Effect of low dose ionizing irradiation on rat metabolism.

Thie biological effect of low dose radiation is little known. In the current study male Wistar rats were exposed monthly to a 60Co-source low dose whole body irradiation (0.25 Gy, per 18 months; total dose: 4.

The influence of peripheral nerve graft's predegeneration stage on the regrowth of hippocampal injured neurites and concomitant changes in submicrosomal fraction proteins of grafts.

The present work has a twofold aim: 1. To ascertain whether the stimulative influence of peripheral nerve grafts on injured hippocampal neurons depends on the time lapse after transection and; 2. To examine whether the mentioned effect runs parallel to the time-dependent changes of proteins contents and composition in the submicrosomal fraction from transected rat sciatic nerves.

Clinical utility of quantitative assessment of liver haemodynamics in cirrhosis provided by dynamic hepatoscintigraphy.

Interrelationships between quantitative assessment of portal (%Qp) and arterial (%Qa) components of hepatic blood supply obtained by dynamic hepatoscintigraphy, and clinical variables characterizing the severity of liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension were studied in 25 cirrhotic patients. The variables, clinical state, size of oesophageal varices, ascites accumulation, sonographic stigmata of portal hypertension, liver mass and elimination rate of lidocaine and antipyrine were studied. The %Qa rose in proportion to the severity of liver injury estimated from the Child-Turcotte and McCormick grading scores.

Factor XIII subunits in relation to some other hemostatic parameters in ulcerative colitis.

The hemostatic parameters, particularly with respect to F.XIII subunits, were examined in 48 untreated UC patients (22 at active and 26 at quiescent stage). UC active patients showed a significant decrease of F.

Regional variations in the activities of antioxidant enzymes in the term human placenta.

This study investigated the influence of the location of the sampling site during enzymatic analyses of 31 human term placentae. The activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione transferase, glutathione reductase, and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase were measured in fetal membranes, umbilical cords and placental disc. The disc samples were obtained from central (peri-insertion and mid-disc fetal and maternal halves), and peripheral regions.

Serum 18:2 (9, 11) linoleic acid in normal pregnancy and pregnancy complicated by pre-eclampsia.

Serum 18:2 (9, 11) linoleic acid concentration was measured in normal pregnancy and pre-eclampsia. The 18:2 (9, 11) linoleic acid in normal pregnancy increased progressively with advancing gestation, reaching the highest value at the end of pregnancy. The 18:2 (9, 11) linoleic acid concentration in pregnancy complicated by pre-eclampsia was significantly higher than in normal pregnancy after week 28.

The intracellular enzymatic response of neutrophils and lymphocytes in patients with precancerous states and cancer of the uterine cervix.

In patients with precancerous states and cancer of the uterine cervix prior to and after radiotherapy exhibit the decreased activity of neutrophil beta-glucuronidase. Moreover, patients treated by radiotherapy before the age 6 to 9 years demonstrate deficiency of N-acetyl-beta-glucuronidase in the above cells. The main finding in lymphocytes of the patients studied was in the appearance by diffusion of the above enzymes and of acid phosphatase in the cytoplasm, reflecting their release from lysosomes and immunological mobilization of these cells.

Predegenerated peripheral nerve grafts facilitate neurite outgrowth from the hippocampus.

Autologous predegenerated (10 days after transection) (PD) distal stumps of rat sciatic nerves and nonpredegenerated (NPD) nerves were implanted into the hippocampus. Light microscopic examination of sections treated by hematoxylin-eosin and Nauta-Gygax silver method was performed at 2, 4, 8, and 16 weeks following implantation and revealed that two weeks after surgery PD implants were better connected with the surrounding brain tissue than NPD nerve fragments. Greater differences were observed at the 4th week of the experiment.

Increased placental phospholipase A2 activities in pre-eclampsia.

Phospholipase A2 activity was significantly increased in placental homogenates from 22 patients with pre-eclampsia in comparison to placental homogenates from women with uncomplicated pregnancy. Such an abnormality may be responsible for an altered release of free arachidonic acid, thus playing a major role in the pathogenesis of this syndrome.

Plasma retinol, beta-carotene and vitamin E levels in relation to the future risk of pre-eclampsia.

20 healthy primigravidas were studied from 28 weeks' gestation until 4 days after delivery. In 9 of these women pre-eclampsia developed, the remaining 11 subjects who were age-matched had normal pregnancies. Plasma retinol, beta-carotene and vitamin E concentrations were measured by high performance liquid chromatography.

Zinc, vitamins A and E, and retinol-binding protein in sera of patients with cancer of the larynx.

Serum vitamin A concentrations were measured in 22 patients with laryngeal cancer and found to be significantly lower than those of patients of similar age with either nonmalignant laryngeal or other than laryngeal diseases. The levels of vitamin A in the patients with laryngeal cancer, but not in the controls, significantly correlated with serum concentrations of retinol-binding protein (RBP) and zinc. It is suggested that low levels of zinc might reduce the synthesis of RBP and thus reduce the mobilization of vitamin A from the liver stores.

