ABSTRACT
The sites of early replication of feline infectious peritonitis virus were studied following oral inoculation of specific-pathogen-free (SPF) cats with virus grown in cell cultures. Viral antigen was first detected by immunofluorescence in the tonsils and small intestine within 24 h of inoculation, and was later found in caecum, colon, mesenteric lymph nodes and liver. However, histological changes in the gut did not appear until relatively late in the course of infection. Virus was recovered from the oropharynx and the faeces from as early as the second or third day after inoculation, and shedding continued until euthanasia.
Subject(s)
Cat Diseases/microbiology , Coronaviridae Infections/veterinary , Coronaviridae/physiology , Animals , Antibodies, Viral/analysis , Cats , Coronaviridae/immunology , Coronaviridae/isolation & purification , Coronaviridae Infections/microbiology , Feces/microbiology , Fluorescent Antibody Technique , Germ-Free Life , Ileum/pathology , Microscopy, Electron , Oropharynx/microbiology , Palatine Tonsil/pathology , Virus ReplicationABSTRACT
Eight specific pathogen-free cats were inoculated orally or parenterally with a cell culture-adapted strain of feline infectious peritonitis virus (FIPV). Faeces and oropharyngeal swabs were monitored daily for infectious virus by inoculation of feline embryo lung cells. Virus was recovered from both sites for approximately 2 weeks after inoculation, before clinical signs of disease developed. Peripheral blood lymphocytes collected from these cats were tested in an in-vitro blastogenic assay using concanavalin A (con A) and FIPV antigen. All cats showed a profound suppression of the response to con A which only recovered to pre-inoculation levels in 2 cats, one of which survived. These 2 cats also responded to FIPV antigen on the 21st day after infection, the greater response being in the survivor. The other cats, surviving 16-18 days, developed no response to FIPV antigen. Antibody titres, measured by immunofluorescence and by virus neutralization, rose rapidly to very high levels in all cats, regardless of the route of inoculation.
Subject(s)
Cat Diseases/immunology , Coronaviridae Infections/veterinary , Coronaviridae/immunology , Peritonitis/veterinary , Animals , Antibodies, Viral/biosynthesis , Cat Diseases/microbiology , Cats , Cell Line , Coronaviridae/isolation & purification , Coronaviridae Infections/immunology , Coronaviridae Infections/microbiology , Feces/microbiology , Fluorescent Antibody Technique , Immunity, Cellular , Lymphocyte Activation , Neutralization Tests , Oropharynx/microbiology , Peritonitis/immunology , Peritonitis/microbiology , Specific Pathogen-Free OrganismsABSTRACT
A cross-sectional survey of bowel habit has been carried out on 201 elderly patients living at home. Although symptoms of constipation were common, reported bowel frequency was similar to younger people. Constipation was most clearly associated with poor mobility and depression. Digital rectal examination was generally unreliable as an indicator of constipation. Using the abdominal radiograph as the final arbiter, true constipation was present in less than half of those complaining of constipation.
Subject(s)
Aging , Constipation , Aged , Cathartics/therapeutic use , Constipation/complications , Constipation/drug therapy , Depression/complications , Dietary Fiber/administration & dosage , Female , Humans , Male , Movement , Physical Examination , Radiography, Abdominal , Rectum , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Forty-two female patients with refractory obesity completed a 20-week double-blind study during which they were given a diet designed to provide not more than 40 mg vitamin C and 1000 kcal (4.2 MJ) daily. Twenty-two of the patients took 600 mg of supplementary vitamin C daily and the remainder, a matched placebo. All were given their highest tolerated dose of fenfluramine up to a maximum of 160 mg daily. There was no significant difference in the mean weight loss of the two groups. This study fails to support the hypothesis that the anti-obesity effect of fenfluramine is influenced by the vitamin C intake.
Subject(s)
Ascorbic Acid/administration & dosage , Body Weight/drug effects , Fenfluramine/therapeutic use , Obesity/drug therapy , Administration, Oral , Clinical Trials as Topic , Diet, Reducing , Double-Blind Method , Drug Evaluation , Drug Interactions , Female , Humans , PlacebosABSTRACT
Fifty women with refractory obesity received fenfluramine for 20 weeks. Every two weeks details of weight change, drug dose, degree of anorexia, and any side effects were recorded and plasma was obtained for fenfluramine and norfenfluramine measurements. Of the 41 patients available for final analysis 26 achieved a maximum plateau dose of 160 mg/day. Plasma fenfluramine concentrations did not correlate with the degree of anorexia or with the incidence of side effects other than the severity of dream disturbance. There was a highly significant relation between weight loss and plasma fenfluramine and norfenfluramine concentrations and also between weight loss and the presence of sustained anorexia. Women who achieved mean plateau concentrations over 200 ng/ml lost a mean 8.8 kg while those with concentrations less than 100 ng/ml lost a mean of only 2.1 kg. When fenfluramine is prescribed in refractory obesity the dose should be increased stepwise until either satisfactory weight loss is achieved or troublesome side effects appear.