Do distribution volumes and clearances relate to tissue volumes and blood flows? A computer simulation

Background

Thoracotomy is associated with severe pain that may persist for years. Acupuncture is a complementary therapy with a proven role in pain control. A randomized trial showed that acupuncture was effective in controlling pain after abdominal surgery, but the efficacy of this technique for the treatment of thoracotomy pain has not been established. We developed a novel technique for convenient application of acupuncture to patients undergoing thoracotomy, and in a Phase II trial evaluated the safety of this intervention and the feasibility of doing a randomized trial.

Methods

Adult patients scheduled for unilateral thoracotomy with preoperative epidural catheter placement received acupuncture immediately prior to surgery. Eighteen semi-permanent intradermal needles were inserted on either side of the spine, and four were inserted in the legs and auricles. Needles were removed after four weeks. Using a numerical rating scale, pain was measured on the first five postoperative days. After discharge, pain was assessed using the Brief Pain Inventory at 7, 30, 60 and 90 days.

Results

Thirty-six patients were treated with acupuncture. Of these, 25, 23, and 22 patients provided data at 30, 60, and 90 days, respectively. The intervention was well tolerated by patients with only one minor and transient adverse event of skin ulceration.

Conclusion

The rate of data completion met our predefined criterion for determining a randomized trial to be feasible (at least 75% of patients tolerated the intervention and provided evaluable data). This novel intervention is acceptable to patients undergoing thoracotomy and does not interfere with standard preoperative care. There was no evidence of important adverse events. We are now testing the hypothesis that acupuncture significantly adds to standard perioperative pain management in a randomized trial.     

Circadian rhythm of glycoprotein secretion in the vas deferens of the moth, Spodoptera littoralis

Background  

Reproductive systems of male moths contain circadian clocks, which time the release of sperm bundles from the testis to the upper vas deferens (UVD) and their subsequent transfer from the UVD to the seminal vesicles. Sperm bundles are released from the testis in the evening and are retained in the vas deferens lumen overnight before being transferred to the seminal vesicles. The biological significance of periodic sperm retention in the UVD lumen is not understood. In this study we asked whether there are circadian rhythms in the UVD that are correlated with sperm retention.     

Suppression of Boll Weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) Infestations on South Texas Cotton by Augmentative Releases of the Parasite Catolaccus grandis (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae)

Augmentative releases of Catolaccus grandis (Burks) were conducted in a series of south Texas cotton fields during 1992 (April 30-June 29) in an attempt to suppress infestations of boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boheman. Within each of three release sites, the average incidence of mortality occurring among susceptible host stages (94.4-96.4% and 86.1-96.6% apparent mortality among third-stage larvae and pupae, respectively) was substantially greater than that occurring among these same stages in controls devoid of parasites (2.2-9.6% and 1.8-7.9% apparent mortality, respectively). Such differential mortality produced two important effects: (1) a significant reduction in densities of adult boll weevils produced in release sites relative to controls (0.0-0.1 and 0.3-1.6 unemerged adults/m², respectively), and (2) a concomitant reduction in the incidence of damaged bells during the postbloom period (0.2-0.4% and 48.3-91.7% in release and control sites, respectively). These results conclusively demonstrated the ability of C. grandis to suppress and maintain boll weevil infestations at subeconomic levels when augmented in sufficient quantities during the period in which the first and second host generations normally develop on cultivated cotton. The potential for augmentative biological control of boll weevil in the south Texas cotton environment is discussed.     

The potential of in situ hybridization and an immunogold assay to identify Legionella associations with other microorganisms.

Based on in vitro studies, bacteria in the genus Legionella are believed to multiply within protozoa such as amoebae in aquatic environments. Current methods used for detection of Legionella species, however, are not designed to show this relationship. Thus the natural intimate association of Legionella with other microorganisms remains to be clearly documented and the extent to which protozoa might be infected with Legionella species remains undefined. In this report we describe methods based on the use of Legionella specific reagents that would prove useful in describing its associations with other microorganisms. An immunogold and in situ hybridization technique have the potential to demonstrate the natural occurrence of Legionella species in free-living amoebae. In preliminary observations, however, bacteria reactive with Legionella specific reagents were often not intimately associated with amoebae. Bacteria occurred as free single cells, as cell aggregates, in proximity to other cells and debris, and only occasionally in close proximity to amoebae. Although some Legionella species replicate within amoebae, these preliminary observations suggest the bacteria may be encountered most frequently as extracellular microorganisms, either free-floating or in association with other structures or microorganisms. The future use of these techniques will aid in the elucidation of any naturally occurring relationships between Legionella species and other microorganisms.