[The influence of different factors on the incidence of diabetes mellitus among the population of Ulan-Ude]. The authors present the results of studying the effect of the social-hygienic factors in diabetes mellitus morbidity in the population of Ulan-Ude. Comparative analysis of the influence of the social-hygienic factors on diabetes mellitus morbidity showed that in men origination of diabetes mellitus was promoted primarily by nervous strain during work and intensive smoking; derangements in nutritional hygiene were of lesser significance. In women origination of diabetes mellitus was primarily promoted by derangements in nutrional hygiene and emotions connected with their family; work accompanied by marked nervous strain played a lesser role.


[Urinary aldosterone excretion and erythrocyte and plasma sodium and potassium ion concentration in persons of different ages]. Practically healthy persons (79 in all) aged from 20 to 80 years and over were examined. The work was aimed at the study of the character of aldosterone excretion and its correlation with the ionic composition of erythrocytes and the peripheral blood plasma in persons at various age periods. As revealed, the activity of glomerular zone of the adrenal cortex in persons aged from 20 to 40 years displayed sexual differences: 1.33 times more aldosterone was excreted with the urine in women than in men. With the advance of age there occurred a functional decrease in the glomerular zone of the adrenal cortex. In senile persons (aged 80 years and over) this difference was entirely eliminated. Sodium ions in erythrocytes increased, but remained unchanged in the peripheral blood plasma. Potassium ion concentration fell both in the erythrocytes and in the blood plasma. A reduction of aldosterone content failed to alter the sodium-retention effect of its action which corresponded to the concept on increase of tissue sensitivity to hormones with the advance of age.


[The relationship between the pineal gland and the hypothalamo-hypophyseal complex. I. The effect of pinealectomy, binding and continuous illumination on H3-leucine incorporation in the nucleus of the anterior, middle and posterior hypothalamus of prepubertal and sexually mature rats]. Autoradiography was applied to the study of the effect of extirpation of the epiphysis in rats on the level of H3-leucine incorporation by the neurons of 8 couples of the nuclei localized in the anterior, middle and posterior portions of the hypothalamus. Experiments were conducted on female animals of the prepubertal and reproductive age. Pinealectomy was combined with binding (a factor intensifying the physiological status of the epiphysis) and continuous illumination (a factor inhibiting the function of this gland). In the blinded prepubertal rats pinealectomy enhanced the H3-leucine incorporation into the supraoptic nucleus by 38%, into the paraventricular--by 26%, into the dorsomedial--by 61%, into the premammillary dorsal--by 58%, into the ventro-medial--by 40%, into the premammillary ventral--by 36%, and into the anterior hypothalamic--by 26%. In mature rats this index exceeded, after pinealectomy, such in the sham-operated animals (control) in the supraoptic nucleus by 48%, in the paraventral--by 40%, in the premamillary ventral--by 80%, in the arcuate--by 48%, in the premammillary dorsal--by 35%, in the ventro-medial--by 29%, and in the dorso-medial--by 26%. Continuous illumination reduced the stimulating influence of pinealectomy on the H3-leucine incorporation into the neurons of the premammillary and the arcuate nuclei, without changing the difference between the experiment and control in the macrocellular nuclei. On the whole, the results obtained permit a conclusion to be drawn on tonic inhibition by the epiphysis of the extensive hypothalamic zones.


[Surgical tactics for sex correction of patients with testicular forms of hermaphroditism]. On the basis of own material (43 patients) the author presents surgical tactics towards the testes in patients with testicular forms of hermaphroditism depending on the form of the disease. The authors consider that in the syndrome of dysgenesia of the testes the latter should be removed from the abdominal cavity (oncological danger!): when female sex is chosen--castration, and male--fixation of the testes under abdominal skin is indicated. In case of the syndrome of testicular feminization the testicles should be fixated under the abdominal skin by the authors' method. In case of the syndrome of incomplete masculinization (eunichoid form) the tactics is the same as in testicular feminization; in android form the testicles can be placed into the scrotum. Biopsy of the testes is necessary in all forms of hermaphroditism.


[The calorigenic effect of catecholamines in rats with experimental hyper- and hypothyroidism]. RQ dynamics in rats, depending on the degree of organism's saturation with hormones, and also after catecholamine injection, was studied. Animals with a relatively mild hyperthyroidism had an increased RG as compared with control. RQ was decreased in the animals with a high degree of hyperthyroidism. Adrenaline and noradrenaline injection was accompanied by a decrease of RQ in the former case, and no changes in the latter case. Even relatively low triiodthyronin doses were shown to intensify the calorigenic catecholamine action. Reserpin injection produced no effect on the metabolic rate of hyperthyroid animals.


[The effect of thyroid hormones on changes in the haptoglobin and transferrin levels in rats]. The author presents data concerning the experimental parallel study on male albino rats (171) of the effect of various thyroid hormones on the haptoglobin and transferrin level in the blood serum. On the basis of the data obtained a study was made of the correlation between the changes in the content of iodine-bound protein (IBP) and the mentioned blood glycoproteins in the experimental animals. There was revealed an influence of the thyroid gland on the content and the character of the changes in the haptoglobin and transferrin concentration in the blood serum. Within the range of physiological action thyroid hormones increased the level of blood component data, and in toxic doses--decreased it. The changes in the content of blood glycoproteins depended on the hormone, dosage and the duration of its administration. Between the changes in the concentration of IBP, haptoglobin and transferrin there proved to be a correlation in all the experimental groups with L-thyroxin and triiodthyronin toxicosis. Normalization of the haptoglobin and transferrin level occurred in the majority of the hyperthyroid animals 12 to 24 days after the end of the experiment.


[The effect of chlorpropamide on the course of latent insular insufficiency in rats under conditions favorable for its transition to patent diabetes]. Experiments were conducted on 162 female rats which had sustained alloxan diabetes during the period of sexual immaturity and had latent insular insufficiency (prediabetes and latent diabetes). Possibilities of chlorpropamide under conditions promoting decompensation development were studied. The animals were given propamide in daily doses of 100 mg per 1 kg of weight for one month, including the period of sexual maturation. Observation period--up to 5 months. A favourable effect of chlorpropamide was noted by the end of puberty and persisted in the course of further observation; the difference from control animals by the frequency of latent and manifest diabetes was intensified under the effect of glucose overfeeding during the perinatal period. Chlorpropamide improved the course of latent insular insufficiency in the rats and was capable of preventing its change into manifest diabetes.


[The activity of the dehydrogenases of the tricarboxylic acid cycle and concentration of adenylic nucleotides in the brain and liver in experimental hypothyroidism]. A determination was made of the activity of the cycle of tricarbolic acids of dehydrogenases and of the content of adeninnucleotides in the brain and the liver of rats in experimental hypothyroidism caused by mercasolyl administration. There were revealed deviations in the activity of dehydrogenases, more pronounced in the liver. Adeninnucleotide content was found to be reduced only in the brain. ATP/ADP ratio decreased in both tissues. The data obtained are discussed with consideration to the possibility of allosteric regulation of the enzyme activity and peculiarities attending the metabolism of substances in the tissues under study.


[The role of noradrenaline in regulating the thyrotropic function of the hypophysis]. Acute experiments were conducted on male rats; a study was made of the effect of microinjections of noradrenaline into the hypothalamus on the thyrotropic function of the hypophysis. Administration of the mediator into the anterior part of the medio-basal hypothalamus led to reduction of the level of thyrotropic hormone in the blood serum and its accumulation in the hypophysis in determination by radioimmunological method. Noradrenaline injections into the area of the paraventricular nucleus practically did not alter the thyrotropic function of the hypophysis.


[The effect of insulin on amino acid accumulation and their incorporation into the proteins of incubated rat diaphragm. The effect of preliminary hypophysectomy and experimental diabetes]. A study was made of the effect of insulin on some indices of protein metabolism in the incubated muscle of the diaphragm obtained from intact rats, hypophysectomized animals, rats with alloxan diabetes and animals with a combined functional exclusion of the hypophysis and the pancreas. Preliminary hypophysectomy depressed and alloxan diabetes increased the effect of insulin on leucin-C14 incorporation into the protein of the diaphragm. At the same time both preliminary actions promoted an increase of sensitivity of the incubated diaphragm to insulin as seen in examination of accumulation of H3-alphaaminoisobutyric acid. Combined exclusion of the function of the hypophysis and the pancreas led to less pronounced changes in the sensitivity of the diaphragm to insulin than each of the actions separately.


[The rate of cortisol secretion in patients with diabetes mellitus]. Velocity of cortizol secretion (VCS) was studied in 5 healthy individuals and 30 patients with diabetes mellitus by the method of dilution of the isotopic label by the mean specific radioactivity of tetrahydrocortizol and tetrahydrocortisone excreted with the urine. There was revealed a close interrelationship between the activation of the adrenal glands and the extent of decompensation of the disease: during the subcompensation and compensation the VCS of the patients with normal weight was no different from the normal and during the decompensation--increased in the majority of the patients investigated; this elevation was more pronounced in marked glucoseuria. The duration of the disease produced no significant influence on the secretory capacity of the adrenal glands.


[Adipose tissue sensitivity to insulin in obese ovariectomized rats]. A study was made of sensitivity of the isolated adipose tissue in rats with ovariectomy and overfeeding. Insulin sensitivity was assessed by the intensity of glucose-C14 incorporation into total lipids of adipose tissue in its incubation with insulin in a concentration of 100 minutes/ml. It was demonstrated that 3 1/2 months after the operation no adiposity developed in ovariectomized rats and insulin sensitivity of the adipose tissue persisted at the normal level. In the excessively fed animals, which due to individual peculiarities of food consumption retained their normal weight, insulin sensitivity of the adipose tissue also remained unchanged. At the same time, with increase in weight caused by overfeeding or ovariectomy in combination with overfeeding, there was no intensification of glucose metabolism under the effect of insulin. The mentioned reduction of insulin sensitivity apparently served as one of the causes leading to development of a relative insulin insufficiency in adiposity and the subsequent development of disturbances of carbohydrate and fat metabolism.


