Vers une approche physiopathologique des troubles de l’éjaculation

Seminal emission and sperm expulsion are under the control of both the sympathetic and parasympathetic outflows and also of the somatic innervation conveyed by the pudendal nerve. The 2 phases of ejaculation are reflexive with the reflexes handled at the thoraco-lumbar and sacral levels of the spinal cord. Such a spinal organization remains widely unknown. The role of various peripheral neurotransmitters has been evidenced including norepinephrine and acetylcholine and also peptidergic, purinergic i.e. ATP and nitric oxide. Stimulation of the seminal tract afferents play a crucial in the onset of ejaculatory mechanisms. Except for the dorsal nerve of the penis, there is a lack of information concerning these afferents. Several supraspinal centers i.e. hypothalamus, medial amygdala, pons and nucleus paragigantocellularis exert descending and ascending inhibitory and excitatory influences on spinal nuclei controlling emission and expulsion of sperm. Central neurotransmission responsible for this supraspinal control could involve serotonin, oxytocin and norepinephrine. In the light of the available anatomical and neurophysiological data, pathophysiological aspects of ejaculatory disorders are futher discussed. Premature ejaculation could be related to a periheral and central hypersentivity. Most of the other ejaculation abnormalities are likely mainly related to an impairment of the central mechanisms.     

Effects of various alcoholic supplements on the growth rate of Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824

Summary The inhibitory effect of various alkanols, benzyl alcohol and phenethyl alcohol on the growth rate of Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824 was investigated. Inhibition of cell growth was studied by treating cultures with varied concentrations of alcohols. There was a threshold concentration above which growth inhibition occurred. The degree of inhibition was a linear function of the alcohol concentration used. The natural logarithm of the inhibition constant was shown to be: (1) a linear function of the chain length of the alkanols, (2) a linear function of the natural logarithm of the octanol/water partition coefficient for both aliphatic and cyclic alcohols.     

Hematology, serum chemistry values, and rectal temperatures of adult greater galagos (Galago garnetti and G. crassicaudatus)

Hematological and serum chemistry values, as well as rectal temperatures, were obtained from greater galagos (Galago garnettii and G. crassicaudatus), in order to establish normative values. No species or sex differences were found for four hematological parameters and 15 serum chemistry parameters. Species differences were seen in phosphate, magnesium, cholesterol, alkaline phosphate, G-glutamyl transferase, mean corpuscular volume and leucocyte, neutrophil, and lymphocyte number. Significant sex differences were observed in glucose, hemoglobin, and hematocrit values. Species and sex differences were seen in chloride and erythrocyte number.     

Purification and characterization of Kurloff cell sialoglycoproteins with acid phosphatase activity

The majora2–6 sialoglycoproteins in detergent-extracts of Kurloff cells were purified by anion-exchange andSambucus nigra agglutinin-affinity chromatographies. The similar ultrastructural localisations of (1)S. nigra agglutinin-gold conjugates and (2) acid phosphatase activities on the Kurloff body and particularly on its myelin figures indicated that the majora2-6 sialoglycoproteins of the Kurloff cell had acid phosphatase activity. Two-dimensional electrophoresis showed that these tartrate-sensitive phosphatases corresponded to 2 acidic (pI 3.4–3.7) polypeptides of 36 and 34 kDa. Hydrolysis with peptide-N-glycosidases F gave a 33 kDa apoprotein rich in alanine, glutamic acid, tyrosine and lysin. A lectin-affinity study demonstrated that they contained hybrid type bisected and fucosylatedN-linked oligosaccharides. Cytotoxic properties were previously attributed to Kurloff cells and other studies suggested that not only acid phosphatases but alsoa2-6-linked sialic acid residues themselves may participate in natural killer activity.     

