Neuroprotective effect of atorvastatin in spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion injury

OBJECTIVES: Prevention of the development of paraplegia during the repair of the damage caused by descending thoracic and thoracoabdominal aneurysms remains an important issue. Therefore, we investigated the protective effect of atorvastatin on ischemia-induced spinal cord injury in a rabbit model. METHOD: Thirty-two rabbits were divided into the following four equally sized groups: group I (control), group II (ischemia-reperfusion), group III (atorvastatin treatment) and group IV (atorvastatin withdrawal). Spinal cord ischemia was induced by clamping the aorta both below the left renal artery and above the iliac bifurcation. Seventy-two hours postoperatively, the motor function of the lower limbs of each animal was evaluated according to the Tarlov score. Spinal cord and blood samples were obtained for histopathological and biochemical analyses. RESULTS: All of the rabbits in group II exhibited severe neurological deficits. Atorvastatin treatment (groups III and IV) significantly reduced the level of motor dysfunction. No significant differences were observed between the motor function scores of groups III and IV at the evaluated time points. Light microscopic examination of spinal cord tissue samples obtained at the 72nd hour of reperfusion indicated greater tissue preservation in groups III and IV than in group II. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates the considerable neuroprotective effect of atorvastatin on the neurological, biochemical and histopathological status of rabbits with ischemia-induced spinal cord injury. Moreover, the acute withdrawal of atorvastatin therapy following the induction of spinal cord ischemia did not increase the neuronal damage in this rabbit model. .

Giant cell tumour of soft tissue--a case report.

Giant cell tumor is seen in late adolescence or in the third or fourth decade of life. It arises from epiphysis of long bones, the commonest site being the distal end of the demur and the proximal end of tibia. This paper presents a case report of giant cell tumor of soft tissue.

Annual variations of the sodium channel blocking toxin in Venezuelan cattle prone to develop the bovine paraplegic syndrome: its dependence on rain

A characteristic of the bovine paraplegic syndrome (BPS) is ventral or sternal decubitus in animals that make unsuccessful efforts to stand when stimulated. Death occurs after a few days. In a previous work we showed the existence of a sodium channel blocking toxin (SCBT) produced by ruminal bacteria in cattle with or liable to develop BPS. The presence of SCBT in bovine plasma sampled monthly during the rainy and dry seasons in animals without BPS has now been observed. A positive correlation between rain precipitation and plasma toxin levels (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient=0.457, n=135, p<10(-5) was found. Precipitation was 194 (121-289) mm water/month (n= 162 months in 27 years, median and its 95 per cent confidence interval) during the rainy season and 7 (0-35) mm water/month (n=109 months in 28 years) during the dry season [p < 10(-6), Mann-Whitney (Wilcoxon) test]. Plasma toxin levels were determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Toxin levels, expressed as peak units of area (PUA) at 340 nm, (1 PUA = 2.5 x 10(-6) units of absorbance/cm) were 5.5 (0.0 - 23.3) PUA/nl (n = 133) in the rainy season and 0.0 (0.0 - 1.1) PUA/nl in the dry season (n=88, p=2x10(-6)). The distribution of toxin concentration in both groups was also different (X² test, p=0.024,7, 7 degrees of freedon). It is then determined that toxin was not detectable in 84.1 per cent of the cows in the dry season (n = 88) and in only 38.3 per cent of the cows in the rainy season (n = 133) (X² test, p < 10(-6)).

Patología ultraestructural del músculo esquelético en el síndrome paraplejico del bovino / Skeletal muscle ultrastructural pathology in bovine paraplegic syndrome

En este trabajo se describen las alteraciones ultraestructurales encontradas en muestras tomadas de los músculos fásico rápido gastrocnemius y fásico lento soleus de 10 bovinos afectados por el síndrome parapléjico. Las anormalidades vistas fueron las siguientes: desorganización de los sistemas contráctil y sarcotubular, formación de vacuolas autofágicas, unas con restos de material mitocondrial y otras con partículas de glucógeno (glucogenosomas), disminución de la densidad electrónica de la cromatina y áreas de necrosis segmental con la estructura sarcolémica dañada. En tales áreas, los macrófagos fueron localizados entre masas homogéneas de material contráctil. Las alteraciones capilares fueron de poca importancia. Se discuten las anormalidades mencionadas en conexión con algunas deficiencias nutricionales minerales presentadas por los animales estudiados.