Effect of triethylenepentaminehexaacetic acid on the renal damage in cadmium-treated Syrian hamsters.

Cadmium (Cd)-induced nephropathy was treated by triethylenepentaminehexaacetic acid (TTHA) in male Syrian hamsters. Hamsters injected three times a week with 3 mg/kg body wt CdCl2 showed proteinuria, urinary N-acetyl-beta-D-inglucosaminidase (NAG), and fractional excretion of sodium (FENa) when compared to saline-injected control. Cd-treated hamsters injected ip with TTHA 10 mg/kg body wt five times a week showed reduction of renal damage, including reductions in urinary protein (from 6.

Chlordiazepoxide attenuates stress-induced activation of neurons, corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) gene transcription and CRF biosynthesis in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN).

Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) plays a role in coordinating endocrine, autonomic, and behavioral responses to stressful stimuli. Benzodiazepines exert many effects which oppose those of CRF, including anxiolysis and suppression of the pituitary-adrenal axis. In the present study, we employed in situ analysis of CRF heteronucleous RNA (hnRNA) and c-fos mRNA to assess stimulus-induced CRF gene transcription rate following stress and its modulation by chlordiazepoxide (CDP).

Intracerebroventricular administration of neuropeptide Y inhibits release of noradrenaline in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus caused by manual restraint in the rat through an opioid system.

Intracerebroventricular injection of 1.5 micrograms neuropeptide Y (NPY) had no effect on basal release of noradrenaline (NA) in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN), measured by intracerebral microdialysis in the rat. However, it blocked the increase in NA release caused by manual restraint but not that by tail-pinch, and the effect was blocked by naloxone (1.

Positron emission tomography with 4-[18F]fluoro-L-m-tyrosine in MPTP-induced hemiparkinsonian monkeys.

PET imaging studies with 4-[18F]fluoro-L-m-tyrosine (FMT) in normal macaca monkeys showed selective accumulations of radioactivity in the striatum with time. In monkeys rendered hemiparkinsonian by intracarotid infusion of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), FMT uptake was eliminated in the lesioned striatum. FMT-PET studies were able to detect dopaminergic terminals in both normal and hemiparkinsonian monkeys, and clearly showed a reduction in aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase (AAAD) activities in the MPTP-lesioned striatum.

[Clinical aspects of drug-induced tubulo-interstitial nephropathy].

It is well known that many drugs can induce tubulointerstitial nephropathy (DTIN) in the kidney. There are two kinds of onset mechanisms such as dose-dependent and allergic nephropathy. Risk factors inducing DTIN are known as aging, dehydration, preexisting renal damage, hypertension and serum electrolyte abnormalities.

Stress-induced activation of neuronal activity and corticotropin-releasing factor gene expression in the paraventricular nucleus is modulated by glucocorticoids in rats.

Intronic in situ hybridization methodology provides a means of determining the rate of gene transcription under basal and stimulated conditions. In the present study, we have used intronic in situ hybridization to the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) gene to measure hypothalamic CRF gene transcription after stress as well as its modulation by glucocorticoids. Using this and conventional exonic in situ hybridization we examined the time course of changes in c-fos mRNA, and CRF heteronuclear RNA (hnRNA) and mRNA concentrations in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of male Wistar rats after restraint stress.

Dopaminergic regulation of aldosterone secretion: its pathophysiologic significance in subsets of primary aldosteronism.

Although aldosterone (Aldo.) secretion is regulated by various humoral factors, evidence has accumulated to support an involvement of dopaminergic system in its regulation. The pathophysiological significance of the dopaminergic system in primary aldosteronism (PA) however remains unknown.

Induction of stress proteins in mouse peritoneal macrophages by the anti-rheumatic agents gold sodium thiomalate and auranofin.