DNA damage in liver and kidney of rats after treatment with hydralazine in vivo.

Alkaline elution has been used to examine the integrity of DNA isolated from liver and kidney from rats treated with hydralazine (1-hydrazinophthalazine). Hydralazine was administered intragastrically at daily doses of 5, 10 and 25 mg per kg body weight to randomly bred female Wistar rats during 3 weeks. The relative strand scission, expressed as rad equivalents increased with increasing drug dose.

Congenital malformations and the environment.

The aim of the work was to search for the correlation between the environmental pollution and the ratio of congenital malformations found in the population of 54,493 newborn infants of three Silesian towns: Bielsko-Biała (situated in the mountains, close to a recreation part of the country), Bytom (situated in the center of an old industrial district, where industry is responsible for very high environmental pollution), and Tarnowskie Góry (situated close to vast woodlands, where very high environmental concentration of heavy metals is caused by an outdated, big zinc plant). In spite of big differences of environmental pollution indices between the three towns, the percentage of major congenital malformations diagnosed within the first three days of extrauterine life was almost identical (1.12% in Bielsko-Biała, 1.

Zinc, magnesium and copper in serum of women given a calcium supplement.

Earlier investigators have demonstrated in animal studies interrelationships between mineral elements. Serum zinc, magnesium and copper were monitored over a two year period in 120 women between the ages of 40 and 55 years. One group (65 women) was supplemented with calcium, the other served as a control.

Cartilage degradation by neutral metalloproteases in experimental collagen-like syndrome.

In this study, we sought to determine the role of neutral proteases in cartilage matrix proteoglycan degradation, which occurs during the experimental hydralazine-induced collagen-like syndrome (c-l-s) in rats. The digestion of endogenous proteoglycans by neutral proteases in homogenates of cartilage from rats with c-l-s has been measured and compared with that of normal age-matched controls. Cartilage specimens from the tibial plateau were analysed for DNA and proteoglycan content, and neutral proteoglycan-degrading activity, No significant difference in cartilage DNA concentration was observed among the rats with c-l-s and the controls.

Lipid peroxidation in the nuclear fraction of rat lungs induced by hydralazine.

Hydralazine (1-hydrazinophthalazine) was administered in drinking water as a 0.0312% solution to randomly bred female Wistar rats during 3 weeks. The average daily intake of this compound was 6.

Preliminary study on the concentration and species composition of bacteria, fungi and mites in samples of house dust from Silesia (Poland).

Twenty-one samples of house dust collected from dwellings situated in Upper Silesia (Poland) were subjected to bacteriological, mycological and acarological examination. Moreover, in two samples the concentration of bacterial endotoxin was estimated by the use of Limulus test. The mean concentration of bacteria in the examined samples was 2831.

Changes in lung activity of superoxide dismutase and copper concentration during lung tumorigenesis by hydralazine in Swiss mice.

Hydralazine (1-hydrazinophthalazine) was administered in drinking water as a 0.0312% solution to randomly bred Swiss mice for life beginning at 5 weeks of age. The treatments gave rise to statistically significant incidences of lung tumors: 55% in females and 43% in males.

N-acetyltransferase phenotype of patients with cancer of the larynx.

In the present paper N-acetyltransferase phenotype has been evaluated in 128 patients with cancer of the larynx. Out of 128 patients, 86.7% were smokers.

Enhancement of neutral metalloproteinase in the dermis after one topical application of tumor-promoting phorbol ester.

The effect of a tumor-promoting skin mitogen, 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) on the induction of matrix degradation in the dermis of mouse skin has been examined. Dermis specimens were analyzed for proteoglycan content and neutral proteoglycan degrading activity. Total neutral metalloproteinase activity (latent plus active forms), determined by direct tissue assay, was significantly elevated in TPA-treated dermis than in control dermis.

A review of seasonal periodicity in peptic ulcer disease.

Although several pathogenetic factors have been identified in recent years, the etiology of peptic ulcer disease is yet unknown. During the past few decades several investigators have reported seasonal patterns in peptic and duodenal ulcer disease. A review of the literature reveals vast differences between studies with respect to the type and number of patients selected, diagnostic techniques, the number of examinations and the interval of time between each as well as the method of data analysis.

Effects of methotrexate on rabbit testes. Part 2: Hormonal changes.

Thirty mature and peripubertal male rabbits were examined for endocrine function and tissue methotrexate (MTX) concentration after single (57.5 mg/kgBW, group 1) and repeated (6 mg/kgBW, once a week for 14 weeks, group 2) MTX doses. Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), testosterone, and androstenedione plasma levels were measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA).

Effects of methotrexate on rabbit testes. Part 1: Morphological changes.

Methotrexate (MTX) has the potential of eradicating small infiltrations of leukemic cells in the gonads. We examined the morphological changes in rabbit testes after a single dose (57.5 mg/kgBW) or repeated low doses (6 mg/kgBW once a week for 14 weeks) of MTX IV.