Prognostic significance of the histological features of malignant melanoma.

A review of 694 patients with localized cutaneous malignant melanoma (clinical stage I) revealed that three histological features of the primary lesion had no effect of their own on survival rate but derived their prognostic significance only because of their close correlation with tumour thickness. Primary lesions of superficial spreading histogenetic type, or of low mitotic activity or showing evidence of partial regression appeared to have a more favourable prognosis than lesions of nodular histogenetic type or of high mitotic activity or showing no regression. However, the former three histological features were predominant in thin lesions which had a better prognosis than thicker lesions. It was concluded that these features exerted only an indirect effect upon survival, tumour thickness being the most important prognostic determinant.


Tubular carcinoma: a variant of secretory breast carcinoma.

Fifteen cases of tubular carcinoma of the breast have been studied using histochemical methods for mucosubstances, immunocytochemical methods for casein and actin and conventional electron microscopy. Mucosubstances and casein were demonstrated lying freely in the lumina of the tubules. Occasionally, mucosubstances and casein assumed the form of target-like intracytoplasmic 'inclusions' like those characteristically seen in lobular carcinoma. The neoplastic cells did not react with antisera specific against actin. Even at ultrastructural level no myoepithelial cells were observed, whilst villi were revealed along the tubular luminal surface. It appears that, in addition to distinctive biological, histological and ultrastructural features, tubular carcinoma has an almost constant histochemical pattern. This suggests a differentiation towards epithelial secretory cells engaged in intensive milk protein production which has also been shown to be a feature of lobular carcinoma. It is concluded that though lobular carcinoma and tubular carcinoma of the breast have been traditionally regarded as two distinct entities, they have certain similar functional characteristics and it is postulated that these two tumours could represent the extreme variants fo the same entity: the infiltrative lobular carcinoma being the most undifferentiated and tubular carcinoma the most highly differentiated.


Myospherulosis: further ultrastructural observations.

The changes of myospherulosis were observed in masses from the buttocks of three patients. Ultrastructural examination of parent bodies and spherules from two patients revealed some spherules to contain dense bodies and filaments. Spherules had a double electron dense wall: the outer layer had a thickness corresponding to that of a cell membrane. Incubation of packed red blood cells with tetracycline ointment produced a similar electron dense deposit on the inner aspect of the cell membrane of the erythrocytes. No filaments or parent bodies were seen. Our findings support the hypothesis that myospherulosis represents altered red blood cells. The filaments seen in our patients may represent polymers of haemoglobin. It is suggested that parent bodies may be derived from histiocytes.


Psychiatric manpower: an overview.

There are approximately 25,000 to 30,000 psychiatrists in the United States, some 17,000 of whom are in actual clinical practice. As part of an overview of psychiatric manpower, the authors show the distribution of psychiatrists by state and present population-per-psychiatrist ratios. In discussing the distribution of psychiatrists in various work settings, they note that the decreasing percentages of psychiatrists in community mental health centers may be related to such factors as the large number of non-hospital-based centers, growing antimedical attitudes in centers, and psychiatrists' inclination to work in a setting similar to their training site. They believe that federal and state support should be increased for university-affiliated psychiatric training programs based in settings where psychiatrists are needed: state hospitals, VA hospitals, community mental health centers, and similar facilities. Such an approach would result in the recruitment and retention of greater numbers of psychiatrists in public service settings.


Psychiatry in public service: challenge of the eighties.

Contrary to popular opinion, there are now more psychiatrists in public service than ever before. Psychiatrists' contributions in this area have been masked by a decreasing growth in the total number of psychiatrists, the simultaneous expansion of other mental health disciplines, and the proliferation of mental health treatment facilities. The authors examine the reasons for the decline in the over-all growth of the profession and describe some new federal initiatives to encourage more American medical graduates to specialize in psychiatry and to work in traditionally underserved areas in the public sector.


Special problems facing the psychiatrist-administrator.

Psychiatrists who become administrators often find themselves in an unfamiliar world of planning, budget and cost control, labor relations, and mental health law. They discover that the physical and mental demands of leadership are great, their role makes them highly visible, and their future is uncertain. Psychiatric administrators in general hospitals are in a unique position of competing for resources with medicine and surgery. In addition, the need for linkages to the community challenges the psychiatric administrator to deliver services to defined catchment areas, identify cases at risk, and establish halfway houses and similar facilities. While the author discusses primarily the stresses and problems of being a psychiatric administrator, he also says there are special satisfactions of the executive role.


Toward increased psychiatric presence in community mental health centers.

The presence of psychiatrists in community mental health centers has diminished in recent years, especially in centers that are non-hospital-based and that are located in rural or disadvantaged urban settings. The decrease in psychiatric leadership in the centers is particularly notable. Factors contributing to the trend include lower salaries than in the private sector, a decrease in the number of patients with severe mental disorders coming to the centers, and the impact of a decrease in specialized training programs in community psychiatry. The authors suggest several incentives to increase psychiatric presence in the centers, including developing staffing standards as a condition of funding, giving psychiatrists time to do research and evaluation and to teach, and increasing the medical involvement of centers through links with general hospitals, private psychiatric hospitals, and medical schools.


Public psychiatry: the public's view.

A 1977 survey of public attitudes toward psychiatry found that the quality of institutional psychiatry was one of several factors associated with negative attitudes toward the field. Noting the shortage of psychiatrists in public institutions, the author questions whether the public associates psychiatrists with conditions in the institutions despite their lack of involvement, or because of it. He believes that the inadequate care provided in many public facilities is a result of a tacit social contract between the public and private sectors that enables private institutions to maintain their fiscal integrity and their quality of care by moving undesirable patients to public institutions that provide inadequate care. Although the problems with the system extend beyond psychiatry and the mental health field, he suggests that psychiatrists could force some positive changes by refusing as a profession to practice in institutions that provide inadequate care, and by supporting the delivery of public services by nongovernmental bodies. The ultimate answer, he believes, lies in research into more effective treatment for mental illness that would make such institutions unnecessary.


Distribution of mental health professionals in the South: a research project.

The Southern Regional Education Board is carrying out a project to determine what factors influence the distribution of mental health professionals in the South and to develop recommendations for improving distribution. The project is concerned with four major aspects of distribution: alleviating geographic maldistribution, increasing the number of professionals in specific subspecialties, providing more professionals for service in the public sector, and training more minority professionals. Staff of training programs, trainees, graduates, and staff of urban and rural community mental health centers and state hospitals are being surveyed, through interviews and questionnaires, to try to determine what factors influence professionals' decisions about where to locate and what kind of practice to enter.


A state perspective on psychiatric manpower development.

When the shortage of qualified psychiatrists and other physicians in Ohio's mental institutions reached the critical point in 1975, a number of measures were implemented to upgrade medical manpower. Salaries were increased, and the leadership of the medical and psychiatric community was enlisted to help encourage physicians to enter public service. In addition, clinical training programs were shifted from the traditional freestanding state-hospital-based programs to programs operated by medical colleges. The author reports that the state has made steady progress in reducing psychiatric manpower shortages, but he notes that new trends, such as the diminishing interest of American medical students in psychiatry, threaten to erode the gains.


Why psychiatrists leave the public sector.

The flight of psychiatrists from public mental health facilities must be halted if the sickest psychiatric patients--the severely and chronically mentally ill--are to receive the best care and treatment possible. The author emphasizes the need for commitment by organized psychiatry, universities, and communities to support the public sector and those working in it. He examines the factors that influence psychiatrists to enter public service and those that eventually cause them to leave. He notes that the departure of public hospital psychiatrists for quasi-public settings has parallelled the transfer of patients to community settings, and that these psychiatrists may now be treating in such settings patients they once saw in the hospital.


Psychiatry's human resources: 20 years later.

The author compares the findings he made about the shortage of psychiatrists 20 years ago for the Joint Commission on Mental Illness and Health with the recent findings of the President's Commission on Mental Health. He concludes that not much has changed except for an increased awareness today of the need for services for minorities, and heightened concern over the low numbers of minorities in professional positions and training programs. The shortage of psychiatrists to work with poor people, children and adolescents, the aged, the organically impaired, and the physically handicapped continues, and it is unlikely to be overcome because of the drop in the number of American medical school graduates entering psychiatric training and the federal law restricting the number of foreign medical graduates entering the United States. He believes primary prevention is the best way to ease the widening gap between the need for services and the available psychiatric resources.


Hospitals must be businesslike. Interview by Alan J. Appelbaum.

AHA's new chairman-elect designate believes that today's not-for-profit hospital is a business enterprise and that it might benefit by following a corporate model.


Less is more in rural hospital staffing.

The concept of multidisciplinary staff members grew out of the manpower needs and financial limitations of rural hospitals, but the idea is now sparking new interest.


This is the way it was in the 1970s.

Although regulatory, economic, and other concerns appear to have taken center stage in the health care field in the past decade, the real work of healing and comforting the sick goes on.


Medical care on a day in May.

Each May, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway medical department sets up a temporary emergency facility that is probably the most complete of its kind in the world.


Food buying undergoes great changes.

The shrewd buyer has been replaced by a systems-oriented buyer who is part of a changed food procurement function, which includes shared services and quality assurance programs.


System for waste disposal reclaims heat.

One hospital's search for a new incinerator that would meet antipollution regulations led to selection and installation of a system that also conserves energy through heat reclamation.


Patients, not unions, first concern of hospitals.

Although the law regarding employee organizational rights in health care institutions has been in a state of flux since 1974, it is now clear that patient care generally takes precedence over employees' rights to organize on hospital premises.


Multihospital system enhances employee relations, programs.

Key elements of a successful personnel management program created within a new multihospital system are presented, along with the difficulties and opportunities accompanying the changeover.


