[Intrahospital infections at a neonatal service]. This study is about the importance and mechanisms of the nosocomial infections, specially in newborn babies of the "Hospital General del Centro Médico La Raza del IMSS". We studied 461 newborns of which 53 (11.49%) developed one or more intrahospitalary infections. The rate of intra-hospital infections was 18.40%, mainly due by septicemia, infections of the surgical wounds, and respiratory tract infections. The gramnegative bacterias were predominant. Also were found Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis frequently. We give some preventive advice.


[Barotrauma in newborns. Study of 81 cases at a neonatal intensive care unit of a province]. We present 81 patients with diagnosis of air leaks in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). During 6 and a half year period. Air leaks were present in a 7.3% of overall admissions and in 18% in those whom received mechanical ventilation. We observed pneumothorax in all the patients, accompanied by pneumomediastinum in 12% and with interstitial emphysema in 7%. Other forms of air leak were present only rarely. Eighty percent of our patients were managed with intrapleural drainage. Almost 40% of events happened after resuscitation of tracheal aspiration management. The concomitant disease most often seen was respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) during it's convalescent period. Most of them had been previously placed in mechanical ventilation. We had a very high death rate, most significant in the group with weight less than 2,500 g in which 80% died. An analysis between our findings and those in literature was made.


[Aneurysm of the Galeno's vein: report of a case]. Some aspects of pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of gastroesophageal reflux (GER) in children are presented. There is considered a multifactorial syndrome. The objective of this review is present new trends in etiology, diagnostic methods, in a practical point of view, specially in places without sophisticated equipment. Finally it is presented rational therapeutical basis en GER management.


Simple in vivo bioassay without radioisotopes for recombinant human erythropoietins. A simple in vivo bioassay suitable for routine testing of quality control of recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) analogues was developed. The assay took four days, normal mice were used and radioactive compounds were not needed. EPO activity was measured by the increased number of some part of reticulocytes which increased specifically and dose-dependently by the injection of rHuEPO. They were considered to be mostly immature reticulocytes and were counted as the residual particles from blood cells after treatment with a hemolysing reagent. These particles could be counted by conventional automated microcell counters. The assay procedure was simple and easy. The sensitivity, reliability and reproducibility of this method were acceptable for routine in vivo bioassay of rHuEPOs. This method was economical, and can be used instead of the existing bioassays for rHuEPOs.


In vivo biological activities of recombinant human erythropoietin analogues produced by CHO cells, BHK cells and C127 cells. The in vivo biological activity of four pharmaceutical preparations of recombinant human erythropoietin was compared. Two of the erythropoietins were produced by Chinese hamster ovary cells, CHO-K1, and the others were produced by mouse mammary cells, C127, and baby hamster kidney cells, BHK-21. The activities of the analogues were estimated by a simple cell counting method with conventional automated microcell counters. The amounts of these analogues gave straight logarithmic dose-response curves when plotted against the count of particles resistant to hemolysing reagent, which particles were mostly immature reticulocytes. The lines from the four analogues were parallel to each other. The relative activities of these analogues were 1.02, 1.19 and 1.21 when one of the analogues was arbitrarily used as the standard. These differences in the extent of the activity were not significant. Thus, the four recombinant human erythropoietin analogues, produced by four different mammalian cell lines, expressed the same biological potencies in vivo corresponding to their units, and the units used up to now by the manufacturers are equivalent. These results also draw the conclusion that the new simple in vivo bioassay can replace the existing accepted assay methods.


Assay for measuring relative potency of leptospiral bacterins containing serovar pomona. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for the quantitation of leptospiral antigen in bacterins containing Leptospira interrogans serovar pomona type kennewicki. A monoclonal antibody (MAb), 2D7, which is directed against a surface antigen on whole cells of L. interrogans serovar pomona type kennewicki, was used in the assay. The capture of antigen in bacterins by a polyclonal antiserum was followed by the addition of the 2D7 ascites fluid, an anti-mouse conjugate and substrate. Biologicals evaluated with this system included preparations containing type kennewicki antigen (homologous) and those not containing type kennewicki antigen (heterologous). Heterologous bacterins gave optical density (OD) values comparable to those of blank wells. Homologous bacterins yielded OD values equal to or greater than those of the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) reference pomona bacterin. The relative potencies (RP) of 84 licensed commercial Leptospira pomona bacterin serials were evaluated against the NVSL reference pomona bacterin using the NVSL Relative Potency computer program. Random samples of 1, 2, 3 and 5 ml dose products were selected for evaluation with this system. All products tested passed the hamster potency assay required for leptospiral bacterins. This ELISA system enables detection of antigen in bacterins containing L. interrogans serovar pomona type kennewicki and demonstrates the potential for in vitro testing of leptospiral bacterins.


Swedish inactivated polio vaccine: laboratory standardization and clinical experience over a 30-year period. Swedish inactivated polio vaccines have contained per single human dose a mean amount of viral antigen equivalent to 1 x 10(7.5) CCID50 of type 1, 1 x 10(7.4) of type 2 and 1 x 10(7.8) of type 3 produced on primary monkey kidney cells. Potency tests were made in comparison with an equivalent amount of live virus suspension of all three types. Validation of tests has been based on the response to type 1 only. Based on clinical experience with vaccine lots from 1957 and the establishment of the second live reference virus suspension in 1966, the minimum limit of immune response in guinea-pigs--expressed in extinction values--was decided as 1.5 for type 1 and type 3, and 1.0 for type 2. The potency test method used since 1959 in Sweden was two subcutaneous injections 2 weeks apart using 10 guinea-pigs per dilution and blood collected 1 week thereafter. Potency tests made according to European Pharmacopoeia revealed a somewhat lower value for type 2. D-antigen content in Swedish vaccines was low, however, the Swedish vaccine has protected against many episodes or outbreaks of wild virus in Sweden and immunized individuals elsewhere in the world. For the Swedish population a clear-cut clinical motivation for requiring a higher potency for type 2 as required in the European Pharmacopoeia or increased levels of D-antigen in the final product has not been presented. It was concluded that the European Pharmacopoeia method did not distinguish between doses of 0.5-1.0 ml. The minimum limit extinction value for type 2, i.e. 2.0 seemed to high.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


The modified leukocytosis promoting factor (LPF)-test: a valuable supplement to the mouse weight gain (MWG)-test in toxicity control of whole cell pertussis vaccine. For the safety testing of pertussis vaccine, many in vivo assays have been developed, but none of these assays, except the Mouse Weight Gain (MWG)-test, are obligatory. Leukocytosis Promoting Factor (LPF) test, performed in mice, is one of the tests to examine the toxicity. However, due to lack of standardization, this test has not been implemented in the regular safety testing of the vaccine. Our investigations demonstrate that the LPF-test becomes more reproducible and sensitive if preparations are administered subcutaneously on day 0 and and counting of the leukocytes are done on day 6. Therefore, it is suggested to include the revised LPF-test in the quality control panel for the assessment of the toxicity of whole-cell pertussis vaccine.


Rabies neutralizing antibody in serum of children compared to adults following post-exposure prophylaxis. Rabies neutralizing antibody concentrations in serum (SRNA) elicited by experimental post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) regimens are used to assess their potential clinical efficacy. Although PEP with human rabies immunoglobulin (HRIG) plus human diploid-cell culture vaccine (HDCV) is almost completely protective, the limited availability of these components has stimulated the search for alternative regimens. Since 33% to over 60% of PEP is administered to children, a need exists for data on the SRNA response to HRIG plus HDCV in children, to be used to assess the potential value of alternative PEP treatments. We measured SRNA by the rapid fluorescent focus inhibition test on days 0, 1, 3, 7, 14, 28, 56 and 90 after initiation of PEP with HRIG (20 IU/kg) and HDCV (1.0 ml on day 0, 3, 7, 14, 28) in 10 children [8 +/- 4 (mean +/- SD) years of age] and 32 adult control patients (38 +/- 16 years of age). Early, uniform appearance of SRNA was observed with no differences between groups. These data are consistent with the demonstrated efficacy of PEP with HRIG plus HDCV in children as in adults and provide results that can be used for initial evaluation of experimental pediatric PEP regimens in the future.


Rabies vaccine standardization: International Collaborative Study for the Characterization of the fifth International Standard for Rabies Vaccine. A collaborative study was carried out to establish a replacement for the International Standard for Rabies Vaccine, the stocks of which are exhausted. Three rabies vaccines for human use derived from different rabies virus strains and prepared on different cell culture substrates were compared with the International Standard for Rabies Vaccine using in vivo and in vitro assay methods in a collaborative study involving 14 participants. The proposed fifth International Standard (PISRAV) which was derived from the same virus strain as the present international standard preparation, the Pitman Moore (PM) strain, was found to be approximately twice as potent relative to the International Standard in immunogenicity assays as in antigenicity assays. On the other hand another vaccine, derived from the LEP strain, was considerably more potent in antigenicity assays than in immunogenicity assays. The glycoprotein of the proposed replacement standard measured in antigenicity assays appeared to be stable at +37 degrees C for 245 days, whereas the immunogenicity of the proposed replacement vaccine was sensitive to this heat treatment and the vaccine lost 66% of its immunogenic potency. The results of this study indicate that the NIH protection test should continue to form the primary basis for potency assay of rabies vaccine as glycoprotein content does not appear to correlate with immunogenic potency for different types of vaccine. The vaccine coded PISRAV has been established as the fifth International Standard for Rabies Vaccine and a potency of 16 International Units of Rabies Vaccine (based on the immunogenicity assays) assigned to the contents of each ampoule. Each ampoule has also been assigned a unitage of 10 IU of PM Rabies Virus Glycoprotein and 135 IU of PM Rabies Virus Ribonucleoprotein.


A peptide family being re-united: the angiotensins coming in from the cold. The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system is now considered to be far more complex than previously thought when the vasoconstrictor and other physiological effects of the octapeptide angiotensin II in the circulating blood were emphasized. The reasons for this altered viewpoint, involving angiotensins other than the octapeptide in the regulation of blood pressure, water and electrolyte homeostasis, are briefly advanced and discussed.


