Pathogenesis of mucosal injury in the blind loop syndrome. Brush border enzyme activity and glycoprotein degradation.

The effect of intestinal bacterial over-growth on brush border hydrolases and brush border glycoproteins was studied in nonoperated control rats, control rats with surgically introduced jejunal self-emptying blind loops, and rats with surgically introduced jejunal self-filling blind loops. Data were analyzed from blind loop segments, segments above and below the blind loops, and three corresponding segments in the nonoperated controls. Rats with self-filling blind loops had significantly greater fat excretion than controls and exhibited significantly lower conjugated:free bile salt ratios in all three segments. Maltase, sucrase, and lactase activities were significantly reduced in homogenates and isolated brush borders from the self-filling blind loop, but alkaline phosphatase was not affected. The relative degradation rate of homogenate and brush border glycoproteins was assessed by a double-isotope technique involving the injection of d-[6-(3)H]glucosamine 3 h and d-[U-(14)C]glucosamine 19 h before sacrifice, and recorded as a (3)H:(14)C ratio. The relative degradation rate in both homogenate and brush border fractions was significantly greater in most segments from rats with self-filling blind loops. In the upper and blind loop segments from rats with self-filling blind loops, the (3)H:(14)C ratios were higher in the brush border membrane than in the corresponding homogenates, indicating that the increased rates of degradation primarily involve membrane glycoproteins. Incorporation of d-[6-(3)H]glucosamine by brush border glycoproteins was not reduced in rats with self-filling blind loops, suggesting that glycoprotein synthesis was not affected. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of brush border glycoproteins from the contaminated segments indicated that the large molecular weight glycoproteins, which include many of the surface hydrolases, were degraded most rapidly. Brush border maltase, isolated by immunoprecipitation, had (3)H:(14)C ratios characteristic of the most rapidly degraded glycoproteins. The results indicate that bacteria enhance the destruction of intestinal surface glycoproteins including disaccharidases. Since alkaline phosphatase, a glycoprotein, is not affected, the destruction is selective and presumably involves only the most exposed membrane components.


Generation of the combined prothrombin activation peptide (F1-2) during the clotting of blood and plasma.

We have investigated the pathway of prothrombin activation in blood and plasma. By means of a rapid purification procedure involving chromatography on DEAE-cellulose and hydroxyapatite, we demonstrated that the major prothrombin fragment in serum is that representing the amino-terminal half of prothrombin (i.e. F1-2). The F1-2 isolated was characterized by its size, amino acid and antigenic compositions, amino-terminal residue, and the peptides (designated F1 and F2, respectively) it yielded upon hydrolysis by thrombin. Measurements by the isotope dilution technique showed that F1-2 could account for the fate of at least 90% of the prothrombin originally present in plasma. By contrast, the serum concentration of the fragment representing the amino-terminal third of prothrombin (viz. F1) was less than 10% that of F1-2. These results demonstrated that the major route of prothrombin conversion in blood or plasma involves the removal of the combined activation fragment (F1-2) as a single peptide.


Ultrasonic evaluation of portacaval shunts.

Patients who had portacaval shunts were examined both before and after surgery. In the majority of cases, it was possible to detect the portcaval shunt by actually demonstrating the site of anastomosis. There was dilatation of the vena cava just cephalad to the site of the anastomosis due to the increased volume of blood entering the vena from the portal system. Mesocaval shunts have also been detected. Splenorenal shunts, however, could not be demonstrated in this series. While gray scale B scan ultrasound was used to record the site of anastomosis and measure the vessel diameters, real time two-dimensional ultrasound provided dynamic information. Long term serial examination are being obtained to evaluate the continued patency of the shunts. Ultrasound appears to be a promising new noninvasive study for the evaluation of portcaval shunts.


Ultrasonic backscatter from human liver tissue: its dependence on frequency and protein/lipid composition.

Ultrasonic volume backscatter by postmortem human liver was investigated in the 1 to 5 MHz frequency range. Representative values of the backscatter coefficient, its range, and frequency dependence were determined. The backscatter level correlated significantly with protein content in normal livers and with  lipid  content  in abnormal fatty livers. The latter suggests the possible development of a simple, noninvasive, quantitative test for fatty infiltration of the liver.


Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Echocardiographic studies in relatives of infants with SIDS.

Echocardiographic studies were performed in 42 sets of parents who had at least one infant with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Asymmetric septal hypertrophy (ASH) was detected by echocardiography in one member of only 5 percent of the 42 sets of parents. Echocardiograms were also obtained in three other sets of parents who had infants with SIDS (selected because their infants showed small foci of disorganized cardiac muscle cells in the ventricular septum, similar to those present in patients with typical ASH but less marked in severity). ASH was present in one member of each of these three sets of parents. Ventricular septal-to-posterobasal left ventricular wall thickness ratios in the five subjects in this study with echocardiographically determined ASH ranged from 1.3 to 1.7, although only one individual showed marked thickening of the ventricular septum (22 mm). Thus, SIDS and ASH do not appear to be commonly associated conditions.


Ultrasonic assessment of liver size in the newborn.

In 141 newborn infants ultrasonic measurements of liver area was performed on the third postnatal day. The liver area was represented by a cross section of the liver at the level where the portal vein entered the organ. There was a linear increase in liver area from 26.8 cm2 at 37 weeks' gestation to 33.0 cm2 at 41 weeks' gestation. Measurement of liver area does not provide more accurate information on fetal size than upper abdominal circumference in the last weeks of pregnancy. Measurement of fetal head circumference is distinctly less accurate in the assen. In May 1977, progrma payments totaled about +840 million a month.


Ultrasound of gynecologic pelvic masses: the indefinite uterus and other patterns associated with diagnostic error.

In a series of 99 pelvic ultrasound examinations for suspected gynecologic masses, there were 72 established tissue diagnoses. The ultrasound diagnosis was correct in 61 (85 per cent). The specificity, based on a small number (six) of actual negative cases, was 67 per cent. The sensitivity, based on 57 actual positive cases, was 100 per cent. The ultrasound pattern of a homogeneous solid mass obscuring part or all of the uterine border was commonly associated with an erroneous diagnosis. When this pattern is seen, examination of the patient with higher frequency transducers provides useful information that supplements high- and low-gain scans.


Gray scale performance of displays for dynamic ultrasound imaging.

Methods used to convert the output of diagnostic ultrasound dynamic imaging systems to television format are reviewed. The gray scale characteristics of a large-screen direct display are compared with the transfer through a display monitor-television camera-television monitor chain. Available direct display devices have distinct performance limitations in this application and the transfer linearity and dynamic range of the television converter described are objectively superior. This confirmed a subjective preference of system users to view the TV display.


Ultrasonic imaging of normal intrauterine fetal anatomy.

With the advent and subsequent refinement of gray scale compound scanning, we are now able to obtain in utero a more detailed look at the size, shape position, and anatomical relationships between the internal organs and vasular structures within the body of a fetus. It is now possible to visualize fetal intracranial structures, lungs, myocardium and valvular structures, liver, spleen, stomach, abdominal aorta, portal venous system, gall bladder, umbilical vein, kidneys, urinary bladder, and genitalia. Fetal extremities, including individual phalanges, are better visualized with gray scale than with bistable sonography.


The antenatal diagnosis of hyperplacentosis, hydramnios and fetal ascites.

The diagnostic value of volumetric analysis of the products of conception by compound ultrasonic scanning is illustrated by a case of hyperplacentosis, hydramnios, and fetal ascites. The use of this method in the diagnosis of fetal conditions is discussed.


Unusual echographic appearance of a Courvoisier gall bladder.

A patient who had been jaundice for more than four months was examined with diagnostic ultrasound. Ultrasound examination revealed that the patient had a solid-appearing mass in the region of the gall bladder, in addition to findings diagnostic of obstructive jaundice. A probable mass was also noted in the head of the pancreas. The clinical data and representative echographic pictures are presented to emphasize the point that sludge within the gall bladder is echogenic and appears more solid than cystic on a standard echographic examination.


Ileocolic intussusception--a case report.

The ultrasonic findings of a case of ileocolic intussusception are presented. The clinical findings usually seen in this condition are reviewed. The atypical presenting symptoms of adult forms of this condition are emphasized.


Echocardiographic pseudoidiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis in a patient with pericardial effusion.

A 26 year old white male with chronic renal failure presented to our institution with a large pericardial effusion. In addition to the effusion, an echocardiogram demonstrated systolic anterior movement of the anterior leaflet of the mitral valve (SAM), suggesting idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis (IH-S). Pericardiectomy was performed to treat the effusion. After surgery and relief of the effusion, the mitral valve motion returned to normal. It is concluded that SAM can be seen with pericardial effusion in the absence of IHSS.


The early work of ultrasound in medicine at the University of Lund.

In the early 1950's, research was started at the University of Lund on the use of ultrasound as a diagnostic tool in cardiology, neurology, and gynecology. The results of this work provided impetus for the later development of the ultrasonic echo method into a routine procedure in many fields of medicine. A historical review of this fundamental work is given in this paper which also stresses the importance of a stimulating and free atmosphere for the development of new ideas in research.


Radioimmunoassay of capsular polysaccharide antigens of groups A and C meningococci and Haemophilus influenzae type b in cerebrospinal fluid.

Sensitive radioimmunoassays capable of measuring 0-5 ng/ml of the Haemophilus influenzae type b polysaccharide and 2 ng/ml of the groups A and C meningococcal polysaccharides were developed and used to detect these substances in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Polysaccharide of the causative agent was detected in the CSF of 14 out of 15 patients with Haemophilus influenzae type b meningitis, in 18 out of 23 patients with group A, and in two out of four patients with group C meningococcal meningitis. In some cases the antigen could be detected even after three days of antibacterial treatment. No false positive reactions were seen. The assay procedure could be shortened to approximately three hours. These assays could be useful in routine diagnostic work and epidemiological investigations.


Use of antiserum agar plates for serogrouping of meningococci.

A convenient and reliable method for serogrouping meningococci, based on immunospecific precipitation haloes in antiserum-agar plates, is described. It gave concordant results with conventional slide-agglutination in 900 strains of groups A, B or C tested. The antiserum-agar can also be used as a primary isolation medium for detecting nasopharyngeal carriers of a certain serogroup if antibiotics are added.


Taxonomy of Acinetobacter: the usefulness of beta-D-xyloside xylohydrolase for strain differentiation.

