Effects of acute handling stress on cerebral monoaminergic neurotransmitters in juvenile Senegalese sole Solea senegalensis.

Juvenile Senegalese sole Solea senegalensis were subjected for short periods to two different types of handling-related stress: air exposure stress and net handling stress. The S. senegalensis were sacrificed 2 and 24 h after the stress events and the levels of serotonin (5-HT), noradrenaline (NA), dopamine (DA) and their respective major metabolites, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), were measured in three brain regions (telencephalon, hypothalamus and optic tectum) and compared with those in control, non-stressed S. senegalensis. Neither type of stress caused any significant alteration of serotoninergic activity (5-HIAA:5-HT ratio) or NA levels. Dopaminergic activity (DOPAC:DA ratio) was lower in stressed fish in all of the brain regions studied. For both air exposure stress and net handling stress, DA levels were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than in the control S. senegalensis. In addition, the higher DA levels after net handling stress were always significantly higher (P < 0.05) than those observed after acute air exposure stress, except in the telencephalon after 24 h. The significantly lower DOPAC:DA ratio (P < 0.05) in all of the brain regions studied was only observed in response to net handling stress.

Effects of acute exposure to exogenous ammonia on cerebral monoaminergic neurotransmitters in juvenile Solea senegalensis.

The present study explored the potential role of brain catecholaminergic and serotoninergic systems as neuronal targets for the toxicological effects of acute ammonia exposure (0.28 mg l(-1) of un-ionized ammonia for 12 and 24 h) in juvenile sole (Solea senegalensis). In addition, plasma cortisol levels were measured. The results showed significant increases in their concentrations that were similar after 12 and 24 h of exposure. These data indicate that acute exposure (12 and 24 h) to ammonia initiates a typical stress response in the Senegalese sole, with stimulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-interrenal axis. The concentrations of dopamine (DA), serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) and noradrenaline (NA), and their metabolites, 3, 4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and 5-hydroxy-3-indoleacetic acid (5HIAA), were measured in the hypothalamus, telencephalon and optic tectum. The main changes induced by acute exposure to ammonia were decreases in the concentrations of 5-HT and DA, which were significant in most of the brain regions studied. The ratios of 5-HIAA/5-HT and DOPAC/DA increased in all regions and at all times studied, although in the case of the DOPAC/DA ratio, the increases were only significant in the hypothalamus (24 h exposure) and in the optic tectum (12 and 24 h exposure). These changes indicated that exposure to ammonia elicited time-dependent increases in serotoninergic and dopaminergic activity in the hypothalamus, telencephalon and optic tectum.

[Ulysses in the medical literature]. / Ulises en la literatura médica.

INTRODUCTION: Cultural manifestations are frequently used as a source of descriptors in the field of the health sciences. The story of Odysseus (Ulysses) is one of the oldest and most influential works of world literature and has given rise to many subsequent creations, with strong roots in popular culture. AIMS: To consider the use of the story of Odysseus in the medical literature, to describe the terms in which it is used, and to discuss its relevance. DEVELOPMENT: From a review performed in PubMed, 112 medical publications with references to the myth of Odysseus were found, out of a total of 343 results. Five different conditions named directly after Ulysses were found (three Ulysses syndromes, the Ulysses contract and the Ulysses conflict), together with two others that have been given the names of other characters who are part of the same cycle (Elpenor syndrome and Penelope syndrome), which we analyse in a critical manner referring to the original material from which they have been taken. CONCLUSIONS: The story of Odysseus constitutes one of the most frequent sources of inspiration in medicine, both for the creation of descriptors and for the use of similes, metaphors or other rhetorical figures, particularly in the area of neuroscience.

TITLE: Ulises en la literatura médica.Introducción. Es frecuente el empleo de manifestaciones culturales como origen de descriptores en el campo de las ciencias de la salud. La historia de Odiseo (Ulises) es una de las obras más antiguas e influyentes de la literatura universal y ha dado lugar a múltiples creaciones posteriores, con un fuerte arraigo en la cultura popular. Objetivo. Ponderar el uso del relato de Odiseo en la literatura médica, describir los términos en los que se emplea y discutir la pertinencia de estos. Desarrollo. Tras una revisión en PubMed, se hallaron 112 publicaciones de carácter médico con referencias al mito de Odiseo, de un total de 343 resultados. Se recogen hasta cinco entidades diferentes directamente nombradas a partir de Ulises (tres síndromes de Ulises, el contrato de Ulises y el conflicto de Ulises), y dos más sobre otros personajes que forman parte de su ciclo (síndrome de Elpenor y síndrome de Penélope), las cuales analizamos de forma crítica respecto al material original del que se parte. Conclusiones. La historia de Odiseo constituye una de las fuentes de inspiración más frecuentes en la medicina, tanto para la elaboración de descriptores como para el empleo de símiles, metáforas u otras figuras retóricas, particularmente en el área de las neurociencias.