Influence of ketamine, phenylcyclidine, and phenobarbital on cholesterol metabolism in rats. The effects of ip injections of phenobarbital (100 mg/kg), phenylcyclidine (Sernylan; [1-(1-phenylcyclohexyl)-piperidine-HBl] (1 mg/kg), and ketamine (Ketaset; [dl)2-O-chlorophenyl)-2-(methylamino)cyclohexanone-HCl] (1 mg/kg) on lipid metabolism in rats were compared. This study was undertaken to determine whether the two sedatives currently used in primates share any of the undesirable effects of phenobarbital on lipid metabolism. All three compounds were administered to male Wistar rats for 6 days. Phenobarbital was hepatomegalic, stimulated 7alpha hydroxylation of cholesterol, and inhibited cholesterol synthesis by rat liver slices from mevalonate, but not acetate. The two other sedatives exhibited effects very similar to those observed in the controls. From our work in rats it is concluded that the use of Sernylan or Ketaset for sedation of nonhuman primates will not significantly affect these parameters of lipid metabolism.


Effect of methyldopa treatment on cardiac function and myocardial blood flow in mongrel dogs. Administration of methyldopa (100 mg/kg, orally twice daily for a period of 3 days) to mongrel dogs produced significant reductions in blood pressure and heart rate. The hypotensive effect of the drug was due to a reduction in peripheral resistance. Methyldopa treatment also produced a significant decrease in coronary vascular resistance. Studies on the left ventricular function indicated that treatment with methyldopa does not compromise the ability of the myocardium to respond to an increased work load. Thus, the beneficial effect of this agent on the myocardial circulation, together with its lack of any detrimental effect on the cardiac function suggest that methyldopa may be an effective agent for the control of hypertension.


Effects of sodium intake on renal cortical blood flow distribution. Renal cortical blood flow and superficial cortical blood flow were measured in chronic sodium-loaded, sodium-deprived and normal rats. Neither total renal cortical blood flow was different among the three groups of animals. Alterations in the amount of sodium excreted, therefore, are not related to alterations of renal cortical blood flow distribution.


Contractile responses to epinephrine, serotonin, and potassium in arterial smooth muscle. Effects of epinephrine, serotonin, and KCl on development of isometric tension were studied in strips of rat femoral and tail artery smooth muscle. Strkining differences were detected between the preparations. Tension development in tail artery smooth muscle was greatest with epinephrine, intermediate with serotonin, and least with K+. In femoral preparations tension developed was greatest with serotonin. Smaller but comparable contractions were elicited with epinephrine and K+. Theoretical and experimental dose-response curves for epinephrine and serotonin agreed closely, whereas curves for K+ differed markedly. The relationship between fractional response and fractional stimulus was hyperbolic for epinephrine and serotonin but sigmoid for K+. The Hill coefficient for serotonin was about 1, slightly smaller than 1 for epinephrine (0.5 to 0.8) and significantly greater for K+ (5 to 5). These findings show that responses elicited with either epinephrine or serotonin are mechanistically consistent with receptor occupancy theory. They suggest that specific receptors for K+ exist and that they may involve positive cooperative interactions similar those described for receptor mechanisms in electroplax.


Microvibration: capable of inducing spontaneous contractions in smooth muscles. Spontaneous contractions were elicited by the vibration of small amplitude (microvibration) imposed upon the quiescent strips prepared from the ureter and portal vein of dogs. An acceleration of the existing rhythm in the spontaneously contracting strips was also brought about by microvibration. Frequencies and amplitudes of microvibration ranged from 1 to 90 Hz and from 50 to 150 mum, respectively. Imposed cyclic strains were less than 1% at their maximum. Up to the amplitude of 150 mum, the greater the amplitude, the faster the induced rhythm. Stepwise increase of the frequencies up to 30 Hz brought about a gradual acceleration of rhythmicity. At frequencies of above 30 Hz, no appreciable frequency-dependent differences were observable among the responses induced. Local adrenergic mechanism proved to have nothing to do with these effects.


Effect of cytosine, arabinoside, iododeoxyuridine, ethyldeoxyuridine, thiocyanatodeoxyuridine, and ribavirin on tail lesion formation in mice infected with vaccinia virus. Mice infected intravenously with vaccinia virus develop characteristic lesions over the entire tail surface. This experimental virus infection presents a highly sensitive and reliable model for evaluating the antivaccinia activity of antiviral compounds. Ara-C (1-beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine), ribavirin (1-beta-D-ribofuranosyl-1,2,4-triazole-3-carboxamide), IUdR (5-iodo-2'-deoxyuridine) as well as two novel analogs of IUdR, EtUdR (5-ethyl-2'-deoxyuridine), and NCSUdR (5-thiocyanato-2'-deoxyuridine), were found to inhibit the formation of vaccinia tail lesions, when administered intraperitoneally once daily for 7 days starting immediately after virus infection. The order of (decreasing) activity was: ara-C greater than IUdR greater than NCSUdR greater than ribavirin greater than EtUdR. Various drug combinations, involving IUdR + ara-C, NCSUdR + ara-C, NCSUdR + IUdR, NSCUdR + ribavirin, etc., were evaluated but none proved more efficacious than either compound administered alone.


Enhanced erythropoietin and prostaglandin E production in the dog following renal artery constriction. Renal artery constriction (RAC) to 30% of normal flow for 12 hr in the unilaterally nephrectomized dog produced a marked increase in both erythropoietin titers and prostaglandin E (PGE) levels in the blood. In dogs pretreated prior to RAC with indomethacin, a potent inhibitor of prostaglandin synthetase, there was no significant increase in either PGE or erythropoietin levels as compared to zero-time control values. These data suggested an involvement of renal PGE in the generation of erythropoietin following RAC.


Melatonin-induced inhibition of testicular function in adult golden hamsters. Melatonin (12-100 mug/day) administered via subcutaneous Silastic implants prevented or suppressed light-induced testicular recrudescence in adult golden hamsters. In addition, melatonin (150 mug/day) induced marked testicular regression in sexually mature hamsters maintained on photostimulatory long days. These results clearly establish that exogenous melatonin can inhibit gonodal function in adult male hamsters.


Effects of aging on LH and prolactin after LHRL L-dopa, methyl-dopa, and stress in male rat. Hypothalamic-pituitary control of prolactin and LH secretion was tested in young (4-6 months) and aged (22-30 months) male Long-Evans rats given L-dopa, methyl dopa, LHRH, or stress treatments. Pretreatment serum LH levels were consistently higher in young than in the aged groups. The increase in serum LH after LHRH injection was only about half as much in aged as compared to young control males. Although acute stress caused a prompt increase in serum LH in young male rats, this treatment was without effect in the aged group. Methyl dopa treatment stimulated serum prolactin secretion in both young and old rats. Although L-dopa treatment caused a reduction in serum prolactin in both age groups, the sensitivity, magnitude, and duration of the reduction was smaller in the aged rats.


Modification of the hepatotoxicity of D-galactosamine in the rat by cycloheximide. The effect of cycloheximide (1.5 mg/kg), a potent inhibitor of protein biosynthesis, on D-galastosamine (375 mg/kg)-induced hepatic necrosis and hepatic triglyceride accumulation was studied in rats. Serum transaminase levels, 24 hr after D-galactosamine administration, were significantly reduced in animals treated simultaneously or 4 hr before D-galactosamine with cycloheximide, when compared to animals given D-galactosamine alone. Transaminase levels in rats given cycloheximide 4 hr after D-galactosamine were not reduced. Histological grading of hepatocyte necrosis showed a similar pattern of protection in the pretreated and simultaneously treated groups. Hepatic triglycerides were significantly reduced only in the latter group. Fatality 48 hr after D-galactosamine administration was significantly less common in rats pretreated with cycloheximide when compared to rats given D-galactosamine without cycloheximide, and surviving animals in the cycloheximide pretreated group had a lower serum transaminase level, a lower necrosis score, and a reduced hepatic triglyceride level. These data are consistent with the concept that protein synthesis is important in the pathogenesis of D-galactosamine-induced hepatotoxicity.


Cytotoxic effects of 1,3-bis(2 chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) on cultured human glioblastomas. Two cultured human glioblastoma cell lines were exposed to graded doses of BCNU, and the sequential cytoxic and cytocidal changes were studied histologically. Changes included cessation of mitotic activity, reduction in population, rounding and clumping of the cells, nuclear pyknosis, and cell death. The intensity of the changes was proportional to the dosage. With 3 daily doses of 18 mug/ml, the population in Tumor A-172 was only 20% of that in the controls, and 75% of the cells present appeared conviable. This dosage is about four times that used in a single course in treating humans. After 3 doses at 60 mug/ml, cell death appeared complete, but transfer without additional treatment brought out 2-min foci of viable cells, with several mitoses. A more anaplastic glioblastoma, T98, was much less sensitive to BCNU, responding only by lowered population density, decreased mitoses and slight-to-moderate cytotoxicity in one experiment.


Inhibitory effects of scillaren and dinitrophenol on bilirubin excretion by the isolated perfused rat liver. The effects of scillaren and dinitrophenol on bilirubin excretion by the perfused rat liver were studied. Both compounds inhibited bile flow, scillaren by 20 to 40%, and dinitrophenol by 60 to 80%. Bilirubin excretion was also impaired. However, the effect of scillaren on bilirubin excretion was less than that on bile flow, as indicated by an increase in the bile bilirubin concentration, whereas dinitrophenol had a greater effect on bilirubin excretion than on bile flow. Dinitrophenol also inhibited the hepatic removal of unconjugated bilirubin from the perfusate, probably because it impaired the initial uptake and/or storage of unconjugated bilirubin by the perfused liver.


Specificity of neural effect on renal tubular sodium reabsorption. Low level direct renal nerve stimulation increases renal tubular sodium reabsorption in the absence of changes in glomerular filtration rate, renal blood flow, or intrarenal distribution of blood flow. Blockade of this response with phenoxybenzamine (or guanethidine) supports the interpretation that it is mediated by direct adrenergic innervation of the renal tubule.


