Evaluation of andrological indices and testicular histology following administration of varied doses of nicotine

This study is aimed at determining the effect of Nicotine on male fertility by evaluating some andrological parameters of male Wistar rat such as sperm parameters (spermatozoa count and motility), serum concentration of testosterone and testicular weight. Histopathology of the testis was also carried out on the effect of nicotine on testicular microstructure. 20 adult male rats were randomly divided into four groups, the test groups were administered with 0.2mg/100g, 0.4/100g and 0.6/100g body weight daily for 30 days while the control were administered with 2mls 0.9% physiological saline. Nicotine caused a significant reduction (P < 0.05) and (P< 0.01) in the mean values of sperm count, serum testosterone concentration and testicular weight in the test when compared with the control. Also, in the test group, the deleterious effect of nicotine on the sperm parameters and testosterone concentration was corroborated by histopathology which revealed a marked degeneration of germ cell layers in the seminiferous tubule and disruption of interstitial cells of the testis thereby interfering with spermatogenesis and testosterone secretion while there was no visible change in the control group. It was concluded that nicotine exerted toxic effect on the germ cell layers in seminiferous tubule with concomitant reduction in reproductive potentials of the male rat whilst showing no significant change in sperm motility. Nicotine and nicotine based products should therefore be taken with caution in cases of infertility. Key words: germ cells, testes, testosterone, fertility, spermatogenesis

Heterogeneity in Preferences towards Complexity

We analyze lottery-choice data in a way that separately estimates the effects of risk aversion and complexity aversion. Complexity is represented by the number of different outcomes in the lottery. A finite mixture random effects model is estimated which assumes that a proportion of the population are complexity-neutral. We find that around 33% of the population are complexity-neutral, around 50% complexity-averse, and the remaining 17% are complexity-loving. Subjects who do react to complexity appear to have a bias towards complexity aversion at the start of the experiment, but complexity aversion reduces with experience, to the extent that the average subject is (almost) complexity-neutral by the end of the experiment. Complexity aversion is found to increase with age and to be higher for non-UK students than for UK students. We also find some evidence that, when evaluating complex lotteries, subjects perceive probabilities in accordance with Prospective Reference Theory

Practical dyspnea assessment: relationship between the 0–10 numerical rating scale and the four-level categorical verbal descriptor scale of dyspnea intensity

Context—Measurement of dyspnea is important for clinical care and research. Objectives—To characterize the relationship between the 0–10 Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) and four-level categorical Verbal Descriptor Scale (VDS) for dyspnea assessment. Methods—This was a substudy of a double-blind randomized controlled trial comparing palliative oxygen to room air for relief of refractory breathlessness in patients with life-limiting illness. Dyspnea was assessed with both a 0–10 NRS and a four-level categorical VDS over the one-week trial. NRS and VDS responses were analyzed in cross section and longitudinally. Relationships between NRS and VDS responses were portrayed using descriptive statistics and visual representations. Results—Two hundred twenty-six participants contributed responses. At baseline, mild and moderate levels of breathlessness were reported by 41.9% and 44.6% of participants, respectively. NRS scores demonstrated increasing mean and median levels for increasing VDS intensity, from a mean (SD) of 0.6 (±1.04) for VDS none category to 8.2 (1.4) for VDS severe category. The Spearman correlation coefficient was strong at 0.78 (P < 0.0001). Based on the distribution of NRS scores within VDS categories, we calculated test characteristics of two different cutpoint models. Both models yielded 75% correct translations from NRS to VDS; however, Model A was more sensitive for moderate or greater dyspnea, with fewer misses downcoded. Conclusion—There is strong correlation between VDS and NRS measures for dyspnea. Proposed practical cutpoints for the relationship between the dyspnea VDS and NRS are 0 for none, 1–4 for mild, 5–8 for moderate, and 9–10 for severe

Acceptability and feasibility of magnetic femoral nerve stimulation in older, functionally impaired patients