Quality control enhanced by chart review.

A long-term care facility developed, tested, and implemented criteria for documenting care, a procedure for regular review of charts, and quantitative methods of evaluating reviews.


Forum sparks creative energy.

Human support committee provides a forum where staff, patients, and administration can become involved in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of patient services.


Medical center supports patient advocacy.

At Hurley Medical Center, patient advocates enjoy an amiable relationship with administrators and are considered a valuable management information resource.


Comfort, care for families who must wait.

Volunteers staff a special waiting room that extends humanistic care to meet the needs of families as they wait to learn the outcomes of their relatives' surgery or tests.


Prospects for humane care are hopeful.

Token deference to humanism will not get the job done/The goal of humanizing care must be given high priority and be made consistent with other hospital objectives.


Can hospitals afford to care less?

"Humanistic health care" has a pleasant ring to it, but hospital employees, administrators, physicians, and trustees must support such an environment for it to have any real value.


Hospitals need humanism.

Just as technology is growing rapidly and is being carefully "mapped out," health care providers also must "map out" the most humane way of delivering health care.


Burnout: job hazard for health workers.

Employees in health care settings face significant risk of burnout, which involves negative emotional, psychological, and physical reactions to continuous work-related stress.


Staff skills in patient/family relations grow.

Short but cogent course on communication, attitudes, and behaviors helps staff members from many departments relate more effectively with patients, their families, and visitors.


Defining hospital market efficiency--the community's task.

Hospitals must concentrate on both market and productive efficiency to control costs and satisfy customers' health care needs. Local communities can set market efficiency standards using data sets similar to the Michigan study's.


Selecting leaders through shared decision making.

The WEVAS procedure, through use of consultative decision making, facilitates the selection of CEOs who will be accepted by associates and subordinates and thus will be able to function with maximum effectiveness.


Choosing a CEO: the necessity of shared Christian values.

The CEO candidate and the Catholic health care facility must clarify expectations and determine if the candidate's values can be expressed administratively to mesh with the organization's philosophy.


The Canon Law revisions: a reflection of the postconciliar Church?

The postconciliar Church has approved many changes in Church life. Reactions to the proposed draft of the new canon law codes have ranged from favorable to strongly critical. The mature Catholic looks beyond the letter of the law to its spirit and purpose.


Needed: model law on the charitable corporation.

Nearly a dozen years ago, the McGrath Thesis stimulated controversy about Catholic corporations as property owners. Though no court has ever ruled that a charitable corporation's control is vested in the general public, institutions should understand state and federal laws that affect both property ownership and its dissolution.


Another elliptocytosis locus on chromosome 1?

Analysis of pedigrees given in the literature suggests that a second elliptocytosis locus (not linked to Rh) may be linked to Duffy (Z = 1.97 at theta = 0.0), and therefore on chromosome 1. Significant heterogeneity is found between the El1 and El2 total lod scores with Fy.


A ring chromosome 9 in an infant with malformations.

A low-birth-weight infant with malformed upper extremities and congenital heart disease was observed. Cytogenetic analysis revealed a 46,XY,r(9)(p24q34) complement.


Trisomy 9p with i(9p) and t(9q18p).

The trisomy 9p syndrome in a 2-year-old girl with moderate mental retardation is presented. She has a unique karyotype with a de novo isochromosome 9p and a translocation between 9q and 18p.


Partial trisomy of 13(pter to q12) due to 47,XY, + der(13),t(13;22)(q12;q13)mat.

A 36-month-old boy presented with short stature, short neck, shield-shaped chest, and mental retardation. Chromosome analysis showed trisomy for the short arm and the proximal protion of the long arm of chromosome 13 [47,XY, + der(13),t(13;22)(q12;q13)mat]. The patient's mother has a balanced translocation between the long arms of chromosomes 13 and 22 [46,XX,t(13;22)(q12;q13)]. The patient's neutrophils showed an elevated number of nuclear projections and his fetal hemoglobin level was undetectable.


X-linked mental retardation with macro-orchidism and marker X chromosomes.

A family with X-linked mental retardation and a marker X chromosome was ascertained by the presence of macro-orchidism in the three institutionalized probands. Verbal evaluation revealed a generalized language disability with commonly occurring articulation errors. The heterozygous females in this family exhibited some reduction in mental ability; the marker X chromosome was demonstrated in both sexes.


Familial translocation t(10;21)(q22;q22).

A family is described with a translocation t(10;21)(q22;q22) transmitted through three generations. This family was studied for the apparition of several miscarriages and two sisters with multiple malformations. Both children had a probably partial trisomy of chromosome 10 and a monosomy of chromosome 21 due to a maternal adjacent-2 meiotic segregation.


Cytogenetic and clinical studies in five cases of inv dup(15).

Inv dup(15) is a clinically significant bisatellited derivative of chromosome 15. Five unrelated patients with this abnormality are described and compared with ten confirmed and nine suspected cases in the literature. Mental and developmental retardation, hypotonia, behavioral disturbances, seizures, abnormal dermatoglyphics, and mild somatic anomalies were the most consistent findings. The extra chromosomes in our patients were identified with the aid of various techniques, including distamycin A/DAPI banding. A comparison of satellite polymorphisms suggested that the rearrangements frequently arose by meiotic nonsister chromatid exchange and second-division nondisjunction. A maternal origin was indicated in two cases, and parental ages were distinctly elevated.


Concordant congenital malformations in twins with inherited translocation: t(9p--;13q+).

Several members of a family with a translocation between the short arm of chromosome 9 and the long arm of chromosome 13(9p--;13q+) are presented. Although the translocation found in various members of the family looked alike and appeared to be balanced, the clinical features were different. The like-sex twins displayed some features of 9p monosomy syndrome, whereas their mother and maternal grandmother, who apparently had the same translocation, showed only a few features of 9p-- syndrome in addition to mild mental retardation. We suggest that a minute deletion of the short arm of chromosome 9 may cause features of 9p-- syndrome and that the clinical features of this syndrome in older individuals may be too mild for the clinical diagnosis to be possible.


The influence of culture medium composition on the incidence of chromosomal breakage.

In patients with chromosomal instability and healthy subjects, significant differences were observed in the chromosomal breakage incidence in simultaneous lymphocyte cultures set up with TC medium 199, Eagle's Minimum Essential Medium, or RPMI, or RPMI 1629. The importance of the choice of culture medium for mutagenicity testing and studies of so-called spontaneous breakage is shown. Cultures incubated with TC Medium 199 showed the highest chromosomal breakage incidence.


Terminal 7p deletion and 1;7 translocation associated with craniosynostosis.

A female infant with presumptive deletion of the 7p2 region and an unusual translocation between a part of the short arm of chromosome 1 and a deleted chromosome 7 is described. The patient showed congenital craniosynostosis of the coronal and metopic sutures; marked turricephaly; hypotelorism; deeply cleft palate; shallow orbits with prominent bulging eyes; a depressed nasal bridge; anteverted nostrils; short hands with broad thin fingers and elongated thumbs; a mild talipes calcaneovalgus deformity of the feet; a systolic murmur due to a small VSD; and psychomotor retardation. The child died of bronchopneumonia at 10 weeks of age. The parents are chromosomally normal.


Sister chromatid exchange in peripheral lymphocytes of subjects vaccinated against measles.

The SCE frequency was studied in cultures of peripheral lymphocytes from three subjects before and after vaccination against measles. The immunological vaccination reactions were monitored by antibody titration and by measurement of DNA synthesis in peripheral lymphocytes. In two of the subjects, on the 14th day after vaccination, there was a marked decrease of the SCE frequency coinciding with common clinical vaccination reactions and an increase of DNA synthesis in the peripheral lymphocytes. The increase of antibody titers started on the 17th day. One month later, when the immunological reactions had subsided, the SCE frequency was increased by 25% over the prevaccination level. Third subject displayed a delayed vaccination response due to a simultaneous influenza infection. This subject showed a 50% increase in the SCE frequency on the 14th day as well as 6 weeks after vaccination. These results suggest that significant changes in the SCE frequency may be related to immunological vaccination reactions.


Cycloheximide-resistance in Chinese hamster ovary cells and human fibroblast cells. Cytogenetic and biochemical characterization.

Cycloheximide(CHM)-resistant mutant Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) and human cells were induced with N-nitrosomethylurea (NMU) and ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS); the mutants were viable and showed unlimited growth in the presence of CHM (7 X 10(-7) M), whereas this concentration inhibits protein synthesis in vivo as well as in vitro. No numerical or structural chromosomal aberrations were found in the mutant cells. In vitro analysis shows that the ribosomes confer resistance against cycloheximide.


Determinants of plasma uric acid.

Obesity, alcohol consumption, and hematocrit provide an index of plasma uric acid, which in path analysis has a cultural heritability of 0.11 in children and 0.23 in parents, a small maternal effect, and a genetic heritability of 0.25 in both generations. Preliminary evidence for a major locus is destroyed by the omission of one exceptional child. There is no evidence against the polygenic hypothesis for hyperuricemia in the Japanese-American population studied.


Association between Duffy blood groups and serum level of the pregnancy zone protein.

In a previous study of psoriatic patients we found increased serum levels of the pregnancy zone protein (PZ) in individuals of blood groups O and Fy(a-). In this study we found an association between the PZ serum level and the Fy(a-) blood group also in young healthy males. Thus the association between the PZ serum level and Duffy blood groups appears to apply to both normal and pathological conditions.


Red cell glyoxalase I polymorphism in Italians. Report of a variant phenotype.