One hundred and twenty-two clinical isolates of Acinetobacter were studied for the presence of beta-galactosidase and of beta-xylosidase, for biochemical characteristics, and for genetic interspecies transformation tests. All strains lacked beta-galactosidase; in contrast, beta-xylosidase was always present in the oxidative strains. This test proved to be of value for separating strains able to form acid from carbohydrates (A. anitratum and A. haemolyticus spp haemolyticus) from the non-oxidative strains (A. lwoffi and A. haemolyticus spp alcaligenes). However, the genetic relationship of all strains tested warrants further study before Acinetobacters are grouped into clearly defined species.


Development of neurons in the visual cortex (area 17) of the monkey (Macaca nemestrina): a Golgi study from fetal day 127 to postnatal maturity.

The morphological maturation of several varieties of neurons of cortical area 17 have been followed in Golgi Rapid preparations from Macaque monkeys ranging in age from fetal day 127 to maturity. A developmental sequence common to all varieties of neuron is described. Maturation occurs at the same rate at all cortical depths and appears to relate to the size of the neuron rather than to factors such as generation time, arrival at a final laminar position or cell type. The characteristic laminar patterns of cell type distribution and the specific axonal and dendritic arborisations seen in the adult are generated in the earliest stages of growth and do not occur as the result of elimination from a wider, less precise, distribution. During the period from birth to postnatal week 8 a marked increase in the numbers of dendritic spines is seen in all varieties of neuron including those which will be spine-free in the adult. Following this period an equally marked reduction in spine numbers occurs, initially rapid but continuing at a slower rate even nine months postnatally. Possible relationships between these postnatal dendritic spine changes and the extreme sensitivity of the system to visual input during the early postnatal weeks are discussed.


Response of bovine serum prolactin and growth hormone to duodenal, abomasal, and oral administration of thyrotropin-releasing hormone.

Thyrotropin-releasing hormone was injected into the duodenum of two 500-kg steers, placed into the abomasum of two prepubertal bulls, and fed to four bull calves (1 to 3 wk of age) to test the effect on concentrations of prolactin and growth hormone in blood serum. Before 20 and 200 mg of thyrotropin-releasing hormone were injected into the duodenum, prolactin in serum averaged 7.5 and 9.4 ng/ml and increased to 52.5 and 129.6 ng/ml at 45 and 35 min after treatment. Average growth hormone concentration of serum was increased also, but the response was more variable than prolactin. Peak concentrations of prolactin and growth hormone in blood serum were 5 to 10 times greater after treatment with thyrotropin-releasing hormone (40 mg/100 kg body weight into abomasum) than before treatment. Within 30 min after oral administration of thyrotropin-releasing hormone (0, .5, 1, and 2 mg/kg body weight) growth hormone concentration of serum was 30, 306, 356, and 317% greater than pretreatment. Prolactin concentration of serum, however, was increased in only one calf.


Serum growth hormone concentrations after growth hormone or thyrotropin releasing hormone in cows.

A single subcutaneous injection of 10, 50, or 100 mg bovine growth hormone into lactating Holstein cows increased concentrations of growth hormone, insulin, and glucose in serum above preinjection baselines for at least 16 h. Growth hormone concentrations in serum after injection of growth hormone or thyrotropin-releasing hormone were greater in cows during early (2 to 4 mo) as compared with cows during late (8 to 12 mo) lactation. Stage of lactation did not affect rate of metabolic clearance of growth hormone in eight cows, but larger cows cleared growth hormone more rapidly than smaller cows. Data of these experiments may help to explain how injections of growth hormone every 3 days stimulate milk yields.


A new strategy for regulating long-term care facilities.

This study analyzes the failure of current regulatory efforts to elicit an acceptable level of performance in long-term care facilities and proposes a strategy for correcting that failure. Seven factors are identified as being responsible for the failure of current regulatory efforts: inadequate financing, inadequate knowledge, bureaucratic apathy, legal constraints, political constraints, a fragmentation of agency responsibility, and a shortage of conforming beds. Public utility status, market regulation, and non-profit control are reviewed and rejected as alternatives to the current approach. A new strategy aimed at improving the regulatory process and environment is proposed. The process can be improved by adopting a program rather than taking a functional approach to agency organization; linking the inspection and rate-setting processes; creating a role for consumer groups in the inspection process; and exposing the process and results of regulation to public scrutiny. Five proposals are offered for improving the regulatory environment. These focus on eliminating barriers to entry, supporting alternatives to institutionalization, federalizing the Medicaid program, abandoning exclusive reliance on the medical model as the guide for regulatory standards, and changing the focus of regulation from structure-process to out-come.


Technology and the governance of the health care industry: the dilemma of reform.

With increasing public expenditures for health care services, the accountability of the health care industry has become a major political issue. Concomitant issues concern the structures and processes through which the public as patients, customers, and citizens can directly influence the delivery of health care services. These issues, which are currently part of the national health policy debate, are indicative of the larger question concerning the relationship of the individual to his increasingly complex society. This paper presents three arguments. (1) The medical profession, through its control of technology and its monopolistic hold on legitimate claims of expertise, is the primary determiners of the way health services are structured and resources are allocated. (2) Domination of doctor-patient relationships, medical care delivery organizations, and the national health care policy process, enables physicians to remain unaccountable to democratic institutions and insulated from public participation in decision-making. (3) Lack of accountability, disproportionate professional power and the failure of governmental regulation raise questions about the role and impact of the medical profession as a quasi-institutional political actor in terms of (a) the return on the investment of +135 billion spent annually for medical care, (b) claims of expertise and self-regulation, and (c) overarching democratic values.


Demonstration of two 3,3'-diaminobenzidine oxidation reactions associated with photosynthetic membranes in anaerobic light-grown Rhodospirillum rubrum.

Photosynthetic membranes of anaerobic light-grown Rhodospirillum rubrum oxidized 3,3'-diaminobenzidine. When glutaraldehyde-treated cells were exposed to 3,3'-diaminobenzidine in the light aerobically, the oxidation appeared to occur by two systems. One reaction was stimulated by white light and the second required molecular oxygen. The O2-dependent activity was inhibited by KCN.


Sero-epidemiology of Neisseria meningitidis infections in parts of Eastern Nigeria.

The prevalence of antibodies to meningococci in the Nsukka area, East Central Nigeria, was studied by the indirect hemagglutination test employing tanned chicken erythrocytes. Of the 1332 apparently healthy persons, whose sera were tested, 982 samples (73.8%) were positive at 1:8 dilution of the sera. Fifty-six per cent of the population had antibodies to Group B, followed by 13% of Group C and 5% to Group A. Twenty-five sera from patients with meningococcal infections, from whom Group B meningococci were isolated, 100% were positive. Percentage reactivity in the 2-5-year age group was low (15%), whereas it increased rapidly from 78% (6-10-year group) to 95% (31 years and above).


Prevalence of haemolytic streptococcal infection in rhesus monkeys.

Seventy-six monkeys arriving in 10 batches were investigated within a day or two of their arrival for beta-haemolytic streptococcal infections. 10.53 per cent of monkeys yielded group A beta haemolytic streptococcus. Majority of the isolates were T pattern I. With ASO test, 44.7 per cent monkeys had low titres while with A-DNase 'B' 'test, 64.5 per cent of the monkeys had low titres.


Auto-antibody to an Ig VH region allotype: induction of anti-a1 antibody in an a1-suppressed a1a2 heterozygous rabbit.

Two a1a2 heterozygous sibling rabbits were first suppressed for the paternally inherited a1 VH region allotype and then immunized with a1 IgG. Anti-a1 antibody was detected in the serum of one of the rabbits. The anti-a1 auto-antibody reacted with the same amount of a1 IgG as did a conventional anti-a1 allo-antibody. Most of the IgG and IgM of this rabbit was of the a2 allotype and no significant amount of the a1 allotype was detected as would be expected for an a1 suppressed a1a2 heterozygous rabbit. However, allotype suppression in this rabbit is maintained by endogenous anti-allotype antibody. Rabbits with anti-allotype auto-antibody may be exploited to produce litters of heterozygous and homozygous rabbits efficiently suppressed for selected allotypes.


Cleavage of human C5 by trypsin: characterization of the digestion products by gel electrophoresis.

Human C5 is composed of two nonidentical polypeptide chains, alpha and beta (m.w. 130,000 and 80,000, respectively) linked together by disulfide bonds and noncovalent forces. Cleavage of C5 by trypsin fragments with increased anodic mobilities. Limited digestion of C5 by trypsin (substrate to enzyme ratio 10:1 w/w at 37 degrees C for 1 min) resulted in the release of a small terminal alpha-chain peptide (alpha1, m.w. 15,000) probably analogous to C5a, from a large fragment, C5b (m.w. 195,000) composed of an intact beta-chain disulfide linked to an alpha-chain that has a lower m.w. (alpha' 115,000). Further digestion (37 degrees C, 5 min) resulted in cleavage of the alpha-chain at multiple sites with the production of three peptides from the alpha'-chain (alpha2I, 23,500; alpha2II 15,700 and alpha2III 10,200) and a residual fragment, C5c (m.w. 144,000). The alpha1 and alpha2 peptides are not covalently linked to the beta-chain nor to one another. The C5c fragment on the other hand is composed of small peptides of the alpha'c chain (alpha3 14,000; alpha4I 9,000; ALPHA 4II 11,000; alpha 5 23,000 to 30,000) which are linked to the beta-chain and also probably to one another by covalent bonds. Secondary cleavage occurred upon prolonged digestion with trypsin (37 degrees C, 20 min), and this resulted in the progressive erosion of the alpha'c peptides and the conversion of C5c to smaller C5c-like species.


An in vitro model of lymphocyte homing. II. Membrane and cytoplasmic events involved in lymphocyte adherence to specialized high-endothelial venules of lymph nodes.

Rat thoracic duct lymphocytes (TDL) are capable of selective adherence to the endothelium of high-endothelial venules (HEV) when overlaid onto glutaraldehyde-fixed sections of lymph nodes. The data presented indicate that lymphocyte adherence is an energy-dependent, calcium-requiring event that involves membrane determinants on TDL which are sensitive to trypsin. Surface sialic acids on lymphocytes are not essential and treatment of the cells with neuraminidase does not interfere with their attachment to HEV. There was no evidence that microtubule-associated functions play a role in binding. Adherence, however, is abolished by cytochalasin B, indicating that the cytoplasmic contractile microfilament system exerts an important effect. The results imply that lymphocyte surface membrane modulation is involved in the development of strong adhesive forces that bind the cells to the endothelium. In addition, lymphocyte-HEV adherence is reduced by ionophore A-23187, an agent known to inhibit surface membrane receptor movement. It is suggested that specific binding of recirculating lymphocytes to HEV is not a passive event, but that activation of cytoplasmic contractile forces in the lymphocyte is required for the formation of stable lymphocyte-HEV binding.


