Low levels of nicotine and cotinine but not benzo[a]pyrene induce human trophoblast cell proliferation.

E-cigarettes use constitutes a source of thirdhand nicotine exposure. The increasing use of electronic cigarettes in homes and public places increases the risk of exposure of pregnant women to thirdhand nicotine. The effects of exposure of pregnant women to very low levels of nicotine have not been studied in humans but detrimental in experimental animals. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of nanomolar concentrations of nicotine and its metabolite cotinine on the proliferation of JEG-3, a human trophoblast cell line. We also studied the proliferative effect of nanomolar concentrations of benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P), a polycyclic hydrocarbon in tobacco smoke, for comparison. We treated JEG-3 cells in culture with nanomolar concentrations of nicotine, cotinine, and B[a]P. Their effect on cell proliferation was determined, relative to untreated cells, by MTT assay. Western blotting was used to assess the mitogenic signaling pathways affected by nicotine and cotinine. In contrast to the inhibitory effects reported with higher concentrations, we showed that nanomolar concentrations of nicotine and cotinine resulted in significant JEG-3 cell proliferation and a rapid but transient increase in levels of phosphorylated ERK and AKT, but not STAT3. Biphasic, non-monotonic effect on cell growth is characteristic of endocrine disruptive chemicals like nicotine. The mitogenic effects of nicotine and cotinine potentially contribute to increased villous epithelial thickness, seen in placentas of some smoking mothers. This increases the diffusion distance for oxygen and nutrients between mother and fetus, contributing to intrauterine growth restriction in infants of smoking mothers.

Perinatal correlates of Ureaplasma urealyticum in placenta parenchyma of singleton pregnancies that end before 28 weeks of gestation.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this work was to examine the relationship between Ureaplasma urealyticum in the placenta and perinatal outcomes in extreme preterm deliveries and to explore the influence of bacteria coinfection on perinatal outcomes in U urealyticum-positive placentas. METHODS: Under sterile conditions, a piece of chorion from 866 singleton deliveries before 28 weeks' gestation was obtained and flash frozen. The tissue was later homogenized and cultured for Ureaplasma and bacteria. Placentas were also examined histologically. Maternal and neonatal data were obtained prospectively. Each infant had 3 sets of cranial ultrasound scans between days 1 to 4, 5 to 14, and between day 15 and 40th week postconceptional age. Cranial ultrasound findings were by consensus of 2 or 2 of 3 sonologists. RESULTS: U urealyticum was recovered from 6% and bacteria from 47%; 47% of placentas had no bacteria detectable. Sixty-seven percent of Ureaplasma-positive placentas also harbored bacteria. Placentas that harbored U urealyticum only were more likely than sterile placentas to be associated with a higher prevalence of preterm labor and preterm premature rupture of membranes, as well as umbilical cord, fetal vessel, membrane, and parenchymal inflammation and to predict intraventricular hemorrhage and echolucent brain lesions. Placentas that harbored U urealyticum only were similar to placentas that harbored bacteria only. Recovery of U urealyticum and bacteria from same placenta did not enhance the differences between placentas with U urealyticum alone and sterile placentas. Recovery of U urealyticum only was not associated with a higher risk of death before day 7 of life. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of U urealyticum in placental parenchyma before 28 weeks is associated with increased risk of preterm labor and delivery, higher risk of fetal and maternal inflammation, and increased risk of intraventricular hemorrhage and echolucent brain lesions but not of early neonatal death.

Adequacy of a single visit for classification of hypertensive status in a Nigerian civil servant population.

BACKGROUND: Concern has been expressed regarding the adequacy of classifying individuals as hypertensive based upon a single blood pressure determination and/or the average of readings taken at a single visit and the appropriateness of these determinations in cross-cultural comparisons of rates of hypertension. METHODS: This analysis investigated the potential classification variability by comparing hypertensive status determined by 1) a single reading, 2) an average of the second and third determination at the first visit, and 3) an average of the second and third determinations obtained at each of three visits according to a standardized protocol. Kappa statistic, sensitivity and specificity were calculated to assess the agreement of hypertension classification for 804 subjects in the Health Survey in Nigerian Civil Servants, Benin City, 1992. Data were also compared to other published studies for variability in hypertension classification with repeated blood pressure determinations. RESULTS: Good to excellent agreement was observed for the entire population between the single blood pressure determination, the average of the first visit, and the average of three visits. Sensitivity and specificity measures were also acceptable for the entire population. Further analysis by sex and staff status (a measure of socioeconomic status) found no apparent distinctions between the groups. CONCLUSION: Contrasting the data with other published studies, conducted in both developed and developing countries, we note no greater variability in repeated blood pressure measurements, and conclude that the average of blood pressure determinations at a single visit in this working urban population is adequate for determining hypertensive status for comparisons with hypertension rates in Westernized populations.

