Inactivation of neuronal function in the amygdaloid region reduces tail artery blood flow alerting responses in conscious rats.

Few studies have investigated whether neuronal function in the amygdaloid complex is necessary for the occurrence of the cardiovascular response to natural (unconditioned) environmental threats. In the present investigation in conscious unrestrained Sprague-Dawley rats we inactivated neuronal function in the amygdaloid complex acutely (bilateral muscimol injections) or chronically (unilateral or bilateral ibotenic acid injections) and measured the effect on sudden falls in tail artery blood flow elicited by non-noxious salient stimuli (sympathetic cutaneous vasomotor alerting responses, SCVARs). After acute bilateral injection of vehicle (200nl Ringer's solution) the SCVAR index was 81 ± 2%, indicating that tail blood flow was reduced by 81% in response to the salient stimuli. After acute bilateral injection of muscimol (1 nmol in 200 nl of Ringer's solution) into the amygdaloid complex the SCVAR index was 49 ± 5%, indicating that tail blood flow was reduced by 49% in response to the salient stimuli (p<0.01 versus vehicle, n=7 rats for vehicle and 6 for muscimol). One week after unilateral ibotenic acid lesions, the SCVAR index was 68 ± 3%, significantly less than 90 ± 1%, the corresponding value after unilateral injection of vehicle (p<0.01, n=6 rats in each group). After bilateral ibotenic acid lesions the SCVAR index was 52 ± 4%, significantly less than 93 ± 1%, the corresponding value after bilateral injection of vehicle (p<0.001, n=6 rats in each group). Ibotenic acid caused extensive neuronal destruction of the whole amygdaloid complex, as well as lateral temporal lobe structures including the piriform cortex. Our results demonstrate that the amygdaloid complex plays an important role in mediating the tail artery vasoconstriction that occurs in rats in response to the animal's perception of a salient stimulus, redirecting blood to areas of the body with more immediate metabolic requirements.

Brown adipose tissue thermogenesis heats brain and body as part of the brain-coordinated ultradian basic rest-activity cycle.

Brown adipose tissue (BAT), body and brain temperatures, as well as behavioral activity, arterial pressure and heart rate, increase episodically during the waking (dark) phase of the circadian cycle in rats. Phase-linking of combinations of these ultradian (<24 h) events has previously been noted, but no synthesis of their overall interrelationships has emerged. We hypothesized that they are coordinated by brain central command, and that BAT thermogenesis, itself controlled by the brain, contributes to increases in brain and body temperature. We used chronically implanted instruments to measure combinations of bat, brain and body temperatures, behavioral activity, tail artery blood flow, and arterial pressure and heart rate, in conscious freely moving Sprague-Dawley rats during the 12-h dark active period. Ambient temperature was kept constant for any particular 24-h day, varying between 22 and 27 degrees C on different days. Increases in BAT temperature (> or = 0.5 degrees C) occurred in an irregular episodic manner every 94+/-43 min (mean+/-SD). Varying the temperature over a wider range (18-30 degrees C) on different days did not change the periodicity, and neither body nor brain temperature fell before BAT temperature episodic increases. These increases are thus unlikely to reflect thermoregulatory homeostasis. Episodic BAT thermogenesis still occurred in food-deprived rats. Behavioral activity, arterial pressure (18+/-5 mmHg every 98+/-49 min) and heart rate (86+/-31 beats/min) increased approximately 3 min before each increase in BAT temperature. Increases in BAT temperature (1.1+/-0.4 degrees C) were larger than corresponding increases in brain (0.8+/-0.4 degrees C) and body (0.6+/-0.3 degrees C) temperature and the BAT episodes commenced 2-3 min before body and brain episodes, suggesting that BAT thermogenesis warms body and brain. Hippocampal 5-8 Hz theta rhythm, indicating active engagement with the environment, increased before the behavioral and autonomic events, suggesting coordination by brain central command as part of the 1-2 h ultradian basic rest-activity cycle (BRAC) proposed by Kleitman.

When administered to rats in a cold environment, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine reduces brown adipose tissue thermogenesis and increases tail blood flow: effects of pretreatment with 5-HT1A and dopamine D2 antagonists.

