Hippocampal capillaries in different age groups of chronically ethanol-intoxicated rats. Morphometrical studies.

The influence of chronic ethanol intoxication on the terminal vascularization of particular hippocampal fields and layers was investigated in different age groups of rats. Thirty-six male Wistar rats aged 6 weeks were used in the study. For twelve months 24 of them drank only 25% ethanol--12 starting at 6-week-age and 12 at 3-month-age.

Interstitial tissue fraction. The prognostic marker in membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis in children.

Objective: To explain the differences in the clinical course of membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN) in children and to find some prognostic markers at the disease onset that correlate with the disease outcome.

Study Design: We reviewed clinical histories and laboratory findings, reexamined kidney biopsies performed at the disease onset and evaluated volume relations between kidney components in children with the diagnosis of MPGN.

Results: Children were divided into three groups based on their final clinical status: I.

Effects of vitamin D on aortic smooth muscle cells in culture.

Earlier investigations on vitamin-induced experimental atherosclerosis in rats suggested that smooth muscle cells (SMCs) play a pivotal role in development of these vascular abnormalities. This study demonstrates the effects of vitamin D (ergocalciferol) on SMCs of rat aorta in tissue culture. SMCs were obtained from aortas of newborn rats by enzymatic digestion and maintained for 6 wk in primary culture with vitamin D (1.

Pericapillary and distant axon terminals in the nuclei of the cat amygdala: a morphometric study.

According to some ultrastructural studies, the pericapillary axon terminals in the central nervous system (CNS) are functionally connected with the capillary vessel wall. Thus, it may be expected that the population of pericapillary axon terminals will be morphologically distinct from the terminals at a further distance from the capillary walls. To test this hypothesis, morphometrical analysis of 3,048 axon terminals was performed, comparing terminals situated in the close vicinity of the capillary vessel with those at a distance from the vessels in the lateral, basal, medial, central and cortical nuclei of the amygdaloid body of eight cats.

Pathogenesis of heart myofibril lesion in experimental vitamin D-induced cardionecrosis.

Multifocal cardionecrosis has been produced in rats by treatment with 3 x 100,000 iu vitamin D3 (calciol). The effects of hypervitaminosis D on rat heart myofibril structure and total protease activity was investigated. Proteolytic enzyme activity of heart muscle homogenate was determined in two independent ways, and was approximately two times higher in the necrotic heart homogenate than in the control rat heart.