Morphometric and molecular analyses of Carassotrema koreanum Park 1938 and Elonginurus mugilus Lu 1995 (Digenea: Haploporidae) Srivastava, 1937 from the Russian Far East and Vietnam.

Adult worms that belong to Carassotrema Park 1938 and Elonginurus Lu, 1955 were found in the intestine of Carassius gibelio Bloch, 1782 from the southern Russian Far East and Mugil cephalus Linnaeus, 1758 from northern Vietnam, respectively. Morphometric parameters, geographic location and host species composition of these worms correspond to Carassotrema koreanum Park 1938, which is a known parasite of cyprinid fish in Korea, Japan and China, and Elonginurus mugilus Lu, 1955, first described from M. cephalus in China. The validity of Carassotrema ginezinskajae Kulakova, Ha Ky, 1976, a synonym of C. koreanum, first described from Spinibarbichthys denticulatus Oshima, 1926 in Vietnam, supported the morphometric data. Phylogenetic analysis based on combined ITS2 ribosomal DNA (rDNA) and 28S rRNA indicated that C. koreanum and E. mugilus belong to the subfamily Waretrematinae and are closely related to the genera Skrjabinolecithum and Parasaccocoelium, respectively. Species similarity, revealed through molecular analysis, agreed with the generic diagnoses for Parasaccocoelium and Elonginurus, as well as for Carassotrema and Skrjabinolecithum.

[Absorbable synthetic clips and pulmonary excision]. / Clips synthétiques résorbables et exèréses pulmonaires.

From the beginning of this decade, two new, 2nd generation, resorbable synthetic materials--polydioxanone and lactomer--have been able to be molded into clips which, in contrast to metallic clips, are fitted with an original locking system preventing any slipping, either transversal or longitudinal, on the vessels. An experimental study was conducted to confirm their great reliability and perfect safety on large vessels (up to 8-9 mm) of large laboratory animals--both pulmonary and systemic vessels. Positive results justified their application to pulmonary vessels in humans during surgery, the pulmonary vessel being at a much lower pressure than in the main circulatory system. These new clips possess the advantages of metallic clips and resorbable synthetic threads without their inconveniences: rapidity, simplicity and ease of application, radio-transparency and complete inertia in magnetic fields enabling radiotherapy and modern postoperative investigations (scanner, NMR...) to be carried out.

[Absorbable synthetic clips and pulmonary excision. Our clinical experience]. / Clips synthétiques résorbables et exérèses pulmonaires. Notre expérience clinique.

Analysis of the first 50 clinical cases confirmed conclusions of experimental studies in large animals with respect to the use of absorbable synthetic clips formed of lactomer and polydioxanone. The advantages of clips when compared with ligatures include rapidity and simplicity of use and ease of insertion, even in regions difficult to approach surgically with the fingers. The advantages of clips of the absorbable synthetic type over conventional metallic material are: safety and reliability due to their locking system and the conservation of sufficient residual resistance, improved behavior in biologic media, radio-transparency and total inertia in magnetic fields compatible with postoperative radiation and modern medical imaging procedures (CT scan, IRM), and finally progressive resorption predictable by simple hydrolysis and then total disappearance after 6 to 7 months. With staplers of the TA and GIA type these clips make sutures and ligatures during lung resection surgery entirely automatic.

What can transgenic and gene-targeted mouse models teach us about salivary gland physiology?

Thousands of genetically modified mice have been developed since the first reports of stable expression of recombinant DNA in this species nearly 20 years ago. This mammalian model system has revolutionized the study of whole-animal, organ, and cell physiology. Transgenic and gene-targeted mice have been widely used to characterize salivary-gland-specific expression and to identify genes associated with tumorigenesis. Moreover, several of these mouse lines have proved to be useful models of salivary gland disease related to impaired immunology, i.e., Sjögren's syndrome, and disease states associated with pathogens. Despite the availability of genetically modified mice, few investigators have taken advantage of this resource to better their understanding of salivary gland function as it relates to the production of saliva. In this article, we describe the methods used to generate transgenic and gene-targeted mice and provide an overview of the advantages of and potential difficulties with these models. Finally, using these mouse models, we discuss the advances made in our understanding of the salivary gland secretion process.

Salivary acinar cells from aquaporin 5-deficient mice have decreased membrane water permeability and altered cell volume regulation.

Aquaporins (AQPs) are channel proteins that regulate the movement of water through the plasma membrane of secretory and absorptive cells in response to osmotic gradients. In the salivary gland, AQP5 is the major aquaporin expressed on the apical membrane of acinar cells. Previous studies have shown that the volume of saliva secreted by AQP5-deficient mice is decreased, indicating a role for AQP5 in saliva secretion; however, the mechanism by which AQP5 regulates water transport in salivary acinar cells remains to be determined. Here we show that the decreased salivary flow rate and increased tonicity of the saliva secreted by Aqp5(-)/- mice in response to pilocarpine stimulation are not caused by changes in whole body fluid homeostasis, indicated by similar blood gas and electrolyte concentrations in urine and blood in wild-type and AQP5-deficient mice. In contrast, the water permeability in parotid and sublingual acinar cells isolated from Aqp5(-)/- mice is decreased significantly. Water permeability decreased by 65% in parotid and 77% in sublingual acinar cells from Aqp5(-)/- mice in response to hypertonicity-induced cell shrinkage and hypotonicity-induced cell swelling. These data show that AQP5 is the major pathway for regulating the water permeability in acinar cells, a critical property of the plasma membrane which determines the flow rate and ionic composition of secreted saliva.