Geochemical prospection of cadmium in a high incidence area of prostate cancer, Sierra de Gata, Salamanca, Spain.

A high incidence of prostate cancer was observed in some areas of Salamanca province, Spain. After excluding the most common etiological factors as the cause, it is concluded that the only possible risk factor must be due to the presence of some environmental carcinogen. In view of the etiological relationship between Cd and the pathological state, a study was carried out on the geochemistry of this element in the area. Anomalous amounts of Cd were found in stream sediments. This anomaly does not correspond to human activity, but rather to high regional amounts of cadmium in the substrate. Thus, the contents of Cd in soils developed over substrates containing naturally-occurring anomalous amounts of cadmium and the concentration in underground waters should be considered as a risk factor in this area.     

Optimization techniques for curved path computing

Participating media with an inhomogeneous index of refraction make light follow curved paths. Simulating this in a global illumination environment has usually been neglected due to the complexity of the calculations involved, sacrificing accurate physical simulations for efficient visual results. This paper aims to simulate non-linear media in a more reasonable time than previous works without losing physical correctness. Accuracy is achieved by solving the Eikonal equation of geometrical optics, which describes the path followed by a light beam that traverses a non-linear medium. This equation is used in the context of a photon mapping extension.     

Should patients with sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome be diagnosed and managed on the basis of home sleep studies?

The purpose of this study was to analyse the validity and the economic efficiency of a portable monitor of respiratory parameters (PMRP), used in a home setting for the diagnosis of sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (SAHS). Eighty nine patients with suspected SAHS were studied in two settings: in the sleep laboratory using full-polysomnography (full-PSG); and at the patient's home using a PMRP. In the home setting, 50 patients were assisted by a technician and 39 set up the equipment themselves. SAHS (apnoea/hypopnoea index (AHI) >10 events x h(-1) by means of full-PSG) was diagnosed in 75 of the 89 patients. An acceptable agreement was obtained between the AHI measured by full-PSG and PMRP, according to the Bland and Altman method of concordance (mean bias 2.56; 95% confidence interval 3.25). Sensitivity and specificity of PMRP were adequate for diagnostic purposes; however, their values rely on the prior PMRP-AHI cut-off point selected with reference to full-PSG-AHI >10. The clinical therapeutic decision taken after PMRP agreed with that taken with full-PSG in 79 patients (89%). Although 10% of the studies with an individual set-up needed repetition, both of the domiciliary modalities (with and without a technician's intervention) were, economically, about three times more efficient than full-PSG. In conclusion, we believe that patients with a suspected sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome should initially be studied in a home setting with a portable monitor of respiratory parameters, since it is a reliable method with an acceptable cost-effective profile.     

Basophilic blast crisis in chronic myeloid leukemia

Acute nonoliguric renal failure developed in a 13-year-old girl, 1 month after the institution of isoniazid therapy because of a positive tuberculin test at school screening. A renal biopsy demonstrated severe crescentic glomerulonephritis with focal interstitial changes. Discontinuation of isoniazid and a short course of steroids and cyclophosphamide therapy were followed by complete recovery. Whereas isoniazid has been shown to induce a lupus-like syndrome and antihistone antinuclear antibodies, our patient displayed none of the clinical or immunological features that are characteristic of drug-induced lupus. Furthermore, none of the identifiable causes for crescentic glomerulonephritis was evident in this girl. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report suggesting a possible association of crescentic glomerulonephritis to isoniazid treatment.     

Primary lymphoma of the central nervous system. Review of etiological factors

INTRODUCTION: The primary lymphoma of the central nervous system are between 1 to 2% of all the brain tumors. The most important risk factor for the development of this kind of lesions is both acquired and congenital immunologic deficiency. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this paper we'll try to study the 13 cases of primary lymphomas of the central nervous system from etiological, epidemiological, clinic, diagnostic, therapeutic and outcome point of view. CONCLUSION: Besides we will discuss the bibliography founded paying special attention to diagnostic and therapeutic features.     

