bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Side effects of calcium channel blockers.
Authors: Russell R P
Published: September 2013

Calcium channel blocking drugs are a chemically heterogenous group, so it might be expected that their effects on vascular smooth muscle, cardiac contractility, and conduction tissue may differ. However, the majority of adverse reactions are predictable from their pharmacological actions and may be conveniently grouped in the following categories: 1) vasodilatation, 2) negative inotropic effects, 3) conduction disturbances, 4) gastrointestinal effects, 5) metabolic effects, and 6) drug interactions. Vasodilatory symptoms, namely, dizziness, headaches, flushing sensation, and palpitation, are more likely with nifedipine. Peripheral edema is also common with nifedipine, but the mechanism is uncertain. For a given degree of vasodilation, the greatest negative inotropic effect is seen with verapamil first, diltiazem second, and nifedipine last. Calcium channel blocking drugs are contraindicated in hypertensive patients with second and third degree heart block, sick sinus syndrome, and severe heart failure. Verapamil and diltiazem have a significant effect on cardiac conduction, whereas nifedipine, in therapeutic doses, does not. Local gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea and constipation, are common with verapamil. None of the calcium channel blocking drugs have been reported to adversely affect lipid or protein metabolism. However, nifedipine, verapamil, and diltiazem in high doses may inhibit liberation of insulin. The significance of this finding needs to be explored further in hypertensive diabetics. Serum digoxin levels have been shown to increase after administration of verapamil and nifedipine, but there is no evidence that this change has any clinical relevance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Compliance and chronic disease.
Authors: German P S
Published: September 2013

The shifting demographics of the population and increasing skill in treatment of chronic disease in this country have combined to make compliance a topic of greater salience than ever before. General issues of compliance are a necessary background to specific issues of compliance with regimens for single diseases such as hypertension. The definition of compliance continues to be modified, and examination of past work reveals certain consistencies in studies of compliance. Non-compliance is higher in chronic conditions, in activities requiring change in life-style, and in clinician-initiated visits. Noncomprehension of instructions is held to be the most frequent cause of noncompliance. Noncompliance is a threat to the course of treatment, increases unnecessary diagnostic procedures, and confounds evaluation of effectiveness. Factors related to compliance have been identified with regard to certain patient and disease characteristics, amount of support in the immediate environment, and the nature of the doctor-patient relationship. Older patients are often at greater risk in understanding regimens because clinicians educate this group less often, because symptoms are misunderstood by both patient and provider, and because of greater complexity in both conditions that are being treated and number of drugs and other aspects of treatment required. Methods of improving the doctor-patient relationship have been urged most recently as a means through which compliance can be increased.
Resistant hypertension. Introduction and definitions.
Authors: Gifford R W
Published: September 2013

The following definition of resistant hypertension is proposed: Provided that adherence to the regimen can be assured, hypertension should be considered resistant if the blood pressure cannot be reduced to less than 150/100 mm Hg by a rational triple drug regimen, including a diuretic, prescribed in nearly maximal doses and if the pretreatment blood pressure was greater than or equal to 180/115 mm Hg. If the pretreatment blood pressure was less than 180/115 mm Hg, resistance should be defined as failure to achieve normotension (less than 140/90 mm Hg) on a rational triple drug regimen in nearly maximal doses.
Pre- and postjunctional inhibition of vascular sympathetic function by captopril in SHR. Implication of vascular angiotensin II in hypertension and antihypertensive actions of captopril.
Authors: Antonaccio M J , Kerwin L
Published: September 2013

The present study was designed to examine the effects of treatment of SHR with captopril, teprotide, and saralasin on vascular and cardiac responses to sympathetic nerve stimulation and angiotensin I and II (AI, AII) and norepinephrine (NE). A single dose of captopril (10 mg/kg i.v. as well as 10 and 100 mg/kg p.o.) caused significant and marked inhibition of pressor responses to sympathetic nerve stimulation in pithed SHR but cardiac responses were unaffected. Pressor responses to AI were abolished but those to AII and NE were not significantly altered. Neither teprotide nor saralasin caused consistent inhibition of sympathetic responses despite total blockade of AI and AII response respectively. Selective inhibition of pressor but not cardiac responses to sympathetic nerve stimulation was obtained after 2 weeks, 3 and 6 months of daily oral doses of captopril. In addition, postjunctional pressor responses to AI, AII, and NE were also significantly inhibited by chronic captopril treatment. Infusion of AII, bilateral nephrectomy, or pretreatment with indomethacin alone in pithed SHR receiving captopril had no effect on the inhibition of pressor responses to sympathetic stimulation. However, the combination of pretreatment of indomethacin and infusion of AII completely restored sympathetic function in SHR receiving captopril. These studies suggest that captopril has a selective inhibitory effect on vascular responses to sympathetic nerve stimulation but not on cardiac responses. Moreover, this effect may have a prejunctional component since, after acute treatment, there is no inhibitory effect on responses to AII or NE. Since, under appropriate conditions, the inhibition can be reversed by AII infusion but not nephrectomy, it is suggested that this inhibition occurs at the vascular level by inhibition of local AII formation by captopril, a site not accessible to teprotide or saralasin.
Response of aldosterone and 18-hydroxycorticosterone to angiotensin II in normal subjects and patients with essential hypertension, Conn's syndrome, and nontumorous hyperaldosteronism.
Authors: Fraser R , Beretta-Piccoli C , Brown J J , Cumming A M , Lever A F , Mason P A , Morton J J , Robertson J I
Published: September 2013

