Metastatic large intestinal adenocarcinoma in two rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).

Spontaneous colonic adenocarcinomas were diagnosed in two rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Although both tumors caused partial obstruction of the colon, they were histologically different. One resembled the commonly described "napkin-ring" adenocarcinoma similar to those found in the descending and sigmoid colon of humans. The other neoplasm, a "tubular" lesion, invaded the full thickness of the colonic wall at the ileocecal-colonic junction. Both tumors were associated with metastasis, which is uncommon in the rhesus monkey.

Stress reduction treatment of severe recurrent genital herpes virus.

Four individuals with high-frequency recurrences of genital herpes virus of at least 2 years' duration were treated with two behavioral stress-reduction treatments. Subjects were given 10 weekly sessions of frontalis EMG biofeedback (2 subjects) or progressive muscle relaxation treatment (2 subjects). Presession and postsession frontalis EMG measures were recorded for all subjects across treatment. Outcome was measured by daily and weekly symptom charting mailed in weekly over 6 months, or by telephone interview after 6 months. Results demonstrated substantial improvement in reported symptoms with both treatments. Relaxation treatment resulted in a 66% and 100% reduction in frequency of recurrences. Frontalis EMG biofeedback resulted in a 72% and 7% reduction in frequency of recurrences. Follow-up at 1-year posttreatment showed that treatment effects were maintained by one subject, partially maintained by two, and reversed in one subject. The need for controlled investigation is emphasized.

Patient-initiated therapy for recurrent genital herpetic infections.

Therapy for recurrent genital herpes is difficult to evaluate because of the short duration of lesions and viral shedding. Very early treatment, however, can be begun by patients who experience prodromes before onset of lesions. We have found prodromes to occur in 73 percent of male and 84 percent of female patients; 57 percent of the men and 68 percent of the women experienced prodromes in at least three out of every four recurrent episodes. Variables that might affect results of such a patient-initiated study evaluating topical acyclovir included: application of the ointment (drug or placebo) without prodrome (10 percent); the possibility of a false prodrome (less than or equal to 10 percent); long intervals between experiencing a prodrome and ointment application (15 percent greater than 24 hours); the inability to sense a prodrome during sleep; lack of ointment application to the involved areas with initial or later lesions (approximately 15 percent); noncompliance of enrollees in returning for study evaluations (greater than or equal to 10 percent). Such variables will need to be considered when the code is broken in this multicenter study, as well as for patient-initiated studies with other formulations of acyclovir or with other drugs. Earlier negative studies with other agents given within two to three days of appearance of lesions might also require reevaluation with similar patient-initiated studies.

Characterization of the effects of Mg2+ on Ca2+- and Sr2+-activated tension generation of skinned rat cardiac fibers.

Submaximum and maximum forces of the cardiac muscle contractile apparatus, activated by Ca2+ or Sr2+, were determined as a function of Mg2+ concentration. Apical left ventricular tissue from Sprague-Dawley rats was broken by homogenization into small bundles of fibers with disrupted sarcolemmas (skinned). Tension generation was activated by and graded according to the concentration of Ca2+ or Sr2+ in solutions bathing the skinned fibers and measured with a photodiode force transducer. Steady-state tensions for various levels of activation at each of four concentrations of Mg2+ (5 x 10(-5), 1 x 10(-3), 5 x 10(-3), and 10 x 10(-3) M) in the bathing solutions were analyzed. Other bathing solution constituents and parameters mimicked significant normal intracellular conditions while providing adequate buffering of [H+], [Ca2+], and [MgATP2-] (magnesium adenosine triphosphate). To assess changes in sensitivity of the mechanical system to activation by Ca2+ (or Sr2+), each submaximum tension was expressed as a percentage of the given fiber bundle's maximum force generated at saturating [Ca2+] (or [Sr2+]) at the same [Mg2+]. When plotted as saturation curves these data demonstrate that increasing [Mg2+] depresses Ca2+ sensitivity of the force-generating mechanism. The Ca2+ and Sr2+ sensitivity of the cardiac force-generating apparatus is similar at every [Mg2+], indicating that the magnitude of Mg2+ effect is similar for both types of activation. However, absolute maximum tensions at saturating activating cation concentration increased as [Mg2+] increased; the effect of Mg2+ on maximum force was proportionately the same for Ca2+ and Sr2+ activation. But because saturating [Ca2+] always resulted in a lower maximum force than saturating [Sr2+], this site of Ca2+-Mg2+ interaction appears distinct from the one influencing Ca2+ sensitivity.