Plasma carnitine concentrations in patients undergoing open heart surgery.

Carnitine is an essential cofactor for fatty acid (FA) metabolism, the predominant source of ATP in the normal aerobic heart. During myocardial ischemia, FA metabolism is impaired and tissue carnitine levels are depleted. Since the heart cannot synthesize carnitine, plasma carnitine could play an important role in maintaining myocardial carnitine levels during reperfusion. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of abnormal plasma carnitine concentrations in open heart surgery. Blood samples were obtained from eleven patients before, immediately after, and two hours after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Total and free carnitine levels were significantly reduced immediately after CPB (p<0.01) and remained depressed until two hours after CPB (p<0.01 vs. pre CPB), while acyl carnitine levels were unchanged over the course of this study. These depressed free carnitine levels might affect cardiac metabolism in the heart after open heart surgery. Carnitine supplement might be a useful adjunct in the therapy after open heart surgery.     

Sequence variation of the rDNA ITS regions within and between anastomosis groups in Rhizoctonia solani

Sequence analysis of the rDNA region containing the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions and the 5.8s rDNA coding sequence was used to evaluate the genetic diversity of 45 isolates within and between anastomosis groups (AGs) in Rhizoctonia solani. The 5.8s rDNA sequence was completely conserved across all the AGs examined, whereas the ITS rDNA sequence was found to be highly variable among isolates. The sequence homology in the ITS regions was above 96% for isolates of the same subgroup, 66 – 100% for isolates of different subgroups within an AG, and 55 – 96% for isolates of different AGs. In neighbor-joining trees based on distances derived from ITS-5.8s rDNA sequences, subgroups IA, IB and IC within AG-1 and subgroups HG-I and HG-II within AG-4 were placed on statistically significant branches as assessed by bootstrap analysis. These results suggest that sequence analysis of ITS rDNA regions of R. solani may be a valuable tool for identifying AG subgroups of biological significance. Received: 11 February /16 May 1997     

Sensory inputs from the oral region to the cerebral cortex in behaving rats: an analysis of unit responses in cortical somatosensory and taste areas during ingestive behavior

1. The responses of 90 cortical neurons in the somatosensory and gustatory areas were recorded with chronically implanted fine wires in freely moving Wistar rats. The responses were analyzed mainly while the animals were freely licking solutions and eating dry pellets. Cortical neurons were classified into several groups according to their response properties. 2. "Mechanosensitive" neurons (n = 20) showed rhythmic phasic activity in different phases of the licking cycle, depending on the location of their receptive field in the peripheral orofacial region. 3. "Movement-related" neurons (n = 27) changed their activities tonically during licking, chewing, or grooming behavior. The responses were either excitatory or inhibitory. Receptive fields and adequate stimuli could not be identified. These neurons might receive somatosensory (except light tactile) inputs from wide or deep areas of intra- or perioral regions, or might be related to orofacial active movement. 4. "Taste" neurons (n = 35) increased or decreased their discharge rates during licking of particular taste solutions. Some taste neurons received convergence from somatosensory inputs. 5. "Temperature" neurons (n = 2) responded exclusively to water of temperatures lower or higher than room temperature. The responses were opposite in direction between cold and warm stimuli. 6. "Anticipation" neurons (n = 4) increased their impulse discharges before the start of licking in the situation in which the animal expected access to the drinking tube. 7. "Attention" neurons (n = 2) responded to arousal stimulation such as sound, a flash of light, and body touch. These neurons showed only a slightly increasing response during ingestive behavior. 8. The locations of 56 of 90 units were histologically identified. Mechanosensitive neurons were located in the appropriate parts of the somatotopic pattern within the primary somatic sensory area in the granular cortex. Taste neurons were found evenly in the dysgranular cortex and the agranular insular cortex. Other types of neurons were located mainly in the dysgranular cortex between the granular cortex and agranular insular cortex, and some were intermingled with taste neurons in the agranular insular cortex. 9. The present study has shown that cortical neurons in the orolingual somatosensory and taste areas have different response characteristics related to each aspect of ingestive behavior.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

The anterolateral funiculus in the spinal cord in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

