1,721,021 research outputs found
Correlation between biochemical and morphological repair in rabbit lungs after elastase injury
No full textThe structural and elastic properties of the lung depend primarily on the concentration in connective tissue of proteins, collagen and elastin. The relationships between biochemical and morphological aspects of pulmonary damage were studied in 50 male New Zealand rabbit's, randomly divided into two groups of 25 animals, instilled with 245 IU of pig pancreatic elastase solution or physiological saline. Animals were killed at 8, 15, 30, 60 and 90 days after treatment. The changes in pulmonary morphology and in collagen and elastin content have been studied chemically and by light microscopy. The left lungs were used for biochemical determinations of insoluble elastin and total, insoluble and salt-extractable collagens. Morphometric measurements (mean linear intercepts or Lm) and histologic evaluations were performed on right lungs. Three months after instillation, the elastase treated lungs showed a minimal degree of alveolar wall rupture, and no significant difference in Lm from the control group. Quantitative restoration of normal biochemical parameters preceded connective tissue repair. Statistical evaluations showed significative correlations among Lm, total collagen (p < 0.01) and insoluble elastin/dry weight (p < 0.01). No significant differences between Lm and insoluble elastin, salt-extractable collagen or total collagen/dry weight were found. © 1980 Springer-Verlag
L'esperienza del sogno in pazienti depressi e le modificazioni indotte dal trattamento con farmaci antidepressivi
No full textResponse of lung enzyme activities in rabbits following short-term exposure to n-hexane: correlation between morphological and biochemical changes
No full textThe activity of lactate dehydrogenase, beta-glucuronidase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, acid and alkaline phosphatase was studied in lung homogenate from New Zealand rabbits exposed to 3000 p.p.m. of n-hexane 8 h per day for 8 days of filtered air. In hydrocarbon-treated animals all enzymes examined, except alkaline phosphatase, were markedly increased. The biochemical changes correlated well with the morphological changes and the results of cytological evaluation of bronchopulmonary lavage. It is suggested that high values in lung lysosomal enzymes from treated rabbits reflect the acute inflammation whilst the increase in lung glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase may depend upon reparative process subsequent to n-hexane-induced lung damage
Abnormalities of bronchial cilia in patients with chronic bronchitis. An ultrastructural and quantitative analysis
No full textThe fine structure of the bronchial cilia has been studied in biopsies of eighteen patients with chronic bronchitis and six nonsmoking controls. Abnormal cilia were noted in three of the control subjects and in all the patients with chronic bronchitis. The percentage of abnormal cilia ranged from 0 to 6% in control subjects and from 8 to 28% in patients with chronic bronchitis. Some ciliary abnormalities with changes in the axonemal 9 + 2 pattern of organisation were only detected in patients with chronic bronchitis. Compound cilia with two or more complete axonemes arranged parallel to one another and giant cilia with increased amounts of cytoplasmic matrix were observed in both control and diseased subjects. The possibility that these cilia represent aspects of biological variability or abnormalities of epigenetic origin is discussed. On the basis of the reported data, it is reasonable to suggest that the presence of atypical cilia of epigenetic origin contribute to the severe impairment of mucociliary transport associated with chronic bronchitis. © 1983 Springer-Verlag GmbH & Co KG
Lack of kinocilia in the nasal mucosa in the immotile-cilia syndrome
No full textThis report describes the ultrastructural alterations observed in the nasal mucosa from two female siblings, aged 11 and 14 years, who had chronic bronchitis, bronchiectasis, recurrent pneumonia and unexplained history of sinusitis and recurrent otitis media since early infancy. Both patients showed, instead of normal ciliated cells, abnormal cells showing on their free surface cilium-like projections without an internal axonemal structure. These abnormal cells, lacking basal bodies, centrioles and kinocilia, presented the same pattern of subcellular components as that occurring in the normal ciliated cells. The possibility that these cells represent a result of genetic mutation is discussed
Pulmonary changes induced in rabbits by long-term exposure to n-hexane
No full textNew Zealand male rabbits were exposed in an inhalation chamber to 3,000 ppm of n-hexane 8 h/day, 5 days/week for 24 weeks, resulting in a total of 120 exposures. After a further 120 days in clean air, morphologic examination of lungs by light and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed three important exposure-related lesions. These consisted of air space enlargement centered on respiratory bronchioles and alveolar ducts (centriacinar emphysema), scattered foci of pulmonary fibrosis, and papillary tumors of non-ciliated bronchiolar epithelial cells. At TEM examination these tumors were rather homogeneous and were found to consist of cells showing both small and large electron dense ovoid granules in their cytoplasmic matrix, a feature that has been described for Clara cells. The implications of these findings are discussed
In vitro and in vivo effects of chloramine T on rat serum elastase inhibitor
No full textRecent studies have shown that oxidizing agents may block the elastase inhibitory activity of alpha 1-antiproteinase in humans and some animal species. It has been postulated that this protein plays a critical role in modulating the activity of the neutral proteinase, i.e. elastase, in the lung; its inactivation has been implicated in the destruction of lung tissue seen in emphysema. In this work, we have studied the inactivation in vitro of rat serum elastase inhibitor by chloramine T (CT) and whether the in vivo use of the same oxidizing agent in the development of a functional model of alpha 1-antiproteinase deficiency in the rat is feasible. Although serum alpha 1-antiproteinase is readily inactivated in vitro by CT, it was observed, in vivo, that serum elastase inhibitory capacity was reduced to about 28-35% of initial levels 1-3 h after CT injection, and returned to control values within 9 h. Therefore, the in vivo study demonstrated that in the rat a functional model of alpha 1-antiproteinase deficiency cannot be achieved by inactivation of the protein molecule with CT. The relatively short half-life (1.45 h) of the serum elastase inhibitor found in normal rats is consistent with a rapid synthesis of the protein molecule, which might contribute to the fast recovery of the elastase inhibitory capacity observed in experimental animals after CT administration
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