Influence of antidiuretic hormone on intrarenal blood flow distribution in diabetes insipidus dogs and rats. The distribution of labeled microspheres within the renal cortex was used to evaluate the influence of physiological amounts of antidiuretic hormone on intrarenal blood flow distribution in hypophysectomized dogs and in rats with hereditary diabetes insipidus. In both species, intravenous infusions of ADH caused a significant decrease in the ratio of inner to outer cortical blood flow. The change in blood flow distribution observed in the hypophysectomized dog with ADH was primarily a consequence of a decrease in inner cortical blood flow. No consistent changes in outer cortical blood flow were found. Also in the dog, glomerular filtration rates and electrolyte excretion rates (Na and K) increased following ADH. In contrast, ADH infusion into Brattleboro rats caused no change in glomerular filtration or excretion of Na and K.


Secretion of human prolactin in vitro.

Secretion of human prolactin in vitro. Cells from two human pituitary tumors were grown in capillary culture units and prolactin production was measured. A single unit could produce 3 mg of prolactin over a 4-month period. The cultured cells responded to TRH exposure by increasing their rate of prolactin secretion. Cultivation of cells in capillary units could be the method of choice for reducing the shortage of human hormones.


Mercury in human maternal and cord blood, placenta, and milk. Total mercury concentration was measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry in 100 maternal-umbilical cord blood pairs, 39 placentae, and 32 breast milk samples, all from patients at the University of Iowa Hospitals. The mean maternal and cord blood levels were 1.01 and 1.24 parts per billion (ppb), respectively. Though the difference between maternal and cord values was not statistically significant, the two were significantly correlated with each other, and maternal blood level increased significantly with maternal age. Mean placental and milk concentrations were 2.28 and 0.93 ppb, respectively. The mercury levels in this study were lower than those reported from elsewhere, probably reflecting a combination of methodological refinement and relatively low mercury exposure in a rural population whose diet is low in fish consumption. These low levels suggest that the risk of perinatal mercury damage is small in such a population.


Studies on the isolation and chemical properties of porcine follicle-stimulating hormone. Porcine follicle-stimulating hormone (pFSH) has been prepared from acetone dried pituitary glands. The acetone powder was initially extracted in pH 5 ethanol-acetate buffer (40% ethanol and acetate at 0.5 ionic strength) containing 0.02% PMSF. The gonadotropin rich fraction, obtained in the 80% ethanol precipitate, was dissolved in 0.12 M NH4HCO3, heated at 60 degrees for 3 min, cooled, and centrifuged. The supernatant was lyophilized for chromatography on QAE-Sephadex, then Sephadex G-100. The pFSH obtained has a biological activity of 15 X NIH-FSH-P-1 and 2.1% sialic acid. The amino acid analysis is characterized by high lysine, aspartic acid, and glutamic acid with notable amounts of threonine, proline, and half-cystine.


Effect of vaginally administered 15(S)15-methyl-PGF2alpha on egg transport and fertility in rabbits. The effects of vaginal suppositories containing 1.0 mg of 15[S]15-methy-PGF2alpha on oviductal motility, egg transport, and fertility were determined in rabbits. Suppository treatment caused a significant increase (P less than 0.02) in the amplitude of oviductal contractions, and a decrease in the frequency of contractractions (P less than 0.04). Altered oviductal motility persisted for an average of 2 hr after treatment. Treatment with 1, 2, or 3 suppositories at various times after ovulation caused a significant reduction in the number of eggs located in the oviducts (P less than 0.025). There was, however, a great deal of variation in egg recovery in treated animals (range 0 to 100%). Treatment of mated rabbits during the time of tubal egg transport caused a significant reduction in the number of Day-12 implants (P less than 0.05). The percentage of corpora lutea represented by Day-12 implants was similar to egg recovery rates in animals similarly treated. The treatment had no effect on fetal survival from Day 12 to 28 of pregnancy. The decrease in fertility caused by these vaginal suppositories is presumably due to the stimulatory effect on oviductal motility which accelerates tubal transport of the embryos into the uterus. Embryos that arrive in the uterus prematurely probably do not implant and degenerate or are expelled.


Hypercholesterolemia due to ascorbic acid. Rats fed a purified diet containing ascorbic acid developed hypercholesterolemia. Because rats do not require exogenous ascorbic acid, they may be comparable to humans who supplement their diets with ascorbic acid in capsular form. The amount of ascorbic acid in this experiment was equivalent to 82 to 630 mg of capsular ascorbic acid ingested by an average man and was well below the amount ingested by those in search of respiratory benefit. The data are consonant with those on humans consuming controlled diets.


In vitro colony assay for a new class of megakaryocyte precursor: colony-forming unit megakaryocyte (CFU-M). A plasma culture system has been used successfully to grow and quantitate megakaryocyte colonies from mouse bone marrow following their staining for acetylcholinesterase activity in situ. Colonies averaging about six acetylcholinesterase-positive cells appear with a peak incidence after 4 days in culture with a plating efficiency of one colony formed for every 10(4) nucleated cells plated.


Estrogen-progestogen interaction: factors influencing progesterone-induced endometrial changes of the uterus of the immature rabbit. In orally estrogen-primed animals, four times as much progesterone is required to bring about secretory changes comparable to those obtained following subcutaneous priming. These findings might be interpreted as evidence that: (a) oral estrogen-induced proliferative changes are either different or inadequate, and (b) excess progesterone is conditio sine qua non for the induction of those proliferative changes susceptible of being transformed into secretory ones.


The influence of hypophysectomy on the stores of somatostatin in the hypothalamuu and pituitary stem. Twenty-eight to 133 days after hypophysectomy of the rat, somatostatin as revealed immunocytochemically was depleted from all segments of the median eminence and from the proximal part of the infundibular stem. A consistent change in the store of somatostatin in the OVLT could not be demonstrated.


Nonparallel courses of intrapancreatic levels of exportable enzymes after a fatty meal. Stimulation of pancreatic secretion by a fatty meal resulted in a nonparallel time-course of intrapancreatic amylase, lipase, trypsinogen, and chymotrypsinogen levels. Concomitant variations in the rate of pancreatic protein biosynthesis are observed. Those results support the hypothesis that nonparallelism in exportable enzyme levels is a consequence of a nonparallel regulation by the stimulus of the individual rates of enzyme biosynthesis.


Attenuation of hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction by verapamil in intact dogs. The hypothesis that hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction is mediated directly by depolarization of the vascular smooth muscle was tested in anesthetized dogs. Pulmonary vascular responses to hypoxia were first determined in eight dogs during 20-min exposures to 10% O2. Each animal was then treated with verapamil (0.5 mg/kg, iv), to block transmembrane Ca2+ influx in an attempt to abolish the vasoconstrictor responses to hypoxia. The hypoxic exposures were then repeated, and the pulmonary vascular responses were compared to the control responses. Verapamil administration attenuated hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction, but did not abolish the responses to hypoxia. Pulmonary vascular resistance increased 87% during the control hypoxic exposure, but increased only 38% during hypoxia after verapamil. The response to another vasoconstrictor, prostaglandin F2alpha, was not reduced by verapamil indicating a different mechanism of mediation. These results suggest that the pulmonary vasoconstrictor response to alveolar hypoxia, in the intact dog, involves transmembrane Ca2+ influx, and are consistent with the idea that hypoxia acts primarily by directly depolarizing vascular smooth muscle, rather than acting indirectly through a chemical mediator.


Influence of dietary fluoride restriction on regulation of plasma nd soft tissue fluoride contents. The adjustments in total fluoride concentration in plasma, bones, liver, and muscle were examined when rats were given a diet of very low fluoride content following a dietary regimen of elevated fluoride intake. The animals received a diet containing 34 ppm of fluoride and water with 50 ppm added fluoride in the 28-day initial period and in the depletion period they were given a diet containing only 0.21 ppm of fluoride and distilled water. The findings indicated a 12-fold increase in the fluoride content of the humeri after 28 days of high-flurodie intake with a greater increment by the epiphyses than by the diaphyses. During 21 days of the depletion period the skeletal fluoride was reduced by only 7.7% indicating a marked retention of fluoride during processes of bone remodeling and growth. The plasma, muscle, and liver total fluoride contents were significantly increased at the end of the period of high-fluoride intake, but these concentrations were found to be restored to base-line levels in 3-7 days of the depletion period. By comparison of the distribution of total fluoride with injected radiofluoride between tissue and plasma waters, it was concluded that muscle and liver contain bound fluoride that does not exchange completely with ionic fluoride.


Study of local anesthetics. Part 46: Correlations between anesthetic activity and physico-chemical parameters of some alkoxy substituted esters of phenylcarbamic acids. The partition in water-octanol and water-carbon tetrachloride systems and electronic spectra of three series of esters of phenylcarbamic acid and its m- and p-alkoxy derivatives were measured. The surface local anesthetic activity of these compounds as well as the infiltration anesthetic activity of some of them were correlated with combinations of partition coefficients, spectral parameters and sigma-coefficients.


Transfer dosemeters for fast neutron sources. The increasing use of fast neutron sources in radiobiology, radiotherapy, etc. makes dosimetry intercomparisons (intercalibrations) by mail desirable. After comparing the relative advantages and disadvantages of the various available integrating fast neutron detectors, fission fragment track etching was chosen because such detectors can be made sufficiently small, rugged, fading resistant, inexpensive and accurate. Using several combinations of 232Th or 237Np as fissile materials, and organic and inorganic track detectors, it was established that both automatic spark counting and visual track counting techniques can be developed to cover the desirable dose range (approximately 50-500 rad) with sufficient accuracy (sigma less than or equal to 5%). One possible source of errors is the overlapping size distributions of fission fragment and recoil particle tracks in organic foils exposed at high neutron energies. Several approaches to reduce this problem are discussed.


The dosimetry of radioisotopes incorporated in bone using cavity ionization theory. Cavity ionization theory is applied to the dosimetry of bones incorporating beta- and gamma-emitting radioactive isotopes. The assumptions inherent in different theoretical approaches to bone dosimetry are reviewed and compared with those adopted in cavity theory. In presenting the theory attention is given to the effects of electron and photon attenuation and to the absence of electronic equilibrium which may occur in bone. The mean marrow dose is calculated for a range of cavity size and gamma-ray energies and for a beta-ray emitter. The mean marrow dose and the mean endosteal dose are calculated for a human lumbar vertebra and some comparisons made with the results of other workers. It is concluded that cavity theory provides a useful approach to the dosimetry problems of bone-seeking beta- and gamma-ray radioactive isotopes.


