Lectins in extracts of certain Polygonaceae seed precipitate animal and human serums.

Seeds of four species of Polygonaceae were tested for lectins that precipitate human and animal serums. Rumex crispus, Polygonum convolvulus, and Polygonum pennsylvanicum developed specific precipitate bands on double diffusion on agar gel plates. These bands were enhanced and increased in number when extracts were tested against serums from patients with certain diseases. When tested against lyophilized serum, no precipitate bands developed. The active substance cannot be dialyzed through cellulose membrane against running tap water for 16 hours, and it is heat stable. Extracts from Fagopyrum esculentum developed no precipitate bands.

Neuroleptic-induced "anhedonia" in rats: pimozide blocks reward quality of food.

The dopamine receptor blocker pimozide attenuated lever-pressing and running for food reward in hungry rats. In each case the characteristic behavior of pimozide-treated rats was the same as that of undrugged rats when reward was simply withheld. Drug-induced performance difficulties were ruled out by the presence of periods of normal responding in drug-treated animals. Pimozide appears to selectively blunt the rewarding impact of food and other hedonic stimuli.

Corpuls cpr resuscitation device generates superior emulated flows and pressures than LUCAS II in a mechanical thorax model.

The provision of sufficient chest compression is among the most important factors influencing patient survival during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). One approach to optimize the quality of chest compressions is to use mechanical-resuscitation devices. The aim of this study was to compare a new device for chest compression (corpuls cpr) with an established device (LUCAS II). We used a mechanical thorax model consisting of a chest with variable stiffness and an integrated heart chamber which generated blood flow dependent on the compression depth and waveform. The method of blood-flow generation could be changed between direct cardiac-compression mode and thoracic-pump mode. Different chest-stiffness settings and compression modes were tested to generate various blood-flow profiles. Additionally, an endurance test at high stiffness was performed to measure overall performance and compression consistency. Both resuscitation machines were able to compress the model thorax with a frequency of 100/min and a depth of 5 cm, independent of the chosen chest stiffness. Both devices passed the endurance test without difficulty. The corpuls cpr device was able to generate about 10-40% more blood flow than the LUCAS II device, depending on the model settings. In most scenarios, the corpuls cpr device also generated a higher blood pressure than the LUCAS II. The peak compression forces during CPR were about 30% higher using the corpuls cpr device than with the LUCAS II. In this study, the corpuls cpr device had improved blood flow and pressure outcomes than the LUCAS II device. Further examination in an animal model is required to prove the findings of this preliminary study.

Concomitant administration of terazosin and atenolol for the treatment of essential hypertension.

The safety and efficacy of once-daily terazosin hydrochloride administered concomitantly with once-daily atenolol for the treatment of essential hypertension were evaluated in this double-blind, multiclinic, placebo-controlled study. After each patient received 50 mg of atenolol daily for eight weeks, patients with a supine diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of 95 to 110 mm Hg and whose supine DBP had decreased at least 5 mm Hg were randomized to receive either terazosin (plus atenolol) or placebo (plus atenolol) for ten weeks. Patients assigned to the terazosin hydrochloride treatment group received increasing dosages (1,2,5, and 10 mg daily) [corrected] of terazosin at two-week intervals until the maximum dose was reached or until the supine DBP was decreased to less than 90 mm Hg. Terazosin-treated patients (n = 43) had significant mean decreases from the baseline in supine BP (systolic/diastolic = -8.8/-8.5 mm Hg) and standing BP (-10.9/-9.5 mm Hg), whereas the decreases in BP in the placebo-treated patients (n = 49; supine, -2.3/-2.6 mm Hg; standing, -1.4/-1.3 mm Hg) were not significant. When terazosin and placebo were compared, the differences in BP were significant. Terazosin-treated patients had significantly greater decreases in mean percent change of total cholesterol (-4.8%) and low-density lipoprotein plus very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (-6.3%) levels, compared with the placebo-treated patients (+0.6% and +1.1%, respectively). Concomitant administration of terazosin and atenolol to patients with essential hypertension was found to be safe and efficacious.

Orbital and conjunctival involvement in multiple myeloma. Report of a case.

