Blood-feeding adaptations and virome assessment of the poultry red mite Dermanyssus gallinae guided by RNA-seq.

Dermanyssus gallinae is a blood-feeding mite that parasitises wild birds and farmed poultry. Its remarkably swift processing of blood, together with the capacity to blood-feed during most developmental stages, makes this mite a highly debilitating pest. To identify specific adaptations to digestion of a haemoglobin-rich diet, we constructed and compared transcriptomes from starved and blood-fed stages of the parasite and identified midgut-enriched transcripts.

Bilateral anterior sacrospinous ligament suspension associated with a paravaginal repair with mesh: short-term clinical results of a pilot study.

Introduction And Hypothesis: This study aims to assess anatomical and functional results of bilateral anterior sacrospinous ligament suspension associated with paravaginal repair with mesh.

Methods: Forty-eight patients were operated between March 2007 and August 2008. Mean age was 67 years old.

Formulation and dosage form design in drug-induced topical irritation of the gastrointestinal tract.

To test drugs for topical effects on gastrointestinal mucosa, a new in situ rabbit colon model was used that permits direct application of drugs in suspensions from gel cups, solutions, or commercially available tablets and capsules onto rabbit colonic mucosa for up to 8 hr. For each agent tested an irritation index was calculated--the product of the area of the mucosa affected by drug exposure and a numerical score for observed effect. Irritation indices ranged from 0 (no effect) to 25.

Assessment and validation of animal models to evaluate topical effects of substances on gastrointestinal mucosa.

The in situ rabbit colon model is a sensitive and reproducible test to evaluate the topical effect of up to three substances applied to the colonic mucosa. Vibra-Tabs (doxycycline hyclate), Inderal (propranolol hydrochloride), and Slow-K (potassium chloride) were compared for topical effects in the Carlborg-Densert cat esophagus model, the Alphin-Droppleman cat gastric mucosa model adapted for dog intestine, and the rabbit colon. Because results were comparable in all models, additional dosage formulations were subsequently tested only in the rabbit colon model.

Transit of pharmaceutical dosage forms through the small intestine.

The gastrointestinal transit of pharmaceutical dosage forms has been measured in 201 studies in normal subjects using gamma scintigraphy. Solutions, small pellets, and single units (matrix tablets and osmotic pumps) were administered with different amounts of food in the stomach, ranging from fasted state to heavy breakfast. Gastric emptying was affected by the nature of the dosage form and the presence of food in the stomach.

Evaluation of oxprenolol and metoprolol Oros systems in the dog: comparison of in vivo and in vitro drug release, and of drug absorption from duodenal and colonic infusion sites.

The performance of oxprenolol and metoprolol Oros systems has been evaluated in the dog. One study compared in vivo and in vitro release from both systems over 2-14 h. The other compared the systemic availabilities of both drugs after 3 h infusion at a constant rate into the cephalic and hepatic portal veins, and into the lumen of the duodenum and colon.

Enzymatic screening of human uterine cervical biopsies in nonpregnant and pregnant women at parturition.

Twelve enzymatic activities, involved in the metabolism of proteins, collagen, glycosaminoglycans, or in the energy metabolism, were studied in 72 cervical biopsies obtained after delivery of the placenta and in 12 cervices obtained by hysterectomy in nonpregnant patients. Although these activities display high interindividual variations, they are greatly and significantly increased at parturition as compared to the nonpregnant state, with the exception of creatine kinase, which is maximum in cervices obtained from nulliparous nonpregnant women. The activities are low in the group of women who are 35 to 40 years old.

Preparation of an N-acetyl-octapeptide of cholecystokinin. The role of N-acetylation in protecting the octapeptide from degradation by smooth muscle tissues.

The C-terminal octapeptide of cholecystokinin (CCK-8) was acetylated on its lone N-terminal amino group using acetic anhydride in N,N-dimethylformamide. The acetylated derivative (Ac-CCK-8) and unreacted CCK-8 were separated from acetic anhydride and other reaction products by fractionation on Sephadex LH-20. Final purification was by thin-layer isoelectric focusing in a pH 2.

Estimating meconium (fetal feces) concentration in human amniotic fluid by nuclear magnetic resonance.

Measurements are reported of NMR relaxation times (T2) on hydrogen in water of isotonic NaCl solutions and of normal human amniotic fluid in which known concentrations of meconium (fetal feces) were dissolved. Magnetic fields for resonance of 23.5 X 10(3) and 0.

[Acetylcholinesterase: an additional test for diagnosis of fetal malformations].