Conditions under which a number of sinusoids may be instantaneously in phase. The literature on the phase relationships between frequency components of a Fourier analysis is reviewed, with examples and theories from acoustics and neurophysiology. Given n sinusoids of different frequencies omega1, omega2, .., omegan and phase angles phi1, phi2, .., phin, it is shown that for n greater than or equal to 2 the set of initial phase angles allowing the n sinusoids to be in phase at some time t0 consists of one or more planes of constant dimension 2 and that for n = 2 such a time t0 always exists. The conditions under which the common phase of n sinusoids at one time t0 will be the same as the common phase at another time t0 are also investigated. The importance of incommensurately related frequency components is emphasized by proofs which do not depend on harmonic relationships. Proofs are formulated in a linear algebra format to demonstrate the versatility of the method for analysing long sequences of frequencies and phases.


Infrasonic analysis of carotid vibration as a diagnostic method in carotid insufficiency syndrome. The infrasonic part of the spectrum of the carotid artery wall vibration in the neck was obtained. Differences between the spectral content and vibrational amplitude in normal and occluded carotids were found. The application of this technique in clinical practice could be useful in the detection of the carotid insufficiency syndrome.


Calculated beta-ray dose factors for trabecular bone. Mean dose factors have been calculated for those tissues in bone that are relevant to the induction of late irradiation effects; namely, red bone marrow and endosteal tissues lining trabecular bone surfaces. The calculations are based on a Monte Carlo computer method for beta-emitting radionuclides which are distributed uniformly throughout the volume of mineralized bone. Results are given for the radionuclides 14C, 45Ca, 22Na, 18F, 32P, 90Y and 90Sr+90Y (all considered for this purpose as volume-seekers) for seven bones from the adult human skeleton and calculations are also presented of average skeletal dose factors. Where possible, results are compared with those derived from other methods based on simple geometrical models.


A TLD system based on lithium borate for the measurement of doses to patients undergoing medical irradiation. A dosimetry system has been developed which is especially suited to the measurement of doses to patients undergoing irradiation for medical purposes. It is a TLD system based on lithium borate which has been used both in powder form and made up into solid discs by incorporation within PTFE. The predominant advantages of this material over other more widely used TLD materials are its closer approximation to soft tissue, its simple glow curve which eliminates the need for complicated annealing procedures and its low cost. The luminescence from the lithium borate is measured with a specially designed reader which uses radiofrequency heating. At present, using lithium borate powder, the system is capable of measuring doses down to 10 mrad and using lithium borate/PTFE discs it can measure down to 50 mrad with adequate precision. Preliminary measurements on solid glassy discs of lithium borate suggest that this form of the material may in some respects be superior for patient dosimetry.


Ultraviolet response of CaSO4:Dy.

Ultraviolet response of CaSO4:Dy. A simple method for measuring ultraviolet exposure using the thermoluminescent properties of CaSO4:Dy is presented in this paper. In general, three peaks at 145, 215 and 365 degrees C were observed by ultraviolet irradiation of virgin phosphor. The peak at 365 degrees C was found to be very small and that at 145 degrees C fades away within a week; no appreciable fading was observed for the 215 degrees C peak. Further, the peak at 215 degrees C was found to coincide with the gamma dosimetric peak and this peak was chosen for ultraviolet exposure measurements. A standard quartz pen-ray lamp was used for calibrating the phosphor both by peak height measurement and by integration. The dosimetric peak has been found to be linear from the detection threshold of 400 erg mm-2 to 4 X 10(4) erg mm-2. Beyond this exposure the phosphor behaved supralinearly to ultraviolet exposure up to the studied range of 5 X 10(5) erg mm-2. The phosphor exhibited strong dependence on photon energy. The TL sensitivity increases sharply by a factor of 300 as the wavelength is decreased from 250 to 200 nm. The response is negligibly small above 350 nm. Other important characteristics such as particle size dependence, fading characteristics, thickness dependence and re-usability are also presented. The ultraviolet sensitivity increased by a factor of 3 when the grain size range was changed from 105-210 mum. Self-shielding by a factor of 2 was observed when the sample thickness was increased from 10 to 72 mg cm-2.


A three-compartment model for the transport and distribution of Hippuran. It is generally believed that after an intravenous injection of Hippuran its concentration in the plasma can be described as the sum of two exponentials. However, by collecting samples during the first minute after injection of the tracer, a third exponential term was found with a half-life of less than one minute. To explain its presence it was assumed that the plasma shares its Hippuran with two peripheral compartments, the rate of transfer from one compartment to another being proportional to the amount in the first of them. The proportionality factors have been determined for 20 adults and averaged. Substituting these averages in the differential equations for the distribution process, the only variable remaining is the renal excretion rate a (the fraction of plasma cleared per minute by the kidneys). If this procedure, which appears to be justified by the experimental results, is correct the shape of the plasma curve will be determined exclusively by a. It is shown that the (small) third compartment has a minor influence on the shape of the renogram curves.


A neutron source with an effective energy of 0-5 keV. Calculations indicate that an assembly consisting of an antimony-beryllium source at the centre of a 4 cm radius water sphere surrounded by a 1 mm thick shell of boron-10 will emit neutrons with a broad spectrum at intermediate energies. A device based on this design was constructed using a water-filled, boron-carbide loaded, plastic shell with an antimony-beryllium source located at the centre. The output spectrum was calculated by Monte Carlo program and the computed total yield agreed well with measurements made with a manganese bath system. The main peak has an effective energy of 0-5 keV and the total yield is 18% of the antimony-beryllium source strength. Experience with this source suggests some possible avenues for future development.


A flow calorimetric method of determining electron beam energy. The construction of an adiabatic flow calorimeter using water as the working substance is described. It is shown that at high dose rates the heat defect due to chemical reactions in water is small (of the order of 0-3%) and that under high dose rate conditions flow calorimetry can be used as a method of measuring the energy of high intensity electron beams. Measurements made with a 15 MeV linear accelerator are reported and compared with magnetic measurements.


A thermoluminescence system for the intercomparison of absorbed dose and radiation quality of X-rays with a HVL of 0-1 to 3-0 mm Cu. A TLD system is described which permits the measurement of absorbed X-ray doses in a water phantom, together with the quality of the incident X-ray beam. The system has been developed for dose and energy intercomparison studies between centres with deep therapy X-ray machines. A distinction has been made between deep therapy treatments and treatments at or near the surface. For beam qualities with a HVL above 1-1 mm Cu, the deep therapy region, measurements have been performed at 5 cm depth in water using CaF2: Mn and LiF (TLD 700). For beam qualities with a HVL of 0-11-1-4 mm Cu, these qualities include the superficial therapy region, measurements with LiF dosemeters at 2 and 10 cm depth in water have been carried out. The uncertainty in the absorbed dose value for X-ray beams with a HVL of 0-11-3-0 mm Cu amounts to +/- 4%; the uncertainty in the determination of the effective energy of the incident beam is +/- 3 to +/- 7%.


Comparison of the particle size distribution curves determined manually and automatically in an accurately calibrated Coulter Counter. An accurately calibrated Coulter Counter, Model ZB Industrial, was used to compare the size distribution curves of seven different standard particles obtained by calculation and after the attachment of a Channelyser, Model C-1000 coupled to an XY recorder. Comparisons were made at the modes of the curves and it was found that the automatic method consistently reported the particles to be slightly larger.


Influence of hole shape on collimator performance. The imaging properties of triangular and hexagonal hole shapes were compared for low energy scintillation camera collimators. The response of both hole shapes was calculated using a ray-tracing computer program, corresponding collimators were constructed and their performance was evaluated by measuring line spread functions and imaging bar patterns. The triangular hole shape was found to give better results above a spatial frequency of 1-5 cycles cm-1, below that frequency the hexagonal hole shape is superior. The differences, however, are small and the superior performance of the hexagonal hole collimator at clinically significant spatial frequencies is barely visible in bar pattern images.


Experience in the development of low haemolysis pumps. In an attempt to provide a pulsatile pump with a low rate of haemolysis, two pulsatile pumps have been developed. These were compared with commercially available pulsatile and roller pumps. The blood flow and the rate of haemolysis were studied under similar conditions. Our pumps were significantly better than the commercial pumps as far as mechanical damage to the red blood cells was concerned. However, we carried out certain modifications to one of our pumps which resulted in a significant reduction in the amount of haemolysis over its previous performance.


Physiological effects of passive exercise on cardiorespiratory function. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of passive exercise as performed by physical therapists on the cardiac and respiratory systems. Seventeen normal subjects were positioned supine on a treatment table where they received passive range-of-motion exercise manually of most joints of the right upper extremity for ten repetitions. Heart rate, respiratory rate, and tidal lung volume were recorded before and immediately after the exercise. The results of the study showed no significant difference between measured values.


Evaluating treatment effectiveness in cerebral palsy. Single-subject designs. Methods to empirically evaluate treatment effectiveness for individual patients or small groups of patients are presented. Different types of single-subject (as opposed to group) experimental designs are described, and their appropriateness for heterogeneous populations such as the cerebral palsied is discussed. Possible errors in attributing causality are noted and illustrated. Techniques or behavioral analysis and various types of single-subject designs are presented, including the AB, ABA, ABAB, and multiple baseline across subjects, behaviors, and settings. The procedures are shown to produce reliable data from which conclusions about the relationship between treatment and behavior change can be made. The generalizability of single subject methods to different patients and problems is also discussed.


[The instability of word-final alveolar plosives in German: an electropalatographic investigation (author's transl)]. Descriptive autority analyses of continuous texts in German have shown that word-final alveolar plosives are frequently assimilated to following labials and velars. On the basis of illustrative data this experimental investigation deals with the question of whether the alveolar movement is completely eliminated by articulatory control or whether coarticulation arises which involves the preservation of the articulatory gesture without a perceptual consequence. As regards the experimental procedure, a method of dynamic palatography is used and described here, also in respect of its limitations. Material from one subject is then discussed and the direction of future research in this area outlined with regard to new experiments and the necessary instrumental facilities. Finally, the special articulatory and physiological status of alveolar consonants in general is considered as well as ensuing consequences for sound change.


