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THE SOLUBLE GUANYLATE CYCLASE INHIBITOR METHYLENE BLUE EVOKES PRETERM DELIVERY AND FETAL GROWTH RESTRICTION IN A MOUSE MODEL
No full textBACKGROUND: The present study was undertaken to test whether methylene blue a soluble guanylate cyclase inhibitor, can initiate delivery in the mouse. The potential adverse effects of methylene blue on the fetal growth process were also investigated.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: ICR (CD-I) mice were injected subcutaneously with Methylene blue at 0 (vehicle), 5, 30, 50, 60 or 85 mg/Kg on gestation days 15.5 and 16 (plug day = gestation day 0).
RESULTS: Methylene blue caused the mice to deliver before gestation day 18 (term gestation). This response was observed in 45%, 50% and 83% of animals receiving Methylene blue at 50, 60 or 85 mg/Kg, respectively (p < 0.05 vs. controls). In a dose-dependent fashion, Methylene blue induced a statistically significant (p < 0.05) derangement of the fetal growth process.
CONCLUSION: The present study provides the first evidence that exposure to Methylene blue during late gestation induces preterm delivery and fetal growth restriction. These findings seem to favour the idea that soluble guanylate cyclase and its catalytic product play a role in the control of myometrial contractility and fetal growth process
Sistemi detossificanti embrionali e placentari: ruolo nella risposta ad agenti teratogeni
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Vitamin A, beta carotene, licopene and vitamin E levels in human preovulatory follicular fluid
No full textAdditional investigation on the potentiation of phenytoin teratogenicity by fluconazole.
No full textFluconazole (FCZ) is a potent inhibitor of the cytochrome P450 (CYP)-mediated metabolism of the anti-epileptic agent phenytoin (PHT), a well-known human and animal teratogen. It has been postulated that phenytoin must be bioactivated via the CYP system to initiate teratogenesis. In contrast with this view, FCZ pretreatment has been previously shown to result in a potentiation of PHT teratogenesis. The current study was initiated to determine the impact of FCZ pretreatment on PHT exposure levels in maternal and embryonal compartments. HPLC analysis revealed that under a co-dosing FCZ-PHT regimen resulting in enhanced PHT teratogenesis, statistically significant higher PHT levels are detectable in maternal plasma and embryonic tissue in comparison to controls. These results further argue against a role for CYP system in teratogenic bioactivation of PHT
Influence of cigarette smoking on vitamin E, vitamin A, beta-carotene and lycopene concentrations in human pre-ovulatory follicular fluid.
No full textIncreasing evidence suggests that fat soluble vitamins and micronutrients have the potential for local modulation of follicular development. Cigarette smoking has been associated with accelerated follicular depletion and derangement of reproductive functions. The present study was initiated to investigate the impact of cigarette smoking on follicular and plasma concentrations of vitamin A, vitamin E, lycopene and beta-carotene. Samples were collected from 17 smokers and 43 non-smoking women undergoing assisted reproduction techniques. Assays were carried out by a reverse-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. Smokers had significantly (P < 0.05) lower levels of follicular fluid beta-carotene in comparison to non-smokers (0.02 +/- 0.02 vs. 0.09 +/- 0.02, respectively). No other significant influences on follicular and plasma concentrations were noted. Smokers showed a significantly (P < 0.05) lower fertilization rate in comparison to non-smokers, (55.9 % vs. 71.5 % , respectively). It is postulated that follicular depletion of the antioxidant beta-carotene occurs in response to oxidative stress imposed by cigarette smoke
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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