The glyoxalase I polymorphism was studied in 1,490 unrelated subjects from three different areas of Italy (Milan, Rome and Naples). The following frequencies of GLO2 allele were observed: Milan 0.57, Rome 0.59, Naples 0.61, and a significant difference between Milan and Naples was found (p less than 0.02). An anomalous phenotype is also described which permits us to postulate a new allele producing an isozyme with low activity and electrophoretically slower than those corresponding to GLO1 and GLO2 alleles.


Human red cell glyoxalase I polymorphism in Denmark and its application to paternity cases.

Phenotypes of glyoxalase I (GLO) were determined in 1220 unrelated adults from all parts of Denmark giving the gene frequencies GLO1 = 0.4311 and GLO2 = 0.5689. The segregation of phenotypes in 59 families and in 455 mother-child pairs was consistent with the assumed autosomal codominant inheritance. The results of an investigation of 379 parternity cases with respect to exclusions of non-fathers by means of the GLO system are reported, and the application of the GLO system to paternity cases is discussed.


beta-Thalassaemia with increased haemoglobin A2 in Turkey. A study of 164 thalassaemic heterozygotes.

Clinical and haematological findings of 164 Turkish beta-thalassaemic heterozygotes with increased Hb-A2 are presented. The series comprised of 19 children, 81 females and 64 males. The majority of these thalassaemic individuals were asymptomatic and only 4 of them had slight or moderate splenomegaly. The mean values of haemoglobin concentration, PCV, MCH and MCHC were significantly lower than those of the corresponding normal controls. Erythrocytosis was present in 33% of them. Hb-A2 values ranged between 3.8 and 6.1%, and between 3.8 and 6.5% as assessed by the methods of DEAE- or DE-cellulose chromatography, respectively. Hb-F was found to be above the normal range in 15.1%. It is established that beta-thalassaemia with increased Hb-A2 is the most frequent variety of thalassaemia in Turkey (80%) and both beta+- and beta0-thalassaemia genes were present in this country. The regional distribution of beta-thalassaemia in Turkey is also presented and the origin of beta-thalassaemia genes in Turkish people is discussed.


Segregation and linkage analyses of dopamine-beta-hydroxylase activity.

Dopamine-beta-hydroxylase (DBH) activity in serum was measured by spectrophotometric methods in 95 persons of a large family (HGAR 2), along with 27 polymorphic markers from blood, urine and saliva. The distribution of DBH activity, after appropriate transformation and age adjustment, showed a significantly better fit to a mixture of two normal distributions than a single normal distribution. Pedigree segregation analyses showed evidence of a possible major gene governing low levels of DBH activity, segregating in this family in a recessive fashion. Linkage analyses between that major locus and the 27 polymorphic markers showed no significant lod scores favoring linkage. The highest lod score obtained was 0.81 with Lp at zero recombination fraction. In addition, published data on DBH activity measured by radiochemical assays on 22 families with 161 members were reanalyzed as a quantitative trait, with appropriate correction for ascertainment bias. The results were similar to that of HGAR 2, corroborating the existence of a major locus for DBH activity.


Atrichia, abnormal EEG, epilepsy and mental retardation in two sisters.

Two daughters of a nonconsanguineous couple are described. Both present mental retardation, epileptic seizures, congenital atrichia, histologically anomalous skin and abnormal EEG pattern. From a discussion of the literature on atrichia, the forms without involvement of teeth, nails and hidrosis, among which recessive inheritance prevails, are distinguished from each other. None of them coincide with the syndrome described here.


A rare electrophoretic enzyme variant of serum alkaline phosphatase in a group of Icelanders.

An electrophoretic isoenzyme variant of serum alkaline phosphatase was found in 10 out of 343 subjects belonging to an Icelandic population in Husavik and the Husavik region. 9 of the variant-positive subjects were women. The enzyme variant differs from normal isoenzymes in electrophoretic mobility, substrate specificity, and response to inhibitors. It could be demonstrated that nine of the subjects with the enzyme variant were related with each other.


Frequency of glutathione reductase, pyruvate kinase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency in a Spanish population.

The frequencies of deficiencies of glutathione reductase (GSSG-R), pyruvate kinase (PK) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) in a Spanish sample are presented. A total of 2,129 individuals was analyzed for GSSG-R, 1,636 for PK, and 1,066 (629 males and 437 females) for G6PD. Beutler's method was used. The frequencies obtained for these deficiencies were: GSSG-R, 0.09%; PK, 0.24%; and G6PD, 0.79%. The results are discussed.


Fingerprint pattern frequencies in schizophrenics. Importance of ethnic origin and plexus visualization score ratings.

Our previous work with schizophrenics has suggested that the plexus visualization score (PVS), a characteristic derived from in vivo observation of skin capillaries, may be helpful in distinguishing between biologically different groups of patients. Preliminary fingerprint data demonstrated a significant difference in the frequency of whorls between high PVS and low PVS schizophrenics. A survey of fingerprints in control subjects revealed, however, that their ethnic background, even within the presumably 'mixed' Caucasian population of the USA, should also be taken into account. In the present study, the fingerprint pattern frequencies were, therefore, studied in 242 schizophrenics selected on the basis of both their ethnic origin and PVS ratings. Our results demonstrate a statistically significant difference in fingerprint pattern frequencies between high PVS and low PVS schizophrenics, even when they are matched for ethnic origin. The effect of the ethnic factor on fingerprint pattern frequencies in this patient sample is similar to the one previously reported for normal subjects.


Subtypes of transferrin C.

Subtypes of transferrin C were studied by means of isoelectric focusing after complete desialylation of transferrin. Family data were consistent with an autosomal co-dominant mode of inheritance. Studies of serum samples from 75 individuals heterozygous for C and another (B or D) variant showed that the genes (C1 and C2) controlling the C subtypes are allelic to the B and D genes. The C2 gene frequency in Swedes and Swedish Lapps was similar to that found previously in Danes and Germans.


Liposomes in immunology: impairment of the adjuvant effect of liposomes by incorporation of the adjuvant lysolecithin and the role of macrophages.

The immune response against HSA (human serum albumin) was studied in rabbits after intravenous injection of various HSA preparations. When HSA was injected one day after, together with or coupled to lysolecithin, a late response was found in twelve out of thirteen rabbits, whereas a minority of the rabbits responded when lysolecithin was omitted. These results confirm the adjuvant activity of lysolecithin. A rapid response starting on day 6 was found in rabbits injected with HSA entrapped in liposomes which had been composed of lecithin, phosphatidic acid and cholesterol (PPC liposomes). The response against liposome entrapped HSA was delayed for about one day when the phospholipid adjuvant lysolecithin was incorporated in the liposomes (LPPC liposomes). Results lend support to the hypothesis that the adjuvant activity of lysolecithin and its opposite inhibition of the adjuvant activity of liposomes are mediated by the same mechanism, i.e. inhibition of enzymatic digestion in lysosomes of macrophages.


Nature of human serum blood group T antibodies.

Antibodies against blood group substance T in normal human sera consist of two types, depending upon whether or not the molecules remain immunochemically active at 37 degrees C. The two agglutinins were isolated by means of T antigen-coupled Sepharose 48 affinity chromatography. Temperature-sensitive agglutinin was eluted from the affinity column at 37 degrees C, while temperature-independent agglutinin remained bound to the antigen. Subsequently, the latter was dissociated from the column in the presence of 2.5 M MgCl2. Examination of six normal sera revealed that the levels of temperature-independent agglutinin was about twice that of temperature-sensitive agglutinin. More than 90% of anti-T agglutinins in normal sera were of the IgM class, in 8 of 11 samples studied. No direct relationship appeared to exist between anti-T titers and blood type. Thermal effects on hemagglutination, at least for anti-T agglutinin interacting with T antigen bearing red cells, is primarily due to the molecular characteristics of the agglutinin and not to the conformational change of the red cell membranes.


The rate of absorption into the embryonic chicken (Gallus domesticus) of 3H-testosterone.

The maximum absorption of tritiated testosterone by 5-day old embryos occurred one hour after its application to the eggshell. This decreased to relatively low levels during a 77 hour period. When the hormone was applied at the eleventh day of incubation there was a relatively large initial uptake by the bursa, spleen and thymus in that order and a subsequent diminution. Activity absorbed by the spleen remained essentially unchanged throughout the experimental period. The bursa appeared to have the greatest affinity for the hormone.


The effect of peritoneal macrophages from mice injected with Leishmania braziliensis on the in vitro growth of tumor cells.

Leishmania braziliensis reportedly is capable of producing a reduction in the growth of solid and ascites murine leukemia and lymphomas. The possibility that the inhibitory effect on the ascites tumor was produced by the activation of the macrophage peritoneal cell population was explored. It was observed that adherent cells from the peritoneal cavity of L. braziliensis injected mice caused a marked inhibitory effect on the in vitro growth of the 6C3HED lymphoma and EL-4 leukemia cells. This effect was dependent on the degree of the macrophage activation, was not produced by supernatants from cultures of activated macrophages, and it seems that contact cell between target and effector cells is necessary. In addition to being cytostatic, this effect was also cytotoxic. The L. braziliensis activated macrophages were also capable of suppressing the multiplication of normal cells induced by mitogen, but this was not observed if the cells were already undergoing multiplication. A similar cytostatic effect on the tumor cells was observed to be produced by the peritoneal non-adherent cell population of the L. braziliensis injected mice.


Thin-layer chromatographic method for estimation of gamma-aminobutyric acid from brain.

The present method describes the estimation of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) from adult rat brain by thin layer chromatography (TLC). The major advantage of this TLC method is the sensitivity and repidity of estimation. About 93 to 98 percent recovery is possible by this procedure and this shows linearity up to 9 micrograms. Replicate analysis of GABA by this method shows a co-efficient variation of 1.31%


Modulation of vagus escape phenomenon by afferent vagal stimulation.