Primary peripheral lymphadenopathy in Jos, Nigeria.

Surgical biopsy specimens of 129 enlarged peripheral nodes seen at Jos University Teaching Hospital over a 3-year period were analyzed. Enlarged peripheral nodes due to primary sarcomas or carcinomas were excluded from the series. Tuberculosis and malignant lymphomas were diagnosed in 48.0% and 28.8% of the patients respectively. Amongst children aged 12 years and below, these diseases account for 50.0% and 30.0% childhood primary peripheral lymph node enlargement respectively. Non-diagnostic features were seen in 20.8% of patients. The cervical (53.0%), axillary (18.2%) and inguinal (7.4%) nodes are affected in that order. Regional lymph node involvement is the usual pattern.

Primary peripheral lymphadenopathy in Jos; Nigeria

Surgical biopsy specimens of 129 enlarged perpheral nodes seen at Jos University Teaching Hospital over a 3-year period were analysed. Enlarged peripheral nodes due to primary sarcomas or carcinomas were excluded from the series. Tuberculosis and malignant lymphomas were mainly diagnosed

Serum alpha 2-HS-glycoprotein levels in neonatal infections.

The serum concentration of alpha 2-HS-glycoprotein was determined in 15-infected neonates and 21 age-matched controls using the radial immunodiffusion method. The infected neonates had significantly lower serum alpha 2-HS-glycoprotein concentration than the controls (56.9 +/- 15.1 and 105.6 +/- 25.7, respectively; p less than 0.001) confirming that it also behaves as a negative acute phase reactant in neonates. No correlation was found between alpha 2-HS-glycoprotein and albumin concentrations. The serum glycoprotein concentration in the control neonates was significantly higher than that of healthy older children and reported values in adult controls. The often reported decrease in the opsonic function of the neonatal serum is therefore unlikely to be explained by decreased alpha 2-HS-glycoprotein levels. However, the relatively higher levels of the glycoprotein observed in this study in neonates may be related to the active bone mineralization taking place in the newborn period.

Haematologic indices in African children.

A full blood count was performed on 380 children (186 preschool and 194 school children). It was found that the school children had significantly higher haemoglobin, haematocrit, neutrophil and platelet counts than the preschool children. The preschool children had higher total leucocyte and lymphocyte counts.

Blood pressure in Nigerian college males.

Hypertension is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in US black populations. There are however limited data available on college educated blacks in either the United States or Africa. The purpose of the present study was to examine blood pressure and its correlates in a Nigerian college population in comparison with US data. The study population comprised 211 Nigerian male college students (mean age, 20.9 years). The means and standard deviations for systolic and diastolic blood pressures among the Nigerians were 119.9 (12.6) and 73.3 (10.0) mm Hg, respectively. Weight, height, and body mass index means for the Nigerians were 133.6 pounds, 68.5 inches, and 20.1 kg/m2, respectively. Compared with US college-educated blacks, the Nigerians had higher systolic blood pressures but were leaner than their US counterparts. There was however a significant positive correlation between weight and systolic blood pressure for the Nigerians, which was similar to that observed among US college students. These data suggest that in a lean population, the Nigerian males' weight is still an important correlate of blood pressure as is seen in the US.

Alpha 2 HS-glycoprotein levels in children with protein-energy malnutrition and infections.

Serum alpha 2 HS-glycoprotein levels were studied, using the single-radial immunodiffusion method, in 39 severely malnourished children (22 kwashiorkor, 17 marasmus) of whom 15 (8 kwashiorkor, 7 marasmus) were infected and 24 (14 kwashiorkor, 10 marasmus) had no signs of infection. Thirty-two well-nourished children, 16 of whom were infected, served as controls. The uninfected controls had higher serum alpha 2 HS-glycoprotein levels than the uninfected kwashiorkor (82.0 +/- 14.7; 57.0 +/- 15.8; p less than 0.001) and marasmic children (82.0 +/- 14.7; 45.0 +/- 13.9; p less than 0.001). Infection was associated with a significant decrease in the mean serum alpha 2 HS-glycoprotein levels in the well-nourished (82.0 +/- 14.7; 57.0 +/- 7.7; p less than 0.001) and kwashiorkor (57.0 +/- 15.8; 34.0 +/- 20.4; p less than 0.02) children, while no such decrease was observed in the marasmic children. While the mean serum glycoprotein level in the infected controls was higher than that in the infected kwashiorkor children (57.0 +/- 7.7; 34.0 +/- 20.4; p less than 0.02), it was comparable to that in the infected marasmic children (57.0 +/- 7.7; 50.0 +/- 11.6; p greater than 0.05). Furthermore, the mean alpha 2 HS-glycoprotein level in the infected malnourished children was higher in marasmus than in kwashiorkor (50.0 +/- 11.6; 34.0 +/- 20.4; p greater than 0.05); this difference was, however, not statistically significant.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)