In an attempt to clarify the protective action of an antioxidant agent against acute toxicity of thioacetamide (TAA) and in order to throw some light on an satisfying concept of the mechanism of its action, a single dose of alphatocopherol (200 mg per kg) was given orally by stomch tube to male mice prior to the administration of thioacetamide in a dose of 200 mg per kg of body weight. Sections of liver samples, obtained from the mice which were sacrificed at intervals of 3, 6, 9, or 12 hours after TAA administration, were stained using the methyl green-pyronin technique. At 3 hours following TAA administration, the pretreatment with alpha-tocopherol inhibited almost completely such alterations of the hepatocytes in the animals given TAA alone, as revealed by loss and clumping of cytoplasmic pyroninophilic granules in the periportal zone of the lobule. At 6, 9, and l2 hours, the prevention of alpha-tocopherol was incomplete in degree and extent. The changes of the hepatocytes were more intense and extensive in the TAA-treated 6 to 12 hour-groups than in the 3 hour-group of TAA-treated ones. Some discussion is given of the mechanism of TAA toxicity, with respect to the microsoma1 lipid peroxidation.
Acetamides/poisoning* ; Animal ; Hepatitis, Toxic/pathology* ; Hepatitis, Toxic/prevention & control ; Liver/pathology* ; Male ; Mice ; Vitamin E/pharmacology* ; Vitamin E/therapeutic use

Twenty-four ma1e a1bino rats were chosen at random and divided into two dietary groups: one for control (diet 1) and the other for an experimental diet (diet 2). Diet II consisted of the basal diet supplemented with red pepper powder in increasing amounts from 1.25%, 1.8% and 2.5% to 3.6%. With a red pepper diet at the 2.5% level, there was a significantly lower efficiency of food utilization. (p=0.05) The apparent digestlbility of calcium with red pepper concentrations from 2.5 to 35% was about 13% greater than in tile control diet. Thus red pepper appears to affect the solubility of calcium in the diet. Serum alpha-Carotene and Vitamin A showed a tendency to increase slightly with a red pepper diet. No histological changes in the gastric mucosa cells were observed in rats fed a red pepper diet. Further investigation is required to define the effects of red pepper in different species of animals.
Absorption* ; Animals ; Calcium* ; Capsicum* ; Diet ; Gastric Mucosa ; Rats* ; Solubility ; Vitamin A* ; Vitamins*

A 34-year-old female with multiple sclerosis (MS) was scheduled Cesarean section. She had been suffering from MS for 10 years and the symptoms of MS were paraplegia and urinary incontinence. After informed consent, anesthesia was induced with propofol and maintained with nitrous oxide, sevoflurane and fentanyl. Rocuronium was used for muscle relaxation and tracheal intubation. Train of four (TOF) ratio and bispectral index scale were monitored for adequate muscle relaxation and depth of anesthesia. She gave birth to a baby within 7 minutes after skin incision. When operation was over, TOF ratio was 0.8. She emerged from general anesthesia smoothly and was extubated. There was no febrile event or exacerbation of MS after Cesarean section under general anesthesia. We report a safe anesthetic management of the parturient with MS, using sevoflurane.
Adult ; Androstanols ; Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, General ; Cesarean Section ; Female ; Fentanyl ; Humans ; Informed Consent ; Intubation ; Methyl Ethers ; Multiple Sclerosis ; Muscle Relaxation ; Nitrous Oxide ; Paraplegia ; Parturition ; Pregnancy ; Propofol ; Skin ; Stress, Psychological ; Urinary Incontinence

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease (CVD), especially ischemic heart disease (IHD) and vascular access occlusion (VAO) is the most common morbidity in dialysis patients. Hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) is regarded as an independent risk factor of atherosclerosis in general population, however clinical implication of HHcy in dialysis patients is controversial. Nutritional status of dialysis patients is also known to be closely linked to CVD. METHODS: To investigate the impact of the presence of HHcy and malnutrition on cardiovascular events, especially ischemic heart disease (IHD) and vascular access occlusion (VAO). We measured plasma levels of Hcy and other biochemical parameters with an evaluation of nutritional status using subjective global assessment (SGA) in 44 HD patients and gender-matched control subjects of comparable age. RESULTS: Mean plasma Hcy was 18.6 microM/L (range 5-28), which was significantly higher than normal control (8.6+/-2.0 microM/L, p< 0.05). There was no significant correlation between plasma Hcy and the levels of folate or vit B12. Mean Hcy was significantly higher in patients with normal nutritional status compared to mild-to-moderately malnourished patients (22.0+/-3.2 vs. 15.1+/-4.1 microM/L, p<0.05), and there was a significant positive correlation of Hcy level with serum albumin or nPNA. There was no significant difference in plasma Hcy level according to the presence of IHD or VAO. However, interestingly, in HD patients group with lower serum albumin (<3.9 g/ dL), frequency of VAO was significantly correlated with Hcy (r2=0.68, p<0.001) whereas no significant correlation was observed in patients with higher albumin level. CONCLUSION: The clinical implication of HHcy in HD patients may be different from general healthy population. Nutritional status can be one of the important factors influencing plasma Hcy level. And, high plasma level of Hcy in malnourished HD patients has to be carefully followed up in terms of the development of atherosclerotic CVD and VAO.
Atherosclerosis ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Dialysis ; Folic Acid ; Humans ; Hyperhomocysteinemia* ; Malnutrition ; Myocardial Ischemia ; Nutritional Status* ; Plasma ; Renal Dialysis* ; Risk Factors ; Serum Albumin

BACKGROUND: Previously, cutaneous lymphomas were classified according to either the European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) or the World Health Organization (WHO) classification paradigms. The aim of this study was to determine the relative frequency of Korean cutaneous lymphoma according to the new WHO-EORTC classification system. METHODS: A total of 517 patients were recruited during a recent 5 year-period (2006-2010) from 21 institutes and classified according to the WHO-EORTC criteria. RESULTS: The patients included 298 males and 219 females, and the mean age at diagnosis was 49 years. The lesions preferentially affected the trunk area (40.2%). The most frequent subtypes in order of decreasing prevalence were mycosis fungoides (22.2%), peripheral T-cell lymphoma (17.2%), CD30+ T-cell lymphoproliferative disorder (13.7%), and extranodal natural killer/T (NK/T) cell lymphoma, nasal type (12.0%). Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma accounted for 11.2% of cases, half of which were secondary cutaneous involvement; other types of B-cell lymphoma accounted for less than 1% of cases. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison with data from Western countries, this study revealed relatively lower rates of mycosis fungoides and B-cell lymphoma in Korean patients, as well as higher rates of subcutaneous panniculitis-like T-cell lymphoma and NK/T cell lymphoma.
Academies and Institutes ; Classification* ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Lymphoma* ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Lymphoma, T-Cell ; Lymphoma, T-Cell, Peripheral ; Lymphoproliferative Disorders ; Male ; Mycosis Fungoides ; Prevalence ; T-Lymphocytes ; World Health Organization