Noradrenergic systems in human cerebellum.

Thin, beaded axons, immunostained with antisera to human dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH), were present in all layers of the anterior vermis of human cerebellum. This plexus appears similar to that described in rodents and provides information complementary to receptor autoradiographic studies that show significant noradrenergic innervation of mammalian cerebellum. Moreover, in two aged controls, we demonstrated abnormal, swollen, tortuous axons not visualized in young controls.

Solution conformation of a synthetic fragment of human pituitary growth hormone. Two-dimensional NMR of an alpha-helical dimer.

Circular dichroism and two-dimensional NMR spectra indicate that a peptide fragment consisting of the first 28 residues from the N-terminus of human growth hormone (hGH 1-28) has considerable alpha-helical structure. The peptide, (1) H-Phe-Pro-Thr-Ile-Pro-Leu-Ser-Arg-Leu-Phe-Asp-Asn-Ala-Met-Leu-Arg-Ala-Hi s-Arg- Leu-His-Gln-Leu-Ala-Phe-Asp-Thr-Tyr-OH (28), was synthesized on an automated peptide synthesizer using the Merrifield solid-phase method. The peptide can be modeled as an amphiphilic helix, and the unusual stability of the alpha-helix in aqueous solution is suggested to be attributable to formation of a dimer of alpha-helices.

Autopsy services for dementia patients.

Chiefs of Pathology of every nonfederal hospital in Maryland were surveyed to determine their hospitals' experience with autopsies of dementia patients. Few pathology services had extensive, ongoing experience with these postmortem examinations, and many hospitals lacked special histochemical techniques or a referral system to evaluate them. Problems exist in obtaining postmortem examinations for dementia patients, especially those who die outside facilities with Autopsy Services.

Ultrastructural observations of human and mouse oocytes treated with cryopreservatives.

The effects of the cryopreservative agents dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) and propanediol (PROH) on mature human and mature mouse oocytes have been examined with transmission electron microscopy. Treatment of CD-1 mouse oocytes and human preovulatory oocytes in a stepwise manner with either DMSO or PROH up to 1.5 M appears to trigger the exocytosis of 70-80% of the cortical granules in all oocytes.

Stretch reflex dynamics in spastic elbow flexor muscles.

Previous studies of stretch reflexes in patients with spastic hypertonia have emphasized the dynamic character of stretch reflex output. In contrast, our own studies of stretch reflex dynamics in spastic elbow flexor muscles of 14 hemiparetic human subjects have shown that stretch-evoked torque displays a relatively weak dependence on stretch velocity, and there is generally no preferential enhancement of dynamic as compared with static reflex output. Moreover, stretch reflex dynamics are broadly similar in voluntarily activated spastic and normal elbow flexor muscles.

Effects of hyperthermia on xanthine oxidase activity and glutathione levels in the perfused rat liver.

The hepatotoxic effects of hyperthermic liver perfusion were investigated in male Fischer 344 rat livers. Perfusions were carried out at 37, 41, 42, 42.5, and 43 degrees C for 2 hr.

Multiple authorship, basic research, and other trends in the emergency medicine literature (1975 to 1986).

As emergency medicine comes of age, it is interesting to examine the scientific nature of the specialty as reflected in the literature. Representative volumes of three emergency medicine journals were reviewed for number and type of article, institutional origin, article length, and number of authors. For Annals of Emergency Medicine, (AEM) volumes for 1975, 1980, and 1985 were studied.

Neurofibrillary tangles and senile plaques in aged bears.

In aged human beings and in individuals with age-associated degenerative disorders, particularly Alzheimer's disease (AD), neurons develop cytoskeletal abnormalities, including neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) and senile plaques (SP). Senile plaques occur in several nonhuman species; however, NFT, with ultrastructural or immunocytochemical similarities to those occurring in humans, have not been identified in other mammals. In this study of five aged bears (Ursus, 20-30 years of age), we identified cytoskeletal abnormalities similar to those occurring in humans.

Planning with elderly outpatients for contingencies of severe illness: a survey and clinical trial.

The authors examined whether elderly patients would report positive or adverse emotional effects after their doctor, during a routine clinic visit, asked them to begin planning for future serious illness. Seventy-four patients, 65 years old or older, who were followed at a university hospital medical clinic were randomly allocated to an intervention or a control group. The intervention was a detailed discussion with the patient's physician of the patient's wishes about decision making and life support therapy in the event of extreme or incapacitating illness.

Innervation of human hippocampus by noradrenergic systems: normal anatomy and structural abnormalities in aging and in Alzheimer's disease.

Immunocytochemical studies, using an antibody directed against human dopamine beta-hydroxylase, identified an extensive plexus of noradrenergic axons/terminals in normal human hippocampus. In hippocampi of individuals with Alzheimer's disease, the density of noradrenergic innervation was reduced and abnormal noradrenergic axons, which exhibited multifocal enlargements, were present in the neuropil. Some of these neurites were clustered around deposits of amyloid (senile plaques), and these abnormalities were most common in CA3-4, a region normally showing a relatively high density of noradrenergic terminals.