Dose-response curves relating plasma angiotensin II (AII) concentration during AII infusion to blood pressure (BP), to plasma aldosterone, and to plasma 18-hydroxycorticosterone were compared in normal subjects and in patients with essential hypertension, Conn's syndrome, and nontumorous hyperaldosteronism. The BP response was steeper than normal in patients with Conn's syndrome and essential hypertension. Before infusion, mean plasma aldosterone concentration was approximately four-fold higher in Conn's syndrome than in the normal group, while that of 18-hydroxycorticosterone was ninefold higher. Neither increased significantly during AII infusion. In essential hypertension, both corticosteroids were within the normal range, but their responses to AII infusion were greater than normal. In the three subjects with non-tumorous hyperaldosteronism, plasma aldosterone and 18-hydroxycorticosterone concentrations were raised, and their responses to AII infusion resembled those found in essential hypertension and were different from those found in Conn's syndrome. This suggests that nontumorous hyperaldosteronism is not a variant of Conn's syndrome. In the response to AII and in other ways, it is indistinguishable from essential hypertension.
Vasopressin elevation in essential hypertension and increased responsiveness to sodium intake.
Authors: Cowley A W , Cushman W C , Quillen E W , Skelton M M , Langford H G
Published: September 2013

The relationship of arterial pressure (AP) to plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP) and sodium (Na) intake was determined in untreated essential hypertensive (H) and normotensive (N) subjects. The AP of H subjects averaged 147/101 mm Hg and that of N subjects, 124/79 mm Hg. Plasma AVP was elevated significantly in H subjects, averaging 8.5 pg/ml compared to 4.7 pg/ml in N subjects. Multivariant regression analysis yielded a significant correlation (r2 = 0.34) between diastolic pressure, urine Na concentration, and changes in plasma AVP. Plasma Na of H subjects averaged 2.0 mEq/liter less and urine Na concentration 22 mEq/liter less than in N subjects. Sodium intake appeared to have no influence on the plasma AVP of N subjects, but H subjects excreting Na in excess of 250 mEq/day averaged a plasma AVP twice as high as that in H subjects excreting less than 150 mEq/day. In H subjects, the influence of Na intake appeared to be related to age. In subjects less than 50 years of age, Na intake did not appear to influence chronic levels of plasma AVP, while in subjects older than 50 years who were excreting Na in excess of 250 mEq/day, plasma AVP levels were twice (13.5 pg/ml) those observed in hypertensives of the same age excreting less than 150 mEq/ day (6.5 pg/ml). The data indicate that plasma AVP tends to be elevated in moderate essential hypertension. Reduced concentrating ability of the kidneys of these subjects is suggested by decreased urine Na concentrations despite elevated plasma AVP. The observed increases of plasma AVP could be exerting a direct influence on extra- and intravascular volumes by renal and systemic vasoconstriction.
Prostaglandins, antidiuretic hormone and renin angiotensin system.
Authors: Terragno N A
Published: September 2013

Current knowledge on prostaglandin biosynthesis is reviewed, centering on how PGs participate in the regulation of vascular tone and the prevention of platelet deposition on endothelial surfaces. Discussion includes review of the vasoactivity of the PG endoperoxides, thromboxane, prostacyclin, and prostaglandin E2; prostaglandin-catabolizing enzymes; polyunsaturated fatty acid precursors; nutritional factors; antidiuretic hormone; and interrelations of PGs with the renin-angiotensin system.
Contribution of vasopressin to hypertension.
Authors: Share L , Crofton J T
Published: September 2013

The contribution of vasopressin to the hypertensive process has been examined in a number of models of hypertension. Vasopressin is essential for the production of DOC-salt hypertension in the rat, It is likely that vasopressin is required in the early stages of this model of hypertension for its antidiuretic activity and contributes to the later stages of the hypertension as a pressor agent. Vasopressin secretion is increased in SHR, but there may be some differences between the SHR and stroke-prone SHR strains. The pressor action of vasopressin appears to be important in the stroke-prone SHR with well-established hypertension, but not in the young SHR. Vasopressin secretion is greater in Dahl S rats on a high salt diet than in similarly treated R rats. Blockade of vasopressin's pressor activity failed to lower blood pressure in these S rats, unless they were pretreated with captopril. There is insufficient information to determine whether vasopressin has a role in the hypertension in NZGH rats. Vasopressin appears to function as a pressor agent in some, but not all, rats with two-kidney, one clip hypertension. Although vasopressin is not essential for the production of one-kidney, one clip hypertension, it apparently contributes to the hypertension by virtue of its antidiuretic activity. Vasopressin secretion is elevated in partial nephrectomy-salt hypertension, and here, too, it is needed for its antidiuretic action. The question of whether vasopressin secretion is elevated in human essential hypertension is controversial, and its role remains to be determined.
Neural contribution to renal hypertension following acute renal artery stenosis in conscious rats.
Authors: Faber J E , Brody M J
Published: September 2013

