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Cholesterol esterase accelerates intestinal cholesterol absorption.

Mechanisms of acceleration of cholesterol absorption by cholesterol esterase were investigated in various experimental conditions. Lymphatic recovery of cholesterol intubated as a micellar solution containing phosphatidylcholine (PC) into the duodenum was enhanced by the co-administration of cholesterol esterase in rats drained of bile and pancreatic juice. However, no accelerated incorporation was observed when cholesterol was solubilized in PC-depleted micelles. Cholesterol esterase dose-dependently accelerated the incorporation of cholesterol into differentiated Caco-2 cells, only when cholesterol was solubilized in PC-containing micelles. The accelerated incorporation of cholesterol into Caco-2 cells by cholesterol esterase disappeared when the enzyme was preincubated with a suicide inhibitor of cholesterol esterase. Cholesterol esterase has an activity as phospholipase A(2). When 10% of PC in bile salt micelles was replaced by lysophosphatidylcholine (lysoPC), the incorporation of cholesterol into Caco-2 cells was significantly accelerated. Cholesterol esterase enhanced the incorporation of micellar cholesterol into brush border membranes prepared from the rat jejunum. The addition of cholesterol esterase to bile salt micelles accelerated the release of micellar cholesterol in a dose-dependent manner, only when the micelles contained PC. These observations strongly suggest that cholesterol esterase hydrolyzes PC in bile salt micelles and thereby, accelerating the release of cholesterol from bile salt micelles. This may be a major cause of the acceleration of cholesterol absorption by cholesterol esterase.

Animals↗

Continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy with/without mitomycin C in head and neck cancer.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect of mitomycin C to an accelerated hyperfractionated radiation therapy. The aim was to test a very short schedule with/without mitomycin C (MMC) with conventional fractionation in histologically verified squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck region. METHODS AND MATERIALS: From October 1990 to December 1996, 188 patients entered the trial. Tumors originated in the oral cavity in 54, oropharynx in 82, larynx in 20, and hypopharynx in 32 cases, respectively. Patients' stages were predominantly T3 and T4 (158/188, 84%) and most patients had lymph node metastases (144/188, 77%) at diagnosis. Only 22 patients were female, 166 were male, the median age of patients was 57 years (range 34 to 76 years). Patients were randomized to one of the following three treatment options: conventional fractionation (CF) consisting of 70 Gy in 35 fractions over 7 weeks (65 patients) or continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiation therapy (V-CHART; 62 patients) or continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiation therapy with 20 mg/sqm MMC on day 5 (V-CHART + MMC; 61 patients). By the accelerated regimens, the total dose of 55.3 Gy was delivered within 17 consecutive days, by 33 fractions. On day 1, a single dose of 2.5 Gy was given, from day 2 to 17 a dose of 1.65 Gy was delivered twice: the interfraction interval was 6 hours or more. RESULTS: Mucositis was very intense after accelerated therapy, most patients experiencing a grade III/IV reaction. The mucosal reaction did not differ whether MMC was administered or not. Patients treated by accelerated fractionation experienced a confluent mucosal reaction 12-14 days following start of therapy and recovered (no reaction) within 6 weeks. The skin reaction was not considered different in the three treatment groups. Those patients treated with additional chemotherapy experienced a grade III/IV hematologic toxicity in 12/61 patients. Initial complete response (CR) was recorded in 43% following CF, 58% after V-CHART, and 67% after V-CHART + MMC, respectively (p < 0.05). Actuarial survival (Kaplan-Meier) was significantly improved in the combined treated patients. Local tumor control was 28%, 32%, and 56% following CF, V-CHART, and V-CHART + MMC, respectively (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: We conclude that our continuous hyperfractionated accelerated radiation therapy regimen is equal to conventional fractionation, suggesting that by shortening the overall treatment time from 7 weeks to 17 days a reduction in dose from 70 Gy to 55.3 Gy is possible, with maintenance of local tumor control rates. The administration of MMC to the accelerated regimen is tolerable and improves the outcome for patients significantly.

