Endocrine disrupting effects on morphological synaptic plasticity.

Neural regulation of the homeostasis depends on healthy synaptic function. Adaptation of synaptic functions to physiological needs manifests in various forms of synaptic plasticity (SP), regulated by the normal hormonal regulatory circuits. During the past several decades, the hormonal regulation of animal and human organisms have become targets of thousands of chemicals that have the potential to act as agonists or antagonists of the endogenous hormones.

Analysis of arsenic-modulated expression of hypothalamic estrogen receptor, thyroid receptor, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma mRNA and simultaneous mitochondrial morphology and respiration rates in the mouse.

Arsenic has been identified as an environmental toxicant acting through various mechanisms, including the disruption of endocrine pathways. The present study assessed the ability of a single intraperitoneal injection of arsenic, to modify the mRNA expression levels of estrogen- and thyroid hormone receptors (ERα,β; TRα,β) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) in hypothalamic tissue homogenates of prepubertal mice in vivo. Mitochondrial respiration (MRR) was also measured, and the corresponding mitochondrial ultrastructure was analyzed.

[Morphological changes in the gastric mucosa in workers with chronic mercury poisoning].

The authors studied morphologic changes in gastric lining of patients facing chronic mercuric intoxication. The examinees are former burners at metallurgic plant of Khaidarkansk mercuric enterprise. The patients demonstrated significant destruction of the superficial epithelial cells and the accumulation of Campylobacter piloridis.

[Further study of experimental hepatitis E in piglets].

Experimental infection of piglets with a fecal pool containing hepatitis E virus (HEV) strains Osh-25 and Osh-228 confirmed previous results obtained with HEV strain Osh-205 on susceptibility of these animals to hepatitis E. A biphasic increase of transaminase activities, histopathologic changes in the liver, virus excretion with feces were observed in the animals. The genome of viral particles in piglet feces conformed, at least partially, to human HEV RNA.

[An experimental infection in lambs by the hepatitis E virus].

Lambs were experimentally infected with a pool of 10% hepatitis E (HE) patient fecal suspension containing HE virus (HEV) isolates Osh-225 and Osh-228 which caused an infection closely resembling experimental HE in primates. Clinical manifestations consisted of acute biochemical and histological hepatitis, virus shedding in feces, the presence of virus-like particles in the peripharyngeal lymph nodes and the contents of small intestine, of HEV RNA in the parenchymal organs of lambs. Susceptibility of lambs to HEV derived from the infected piglets and the possibility of passaging the piglets' HEV in lambs was demonstrated.