Effects of a prolonged administration of valepotriates in rats on the mothers and their offspring.

Valeriana officinalis L. (Valerianaceae) is widely known to be associated with sedative properties. The effects of a valepotriates mixtures on mothers and progeny were evaluated in rats. A 30-day administration of valepotriates did not change the average length of estral cycle, nor the number of estrous phases during this period. Also, there were no changes on the fertility index. Fetotoxicity and external examination studies did not show differences, although internal examination revealed an increase in number of retarded ossification after the highest doses employed--12 and 24 mg/kg. No changes were detected in the development of the offspring after treatment during pregnancy. As for temperature, valepotriates caused a hypothermizant effect after administration by the intraperitoneal route but not after oral administration. Generally, the valepotriates employed induced some alterations after administration by the intraperitoneal route, but doses given orally were innocuous to pregnant rats and their offspring.

Acquisition of nonmaternal Enterobacteriaceae by infants delivered in hospitals.

To determine whether Escherichia coli strains that colonize the intestinal tract of newborn infants in hospitals are of maternal origin or come from the environment, plasmid profiles of E. coli strains isolated from the stools of infants were compared with those from the stools of their mothers. Twenty-nine mother-infant pairs were studied in three different hospitals. In only 4 of 29 pairs, plasmid profiles of E. coli or other Enterobacteriaceae were shared by infant and mother; vertical transmission seemed to be uncommon, unlike findings in previous reports. In one hospital, 8 of 10 infant fecal E. coli strains shared a single plasmid profile, strongly suggesting nosocomial acquisition. In another, 7 of 9 neonate strains also shared a unique profile, and additionally carried K1 capsular antigen, a known virulence factor. Two other infants from the latter nursery acquired a urinary tract infection with E. coli K1 carrying the same plasmid profile. This study indicates that nosocomial acquisition of hospital strains of E. coli by neonates may be common in some hospitals and that the clinical implications are potentially serious.

The central pressor effect of bradykinin in normotensive and hypertensive rats.

The site of action for the pressor response to bradykinin administered into the lateral ventricle has been reported to be either in the septal area or in the ventral portion of the third ventricle. We obtained dose-response curves for the pressor effect of bradykinin injected into the lateral ventricle or the posterior region of the fourth ventricle of normotensive Wistar and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Responses to fourth ventricle injections had a shorter latency and larger maximal effect, and were 20 to 100 times greater than those to lateral ventricle injections, suggesting that the site of bradykinin's action is in the caudal region of the brain, probably close to the area postrema. Maximal effects were similar for lateral and fourth ventricle injections in both SHR and normotensive rats, but SHR were much more sensitive to bradykinin. The ED50 values for the lateral ventricle route in normotensive rats and SHR were 1.3 and 0.35 nmol, respectively, and, for the fourth ventricle route, 60 and 3.4 pmol, respectively. Responses to Lys-Lys-bradykinin, a kininase-resistant bradykinin analogue, showed that kininase activity is lower in SHR than in normotensive rats and that SHR are four times more sensitive to Lys-Lys-bradykinin than are normotensive rats. The responses of all rats were inhibited by a specific bradykinin receptor blocker [Thi5,8,DPhe7]bradykinin. Our results show that there is a site of bradykinin action that is far more caudal than those previously described. The shorter latency and higher sensitivity of the fourth ventricle injection suggest that bradykinin injected into the lateral ventricle diffuses to the fourth ventricle where it exerts its effects.