[Radiological aspects of emotive speech (author's transl)]. The mechanism for the acoustic encoding of emotions was analyzed by means of two X-ray films containing neutral and emotional variants (anger, hate, sadness, joy, tenderness, irony) of six Hungarian phrases. Each attitude is expressed by an articulatory pattern peculiar to it. This oral gesture can be seen as superimposed on the (ideal) neutral articulation. Each concrete sound necessarily contains two pieces of information differing profoundly both at the level of content (conceptual vs. preconceptual) and of expression (arbitrary linguistics vs. non-arbitrary prelinguistic encoding). In some cases, this double encoding is reflected in ambiguous and contradictory lingual articulation.


On the predictive role of the recent theories of aspiration. The purpose of this study is to examine the predictive power of recent theories of aspiration. These theories (lag of voicing) predict that aspirated sounds will be perceived as unaspirated in word-final position, as in the case of Korean stops. Contrary to the predictions of these theories, our experiment showed that in final position in Hindi stops, such a neutralization between unaspirated and aspirated stops was absent. What is even more interesting is that the intelligibility of aspirated sounds in Hindi was the highest on the perception scale while unaspirated had a lower rank.


The cross-hand finger transfer.

The cross-hand finger transfer. This report is of the first successful case we know of transplantation of a ray (finger and metacarpal) from one hand to another. The transfer was accomplished by a two-stage pedicle technique. The tendons and nerves were left long in the donor finger, and were anastomosed at the second stage when the pedicle was divided. Good sensation was obtained. Active tendon function resulted, with excellent power and range of motion in all of the digits of both hands.


Postoperative hypertension as an etiological factor in hematoma after rhytidectomy. Prevention with chlorpromazine. Our experience strongly implicates postoperative "reactive hypertension" as a major etiological factor in hematoma formation in the face lift patient. This autonomic lability to post-surgical and emotional stress may be prevented and treated by the appropriate and timely administration of chlorpromazine.


A scanning electron microscope study of microvascular anastomoses. The abdominal aortas of 30 rats were sutured under an operating microscope. The results were studied under a scanning electron microscope at 8 different periods after operation, ranging from 3 minutes to one month. The observations are presented.


Preservation of a posterior pharyngeal flap during maxillary advancement. In maxillary advancement procedures, a previously existing posterior pharyngeal flap can be preserved by lengthening it. A technique for this and its results in two cases are presented.


Ankylosis of the mandible from cancrum oris. We present 30 cases of ankylosis of the lower jaw following cancrum oris. The clinical and radiological findings, the anesthetic methods, and the surgical management are described. Adequate excision of limiting scar and any bony ankylosis, with immediate mucosal or skin coverage of any raw surfaces created, is the proper approach. Postoperative jaw exercises and the use of a bite block may be helpful.


Spontaneous regression of the primary lesion of a metastatic maligvant melanoma. An atypical elderly patient with spontaneous regression of a primary lesion of malignant melanoma is presented. The 12 previously reported cases are also reviewed. The histological diagnosis of spontaneous regression of a melanoma can still be made after the regression appears to be grossly complete. All localized areas of depigmentation, or of scarring, should be biopsied when searching for an "occult" primary.


The use of behavior modification therapy in a recalcitrant burned child: case report. The hospital behavior of a burned adolescent is presented, with emphasis on the antecedent causes. We used a behavior modification technique to treat this patient, and we describe the basic characteristics of this procedure.


The role of anionic, imidic and amidic forms in structure-activity relationships. Conjugation and bacteriostatic activity in sulphonamides. The electronic structures of anionic, imidic and amidic forms of sulphonamides were investigated and compared by means of I.R., Raman and U.V. spectroscopy. Indices reflecting the electronic situation of the common moiety p-H2N-C6H4-SO2 was a whole, although not necessarily related, physically, to any event taking place in the biological processes, were found to correlate with the in vitro bacteriostatic activity of the specific individual forms. The influence of N1-substituents both on the SO2 electronic features and on the coupling between the para amino group and the phenyl ring was discussed. It resulted that the most active chemical species, in this class of compounds, are characterized, electronically, by the most electron-rich common moiety and, in particular, by the most negative oxygens in the SO2 group and the most available (less engaged) lone-pair in the rho-amino group. These conclusions give a new settlement both to the problem of resonance and to the relation between resonance effects and bacteriostatic activity in this class of compounds.


Effect of clozapine on the metabolism of serotonin in rat brain. Clozapine, but not chlorpromazine, haloperidol, thioridazine, or loxapine, increases the concentrations of tryptophan, serotonin, and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid in the brain of the rat. This effect of clozapine is due to an increased serotonin synthesis as demonstrated by an enhanced accumulation of 3H-serotonin in the brain after i.v. infusion of 3H-tryptophan. Clozapine also elevates the plasma concentration of free tryptophan, and reduces the plasma concentration of total tryptophan. Therefore, clozapine may increase the brain serotonin concentration by enhancing the availability of tryptophan in the brain, thereby promoting serotonin synthesis. Measurement of the rate of disappearance from the brain of 3H-serotonin or of endogenous serotonin after synthesis inhibition with 6-fluorotryptophan shows that clozapine has no direct effect on the release and degradation of serotonin. The effect of clozapine on brain serotonergic systems may possibly be related to the pronounced sedative and sleep-inducing properties of this drug.


Acute and chronic effects of 4-chloroamphetamine on monoamine metabolism in the rat brain. The acute administration of 4-chloroamphetamine caused a marked reduction in the concentration of serotonin and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid and a rise in dopamine in the rat brain. Following the injection of 3H-tyrosine and 3H-tryptophane into rats treated with 4-chloroamphetamine, there was a reduction in brain levels of 3H-dopamine and 3H-serotonin. Although the endogenous concentration of noradrenaline was not affected by 4-chloroamphetamine, there is evidence that its reuptake into neurones was reduced and its release increased by the drug. Following the administration of 4-chloroamphetamine for 10 days, the concentration of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid was reduced; no other changes in amine metabolism were apparent. From this investigation, and those of others, it appears that following acute administration, 4-chloroamphetamine has a neurochemical profile which has a similarity to that of many tricyclic antidepressants. However, there is a marked discrepancy between the acute and chronic effects of 4-CA on brain amine metabolism. Such findings are difficult to reconcile with the widely accepted theory that antidepressant drugs counteract the symptoms of depression by increasing the concentration of noradrenaline and/or serotonin at receptor sites within the brain.


Tolerance in methylphenidate-induced locomotion in prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus). After a five-day adaptation period in activity wheels, four prairie dogs were assigned to a methylphenidate group (2.5 mg/kg, s.c.) and four prairie dogs were assigned to a saline group for ten consecutive daily injections. Half-revolutions of locomotor activity were recorded during seven measurement periods taken daily. During the third measurement period, from 1-3 hrs following injection, the methylphenidate group declined in locomotor activity over the first three days of drug administration.


Amphetamine and the reward system: evidence for tolerance and post-drug depression. Existing reports of tolerance to the behavioral effects of d-amphetamine are most parsimoniously interpreted as reflecting behavioral adaptation to the disruptive effects of the drug rather than physiological tolerance. The present study shows that physiological tolerance does develop to the facilitation of self-stimulation behavior which the drug produces. Rats were trained to bar-press for electrical stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle and tested for facilitation of responding following the administration of 0.25 or 0.50 mg/kg d-amphetamine. Testing was terminated for 4 days during which increasing doses (1.0-12.0 mg/kg) of the drug were given. 16 h after the last injection, the test doses (0.25 or 0.50 mg/kg) no longer produced facilitation of self-stimulation. In addition, testing on the following day with no further drug administration showed a depression of responding indicating depression of the sensitivity of the reward system of the brain.


Impaired development of tolerance to morphine analgesia in rats with hereditary diabetes insipidus. Recently it was reported that vasopressin facilitates the development of resistance to the analgestic action of morphine. Therefore, the development of tolerance to daily administration of morphine-HCl (10 mg/kg i.p.) was studied in a series of trials on a hot plate using rats with hereditary diabetes insipidus (DI), which lack the ability to synthesize vasopressin. In contrast to heterozygous DI rats, who developed full tolerance after the fifth injection, homozygous DI rats showed a delayed development of tolerance. Substitution of HO-DI rats with either arginine-8-vasopressin (3 mug/rat, s.c. daily) or the endocrinologically inert fragment of vasopressin desglycinamide lysine-8-vasopressin (5 mug/100 g, s.c. daily) restored the impaired development of tolerance towards normal. The data support the notion that vasopressin is important to the development of tolerance to narcotic analgesics and that its mechanism of action is dissociated from its endocrine effect but rather resembles that of its known influence on memory consolidation.


Memory performance after flurothyl treatment in rainbow trout. Fingerling rainbow trout (N = 436) were trained in one trial with brief electric shock (2.0 V/cm) to suppress their spontaneous upstream swimming into a quiet well. Memory retention one day later was not influenced by the temperature at which they had been acclimated, trained and tested (10 degrees C, 15 degrees C or 20 degrees C). When exposed 4 min after training for 2 min, to a flurothyl solution (10, 25, 50, 100 or 200 mul/l) trout convulsed and overturned. The onset of overturn was concentration- and temperature-dependent. Flurothyl altered the one-day retention of avoidance behavior; low concentrations enhanced, whereas high concentrations impaired. Memory-enhancing low concentrations of flurothyl, applied after post-training amnesic treatment with carbon dioxide, reversed the carbon dioxide amnesia.


A test of state dependency effects in marihuana intoxication for the learning of psychomotor tasks. Cannabis cigarettes calibrated to deliver 7 mg delta9-THC were administered to experienced cannabis users and to novices in a 2 x 2 state-dependency learning design using psychomotor tasks. Subjects given four training sessions under marihuana performed no better on the fifth (test) session with the drug than those subjects who had trained in the non-drug condition and were tested in the drug condition. Cannabis-induced impairment in the performance of these tasks is such that prior training in the non-drug condition appears to confer no advantage to the subject. There was no evidence of state-dependency effects in psychomotor performance between drug and non-drug conditions.