Benjamin, Ivy, Taylor, Herbert, and Spindler, James: Orbital and conjuctival involvement in multiple myeloma. Report of a case. Am J Clin Pathol 63: 811-817, 1975. Orbital and conjunctival involvement in multiple myeloma are rare. In most reported cases of multiple myeloma with orbital involvement proptosis has been the initial manifestation that has led to diagnosis of the disease. Our case represents and example of terminal involvement of the orbit and conjunctiva, causing proptosis. The minimal conjunctival changes were the first indication of neoplastic proliferation of plasma cells in this location and, presumably, the orbit.

Evaluating the thirty minute interval in emergency cesarean sections.

BACKGROUND: This study was done to evaluate what percent of emergency cesarean sections are begun within the 30 minute interval between decision and incision time and to evaluate morbidity associated with this time interval. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective patient-control study of records from 75 patients undergoing emergency cesarean sections and two different control groups was undertaken. RESULTS: Sixty-three percent of emergency cesarean sections were begun in less than 30 minutes. A significantly greater number of infants in the group that delivered in less than 30 minutes experienced five minute Apgar scores less than six. There was no significant differences in maternal morbidity associated with emergency cesarean sections. CONCLUSIONS: The 30 minute interval is obtainable in a large number of patients but did not have a beneficial effect on neonatal morbidity. There was no significant morbidity seen in the patients who underwent emergency cesarean section. Other measurements of emergency preparedness should be considered other than the 30 minute rule.

Intramuscular ketorolac and morphine in the treatment of moderate to severe pain after major surgery.

A multicenter, randomized, open, parallel study in 227 patients with moderate or severe postoperative pain compared the analgesic efficacy and safety of multiple intramuscular injections of ketorolac 30 mg (184 patients) and morphine 10 mg (43 patients) administered as needed as often as every 2 hours for a maximum of 40 doses or 10 days. Supplemental standard analgesics, usually opiates, were permitted if additional pain medication was required. When used with supplemental analgesics (averaging less than 1 dose/day), ketorolac afforded equal or superior efficacy to morphine used with other supplemental analgesics. Given alone or with supplemental analgesics, ketorolac was better tolerated than morphine, as reflected by rate of terminations due to adverse events and frequency of common complaints. Intramuscular ketorolac thus provides an important additional approach to management of pain.

Functional loss of the horizontal doll's eye reflex following unilateral vestibular lesions.

The doll's eye reflex represents the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) elicited by high-acceleration head rotation. After complete unilateral vestibular lesions, the ipsilateral, horizontal doll's eye reflex is replaced by a series of "catch-up" saccades. These cause permanent symptoms of blurred vision and dizziness during ipsilateral turns. We compared normal controls and patients with complete surgical lesions or canal paresis of up to 9 years duration via electronystagmography (ENG) to determine the usefulness of the doll's eye test as a diagnostic test for complete vestibular lesions. This test was found to be more sensitive in diagnosis of such lesions than head-shaking nystagmus, rotatory directional preponderance, and spontaneous nystagmus. It is also useful to document VOR function in patients in whom caloric irrigation is contraindicated.

Concurrent heroin self-administration and intracranial self-stimulation in rats.

In a two-lever testing chamber, rats lever pressed for lateral hypothalamic brain stimulation or intravenous heroin reinforcers on a concurrent FR1 FR1 schedule of reinforcement. Responding for stimulation did not alter the rate of heroin self-administration, and responding for heroin caused increased responding for stimulation. Discontinuing heroin injections, or administering 3 mg/kg of naloxone, disrupted responding for both reinforcers, while changing the unit dose of heroin did not appreciably affect response rates for stimulation. This experiment demonstrates that rats are able to lever press during the period between successive self-administered heroin infusions, suggesting that the pausing normally seen between infusions is not due to debilitation, stereotyping, or sedation.

Increase in Mycobacterium avium complex isolations among patients admitted to a general hospital.

