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Infection by Chlamydia trachomatis was frequently observed in routine cytologic smears studied for cancer detection. Seventy-three smears from 187 Chlamydia-positive cases seen in a two-and-one-half-year period were reviewed to establish the relationship between C. trachomatis infection and the incidence of metaplastic and dysplastic cells. An inflammatory process with metaplastic cells was found in 72.6% of the smears and dysplastic cells in 16.4%. The Papanicolaou stain gave enough detail not only for the identification of the inclusions but also for the relation of different types of inclusions to the different stages of the life cycle of the microorganism.

Catecholamine release from perfused cat adrenal glands has been continuously monitored by on-line connection of the perfusion fluid emanating from the gland to an electrochemical detector. This method allowed: the recording of basal levels and fluctuations of catecholamine release with good reliability; the study of the release of catecholamines in response to even submicromolar concentrations of nicotine or acetylcholine and 3 mM increments of the K+ concentration, perfused in pulses of a few seconds, and to determine the effects of drugs and ionic manipulations on such secretory responses; the analysis of the 'physiological' secretory response evoked by electrical stimulation of the splanchnic nerves, allowing the study of presynaptic as well as postsynaptic components of the effects of drugs and ions on chemical neurotransmission at the splanchnic--chromaffin cell synapse; the continuous monitoring of the kinetics of the secretory process during sustained depolarization with several secretagogues and its correlation with the kinetics of activation and inactivation of potential sensitive Ca channels. In addition, this method avoids the time-consuming procedures of collecting samples and assaying them individually through tedious fluorimetric or radioenzymatic techniques.

Esophageal material for cytologic smears was obtained by the gel-foam technique from an 84-year-old man with dysphagia and symptoms of obstruction in whom initial attempts at endoscopic biopsy were nondiagnostic. The smears contained cells with koilocytotic atypia, similar to those described in smears from uterine cervix lesions produced by human papilloma virus. The cytologic diagnosis of an esophageal papilloma of viral origin was confirmed by the second biopsy. A third biopsy, from a lower level of the esophagus following dilatation procedures, revealed an epidermoid carcinoma in situ contiguous with the papilloma.

The effect of chronic ethanol intake on neuromuscular function has been analyzed by using a rat tibial muscle preparation. The time-course of single twitches, trains-of-four, tetanus and post-tetanic facilitation with and without blockade with alcuronium was evaluated. A decrease in these parameters was observed, being more pronounced in ethanol fed rats during 10 than 30 days. The twitch was the most affected parameter. After recovery of alcuronium blockade, the depressant effects of ethanol were completely reversed. These data suggest that low but sustained ethanol blood levels causes evident alterations of neuromuscular function due, probably, to a postjunctional action.