When given in a warm environment MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, ecstasy) causes hyperthermia by increasing interscapular brown adipose tissue (iBAT) heat production and decreasing heat loss via cutaneous vasoconstriction. When given in a cold environment, however, MDMA causes hypothermia by an unknown mechanism. This paper addresses these mechanisms and in addition examines whether antagonists at 5-HT(1A) and D(2) receptors reduce the hypothermic action of MDMA. Male Sprague-Dawley rats instrumented with a Doppler probe for measuring tail blood flow, and probes for measuring core and iBAT temperatures, were placed in a temperature-controlled chamber. The chamber temperature was reduced to 10 degrees C and vehicle (0.5 ml Ringer), the 5-HT(1A) antagonist WAY 100635 (0.5 mg/kg), the D(2) antagonist spiperone (20 mug/kg), or the combination of Way 100635 and spiperone were injected s.c. Thirty minutes later the antagonists were injected again along with MDMA (10 mg/kg) or vehicle. MDMA reduced core body temperature by preventing cold-elicited iBAT thermogenesis and by transiently reversing cold-elicited cutaneous vasoconstriction. Pretreatment with WAY 100635 prevented MDMA induced increases in tail blood flow, and briefly attenuated MDMA's effects on iBAT and core temperature. While spiperone alone failed to affect any of the parameters, the combination of spiperone and WAY 100635 decreased MDMA-mediated hypothermia by attenuating both the effects on tail blood flow and iBAT thermogenesis. MDMA's prevention of cold-induced iBAT thermogenesis appears to have a central origin as it rapidly reverses cold-induced increases in iBAT sympathetic nerve discharge in anesthetized rats. Our results demonstrate that MDMA in a cold environment reduces core body temperature by inhibiting iBAT thermogenesis and tail artery vasoconstriction and suggest that mechanisms by which this occurs include the activation of 5-HT1A and dopamine D2 receptors.

Dopamine D2 receptor stimulation inhibits cold-initiated thermogenesis in brown adipose tissue in conscious rats.

Dopamine D(2)-like receptor agonists cause hypothermia. We investigated whether inhibiting heat production by interscapular brown adipose tissue (iBAT), a major thermogenic organ in rats, contributes to hypothermia caused by dopamine D(2)-like receptor agonists. Temperature of iBAT and tail artery blood flow were measured in conscious rats. Activity in postganglionic sympathetic nerves supplying iBAT was assessed in anesthetized rats. Conscious rats were housed in a warm cage maintained at 26-28 degrees C and then transferred to a cold cage at 5-10 degrees C to induce iBAT thermogenesis. Cold exposure increased iBAT temperature (+0.7+/-0.1 degrees C, 30 min after transferring to the cold cage, P<0.01, n=54). The mixed dopamine D(2)/D(3) receptor agonist, 7-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (7-OH-DPAT, 0.5 mg/kg s.c.) reversed the cold-induced increase in iBAT temperature (-2.8+/-0.2 degrees C at 30 min after 7-OH-DPAT treatment during cold exposure vs. +0.3+/-0.1 degrees C at 30 min after vehicle treatment during cold exposure, n=8). These temperature changes were blocked by pre-treatment with the D(2) receptor antagonists spiperone (20 microg/kg i.p.) and L-741,626 (2.5 mg/kg i.p.), but not by the selective D(3) receptor antagonist SB-277011A (10 mg/kg i.p.). Another mixed dopamine D(2)/D(3) receptor agonist, quinpirole (0.5 mg/kg s.c.) also reversed cold-induced iBAT thermogenesis, and this effect was also prevented by pre-treatment with spiperone, but not with a peripherally acting dopamine receptor antagonist, domperidone (2 mg/kg s.c.). Neither 7-OH-DPAT nor quinpirole reversed cutaneous vasoconstriction elicited by cold exposure. In anesthetized rats, quinpirole (0.5 mg/kg i.v.) abolished iBAT sympathetic nerve discharge elicited by cooling the trunk, and this change was reversed by spiperone (20 microg/kg i.v.). These results demonstrate that activation of CNS dopamine D(2) receptors inhibits sympathetically-mediated iBAT thermogenesis in response to cold exposure. Furthermore, they suggest that in rats hypothermia induced by dopamine D(2) receptor agonists in cold environments is mainly due to decreased heat production rather than to increased heat loss.

