ABSTRACT
Many clinical abnormalities in atopic eczema have been attributed to an imbalance in autonomic nervous system control, specifically a partial blockade of beta-adrenergic responsiveness. The lysosomal enzyme beta-glucuronidase is released from granulocytes during in vitro incubation with complement-activated zymosan particles. Isoproterenol will inhibit the release of this lysosomal enzyme from the granulocyte and the isoproterenol effect is associated with increased granulocyte cyclic AMP formation. In atopic eczema and asthma, this granulocyte response to isoproterenol is impaired. Histamine also inhibits in vitro zymosan induced release of beta-glucuronidase and this is an H2 histamine effect. In asthma, this H2 histamine response is diminished. In the following study, we found a similar impairment in histamine inhibition of beta-glucuronidase release and formation of granulocyte cAMP in atopic eczema. This defect was found only in granulocytes from patients with active eczema. Thus in active atopic eczema, defects in the pharmacological response of the granulocyte are not limited to beta-adrenergic agonists but include H2 histamine activity.
Subject(s)
Eczema/blood , Granulocytes/metabolism , Receptors, Histamine H2/metabolism , Receptors, Histamine/metabolism , Adult , Cyclic AMP/blood , Female , Glucuronidase/blood , Granulocytes/drug effects , Granulocytes/enzymology , Histamine/pharmacology , Humans , In Vitro Techniques , Lysosomes/drug effects , Lysosomes/enzymology , Male , Metiamide/pharmacology , Middle Aged , Zymosan/pharmacologyABSTRACT
Woolly hair is very curly hair that is characteristically unruly and will not form naturally into locks. Woolly hair nevus first appears when the scalp hair begins to grow. It is seen as a patch of unruly, very curly hair, arising in a field of otherwise unremarkable scalp hair. Woolly hair can also be seen as a hereditary trait involving the entire scalp and in acquired forms. It may be distinguished from two other types of unruly hair, pili torti and spun glass hair.
Subject(s)
Hair/abnormalities , Nevus, Pigmented/complications , Skin Neoplasms/complications , Adult , Dermatitis, Seborrheic/complications , Female , Humans , Male , Scalp Dermatoses/complications , Warts/complicationsABSTRACT
A new method of sectioning hair specimens has been devised that employs Araldite as an embedding medium. This has greater rigidity than paraffin and eliminates the possibility of compression on sectioning with resultant distortion of the hair shaft. Semithin sections could be sectioned at the perpendicular and examined with phase contrast optics. By correlating the cross section with the longitudinal position of the hair shaft within this translucent medium, exact cross sections of various hair types could be obtained.
