Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0851184 (thinning)
 11,252 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Although the pathophysiology of critical limb ischaemia is poorly understood, there is evidence that the condition of the small arteries may determine the outcome of revascularization procedures. This study was designed to investigate the effects of critical limb ischaemia on the structure and function of the small arteries in the leg. Small arteries (<500 microm) from proximal (non-ischaemic) and distal (ischaemic) sites were obtained from patients undergoing bypass surgery for critical limb ischaemia and mounted in a myograph. Reactivity and morphological measurements were carried out and compared with controls. Control vessels from the thigh and calf showed no difference in media to lumen ratio. However, a comparison of ischaemic and non-ischaemic vessels from the patients with critical limb ischaemia showed significant thinning of the ischaemic vessel wall. Contraction studies using noradrenaline and angiotensin II revealed a significant decrease in the response of ischaemic vessels compared with the non-ischaemic vessels from the same patient. Moreover, these differences in reactivity were still apparent after the responses were corrected for wall thickness. Endothelial function assessed using the endothelium-dependent agonists acetylcholine and bradykinin showed a significantly impaired relaxation response to acetylcholine but not to bradykinin in the ischaemic vessels, and acetylcholine-induced relaxation was not improved after incubation with indomethacin. There was no change in the response to the endothelium-independent cAMP-mediated vasodilator iloprost but a significant impairment to sodium nitroprusside which acts via cGMP. These results suggest that small arteries in critical limb ischaemia are altered in both structure and function, with vessel wall thinning and impaired responses to acetylcholine and sodium nitroprusside.
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PMID:Altered small artery morphology and reactivity in critical limb ischaemia. 991 95

The creaming and rheology of fine n-tetradecane oil-in-water emulsions at pH 6.8 containing the commercial protein sodium caseinate and the ionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) have been studied, and an overview diagram relating surfactant composition and creaming stability has been constructed. The presence of both SDS and sodium caseinate in an emulsion system increases the overall stability with respect to creaming. Excess SDS promotes destabilization through fast creaming; this can be attributed to depletion flocculation brought about by unadsorbed surfactant micelles. Addition of sodium caseinate was found to reduce this effect, even at relatively high SDS concentrations. The behavior of the caseinate + SDS emulsions is thus different from the behavior of the previously reported caseinate + Tween 20 systems, where the combination of the two surface-active agents was found to reduce the emulsion stability, as indicated by fast creaming and shear-thinning rheology. Addition of sodium chloride was found to increase the extent of non-Newtonian behavior and to enhance the degree of creaming for SDS-containing emulsions. Increased caseinate levels in these systems seem to offer some stabilization through reduction of the shear-thinning character and improvement in creaming stability. These phenomena can be explained in terms of a considerable amount of SDS binding to the protein, which reduces the amount of SDS available to promote protein displacement and depletion flocculation. In contrast to the SDS systems, the properties of equivalent emulsions containing caseinate + nonionic surfactant Tween 20 are relatively insensitive to salt content. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.
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PMID:Creaming and Rheology of Oil-in-Water Emulsions Containing Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate and Sodium Caseinate. 1070 4

Corneal stromal hydration is maintained by an active HCO3- transport mechanism located in the corneal endothelium. Whilst modulation of transport activity by changes in intracellular cAMP concentration have been noted, the site of effect is undefined. To resolve this question, the effects of Rolipram, a cAMP phosphodiesterase inhibitor, on endothelial physiology were determined. Addition of 0.1 mM Rolipram caused a threefold increase in intracellular cAMP with no change in cGMP. Associated with the increase in cAMP was a transient whole corneal thinning and a similarly transient increase in trans-endothelial potential difference, short-circuit current and resistance. The membrane potential hyperpolarized and the intracellular Na+ concentration decreased. The decreased intracellular Na+ was associated with an increased rate of Na+ extrusion between the endothelial cell and extracellular space. It is concluded that Rolipram increases the concentration of cAMP which activates the basolateral membrane Na+/K+-ATPase activity and increases net HCO3- transport. In addition there is a reduction in endothelial permeability which combined with the increase in pump activity may jointly explain the observed stromal thinning. The duplicity of responses indicates that if cAMP has a physiological role in regulating corneal hydration then it may operate on both the endothelial pump and the endothelial permeability.
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PMID:Modulation of corneal endothelial hydration control mechanisms by Rolipram. 1104 52