Adult↗

Fluid particle accelerations in fully developed turbulence.

The motion of fluid particles as they are pushed along erratic trajectories by fluctuating pressure gradients is fundamental to transport and mixing in turbulence. It is essential in cloud formation and atmospheric transport, processes in stirred chemical reactors and combustion systems, and in the industrial production of nanoparticles. The concept of particle trajectories has been used successfully to describe mixing and transport in turbulence, but issues of fundamental importance remain unresolved. One such issue is the Heisenberg-Yaglom prediction of fluid particle accelerations, based on the 1941 scaling theory of Kolmogorov. Here we report acceleration measurements using a detector adapted from high-energy physics to track particles in a laboratory water flow at Reynolds numbers up to 63,000. We find that, within experimental errors, Kolmogorov scaling of the acceleration variance is attained at high Reynolds numbers. Our data indicate that the acceleration is an extremely intermittent variable--particles are observed with accelerations of up to 1,500 times the acceleration of gravity (equivalent to 40 times the root mean square acceleration). We find that the acceleration data reflect the anisotropy of the large-scale flow at all Reynolds numbers studied.

Journal Article↗

High-quality electron beams from a laser wakefield accelerator using plasma-channel guiding.

Laser-driven accelerators, in which particles are accelerated by the electric field of a plasma wave (the wakefield) driven by an intense laser, have demonstrated accelerating electric fields of hundreds of GV m(-1) (refs 1-3). These fields are thousands of times greater than those achievable in conventional radio-frequency accelerators, spurring interest in laser accelerators as compact next-generation sources of energetic electrons and radiation. To date, however, acceleration distances have been severely limited by the lack of a controllable method for extending the propagation distance of the focused laser pulse. The ensuing short acceleration distance results in low-energy beams with 100 per cent electron energy spread, which limits potential applications. Here we demonstrate a laser accelerator that produces electron beams with an energy spread of a few per cent, low emittance and increased energy (more than 10(9) electrons above 80 MeV). Our technique involves the use of a preformed plasma density channel to guide a relativistically intense laser, resulting in a longer propagation distance. The results open the way for compact and tunable high-brightness sources of electrons and radiation.

Journal Article↗

Controlled injection and acceleration of electrons in plasma wakefields by colliding laser pulses.

In laser-plasma-based accelerators, an intense laser pulse drives a large electric field (the wakefield) which accelerates particles to high energies in distances much shorter than in conventional accelerators. These high acceleration gradients, of a few hundreds of gigavolts per metre, hold the promise of compact high-energy particle accelerators. Recently, several experiments have shown that laser-plasma accelerators can produce high-quality electron beams, with quasi-monoenergetic energy distributions at the 100 MeV level. However, these beams do not have the stability and reproducibility that are required for applications. This is because the mechanism responsible for injecting electrons into the wakefield is based on highly nonlinear phenomena, and is therefore hard to control. Here we demonstrate that the injection and subsequent acceleration of electrons can be controlled by using a second laser pulse. The collision of the two laser pulses provides a pre-acceleration stage which provokes the injection of electrons into the wakefield. The experimental results show that the electron beams obtained in this manner are collimated (5 mrad divergence), monoenergetic (with energy spread <10 per cent), tuneable (between 15 and 250 MeV) and, most importantly, stable. In addition, the experimental observations are compatible with electron bunch durations shorter than 10 fs. We anticipate that this stable and compact electron source will have a strong impact on applications requiring short bunches, such as the femtolysis of water, or high stability, such as radiotherapy with high-energy electrons or radiography for materials science.

Journal Article↗

Transfer effects from listening to frequency-controlled and frequency-shifted accelerated speech.

