Our findings suggest that thrombin clotting time prolongation can contribute to prevention of clot formation in extracorporeal circuits, and the non-antithrombin III-dependent activities of DHG may be related to its low risk of hemorrhage for hemodialysis. DHG appears to be promising as an alternative anticoagulant with low risk of hemorrhage for hemodialysis.

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Using a transplantable Yoshida sarcoma in a rat model of total parenteral nutrition (TPN), we measured the effectiveness of an arginine-enriched amino acid solution (AI-82) on muscle glutamine concentration and muscle protein synthesis compared with that of a conventional amino acid solution (Proteamin12). After tumor-bearing rats had been given one of two isocaloric TPN regimens for 6 days, [15N]glycine (99 atom %) containing TPN solution was infused into animals at a constant rate of 8 mg of [15N]glycine per hour for 18 hours, after which the liver, skeletal muscle (gastrocnemius muscle), and tumor protein synthesis rates were measured. A significantly increased whole muscle protein synthesis rate was observed in the AI-82 group; there was no difference in the whole liver and tumor protein synthesis rates between the two groups. When each TPN solution was administered for 1 week, muscle concentrations of arginine, ornithine, glutamine, and glutamate were considerably higher in the AI-82 group than in the Proteamin12 group, and these differences were also accompanied by a decrease in the plasma branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) (leucine, isoleucine, and valine) levels in the AI-82 group. The high levels of muscle glutamine concentration in the AI-82 group were investigated in connection with the high use of exogenous branched-chain amino acids.

By using a transplantable Yoshida sarcoma in a rat total parenteral nutrition model, we measured the effectiveness of an arginine-enriched amino acid solution (AI-82) in terms of leucine kinetics and nitrogen balance as indicators of host-tumor nutrition interaction compared with that of a conventional amino acid solution (Proteamin12). When tumor-bearing rats received isocaloric total parenteral nutrition solutions for 7 days, AI-82 significantly improved host nitrogen balance and significantly decreased the tumor-nitrogen trap throughout the experimental period. Leucine kinetics of whole body and tissues were also determined by a 4-hour continuous infusion of each total parenteral nutrition solution containing 14C-leucine. Significantly increased whole-body leucine oxidation (p < .01) without an increase in leucine release from normal tissues was observed in the AI-82 group. Total incorporation of 14C-leucine into whole muscle was significantly elevated (p < .05) without changes in muscle protein degradation in the AI-82 group. In the whole tumor, AI-82 tended to decrease total incorporation of 14C-leucine, but there was no difference in leucine release caused by protein breakdown between the two groups. These findings suggest that AI-82 can improve the nutritional status of the host over that of the tumor.

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