The effects of chronic intake of dietary alcohol on myocardial peroxidation (measured as formation of diene conjugates), reduced glutathione content, and morphology and the protective actions of different antioxidant compounds (vitamin E and (+)-cyanidanol-3) were studied in rats. Alcohol, comprising more than 30% of the dietary calorie content, was administered to rats for six weeks. Compared with the controls, the left ventricle of the alcoholic animals had an increased diene conjugate content (5.4(0.5) vs 4.3(0.6) optical density X g wet weight-1) and a slightly, but not significantly, decreased glutathione content (1.62(0.05) vs 1.66(0.07) mumol X g wet weight-1). Simultaneous administration of antioxidants (vitamin E or (+)-cyanidanol-3) prevented the pathological changes in diene conjugates and significantly increased the glutathione content compared with the alcoholic rats. Electron microscopy showed remarkably few ultrastructural abnormalities in the myocardium of alcoholic animals fixed by vascular perfusion. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that reactive oxygen radicals are involved in the ethanol induced biochemical changes and that the antioxidants could prevent the increased formation of peroxides in the myocardium.
A rare case of extra-abdominal desmoid tumor is reported. A palpable mass was detected in the right breast of a 47-year-old man. Mammography showed a stellate mass without calcification, and breast ultrasound examination revealed a solid, inhomogeneous, non-calcified lesion. The result of cytological examination of the fine-needle aspiration biopsy specimen was equivocal. Histology of the surgical specimen showed extra-abdominal desmoid tumor. Extra-abdominal presentation of this semimalignant tumor is rare and may mimic malignant breast tumor. Differential diagnosis is difficult and usually based on the result of the histological examination.
In anaesthetized guinea-pigs treated with lethal doses of dimethoate, cardiac failure and serious ECG disturbances developed in the early phase of intoxication. The toxic cardiac phenomena appeared to be unrelated to the degree of cholinesterase inhibition, but showed a close correlation with myocardial dimethoate concentration. Cardiac failure and mortality were first observed at a critical pesticide level of about 110 micrograms/g, while a level of 221 micrograms/g resulted in death in all cases. The present investigation refers to the direct effect of the pesticide on the myocardium, independent of its anticholinesterase action.
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