Further purification and characterization of a circulating antigen in schistosomiasis.

Previous studies showed that an antigen found in the circulation of animals heavily infected with Schistosoma mansoni was extracted in a trichloroacetic acid soluble-chloroform insoluble fraction (TCA-S-C) of adult worms. Antigenic activity was destroyed by periodate treatment but remained unaltered after treatment with proteolytic enzymes, DNase, RNase, and lyophilization. In the present study, chromatography of TCA-S-C on a DEAE cellulose column revealed six substances, one of which was antigenic. After electrophoresis in agarose antigenic activity corresponded to a slower moving, toluidine blue-staining material. A faster moving, toluidine blue-staining substance seems to be responsible for the large 260 nm, absorbing peak. Analysis of a fraction containing only antigen revealed a large amount of carbohydrate, primarily N-acetylglucosamine and D-glucuronic acid but also galactase, glucose, N-acetylglucosamine, and trace amounts of other sugars. Amino acids accounted for about 11% of the weight of the antigen. The antigen appears to be a proteoglycan.


Effects of ionic and nonionic detergents on antigen-antibody reactions.

Using highly sensitive and quantitative radioimmunoassay procedures we have measured the effects of different concentrations of three commonly used detergents, SDS, DOC, and Triton X-100, on antibody-antigen reactions. Triton X-100, had a relatively mild effect on primary antigen-antibody bindings, the precipitin reaction, and a double antibody RIA as evidenced by only an 8 to 10% inhibition of binding or precipitation. These results were not detergent concentration dependent, as Triton concentrations ranging from 5 to 0.1% had virtually no differential effects. Sodium deoxycholate (DOC) had a more profound effect on both primary antigen-antibody binding and the precipitin reaction than did Triton X-100, and its effects, unlike those of Triton X-100, were concentration dependent. There was a direct relationship between concentration of DOC and degree of inhibition of both primary binding and immune precepitation especially in antigen excess. Sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS), at concentrations 10- to 100-fold less than either Triton X-100 or DOC, had profound inhibitory effects on primary antigen-antibody binding, the precipitin reaction, and a double antibody radioimmunoassay. Generally, at concentrations greater that 0.01% SDS, almost all immunochemical reactivity is destroyed.


Synthesis and characterization of membrane immunoglobulin, Ia, and H-2 molecules of thy 1+ AKR/J lymphomas.

Three AKR lymphomas displaying B cell and T cell characteristics have been described. Because of the proclivity of normal AKR/J mice to develop T cell lymphomas, and the rarity of lymphomas with dual characteristics, the B cell markers of these tumors were studied more intensively. Fluorescence data with class-specific anti-immunoglobulin reagents demonstrated that the tumor cells stained only with class-specific anti-IgM reagents. Because of the possibility that the surface Ig was passively acquired and of reports that certain anti-mu-chain sera react with "IgT", chemical characterization of the immunoglobulin molecules was performed. Using 3H-leucine internal labeling, we showed that all three tumor lines synthesized the immunoglobulin found on their surface, and that the immunoglobulin had the chemical and immunologic characteristics most typical of monomeric surface IgM, and was composed of mu-chains and light chains. The Ia antigens found on these cells were also examined. These antigens were also synthesized by the cells and were present in the same molecular form and in the same approximate quantity as Ia antigens on normal spleen cells.


Chemotaxigenesis and complement fixation by Listeria monocytogenes cell wall fractions.

Data reported here show that a crude cell wall fraction of Listeria monocytogenes (LCWF) and its purified derivative (PF) induce chemotaxis of human polymorphonuclear leukocytes in the presence of normal rabbit serum. In addition, both LCWF and PF can fix rabbit and guinea pig complement. The purified cell wall preparation is more active than LCWF in both chemotaxigenesis and complement fixation, indicating that these activities are due primarily to the nonprotein portion of LCWF. Complement fixation by PF was demonstrated in the presence of ethylene glycol tetraacetic acid (EGTA) and in C4-deficient serum, which is evidence that PF activated complement by the alternative pathway. Therefore, chemotaxigenesis by PF and LCWF seems to involve fixation of complement via the alternative pathway.


The SC5b-7 complex: formation, isolation, properties, and subunit composition.

Activation of C in C8-depleted serum results in the formation of a soluble complex containing C5, C6, and C7. The complex has an electrophoretic mobility of an alpha-globulin, an s-rate of 18.5S, and a m.w. of 668,000 daltons. This complex was isolated and upon SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis it was found to contain, in addition to C5b, C6 and C7, an 88,000 dalton glycoprotein. The protein was identified as the band V protein of the soluble C5b-9 complex. It is referred to as SIIIs-protein, or S-protein. Since the S-protein does not bind to C5b-6, it is concluded that it is incorporated during the fusion of C5b-6 with C7. The SC5b-7 complex exhibits the same neoantigen as the SC5b-9 complex, but compared to the C5b-6 complex it appears to contain an additionally qualitatively distinct neoantigen.


Serum immunoglobulins: methods for the determination of normal values in international units.

This paper describes the proper statistical methods for the determination of the range of normal values of serum immunoglobulins in any population and for the conversion of those ranges, or any serum immunoglobulin value, from mg per ml to World Health Organization International Units. In determining the normal range, it is argued that the analysis should be based upon the logarithms of the serum immunoglobulin values and that the range of normal values about the mean should be determined by the application of tolerance limits, rather than the more familar but incorrect confidence limits. For converting normal ranges from mg per ml to International Units, methods of parallel line bioassay (for IgG and IgA) and non-linear bioassay (for IgM and IgD) are used. For both bioassay methods, graphical techniques are described.


A rapid micro method for the simultaneous determination of phagocytic-microbiocidal activity of human peripheral blood leukocytes in vitro.

A new, simple technique for simultaneously studying phagocytic and microbiocidal functions, using viable eukaryotic and prokaryotic microbes, is described. Fresh human venous blood from volunteers was placed on a coverglass and incubated to allow leukocyte adhesion to the coverglass. After clot removal, viable microbes in suspension were added and the coverglass preparation was incubated to allow phagocytosis. The excess microbes (E. coli, S. aureus, L. monocytogenes, and C. albicans each have been used) were then rinsed off, and the vital fluorochrome, acridine orange (AO), was used for staining. A wet mount was prepared and examined by reflected fluorescence with an ultraviolet microscope. Intact (viable) polymorphonuclear (PMN) leukocyte nuclei and microbes appeared green (orthochromatic). Granules in the PMN cytoplasm were yellow or reddish. Nonviable PMN nuclei appeared yellowish or reddish and the nonviable microbes appeared bright red (metachromatic). Thus, phagocytized microbes may be counted and identified as viable or non-viable.


An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the determination of diphtheria toxin antibodies.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the quantitation of diphtheria toxin antibodies is described. When the ELISA technique was compared to a single radial immunodiffusion assay the results correlated well but the ELISA technique was ten thousand times more sensitive. It was also at least ten times as sensitive as the in vivo rabbit skin test.


Detection of antigens and antibodies by an immuno-peroxidase method applied on thin longitudinal sections of SDS-polyacrylamide gels.

This paper describes a method for detection of antigens in thin sections of SDS-polyacrylamide gels. This method, called SGIP, involves longitudinal sectioning of SDS gels, fixation of the proteins in the gels, removal of the SDS, incubation of the sections with an antiserum and detection of antigens by the indirect immuno-peroxidase technique. The method is useful for assessing the affinity spectrum of a given antiserum against a heterogeneous mixture of proteins, and for the detection of proteins in tissue homogenates or other protein mixtures by means of well defined antisera. By applying the method to serial sections from a single SDS-polyacrylamide gel, a dilution dependent reactivity of antisera is demonstrated.


Quantitation of B cells in peripheral blood by polyacrylamide beads coated with anti-human chain antibody.

A method for quantitating peripheral blood B cells is described which utilizes anti-heavy chain specific antibody attached to polyacrylamide beads. The method has the advantages of ease of performance, of utilizing reagents which are commercially available and routine phase microscopy. In addition, the reagents are stable for prolonged periods of time and only small amounts are required. Utilizing this assay, the following percentages of B cells have been found in normals: IgG 6.3 +/- 0.6; IgM 4.3 +/- 0.5; IgA 4.0 +/- 0.5. The polyacrylamide beads may be phatocytized allowed recognition of certain phagocytic mononuclear cells.


Structural restriction and similarities of the light chains of antibodies to group B streptococcal carbohydrate produced in a single rabbit.

Comparison of the amino acid compositions, N-terminal amino acids and tryptic peptide maps of two L chains (145 LI and 145 LII) derived from antibodies produced in a single rabbit to group B streptococci indicates a high degree of sequence homology of the two chains. Furthermore, comparison of these data with similar analysis of L chains prepared from pooled antibodies to group B streptococci indicates a high degree of V region restriction in the L chains of antibodies elicited by hyperimmunization with streptococci.


A study of the increased serum level of IgG1 in 'lethargic' mice combined with a depressed thymus-dependent lymphoid system.

In a series of recent studies on 'lethargic' mice, a neurological mutation of the mouse, significant abnormalities were discovered in the thymus and its dependent regions in the lymph nodes and spleen. The present study was made as an approach toward finding the possible causes for these abnormalities. Serum IgG1 levels were stldied in 'lethargic' mutants at the age when severe deficiency of the thymus-dependent lymphoid system is known to occur in the animal. Using the radial immunodiffusion method, it was found that serum IgG1 levels are always significantly higher in 'lethargic' mice than in their normal littermates. Possible causes of the higher IgG1 in the serum of 'lethargic' mice are discussed. The authors note the similarities of other mouse mutations to that of the 'lethargic' mouse and propose the possibility that a common mechanism may account for immunologic deficiencies in several types of mutant mice.


Bacteriophage typing of Corynebacterium diphtheriae.