Two experiments examined intelligibility of sentences reproduced with increased tonal frequency (the spectrum of the speech signal shifted upward), increased speech rate, or both frequency and speech rate increased. The first experiment showed that both the frequency and speech rate increases independently impaired sentence intelligibility. Sentences played back at increased rates and increased frequencies also were perceived as having been spoken more rapidly. In the second experiment subjects listened either to practice sentences played back at frequency-shifted (FS) or frequency-controlled (FC) accelerated rates. Subsequent to this practice, an intelligibility test was given on 10 FS and 10 FC accelerated sentences played back at double speed. The accelerated sentences were more intelligible for practice groups than for a no-practice control group, and FC accelerated rates produced more intelligible sentences than FS acceleration. The specific training experiences produced an interaction with the type of test-sentence acceleration early in transfer. The FS accelerated sentences were more intelligible following FS practice compared to FC practice, and the FC accelerated sentences were more intelligible following FC practice compared to FS practice.

Humans↗

Peritransplant injury to the myocardium associated with the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis in heart transplant recipients.

Accelerated arteriosclerosis is now the major long-term complication of heart transplantation. Defining the risk factors associated with the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis will provide not only a means of identifying patients at risk for this complication but also clues to the etiology of accelerated arteriosclerosis. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between peritransplant myocardial ischemic injury and the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis. In a case-control study we examined the first three endomyocardial biopsies from 50 heart transplant recipients and graded the degree of ischemic injury present in these biopsies. The histologic changes graded in the biopsies included contraction band necrosis, coagulative necrosis, and macrophagic removal of ischemically injured myocytes. Of the 50 recipients included in the study, 25 had angiographic evidence of accelerated arteriosclerosis and 25 did not. In multivariate analysis, which included the number of class I major histocompatibility (MHC) antigen mismatches between the donor and the recipient, the recipient's post-transplant cytomegalovirus status, the donor's age, and the number of rejection episodes, the histologic degree of ischemic injury present in the biopsies emerged as the strongest predictor of the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis (RR 2.6, 95% CI 1.2-5.8, p = 0.02). These results suggest that ischemic injury to the heart during the peritransplant period significantly contributes to the development of accelerated arteriosclerosis in heart transplant recipients and that histologic changes in early posttransplant biopsies can be used to identify recipients at risk of developing accelerated arteriosclerosis.

Adolescent↗

Characterization of natural and total artificial heart acceleration.

The pulsatile nature of an implanted total artificial heart (TAH) may have several deleterious effects. To define the level of TAH impact, acceleration was measured and compared with that of the natural heart in a series of in vivo and in vitro experiments. In TAH implantations in calves, miniature accelerometers were incorporated onto the housing of a Utah-100 left ventricle. Identical accelerometers were glued to felt pledgets to obtain measurement of radial cardiac acceleration when sewn to the epicardial surface of the natural heart. Measurement of natural and artificial heart acceleration was made both intraoperatively and postoperatively in several animals. Many pumping conditions were also investigated with a similarly instrumented UVAD 85 left ventricle during in vitro testing. The peak natural heart acceleration measured was nearly 2 g both intraoperatively and at rest. Treadmill exercise or epinephrine infusion produced twice the resting peak acceleration value of the natural heart. Artificial heart peak acceleration as great as +/- 100 g was found intraoperatively and postoperatively. Peak TAH acceleration could be reduced by allowing the ventricle to fill fully prior to the start of the next systole, by allowing the ventricle to fully eject prior to the next diastole, or by using a ventricular pressurization waveform that has a smooth contour with a sinusoidal-like profile. The ability to lower TAH acceleration may lead to a reduction in undesirable consequences of TAH implantation.

Animals↗

Survey of sulfur-containing rubber accelerator levels in latex and nitrile exam gloves.

