Cell and tissue research
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Cell and tissue research · May 2001
Comparative StudyDifferential storage of hydroxyethyl starch (HES) in the skin: an immunoelectron-microscopical long-term study.
Hydroxyethyl starch (HES) is widely used as a plasma substitute. Serious side effects occur only rarely, whereas a high incidence of severe pruritus has been reported. Moreover, tissue storage of HES has been demonstrated in various organs. ⋯ In nerves, HES deposits persisted no longer than 17 months paralleling the cessation of pruritus. Biopsies taken after 94 months exhibited no HES deposits in the skin. The condensation and final dissolution of the vacuoles may either indicate the release and subsequent redistribution of HES into the circulation or lysosomal degradation.
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Cell and tissue research · May 2001
Comparative StudyEstrogen receptor-alpha and beta- immunoreactivity and mRNA in neurons of sensory and autonomic ganglia and spinal cord.
Estrogen receptor-alpha immunoreactivity and mRNAs are present in neurons in locales that innervate genital organs, e.g., parasympathetic pelvic autonomic ganglia, sensory dorsal root and nodose ganglia, and autonomic areas of the lumbosacral spinal cord. With the availability of probes for the beta-isoform of the estrogen receptor, we studied this receptor in autonomic, sensory, and spinal cord neurons and compared it with the distribution of the alpha-receptor. Estrogen receptor-alpha and -beta immunoreactivity were located in the nuclei of neurons, were in subpopulations of parasympathetic neurons in pelvic ganglia, and sensory neurons of dorsal root and nodose ganglia. ⋯ In situ hybridization revealed both estrogen receptor-alpha and -beta mRNA transcripts in sensory neurons of the dorsal root and nodose ganglia, parasympathetic neurons of pelvic ganglia, and spinal cord neurons in the dorsal horn, sacral parasympathetic nucleus, and dorsal intermediate gray of L6-S1 segments. These studies show that both estrogen receptor-alpha and -beta are synthesized by autonomic and sensory neurons in parts of the nervous system that have connections with the female reproductive system. Such neurons contain neurotransmitters that have important functions in the female reproductive organs; thus, it is likely that estrogen can influence the activity of such neurons and consequently, through them, the activities of the reproductive organs.