Activation of dopamine D2 receptors in the CNS inhibits sympathetic cutaneous vasomotor alerting responses (SCVARs), contributing to clozapine's SCVAR-inhibiting action.

Sympathetic neural outflow to thermoregulatory cutaneous vascular beds is selectively activated when the individual is aroused, so that cutaneous blood flow is characterized by sudden alerting-related falls to near zero levels ("SCVARs", sympathetic cutaneous vasomotor alerting responses). Our previous work shows that clozapine, an atypical antipsychotic drug used in schizophrenia, profoundly inhibits SCVARs. Clozapine, conventionally assumed to have a dopamine D(2) receptor antagonist action, also increases baseline cutaneous blood flow and lowers body temperature. However dopamine D(2) receptor agonists lower temperature, suggesting that a dopamine D(2)agonist action might also reduce SCVARs. The present study determined whether a dopamine D(2)agonist action contributes to clozapine's SCVAR-inhibiting effect. SCVARs were measured in conscious rats with a Doppler ultrasonic flow probe chronically implanted around the base of the artery, with probe wires passing subcutaneously to a headpiece. Doppler signals were monitored via a flexible connection between the headpiece and a swivel device in the roof of the cage. Apomorphine (0.1-0.5 mg/kg), quinpirole (0.05-0.25 mg/kg) and 7-OH-DPAT (0.02-0.5 mg/kg) dose-dependently reduced SCVARs. Pre-treatment with the dopamine receptor antagonist spiperone (20 microg/kg) but not the D(1) antagonist SCH-23390 or the peripheral dopamine D(2) antagonist domperidone, abolished this effect. Spiperone pre-treatment reduced the SCVAR-inhibiting action of clozapine (0.06-1.0 mg/kg). Chlorpromazine (0.1-10 mg/kg) also dose-dependently inhibited SCVARs, but this effect was not reduced by pre-treatment with spiperone. Mechanisms underlying clozapine's SCVAR-inhibiting effect include dopamine D(2) receptor agonism, not dopamine D(2) receptor antagonism, calling into question the mechanism of the drug's therapeutic action in schizophrenia.

Clozapine reverses increased brown adipose tissue thermogenesis induced by 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine and by cold exposure in conscious rats.

Clozapine, an atypical antipsychotic agent important for the treatment of schizophrenia, has marked inhibitory effects on sympathetic outflow to the thermoregulatory cutaneous circulation. In rabbits clozapine reverses ear pinna vasoconstriction induced either by administration of MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, ecstasy) or by exposing the animal to a cold environment. In rats, both these procedures are known to increase sympathetic activation of interscapular brown adipose tissue (iBAT) thermogenesis, important for heat production in the rat. In the present study in conscious rats we determined whether clozapine reduces iBAT thermogenesis induced by MDMA and by exposure to cold. We designed our study so that we could also determine effects of clozapine on the acute (stress-induced) increases in iBAT thermogenesis initiated by the process of s.c. injection. MDMA increased iBAT temperature (+1.7+/-0.2 degrees C after 90 min, P<0.01, n=14 measurements from seven rats each studied on two occasions). Clozapine acutely reversed the MDMA-elicited increase in iBAT temperature (-1.3+/-0.2 degrees C 60 min after clozapine treatment following MDMA versus +0.3+/-0.2 degrees C for 60 min after vehicle treatment following MDMA, P<0.01, n=7). Clozapine also reduced stress-induced increases in iBAT temperature, as well as increases elicited by exposing rats to a cold (5 degrees C) environment. Results, taken together with our previous findings, suggest that MDMA activates the sympathetic thermoregulatory outputs (including the output to iBAT) that defend body temperature against cold exposure and that increase body temperature in response to environmental stress. Clozapine's marked inhibition of iBAT thermogenesis may provide a clue to its marked tendency to cause obesity when used to treat humans with mental disorders including schizophrenia. Our demonstration in rats that clozapine decreases sympathetically-mediated increases in iBAT temperature elicited by MDMA adds to the likelihood that clozapine and clozapine-like agents might be therapeutically effective in life threatening hyperthermia induced by MDMA in humans.

