Reversal of scopolamine-induced alterations of choline transport across the blood-brain barrier by the nootropics piracetam and pramiracetam.

The choline transport across the blood-brain barrier was studied in nine brain regions of male Wistar rats after treatment with scopolamine, piracetam and pramiracetam, respectively. 14-Day treatment with scopolamine (0.5 mg/kg/d) elicited an increase of the extraction and the PS-product (permeability-surface area) of choline which was prevented by coinjection of piracetam or pramiracetam (100 mg/kg/d).

Arginine-vasopressin binding to isolated hippocampal microvessels of rats with different endogenous concentrations of the neuropeptide.

The binding of [125I]arginine-8-vasopressin (AVP) to hippocampal microvessels isolated from brains of normal Wistar rats, animals after water deprivation and heterozygous as well as homozygous diabetes-insipidus rats (Brattleboro strain) were measured. Data from binding experiments from the microvessels of the different groups of animals in each case revealed a single class of high affinity binding sites. However, the binding parameters between the different groups of rats were different.

Autoradiographic demonstration of glucocorticoid receptors in the intermediate lobe of the rat pituitary transplanted to the anterior eye chamber.

It is a general belief that the intermediate lobe of the pituitary, in contrast to the anterior pituitary, is devoid of glucocorticoid receptors. However, Antakly et al. (1985) using immunocytochemistry, demonstrated the presence of this receptor in intermediate lobe cells deprived of the hypothalamic innervation.

Metabolic differences between AGA-and SGA-infants of very low birthweight. III. Influence of postnatal age.

Seven very low birthweight (VLBW) infants, small for gestational age (SGA), with moderate intrauterine growth retardation and 7 VLBW-infants, appropriate for gestational age (AGA), fed breast milk fortified with 6 g freeze-dried human milk per 100 ml were studied on the 8th, 21st and 42nd days of life. The protein intake on the study days varied between 2.68 and 3.

Septal and Hippocampal Release of Oxytocin, but not Vasopressin, in the Conscious Lactating Rat During Suckling.

Abstract The central release of both oxytocin and vasopressin within the septum and dorsal hippocampus in response to suckling was studied in conscious, freely-behaving lactating rats. Three consecutive 30-min push-pull perfusions were carried out before, during and after suckling (suckled group) or without suckling (control group). As compared to control levels, suckling resulted in a significantly increased oxytocin release within both limbic brain areas (septum: to 140%, dorsal hippocampus: to 1,600%).

Laminar distribution of benzodiazepine receptors in visual cortex of adult rat.

The characteristics and distribution of benzodiazepine receptors in individual layers of the visual cortex of adult rats were examined with the 3H-flunitrazepam binding technique employed on intact tissue slices. The different visual cortical layers were separated by cutting serial cryocut sections horizontally to the cortical surface and collecting the slices from each individual cortical layer under anatomical control. Highest benzodiazepine receptor densities were found in layers IV and VI.

Differences in hydrophobic properties for human alpha 2-macroglobulin and pregnancy zone protein as studied by affinity phase partitioning.

Human alpha 2-macroglobulin and pregnancy zone protein are related with regard to primary structure, physicochemical properties, and quarternary structure. Both proteins undergo conformational changes when they form complexes with proteinases or react with primary amines. The surface properties of the native, chymotrypsin-treated and methylamine-treated forms of alpha 2-macroglobulin and pregnancy zone protein were studied by partitioning in aqueous two-phase systems composed of 7.

Sperm motile efficiency (SME) of fresh spermatozoa in a hypotonic medium correlates with their cryosurvival in fertile men and infertility patients (predicting test).

The sperm motile efficiency (SME) of fresh spermatozoa in a hypotonic medium was investigated concerning the prediction of post thaw motility and the differentiation between fertile men and infertility patients. A total of 95 semen samples were collected for this study. Twenty of these samples were obtained from semen donors of proven fertility and 75 samples were collected from male partners of infertile couples.