Association between periodontal disease and dementia: A literature review. / Asociación entre enfermedad periodontal y demencia. Revisión de la bibliografía.

INTRODUCTION: Periodontal disease and dementia are very prevalent, especially in elderly populations. Multiple studies have shown a link between these diseases; however, the conditions are highly heterogeneous and so is the diagnostic methodology, which may hinder interpretation and comparison of the results. The aim of this article is to provide a critical review of the literature linking these 2 processes. DEVELOPMENT: We retrieved 22 studies, most of which were retrospective, and analysed various methodological variables including study population, diagnosis of periodontitis, definition of dementia, adjusted variables, and results. The different aetiopathogenic mechanisms that may affect the progression and interaction of these 2 conditions were also analysed. CONCLUSIONS: Although available evidence indicates a positive association between periodontitis and dementia, both the strength of that association and the presence of a causal relationship have yet to be determined.

Highly precise experimental device for determining the heat capacity of liquids under pressure.

An experimental device for making isobaric heat capacity measurements of liquids under pressure is presented. The device is an adaptation of the Setaram micro-DSC II atmospheric-pressure microcalorimeter, including modifications of vessels and a pressure line allowing the pressure in the measurement system to be set, controlled, and stabilized. The high sensitivity of the apparatus combined with a suitable calibration procedure allows very accurate heat capacity measurements under pressure to be made. The relative uncertainty in the isobaric molar heat capacity measurements provided by the new device is estimated to be 0.08% at atmospheric pressure and 0.2% at higher levels. The device was validated from isobaric molar heat capacity measurements for hexane, nonane, decane, undecane, dodecane, and tridecane, all of which were highly consistent with reported data. It also possesses a high sensitivity as reflected in its response to changes in excess isobaric molar heat capacity with pressure, which were examined in this work for the first time by making heat capacity measurements throughout the composition range of the 1-hexanol+n-hexane system. Finally, preliminary measurements at several pressures near the critical conditions for the nitromethane+2-butanol binary system were made that testify to the usefulness of the proposed device for studying critical phenomena in liquids under pressure.

Viscosity anomaly near the critical point in nitrobenzene + alkane binary systems.

The viscosity near the critical point in nitrobenzene+hexane and nitrobenzene+heptane binary systems was studied by examining the viscosity values for critical mixtures at a variable temperature as obtained with a falling-ball viscometer. The regular part of the viscosity of the critical mixtures was calculated by interpolating measurements made at noncritical concentrations. Because viscosity anomaly studies must be conducted at zero shear, a method allowing the estimation of the effective shear for this type of viscometer was developed with a view to introducing the corrections required. This methodology was used to determine the critical exponent for the viscosity anomaly in nitrobenzene+hexane and nitrobenzene+heptane systems, which were found to be 0.0422+/-0.0004 and 0.0432+/-0.0013 , respectively, very consistent with the accepted value: 0.043.

[Tropical spastic paraparesis in a non tropical region]. / Paraparesia espastica tropical en una region no tropical.

INTRODUCTION: Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 (HTLV-1) associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) is a prevalent disease in certain tropical regions endemic for HTLV-1, being a rare entity in areas such as Europe and North America. CASE REPORTS: We report two new cases of HAM/TSP in Caucasians, native from Galicia, Spain. Serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis, clinical neurophysiologic studies and brain and spinal cord MRI scans were performed. Both patients presented a progressive chronic myelopathy, evolving to spastic paraparesis; one of them presenting with uveitis, prior to the onset of neurological symptoms. CSF analysis revealed mild lymphocytic pleocytosis and increased protein concentration with positive anti-HTLV-1 antibodies. Polymerase chain reaction was positive for HTLV-1. Oligoclonal bands were not detected. In one of the patients, MRI scans did not reveal abnormalities whilst in the other there was an elongated high intensity lesion at the thoracic spinal cord level, which resolved after treatment. No evidence of peripheral neuropathy was found. Corticosteroids and interferon alpha therapy was started, with moderate functional improvement. A history of unprotected sexual relationships while travelling to HTLV-1 endemic areas was revealed. CONCLUSIONS: HTLV-1-associated uveitis may predict HAM/TSP. HAM/TSP is probably an underdiagnosed disease due to the high prevalence of asymptomatic carriers, insidious clinical presentation and low suspicion index in non-endemic regions for HTLV-1. In non-tropical countries, HAM/TSP should not only be suspected in migrants from endemic areas for HTLV-1, but also in patients from communities with a tradition of migration to tropical countries.

