A microdialysis technique for continuous subcutaneous glucose monitoring in diabetic patients (part 1)

Lettre de Louis Phélypeaux de Pontchartrain (secrétaire d'Etat de la Marine et de la Maison du roi) à Gabriel Nicolas de La Reynie (lieutenant général de police de Paris) datée du 27 mars 1693. In: Correspondance administrative sous le règne de Louis XIV, recueillie et mise en ordre par G. B. Depping. Tome II. Administration de la justice – Police – Galères. Paris : Imprimerie nationale, 1851. pp. 613-614

Equations and nomogram for the relationship of human blood p50 to 2,3-diphosphoglycerate, CO2, and H+

We describe a new method for tonometry of small amounts of blood (up to 0.25 mL) at known pO2, PCO2, and temperature, in small, reusable, closed Pyrex flasks. Equilibrated blood is analyzed for oxygen saturation, pH, and organic phosphate concentration with standard techniques, and its p50 (the pO2 at which hemoglobin is half-saturated with oxygen) is determined with full control of all the variables known to affect it. The SD in the measurement of p50 is 0.044 kPa (0.33 mmHg). We made 63 determinations of p50 on normal human blood under different conditions of pH and pCO2, and with different concentrations of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate and ATP. Empirical equations and a nomogram were derived, which allow the calculation of p50 from known values of pCO2, pH, and [2,3-DPG]/[Hb4] molar ratio with a SD of 97 and 114 Pa (0.73 and 0.86 mmHg), respectively

Oxygen equilibrium curve of normal human blood and its evaluation by Adair's equation

Oxygen equilibrium curves of fresh, normal human blood have been measured by new methods which allow the control of pH, pCO2, and 2,3-diphosphoglycerate and which yield higher accuracy at the extremes of saturation than was possible previously. The curve determined by these techniques lies slightly to the right of the standard curve of Roughton et al. (Roughton, F.J.W., Deland, E.C., Kernohan, J.C., and Severinghaus, J.W. (1972) in Oxygen Affinity of Hemoglobin and Red Cell Acid Base Status (Astrup, P., and R\uf8rth, M., eds) pp. 73-83, Academic Press, New York). The greatest difference is at low oxygen saturation, probably owing to the fact that the latter data were obtained under conditions which would lead to depletion of cellular 2,3-diphosphoglycerate. The range of p50 (oxygen pressure at half-saturation) values for four normal subjects was 28.3 mm Hg to 29.0 mm Hg. Adair's stepwise oxygenation scheme has been used to analyze the curves with the result that a1 = 0.1514 X 10(-1) (+/- 10%) mm-1; a2 = 0.9723 X 10(-3) (+/- 8%) mm-2; a3 = 0.1703 X 10(-3) (+/- 50%) mm-3; a4 = 0.1671 X 10(-5) (+/- 2%) mm-4 for the best of four data sets. Because these constants are very sensitive to changes in the shape of the oxygenation curve, this analysis is much more useful than p50 measurements in the investigation of the various allosteric effectors of the function of hemoglobin within the red cell

Fractionation of carrier ampholytes for isoelectric focusing

A simple method for fractionating synthetic carrier ampholytes is reported, based on the principle of continuous-flow isoelectric focusing in gel-stabilized layers. An 8% ampholyte solution, encompassing the pH range 3-9.5, is separated into 12 fractions in a chamber filled with Sephadex G-100 by a continuous-flow technique. We are thus able to obtain ampholytes of narrow pH range, encompassing approximately 2 ph units, whose resolving power is comparable with that obtained with commercial Ampholine covering similar pH ranges

Cardiac involvement in systemic autoimmune diseases

The heart and the vascular system are frequent and characteristic targets of several systemic autoimmune diseases, in particular Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and Systemic Sclerosis (SSc). In this chapter we review the classic cardiac abnormalities and the more recent data about cardiovascular involvement as part of a major disease complication determining a substantial morbidity and mortality. In addition to the classic cardiac abnormalities involving the heart structures, acute and chronic ischemic heart disease and cerebrovascular accidents are threatening clinical manifestations of SLE and RA associated to an early accelerated atherosclerosis. Immune-mediated inflammation is now recognized as an important factor involved in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Ongoing clinical studies are being devised to find specific risk factors associated with systemic autoimmune diseases and/or treatment regimens. Hopefully, prophylactic measures should be available within the next few years

Up-date on the antiphospholipid syndrome

Antiphospholipid syndrome is defined by recurrent thrombotic events and fetal losses in the presence of anti-phospholipid antibodies detectable by beta 2 glycoprotein I-dependent anti-cardiolipin and/or lupus anticoagulant assays. Thrombosis can occur in any vascular district but deep veins and cerebral arteries represent the most frequent sites. Both early and late fetal losses have been reported in women affected by the syndrome as well as pre-eclampsia. Beta 2 glycoprotein I-dependent anti-cardiolipin and lupus anticoagulant are the formal laboratory diagnostic tools; new assays appear to improve the diagnostic power, but larger validation studies are needed before accepting them on a routine basis. In spite of the improvement in our knowledge on the pathogenic mechanisms of the syndrome, the standard therapy is still based on anti-platelet or anticoagulant drugs both for vascular and obstetrical problems