Various amphiphilic derivatives of sodium alginate and hyaluronate were prepared by covalent fixation of long alkyl chains (dodecyl and octadecyl) with various ratios on the polysaccharide backbones via ester functions. In the semidilute regime, aqueous solutions of the resulting compounds exhibited the typical rheological properties of hydrophobically associating polymers: tremendous enhancement of zero shear rate Newtonian viscosity, steep shear-thinning behavior, and formation of physically cross-linked gel-like networks. The influence of the alkyl chain length, its content on the polysaccharide and of the polymer concentration in the solution was well identified. All obtained results are discussed with respect to the schedule of conditions related to materials, which could be used for cartilage repair, such as in synovial fluid viscosupplementation as well as in cartilage replacement. In particular, it is seen that HA-C(12)-5 (hyaluronate substituted with 5% of dodecyl chains) and HA-C(18)-1 (hyaluronate substituted with 1% of octadecyl chains) in a 0.15N NaCl solution at 8 g/L have rheological properties quite similar to those of healthy synovial fluid. On the other hand, the rheological parameters of solutions at 8 g/L in 0.15N NaCl of some of derivatives, such as, for example, AA-C(12)-8 (alginate substituted with 8% of dodecyl chains) or HA-C(18)-2, are well fitted for a use in cartilage repair.
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PMID:Amphiphilic derivatives of sodium alginate and hyaluronate for cartilage repair: rheological properties. 1107 8

An ultrastructural study of rat hippocampus was performed on young (group 1) and old (group 4) rats receiving daily subcutaneous injections of aluminum L-glutamate and on old untreated rats (group 5). Young controls were treated with sodium L-glutamate (group 2) and physiological saline (group 3). Group 1 showed vacuolated astrocytes with numerous lipofuscin deposits, mitochondrial swelling, a thinning of the myelin sheath, and many multivesicular bodies invading the cytoplasm. Cellular structure did not appear to be affected in groups 2 and 3. Group 4 showed swollen mitochondria, a demyelination process in axonal regions, sizable perivascular oedema with vessel retraction and gliofilament bundles. In this group, lipofuscin deposits in astrocytes were associated with multivesicular bodies that thinned the myelin sheath to the breaking point; however, no excitotoxic glutamate-induced effects were observed. In group 5, extreme cytoplasmic vacuolation was observed, with massive mitochondrial swelling, considerable thinning of the myelin sheath (at times to the breaking point), sizable vacuolar degeneration and gliofilament bundles. These results indicate that ultrastructural alterations in the hippocampus, such as cell vacuolization, massive mitochondrial swelling and the demyelination process, occur with aging and independently of aluminum intoxication. Similar alterations were observed in aluminum L-glutamate-intoxicated young rats, but not in controls. These results are consistent with aluminum-induced acceleration of the aging process.
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PMID:Ultrastructural study of rat hippocampus after chronic administration of aluminum L-glutamate: an acceleration of the aging process. 1122 39

Glucose degradation products (GDP) are carbonyl compounds, that are formed by heat sterilization of conventional peritoneal dialysis (PD) fluids. Carbonyl compounds are known to be toxic in vitro and potentially toxic also in vivo. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of daily, short-term exposure of the peritoneum to very high concentrations of GDP in vivo on peritoneal transport parameters and on peritoneal morphology in a well-established rat model of PD. Rats were exposed to three daily intraperitoneal (IP) injections (10 ml) for 9 days of a largely neutral (pH 7.2) PD fluid containing 1.5% glucose and sterilized by filtration, with (n = 8) or without (n = 8) the presence of different carbonyl compounds in concentrations 100 times higher than those reported in commercial PD fluids. Seven rats, not subjected to any exposure, served as controls. After the exposure, the rats were subjected to acute PD in 4-hour dwells. Twenty milliliters of 4% glucose dialysis fluid were instilled into the rat peritoneal cavity. Blood and dialysate samples were taken during the dwell for measurements of dialysate sodium, and for assessments of the mass transfer area coefficient (PS) for glucose and 51Cr-EDTA and of transperitoneal clearance (Cl) or radiolabelled albumin (RISA). At the end of the dwell, parts of the liver, diaphragm and peritoneum were removed for measurements of tissue cell density and thickness of the submesothelial peritoneal tissue. The exposure of the peritoneum to very high doses of carbonyl compounds did not affect the peritoneal transport of fluid and small solutes significantly, but seemed to slightly reduce lymph flow and albumin clearance out of the peritoneal cavity. Assessed after a hypertonic dwell, and compared to the situation in nontreated rats after the same kind of dwell, there was a significant thinning of the submesothelial tissue, but no difference in tissue cell density. It is concluded that short-term exposure of the peritoneum in vivo to very high doses of GDP resulted in almost no signs of acute toxicity.
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PMID:Very high daily intraperitoneal doses of carbonyl compounds affect the morphology, but not the exchange characteristics, of rat peritoneum. 1124 88

A method for the wet extrusion of human plasma-derived fibronectin-fibrinogen cables is described. Solutions of fibronectin and fibrinogen with and without sodium alginate and carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) are tested. The rheological properties of the protein solutions changed from Newtonian to shear thinning non-Newtonian in the presence of small quantities of these additives, the apparent viscosity increased, and the extrusion properties of the protein solutions improved. Cables were prepared using a capillary with a diameter of 1 mm and overall length of 18 mm. Cable diameter was reduced to about 0.5 mm by drawing using a series of rollers. Cables prepared with sodium alginate were found to have suitable properties, and those made with CMC were sticky and difficult to handle. Solutions containing no sodium alginate required a minimum total protein concentration of about 70 mg/mL for extrusion. Extruded cables were prepared with solutions containing 140 mg/mL total protein with 12.9 mg/mL alginate (high protein), and 46 mg/mL total protein with 47.6 mg/mL of sodium alginate (high alginate). The mechanical strength of the extruded cables was within the range suitable for application in tissue engineering. Extrusion of the protein solutions into cables was achieved in a coagulation bath. Cables with a mechanical strength of approximately 30 N/mm(2), suitable for wound repair and nerve regeneration applications, were prepared with a coagulation bath containing 0.25 M HCl, 2% CaCl(2) at a pH of <0.9. These cables also had a large average elongation at break of 52%, and showed an increase in cable length after breakage (permanent set) of 20%, demonstrating the potential for drawing the cables down to a fine diameter.
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PMID:Wet extrusion of fibronectin-fibrinogen cables for application in tissue engineering. 1128 12