Autoradiographic studies on the distribution of 3H-2,3,4-trimethoxy-beta-phenylethylamine in the mouse. The regional distribution of radioactivity was studied in the brain and in other organs of the mouse by light microscopic autoradiography after injection of 3H-2,3,4-trimethoxy-beta-phenylethylamine (2,3,4,-TMPEA), a nonhallucinogenic isomer of mescaline. The distribution patterns were compared with biochemical and autoradiographic results obtained after 3H-mescaline. Although 2,3,4-TMPEA is rapidly deaminated compared to mescaline its distribution pattern in the brain is similar to that of mescaline at 1 h after injection. However, contrary to mescaline the radioactive labeling becomes more and more homogenously distributed in the brain with tiem. The distribution patterns in kidney, pancreas, adrenal, and spinal ganglia were also different from those observed after application of 3H-mescaline.


Temporal parameters of d-amphetamine as a discriminative stimulus in the rat. Three groups of rats were trained on a two-lever operant discrimination using d-amphetamine (0.8, 1.6 or 2.4 mg/kg) and saline as cues. Reinforcement of responding on one lever was associated with the drug and reinforcement on the other lever was associated with saline. Following acquisition, behavioral control was evaluated during 10-min extinction tests at 0, 15, 30, 60, 90, 120, 180 or 240 min after injection of drug or saline. Onset of the stimulus properties of d-amphetamine occurred within 10 min and maximal effects were attained by 15-30 min post-injection. Drug effects were minimal or absent 2-4 h after administration. The time course for all doses of d-amphetamine was identical when each group was tested iwth its respective training dose. When subjects were tested with doses other than their training dose, the time course of the drug effect varied as a function of training dose, test dose and time after injection.


Pharmacological suppression of photically evoked after-discharges in rats: incremental dose, hippocampal EEG and behavioral activity correlates. In subjects lightly restrained (Experiment I) pharmacological arousal via pilocarpine, physostigmine, or amphetamine administration, as compared to saline and methyl atropine treated controls, suppressed photically evoked after-discharge (PhAD) activity in visual cortex, while concomitantly inducing rhythmical slow-wave activity (RSA) in dorsal hippocampus. Incremental doses of amphetamine and pilocarpine correspondingly suppressed PhAD parameters in a dose-response fashion. While physostigmine treatment resulted in significant PhAD suppression, this effect could not be quantified in a dose-response manner. Incrementally increased cholinergic blockade via atropine administration also suppressed PhAD bursting yet simultaneously induced large amplitude irregular slow-wave activity (LIA) in dorsal hippocampus. When tested under identical conditions but in an unrestrained environment (Experiment II) PhADs were similarly suppressed with the concomitant induction of hippocampal patterns as specified in Experiment I; however, general ambulatory activity (grid-crossing) was differentially affected by the drugs. Amphetamine and atropine markedly enhanced while pilocarpine and physostigmine suppressed such activity. In both experiments, previously established PhAD-movement, PhAD-RSA-LIA, and RSA-LIA-movement relationships, occurring as hypothesized in amphetamine, methyl atropine, and saline treated animals, did not remain fully intact during cholinergic alteration.


Effect of cannabinoids on the abdominal constriction response in mice: within cannabinoid interactions. After oral administration to mice, delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabinol (CBN) caused a dose-dependent suppression of the abdominal constriction response to formic acid. Cannabinol was 50 times less active than THC and cannabidiol (CBD) was without effect. The effects of THC and CBN were additive. CBD antagonised the antinociceptive effects of both THC and CBN in a dose-dependent manner.


Piracetam-induced facilitation of interhemispheric transfer of visual information in rats. The effect of Piracetam (UCB 6215, 2-pyrrolidoneacetamide) on learning mediated by transcommissural information flow was studied in hooded rats. Acquisition of monocular pattern discrimination was faster in drug-treated rats (100 mg/kg, 30 min before training) than in untreated controls. Subsequent relearning with one hemisphere functionally eliminated by cortical spreading depression showed that the strength of the primary engram formed under Piracetam in the hemisphere contralateral to the trained eye remained unaffected but that the secondary trace (in the ipsilateral hemisphere) was considerably improved and almost equalled the primary one (savings increased from 20-30% to 50-60%). Learning with uncrossed optic fibers was unaffected by the drug. Interhemispheric transfer of lateralized visual engrams acquired during functional hemidecortication was facilitated by Piracetam administration preceding the five transfer trials performed with the untrained eye open (imperative transfer). Piracetam was ineffective when the trained eye was open during transfer trials (facultative transfer). After a visual engram had been lateralized by 5 days of monocular overtraining, Piracetam facilitated formation of the secondary engram induced by 3 interocular transfer trials. It is concluded that Piracetam enhances transcommissural encoding mechanisms activated in the initial stage of monocular learning and in some forms of interhemispheric transfer, but does not affect the transcommissural readout. This effect is interpreted as a special case of the Piracetam-induced facilitation of the phylogenetically old mechanisms of redundant information storage which improve liminal or subnormal learning.


Physiological concomitants (I131 uptake) of field dependence. Radioactive iodine uptake levels of two matched groups 11 field dependent and 11 field independent male euthyroid medical students were compared at the 7th, 24th, and 48th hr and at the 7th day. Significantly higher levels were observed in the field dependent group at all points except the 48th hr. These findings may reflect individual differences in adaptive psychoendocrine functioning.


The magnitude of premenstrual anxiety and depression. The magnitude of premenstrual mood changes in 50 parous adult women between the ages of 30 and 45 was assessed using standardized measures of depression and anxiety. Premenstrual test scores were compared with those obtained during the intermenstrual phase of the cycle and with normative data. Premenstrual state anxiety and depression mean scores were significantly higher than those obtained midcycle, but were much lower than those of patients with psychiatric disorders. Trait anxiety scores were low and were not significantly correlated with premenstrual depression and anxiety scores.


Tetrahydrocortisol/tetrahydrocortisone ratio (H4F/H4E) as an indicator of depressive feelings. Tetrahydrocortisol (H4F) and tetrahydrocortisone (H4E) were determined for a group of 15 depressed patients and 25 normal controls following the administration of cortisol-4-C14. The ratio, H4F/H4E, was significantly greater for the depressed patients than for the normal controls (P less than 0.001), although the sum of the two metabolites, H4F + H4E, was not significantly different. Three of four objective test measures of depressive feelings likewise discriminated between the two groups. All four depression measures correlated significantly with the H4F/H4E ratio at the 0.01 level or better. It is suggested that the data of the present report and those of Zumoff et al. (J Clin Endocrinol Metab 39:1120, 1974) may be explained by the paradigm: depressive feelings leads to reduced thyroid function leads to elevated H4F/H4E ratio.


A consultation-liaison psychiatry clinical clerkship. Toward the goal of increasing the relevance of clinical psychiatry to the future practice of medicine, a full-time psychiatry clerkship has been developed on the Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry Service at the University of Vermont. This new Psychiatry Clinical clerkship was begun on a pilot basis in January, 1973, and made fully operational in January, 1974. It uses the problem oriented medical record system and the audit of student performance as basic instructional tools. A description of the background or curricular matrix of the Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry Clinical Clerkship (CLPCC) is followed by an outline of the rotation's goals, and evaluation and educational strategies as developed over 2 years. Certain performance outcomes are reported for the 1 year of full operation. These outcomes are parameters of student performance on several standardized measures applied to all Psychiatry Clerkship students. The CLPCC students seem to be at least as adequate as students on all other clerkship rotations, in terms of their knowledge of psychopharmacology, their use of the Problem Oriented Record, their ability to assess psychosocial problems, and their ability to define a psychosocial treatment plan. Further, the CLPCC students are statistically significantly more positive about their rotation as an educational experience compared with students on other psychiatry rotations. While further evaluation measures are planned to compare the CLPCC students with those who have had one of the several traditional clinical clerkship experiences in psychiatry, our experience to date would indicate that the CLPCC is a viable alternative to traditional clerkships on psychiatric services and one that may enable a greater application of psychiatric principles to the practice of medicine.


The effect of biofeedback training on respiratory resistance of asthmatic children. In a pilot study four children with severe asthma were trained to lower their respiratory resistance by means of biofeedback training techniques. Total respiratory resistance measured continuously by the forced oscillation method was used as the feedback signal. Each child demonstrated lowered respiratory resistance after most sessions. Results were comparable with the improvement seen after bronchodilator inhalation therapy. A nonasthmatic child demonstrated no significant changes of respiratory resistance after using the same techniques. Arguments are presented in support of the hypothesis that changes in total respiratory resistance were primarily due to changes in lower airway resistance. Lowering of airway resistance in asthmatic children by use of biofeedback appears possible; its promise calls for further clinical evaluation.


The haematology of hypothyroidism.

The haematology of hypothyroidism. In an unselected series of 202 patients with hypothyroidism anaemia was present on diagnosis in 39 of 172 women and 14 of 30 men. Microcytic anaemia was present in only nine patients in the entire series. The average of the mean corpuscular volume (MCV) of all the patients was 90 fl. Fifty-three of 118 patients who were studied in detail had normal serum concentrations of vitamin B12, folic acid and iron. The haemoglobin was low in 13 of these 53 patients and rose on treatment with thyroxine alone. The MCV exceeded 90 fl in 29 of these 53 patients and in three it was greater than 100 fl. The MCV invariably fell on treatment with thyroxine even if the initial value was within the normal range. Nine of this group of 53 patients had both anaemia and an increased MCV--the macrocytic anaemia of hypothyroidism. A minor degree of anisocytosis of the red blood cells, which was reduced by treatment with thyroxine, was also demonstrated. Acanthocytes were present in the blood films of 32 out of 172 patients but in only five did the abnormal cells comprise more than 0-5 per cent of the red cell population. The incidence of new cases of pernicious anaemia diagnosed concurrently with the hypothyroidism in the carefully studied group of 118 patients was 8-5 per cent. The MCV of hypothyroid patients with low levels of vitamin B12 was often no greater than in patients with uncomplicated hypothyroidism. The MCV is not therefore a useful discriminant in the diagnosis of pernicious anaemia in hypothyroidism. The serum iron concentration was less than 12 mumol/1 in 60 out of 118 patients. The total iron binding capacity of the serum was increased in only 21 of these 60 patients. In 42 hypothyroid patients the low serum iron concentration was not associated with low levels of either vitamin B12 or folate and of these patients 22 were anaemic. Despite the very low percentage saturation of the iron binding capacity in all of these patients with a low serum iron, a lack of iron did not seem to be the usual determinant of anaemia when it occurred.


