鸡实验性尿酸盐沉积症的肾脏病理学研究

将１２０只３５日龄迪卡商品代蛋用雏鸡随机分为高钙组、高蛋白组和对照组,分别饲喂高钙（含钙３．９％）、高蛋白（含粗蛋白４４．０％）和全价（含钙０．８％,粗蛋白１８．２％）饲料。试验第２５天,各组剖检５只鸡,作肾脏的光镜和电镜观察。结果表明,高钙、高蛋白饲料均能引发尿酸盐沉积。高钙组鸡肾脏肿大,表面及切面有大量尿酸盐结晶;输尿管扩张,管内充满白色尿酸盐沉积物。光镜观察,肾小球肿胀,近曲及远曲小管上皮细胞肿胀、变性。电镜观察,近曲小管上皮绒毛短缩、肿胀、断裂、脱落,线粒体肿胀、嵴断裂;远曲小管线粒体肿胀,呈现空泡,核呈锯齿型。高蛋白组眼观病变不明显,肾脏的光镜、电镜病变与高钙组相似,但损伤程度较轻。作者认为,高钙、高蛋白所致肾脏损害是鸡尿酸盐沉积症的重要原因。     

柔嫩艾美球虫（Eimeria tenella）体外细胞培养

试验比较了玻璃珠层析法，ＤＥＡＥ纤维素层析法，Ｇ３漏斗过滤法３种提纯柔嫩艾美球虫（Ｅｉｍｅｒｉａｔｅｎｅｌｌａ）子孢子的方法，柱高８ｃｍ，直径２００μｍ的玻璃株柱用ｐＨ８．０的Ｒｉｎｇｅｒ’ｓ缓冲液作洗脱提纯子孢子，回收率为６４．１％，子孢子洗脱高峰期集中，且易于无菌操作，柱高５ｃｍ的ＤＥＡＥ纤维素柱用ｐＨ８．０的甘氨酸缓冲液作洗脱液，提纯子孢子回收率为６３．２％，但严格无菌操作困难，Ｇ３漏斗法易     

三聚氰胺对小鼠肾脏的影响及中药治疗试验

给小鼠灌喂三聚氰胺后，经肾功能生化检测、肾脏剖检等手段了解三聚氰胺对小鼠肾脏的影响。结果发现，在灌喂后9,4h～48h内小鼠表现精神不振、反应迟钝、不食等症状；生化检测显示，尿氮素（blood urea nitrogen，BUN），肌酐（creatinine，CRE）明显升高；剖检发现，肾脏表面有淤血斑，输尿管及肾小管内有细沙状结石。在发病后，立即给小鼠灌喂中药，48h之后，小鼠精神好转，生化检测显示小鼠病情有好转，剖检可见结石基本排出。     

Therapeutic Plasma Exchange for Venom-Induced Thrombotic Microangiopathy Following Hump-Nosed Pit Viper (Genus: Hypnale) Bites: A Prospective Observational Study

Introduction—Thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), which is the triad of acute kidney injury (AKI), microangiopathic hemolytic anemia (MAHA), and thrombocytopenia, is a rare complication of snakebites, and in Sri Lanka, it is commonly seen with hump-nosed pit viper (HNPV) bites.Methods—We conducted a prospective observational study of patients with AKI caused by HNPV bites in Teaching Hospital, Ratnapura, Sri Lanka for 6 y, commencing in June 2015. Some patients with TMA underwent therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) and some did not. These 2 groups were compared. Statistical analysis was carried out using Minitab 18.1. Data were presented as median (IQR).Results—There were 52 (8%) patients with TMA, of whom 21 (45%) were in the TPE group and 26 (55%) were in the non-TPE group. TPE improved time to platelet correction (4 d [IQR, 4–5 d] vs 7 d [IQR, 5–9 d]; P=0.009), time to MAHA correction (5 d [IQR, 3–4 d] vs 7 d [IQR, 6–9 d]; P=0.004), time to prothrombin time (PT)/international normalized ratio (INR) correction (1 d [IQR, 1–2 d] vs 3 d [IQR, 3–4 d]; P=0.003), and time to 20 min whole blood clotting test (WBCT20) correction (2 d [IQR, 1–2 d] vs 3 d [1QR 2–3 d]; P=0.020). Renal recovery was predicted by TPE (P=0.048) and highest creatinine level (P=0.001). There was no association between TPE and dialysis dependency at discharge (P=0.597), length of hospital stay (P=0.220), and the number of dialysis cycles prior to discharge (P=0.540). TPE did not improve the number of blood transfusions (5 packs [IQR, 3–8.5 packs] vs 4 packs [IQR, 0–9 packs]; P=0.290).Conclusions—TPE is effective for TMA in the early correction of platelet counts, MAHA, PT/INR, and WBCT20 in HNPV bites.     

Bioencapsulation of five forms of erythromycin by adult Artemia salina (L.)