Reaching special populations with breast and cervical cancer public education. With passage of the Breast and Cervical Cancer Mortality Prevention Act of 1990, significant activity has emerged in the development, implementation, and evaluation of breast and cervical cancer screening programs targeting underserved populations. This activity has prompted health educators and program planners to identify barriers to breast and cervical cancer screening specific to low-income and minority women, those traditionally underserved by cancer control programs, and to develop strategies that address these barriers. The authors reviewed current knowledge regarding barriers to breast and cervical cancer screening and public education interventions that address them. The results and implications for program planning activities are presented.


Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of breast and cervical cancer screening among Vietnamese women. The Vietnamese are the fastest-growing Asian/Pacific Islander ethnic group in California. Data from Vietnam and elsewhere suggest that cervical cancer and breast cancer are major contributors to cancer morbidity and mortality among Vietnamese women. However, little is known about the cancer knowledge and screening practices of Vietnamese women. Using a structured 57-item written questionnaire, we conducted a mailed survey of 400 randomly selected Vietnamese adult women in San Francisco. Overall, 107 women responded (31%). Of the respondents, 54 (52%) indicated that there was little one could do to prevent cancer. More than a third (39%) thought that breast or cervical cancer could be caused by poor hygiene, and about one-third (29%) thought that these cancers could be contagious. Although virtually all (97%) had heard of cancer, one-third did not know that a breast lump could be a sign of breast cancer (37%) or that abnormal vaginal bleeding could be a sign of cervical cancer (39%). Many (55%) did not know that family history was a risk factor for breast cancer and three-fourths (74%) did not know that having multiple sexual partners was a risk factor for cervical cancer. Fourteen (13%) had not heard of breast self-examination. Of 31 women aged > or = 40, 10 (34%) had never had a mammogram, and of 92 women aged > or = 18, 50 (54%) had never had a Papanicolaou test.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Breast and cervical cancer screening in minority populations: a model for using lay health educators. Although mammography and the Pap smear have significantly reduced US deaths related to breast and cervical cancers, screening prevalence and survival rates for both diseases are disproportionately lower among minority women. This model program outlines techniques for recruiting and training minority women to serve as lay health educators who can effectively deliver preventive health care information to their peers. Lay health educators have three primary functions: to serve as mediators between minority women and health agencies, to establish a social network, and to offer social support. When properly recruited and trained, these educators can bridge the gap between health professionals and the community as well as help health professionals to better understand community and individual concerns about cancer. The goal is to increase the detection, prevention, and treatment of breast and cervical cancers in minority communities and thus decrease related deaths. An ongoing intervention by the Arizona Disease Prevention Center, targeting Yaqui Indian and Mexican-American women aged 35 and older, illustrates specific elements of the model.


Use of large-scale hydrazinolysis in the preparation of N-linked oligosaccharide libraries: application to brain tissue. In this report, we describe the preparation of a library of N-linked glycans from whole murine brain obtained by the large-scale hydrazinolysis of an acetone powder of the tissue followed by chromatographic procedures. 84% of the characterized oligosaccharides were found to be anionic, the remainder neutral. The anionic species were successively neutralized by neuraminidase (29%), aq. hydrofluoric acid (30%), and methanolysis (26%), indicating that approximately equal portions were sensitive to desialylation, dephosphorylation and desulfation, respectively. The presence of the sulfated fraction was confirmed by direct 35SO4 metabolic labelling. A residual partially characterized fraction was found to be anionic through possession of carboxylic acid groups, unrelated to sialic acid. The purified oligosaccharides, in the absence of their original protein conjugates, were shown to retain those immunological characteristics essential for recognition by a specific monoclonal antibody, LS (412), that is known to recognize a carbohydrate epitope present on a number of neural adhesion molecules and functional in neural cell adhesion. These properties confirm the viability of scaling up the size of the hydrazinolysis procedure and adapting it to whole tissue for the production of glycan libraries and for the probing of structures of interest.


Anti-GM3-lactam monoclonal antibodies of the IgG type recognize natural GM3-ganglioside lactone but not GM3-ganglioside. Immunization of mice with a synthetic GM3-lactam-BSA (bovine serum albumin) conjugate (designed to emulate the corresponding natural GM3-lactone conjugate), followed by fusion of splenocytes with myeloma cells, gave rise to more than 300 monoclonal hybridomas producing antibodies to GM3-lactam-BSA, which did not react with Glc-BSA and BSA. Eight antibody clones were randomly chosen from the positive 300 hybridomas. The eight clones, all belonging to the IgG class, were unreactive against GM3-ganglioside, whereas two antibodies (P5-1 and P5-3, both IgG1, kappa) reacted with GM3-ganglioside lactone. Binding of these two antibodies to the GM3-lactam-BSA conjugate was inhibited by soluble glycosides of GM2-, GM3-, and GM4-lactam and by GM3- and GM4-lactam, respectively, but not by Gb3 or asialo-GM1 and GM2-saccharides. A third antibody (P3; IgG2b, kappa) was inhibited by GM2-, GM3-, and GM4-lactam, but did not recognize GM3-ganglioside lactone.


Characterization of a glucuronyltransferase: neolactotetraosylceramide glucuronyltransferase from rat brain. The properties of a rat brain glucuronyltransferase, which is presumed to be associated with the biosynthesis of the HNK-1 epitope on sulfoglucuronyl glycolipids, are described. The enzyme required divalent cations for reaction, with maximal activity at 10 mM Mn2+, and exhibited a dual optimum at pH 4-5 and pH 6 depending upon the buffer used, with the highest activity at pH 4.5 in MES buffer. This enzyme strictly recognized the Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc terminal structure, and was highly specific for neolacto (type 2) glycolipids as acceptor. The enzyme was localized specifically in the brain, and was barely detected in other issues, including the thymus, spleen, liver, kidney, lung, and sciatic nerve fibres. Phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylserine increased the enzymatic reaction 4.4- and 2.3-fold, respectively, whereas phosphatidylcholine slightly decreased the rate.


Glycosphingolipid expression in spontaneously aborted fetuses and placenta from blood group p women. Evidence for placenta being the primary target for anti-Tja-antibodies. A 12-week-old fetus and one 17-week-old fetus + placenta were obtained after spontaneous abortions from two women of blood group p. The 17-week-old fetus was dissected into intestine, liver, brain and residual tissue. Nonacid glycosphingolipid fractions were prepared from the tissues. Glycolipid characterization was carried out using thin layer chromatography immunostained with monoclonal antibodies and bacteria and by 1H NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. In the placental fraction substantial amounts of globotetraosylceramide (P-antigen) and globotriaosylceramide (Pk-antigen) were identified. In contrast, the fetuses contained only trace amounts of these structures, as revealed by immunostaining. These results indicate that the primary target for the antibodies of the anti-Tja serum is the placenta tissue, resulting in termination of the pregnancy.


[The pharmacological characteristics of the new anticholinesterase drug aminostigmine]. The pharmacological properties of a new drug approved in the USSR for the treatment of cholinolytics poisonings are described. The drug is as active as physostigmine. However, its action is longer. Aminostigmine exhibits marked central effects, which forms the basis for its use for elimination of brain dysfunctions caused by choline blockers.


[The nooglutil correction of functional disorders of the central nervous system caused by prenatal alcoholization in rats]. Administration of ethanol (5 g/kg/day, per os) to the pregnant rats evoked delayed impairments of the learning and memory in the offspring. Prenatal alcoholization of the animals attenuated the habituation of the exploration behavior in open field, impaired acquisition and retention of active avoidance in a shuttle box, increased slow activity of the EEG spectrum power, disturbed the function of the serotoninergic system in the brain cortex and of the dopaminergic system in the hippocamp. The new nootropic drug nooglutyl (N-5/hydroxynicotinoyl/-L-glutamic acid) administered in a dose of 25 mg/kg/day from the 8th to the 20th day of life prevented the above-mentioned delayed disturbances of higher integrative functions and biochemical processes in rat brain.


[The neurotropic properties of new 4,4-di-substituted derivatives of 1-methylpiperidine]. Experiments on small laboratory animals were made to study local anesthetic, antinociceptive and antihypoxic properties of 6 new derivatives of 1-methylpiperidine. A substance coded phi AB-8 (1-methyl-4-vinylethynil-4-benzoyl hydroxypiperidine hydrochloride) was found to exert a pronounced local anesthetic and an antihypoxic actions.


[The search for new anticonvulsant agents based on nicotinamide]. The electron structural analogs nicomorpholine and azethylnicotinate possessing a high anticonvulsant activity in experiment were synthesized on the basis of nicotinamide. The new substances antagonized the convulsant effect of corasole in the doses less by a factor of 10 than nicotinamide, with the therapeutic protective index of the test agents being 3-4 times higher than that of nicotinamide and being equal to the index of phenobarbital and diazepam. Analysis of the anticonvulsive activity with the aid of pro- and anticonvulsants disclosed that nicotinamide and its analogs are more effective in relation to bikukullin, thiosemicarbazide and picrotoxin than to corasole. Nicomorpholine like nicotinamide is capable of suppressing the epileptic foci in various zones of the cerebral cortex. The data obtained evidence that the spectrum of the activity of nicotinamide and its analogs differ from that of the classic anticonvulsants and antiepileptic drugs of the diphenin and phenobarbital series, resembling, to a greater degree, benzodiazepine tranquilizers with the predominant influence on the GABA-ergic system.


[The increased sensitivity of rats to ouabain in the acute stage of heart failure]. A study was made of the response of the cardiovascular system to the cardiac glycoside ouabain, using original experimental acute heart failure that developed as a result of coronary vessel embolization with 15 microns radioactive microspheres introduced into the cavity of the left ventricle during occlusion of the ascending aorta. To examine the general and regional hemodynamics, an isotope exchange method was employed. 48 hours after coronary vessel embolization the rats appear more sensitive to the action of ouabain as compared to the sham-operated animals. This shows up in a more pronounced vasoconstriction in some organs, leading to a noticeable increase of the general peripheral resistance and arterial pressure. High sensitivity of the cardiovascular system to ouabain makes this effect transform very rapidly to the toxic one.