Changes in cholinergic but not in GABAergic markers in amygdala, piriform cortex, and nucleus basalis of the rat brain following systemic administration of kainic acid.

Three days after systemic administration of kainic acid (15 mg/kg, s.c.), selected cholinergic markers (choline acetyltransferase, acetylcholinesterase, muscarinic acetylcholine receptor, and high-affinity choline uptake) and GABAergic parameters [benzodiazepine and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors] were studied in the frontal and piriform cortex, dorsal hippocampus, amygdaloid complex, and nucleus basalis.

Ducto-insular proliferation of beta-cells after syngeneic islet transplantation into the spleen of streptozotocin-diabetic Lewis rats.

Syngeneic transplantation of cultured and functionally characterized neonatal islets into the spleen of streptozotocin diabetic Lewis rats resulted in long time survival up to 200 d and in plasma glucose levels lower than 9 mmol/L. The daily plasma glucose profile of transplanted rats had shown significantly above that of nondiabetic control rats. Two-hundred d after transplantation, morphologically intact, insulin containing beta-cells were demonstrable in the spleen, thus demonstrating the long-term survival of functioning islet cells.

Purification and properties of carnitine dehydratase from Escherichia coli--a new enzyme of carnitine metabolization.

Carnitine dehydratase from Escherichia coli 044 K74 is an inducible enzyme detectable in cells grown anaerobically in the presence of L(-)-carnitine or crotonobetaine. It has been purified 500-fold to electrophoretic homogeneity by chromatography on phenyl-Sepharose, hydroxyapatite, DEAE-Sepharose, second phenyl-Sepharose and finally gel filtration on a Sephadex G-100 column. During the purification procedure a low-molecular-weight effector essential for enzyme activity was separated from the enzyme.

beta-Casomorphins alter the intestinal accumulation of L-leucine.

Everted sacs of the rat jejunum change the accumulation of [3H]leucine when beta-casomorphins (BCMs) or synthetic analogs, in a concentration range of 10(-8) mol/l, are coincubated with the amino acid. BCM5 (BCM fragment 1-5, Tyr-Pro-Phe-Pro-Gly) and [D-Ala2]-BCM5-NH2 (Tyr-D-Ala-Phe-Pro-Gly) increase, whereas [D-Pro4]-BCM5 (Tyr-Pro-Phe-D-Pro-Gly) decreases the leucine accumulation and [Arg8]-vasopressin has no effect. No effect of BCM5 could be observed on the accumulation of the space marker [14C]inulin.

Enhanced inhibition of plant virus replication by pyridylthiourea compounds complexed with metal ions.

Inhibition of potato virus X replication can be enhanced by complexation of N-allyl-N'-2-pyridyl-thiourea and of N-phenyl-N'-2-pyridyl-thiourea with Cu+, Zn2+ and Cd2+. The antiphytoviral activity of some complexes with pyridylthiourea can be further augmented by adding small quantities of 2,4-dioxohexahydro-1,3,5-triazine.

The ontogeny of benzodiazepine receptors in selected regions of the rat brain: effect of perinatal exposure to diazepam.

The postnatal development of the binding of [3H]flunitrazepam to benzodiazepine receptors has been studied in the frontal cortex, cerebellum, striatum, hypothalamus and hippocampus of the rat after prenatal, perinatal and postnatal exposure to diazepam. The dams were injected subcutaneously with single daily doses of 1 mg/kg of diazepam from day 7-20 of gestation or from day 15 of gestation day 6 after birth. Offspring of untreated dams were injected in the same way from postnatal day 7-20.

Affinity chromatography of bovine heart lactate dehydrogenase using dye ligands linked directly or spacer-mediated to bead cellulose.

A number of reactive dyes coupled to bead cellulose directly or spacer-mediated has been investigated in respect of their interaction with lactate dehydrogenase (LDH; E.C. 1.

The multielemental analysis of bone. A review.

