Selachyl alcohol as an oral antihypertensive agent: a preliminary note

Selachyl alcohol (SA) is a mono-oleyl glyceryl ether. It has certain biologic activities similar to those of the antihypertensive neutral renomedullary lipid (ANRL) derived from the renal papilla and its renomedullary interstitial cells (RIC). These include a vaso-depressor effect following bolus injection and a requirement for hepatic activation for the development of biological activity. In view of this similarity to ANRL, it appeared worthwhile to test the antihypertensive action of SA when given via the GI tract. Accordingly, pure SA was given either by gavage or by tube into the stomach or duodenum of one-kidney, one-clip hypertensive rats (5-10 mg per dose). The role of hepatic activation was demonstrated by comparing the BP response to bolus injection of SA and ANRL with and without the presence of an intact circulation to the liver. Administration of SA via the GI tract resulted in a significant decline in BP without tachycardia or weight loss. In the absence of a circulation to the liver, neither SA nor ANRL was active. SA appears to be an effective antihypertensive agent when given via the GI tract.     

Anesthesia affects respiratory and sympathetic nerve activities differentially.

Phrenic and cervical sympathetic nerve responses to hypercapnia were examined before and after anesthesia in twelve midcollicularly decerebrated, vagotomized, glomectomized, paralyzed and ventilated cats. We measured responses of integrated phrenic and cervical sympathetic nerve activities to increases in end-tidal PCO2 (PETCO2) from apneic threshold to approximately 30 torr above threshold. All cats were studied first in the unanesthetized state. Six cats were then restudied after a quarter of a usual dose of chloralose/urethane (10 mg/kg and 62.5 mg/kg, respectively) and then after half the usual dose of chloralose/urethane (20 mg/kg and 125 mg/kg). The other six animals were restudied after quarter of a standard dose of pentobarbital (9 mg/kg), after half the standard dose (18 mg/kg) and then after the full (35 mg/kg) dose. Both anesthetic agents led to significant increases in apneic thresholds for both phrenic and sympathetic nerve activities. These agents also caused dose-dependent decreases in peak, tonic and respiratory-related sympathetic nerve activities. Peak (tidal) phrenic nerve activities, in comparison, were much less affected by the anesthetic agents. CO2 response curves showed that both of these anesthetic agents depressed, at any given level of PETCO2, respiratory-related sympathetic nerve responses more than the responses found in the phrenic nerve. We conclude that the relations between peak, tonic (i.e. between phasic bursts) and respiratory-related sympathetic nerve activities and phrenic nerve activity can be altered by anesthesia.     

Case Report: Giant choledochal cyst

We report an adult female with a rare giant choledochal cyst. The patient presented following a normal pregnancy with the classical triad of an abdominal mass associated with jaundice and right upper quadrant abdominal pain. The cyst was excised using an intramural technique and biliary reconstruction achieved with a Roux-en-Y hepaticojejunostomy. Our patient has remained well with no evidence of malignancy over a 12 year review period. The aetiology and current management of this condition are discussed.     

Determination of optimal cryoprotectants and procedures for their addition and removal from human spermatozoa

The objective was to test the hypothesis that the optimal cryoprotective agent for cryopreservation of human spermatozoa would be a solute for which cells have the highest plasma membrane permeability, resulting in the least amount of volume excursion during its addition and removal. To test this hypothesis, theoretical simulations were performed using membrane permeability coefficients to predict optimal procedures for the addition and removal of a cryoprotectant. Simulations were performed using data from four different cryoprotectants: (i) glycerol, (ii) dimethyl sulphoxide, (iii) propylene glycol and (iv) ethylene glycol. Thermodynamic formulations were applied to determine approaches for the addition and removal of 1 M and 2 M final concentrations of cryoprotectant, allowing the spermatozoa to maintain a cell volume within their osmotic tolerance limits. Based on these data, ethylene glycol was predicted to be optimal for minimizing volume excursions among the solutes evaluated. These predictions were then experimentally tested using glycerol as the control cryoprotectant and ethylene glycol as the experimental cryoprotectant. The results indicate that there was a higher (P < 0.05) recovery of motile spermatozoa after cryopreservation when using 1 M ethylene glycol than with 1 M glycerol, supporting the hypothesis that use of the cryoprotectant for which the cell has the highest permeability will result in higher cell survival.      

Evaluation of Port-A-Cul transport system for protection of anaerobic bacteria.

The protection of anaerobes in Port-A-Cul (PAC) transport system (Bioquest, Div. of Becton, Dickinson &Co., Cockeysville, Md.) tubes and vials was studied. Ten species of obligately anaerobic bacteria commonly isolated from clinical specimens were used to prepare simulated swab and fluid specimens in high and low concentrations. Samples in PAC tubes and vials were held for 2, 24, and 48 h at ambient temperature and in a refrigerator. In addition, samples of the simulated specimens were exposed to controlled anaerobic and aerobic conditions in vented tubes and vials, with and without PAC medium, at ambient and refrigerator temperatures. Viable bacterial colony counts from specimens in PAC tubes and vials used as recommended by the manufacturer were consistently greater than those from specimens exposed to the different controlled conditions. The protection in PAC was about equal for specimens with either high or low concentrations of bacteria. Protection of the anaerobes in PAC was more obvious with swab than with fluid specimens. Quantitative recovery of anaerobes from refrigerated PAC samples, with few exceptions, was comparable to that from PAC samples held at ambient temperature.