[The central and peripheral components in the mechanism of action of urapidil]. Effects of two doses of urapidil (0.6 mg/kg and 1.2 mg/kg, i.v.) on the sympathetic nervous activity (renal nerve) and sensitivity of the chronotropic and sympathetic components of the baroreceptor reflex were studied in experiments on awake Wistar rats. Urapidil did not change significantly the baseline sympathetic nervous activity. The sensitivity of the sympathetic baroreceptor reflex tested by phenylephrine was significantly enhanced and that tested by nitroprusside was significantly inhibited by urapidil. The sensitivity of the heart rate baroreceptor reflex tested by phenylephrine remained unchanged whereas that tested by nitroprusside was significantly inhibited by urapidil. It is concluded that urapidil changes the sensitivity of the baroreceptor reflex via the central mechanism of action.


[The anticoagulant action of a factor from the nondialyzed fraction of the ammoniacal extract of the lungwort, Pulmonaria mollissima]. It has been established that a non-dialyzed fraction of ammoniacal extract from P. molissima contains an anticoagulant-glycopeptide. In in vivo experiments, it produces stable hypocoagulemia, primarily blocking fibrin self-assemblage, and prevents the animal's death from thromboplastinemia. It has been found that the aforesaid action does not exert any adverse effect on the blood contents, arterial pressure, respiration or urinary renal function.


[The efficacy of quercetin in alloxan diabetes]. It has been established that quercetin in doses of 10 and 50 mg/kg promotes normalization of the level of glycemia and blood coagulation, increases liver glycogen content, reduces high blood serum concentrations of cholesterol and low density lipoproteins, seen in diabetes. In some cases, the efficacy of quercetin exceeds that of chlorpropamide and dry Eleutherococcus extract in white rats with alloxan diabetes.


[Changes in the endogenous hormonal background due to anabolic steroids]. Studies into the effects of metandrostenolone and ecdisterone, anabolic steroids of different classes, on the content of hormones in blood plasma made it possible to establish that metandrostenolone produces appreciable changes in the hormonal background: a short-term increase in the content of corticosterone but a decline in the concentration of somatotropic hormone (STH). The long-term administration of metandrostenolone brings about a reduction of the content of testosterone. Unlike metandrostenolone, ecidsterone provoked but an increase in the content of corticosterone both on single and long-term administration. It is concluded that the rise of the content of corticosteroids in blood plasma under the influence of the tested drugs may be a factor favoring mobilization of biochemical processes in skeletal muscles in response to physical exercise. Meanwhile the change in the corticosterone:testosterone:STH ratio in blood may cause side effects due to the long-term use of metandrostenolone and other anabolic derivatives of androgens.


[An analysis of the intracellular distribution of glucocorticoid hormones by using a mathematical model]. A mathematic model depicting the interaction of glucocorticoids with the target cell is proposed. Specific features of cortisol and dexamethasone distributions in thymocytes in a wide range of hormonal concentrations have been analyzed. It has been established that specific action of glucocorticoids is dependent on the binding affinity and the number of the binding sites of hormones in the topographically different cell receptor systems (intracellular and membrane glucocorticoid receptors).


[The correction of energy metabolism disorders in hypoxia by using vitamin K]. A study was made of the possibility of correcting respiratory chain function disorders in hypoxia by means of the naphthoquinone derivative vitamin K3. The antihypoxic activity of that compound is defined by its donor-acceptor properties and its capability to shunt the electron flow from NADH to CoQ. The effect is more pronounced in the tissues that oxidize mostly the NAD-dependent substrates which is related to rapid inactivation of the given enzymatic complex under hypoxia and correlates with low resistance of the cell using the NADH-oxidase pathway of oxidizing energy substrates to oxygen deficiency.


[The immunity indices of the progeny of white rats antenatally exposed to prodigiozan]. A study was made of the effect of prodigiosan administered during pregnancy on the immunity system of the offspring. Material changes in the immune response to foreign antigens were found to be determined by the day of pregnancy on which prodigiosan had been administered.


[The effect of ziksorin on the development of experimental food anaphylaxis in guinea pigs]. A study was made of the effect of zixorin, an inductor of liver cytochrome P-450, on the intensity of the immediate type allergic reaction--active food anaphylaxis in response to ovalbumin in guinea-pigs. Intraperitoneal injection of zixorin in a dose of 50 mg/kh for 3 days before administration of the antigen resolution dose was found to lower 2,3-fold the level of lethal outcomes due to the anaphylactic shock. It is suggested that zixorin may be used in multimodality treatment of food allergy.


[The results of the therapeutic monitoring of piracetam in parturients and newborn infants]. Overall 30 women in childbirth with preeclampsia and fetoplacental dysfunction received piracetam solution which was given initially in a dose of 5 g by intravenous drip, rapidly since the onset of labour and then every 2 hours till the end of labour in a dose of 2 g by jet injection. This made it possible to increase fetus resistance to hypoxic conditions. The concentrations of piracetam within the range of 60-80 g/l in the blood of women in childbirth should be viewed as minimum therapeutic. A single daily intramuscular injection of piracetam (50 mg/kg) into neonates with encephalopathies may build up blood concentrations equal to 25-60 mg/l after 2 hours. The drug is not detectable in the blood by the moment the next injection is given.


[The efficacy of vitogepat and sirepar in combination with karsil in chronic liver lesions]. It has been shown in experiments on white rats that chronic (for one month) intoxication with CCl4 and C2H5OH results in liver injury. It manifests by activation of aminotransferases (ALT, AST) and alkaline phosphatase in blood serum, initiation of lipid peroxidation, depletion of the liver pool of reduced glutathione, and suppression of bile production. The liver preparations (sirepar and vitohepat) reduce hepatotoxicity of the poisons in question. The use of vitohepat and sirepar in combination with carsil potentiated hepatoprotective and antioxidative activity of the liver preparations.


[The problem of fever and its elimination in children]. This is the brief review of literary data about mechanism of development and means of removal the fever, in the main order to render the first symptomatic aid for children. Special attention paid to combinations of drugs with acupuncture. Elucidation of mechanisms of realisation antipyretic effects of acupuncture and interactions of drugs and acupuncture is the most actual problems for research.


[The advantages of benzonal as an inducer of the liver mono-oxygenase enzyme system compared to phenobarbital]. It is stated that phenobarbital used as the most potent inductor of the monoxygenase enzymic system of the liver in different pathologies has substantial side effects. In this connection the search of active inductive agents devoid of phenobarbital deficiencies is an important issue. Zixorene, a Hungarian drug developed to solve the problem, is weak as an inductor and has deficiencies of its own. A fitting substitute for phenobarbital is benzonal which is not inferior to phenobarbital in inductive activity but lacks its drawbacks. It is used both as a hypobilirubinemic agent and a drug restoring a disordered monohygenase system of the liver in different pathologies. Benhonal is metabolized in the gastrointestinal tract and the liver generating an active metabolite of phenobarbital. It is suggested that slow formation of phenobarbital in small quantities determines its more optimal interaction with the corresponding hepatic receptors resulting in the appearance of a marked inductive action while side effects are significantly decreased.


[Central nervous system stimulants as nonspecific antagonists of morphine-induced respiratory depression]. The respiratory effects of pymadin, amiridine, thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH), its analog RGH 2202, and pentetrazol and their interaction with morphine were studied in anesthesized rats. During intravenous injection or local application to the medulla oblongata, pymadin, amiridine, TRH and RGH 2202 were shown to enhance the respiratory activity of the diaphragm and to abolish its morphine-induced inhibition. TRH and RGH 2202 proved to be the most potent and safe antagonists of morphine-induced respiratory depression. These agents given in the doses sufficient to completely abolish morphine-induced respiratory depression unchanged its antinociceptive activity. Pentetrazol in the tested dose range failed to increase diaphragmatic respiratory activity or to eliminate its depression induced by morphine.


[The effect of cholinergic-potentiating and cholinergic-blocking agents on reparative processes in the damaged gastric mucosa of rats]. Rat experiments have indicated that increased lipid peroxidation in gastric tissue occurs with formation of cryogenic gastric ulcers. The use of methacin alone, 1 mg/kg i.p., and in combination with proserinum, 0.1 mg/kg, s.c., metamisyl alone, 1 mg/kg, i. p., and in combination with galanthamine hydrobromide, 1 mg/kg, s. c., result in acceleration of reparative process in the rat gastric walls and normalization of gastric tissue malonic dialdehyde levels. Methacin in combination with proserinum has been found to be most beneficial.


[The effect of N-methyl-D,L-aspartic acid on the nociceptive reaction of mice]. Intraperitoneal NMDLA was pharmacologically studied in mice for effects by using the hot-plate test. The agent given in a subconvulsive dose of 50 mg/kg showed a biphasic action: 5 minutes after administration there was hyperalgesia (Phase I) followed by hypoalgesia (Phase II) 15 minutes later. The effects of phencyclidine, ketamine, morphine, naloxone, bromocriptine and isradipine on NMDLA's analgetic action were also examined. Bearing in mind the fact that the action of NMDLA is decreased by isradipine in Phase I and by receptor-acting agents in Phase II it is suggested that there is a great difference in the patterns of the two phases of the analgetic action of NMDLA systemically used.


[The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of the prolonged-action beta-adrenoblocker nadolol at rest after a single administration to hypertension patients]. The pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of nadolol given in a single dose of 80 mg to 17 patients with mild hypertension were studied by echocardiography at rest. The major pharmacokinetic parameters for nadolol did not differ greatly from those reported in the literature and obtained from volunteers. No correlation was found between endogenous creatine clearance and renal nadolol clearance. How the hemodynamic effect developed and whether it was related to blood nadolol concentrations in time after single administration were followed up and discussed. There was a significant decline in blood pressure 2 hours after the drug. There was a clock-wise hysteresis in the relationship between the changes in cardiac output and nadolol levels. Changes in blood pressure were shown to significantly correlate with those in cardiac output.


[The role of prazosin in regulating cardio- and hemodynamics in the early stage of experimental lung-heart failure]. Canine experiments have shown that prazosin used in the course of therapy for pulmonary hypertension and abolition of heart overload substantially enhanced myocardial contractility and relaxing properties of the both ventricles and improved cardiac pump function.


[The effect of prostacyclin and its synthetic analog MM-706 on kidney function in corrosive sublimate-induced nephropathy]. The effects of prostacyclin and its stable analogue MM-706 on renal function were examined in rats with sublimate nephropathy. Prostacyclin was shown to attenuate renal dysfunctions by increasing glomerular filtration rate and water and salt reabsorption. MM-706 produced more pronounced protective effects and restored the filtration and reabsorption up to the level observed in control rats.


