Dopamine D2 and Adenosine A2A Receptors Interaction on Ca2+ Current Modulation in a Rodent Model of Parkinsonism.

SUMMARY STATEMENT: A2A receptor required previous D2 receptor activation to modulate Ca2+ currents. Istradefylline decreases pramipexole modulation on Ca2+ currents. Istradefylline reduces A2A + neurons activity in striatial microcircuit, but pramipexole failed to further reduce neuronal activity.

Prolonged prophylactic effects of gabapentin on status epilepticus-induced neocortical injury.

Long-term consequences of status epilepticus (SE) occur in a significant proportion of those who survive the acute episode. We developed an in vivo model of acute focal neocortical SE (FSE) to study long-term effects on local cortical structure and function and potential strategies to mitigate adverse consequences of SE. An acute 2 h episode of FSE was induced in anesthetized mice by epidural application of gabazine +4-aminopyridine over sensorimotor neocortex. Ten and 30 days later, the morphological and functional consequences of this single episode of FSE were studied using immunocytochemical and electrophysiological techniques. Results, focused on cortical layer V, showed astrogliosis, microgliosis, decreased neuronal density, and increased excitatory synapses, along with increased immunoreactivity for thrombospondin 2 (TSP2) and α2δ-1 proteins. In addition, neocortical slices, obtained from the area of prior focal seizure activity, showed abnormal epileptiform burst discharges along with increases in the frequency of miniature and spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents in layer V pyramidal cells, together with decreases in both parvalbumin immunoreactivity (PV-IR) and the frequency of miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents in layer V pyramidal cells. Treatment with an approved drug, gabapentin (GBP) (ip 100 mg/kg/day 3×/day for 7 days following the FSE episode), prevented the gliosis, the enhanced TSP2- and α2δ-1- IR and the increased excitatory synaptic density in the affected neocortex. This model provides an approach for assessing adverse effects of FSE on neocortical structure and function and potential prophylactic treatments.

Characterization of Phosphoranes Obtained by the Spontaneous Carbonyl-Catalyzed Phosphorylation of Monosaccharides and Polyols in Aqueous Media.

Phosphorylation is a very important biochemical process in metabolism and biochemical marking. The mechanism for the biophosphorylation of substrates and the hydrolysis/transesterification of RNA has been suggested to proceed through phosphorane intermediates. Although the phosphorane intermediate/transition state has long been a subject of many theoretical models and studies, it has neither been isolated nor characterized, with most information derived from the hydrolysis and radiolabeling of cyclic phosphotriesters. We herein present the first report of the spontaneous phosphorylation of sugars and polyols in the absence of enzymes. That is, aldehydes and ketones combine with inorganic phosphates to form activated phosphates that phosphorylate alcohols without the requirement of any enzyme or additional activating agent. This phosphorylation is particularly favored in polyhydroxycarbonyls that can form internal cyclic acetals to give rise to the corresponding acetal phosphoranes. We have further characterized these phosphoranes and demonstrated their dehydration to the corresponding phosphates by using high-resolution mass spectroscopy. The phosphorylation of adenosine and uridine to form the corresponding phosphoranes was also achieved.

Infecciones profundas por Gardnerella vaginalis en el varón. Revisión de la literatura y a propósito de un caso / Male deep infections by Gardnerella vaginalis. A literature review and a case report

No disponible

Infección del tracto urinario por Lactobacillus delbrueckii, microorganismo usado como probiótico / Urinary tract infection by Lactobacillus delbrueckii, microorganism used as probiotic

No disponible

Modulation of direct pathway striatal projection neurons by muscarinic M4-type receptors.

Models of basal ganglia (BG) function posit a dynamic balance between two classes of striatal projection neurons (SPNs): direct pathway neurons (dSPNs) that facilitate movements, and indirect pathway neurons (iSPNs) that repress movement execution. Two main modulatory transmitters regulate the output of these neurons: dopamine (DA) and acetylcholine (ACh). dSPNs express D1-type DA, M1-and M4-type ACh receptors, while iSPNs express D2-type DA and M1-type ACh receptors. Actions of M1-, D1-, and D2-receptors have been extensively reported, but we still ignore most actions of muscarinic M4-type receptors. Here, we used whole-cell recordings in acutely dissociated neurons, pharmacological tools such as mamba-toxins, and BAC D(1 or 2)-eGFP transgenic mice to show that activation of M4-type receptors with bath applied muscarine enhances Ca(2+)-currents through CaV1-channels in dSPNs and not in iSPNs. This action increases excitability of dSPNs after both direct current injection and synaptically driven stimulation. The increases in Ca(2+)-current and excitability were blocked specifically by mamba toxin-3, suggesting mediation via M4-type receptors. M4-receptor activation also increased network activity of dSPNs but not of iSPNs as seen with calcium-imaging techniques. Moreover, actions of D1-type and M4-type receptors may add to produce a larger enhancement of excitability of dSPNs or, paradoxically, oppose each other depending on the order of their activation. Possible implications of these findings are discussed.

