In a previous study our group found that the probiotic Saccharomyces boulardii was capable of reducing the intensity of infection in mice with toxocariasis. In order to assess whether the mechanism involved would be a direct action of the probiotic on Toxocara canis larvae, this study was designed. Both probiotics were singly cultivated in plates containing RPMI 1640 medium and T. canis larvae....

A procedure was developed to directly measure the self-renewal capacity of clonogenic cells from biopsies of metastatic human malignant melanoma. A culture of colony-forming cells was performed with bilayer agar in microtiter wells. The number of live tumor cells from biopsies of melanoma tissue was determined and was used to calculate plating efficiencies. Sequential photography showed that ce...

Careful examination of relevant literature shows that many of the most cherished concepts of the blood-brain barrier are incorrect. These include an almost mythological belief in its immaturity that is unfortunately often equated with absence or at least leakiness in the embryo and fetus. The original concept of a blood-brain barrier is often attributed to Ehrlich; however, he did not accept th...

Epiretinal membrane is a common surgical disease of the elderly. The aetiology, clinical presentation, and diagnosis are briefly described. Management, principally vitrectomy and membrane removal, is then elaborated. Recent advances such as internal limiting membrane peeling are further discussed. The safety and efficacy of intra-ocular dyes, including indocyanine green and trypan blue, as well...

Using a quantitative technic for depositing a definite number of carcinoma or sarcoma cells into the anterior chamber of the mouse eye, without leakage as proven by complete reten tion of Trypan blue dye, this route generally required a 100to 1,000-fold lower dose of cells to produce tumors in 100% of animals, as compared to the intramuscular, intravenous, and intraperitoneal routes of inoculat...

Flavopiridol (NSC @98%,L86-8275), a potent inhibitor of cyclin dependent kinase 1Jp34@ phosphorylation and kinase activity, is cur rently undergoing Phase I clinical testing as a potential antineoplastic agent. Previous studies have suggested that flavopiridol is cytostatic but not cytotoxic when applied to exponentially growing cells. In the present study, various human tumor cell lines were a...