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Biomedical subjects

J L Ferguson

Publications and source records attributed to J L Ferguson.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Evidence that adenosine contributes to maintenance of hepatosplanchnic blood flow during peritoneal sepsis in rats.

Sepsis induced derangements in hepatosplanchnic perfusion can contribute to organ damage and death. Adenosine, a common and potent metabolic vasodilator, has not been evaluated as a mechanism for maintenance of blood flow during sepsis. We tested the hypothesis that adenosine receptor blockade would cause a decrease in hepatosplanchnic blood flow during intraperitoneal (i.p.) sepsis in the rat. Rats (250-350 g) were catheterized for hemodynamic and blood flow measurements with tracer microspheres. Sepsis was induced with an i.p. injection of cecal material (150 mg/kg in D5W; 5 mL/kg), and baseline measurements were taken 24 h later. Animals then received either the adenosine receptor antagonist 8-PTH (10 mM, 1.5 mL/kg), its vehicle (1.5 mL/kg) or normal saline (1.5 mL/kg), intravenously, and measurements were repeated 1 and 10 min later. There was a significant increase in hepatosplanchnic portal resistance in septic animals given 8-PTH, with no change in mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) or heart rate. Regionally, there was a significant decrease in gastric, small intestinal, cecal, and pancreatic blood flow when compared with vehicle. Adenosine receptor blockade caused a significant reduction in hepatosplanchnic blood flow during sepsis, suggesting that maintenance of splanchnic blood flow during sepsis involves receptor mediated adenosine actions.

Adenosine↗

The effects of diaspirin cross-linked hemoglobin in sepsis.

We tested the hypothesis that diaspirin cross-linked hemoglobin (DCLHb; Baxter Healthcare Corp.) would improve blood pressure, organ perfusion, and mortality during sepsis. Rats were catheterized to assess general hemodynamics (protocol 1) or regional blood flow (protocol 2). Sepsis was induced by intraperitoneal introduction of a cecal slurry (100 mg/kg). In protocol 1, rats received either 100 or 250 mg/kg DCLHb, or albumin at 1, 2, or 4 h after sepsis induction. Hemodynamics were recorded at these times and daily for 72 h. DCLHb increased blood pressure, prevented 72 h leukocytosis, and reduced mortality, but the timing of DCLHb administration was crucial. In protocol 2 only moribund septic animals received 100 mg/kg DCLHb or iso-oncotic albumin i.v. Hemodynamics and regional organ blood flows were measured at baseline, immediately before and after treatment, and at 24 h. DCLHb immediately increased blood pressure with no changes in cardiac output, heart rate, or regional perfusion. DCLHb increased regional perfusion to vital areas at 24 h (compared to albumin group). Distribution of cardiac output in albumin-treated rats was significantly skewed toward skeletal muscle at a time when cardiac output was significantly lower as compared with DCLHb treated animals. In conclusion, DCLHb safely elicited a pressor response, and improved regional perfusion to selected tissues. However, DCLHb benefits were best obtained when given within a specific time frame.

Albumins↗

Steroid hormone alterations following induction of chronic intraperitoneal sepsis in male rats.

The influence of sepsis on male reproductive function in chronic animal models has not been extensively investigated. On the basis of earlier clinical studies, it was hypothesized that chronic intraperitoneal (i.p.) sepsis in rats would modulate the circulating levels of steroid reproductive hormones. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (300-375 g) were randomized to septic and nonseptic groups. Sepsis was induced with cecal slurry (200 mg/kg/5 mL 5% dextrose in water (D5W); i.p.) in septic rats, while nonseptic rats received only sterile D5W. The rats (n = 8-12) were catheterized to measure systemic hemodynamics and to collect blood at 0, 12, 24, and 48 h after induction of sepsis/sham sepsis. A separate group of normal rats was included to serve as an unoperated control group. The plasma concentration of corticosterone, progesterone, and testosterone in serum was determined using radioimmunoassay. The heart rate was significantly increased at t = 12, 24, and 48 h following induction of sepsis. However, septic rats did not display any significant alterations in the mean arterial pressure and pulse pressure. Basal circulating concentrations of serum corticosterone, progesterone, and testosterone were 356 +/- 124 ng/mL, 2.37 +/- 1.03 ng/mL, and 1.88 +/- .29 ng/mL, respectively, in the unoperated rats. At t = 0 h there was a significant increase in the levels of corticosterone in septic rats and in the levels of progesterone in both septic and nonseptic rats. The elevations in the concentrations of corticosterone and progesterone returned to basal values after 24 and 48 h. The septic animals had significantly decreased levels of testosterone at t = 24 and 48 h as compared with basal values and nonseptic groups. Our model of sepsis produced a time-dependent decrease in levels of testosterone, an end product of male steroidogenesis. This, along with unchanged levels of corticosterone and progesterone at 24 and 48 h following sepsis, indicates that separate mechanisms for steroidogenesis regulating synthesis of these steroid hormones (progesterone and testosterone) occur with sepsis. It is concluded that in our chronic septic rat model, induction of i.p. sepsis produced dysfunction in steroidogenesis, which selectively affected the synthesis of testosterone.

