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The effects of total lymphoid irradiation, cyclosporine and splenectomy alone and in combination have been studied in liver transplants from the LVG hamster to the LEW rat. Neither CsA alone, splenectomy alone, nor TLI alone prolonged graft survival. CsA/splenectomy and TLI/CsA produced significant prolongation of graft survival. TLI/CsA/splenectomy prolonged graft survival by over sixfold compared with controls. While CsA alone was ineffective in reducing lymphocytotoxic antidonor antibody, splenectomy alone or CsA/splenectomy did significantly suppress production of antibody. Only very low levels of antibody could be detected in animals treated with TLI/CsA/splenectomy. TLI/CsA/splenectomy has an immunosuppressive effect sufficient to significantly prolong liver graft survival in the LVG hamster to LEW rat combination and may represent a promising treatment protocol in experimental cross-species transplantation.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Health-related quality of life (HRQL) after proctocolectomy is a critical parameter for management decisions in patients with chronic pancolitis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the HRQL of patients with ileoanal pull-through and to validate new, easy-to-administer HRQL measures. METHODS:The Sickness Impact Profile (SIP), Short Form 36 (SF-36), Rating Form of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Patient Concerns (RFIPC), and the time trade-off (TTO) were used to measure HRQL of pull-through patients. The SF-36 and the RFIPC were validated. RESULTS: HRQL of patients with ileoanal pull-through was better than that of a national sample of patients with IBD (SIP and RFIPC) and similar to that of a normal population (SF-36). Physical and psychosocial subscales of the SF-36 correlated with the SIP, affirming the construct validity of the SF-36. The RFIPC results correlated with the SIP and SF-36 results, suggesting that it is also a valid health status measure for these patients. TTO results correlated with the physical subscales of the SIP and SF-36, reflecting the impact of physical health on this group. CONCLUSIONS: HRQL of patients with ileoanal pull-through is excellent. The SF-36 and RFIPC are valid health status measures that can be used by clinicians and researchers in these patients. (Gastroenterology 1997 Jul;113(1):7-14)

Warm ischemia of the intestine is a medical emergency which results from menenteric vascular occlusion. In addition, intestinal transplantation techniques will also inevitably result in intestinal ischemia. The recovery of organ function following ischemia depends on the extent of irreversible damage produced by the ischemia and the extent of reflow upon reperfusion. In some organs energy homeostasis has been found to correlate with organ recovery and graft survival following ischemia-reperfusion. Investigating the usefulness of the determination of adenine and pyridine nucleotides as indicators of the extent of ischemic injury in intestinal segments, we found that after an initial 40% decrease in ATP following 30 min of isehemia there was no further decrease despite increasing the ischemia period to 120 min. Similarly, the decrease in NAD⁺ and NADP which occurred after 30 min of ischemia did not decrease further after 60, 90, or 120 min of ischemia. Xanthine was the only biochemical where an increase appeared to correlate with ischemia duration while energy charge was of no value in indicating injury extent. Additionally, after reperfusion there was at best a poor correlation between recovery of ATP content and the duration of ischemia. Microcirculation reflow after reperfusion indicated ischemia time-related endothelial cell injury. Thus, the measurement of high-energy phosphates in intestinal segments is not of value as an indicator of the extent of intestinal ischemic injury. Copyright 1993, 1999 Academic Press

Toxoplasma gondiiwas isolated antemortum in human fibroblast cultures (Detroit-532) from buffy coat of peripheral blood, minced tissue, and ascitic fluid of both experimentally infected mice and human patient. Cytopathic changes were evident within 2–3 days in all cases. The subculture and passage of T. gondiiin Det-532 cells were found consistently facile and reproducible. Infected cultures could be stored in the frozen state (liquid nitrogen) and reactivated. Using experimental infections of tissue cultured human cells, the effect of sulfadiazine at ranges from 250 mcg/cc-8,000 mcg/ml were evaluated with regards to parasite proliferation, host cell growth and survival. This study provides a new body of knowledge to which the effects of new therapeutic agents could be compared in the assay of their effectiveness. The hospital pharmacy has a deep responsibility to provide the leadership in the determination of the efficacy of new drugs. Studies such as ours are an integral part of this responsibility.

Viridin B, a bacteriocin produced by Streptococcus mitis strain 42885, was shown previously to exert a bactericidal effect against a Neisseria sicca strain but only a bacteriostatic effect against a coagulase-negative staphylococcus. In the present report, this dual effect was defined further. Viridin B caused the appearance of mesosomes in both indicator strains early in the course of exposure. Whereas mesosomes were the only noticeable alterations in the staphylococcal strain at all times of exposure to bacteriocin, progressive changes occurred in the N. sicca cells involving the nucleoid and cytoplasmic contents and resulting in the appearance of bacterial ghosts. Biochemical studies indicated a rapid and complete cessation of the incorporation of [3H]thymidine in N. sicca and in the staphylococcus. Whereas the incorporation of [3H]leucine and [3H]uridine in N. sicca was completely stopped, such incorporation was only reduced in the staphylococcus.

By the use of [5'-32P]tRNA3Gly from Escherichia coli as a hybridization probe, glyW was located on cloned fragments of the uvrC pgsA region of the bacterial chromosome. After determination of the sites of action of several restriction enzymes, glyW was found to be within approximately 300 base pairs of pgsA. The order of genes in this region is uvrC, pgsA, glyW, flaI. Comparison of the order of determined restriction sites with the sites predicted from the nucleotide sequence of tRNA3Gly indicates that the direction of transcription of glyW is counterclockwise on the circular E. coli map.

AbstractComplications due to ureteric obstruction are an occasional cause for renal transplant dysfunction. Here we report an unusual case of orthostatic renal failure in a renal transplant recipient. Our patient had the previously reported predisposing risk factors including: female sex, obesity, and lax abdominal musculature. It is important to recognize this unusual complication of renal transplantation early in order to preserve long‐term graft function.

Intavenous digital subtraction renal angiography (IV-DSRA) is frequently used in the preooperative evaluation of living-related (LR) kindney donors. However, the true accuracy of IV-DSRA in th donor population is difficult to assess since abnormalities of the kidney and its circulation are uncomon in this group. Therefore, we evaluated IV-DSRA in a group of patients more likely to have anomalies and abnormalities that would affect LR donor selction, donor nephrectomy, and subsequent transplantation. Hypertensive adults being evaluated for renovascular hypertension had IV-DSRA and conventional renal arteriograms, which were interpreted indepenmdently. We determinded the accuracy of IV-DSRA, compared with conventional arteriography, in detecting multiple renal arteries,l renal artery stenosis, fibromuscular dysplasia, and abnormal renal parentchyma. Technically unsatisfactory studies were excluded from analysis.