2-Mercaptobenzothiazole and zinc dialkyldithiocarbamates are commonly used sulfur-containing rubber vulcanization accelerators known to cause allergic contact dermatitis. Exposure to these agents occurs through clothing such as undergarments and shoes, latex medical devices and latex and nitrile gloves. A simple, inexpensive screening method for total sulfur accelerator and a high performance liquid chromatographic speciation method were developed in the present study. These methods were applied to screen and quantify the sulfur accelerator content from 38 brands of 'off-the-shelf' latex and nitrile gloves obtained from commercial vendors. It was found that accelerator levels ranged from not detectable to 7.35 mg/g in the gloves analysed. Brands were found to contain single and multiple accelerator species within the glove. Powdered gloves had significantly higher accelerator levels than powder-free gloves from the same manufacturer; however, these chemical accelerators do not preferentially partition to the powder. The present analytical methodology is suitable for both manufacturing quality validation purposes, as well as for accelerator allergy research.

Allergens↗

Factors Associated With Accelerated Fracture Healing in Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury and Extremity Comminuted Fractures: A Retrospective Case-Control Study.

OBJECTIVE: Although traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been clinically associated with accelerated bone healing, the factors that determine which patients experience this phenomenon remain poorly defined, and previous findings are conflicting. This study aimed to investigate the clinical factors associated with accelerated fracture healing in patients with TBI combined with comminuted fractures of the limbs, so as to provide an evidence-based foundation for elucidating the clinical phenomenon of TBI-promoted fracture healing. METHODS: A retrospective case-control study design was employed. Patients between January 2020 and April 2024 with concurrent diagnoses of TBI and comminuted fractures were included. Based on radiographic findings and RUST/mRUST scores, patients were divided into an accelerated healing group (AHG) and a normal/delayed healing group (NDHG). Clinical data including demographics (age, sex, BMI), TBI characteristics (injury site, GCS score), admission laboratory indices (blood count, coagulation function, inflammatory markers), and fracture site/local soft tissue conditions, as well as functional outcomes assessed by the Short Musculoskeletal Function Assessment (SMFA) questionnaire at final follow-up were collected. Univariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to identify independent factors influencing accelerated fracture healing. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted to evaluate their predictive value. RESULTS: A total of 119 patients were included, with 69 in the AHG and 50 in the NDHG. Significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of age, BMI, GCS score, and platelet count (p&#x2009;<&#x2009;0.05). Univariate analysis showed that age, BMI, GCS score, red blood cell count, and platelet count were associated with accelerated fracture healing (p&#x2009;<&#x2009;0.20). Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that younger age (OR&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.875, 95% CI: 0.821-0.934) and lower GCS score (indicating more severe TBI; OR&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.490, 95% CI: 0.339-0.707) were independent predictors of accelerated fracture healing. ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) for age and GCS score in predicting accelerated healing were 0.893 and 0.851, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with TBI combined with comminuted fractures, younger age and greater TBI severity (lower GCS score) are independent predictors of accelerated fracture healing. These findings assist clinicians in the early identification of patients with high healing potential to optimize treatment strategies, facilitate the early identification of high-risk patients, and provide clinical clues for further exploration of the molecular mechanisms underlying neurohumoral regulation of bone regeneration.

Humans↗

Assessment of aortic regurgitation by the acceleration flow signal void proximal to the leaking orifice in cinemagnetic resonance imaging.

BACKGROUND: The proximal acceleration flow region is a laminar flow field that is located immediately upstream from the leaking orifice. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether cinemagnetic resonance imaging can provide information regarding the proximal acceleration flow region in patients with aortic regurgitation and to analyze the relation between the area of the proximal acceleration flow delineated by cinemagnetic resonance imaging and the severity of aortic regurgitation delineated by angiography. METHODS AND RESULTS: Thirty-eight consecutive patients who underwent aortography were examined by cinemagnetic resonance imaging. The region of proximal flow acceleration was identified as a semicircular-shaped signal void in the aorta during diastole. Cinemagnetic resonance imaging detected the proximal acceleration flow region in 26 of the 30 patients who were proved to have this lesion (sensitivity, 87%). In eight patients without aortic regurgitation according to aortography, no proximal acceleration flow region was detected (specificity, 100%). The area of the acceleration flow signal void from the long-axis view was well correlated with angiographic degree of aortic regurgitation. CONCLUSIONS: Cinemagnetic resonance imaging is useful in detecting the proximal acceleration flow region and permits noninvasive assessment of the severity of aortic regurgitation.