To assess the hemodynamic changes during acute renal artery stenosis (RSt) and their dependence on alterations in the renin-angiotensin and sympathetic nervous systems, we studied conscious rats chronically instrumented with miniaturized pulsed-Doppler flow probes. Probes were implanted on the superior mesenteric and both renal arteries, and on the lower abdominal aorta for measurement of mesenteric (MR), renal (RR), and hindquarters (HQR) vascular resistance. Unilateral RSt, with a pneumatic cuff occluder that reduced flow by approximately 50%, increased mean arterial pressure (MAP) by 32%, reduced heart rate, and increased MR, nonstenotic (contralateral) RR and HQR. The hypertension was renin-dependent since plasma renin activity increased 6-fold and the angiotensin II (AII) antagonist, saralasin, significantly reduced MAP and regional resistances. The acute hypertension was also associated with increased neurogenic vasoconstrictor tone since hexamethonium markedly reduced MAP, MR, HQR and non-stenotic RR. Hexamethonium similarly decreased MAP during hypertension induced by AII infusion, whereas hypertension produced by the "pure" peripheral vasoconstrictor, phenylephrine, was unaffected by ganglionic blockade. In animals with peripheral sympathectomy produced by 6-hydroxydopamine, acute RSt produced hemodynamic changes similar in magnitude to intact animals; however, PRA increased 3-fold more than in intact rats. We conclude that hypertension induced by acute RSt in conscious rats is not only renin-dependent, but is also associated with inappropriately high neurogenic vasoconstrictor tone, presumably activated by indirect neural actions of AII.
Efficacy of nifedipine as a step 3 antihypertensive drug.
Authors: Murphy M B , Scriven A J , Dollery C T
Published: September 2013

The efficacy of nifedipine (N) as a "step 3" antihypertensive drug was assessed in 15 patients who remained hypertensive in spite of atenolol 100 mg and bendrofluazide 5 mg daily. Nifedipine was added in doses of 10, 20, and 30 mg three times daily in a placebo-controlled double-blind trial. Supine mean blood pressure was reduced by 11.9% +/- 6.2% by N 10 mg three times daily, by 13.9% +/- 7.6% by N 20 mg three times daily and by 20.3% +/- 6.2% by N 30 mg three times daily. Plasma potassium was reduced from 3.9 +/- 0.5 mEq/liter on placebo to 3.6 +/- 0.5 mEq/liter on N 10 mg three times daily, 3.6 +/- 0.4 mEq/liter on N 20 mg three times daily (p less than 0.05), and 3.5 +/- 0.5 mEq/liter on N 30 mg three times daily (p less than 0.05). Heart rate, body weight, renal function, and plasma glucose were not altered. Nifedipine is thus a useful third-line hypotensive agent that should be used in combination with a potassium-sparing diuretic.
Factors influencing the hypotensive effects of calcium antagonists.
Authors: Erne P , Bolli P , Bertel O , Hulthen U L , Kiowski W , Muller F B , Buhler F
Published: September 2013

The antihypertensive efficacy of monotherapy with the calcium antagonists nifedipine (n = 60) and verapamil (n = 43) was investigated in patients with essential hypertension. Relationships between age, pretreatment blood pressure, pretreatment plasma renin activity, and hypotensive response were examined. Intraindividual differences in the responses to both drugs were also studied (n = 16). Treatment with verapamil had to be discontinued because of constipation in one patient; treatment with nifedipine was discontinued because of headache in 11 and ankle edema in one. The antihypertensive efficacy of nifedipine and verapamil was comparable and was positively related to pretreatment mean blood pressure (p less than 0.001) and inversely to pretreatment plasma renin activity (p less than 0.05). With verapamil, the fall in blood pressure correlated positively with the patient's age (p less than 0.001). Thus, calcium antagonists can be used as first-line drugs, especially in older and low renin patients. The relationship between the antihypertensive response and pretreatment blood pressure suggests that there may be a calcium influx-dependent vasoconstrictor mechanism in essential hypertension which may be more pronounced in patients with low plasma renin.
Monotherapy of essential hypertension with a converting-enzyme inhibitor.
Authors: Drayer J I , Weber M A
Published: September 2013

The antihypertensive effectiveness of twice-daily dosing with the converting enzyme inhibitor, captopril, was examined in a multicenter study of 294 patients (181 white, 111 black, two oriental) with essential hypertension whose supine diastolic blood pressure (SDBP) was 95 mm Hg or higher after 4 to 6 weeks of preliminary placebo administration. In this double-blind study, the patients were randomized into one placebo and three captopril-treated groups: twice-daily placebo (n = 77) or twice-daily captopril 25 mg (n = 77), 50 mg (n = 71), or 100 mg (n = 69). The average decreases in SDBP after 8 weeks of treatment were 5.2%, 7.7%, 11.7%, and 10.5%, respectively. Only the two higher dose groups differed significantly from the placebo group; they also differed from the lowest dose group. The proportions of patients classified as having normalized pressures (SDBP less than 90 mm Hg) in the four groups were 39%, 47%, 70%, and 50%. If the results were analyzed by race, all three captopril-treated groups differed significantly from the placebo-treated group in the white patients but not in the black patients. However, direct comparisons between the white and black groups showed a difference only at the low, 25 mg twice daily (b.i.d.), captopril dose. Thus, although conventionally given on a three-times daily basis, the twice-daily (12-hourly) administration of captopril provides effective antihypertensive treatment in doses of 50 or 100 mg b.i.d. Moreover, white patients also exhibit a significant response to captopril at doses as low as 25 mg b.i.d.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The problem of obesity and hypertension.
Authors: Frohlich E D , Messerli F H , Reisin E , Dunn F G
Published: September 2013

