Masao Shimamura

Role of mucosal prostaglandins in vagally-mediated adaptive cytoprotection in the rat

SummaryThis study was designed to investigate whether vagal innervation and muscosal prostagladins (PGs) participate in gastric adaptive cytoprotection. Rats were divided into three groups; sham operation (control), truncal vagotomy or splanchnicotomy. In the first experiment, 100% ethanol (EtOH) was orally administered 15 min after pretreatment with 20% EtOH to all 3 groups. One hour later, the gastric mucosa was examined macroscopically. In a second experiment, the mucosal PG contents 15 min after administra tion of either 20% EtOH or saline were measured by high performance liquid chromatography. In truncal vagotomized rats, the adaptive cytoprotection caused by exposure to 20% EtOH in control and splanchnicotomized rats was not observed and an increase in hemorrhagic lesion severity was seen. In the control and splanchnicotomized rats, PGE2 contents were elevated following 20% EtHO treatment, as compared to those in the saline-treated rats. However, PGE2 contents in vagotomized rats were not altered by EtOH exposure, and were significantly lower than in the control and splanchnicotomized groups, whereas PGF2 α and PGD2 contents were significantly higher after EtOH administration as compared to those in saline-treated rats. These results suggest that vagal innervation is essential for adaptive cytoprotection and that the vagotomy induced decrease in PGE2 and increases in PGF2 α and PGD2 following 20% EtOH administration, may be caused by a disturbance in adaptive cytoprotection.

DNA typing of the D1S80 locus using capillary zone electrophoresis

DNA typing of the D1S80 locus was carried out using capillary polyacrylamide gel zone electrophoresis (CZE). The D1S80 allelic ladder was isolated within 40 min in polyacrylamide gel columns of 50 μm inner diameter and 30 cm length. The PCR products and ladder marker in the injection port were electrophoresed and detected by UV absorption (254 nm). The typing was determined according to migration of DNA fragments on the electropherograms, which permits simultaneous analysis of both the test sample polymerase chain reaction products and the ladder marker. The two-step sample injection method applied in this study allows us to use minute amounts of the ladder maker. This procedure provides a reliable, economical and rapid method for D1S80 typing.