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The postoperative transit times of radioopaque markers through the gastrointestinal tract where measured in 6 patients after gastric surgery, in 13 patients after cholecystectomy, in 10 patients after appendicectomy and in 7 other patients who underwent general anesthesia without laparotomy. After ingestion of 20 markers, overall and segmental transit times were calculated according to their distribution on serial plain films of the abdomen taken 6 and 24 h after the operation, and every 24 h thereafter until complete evacuation of the markers. Overall transit times of the 3 groups of patients with laparotomy (171, 130 and 113 h respectively) were greater than overall transit times of patients without laparotomy (25 h). Overall transit times of patients with gastric operations were greater than overall transit times of patients with cholecystectomy (p less than 0.05) or appendicectomy (p less than 0.01). The increase in overall transit time was mainly due to an increased gastric transit time in patients after gastric surgery and an increased transit time through the right colon in patients who underwent cholecystectomy and appendicectomy. Once markers began to be defecated, their disappearance rate was the same in the 4 groups of patients. These results show that an increased overall transit time may be the consequence either of an increased transit time through the stomach or through the right colon, depending on the type of operation. As well, when digestive propulsive activity returns, it is de novo normal.

Thanks to the photo-elastic method, the authors have described the disposition of the quadricipital tensile stresses in the human patella. Photo-elasticity allows the study of the relations between birefraction and stresses which exist in a transparent medium. Up to now, all the studies have been made on a plane model. The original feature of this study lies in the use of a three-dimensional model which, better than any plane photo-elasticimetry, makes it possible to display bone stresses in the three-dimensional space. After reminding some fundamental data, the authors describe the methodology and give the first qualitative results: in a frontal plane, tensile stresses are localised in the anterior two-thirds of the patella; on the contrary, pressure stresses can be observed in the posterior third. So the patella moves forward the tensile stresses of the knee.

Three phenotypically distinct subclones (SH-SY-5Y, SH-EP, SH-IN) of the human neuroblastoma cell line SK-N-SH were found to possess vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) precursor mRNA, release immunoreactive VIP, and express high-affinity VIP receptors coupled to adenylate cyclase. The apparent molecular mass for the receptor polypeptide, as determined by covalent cross-linking of 125I-VIP, was 49 kDa. After 2 days in culture, a concentration of immunoreactive VIP equivalent to the binding affinity of VIP to its receptor was found in the medium in two of these clones (SH-IN and SH-EP). Conditioned medium from SH-IN cells competitively displaced 125I-VIP binding and increased cAMP levels in SH-EP cells, indicating that all of the necessary components for a potential autocrine action of VIP exist in SK-N-SH cells. After numerous cell passages, the SH-EP subclone converted to a distinct phenotype in which VIP precursor mRNA and VIP immunoreactivity in the cell and medium were no longer detectable. In correlation, the VIP receptor number increased, and the EC50 for VIP stimulation of cAMP production shifted to a lower concentration. This points to the possibility that the continuous presence of endogenous VIP in earlier passage SH-EP cells causes a modification in VIP receptor number and cell responsiveness to VIP.

Hybridoma cells have been obtained by fusing RCY 3 Ag 1-2-3 rat myeloma cells with spleen cells from a rat hyperimmunized with human adenocarcinoma cells (HT 29 cell line) grown in serum-free medium. Immunoglobulins secreted by hybridomas were screened for: (i) specific binding to HT 29 cells; (ii) their ability to inhibit the binding of [125I]-vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) to HT 29 cells; (iii) their capacity to modulate the cAMP production induced by VIP. The monoclonal antibodies we have obtained from clones 109-10-16 and 109-10-19 compete for the binding of radiolabelled VIP to HT 29 cells and partially inhibit the production of cAMP induced by VIP while they are ineffective in reducing the intracellular level of cAMP attained after stimulation of HT 29 cells by isoproterenol. We never found antibodies which increase the cAMP level in HT 29 cells. The binding of the purified monoclonal antibody 109-10-16 Ig gamma 2c to HT 29 cells was visualized by indirect immunofluorescence and was not present at the surface of all cells. These observations strongly support the hypothesis that the monoclonal antibodies we have characterized interact with an antigenic determinant which belongs to the VIP receptor or at least to a cell surface component closely associated with the receptor.