Hypertension and obesity are two disorders that have been closely related, each occurring in greater frequency with the other than in an otherwise normal population. Although a causal relationship has not been established between the two, their coincidence carries increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. This report summarizes the pathophysiological studies from our laboratory concerning their interrelationship and offers a rational hypothesis for the mechanisms underlying this enhanced risk. Patients with hypertension demonstrate an increased total peripheral resistance that explains hemodynamically the rising arterial pressure with advancing vascular disease. In response to this increased afterload imposed upon the heart, the left ventricle adapts itself structurally through a process of concentric hypertrophy. In addition, in most patients with essential hypertension, plasma volume progressively contracts and renal vascular resistance increases in proportion to the rise in arterial pressure and total peripheral resistance. In contrast, in obesity-hypertension there is a superimposed factor of volume overload upon the hemodynamic abnormality. The result is an additional cardiac stimulus for eccentric hypertrophy due to the increased ventricular preload. This factor enhances left ventricular stroke work and its attendant myocardial oxygen demands, thereby providing a dual overload on cardiac function that can explain the increased risk of heart failure related to these associated conditions. In contrast to the compounding adverse hemodynamic effects on the heart, there does not seem to be an additive hemodynamic effect of obesity on hypertensive renal vascular disease.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Protracted effect of converting-enzyme inhibition on the rat's response to intraarterial bradykinin.
Authors: Lindsey C J , de Paula U M , Paiva A C
Published: September 2013

Intravenous infusion of the converting-enzyme (CE) inhibitor, MK422 (1 mg X kg-1 X hr-1 for 30 minutes) in normotensive controls and two-kidney, one clip (2K1C) rats in the acute phase of renovascular hypertension had a significant hypotensive effect that persisted after 24 hours. In contrast to that prolonged effect, inhibition of the pressor responses to intraarterial or intravenous angiotensin I, and the potentiation of the depressor responses to intravenous bradykinin (BK), were evident during the hour following the infusion of MK422, but not 24 hours later. Potentiation of intraarterially administered BK, however, persisted for 24 hours after infusion of the CE inhibitor. It is concluded that at least the prolonged (24-hour) effect of the treatment with MK422 was due to inhibition of the CE activity in tissues other than the lung, and that increased levels of endogenous BK may be responsible for the inhibitor's hypotensive effect.
Vascular angiotensin II receptors in renal and DOCA-salt hypertensive rats.
Authors: Schiffrin E L , Thomé F S , Genest J
Published: September 2013

To determine the contribution of receptor number and affinity to changes in vascular reactivity to angiotensin II (AII) in hypertensive rats, we have investigated the binding of 125I-AII to a particulate fraction of the rat mesenteric artery of hypertensive rats. In two-kidney, one clip hypertensive rats, receptor concentration (Bmax) was 83 +/- 13 fmol/mg and the dissociation constant (Kd) 0.6 +/- 0.1 nM vs 75 +/- 5.3 fmol/mg and 0.6 +/- 0.1 nM in normotensive controls, although PRA was much higher in the former. Bmax was reduced in these hypertensive rats after sodium depletion, as in normal rats. One-kidney, one clip hypertensive rats (Bmax 88 +/- 17 fmol/mg, Kd 0.6 +/- 0.1 nM) did not differ from uninephrectomized control rats (96 +/- 9 fmol/mg, Kd 0.5 +/- 0.1 nM). In DOCA-salt hypertensive rats, binding capacity was increased (125 +/- 2 fmol/mg, Kd 0.7 +/- 0.0 nM) vs uninephrectomized salt-loaded rats (Bmax 95 +/- 6 fmol/mg, Kd 0.6 +/- 0.1 nM), although PRA was suppressed comparably in both groups. The salt-loaded rats did not differ from uninephrectomized controls drinking water. We conclude that changes in the circulating renin-angiotensin system do not explain all the variations in receptor number in hypertensive rats. Our results suggest a role of mineralocorticoids in the regulation of vascular AII receptors.
Systemic and arterial hemodynamic effects of nifedipine (20 mg) in mild-to-moderate hypertension.
Authors: Levenson J A , Safar M E , Simon A C , Boutier J A , Griener L
Published: September 2013

Systemic and arterial hemodynamic effects of the new 20 mg tablet of nifedipine were studied in seven patients with mild-to-moderate essential hypertension. Hemodynamics of the forearm arterial circulation were investigated using a new pulsed Doppler system, enabling the simultaneous determination of the brachial artery diameter and the arterial blood flow velocity. After nifedipine administration, blood pressure decreased significantly, due to a fall in total peripheral resistance. Simultaneously, brachial blood flow increased significantly, due both to an increase in arterial diameter and blood flow velocity. The study provided evidence that, with nifedipine, there is both 1) a dilation of small arteries, causing a decrease in blood pressure; and 2) a dilation of peripheral large arteries, leading to an increase in peripheral blood flow.
New centrally acting antihypertensive drugs related to methyldopa and clonidine.
Authors: Sweet C S
Published: September 2013