The present study was conducted on healthy adult mongrel dogs under chloralose urethane anaesthesia. After bilateral midcervical vagotomy, peripheral end of either vagus was stimulated continuously. This stimulation produced cardiac asystole followed by escape beats. Initially, the heart rate and arterial pressure were low, but both increased progressively and reached a steady-state level in 1-3 min while stimulation of peripheral vagus continued. During this plateau of vagus escape, stimulation of the central end of either vagus produced elevation of arterial pressure and cardio-acceleration. This modulation of vagus escape phenomenon by afferent vagal stimulation was reproducible.


Toxicological study of Semecarpus anacardium nut extract.

Toxicological study was carried out in rats with chloroform-soluble fraction of the nuts of Semecarpus anacardium to determine its safe non-toxic dose. The fraction produced toxicity at all levels tested (50-400 mg/kg) but the extent of toxicity was found dose-dependent. At lower doses this fraction induced partial growth inhibition over 36 days and higher doses proved fatal within 6 days. It was observed that 230 mg/kg caused 50% mortality in rats and this value is 1380 mg/m2 when expressed for body surface area. This work will be of some use in the cancer chemotherapy study of the fraction.


Hormonal influence on epididymal lipids.

Single dose administration of Prolactin(P), Progesterone (PP) and a combination of both (PPP) affected the epididymal lipids considerably. Caput and Cauda showed differential responses. PP and PPP showed significant alterations in Caput epididymis. However, Prolactin was effective in Cauda epididymis. The importance of these changes in relation to physiological functions of epididymis is discussed.


Effect of ingestion of glucose on fibrinolytic activity and prothrombin time in diabetic and non-diabetic persons.

Effect of ingestion of 50 g of glucose on euglobulin clot lysis time and prothrombin time was studied in 14 diabetic and 12 non-diabetic persons. There was no significant change in euglobulin clot lysis time and prothrombin time after ingestion of glucose in the non-diabetic group. In the diabetic group, ingestion of glucose resulted in significant increase in euglobulin clot lysis time at the end of one hr which returned to initial level at the end of two hours even though blood glucose level at two hrs was still higher than fasting level. Increase in clot lysis time has no correlation to the blood glucose level. There was no significant change in prothrombin time after glucose ingestion.


Effects of neuromuscular blocking agents on arterial blood pressure in the rat.

Gallamine triethiodide pancuronium bromide or d-tubocurarine was infused intravenously at different rates in urethane anaesthetized rats. When given in neuromuscular blocking doses gallamine triethiodide produced significant hypotension if the rate of infusion exceeded 2 mg/min whereas neither pancuronium bromide nor d-tubocurarine produced a marked change in blood pressure in neuromuscular blocking doses.


A simple gravimetric method for estimation of plasma fibrinogen.

The study was undertaken to evaluate a new method of estimating plasma fibrinogen levels, gravimetrically using calcium chloride in albino rats. The results were compared with the standard method in which thrombin was used as clotting agent and were found to be statistically not significant. Advantages of using calcium chloride instead of thrombin have been discussed.


Effect of tonicity on glucose absorption and histomorphology of rat intestinal mucosa.

Perfusion of the gut lumen with 2 ml of isotonic solutions showed uniform absorption of glucose and water over the four 15-minutes study periods, the absorption being maximum in jejunum and least in colon. With hypertonic solutions the glucose absorption decrease was related to the increasing osmolarity and duration of exposure to the solution as well as the nature of the substance used. Histological changes reflecting impaired functions were localised to the tips of the villi and were observed on exposure to hypertonic solution for 45 minutes or more.


Essential dependence of smooth surface caries on, and augmentation of fissure caries by, sucrose and Streptococcus mutans infection.

Streptococcus mutans-free Osborne-Mendel rats were used to study the ability of well-characterized S. mutans strains of Bratthall serotypes c, d, and E to form plaque and cause caries when the animals consumed either sucrose- or glucose-containing diets. All of the serotype representatives successfully infected, colonized, and emerged in the oral ecology of animals, independent of the carbohydrate supplementation of the diet. However, the sucrose-containing diet supported higher percentages of S. mutans of all the serotypes in the plaque and greater amounts of plaque on the teeth. Smooth surface caries was essentially S. mutans dependent and sucrose dependent; fissure caries, although it was neither dependent on S. mutans infection nor sucrose consumption, was augmented by both. This sucrose-associated emergence of all three serotype representatives in the plaque flora and their virulence in the production of caries can be ascribed to their production of alkali-solible alpha-(1 yields 3)-rich glucans from sucrose.


Purification and biochemical characterization of deoxythymidine kinase of deoxythymidine kinase-deficient mouse 3T3 cells biochemically transformed by equine herpesvirus type 1.

A line of mouse 3T3 cells lacking deoxythymidine kinase (dTK-) was stably transformed to see dTK+ phenotype after exposure to ultraviolet-irradiated equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1). Deoxythymidine kinase (dTK) was purified from the biochemically transformed mouse cells by affinity chromatography on deoxythymidine-Sepharose. The purified dTK from EHV-1-transformed 3T3 cells was identical to the dTK purified from dTK- 3T3 cells lytically infected with EHV-1 with respect to its electrophoretic mobility, molecular weight, substrate specificity, phosphate donor specificity, and immunological specificity. The sedimentation velocity of the purified dTK from the transformed 3T3 cells was similar to that previously reported for the enzyme in lytically infected dTK- 3T3 cells, and its molecular weight was estimated to be 87,000. Antiserum prepared against the EHV-1 dTK induced in horse cells inactivated the dTK purified from the transformed mouse cells. The Km for deoxythymidine (5 micrometers) of purified dTK from the EHV-1-transformed cells was the same as that reported for the EHV-1-induced dTK. These results further support the notion that the dTK acquired by dTK- mouse 3T3 cells after transformation by EHV-1 is of viral and not of cellular origin.


Interferon production: variation in yields from human cell lines.

A survey of human diploid, aneusomic, transformed and tumor fibroblast or fibroblastoid cell lines for their capacity to produce interferon after polyriboinosinic acid:polycytidylic acid induction showed considerable variation in responsiveness. There was no apparent correlation between karyotype or phenotype and interferon production. Pretreating or "priming" the cells with human interferon generally led to increased yields of interferon after polyriboinosinic acid:polycytidylic acid induction in all cell lines tested. All the cells also showed the "super-induction" phenomenon, although to varying degrees. The combination of priming and superinduction conditions led to the production of very high yields of interferon in some cell lines, but in other lines, yields less than either the primed or superinduced amounts were found. A more limited survey of human cell lines for their capacity to produce interferon after Newcastle disease virus induction also showed that yields varied from line to line. However, there was little evidence to suggest that ability to produce interferon after Newcastle disease virus induction correlated with that after polyriboinosinic acid:polycytidylic acid induction.


Listeria pneumonitis: influence of route of immunization on resistance to airborne infection.

Mice that are immunized with an airborne inoculum of BCG are more highly resistant to airborne challenge with Mycobacterium tuberculosis than are mice that are immunized by the subcutaneous or intravenous route. To discover whether this phenomenon is peculiar to tuberculosis, we studied the influence of the route of immunization upon pulmonary resistance in Listeria monocytogenes infection. Mice were immunized by the airborne, intravenous, or footpad route and were subsequently challenged by the same route at 1 to 4 weeks after immunization. Mice were highly and uniformly resistant to intravenous challenge, regardless of the route of immunization. The route of immunization bore no influence upon resistance to footpad infection, but resistance was appreciably better in mice challenged within 2 weeks of immunization than it was at later time points. In mice immunized by the footpad and intravenous routes, the pattern of resistance to airborne and footpad challenges was similar, in that there was substantially less immunity at 4 weeks than at 2 weeks after immunization. However, mice immunized by the airborne route were highly resistant to airborne challenge, regardless of the interval between immunization and reinfection. In this last respect, resistance of the lungs to reinfection was similar after Listeria and tuberculosis pneumonitis. It is suggested that a similar pattern of resistance may prevail in pneumonitis caused by other facultative intracellular parasites.


Capacity of anaerobic bacteria from necrotic dental pulps to induce purulent infections.

Combinations of bacteria isolated from the root canals of teeth with necrotic pulps and periapical bone destruction were tested for their capacity to induce abscess formation and transmissible infections when inoculated subcutaneously into guinea pigs. Transmissible infections could be induced with combinations obtained from teeth with purulent apical inflammation, but not with combinations from symptomless teeth with chronic apical inflammation. All combinations which gave transmissible infections contained strains of Bacteroides melaninogenicus or B. asaccharolyticus (formerly B. melaninogenicus subsp. asaccharolyticus). The results suggest that purulent inflammation in the apical region in certain cases may be induced by specific combinations of bacteria in the root canal and that the presence of B. melaninogenicus or B. asaccharolyticus in such combinations is essential. However, with one exception, the strains needed the support of additional microorganisms to achieve pathogenicity. The results indicate that Peptostreptococcus micros was also essential. Histological sections of the lesions in the guinea pigs showed that all bacterial combinations induced acute inflammation with an accumulation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes and the formation of an abscess. However, the presence of B. melaninogenicus or B.  asaccharolyticus in the combinations resulted in a failure of abscess resolution, with a gradually increaseing accumulation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes.


Mechanisms of Listeria monocytogenes-mediated modulation of tumor growth.

