Abnormal endogenous pain modulation and somatic and visceral hypersensitivity in female patients with irritable bowel syndrome

AIM： To investigate the role of endogenous pain modulatory mechanisms in the central sensitization implicated by the visceral hypersensitivity demonstrated in patients with irritable bowel syndrome （IBS）. Dysfunction of modulatory mechanisms would be expected to also result in changes of somatic sensory function. METHODS： Endogenous pain modulatory mechanisms were assessed using heterotopic stimulation and somatic and visceral sensory testing in IBS. Pain intensities （visual analogue scale, VAS 0-100） during suprathreshold rectal distension with a barostat, cold pressor stimulation of the foot and during both stimuli simultaneously （heterotopic stimulation） were recorded in 40 female patients with IBS and 20 female healthy controls. RESULTS： Rectal hypersensitivity （defined by 95% Cl of controls） was seen in 21 （53%）, somatic hypersensitivity in 22 （55%） and both rectal and somatic hypersensitivity in 14 of these IBS patients. Heterotopic stimulation decreased rectal pain intensity by 6 （-11 to -1） in controls, but increased rectal pain by 2 （-3 to ＋6） in all IBS patients （P 〈 0.05） and by 8 （-2 to ＋19） in IBS patients with somatic and visceral hypersensitivity （P 〈 0.02）. CONCLUSION： A majority of IBS patients had abnormal endogenous pain modulation and somatic hypersensitivity as evidence of central sensitization.

Transient receptor potential channel A1 involved in calcitonin gene-related peptide release in neurons

Transient receptor potential channel A1 is one of the important transducers of noxious stimuli in the primary afferents, which may contribute to generation of neurogenic inflammation and hyperalgesia. The present study was designed to investigate if activation of transient receptor potential channel A1 may induce calcitonin gene-related peptide release from the primary afferent neurons. We found that application of allyl isothiocyanate, a transient receptor potential channel A1 activator, caused calcitonin gene-related peptide release from the cultured rat dorsal root ganglion neurons. Knock- down of transient receptor potential channel A1 with an antisense oligodeoxynucleotide prevented calcitonin gene-related peptide release by allyl isothiocyanate application in cultured dorsal root ganglion neurons. Thus, we concluded that transient receptor potential channel A1 activation caused calcitonin gene-related peptide release in sensory neurons.

Possible implications of animal models for the assessment of visceral pain

Acute pain,provoked generally after the activation of peripheral nociceptors,is an adaptive sensory function that alerts the individual to avoid noxious stimuli.However,uncontrolled acute pain has a maladaptive role in sensory activity leading to development of a chronic pain state which persists even after the damage is resolved,or in some cases,in the absence of an initial local acute injury.Huge numbers of people suffer from visceral pain at least once during their life span,leading to substantial health care costs.Although studies reporting on the mechanism of visceral pain are accumulating,it is still not precisely understood.Therefore,this review aims to elucidate the mechanism of visceral pain through an evaluation of different animal models and their application to develop novel therapeutic approaches for treating visceral pain.To assess the nociceptive responses in viscera,several visceral pain models such as inflammatory,traction,stress and genetic models utilizing different methods of measurement have been devised.Among them,the inflammatory and traction models are widely used for studying the visceral pain mechanism of different disease conditions and post-operative surgery in humans and animals.A hapten,2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid(TNBS),has been extensively used as an inflammatory agent to induce visceral pain.The traction model seems to cause a strong pain stimulation and autonomic reaction and could thus be the most appropriate model for studying the underlying visceral pain mechanism and for probing the therapeutic efficacies of various anesthetic and analgesics for the treatment of visceral pain and hyperalgesia.

The Alterations of Unit Discharges of Hippocampal Formation in Acupuncture Analgesia

The actions of thc hippocampal formation were studied by recording the electrical activi-tics of a single neuron of that area.Two different reactions of some neurons in CA2,CA3 and thedentate gyrus ntight occur after peripheral noxious stimulations,that is,increase of the reaction frc-qtcncy of the nociccptive cxcitcd neurons(NENs)and decrcasc of the macron frequeency of thenociocptive inhibited neurons(NENs).Flctrical acuptmcture of the“points”would result in inhib-iting cffcet on most of the NENs but disinhibiting cffcct on NENs.Identical effect to that ofacupunctre could be creatcd by injecting morphine to the expcrimental animals.Electricalstimulation of thc nucleus raphc magnus or peri-aqueduct gray mattcr could affcct the NENs andNINs in the hippocampus,and the results were similar to that of acupucture.When 5-HT was in-jccted into thc latcral ventricle or applied to thc hippocampal neurons through micro-iontophoresis,effects similar to that of acupuncture also occurred.These facts imply that the effects of peripheral“point”acupuncture on the eletrical activities of the neurons of the hippocampal formation might be rre-lated to the activities of the cndogenous serotoninergic neurons,or to the cndogenous morphine-likesubstance.The NENs would be inhibitod after large amounts of GABA were injected into the lateralventricle.The relationship between this phcnomenon and the acfivites of GABAergic intenrons inthe hippocampus awaits furthcr investigation .

