No abstract

Reduction of ischemia-reperfusion injury by administration of epoprostenol before graft retrieval may have important applications in liver transplantation. Further studies are required to establish the mechanism of this effect and to define its precise role in clinical practice.

Infusing PGI2 in patients with septic shock increases pHi probably by enhancing blood flow to the splanchnic bed and thereby improves splanchnic oxygenation even when conventional resuscitation goals have been achieved.

Nonspecific cross-reacting antigen (NCA) is the name of a family of highly glycosylated bacterial-binding receptors found on human granulocytes and other tissues. These glycoproteins are members of the immunoglobulin supergene family and are related structurally to carcinoembryonic antigen. In this study, we demonstrate that ligation of granulocyte NCA results in the activation of the cells, as measured by degranulation and the flux of intracellular calcium. These studies further the proposition that NCA has a function in the immune response of granulocytes against bacterial infections.

Sera of 83 patients with insulin-dependent diabetes of early onset were tested for latex agglutination-inhibiting antibodies to coxsackie virus types B1-B5. We could not find any evidence of a causal association between Coxsackie B virus infection and diabetes.