To establish how charged species move from water to the nonpolar membrane interior and to determine the energetic and structural effects accompanying this process, we performed molecular dynamics simulations of the transport of Na+ and Cl- across a lipid bilayer located between two water lamellae. The total length of molecular dynamics trajectories generated for each ion was 10 ns. Our simulations demonstrate that permeation of ions into the membrane is accompanied by the formation of deep, asymmetric thinning defects in the bilayer, whereby polar lipid head groups and water penetrate the nonpolar membrane interior. Once the ion crosses the midplane of the bilayer the deformation "switches sides"; the initial defect slowly relaxes, and a defect forms in the outgoing side of the bilayer. As a result, the ion remains well solvated during the process; the total number of oxygen atoms from water and lipid head groups in the first solvation shell remains constant. A similar membrane deformation is formed when the ion is instantaneously inserted into the interior of the bilayer. The formation of defects considerably lowers the free energy barrier to transfer of the ion across the bilayer and, consequently, increases the permeabilities of the membrane to ions, compared to the rigid, planar structure, by approximately 14 orders of magnitude. Our results have implications for drug delivery using liposomes and peptide insertion into membranes.
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PMID:Mechanism of unassisted ion transport across membrane bilayers. 1153 69

The day-neutral, semidwarf rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivar Ai-Nan-Tsao was grown in a greenhouse under summer conditions using high-pressure sodium lamps to extend the natural photoperiod. After allowing 2 weeks for germination, stand establishment, and thinning to a consistent planting density of 212 plants/m2, stands were maintained under continuous lighting for 35 or 49 days before shifting to 8- or 12-h photoperiods until harvest 76 days after planting. Non-shifted control treatments consisting of 8-, 12-, or 24-h photoperiods also were maintained throughout production. Tiller number increased as duration of exposure to continuous light increased before shifting to shorter photoperiods. However, shoot harvest index and yield efficiency rate were lower for all plants receiving continuous light than for those under the 8- or 12-h photoperiods. Stands receiving 12-h photoperiods throughout production had the highest grain yield per plant and equaled the 8-h-photoperiod control plants for the lowest tiller number per plant. As long as stands were exposed to continuous light, tiller formation continued. Shifting to shorter photoperiods late in the cropping cycle resulted in newly formed tillers that were either sterile or unable to mature grain before harvest. Late-forming tillers also suppressed yield of grain in early-forming tillers, presumably by competing for photosynthate or for remobilized assimilate during senescence. Stands receiving 12-h photoperiods throughout production not only produced the highest grain yield at harvest but had the highest shoot harvest index, which is important for resource-recovery strategies in advanced life-support systems proposed for space.
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PMID:Transfer from long to short photoperiods affects production efficiency of day-neutral rice. 1154 85

It has been shown that glucocorticoids accelerate lung development by limiting alveolar formation resulting from a premature maturation of the alveolar septa. Based on these data, the aim of the present work was to analyze the influence of dexamethasone on cell cycle control mechanisms during postnatal lung development. Cell proliferation is regulated by a network of signaling pathways that converge to the key regulator of cell cycle machinery: the cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) system. The activity of the various cyclin/CDK complexes can be modulated by the levels of the cyclins and their CDKs, and by expression of specific CDK inhibitors (CKIs). In the present study, newborn rats were given a 4-d treatment with dexamethasone (0.1-0.01 microg/g body weight dexamethasone sodium phosphate daily on d 1-4), or saline. Morphologically, the treatment caused a significant thinning of the septa and an acceleration of lung maturation on d 4. Study of cyclin/CDK system at d 1-36 documented a transient down-regulation of cyclin/CDK complex activities at d 4 in the dexamethasone-treated animals. Analysis of the mechanisms involved suggested a role for the CKIs p21CIP1 and p27KIP1. Indeed, we observed an increase in p21CIP1 and p27KIP1 protein levels on d 4 in the dexamethasone-treated animals. By contrast, no variations in either cyclin and CDK expression, or cyclin/CDK complex formation could be documented. We conclude that glucocorticoids may accelerate lung maturation by influencing cell cycle control mechanisms, mainly through impairment of G1 cyclin/CDK complex activation.
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PMID:Impairment of rat postnatal lung alveolar development by glucocorticoids: involvement of the p21CIP1 and p27KIP1 cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors. 1180 10


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