Animals↗

Indomethacin attenuation of radiation-induced hyperthermia does not modify radiation-induced motor hypoactivity.

Exposure of rats to 5-10 Gy of ionizing radiation produces hyperthermia and reduces motor activity. Previous studies suggested that radiation-induced hyperthermia results from a relatively direct action on the brain and is mediated by prostaglandins. To test the hypothesis that hypoactivity may be, in part, a thermoregulatory response to this elevation in body temperature, adult male rats were given indomethacin (0.0, 0.5, 1.0, and 3.0 mg/kg, intraperitoneally), a blocker of prostaglandin synthesis, and were either irradiated (LINAC 18.6 MeV (nominal) high-energy electrons, 10 Gy at 10 Gy/min, 2.8 microseconds pulses at 2 Hz) or sham-irradiated. The locomotor activity of all rats was then measured for 30 min in a photocell monitor for distance traveled and number of vertical movements. Rectal temperatures of irradiated rats administered vehicle only were elevated by 0.9 +/- 0.2 degree C at the beginning and the end of the activity session. Although indomethacin, at the two higher doses tested, attenuated the hyperthermia in irradiated rats by 52-75%, it did not attenuate radiation-induced reductions in motor activity. These results indicate that motor hypoactivity after exposure to 10 Gy of high-energy electrons is not due to elevated body temperature or to the increased synthesis of prostaglandins.

Animals↗

Regional changes in blood flow, extracellular potassium and conduction during myocardial ischemia and reperfusion.

OBJECTIVES: We postulated that ventricular arrhythmias may arise from the heterogeneous washout of ischemic metabolites. Our objective was to investigate the distribution of extracellular potassium concentration ([K+]o) during myocardial ischemia and reperfusion and to correlate this distribution with regional differences in myocardial blood flow. BACKGROUND: Our previous study showed that reperfusion after a brief period of ischemia resulted in heterogeneous reflow of the ischemic myocardium. METHODS: The changes in regional myocardial blood flow, midmyocardial [K+]o and electrogram duration were quantitated in 14 dogs undergoing 20 min of left anterior descending coronary artery occlusion and 1 min of reperfusion. Regional myocardial blood flow was measured by using 15-microns radioactive microspheres in 1- to 1.5-g full thickness myocardial samples. The [K+]o was measured with intramyocardial K(+)-sensitive electrodes. RESULTS: During coronary occlusion, the ischemic zone exhibited a reduction in regional blood flow to 0.13 +/- 0.06 ml/g per min and increases in [K+]o to 9.3 +/- 2.6 mmol/liter and electrogram duration to 131.8 +/- 38.6% of control. Heterogeneous reduction in regional blood flow at various sites in the ischemic zone had fair correlations with variable increases in [K+]o (r = -0.70) and electrogram duration (r = -0.75). During min 1 of reperfusion, regional blood flow ranged from two to more than seven times baseline, resulting in a disorganized spatial distribution of perfusion with islands of high and low blood flows. Associated with the heterogeneous early reperfusion regional myocardial blood flow, [K+]o and electrogram duration changed at different rates toward normal. Whereas correlation between regional blood flow and [K+]o or standardized electrogram duration was fair during ischemia, this correlation was poor during early reperfusion. CONCLUSIONS: Spatial heterogeneity in regional myocardial blood flow during myocardial ischemia and early reperfusion is associated with heterogeneity in [K+]o and electrophysiologic characteristics, which in turn may play an important role in the genesis of arrhythmias arising from the ischemic and reperfused myocardium.