Interactive drives from two brain stem premotor nuclei are essential to support rat tail sympathetic activity.

Anatomical studies indicate that sympathetic preganglionic neurons receive inputs from several brain stem cell groups, but the functional significance of this organization for vasomotor control is not known. We studied the roles of two brain stem premotor cell groups, the medullary raphé and the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM), in determining the activity of sympathetic vasomotor supply to the tail of urethane-anesthetized, artificially ventilated rats. Chemical inactivation of either RVLM (bilaterally) or raphé cells by microinjecting glycine (120-200 nl, 0.5 M) or muscimol (40-160 nl, 2.1-8 mM) was sufficient to inhibit ongoing tail sympathetic fiber activity and to block its normally strong response to mild cooling via the trunk skin (reducing rectal temperature from 38.5 to 37 degrees C). After bilateral RVLM inactivation, tail sympathetic fibers could still be excited by chemical stimulation of raphé neurons (l-glutamate, 120 nl, 50 mM), and strong cooling (rectal temperature approximately 33 degrees C) caused a low level of ongoing activity. After chemical inhibition of raphé neurons, however, neither strong cooling nor chemical stimulation of RVLM neurons activated tail sympathetic fibers. Electrical stimulation of the RVLM elicited tail sympathetic fiber volleys before and after local anesthesia of the raphé (150-500 nl of 5% tetracaine), demonstrating the existence of an independent descending excitatory pathway from the RVLM. The data show that neurons in both the medullary raphé and the RVLM, acting together, provide the essential drive to support vasomotor tone to the tail. Inputs from these two premotor nuclei interact in a mutually facilitatory manner to determine tonic, and cold-induced, tail sympathetic activity.

5-Hydroxytryptamine 1A receptors inhibit cold-induced sympathetically mediated cutaneous vasoconstriction in rabbits.

5-HT1A receptor agonists lower body temperature. We have investigated whether activation of 5-HT1A receptors inhibits cutaneous sympathetic discharge so that dilatation of the cutaneous vascular bed lowers body temperature by increasing heat transfer to the environment. We measured ear pinna blood flow in conscious rabbits (with chronically implanted Doppler ultrasound flow probes), and postganglionic sympathetic vasomotor nerve activity in anaesthetized rabbits. Recordings from conscious rabbits were made in a cage at 26 degrees C and the rabbit was then transferred to a cage at 10 degrees C. The ear pinna Doppler signal fell from 56 +/- 4 cm s-1 in the 26 degrees C cage to 4 +/- 1 cm s-1 (P < 0.0001, n = 24) after 30 min in the 10 degrees C cage, and body temperature increased from 38.8 +/- 0.2 to 39.0 +/- 0.2 degrees C (P < 0.01, n = 24). The 5-HT1A agonist 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT; 0.1 mg kg-1 I.V.) reversed the cold-induced fall in ear pinna blood flow (Doppler signal increased from 5 +/- 1 to 55 +/- 8 cm s-1, P < 0.001, n = 7) within 5 min when administered 30 min after transfer to the 10 degrees C cage, and prevented the fall in ear pinna blood flow when administered before the rabbit was transferred to the 10 degrees C cage. Body temperature decreased after administration of 8-OH-DPAT. These changes were abolished by the specific 5-HT1A antagonist WAY-100635 (0.1 mg kg-1 I.V.). In anaesthetized rabbits, 8-OH-DPAT (0.1 mg kg-1 I.V.) reduced resting postganglionic cutaneous sympathetic vasomotor discharge, and prevented the increase normally elicited by cooling the trunk. Our experiments constitute the first demonstration that activation of 5-HT1A receptors powerfully inhibits cold-induced increases in cutaneous sympathetic vasomotor discharge, thereby dilating the cutaneous vascular bed and increasing transfer of heat to the environment.

Clozapine reverses hyperthermia and sympathetically mediated cutaneous vasoconstriction induced by 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (ecstasy) in rabbits and rats.