[S. V. Anichkov--man and scientist (on the centenary of his birth)]. The paper is devoted to a brief review of the research and public activities of Professor Sergeĭ V. Anichkov; the prominent Soviet pharmacologist. He was Hero of Socialist Labour, V. I. Lenin and State Prize winners and Academician of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences. It also summaries the main biographic data on the scientist and his theoretical and practical achievements in various areas of pharmacology. Great emphasis is laid on S. V. Anichkov's scientific school and his work in the Department of Pharmacology (he was head of the Department from 1948 to 1981), Institute for Experimental Medicine, USSR Academy of Medical Sciences.


[The efficacy of substances with antihypoxic action in experimental hyperlipidemia]. Experiments on rats, guinea pigs and rabbits with hyperlipidemia induced by high-cholesterol diet have revealed that the specific antihypoxic drug oliphen has hypolipidemic effect which is least pronounced in oral GABA. Oliphen causes a significant increase in alpha-cholesterol (antiatherogenic lipoprotein cholesterol) decreased by hyperlipidemia. It is suggested that oliphen improves hepatic receptor-dependent uptake and atherogenic lipoprotein degradation.


[The hypolipidemic action of water-soluble enterosorbents of cholesterol and bile acids in an experiment]. Experiments on rats, guinea pigs and rabbits with experimental dyslipoproteinemia have revealed that the new water-soluble high-molecular weight polymers containing digitonin (ED) or a quaternary nitrogen atom (EA) have a more marked hypolipidemic action than cholestyramine and normalize lipoprotein metabolism. The digitonin-containing enterosorbent has been shown to decrease the absorption of 4-14C-cholesterol, while the nitrogen-containing enterosorbent diminishes the absorption of 3H-cholic acid.


[The immunomodulating action of riboxin during physical loading]. Administration of riboxin to Wistar rats which had no exercise increased the development of a humoral immune response, but failed to affect the manifestations of delayed hypersensitivity induced by sheep red cells. Riboxin given to swimming rats intensified the development of two immune response types. The agent enhanced splenic cell release of suppressive and helper agents in swimming rats and reduced the responsiveness of the immune system to suppressive agents liberated by splenocytes during exercise. The cells of the swimming rats' immune system were sensitive to the helper agent liberated by splenocytes after riboxin administration.


[The hypolipidemic activity of natural substances]. Experiments on guinea pigs and rats have revealed that thiazole derivatives of isoflavone has a beneficial effects on disturbed lipid and lipoprotein metabolism. New phospholipid complexes enriched with vitamins have been demonstrated to produce a hypolipidemic effect. Sulfated chitosans decrease lipid infiltration of the liver and elevate serum high density lipoprotein levels in rats.


[A metabolic study of the synthetic glucocorticosteroids prednisolone and dexamethasone in the body of white rats and in in-vitro reactions]. The metabolism of the synthetic steroidal hormones prednisolone and dexamethasone was studied in albino rats and in in vitro microsomal oxidation system by using high performance chromatography and radioactive tracers. Dexamethasone was found to be metabolically stable. The first step of prednisolone biotransformation is formation of prednisone during the NADPH-dependent reaction catalyzed by microsomal enzymes. Conditions were created for isolating the ultimate prednisolone metabolite formed in the rats' body by using HPLC.


[The action of acute alcoholic intoxication on the antioxidant system and creatine kinase activity in the brain of rat embryos]. The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) was enhanced in the brain of 14-day rat embryos 1 and 3 hours after single administration of ethanol to pregnant rats. Concurrently, the levels of lipid peroxidation were changing in these periods. Ethanol, 1 g/kg, increased LPO levels in the 14-day embryonic brain, whereas its dose of 3 g/kg decreased them. It is concluded that with single administration of ethanol, free-radical processes are activated in the embryonic brain. It is suggested that the activity of creatine kinase decreases concurrently with an increase in SOD activity due to the damaging action of superoxide radicals on the enzyme molecule.


[The presence of quinolinic acid in the structures of the rat brain]. The brain tissue extracts from chronically alcoholized (15% ethanol intake for more than 18 months) rats were studied by mass spectrometry. The mass spectra for the striatum of control and alcohol-consuming rats were identical, while those for the hippocampus showed a significant difference: a great increase in the intensity of peaks typical of mass spectra for quinolinic acid.


[The effect of the inhalation of ethanol and acetone on the indices of the antioxidant protection system and on lipid peroxidation in the brain tissue and blood serum of rats]. Ethanol or acetone inhalation resulted in a reduction in motor activity in rats, affecting largely their explorative behavior. The biochemical parameters of free-radical processes (catalyse and SOD activities, LPO levels) remained unchanged in the inhaling animals. Ethanol or acetone inhalation caused a significant decrease in blood catalyse activity and serum LPO levels. The acetone- and ethanol-induced changes in the activity of ceruloplasmin were heterodirectional. It can be concluded that it is useful to study the biochemical parameters of serum free-radical processes and to employ the findings in the therapy of inhalation toxicomanias.


[The effect of diphosphonates on the metabolism of calcium, its regulation and the state of the bone tissue in the modelling of the physiological effects of weightlessness]. The diphosphonates AMOA and OEDP had a positive action on calcium metabolism and regulation and the osseous tissue in tilt-suspension and hypokinetic Wistar rats in 40-60-day experiments. During special regimens of physical training, ksidifon (OEDP) produced preventive effects on calcium metabolism and renal calciuretic function in man during 120-day antiorthostatic hypokinesia and the agent may be recommended for prevention of alterations in mineral metabolism and osseous tissue at long-term bed rest.


[The psychopharmacology of narcotics: a preclinical study]. Simple and economic tests for estimating addictive potential of drugs using conditioned place preference and intravenous self-administration paradigms have been developed. Various groups of substances were revealed among 12 opioids which differed by their potencies in analgesics and reinforcing tests. Index of "narcological safety" and "addictive index" were proposed for comparative evaluation of therapeutic and adverse (addictive) effects. Using the self-administration procedure a group of addictive psychostimulants were investigated and quantitative criteria for the reinforcing action of them were derived. The analgesic and reinforcing effects of morphine have been dissociated by administration of the calcium-channel blocker isradipine.


[The effect of vicasol and pelentan on the biopolymers of the periodontium]. Vitamin K (vikasol) and pelentan were examined for their effects of periodontal tissue levels of collagen, hexosamine-containing biopolymers and sialoglycoproteins. During tooth replantation in dogs, vitamin K was demonstrated to elevate the levels of collagen, hexosamine-containing polymers in periodontal tissue by 25.8, 19.9, and 36.1%, respectively, whereas pelentan lowered the above parameters.


[A method for studying the effect of drugs on the psychophysiological status and quality of the performance of operators with different skills by using a microcomputer]. Computer method for evaluating the quality of the motivated operator's performance and psychophysiological status was devised and validated. This method can be used for clinical studies of new drugs.


[The comparative characteristics of the effect of piracetam peptide analogs on the recovery of conditioned reflex activity in animals following damage to the frontal cortex and the electrophysiological characteristics of the brain integrative activity]. The time course of recovery of a conditioned avoidance response (CAAR) after extirpation of brain frontal regions was examined in rat experiments. The reference nootropic drug piracetam given in a dose 200 mg/g for 9 days after surgery promoted CAAR recovery. The original peptide analogue of piracetam--pyroglutamyl-D-alanine amide (I)--produced the same effect when given in a dose of 1 mg/kg. Another peptide analogue of piracetam--pyroglutamyl-asparagine amide (II) showed no promoting effect on CAAR recovery after frontal lobectomy. Electrophysiological experiments have demonstrated that I promotes the transcallosal cortical responses to a greater extent than does II. It has been suggested that the most significant promoting effect on the compensatory and recovery process after frontal lobectomy is produced by the nootropic compounds which have a promoting effect on memory trace consolidation.


[The effect of hormonal systems on the activity of convulsant agents]. The dynamics of convulsive action exerted by Bemegride, 15 mg/kg, and Corasol (Pentamethylenetetrasol, 50 mg/kg, was examined in rat experiments during extirpation of endocrine glands (pituitary, thyroid, adrenals and gonads). Their effects were found to be unequal in various series of experiments: thyroidectomy intensified the nature of convulsive reactions while gonadectomy attenuated them; sex-specific differences in the effects of the agents were insignificant. It has been suggested that the hormone-mediator interaction is essential in the mechanisms of convulsive action of Bemegride and Corasol.


Environmental risk factors for nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a case-control study in northeastern Thailand. A case-control study of nasopharyngeal carcinoma was conducted in northeast Thailand, a region which shows an intermediate risk for this neoplasm. The study was conducted to investigate the importance of environmental exposures, particularly salted fish consumption, cigarette smoking, alcohol drinking, and occupational exposure to smoke or dust, as risk factors for the disease. Data from 120 nasopharyngeal cancer cases and the same number of hospital-matched controls indicated that consumption of sea-salted fish at least once a week was a significant risk factor (odds ratio, 2.5; 95% confidence interval, 1.2-5.2). Agricultural workers were also at significantly higher risk (odds ratio, 2.8; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-6.2), and working in agriculture or as a woodcutter was associated with an even higher risk (odds ratio, 8.0; 95% confidence interval, 2.3-28.2). There was no association between nasopharyngeal carcinoma and alcohol drinking or cigarette smoking.


Sources of variability in normal CA 125 levels. Two hundred eighty-eight serum specimens from 144 asymptomatic menopausal women were assayed two times each for CA 125. The specimens were randomly assigned to sixteen CA 125 kits. Our purpose was to quantitate the biological variability and the assay variability that occurs at low levels of this tumor marker. All of the subjects had CA 125 values less than 35 units/ml. The total error from all sources was about 13% of the observed values. These findings suggest that single, low CA 125 values are reliable indicators of a woman's true CA 125 value. Clinical trials of ovarian cancer screening that incorporate CA 125 measurements should evaluate the performance of this test at thresholds lower than the usual 35 units/ml.