Kurloff cell lysosomal arylsulphatases: Presence of both cationic and highly anionic isoforms of the sole B class

Following the previous ultrastructural demonstration of the presence of arylsulphatase (Asase) activities in Kurloff cells (KC) and of their quasi-exclusive localization in the Kurloff body (KB), this work investigates their biochemical and zymographic properties after extraction from purified KC suspensions. Using the discriminative inhibitory conditions of both the Baum or LeeVaupel and Conzelmann methods, nitrocatechol sulphate hydrolyzing enzymes of the KC were assumed to belong to the B class of the type II Asase alone. After electrophoretic separation under non-denaturing conditions in a 4–23% polyacrylamide gel, they were characterized by 55 kDa and 62 kDa zymographic bands. After isoelectric focusing, ‘classical’ cationic isoforms (pI 8.5) and two anionic isoforms (pI 4.4 and 4.6) were observed on zymograms. As expected for class B Asase, the different zymographic forms of KC Asase were only recovered in the unadsorbed fraction after anion-exchange chromatography on DEAE-cellulose column equilibrated with high ionic strength buffer. Their K_m (2.1 mM), their optimum pH (5.8) and their inhibitions by sulfite, phosphate, sulphate and ascorbic acid as well as their slight stimulation by AgNO₃ were also characteristic of this class of Asase. Finally, chondroitin4-sulphate was shown to potentially be a physiological substrate for these lysosomal enzymes.     

Development of a computer identification system for coliform strains

A computer identification system, previously described, was tested on 279 β-galactosidase-positive enterobacteria isolated from clinical material, and the results compared with API and Micro ID methods. The system was also applied to the identification of 564 strains isolated from drinking water samples. Faecal coliform species and also some new groups and species of aquatic and telluric origin characterized by numerical analysis and DNA-DNA hybridization procedures could be identified. The performance of the computer identification system with bacterial isolates from food and water is discussed.     

Kurloff cell proteoglycans. Evidence for de novo synthesis of chondroitin sulphate proteoglycans by purified Kurloff cells

This paper reports the first direct demonstration of de novo synthesis of chondroitin sulphate proteoglycans by Kurloff cells. This was achieved using highly purified splenic Kurloff cells labelled in vitro with [35S]sulphate and D-[U-3H]glucosamine. A single population of sulphated proteoglycans was observed after dissociative extraction, DEAE-cellulose chromatography, Sepharose CL 6B chromatography and fluorography after electrophoresis. These were large, highly anionic proteoglycans and were completely digested by chondroitinase AC or ABC. Moreover, glycosaminoglycan extracted from Kurloff cells had the electrophoretic mobility of control chondroitin sulphate.     

Airway cellularity, lipid laden macrophages and microbiology of gastric juice and airways in children with reflux oesophagitis

Background and methods

Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) is a recently discovered respiratory virus associated with bronchiolitis, pneumonia, croup and exacerbations of asthma. Since respiratory viruses are frequently detected in patients with acute exacerbations of COPD (AE-COPD) it was our aim to investigate the frequency of hMPV detection in a prospective cohort of hospitalized patients with AE-COPD compared to patients with stable COPD and to smokers without by means of quantitative real-time RT-PCR.

Results

We analysed nasal lavage and induced sputum of 130 patients with AE-COPD, 65 patients with stable COPD and 34 smokers without COPD. HMPV was detected in 3/130 (2.3%) AE-COPD patients with a mean of 6.5 × 10⁵ viral copies/ml in nasal lavage and 1.88 × 10⁵ viral copies/ml in induced sputum. It was not found in patients with stable COPD or smokers without COPD.

Conclusion

HMPV is only found in a very small number of patients with AE-COPD. However it should be considered as a further possible viral trigger of AE-COPD because asymptomatic carriage is unlikely.     

Establishment and follow-up of bifidobacterial species in the gut of healthy bottle-fed infants of 1–4 months age

Twenty-one healthy bottle-fed infants were screened monthly (1-4 months) for bifidobacteria in their stools. Bifidobacteria were detected by culture and isolates specified by PCR. Alternatively, direct PCR in undiluted fecal suspensions was carried out for detection of bifidobacteria under the cultural detection level. All infants harbored cultivable bifidobacteria throughout the study period. Beerens medium was shown to permit a better recovery of bifidobacteria than MRS and horse blood Columbia agar. Direct PCR detection proved valuable in detecting species for which no cultural isolate could be recovered since the species were under the cultural detection level. B. bifidum, B. longum-infantis and B. breve were confirmed as dominant and stable species in infant stools while B. adolescentis and B. catenulatum group exhibited unstable colonization profiles. A trend towards B. breve decrease began at month 3 while carriage of the B. catenulatum group and B. adolescentis was rising. This observation warrants further analysis to assess a possible switch occurring at month 3 in bottle-fed infants, between so-called infant and adult bifidobacterial species.