Inhibition of antigen-induced cutaneous responses of ponies with insect hypersensitivity by the histamine-1 receptor antagonist chlorpheniramine

A whole-body extract of Culicoides impunctatus induced a biphasic increase in oedema formation in ponies with insect hypersensitivity, with maxima after one and eight hours. The Culicoides antigen did not induce similar responses in ponies with no previous history of the disease. In insect-hypersensitive ponies the local administration of chlorpheniramine (12 micrograms) completely inhibited oedema formation in response to histamine (0.04 microgram) and to Culicoides antigen (0.5 microgram) at one hour, and the response to Culicoides antigen at eight hours was inhibited by 63 per cent. Chlorpheniramine also partially inhibited the accumulation of eosinophils and neutrophils induced by Culicoides antigen after two hours.     

Relationship of oral microflora with oral health status in Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) patients report an increased craving for sweets, which may have an effect on microflora. We compared patients of PD who crave sweets with PD patients who do not. Age- and sex-matched control subjects were used, with 14 subjects in each group. A plaque sample was taken from tooth #18 with a curette and placed into RTF, homogenized, and plated onto selective and non-selective media. Microflora were expressed as % CFU's of total anaerobes. Statistical analysis was performed by ANOVA and Newman-Keuls on log-transformed data. No statistical difference was observed among the three groups for lactobacilli, bacteroides, fusobacteria, veillonella, and actinomyces. S. mutans was lower in controls than in PD patients. Apparently, the craving for sweets in PD patients does not result in a significant increase in % of total anaerobes of certain microflora. PD patients showed a significant increase in mucositis compared with the control groups.     

The standard ''Healthcare Information Systems Architecture'' and the DHE middleware

The integration and evolution of existing systems represents one of the most urgent priorities of health care information systems in order to allow the whole organisation to meet the increasing clinical organisational and managerial needs. This paper discusses how an open architecture, based on the introduction of a middleware of common health care-specific services not only reduces the effort necessary for allowing existing systems to interwork, but also automatically establishes a functional and information basis common to the whole organisation, on top of which also new applications can be rapidly developed, natively integrated with the rest of the system. Such architecture has been already formalised through the European standard, defined by the CEN/TC251 prENV 12967-1 'Architecture for Health care Information Systems' (CEN prENV 12967-1 'Health care Information Systems Architecture'). Thanks to the availability of industrial products conforming to the standard, the effectiveness and the validity of this approach has been already demonstrated in practice. For example, through the Hansa collaboration hospitals and industries from countries of the Western and Eastern Europe, as well as of the Middle East use the same industrial middleware (i.e. 'The DHE middleware-Information view'-SPRI, 1998, 'The DHE middleware-Functional view'-SPRI, 1998) for integrating existing systems as well as for developing new applications.     

Evaluation of pregnancy rates after intrauterine insemination according to indication, age, and sperm parameters

The intention of this review is to compare studies on the morphology and histology (light and electron microscopic) of ultimobranchial glands of various groups of reptiles. Moreover, experiments (including our investigations) on suppression or stimulation of the ultimobranchial gland are included. Adult reptiles possess one (on the left side) or two ultimobranchial glands (UBG). The UBG lie just anterior to the heart. Light as well as electron microscopically, the gland has been shown to contain follicles and cell cords (cell aggregates). The follicular epithelium is lined by simple cuboidal or pseudostratified columnar cells. Ciliated and goblet cells may be present in the follicular epithelia in some groups. The lumen may contain a colloid-like substance with desquamated cells or debris. The UBG of reptiles seem to be an active secretory organ with influence on calcium regulation. Other functions of calcitonin have also been suggested in reptiles for example in neurotransmission, in volume regulation, phosphate balance and promotion of bone calcification (at least in juveniles).     

Adenosine monophosphate as a mediator of ATP effects at P1 purinoceptors

1. When perfused with a medium containing no added magnesium and 4-aminopyridine (4AP) (50 microM) hippocampal slices generated epileptiform bursts of an interictal nature. We have shown in a previous study that adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) depressed epileptiform activity and that this effect was blocked by the adenosine A1 receptor antagonist cyclopentyltheophylline but was not affected by adenosine deaminase. This implied that ATP might act indirectly at P1 receptors or at a xanthine-sensitive P2 receptor. The aim of the present study was to investigate further the action of ATP on epileptiform activity. 2. ATP can be metabolized by ecto-nucleotidases to adenosine 5'-diphosphate (ADP), adenosine 5'-monophosphate (AMP) and adenosine, respectively. Each of these metabolites can activate receptors in its own right: P2 receptors for ADP and P1 receptors for AMP and adenosine. 3. We now show that both AMP and ATP (50 microM) significantly decrease epileptiform discharge rate in a rapid and reversible manner. 5'Adenylic acid deaminase (AMP deaminase, AMPase) (0.2 u ml(-1)), when perfused alone did not significantly alter the discharge rate over the 10 min superfusion period used for drug application. When perfused concurrently with AMP (50 microM), AMP deaminase prevented the depressant effect of AMP on discharge rate. 4. AMP deaminase, at a concentration of 0.2 u ml(-1) which annulled the effect of AMP (50 microM), prevented the inhibitory activity of ATP (50 microM). A higher concentration of ATP (200 microM) depressed the frequency of spontaneous bursts to approximately 30% control and this response was also prevented by AMP deaminase. 5. Superfusion of the slices with 5'-nucleotidase also prevented the inhibitory activity of ATP on epileptiform discharges. 6. The results suggest that AMP mediates the inhibitory effects of ATP on epileptiform activity, a conclusion which can explain the earlier finding that cyclopentyltheophylline but not adenosine deaminase inhibited the effect of ATP. A corollary to this is that, when examining the pharmacology of ATP, care must be taken to inactivate AMP with AMP deaminase, as well as adenosine with adenosine deaminase, before a direct action of ATP on P1 receptors can be postulated. Failure to do so may have led to erroneous conclusions in some previous studies of nucleotide activity on nucleotide receptors.     

Effect of bleaching agents on chemical composition of enamel

A very rare case of Teratoma of the bladder in an eight year old girl is presented. The diagnosis was made on cyctoscopy and confirmed histopathologically. Complete excision was possible. No recurrence was seen at four years follow up. Only one such case has been reported in the literature and this is the first such case reported from India and Asian continent.     

Dementia in the very elderly. Results of the Berlin Aging Study

The frequency of dementia in very old subjects, the risk factors and the consequences of the disease were investigated in the Berlin Aging Study in an age- and gender-stratified design (ages 70-103 years, n = 516). Psychiatrists diagnosed a dementia syndrome according to DSM-III-R, applying the GMS-A and HAS interviews. The dementia frequency steeply increases until the 90-94 year group, but there is no further exponential increase for the 95+ group--instead for men the data show a plateau of dementia prevalence. Low education level turned out to be a risk factor, which explains the gender effect in a logistic regression analysis. The apolipoprotein E4 genotype was confirmed as a risk factor--however, only for the older subjects (85+). Dementia was a major reason for institutionalization. The 2-year mortality was no higher in dementia than for age-matched non-demented controls. The results gave a detailed picture of dementia in the very old. This is a prerequisite for planning facilities for psychiatric diagnostics and therapy as well as nursing care.