Linear versus nonlinear models for hemoglobin adduct formation by acrylamide and its metabolite glycidamide: implications for risk estimation. Hemoglobin cysteine adduct levels formed by acrylamide (AA) and its epoxide metabolite glycidamide (GA) as previously determined (Bergmark et al., Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol., 111: 352-363, 1991) in rats given single injections of AA were used to estimate tissue doses, D = integral of Cdt (area under the concentration curve in the blood compartment), of the two compounds. The data were adapted to linear or nonlinear kinetic models, where the latter model accounted for the Michaelis-Menten kinetics of the metabolic conversion of AA to GA. In the linear model, the first-order rates, k*, of elimination from all processes were estimated to be 0.50 and 0.48 h-1 for AA and GA, respectively. In the nonlinear model, the parametrical values Vmax = 19.1 h-1 and Km = 66 microM for the in vivo metabolic conversion of AA to GA, and k1 = 0.21 h-1 and k2 = 0.48 h-1 for the first-order rates of elimination from all other processes of AA and GA, respectively, were found to give the best fit to the exact dosimetric expressions [formula: see text] Using Equation B, it was estimated that the percentage of AA converted to GA approaches 58% when [AA]o, the initial concentration of AA, approaches zero. The implications for high-to-low-dose extrapolation of toxic effects of the derived mathematical relationships between administered dose and tissue dose are discussed.


Active and passive cigarette smoke exposure and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. This case-control analysis presents odds ratios for active and passive cigarette smoke exposure and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia of levels II and III (CIN II and CIN III) while controlling for confounders. From 1987 to 1988, 103 biopsy-conformed incident cases of CIN II or III and 268 controls with normal cervical cytology were enrolled. Seventy % of cases were cigarette smokers, while only 30% of controls had ever smoked. The adjusted odds ratio for current cigarette smoking was 3.4 (95% confidence interval, 1.7-7.0). The following confounders were included in logistic regression models: age, race, education, number of sex partners, contraceptive use, sexually transmitted disease history, and Pap smear history. The risk of CIN II/III increased with increasing years of cigarette smoking and with increasing pack-years of exposure. Smoking was associated more strongly with CIN III than CIN II. The effect of passive cigarette smoke exposure was explored separately for smokers and nonsmokers and was found not to be consistently associated with CIN II/III when controlling for confounders.


Significant endogenous synthesis of nitrate does not appear to be a feature of influenza A virus infection. There is much concern about the role of nitrate in the formation of carcinogenic N-nitroso compounds. There has been renewed interest in the endogenous formation of nitrate arising as a host response to infection. This study was designed to investigate whether the large increases in nitrate excretion rate reported (6-15-fold) for certain infectious diseases is also a feature of systemic influenza infections. Volunteers were challenged either with an attenuated strain of influenza A virus or with saline; and excreted nitrate was measured in subsequent 24-h urine samples. Both with and without adjustment for potential confounding by dietary and other factors, it was clear that neither mild nor moderate influenza A virus infection resulted in substantial endogenous nitrate biosynthesis since all the variation in urinary nitrate excretion observed was within the range of normal daily fluctuations. It remains possible that a stronger and more consistent nitrate excretion response might be observed in other infectious illnesses with greater systemic disturbance.


Simultaneous liquid chromatographic determination of carotenoids, retinoids, and tocopherols in human buccal mucosal cells. Epidemiological and experimental data have suggested that some micronutrients, including various carotenoids, retinoids, and alpha-tocopherol, may have chemopreventive activity against certain types of human cancer. In order to define the role of these micronutrients in cancer prevention, it is necessary to measure their concentrations in the target tissues, since these are critical to the chemopreventive effect. We have developed a sensitive and reproducible high-performance liquid chromatography procedure for the simultaneous determination of lutein, zeaxanthin, beta-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, cis-beta-carotene, retinol, retinyl palmitate, alpha-tocopherol, and gamma-tocopherol in an easily accessible human target tissue, the buccal mucosal cells. This procedure used a gradient of two mobile phases which consisted of acetonitrile, tetrahydrofuran, methanol, 1% ammonium acetate, and butylated hydroxytoluene (in v/v/v/v/w): mobile phase A, 85:5:5:5:0.05; mobile phase B, 55:35:5:5:0.05. The run time, including reequilibration, was 47 min: from 100% A to 100% B in 27 min, remaining at that mobile phase for 10 min, then back to 100% A at 43 min at a constant flow rate of 1.3 ml/min. The high-performance liquid chromatography effluent was monitored at 300, 325, and 452 nm for tocopherols, retinoids, and carotenoids, respectively, with a photodiode array detector. The average recovery was 83% for lycopene and > 92% for others. The precision of the assay for all the compounds was less than 10% in a 1-month period. The micronutrients were extracted by incubating the cells with protease, followed by vortex mixing with 1% sodium dodecyl sulfate in ethanol containing 0.1% butylated hydroxytoluene, and, finally, hexane extraction.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Directed movements of ciliary and flagellar membrane components: a review. The ability to rapidly translocate polystyrene microspheres attached to the surface of a plasma membrane domain reflects a unique form of cellular force transduction occurring in association with the plasma membrane of microtubule based cell extensions. This unusual form of cell motility can be utilized by protistan organisms for whole cell locomotion, the early events in mating, and transport of food organisms along the cell surface, and possibly intracellular transport of certain organelles. Since surface motility is observed in association with cilia and flagella of algae, sea urchin embryos and cultured mammalian cells, it is likely that it serves an additional role beyond those already cited; this is likely to be the transport of precursors for the assembly and turnover of ciliary and flagellar membranes and axonemes. In the case of the Chlamydomonas flagellum, where surface motility has been most extensively studied, it appears that cross-linking of flagellar surface exposed proteins induces a transmembrane signaling pathway that activates machinery for moving flagellar membrane proteins in the plane of the flagellar membrane. This signaling pathway in vegetative Chlamydomonas reinhardtii appears to involve an influx of calcium, a rise in intraflagellar free calcium concentration and a change in the level of phosphorylation of specific membrane-matrix proteins. It is hypothesized that flagellar surface contact with a solid substrate (during gliding), a polystyrene microsphere or another flagellum (during mating) will all activate a signaling pathway similar to the one artificially activated by the use of monoclonal antibodies to flagellar membrane glycoproteins. A somewhat different signaling pathway, involving a transient rise in intracellular cAMP level, may be associated with the mating of Chlamydomonas gametes, which is initiated by flagellum-flagellum contact. The hypothesis that the widespread observation of microsphere movements on various ciliary and flagellar surfaces may reflect a mechanism normally utilized to transport axonemal and membrane subunits along the internal surface of the organelle membrane presents a paradox in that one would expect this to be a constitutive mechanism, not one necessarily activated by a signaling pathway.


Quantitation of human uptake of the anticarcinogen phenethyl isothiocyanate after a watercress meal. Our previous studies showed that phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC), a cruciferous vegetable constituent, inhibited the lung tumorigenesis induced by a potent tobacco-specific carcinogenic nitrosamine in animals. These results implicate dietary PEITC as a risk-reducing factor of lung cancers induced by smoking. To define the effect of dietary PEITC on human cancers, a method of measuring its uptake is needed. Since watercress is rich in gluconasturtiin, a glucosinolate precursor of PEITC, it was chosen to be the source of PEITC. Four individuals were asked to eat watercress as part of a breakfast meal, and 24-h urine samples were collected. A urinary metabolite was found, and its identity was confirmed as the N-acetylcysteine conjugate of PEITC by comparison with the synthetic standard using nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry. A dose-dependent excretion of this conjugate was observed. These results clearly showed that PEITC was released in the human body upon ingestion of watercress and suggest that the N-acetylcysteine conjugate of PEITC may be a useful marker for quantitating human exposure to this anticarcinogen as a tool for epidemiological investigations.


A cytoplasmic dynein heavy chain in sea urchin embryos. By making the hypothesis that the pattern of conserved sequence residues in the vicinity of the hydrolytic ATP-binding site of dynein would resemble that in myosins from a broad variety of sources, we designed degenerate oligonucleotide primers capable of amplifying this region of multiple dynein isoforms from sea urchin embryo poly(A)+ RNA. Quantification of the expression of two of these dynein isoforms has shown that the level of mRNA encoding for the beta-heavy chain, like that of tubulin, increases 2-3-fold after deciliation of the embryos, whereas the expression of the second dynein isoform, like that of actin, is essentially unaffected. This second isoform is believed to be the cytoplasmic dynein of sea urchin embryos.


Effect of chemopreventive agents on intermediate biomarkers during different stages of azoxymethane-induced colon carcinogenesis. Chemoprevention of colon cancer is emerging as an alternative to therapy with a broad potential for reducing cancer incidence in defined high-risk groups and the general population. Besides several chemopreventive agents in use and under investigation, D,L-alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) and piroxicam have been shown to effectively inhibit colon carcinogenesis in rodents. A variety of proliferation-related parameters have been suggested as potential intermediate markers of cancer risk that could be used to monitor the progress of chemoprevention in clinical trials. We have investigated the effect of chemopreventive agents, DFMO, and piroxicam on mucosal ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) and tyrosine-specific protein kinase (TPK) activities during different stages of azoxymethane (AOM)-induced colonic carcinogenesis in male F344 rats in order to examine the plausibility of using these enzymes as intermediate biochemical markers of colon cancer. Groups of male F344 rats were fed modified AIN-76A diets containing 0 or 150 ppm piroxicam or 4000 ppm DFMO and given s.c. injections of AOM dissolved in normal saline at a dose of 15 mg/kg body weight/week, once weekly, for 4 weeks. Vehicle control groups received s.c. equal volumes of normal saline. Groups of animals were then sacrificed at 0, 4, 16, 24, and 32 weeks after AOM or saline treatment, and their colonic mucosa was analyzed for ODC and TPK activities. AOM treatment significantly increased mucosal ODC as well as TPK activities. AOM-induced ODC and TPK activities were significantly suppressed by dietary DFMO progressively at all stages of colon carcinogenesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Thyroid hormones and duration of ovulatory activity in the etiology of breast cancer. We conducted the present study with the hypothesis that conflicting reports on the association between mild hypothyroidism and breast cancer may be due to failure to consider the potential interaction between thyroid and ovarian hormones. Seventy-three cases of breast cancer and 75 hospital controls were studied. The overall matched multivariate odds ratio of breast cancer for the lowest tertile of free T4 (< or = 1.10 ng/dl) versus the two other tertiles was 1.7 (95% confidence limits, 0.6-5.0). However, there was a statistically significant linear trend (P = 0.04) in the odds ratios for breast cancer related to subnormal free T4 levels across tertiles of duration of ovulatory activity. These results suggest that women combining low levels of circulating free T4 with long duration of ovulatory activity may be at increased risk for this disease.


