ABSTRACT
Ten male chronic schizophrenic patients with polydipsia and 10 nonpolydipsic controls, matched for gender, diagnosis, duration of illness, age, and race, were studied by dual- and single-photon absorptiometry to estimate bone density of the lumbar spine and radius and by 24-hr urine collections to estimate urinary electrolyte excretion. Bone density was normal in the control group, but was abnormally low in the polydipsic group, which had a markedly increased incidence of fractures. Electrolyte excretion was normal in the control group and in the polydipsic group when water intake was restricted to normal amounts; increased urinary sodium and calcium excretion occurred in proportion to polydipsia. As polydipsia is associated with a number of physiological changes, the cause of the osteopenia is unclear; we suggest that a negative calcium balance caused by increased urinary calcium excretion induced by extracellular space expansion may play an important role in the causation of the skeletal changes.
Subject(s)
Bone Diseases, Metabolic/physiopathology , Calcium/urine , Drinking/physiology , Fractures, Spontaneous/physiopathology , Schizophrenia/physiopathology , Schizophrenic Psychology , Water Intoxication/physiopathology , Water-Electrolyte Balance/physiology , Adult , Bone Density , Electrolytes/urine , Humans , Lumbar Vertebrae/injuries , Male , Middle Aged , Thoracic Vertebrae/injuriesABSTRACT
Progesterone-binding plasma proteins (PBPP, progesterone-binding globulin, PBG, and corticosteroid binding globulin, CBG) have been measured in plasma of guinea-pigs, casiragua, cuis, degu and plains viscacha. During pregnancy PBPP increased to reach peak values between Days 20-25 and Days 50-term in guinea-pigs, immediately before parturition in casiragua, and in mid-gestation in cuis, degu and viscacha. The pattern of PBPP concentration during pregnancy was similar to that of plasma progesterone concentration, and the ratio of molar concentration of PBPP and progesterone was greater than 1 in all species. Plasma proteins were separated by chromatography on SP-Sephadex C-50, and from its chromatographic behaviour and progesterone-binding property evidence was obtained for an anionic, high-affinity PBG in the plasma of all the animals studied during gestation: Electrophoretic mobility of SP-Sephadex-purified PBG applied to 7% polyacrylamide gels differed between species, being highest for casiragua PBG and lowest for guinea-pig PBG. Binding capacities ranged from 0.5 to 4.8 X 10(-6) M, and association constants from 7.6 to 17.4 X 10(8) M-1. Ligand specificities differed between species and marked contrasts were found for certain steroid isomers. The average molecular weights measured by gel electrophoresis of PBG under denaturing conditions were similar in cuis, degu and viscacha and close to PBG I of guinea-pigs, while coypu PBG had a molecular weight of about one half, approximately 75000. It is concluded that PBG has been adopted in pregnancy as a progesterone-conserving mechanism in this suborder of rodents with long gestation periods relative to maternal body weight. Restricted homologies in the physico-chemical characteristics of PBG from various hystricomorph rodents suggest that interspecific differences in structure are considerable.
Subject(s)
Alpha-Globulins/blood , Pregnancy, Animal , Progesterone-Binding Globulin/blood , Rodentia/blood , Transcortin/blood , Animals , Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel , Female , Guinea Pigs , Pregnancy , Progesterone/blood , Progesterone-Binding Globulin/isolation & purification , RadioimmunoassayABSTRACT
Milk samples were taken from 10 plains viscacha between 9 and 64 days post partum. Mean concentrations (+/- s.e.) were 17 +/- 1.1 mM-Na; 32 +/- 1.6 mM-K; 35 +/- 2.2 mM-Cl; 116 +/- 3.3 mM-lactose (total reducing sugar) (all in 8 samples); less than 10-220 mg citrate/l (range of 4 samples); 15.7 +/- 0.64 g total nitrogen/l (3 samples). The Na:K ratio was 1:1.95 +/- 0.17. It was estimated that the fat concentration was between 116 and 182 g/l.
