Chemotherapy for spinal cord astrocytoma

A combined retrospective and prospective study of 129 beta-thalassaemia major patients seen between 1965 and 1995 in Sabah Hospital, Kuwait has been carried out. The age range at diagnosis was 2 to 84 months, median 9 months. In approximately 80 per cent, the patients were outcomes of first- or second-cousin marriages. Nine (7 per cent) of the patients were HBsAg positive, while 42 (33 per cent) were hepatitis C seropositive. Eleven (9 per cent) patients had had bone marrow transplantation (BMT). There was no BMT-related mortality, but there were three graft rejections and two cases of chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD).     

Map integration at human chromosome 10: molecular and cytogenetic analysis of a chromosome-specific somatic cell hybrid panel and genomic clones, based on a well-supported genetic map

Well-characterized, chromosome-specific somatic cell hybrid panels are powerful tools for the analysis of the human genome. We have characterized a panel of human x hamster somatic cell hybrids retaining fragments of human chromosome 10 by fluorescence in situ hybridization and associated them to genetic markers. Most of the hybrids were generated by the radiation-reduction method, starting from a chromosome 10-specific monochromosomal hybrid, whereas some were collected from hybrids retaining chromosome 10-specific fragments as a result of spontaneous in vitro rearrangements. PCR was used to score the retention of 57 microsatellite markers evenly distributed along a well-supported framework genetic map containing 149 loci uniquely placed at 69 anchor points (odds exceeding 1,000:1), with an average spacing of 2.8 cM. As an additional resource for genomic studies involving human chromosome 10, we report the cytogenetic localization of a series of YAC and PAC clones recognized by at least one genetic marker. Somatic cell hybrids provide a powerful source of partial chromosome paints useful for detailed clinical cytogenetic and primate chromosome evolution investigations. Furthermore, correlation of the above physical, genetic, and cytogenetic data contribute to an emerging consensus map of human chromosome 10.     

Pitfalls and complications of colon interposition

Colon interposition is a complex operation that requires meticulous technique and attention to detail. In experienced hands, the colon is a valuable conduit for esophageal reconstruction, particularly in patients with benign disease.     

Compliance of secondary prophylaxis for controlling rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease in a rural area of northern India

Using the methods of recombination and gene disruption, the effects of degUS gene in Bacillus subtilis Ki-2-132 were studied. The results showed that the gene could affect all protease-producing, competence formation, cell mobility and repression effects of glucose on protease-production. This implies that it is a pleitropic gene in Bacillus subtilis Ki-2-132. The disruption of the gene caused morphological changes and repressed the expression of aprE in vectors.     

Dopamine infusion does not alter LH levels before or after chronic cocaine exposure in female rhesus monkeys

Cocaine stimulates release of luteinizing hormone (LH) in preclinical and clinical studies but the contribution of the indirect dopamine agonist actions of cocaine to its effects on LH are unclear. In the present study, we examined the effects of exogenous dopamine infusions on LH release in drug-naive, normally cycling, female rhesus monkeys. All studies were conducted during the mid-follicular phase (cycle days 6-8). Three successive 80-min dopamine infusions (10 micrograms/kg/min, intravenous) were alternated with 20- or 40-min interruptions of dopamine infusions. There were no significant changes in LH during or following dopamine infusions. Predopamine baseline LH levels averaged 30 +/- 5.4 ng/ml. LH averaged 31.7 +/- 1.3 ng/ml during dopamine infusions and 31.4 +/- 1.3 ng/ml after dopamine infusions stopped. To determine whether chronic cocaine exposure influenced the effect of dopamine on LH, rhesus females were studied after more than 2 years of cocaine self-administration at an average dose of 6.5 +/- 0.2 mg/kg/day. LH averaged 27.3 +/- 3.3 ng/ml during baseline and 26.9 +/- 0.7 ng/ml and 26.1 +/- 0.7 ng/ml during dopamine infusions and interruptions, respectively. Similarly, during withdrawal from cocaine, baseline LH levels averaged 32.1 +/- 4.5 ng/ml, and LH did not change significantly during dopamine infusions (31.2 +/- 1.1 ng/ml) and infusion interruptions (32.1 +/- 1.1 ng/ml). Under the conditions of the present study, dopamine administration did not change LH levels in gonadally intact rhesus monkeys, and these findings are consistent with previous studies in ovariectomized rhesus females. However, these data are not consistent with clinical reports, and some possible implications of this species difference are discussed. Moreover, these data suggest that the stimulation of LH by cocaine may not be explained by its indirect dopamine agonist actions.     

Sodium pump isoform specificity for the digitalis-like factor isolated from human peritoneal dialysate

We have isolated a labile, specific sodium pump inhibitor or digitalis-like factor from the peritoneal dialysate of volume-expanded renal failure patients whose levels correlated closely with volume status and blood pressure. This study characterizes the inhibitory profile of this agent compared with that of ouabain against the three alpha-isoforms of the sodium pump. We prepared microsomal Na,K-ATPase from rat tissues representing the highest proportion of one of the alpha-isoforms. Both Northern and Western blot analyses confirmed that kidney had predominantly the alpha1-isoform, skeletal muscle the alpha2-isoform, and fetal brain the alpha3-isoform. Ouabain (5 x 10(-6) mol/L) produced little inhibition of kidney Na,K-ATPase (3.4+/-2.0%) but significant inhibition of skeletal muscle (37.2+/-3.7%, P<.001) and fetal brain (38.8+/-3.5%, P<.001) activity. In contrast, the labile digitalis-like factor, causing comparable inhibition of fetal brain Na,K-ATPase activity (33.3+/-4.7%), produced markedly greater inhibition of kidney (42.5+/-5.6%, P<.001) and moderately greater inhibition of skeletal muscle pump activity (57.7+/-6.3%, P<.05). In addition, the labile digitalis-like factor produced a marked concentration-dependent inhibition of the alpha2- and alpha3-isoforms (r=.79, P=.00005). Experiments combining the labile digitalis-like factor and ouabain confirmed that digitalis-like factor, unlike ouabain, was an effective inhibitor of all three isoforms in rat, in particular alpha2. The different pattern of isoform sensitivity displayed by the labile digitalis-like factor and ouabain further differentiates the two agents and raises some interesting possibilities about the functional implications of the endogenous factor.