The decline in olfaction with age is well documented in histological, psychological, and electroencephalographical studies. However, there are few electrophysiological studies on changes in the sensitivity of the peripheral olfactory cells with age. We evaluated the behavior, the amplitude of electro-olfactogram (EOG), and the thickness of the olfactory epithelium in the Senescence-Accelerated Mouse (SAM-P1). This strain of mouse exhibits accelerated senescence and age-related pathologies, and it is commonly used as a model for research on aging. Its median survival time is 55 weeks. To ensure our results would be restricted to the olfactory system, we chose vanillin as a stimulus, because this stimulus has no definitive chorda tympani (VII) response, and we verified that it is tasteless. The data demonstrate that olfactory sensitivity to vanillin decreases dramatically with age in these mice, and that this is due to loss in the number of olfactory receptor cells.

Aging↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Electroencephalographic study of odor responses in the domestic fowl.

Although avian olfaction has been studied behaviorally and anatomically, few electrophysiological (EEG) studies exist. The purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of the olfactory function of the fowl with EEG recording. We found that slow waves decreased and the rapid waves increased in response to a variety of odors.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Comparison of thallium-201 and gallium-67 imaging in evaluation of head and neck tumors.

PURPOSE: 201Tl imaging was compared with 67Ga imaging in the detection of malignant head and neck tumors. METHOD: Eighteen patients with tumors in the head and neck region underwent both planar and SPECT imaging using 201Tl-chloride and 67Ga-citrate. The detection of primary tumors and lymph node (LN) metastases by visual evaluation was compared between 201Tl and 67Ga imaging. Additionally, quantitative analysis of the SPECT images was performed in eight patients. RESULTS: On visual evaluation, primary tumor uptake was detectable in 100% on the 201Tl SPECT images compared with 44% on the 67Ga SPECT images. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 201Tl in detecting LN metastases were higher than those of 67Ga SPECT; however, there was no statistical difference between 201Tl and 67Ga. The tumor-to-background ratio was significantly higher on 201Tl SPECT than on 67Ga SPECT. CONCLUSION: This study suggested that 201Tl could be useful in the evaluation of malignant tumors in the head and neck region.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Small cell carcinoma of the lung: CT findings of parenchymal lesions.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe the CT findings of small cell carcinoma of the lung. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CT findings were retrospectively reviewed in 38 patients (34 men, 4 women; aged 46-73 years) with pathologically proven small cell carcinoma. RESULTS: Tumors were located centrally in 23 cases (61%) and peripherally in 15 cases (39%). Twenty-seven patients had a bulky central mass with encasement of the great vessels or extrinsic compression of the airway (22 central tumors, 5 peripheral tumors). Six patients had peripheral lesions without adenopathy. Five peripheral small cell carcinomas demonstrated peribronchial thickening adjacent to the primary tumor. CONCLUSION: The first sign of small cell carcinoma most typically is a bulky central mass that represents metastasis to the hilar and/or mediastinal lymph nodes. Although no findings specific to peripheral small cell carcinoma are available, small cell carcinoma originating from the peripheral lung parenchyma should be included in the differential diagnosis when peribronchial thickening is associated with the tumor.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Thymidine phosphorylase activity in transitional cell cancer: relation to histological parameters and chemosensitivity to fluorouracil-related drugs.

BACKGROUND: Thymidine phosphorylase (TdR-Pase) is an essential enzyme for the metabolism of fluorouracil-related drugs and it is also recognized as a potent angiogenic factor. We measured the TdR-Pase activity in human transitional cell cancers (TCCs) of the urinary tract to assess the relationship between TdR-Pase activity and degree of tumor malignancy. Furthermore, we investigated the relationship between TdR-Pase activity and chemosensitivity to fluorouracil-related drugs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty-two TCC tissues and 12 normal bladder tissues were obtained. TdR-Pase activity was measured with the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The in vitro histoculture drug response assay was also performed to investigate tumor sensitivity to 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and doxifluridine (5'-DFUR). RESULTS: The TdR-Pase activity of TCCs was three-fold higher than that of normal tissues. The TdR-Pase activity increased along with the histological grade, and the TdR-Pase activity of invasive cancers was significantly higher than that of superficial cancers. However, TdR-Pase showed no relationship with the sensitivity to 5-FU or 5'DFUR. CONCLUSION: A high TdR-Pase activity in human TCCs was confirmed to predict a high tumor grade and stage. However, the anti-tumor effect of fluorouracil-related drugs was independent of the TdR-Pase activity.

Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Clinical usefulness of chemotherapy based on an in vitro chemosensitivity test in urothelial cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the clinical usefulness of individualized chemotherapy based on an in vitro chemosensitivity test, i.e., the histoculture drug response assay (HDRA), for urothelial cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 62 clinically obtained cancer specimens were studied. Each specimen was tested for sensitivity to nine anticancer drugs. The antitumor effect was calculated as the inhibition rate to their control values. The HDRA effective cytotoxic drugs were selected for clinical treatment. RESULTS: HDRA was possible in 58 out of 62 specimens (93.5%). Their chemosensitivity showed a wide variety even among the same histological category. No correlation was seen between histological grade and chemosensitivity. The effect of chemotherapy on the measurable lesions was studied in 12 patients and good clinical responses were obtained in 7 of them (58.3%). All 7 responders were the patients who received drugs predicted to be effective by HDRA. In 8 out of the 12 patients (66.7%), including 7 true-positive and 1 true-negative, HDRA correctly predlicted the clinical effect of chemotherapy. CONCLUSION: The HDRA might be feasible for predicting the efficacy and, therefore, selecting the proper anticancer drug for individual patients.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of dilevalol and propranolol on hemodynamics in patients with essential hypertension.

Eighteen patients with essential hypertension received 50 to 200 mg of dilevalol or 60 to 90 mg of propranolol daily for six weeks. Mean arterial blood pressure and venous pressure were significantly reduced in the dilevalol-treated patients at six weeks but were unchanged in the propranolol-treated patients. The cardiac index and systemic vascular resistance remained unchanged in the dilevalol group, but were significantly reduced (cardiac index) or increased (systemic vascular resistance) in the propranolol group. No changes in heart rate were noted in either treatment group. It is concluded that dilevalol has some ideal features for the treatment of hypertension, but further research is needed to determine the causes of fatal hepatotoxicity reported in a few cases.

Blood Pressure↗