Role of airway smooth muscle cell phenotypes in airway tone and obstruction in guinea pig asthma model.

Background: Airway obstruction (AO) in asthma is driven by airway smooth muscle (ASM) contraction. AO can be induced extrinsically by direct stimulation of ASM with contractile agonists as histamine, or by indirect provocation with antigens as ovalbumin, while the airway tone is dependent on intrinsic mechanisms. The association of the ASM phenotypes involved in different types of AO and airway tone in guinea pigs was evaluated.

Magnesium concentration in amniotic fluid in the early weeks of the second trimester of pregnancy.

Background: We analyse magnesium levels in amniotic fluid to establish normal values for the 14th to 18th week of pregnancy and establish critical values that could be useful diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines for possible complications.

Findings: Ninety-two samples of amniotic fluid obtained by amniocentesis as well as the corresponding serum samples of pregnant women were analysed. The gestational age (mean ± SD) at which the amniotic fluid sample was obtained was 16.