6 research outputs found
The Impairment of Wound Healing Process is Correlated With Abnormalities of TNF-α Production by Peritoneal Exudate Cells in Obstructive Jaundiced Rats
The wound healing process and production of
tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) by peritoneal
cells of 7-day and 14-day obstructive jaundice (OJ)
and sham-operated rats were investigated. In the
study the skin wound breaking strength was measured,
In addition such histological and biochemical
parameters as fibroblast and endothelial cell proliferation,
inflammatory cell infiltration and hydroxyproline
content were evaluated in polyurethane
sponge discs implanted subcutaneously into rats.
TNF-α production by peritoneal exudate cells (PEC),
both spontaneous and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-
induced was determined by a bioassay. In OJ rats the
process of both early as well as late phase of healing
was impaired. The breaking strength of skin wound
was decreased, the fibroblast and endothelial cell
proliferation and collagen deposition, as well as hydroxyproline
content were diminished. In 7 day OJ
the numbers of inflammatory cells in the implants
were lowered with a subsequent slight increase on
day 14 of OJ. The spontaneous and LPS induced TNF-
α production by PEC were significantly higher in 7
day OJ as compared with sham-operated controls. On
day 14 of OJ the LPS-induced TNF-α level was, in
contrast, much lower and did not differ much from
the spontaneous TNF-α production. We conclude
that the impairment of wound healing in OJ results
from disturbances in functioning of the immune
system caused by systemic endotoxaemia
Shifts in Female Facial Attractiveness during Pregnancy
It has been proposed that womenâs physical attractiveness is a cue to temporal changes in fertility. If this is the case, we should observe shifts in attractiveness during pregnancyâa unique physiological state of temporal infertility. The aim of this study was to examine how womenâs facial attractiveness changes during the subsequent trimesters of pregnancy and how it compares to that of nonpregnant women. Sixty-six pictures of pregnant women (22 pictures per trimester) and 22 of nonpregnant women (a control group) were used to generate four composite portraits, which were subsequently assessed for facial attractiveness by 117 heterosexual men. The results show considerable differences between facial attractiveness ratings depending on the status and progress of pregnancy. Nonpregnant women were perceived as the most attractive, and the attractiveness scores of pregnant women decreased throughout the course of pregnancy. Our findings show that facial attractiveness can be influenced by pregnancy and that gestation, even at its early stages, affects facial attractiveness. Considerable changes in womenâs physiology that occur during pregnancy may be responsible for the observed effects