Magnetic resonance imaging of renal lymphoma with computed tomography correlation

The magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and computed tomography (CT) findings in four patients (five kidneys) with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma involving the kidneys and perirenal spaces are presented. The patterns of disease in each case were as follows: bilateral renal nodules, infiltration in the perirenal space, infiltration in the perirenal space with renal involvement, and direct invasion from contiguous retroperitoneum. On plain CT, the lesions showed slight hyperdensity (three kidneys) and isodensity (two kidneys) as compared with normal renal parenchyma. But all lesions appeared as hypodense masses with more definite margins after contrast enhancement. MR imaging findings showed iso- or slight hypointense masses on T1-weighted images and definite hypointense masses on T2-weighted images as compared with the signal intensity of the renal cortex. Dynamic imaging and conventional delayed T1-weighted imaging following Gd-DTPA injection showed no significant enhancement of the lesions. In comparison with contrast enhanced CT, despite its poorer resolution, T2-weighted MR imaging showed nearly the same accuracy in the evaluation of number and extent of the lesions without contrast medium administration. MR imaging was also useful to evaluate the patency of vessel lumen surrounded by tumor mass and to determine the location and extent of huge lesions by its multiplanar imaging capabilities.     

Effect of mebendazole on free amino acid composition of cyst wall and cyst fluid of Echinococcus granulosus harbored in mice

Eighteen and 23 FAA components were detected in the cyst wall and cyst fluid of E granulosus, respectively, by using automatic amino acid analyzer. The concentrations of most of the determined FAA were higher in the cyst fluid than those in the cyst wall, especially the taurine was 5-fold higher. Mebendazole treatment resulted in an increase in the concentration of alanine, valine, lysine, and taurine in both cyst wall and cyst fluid, the most notable being the alanine in the cyst wall. The results are interpreted as a coupling of glycolysis and amino acid metabolism, suggesting an involvement of FAA metabolism in the mechanism of Meb action.     

Oxidative damage to the eye lens caused by cigarette smoke and fuel smoke condensates

The degree to which a reformed U.S. health care system relies on an adequate supply of primary care physicians will determine the urgency of change in the composition of the medical workforce. In many areas of the United States, the demand for primary care physicians, particularly in managed care settings, far exceeds the supply. In contrast, reports of reduced practice opportunities for medical and surgical subspecialists in the same settings are increasing. As opportunities for and incomes of primary care physicians are enhanced, some medical subspecialists may seek retraining in primary care. This article provides a context for understanding the development of physician retraining programs, examines precedents for retraining physicians, describes four possible pathways through which medical subspecialists might acquire primary care training, and emphasizes the importance of defining the scope of practice and necessary skills for providing primary care. Obstacles to retraining appear to be economic (Who will pay? Is the cost worth the benefit?) and jurisdictional (Who will define core competencies? Who will credential programs and trainees?). The current absence of demand for such retraining programs suggests either that marketplace-induced changes will not take place or that the notion of a primary care provider shortage and an oversupply of medical subspecialists is overstated. The inclusion of physician retraining programs in proposed health reform legislation suggests that policymakers are convinced that such programs offer one viable solution to the nation's medical workforce needs.     

NO/cGMP pathway is involved in exocrine secretion from rat pancreatic acinar cells

OBJECTIVE: To identify factors associated with the initiation of breast-feeding in a predominantly Puerto Rican population living in inner-city Hartford, Conn. DESIGN: Retrospective study of 144 Latino women (mean +/- standard deviation age = 26.3 +/- 5.7 years) with children at least 1 year old but younger than 6 years old (mean +/- standard deviation age = 3.0 +/- 1.2 years) at the time of the survey. Women were recruited from agencies sponsoring health programs for mothers and children. They were interviewed in their homes (69%) or at the Hispanic Health Council, Hartford, Conn (31%). SUBJECTS/SETTING: Low-income Latino women who had at least 1 preschooler at the time of the interview. The women lived in inner-city Hartford, and the overwhelming majority were Puerto Rican and received welfare assistance and food stamps. Seventy-eight percent of the women chose to be interviewed in Spanish; the other 22% were interviewed in English. STATISTICAL ANALYSES: Explanatory variables that related to breast-feeding initiation (P < or = .2) in bivariate chi 2 analyses were entered into a multivariate logistic regression model that was reduced using backward stepwise elimination procedures. RESULTS: Multivariate analyses indicated that breast-feeding the previous child, shorter length of maternal residence in the United States, not receiving prenatal bottle-feeding advice, more recent birth, and higher birth weight were positively associated with breast-feeding initiation. A major reason for choosing not to breast-feed was that women felt socially uncomfortable doing it. APPLICATIONS: Breast-feeding initiation was more likely in Latino women who received prenatal breast-feeding counselling and postpartum support. Mothers of low-birth-weight infants and women breast-feeding for the first time may need additional help. These findings can be used by programs like the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children to increase breast-feeding initiation.     