It has been well established that the antihypertensive drugs clonidine and methyldopa lower blood pressure by acting on postsynaptic alpha 2-adrenergic receptors within cardiovascular control centers of the brain. A number of novel agents designed as lipophilic and highly selective alpha 2-adrenergic stimulants have been synthesized and in general the pharmacological features of these agents resemble clonidine or alpha-methylnorepinephrine, the principal metabolite of methyldopa. The clonidine analogs, ICI-106,270, UK-14,304, piclonidine (LR-99,853), and the bridge analogs (ST-1913, ST-1966,ST-1967) exhibit varying activity on the central cardiovascular control centers. ICI-106,270 is of interest because relative to clonidine it appears to exert fewer CNS side effects. Azepexole (BHT-933) is also of interest because, although structurally unrelated to clonidine, it appears to interact with central alpha-adrenergic receptors in a manner similar to that of clonidine. In contrast, central administration of ST-1966, a monoatomic bridge analog of clonidine, lowers blood pressure in animals treated with an alpha 2-antagonist, which suggests other mechanisms may be involved in its action. Novel antihypertensive agents structurally similar to methyldopa have not been described, although viable pro-drugs of methyldopa such as 2-oxo-1,3-dioxol-4-yl-methyl and pivaloyloxyethyl esters have been shown to have greater oral activity than methyldopa, presumably because they are more lipophilic than the parent moiety.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Sodium loading and posture modulate human atrial natriuretic factor plasma levels.
Authors: Hollister A S , Tanaka I , Imada T , Onrot J , Biaggioni I , Robertson D , Inagami T
Published: September 2013

Atrial natriuretic factor is postulated to act through atrial stretch receptors as a volume regulatory hormone that stimulates diuresis and natriuresis in response to increased atrial pressure. To characterize the stimuli associated with the release of atrial natriuretic factor in humans, we studied 14 normal subjects, both in the supine position and after 10 minutes in an upright posture, while they were on a regular diet (Day 0) and during 3 days of supplemental sodium chloride intake (8 g/day). Radioimmunoassay of plasma atrial natriuretic factor was performed with rabbit antibody to the human hormone amino acids (102-126). Urinary sodium excretion increased from 111 +/- 13 mEq/day (mean +/- SEM) on Day 0 to 275 +/- 15 mEq/day by the third day (Day 3) of high sodium intake. The level of atrial natriuretic factor in the supine position rose from 17 +/- 4 pg/ml (Day 0) to 76 +/- 13 pg/ml on Day 3 (p less than 0.001) and after 10 minutes in an upright posture on Day 3, the level fell to 32 +/- 10 (p less than 0.005). Plasma concentrations of atrial natriuretic factor correlated positively with spot and 24-hour urinary sodium excretion and weight gain, and correlated negatively with plasma aldosterone and renin activity. We conclude that the response of atrial natriuretic factor to sodium loading and posture change in humans is appropriate for a volume regulatory hormone.
Definitions and characteristics of sodium sensitivity and blood pressure resistance.
Authors: Weinberger M H , Miller J Z , Luft F C , Grim C E , Fineberg N S
Published: September 2013

Sensitivity and resistance to the effects of sodium were evaluated in normotensive and hypertensive humans by two approaches. Blood pressure was measured after an intravenous infusion of 2 L of normal (0.9%) saline and after sodium and volume depletion induced by a low sodium diet and furosemide administration in 378 normal volunteers and 198 subjects with essential hypertension. Those in whom mean arterial blood pressure decreased by at least 10 mm Hg after sodium and volume depletion were considered sodium-sensitive, and those with a decrease of 5 mm Hg or less (including an increase in pressure) were considered sodium-resistant. The second study utilized the blood pressure response to modest dietary sodium restriction in 74 normotensive subjects to identify sodium sensitivity and resistance. In both studies the responses were heterogeneous. In the first study significantly more hypertensive subjects were sodium-sensitive, as compared with those in the normotensive group (p less than 0.001). Plasma renin activity (low, normal, or high) did not predict sodium responses. In both groups sodium-sensitive individuals were significantly older (p less than 0.001) and had lower baseline renin values than sodium-resistant subjects. Factors related to the change in mean arterial blood pressure after sodium and volume depletion included baseline pressure (r = -0.54, p less than 0.001) and age (r = -0.16, p = 0.002 in the normotensive group; r = -0.28, p less than 0.001 in the hypertensive group). The response to dietary sodium restriction was also correlated with baseline pressure (r = 0.61, p less than 0.001) and the initial urinary sodium excretion (r = 0.27, p less than 0.01).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Four-hour infusions of synthetic atrial natriuretic peptide in normal volunteers.
Authors: Biollaz J , Nussberger J , Porchet M , Brunner-Ferber F , Otterbein E S , Gomez H , Waeber B , Brunner H R
Published: September 2013

Two doses of synthetic atrial natriuretic peptide (0.5 and 5.0 micrograms/min) and its vehicle were infused intravenously for 4 hours in eight salt-loaded normal volunteers, and the effect on blood pressure, heart rate, renal hemodynamics, solute excretion, and secretion of vasoactive hormones was studied. The 0.5 micrograms/min infusion did not alter blood pressure or heart rate, whereas the 5.0 micrograms/min infusion significantly reduced the mean pressure by 20/9 mm Hg after 2.5 to 3 hours and increased the heart rate slightly. Inulin clearance was not significantly changed, but the mean p-aminohippurate clearance fell by 13 and 32% with the lower and higher doses, respectively. Urinary excretion of sodium and chloride increased slightly with the lower dose. With the higher dose, a marked increase in urinary excretion of sodium, chloride, and calcium was observed, reaching a peak during the second hour of the infusion. Potassium and phosphate excretion did not change significantly. A brisk increase in urine flow rate and fractional water excretion was seen only during the first hour of the high-dose infusion. Signs and symptoms of hypotension were observed in two subjects. No change in plasma renin activity, angiotensin II, or aldosterone was observed during either infusion, but a marked increase occurred after discontinuation of the high-dose infusion. In conclusion, the 5 micrograms/min infusion induced a transient diuretic effect, delayed maximal natriuretic activity, and a late fall in blood pressure, with no change in inulin clearance but a dose-related decrease in p-aminohippurate clearance. Despite large amounts of sodium excreted and blood pressure reduction, no counterregulatory changes were observed in the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system or plasma vasopressin levels during the infusion.
Standardization in the measurement of left ventricular wall mass. Two-dimensional echocardiography.
Authors: Reichek N
Published: September 2013

