Production of interleukin-1 beta, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha by a rat corneal epithelial cell line

Production of interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha by rat corneal epithelial cells in response to lipopolysaccharide and phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) was tested. Supernatants from rat corneal epithelial cells treated with lipopolysaccharide and PMA were collected after 6, 24 and 48 h and tested with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for IL-1 beta, IL-6 and TNF-alpha. The activity of TNF-alpha was additionally confirmed with bioassay on L929 cells. It was found that control groups did not produce significant levels of either cytokine. However, after stimulation with lipopolysaccharide, cells produced mainly IL-6, whereas after PMA they produced mainly TNF-alpha. IL-6 levels 24 and 48 h after PMA stimulation were also elevated, which could have been caused by the presence of TNF-alpha. Production of IL-1 beta in all groups was very low and remained within the test sensitivity range. These results show that the rat corneal epithelial cell line produces inflammatory cytokines in response to proinflammatory mediators. For this reason, it could be used for measuring the effects of irritants on the cornea.

Prostheses PORP and TORP prepared by the authors' method

The authors described their own method of preparing prostheses for reconstruction of the transmissive system in tympanoplasty. The PORP and TORP prostheses are prepared by use of a simple apparatus from polyethylene drains.

[Tactics in radical operations on the spine and spinal cord]

The authors discuss the tactics in the surgical approach in radical operations on the spinal cord, cauda and spine. The discussion is based on 1972 operations on the spine and spinal cord. The group of radical operations comprises 192 cases. The operative mortality in this material was 1%. The authors believe that the surgical tactics in these diseases should be considerate but also as radical as possible.