Uptake of five chemical forms of erythromycin by adult Artemia salina (L.) (erythromycin phosphate – EP, erythromycin stearate – ES, erythromycin estolate – EE, erythromycin hydrate – EH and crystalline erythromycin – CE) was investigated in two trials. In each trial, final erythromycin concentration in Artemia tissue and survival after a 12‐h bioencapsulation period were determined. In the first trial, Artemia tissue concentration after a 12‐h bioencapsulation period was significantly (P < 0.05) affected by erythromycin form with ES (68.5 ± 3.3 μg mL^?1, mean ± SEM) ≈ EH (61.2 ± 3.4 μg mL^?1) > CE (37.1 ± 10.7 μg mL^?1) > EP (16.4 ± 7.7 μg mL^?1) > control. In trial 2, Artemia tissue concentration was also significantly (P < 0.05) affected by erythromycin form with EE (111.4 ± 9.6 μg mL^?1) > CE (89.1 ± 1.7 μg mL^?1) > ES (78.9 ± 1.6 μg mL^?1) > EP (33.4 ± 5.2 μg mL^?1) > control. Survival was significantly affected by erythromycin form in trial 1 with EP=control (100 ± 0.0%) > ES (74.4 ± 2.0%) > CE (32.2 ± 0.3%) > EH (8.8 ± 4.4%). In trial 2, survival was also significantly affected by erythromycin form with EP=control (100 ± 0.0%) > ES (67.1 ±3.7%) > CE (52.5 ± 7.7%) > EE (5.0 ± 2.5%). Based on both uptake and survival, EP and ES appear to be appropriate compounds for bioencapsulation of erythromycin using live adult Artemia.     

Properties of cod metallothionein,its presence in different tissues and effects of Cd and Zn treatment

One isoform of the low-molecular-weight metal-binding protein metallothionein (MT) has been isolated from the liver of Atlantic cod by size-exclusion and ion-exchange chromatography. Cod MT contained 33% cysteine, no aromatic amino acids or arginine. As is the case for other piscine MTs, the N-terminus of cod MT lacked the asparagine in position 4 which is present in mammalian MTs. In addition, cod MT differed from all other vertebrate MTs described in that the N-terminal methionine was not acetylated. Antibodies were raised in rabbits against hepatic MT from cod by repeated injections of native protein mixed with adjuvant. Anti-cod MT antisera cross reacted with similarly-sized proteins in liver, brain, anterior kidney, posterior kidney, spleen, intestine, gills and ovaries. The putative MT in cod brain migrated differently to that of the other tissues in native gel electrophoresis. Intraperitoneally injected Cd (1 mg/kg) was nearly entirely associated with the MT-peak in hepatic and renal cytosols, whereas a single injection of Zn (10 mg/kg) resulted in increases in all cytosolic Zn pools of the liver and no apparent change in cytosolic Zn, Cu, Ni or Cd in kidney.     

Effects of aromatase inhibitors on reproduction in male three-spined sticklebacks, Gasterosteus aculeatus, exposed to long and short photoperiods

Three-spined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus, males were implanted with Silastic capsules filled with different aromatase inhibitors; 1,4,6-androstatriene-3,17-dione or the non-steroidal CGS16949 A, 4-(5,6,7,8-tetrahydrimidazol [1,5-a]pyridin-5-yl) benzonitrile monohydrochloride or empty capsules. The fish were then exposed to long or short photoperiod. Under the long photoperiod most fish in all treatments displayed a hypertrophied kidney (a secondary sexual character in sticklebacks) and completed, quiescent spermatogenesis, similar as in the natural spawning period. Under the short photoperiod the controls had unstimulated kidneys and an active spermatogenesis, whereas the males implanted with both aromatase inhibitors had stimulated kidneys, though not to the extent as in the long photoperiod, and completed, quiescent spermatogenesis. These findings suggest that aromatization is of importance for the inhibitory effects of short photoperiod on reproduction in the stickleback. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Extrapituitary gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) binding sites in goldfish

In teleosts, as in other vertebrates, the secretion of pituitary gonadotropin (GTH) is mediated by the hypothalamic decapeptide, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). Recent findings in teleosts indicate that GnRH receptors are not restricted to the pituitary gonadotropes and are also associated with somatotropes as well as being present in a number of other tissues. In the present study, we provide novel information on GnRH binding in a number of extrapituitary tissues in goldfish. However, we do not intend to provide full characterization of GnRH binding sites in various extrapituitary tissues in goldfish as this would clearly be outside the scope of this paper. In this study we examined GnRH binding in a number of extrapituitary tissues in goldfish and observed specific binding in ovary, testis, brain, liver and kidney. No specific GnRH binding was observed in muscle, skin, gut, gill and heart. In general, the present findings together with the results of other studies carried out in our laboratory demonstrate that mature goldfish ovary and testis contain two classes of GnRH binding sites, high affinity/low capacity and low affinity/high capacity sites with binding characteristics similar to those of the pituitary GnRH receptors. The brain of goldfish was also found to contain two classes of GnRH binding sites, a super-high affinity/low capacity and a low affinity/high capacity sites. Furthermore, study of goldfish liver and kidney demonstrated the presence of a single class of GnRH binding sites with characteristics different from those of pituitary, ovary, testis and brain. Overall, it is evident that goldfish contains a family of GnRH binding sites which can be classified into four groups based on binding affinities: 1) A class of high affinity binding sites present in the pituitary, ovary and testis, 2) a class of super high affinity sites so far only detected in the brain, 3) a class of intermediate-affinity GnRH binding sites in the liver and kidney, and 4) a class of low affinity binding sites present in all the tissues containing specific GnRH binding sites except for liver and kidney.