Animals↗

Heterogeneity of reperfusion after reversible regional myocardial ischemia in a canine model.

Variability of regional myocardial blood flow (RMBF) during reflow after 20 minutes of left anterior descending (LAD) coronary occlusion was measured by the radioactive microsphere technique in nine open-chest dogs. Preocclusion RMBF in the LAD territory was 0.89 +/- 0.27 ml/min/gm. Twenty minutes of LAD occlusion resulted in uniform and severe ischemia (RMBF < or = 0.25 ml/min/gm). After 1 minute of reperfusion, RMBF in the LAD territory rose to 3.48 +/- 1.88 ml/min/gm, and declined to 1.06 +/- 0.29 ml/min/gm after 20 minutes of reperfusion. RMBF variance increased significantly from 0.046 preocclusion to 0.2857 after 1 minute of reperfusion (p < 0.01) and declining to 0.086 after 20 minutes of reperfusion. By contrast, RMBF variance analysis of myocardial segments from the nonischemic left circumflex territory exhibited no significant change throughout the experiment. In any given dog this heterogeneous reperfusion of previously ischemic tissue resulted in a disorganized topography of blood flow rates. Myocardium with relatively high regional flow was intermingled with islands of tissue with relatively low blood flow. In conclusion, despite a relatively uniform and severe myocardial ischemic insult, the subsequent initial hyperemic response during reperfusion exhibits marked spatial heterogeneity. The juxtaposition of myocardial regions exposed to vastly differing rates of oxygen delivery and washout of toxic metabolites may set the stage for nonuniform recovery of myocardial function.

Analysis of Variance↗

Regional blood flow redistribution due to acetate.

There is little information about the effects of acetate on regional blood flow in unanesthetized animals. Isosmolal sodium acetate or saline was infused at a rate of 250 mumol/kg.min into conscious rats such that, in the acetate group, plasma acetate levels averaged 2.06 +/- 0.23 mM. Sequential injections of tracer-tagged microspheres were used to determine the effect of acetate infusion on cardiac output, total peripheral vascular resistance, and various organ blood flow rates. At this infusion level, acetate had no discernible effect on either central hemodynamics or arterial blood gases. However, there was marked alteration of regional organ perfusion. After 5 min of infusion, acetate (relative to control) increased blood flow markedly to the splanchnic bed (+40 +/- 6.1%), including all individual splanchnic organs except for the stomach. Acetate also increased blood flow to the heart (+33 +/- 5.2%) and kidneys (+29 +/- 5.4%); all P < 0.05. Acetate had no specific effect on total cerebral blood flow or on regional brain circulations. Acetate had no effect on flow to skeletal muscle (-30 +/- 11%; P = not significant) or fat (-5 +/- 6.3%; P = 0.097), although flow to muscle tended to decrease. These data suggest that low plasma levels of acetate, which do not alter total peripheral resistance, cause a marked redistribution of blood flow to the splanchnic organs and to the kidneys. Brain blood flow is unaffected.

Acetates↗

Serial injections of MK 801 (Dizocilpine) in neonatal rats reduce behavioral deficits associated with X-ray-induced hippocampal granule cell hypoplasia.

MK 801 (NMDA antagonist) has been shown to protect newborns from hypoxia-induced brain damage. Here, we determined if (+)-5-methyl-10,11-dihydroxy-5h-dibenzo (a,d)cyclohepten-5,10-imine (MK 801) could attenuate behavioral deficits associated with early radiation-induced hypoplasia of fascia dentata granule cells. We pretreated neonatal rats (n = 20) with MK 801 (0, 0.1, or 0.2 mg/kg, IP) before each of eight fractionated, head-only doses of X-rays (13 Gy total) administered during the first 16 days postpartum. Other rats (n = 18) received the same drug treatments but were sham irradiated. At age 16 months, water-escape latencies to a submerged platform were measured in a water maze. Irradiated rats with hippocampal damage exhibited impaired learning (longer latencies to find the platform) than did sham-irradiated subjects. Moderate doses of MK 801 (0.1 mg/kg) facilitated the learning of the water maze by irradiated subjects but did not enhance the number of their fascia dentata granule cells. Higher doses (0.2 mg/kg) of MK 801 provided no behavioral benefits. In fact, this dose significantly impaired the learning of the water maze by sham-irradiated rats and potentiated the granule cell hypoplasia observed in irradiated subjects. Thus, early MK 801 treatment produces dose-dependent behavioral protection for rats with radiation-induced hippocampal damage. Future studies may reveal the neurophysiological and neuroanatomic substrates of this behavioral recovery.