Chymotrypsin-like protease activity associated with demembranated sperm of chum salmon. Our previous study suggested that a chymotrypsin-like protease was involved in the motility of chum salmon sperm (Inaba K, Morisawa M, Biomed Res (1991) 12, 435-437). In this study, we examined the peptidase activity of demembranated sperm of chum salmon using ten synthetic peptides. When spermatozoa were treated with 0.04% Triton X-100 for extracting the plasma membrane and the suspension was separated into the Triton-soluble and insoluble fractions by centrifugation, only the hydrolytic activity towards succinyl (Suc)-Leu-Leu-Val-Tyr-4-methylcoumaryl-7-amide (MCA), a typical substrate for chymotrypsin-like protease, was mostly retained in the insoluble fraction. The bulk of the activities toward other substrates was detected in the soluble fraction. Flagellar axonemes isolated from demembranated sperm showed considerable hydrolytic activity toward Suc-Leu-Leu-Val-Tyr-MCA and the activity was still retained in the axoneme even after further washing. The hydrolysis was activated by a low concentration of SDS, suggesting that the protease associated with the axonemes is a multicatalytic ATP-dependent proteinase (proteasome). Motility of demembranated sperm was inhibited by Suc-Leu-Leu-Val-Tyr-MCA in an ATP-concentration-dependent manner. These results suggest that proteasomes associated with flagellar axoneme regulate flagellar motility.


Feasibility of a telephone survey to recruit health maintenance organization members into a tamoxifen chemoprevention trial. A large-scale, nationwide tamoxifen chemoprevention trial is currently being planned as a primary preventive strategy against breast cancer. The recruitment of health asymptomatic women into a long-term clinical trial will pose unique recruitment problems. This study examines the feasibility of telephone recruitment from a health maintenance organization population into such a trial. A random sample of 203 women aged 50 and older with a personal family history of breast cancer were contacted by telephone. A structured interview was administered to assess self-perceived risk of breast cancer, willingness to participate in a trial, and anticipated barriers to participation. Of the 203 names generated from the health maintenance organization membership roster 128 (63%) met eligibility criteria and participated in the interview. Forty-five % of the eligible women expressed interest in the tamoxifen trial. Women who felt that their family would support their participation expressed significantly more interest, while concern about possible side effects emerged as potential barriers. We conclude that contact by telephone among health maintenance organization members can identify a significant proportion of women who are interested in primary chemoprevention for breast cancer. Participation rates may be improved by bolstering family support and by addressing concerns about drug toxicity.


Temperature effect on the ciliary beat frequency of human nasal and tracheal ciliated cells. Even though all human respiratory cilia are similar in structure, they experience a wide range of temperatures between the initial part of the nasal fossae which behave as heat exchangers and the inferior part of the trachea, particularly when we inhale exceedingly cold or hot air. The ciliary beat frequency of ciliated cells from human nasal mucosa and from bronchial mucosa averages 8 Hz when measured at room temperature. In the present study we compared the ciliary beat frequency of human cells from nasal and tracheal mucosa brushings at different temperatures from 5 degrees C to 50 degrees C using two different techniques, ex vivo and in vitro: ex vivo in culture medium less than 24 h after sampling and in vitro after demembranation and reactivation according to a standard procedure developed in our laboratory. Measuring the ATP-reactivated ciliary beat frequency allowed us to check the thermal parameters of the dynein ATPase and all the axonemal machinery. No significant difference in frequency was observed between nasal fossae cilia and tracheal cilia when comparing extreme temperatures in both experimental procedures.


Cytoskeletal elements in arthropod sensilla and mammalian photoreceptors. Ciliary receptor cells, typified by cilia or modified cilia, are very common in the animal kingdom. In addition to the cytoskeleton of their ciliary processes these receptors possess other specific prominent cytoskeletal elements. Two representative systems are presented: i) scolopidia, mechanosensitive sensilla of various arthropod species; and ii) photoreceptor cells of the retina of the bovine eye. Two cytoskeletal structures are characteristic for arthropod scolopidia: a scolopale typifies the innermost auxiliary cell, and long ciliary rootlets are extending well into the sensory cells. The latter element is also characteristic for the inner segment of the photoreceptor cells in bovine. The scolopale of scolopidia is mainly composed of actin filaments. In the absence of myosin, the uniform polarity of the actin filaments and their association with tropomyosin all indicate a stabilizing role of the filament bundles within the scolopale. This function and a certain elasticity of actin filament bundles may be important during stimulation of the sensilla. The ciliary rootlets of both systems originate at the basal bodies at the ciliary base of the sensory cells and project proximally. These rootlets are composed of longitudinally oriented, fine filaments forming a characteristic regular cross-striation. An alpha-actinin immunoreactivity was detected within the ciliary rootlets of scolopidia. In addition, antibodies to centrin react with the rootlets of both types of receptors. Since centrin is largely responsible for the contraction of the flagellar rootlets in green algae, contraction may also occur in the ciliary rootlets of insect sensilla and vertebrate photoreceptors. In both systems, contraction or relaxation of the ciliary rootlets could serve in sensory transduction or adaptation.


Centrin is a component of the pericentriolar lattice. Here, we use three polyclonal anticentrin antisera designated 08/28, 26/14-1, and 26/14-2 to further characterize the pericentriolar lattice of metazoan cells. All of these antibodies give an indistinguishable localization pattern that consists of a constellation of pericentrosomal spots. In QT6 cells these spots are few in number and closely associated with the centriolar region, whereas in PtK2 cells they are more numerous and distributed further from the point of microtubule focus. In mitotic cells, centrin is localized to the spindle poles and spindle apparatus. We demonstrate here that the pericentriolar lattice of PtK2 and QT6 cells is, in part, composed of proteins characterized by acidic pIs (4.4 to 5.4), low molecular mass (M(r) 18,500-21,000), and calcium-binding; these attributes and the immunoreactivity of these proteins to anticentrin antibodies indicate that they are centrin isoforms of metazoan cells. Finally, we confirm our earlier observation that PtK2 cells contain a centrin-related protein of M(r) 165,000; QT6 cells also contain centrin-related proteins (M(r) 64,000-165,000). We conclude that centrin is a component of the pericentriolar lattice of higher eukaryotic centrosomes.


Arginine-vasotocin (AVT)--a pineal hormone in mammals. Covering more than 30 years of studying the pineal peptide hormones physiology, this study largely discusses the main personal research as well as international literature indirectly or directly supporting the idea that the nonapeptide hormone arginine-vasotocin (AVT) is a pineal hormone in mammals. After a short review of the problem, the data are structured in two chapters: one including all the indirect arguments, i.e. those results demonstrating that the ly synthetic exogenous AVT mimics all the effects attributed to the pineal gland itself or to its releasing hormone the indole melatonin, or are contrary to those reported after pinealectomy, and a second chapter that includes all the data directly demonstrating that AVT is contained, synthetized and released from the pineal gland of mammals. Special emphasis was placed on the personal results regarding the AVT effects, the mechanisms of action, the release and interference with some of the basic functions of the brain such as sleep, behaviour, attention or maturation.


Therapeutic methods in endocrinology. General considerations. The integrative character of the endocrine system and its regulation ways generate and motivate the specificity of endocrine therapy. The latter tries, by its methods and means, to restore hormonal homeostasis, to imitate the biologic rhythms of secretion, to respond to the stress needs, in fact it ensures the dynamics of the normal integration of an individual in the daily life with all its changes. This requirement is ensured by the methods of stimulation and suppression, hormonal substitution or depression of hormone bio-synthesis, blockade of enzymatic activation or desensitivation of the receptors to the hormonal message, etc. The association of the therapeutic means and methods has the purpose of bringing relief and the expectancy of a decent, controlled survival in inevitable iatrogeny. Endocrine therapy also ensures a normal growth and development, an acceptable IQ, a reasonable degree of sexualization, responds to the most important demand of life: perpetuation of the species. The range of endocrine therapy is perhaps the widest in medicine, starting with the disease and ending with the esthetic aspects of the individual. A good knowledge of the methods, means and especially their dynamics and specificity gives the endocrinologist the pragmatic outlook measured only by its efficiency.


The role of free radicals in normal and pathologic cell proliferation. Oxygen, while essential for life, is at the same time involved in the toxic effects of exposure to ionizing radiations, U.V. and a variety of chemical substances. All these cause an increased production of oxygen-derived free radicals (ODFR) and a modified pro-oxidant state. Many studies point to the involvement of the mechanisms controlled by ODFR in regulating the normal cell proliferation. In recent years, much evidence has been gathered implying the ODFR in the mechanisms of initiating and promoting the neoplastic transformations in vivo and in vitro, and in the activation of specific oncogenes.


Comorbidity: meaning and uses in cross-cultural clinical research. American Indians and Alaska Natives were the subject of a workshop sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health and the Indian Health Service. Comorbidity of anxiety, depression, and substance abuse is highly prevalent in these two populations, and this was the focus of the meeting. This paper introduces the topic of psychiatric comorbidity, and considers the topics of culture, psychiatric diagnosis, and assessment. Future research directions and a brief summary of the papers presented at the workshop, which are included in this issue, are provided.


"Feeling worthless": an ethnographic investigation of depression and problem drinking at the Flathead reservation. The study of depression, drinking and suicidality has long preoccupied students of American Indian life, in part because of the assumed connection between these specific forms of psychiatric distress and generalized demoralization. Given the significant variation in suicidal behavior and prevalence rates intertribally, this assumption deserves closer attention. Recently, researchers working with Western populations have sought to clarify the relationships among depression, alcohol abuse and suicidality through an explicit investigation of their comorbidity. Using data collected at the Flathead Reservation, this paper explores the degree to which the investigation of the comorbidity of these three disorders can validly reveal the relevant contours of psychopathological distress in a cross-cultural setting. The data show that while the comorbidity of problem drinking and depression can sometimes indicate severe psychopathological distress, measured in this case by suicidality, comorbidity cannot account for another group at high risk for suicide. The discrepancy is explicable with reference to the cultural construction of depression, drinking and suicidality in relation to the creation, maintenance and disruption of social bonds, rather than in relation to an internal state of demoralization.