Rectal strictures are rare complications of prostatic cancer and are considered to be a sign of poor prognosis. The authors report 9 cases. In 5 cases, the cancer was already diagnosed and had been treated by endocrine therapy. All patients died during the months following onset of the intestinal symptoms despite diversion colostomy (4 cases) and high dose oestrogen therapy. Rectal strictures therefore have the same poor prognosis as escape from endocrine therapy. In 3 cases, the stricture was the presenting sign of the cancer in one case, the cancer was already known and treated by radiotherapy; in this case, survival depends on the hormone sensitivity of the cancer and one patient survived for 7 years with subsequent closure of the colostomy.

The authors report 62 cases of operated diverticular sigmoiditis, note the indications for surgery and the method adopted. Apart from acute complications comparison of the clinical, laboratory and radiological data permit one to decide on a cold operation for prophylactic purposes. For acute generalised or localised peritonitis, the authors remove the lesions straight away when local and general conditions permit it. They emphasis the severity of the complications and the dealy with which these patients are still too often admitted on a surgical unit, which explins the persistently poor prognosis in spite of present conditions of resuscitation.

Female homozygous twins presented with alloimmune neonatal neutropenia due to a maternal neutrophil-specific anti-NA2 antibody. The disease is usually benign, but when accompanied by severe infection it may require exchange transfusion and transfusion of granulocytes free of the antigen involved in the immunological conflict. Owing to the risk of relapse in subsequent pregnancies, the haemogram of the following infants must be supervised.

The used of a test of prolonged grip and recording the changes in arterial blood-pressure and heart rate is suggested as a way of studing the blood-pressure changes of effort in hypertensives. This test provides a real screen for provoqued hypertension: it allows --to define a normal profile of reference for blood-pressure, --to check the fluctuations at rest of blood-pressure, --to determine the severity of haemodynamic dissorders, --to judge the efficiency of hypotensive therapy.

The initial event of VIP action is its interaction with a specific receptor at the surface of a target cell. The understanding of the fine mechanism of action of VIP requires the characterization and of course the purification of the receptor. The understanding of the mechanism which regulates the number of receptor sites at the cell surface, if it occurs, is also a way to characterize the properties of VIP receptor. In this paper we report a number of data which represent several attempts to characterize VIP receptor in a human colonic adenocarcinoma cell (HT 29 cells). We have characterized a monoclonal antibody which partially inhibits 125I-VIP binding to HT 29 cells. We have specifically cross-linked, on intact HT 29 cells, a major polypeptide of Mr-64,000 with 125I-VIP using DTSP or DSS as cross-linking reagents. This polypeptide behaves like a high affinity binding site for VIP. We have demonstrated that VIP is rapidly internalized in HT 29 cells (in less than 10 minutes) and that simultaneously VIP receptors were no more detectable on the cell surface by cross-linking experiments. This suggests that VIP is internalized together with its receptor.