Adult↗

Antidepressant-induced mania and cycle acceleration: a controversy revisited.

OBJECTIVE: The longitudinal course of 51 patients with treatment-refractory bipolar disorder was examined to assess possible effects of heterocyclic antidepressants on occurrence of manic episodes and cycle acceleration. METHOD: Using criteria established from life charts, investigators rated the patients' episodes of mania or cycle acceleration as likely or unlikely to have been induced by antidepressant therapy. Discriminant function analyses were performed to assess predictors of vulnerability to antidepressant-induced mania or cycle acceleration. Further, the likelihood of future antidepressant-induced episodes in persons who had had one such episode was assessed. RESULTS: Thirty-five percent of the patients had a manic episode rated as likely to have been antidepressant-induced. No variable was a predictor of vulnerability to antidepressant-induced mania. Cycle acceleration was likely to be associated with antidepressant treatment in 26% of the patients assessed. Younger age at first treatment was a predictor of vulnerability to antidepressant-induced cycle acceleration. Forty-six percent of patients with antidepressant-induced mania, but only 14% of those without, also showed antidepressant-induced cycle acceleration at some point in their illness. CONCLUSIONS: Mania is likely to be antidepressant-induced and not attributable to the expected course of illness in one-third of treatment-refractory bipolar patients, and rapid cycling is induced in one-fourth. Antidepressant-induced mania may be a marker for increased vulnerability to antidepressant-induced cycle acceleration. Antidepressant-induced cycle acceleration (but not antidepressant-induced mania) is associated with younger age at first treatment and may be more likely to occur in women and in bipolar II patients.

Adult↗

Effect of lateral perturbations on psychophysical acceleration detection thresholds.

BACKGROUND: In understanding how the human body perceives and responds to small slip-like motions, information on how one senses the slip is essential. The effect of aging and plantar sensory loss on detection of a slip can also be studied. Using psychophysical procedures, acceleration detection thresholds of small lateral whole-body perturbations were measured for healthy young adults (HYA), healthy older adults (HOA) and older adults with diabetic neuropathy (DOA). It was hypothesized that young adults would require smaller accelerations than HOA's and DOA's to detect perturbations at a given displacement. METHODS: Acceleration detection thresholds to whole-body lateral perturbations of 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 mm were measured for HYAs, HOAs, and DOAs using psychophysical procedures including a two-alternative forced choice protocol. Based on the subject's detection of the previous trial, the acceleration magnitude of the subsequent trial was increased or decreased according to the parameter estimation by sequential testing methodology. This stair-stepping procedure allowed acceleration thresholds to be measured for each displacement. RESULTS: Results indicate that for lateral displacements of 1 and 2 mm, HOAs and DOAs have significantly higher acceleration detection thresholds than young adults. At displacements of 8 and 16 mm, no differences in threshold were found among groups or between the two perturbation distances. The relationship between the acceleration threshold and perturbation displacement is of particular interest. Peak acceleration thresholds of approximately 10 mm/s(2) were found at displacements of 2, 4, 8, and 16 mm for HYAs; at displacements of 4, 8, and 16 mm for HOAs; and at displacements of 8 and 16 mm for DOAs. Thus, 2, 4, and 8 mm appear to be critical breakpoints for HYAs, HOAs, and DOAs respectively, where the psychometric curve deviated from a negative power law relationship. These critical breakpoints likely indicate a change in the physiology of the system as it responds to the stimuli. CONCLUSION: As a function of age, the displacement at which the group deviates from a negative power law relationship increases from 2 mm to 4 mm. Additionally, the displacement at which subjects with peripheral sensory deficits deviate from the negative power law relations increases to 8 mm. These increases as a function of age and peripheral sensory loss may help explain the mechanism of falls in the elderly and diabetic populations.