Life-threatening hyperthermia occurs in some individuals taking 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy). In rabbits, sympathetically mediated vasoconstriction in heat-exchanging cutaneous beds (ear pinnae) contributes to MDMA-elicited hyperthermia. We investigated whether MDMA-elicited cutaneous vasoconstriction and hyperthermia are reversed by clozapine and olanzapine, atypical antipsychotic agents. Ear pinna blood flow and body temperature were measured in conscious rabbits; MDMA (6 mg/kg, i.v.) was administered; and clozapine (0.1-5 mg/kg, i.v.) or olanzapine (0.5 mg/kg, i.v.) was administered 15 min later. One hour after MDMA, temperature was 38.7 +/- 0.5 degrees C in 5 mg/kg clozapine-treated rabbits and 39.0 +/- 0.2 degrees C in olanzapine-treated rabbits, less than untreated animals (41.5 +/- 0.3 degrees C) and unchanged from pre-MDMA values. Ear pinna blood flow increased from the MDMA-induced near zero level within 5 min of clozapine or olanzapine administration. Clozapine-induced temperature and flow responses were dose-dependent. In urethane-anesthetized rabbits, MDMA (6 mg/kg, i.v.) increased ear pinna postganglionic sympathetic nerve discharge to 217 +/- 33% of the pre-MDMA baseline. Five minutes after clozapine (1 mg/kg, i.v.) discharge was reduced to 10 +/- 4% of the MDMA-elicited level. In conscious rats made hyperthermic by MDMA (10 mg/kg, s.c.), body temperature 1 hr after clozapine (3 mg/kg, s.c.) was 36.9 +/- 0.5 degrees C, <38.6 +/- 0.3 degrees C (Ringer's solution-treated) and not different from the pre-MDMA level. One hour after clozapine, rat tail blood flow was 24 +/- 3 cm/sec, greater than both flow in Ringer's solution-treated rats (8 +/- 1 cm/sec) and the pre-MDMA level (17 +/- 1 cm/sec). Clozapine and olanzapine, by interactions with 5-HT receptors or by other mechanisms, could reverse potentially fatal hyperthermia and cutaneous vasoconstriction occurring in some humans after ingestion of MDMA.

Thermoregulatory control of sympathetic fibres supplying the rat's tail.

We investigated the thermoregulatory responses of sympathetic fibres supplying the tail in urethane-anaesthetised rats. When skin and rectal temperatures were kept above 39 degrees C, tail sympathetic fibre activity was low or absent. When the trunk skin was cooled episodically by 2-7 degrees C by a water jacket, tail sympathetic activity increased in a graded fashion below a threshold skin temperature of 37.8 +/- 0.6 degrees C, whether or not core (rectal) temperature changed. Repeated cooling episodes lowered body core temperature by 1.3-3.1 degrees C, and this independently activated tail sympathetic fibre activity, in a graded fashion, below a threshold rectal temperature of 38.4 +/- 0.2 degrees C. Tail blood flow showed corresponding graded vasoconstrictor responses to skin and core cooling, albeit over a limited range. Tail sympathetic activity was more sensitive to core than to trunk skin cooling by a factor that varied widely (24-fold) between animals. Combined skin and core cooling gave additive or facilitatory responses near threshold but occlusive interactions with stronger stimuli. Unilateral warming of the preoptic area reversibly inhibited tail sympathetic activity. This was true for activity generated by either skin or core cooling. Single tail sympathetic units behaved homogeneously. Their sensitivity to trunk skin cooling was 0.3 +/- 0.08 spikes s(-1) degrees C(-1) and to core cooling was 2.2 +/- 0.5 spikes s(-1) degrees C(-1). Their maximum sustained firing rate in the cold was 1.82 +/- 0.35 spikes s(-1).

Leptin injection into white adipose tissue elevates renal sympathetic nerve activity dose-dependently through the afferent nerves pathway in rats.

Recent studies suggested that leptin in white adipose tissue (WAT) affected the sympathetic out flow to several tissues. We examined whether elevations of renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA) and blood pressure (BP) could be observed by leptin injection into WAT in rats. Injections of leptin (10 and 100 ng/ml per kg) into WAT evoked the activation of RSNA dose-dependently. Circulating sympathetic nerve activators, such as leptin, insulin, glucose and lactate, were unchanged by any doses of leptin. In addition, BP was not affected by leptin injections during a 90 min experimental period. These data suggested that leptin activated the afferent nerves through the sensors in WAT, resulting in elevation of RSNA.