Studies using Listeria monocytogenes as an antitumor agent were initiated to determine the requirements for Listeria-mediated tumor inhibition to occur. When Strain 13 guinea pigs were injected with an admixture of viable Listeria and a methylcholanthrene-induced fibrosarcoma in a ratio of 1 bacterium to 100 tumor cells, Listeria had a marked capacity to inhibit tumor growth. This confirms an earlier study in our laboratory (M. M. Dustoor, A. Fulton, W. Croft, and A. A. Blazkovec, Infect. Immun. 23:54-60, 1979). At no time did animals exhibit overt symptoms of disease as a result of Listeria infection. Animals treated with antilymphocyte serum, which had previously been shown to abrogate T-cell functions, were no longer able to suppress Listeria-tumor cell mixtures. Treatment in vivo with carrageenan, a macrophage-inhibitory agent, also abrogated Listeria-mediated tumor inhibition. These results suggest that Listeria-mediated inhibition requires intact T-lymphocyte and macrophage function. Experiments in which Listeria was given in admixture with the tumor cells or in the opposite flank demonstrated that the antitumor effects require intimate association of the Listeria and tumor cells. Histopathological studies, showing that macrophages and lymphocytes are the predominant inflammatory cells present at sites of tumor destruction, further suggest a role for these cells in Listeria-mediated inhibition. Animals which had rejected prior Listeria-tumor cell inocula were resistant to rechallenge with the homologous tumor for more than 1 year. This work thus confirms in vitro studies demonstrating that both lymphocytes and macrophages are required for Listeria-mediated tumor inhibition to occur. This study demonstrates that viable Listeria can have potent antitumor effects without causing overt disease as a result of Listeria infection.


Interaction of influenza A virus with human peripheral blood lymphocytes.

Peripheral blood lymphocytes cultured in the presence of phytohemagglutinin, concanavalin A, or pokeweed mitogen were exposed in vitro to influenza A virus. The synthesis of several virus-specific proteins, including the nucleoprotein, membrane protein, and nonstructural 1 protein were detected, although no infectious virus was produced by the lymphocyte cultures. Evidence was obtained that only a subpopulation of mitogen-transformed cells would support virus protein synthesis. A comparison of the interactions of influenza A virus with lymphocytes from normal individuals and from rheumatoid arthritis patients showed that the same range of virus-specific proteins were made, in similar quantities, regardless of the source of lymphocytes.


In vitro studies of dental plaque formation: adsorption of oral streptococci to hydroxyaptite.

A mixture of saliva-coated hydroxyapatite beads and radioactively labeled bacteria has been employed as an in vitro model for the initial phase of dental plaque formation. Adsorption in this model can be expressed by the Langmuir adsorption isotherm, and the adherence of oral streptococci can be expressed as the product of the affinity constant (Ka) and the number of binding sites (N), KaN. With this approach, Streptococcus sanguis serotype 1 strains adhered better (KaN = [187 +/- 72] X 10(-2)) than serotype 2 strains (KaN = [97 +/- 84] X 10(-2)); a t test showed this difference to be statistically significant to the 99.99% confidence level. Strains of S. mitis, S. mutans, and S. salivarius did not appear to adhere as well. To analyze the bacterial receptors involved in adherence, competition studies in which increasing quantities of unlabeled bacteria were added to a fixed quantity (4 X 10(9) cells per ml) of 3H-labeled serotype 1, reference strain S. sanguis G9B, were performed. These studies indicated that the type 1 strains competed for the same, or closely related, binding sites. Competition studies using serotype 2 S. sanguis strains resulted in an increased binding of reference strain G9B to hydroxyapatite. Scanning electron microscopy indicated this effect was due to the formation of localized aggregations of bacteria, presumably representing the two bacterial types. The results of competition studies with S. mitis were variable, and several strains of other oral bacteria showed little or no competition.


Experimental infection in mice with Treponema hyodysenteriae.

Nineteen of 22 female mice (CF1 strain) inoculated intragastrically with Treponema hyodysenteriae developed cecal and colonic lesions consisting of catarrhal inflammation, edema, and occasional hemorrhage.


Adsorption and growth of Vibrio cholerae on chitin.

Incubation of Vibrio cholerae of O-group serotype 1 with chitin particles resulted in adsorption of vibrios onto chitin; chitin-adsorbed V. cholerae survived exposure to acid better than nonadsorbed vibrios. V. cholerae multiplied in dialyzed chitin suspended in 4.2% NaCl, suggesting that adherence to ingested chitin of crustacea might be of epidemiological significance by providing a substrate for vibrio multiplication as well as protection from gastric acid during stomach transit.


Liposomal enhancement of the immunogenicity of adenovirus type 5 hexon and fiber vaccines.

Immunogenicity of adenovirus capsid proteins carried in liposomes was comparable to that with equivalent doses administered in Freund adjuvant, and both forms were more potent than aqueous vaccines.


Depression of contact hypersensitivity to oxazolone in mice exposed to Newcastle disease virus.

The effect of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) on delayed hypersensitivity to oxazolone in CBA mice was studied. There was a significant impairment of the ability of mice to develop cutaneous hypersensitivity shortly after injection of the virus. The effect was evident when NDV was administered up to 2 days before or within 24 h after sensitization, suggesting that NDV interferes with the process of sensitization. The degree of depression was related to the dose of virus inoculated. NDV inactivated by UV irradiation or heat did not depress contact sensitivity to oxazolone. These data are considered to support the hypothesis that the depression is mediated by a direct interaction between lymphocytes and NDV.


Quantitation of immediate and delayed hypersensitivity responses in Trichinella-infected mice. Correlation with worm expulsion.

The developmental relationships between active cutaneous or local anaphylaxis, delayed hypersensitivity and worm expulsion were quantitatively examined in Trichinella-infected mice. The onset of both types of hypersensitivities and increase in sensitivity to antigen following an initial infection correlated with the onset and rate of elimination of adult worms. Mice passively sensitized with serum containing both IgG1 and IgE antibodies, but not IgG1 alone, expelled their worms at a faster rate in comparison to the controls. On the basis of these findings it is suggested that local allergic reactions mediated by anaphylactic antibodies are involved in the development of resistance to Trichinella infection.


Enhancement of eosinophil leukocyte chemotaxis by a factor in normal human serum (SEF).

An activity in normal human serum is described which enhances the migration of eosinophils towards neutrophil-derived eosinophil chemotactic factor (ECF). The serum-enhancing factor (SEF), in contrast to the inhibitors in serum, is expressed primarily during weak chemotaxis, acts in a cell-directed fashion, increases the chemokinesis of eosinophils and, in the presence of ECF, enhances chemotaxis in a synergistic fashion. SEF is found in sera of several mammalian species, affects human and guinea pig eosinophils, and it is heat-labile (56 degrees C). On Sephadex column chromatography, SEF has a molecular weight of approximately 800,000 daltons. In some sera, a second activity with a molecular weight of approximately 200,000 daltons is eluted. SEF does not enhance eosinophil migration once the cells have been deactivated in vitro by their chemotactic factor. Because of its wide distribution, SEF may play an important modulating role both in in vitro assay systems and in vivo.


Search for specific effector functions of C3H X CBA lymphocytes which have proliferated in the spleens of irradiated CBA mice.

Injection of C3H X CBA hybrid lymphocytes into CBA mice specifically reduces the pool of host T cells which are reactive against the Mls antigen determined by the C3H genome. Since C3H X CBA lymphocytes are triggered to cell division in the spleens of irradiated CBA mice we have now examined if such activated cell populations exhibit any effector functions against CBA lymphocytes which are reactive against C3H-determined antigens. It was observed that such 'educated' cell populations were unable to significantly kill CBA lymphocytes which are triggered to cell division in C3H X CBA hosts or CBA lymphocytes which can inhibit proliferation of transplanted C3H X CBA bone marrow cells. Moreover, there was no evidence that such 'educated' cell populations can specifically kill anti-C3H-reactive CBA lymphocytes in vitro or damage CBA bone marrow cells in vivo. Thus, these results do not demonstrate that C3H X CBA lymphocytes acquire any effector functions against CBA T cells which are reactive against C3H-determined antigens.


A microcytotoxicity assay using 51Cr for measuring specific cell-mediated and humoral immune responses.

A microcytotoxicity assay (MCA) for measuring in vitro cell-mediated cytotoxicity (CMC) and humoral cytotoxicity which uses 51Cr-labelled target cells is described. Data is presented to show the uptake and rentention of 51Cr by various viable cultured cells. The CMC determined by 51Cr-labelled target cell retention in microtest II plate wells was verified by microscopic observation. Comparisons between the CMC observed 24 and 48 h after incubation of immune and normal lymphoid cells with 51Cr-labelled target cells were made. The factors, including savings in time and expense, which may make this modified MCA superior to other MCAs in use, are discussed.


Methdological issues in life-span developmental psychology from a dialectical perspective.

In the last few years there have been several studies reported in the literature using bifactorial ANOVA designs for the description and/or explanation of developmental phenomena. As formulated by Schaie and Baltes, these bifactorial ANOVA designs consist of taking any two of age, cohort, or time of measurement as the independent variables. The logic of these designs is carefully considered with respect to answering descriptive and/or explanatory developmental questions. It is concluded that the employment of ANOVA in the manner recommended by Schaie and Baltes has led us down a blind alley with respect to addressing developmental phenomena. Much more reasonable data analysis designs are available for getting at the description and/or explanation of development, namely, regression techniques. The advantages of regression models as compared to ANOVA are discussed in the context of developmental data analysis. Disenagement theory is singled out for special attention in the context of the dialectic between the individual and the environment.


Foster-family care for the elderly: surrogate family or mini-institution?

The rationale behind adult foster care (AFC) has been that "participation in the life of the family" is superior to institutionalization. The extent to which AFC is familial has been widely debated, ranging from claims that this environment provides a surrogate family, to claims that it is no more than a mini-institution. This paper discusses the extent to which elderly clients are integrated into the family and the method by which such integration was measured in a sample of one hundred adult foster homes in New York State. The four dimensions used to measure familism were Affection, Social Interaction, the performance of Ritual, and the minimization of Social Distance.