Bacteriophage types of over 3,000 strains of Corynebacterium diphtheriae isolated in Canada have been determined. The typing scheme used involved the use of nine phages. Results indicated that phage types correlate with biotypes to a large degree. Corynecin types were also determined for a limited number of cultures, and results indicated that the indicator strains presently available are unsuitable for the typing of C. diphtheriae strains isolated in North America. The distribution of phage types is similar throughout Canada, and the types present correspond to types reported from other countries. Phage typing could be of value in the study of circumscribed outbreaks and in epidemiological surveillance of types over long periods.


Mechanism of action of tetracaine hydrochloride against Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

The mode of action of tetracaine hydrochloride in vitro on Pseudomonas aeruginosa was investigates. The inhibitory and bactericidal action of tetracaine hydrochloride in vitro was adversely affected by magnesium ions. Observation of cellular lysis, leakage of intracellular materials, dehydrogenase activity, and a higher sensitivity of spheroplasts than of whole cells to tetracaine led to the conclusion that tetracaine acts by damaging the cell membrane. The lytic action of lysozyme was potentiated by tetracaine; this finding indicates enhanced permeability of the cell wall. Alteration of cell wall permeability was demonstrated by the finding that the cells exposed to subinhibitory amounts of tetracaine became susceptible to otherwise ineffective erythromycin.


Mutations of Drosophila melanogaster that affect muscles.

Eight X-chromosome mutations (falling into five complementation groups) that affect the development and morphology of the indirect flight muscles of Drosophila melanogaster were investigated using histological, behavioural and genetic techniques. All of these mutations result in flightlessness, in a marked reduction in the ability of the flies to jump, and in the wings being held in abnormal positions. Mutations in each of the complementation groups have different effects on the morphology of the muscles. Two (flapwing, vertical wing) result in absence of most of the indirect flight muscle fibres, a third (upheld) is required for the gross organization of muscle structure, another (heldup) is involved in the maintenance of muscle structure once formed, and the fifth seems to be necessary for the detailed architecture of the muscle fibre (indented thorax). The analysis of flies genetically mosaic with respect to each mutation by the technique of fate-mapping suggests that three (heldup, upheld and indented thorax) of the genes concerned have their primary site of action in the musculature itself, while the other two (flapwing and vertical wing) may function primarily in the fat-body and tracheae respectively.


Abnormal oogenesis and embryogenesis resulting from centrifuging Drosophila melanogaster females.

Females of Drosophila melanogaster were centrifuged at 2400 g and 4200 g for 3 h in a number of different orientations. The oocytes in various stages of vitellogenesis become separated into three layers; a centrifugal yolk layer, a central cytoplasmic layer, and a centripetal lipid layer. The direction of layering is related to the orientation of the female. The process of recovery of the ovaries was followed and the development of the eggs laid analysed. Many of the eggs laid over the subsequent 3 days die very early in development and fail to produce any differentiated structures. Some hatch into normal larvae and others produce defective embryos. The most common defect being a misarrangement of the segmentation. The differences in the kinds of experimentally inducible pattern aberrations in Drosophila and other diptera is discussed.


Restrictions on rotational and translational diffusion of pigment in the membranes of a rhabdomeric photoreceptor.

Individual, isolated rhabdoms from dark-adapted crayfish (Orconectes, Procambarus) were studied with a laterally incident microbeam that could be placed in single stacks of microvilli. Concentration gradients of metarhodopsin along the lengths of microvilli were produced by local bleaches, accomplished by irradiation with small spots of orange light at pH 9 in the presence of glutaraldehyde or formaldehyde. No subsequent redistribution of pigment was observed in the dark, indicating an absence of translational diffusion. On the basis of comparison with other systems, glutaraldehyde, but not formaldehyde (0.75%), would be expected to prevent diffusion of protein in the membrane. Under the same conditions photodichroism is observed, indicating an absence of free Brownian rotation. Photodichroism is larger in glutaraldehyde than in formaldehyde, suggesting that the bifunctional reagent quiets some molecular motion that is present after treatment with formaldehyde. Quantitative comparison of photodichroism with mathematical models indicates that the pigment absorption vectors are aligned within +/- 50 degrees of the microvillar axes and are tilted into the surface of the membrane at an average value of about 20 degrees. The photoconversion of rhodopsin to metarhodopsin is accompanied by an increase in molar extinction of about 20% at the lambda maxand a reorientation of the absorption vector by several degrees. The transition moment either tilts further into the membrane or loses some of its axial orientation, or both. The change in orientation is 3.5 time larger in formaldehyde than in glutaraldehyde.


The preparation and properties of gonococcal pili.

Pili have been isolated from Neisseria gonorrhoeae by controlled homogenization followed by selective disaggregation in sucrose and purification by CsCl density gradient centrifugation. Pili from six gonococcal strains had buoyant densities of 1-30 to 1-31 g ml-1 on CsCl. The pili were immunologically distinct when tested with rabbit antisera to purified pili. The amino acid composition of pilin from strains P9 and 201 was very similar, consisting of 208 and 212 amino acid residues respectively giving molecular weights of 22 600 and 22352. The pili contained a high proportion (46%) of non-polar amino acids. Further analysis of strain P9 pili revealed the presence of 1 to 2 phosphate groups and 1 to 2 hexose groups per pilin subunit; no amino sugars were detected. Pili from strain P9 were resolved into two bands by equilibrium density gradient centrifugation or column isoelectric focusing, suggesting the presence of more than one kind of pilus.


New types of mutation affecting formation of alkaline phosphatase by Bacillus subtilis in sporulation conditions.

Mutations defining three new loci, sapA, sapB and phoS, were detected by their ability to overcome the phosphatase-negative phenotype of early-blocked asporogenous mutants in sporulation conditions. Synthesis of alkaline phosphatase by Bacillus subtilis is subject to 'vegetative' and 'sporulation' controls. The phoS mutations resulted in constitutive production of alkaline phosphatase and so could be altered in either the 'vegetative' or the 'sporulation' control system. The sapA and sapB mutations only affected alkaline phosphatase formation in sporulation conditions, and were considered to be sporulation specific. They rendered 'sporulation' alkaline phosphatase formation independent of all the spomutations tested, and so independent of the control of the dependent sequences of spo locus expression; as the enzyme was not formed constitutively, it remained subject to some other sporulation control. The sapA and phoS loci were placed between argC4 and metC3 on the genetic map; the sapB locus was located close to purB6. The three loci mapped separately from all known spo loci.


Isolation and characterization of a Bacillus megaterium QMB1551 bacteriophage.

A bacteriophage specific for Bacillus megaterium QM B1551 was isolated. This phage (MP-7) was a lytic phage of typical morphology and distinct stability properties. The DNA was double-stranded, with a mole % G+C of 38.9 +/- 0.7 and a mol. wt. of 42 to 44 X 10(6).


Sources of error in measuring cerebrospinal fluid formation by ventriculocisternal perfusion.

Ventriculocisternal perfusion is regarded as a precise method of measuring the rate of formation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) but it possesses inherent potential sources of error. Using the technique to measure CSF formation rate in the rhesus monkey, we have observed rate changes when none were expected. Most puzzling has been the steady decline of CSF formation rate at 4 percent each hour during the final five hours of a seven hour perfusion although variables known to affect CSF formation remained stable. In addition, alterations in rate caused by artefacts were observed in experiments in which craniospinal blood volume was changed by sudden changes of either PCO2 or central venous pressure. Mobilisation or sequestration of incompletely equilibrated CSF is believed responsible. In other experiments, a small increase of intracranial pressure produced by increasing outflow resistance was quickly followed by an apparent reduction of CSF formation. We have concluded that to assess accurately the effect a variable has on the rate of CSF formation, one must control perfusion time and craniospinal blood volume as well as intracranial pressure.


Percutaneous catheterization of the internal jugular vein in infants and children.

Two methods are described for percutaneous catheterization of the internal jugular vein in children. The technique can be used even in premature babies. No serious complications were observed from the catheterization in 100 cases.


Identification of urinary catechol and methylated catechol metabolites of phenytoin in  humans, monkeys, and dogs by GLC and GLC-mass spectrometry.

A catechol metabolite, 5-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-5-phenylhydantoin, and a methylated catechol metabolite, 5-(3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenyl)-5-phenylhydantoin, were identified as urinary metabolites in humans, monkeys, and dogs following the administration of phenytoin. These metabolites were separated from each other and from other known metabolites of phenytoin as n-butyl derivatives by GLC and positively identified by combined GLC-mass spectrometry.


Neurofibromatosis of lid and orbit in early childhood.

Fifty cases of neurofibromatosis of lid and orbit that were followed up from early childhood for about 20 years showed: 1. Age at which cases firstly seen by ophthalmologist in 10 percent at first, in 20 percent between two and four; in 30 percent betweeen five and 12; in 30 percent between 13 and 17; and in 10 percent after 17 years. 2. The most common lesion in a unilateral orbital and upper lid swelling with ptosis in 30 percent; with added swelling of temporal region and eyebrow in 30 percent; with added swelling of cheek in 30 percent. Only unilateral swelling at root of nose in four percent; eyebrow in two percent; or temporal atrophy in two percent. 3. Associated cafe au lait patches are found in 70 percent, and multiple neurofibromata of skin in 50 percent. 4. Malignant transformation to neurofibrosarcoma occurs in six percent. 5. X-ray changes of the bony orbit: absent in 60 percent; congenital since birth in 20 percent-the lesser and greater wings of the spehenoid bone are most commonly absent; and due to pressure of growing neurofibromatosis of orbit in 20 percent.


Schizogony in Haemoproteus columbae Kruse.

To fill in some of the gaps in our knowledge of Schizogony of Haemoproteus columbae Kruse, transmission experiments involving inoculation into pigeons (Columba livia Gmelin) of sporozonites from salivary glands of the hippoboscid fly Pseudolynchia canariensis (Macquart) were carried out. We were unable to detect prepatent schizonts or to observe schizogonic development when infection became chronic. Schizonts were mainly confined to lung tissue. Observations of parapatent schizonts were made in smears and tissue sections. A variety of forms was found. Cytomeres were rarely encountered. Two types of morphologically distinct merozoites were seen. One type was twice as large as large as the other and was thought to repeat the process of schizogony several times before invading erythrocytes. Schizonts with cytoplasmic clefts were not common in our material due to the fixatives used (Bouin's and Carnoy's). Merozoites were occasionally observed inside monocytes, probably being phagocytosed.


Ocular malformations in human fetuses with external malformations.

