[Proton irradiation of the pituitary gland for alleviating pain in patients with disseminated prostate cancer].

Central Research Institute of Roentgeno-Radiology; Medical Academy for Further Education, St. Petersburg Stereotactic ablation of the frontal lobe of the pituitary with narrow beams of 1,000 MeV protons was performed in 80 patients to alleviate pain caused by bone metastases. Pain was aborted for a long time so that pain-relieving medication was suspended in 56 (70%) patients.

Metabolic alterations in rat myocardium in experimental acute atrial fibrillation.

Experimental atrial fibrillation in intact rats significantly decreased the content of catecholamines in atrial adrenergic fibers and phosphorylase activity, which attests to enhanced glycogen consumption in the heart. These changes were specific of the fibrillating myocardium and atria, but were absent in the ventricles. Induced atrial fibrillation did not modify activities of SDH and monoamine oxidase in cardiac subdivisions.

[Modulation of the antiarrhythmic effect by endogenous opioids during adaptation to hypoxia in rats].

Adaptation of rats to hypoxia increased the heart resistance against arrhythmogenic effects. The Met-enkephaline-Arg6-Phe7 contant increased in the hypothalamus of the adapted animals. The blockers of mu- and delta-opioid receptors reduced the antiarrhythmic effect of the adaptation, whereas chi-receptor inhibitor, nor-binaltorphimine, completely abolished it.

[Effect of the acute exposure to cold on the heart muscle].

An action of cold was found to decrease the rat myocardium contractile activity which correlated with the catecholamines level in adrenergic fibres and glycogenolysis in cardiac muscle. Coronary blood flow preservation associated with cold, and its decrease 18 hrs later are connected with the change in the basophils activity in the myocardium as well as with the dynamics of sympatho-adrenal system condition during experiment.