Group progress of community elderly as measured by tape recordings, group tempo and group evaluation.

Community based geriatric outpatients (N:67) were involved in a 12-session group resocialization program conducted at a municipal hospital. Meetings were taped and records kept on all group interactions. Short-term behavioral changes in quality of group participation and evaluation of the group experience by the members are reported. Comparison is made between the two experimental groups led by a trained group leader who used group intervention techniques and two "talk" groups in which the leader played a non-intervention role. Results indicate that experimental group members showed changes toward more active problem-solving approaches over time and maintained a lively group tempo. "Talk" group members remained fixed at one level evidencing little change along with a depressed tempo during group sessions.


Analysis of ECG data, for data compression.

A number of papers on the subject of data reduction techniques applied to ECG Data have recently been published; however, the authors found that most of these articles did not consider quantization techniques, which can be effectively applied to ECG data without any complex parameter extraction procedures. In this paper the authors have looked at the effects of quantization on ECG data and techniques of reducing the amount of data needed to represent these signals. Basically, 3 data reduction techniques, linear prediction using differential pulse code modulation, spectral analysis and slope change detection are investigated and a relative assessment of their performance is presented. This analysis revealed that a slope change detection, as applied to prefiltered data, can be used to represent ECG data at a rate of 2 bits/sample, while maintaining the mean squared error and peak error below 1% and 5% respectively. This technique therefore gives an effective 3 to 1 reduction over the original sampled data, since it was found that the original data could be quantized to 6 bits without significant loss of waveform information.


Relationships between intelligence and concept identification in adulthood as a function of stage of learning.

Three groups (n = 54) of participants aged 17-26, 39-51 and 59-76 were asked to solve two types of concept problems to investigate the intellectual correlates of concept identification as a function of stage of learning in adulthood. Predictions derived from the Gf-Gc theory of Horn and Cattell were partially supported in each age group. Differential ability-performance relations as a function of stage of learning were considerably less potent in the elderly versus the young and middle aged. Comparisons both within and between age groups suggested that a dynamic picture of interactions among organismic and task-related variables is preferable, reflecting structural changes in such relationships with practice and cohort membership.


Correlates of life satisfaction: an aid analysis.

The Automatic Interaction Detector (AID3) was used to develop a model based on the interaction of predictors of life satisfaction. The sample consisted of 871 people over fifty-five years of age. Thirty-one potential predictors were used representing demographics, environmental variables, and social psychological variables. The findings indicate that nine predictors explained 22.1% of the variance in life satisfaction scores. The most important predictors of life satisfaction were family life satisfaction, personal health satisfaction, and satisfaction with dwelling. The interactions between the predictors indicated that a simple linear-monotonic relationship between the predictors was too restrictive.


A real-time programming system.

The paper describes a Basic Operating and Scheduling System (BOSS) designed for a small computer. User programs are organised as self-contained modular 'processes' and the way in which the scheduler divides the time of the computer equally between them, while arranging for any process which has to respond to an interrupt from a peripheral device to be given the necessary priority, is described in detail. Next the procedures provided by the operating system to organise communication between processes are described, and how they are used to construct dynamically self-modifying real-time systems. Finally, the general philosophy of BOSS and applications to a multi-processor assembly are discussed.


Computer simulation as a tool for clinical trial design.

Use of a computer simulation technique as a tool for optimising the design of a clinical trial is described. One of several aspects of trial design facilitated by use of the technique is the estimation of the number of patients required in the trial. The simulation tool provides the basis for structured and disciplined discussion of all the issues to be considered in designing a trial. Copies of the simulation program are available from the author.


[Comparison of algorithms for the resolution of a secular equation in the vibrational analysis of biological molecules].

A computer analysis of several solution methods for secular equations leads to a determination of their optimum conditions. The results contribute to the application of a new preliminary method of frequency assignment to the vibrational study of the heavy atoms coordination sphere in complex biological structures, such as metalporphyrins and adenosine triphosphate.


Model of hospital's inflow.

To be accepted as an inpatient in the Geneva Hospital one must proceed through a registration post. Data collecting sessions were set up there to study its working. Since many random components enter the registration procedure a stochastic queuing process is the appropriate model. The process main characteristics are determined by rather involved statistical and mathematical means. The values reckoned for the most relevant parameters (to both medical staff and general public) are found quite plausible.


Toward adaptive (computer-based) hospital care systems that can grow and improve as a function of user participation.

This paper describes a computer-based system that would allow doctors, patients, nurses, researchers and experts to participate in medical care in ways that will enhance the usefulness of the system, and will allow the system to grow, adapt and improve as a function of this participation.


[Research method using discriminant subsets on minicomputers].

Given a set of elements (illnesses, medicines,...) characterised by criteria or attributes (symptoms, characteristics, colour,...), each able to assume a certain number of states (for colour, more than nine), the problem is to find a minimal discriminant chain, or in other words, the smallest sequence of criteria enabling one to distinguish the elements of the initial set, unless of course they are identical. This problem is very general, but when tackled together it often involves excessive calculations. Based on the research principles proposed by Begon and Tremolieres, the authors propose a method well adapted to criteria in several states, which can be used on a small computer, when searching for pseudo-minimal chains by sampling. An application of this method (in liaison with the 'Centre Anti-Poisons', Nancy Pr Larcan) has enabled us to carry out a search for discriminant chains for more than 2800 medical tablets by their external characteristics, among which 3 quantitative criteria were known with a certain margin of error, and 21 qualitative criteria, making a total of more than 60 different states.


Computer programs to implement retinal models.

To implement retinal models of some complexity a set of computer programs, coordinated by a main program is required. A set of said programs is presented here which permits the design and the experimentation with linear and non-linear retinal layered models. A main program, called RETINA, is the basis for the building of a model, the generation of the input stimuli and the experimentation with the overall system.


A theoretical model for layered visual processing.

A theoretical general model of layered computation in the retina is presented. Each layer is functional in the sense that it may correspond or not to an anatomical layer. It is formed by computing elements which can perform in principle any non-linear arbitrary function on a three-dimensional input space. This space consists of 2 spatial dimensions, plus time. The function performed by each computing element of a layer is simplified for the cases of invariance, space or time linearity and for time independence. Two illustrations are also presented. The first is a model of the simple ganglion cells in cat's retina. The second, a model of the group 2 ganglion cell of the frog's retina.


Multicompartment pharmacokinetic analysis and simulations using a programmable calculator.

This paper describes the use of a programmable calculator (HP-97), for fitting plasma concentration profiles to 1 and 2 compartment open models and calculating fitted and derived parameters together with estimates of steady state plasma drug levels following various dosage regimens in clinical settings.


Digital filtering of on-line evoked potentials.

Evoked potentials recorded automatically at frequent intervals are a useful adjunct for monitoring head injury patients; however, unaveraged residual noise due to patient movement and synchronization of th- stimulus to harmonics of the line frequency is sometimes present. A frequency analysis was performed on 23 records with varying degrees of unaveraged noise and the results were used to design a digital filter. The frequency content of the records analyzed was largely contained in a band from D.C. to 200 Hz. A zero phase shift lowpass digital filter with a cutoff frequency of 200 Hz eliminated the majority of noise. Despite the low frequency content, a wide-band amplifier is still required to avoid waveform distortion, particularly latencies. Digital filters can then be applied without causing distortion.


[Original method of multivariate analysis, adapted for comparison of mean evoked potentials: E2 test].

This paper describes a multivariate statistical method of analysis for the comparison of 2 paired series. For such paired series, this test, called E2, is analogous to the generalized Hotteling T2 test, as epsilon test (pairing method) is analogous to Student's t test. Here we give an example of its application to a comparison of curves, in this particular case average auditory evoked potentials, picked up at symmetrical points on the scalp.


Application of optimized parallel processing digital computers and numerical approximation methods to the ultra high-speed three-dimensional reconstruction of the intact thorax.

In order to achieve the computational capability to carry out many thousands of cross-sectional reconstructions, necessary to support a prototype high temporal and spatial resolution cylindrical scanning multiaxial tomographic unit, a series of design, software simulation, and fabrication studies is underway to develop a special-purpose high-speed reconstruction computer. This processor will rely upon integrated circuit arithmetic components of advanced design, and highly parallel architecture to execute X-ray based transaxial reconstruction algorithms at the rate of hundreds of cross sections/sec.


A non-linear mathematical model for the in vivo determination of Kupffer cells number and rate of phagocytosis of radiocolloids in rats.

In order to perform a quantification of the hepatic RES function, a mathematical model of the colloids phagocytosis was constructed and validated in normal and partially hepatectomised rats. The experimental design consisted of the collection of successive blood samples for the measurement of radiocolloids time courses after the injection of different doses of gelatin colloids (0.075--5 mg of gelatin/100 g body wt). The unknown parameters were estimated by method of maximum likelihood using a second order algorithm. A good fit between experimental and simulated data was obtained for a large range of injected doses using a single set of parameters. Comparisons of parameters values between normal and hepatectomised rats were found to be -onsistent with the hepatectomy ratio. This computerised estimation of parameters provides a determination of both the total number of Kupffer cells and the mean time of a complete phagocytosis cycle which cannot be obtained by classical approaches.


Large interindividual variations in metabolism of benzo(alpha)pyrene by peripheral lung tissue from lung cancer patients.

