J N Wessel | PubMed Health

PubMed1989

Tissue oxygen tension in the cerebral cortex of the rabbit.

Polarographic techniques were employed to measure oxygen partial pressure using 10 micron glass-protected gold microelectrodes. When inserting the electrode into the cortex, a PO2-profile is produced. The average PO2 was about 9 mm Hg. Nearly all measurements were below 25 mm Hg and measurements above 50 mm Hg were rare. When the FiO2 was increased from 0.3 to 1.0, tissue PO2 increased, then gradually decreased. This is probably due to vasoconstriction of pre-capillary sphincters. Acute hypoxia showed the opposite effect, but the autoregulation does not seem to be so effective. When CO2 was added to the inspiratory gas mixture the PO2 increased and showed little tendency to return to normal values. This increase in PO2 is due to the direct effect of CO2 and H+ on the blood vessels, causing vasodilation, and therefore an increase in blood flow and tissue oxygenation.

Animals↗

PubMed1989

Renal function in single-kidney rats.

Can a single kidney survive for a normal life span? This is the type of question frequently asked by patients and especially by parents of children who lose one kidney in early childhood. Based on our wide experience with single-kidney rats, we will try to give an answer to this question. After the removal of its counterpart, the single remaining kidney will rapidly adapt to the new situation by a compensatory increase in the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and renal mass. This is true not only for intact kidneys but also for damaged ones. The GFR level obtained by damaged kidneys will be less than that of intact single kidneys, however, depending on the degree of initial damage. The GFR is stable for a certain period of time, which is longer for intact single kidneys than for damaged kidneys and also depends on the daily protein intake; after that renal function will deteriorate. This decline in GFR is preceded by a marked increase in urinary protein excretion. Although the follow-up period is not completed yet, the survival time of single intact kidneys in rats on a normal diet is expected to be 15%-20% less than the normal rat life span. In rats on a lifelong high protein intake the kidney survival time drops to 40% below the normal rat life span. In rats on a moderately reduced protein intake, however, single intact kidneys may survive for a normal life span. The situation is worse for single damaged kidneys. Depending on the severity of the initial damage, kidney survival time will be much less than a normal life span. We studied rats with an initial recovery to 75% of renal function. Despite this initial recovery, the animals died of renal failure within 50% of the expected life span. A low-protein diet prolonged the renal survival by about 12%, a high-protein diet shortened it by the same percentage.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1979

Cerebral ammonia production during hypoglycemia in the newborn calf.

The effect of insulin hypoglycaemia on cerebral blood flow, and cerebral metabolic rates of glucose, oxygen and ammonia was investigated in the unanaesthetized newborn calf. A net loss of ammonia from the brain occurred during hypoglycaemia, and was greater in convulsing than in comatose animals.

Ammonia↗