Involvement of prostaglandins in chilli-induced early gastric vascular damage in adult Wistar rat.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the role of prostaglandins in protecting against chilli-induced early gastric vascular damage. METHODS: Early gastric vascular damage was induced in rats by oral administration of 8 mg/Kg chilli extract. The damage was assessed by estimating spectrophotometrically the amount of Evan's blue leaking into gastric tissue and luminal contents 10 min after exposure to chilli. Further groups of rats were pretreated with misoprostol (10, 25 or 50 micrograms/Kg) or dazmegrel (1, 5 or 25 mg) to evaluate their protective effects. RESULTS: Both misoprostol and dazmegrel were able to reduce gastric vascular damage induced by chilli in a dose-dependent fashion. CONCLUSION: Prostaglandins may play a role in protecting against chilli-induced early gastric vascular damage.

Static and dynamic computerised radioactive tracer studies, vital dye staining and theoretical mathematical calculations to ascertain the mode of survival of single cephalad channel venous island flaps.

Experiments were performed to ascertain the perfusion and drainage of single cephalad channel saphenous venous flaps in dogs. In the first experiment a standard saphenous flap and a single cephalad channel saphenous venous island flap were dissected on contralateral thighs of dogs. A radioactive tracer, 99mTc, was injected into a foreleg vein and its appearance in both flaps was monitored with the use of a static and dynamic scanner. After this experiment, Evans blue, a vital dye, was injected into the foreleg vein of the dog. Five minutes later both flaps were excised and the dye in the flaps was assayed quantitatively. In the third experiment radioactive tracer was injected into the single cephalad channel venous flap subcutaneously and its decay in the flap as well as its uptake in the rest of the body were measured dynamically. The experiments show that the single cephalad channel venous island flap is perfused by and drains through its single cephalad vein. A mathematical model to justify the above conclusion was worked out independently, based on standard values involved in mammalian circulatory mechanisms as in dog and man.