In order to reveal the precursor lesion of hepatocellular carcinoma, a histopathologic study was performed on 141 cases of liver cirrhosis with or without hepatocellular carcinoma. Exclusive of primary or metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma nodules, 94 nodular lesions (greater than 5 mm) were detected in 53 cirrhotic livers. They consisted of 83 large regenerative nodules and 11 dysplastic nodules. Besides some common features with those observed in the former type, the dysplastic nodules presented increased cytoplasmic basophilia, nuclear and nucleolar enlargement, nuclear crowding, occasional microacinar formation and proliferation of the hepatocytes within fibrous septa. These changes were not substantial enough to allow the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. In one case, however, malignant transformation of hepatocytes was suspected because of their pattern of extranodular outgrowth. It is important to recognize these subtle abnormalities in order to define premalignant hepatic lesions. A possible connection between benign large regenerative nodules and dysplastic nodules is also discussed.

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular↗

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Coil embolization of a persistent sciatic artery aneurysm.

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Aged↗

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Effects of chronic codergocrine mesylate administration on the brain somatostatinergic system in aged rats.

Codergocrine mesylate (dihydroergotoxine; DHET), which is an ergot derivative, has been reported to counteract some age-induced impairments in brain function, but the mechanism of these effects is not known. We examined the effect of chronic DHET administration on the somatostatinergic system in the brains of aged rats. Intraperitoneal injections of DHET (1 mg/kg per day) or of vehicle were given to aged rats for 14 days, and resulted in a significant increase in somatostatin (SOM) receptor binding in all six brain regions examined except the hindbrain. DHET had no effect on SOM receptor binding in the brains of young-adult rats. However, the SOM concentration in aged rats was nearly identical to that in young-adult rats and the SOM concentration in different brain areas did not change after chronic administration of DHET. Thus, the present results suggest that chronic administration of DHET can ameliorate at least one of the age-induced impairments of brain somatostatinergic function.

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Cholinergic deficits in aged rat brain are corrected with nicergoline.

Choline acetyltransferase (CAT) and muscarinic cholinergic receptor (MCR) activities are markedly reduced in aged as compared with young-adult rat brain. Nicergoline was found to correct these reduced activities in most regions of the brain, especially in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. Chronic administration of nicergoline had no effect on CAT activity or MCR binding in young-adult rat brain. Nicergoline thus appears to have a specific therapeutic effect on cholinergic functions in aged rat brain, where it acts both pre-synaptically and post-synaptically.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effects of repeated administration of rolipram, a cAMP-specific phosphodiesterase inhibitor, on acetylcholinergic indices in the aged rat brain.

The effects of repeated treatment of rolipram, a cAMP specific phosphodiesterase inhibitor (0.1 mg/kg/day i.p., 14 days), on several neuronal cholinergic indices, especially on those in aged rats were examined. In young-adult rats, rolipram treatment increased choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity (V(max)value) in the striatum as well as in thalamus + midbrain, whereas it decreased choline esterase activity in the hippocampus. The ChAT activity (V(max)value) and the M1-R binding (B(max)value) in the aged control rats were significantly reduced in all the brain regions examined, compared with the young-adult rats, but consecutive rolipram treatment ameliorated the reductions of both indices in the frontal cortex and the hippocampus to approximately the young-adult control levels. Since high membrane binding site concentrations for rolipram itself were revealed in the frontal cortex and the hippocampus, where the rolipram treatment showed ameliorating effects on the ChAT activity and the M1-R binding, the present findings indicate that repeated rolipram administration easily affects these two brain regions. Thus, repeated rolipram administration could restore both the presynaptic ChAT activity and the postsynaptic muscarinic cholinergic M1-R binding which are decreased with aging.

Journal Article↗