ABSTRACT
Fatty acids and their derivatives play a role in the response to neural injury. The effects of prenatal and postnatal dietary fatty acid composition on excitotoxic neural injury were investigated in neonatal rat pups. Dams were fed during gestation and lactation a diet whose fat source was either corn oil or menhaden fish oil. On postnatal day 3, litters were culled to 10 per dam. On postnatal day 4, excitotoxic neural injury was induced by infusion of the glutamate analog N-methyl-DL-aspartate (NMA) into the left cerebral hemisphere. Three days later, pups were killed and brains were removed for histological and volume assessments. Levels of arachidonic acid were 2.3-fold higher in cerebrums of pups in the corn oil group than in the fish oil group. Left cerebral hemispheres among all pups were atrophic. Right cerebral hemispheres of pups in the corn oil group showed more histological evidence of edema, and had significantly higher volumes than pups in the fish oil group (66 vs. 42 mm2, p=0.007). These data suggest that the fatty acid composition of prenatal and/or postnatal diet can affect the neonatal response to excitotoxic neural injury.
Subject(s)
Brain/pathology , Corn Oil , Dietary Fats , Fish Oils , N-Methylaspartate/toxicity , Neurons/pathology , Neurotoxins/toxicity , Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects , Animals , Animals, Newborn , Atrophy , Brain/drug effects , Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists/toxicity , Fatty Acids/analysis , Female , Lactation , Milk/chemistry , Neurons/drug effects , Pregnancy , Rats , Rats, Sprague-DawleyABSTRACT
Flow cytometric analysis was performed on purified mononuclear cells isolated from whole blood samples of 11 adults, 7 breast-fed (BF) infants and 11 formula-fed (FF) infants, mean ages 34.2 +/- 4.3 years, 6.3 +/- 1.3 months, and 6.2 +/- 1.2 months, respectively. Infants were receiving at least 70% of calories from formula or breast milk. Infant mononuclear cell populations contained a higher percentage of lymphocytes and a lower percentage of monocytes compared with adults. Within the lymphocyte population, infants had a higher CD4+/CD8+ ratio (T helper-inducer/T cytotoxic-suppressor), a higher percentage of CD19+ (pan B) and CD4+ cells, and a lower percentage of CD8+ and CD16+ (natural-killer) cells compared with adults. CD3+ (pan T) and CD4+ lymphocyte percentages were higher and CD19+ lymphocyte percentages were lower in FF compared with BF infants. Although sample size is small, our data indicate that diet may influence lymphocyte subset distribution during infancy when the majority of calories is derived from infant formula or human milk.
Subject(s)
Flow Cytometry , Infant Food , Lymphocyte Subsets/cytology , Adult , Breast Feeding , Diet , Humans , Infant , Leukocyte CountABSTRACT
Basal cell carcinomas arising in tattoos have been reported previously in four patients. We present the fifth reported case of a basal cell carcinoma arising in a tattoo that was at a site not frequently exposed to ultraviolet radiation and briefly review malignancy in tattoos.