Idiopathic oedema of women. A clinical and investigative study. A clinical and investigative study is reported of 19 patients with 'idiopathic oedema of women'. The resons for defining this as a specific syndrome unrelated to the menstrual cycle are given, and the clinical features reviewed. During a forced water diuresis the flow and composition of the urine and the plasma volume were studied on tilting from the supine to the upright position seven premenopausal and four postmenopausal patients with this disorder. No differences were found in the results obtained in the follicular and luteal phases of the menstrual cycle or in the pre- and post-menopausal patients. The reductions in urinary volume and electrolyte excretion on upright tilting were greater than those observed under similar circumstances during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle in normal female controls, and attributed to increased proximal renal tubular reabsorption. The rate of loss of isotopically labelled albumin from the intravascular compartment was greater in patients with idiopathic oedema than in control subjects. A reduction in blood volume on tilting occurred in control subjects and patients with idiopathic oedema, but was greater in the latter; and the larger the fall, the greater were the reductions in urinary flow and electrolyte excretion. The effect of administering 9-alpha-fluorohydrocortisone was studied in nine patients with idiopathic oedema. One patient failed to 'escape' from the sodium-retaining action of this mineralocorticoid and developed pulmonary oedema; the others 'escaped' normally. The pathophysiological disturbance in this condition is related to increased loss of fluid from the vascular compartment but the precise aetiological mechanism remains unknown.


Intestinal lymphangiectasia: the variability of presentation. A study of five cases. Five patients with intestinal lymphangiectasia are described. They all had evidence of protein-loss from the gut but this was of a variable degree. In four patients the diagnosis was first suggested by the appearances of jejunal biopsy. The factors influencing presentation are discussed as are the possible co-existence of other gastronitestinal disorders with this congenital abnormality. It seems likely that the condition is commoner than hitherto believed.


Serum ionized calcium and parathyroid hormone in renal stone disease. Serum ionized calcium was shown to be significantly elevated in a group of twenty-eight subjects with idiopathic hypercalciuria in whom the mean total serum calcium concentration was within normal limits. Measurement of parathyroid hormone levels confirmed that elevated values are suppressible by infusion of calcium. Ten subjects with simultaneous elevation of serum ionized calcium and parathormone levels above 3 S.D. of normal were referred for neck exploration, and a parathyroid adenoma was found and removed in nine. Significant decreases to normal values of serum ionized calcium and parathormone levels of urine and calcium excretion were documented some weeks following operation. The results conflict with both the alimentary calcium hyperabsorption theory and the renal calcium leak theory of the aetiology of idiopathic hypercalciuria, and support the possibility that idiopathic hypercalciuria in many cases represents an early or mild form of 'normocalcaemic' primary hyperparathyroidism.


[Semimalignant skeletal tumors (author's transl)]. Osteoclastoma, chondroma and chordoma are tumors of the skeletal system which have some common features: in spite of benign histological findings their clinical course is that of a malignant neoplasm. They show an aggressive growth and a high rate of recurrencies mainly when the initial therapeutic procedure was insufficient. Osteolysis is the principal sign in the roentgenogram. However, there is no correlation between the roentgenogram and the dignity of the tumor. The best therapy is the radical operation. A good cooperation between surgeon, radiologist and surgical pathologist is very important for the prognosis of patients with this lesion.


[Eosinophilic granuloma of the bone in adults (author's transl)]. Eosinophilic granuloma of the bone shows a characteristic age distribution with an incidence of 75% in children. According to our observations, however, its occurrence in adults is not as rare as one should expect from the number of cases reported in the literature. The clinical and radiologic diagnosis can be established in many cases if the possibility of an eosinophilic granuloma is considered and certain criteria are taken in consideration. Solitary osteolytic changes should be biopsied early in order to avoid unnecessary and expensive examinations. The X-ray signs which can lead to the diagnosis are discussed and illustrated, and 7 cases of eosinophilic granuloma in adults are presented.


[Recent progress in morphology and diagnosis of bone diseases and bone tumors (author's transl)]. 1. Bone structure is shaped by a specialized bone cell system comprising osteoblasts, osteocytes and osteoclasts. --2. The function of this bone cell system is impaired by metabolic bone disease altering bone structure, bone mass and mineral content. --3. In metabolic bone disease a striking improvement in morphologic diagnosis could be obtained recently using undecalcified preparations of bone tissue as well as histomorphometric methods. --4. For exact diagnosis and successful therapy of bone tumors interdisciplinary cooperation is mandatory. The advantages of modern morphologic methods are proven helpful in diagnosing benign and malignant bone tumors.


[A new theory of the etiology of osteoporosis (author's transl)]. A new theory of the etiology of osteoporosis--inaugurated by the author and developed in cooperation with Fricke--is step by step elaborated and explained. Alteration of the bone marrow is observed simultaneonly with osteoporosis--caused by reduced blood flow in bone and bone marrow, and promoted by reduced muscle work, i.c. inactivity, influencing blood circulation in bone and bone marrow. Alteration of statics and vertebral bodies resulting from bone atrophy and reduced muscular force are newly interpreted by a new theory capabilities of radiological osteoporosis-diagnostis are preceding.


[Synovectomy in rheumatoid arthritis of the knee, radiologic investigations (author's transl)]. Pathologic and radiologic investigations of rheumatoid arthritis are compared with regard to their development. Radiologic demonstration of several cases prior to and following synovectomy shows improvement as well as exacerbation of the disease. An increasing mineral content signifies an improvement of the bone lesion. The mineral content depends on reduction of inflammatory activity, increasing motility, and postoperative discontinuation of cortisone therapy. In some cases various lesions at the border line between bone and cartilage as blurring, notching and destructions are disappearing. Reduction of cartilage accompanied with narrowing of the joint spaces will subside postoperatively, too. We have to suppose a regeneration of cartilage under increasing physical strain by functional stimulation. Following synovectomy the structure of subcartilage spongiosa becomes more organized as a sign of regression of inflammatory activity, improved motility and load capacity. Following synovectomy, exacerbation of radiologic symptoms occur mainly in advanced stages of rheumatoid arthritis. We may often see progression of secondary osteoarthritis existing preoperatively in contrast to clinical recovery. The increasing load capacity may cause an identation of the articular surface in cases of extreme osteoporosis. This might result in a false position. These lesions might necessitate further surgical treatment as possibly total joint prosthesis. Following synovectomy in rheumatoid arthritis of the knee, dissolving radiologic symptoms in addition to improvement of the clinical picture may be observed. The poor results of synovectomy in advanced rheumatoid arthritis favours the of early synovectomy during the proliferative and destructive stage of the disease.


[Xeroradiography and its value in the diagnosis of chondrocalcinosis (author's transl)]. Conventional x-ray and xeroradiographic technique were compared in a modified blind study in order to evaluate its efficiency to detect calcifications of the cartilage. Using both techniques knees, hands, and pelvic joints were examined in 16 patients with proven chondrocalcinosis. Three different radiologists evaluated radiological films and xeroradiograms independently. Their results were classified in correct, false negative, and false positive groups. All examiners achieved the best results with xeroradiography. Due to special characteristic features in xeroradiography even fine calcifications were recognized in most cases. By this method the "false negative" results were reduced to almost zero. On the other hand, the twenty percent "false positive" results in conventional radiological technique was eliminated by xeroradiography.


Equipment vibration and radiographic image resolution. Accelerometer transducers were employed to detect linear vibratory motions in various radiographic equipment during film exposure. Vibratory displacements sufficient to degrade the image were found in several spot-film devices and Bucky drawers. Other potential sources of image degradation are discussed.


Experience with the AURA free-text documentation system. AURA is a free-text system designed to facilitate automatic documentation of radiological reports, with the goal of making the information in the reports accessible for case location, feedback, and statistical evaluation without changing the regular routine of the radiologist. A simple interactive search language makes retrieval easy. Search criteria can be formulated in medical terms and do not require programming ability.


Angiographic findings in recurrent meningioma. Of 147 patients who underwent radical surgery for intracranial meningioma, 25 (17%) had symptomatic recurrence requiring further surgery. Correlation between histological and angiographic findings of recurrent meningioma was poor. Following extirpation of feeding meningeal vessels in convexity meningiomas, the principal blood supply was usually from the anterior, middle, and/or posterior cerebral arteries. The angiographic appearance was that of a "tree-root" or "sunburst" pattern, indicating neoplastic invasion of the pia mater and/or underlying brain tissue. Polytomography, selective cerebral angiography, and radionuclide imaging of the brain are often necessary to detect early recurrent meningiomas. Computed tomography appears to be an innocuous and accurate method of diagnosing recurrent tumor, especially when the bone is not involved.


Intracerebral venous angioma.

Intracerebral venous angioma. Intracerebral venous angioma is a rare congenital vascular malformation of the brain. Three cases are reported, all of which had strikingly similar angiographic findings in the venous phase, viz., a local network of small medullary veins which converge centrally into a single large venous channel which courses transcerebrally to reach the superficial venous system. No gross abnormalities are seen in the arterial phase with the usual techniques. However, magnification delineated enlarged arterial branches supplying the periphery of the malformation in 2 of the 3 cases. A poorly marginated homogeneous blush and early filling of the draining veins were also seen in these 2 patients. The findings in the venous phase agree with those described in previous isolated case reports and appear to be highly suggestive of this rare malformation.


Adhesive arachnoiditis after lumbar radiculography with Dimer-X and Depo-Medrol. Lumbar radiculographs were obtained in 252 patients with suspected disk herniation. Fifteen patients who underwent previous radiculography with Dimer-X plus Depo-Medrol exhibited adhesive arachnoiditis. This was not observed in 6 patients who received Dimer-X alone. No positive correlation between radiological diagnosis of adhesive arachnoiditis and clinical symptoms can be demonstrated. The authors suggest that steroids not be used intrathecally in combination with water-soluble contrast media.