Use of the CES-D in an American Indian village. In this paper, we examine the performance of a pencil-and-paper screening questionnaire on depressive symptoms (the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, or CES-D) in a sample of 120 adult American Indians belonging to a single Northwest Coast tribe. Results of factor analyses suggest that somatic complaints and emotional distress are not well differentiated from each other in this population. CES-D scores (which have shown good sensitivity and specificity for depressive disorders in this sample) also show weak and apparently nonsignificant trends to be elevated in the presence of other psychiatric diagnoses (including alcoholism) or general impairment. However, because of the use of a convenience sample (rather than a probability sample), analyses of associations between study factors--including comorbidity--are liable to produce spurious results due to selection bias (including Berkson bias). On this basis, we suggest that the use of probability samples should assume a high priority in cross-cultural studies. The study of the entire population of interest is another solution to the sampling problem, particularly in small communities.


[Occupational hygiene of railway transport workers as a specific branch of occupational medicine]. Occupational hygiene of the railway transport is a well defined sphere of knowledge. It is closely connected with the general occupational medicine and yet occupies a significant place in the railway medicine. Occupational medicine of the railway transport is based on results of sciences connected with each other and at the same time it serves for the favourable research is included sciences, such as occupational physiology and hygiene pathology, sanitary technics, chemistry, acoustics et al.


Substance use and other psychiatric disorders among 100 American Indian patients. One hundred American Indian patients with a Psychoactive Substance Use Disorder (PSUD) were studied with special reference to associated psychiatric disorders. This clinical sample was divided into three groups: PSUD only, PSUD plus an Organic Mental Disorder (OMD), and PSUD plus any other psychiatric disorder. OMD diagnoses included primarily Delirium Tremens and Alcoholic Hallucinosis; cases of Alcohol Amnestic Disorder, Alcohol Dementia, and trauma-induced OMD were also encountered. Other psychiatric disorders included primarily Major Depression and Anxiety Disorder, with smaller numbers of Schizophrenia, Conduct, Sexual, and other Disorders. Demographic and clinical characteristics were compared among these three groups. Those with PSUD+OMD tended to be older, male, and have more DSM-III Axis 3 disorders (American Psychiatric Association 1980) as compared to other patients; those with PSUD+other diagnoses tended to be single and younger. Education and occupational status were not related to the three diagnostic groups. The data were also subjected to MANOVA analysis. Even when corrected for sex, types of substance being abused, Axis 3 health status, and other factors, the three diagnostic groups still bore a significant relationship to age. Those with PSUD+Other psychiatric diagnoses besides OMD tended to be youngest. Those with PSUD-only were intermediate by age, while those with PSUD+OMD tended to be the oldest.


[Necessity of individual approach to evaluating the level of fatigue during prolonged work in the mountains]. Capacity to the physical work and functional status were studied during the prolonged (1 year) work in the mountainous conditions (3,600 m above sea level). The fatigue grade and capacity level were proved to depend on individual adaptation to the mountainous conditions.


Alcoholism and substance abuse among selected southern Cheyenne Indians. This family and small community-based study reports the occurrence of alcoholism and co-occurring substance abuse in Southern Cheyenne Indians living in western Oklahoma. Sociocultural factors complicate operationalization of clinical data into standard (DSM-III-R) psychiatric disorder terminology; understanding sociocultural factors is essential for assessing the high rate of addictive disorders in this group. To obtain reliable and valid clinical diagnoses, data from several sources were utilized within a blind rating system: 1) SADS-L, a clinician-administered research diagnostic instrument; 2) MAST; 3) relatives; 4) medical records; 5) other official documents. The sample consisted of 69 males (45 alcoholics) and 97 females (36 alcoholics). Among clinically significant substance abusers (moderate impairment of function), 22 of 24 were alcoholics. In non-alcoholics, mean MAST scores were 8.8 (males) and 5.1 (females); in alcoholics, 32.0 (males) and 38.7 (females). Mean age of onset on heavy use of alcohol was 20.1 yrs. (males) and 22.8 (females) (p = 0.047); among all alcoholics, 86% (males) and 64% (females) had early onset (< 25 yrs. old). When data from 98 unrelated subjects were analyzed separately, similar findings were observed except that mean age of onset of heavy use of alcohol was more discrepant between males and females, viz. 20.1 versus 22.8 yrs. (p = 0.02). Among those with substance abuse disorders, early age of onset was present in all but one female. In these Cheyenne, alcoholism is usually clinically severe and early in onset; it often co-occurs with substance abuse, also early in onset.


[Utilization of individual protective devices with autonomic air supply for work with hazardous materials ]. An application of individual protective means (IPM) with the autonomic air supply has considerable promise for protecting respiratory organs and eyes in hazardous conditions. The main advantage of such devices is that the respiratory zone has the forced supply with the cleansed air. Biophysical studies showed that such IPM don't harm the functional status and capacity for work in human doing the medium-difficult physical work during 8 hours and can be recommended for the application in mines.


Co-morbid symptoms of depression and conduct disorder in First Nations children: some findings from the Flower of Two Soils Project. The prominence of co-morbidity in children and adolescents has increased over the past decade as new empirical research data has accumulated. Yet little epidemiological data of any kind exists for First Nations Children. Following a brief literature review on co-morbidity in children and adolescents, the authors analyzed data from the Flower of Two Soils Project (M. Beiser, principal investigator) to examine more closely the relationship between self-reported depressive symptoms and parent/teacher reported conduct symptoms. Such a relationship has been consistently found in a number of studies. Children aged 7 to 10 were found to show more academic and social problems when rated as having high conduct symptoms. Children in the co-morbid group were found to have the highest rates of family stress and help-seeking behavior. Suicidal ideation was as high in the conduct and co-morbid groups as it was in the high depression group. More First Nations children were found in the high conduct-low depression group. The significance of these findings is discussed.


Stressful life events and co-occurring depression, substance abuse and suicidality among American Indian and Alaska Native adolescents. Depression, suicidality and substance abuse disorders are examined with special emphasis on the role of stressful life events in predicting severity and patterns of comorbidity among American Indian and Alaska Native adolescents in boarding school environments. Both amount and severity of comorbidity increase with age and specific patterns of comorbidity are associated with gender. Different types and amounts of stressful life events predict specific combinations of comorbidity. These outcomes are interpretable with respect to associated cultural dynamics and the ecology of mental health services delivery for Indian and Native adolescents. Theoretical and methodological issues are discussed in relation to the use of stressful life events in examining cultural factors related to comorbidity among culturally different populations.


Treatment implications of comorbid psychopathology in American Indians and Alaska Natives. This paper discusses treatment implications of comorbid psychopathology in the context of American Indian and Alaska Native culture and in the context of the Indian Health Service's Mental Health and Alcohol and Substance Abuse Program Branches. Treatment of comorbidity in this population is a particularly difficult problem due to numerous barriers to treatment and a poorly defined treatment system. As in other clinical populations, these patients are high utilizers of the limited treatment services available, but may not receive the type of treatment they need. After describing the extent of comorbidity in this population, we present an historical perspective of mental illness that provides an Indian's view of why we are where we are today in treating these problems. Next, we discuss Western and traditional treatment implications for comorbidity among adults and adolescents. Finally, we suggest directions for future research in this area.


[Evaluation methods of memory in depression]. The aim of this review is the description of the main modifications of memory of depressive subjects. Cognitive alterations concerning long term and working memory, results of tests dealing with learning items or stories with affective contents. Capacities of depressed subjects on the word completion test (implicit memory) are preserved. In a second part these cognitive particularities will be reviewed in integrative models and these theoretical approaches and their limits will be discussed. Finally, as a general conclusion, difficulties encountered in neuropsychological investigations of depressive subjects will be stressed.


The natural history of medical and psychiatric disorders in an American Indian community. In 1969, a Pacific Northwest American Indian community cohort (n = 100) was interviewed for the presence of physical and psychiatric illnesses. The same community was studied again in 1988. This study describes the outcome among the original 100 subjects. The schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia Lifetime Version (SADS-L) served as the basic interview instrument, supplemented by data from medical records, death certificates, and medical and community informants. Twenty-five subjects had died, 13 from cardiovascular disorders and seven from alcohol-related illnesses. Among the 46 subjects re-interviewed, hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes had become significant sources of medical morbidity. Alcoholism was the most significant cause of psychiatric morbidity, particularly among males. This study indicates that greater attention should be focused upon prevention and treatment of alcoholism, cardiovascular disorders, and diabetes in this community and in other American Indian populations.


[Evaluation of the workload in the various modes of tractor driving]. Two modes of tractor driving--by means of unstepped and frictional turn mechanisms--were compared. The study revealed the advantage of unstepped turn mechanism according to changes of the body functional status.


[Exploration of memory disorders in anxiety states]. According to cognitive model of anxiety, memory process in anxious patients is usually tested by comparing the incidental recall of positive and negative, threatening and non threatening, self and other-referenced words. Contrary to expectation, the results indicate relatively poorer memory for threatening material in anxious patients and no bias in favour of the recall of self referent negative words. At the opposite this memory bias can be evidenced in patients with panic disorder. The bias for anxiety words is better evidenced in the subgroups with the higher arousal level or when there is a mood induction by reading first an anxiogenic text. Consistent with prediction a perceptive pre-attentional bias can be shown for the great majority of the subjects studied in recent researches.


[Medical consequences of drinking water pollution resulting from a chemical accident]. The article describes consequences of the chemical accident in Ufa, lead to the drinkable water pollution by phenol and chlorophenolic compounds. Events required the prompt prophylactic measures and reconstruction of health care in the city. The treatment tactics approved at that period of time are represented.