Different cardiovascular neuron groups in the ventral reticular formation of the rostral medulla in rabbits: single neurone studies.

To examine whether the cardiovascular neurons of the ventral medulla consist of functionally different kinds of neurons, single neuronal activity of the ventral medulla, activity of the renal sympathetic nerves (RSNA), blood flow of the ear (EarBF) and arterial pressure (AP) were recorded in urethane-anesthetized, vagotomized and immobilized rabbits during electrical stimulation of the aortic nerve (AN, baroreceptor afferent fibers) and electrical stimulation of the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) that reduced EarBF but less affected on AP and RSNA. The dorsolateral funiculus of the second cervical cord was stimulated to evoke antidromic spikes of medullary neurons. Two kinds of reticulo-spinal neurons were identified. Activities of one kind of neurons were facilitated by stimulation of DMH (latency 48.6+/-27.6 ms, n=11) but they did not respond to stimulation of the AN. Therefore, it was presumed that these neurons controlled vasomotion of the ear through the vasoconstrictor neurons in the spinal cord but did not participate in regulation of systemic AP. Activities of the other neurons were inhibited by stimulation of the AN (latency 47.8+/-8 4 ms, n=16) but they did not respond to the DMH stimulation. These neurons were identical to those reported previously as the RVLM neurons, and they contributed to regulate systemic AP but might not participate in control of cutaneous vascular movement. The former neurons were located medially to the latter in the reticular formation of the rostral ventral medulla. These results provided evidence at the single neuronal level that the cardiovascular neurons in the ventral medulla were consisted of functionally different sympatho-excitatory neurons and they were located at the different sites in the rostral ventral medulla.

Double stapling method of anastomosis after esophagectomy with endoscopic stapler to prevent postoperative stricture.

To prevent stricture of an anastomotic site after operation of esophageal cancer, a new surgical technique, the "double-stapling method," was designed and applied clinically to 29 patients. According to the surgical technique, an automatic suture device for endoscopy was inserted from the side of the lesser curvature of the stomach to the esophageal side after performing end-side anastomosis between the esophagus and the stomach tube using a conventional circular anastomotic device to perform anastomosis between the anterior wall of the esophagus and the posterior wall of the stomach tube. As a result, a conventional anastomotic site, which was a plane (two dimensional), was transformed into a three-dimensional configuration. In the postoperative measurement of the anastomotic site using a measurement forceps, the inner diameter of the site was 8.6+/-3.1 mm in the circular group, while it was 17.2+/-4.5 mm in the DS group, showing a significant difference (p < 0.0001). Minor leakage was observed in three patients as a postoperative complication, but no postoperative hemorrhage occurred.

Genomic structure of the human RBP56/hTAFII68 and FUS/TLS genes.

We previously isolated RBP56 cDNA by PCR using mixed primers designed from the conserved sequences of the RNA binding domain of FUS/TLS and EWS proteins. RBP56 protein turned out to be hTAFII68 which was isolated as a TATA-binding protein associated factor (TAF) from a sub-population of TFIID complexes (Bertolotti A., Lutz, Y., Heard, D.J., Chambon, P., Tora, L., 1996. hTAFII68, a novel RNA/ssDNA-binding protein with homology to the proto-oncoproteins TLS/FUS and EWS is associated with both TFIID and RNA polymerase II. EMBO J. 15, 5022-5031). The RBP56/hTAFII68, FUS/TLS and EWS proteins comprise a sub-family of RNA binding proteins, which consist of an N-terminal Ser, Gly, Gln and Tyr-rich region, an RNA binding domain, a Cys2/Cys2 zinc finger motif and a C-terminal RGG-containing region. Rearrangement of the FUS/TLS gene and the EWS gene has been found in several types of malignant tumors, and the resultant fusion proteins play an important role in the pathogenesis of these tumors. In the present study, we determined the genomic structure of the RBP56/hTAFII68 gene. The RBP56/hTAFII68 gene spans about 37kb and consists of 16 exons from 33bp to 562bp. The longest exon, exon 15, encodes the C-terminal region containing 19 repeats of a degenerate DR(S)GG(G)YGG sequence. While the structure of the FUS/TLS gene has been reported previously, we determined the total DNA sequence of the FUS/TLS gene, consisting of 12kb. The RBP56/hTAFII68, FUS/TLS and EWS genes consist of similar numbers of exons. Comparison of the structures of these three genes showed that the organization of exons in the central part encoding a homologous RNA binding domain and a cysteine finger motif is highly conserved, and other exon boundaries are also located at similar sites, indicating that these three genes most likely originate from the same ancestor gene.

