Intoxication with four synthetic pyrethroids fails to show any correlation between neuromuscular dysfunction and neurobiochemical abnormalities in rats.

The neurological effects of four synthetic pyrethroids resmethrin, permethrin, cypermethrin, and deltamethrin have been investigated in the rat to establish whether there is a correlation between the clinical-functional status of the animal and peripheral nerve damage as measured biochemically. Neuromuscular dysfunction was assessed by means of the inclined plane test and peripheral nerve damage by reference to beta-glucuronidase and beta-galactosidase activity increases in nerve tissue homogenates from treated and control animals. A transient functional impairment was found in animals treated with any one of the four pyrethroids tested and in all cases this was maximal at the end of the 7 day subacute dosing regimen.

Ultrastructural changes in bronchoalveolar lavage cells in sarcoidosis and comparison with the tissue granuloma.

The authors undertook this study to determine whether there were any morphologic changes in bronchoalveolar lavage lymphocytes and macrophages in sarcoidosis and, in particular, to determine whether changes described previously in the mononuclear phagocytes of sarcoid granulomas were also evident in such cells obtained by lavage. Lavage cells from 28 sarcoidosis patients were studied by transmission electron microscopy and compared with lavage cells from 17 control subjects and with lung tissue granulomas from 5 sarcoidosis patients. Interactions between mononuclear phagocytes, especially subplasmalemmal linear densities, and between these cells and lymphocytes were observed in both the tissue granulomas and lavage specimens from sarcoidosis patients.

Protection against misonidazole-induced neuropathy in rats: a biochemical assessment.

A biochemical method for assessing the chemically induced neurotoxicity of misonidazole (MISO) in the rat has been used to assess whether the concurrent administration of thiamine, thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) or vitamin E (Vit.E) could afford protection against the neurotoxic side effects of the drug. The tissues analysed were distal sections of the sciatic/posterior tibial nerve (SPTN), trigeminal ganglia and cerebellum.

Interstitial lung disease and asthma in hard-metal workers: bronchoalveolar lavage, ultrastructural, and analytical findings and results of bronchial provocation tests.

Five patients with respiratory disorders associated with hard metal exposure are described. In four patients electron microprobe analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage cells or lung tissue was used to show tungsten and other hard-metal components. Three patients had interstitial pneumonia and fibrosis with unusual multinucleate giant cells.

Peripheral blood cell changes in response to acute hypoglycaemia in man.

Peripheral white and red blood cell changes were studied in response to acute insulin-induced hypoglycaemia in six normal, six splenectomized and five sympathectomized (tetraplegic) subjects. The normal subjects were restudied during beta (propranolol) and beta 1-selective (metoprolol) adrenergic blockade. In the normal subjects a lymphocytosis immediately followed the acute hypoglycaemic reaction (R) with a neutrophilia 2 h later.

Cell marker studies in patients with newly diagnosed chronic lymphatic leukaemia.

Cell marker analysis including mouse red cell rosetting ability was carried out on 24 newly diagnosed patients with chronic lymphatic leukaemia. Using a technique not employing neuraminidase a significant difference in mouse red cell rosetting ability was noted between male and female patients. It is well accepted that females often have a milder form of disease and better longterm survival than it is suggested this might be a reflection of the difference found in mouse red cell rosetting ability between the sexes in this condition.

Screening for ciliary dyskinesia - a spectrum of defects of motility and structure.

Ciliary motility and ultrastructure were studied in cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis and Kartagener's syndrome and normal control subjects. In cilia from patients with Kartagener's syndrome, beat frequency was slower and there were more microtubular abnormalities and fewer dynein arms than for each of the other groups. In Kartagener's syndrome, ciliary motility and outer dynein arm numbers were positively correlated and there was a wide variation in each.

T and B lymphocyte markers in effusions of patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

T and B cells were sought in effusion fluids of 13 patients with lymphoma. In T cell lymphomas (four cases) morphologically abnormal cells that formed E rosettes were present. In B cell lymphomas (nine cases) morphologically abnormal cells were present in only two cases, however immunological studies showed a reduction in T cells and monoclonal light chain immunoglobulin expression in six of nine cases.

Squamous cell carcinoma of bronchus: polypoid granules and mitochondrial densities found by electron microscopy.

