Serotonin turnover in raphe neurons transplanted into rat hippocampus.

Injections of the neurotoxin, 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine, into rostral raphe nuclei in rats reduced serotonin (5-HT) and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) in hippocampus to 35-50% of normal levels but only reduced 5-HT synthesis and catabolism by 20-35%. The small reduction in 5-HT metabolism as compared to depletion of 5-HT suggests that 5-HT turnover was increased in nerve terminals that survived the neurotoxin lesion. Transplantation of rat fetal raphe cells into the 5-HT-denervated hippocampus restored 5-HT and 5-HIAA levels and 5-HT synthesis to 125-150% of normal.

Response of serotonin-containing neurons in nucleus raphe magnus to morphine, noxious stimuli, and periaqueductal gray stimulation in freely moving cats.

Extracellular single-unit recordings were made in nucleus raphe magnus in unanesthetized, unrestrained cats. Discharge of serotonergic neurons in this region was increased when animals were aroused by noxious stimuli such as pinch and radiant heating of the tail, but these cells were not specifically nociceptive. Peristimulus time histograms indicated that stimulation in the periaqueductal gray was excitatory but alveolar nerve stimulation at a noxious current intensity was no more effective than nonnoxious nerve stimulation in activating serotonergic unit discharge: Similarly, stressful treatments such as physical restraint increased the discharge of some serotonergic neurons, but these cells were activated during any period of behavioral arousal whether or not arousal was the result of aversive treatment.

Activity of serotonin-containing neurons in nucleus raphe magnus in freely moving cats.

Serotonergic neurons were recorded in the nucleus raphe magnus in freely moving cats and were initially identified on-line by their characteristic slow and regular spontaneous activity during quiet waking (3.42 +/- 0.33 spikes/s; mean +/- SE).

Regulation of serotonin release from the in vitro rat hippocampus: effects of alterations in levels of depolarization and in rates of serotonin metabolism.

We analyze the time course of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT, serotonin) release from K+-depolarized hippocampal slices using a two-compartment kinetic model. The model is based on the assumptions that the rate of release is dependent on the amount of 5-HT in a releasable pool and that this pool may be resupplied during depolarization by newly synthesized 5-HT. Comparisons were made between predictions of the model and observed changes in 5-HT metabolism and in 5-HT release studied under a variety of experimental conditions.

Psychological factors in adjustment to orthognathic surgery.

The psychological adjustment of 30 orthognathic surgery patients was evaluated before and on three occasions after surgery. Results of preoperative testing showed the group to be well adjusted, and there were no major changes in psychological functioning as a result of surgery. Motivation for surgery included both functional and esthetic goals, and the majority of patients were satisfied with the results of surgery.

Axisymmetric finite element analysis of tourniquet application on limb.

An axisymmetric finite element model of cuff on limb was developed. The model was used to simulate a clinical experiment by others in which the fluid pressure was measured at various points under a blood pressure cuff; the distribution of calculated hydrostatic stress was consistent with the clinical results. Simulations involving varying degrees of rounding at the edges of a tourniquet suggested that ensuring such rounding decreases maximum octahedral shear stress; this finding was consistent with studies by others using a two-dimensional physical model.

Anxiety, information, interpersonal impacts, and adjustment to a stressful health care situation.

Forty patients scheduled for dental extraction surgery were given either specific or general preparatory information, and this information was presented in either a personalized or relatively impersonal fashion using nonverbal cues. Changes in state anxiety over the course of the experiment were accounted for by individual differences in the Dental Anxiety Scale. The most important determinant of adjustment during surgery was the congruence between specificity of information received and individual differences in preference for information as measured by the Information subscale of the Krantz Health Opinion Survey (KHOS; Krantz, Baum, & Wideman, 1980).

Effect of increased oxygen affinity and anemia on cardiac output and its distribution.

Effect of increased blood O2 affinity on cardiac output and its distribution was studied in conscious sedated rats by the microsphere-reference sample method. After a preliminary measurement of cardiac output and its distribution, rats were exchange transfused with normal blood or low-P50 (PO2 at which hemoglobin is half-saturated with O2) blood; other groups were made anemic with and without a simultaneous reduction in P50. Reduction in P50 from 38 to 17 Torr did not change cardiac output, pulse, or blood pressure but caused, after allowance for changes in controls, a 102% increase in coronary blood flow and an 88% increase in cerebral blood flow.

