Dietary intervention study among 30 free-living families in Finland.

A dietary intervention study to reduce risk factors for coronary heart disease was carried out among 30 free-living middle-aged couples in North Karelia, Eastern Finland. During the study, the subjects changed their normal diet for six weeks. The main changes in the diet were decrease in the consumption of fat (from 39% to 24% of total calories), increase in the P:S ratio from 0.

Morphological and morphometrical changes in chloride cells of the gills of Pimephales promelas after chronic exposure to acid water.

Fathead minnows, Pimephales promelas, were exposed for 129 days to Lake Superior water acidified with sulfuric acid by means of a flow-through toxicant injection system. The effects of chronic acid stress (pH 6.5, 6.

[14C]6-methoxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-beta-carboline in retinal and other tissues after intravascular and intravitreal injections in mice and rats.

6-Methoxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-beta-carboline (6-MeO-THBC) is a condensation product of 5-methoxytryptamine and formaldehyde. It possesses diverse biochemical and pharmacological properties and has been suggested to act as a neuromodulator. 6-MeO-THBC has been shown to occur in various tissues including the retina in animals and human beings.

Increased immunoglobulin production in vitro in healthy HLA-B8-positive persons.

The histocompatibility antigens B8 and DR3 are associated with several autoimmune diseases, and immune hyper-responsiveness has been believed to be one factor in the pathogenesis of these diseases. In the present study we compared the in vitro immunoglobulin production of healthy HLA-B8-positive individuals with that of HLA-B8-negative individuals. In HLA-B8-positive persons a higher number of pokeweed mitogen (PWM)-stimulated Ig-secreting cells was obtained.

Effect of dietary fat on blood pressure in a rural Finnish population.

Thirty couples living in Liperi, a community of North Karelia, aged 40 to 50 yr participated in a dietary intervention study to assess the influence of dietary fat on blood pressure and other parameters. After a weeklong base-line period the subjects consumed a low fat diet (24% of energy) with a polyunsaturated/saturated fat ratio (P/S) of 1.2 for 6 wk.

Clinical correlates of circulating immune complexes in patients with recent yersiniosis.

Circulating immune complexes (CICs) and rheumatoid factor were studied in 31 patients with serologically confirmed yersiniosis (12 in a pilot series and 19 in a prospective series). Yersiniosis is an intestinal infection complicated occasionally by extraintestinal symptoms such as aseptic arthritis. Four tests representing three main principles (affinity of human platelets and of C1q for complexed IgG and of conglutinin for C3) were used for the detection of CICs, which were found in all patients.

In vitro lymphoproliferative response to Yersinia: depressed response in arthritic patients years after Yersinia infection.

The persistence of lymphocyte transformation response to Yersinia was studied three to six years after Yersinia infection in subjects who had or had not suffered from reactive arthritis. In persons who had had arthritis, significantly weaker response to Yersinia was found than in those who had recovered without developing arthritis. The same held true also for the response to Klebsiella.

Depressed lymphocyte transformation by yersinia and Escherichia coli in yersinia arthritis.

Lymphocyte transformation responses were studied in 21 patients with acute yersinia infection followed-up after the acute infection for up to one year. Eight patients had reactive arthritis caused by yersinia. The responses to the causative serotype of yersinia were significantly lower (p less than 0.

6-Methoxy-tetrahydro-beta-carboline in the retinae of rabbits and pigs.

beta-Carbolines are alkaloids found as normal constituents in many plants and animals. These compounds have many biochemical and pharmacological effects often related to a neuromodulator-like mode of action. We have demonstrated a beta-carboline derivative, 6-methoxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-beta-carboline (6-MeO-THBC) as a normal constituent in the retina.

Effect of furosemide on the lipid abnormalities in chronic renal failure.

The effect of furosemide on the lipoprotein profile and the activities of postherapin plasma lipases were studied in 12 patients with chronic renal failure. The concentrations of serum total, VLDL and LDL triglycerides were significantly higher and the concentration of HDL triglyceride was significantly lower in the patients with renal failure than in healthy controls. HDL cholesterol was significantly lower in the patients than in the controls.

