Foreign body urethral obstruction in a chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes).

BACKGROUND: A 34-year-old, captive-born, vasectomized male chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) presented with lethargy and scrotal swelling. METHODS: Urethral obstruction was diagnosed via urethroscopy. RESULTS: Removal of the grass stem foreign body resolved the obstruction. Scrotal and preputial ulceration developed from urine scald, which was managed with surgical debridement and antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS: After 7 weeks, the animal was reintroduced to its troup and has been healthy for 11 months.

The cell-surface form of colony-stimulating factor-1 is regulated by osteotropic agents and supports formation of multinucleated osteoclast-like cells.

Colony-stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1) is a hematopoietic growth factor that is released by osteoblasts and is recognized to play a critical role in bone remodeling in vivo and in vitro. CSF-1 is synthesized as a soluble or cell-surface protein. It is unclear, however, whether human osteoblasts express both molecular forms of CSF-1, and whether these isoforms can independently mediate osteoclastogenesis. In the present study, using a combination of quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, flow cytometry, and Western immunoblot analysis, we have demonstrated that human osteoblast-like cells as well as primary human osteoblasts express the cell-surface form of CSF-1 both constitutively and in response to parathyroid hormone and tumor necrosis factor. Furthermore, using an in vitro co-culture system, we have shown that cell-surface CSF-1 alone is sufficient to support osteoclast formation. These findings may be especially significant in view of evidence that direct cell-to-cell contact is critical for osteoclast formation, and suggest that differential regulation of expression of the CSF-1 isoforms may influence osteoclast function modulated by osteotropic hormones.