In the course of studying a series of human bronchial and lung carcinomas by electron microscopy, we have come across a squamous cell (epidermoid) carcinoma containing two different kinds of small bodies that have not been described previously. One of them took the form of small round dense granules projecting from the surface of keratinizing tumour cells, which we have termed 'polypoid granules'. The other consisted of small oval dark densities associated with the outer membranes of the mitochondria of non-keratinizing tumour cells, which we have termed 'mitochondrial densities'.

Transitory ultrastructural abnormalities of cilia.

We report a patient with chronic respiratory tract disease and ultrastructural abnormalities of nasal cilia at first interpreted as being consistent with a primary ciliary defect. Subsequent sampling of nasal ciliated epithelium from the same area failed to reveal the defects of structure. Abnormalities of ciliary ultrastructure found on a single occasion, especially in the presence of acute inflammation, should be interpreted with caution.

One very rare and one new tracheal tumour found by electron microscopy: glomus tumour and acinic cell tumour resembling carcinoid tumours by light microscopy.

Tracheal tumours were removed surgically from two patients and diagnosed as carcinoid tumours by routine light microscopy. At a later date, electron microscopy was performed on stored tumour tissue and no neurosecretory granules were found in either case. One showed features of a glomus tumour and the other of an acinic cell tumour.

A biochemical assessment of the neurotoxicity of the radiosensitizing drug misonidazole in the rat.

We have obtained biochemical evidence that misonidazole when administered in large doses to rats produces a sparse dying-back peripheral neuropathy and degenerative changes in the trigeminal ganglia and cerebellum. In our experience these neurotoxic effects of misonidazole cannot be detected reliably by the use of simple behavioural and functional tests, e.g.

Studies on blood lymphocytes of patients with nodular poorly differentiated lymphocytic lymphoma.

T and B lymphocytes were measured in pretreatment blood samples from patients wih nodular poorly differentiated lymphocytic lymphoma (NPDLL). There were significant differences in T cell values between control groups and patients with NPDLL. In 13 out of 20 cases of NPDLL blood lymphocytes showed abnormalities of immunoglobulin light chain expression and were considered to show an abnormal clonal expansion of B lymphocytes.

Evidence of increased histamine levels of lung lavage fluids from patients with cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis.

In this study we report a significant increase in histamine in lung lavage fluids from a group of 33 patients with lone cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis (lone CFA), and from a group of 13 patients having CFA in association with other connective tissue disorders, when compared with findings for 13 smoking patient controls without peripheral lung disease (P less than 0.001, P less than 0.05 respectively).

Preparation and properties of antisera to Mph-1, the mouse macrophage alloantigen.

Mph-1 is an alloantigen demonstrable on mouse peritoneal macrophages. Two lines, B10M.I and C.

A biochemical method for assessing the neurotoxic effects of misonidazole in the rat.

A proven biochemical method for assessing chemically induced neurotoxicity has been applied to the study of the toxic effects of misonidazole (MISO) in the rat. This involves the fluorimetric measurement of beta-glucuronidase and beta-galactosidase activities in homogenates of rat nervous tissue. The tissues analysed were sciatic/posterior tibial nerve (SPTN) cut into 4 sections, trigeminal ganglia and cerebellum.

T-cell lymphoma in children and young adults: clinical, immunological and pathological features.

The clinical, pathological and immunological features in 5 cases of T-cell lymphoma without overt marrow involvement are described. Classification of this distinct sub-group of lymphoma on morphological and clinical criteria alone has been shown to be unreliable, and precise recognitionr equires additional information from cytochemical and immunological marker studies of peripheral blood and lymph nodes. Valuable information may also be obtained from analysis of pleural fluid.

Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid cell counts in cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis and their relation to therapy.

Bronchoalveolar lavage was used to sample inflammatory cells from the lungs of 51 patients with cryptogenic fibrosing alveolitis (CFA) (24 smokers, 12 ex-smokers, and 15 non-smokers). The smokers with CFA have been compared with 15 smoking control subjects in whom there was no radiographic abnormality or clinical evidence of chronic bronchitis. Significantly lower volumes of lavage fluid were recovered from the smokers with CFA (p < 0.