Sixty undamaged human fetuses with various nonocular external malformations were selected randomly from a large number of fetuses collected by the Department of Anatomy Faculty of Medicine, Kyoto University, and examined macroscopically and stereomicroscopically for ocular and other external and internal malformations. Eighteen fetuses (30 percent) showed ocular malformations of the following types: approximated eyes (two cases), approximated eyes plus microncornea (one case), microphthalmia (eight cases), microcornea (three cases), corneal opacity (one case), transparent sclera (two cases), and antimongoloid obliquity of the palpebral fissure (one case). In addition, asymmetric insertion sites of the recti muscles, regarded as a minor deviation, were found in 12 cases (20.0 percent). Of the fetuses with malformations in the central nervous system 37.5 per cent showed ocular malformations. No specific causes of ocular malformations could be confirmed in the present study. However, drugs such as hormones, sedatives and antipyretics in the early stage of pregnancy, systemic diseases such as influenza, and dysplasia or dysfunction of the ovary or uterus might be related to the production of some ocular and other malformations.


Monstrous Tetrahymena with intraclonal variation in structure produced by hereditary modification of normal cells.

Monstrous Tetrahymena pyriformis strain GL may be isolated after exposure of normal cells to numerous heat shocks, to flattening on agar or gelatin plates, or to viscous solutions of methyl cellouse. It is shown that in some cases the abnormalities are inherited and that this results in clones where the cells are different from each other and have various abnormalities with respect to cortical pattern, swimming and feeding behavior, and generation time. Furthermore, it is shown that these cells are produced rather than selected by the experimental treatments. Evidence is presented that growth without division is important for production of the abnormal organisms. The basis of the inheritance of the abnormalities is discussed.


The histochemical localization of prostaglandin synthetase activity in reproductive tract of the male rat.

PG synthetase activity was assessed histochemically in the reproductive tract of male rats. Moderate activity was observed in tails of spermatozoa within the corpus and cauda epididymidis but there was no activity in the caput epididymidis or the seminiferous tubules. The sperm tail activity was maximal for cells within the vas deferens. PG synthetase activity was also observed in individual adipose cells adhering to the testicular capsule, epididymis and vas deferens, and in isolated interstitial cells of the testis and the caput, corpus and cauda epididymidis. Specific cells in the capsules of the testes, epididymis and vas deferens also produced PGs. The activity observed in the interstitial cells of the testis and the caput epididymidis was less than that for the other tissues in terms of the proportion of possible cells. The demonstration of PG synthetase activity paralleled to known loss of arachidonic acid from the phospholipids of the spermatozoa as they pass through the male tract. Endogenous substrate was not limiting in the assay system, even in the testis and caput epididymidis where PG synthesis was not normally observed, indicating that a PG synthesis inhibitor may be present in these two tissues. PG synthetase activity within teased seminiferous tubules was markedly increased by physical trauma. Indomethacin diminished but did not eliminate synthesis.


Characterization of the oestrous cycle and mating season of squirrel monkeys from copulatory behaviour.

Observations of the behaviour of squirrel monkeys, including 8 opposite-sex pairs during daily 30-min social encounters and 2 mixed-sex permanent groups during daily 30-min observation sessions, over a 14-month period were used to determine the periodicity of the oestrous cycle and annual mating season. The median and modal length of the oestrous cycle was 8 days, within which copulations were limited to a 1--2 day period. In a cyclic female, plasma progesterone levels over a 24-day period dropped from 85--151 ng/ml to 25 ng/ml 2 days before oestrus. In non-cyclic females plasma progesterone values were less than 15-4 ng/ml. Males exhibited a 6-8--19-7 week 'season' of copulation and ejaculation. The onset of this 'mating season' in August coincided with the annual peak in male body weight (the 'fatted male' phenomenon).


The development of a qualitative assay for male infertility from a study of enzymes in human semen.

Various enzymes in the semen of men were examined to see if any could be related to measures of fertility. Fumarase activity was highly correlated with sperm number and percentage motility. Diamine oxidase activity was higher in samples with sperm counts of less than 20 X 10(6)/ml and aperm motility of less than 20%. Monoamine oxidase, adenine deaminase and prostaglandin dehydrogenase were undetectable in significant amounts in all samples, while peroxidase and adenosine deaminase were not correlated with sperm count and motility. It is suggested that the simple spectrophotometric assays for fumarase and diamine oxidase could form the basis of a routine assessment of human semen samples for estimation of male infertility.


Isoimmune blood group antibodies in cattle after the use of a blood vaccine.

A total of 100 animals were inoculated twice within 21 days with the Onderstepoort babesiosis vaccine. High blood group antibody titres were recorded, especially after the second inoculation. The possibility is discussed of neonatal isoerythrolysis occuring after vaccination as a result of maternal isoimmune blood group antibodies gaining access to the circulation of the offspring which inherited the corresponding blood group factors from its size.


Prostaglandin prodrugs. 5.1 Prostaglandin E2 ethylene ketal.

In order to improve the chemical stability of prostaglanding E2 (2), prostaglanding E2 ethylene ketal (1) was prepred by direct ketalization of 2 with ethylene glycol in benzene. To establish a quantitative assessment of 1 as a chemically stable and orally active prodrug of 2, the hydrolysis of 1 to 2 and the subsequent dehydration of 2 to prostaglandin A2 (3) were followed at 25 degrees C and six pH's ranging from 2.0 to 6.5 by means of a high-pressure liquid chromatographic procedure. Kinetic results clearly indicate that 1 should be quantitively hydrolyzed back to the parent drug 2 dehydration of 2 to 3 are in the order of 1 h and 14 days, respectively. The preliminary data on the biological response after oral administration of 1 appeared to indicate the 1 is bioequivalent to 2.


Diastereoisomers of 5,10-methylene-5,6,7,8-tetrahydropteroyl-D-glutamic acid.

The diastereoisomers of 5,10-methylene 5,6,7,8-tetrahydropteroyl-D-glutamate were resolved and tested as substrates and inhibitors of Lactobacillus casei thymidylate synthetase. No activity was observed. The compounds were neither growth factors nor inhibitors for Lactobacillus casei, Streptococcus faecium, or Pediococcus cerevisiae. 7,8-Dihydropteroyl-D-glutamate is 50% as active as 7,8-dihydropteroyl-L-glutamate (dihydrofolate) as a substrate for L. casei dihydrofolate reductase.


Rapid identification of cell wall components as a guide to the classification of aerobic coryneform bacteria from human skin.

In a survey of over 1000 isolates of aerobic skin coryneforms from a wide variety of sources, chromatographic methods were used to identify the major cell-wall components in whole-cell hydrolysates. Most of the skin isolates-like members of the genus Corynebacterium--possessed meso-diaminopimelic acid and arabinose. However, substantial numbers of coryneforms apparently resident on the skin did not have this pattern; the sites from which they were isolated suggested that some were derived from the environment whilst others (possessing meso-DAP and galactose but not arabinose as the major wall components) were members of the resident skin flora.


Epidemiological information from active and passive pyocine typing of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

An investigation was carried out to determine the value of active and passive pyocine typing in the study of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections acquired in hospital. Active typing was a more reliable and reproducible method than passive typing. Both methods were used in studies of nine outbreaks of infection. In six of these episodes there was good agreement between the two methods. Less clear-cut results were achieved in the remaining three episodes. In one of these, active typing gave more valuable information. However, both methods are easy, convenient and of value in epidemiological studies.


Electronmicroscopical characterisation of simian papovavirus SA12.

Ultrastructural studies of simian virus SA12, growing in primary cultures of vervet monkey-kidney cells, have demonstrated a typical papovavirus capsid morphology and a diameter of 43 nm. The cytopathic nuclear characteristics, with the absence of virus crstals and elongated capsid forms, distinguish it from SV40 and the human papovaviruses. Like other papovaviruses, SA12 shows a strong affinity for cellular membranes.


Assessment of obesity in pigtailed monkeys (Macaca nemestrina).

Obesity was studied in a colony of 873 Macaca nemestrina to establish tools for epidemiologic studies, to examine a genetic form of obesity, to document age/sex relationships to obesity, and to compare metabolic profiles of obese and normal monkeys. Age/weight growth curves were analyzed to select the most obese monkeys and age- and sex-matched normal controls. Degree of adiposity was determined using tritiated water for estimation of lean body mass. Body weight, anterior trunk height, and abdominal and triceps skinfolds were measured. Fasting insulin, fasting free fatty acids, and glucose disappearance rate were determined. The results give evidence of similarities between macaque and human obestiy.


E and EAC rosettes in man and nonhuman primates and the effect of thymosin in vitro.

E (erythrocyte) and EAC (erythrocytes coated with antibody and complement) rosettes were quantitated in baboons, cebus monkeys and cotton-topped marmosets. There was poor correlation between E rosette levels and other parameter of T-lymphocyte function. In nonhuman primates, E rosettes were increased in the presence of thymosin fraction V, while human E rosettes were not affected.


A note on the external genitalia of female squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus).

Observations of six female squirrel monkeys, Saimiri sciureus, indicate that the appearance of the external genitalia is hormone-dependent. Estradiol benzoate induced opening of the vagina, swelling of the labia, enlargement of urethral papilla, and copious discharge of thick white vaginal secretion in ovariectomized females.


[Endoscopic resection in the treatment of non-invasive excreto-urinary carcinomas of the bladder 146 endoscopic resections carried out in 53 patients].

The authors divided their cases of excreto-urinary tumours of the bladder using the classification of Chome and Algazi. The diagnosis was made in 8 cases out of 10 on the basis of the cystogram obtained by IV pyelography. The upper urinary tract was free of disease in all cases. All patients were treated by endoscopic resection with or without the addition of intravesical instillations of triaziridinyl phosphine sulphide. The effectiveness of such instillations would not appear to have been conclusively demonstrated at the present time. Recurrences of intravesical tumours are extremely common (33/53 patients), but were always at the initial stage: i.e. highly differentiated non-invasive carcinoma. Up to the present none of these 53 patients (maximum follow-up 10 years) has died of an invasive carcinoma of the bladder.


Changes in the capsid structure and stability of defective particles of bacteriophage R17.