Can Persistent Children Hyperglycemia Be Induced by Causes Other Than Pancreas Failure?

In this work, children’s persistent hyperglycemia has been revised using the available literature to support the proposed reasoning. Based on this study, we have shown that the human glycemic management system must be seen as coupled and integrated by four subsystems, namely, production system, consumption system, distribution system, control system, and also it should be seen as coupled to external noxious factors/stressors, if not we show that the glycemic homeostasis analysis might be defective and might induce, in many cases, a misdiagnosis of the causes of the persistent hyperglycemia under consideration. Also, in this work, some considerations were presented to show that anomalies in the cerebral glycemic control through the glucose sensor neurons might be a possible cause/origin of some of the glycemic abnormalities and dysfunctions (however, not only the known related hypoglycemia but also hyperglycemia) that occur in childhood. Finally, it is shown that persistent novel external noxious factors of modernity or noxious factors already known, but amplified by modernity, such as persistent stress, media induced fears, and phobias, environmental pollution, and electromagnetic pollution, can and should also be considered as possible precursors for the development of anomalies in the juvenile homeostatic glycemic system that might well be, if intense and persistent, the driver of the worldwide observed T1DM epidemic events.

Can the Stepping Stone Enhance the Establishment, Competition and Distribution of Sown Grassland Species during Recovery on Ex-Arable Lands?

Most diversity restoration projects are not to improve diversity per se, but rather to enhance the presence and abundance of species that are characteristic of reference or target community. The use of Bromus inermis suppresses annual noxious grasses and increases the control of other-forb group these species are also noxious weeds;these may be substituted with another perennial species of the same functional group all through the whole experimental period, as it occurs with other perennial-forb Carduus tenuifolius. A field experiment was conducted on abandoned arable land with sown low and high diversity treatments and natural colonization following typical farming practice for the site. Experimental plots were installed on former agricultural land that had been cropped with (a rotation of) monocultures until the end of 1995. The experiment was organized according to a block design with five replicate blocks. An opposite trend was performed among the colonizer species, because the colonizer grasses were relegated by the high dominance of sown grasses. But at the same time, the sown grasses facilitated the dominance of other colonizer-forbs species;therefore its functional replacement in the community due to sown effect was again tested. However, in natural conditions the other-forbs group was the dominant group, without taking into account the stepping-stone treatment and there was also a functional change of dominance. Our study has demonstrated the restoration effectiveness of species richness at abandoned arable land and may be enhanced by sowing late successional species.

Can the Glucose Central Control System Dysfunctions Induce Diabetes Mellitus?

We study afresh how the glucose control system anomalies impact the organicity of the glucose homeostasis and build up events of persistent hyperglycemia and diabetes mellitus. We have used critically the state of art literature related to the subject, in order to cross, to compare, and to organize the relevant contents to create a logical and consistent support to the finds. We show that it is consistent to assume that persistent hyperglycemia and diabetes mellitus can have precursors not only in pancreas, but also in brain, mainly induced by noxious dysfunctions of hypothalamus sensor neurons circuits and external noxious elements, causing pancreas overload, and the consequent exhaustion—overburden.

Applying multi-criteria analysis to select the most appropriate broiler rearing environment

The present study aimed to assess the most appropriate rearing system for broiler housing in tropical regions using the Analytical Hierarchy Process(AHP).The research was done using data sampling from a field study carried out in eight mechanically-ventilated commercial broiler houses.Four had positive ventilation(open-sided conventional system),and the other four had negative pressure systems,which were named according to the curtains color and light management(blue-house with blue curtains,and dark-house with black side curtains).The data from the field research(rearing dry-bulb temperature and relative humidity;ammonia and carbon dioxide concentrations;energy use;litter type and quality;and broiler performance)were organized,and the multi-criteria analysis AHP was applied.In the process,the decision-maker must define the problem and chose the criteria to evaluate the alternatives to make a suitable decision.The alternative selected needs to be according to the stakeholders’expectations.The alternatives consisted of houses using three ventilation systems(conventional,blue-house,and dark-house).The different chosen criteria were the thermal and aerial environment,broiler productivity,energy consumption,and litter quality.We selected data collected from the field experiment and from current literature to subsidize the selection of the criteria.The computation was done using field data results,knowledge from existing literature,and the expertise of three specialists.For the first time,the AHP technique is applied to select the most suitable broiler housing,considering the complex variables involved in the process.Results indicated the conventional system as the most appropriate alternative.Results of the conventional system showed the highest scores on most criteria in the pairwise comparison.Which considered broiler performance,gasses concentration,and electricity cost,providing natural ventilation open-sided conventional house as the most appropriate rearing system for broiler production in tropical countries.

Bootlace Worms' Secret

Bootlace worms boast spooky—stretchy bodies.Their secret:They also secrete a family of toxins newto science.These poisons might one day inspire novelways to control noxious pests,such as cockroaches.Tests first identified the toxins in the mucus coating one bootlace species.It holds the record asthe world’s longest animal,notes Ulf Goransson.