A very large variation (44-fold) was observed in the ability of short-term organ cultures of peripheral lung tissue from lung-cancer patients to metabolize the environmental carcinogen benzo(alpha)pyrene to organic solvent-soluble metabolites. The amounts of benzo(alpha)pyrene (2 microM) metabolized ranged from little (1%) to almost total (96.2%) metabolism within 24 h of culture. Previous work by Kellerman et al. (1973) has suggested a relationship between susceptibility to lung cancer and the indicibility of aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity in cultured human lymphocytes. The metabolic fate of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the respiratory tract in vivo is undoubtedly more closely mimicked by short-term organ culture of human lung than by cultured lymphocytes. Thus the very wide interindividual variation observed in pulmonary metabolism of benzo(alpha)pyrene in this study and the large variations in covalent binding to human bronchial DNA observed by Harris et al. (1976) strongly suggest that there may be little basis for screening humans for variations in lymphocyte aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity as a means of assessing their susceptibility to lung cancer.


Effect of parity regimen on the rate of occurrence of mammary tumors in A, C3H, and RIII mice.

The occurrence rates of mammary tumors as affected by breeding regimen (early in life, late, continuous, or not at all) in A, RIII, and C3H mice were observed. The response to the breeding regimen was different in each of the three strains. The C3H stock was affected least, although the tumor occurrence rate was slower in virgins. In both A and RIII, only one litter at puberty resulted in the tumors occurring over the greatest age range; and in RIII mice, the occurrence rate and the mean tumor age were similar to those of the virgins. Normal continuous breeding caused the earliest tumors in all three strains, although the RIII mice, breeding after 18 weeks of age also caused very early tumors. The response of RIII strain to parity variations was more like that of humans than was the response of either of the other strains. Removal of the milk-transmitted virus from these strains by foster-nursing resulted in vastly different mammary tumor occurrence rates, the quantitative changes being different in each mouse strain.


A quantitative comparison of the mutagenicity of carcinogenic polycyclic hydrocarbon derivatives in cultured mammalian cells.

The mutagenicity of a series of reactive polycyclic hydrocarbon derivatives has been studied using Chinese hamster (V79) cells in culture and, as a mutational marker, resistance to the purine analogue 8-azaguanine. The compounds were compared by relating mutation frequency to the dose applied (mutagenic effectiveness) to induced cytotoxicity (mutagenic efficiency) and to the extent of reaction of the hydrocarbon with DNA (absolute mutagenic efficiency). In each case anti-benzo(alpha)pyrene (BP)-7,8 dihydrodiol-9,10 oxide, the suspected ultimate carcinogenic form of benzo(alpha)pyrene, was by far the most potent of the compounds tested. Furthermore, the mutagenicity of the syn- and anti-BP-diolepoxide isomers correlated positively with their documenrences in the ability of each derivative to form a carbonium ion. Variations in mutagenic efficiency and absolute mutagenic efficiency were more difficult to explain. The latter findings are discussed in relation to the types of hydrocarbon-DNA product obtained with each compound and also to the possibility of a variable cellular response to more subtle differences in the chemistry of the hydrocarbon-DNA interaction.


Importance of a collagen substratum for stimulation of capillary endothelial cell proliferation by tumour angiogenesis factor.

Tumour extracts were obtained from rat Walker 256 carcinoma and examined for the presence of tumour angiogenesis factor (TAF) in vivo before being used in tissue culture experiments. Capillary endothelial cells derived from cow brain white matter were used to study the effects of TAF-containing tumour extracts on cell proliferation in vitro. The cells were grown on two types of substrata: (1) plastic tissue culture dishes and (2) hydrated gels made of rat tail tendon type I collagen. Human platelets or platelet-released factors were introduced into the system because of the many inter-relationships known to exist between platelets, collagen and endothelial cells. If trypsin was used during the preparation of TAT, the resulting batches stimulated endothelial cell proliferation only when the cells were growing on a collagen substratum and either platelets or platelet-released factors were present in the growth medium. If incubation with trypsin was omitted from the TAF extraction procedure, the resulting batches stimulated cell growth both on plastic and on collagen. A synergistic interaction also occurred between these TAF-containing tumour extracts and platelet-released factors. This effect was always more marked when the cells were growing on collagen than when on plastic. These data suggest that the nature of the substratum affects the response of the endothelial cells to TAF and to platelet-released factors.


Augmentation of cell-mediated cytotoxicity to a rat lymphoma. I. Stimulation of non-T-cell cytotoxicity in vivo by tumour cells.

The injection of a syngeneic Gross-virus-induced lymphoma into W/Fu rats induced peaks of cytotoxicity in the spleen attributable to non-T cells and T cells 3 and 10 days later, respectively. The conditions required for augmenting the cytotoxicity of the non-T cells in various lymphoid compartments (shown elsewhere to closely resemble NK cells) were analysed using the ip and iv routes of inoculation and a variety of tumour cells including those normally susceptible or resistant to lysis by NK cells in vitro. Using an ip inoculation of W/FuG-1 cells (a tumour susceptible to lysis by NK cells), a short-lived, 3-fold increase in cytotoxicity was observed in the spleen at day 3 and a 5-fold increase in the PEC at day 5. Cytotoxicity in other lymphoid organs remained unchanged. Tumours resistant to lysis by NK cells also stimulated cytotoxicity in the spleen or PEC, although the effect depended on the dose and route of inoculation used, and depression of cytotoxicity was observed under some conditions.


Decreased sensitivity to interferon associated with in vitro transformation of X-ray-transformed C3H/10T1/2 cells.

We have compared the interferon sensitivity of parental 10T1/2 cells, having a phenotype characteristic of normal cells, with that of transformed cells isolated after X-irradiation of treatment with methylcholanthrene. Transformed cells were 10- to 20-fold less sensitive than the parental untransformed cells to the antiviral action of interferon and were also less sensitive to the inhibitory effect of interferon on cell multiplication. The decreased sensitivity of these cells to interferon is a useful marker of the transformed phenotype.


Chromosome breaking activity of human feces and its enhancement by transition metals.

Chloroform-methanol extracts from human fecal samples were found to contain compounds which induce chromosome aberrations in Chinese hamster ovary cells. The induction of chromosome aberrations is stimulated by Cu2+ or Mn2+ and inhibited by Fe2+ or Fe3+. Addition of catalase to the fecal extract or the mixture of fecal extract and Mn2+ reduced the frequency of chromosome aberrations. These properties are indicative of hydroxyradical producing agents.


Induction of reproductive system tumors in mice by N6-(methylnitroso)-adenosine and a tumorigenic effect of its combined precursors.

Interaction of the naturally-occurring nucleoside, N6-methyl adenosine, with nitrite, a reaction that occurs readily under acidic conditions, results in the formation of a nitrosamine, N6-(methylnitroso) adenosine[m6(NO)Ado]. This nitrosamine was given in the drinking water (1 mM solution) of non-inbred Swiss mice from 3 weeks of age until death. It caused a significant increase in the incidence of primary lung tumors, compared with controls. It also induced reproductive tract tumors in 80% of the exposed females, including mammary tumors in 60% and uterine tumors in 25%. The precursors of m6(NO) Ado, m6Ado and nitrite, did not elevate tumor incidence when given singly, but when administered together resulted in a significant increase in numbers of lung tumors in the males. The nitrosamine base, N6-(methylnitroso)adenine, was found to be a less potent carcinogen than m6(NO)Ado, causing lung tumors only in males and possibly a few mammary tumors in females. These results indicate the in vivo formation of a carcinogen from m6Ado and nitrite, and show that m6(NO)Ado induces neoplasms in the reproductive system of mice, an unusual target for a N-nitroso carcinogen.


Transplacental mutagenesis of products formed in the stomach of golden hamsters given sodium nitrite and morpholine.

Hamster embryos were exposed in utero to the action of sodium nitrite (NaNO2) and morpholine (Mo) administered simultaneously by stomach tube to the mothers on the 11th or 12th day of pregnancy. Embryo cells were examined for chromosomal aberrations, micronuclear formation, morphological or malignant transformation and drug resistance mutations. For detection of induced mutations, the embryo cells were cultured in normal medium for 72 h and then transferred to medium containing 10 or 20 micrograms/ml of 8-azaguanine (8AG) or 1m7 ouabain (Oua). The number of 8AG-, Ouaresistant colonies was markedly increased after administration of NaNO2 and Mo. The embryonic fibroblasts also showed a markedly increased frequency of micronucleation and a slight increase in chromosome aberrations. This treatment also caused morphological or malignant transformation of fetal cells. After cultivation in vitro, cells from some transformed colonies produced tumors when inoculated into the cheek pouch of young golden hamsters. Orally administered N-nitroso-morpholine (N-Mo), as a positive control, had the same transplacental biological actions on embryonic fibroblasts. However, transplacentally Mo alone was ineffective. A single administration of 500 mg/kg NaNO2 had only slight biological effects. N-Mo was produced in the stomachs of animals treated simultaneously with NaNO2 and Mo. A small amount of a nitrosamine, N-nitrosodimethylamine (DMN), was detected in the stomach after a single dose of NaNO2.


A review of psychoactive drug-involved deaths in nine major United States cities.

Detailed psychosocial and biomedical data were collected in 2,000 psychoactive drug-involved deaths occurring from 1972 through 1974 in nine large cities in the United States. The cases were selected representatively by the medical examiners or coroners in each city. Also, proficiency studies were carried out of the toxicological laboratories associated with these nine cooperating data collection centers. There were striking intercity psychosocial and biomedical differences in these psychoactive drug-involved deaths. These differences were based not simply in demographic regional population differences but also on the kinds of psychoactive drugs used as well as the role of the drug in contributing to death and whether the death was a result of an accident, suicide, homicide, or unknown intent. Also, a lack of uniformity was demonstrated in the quality control of the toxicological laboratories associated with the offices of these nine medical examiners or coroners, which suggests varying degrees of accuracy in resulting medicolegal diagnoses. Hence national programs of drug abuse deterrence or prevention and treatment should deal specifically with the variety of psychoactive drug-involved deaths occurring in different urban areas rather than approaching these problems globally as if they were uniform and homogeneous, and our toxicological proficiency studies accentuate the importance of mandatory quality control studies for all toxicological laboratories in the United States.