We have previously shown that the mono [125I]iodinated vasoactive intestinal peptide (125I-VIP) could be covalently cross-linked on intact colonic adenocarcinoma cells (HT29). A major Mr 67,000 and a minor Mr 120,000 cross-linked polypeptides have been characterized [Muller, Luis, Fantini, Abadie, Giannellini, Marvaldi & Pichon (1985) Eur. J. Biochem. 151, 411-417]. The glycoprotein nature of these species was investigated using endo-beta-acetylglucosaminidase F (Endo F) treatment, enzymic and chemical desialylation and wheat germ agglutinin (WGA)-Sepharose affinity chromatography. Affinity-labelled VIP-binding proteins solubilized by Nonidet P-40 bound to WGA-Sepharose and could be eluted specifically with N-acetyl-D-glucosamine. Treatment with Endo F resulted in an increased electrophoretic mobility of both polypeptides. The major and the minor VIP-binding proteins were converted respectively into Mr 47,000 and 100,000 species, indicating removal of 20 kDa of N-linked oligosaccharides. Deglycosylation with trifluoromethanesulphonic acid also led to a 20 kDa loss in mass of the Mr 67,000 component, indicating the absence of additional O-linked sugars on this polypeptide. The presence of sialic acid on the major VIP-binding protein was demonstrated after treatment of intact cells with neuraminidase or by chemical desialylation with hydrochloric acid. We conclude from this study that the VIP receptor from intact HT29-D4 cells is a glycoprotein with N-linked oligosaccharide side chains containing sialic acid.

The authors report 17 cases of colonic carcinoma associated with diverticulitis. They differentiate between carcinomas arising above and below the diverticular area and emphasise the coexistence of both diseases on the same segment of colon. The diagnosis may be made in two different circumstances depending on whether the association presents as diverticulosis or as diverticulitis with complications. Careful examination of the barium enema whenever possible is the basic factor in diagnosis. The operation is rendered more difficult by inflammatory phenomena or suppuration of the sigmoiditis and the prognosis is aggravated by cancer.

[125I]Monoiodinated vasoactive intestinal peptide (125I-VIP) was cross-linked with human colonic adenocarcinoma cells (HT29 cells) grown as a monolayer using dithiobis(succinimidylpropionate) as cross-linking reagent. The cross-linked polypeptides were separated by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. A major polypeptide of Mr = 67 000 was characterized and it behaved like a high-affinity binding site for VIP according to the following data. The concentration of native VIP (0.5 nM) giving half-maximum inhibition of 125I-VIP covalent cross-linking with this polypeptide was very similar to that giving half-maximum displacement of 125I-VIP on HT 29 cells (0.6 nM). Glucagon or insulin was unable to inhibit the labelling of the Mr-67 000 component. In our experimental conditions neither specific 125I-VIP binding nor covalent labelling was observed with monolayers of Madin Darby canine kidney epithelial cells (MDCK cells) or African green monkey kidney fibroblasts (Vero cells) while the Mr-67 000 polypeptide was also characterized with human rectal adenocarcinoma cells (HRT 18 cells), known to possess the VIP receptor. Preincubation of HT 29 cells with native VIP at 37 degrees C, before 125I-VIP binding and subsequent cross-linking reaction, decreased the labelling of the Mr-67 000 polypeptide up to 80%. Assuming one molecule of 125I-VIP cross-linked per polypeptide, we have characterized, for the first time, a major polypeptide of Mr = 64 000, which belongs to the high-affinity VIP binding site of an intestinal human cell line.

A 17 year-old girl with chronic idiopathic intestinal pseudo-obstruction is reported. Abnormalities of smooth intestinal muscle were shown on light and electron microscopic studies of the excised small intestine and led to the diagnosis of visceral myopathy based on the following features: vacuolar degeneration of intestinal smooth muscle cells with replacement by fibrous preferential involvement of the external longitudinal muscle layer normal myenteric plexus. For the first time similar ultrastructural changes were found on histological study of the colon. Manometric studies revealed a diffuse disease involving the esophagus, small bowel, and bladder. Anorectal abnormalities, never described before, were reported. Family involvement was shown by abnormal esophageal and anorectal manometries in the patient's brother and by paternal history of fatal small intestine occlusion without mechanical obstruction. The prognosis of severe forms of visceral myopathy is generally poor because of the inefficiency of drugs. In this case, after a long period of parenteral nutrition with maintenance of a good nutritional status, a terminal ileostomy (with a special procedure to avoid evagination) associated with a second stage total colectomy allowed to stop parenteral nutrition.