Gold sodium thiomalate and auranofin, anti-rheumatic gold-containing compounds, induced some stress proteins in cultured mouse peritoneal macrophages. The enhanced synthesis of two proteins, heme oxygenase (a 34-kDa protein) and a 23-kDa protein, was particularly prominent. The 23-kDa protein induced by the gold compounds was identical to that found in macrophages exposed to oxidative stress and was suggested to have antioxidant activity.

Intracerebroventricular administration of corticotropin-releasing factor antagonist attenuates c-fos mRNA expression in the paraventricular nucleus after stress.

Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) plays a role in coordinating endocrine, physiological and behavioral responses to stressful stimuli. We have previously reported that centrally administered CRF rapidly induces c-fos mRNA expression in most areas that express c-fos following stress: the limbic structures including the hippocampus, amygdala, septal nucleus and hypothalamic nuclei such as the paraventricular nucleus (PVN), and brainstem nuclei such as Barrington's nucleus and locus ceruleus (LC). These results suggest several candidate structures through which CRF could exert its effects on the central nervous system.

[Effect of cyclosporin monotherapy on proteinuria in a patient with membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis].

A-34-year-old man with a 16-year history of proteinuria was successfully treated with cyclosporin A (CsA). He was diagnosed as having membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN) by renal needle biopsy and was treated with dipyridamole. In July 1992, he was readmitted for the treatment of anasarka.

Calcified astrocytoma of the amygdalo-hippocampal region in children.

Three pediatric cases of temporal lobe seizure due to calcified glioma of amygdalo-hippocampal region are described. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging showed dense calcification with no postcontrast enhancement in the amygdalo-hippocampal region. Positron emission tomography showed low oxygen metabolism, low glucose metabolism, hypermetabolism of amino acids, and low regional cerebral blood flow in the tumors.

The response pattern of noradrenaline release to repeated stress in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus differs according to the form of stress in rats.

The effect of two repeated forms of stress, manual restraint and tail-pinch, on noradrenaline (NA) release in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus of the rat was examined by intracerebral microdialysis. Manual restraint significantly increased NA release, but the stimulatory effect gradually declined when the stress was repeated at intervals of 120 min. High K+ induced a great increase in NA release even when manual restraint produced no significant effect on NA release.

Beta 1-adrenergic mechanism is involved in stress-induced increase in arousal.

It has been shown that 1 h restraint shortens pentobarbital (PbNa)-induced sleeping time and that brain corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) is involved in the mechanism by which restraint shortens. PbNa-induced sleeping time. The present study was designed to further examine the mechanism of the antagonistic effect of 1 h restraint on PbNa in rats.

Effect of D-Ala-D-beta Nal-Ala-Trp-D-Phe-Lys-NH2 (KP-102) on GH secretion in urethan-anesthetized rats.

The effect of a newly developed growth hormone (GH)-releasing hexapeptide (KP-102) on GH secretion was studied in urethan-anesthetized adult male rats. Although KP-102 alone exerted a small influence on GH secretion, it produced a large plasma GH response in the presence of exogenous GH-releasing factor (GRF). During the continuous infusion of GRF, the somatotropes became refractory to a large bolus dose of GRF, but KP-102 induced a marked increase of plasma GH.

Characteristics of anemia in patients with nephrotic syndrome.

Primary nephrotic syndrome can, although infrequently, cause severe anemia. However, the mechanisms of the anemia remain unknown. We investigated the mechanism of anemia in nephrotic syndrome by measuring parameters of nephrotic syndrome and anemia in 44 nephrotic patients (male: female; 21:23, average age; 43.

[Pregnancy and delivery in patients with lupus nephritis].

To investigate some of the problems associated with pregnancy and delivery in lupus nephritis, 13 pregnancies in 7 patients with inactive lupus nephritis and 5 pregnancies in one patient with primary antiphospholipid syndrome (PAPS) were compared with 36 pregnancies in 22 patients with primary nephrotic syndrome (NS). Furthermore, a follow-up survey during 0-8 years was made with 12 babies born to mothers with lupus nephritis. Some pregnancies during lupus nephritis were accompanied by disease exacerbation and worsening of renal function.

