Types of neurons of the claustrum in the rabbit - Nissl, Klüver-Barrera and Golgi studies

The studies were carried out on the claustrum of 8 adult rabbits. Four types of neurons were distinguished: 1. Multipolar neurons, which have dendritic trunks either with conus (multipolar polygonal perikarya) or without conus (multipolar rounded perikarya). Both subdivisions of the multipolar neurons have 3Œ6 dendritic trunks. Only some branches of these trunks have spines. An axon emerges mainly from the cell body, rarely from the initial part of the dendritic trunk. 2. Bipolar neurons with fusiform or rounded perikarya; they have two dendrites covered with spines. An axon originates directly from the cell body or from one of the dendritic trunks. 3. Triangular neurons, which have three dendritic branches with spines. An axon emerges directly from the soma, often near the primary dendritic trunk. 4. Pear-shaped neurons with one or two dendritic trunks arise from one pole of the cell body and with an axon that originates from the opposite side of the perikaryon. The dendrites are covered with spines

The neuronal structure of the globus pallidus in the rabbit - Nissl and Golgi studies

The studies were carried out on the telencephalons of 12 adult rabbits. Two types of neurons were distinguished: 1. Large neurons (perikarya 18–40 μm), which have from 2 to 6 thick, long primary dendrites. Their perikarya have a polygonal, triangular and fusiform shape. The large neurons in the centre of GP have radiated dendritic trees, whereas the dendritic field of the cells along the borders of GP has an elongated shape. The dendritic arbour is not homogeneous. The dendrites may be covered with spindle-shaped dendritic swellings, bead-like processes, not numerous spines or they may be smooth as well. The dendritic branches form thin, beaded dendritic processes, that arise from any part of the dendritic tree, as well as “complex terminal endings”, which have various types of appendages on their terminal portions. An axon emerges from a thick conical elongation either from the cell body or one of the dendritic trunks. These neurons are the most numerous in the investigated material. 2. Small nerve cells have been infrequent in our material. Their cell bodies are rounded or polygonal. From the perikarya there arise 2–4 thin dendritic trunks, which may have irregular swellings and few spines. The dendrites spread out in all directions, making the dendritic field round or oval in shape. Generally most axons of the small cells have not been impregnated. However, a few of them have a thin axon with a conical elongation, which emerges from the cell body and bifurcates into beaded processes

The neuronal structure of the inferior colliculus in the bank vole (Clethrionomys glareolus) - Golgi and Nissl studies

The inferior colliculus (IC) of the bank vole is made up of 3 nuclei: the external and pericentral nucleus, which are located on the outer border of the IC, and the central nucleus, which is the largest part of IC and shows a laminated structure. On the basis of various morphological criteria 5 types of neurons have been distinguished in the bank vole IC: 1. The rounded cells (perikarya 10-15 µm) with 2–4 primary dendritic trunks. The dendritic tree has a spindle-like shape. The axon emerges from the soma or from the proximal portion of a dendrite. 2. The fusiform neurons (17-20 µm) with 2 primary dendrites arising from both poles of the perikaryon. The dendritic tree has the same shape as the previous type. The axon originates from the proximal dendritic trunk. The rounded and fusiform cells constitute the main neuronal type. 3. The pear-shaped neurons (10–13 µm) with 2 main stems or rarely 1. The axon emerges from the perikaryon or seldom from the dendritic trunk. 4. The multipolar cells (18–23 µm), which have from 4 to 6 primary dendrites radiating in all directions. The dendritic tree has a spherical shape. The axon emerges either from the proximal stem or directly from the soma. 5. The triangular neurons (15–18 µm) with 3 primary dendritic trunks. The axon originates from the perikaryon. The triangular cells are the least numerous. All types of neurons in the bank vole IC bear spines and protrusions

Hybrid model of cardiac rehabilitation in men and women after myocardial infarction

Background: A relatively new alternative for post-myocardial infarction (MI) patients’ care is the hybrid cardiac rehabilitation (CR) consisting of ambulatory and home-based parts. The aim of the study was to compare the influence of CR on physical capacity, safety, adherence and return to work in post-MI male and female patients with preserved left ventricular systolic function, and to assess who benefited more from this model of trainings. Methods: The study comprised 57 men aged 54.5 ± 7.5 years and 30 women aged 52.2 ± 6.7 years after MI. All subjects underwent an 8-week training program consisting of 24 interval train­ings. The first 10 trainings were conducted in an out-patient clinic, then both groups did their training at home with TeleECG monitoring. At the beginning and after trainings all patients underwent a symptom-limited exercise stress test. Assessment included results of exercise tests. Moreover, a comparative analysis of adherence and returning to work in post MI female and male patients was performed. R esults: We found that trainings led to a significant improvement in physical capacity in all patients based on exercise test. When the training effects were compared between men and women, no significant differences were observed. The percentage of patients returning to work was higher in men than in women (78.9% vs. 50%, p < 0.01). Conclusions: 1. Hybrid rehabilitation resulted in a comparable improvement in physical capacity in post-MI low-risk male and female patients. 2. Although hybrid rehabilitation facilitated patients’ adherence to the training program, their return to work was significantly greater only in post-MI men