Journal Article↗

Induction of accelerated senescence by gamma radiation in human solid tumor-derived cell lines expressing wild-type TP53.

Recent studies have demonstrated that p21WAF1 (now known as CDKN1A)-dependent and -independent accelerated senescence responses are a major determinant of the sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapeutic agents. The objective of the present study was to determine whether human solid tumor-derived cell lines that express wild-type TP53 can exhibit levels of CDKN1A induction after exposure to ionizing radiation that are sufficient to activate the accelerated senescence program. Exposure to 60Co gamma radiation (< or =8 Gy) triggered accelerated senescence in all five TP53 wild-type tumor cell lines examined, albeit to differing degrees. Three of the TP53 wild-type tumor cell lines, HCT116, A172 and SKNSH, activated the TP53 signaling pathway similarly to normal human fibroblasts, as judged by the nuclear accumulation of TP53, magnitude and duration of induction of CDKN1A mRNA and CDKN1A protein, and propensity to undergo accelerated senescence after radiation exposure. In the clonogenic survival assay, the degree of radiosensitivity of these three tumor cell lines was also in the range displayed by normal human fibroblasts. On the other hand, two other TP53 wild-type tumor cell lines, A498 and A375, did not maintain high levels of CDKN1A mRNA and CDKN1A protein at late times postirradiation and exhibited only low levels of accelerated senescence after radiation exposure. Studies with a CDKN1A knockout cell line (HCT116CDKN1A-/-) confirmed that the radiation-triggered accelerated senescence is dependent on CDKN1A function. We conclude that (1) clinically achievable doses of ionizing radiation can trigger CDKN1A-dependent accelerated senescence in some human tumor cell lines that express wild-type TP53; and (2) as previously documented for normal human fibroblasts, some TP53 wild-type tumor cell lines (e.g. HCT116, A172 and SKNSH) may lose their clonogenic potential in response to radiation-inflicted injury primarily through undergoing accelerated senescence.

Cell Cycle Proteins↗

Effect of accelerated postpubertal growth and early calving on lactation performance of primiparous Holstein heifers.

Seventy postpubertal Holstein replacement heifers were assigned to one of four treatments to assess effects of accelerated postpubertal growth on performance during first lactation. Heifers were fed control or accelerated diets from 10 mo of age until parturition, and breeding was initiated at 14 or 10 mo of age, respectively. Heifers were also subdivided into two breeding groups (target or delayed) based on normal AI breeding efficiencies. Heifers fed accelerated diets had a higher average daily gain (933 vs. 778 g/d) and calved earlier (21.7 vs. 24.6 mo) than did heifers fed control diets. Heifers fed accelerated diets had similar prepartum (10 d) BW, but lower wither height and postpartum BW, than heifers fed the control. For heifers fed accelerated diets, milk fat and milk protein yields were lower, and milk fat percentage was higher, at mo 1 and 2; milk fat percentage was lower at mo 3 to 7 of lactation. Delayed bred heifers calved later (approximately 2 mo), had higher prepartum and postpartum BW, and were taller at the withers than target bred heifers. Delayed breeding resulted in higher body condition scores at calving and a greater incidence of dystocia, but lactation performance was not affected. Accelerated postpubertal growth resulted in earlier calving at similar prepartum BW, but data for wither height, pelvic area, and postpartum BW suggested that heifers fed accelerated diets were smaller. Accelerated postpubertal growth and early calving reduced performance during first lactation, but the exact mechanisms could not be determined.