Evaluación de la técnica LightCycler ® SeptiFast en recién nacidos y lactantes con sospecha de sepsis / Evaluation of the LightCycler ® SeptiFast test in newborns and infants with clinical suspicion of sepsis

Introducción La sepsis neonatal es una importante causa de morbimortalidad. Un diagnóstico precoz y el inicio rápido del tratamiento son fundamentales en la evolución del recién nacido. El hemocultivo, considerado técnica de referencia para el diagnóstico de sepsis, presenta una baja sensibilidad en este grupo de pacientes. Se planteó evaluar la utilidad de la PCR múltiple LightCycler® SeptiFast (LC-SF) en el diagnóstico de la sepsis neonatal, comparándola con el hemocultivo tradicional. Métodos Se recogieron 42 muestras de sangre correspondientes a 35 recién nacidos con episodios febriles ingresados en la unidad de cuidados intensivos neonatal del Hospital Universitario Virgen de las Nieves. Por cada episodio febril se procesaron 2 muestras de sangre venosa periférica para la realización del ensayo LC-SF y del hemocultivo, respectivamente. Resultados La sensibilidad y la especificidad de LC-SF, comparada con el diagnóstico clínico de sepsis, fueron del 79 y del 87%, respectivamente. La tasa de hemocultivos contaminados fue del 16,7%, detectándose Staphylococcus coagulasa negativa (SCN) y Streptococcus grupo viridans. En LC-SF la tasa de SCN contaminantes fue del 2,4%. La concordancia entre las 2 técnicas diagnósticas fue moderada (índice kappa: 0,369). La técnica LC-SF demostró una mayor concordancia con el diagnóstico clínico final (índice kappa: 0,729) que el hemocultivo (índice kappa: 0,238). Conclusión LC-SF podría ser una herramienta útil, empleada en paralelo con el hemocultivo en recién nacidos, al confirmar o descartar los casos que el hemocultivo no resuelve, además de disminuir el tiempo de obtención de resultado a 7 h( AU)

Introduction Neonatal sepsis is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Early diagnosis and prompt antimicrobial therapy are crucial for a favorable outcome of the newborn child. Blood culture, the current “gold standard” method for diagnosing bloodstream infections, has a low sensitivity in newborns. We evaluated the multiplex real-time PCR LightCycler® SeptiFast (LC-SF) for detection of bloodstream infections in newborns, compared with conventional blood culture. Methods A total of 42 blood samples were obtained from 35 subjects presenting with a febrile episode and hospitalized in neonatal intensive care unit at Hospital Universitario Virgen de las Nieves. Two samples were collected during each febrile episode in order to carry out LC-SF assay and blood culture, respectively. Results Sensitivity and specificity of 79% and 87%, respectively, compared with clinical diagnosis, were obtained for LC-SF. Contamination rate of blood cultures was 16.7%, mainly due to coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) and viridans groups of streptococci. Contamination rate of LC-SF by CoNS was 2.4%. Concordance between LC-SF and blood culture was moderate (kappa index: 0.369). LC-SF demonstrated a higher concordance (kappa index: 0.729) with the final clinical diagnosis than blood culture (kappa index: 0.238). Conclusion LC-SF assay could be a useful diagnostic tool, along with a conventional blood culture, in newborn, for confirming or ruling out those cases that blood culture could not determine, shortening the time to result to 7 hours (AU)

Contribution of different classes of glutamate receptors in the corticostriatal polysynaptic responses from striatal direct and indirect projection neurons.