Two-dimensional echocardiography is superior to M-mode echocardiography for estimation of left ventricular mass when left ventricular shape is markedly abnormal. Left ventricular mass measurement by two-dimensional echocardiography depends on careful experimental calibration of the echocardiographic instrument using either a standard phantom or actual heart slices, and appropriate geometric algorithm, and short axis images to determine myocardial cross-sectional area. Several well-validated algorithms are available, of which the short-axis area-length technique is the simplest. In hypertensive heart disease, in which left ventricular shape is usually close to normal, two-dimensional echocardiography may offer a smaller standard error than M-mode, but this issue requires further evaluation. Further, it is uncertain whether the incremental accuracy of two-dimensional echocardiography in hypertensive heart disease would offset its increased cost and complexity relative to M-mode echocardiography.
High calcium diet reduces blood pressure in Dahl salt-sensitive rats by neural mechanisms.
Authors: Peuler J D , Morgan D A , Mark A L
Published: September 2013

We tested the hypothesis that high dietary calcium attenuates hypertension in Dahl salt-sensitive rats by neural as opposed to vascular mechanisms. Four-week-old Dahl salt-sensitive rats were fed a high salt diet (3.3% sodium) with either high (4.0%; n = 21) or normal (0.4%; n = 21) calcium content until they were 10 to 11 weeks old. Total plasma calcium concentration was increased and plasma phosphorus concentration was decreased by the high calcium diet. At 10 weeks, food intake and intestinal absorption of sodium were not altered by the high calcium diet. There were three major observations. First, mean arterial pressure was lower in awake rats fed a high versus normal calcium diet (137 +/- 7, n = 11, vs 165 +/- 6 mm Hg, n = 10, respectively; p less than 0.05). This pressure difference was dependent on intact autonomic transmission, since ganglionic blockade eliminated the significant difference between pressures in rats fed high (78 +/- 5 mm Hg) and normal (85 +/- 6 mm Hg) calcium diets. Second, high calcium intake augmented baroreceptor reflex inhibition of renal sympathetic nerve activity and heart rate during ramp increase in arterial pressure produced by infusion of phenylephrine. Reflex suppression of renal sympathetic nerve activity was twofold greater in rats fed the high (vs normal) calcium diet (-2.79 +/- 0.25 vs -1.34 +/- 0.14% delta/delta mm Hg, respectively; n = 9 rats per group; p less than 0.05). Third, high calcium intake did not attenuate vascular responsiveness, since pressor responses to norepinephrine and angiotensin II did not differ between rats fed high and normal calcium diets after ganglionic blockade.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Angiotensin II receptors and angiotensin converting enzyme in the medulla oblongata.
Authors: Allen A M , Chai S Y , Sexton P M , Lewis S J , Verberne A J , Jarrott B , Louis W J , Clevers J , McKinley M J , Paxinos G
Published: September 2013

Quantitative in vitro autoradiography was used to map angiotensin II (ANG II) receptors and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) in sections from rat, rabbit, sheep, and human medulla oblongata and to follow changes in receptor and ACE density after disruption of vagal projections by nodose ganglionectomy in the rat. ANG II receptors and ACE are both concentrated in the nucleus of the solitary tract and dorsal motor nucleus of vagus of the rat, rabbit, sheep, and human. An ANG II receptor-containing band connecting the nucleus of the solitary tract with the dorsolateral medulla was seen in rabbit and human tissue, providing evidence for association of ANG II receptors with vagal afferent fibers. ANG II receptors were found to be concentrated in the rostral and caudal ventrolateral medulla, which corresponded to the region of C1 and A1 catecholamine-containing cell groups in the rabbit. This localization was also evident in rat and human tissue. In all four species, a prominent, ANG II receptor-rich band in the intermediate reticular nucleus was found to connect the ventrolateral medulla and the dorsal vagal complex. In humans and sheep, this band contains puncta that overlie cell bodies. One week after nodose ganglionectomy in the rat, the density of ANG II receptors in the ipsilateral dorsal vagal complex fell markedly. This fall was most prominent in the rostral dorsal motor nucleus of vagus (to 46% of control density) and in the nucleus of the solitary tract (to 56% of control). ACE levels and calcitonin gene-related peptide receptor density were unchanged in both nuclei after ganglionectomy.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Cyclosporin A-induced hyperreninemic hypoaldosteronism. A model of adrenal resistance to angiotensin II.
Authors: Stern N , Lustig S , Petrasek D , Jensen G , Eggena P , Lee D B , Tuck M L
Published: September 2013