Functional significance of the 10 Hz rhythmic discharges in sympathetic nerves.

1. By measuring renal vascular conductance in anaesthetized and immobilized rabbits, the functional significance of the 10 Hz rhythmic discharges in the sympathetic nerves was assessed by electrical stimulation of the renal nerve. This stimulation mimicked the intermittently occurring 10 Hz rhythmic discharges. 2. Comparison of high-frequency (10-20 Hz) intermittent electrical stimulation with continuous low-frequency (5 Hz) stimulation showed that the intermittent high-frequency stimulation evoked faster (smaller time constant) and larger responses of the renal vascular conductance if the total number of stimulus pulses was the same. 3. Therefore, the intermittently occurring 10 Hz rhythmic discharges in the sympathetic nerve produces faster and larger effects on peripheral organs than effects produced by continuous discharges if the number of spikes is equal.

Chemical shift GRE MRI of renal angiomyolipoma.

The renal angiomyolipoma is a fairly common benign renal tumor composed of various proportions of smooth muscle, blood vessels, and fat. Because fat is present in virtually every case, the CT findings in angiomyolipomas are so distinctive that a histologic diagnosis may be suggested. In angiomyomas composed mainly of vascular tissue and muscle or in those in which recent hemorrhage has occurred, the majority of tumors may have soft tissue CT density values without apparent fatty component (1,2). In such cases, preoperative diagnosis is extremely difficult. In this case report, we detected a small amount of fatty tissue with a chemical shift GRE MRI technique, although CT failed to detect the fatty tissue.

Functionally different neurons are organized topographically in the rostral ventrolateral medulla of rabbits.

To examine whether the sympatho-excitatory neurons in the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) were divided into subgroups, gamma-amino-n-butyric acid (GABA) was injected into multiple sites of the medulla while simultaneous recordings of blood flows were made from the renal artery with an ultrasonic pulsed Doppler flowmeter and from the ear skin and muscles of fore- and hind-limbs with laser Doppler flow meters in urethane-anesthetized, vagotomized and immobilized rabbits. The magnitude of the responses of mean systemic arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR) and conductance of each vascular bed, calculated by its blood flow and MAP, were represented as a contour map of the ventral surface of the medulla. Microinjection of GABA (50 mM, 9-27 nl) into the RVLM produced a decrease in MAP (-27 +/- 10 mmHg) and HR (-14 +/- 7 beat min-1) and an increase in the vascular conductance of the ear skin (ESC; 33 +/- 25 microliters min-1 100 g-1 (mmHg)-1), the fore-limb muscle (FLMC; 93 +/- 84 microliters min-1 100 g-1 (mmHg)-1), the hind-limb muscle (HLMC; 18 +/- 7 microliters min-1 100 g-1 (mmHg)-1) and the kidney (KC; 49 +/- 25 microliters min-1 (mmHg)-1). Comparing the sites into which the injection of GABA evoked the maximal response of MAP (the 'center' of the RVLM), the maximal responses of HR, ESC and KC were obtained from caudal, caudo-medial and slightly rostral sites, respectively. In more than half of cases, the maximal responses of FLMC and HLMC were obtained from the 'center' of the RVLM. These results indicated that the functionally different sympatho-excitatory reticulospinal neurons are located at different sites in the RVLM, although they considerably intermingle with each other.

The spinally mediated 10-Hz rhythm in the sympathetic nerve activity of cats.