Numerous elements, especially metals, possess biological activity. But until now, they were of interest mainly as ingredients of foods. This caused the grouping in essential and nonessential elements, and characteristic changes of their concentrations in tissues and body fluids of man are often accompanied by pathologic alterations.

Adaptive changes in the central noradrenergic system in monocular deprived rats.

Noradrenaline and dopamine content, K+-stimulated release of 3H-noradrenaline, 3H-noradrenaline high-affinity uptake, 3H-prazosin and 3H-rauwolscine binding to alpha 1- and alpha 2-adrenoreceptors, respectively, were studied in isolated visual structures (visual cortex, superior colliculus, lateral geniculate nucleus) of three-month-old rats monocularly deprived by unilateral eyelid closure at postnatal day 11. Monocular deprivation resulted in a number of changes in comparison with normal littermates, mainly in the lateral geniculate nucleus, both ipsilateral and contralateral to the closed eye. K+-stimulated release of noradrenaline and high-affinity noradrenaline uptake were significantly increased, 3H-rauwolscine binding to alpha 2-adrenergic receptor sites was decreased in the contralateral and ipsilateral lateral geniculate nucleus.

Field studies towards intestinal helminthoses from north Ethiopia (1982) by means of microscopic and seroimmunologic methods.

In two villages of north Ethiopia (Gorgora and Zerema) helminthologic stool analyses were performed and compared with seroimmunologic examinations. Regional difference could be obtained. The infection rate of males was slightly higher than that of females (except Schistosomiasis in Gorgora).

Characterization of the S'-subsite specificity of porcine pancreatic elastase.

A number of maleyl peptide p-nitrobenzyl esters have been synthesized to study elastase-catalyzed hydrolysis reactions. These new substrates were used as acyl donors to investigate the S'-subsite specificity of porcine pancreatic elastase by partitioning of the acyl enzyme between various added nucleophiles and water. The following results were obtained.

Age-dependent changes in the laminar distribution of cholinergic markers in rat visual cortex.

The laminar distribution of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors, choline acetyltransferase, and sodium-dependent high-affinity choline uptake sites was studied in individual layers of rat visual cortex at 10, 15, 25 and 90 days of age, using a cryocut technique to separate the different cortical layers. Muscarinic acetylcholine receptor density in layer I rises sharply from postnatal day 10 to day 25, and then it continues to increase more gradually until adulthood. In layers II-V, receptor density increases slightly from day 10 to day 15, then it rises sharply until day 25 and continues decreasing up to day 90.

The course of axons within the postnatal rabbit retina.

The course of optic axons within the postnatal rabbit retina was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the nerve fibre layer exposed by HCl and collagenase treatment, and by freeze-fracture electron microscopy. In the first days after birth, axon bundles were found to run along a rather tortuous way in between the developing Müller cell endfeet. Later on and in adults, the axon bundles show a more straight course.

Effect of gliadin on the distribution of sucrase among different fractions of fetal chick intestine.

The effect of peptic-tryptic digested gliadin (PT-gliadin) on the increase in sucrase activity in different fractions of tissue cultured fetal chick duodenum was investigated and compared with that of monensin, a known perturbant of the Golgi complex. PT-gliadin diminished the rise in sucrase activity in the tissue homogenate, in a brush border fraction, and in the high speed supernatant, whereas the activity in a Ca2+-pelleted fraction including endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus was unaffected. In contrast, monensin caused a proportional inhibition of the increase in sucrase activity in all fractions examined.

Histological and histometrical changes of liver damage in rats after treatment with ethanol and carbon tetrachloride.

A pretreatment of 30 to 52 weeks with a 10% (v/v) solution of ethanol did not bring about any distinct changes but increased the damaging effects on liver caused by an acute dose of carbon tetrachloride in rats. This was shown by the semiquantitative assessment of histological changes and by the measurement of hepatocyte nuclei. The results of both investigations are complementary to each other and show a correlation.