We studied the effects of cyclosporin A on the renin-aldosterone axis in Sprague-Dawley rats. Two weeks of intragastric administration of cyclosporin A (5 mg/kg/day or or 20 mg/kg/day) resulted in large increases in plasma renin concentration (23 +/- 5, 70 +/- 12, and 79 +/- 11 ng/ml/hr in control rats and rats receiving 5 mg and 20 mg of cyclosporin A, respectively), with no parallel increments in plasma aldosterone. In vitro angiotensin II (ANG II)-stimulated aldosterone secretion by zona glomerulosa cells obtained from cyclosporin A-treated rats was also reduced (4.8 +/- 0.5, 1.5 +/- 0.2, and 0.2 +/- 0.2 ng/10(5) cells in control rats and rats receiving 5 mg and 20 mg of cyclosporin A, respectively). In contrast, in vitro aldosterone response to graded increments of potassium (3.7-10.7 mmol/L) or adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) (10(-11)-10(-8) M) was preserved in cyclosporin A-treated rats. When added in vitro to zona glomerulosa cells from untreated rats, cyclosporin A also attenuated ANG II-stimulated aldosterone secretion, but did not affect potassium or ACTH-mediated aldosterone production. Thus, cyclosporin A-induced hyperreninemic hypoaldosteronism in the rat depends on opposing renal and adrenal effects, with a direct or feedback stimulation of renin secretion and a specific blockade of ANG II-mediated aldosterone production.
Plasma angiotensins and blood pressure during converting enzyme inhibition.
Authors: Mento P F , Wilkes B M
Published: September 2013

The relationship between plasma angiotensin and the reduction of blood pressure with the angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor enalapril was studied in rats. Blood pressure was measured in conscious rats with indwelling arterial catheters. To measure angiotensin II, plasma was analyzed by physical separation of angiotensins using high performance liquid chromatography followed by radioimmunoassay. The effects of both single (acute) and long-term (chronic) dosages of enalapril were measured. After a single oral dose of enalapril (10 mg/kg), mean arterial pressure fell from 111 +/- 3 to 86 +/- 3 mm Hg (p less than 0.005). Despite the blood pressure reduction, plasma angiotensin II was unaffected (control, 9.9 +/- 1.8 vs 9.7 +/- 1.1 pg/ml). After a higher single oral dose of enalapril (30 mg/kg), there was a reduction in both mean arterial pressure (81 +/- 5 mm Hg, p less than 0.005) and plasma angiotensin II concentration (2.3 +/- 0.6 pg/ml, p less than 0.01). The chronic effects of converting enzyme inhibition were evaluated in rats given enalapril in their drinking water (30 mg/kg 24 hr) for 1 week or 2 months. Mean arterial pressure remained equally low after chronic administration (for 1 week or 2 months), but plasma angiotensin II increased above normal (after 1 week, 28.9 +/- 8.7, p less than 0.01 vs control; after 2 months, 43.1 +/- 16.2 pg/ml, p less than 0.05 vs control). Although plasma angiotensin converting enzyme activity was undetectable at any time after enalapril administration, there was a partial return of the angiotensin I pressor response with chronic administration. The data are most compatible with actions of converting enzyme inhibitors independent of the blockade of plasma angiotensin II formation.
The Ethnic Life of Missionaries: Early Inculturation Theology in Mato Grosso, Brazil (1952-1990)
Authors: Belleau Jean-Philippe
Published: September 2013

From the early 1950s to the mid-1970s, missionaries from several congregations in the southwestern Amazon region of Brazil, notably a group of young Jesuits, developed an avant la lettre radical brand of inculturation theology, based on close relations with academic anthropology and cultural relativism. By the 1990s, this “type” of inculturation became one of the missionary norms in the region; it was also instrumental in the creation and orientation of the Indigenist Missionary Council, the main missionary organization in Brazil. I explore the trajectories of three inculturation theology Jesuits who asserted the need to protect indigenous cultures, including their shamanic rituals.
Mormon Missionary Experiences and Subsequent Religiosity among Returned Missionaries in Utah
Authors: Grace Chou Hui-Tzu
Published: September 2013

This qualitative research examined Mormon missionary experiences and their impacts on the religiosity of returned missionaries living in Utah. Based on open-ended surveys completed by those who served a mission for the Mormon Church, this research analyzed how missionary experiences increased the religiosity of most missionaries, as well as reasons why some respondents felt their missionary experiences decreased their religious level. This paper also examined the missionary experiences of those who later dropped out of Mormonism – why their missionary experiences failed to strengthen their commitment while they convinced others to join the Mormon Church. This paper found that men and women faced different challenges during their mission, and mission experiences also affected men’s and women’s religiosity differently. In addition, although those who served in Western Europe faced the highest rate of rejection during their mission, they reported higher religious and spiritual levels than their counterparts. The paper concludes with the development of a grounded theory arguing that the impact of the Mormon missionary experiences on missionaries’ subsequent religiosity corresponds to a process of maximizing social acceptance and minimizing social rejections among various social groups.
A Hostile Tribe Made Him Their Chief: Edwin W. Smith (1876-1957) and Anthropology
Authors: Young W. John
Published: September 2013

This paper offers a brief account of the rise of British anthropology followed by a survey of the writings of Edwin W. Smith (1876-1957) on the subject. Smith from a Primitive Methodist background is the only missionary of any denomination to be President of the Royal Anthropological Institute. From an Africanist perspective Smith promoted applied anthropology as a tool for mission and development and encouraged anthropological research in a changing Africa. His contribution and approach will be evaluated in the context of modern reflections on anthropology and mission in the imperial era.
Book Debate
Authors: Longman Timothy
Published: September 2013