Mumps orchitis; review of 8 cases]

The occurrence of secondary hypogonadism is a common finding in males who seek help with erectile dysfunction, although the relationship to diminished testosterone is unclear. Two possibilities exist regarding both the genesis and maintenance of the hypogonadotropic hypogonadal state. First, a defect in hypothalamic function, resulting in downregulation as well as in alterations of anterior pituitary function; second, estradiol inhibition of gonadotropin release, both of which result in decreased testosterone production. As testosterone levels decrease and estradiol levels increase, the ratio of free testosterone to estradiol reaches a critical point and the estrogenic gonadotropin suppressive effects predominate. This ratio may signal the biological point of no return and could become one of the criteria for defining the separation of the transitional hypogonadal state from the final 'end stage' hypogonadotropic hypogonadal state. As the aging process continues, there is a relative accumulation of fatty tissue, and aromatization accelerates the conversion of testosterone to estradiol. This additional secondary estradiol inhibition results in the maintenance of the testosterone deficient state, and the aging process continues uncontested.     

Physiopathology of neurological signs of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase deficiency

OBJECTIVE: Hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) deficiency is characterized by an increase in renal uric acid excretion, usually with hyperuricemia and may be associated with more or less important neurological symptoms. Based on a series of 20 patients from 16 Spanish families we propose that HPRT deficiency could be clinically classified in four different groups. In the more severe form (classic Lesch-Nyhan syndrome) HPRT deficiency is characterized by choreoathetosis, spasticity, mental retardation and compulsive self-mutilation behavior. The pathophysiology of the neurological symptoms remains unclear and there is no effective therapy. This review is intended to provide a research strategy for a better knowledge of the neurological pathophysiology of HPRT deficiency. DEVELOPMENT: We have analyzed the knowledge on the neurological symptoms of HPRT deficiency. This knowledge comes from histopathological studies of the brains from Lesch-Nyhan patients, chemical studies of the cerebrospinal fluid, experimental animal models (pharmacologic and lesioning and genetic approaches), and human in vivo studies with positron-emission tomography. CONCLUSIONS: The observed findings suggest that the neurological symptoms of Lesch-Nyhan syndrome could be related with the neonatal neuronal and/or dopaminergic terminations damage. This damage could be due to lost or reorganization of dopaminergic system, and is associated with a reduced dopamine levels and with hypersensitivity of the D1 subclass dopamine receptors.     

Cellular mechanisms of intestine regeneration in the sea cucumber, Holothuria glaberrima Selenka (Holothuroidea:Echinodermata)

Echinoderms are the deuterostome group with the most striking capacity to regenerate lost body parts. In particular, members of the class Holothuroidea are able to regenerate most of their internal organs following a typical evisceration process. Such formation of new viscera in an adult organism provides a unique model to study the process of organogenesis. We have studied this process in the sea cucumber Holothuria glabberrima by describing the spatial and temporal pattern of cellular events that occur during intestine regeneration following chemically induced evisceration. Regeneration begins as a thickening of the mesenteries that supported the autotomized organs to the body wall. The mesenterial thickening consists of tissues where most of the cellular populations found in the normal intestine are already present. However, the cell numbers differ, particularly those of hemocytes and amoebocytes, suggesting that some of these cells play an important role in the formation of the solid rod of hypertrophic mesentery that characterizes the intestinal primordia. The appearance of the luminal epithelium, together with the formation of the lumen, occurs during the second week of regeneration by proliferation and extensive migration of cells from the esophagus and cloacal ends into the thickenings. At this stage all tissue layers are present, but it takes an additional week for them to exhibit the proportions typical of the normal organ. Cell division, as determined by BrdU labeling, mainly occurs in the coelomic epithelia of the hypertrophic mesentery and in the regenerating luminal epithelium. Our study provides evidence that the process of new organ formation in holothurians can be described as an intermediate process showing characteristics of both epimorphic and morphallactic phenomena.