Effect of ergotamine and ergonovine on plasma concentrations of thyroid hormones and cortisol in cattle

Plasma samples from two experiments were processed to determine whether ergot alkaloids associated with endophyte-infected tall fescue altered peripheral thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine (T3), or cortisol concentrations in cattle. In Exp. 1, seven Angus steers (294 kg) received i.v. bolus injections of saline (SAL), ergonovine maleate (7 mg; EM), or ergotamine tartrate (7 mg; ET) at weekly intervals, and they received all treatments during the study. Blood was sampled every 15 min for 5 h, and treatments were given after h 1. Mean ambient temperature was 34 degrees C. Treatment x time affected plasma concentrations of T3 (P < .05) and of cortisol (P < .001) but not that of T4 (P > .2). Plasma T3 concentrations were not affected by SAL, whereas concentrations increased (P < .01) after either EM or ET treatment. Plasma cortisol concentrations were not altered by SAL or EM, but they were increased (P < .001) by ET treatment. In Exp. 2, six Holstein cows (499 kg) nursing calves received a bolus i.v. injection of SAL, EM (9.5 mg), or ET (9.5 mg) per estrous cycle, and all treatments were given over three cycles. Blood was sampled every 20 min for 5 h; treatments were given after h 1. Mean ambient temperature was 26 degrees C. Treatment x time affected T3 (P = .08) and cortisol (P < .001) and tended to influence (P = .16) T4 concentrations. Plasma T3, T4, and cortisol concentrations were not influenced by SAL treatment. Plasma T3 was higher (P < or = .01) after EM or ET treatment compared with pretreatment concentrations. Concentrations of T4 during the 4 h after EM and ET were increased (P < .001) compared with pretreatment. Plasma cortisol concentrations were not altered by EM but were increased (P < .001) by ET. Ergot alkaloids implicated as contributing agents to fescue toxicosis alter plasma concentrations of hormones important to metabolic and thermoregulatory functions in cattle.     

Influence of receptor number on the stimulation by salmeterol of gene transcription in CHO-K1 cells transfected with the human beta2-adrenoceptor

We investigated the behavior of the antioxidant enzymes, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and ascorbate peroxidase (APx), in potato tubers during storage at low temperature. SOD activity increased temporarily within 3 weeks and was higher at 1 degree C than at 20 degrees C. APx activity also increased more at low (1 degree C) than at higher temperatures (5 and 20 degrees C). The contents of ascorbic acid (AsA), which is the substrate of APx, decreased immediately within 3 weeks and then gradually decreased until 15 weeks. The activity of CAT, the other enzyme which can scavenge hydrogen peroxide, decreased once in the first six weeks and thereafter increased to 15 weeks. Thus, the enhancement of the active oxygen-scavenging system that was induced by low temperature in potato tubers could result not only in a decrease of AsA but also in combined increases in APx and CAT activity whose manners were different.     

Metastatic carcinoma of the prostate mimicking primary carcinoid tumor of the lung and mediastinum

AIMS: To investigate the current use of thrombolytic therapy in the management of patients with acute myocardial infarction and to determine the potential for an increased use of thrombolysis or percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA). METHODS AND RESULTS: All hospitalised cases of acute myocardial infarction were identified in three health districts in the UK (population of 960,000) in patients under the age of 76 years during a 2-year period; 2439 patients had acute myocardial infarction, of whom 1264 (52%) received thrombolytic therapy. Failure to administer thrombolytic therapy was a result of the absence of diagnostic electrocardiograms in 712 (29.2%) patients, late presentation in 127 (5.2%), therapeutic error in 112 (4.6%), presence of a bleeding risk in 139 (5.7%) and other miscellaneous reasons in 80 (3.3%) patients. Thirty-eight of the 139 patients in whom bleeding risk was reported as a contra-indication could, in retrospect, have received thrombolytic therapy and a further 76 would have been suitable for primary PTCA. CONCLUSIONS: The potential for increasing the use of thrombolytic therapy seems to be limited and is unlikely to make a major impact on the in-hospital mortality from acute myocardial infarction. However, primary PTCA should be considered in those who are ineligible for thrombolysis because of bleeding risk as a contra-indication.     

Phlebotomus papatasi sand fly salivary gland lysate down-regulates a Th1, but up-regulates a Th2, response in mice infected with Leishmania major

A vertebrate host becomes infected with Leishmania major when the sand fly vector injects parasites into skin along with saliva. Previous studies showed that salivary gland lysate of the New World sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis markedly enhanced L. major infection in CBA mice. However, L. major is an Old World parasite transmitted in nature by the Old World sand fly Phlebotomus papatasi. Here we examine the ability of P. papatasi salivary gland lysate to enhance infection (lesion size and parasite burden) by L. major. In addition, we examine the effects of salivary gland lysate on the immune response to L. major by monitoring the levels of cytokine mRNA from the lymph nodes draining cutaneous lesions. We found that P. papatasi salivary gland lysate dramatically exacerbated lesion development in disease-resistant CBA mice. This exacerbation of disease correlated with inhibition of the production of Thl cytokines and associated factors (IFN-gamma, IL-12, and inducible nitric oxide synthase), but with enhancement of the Th2 cytokine IL-4, whereas no changes in the levels of IL-10 and TGF-beta were noted. Importantly, salivary gland lysate directly up-regulated expression of IL-4 mRNA in mice in the absence of infection with L. major.     