Animals↗

Hyperbaric oxygenation decreases blood flows in normal and septic rats.

The purpose of the study reported here was to characterize the effects of acute exposure to 100% oxygen at a pressure of 202.6 kPa on hemodynamics and organ blood flow in antibiotic-controlled bacterial sepsis. An abscess containing known numbers and strains of live Escherichia coli and Bacteroides fragilis was established in the peritoneal cavity of rats. Sham-operated rats were used as controls. Cardiac output, fractional blood flow distribution, and blood flow were calculated from data obtained using the radiolabeled microsphere technique. Myocardial and renal blood flows were decreased (20-30%) in both experimental groups during hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) exposure. Renal blood flow remained diminished for at least 20 min after rats were removed from the hyperbaric chamber. Adrenal gland perfusion in abscess-containing rats was reduced both during and after HBO exposure. Skeletal muscle blood flow (quadriceps and gastrocnemius muscles) was reduced by one third in both experimental groups 20 min after acute exposure to HBO. The results of this study indicate that changes in organ perfusion induced by HBO are similar in abscess-containing and normal rats. We conclude that HBO does not alter the regulation of blood flow in antibiotic-controlled sepsis.

Animals↗

Early neural grafts transiently reduce the behavioral effects of radiation-induced fascia dentata granule cell hypoplasia.

X-irradiation of the neonatal rat hippocampus produces a selective hypoplasia of fascia dentata granule cells, locomotor hyperactivity, perseverative movements and deficits in passive avoidance. We previously reported that transplantation of fetal hippocampal tissue into the adult (age = 182 +/- 4 days) brain produced a partial recovery of these behavioral deficits. Since graft/host interconnections are more prominent when transplants are conducted soon after radiation-induced hippocampal damage, in this study we transplanted hippocampal or cerebral cortex neurons when host rats were 33 +/- 5 days of age (i.e. only 16 days after radiogenic brain damage). Behavioral evaluations were conducted 80 and 182 days after transplantation or surgical control procedures. In the first test series only, selective components of locomotion (e.g. stereotypy and total distance traveled) and perseverative turning (e.g. mean bout length and turning speed topography) were normalized by the hippocampal grafts. Radiation-induced changes in passive avoidance were less prominent in these studies than in past experiments. Still, transplantation of hippocampal tissue improved performance on this learning task as well. Cerebral cortex grafts did not produce reliable improvements in most behavioral measures. These data suggest that hippocampal grafts placed soon after X-ray induced fascia dentata hypoplasia reduce a broad range of behavioral deficits. However, these benefits are transient and, for the most part, depend on the use of transplant tissues homologous with those damaged.

Animals↗

Alterations in splanchnic blood flow after low and high doses of ethanol.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effect of various acute doses of ethanol (1.0, 3.0, 4.0 g/kg) on the distribution of cardiac output (%CO) and blood flow to the splanchnic vascular bed in conscious male Wistar rats. Regional blood flow and cardiac output (CO) were measured by the reference microsphere technique. Mean arterial pressure and CO were significantly reduced 60 min after 3.0 g/kg and 4.0 g/kg of ethanol, while no changes occurred over time in total peripheral vascular resistance or heart rate. Acute ethanol administration produced an early non-sustained increase in portal vein blood flow, that was most pronounced after a low dose of ethanol, and was attenuated after the 3.0 g/kg and 4.0 g/kg doses of ethanol. The early increase in portal vein blood flow produced a corresponding increase in total liver blood flow. Additionally, we found increases in hepatic arterial blood flow after the higher doses. The combined increase in portal vein and hepatic arterial supply to the liver may serve to increase oxygen delivery, more than the singular increase in portal vein blood flow. This early increase in total liver blood flow after high doses of ethanol may be important for protecting hepatocyte function in the presence of high blood ethanol levels.