Jan van Butselaar, who lived and worked in Rwanda for many years, reviews Timothy Longman’s book Christianity and Genocide. He describes his experience of church life in the country between 1975 and 1983, and he contests Longman’s view of the 1994 genocide and what he sees as a blanket condemnation of the role of Christian institutions and leaders in it. Longman responds by unpacking the different understandings of the genocide which he and Butselaar have, before restating and explaining further his main argument in relation to the role of Christian churches in the genocide in Rwanda.
The Family Cladoniaceae (Lecanorales) in the Galapagos Islands
Authors: Yánez Alba , Ahti Teuvo , Bungartz Frank
Published: September 2013

As part of an ongoing comprehensive inventory of the Galapagos lichen flora, all species in the Cladoniaceae from the archipelago have been revised using both historic and recent collections. A total of twenty-six species is reported here, one species of Cladia and twenty-five Cladonia species. One species, Cladonia bungartzii, is described as new to science; seven are records new to Ecuador and the Galapagos: Cladonia corymbosula, C. polyscypha, C. pulverulenta, C. pyxidata, C. aff. sphacelata, and C. strepsilis. Four species have previously been reported from Ecuador, but are new to Galapagos: C. cartilaginea, C. chlorophaea, C. dactylota, and C. grayi. Eight species previously reported cannot be confirmed here. Detailed descriptions are presented for all species. They include diagnostic characteristics to distinguish similar species. An identification key to all Galapagos Cladoniaceae is provided. A brief discussion highlights the importance of baseline inventories and uses the Galapagos Cladoniaceae as a case study to discuss important aspects of lichen biogeography in Galapagos.
A brief review of genus Catopta Staudinger, 1899 (Lepidoptera: Cossidae) with description of a new species from China
Authors: YAKOVLEV ROMAN V. , SALDAITIS AIDAS , KONS HUGO JR. , BORTH ROBERT
Published: September 2013

A checklist of the genus Catopta Staudinger, 1889 is presented. A new species, С. dusii sp. nov., from the Xiling Xue Shan Mountains of in the Noth West China’s Sichuan Province is described.
A new species of Parapanteles Ashmead (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from India reared from Abisara echeria Stoll (Lepidoptera: Riodinidae) with key to the Indian Parapanteles species
Authors: GUPTA ANKITA , PEREIRA BLAISE , CHURI PARESH V.
Published: September 2013

A new species of gregarious endoparasitoid, Parapanteles echeriae Gupta, Pereira & Churi, sp. nov., bred from Abisara echeria Stoll (Lepidoptera: Riodinidae) on host plant Embelia sp. (Myrsinaceae), is described and illustrated from Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Abisara echeria, commonly known as plum judy, is a small striking butterfly prevalent in Asia. This is the first ever record of a parasitic wasp associated with Abisara. Parapanteles echeriae is distinguished from P. sireeshaae Ahmad & Akhtar in having propodeum with areola 1.2´ as long as wide; anterior diagonal carina meeting anterior margin of propodeum in one half; veins r and 2RS of fore wing merging in a smooth curve; yellow coloured legs and tegulae brownish black. A key to the Indian species of Parapanteles is also provided.
The Cossidae (Lepidoptera) of Malawi with descriptions of two new species
Authors: YAKOVLEV ROMAN V. , MURPHY RAYMOND J.
Published: September 2013

An annotated list of Cossidae of Malawi including 30 species from 13 genera and 3 subfamilies is presented for the first time. Two new species are described: Macrocossus grebennikovi Yakovlev, sp. nov. and Strigocossus elephas Yakovlev, sp. nov. Three new synonyms are established: Strigocossus moderatus (Walker, 1856) = Strigocossus leucopteris Houlbert, 1916, syn. nov. = Xyleutes sjoestedti vosseleri Gaede, 1930, syn. nov. and Strigocossus capensis (Walker, 1856) = Azygophleps kilimandjarae Le Cerf, 1914, syn. nov.
A new species of Anchylorhynchus Schoenherr (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) from the Amazon, with a record of a new host palm for the genus
Authors: VALENTE ROBERTA DE MELO , DE MEDEIROS BRUNO AUGUSTO SOUZA
Published: September 2013

Anchylorhynchus vanini sp. nov. from the Amazon is described, including the mouthparts and male genitalia. The new species is compared with similar species within the genus and the key to the species of Anchylorhynchus provided by    Vaurie (1954) is modified to include the new species. Adult specimens were collected in flowers of the palm Syagrus     vermicularis Noblick and additional collections in other palms species suggest that this association is specific. This is the first record of the palm Syagrus vermicularis as host for a species of Anchylorhynchus.
Preventive coping among people with severe mental illness in daily life: Strategies used and associations with mood
Authors: Yanos Philip T , Rosario Arlety
Published: September 2013

Background:

Preventive coping refers to efforts that are taken to reduce the likelihood of experiencing, or lessen the impact of, stress in the future.

Aims:

The present investigation explored the use of preventive strategies in daily life among people with severe mental illness, and examined the association between types of preventive strategies used and end-of-day mood.

Methods:

Participants included 27 adults diagnosed with severe mental illness who completed up to 20 daily interviews each (375 interviews were completed in total), which assessed preventive coping and end-of-day mood.

Results:

The most commonly (across participants) and frequently (within participant days) endorsed preventive strategies were accessing social support and engaging in activities/hobbies. Participants tended to have less positive mood at end-of-day on days in which either no, or more passive, strategies were used.

Conclusions:

Findings supported that preventive strategies are frequently used by members of this population, and that accessing social support and engaging in activities/hobbies are the most frequently used preventive strategies. Findings also suggest that the use of no or more passive preventive strategies was associated with less positive mood at end of day.