Trends in mortality of childhood-onset insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in Leicestershire: 1940-1991

The relative risk of death by calendar date of diagnosis was investigated in a population-based incident cohort of 845 (463 males:382 females) IDDM diagnosed in Leicestershire before the age of 17 years between 1940 and 1989. The mortality status of 844 (99.9%) patients was determined as of the 31 December 1991, representing 14,346 person-years of risk. Trends in relative risk of death were investigated using Cox proportional hazards modelling for within cohort comparisons and age/sex and calendar time adjusted standardized mortality ratios (SMR) using generalized linear modelling for external comparisons. Median age at diagnosis was 10 years (range 3 months to 16 years); median duration of diabetes 15 years (range 1-51 years). Forty-four patients had died (5.2%; median age at death 31 years, range 11-51 years). A further four patients died at presentation (within 24 h) from ketoacidosis and are excluded from all analyses. Calendar date of diagnosis was found to be an important predictor of mortality. Adjusting for attained age there was evidence of a decline in relative risk of death with calendar date of diagnosis of 3.4% (95% CI, 0.005-6.9%) per annum, equivalent to a 32% fall per decade (95% CI, 5-51%), or 84% (95% CI, 21-97) from 1940 to 1989. The data are consistent with a large fall in mortality between the 1940s and 1950s representing over 50% of the total reduction in mortality between 1940 and 1991. Neither sex nor age at diagnosis were significant predictors of mortality. Over the study period 1940-89 the SMR (male and female combined) fell from 981 (541-1556) to 238 (60-953) relative to the general population. This population-based study shows that the prognosis for Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus has improved markedly over the period 1940-1991.     

Reduced skin tumor development in cyclin D1-deficient mice highlights the oncogenic ras pathway in vivo

Cyclin D1 is part of a cell cycle control node consistently deregulated in most human cancers. However, studies with cyclin D1-null mice indicate that it is dispensable for normal mouse development as well as cell growth in culture. Here, we provide evidence that ras-mediated tumorigenesis depends on signaling pathways that act preferentially through cyclin D1. Cyclin D1 expression and the activity of its associated kinase are up-regulated in keratinocytes in response to oncogenic ras. Furthermore, cyclin D1 deficiency results in up to an 80% decrease in the development of squamous tumors generated through either grafting of retroviral ras-transduced keratinocytes, phorbol ester treatment of ras transgenic mice, or two-stage carcinogenesis.     

Synthesis of corneal keratan sulfate proteoglycans by bovine keratocytes in vitro

Keratan sulfate proteoglycans (KSPGs) are the major proteoglycans of the cornea and are secreted by keratocytes in the corneal stroma. Previous studies have been able to show only transient secretion of KSPG in cell culture. In this study, cultures of bovine keratocytes were found to secrete the three previously characterized KSPG proteins into culture medium. Reactivity with monoclonal antibody I22 demonstrated substitution of these proteins with keratan sulfate chains. KSPG constituted 15% of the proteoglycan metabolically labeled with [35S]sulfate in keratocyte culture medium. This labeled KSPG contained keratan sulfate chains of 4700 Da compared to 21,000 Da for bovine corneal keratan sulfate. Labeled keratan sulfate from cultures contained nonsulfated, monosulfated, and disulfated disaccharides that were released by digestion with endo-beta-galactosidase or keratanase II. Nonsulfated disaccharides were relatively more abundant in keratan sulfate from culture than in corneal keratan sulfate. These results show that cultured bovine keratocytes maintain the ability to express all three of the known KSPG proteins, modified with keratan sulfate chains and sulfated on both N-acetylglucosamine and galactose moieties. KSPG made in vitro differs from that found in vivo in the length and sulfation of its keratan sulfate chains. The availability of cell cultures secreting corneal keratan sulfate proteoglycans provides an opportunity to examine biosynthesis and control of this important class of molecules.     

Is implementation of continuous improvement possible? An evolutionary model of enablers and inhibitors

The purpose of this article is to present an evolutionary model of the enablers and inhibitors affecting the implementation and sustainability of continuous improvement. With this aim, a qualitative study using the grounded theory was carried out. Interviews were conducted with managers responsible for continuous improvement in first‐tier suppliers in the automotive sector. As a result, two existing lines of research in the continuous improvement literature are synthesized: on one hand, the literature concerning the enablers and barriers associated with continuous improvement sustainability; and on the other, the literature concerning the evolutionary model. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Photo-Chemically-Deposited and Industrial Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 Catalyst Material Surface Structures During CO2 Hydrogenation to Methanol: EXAFS,XANES and XPS Analyses of Phases After Oxidation,Reduction, and Reaction

Catalysis Letters - Industrial Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 or novel rate catalysts, prepared with a photochemical deposition method, were studied under functional CH3OH synthesis conditions at the set temperature...