We carried out a morphometric study on the myelinated fibers in the anterolateral funiculus (ALF) and lateral corticospinal tract (LCS) in the cervical segment of the spinal cord of 13 patients with classic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), 6 of whom had been on a respirator: 5 age-matched subjects were used as controls. The results obtained revealed that: (1) the fiber-size distributions of the myelinated fibers in the ALF and LCS of the control subjects had peaks at 2 m; (2) there were marked and significant losses of large myelinated fibers in the ALF and LCS of ALS patients; (3) the patients who required respirator support showed more severe degeneration in the ALF than those who required none; and (4) the degree of myelinated fiber loss in the LCS did not correlate with either the illness duration or the history of respirator use.     

Distinctive features of degenerating Purkinje cells in spinocerebellar ataxia type 31

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 31 (SCA31) is an autosomal dominant form of pure cerebellar ataxia that is caused by a disease‐specific insertion containing penta‐nucleotide repeats (TGGAA)_n. Neuropathologically, cerebellar Purkinje cells are preferentially affected and reduced in number in SCA31, and they are often surrounded by halo‐like amorphous materials. In the present study, we performed neuropathological analyses on two SCA31 brains, and discussed the serial morphological changes of Purkinje cells in SCA31.We found that bent, elongated, often folded nuclei were observed frequently in degenerating Purkinje cells with the halo‐like structure. Conversely, Purkinje cells without this structure developed marked atrophy with severely slender and condensed nuclei. On the basis of these pathological findings, we propose two different processes for Purkinje cell degeneration in SCA31, namely, shrinkage of Purkinje cells with or without the halo‐like amorphous materials. The former, but not the latter, was considered to be specific to SCA31. Correspondingly, fragmentation of the Golgi apparatus was observed more frequently in Purkinje cells with the halo‐like structure than in those without this structure. We consider that the profound nuclear deformity and fragmentation of the Golgi apparatus are closely linked with the formation of the halo‐like structure in SCA31.     

“Gliomatosis encephali” as a novel category of brain tumors by the first autopsy case report of gliomatosis cerebelli

Gliomatosis cerebri is a rare diffuse glioma that is neither mass‐forming nor necrotic, and does not disrupt existing structures. Gliomatosis occurring in the cerebellum is known as gliomatosis cerebelli, and only three such cases examined by biopsy have been reported. Here we describe the first autopsy findings of a patient who was diagnosed as having gliomatosis in the cerebellum. Neuropathological examination identified the tumor cells as being positive for glial fibrillary acidic protein, vimentin and nestin, with atypical nuclei that were cashew‐nut‐ or dishcloth‐gourd‐shaped. These tumor cells were dense in the right cerebellum, but also spread broadly throughout the brain including the left cerebrum and optic nerve. Mitotic figures were frequently seen in the cerebellum, brain stem and cerebrum. Scherer's secondary structures were evident not only in the cerebellum but also the cerebrum. No necrosis, microvascular proliferation or destruction of anatomical structures was detected in the whole brain. Differences in the origin of the tumors of the gliomatoses cerbri and cerebelli suggests these tumors are different types of brain tumors. Thus the findings support that the gliomatosis cerebelli is a novel type of brain tumor classification. Furthermore, by the similarities of the histological features among the tumors, it appears appropriate to establish a novel category of “gliomatosis encephali” which includes both gliomatosis cerebri and gliomatosis cerebelli.     

Alteration of midkine expression in the ischemic brain of humans

Midkine (MK) is a heparin-binding growth factor that occurs as a product of the retinoic acid-inducible gene. Alteration of MK expression in ischemic brain lesions was examined in humans immunohistochemically in nine patients and in two control subjects without neurological disorders. Some neurons were MK-immunopositive, but no evident MK-immunoreactivity was observed in astrocytes in brains of control subjects. In the ischemic lesions, significant elevation of MK-immunoreactivity in the astrocytes and depletion of the reactivity in neurons were seen, especially in the early period, where edema and eosinophilic neurons were prominent. On the other hand, MK-immunoreactivity was not observed in hypertrophic and fibrillary astrocytes in the later period. These findings suggest that the MK in astrocytes play some role in the repair process in the early period of the ischemic brain lesions in humans.