Abstract Objective Magnetic femoral nerve stimulation to test muscle function has been largely unexplored in older people. We assessed acceptability, feasibility, along with reproducibility and correlation with other physical function measures. Results Study 1 recruited older people with sarcopenia. Stimulation was performed at baseline and 2 weeks along with six minute walk (6MW), maximum voluntary quadriceps contraction, short physical performance battery and grip strength. Acceptability was measured using visual analog scales. Study 2 used baseline data from a trial of older people. We correlated stimulation results with 6MW, maximal voluntary contraction and muscle mass. Maximum quadriceps twitch tension was measured in both studies, evoked using biphasic magnetic stimulation of the femoral nerve. In study 1 (n = 12), magnetic stimulation was well tolerated with mean discomfort rating of 9% (range 0–40%) on a visual analog scale. Reproducibility was poor (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.06; p = 0.44). Study 2 (n = 64) showed only weak to moderate correlations for maximum quadriceps twitch tension with other measures of physical function (6 minute walk test r = 0.24, p = 0.06; maximal voluntary contraction r = 0.26; p = 0.04). We conclude that magnetic femoral nerve stimulation is acceptable and feasible but poorly reproducible in older, functionally impaired people

Entry of Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 (HSV-1) into the Distal Axons of Trigeminal Neurons Favors the Onset of Nonproductive, Silent Infection

Following productive, lytic infection in epithelia, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) establishes a lifelong latent infection in sensory neurons that is interrupted by episodes of reactivation. In order to better understand what triggers this lytic/latent decision in neurons, we set up an organotypic model based on chicken embryonic trigeminal ganglia explants (TGEs) in a double chamber system. Adding HSV-1 to the ganglion compartment (GC) resulted in a productive infection in the explants. By contrast, selective application of the virus to distal axons led to a largely nonproductive infection that was characterized by the poor expression of lytic genes and the presence of high levels of the 2.0-kb major latency-associated transcript (LAT) RNA. Treatment of the explants with the immediate-early (IE) gene transcriptional inducer hexamethylene bisacetamide, and simultaneous co-infection of the GC with HSV-1, herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) or pseudorabies virus (PrV) helper virus significantly enhanced the ability of HSV-1 to productively infect sensory neurons upon axonal entry. Helper-virus-induced transactivation of HSV-1 IE gene expression in axonally-infected TGEs in the absence of de novo protein synthesis was dependent on the presence of functional tegument protein VP16 in HSV-1 helper virus particles. After the establishment of a LAT-positive silent infection in TGEs, HSV-1 was refractory to transactivation by superinfection of the GC with HSV-1 but not with HSV-2 and PrV helper virus. In conclusion, the site of entry appears to be a critical determinant in the lytic/latent decision in sensory neurons. HSV-1 entry into distal axons results in an insufficient transactivation of IE gene expression and favors the establishment of a nonproductive, silent infection in trigeminal neurons

A Systems Biology Approach Identifies Molecular Networks Defining Skeletal Muscle Abnormalities in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is an inflammatory process of the lung inducing persistent airflow limitation. Extensive systemic effects, such as skeletal muscle dysfunction, often characterize these patients and severely limit life expectancy. Despite considerable research efforts, the molecular basis of muscle degeneration in COPD is still a matter of intense debate. In this study, we have applied a network biology approach to model the relationship between muscle molecular and physiological response to training and systemic inflammatory mediators. Our model shows that failure to co-ordinately activate expression of several tissue remodelling and bioenergetics pathways is a specific landmark of COPD diseased muscles. Our findings also suggest that this phenomenon may be linked to an abnormal expression of a number of histone modifiers, which we discovered correlate with oxygen utilization. These observations raised the interesting possibility that cell hypoxia may be a key factor driving skeletal muscle degeneration in COPD patients

Outcome measures in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): strengths and limitations

Current methods for assessing clinical outcomes in COPD mainly rely on physiological tests combined with the use of questionnaires. The present review considers commonly used outcome measures such as lung function, health status, exercise capacity and physical activity, dyspnoea, exacerbations, the multi-dimensional BODE score, and mortality. Based on current published data, we provide a concise overview of the principles, strengths and weaknesses, and discuss open questions related to each methodology. Reviewed is the current set of markers for measuring clinically relevant outcomes with particular emphasis on their limitations and opportunities that should be recognized when assessing and interpreting their use in clinical trials of COPD