From an observation of in utero suspected myelomeningocele, the authors underline interest of pattern of cholinesterases using acrylamide gel electrophoresis. The AChE isoenzyme band appears in some fetal malformations, particularly NTD. This biochemical test is considered as complementary of the AF alpha-fetoprotein assay.

Hepatic artery response to vasopressin.

As vasopressin began to be used widely to control gastrointestinal hemorrhage, there was concern over the effect of vasopressin on the hepatic circulation. Although an initial vasoconstrictor effect of the drug has been described on the hepatic artery, a secondary increase in blood flow ensues. This increase has been attributed to the accompanying decrease in portal blood flow produced by vasopressin.

Diatrizoate distribution in dogs as a function of administration rate and time following intravenous injection.

In this study, we determined diatrizoate concentrations in plasma and the extravascular space in dogs following an injection of the same dose of diatrizoate under three different conditions: (A) subsequent to a rapid bolus injection of diatrizoate: (B) subsequent to a bolus injection followed by an intravenous drip infusion; and (C) subsequent to a slow intravenous drip infusion. The data indicate that the highest plasma level occurred immediately after bolus injection (A). Significantly more diatrizoate was present in plasma 10 to 25 min from the start of an intravenous drip infusion given over 12.

Hemodynamic effects of vasodilators across iliac stenoses in dogs.

Blood flow and pressure gradients were measured in dogs across externally applied iliac artery stenoses following 3 minutes of reactive hyperemia and injection of tolazoline (0.4 mg/kg), papaverine (0.04 mg/kg), and prostaglandin E1 (0.

Early imaging of experimental intestinal infarction with 99mTc-pyrophosphate.

Extensive mucosal small-bowel infarction was produced in 8 dogs by occluding the cranial mesenteric artery. After one hour of reperfusion, 15 mCi (555 MBq) of 99mTc-pyrophosphate was intra-arterially injected into 4 dogs and venously into the other 4. Positive images were obtained in all dogs except 1 which had received an intravenous injection.

Mesenteric vascular effects of prostaglandins F2 alpha and B2. Possible advantages over vasopressin in control of gastrointestinal bleeding.

Mesenteric vascular effects of prostaglandins B2 and F2 alpha were studied and compared to those of vasopressin in the dog, cat and baboon. Vasopressin reduced superior mesenteric blood flow (SMBF) 80-100%, and significantly increased hepatic arterial blood flow and systemic arterial pressure. Prostaglandin B2 produced vasodilatation at low doses and biphasic vasodilatation/vasoconstriction at high doses.

Emptying the gallbladder prior to intravenous cholangiography: effect on gallbladder visualization.

Experiments were done to test the hypothesis that emptying the gallbladder prior to intravenous cholangiography (IVC) would result in earler and better opacification of the gallbladder. Five dogs were studied on two separate days in a crossover experiment. Each dog had a standard IVC (15-minute infusion of meglumine iodipamide) 2.

Small bowel absorption of sulfasalazine and its hepatic metabolism in human beings, cats, and rats.

To elucidate the role of the small bowel and liver in sulfasalazine (SASP) metabolism, we performed studies in patients, cats, and rats. The role of the small bowel in absorption and metabolism of SASP was determined by the amount of administered SASP excreted in ileostomy effluents, and the concentration of serum and urinary SASP and its metabolites, sulfapyridine and 5-amino salicylic acid. Seventy-five to ninety percent of the drug was excreted in ileostomy effluents of 6 patients as SASP, and only 5% of the dose was sulfapyridine.

Interaction between gastrin, CCK, and secretin on canine antral smooth muscle in vitro.

This study compared the actions and interactions of human synthetic gastrin, octapeptide-cholecystokinin (OP-CCK), cholecystokinin (CCK), and secretin on the amplitude of isometric tension developed in strips of dog antral smooth muscle in vitro. Cholecystokinin, OP-CCK, and gastrin produced maximal stimulatory effects at 7.5 x 10(-9), 4.

Comparison of in vivo and in vitro responses to sulfated and non-sulfated ceruletide.

Responses of, guinea pig gall bladder to sulfated and non-sulfated ceruletide were compared in vitro and in vivo. Tested in vivo, sulfated ceruletide was 75 times more potent than non-sulfated. In vitro, sulfated was 150 times more potent.

Effect of sulfated and non-sulfated gastrin and octapeptide-cholecystokinin on cat gall bladder in vitro.

This study demonstrates that for the isolated cat gall bladder a smaller molar dose of the sulfated form of OP-CCK and gastrin is required to produce contraction as compared to the respective non-sulfated forms. For OP the D50 for the sulfated form versus the non-sulfated form was 1.94.