Serological and chemical methods were used to compare the capsid structure and stability of R17 phage and amA31 defective particles. Immunodiffusion analysis demonstrated identity between intact R17 and amA31 capside and between dissociated subunits of both R17 and amA31 and purified coat protein. Radioimmunoassays detected an antibody in R17 antisera that binds to intact R17 but could not be absorbed from R17 antisera with amA31. The R17 antibody remaining in amA31-absorbed sera did not neutralize infectivity of R17 phage. Differences between the surface composition of R17 and amA31 capsids were also detected by iodination. Capsids of R17 bound approximately four times more 125I than amA31, which was accounted for by a decreased 125I labeling of coat protein. Finally, amA31 capsids dissociated under milder conditions of sodium dodecyl sulfate treatment than R17 capsids. The sodium dodecyl sulfate dissociation of both R17 and amA31 capsids resulted in the formation of a transient 38,000-dalton intermediate, which subsequently dissociated to coat protein monomers. Preparations of dissociated R17 capsids also contained assembly protein was also found in preparations of dissociated amA31 capsids.


Is the diverticulum of the distal and collecting tubules a preliminary stage of the simple cyst in the adult?

Whereas the outlines of nephrons and collecting ducts in kidneys from subjects less than 20 years old age regular, the number of diverticula on the distal tubule in kidneys from adults increase with age. An embryogenic progression from diverticula to microscopic and macroscopic cysts to radiologically detectable cysts can be established from morphological anomalies found in kidneys from adults. Therefore, a diverticulum on distal and collecting tubules and collecting tubules is postulated as the precursor of a simple cyst.


Acquired male urethral diverticulum.

Four cases of acquired urethral diverticula in male subjects are reviewed. All patients presented with complications such as urinary tract infection, urethral fistulas and stone or sequestrum formation in the diverticulum. The recommended treatment is excision of the diverticulum and repair of the urethra. The relevant literature has been reviewed.


Transitional cell carcinoma in a pyelogenic cyst.

A case of transitional cell carcinoma in a pyelogenic cyst is presented. The pathogenesis of pyelogenic cysts and the clinical management of avascular cystic renal masses are discussed.


Blood parasites of mallard and pintail ducks from central Alberta and the Mackenzie Delta, Northwest Territories.

Blood films from 60 mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) and 67 pintail (A. acuta) ducks, collected in Alberta and the Mackenzie Delta, Northwest Territories, during 1973 and 1974, were examined for blood parasites. Twenty-two (37%) of the mallards and fourteen (21%) of the pintails were infected with one or more species of hematozoa. Infections of Leucocytozon simondi occurred more frequently (86%) than Haemoproteus nettionis (22%) in the infected birds. Trypanosoma avium occurred in one individual of each species of duck; one pintail harbored an unidentified microfilaria. Differences of prevalence between species are predicted on the basis of host attractancy to vectors and/or host habitat selection, and are discussed.


Additional observations on the blood parasites of Ugandan birds.

One thousand and seventy-six birds of 26 families and 127 species were examined for hemoprotozoa; 404 birds (37%) of 41 species representing 17 families harbored one or more blood parasites. Most parasites were species of Haemoproteus which represented 95% of all parasitic infections detected. Prevalence of blood parasites in birds collected from four areas over a period of six years was relatively stable.


Some infectious and parasitic diseases in Oklahoma raptors.

Blood films and sera samples from wild Oklahoma raptors (Strigiformes--36 birds, 3 species; Falconiformes--50 birds, 7 species) were examined for hematozoa and tested for serologic antibody response to Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV), encephalitis (EEE and WEE), ornithosis, and influenza. Twenty-nine of 36 (80.5) Strigiformes and 24 of 50 (48.0%) Falconiformes showed the presence of one or more hematozoa. Serologic testing revealed the serum of one adult male red-tailed hawk positive for antibody to NDV and one additional adult male red-tailed hawk positive for antibody to type-A influenza.


Organochlorine poisoning of ring-billed gulls in southern Ontario.

Clinical, necropsy, bacteriologic, parasitologic, histopathologic, toxicologic and animal inoculation studies suggest that organochlorine (PBC, dieldrin and DDE) poisoning was an important factor in causing deaths of free-flying ring-billed gulls (Larus delawarensis) in southern Ontario in 1969 and 1973. The brains of gulls dying with clinical signs of neurologic involvement, and dead gulls with no other apparent cause of death, contained organochlorine residues of significantly greater levels than those found in healthy gulls shot for comparison.


Occurrence with bacteriologically positive pulmonary tuberculosis.

Fever was unchanged by chemotherapy in ten patients with bacteriologically positive pulmonary tuberculosis. Blood cultures were positive for Gram-positive organisms in six patients and for Gram-negative organisms in four patients. The same organism was present in sputa and blood in six patients and in urine and blood in two patients. Leukocytosis was not found, and roentgenographic findings did not suggest superinfection. Nine of the ten patients survived. Blood cultures must be obtained in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis whose fever is not altered by antituberculous chemotherapy, so that concomitant septicemia is not neglected.


Elective delivery of the term fetus. An obstetrical hazard.

Of 1,020 consecutive admissions to a regional neonatal center, 38 infants were admitted following elective delivery in which no medical condition of the mother or fetus had necessitated immediate delivery. Twenty infants had problems that were not primarily the result of elective delivery, developed in 18. Fifteen of these 18 infants were delivered by cesarean section; in none of the mothers had any assessment of fetal maturity or size (other than the menstrual history and physical examination) been made. The infants remained in the hospital for an average of 12.7 days at a median cost of $2,678 per patient. One infant died. In the absence of pressing medical indications and without an objective assessment of fetal maturity, elective delivery remains potentially hazardous.


Cardiac manifestations of Fabry's disease. Report of a case with pulmonary regurgitation diagnosed on the basis of endomyocardial biopsy findings.

A case of Fabry's disease with pulmonary regurgitation is reported, and the cause of valvular involvement, the electrophysiological mechanism of the short PR interval, and the usefulness of the endomyocardial biopsy method in an attempt to establish the diagnosis in Fabry's disease have been discussed.


Comparison of the mode of immunopotentiating action of BCG and wax D. I. Effect on the immune response to SRBC.

The immunopotentiating action of BCG and wax D was comparatively evaluated as the immune response to sheep red blood cells (SRBC) in mice. The immunopotentiation of BCG varied with the interval between its priming and subsequent antigen injection. BCG increased delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) at early stage but enhanced antibody formation at later stage. DTH reached its maximum about 5 weeks after BCG inoculation. In contrast, wax D increased antibody formation at early stage but increased DTH at later stage. Freund complete adjuvant (FCA) containing wax D stimulated much antibody formation rather than induction of DTH in mice. Cord factor and even Drakeol 6VR could induce DTH at early stage of prior inoculation.


Thermoregulation of the Japanese macaque living in a snowy mountain area.

A field investigation was conducted to study the thermoregulatory responses in nine Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) living in a snowy mountain area, Jigoku-Dani (Hell Valley, about 1,000 m above sea level) in Shiga Heights in central Japan in late January 1975. At about the same time, a laboratory study was made on four Japanese macaques reared in mild climate in an outdoor cage in Inuyama City. In the Hell Valley (HV) monkeys, no significant change in metabolic rate was observed at Ta between -1.4 and 28.3 degrees C, while the rectal temperature was maintained at normal level. In the cold environment, the skin temperatures of HV monkeys were significantly higher than those of the monkeys living indoors previously studied. Similar patterns of metabolic and thermal responses were observed in Inuyama monkeys living outdoors, but to a lesser degree. The hair on the back and abdomen in the HV monkeys was significantly longer than that of Iuyama monkeys living indoors. It is suggested that the thick fur of HV monkeys may account for, if not all, the thermoregulatory responses of the Japanese macaque in snowy mountain areas.


[Anaphylactoid purpura and the complement system: particularly in terms of C3a and IgA (author's transl)].

We measured the immunoglobulin, beta1 C globulin, beta1E globulin, C3a, and CH50 in 20 patients with anaphylactoid purpura (Schönlein-Henoch purpura). IgA values proved to be elevated in 5 out of 11 cases. beta1 C globulin values were lower in 2 out of 8 cases and fell within the range of normalcy in the remaining 6 cases. beta1 E globulin values were normal in all cases measured (5 patients). A 130% increase in C3a was found in 7 out of 9 cases; patients with higher C3a values suffered from lasting petechial hemorrhages. It can, therefore, be concluded that the activation of the "alternative pathway" induced by IgA led to the release of C3a.


Effects of greater superficial petrosal neurectomy on nasal mucosa in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta).

The effects of greater superficial petrosal neurectomy on normal nasal mucosa was studied in ten rhesus monkeys by light microscopy at four, six, and eight weeks postoperatively. Greater superficial petrosal neurectomy caused no histological alteration in the nasal mucosa of these monkeys. These procedures were accomplished with no complications.


Heart mitochondrial metabolism after feeding herring oil to rats and monkeys.

Heart mitochondrial oxidation of palmityl CoA and pyruvic acid was studied in rats and in the monkey Macaca fascicularis to determine the effects of feeding partially hydrogenated herring oil. Herring oil glycerides contain cetoleic acid (cis-11-docosenoic) which could have a similar effect to erucic acid (cis-13-docosenoic) in causing a rat cardiomyopathy. The initial rat heart mitochondrial response to dietary cetoleic acid (67% cis, 33% trans) was an in vitro decrease in palmityl CoA oxidation. Pronlonged feeding of cetoleic acid mixture was associated with a significant metabolic adaptation, increasing pyruvate and palmityl CoA oxidation above control levels. In vitro addition of cetoleyl CoA (pure cis isomer) stimulated pyruvate dehydrogenase activity, a possible response to decreased B-oxidation. There was no significant adaptive change in pyruvate or palmityl CoA use in monkeys after prolonged feeding of partially hydrogenated herring oil. Cetoleyl CoA was a good substrate for monkey heart carnitine acyl transferase even in the presence of palmityl CoA. These observations suggest that C22 fatty acids may be metabolized more rapidly in monkey heart than in rat heart. Metabolic differences argue against using the rat as an experimental model for studying possible cardiotoxic effects of docosenoic acids in primates.


Clinical observations of human bone marrow macrophages.

Although human bone marrow is usually obtained to examine precursors of formed elements of blood, important diagnostic information can be gleaned from study of macrophages. These cells are usually unnoticed. Macrophages may be involved in a number of different pathophysiologic mechanisms which are pointed out in this clinical and pictorial study. Inherited enzymatic deficiencies usually result in "storage cells" as exemplified by Gaucher disease. Relative deficiencies may be acquired if phagocytic activity overcomes normal enzymatic mechanisms.


[Reversible pulmonary arterial hypertension after medication of aminorexfumarate (author's transl)].