[Actual problems of allergy in occupational pathology]. Data from different sources concerning the modern status of the allergy problem in the occupational pathology are represented. Features of immunologic pathogenesis in occupational respiratory tract diseases formation due to the simple and composite substances, protein denaturants, immune modulators and histamine-liberators organic and non-organic by origin are described. The most promising directions for the further investigation of the problem are stated and based.


[Photometric detection of metacide in the air of the working area]. The method of photometric detection of metacide in the air is based on the interaction of latter with p-nitrophenyldiasonium in borate-buffer solution. The measurement takes place in 10 mm-basins at the wave-length 540 nm. The lower limit of detection is 0.15 mg/mm when 167 L of air are analysed.


[Rapid method of calculating the heat resistance of clothes using programmable microcomputers]. Microcomputer calculation of the heat resistance of clothes gives the current data for the wide range of air speed. Programme is based on the equation, summarizing the number of standard clothing layers. Other methods (using of dummies, trials on humans) were analysed and the results identical to the suggested method were obtained.


[Gas chromatographic detection of 2- chlorbutadiene- 1,3 and 2,3-dichlorbutadiene- 1,3 in skin wash-off]. Highly sensitive, selective method of 2-chlorobutadiene-1,3 and 2,3-dichlorobutadiene-1,3 detection by means of gas chromatography in the skin wash-off is worked out. The sensitivity is 0.2 microgram for 2-chlorobutadiene-1,3 and 1 microgram for the 2,3-dichlorobutadiene-1,3.


[Status of the vestibular analyzer and psychophysiologic parameters in miners and crew members cleaning up the consequences of the Chernobyl nuclear plant accident]. Status of the vestibular analyzer and psychophysiologic parameters were studied in 20 miners with the long length of service and in 16 liquidators of Chernobyl atomic power station accident consequences. Liquidators showed the reliably increased latent periods of P1, N1 and P2 spikes of vestibular evoked potentials, considerably increased latent time of the complicated oculomotor reaction and lowered rate of information processing. Exposure to increased radiation dose during the work at Chernobyl atomic power station was a main factor to influence on the functional status of vestibular analyzer.


[Modern hygienic norm setting for occupational poisons in the air of the working area]. The peculiarity of modern hygienic norm setting is the application of rapid methods of MAC basement in the air of working area. Criteria of rapid norm setting for occupational poisons are summarized, the extent of further investigations and expedience of norm setting for chemical substances in the air of working area are defined.


[Occupational hygiene and health status in welders of laser devices]. Welders-assemblers of the Quant-type laser devices are exposed to bright light flashes of plasma and laser exceeding in certain measurements the maximal allowed level. Such hazards induce disorders in eyes, autonomic nervous, circulatory and immune systems of workers. Impaired humoral immunity can lead to increased incidence of acute respiratory tract diseases. Prophylactic measures, including laser and flash shielding screens and drug therapy were suggested.


[Program for promotion of breast feeding in Poland. I. Justification of the program with supporting information]. A breast-feeding promotion programme for Poland was developed as a part of governmental programme to protect and improve health of the mother, child and family for the years 1986-2000 carried out by Institute of Mother and Child. It was presented as a document consisting of three major components which will go to press successively. Part I covers justification of the proposed programme activities and thirty five consistent paragraphs summarizing principal information on breast-feeding and its promotion.


[Concentration of erythropoietin in blood serum of the umbilical cord and in amniotic fluid in normal and complicated pregnancies]. Erythropoietin is the primary hormone controlling erythropoiesis in both adults and fetuses. In extra-fetal life the main organ producing erythropoietin is the kidney which is responsible for producing about 90% of the total amount of this hormone. In fetal life erythropoietin is produced by the liver of the fetus. The erythropoietin production depends on the content of oxygen in blood. This is probably the only physiological stimulus which regulates the production of erythropoietin. The increase of erythropoietin concentration in the umbilical cord serum and in the amniotic fluid has been observed in the states of fetus anoxia. This mainly concerns such complications during pregnancy as the fetus hypotrophy, diabetes, serological conflict, and gestosis.


[Diagnostic value of directed anamnesis and gynecologic examination with regard to HSG investigation in diagnosis of mechanical infertility in women]. The aim of the work has been hysterosalpingographic estimation of oviductal patency in women with case histories encumbered or not encumbered by inflammations restricting the fertility, with taking into consideration the anatomical state of the reproductive organs being evaluated by gynaecological examination. Of 429 women covered by the study 102 out of a group of 277 with primary infertility reported adnexitis in their case histories, while 67 women out of a group of 152 with secondary infertility declared having had inflammations. In women, whose anamnesis included inflammations, uterine adnexa thickening as well as abdominal position of uterus with restricted movements appeared in the group of examined women with primary infertility (15.2%) about twofold, and in the group with secondary infertility (26.5%) over fourfold more frequently than in women with inflammatory--free case histories. The women, in whom the gynaecological examinations failed to reveal any changes in genital organs, regardless of the fact that they reported adnexitis, were found to have uni- or bilateral in patency of oviducts from 43.7% to 96.2%, mean in 53.74%, and in those with pubescent uteri on the average 53.75%, with thickened uterine adnexa--mean 64.46% with abdominal position and restricted movements of uterus on the average 74%. Oviductal in patency was recorded twofold more frequently in women, whose case histories disclosed uterine adnexitis.


[Evaluation of combined application of diazepam, fenoterol and metamizole in prevention of uterine-tubal spasm during the performance of hysterosalpingography]. In the years from 1989 to 1991 HSG examination was carried out in 502 infertile women. Two hours before the examination 5 mg of diazepam and 5 mg of fenoterol were orally administered, and 30 minutes prior to the procedure 2.5 mg of metamizole were given intramuscularly. The examined population of women was found to have normal patency of oviducts in 412 (82.07%) women, 48 (9.56%) had uni- or bilateral impatency of abdominal openings, in 16 (3.19%) there was uni- and in 19 (3.78%) bilateral +impatency of oviducts in uterine segments, while in 7 (1.39%) alternating impatency was disclosed. Of 502 women in 109 patients laparoscopy and chromotubation were performed during a period from 2 to 16 months after HSG examinations. In 30 (93.7%) out of 32 women with impatency of oviducts in the proximal segment, the diagnosis was confirmed. The administered drugs effectively prevent uterine-tubal spasms occurring at the time HSG is being accomplished.


[Developmental anomalies of the uterus in a population of 3000 women with various causes of infertility]. In the years from 1979 to 1991 a population of 3000 women with various causes of infertility was found to have in 13.34% developmental anomalies of uteri. As many as 9.27% consisted of saddle uteri, 2.67% bicornous, in 0.37% there was partial, and in 0.13% complete septum, in 0.57% unicornous and in 0.33% double. The diagnosis of developmental anomalies involving uterus was based mainly on HSG, laparoscopic and hysteroscopic examinations.


[Effect of hydrotubation on the anatomical state of oviducts in women with mechanical infertility]. The aim of the paper was to evaluate the anatomical state of uterine adnexa in women operated on due to mechanical infertility. Hydrotubation were previously applied in 31 women stemming from various centres in the country, while in 31 such a treatment was not performed at all. The mentioned groups of women were encumbered, to a similar degree, with a risk factor of infertility, except for the duration of sterility, which in those treated by hydrotubation lasted on the average 2 years longer. From 5 to 50 hydrotubations were carried out, most frequently in series of 5 procedures. It was reported by the women that 8 of them after hydrotubation experienced hypogastric pain persisting for some days, and in 6 there was acute adnexitis. Destructive changes in uterine adnexa, being estimated during the reconstructive operation, were decidedly more advanced in women treated by hydrotubation. That was expressed mainly by frequent appearance of lytic adhesions as well as by more advanced fibrosis of oviducts, particularly that of endosalpinx. Unchanged oviducts, after their release from adhesions, also appeared less frequently.


[The value of ultrasound examination for diagnosing postmenopausal metrorrhagia]. The results of transvaginal ultrasound diagnostic assessment of endometrium were compared with histopathological examination of endometrium by following diagnostic abrasion on examined group of 54 postmenopausal women. The method seems to be useful for diagnosis of postmenopausal metrorrhagia, when the "safe" thickness of endometrium layer is taken as 5 mm. It occurs in effect of our study the transvaginal ultrasound examination may decrease the number of subsequent diagnostic abrasions in those cases.


[Evaluation of an immunoenzymatic assay for determining estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast tumors]. The aim of our research was the usability of immunoenzymatic assay for the determination of estrogen and progesterone receptors. We tested 59 women with breast tumours. 20 of these women have had carcinoma ductal, 10 carcinoma lobular and 3 women another histopathological type. 26 women have had benign tumours: 15 mastopathia fibrosocystica, 11 fibroadenoma. It was found that mean concentration of cER, nER and cPgR, nPgR were higher in malignant tumours as compared with benign tumours. Mean concentration of cER in carcinoma ductale (mean = 45.96 fmol/mg protein) and carcinoma lobular (mean = 130.38 fmol/mg protein) were of higher statistical significance than the levels of these receptors in mastopathia fibroso-cystica (mean = 16.82 fmol/mg protein). Mean concentrations nER and nPgR in benign and malignant tumours were not statistically significant. On the basis of our own investigations we can suggest that immunoenzymatic method supplied by Abbott is a simple test to perform and useful to evaluate hormonal dependence of cancer tissue.


[Ultrasound diagnosis of vesico-uterine fistula]. The case of vesico-uterine fistula after cesarean section was described. Ultrasound technique was used to confirm the diagnosis because of noncharacteristic urography and absence of typical changes in urine analysis. Surgical intervention with good result was performed 3 month after cesarean section.


[Treatment of ureter injuries after obstetric-gynecologic surgery]. The article presents an analysis of 21 patients with ureter injuries originated during obstetric-gynaecological operations treated in Urology Clinic in Medical Academy Poznań. Attention was particularly focused on prevention and fast diagnosis of injuries based on intra-operation examination usg, urography, and ascending pyelography. This fast diagnosis is of crucial importance for the cure.


[Giant cyst of the spermatic vesicle imitating abdominal tumor]. A paper presents the case of big cystic degeneration of spermatic vesicle found accidentally. Diagnosis was established on the basis of the objective examination and the following additional examination: urography, computer tomography, cystoscopic examination and rectal examination. The radical excision was performed and as a result full cure was achieved.