Animals↗

Neural grafts attenuate behavioral deficits produced by early radiation-induced hypoplasia of fascia dentata granule cells.

Localized X-irradiation of the mitotic cells in the neonatal rat hippocampus produces a discrete hypoplasia of the fascia dentata granule cell layer. This brain damage inhibits the acquisition of a passive avoidance task, and stimulates spontaneous perseverative turning (without reversals) in a plastic hemisphere apparatus. Here we report how transplantation of fetal brain tissue can attenuate these radiation-induced behavioral deficits. The partially shielded cerebral hemispheres of neonatal rats received fractionated exposures to 13 Gray (Gy) of X-rays during the first 16 days post partum. This procedure depleted 90% of the hippocampal granule cells while sparing other brain areas. Control animals were sham irradiated. Baseline behavioral tests were conducted when subjects reached an average age of 147 +/- 4 days. We recorded behavioral parameters known to be sensitive to hippocampal damage: (1) passive avoidance performance, and (2) perseverative spontaneous turning without reversals. Irradiated subjects later (average age = 182 +/- 4 days) received intracerebral transplants of either fetal (E20-21) neurons/neuronal precursors from the fascia dentata or cerebral cortex (control grafts). Additional controls (both irradiated and sham-irradiated) experienced sham surgical procedures or received no surgical manipulation. Two post-surgical behavioral retests were accomplished when rats were 265 +/- 5 and 351 +/- 6 days old. Rats were then sacrificed and brains were treated histologically to assess radiation-induced brain damage, graft survivability and graft locus. Both hippocampal and cerebral cortex grafts generally facilitated performance on the passive avoidance task. This effect was most prominent during the first post-surgical test. Hippocampal transplants (especially those found to reside in the damaged hippocampus) also significantly attenuated perseverative spontaneous rotation at the time of the final post-surgical test series. Cortex grafts found within the damaged hippocampus did not ameliorate perseverative movements, while cortex grafts located outside the hippocampus significantly reduced this behavioral deficiency. These data suggest that selected behavioral deficits may be attenuated by transplanting fetal neural tissue long after early radiation-induced brain damage. The success of these procedures depends on a number of factors including: (1) the behaviors chosen for analysis, (2) the time after transplantation that behavioral tests are conducted, and (3) the source and final location of the donor neural tissue.

Animals↗

Alterations in splanchnic blood flow following chronic ethanol exposure.

The purpose of these experiments was to determine whether or not tolerance develops to the effect of 3.0 g/kg ethanol on total and regional splanchnic blood flow in male Wistar rats. The animals were given the Lieber-DeCarli liquid diet containing ethanol for 10 days; ethanol-fed animals were withdrawn 24 hr prior to experiments. Regional blood flow and cardiac output (CO) were measured by the reference microsphere technique after an intraperitoneal injection of 3.0 g/kg of ethanol. Acute ethanol administration produced early nonsustained increases in portal vein blood flow in animals fed ethanol for 10 days and withdrawn for 24 hr and in control animals. However, after chronic exposure to ethanol, the pattern of increase in blood flow in response to ethanol in the splanchnic organs was different between the ethanol-fed and control groups. Increases in portal vein flow in control groups were due to concomitant increases in small intestinal, colonic, and cecal blood flow while the increase in the ethanol-fed group was due to a rise in small intestinal and stomach blood flow. The increase in stomach blood flow that occurred in the animals treated chronically with ethanol may be viewed as a conditioned response to ethanol, since this was not found in the control group. These results, demonstrate that the pattern of increase in blood flow in the splanchnic organs produced by an acute dose of ethanol depends on the animal's previous exposure to ethanol.

Alcohol Withdrawal Delirium↗

Coronary flow by left atrial and left ventricular microsphere injection in the rat.