Aging↗

Myocardial contraction maps using tissue Doppler acceleration imaging.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the tissue Doppler acceleration imaging (TDAI) data which can be used to determine the intramural site of origin of myocardial contraction in response to electrical stimulation. METHODS: Six open-chest pigs with left ventricle (LV) pacing were evaluated with TDAI. An epicardial surface scanning method was used to collect short-axis views of the left ventricle. The electrode was implanted from the epicardium through the anterior free wall to an intramural position. RESULTS: During pacing, the intramural onset of myocardial acceleration occurred within 33 ms after electrical stimulation and always surrounded the embedded subendocardial end of the pacing needle. The observed short-axis diameter of the area of initial myocardial acceleration ranged from 2.9 mm to 5.0 mm (4.2 +/- 0.9 mm, n = 6). The onset of myocardial acceleration allowed appreciation of the initial intramural myocardial contraction. The spatial size and acceleration magnitude of the initial myocardial acceleration distribution were irregular. CONCLUSION: Two-dimensional myocardial acceleration mapping can show the intramural site of origin of myocardial contraction in response to paced electrical stimulation. The location of myocardial acceleration conformed to the site of initial electrical stimulation. The delay to the earliest regional myocardial contraction, 33 ms after paced electrical stimulation, was related to the frame rate of image acquisition.

Animals↗

Accelerated graft coronary artery disease: diagnosis and prevention.

Accelerated graft coronary artery disease (CAD) has become a major factor limiting survival among long-term heart transplant survivors. Currently 14%, 37%, and 50% of patients treated with triple therapy have angiographically apparent accelerated graft CAD at 1, 3, and 5 years after transplantation. Because cardiac allografts are denervated, transplant recipients generally do not experience angina pectoris. Therefore accelerated graft CAD may present as silent myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, or ventricular arrhythmia leading to syncope or sudden death. Noninvasive tests for CAD have been insensitive for the detection of accelerated graft CAD because of the diffuse nature of the disease. Coronary arteriographic characteristics of accelerated graft CAD are a mixture of typical focal atherosclerotic lesions and unusual diffuse, concentric, and longitudinal narrowing prominent in middle to distal coronary vessels, with distal vessel obliteration and lack of collateral vessel formation. The presence and severity of accelerated graft CAD may be underestimated by routine angiography because of its diffuse and concentric nature. Quantitative arteriography has become an important technique to assess the progression of accelerated graft CAD. Intravascular ultrasound imaging can detect even earlier development of intimal thickening. CAD risk factor modification has had little impact on the overall incidence. We initiated a randomized study of diltiazem versus no calcium blocker to determine if this may prevent accelerated graft CAD. Patients have undergone early postoperative and annual quantitative coronary angiography since inception of the study.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Calcium Channel Blockers↗

Male acceleration of puberty in female mice (Mus musculus).

Nine experiments were performed to investigate various aspects of the acceleration of puberty in female house mice produced by the presence of a male mouse or urine from males. The findings include the following: (a) Grouping males has no effect on the urinary chemosignal that accelerates puberty except that (b) urine from dominant males produces greater acceleration than urine from subordinates. (c) Young female mice must be exposed to the male urine for at least 2-3 hr/day or to the presence of a male for 1 hr/day to produce acceleration of first vaginal estrus. (d) Females are accelerated to the same extent in attaining puberty whether treated with urine from the same male or a different male each day. (e) Urine from the father or a full brother, or the presence of those close relatives, exerts no differential acceleratory or retarding effect on puberty when compared with urine from or the presence of unrelated males. (f) Excreted or bladder urine from adrenalectomized males accelerates puberty to the same extent as urine from intact males, but (g) the presence of an adrenalectomized male does not produce the same degree of acceleration that occurs when an intact male is present. (h) Behavioral observations indicate that adrenalectomized males pursue young females less and attempt fewer mounts during a brief test period. Together, these findings have some important consequences with respect to our understanding of both the mechanisms of acceleration of puberty in the house mouse and the population and reproductive biology of these mice.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