Controlled, randomised trial of the effect of dietary fat on blood pressure.

57 couples living in two communities of North Karelia, aged 30-50 years, were randomly allocated to three groups. After a 2-week baseline period group I followed a diet low in fat (23% of energy) with a high polyunsaturated/saturated (P/S) ratio (1 . 0), group II reduced daily salt intake from 192 mmol to 77 mmol, and group III (control group) continued the usual diet.

Electroneuromyographical and morphological findings in progressive myoclonus epilepsy (PME).

The purpose of this study was to assess the function of peripheral nerves and muscles and to describe morphological changes in muscle biopsies of patients with progressive myoclonus epilepsy. Electroneuromyographic studies were performed on 24 adult patients whose mental and motor skills were either little, moderately or severely impaired by the disease. In 5 patients a specimen of tibial anterior muscle was morphologically and histochemically investigated.

Decrease of GABA in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with progressive myoclonus epilepsy and its correlation with the decrease of 5HIAA and HVA.

The degenerative type of progressive myoclonus epilepsy (PME) is a hereditary disease with grand mal seizures, stimulus sensitive myoclonus, characteristic EEG and mental deterioration in the late stage. GABAergic antiepileptic drugs are the most effective ones in this disease, with an unknown etiology. In this study, the GABA concentration in the CSF of 15 PME patients was measured and compared with values of sex- and age-matched epileptic controls.

Effect of diet on serum lipoproteins in a population with a high risk of coronary heart disease.

The population of North Karelia, a county in Finland, has a high rate of coronary heart disease. It also has a high prevalence of hypercholesterolemia, but whether this reflects a diet rich in animal fats or is a result of genetic factors is unclear. We studied the effect on serum lipoproteins of a low-fat diet with a high ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fatty acids in 54 middle-aged volunteers in North Karelia.

Alpha-naphthyl acetate esterase activity in human foetal lymphocytes.

Human foetal mononuclear cells from thymus, spleen, liver, bone marrow and peripheral blood at 8-24 weeks of gestation were examined for cytochemical evidence of acid alpha-naphthyl acetate esterase (ANAE) activity. The focal brownish-red ANAE reaction product (T cell staining pattern) was observed in counterstained cytocentrifuged cell smears in the cytoplasm. ANAE-positive lymphoid cells were first observed in the thymus at 9 weeks of gestation.

Progressive myoclonus epilepsy is not accompanied by humoral immune response within the central nervous system.

CSF and serum from five patients with progressive myoclonus epilepsy taken on two occasions with about one month's interval were examined for intrathecal humoral immune response. The CSF IgG and IgA index values were normal, and no oligoclonal bands were detectable by agarose electrophoresis or polyacrylamide isoelectric focusing (IEF). Immunofixation of IEF separated IgG with four different viruses as possible antigens, and autoradiography did not reveal any intrathecal antibody production.

Clinical stages of progressive myoclonus epilepsy in adult patients.

Nineteen hospitalized adult patients with progressive myoclonus epilepsy were studied. According to their clinical status they were divided into three groups of severity. The ages and duration of the disease did not differ significantly between the groups.

L-tryptophan-carbidopa trial in patients with long-standing progressive myoclonus epilepsy.

Eleven patients with long-standing progressive myoclonus epilepsy, PME, and age- and sex-matched epileptic controls received L-tryptophan (L-Trp) 100 mg/kg body weight combined with carbidopa in addition to their usual anticonvulsant regimen. During six weeks of the trial an improvement in activities of daily living and a decrease of action myoclonus was noted in the PME patients. The frequency of seizures compared with the past year decreased significantly in the PME patients, but not in the epileptic controls.

Electrophysiological signs of peripheral nerve dysfunction in progressive myoclonus epilepsy.

Electrophysiological findings were analysed in a group of 24 patients with progressive myoclonus epilepsy (PME) without Lafora bodies. Denervation activity in needle EMG and diminution of motor and sensory responses pointed out a mild axonal degeneration. We observed a significant slowing of motor and sensory conduction velocities in all the limb nerves examined, but distal motor latencies were not significantly increased.