Effect of pentoxifylline on CdCl2-induced nephrotoxicity in the rat.

We developed a rat model of cadmium (Cd)-induced nephrotoxicity and tried to prevent renal damage by treating the animals with pentoxifylline (PTX). Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats given CdCl2 3.0 mg/kg sc, daily for 2 wk showed evidences of renal proximal tubular damage, including significant increases in urine volume, urinary excretion of N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG), alanine aminopeptidase (AAP), and fractional excretion of sodium (FENa), and a decrease in the percentage of tubular reabsorption of phosphate (%TRP).

Restraint changes pentobarbital-induced sleeping time in rats: evidence that arousal is modulated by brain corticotropin-releasing hormone and opioid in stress.

The effect of restraint of different duration on sodium pentobarbital (PbNa)-induced sleeping time was examined in rats. 1 h-restraint significantly shortened PbNa (50 mg/kg b.wt.

Possible thyroidal involvement in a case of Fabry disease.

Endocrinological evaluations of a 48-year-old man with Fabry disease revealed low levels of serum thyroid hormones and high levels of serum thyrotropin (TSH), indicating that the patient had primary hypothyroidism. Also, an exaggerated growth hormone (GH) response to hypoglycemic stimuli was observed. Thin layer chromatography of the lipid extract of the thyroid gland obtained by biopsy demonstrated marked accumulation of ceramide trihexoside (CTH) and ceramide dihexoside (CDH).

Small gliomas: metabolism and blood flow.

Eight patients with small gliomas (6 low-grade and 2 high-grade) localized in a single gyrus or less than 2 cm diameter were investigated using positron emission tomography and single photon emission computed tomography. All three tumors examined demonstrated hypermetabolism of amino acids. High-grade gliomas demonstrated hypermetabolism of glucose and high blood flow, but normal or low oxygen metabolism.

Pathophysiology of central (thalamic) pain: combined change of sensory thalamus with cerebral cortex around central sulcus.

In 13 patients with central (thalamic) pain after stroke, CT, MRI, PET scan and intraoperative thalamic microrecordings were performed. Electrophysiological studies showed that irregular burst discharges were often encountered in the posterolateral thalamus. The more often the irregular burst discharges were encountered, the greater the decrease of sensory response in the posterolateral thalamus.

Visualization of dopamine nerve terminals in monkey by positron emission tomography using 4-[18F]fluoro-L-m-tyrosine.

4-[18F]Fluoro-L-m-tyrosine (FMT) is an L-Dopa analog that essentially follows the L-Dopa metabolic pathway, but without 3-O-methylation or extensive peripheral metabolism. As such, FMT may serve as a useful probe of striatal dopaminergic function with positron emission tomography (PET). FMT was synthesized, as previously described by Perlmutter et al.

Pravastatin administration to hyperlipidemia in patients with nephrotic syndrome.

We treated hyperlipidemia in patients with nephrotic syndrome (NS) using pravastatin for more than one year. There were 7 cases consisting of 3 with minimal change nephrotic syndrome (MCNS), 1 with focal glomerulosclerosis (FGS), 1 with proliferative glomerulonephritis (PGN), 2 with membranous glomerulonephritis (MGN) and 1 of unknown origin. Three cases consisted of frequent relapsers, and 4 were steroid-resistant.

Reciprocal synaptic relations between CRF-immunoreactive- and TRH-immunoreactive neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the rat hypothalamus.

By double immunoelectron microscopy, we studied synaptic relations between corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF)-immunoreactive (ir) and thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH)-ir neurons in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the rat hypothalamus. CRF-ir and TRH-ir neurons made reciprocal synaptic connections in the medial and periventricular parvocellular regions. These results may suggest that both the parvocellular neurons interplay on their hypophysiotropic functions within the PVN.