To examine the origin of the so-called '10-Hz rhythm' in the sympathetic nerves, the mass discharges of the white ramus of the third thoracic segment (T3WR) and the inferior cardiac nerve (ICN) and the activities of single postganglionic neurons in the stellate ganglion were recorded in spinal cats. During the chemical or electrical stimulation of the spinal cord, the time of peak of discharges in the sympathetic nerves was analyzed. Both intrathecal administration of N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA; 3-10 mM) and continuous high frequency (80-200 Hz) electrical stimulation of the dorsolateral funiculus at the second cervical level increased activity of the sympathetic nerves in a similar fashion. In these conditions, modes of the inter-peak interval histograms (IPIH) were about 100 ms (range; 90-130 ms), the inverse of about 10 Hz, but no correlation was observed in autocorrelograms of these peaks of discharges. Therefore, this 100-ms interval activity might have some significance for the 10-Hz rhythm. In order to make this point clear, we stimulated the dorsolateral funiculus with intermittent trains of electrical pulses (0.2-ms duration, 10-35 pulses of 80-200 Hz frequency, in every 300-800 ms). While intermittent trains of pulses were applied, multiple peaks of discharges were evoked in the sympathetic nerves. IPIHs of the nerves were multimodal. The first mode (shortest interval) was about 100 ms. The first mode depended on none of the stimulus parameters but the probability of the about 100-ms interval activity depended on the interval of trains of pulses and the stimulus intensity. With this intermittent stimulation, the autocorrelogram of the peaks revealed the 100-ms interval rhythm. To confirm that the peak of discharges in the ICN was composed of synchronized spikes of postganglionic fibers, single neuronal activities of postganglionic neurons were recorded during the intermittent stimulation. Inter-spike interval histograms showed almost same profile as the IPIHs of the ICN. These results can be explained if the following two assumptions are valid; (i) There are mechanisms that limit minimum firing interval of most preganglionic neurons to about 100 ms. (ii) Simultaneously a interneuron in the spinal cord resets the spike generation of multiple preganglionic neurons. Similarity of the spike activities of the sympatho-excitatory reticulospinal neurons to the intermittent stimulation can explain the 10-Hz rhythm in the peripheral sympathetic nerves in intact spinal cord animals. It is not necessary to postulate the specific 10-Hz rhythm generator in the brain stem for the sympathetic nervous system.

The 10-Hz rhythm in the sympathetic nerve activity of cats, rats and rabbits.

Since the 10-Hz rhythmic activity in the sympathetic nerves was reported only in cats, we examined whether the activity of the same frequency could be observed in rats and rabbits as well as in the cats. Histograms of inter-burst-peak intervals of discharges of the renal nerves revealed that the 100 ms interval activity, the reverse of the 10-Hz, was observed in all the three mammals, of which the baroreceptor afferents were intact or inactivated. Further, the same frequency activity could be evoked by intermittent electrical stimulation of the dorsolateral funiculus of the cervical cord in spinal animals. It was suggested that the 10-Hz rhythmic activity in the sympathetic nerves was a common phenomenon throughout mammals and this activity was produced in the spinal cord. The physiological significance of the 10-Hz activity in the sympathetic nerves was discussed.

[Association of active pulmonary tuberculosis and malignant diseases: a clinical study].

The association of pulmonary tuberculosis and bronchogenic carcinoma has been reported by many authors, however, there are rather few studies about the association of pulmonary tuberculosis and other malignant diseases and how the latter affects the outcome of the former. Between 1980 and 1993, we had in our hospital 104 patients who had both active pulmonary tuberculosis and malignant diseases. Pulmonary tuberculosis was diagnosed at the time or after the diagnosis of malignant diseases in 74 patients, of whom 92% (68 patients) were males and 42% (31 patients) were over the age of 70. There were 23 stomach cancer (31%), and 15 lung cancer (20%). In 11 patients tuberculosis developed after the initiation of radiation and/or chemotherapy. 67 patients could be followed up for more than 6 months after the initiation of chemotherapy for tuberculosis and the negative conversion rate was as high as 95.5% at 3 months. The fact indicates that the association of malignant diseases does not influence the course of tuberculosis and that these patients could be treated safely in general hospitals, provided the diagnosis is made properly without unnecessary delay.