TITLE: Paraparesia espastica tropical en una region no tropical.Introduccion. El virus linfotropo humano de celulas T tipo 1 (HTLV-1) es el agente causal de la paraparesia espastica tropical. Su prevalencia, elevada en determinadas areas tropicales, es baja en Europa y Norteamerica. Casos clinicos. Se describen dos casos de paraparesia espastica tropical en varones naturales y residentes en Galicia. Se realizaron estudios analiticos en la sangre y el liquido cefalorraquideo (LCR), examenes neurofisiologicos y resonancia magnetica craneal y medular. En ambos pacientes, la presentacion clinica fue la de una mielopatia cronica, con cuadro torpido y progresivo que evoluciono a paraparesia espastica. Un paciente desarrollo uveitis antes de la clinica neurologica. En los dos casos, el estudio del LCR demostro leve pleocitosis linfoide, ligera hiperproteinorraquia, bandas oligoclonales negativas y anticuerpos anti-HTLV-1 positivos. La reaccion en cadena de la polimerasa para HTLV-1 resulto positiva en ambos casos. La resonancia magnetica raquidea resulto normal en un paciente y mostro en el otro hiperseñal medular dorsal, que desaparecio tras el tratamiento. No se demostraron datos de polineuropatia periferica. Recibieron corticoides e interferon alfa, con leve mejoria y estabilizacion del cuadro clinico. La anamnesis dirigida revelo antecedentes de contactos sexuales de riesgo en regiones endemicas de HTLV-1. Conclusiones. La uveitis asociada a HTLV-1 podria ser predictora de paraparesia espastica tropical. Esta es probablemente una entidad infradiagnosticada (alto porcentaje de portadores asintomaticos, clinica insidiosa y bajo indice de sospecha en areas no endemicas). Debe considerarse su diagnostico en zonas no tropicales que reciben inmigrantes de areas endemicas y tambien en regiones con una tradicional emigracion a regiones tropicales.

Determination of plasma melatonin levels by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (EIA) in turbot (Scophtalmus maximus L.) and tench (Tinca tinca L.).

An enzymoimmunoassay (EIA) kit for plasma melatonin (MLT) measurements was employed in tench (Tinca tinca) and in turbot (Scophtalmus maximus). Tench and turbot plasma samples were purified with a C18 reversed phase extraction columns because this kit is designed for human serum measurements. The lowest detection limit of the technique was 11.48 pg/well with a sensitivity at 50% binding of 100 pg/well. Intra-assay and inter-assay CV (%) were always less than 5% (n=8), and 9% (n=6) in tench plasma samples, and less than 5% (n=8) and 13% (n=5) in turbot plasma samples, respectively. Correlation coefficients between EIA and RIA measurements in tench and turbot plasma samples were 0.93 and 0.89 (p<0.001) respectively. Diurnal and nocturnal plasma melatonin mean levels were 14.7+/-2.1 pg/ml and 87.4+/-11 pg/ml in tench (n=15), and 3.5+/-0.4 pg/ml and 28.1+/-2.1 pg/ml in turbot (n=15). These species showed a melatonin circadian rhythm as in other animals studied. The results suggest that the commercial kit used in this experiment could be a suitable and alternative method to RIA for plasma MLT determinations in tench and turbot although it is necessary to increase volumes (1ml) and concentrate daytime samples.

[Bilateral vitreous haemorrhage associated with pontomesencephalic haemorrhage: an extreme case of Terson syndrome]. / Hemorragia vitrea bilateral asociada a hemorragia pontomesencefalica: un caso extremo de sindrome de Terson.

TITLE: Hemorragia vitrea bilateral asociada a hemorragia pontomesencefalica: un caso extremo de sindrome de Terson.

[Flax-leaved daphne (Daphne gnidium L.): an ancient European timbo]. / El torvisco (Daphne gnidium L.): un timbó ancestral europeo.

TITLE: El torvisco (Daphne gnidium L.): un timbo ancestral europeo.

The validation of a new method that measures contact and flight times during vertical jump.

The aim of this study was to design and validate a vertical jump assessing system based on flight time measurements. Hence, the first phase of this study consisted of programming the software SportJumpv-1.0 and adapting a contact mat and a computer mouse in order to record the flight and contact times of a jump test. In the second phase, 9 subjects made 12 maximal and submaximal vertical single and rebound jumps. Thus 108 flight times and 36 contact times were simultaneously obtained with five different systems: ErgoJump Bosco System (PS), SportJump-v1.0 (SJ), Force Plate (FP), High-speed camera (HSC), and a Led (LED) filmed with a high-speed camera; FP was considered as the reference system. No significant differences were found either between SJ and LED, or between FP and HSC systems. SJ and LED overestimate flight time (9 ms and p < 0.001) and underestimate contact time in respect to FP values. PS underestimates flight time regarding FP values (4 ms and p < 0.01). In spite of the differences obtained between the systems, the errors found are constant. Those slightly depend on the subject's body mass for the systems that are connected to a contact mat. A high correlation between all of them was obtained (r approximately 1 and p < 0.001). The SJ system was validated for an accuracy of 500 Hz, and it was shown to be a useful tool in measuring flight and contact times during jumping. The differences and correlations found between the five systems show that it is necessary to take into account which system is being used when analyzing vertical jump performance.