In early 1979, an official of an Illinois hospital reported an increase in the number of patients from whom Mycobacterium avium complex recently had been recovered. Over the preceding 3 years specimens from a total of 51 patients were culture positive for M. avium complex: 7 in 1976, 8 in 1977, and 36 in 1978. Nine of 10 serotyped isolated were serotype 8. The increase was not attributable to an increase in the number of mycobacterial cultures performed. No other area hospitals had similar increases in rates of recovery of M. avium complex. Patients with M. avium complex were significantly more likely than patients with other mycobacteria to have been residents of the city where the hospital is located. The distribution of abnormalities in patients' chest films differed significantly between patients with M. avium complex in 1978 and patients with M. avium complex in 1976-77; in 1978, patients although equally likely to have infiltrates, nodules, or cavities, were more likely to have no abnormalities or abnormalities consistent with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and less likely to have other abnormalities. The data suggest that the increased rate of recovery of M. avium complex from patients could not be attributed to ascertainment bias or laboratory variation but may be due to an increase in the incidence of disease or colonization among persons living in the community where the hospital is located.

Female androgenetic alopecia: a review.

This review of androgenetic alopecia (AA) in women provides a summary of hair physiology and biochemistry, a general discussion of AA, and a brief description of other types of hair loss in women. AA associated with signs of virilization is distinguished from AA alone.

HIV latency. Specific HIV integration sites are linked to clonal expansion and persistence of infected cells.

The persistence of HIV-infected cells in individuals on suppressive combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) presents a major barrier for curing HIV infections. HIV integrates its DNA into many sites in the host genome; we identified 2410 integration sites in peripheral blood lymphocytes of five infected individuals on cART. About 40% of the integrations were in clonally expanded cells. Approximately 50% of the infected cells in one patient were from a single clone, and some clones persisted for many years. There were multiple independent integrations in several genes, including MKL2 and BACH2; many of these integrations were in clonally expanded cells. Our findings show that HIV integration sites can play a critical role in expansion and persistence of HIV-infected cells.

Prevalence of XMRV nucleic acid and antibody in HIV-1-Infected men and in men at risk for HIV-1 Infection.

Xenotropic MLV-Related Virus (XMRV) was recently reported to be associated with prostate cancer and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Infection was also reported in 3.7% of healthy individuals. These highly reported frequencies of infection prompted concerns about the possibility of a new, widespread retroviral epidemic. The Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) provides an opportunity to assess the prevalence of XMRV infection and its association with HIV-1 infection among men who have sex with men. Reliable detection of XMRV infection requires the application of multiple diagnostic methods, including detection of human antibodies to XMRV and detection of XMRV nucleic acid. We, therefore, tested 332 patient plasma and PBMC samples obtained from recent visits in a subset of patients in the MACS cohort for XMRV antibodies using Abbott prototype ARCHITECT chemiluminescent immunoassays (CMIAs) and for XMRV RNA and proviral DNA using a XMRV single-copy qPCR assay (X-SCA). Although 9 of 332 (2.7%) samples showed low positive reactivity against a single antigen in the CMIA, none of these samples or matched controls were positive for plasma XMRV RNA or PBMC XMRV DNA by X-SCA. Thus, we found no evidence of XMRV infection among men in the MACS regardless of HIV-1 serostatus.

Nucleic Acid, Antibody, and Virus Culture Methods to Detect Xenotropic MLV-Related Virus in Human Blood Samples.

The MLV-related retrovirus, XMRV, was recently identified and reported to be associated with both prostate cancer and chronic fatigue syndrome. At the National Cancer Institute-Frederick, MD (NCI-Frederick), we developed highly sensitive methods to detect XMRV nucleic acids, antibodies, and replication competent virus. Analysis of XMRV-spiked samples and/or specimens from two pigtail macaques experimentally inoculated with 22Rv1 cell-derived XMRV confirmed the ability of the assays used to detect XMRV RNA and DNA, and culture isolatable virus when present, along with XMRV reactive antibody responses. Using these assays, we did not detect evidence of XMRV in blood samples (N = 134) or prostate specimens (N = 19) from two independent cohorts of patients with prostate cancer. Previous studies detected XMRV in prostate tissues. In the present study, we primarily investigated the levels of XMRV in blood plasma samples collected from patients with prostate cancer. These results demonstrate that while XMRV-related assays developed at the NCI-Frederick can readily measure XMRV nucleic acids, antibodies, and replication competent virus, no evidence of XMRV was found in the blood of patients with prostate cancer.