Pure word deafness. Analysis of a case with bilateral lesions and a defect at the prephonemic level.

We have demonstrated that the deficit in speech perception in our patient with pure word deafness is secondary to a prephonemic temporal auditory acuity disorder. We delineated the nature of the auditory processing deficit in our patient with bilateral lesions and then demonstrated the presence of a predicted deficit in phonemic discrimination. This pattern is comparable to previous cases with bilateral lesions and distinct from other cases with unilateral lesions.

Vasopressin augments depolarization-induced release and synthesis of serotonin in hippocampal slices.

Vasopressin may be a neurotransmitter and in vivo experiments suggest that it acts on monoamine metabolism. The rat hippocampal slice contains serotonergic nerve terminals but not cell bodies; we studied the effect of vasopressin on the synthesis and release of serotonin from these nerve terminals during depolarization. Incubation of slices in a buffer containing 60 mM K+ (high K buffer) for 10 min stimulated the release of serotonin into bathing medium and resulted in a Ca2+-dependent depletion of tissue serotonin from about 4.

Familial recurrent peripheral facial palsy. Observations of the pediatric population.

Idiopathic peripheral facial palsies in the pediatric population have been noted to carry a favorable prognosis. We describe three members of a family, including two children with recurrent facial palsy, and review the relevant literature. As recurrent peripheral facial palsies carry a relatively poor prognosis, the physician should be alerted to this possibility in any child who has an idiopathic peripheral facial palsy and a positive family history.

Pure agraphia and unilateral optic ataxia associated with a left superior parietal lobule lesion.

Impairment in visually guided reaching and pure agraphia are described in a patient with a left superior parietal embolic infarction. Identification of these disorders required specific but simple test procedures. Both disorders may reflect disruption of specific integrative functions of the superior parietal lobule.

Headache in cerebral embolic disease.

A patient is presented who had severe headache and then developed a stuttering course of clinical neurological deficits. Arteriography demonstrated an ipsilateral proximal middle cerebral embolus. With recurrence of symptoms, repeat arteriography showed another, more proximal embolus with areas of distal occlusion.

Analysis of the 1957--1958 Soviet nuclear accident.

The presence of an extensive environmental contamination zone in Cheliabinsk Province of the Soviet Union, associated with an accident in the winter of 1957 to 1958 involving the atmospheric release of fission wastes, appears to have been confirmed, primarily by an analysis of the Soviet radioecology literature. The contamination zone is estimated to contain 10(5) to 10(6) curies of strontium-90 (reference radionuclide); a relatively small fraction of the total may have been dispersed as an aerosol. A plausible explanation for the incident is the use of now-obsolete techniques for waste storage and cesium-137 isotope separation.

Sex differences in anxiety response and adjustment to dental surgery: effects of general vs. specific preoperative information.

Monitored anxiety level by the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and Corah's (1969a) dental anxiety scale and evaluated adjustment via behavioral ratings, in 32 female and 31 male dental surgery patients who were presented general or specific information prior to surgery. The findings indicated that dental surgery is a stressful procedure that elicits comparably high levels of state anxiety in males and females. For most patients, even those high in dental anxiety, state anxiety level returns to "normal" levels just after the completion of surgery.

An acid phosphatase locus expressed in mouse kidney (Apk) and its genetic location on chromosome 10.

A genetic locus controlling the electrophoretic mobility of an acid phosphatase in mouse kidney is described. This locus, called acid phosphatase-kidney (Apk), is not expressed in erythrocytes, liver, spleen, heart, lung, brain, skeletal muscle, stomach, or testes. The product of Apk hydrolyzes the substrate naphthol AS-MX phosphoric acid but is not active on alpha-naphthylphosphate or 4-methylumbelliferylphosphate.

The effects of surgery-induced stress on anxiety as measured by the Holtzman Inkblot Technique.

Form A of the Holtzman Inkblot Technique (HIT) was administered to 45 subjects approximately 24 hours prior to a surgical operation and Form B of the HIT was administered after surgery. A-State and A-trait were monitored by the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) pre- and postsurgery. STAI A-State scores declined and STAI A-Trait scores remained stable from pre- to postsurgery.