Retroperitoneal and mediastinal emphysema as a complication of colonoscopy

Retroperitoneal and mediastinal emphysema as a complication of colonoscopy, though infrequent, may occur. It is important to realize that this can be a benign clinical condition that will resolve with conservative management. A case of retroperitoneal emphysema after routine colonoscopy is reported with a review of literature and a brief discussion.     

Effect of Fine-Particle NbC Additions on the Structure and Superconducting Properties of (Bi,Pb)2Sr2Ca2Cu3O10 + xCeramics

(Bi,Pb)-2223 superconducting ceramics prepared by heat treatment at 840°C and containing 0.1 to 0.5 wt % fine-particle NbC additions were characterized by microstructural analysis, x-ray diffraction, and magnetic susceptibility measurements. The introduction of 0.1 wt % NbC was found to raise the 77-K zero-field critical current density by a factor of 2 to 3, reduce the superconducting transition width, and slightly increase T _c.     

Augmented water binding and low cellular water content in erythrocytes of camel and camelids

We investigated a link between hemoglobin primary structure, hemoglobin hydrophobicity-hydrophilicity, and erythrocyte water content in various mammalian species. Some hemoglobin molecules, particularly those of the camel and camelids, contain more charged amino acid residues and are more hydrophilic than the hemoglobins of human and a number of other mammalian species. To test the in vivo significance of these alterations of hemoglobin primary structure, we determined the osmotically unresponsive erythrocyte water fractions in mannit solutions of various osmolarities at 4 degreesC. Among the species investigated, the size of the osmotically unresponsive erythrocyte water fraction relates in a positive linear way to hemoglobin hydrophilicity. The extreme low total erythrocyte water content of camel erythrocytes (1.1-1.3 g water/g dry mass) may be explained by a comparatively high osmotically unresponsive erythrocyte water fraction. It is proposed that alterations of hemoglobin sequences of camel and camelids may be the part of a natural selection process aimed at protecting these animals against osmotic dehydration in arid environments.