BACKGROUND: Previous work showed differences in the polysynaptic activation of GABAergic synapses during corticostriatal suprathreshold responses in direct and indirect striatal projection neurons (dSPNs and iSPNs). Here, we now show differences and similarities in the polysynaptic activation of cortical glutamatergic synapses on the same responses. Corticostriatal contacts have been extensively studied. However, several questions remain unanswered, e.g.: what are the differences and similarities in the responses to glutamate in dSPNs and iSPNs? Does glutamatergic synaptic activation exhibits a distribution of latencies over time in vitro? That would be a strong suggestion of polysynaptic cortical convergence. What is the role of kainate receptors in corticostriatal transmission? Current-clamp recordings were used to answer these questions. One hypothesis was: if prolonged synaptic activation distributed along time was present, then it would be mainly generated from the cortex, and not from the striatum. RESULTS: By isolating responses from AMPA-receptors out of the complex suprathreshold response of SPNs, it is shown that a single cortical stimulus induces early and late synaptic activation lasting hundreds of milliseconds. Prolonged responses depended on cortical stimulation because they could not be elicited using intrastriatal stimulation, even if GABAergic transmission was blocked. Thus, the results are not explained by differences in evoked inhibition. Moreover, inhibitory participation was larger after cortical than after intrastriatal stimulation. A strong activation of interneurons was obtained from the cortex, demonstrating that polysynaptic activation includes the striatum. Prolonged kainate (KA) receptor responses were also elicited from the cortex. Responses of dSPNs and iSPNs did not depend on the cortical area stimulated. In contrast to AMPA-receptors, responses from NMDA- and KA-receptors do not exhibit early and late responses, but generate slow responses that contribute to plateau depolarizations. CONCLUSIONS: As it has been established in previous physiological studies in vivo, synaptic invasion over different latencies, spanning hundreds of milliseconds after a single stimulus strongly indicates convergent polysynaptic activation. Interconnected cortical neurons converging on the same SPNs may explain prolonged corticostriatal responses. Glutamate receptors participation in these responses is described as well as differences and similarities between dSPNs and iSPNs.

[Evaluation of the LightCycler® SeptiFast test in newborns and infants with clinical suspicion of sepsis]. / Evaluación de la técnica LightCycler® SeptiFast en recién nacidos y lactantes con sospecha de sepsis.

INTRODUCTION: Neonatal sepsis is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Early diagnosis and prompt antimicrobial therapy are crucial for a favorable outcome of the newborn child. Blood culture, the current "gold standard" method for diagnosing bloodstream infections, has a low sensitivity in newborns. We evaluated the multiplex real-time PCR LightCycler(®) SeptiFast (LC-SF) for detection of bloodstream infections in newborns, compared with conventional blood culture. METHODS: A total of 42 blood samples were obtained from 35 subjects presenting with a febrile episode and hospitalized in neonatal intensive care unit at Hospital Universitario Virgen de las Nieves. Two samples were collected during each febrile episode in order to carry out LC-SF assay and blood culture, respectively. RESULTS: Sensitivity and specificity of 79% and 87%, respectively, compared with clinical diagnosis, were obtained for LC-SF. Contamination rate of blood cultures was 16.7%, mainly due to coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) and viridans groups of streptococci. Contamination rate of LC-SF by CoNS was 2.4%. Concordance between LC-SF and blood culture was moderate (kappa index: 0.369). LC-SF demonstrated a higher concordance (kappa index: 0.729) with the final clinical diagnosis than blood culture (kappa index: 0.238). CONCLUSION: LC-SF assay could be a useful diagnostic tool, along with a conventional blood culture, in newborn, for confirming or ruling out those cases that blood culture could not determine, shortening the time to result to 7 hours.

[Hysteroscopy used in infertility. Diagnosis and therapy]. / Histeroscopia en infertilidad. Diagnóstico y tratamiento.

The purpose of this study is to review the prevalence of different uterine defects associated with infertility, recurrent pregnancy loss, and preterm pregnancies. Various infertility etiologies are analyzed, mainly that of uterine basis (adhesions, septa, myomas, polyps, pelvic inflammations or infection, and endometriosis). Importance of surgical techniques with minimal invasion is studied, basically hysteroscopy as a diagnosis and therapeutic method, which is compared with the rest of techniques.

Tumor vesical intradiverticular: valoración por T.C / Intra-diverticulum bladder tumor: CT evaluation

OBJETIVOS: Se revisa el papel de la Tomografía Computarizada (T.C.) en el diagnóstico del tumor vesical intradiverticular. Presentamos la iconografía de los distintos casos y se hace una revisión de la literatura al respecto. MÉTODO: Se realiza estudio retrospectivo encontrando 5 enfermos diagnosticados por T.C. de neoplasia vesical intradiverticular. Todos los casos fueron confirmados por anatomía patológica. Se revisan los hallazgos radiológicos por esta técnica y se comparan con los obtenidos por otros métodos diagnósticos. RESULTADOS: La T.C. permitió realizar el diagnóstico y la extensión de la enfermedad. La localización más frecuente de los divertículos fue la pared lateral y la forma de presentación más común fue la de masa intradiverticular. Dos pacientes presentaron calcificación en el tumor, uno en la periferia y otro en la práctica totalidad del tumor. El comportamiento vascular de estos tumores es similar al resto de las neoplasias vesicales no intradiverticulares. En dos casos existía también afectación de la luz principal. Todos los tumores eran carcinomas de células transicionales. CONCLUSIONES: La T.C. es un método eficaz para el diagnóstico del carcinoma intradiverticular así como para ver su extensión, siendo imprescindible para planificar la técnica quirúrgica (AU)

[Intradiverticular bladder tumor: C.T. assessment]. / Tumor vesical intradiverticular: valoración por T.C.