It is reported on a patient who 8 years ago and 42 developed a primary pulmonary arterial hypertension after medication with medicaiton with aminorefumarate, an antiappetizing compound whose structure is similar to ephedrine. A control measurement of the pulmonary artery pressure 8 years later showed normal values for the pressure in the right cavities and in the pulmonary artery. Beside a short term medication with nitro compounds no further medication was given. The case in one of the very few with primary pulmonary arterial hypertension where a normalization of the pulmonary artery pressure could be documented.


The effect of chopped rat lung on the inhibitory actions of prostaglandins, isoprenaline, theophylline and disodium cromoglycate on mast cell degranulation.

Prostaglandins and other drugs that stimulate adenylate cyclase have little inhibitory activity for antigen-induced degranulation of rat peritoneal mast cells. In the presence of chopped rat lung, however, the inhibitory activities of both prostaglandins and isoprenaline were markedly enhanced. A similar effect was also seen with disodium cromoglycate, which is not known to stimulate adenylate cyclase, but which does inhibit cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase. In contrast, however, the chopped lung had no effect on either degranulation in the absence of an inhibitor or on the inhibitory potency of theophylline. Lung tissue suspension pretreated with isoprenaline released a factor into the supernatant which enhanced isoprenaline action on peritoneal mast cells. The activity of this supernatant factor was destroyed by boiling for 5 min. Untreated lung supernatant fluid failed to affect either the level of antigen-induced degranulation or the inhibitory potency of isoprenaline.


[Nutritional deficiencies affecting children of the Third World. The example of Ethiopia (author's transl)].

For the large non-privileged population groups in developing countries and diet shows many deficiencies, often with major disturbances of health as a consequence. This is particularly true for the children. The monotony and the bulkiness of the traditional diet, the often sparse number of meals as well as periodic deteriorations of the food situation ("hungry season") all contributes to make the nutritional situation precarious. The vicious circle between PEM and infections contribute in a major way to the high mortality rate among preschool children in developing countries. In this paper a review is given of different nutritional deficiency diseases affecting children in the Third World. The practical illustrations derive mainly from Ethiopia. During the period between 1962-1975 there has been lively cooperation in the field of nutritional research between Ethiopia and Sweden.


Production of mosaic lethals in different germ cell stages of drosophila by N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine.

The delayed effect of N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) was studied in Drosophila melanogaster by the proportion of mosaic progeny produced after this treatment. Following injection of the chemical into wild type males, complete and mosaic sex-linked recessive lethals were scored by the Muller-5 method, in five successive broods representing the different stages of spermatogenesis. All broods showed significant increase over the control in the frequencies of complete lethals with gradual decrease in mutation rate from the post-meiotic stages to the pre-meiotic ones. In the case of mosaic lethals, too, the post-meiotic stages were generally more sensitive; but the increase over the control was significant only for the mature spermatozoa. The extension of the experiment to F4 generation showed that a mosaic F1 female may produce further mosaic progeny. The production of lethal mutations in successive generations after treatment with MNNG supports the view that chemically induced instabilities can be transmitted as such over several generations.


The mutational spectrum of procarbazine in Drosophila melanogaster.

The antineoplastic agent Procarbazine was tested for the induction of genetic damage in Drosophila melanogaster. The compound was administered to adult males by oral application. The following types of genetic damage were measured: (1) sex-linked recessive lethals; (2) dominant lethals; (3) total and partial sex-chromosome loss; and (4) translocations. Procarbazine is highly mutagenic in causing recessive lethal mutations in all stages of spermatogenesis. In sperm a clear-cut concentration-effect relationship is not apparent, but in spermatids such a relationship is obtained for mutation induction at low levels of procarbazine exposure, while at high concentrations the induction of recessive lethals is not a function of concentration. A low induction of total sex-chromosome loss (X,Y) and dominant lethals was observed in metabolically active germ cells (spermatids), but procarbazine failed to produce well-defined breakage events, such as partial sex-chromosome loss (YL,YS) and II-III translocations. The results obtained in Drosophila melanogaster are discussed and compared with the mutational pattern reported in the mouse after procarbazine treatment.


Hypothalamic dysfunction in secondary amenorrhea associated with simple weight loss.

We tested hypothalamic, pituitary and endocrine function in 19 patients with secondary amenorrhea associated with simple weight loss who did not have anorexia nervosa to evaluate the effects of weight loss on these systems. Thermoregulation at 10 degrees C and 49 degrees C was abnormal and correlated with the percentage below ideal body weight (r = 0.62, P less than 0.02, and r = 0.55, P less than 0.05, respectively). Partial diabetes insipidus was found in 27 per cent of patients with simple weight loss. They had delayed peak plasma luteinizing hormone levels after 10 microgram of luteinizing-hormone-releasing factor, which was correlated with percentage below ideal body weight (r = 0.49, P less than 0.05). Delayed peak plasma thyrotropin levels after 500 microgram of thyrotropin-releasing factor were found. No prolactin, pituitary, thyroid or adrenal abnormalities were present. These findings are qualitatively similar to results of studies in 29 patients with anorexia nervosa, but less severe and less frequently present. We conclude that hypothalamic dysfunction may be caused by weight loss per se.


Preclinical effects: learned behavior.

A review of the previous Marihuana and Health Reports (1971-1975) reveals that an extensive array of experimental procedures and contexts have been used to study the effects of cannabinoids on the performance of learned behavior in animals. These preclinical behavioral experiments have provided a framework for, and guided the design of, subsequent human experimentation. Compared to previous years, only a few experiments pertaining to cannabinoids and learned behavior have appeared during the past two years. By and large these more recent experiments confirm previous findings; no particularly novel procedures have been explored nor have there been dramatically unpredictable results. In part, the decrease in activity in cannabinoid preclinical animal research on learned behavior indicates an increase in human cannabinoid-learning investigations. Several detailed taxonomies of learned behavior are possible. However, for the purposes of the present report, learned behaviors will be categorized into those involving: avoidance learning and aversive control; reinforcement schedules and maze learning; and discrimination learning.


Effects of marihuana on the genetic and immune systems.

With the continued widespread abuse of marihuana and the potential use of marihuana as a therapeutic agent being widely discussed, it becomes important to assess the effects of marihuana and other cannabis preparations on the immune mechanisms and the genetic material. This chapter integrates recent findings with those in the Fifth Marihuana and Health Report (1975) to provide a wiser data base from which conclusions may be drawn. Animal studies and human studies are considered separately because it is not known to what extent, if at all, results from animal studies can be directly extrapolated to man.


Preclinical effects: unlearned behavior.

The cannabinoids produce a variety of effects on unlearned behavior in different animal species. The voluminous literature pertaining to cannabis and unlearned behavior has been reviewed in the five previous Marihuana and Health Reports (1971 through 1975). The present chapter relies heavily on these previous reports for background and focuses primarily on the relevant literature which has appeared during the past two years, although a continuing attempt is made to consider the more recent literature in the context of previous findings. As in the 1975 Marihuana and Health Report, the present chapter is organized for expository purposes around four categories of unlearned behavior: gross behavior; activity and exploration; consummatory behavior; and aggressive behavior.


[The antero-posterior diameter of the cervical spinal canal in the ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (author's transl)].

1. The antero-posterior diameter (APD-Fig. 1A) of the cervical spinal canals in 38 cases of symptomatic ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) and 29 cases of asymptomatic OPLL was measured for each vertebra, and the thecoperiosteal diameter (TPD-Fig. 1B) of the cervical spinal canals in the same cases was measured. 2. The APD in the cases of symptomatic OPLL was found to be significantly smaller than those of asymptomatic OPLL. 3. The TPD in symptomatic OPLL was also found to be more significantly smaller than those of asymptomatic OPLL. Measurements of 9 mm or less were considered liable to be associated with cord compression. 4. The growing rate of the ossification was calculated in 13 cases of symptomatic OPLL which we have followed up radiologically for more than 2 years. The growing rate varied considerably from case to case. The average growing rate per one year was 4.07 mm in axial length and 0.67 mm in thickness on antero- posterior direction. 5. The incidence of OPLL was examined.


Long-term results after intentional tooth reimplantation in monkeys.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate histologically the long-term response to intentional tooth reimplantation in six rhesus monkeys. The study revealed that cervical and apical root resorption is a universal complication after tooth reimplantation and that arrested areas of resorption will show repair by deposition of cementum. A highly cellular periodontal membrane usually will develop. Periodontal fibers will reattach to reparative bone and cementum but seldom regain functional orientation. Partial or complete ankylosis may result. A further complication is progressive undermining resorption of the ankylosed teeth. Long-term studies are mandatory to evaluate the response to intentional tooth reimplantation.


Endodontic morphology. III. Canal preparation.

Three hundred nine root canals in 164 extracted human teeth were prepared with endodontic instruments for obturation by the lateral condensation technique. Variations in tooth lengths for each group of teeth were marked, pointing up the need for adequate control of instruments through careful assessment of tooth lengths in clinical practice. In most cases the canals were prepared to the desired depth and flared coronally with the assistance of chelates. Some instrument failures were noted, along with the tendency for files to force debris in an apical direction during instrumentation.


Long-term results of the implantation of glutaraldehyde-fixed tissue.

Glutaraldehyde-fixed autologous young connective tissue was implanted in rabbits for periods of 4,6,8, and 12 months, respectively, to evaluate the long-term effects of glutaraldehyde fixation. It was concluded that the implants elicit very little reaction in the surrounding tissues and that the fixed tissue is slowly invaded by vital cells and probably evokes an immune response. It is likely that, although glutaraldehyde-fixed dead tissue provokes less reaction than both unfixed and formaldehyde-fixed dead tissue, in the long term it is also broken down and phagocytized.


The colonial rock-forming microfossils of the Bohemian Upper Proterozoic (Czechoslovakia), 'Bohemipora Pragensis' n.g., n.sp.