A morphometric study of the amygdala in the guinea pig

The characteristic features of guinea pig amygdala (CA), as shown by volumetric comparisons of the individual nuclei, are the poor development of the basolateral (BL) and lateral olfactory tract (NLOT) nuclei as well as the strong formation of the lateral (LA) and basomedial (BM) nuclei. The central (CE), cortical (CO) and medial (ME) nuclei also appear to be well represented in this species. All these features are even more pronounced when the total number of neurons in the nuclei referred to was taken into consideration. A comparison of the densities of neurons in the individual nuclei with the mean numerical density of cells in the guinea pig CA indicates that the densities of neurons in LA, BL, BM, CE and CO are significantly lower than the mean (p < 0.05), whereas in the ME and NLOT these values are significantly higher than the mean (p < 0.05). It is noteworthy, that the densities of the neurons in CE and CO do not differ statistically from each other (p > 0.05) and are significantly higher than the respective values in LA, BL and BM (p < 0.05). Furthermore, a similar division of the guinea pig CA may to some extent be made using the size parameters of the amygdaloid neurons as a marker. Interestingly, the large neurons populate organised CA areas like LA, BL and BM less densely, whereas the small cells create ME and NLOT, where the neurons are densely arranged. CE and CO occupy intermediate positions, with the neurons similar in size to the mean for the guinea pig CA

The influence of water-based training on arrhythmia in patients with stable coronary artery disease and preserved left ventricular function

Background: Water immersion may cause adverse cardiovascular events, including arrhythmias in patients with damaged cardiac muscle, e.g. with cardiac failure. So far, there have been rather few reports on arrhythmia induced by water training in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). The aim of the study was to assess the influence of exercise training in moderately cold water (28–30°C) on arrhythmia and physical capacity in stable CAD patients with preserved left ventricular (LV) function. Methods: Sixty-two post-myocardial infarction male patients, mean age 50.9 ± 7.9 years, participated in 16 water-based trainings (WBT), which lasted 55-min, twice a week in water at 28–30°C. Each subject underwent 24 h Holter on-land monitoring (Holter-24) once during the study and twice in-water Holter monitoring (Holter-W) during WBT. Before and after WBT cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) was performed. The following parameters were analyzed: peak oxygen consumption (peak VO2), mean number of ventricular ectopic beats (VEBs) and supraventricular ectopic beats (SVEBs) during Holter-24 and Holter-W, the percentage of men who developed arrhythmia during CPET vs. Holter-24 and vs. Holter-W. Results: WBT significantly improved patients’ physical capacity, and more often provoked arrhythmia, mainly SVEBs, than CPET or daily activity assessed during Holter-24. During WBT 58% men developed VEBs and 62% SVEBs. Conclusions: 1. WBT provoked arrhythmias significantly more often than did CPET and normal daily activity. 2. Owing to WBT patients improved their physical capacity which was still maintained at 1-year follow-up.

Influence of exercise training on left ventricular diastolic function and its relationship to exercise capacity in patients after myocardial infarction

Background: The study&#8217;s aim was to examine the effect of exercise training on left ventricular diastolic function (LVDF) and whether LVDF could predict an improvement in exercise capacity (EC) in post-myocardial infarction patients. Methods: Forty-eight males, aged 56.4 &#177; 7.2 years, with preserved left ventricular systolic function (LVSF) and mild diastolic dysfunction (the ratio of transmitral early left ventricular filling velocity to early diastolic mitral annulus velocity E/E&#8217; > 8 as the average of the septal and lateral annulus velocities), were assigned to either a training group (TG, n = 32) or controls (n = 16). Before, and at the end of the study, all patients underwent a cardiopulmonary test and echocardiography with tissue Doppler imaging (TDI). Results: After a 4.5-month training program, maximal oxygen consumption increased significantly in TG (26.66 &#177; 3.88 vs. 28.79 &#177; 5.00 mL/kg/min, p < 0.0001). TDI-derived E/E&#8217; did not change after the training program. After dividing TG according to septal E/E&#8217;s > 10 and 8 and < 8, exercise capacity improved significantly only in patients with E/E&#8217;s < 10 and E/E&#8217;l < 8. Conclusions: A 4.5-month training program in post-myocardial infarction patients with preserved LVSF and mild diastolic dysfunction led to improved exercise capacity only in TG. The diastolic function did not change significantly. The improvement in exercise capacity was significantly greater in patients with a better LVDF measured by TDI. (Cardiol J 2010; 17, 2: 136-142