灌排系统水转化模拟模型研究

受自然与人为因素综合影响,灌区水转化过程复杂多变。以湖北漳河水库灌区为例,分别从水平和垂直方向描述典型灌排系统的水转化过程,以水量平衡原理为基础,研发灌排系统边界处置、稻作区田间多层土壤、塘坝及排水沟道之间多个水转化模拟子模块,由此构建一种客观描述灌排系统边界半封闭结构及其水平输送、垂直运动与渠-田-沟-塘水转化过程的耦合模拟模型,解决了应用流域分布式水文模型求解灌区水转化过程中面临的灌区边界不确定、分层土壤简化处理等问题。利用漳河灌区谭店灌排系统2014-2015年水平衡测试观测数据对该模型进行检验,采用拉丁超立方抽样法对模型参数进行分层抽样,并利用偏相关法分析参数敏感性。通过模型计算可得,支沟率定期和验证期模拟结果的复相关系数分别为0.83、0.70,Ens系数分别为0.81、0.68,斗沟率定期和验证期模拟结果的复相关系数分别为0.79、0.68,Ens系数分别为0.73、0.62,结果表明该模型适用于灌排系统水转化过程模拟。与SWAT模型对比,对于同一研究区域,复相关系数由0.11提高到0.73,Ens系数由-0.71提高到0.70,进一步验证了该模型的先进性,为灌排系统尺度水转化模拟和机制研究提供了新方法。     

Views of hospital staff on the management of hypertension

A questionnaire concerning the detection and management of hypertension was presented to 265 hospital doctors, 114 medical students and 59 student nurses. Of these 75% were completed. Although only 76% thought that routine measurement was necessary in outpatients, 92% of respondents thought that blood pressure (BP) should be measured routinely in all in-patients. A total of 17% of all doctors and 11% of physicians indicated that they would not use drug treatment until the diastolic BP exceeded 105 mmHg. Thirty-four per cent of respondents still use diastolic phase IV and 84% felt that BP should be measured 2-4 times before deciding on treatment but the posture of the patient (lying, sitting or standing) during recording was inconsistent. Seventy-seven per cent of respondents indicated that they recorded BP to the nearest 5 mmHg and 4% to the nearest 10 mmHg. Despite the literature on the subject, there are still widely differing opinions amongst medical staff on how to record BP and at what level it should be treated.     

Participation of AT1 and AT2 receptor subtypes in the tonic inhibitory modulation of baroreceptor reflex response by endogenous angiotensins at the nucleus tractus solitarii in the rat

Although myelin basic protein (MBP)-recognizing T cells are not readily obtained after immunization of BALB/c mice with MBP (reflecting the BALB/c resistance to actively induced experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE)), they can be expanded and cloned after several rounds of in vitro culture. The majority of BALB/c-derived clones recognize an epitope defined by MBP peptide 59-76. When transferred to naive BALB/c recipients, these clones cause classical EAE, with characteristic inflammation and demyelination of the central nervous system (CNS). We previously showed that two related clones recognizing a minor epitope, defined by MBP peptide 151-168, cause inflammation and demyelination preferentially of the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Because MBP has alternatively spliced isoforms, residues 151-168 are not present contiguously in all MBP isoforms. In order to determine whether induction of PNS disease is idiosyncratic to these sister clones, or related to their properties of epitope recognition, an independent T-cell line with similar recognition properties was studied. Clone 116F, derived from a BALB/c shiverer mouse, expresses a different T-cell receptor (TCR), with distinct TCR contact residues, but like the previously described T cells, this clone requires residues from both exons 6 and 7 for optimal stimulation. When adoptively transferred to BALB/c recipients, this clone preferentially induces disease of the PNS. A control BALB/c shiverer-derived MBP 59-76-recognizing clone, in contrast, induces CNS disease. These data strongly suggest that the site of disease initiation may correlate with epitope recognition, particularly when alternative isoforms are involved.