T lymphocytes 84.6 ± 6.3% vs. 56.5 ± 12.9%). However, when labeled mesenteric lymph node lymphocytes were injected and their location within the HEV was analyzed 15 min later, no preferential interaction was seen. After injection of labeled thoracic duct lymphocytes, the percentage of labeled cells among B and T lymphocytes in the blood was significantly different (4.4 ± 0.9% vs. 8.9 ± 3.6%), whereas that in HEV of axLN (19.0 ± 6.4% vs. 16.6 ± 6.0%) and PP (30.6 ± 6.1% vs. 33.9 ± 4.4%) was comparable. Although the number of injected lymphocytes was similar in magnitude to the total blood lymphocyte pool, after injection there was no increase in lymphocyte numbers in the HEV. Thus, the adhesion assay in vitro does not completely reflect immigration into HEV in vivo. In addition, our data suggest that both the availability of lymphocyte subsets in small venules and the immigration rate into HEV are actively regulated in vivo.     

Lectin-induced increase in clonogenic growth of haematopoietic progenitor cells

Abstract: The galactoside-specific plant lectin, Viscum album agglutinin (VAA-I) increases cellular parameters of natural host defence. It also binds to a variety of haematopoietic cells, including progenitors. We investigated whether VAA-I has a stimulatory effect on haematopoietic progenitor cells. Peripheral blood progenitor cells from 7 healthy volunteers were cultured in a colony assay with VAA-I plus erythropoietin (EPO) and stem cell factor (SCF). At 50 pg/ml VAA-I induced a significant increase in the cytokine-dependent clonogenic growth (52% in median, p<0.05). In another set of experiments purified CD34+ cells were isolated from the bone marrow aspirate of 4 patients with non-metastatic breast cancer using fluorescence-activated cell sorting. Binding to CD34+ cells was demonstrated by using directly fluorescence-conjugated VAA-I. Co-incubation with d -galactose significantly abrogated this effect. CD34+ cells were cultured in the presence of EPO, SCF, interleukin-3, granulocyte/monocyte colony-stimulating factor and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor. VAA-I alone had no measurable effect on the clonogenic growth of the isolated cells. However, at concentrations of 100 and 250 pg/ml VAA-I increased the cytokine-dependent proliferation and differentiation of CD34+ cells by a median of 75 and 85%, respectively. The results show that VAA-I binds to haematopoietic progenitor cells and has a co-stimulatory effect on their proliferation.     

Brain Death Further Promotes Ischemic Reperfusion Injury of the Rabbit Myocardium

Background. Little is known about preload-dependent cardiac function after brain death (BD) and subsequent graft preservation.

Methods. A validated model of BD in rabbits was developed and myocardial performance was studied after BD induction and 1 hour of subsequent global hypothermic ischemia using a validated rabbit model and an isolated work-performing heart preparation.

Results. Significant decreases in stroke work, left ventricular contractility, and left ventricular relaxation were observed 2 hours after BD. After global hypothermic ischemia, significant decreases in stroke work, left ventricular contractility, and left ventricular relaxation were observed in the BD group compared with controls. Cardiac output and coronary flow were also significantly decreased in BD hearts compared with controls. Creatine kinase release was increased by 32.5% in BD hearts compared with controls.

Conclusions. In a rabbit model, BD combined with global hypothermic ischemia causes a significant decrease in left ventricular function compared with global hypothermic ischemia. This dysfunction may be attributed to a significant decrease in coronary flows in BD hearts.