Previous studies have reported significantly higher variability in coronary blood flow (CBF) measurements obtained by microsphere injection into the left ventricle (LV) as compared with microsphere injection into the left atrium (LA) of the rat. Questions have arisen concerning whether or not some of the variability may have been due to successive rather than simultaneous injections at the two sites, thereby giving measurements at different cardiovascular states. To address this question, we measured cardiac output (CO) and CBF as well as other systemic organ blood flows by employing simultaneous injection of two different sets of radiolabeled microspheres into the left atrium and left ventricle of semiconscious rats. Using this technique, CBF values (ml.min-1.g-1) of 5.45 +/- 0.43 and 5.24 +/- 0.46 for LA and LV injection sites, respectively, were measured (all values reported as means +/- SE). CO values (ml/min) of 67.5 +/- 3.5 for LA and 67.6 +/- 3.4 for LV were obtained. Paired left atrial and left ventricular measurements of CBF, CO, and other systemic organ blood flows using tracer microsphere methodology were not significantly different. All variabilities in these measurements by LA and LV injection were not significantly different. Our procedure did not significantly alter physiological parameters such as heart rate, mean arterial pressure, hematocrit, or blood gases. These findings indicate that, in our rat model, measurements made by LV microsphere injection are not only adequate for determining systemic blood flow at distal beds but provide coronary blood flow data with variability not significantly different from that of left atrial injection.

Animals↗

Effect of Klebsiella ozaenae on ciliary activity in vitro: implications in the pathogenesis of atrophic rhinitis.

Klebsiella ozaenae is a gram-negative rod that has been isolated with relative frequency from patients with atrophic rhinitis. The relationship of this bacterium to the pathogenesis of atrophic rhinitis is not understood, and whether this bacterium is simply an opportunistic colonizer of the injured nose or the etiologic agent of the disease is unclear. This study was designed to investigate a potential role for bacterially produced cilioinhibition as a mechanism for the pathogenesis of atrophic rhinitis.

Cilia↗

Enhanced acoustic startle responding in rats with radiation-induced hippocampal granule cell hypoplasia.

Irradiation of the neonatal rat hippocampus reduces the proliferation of granule cells in the dentate gyrus and results in locomotor hyperactivity, behavioral perseveration and deficits on some learned tasks. In order to address the role of changes in stimulus salience and behavioral inhibition in animals with this type of brain damage, irradiated and normal rats were compared in their startle reactions to an acoustic stimulus. A portion of the brain of 10 rats was exposed to a fractionated total dose of 13 Gy during the first 16 days post partum. This procedure produced selective hypoplasia (91% reduction) of the granule cells in the hippocampal dentate gyrus. Other rats (N = 10) were sham irradiated. Sudden tones were presented to each adult rat at a rate of 1 every 30 s (spaced trials) during an initial 10-min session and 1 every 15 s (massed trials) during a subsequent session. Irradiated rats startled with a consistently higher amplitude than controls and were more likely to exhibit startle responses. These animals with hippocampal damage also failed to habituate to the startle stimulus and, under certain circumstances, showed potentiated startle responses after many tone presentations.

Animals↗

Cryopreservation of canine trachea: functional and histological changes.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate tracheal viability and to document histological changes in an autograft implanted in the abdominal wall after a 1-week period of cryopreservation. A 5-cm segment of cervical trachea was resected in 6 dogs. One-half of the segment was cryopreserved and stored in liquid nitrogen at -196 degrees C for 1 week. The other half was immediately implanted in an abdominal pouch fashioned from the rectus abdominis muscle (control). One week later, the cryopreserved segment was thawed and then implanted in a similar contralateral muscular pouch. Five weeks later, the control and cryopreserved autografts were removed and compared with the in situ trachea. Ciliary beat frequency was assessed by transmitted light technique. Histology was evaluated by light microscopy. Gross anatomy and mucus production were maintained after cryopreservation. Histologically the cryopreserved segment displayed both normal epithelium and smooth muscle cells, but the cartilage was abnormal as characterized by empty lacunae. Mean ciliary beat frequency of in situ, control, and cryopreserved segments was 13.3 +/- 1.8, 13.5 +/- 1.5, and 13.3 +/- 1.1 beats per second (+/- the standard deviation), respectively. We conclude that smooth muscle, epithelium with mucus production, and ciliary function were retained after cryopreservation and reimplantation. Histological changes, however, were suggestive of early cartilage ischemia. These findings support further evaluation of cryopreserved canine tracheal grafts.

Animals↗