Kinetics of TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma mRNA expression in islets and spleen of NOD mice

Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus is caused by autoimmune destruction of pancreatic ß cells. Non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice spontaneously develop diabetes similar to the human disease. Cytokines produced by islet-infiltrating mononuclear cells may be directly cytotoxic and can be involved in islet destruction coordinated by CD4+ and CD8+ cells. We utilized a semiquantitative RT-PCR assay to analyze in vitro the mRNA expression of TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma cytokine genes in isolated islets (N = 100) and spleen cells (5 x 10(5) cells) from female NOD mice during the development of diabetes and from female CBA-j mice as a related control strain that does not develop diabetes. Cytokine mRNAs were measured at 2, 4, 8, 14 and 28 weeks of age from the onset of insulitis to the development of overt diabetes. An increase in IFN-gamma expression in islets was observed for females aged 28 weeks (149 ± 29 arbitrary units (AU), P<0.05, Student t-test) with advanced destructive insulitis when compared with CBA-j mice, while TNF-alpha was expressed in both NOD and CBA-j female islets at the same level at all ages studied. In contrast, TNF-alpha in spleen was expressed at higher levels in NOD females at 14 weeks (99 ± 8 AU, P<0.05) and 28 weeks (144 ± 17 AU, P<0.05) of age when compared to CBA-j mice. The data suggest that IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha expression in pancreatic islets of female NOD mice is associated with ß cell destruction and overt diabetes

Contribuiçäo ao estudo epidemiológico das ginecopatias prevalentes no atendimento primário de saúde / Epidemiologic study of gynecological diseases prevalent at the primary health care

Os autores pretendem mostrar a alta prevalência de doenças sem manifestaçöes clínicas aparentes, através de um levantamento feito com 2.200 mulheres de níveis sócio-culturais diferentes e idades entre 15 e 58 anos, a partir de exames clínico-ginecológicos realizados em dois ambulatórios da UNICAMP. O estudo deixa evidente que, do total de pacientes que procuram, por motivos ginecológicos ou näo, a atençäo primária nestes ambulatórios onde foi detectado algum tipo de afecçäo genito-urinária, perto da metade näo apresentou qualquer queixa clínica que pudesse sugerir a existência do problema. Destacam também a influencia do nível sócio-cultural das pacientes no grau de percepçäo dessas doenças e enfatizam a importância da atençäo primária reorganizada de forma mais eficiente com a melhor maneira de solucionar o problema