Effects of acute dorsal spinal hemisection on motoneuron discharge in the medial gastrocnemius of the decerebrate cat.

1. The discharge of single alpha-motoneuron axons was recorded from small cut filaments of the medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle nerve in the decerebrated cat preparation before and after a dorsal hemisection of the thoracic spinal cord. The remainder of the MG muscle nerve was left intact, and muscle force and multiunit electromyographic (EMG) activity were recorded along with alpha-motoneuron discharge, while motor output was varied by manual stimulation of the contralateral hindlimb.

Pregnancy after gamete intrafallopian transfer in a woman with primary infertility and in utero exposure to diethylstilbestrol. A case report.

In utero exposure to diethylstilbestrol (DES) has an adverse effect on reproductive performance and may be associated with infertility. Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) is a new reproductive technique that has been advocated as an alternative to in vitro fertilization in women with at least one normally functioning fallopian tube. The process involves the translaparoscopic placement of oocytes and sperm into the fallopian tube.

Quantitative relations between hypertonia and stretch reflex threshold in spastic hemiparesis.

The relative contributions of variations in stretch reflex threshold and total joint stiffness to changes in stretch-evoked torque were assessed in the spastic elbow muscles of 14 hemiparetic spastic subjects. For a given subject, variations in torque, measured after a constant angular deflection, were mediated largely by changes in stretch reflex threshold, rather than by changes in reflex stiffness. Between-subject comparisons were sensitive to stiffness differences between limbs, but reflex thresholds were still broadly correlated with torque magnitude, suggesting that reductions in stretch reflex threshold are uniformly present in spastic muscles.

Emergency department patient literacy and the readability of patient-directed materials.

There are 20 million American adults who cannot read. The demographics of the illiterate population suggest that they represent a significant proportion of patients cared for in a teaching hospital emergency department. This study was designed to assess whether readability of written material given to patients in a university hospital ED matched the literacy level of these patients.

Disturbances of motor output in a cat hindlimb muscle after acute dorsal spinal hemisection.

Force and electromyogram (EMG) responses of the medial gastrocnemius muscle were assessed during isometric contractions in 8 decerebrate cat preparations, before and after acute dorsal hemisection of the spinal cord at the T12 level. The measures derived included the relation between static force and mean rectified EMG, the EMG amplitude distribution, EMG power spectral density, and force power spectral density. Our findings were that the spinal lesion induced modifications in the shape of the EMG amplitude distribution, a substantial increase in mean rectified EMG per unit force, and increases in EMG spectral power and force spectral power over a broad band of frequencies.

Xanthine oxidase activity in mouse pancreas: effects of caerulein-induced acute pancreatitis.

The development of acute pancreatitis involves a number of pathophysiological changes which result in pancreatic tissue damage. Data from several models of acute pancreatitis suggest that the in vivo conversion of the enzyme xanthine dehydrogenase to xanthine oxidase may cause tissue damage by the subsequent generation of oxygen-derived free radical products. In the present studies, acute pancreatitis was induced in mice by the administration of supramaximal secretory doses of caerulein, a cholecystokinin analogue.

Incarceration of a section of small intestine by remnants of the ductus deferens in steers.

A 13-month-old Charolais steer was examined because of anorexia and weight loss of 1 week's duration. Initially, the steer passed tarry feces for 2 days, but no feces were passed for 4 days before examination. Palpation per rectum disclosed moderate distention of the small intestine and dark tenacious mucus in the rectum.

Emergency department lumbar puncture: clinical application and utility of laboratory testing.

Lumbar puncture is an emergency department procedure for evaluating patients with suspected central nervous system infection or hemorrhage. To determine whether extensive testing of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) obtained from emergency department patients was useful, charts of 104 adult patients who underwent lumbar puncture in a university hospital emergency department were reviewed. Examination of the CSF disclosed pleocytosis in 25 (24%) of the patients; the presence of red blood cells was considered to be clinically significant in two patients.

Biologic characterization of canine melanoma cell lines.

Eight canine melanoma cell lines were established from tissues from 6 dogs with spontaneous primary or metastatic melanomas. Cell lines were characterized for morphologic features and growth patterns on plastic, pigmentation, ultrastructure, cloning efficiency in soft agar, and tumorigenicity in nude mice. Biologic properties of cell lines were distinct and preserved during 40 to 120 passages in vitro.

Subcellular redistribution of lysosomal enzymes during caerulein-induced pancreatitis.

The subcellular distribution of the lysosomal enzymes cathepsin B and D in the pancreas was evaluated in rats infused with saline (control) or a maximal (0.25 microgram . kg-1 .