Comparative assessment of scintillation camera performance. The performance characteristics of 5 scintillation cameras were compared: Searle 19, Searle 37, Ohio Nuclear, Picker 2C and Toshiba GCA 202. Inherent characteristics including spatial resolution, field uniformity and distortion, energy resolution, count-rate capability and paralyzing time were measured. Extrinsic characteristics such as spatial resolution with emission tests and sensitivity with high resolution, low energy collimators also were measured. The Ohio Nuclear camera gave the best results for most of the parameters studied, followed by Searle 37 PMT, Searle 19 PMT, Picker, and Toshiba. The size of the crystal must also be a criterion for choosing a camera.


The accuracy of 111InCl3 as a bone marrow scanning agent. The number of normal cellular elements present in bone marrow biopsies was compared to the extent of uptake at corresponding sites on 111InCl3 bone marrow scans in 87 patients with malignant lymphoma. Of the biopsies free of tumor, 49/54 interpreted as normocellular and 16/17 hypocellular or aplastic confirmed the scan interpretation. Of the biopsies demonstrating tumor, 10/11 of those interpreted as normocellular and 14/15 hypocellular or aplastic confirmed the scan interpretation. The 111InCl3 bone marrow scan is accurate in depicting the presence or absence of normal marrow elements, but is of value in detecting tumor only when the normal elements are extensively replaced.


Marked enlargement of the left lobe of the liver causing a false-positive spleen image. In 10 patients with a markedly enlarged left lobe of the liver, the posterior (prone) views (99mTc-sulfur colloid) revealed a false-positive splenic defect. In 1 case the defect was also apparent in the anterior view. In all but 1 case this pseudodefect was not present in the posterior image obtained standing up. Use of a spleen-specific or liver-specific radionuclide agent was necessary in that case. The authors caution against diagnosis from an apparently abnormal posterior image unless proved by other measures.


Clinical and angiographic features of pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas in children. Multiple pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas were demonstrated angiographically in 8 patients who exhibited cyanosis and polycythemia during childhood. Cyanosis was first observed during infancy in 5 patients. The diffuse (telangiectatic) type was present in 2 cases, while the remainder were of the multiple discrete type with one or two dominant fistulas. The clinical and angiographic features and surgical implications of multiple pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas in these children and those reported previously are discussed.


Roentgenography of congenital dislocation of the hip. The chronically dislocated hip of a 15-month-old girl was studied postmortem. The cartilaginous components of the pelvis (both true and false acetabula) and proximal femur were demonstrated roentgenographically and correlated with gross anatomical observations. These findings should be useful in the interpretation of radiographs in congenital hip dysplasia in children.


Meckel's stones: a case report.

Meckel's stones: a case report. The authors describe a case of Meckel's stones demonstrated by barium study of the small bowel. Preoperative diagnosis of Meckel's stones is extremely rare; but with knowledge of their existence, more cases should be encountered.


B-scan ultrasound in the evaluation of renal failure. Twenty-three patients with blood urea nitrogen (BUN) over 70 and thought clinically to be in renal failure were examined by ultrasound. A correct diagnosis of kidney size and the presence or absence of hydronephrosis or polycystic kidney was made in all but one instance. One kidney in a patient with end-stage renal failure was not seen ultrasonically but was subsequently demonstrated on a retrograde pyelogram. In 10 patients, excretory urography (on 4 occasions with tomography) failed to demonstrate the kidneys adequately. It is suggested  that ultrasound should either be the first or second imaging technique in the investigation of patients who present in renal failure of unknown cause.


Ultrasonic characteristics of cystadenoma of the pancreas. The authors describe the ultrasound appearance of cystadenoma of the pancreas. Such lesions may be characterized as sonolucent, with good through-transmission, slightly irregular but well-defined margins, and internal echoes from septa.


Time, dose and volume factors in interstitial Radium implants of carcinoma of the oral tongue. In a retrospective computer dosimetry analysis of 58 patients with carcinoma of the oral tongue treated with interstitial radium implants alone or in combination with external irradiation, dose and volume appear to be the most important factors in both local control and the incidence of necrosis; in the dose rate range commonly used in clinical interstitial radiotherapy, dose rate has no significant effect. The optimal minimum tumor doses for local control vary with the size of the primary lesion: 6,000 rads for T1 lesions and 6,500 rads for T2 lesions treated with interstitial radium implants alone and 7,500 rads for lesions treated with interstitial radium implants in combination with external irradiation. For lesions treated with implants plus external irradiation, greater local control was achieved when most of the dose was delivered through the interstitial implants. For a given volume, the incidence of necrosis was directly proportional to the degree of overdosage; for a given dose, the incidence of necrosis was directly proportional to the volume receiving the dose.


Radiographic findings in herpetic esophagitis. The authors report a case of classic esophagitis simulating candidiasis radiographically. Endoscopy provided pathological conformation of herpes infection, showing typical multinucleated cells with intranuclear inclusion bodies.


Adriamycin: a possible indirect radiosensitizer of hypoxic tumor cells. Multicellular spheroids grown in vitro provide a convenient model of nodular tumors for experimental tumor therapy studies. Adriamycin was found to inactivate cells grown as spheroids less efficiently than single cells, presumably due to enhanced cellular resistance analogous to the increased radioresistance observed when these cells are grown in close contact. Spheroid growth was retarded by a minimally toxic (0.005 mug/ml) chronic level of adriamycin; irradiation and exposure to that drug concentration were not found to be synergistic. Large adriamycin concentrations (0.5 mug/ml) present during radiation exposure produced a marked "radiosensitization," presumably due to the drug-inhibitng cellular oxygen consumption and thus permitting reoxygenation of the previously hypoxic spheroid cells.


The effect of hyperthermia on the repair of radiation damage in plateau phase cells. Hyperthermia (41 degrees C for 1 hr.) completely inhibited both sublethal and potentially lethal radiation damage repair by plateau phase cells taken from V79 Chinese hamsters. This suggests that there may be disadvantages in combining x-ray and heat therapies for the treatment of tumors.


Minimal Thorotrast deposition in parapancreatic lymph nodes. The characteristic roentgenologic features of Thorotrast deposition in the perihepatic and parapancreatic lymphatics are described. Minimal deposits of Thorotrast were seen in the liver and spleen on the abdominal radiograph in 6 patients who had no clinical symptoms. Inquiry into the patient's history invariably disclosed angiography for vascular surgery several years earlier. The typical configuration of the affected lymph node is an oval, heavy density with a long tail, resembling a tadpole or teardrop. Other irregular radiopacities in the same area, including linear ones, probably represent colloid deposition along the lymphatics. Roentgenologic differentiation of Thorotrast deposits from pancreas stones and calcified lymph nodes is discussed.


Anatomic variation of the thoracic duct and visualization of mediastinal lymph nodes: a lymphographic study. Of 243 thoracic ducts (TD) demonstrated during pedal lymphography, 65 (26.8%) had anatomic variations. In 58 of 65 cases with TD variants, mediastinal lymph nodes were visualized. This suggests that the radiographic appearance of mediastinal nodes is associated with TD anatomic variations. Two or more channels in the cervical portion of the thoracic duct were seen in 195 of the 243 cases. A classification of these anatomic variations is proposed.


A large intrapericardial cyst presenting as a cardiac abnormality. A case of mitral regurgitation apparently caused by extrinsic pressure of the large intrapericardial cyst distorting the mitral valve is reported. The initial radiographic appearance of the cyst suggested an atypically enlarged left atrium. The mitral regurgitation subsided after surgical drainage of the cyst. The angiogram showed elevation of the right pulmonary artery and depression of the left atrium.


Anomalous inferior vena cava with accessory hemiazygos continuation. A case of accessory hemiazygos continuation of an anomalous left inferior cava with drainage via the highest intercostal vein into the left brachiocephalic vein is reported and the embryologic and radiological significance discussed. The diagnosis is suggested on plain films by the dilated highest intercostal vein, the so-called aortic nipple, and a widened left paraspinal line.


Developmental interruption of the inferior vena cava with azygos and hemiazygos substitution. Unusual radiographic features. Two cases of left paraspinous density are presented. An inferior vena cava anomaly was not considered in the initial case, resulting in surgical exploration. The second case was diagnosed angiographically and surgery was avoided. The importance of considering this entity in the differential diagnosis of paraspinous masses is obvious, and venography should be performed to delineate the anatomy. Concurrent cardiac catheterization should be used to rule out associated lesions such as intracardiac shunts, since there is an increased association of such lesions with this anomaly.


The dislocated heart: an unusual complication of major chest injury. A case of pericardial rupture with herniation of the heart through the pericardium into the left hemithorax is described. Chest radiographs showed the heart displaced to the left with slight or no displacement of the rest of the mediastinum. The patient's condition improved following operative reduction of the heart rate and repair of the pericardial tear.


Various applications of corpus cavernosography. The authors believe corpus cavernosography is an important aid in the evaluation of metastatic lesions, priapism, impotence, atrophy and fibrosis of the penis, and trauma to the penis. By visualizing the emptying of the contrast material from the cavernous spaces into the veins draining the penis, it is possible to assess the length of time that the contrast material remained in the organ.


Gastrocolic fistula as a complication of benign gastric ulcer. The authors present 3 cases which illustrate the wide spectrum of clinical presentations of gastrocolic fistula. These complications include (a) pain, feculent vomiting, and diarrhea; (b) gastrointestinal hemorrhage; and (c) peritonitis. The gastric ulcer is easily detected by a barium meal study although a barium enema may be necessary to show the fistulous communication. The relationship of this condition to steroids and acetylsalicyclic acid is stressed. Two other cases are included to illustrate the development of such a fistula and show the distinguishing features of a gastrocolic fistula due to carcinoma of the colon.


Mediastinal pseudotumors associated with exogenous obesity. In obese individuals, a localized deposit of normal fat may simulate a mediastinal tumor on chest radiography. It is important to consider this possibility in the differential diagnosis to avoid needless surgery and facilitate continued observation when appropriate.


Spontaneous fractures of the olecranon process in rheumatoid arthritis. Spontaneous fractures through the olecranon process occurred in 3 patients with long-standing rheumatoid arthritis. In each case the elbow was severely damaged, particularly in the midportion of the trochlear notch, which was thinned either by erosion or cyst formation. The thin trichlear notch is the weak pivot point of a lever (the olecranon process) which pivots on the distal humerus. Excess stress on the lever, by the action of the triceps on the olecranon process, will produce a fracture at the weakest point: the midtrochlear notch.