Large amounts of well preserved microfossils have been reported from the cherts of the Upper Proterozoic of the Bohemian Massif (Middle Europe). They resemble those described by Cayeux (1894) from the Upper Proterozoic (Brioverian) of Bretagne (France). It is shown, unlike the views of Cayeux and his followers (Deflandre, 1955, and Graindor 1957), that the observed structures did not belong to individuals but to colonies of filamentous prokaryotic organisms, most probably blue-green algae (Cyanophyta). These produced specific crystal-like mineral aggregation round each filament. Scanning microscope examination has revealed that the individual facets of these mineral crystals were perforated by the openings through which the thread-like bodies of these primitive  organisms protruded. It is shown that these microorganisms were attached to the cells of other, bigger microorganisms and enveloped them. Some of these substrate organisms might have been eukaryotic algae. The thecae gradually accumulated around the cells of these carrier organisms and after death the colonies disintegrated to constitute the main component of the sediment. The microfossils described are just a major component of a complicated fossil assemblage comprising coccoid and filamentous blue-green algae and bacteria. There are indications that several eukaryotic species might also have been present.


A rapid and sensitive method using immunological nephelometric analysis to evaluate the gel-filtration method. (Application to the diagnosis of rubella).

Immunological nephelometric analysis has been shown to be a more sensitive method than either immunoelectrophoresis or gel-diffusion for testing the gel-filtration method of human immunoglobulins sera. This method has the advantages of facility, rapidity and sensitivity. We have compared this method to radial immunodiffusion. This method can be applied to locate with precision any antigens after gel-filtration or ion-exchange chromatography.


Operant conditioning of epileptic neurons in monkeys and its theoretical application to EEG operant conditioning in humans.

This paper reviews a series of previous reports which summarize the physiology of chronic experimental epileptic foci in monkeys. It is shown that such monkeys can be trained to bidirectionally control the firing rates of normal and epileptic neurons which comprise the epileptic focus. As a result of this acquired operant performance, the monkeys show both a decrease in clinical seizures as well as a decrease in single unit epileptic activity. The EEG correlate of this change in single unit epileptic activity is generalized EEG desynchronization. The conclusion  from these data would indicate epileptic neurons can be operantly controlled from and this control is not correlated with any specific EEG pattern. This brings to question the specificity of the SMR in EEG biofeedback paradigms which treat human epilepsy. This author feels that the result from such biofeedback studies are the result of the patient learning to manipulate electrical events within the CNS pathways through which the seizures propagates and is not contingent upon specific EEG frequencies.


Persistence of antibody following immunization of children with groups A and C meningococcal polysaccharide vaccines.

Persistence of antibody following immunization with groups A and C meningococcal polysaccharides was studied in two groups of children. Cohort 1 (20 children, 2 to 11 years of age) received two doses of A vaccine three years apart; cohort 2 (1,345 children, 6 to 8 years of age) received A or C vaccine initially and the heterologous vaccine one year later. No significant reactions were observed. Geometric mean anti-A concentrations one month after primary and booster immunization in cohort 1 were 8.77 and 13.08 microgram/ml, respectively. Mean anti-A concentration declined 32% one year after booster immunization, but then stabilized. Mean anti-A and anti-C concentrations in cohort 2 were 9.35 and 9.12 microgram/ml, respectively, one month after primary immunization. Mean anti-A concentration declined to 5.54 and 3.62 microgram/ml while anti-C levels fell to 2.35 and 1.47 microgram/ml one and four years after immunization. The proportion of children in cohort 2 with greater than or equal to 2.0 microgram/ml of anti-A and anti-C four years after immunization were 80% and 40%, respectively. An antibody concentration greater than or equal to 2.0 microgram/ml has been associated with protection against meningococcal disease. The results suggest that routine immunization of young infants with group A vaccine may result in long-lasting immunity. The usefulness of the presently available group C vaccine appears to be limited to the control of epidemics.


Low-dose intravenous insulin infusion in patients with diabetic ketoacidosis: biochemical effects in children.

Twenty-five episodes of diabetic ketoacidosis in 20 children were treated with continuous low-dose intravenous insulin infusion. Stable serum immunoreactive insulin concentrations were produced, along with prompt falls in glucose, beta-hydroxybutyrate, and glucagon levels, and a steadily increasing bicarbonate level. Neither hypokalemia nor hypophosphatemia developed. Elevated serum alanine concentrations were found during ketoacidosis in contrast to the lowered concentrations found in adults, and were correlated inversely with plasma glucagon concentrations. The treatment regimen described is safe, easy to use, efficacious, and resulted in prompt correction of the observed biochemical alterations in children with diabetic ketoacidosis.


Carbonic anhydrase activity of isolated brush border and basal-lateral membranes of renal tubular cells.

Carbonic anhydrase activity was found and characterized in isolated homogeneous preparations of microvilli and basal infoldings of the rat renal tubular cells. This membrane-bound activity was about 3% of the total carbonic anhydrase activity of the renal cortex. Compared to the renal cytoplasmic soluble form, the membrane-bound enzymes had the same Km for CO2 and were equally resistant to inhibition by chloride. However, they were less inhibited by different sulfonamides. The implication of the existence of membrane-bound enzymes in the renal tubular cells is discussed.


[The occurrence of Bacillus cereus in dairy products (authors transl)].

During one year 1390 samples of pasteurized milk products from five different dairies were examined for content of B. cereus. The examination was done on the day of packaging and after incubation at 17 degrees C for 24 hrs. as well. On examination on the day of packaging 8.1 % were positive. No difference could be demonstrated between low-temperature pasteurized and high-temperature pasteurized products. However, differences were found from one plant to another (2.1 %--14.5 %). After incubation B. cereus were isolated from 17.2 % of low-temperature pasteurized samples and from 22.8 % of high-temperature pasteurized products. The occurrence of B. cereus varied according to season. In July-September the level of contamination was 40 %. It is concluded that during summer months bacteriological examination of dairy products should be supplemented with an examination for B. cereus. This could provide a valuable tool in checking the efficiency of dairy cleaning.


[Selective effect of propolis in the isolation of Listeria monocytogenes (author's transl)].

Propolis is a substance produced by honeybees. It is inhibitory to some bacteria species, mainly Gram-positive bacteria, but less inhibitory to Listeria monocytogenes (L.m) than to the other Gram-positive bacteria tested. In order to obtain selective growth of L.m. from contaminated samples, the effect of propolis in plating media and broths on various strains of bacteria was examined. Table I shows the effect of increasing concentrations of propolis in tryptose-agar (TA). L.m. tolerated higher concentrations of propolis than Streptococcus viridans and Staphylococcus aureus. L.m. grew well in tryptosebroth (TB) that contained 0.15 mg propolis pr. ml medium, while Streptococcus viridans and Streptococcus agalactiae were completely inhibited as seen in Table II. Table III shows that when serum was added to the agar, the inhibitory effect was reduced. It can also be seen that Gram-negative bacteria grew quite well on media that contained 0.19 mg propolis pr. ml. To reduce the growth of Gram-negative bacteria, nalidixic acid was added to the medium. Table IV illustrates growth of various species of bacteria in tryptosephosphatebroth (TFB) with or without propolis and nalidixic acid. Most of the strains tested were inhibited, but Pseudomonas aeruginosa and to some extent faecal streptococci were able to grow in the medium that contained the selective substances. As a conclusion it seems that propolis may be a valuable additive to a medium for the selective isolation of L.m.


A new selective medium for the isolation of Listeria monocytogenes.

A new selective medium for the isolation of Listeria monocytogenes (Lm), is described. The medium contained propolis, nalidixic acid, polymyxin B and rivanol as selective substances. The new medium (propolis-agar) was compared with two other selective media and one nonselective medium. No inhibitory effect was found on the 6 strains of Lm tested, and Lm was easily isolated from a mixture of Lm and contaminating bacteria. The selective effect was better than for the two other selective media tested.


[Buxtonella sulcata, an intestinal ciliate of apparently frequent occurrence in Danish cattle (author's transl)].

Faeces samples from 762 apparently healthy heifers were examined for eggs of Fasciola hepatica (sedimentation test). At the same time possible ciliate cysts were recorded. Such cysts, usually circular, and varying in size from ab. 55 micrometer to ab. 95 micrometer (average ab. 71 micrometer) were found in 71.8 % of the samples. According to morphological descriptions in literature, the cysts observed are supposed mainly to represent the species Buxtonella sulcata. Their presence in faeces samples seems to give no differential diagnostic problems relative to parasite eggs or coccidial oocysts.


[Primary liver carcinoma: deficiency of alpha 1-antitrypsin].

A preliminary study involving 12 subjects suffering from carcinoma of the liver indicates the value of the estimation of alpha-1 antitrypsin and the determination of its phenotype by bidimensional electrophoresis. Alpha-1 antitrypsin was greater than 3.3 g/l in all cases, with a normal of 2.5 g/l. The MZ phenotype was found in 9 cases out of 12, the MM phenotype in the three recent cases and in particular in the only case of secondary carcinoma. In the Pi system, the Z trait would seem to be a genetic risk factor in primary carcinoma of the liver. Determination of the phenotype of alpha-1 antitrypsin may aid in its laboratory diagnosis.


[Hematology, genetics and ethnology (author's transl)].

The concept of geographical haematology described by Jean Bernard in 1965-1966, found a remarkable application field in Anthropology. The human ecology which allows to measure the influence of environmental factors in man through some haematological variations, has been added to the genetics of human populations, revealed by the blood groups discovery. It has been now demonstrated that, in man, cultural or sociological features can act a genetical isolation more effective that natural boundaries. So, an ethnological haematology is superimposed on the geographical haematology of which it can modify outlines.


Drug management of stable angina pectoris.

Nitroglycerin and long-acting nitrates are the pharmacologic mainstays of antianginal therapy, both for acute attacks and for prophylaxis. Propranolol is often effective for prophylaxis in patients incompletely helped by nitrates. A holistic approach is stressed. Appropriate drug use will effect marked improvement in most pateints.


Catabolic disorders of complex carbohydrates.

The various disorders caused by heritable defects in complex carbohydrate catabolism comprise two groups: (A) The mucopolysaccharidoses, six main and several subtypes are described. (B) The mucolipidoses (oligosaccharidoses), at least nine types being recognized. Whilst most of these are now well defined by clinical and biochemical studies, much of the sequence of events from the intrinsic metabolic error to their clinical features remains obscure. Most are transmitted as autosomal recessive conditions, a mode of inheritance often, as with these disorders, associated with enzymic deficiencies. All patients display the Hurler phenotype, but this, as also the characteristic bone changes, varies widely in severity both within and between the specified types of disease. The radiological abnormalities--dysostosis multiplex--indicate the broad disease complex and are rarely type-specific; diagnostic precision needing knowledge of both clinical and biochemical examinations. In several types mental development is normal and bone changes are mild, so permitting confusion with other forms of bone dysplasia or disease.