Distribution and chemical coding pattern of somatostatin immunoreactivity in the dorsal striatum of the guinea pig

The present study provides a detailed description of somatostatin (SOM) distribution and the colocalization pattern of SOM, neuropeptide Y (NPY) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in the dorsal striatum (caudate-putamen complex) of the guinea pig. Within the dorsal striatum, SOM is found in a population of medium-sized aspiny interneurons. We found that 97% of all SOM-IR neurons expressed NPY simultaneously, while 98% of all NPY-ergic perikarya was simultaneously SOM-IR. On the other hand, while 98% of all SOM-IR cells were simultaneously NOS-IR, only 91% of all NOS-containing neurons exhibited SOM-immunoreactivity. Irrespective of their chemical coding, both types of SOM-IR neurons were scattered throughout the dorsal striatum, sometimes in the form of small, loosely arranged clusters of 2&#8211;4 cells. While SOM-IR and NPY-IR nerve fibers were present in all of the studied regions, they were more numerous in the ventro-medial part of the studied structure, with the exception of its caudal portion, where SOM-IR and NPY-IR fibers additionally formed a dense network in the part corresponding to the caudate nucleus. A low expression of staining for NOS-IR fibers was seen throughout the entire dorsal striatum. In some fibers, SOM and NPY were co-expressed. Fibers expressing both SOM and NOS were not found. (Folia Histochemica et Cytobiologica 2011; Vol. 49, No. 4, pp. 690&#8211;699

Seismocardiography - a non-invasive method of assessing systolic and diastolic left ventricular function in ischaemic heart disease

Background: Seismocardiography (SCG) is a new non-invasive method which can assess left ventricular function (LVF) during exercise testing based on cardiac time intervals (CTI). There are no data assessing cardiac time intervals during exercise ischaemia in patients with coronary artery disease. The aim of the study was to assess systolic and diastolic CTI in patients after myocardial infarction (MI) with ischaemia during the exercise tolerance test (ETT). Material and methods: Sixty post-MI patients were included in the study and subdivided into two groups, A and B. Group A consisted of 30 patients aged 61.7 &#177; 6 with normal left ventricular systolic function and left ventricular diastolic dysfunction based on Echo. Group B consisted of 30 patients aged 60.1 &#177; 6 with normal left ventricular systolic and diastolic function. During SCG the following parameters were analysed: pre-ejection period (PEP) in ms, left ventricular ejection time (LVET) in ms, PEP/LVET, myocardial performance index (MPI) and isovolumetric relaxation time (IVRT) in ms at rest and immediately after exercise. During ETT the following parameters were analysed: ETT duration in minutes, blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR) and ST depression in mm. Results: In group A on SCG exercise-induced ischaemia changed PEP from 115 &#177; 13 to 116 &#177; 17 ms, LVET from 298 &#177; 22 to 290 &#177; 26 ms, PEP/LVET from 0.39 &#177; 0.05 to 0.40 &#177; 0.08, MPI from 0.39 &#177; 0.1 to 0.42 &#177; 0.1, IVRT from 67 &#177; 21 to 72 &#177; 21 ms and MO-RF from 115 &#177; 39 to 85 &#177; 20, p < 0.001, which suggests a deterioration of the left ventricular systolic and diastolic function. In group B on SCG exercise-induced ischaemia changed PEP from 116 &#177; 18 to 118 &#177; 15 ms, LVET from 305 &#177; 25 to 294 &#177; 27, PEP/LVET from 0.38 &#177; 0.07 to 0.40 &#177; 0.07, MPI from 0.37 &#177; 0.8 to 0.40 &#177; 0.09, IVRT from 59 &#177; 14 to 66 &#177; 17 and MO-RF from 112 &#177; 39 to 85 &#177; 28, p = 0.001, also suggesting a deterioration in left ventricular systolic and diastolic function in spite of the normal function at rest. There were no intergroup differences in ETT duration, HR and BP; only ST depression in group B was longer, 1.7 vs. 1.4 mm (p = 0.027). Conclusion: Seismocardiography is a helpful method of assessing left ventricular systolic and diastolic function in patients with exercise-induced ischaemia