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Biomedical subjects

H Fritz

Publications and source records attributed to H Fritz.

367 records · Page 21Linked to original sources

Arterial air embolism in the cat brain.

In cats air embolism of the brain was produced by injecting 0.6 ml blood foam into the innominate artery proximal to the origin of both common carotid arteries. Air embolism caused transient ischemia of the brain, reaching a maximum within 1 min after injection. Resolution of the air embolism began a few minutes later and was completed within 15 min in the center and within 30 min in the border zone of the main supplying arteries. During this phase tissue perfusion was inhomogenous with reduced flow rates in some areas and reactive hyperemia up to 300% in others. This resulted in venous hyperoxia and a decrease of arteriovenous oxygen difference to as low as 2 ml/100 ml blood. Reactive hyperemia was accompanied by brain swelling and an increase in intracranial pressure from 3.6 +/- 1.2 to 12.3 +/- 2.0 mm Hg. The reason for hyperemia was a decrease of cortical pH which fell from 7.33 +/- 0.03 to 7.03 +/- 0.05, and which caused a dilation of pial arteries up to 260%. Immediately after embolism, the EEG flattened and oxygen consumption decreased. After normalization of flow, oxygen consumption returned to normal, but EEG only partially recovered. Air embolism had little effect on the water and electrolyte content of the brain, and produced very little damage to the blood-brain barrier.

Animals↗

Human keratinocyte cell lines differ in the expression of the collagenolytic matrix metalloproteinases-1,-8, and -13 and of TIMP-1.

We investigated cells and conditioned media of the three human keratinocyte cell lines HaCaT (non-tumorigenic), A5 (benign, tumorigenic) and II-4RT (malignant, tumorigenic) with regard to production and secretion of the collagenases-1 to -3 (MMP-1, MMP-8 and MMP-13) and TIMP-1 using semi-nested RT-PCR, Western blots, ELISA, immunocytochemistry and casein zymography. Transcripts of MMP-1, -8, -13 and TIMP-1 were detected in all cell lines by RT-PCR and the corresponding proteins were found in the cytoplasm of all three cell lines by Western blot analysis and/or immunocytochemistry. The conditioned media of the malignant II-4RT cells contain significantly more MMP-1 and MMP-8 than those of HaCaT or A5 as evidenced by immunoblotting and ELISA. In addition to the presence of latent MMP-1, zymography also detected the active form of this enzyme. TIMP-1 was found only in extracts of all three cell lines, predominantly in A5. This study clearly indicates that the epithelial tumor cells synthesize different collagenases and TIMP-1. The malignant clone secretes increased amounts of distinct collagenases compared to the non-tumorigenic cell line, thereby verifying a correlation between biological behaviour and the amount of collagenases. In addition, we provide clear evidence that MMP-8 is not exclusively found in polymorphonuclear granulocytes, but also in keratinocyte cell lines.

Base Sequence↗

[Inhibitors of acrosomal proteinase as antifertility agents. A problem of acrosomal membrane permeability (author's transl)].

In vitro studies were performed to investigate the accessibility of acrosin to various proteinase inhibitors inside the intact acrosome of testicular, ejaculated, and uterine human spermatozoa. As test system, the gelatin plate assay was used. For this assay, it was shown formerly that a correlation exists between the size of the digested lysis areas (halo formation) and acrosin activity estimated with synthetic substrates. In addition, saturation of the gelatin substrate membranes with acrosin inhibitors including highly specific ones before application of spermatozoa completely prevented halo formation indicating that the gelatinolytic activity of human spermatozoa is caused exclusively by acrosin. When human spermatozoa were incubated with various acrosin inhibitors (concentration: 1 mmol/1) prior to application to the gelatine membrane, reduction of halo formation could not be observed, however. This result indicates that most of the tested acrosin inhibitors (9 naturally occurring protein inhibitors, 2 microbial peptide inhibitors, 19 synthetic inhibitors) were unable to penetrate the acrosomal membranes of testicular, ejaculated, and uterine human spermatozoa. Only 2 inhibitors caused moderate to complete inhibition of the gelatinolytic activity of the spermatozoa if applied in concentrations between 1-10 mmol/l: the proteinase inhibitor aprotinin and the synthetic inhibitor NPGB (4-nitrophenyl 4-guanidinobenzoate). Obviously, human acrosomal membranes seem to be especially impenetrable to proteins, polypeptides, and synthetic agents. Those acrosin inhibitors penetrating the human sperm head membranes are either too toxic or the local concentration necessary for effective acrosin inhibition in vivo cannot be achieved within the male or female genital tract secretions. Therefore, acrosin inhitibors cannot be used for human contraception at present. Thus, it is mandatory to continue the search for suitable acrosin inhibitors with low toxicity easily penetrating into the intact sperm acrosome.

Biology↗