OBJECTIVES: To review the role of computerized tomography on the diagnosis of intradiverticulum bladder cancer. We present images of various cases and perform a bibliographic review. METHODS: 5 cases of intra-diverticulum bladder cancer were identified after a retrospective review. All cases had pathological confirmation. Radiological findings are reviewed for this technique and compared with those obtained by other diagnostic tests. RESULTS: CT scan allowed the diagnosis of the disease and its extension. Lateral wall was the most frequent diverticulum location and intra-diverticulum mass was the most frequent clinical presentation. Two patients showed tumor calcification, one in the peripheral area, the other allover the tumor area. Vascular behavior of these tumors is similar to the rest of non intra-diverticulum bladder neoplasms. Two cases showed main lumen involvement as well. All tumors were transitional cell carcinomas. CONCLUSIONS: CT scan is an efficient diagnostic method for the intra-diverticulum carcinoma as well as for extension determination, and it is essential for surgical planning.

Carcinoma escamoso vesical calcificado: consideraciones radiológicas / Calcified squamous cell carcinoma of bladder: Radiological considerations

OBJETIVO: Exponemos un caso de carcinoma escamoso vesical, tumor no muy frecuente, que presentaba extensas áreas calcificadas. Revisamos la literatura existente sobre los tumores de vejiga calcificados, especialmente en su vertiente diagnóstica. MÉTODO Y RESULTADOS: Se analiza desde el punto de vista radiológico la iconografía del caso: Rx simple, ecografía y TAC. Por todos los métodos por imagen se observan las calcificaciones situadas en la superficie tumoral y de morfología curvilínea, propias de este tipo histológico. CONCLUSIONES: La calcificación del carcinoma vesical es una rara forma de presentación que sólo ocurre en el 0,5 por ciento de los casos cuando son estudiados por radiología convencional. Ante toda calcificación de probable origen vesical vista por radiología simple, se debe proseguir su estudio con otros métodos por la imagen, y en caso de duda etiológica, realizar cistoscopia con toma de biopsia y/ o estudio microbiológico (AU)

Aspectos clínicos y epidemiológicos del herpes genital en ginecología y su asociación con otras enfermedades de tanasmisión sexual / m

Se realiza un estudio en 40 pacientes que padecen de vulvovaginitis por herpes virus, el cual comprendió una serie de análisis clinicopatológicos y virológicos realizados al 50 por ciento de ellas. Se indica que se les tomó una muestra endocervical y se les realizó un exudado vaginal en busca de otros gérmenes asociados de transmisión sexual, y también se efectuó un estudio serológico, con la aplicación de la técnica de veneral disease reaction laboratory (VDRL). Se informa que entre las características clínicas, las lesiones vesicoulcerosas fueron las más frecuentes, el edema vulvar fue leve en el 65,0 por ciento de las pacientes, la localización vulvar fue del 100,0 por ciento; entre los síntomas locales, el ardor vulvar, la disuria vulvar y las adenopatías inguinales dolorosas fueron los más frecuentes. Se encuentra que el 77,5 por ciento de las pacientes estudiadas tenía un estudio citológico positivo al herpes virus y el estudio virológico fue positivo en el 100 por ciento de las mismas. Se expresa que al analizar la asociación de herpes virus con otros gérmenes de transmisión sexual, se comprueba que el 45 por ciento tenía Candida Albicans, el 32,5 por ciento Trichomonas vaginalis y el 6,5 por ciento, Neisseria gonorrhoea (AU)

Vulvitis por herpes simple: estudio de 21 casos / Vulvitis by herpes siplex: study of 21 cases

Se realiza un estudio de 21 pacientes que presentaron cuadro clínico y citológico característico de vulvitis por herpesvirus. Seis pacientes presentaron cuadros clínicos recidivantes. Desde el punto de vista clínico, todas las pacientes presentaron similares características. La mayoría de las pacientes tenían una edad entre 20 y 29 años y el color de la piel que predominó fue el blanco (AU)

Vulvitis por herpes simple: estudio de 21 casos / Vulvitis by herpes simplex: study of 21 cases

Se realiza un estudio de 21 pacientes que presentaron cuadro clínico y citológico característico de vulvitis por herpesvirus. Seis pacientes presentaron cuadros clínicos recidivantes. Desde el punto de vista clínico, todas las pacientes presentaron similares características. La mayoría de las pacientes tenían una edad entre 20 y 29 años y el color de la piel que predominó fue el blanco