Self-esteem patterns distinctive of groups of drug abusing and other dysfunctional adolescents.

Self-report measures on seven scales representing four broad processes of self-esteem were used to contrast three groups of drug abusers (pretreatment, in-treatment, and posttreatment), two other groups of institutionalized dysfunctional youth, and a "normal" public school sample, all from a population of White middle-class suburban adolescents. Multivariate analysis of covariance with adjustment for age and sex was used to compare the dysfunctional groups with the normal group. Discrimination analysis portrayed the dimensions of self-esteem separating all the groups. Pretreatment and in-treatment drug abusers had significantly lower scores on all seven measures of self-esteem; posttreatment abusers did not show these decrements, but reported greater ease in sharing feelings than normals did. The learning disabled adoles reported a lower sense of well being and greater ease in sharing feelings. These outcomes suggest that low self-esteem is not a general consequence of personal dysfunction per se, and may play a causal role in drug abuse.


Blue Heaven Farms.

A therapeutic community for antisocial adolescents is discussed. The facility's tribulations before instituting a designed program, including a treatment plan for each client, and the results of such a program are described. Also discussed are the inherent problems of such facilities in our culture and the built-in-failure which seems inevitable.


Psychosis. A probable result of propranolol therapy.

beta-Adrenoceptor blocking agents are important agents in the management of many cardiovascular problems. Multiple neuropsychiatric adverse reactions have been noted with their use. This article reviews these reactions and describes the case of a suspected propranolol-induced psychosis.


A social-learning approach to student marijuana use.

Three hundred seventy-two college students were administered a battery of questionnaires designed to assess the predictive power of four social variables (social support, perceived sanctions, availability, family models), and six psychological ones (locus of control, mortality-conscience guilt, personal meanings, functions for continuing use, belief in consequences, societal and non-societal means of valued goal attainment) with respect to marijuana use. Results support a social learning theory interpretation of marijuana use. Users have had pleasant experiences, believe that sanctions are minimal, and that marijuana is not harmful. Six predictor variables correlated +.76 with use.


Drug use in college students: a test of sociodemographic and reference group models of explanation.

This study examined the importance of reference group variables in the understanding of drug use in college students. Other studies have investigated the role of peer orientation, and this study further elaborates on the issue by specifically looking into parents and peers as reference groups for the students. This study supports the importance of reference group variables in understanding the students' use of marijuana and/or hashish. In addition, it shows that the sociodemographic variables cannot predict drug use behavior as well as the reference group variables can.


Self-evaluation, role satisfaction and anxiety in the woman alcoholic.

Compared with a matched group of 100 controls, 100 alcoholic women were found to have a significantly poorer self-concept, to view themselves as less personally competent, to experience greater anxiety, and to be less satisfied with themselves. The alcoholic and nonalcoholic women had similar concepts of other men and women and shared similar views of the roles of women in comtemporary society. The need for research comparing alcoholic women with matched female controls was stressed.


Outreach redefined: the impact on staff attitudes of a family education project.

We decided to implement a family education program in our methadone maintenance clinic as a means of reaching out to family members. In the course of designing and implementing the program, we uncovered a variety of problems concerned with staff's perception of their roles and their attitudes toward parents. This paper discusses the growing awareness of these problems, which seem to be of significant generic importance to any agency involved in setting up a new program. We also discuss the effects of these problems, attempts at resolution, and suggest some general criteria for evaluation.


Treatment of alcoholics with logotherapy.

This study evaluates the results of group logoanalysis with selected hospitalized alcoholics using the Purpose in Life (PIL) Test as a before-and-after measure of therapeutic outcome in comparison with controls. Results suggest that closed-end logoanalysis groups are superior to open-end groups, and that both are superior to controls in improving the patient's sense of meaning and purpose in life as measured by the PIL.


Drug use among native American young adults.

Young adult Native American students at a postsecondary educational institute showed a very high level of use of all drugs when compared with other samples of college age youth. Alcohol, marijuana, and amphetamines were drugs of choice: 31% had tried inhalants although there was little present use; 10% were involved in a drug subculture, using multiple drugs relatively heavily. The authors' interpretation of these findings is either the institution attracts drug users or young Native Americans from relatively isolated environments have higher susceptibility to drugs when they enter an urban (nonreservation) culture.


Anomie and drug use in high school students.

The use of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs as it relates to anomie was studied in 11th grade students. A questionnaire was administered to 1,314 11th grade students which included Srole's Anomie Scale as well as items pertaining to the usage of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, cocaine, LSD, heroin, amphetamines, barbiturates, and methaqualone. The name of each drug was given along with the colloquial terms typically used to identify each drug. Substance users showed significantly higher anomie scores than nonusers on alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, LSD, amphetamines, and barbiturates. Although the results were not statistically significant for cocaine, heroin, or methaqualone, the differences between substance users and nonusers were all in the predicted direction.


Work and health in Mexico.

It is suggested that the relationship between work and health and disease traditionally has been analyzed in a limited way in that work has been considered only as a situational factor which puts workers in contact with environmental risks. It is proposed that work is an essential category for the understanding of disease, if one tries to study disease not as an individual biological phenomenon but as a social (and biological) phenomenon that occurs to the collectivity. Furthermore, it is suggested that the relation between disease and work should be analyzed in terms of the elements of the work process, understood as a technical and social process, and the capacity of different social groups to realize their interests. Reviewing the general trends of development of the work process in Mexico, it is shown that a transformation in the causes of death among men of working age has occurred during the last 20 years and there has been an increase in the number and the rate of work accidents and occupational diseases, despite a significant under-registration factor. Finally, the labor legislation on health and safety is contrasted with its actual implementation. This problem is interpreted in the context of traditional Mexican trade unionism. It is shown that trade unions which have become democratic and have gained their independence have struggled more vigorously on occupational health and safety issues.


The export of hazardous factories to developing nations.

The export of hazardous industrial plants to developing nations is examined for a number of industries. As hazardous and polluting industries come under increasing regulation in industrial nations, some of the affected processes are exported, without improvements to make them less hazardous, to nonregulating countries where cheap and uninformed labor is abundant. "Runaway shops" then market their products in industrial nations with the competitive advantage of not having had to comply with costly workplace and pollution-control regulations. The international trade impacts of hazard export include: export of jobs from regulating to nonregulating countries; shift of international balance of payments in favor of nonregulating countries; export of mortal health hazards and environmental destruction to workers and communities in nonregulating nations, in order to produce goods for consumption by the regulating countries; weakened competitive position of reputable manufacturers who incur control costs and complete in domestic and would markets against less scrupulous companies; prolonged widespread use of discredited, extremely hazardous technologies, arising from the continuing "subsidy" of certain industries by workers and communities exposed to uncontrolled, well-recognized, mortal health hazards; and aggravated international relations resulting from developing nations' awareness and concern over becoming dumping grounds for hazard export from industrial nations.


Professionalism: rise and fall.

Historically, the early professionalization movements in medicine and the law appear as organizational projects which aspire to monopolize income and opportunities in markets of services or labor and to monopolize status and work privileges in occupational hierarchies. Their central task is to standardize training and link it to actual or potential markets of labor or services, a linkage that is structurally effected in the modern university. The second wave of professionalization has different protagonists than the older "market professions": placed in a different structural situation, the bureaucratic professions transform the model of profession (which they adopt as a strategy of collective ascension) into an ideology. The import of the ideology of professionalism is examined in relation to two issues: the relationships between professional occupations and bureaucratic organizations; and the position of professional occupations within the larger structure of inequality. Analysis of the first point requires consideration of the distinctions between professional occupations in the public and private sectors, the use of professional knowledge and the image of profession in bureaucratic organizations, and the specific characteristics of professions that produce their own knowledge. In the discussion of the second point, professional occupations and their ideology are examined in relation to other occupations and to the possibilities of political awareness generated by uncertain professional statuses.


Monopolistic structures and industrial analysis in Spain: the case of the pharmaceutical industry.

This article seeks to illustrate the monopolistic structure of the Spanish pharmaceutical industry, focusing on its many dimensions. The basic conditions of technology and demand, product differentiation, effect of advertising, and barriers to entry are considered, as is financial and economic concentration. Although economic conditions are emphasized, the ways they affect public and private health, the quality of health services, and health education are also highlighted.


Protective antiallergic effects of a new coumarin compound (BM 15.100) in experimental asthma.

The antiallergic properties of a new coumarin compound (BM 15.100) were tested in two separate trials, using bronchial provocation tests in asymptomatic volunteers with extrinsic allergic bronchial asthma. Study I was a blind study in 10 subjects with placebo controls and three additional non-medicated controls. Study II was an open study with non-medicated controls. Body plethysmography (study I) and spirometry (study II) were used for the assessment of bronchial obstruction. A significant protective effect of a single oral 20 mg dose of BM 15.100 administered 60 min prior to allergen inhalation was found in both trials. The effect of 10 mg BM 15.000 was not significant. Skin test, pulse rate, and diastolic blood pressure were not influenced. The results indicate a possible therapeutical value of BM 15.100.


The cardiac electrophysiological effects of nifedipine.

A study was carried out on the electrophysiological effects of a sublingually administered antianginal drug: nifedipine (20 mg). The results show a significant shortening of sinus cycle length from 925 +/- 249 msec to 810 +/- 245 msec, (p less than 0.005) and the disappearance of some interpolation and echo zones. There are no significant effects on the other evaluated parameters of sino-atrial and AV-node function. In one case, during atrial pacing, a second-degree, Wenckebach type, A-V block was present only before nifedipine. The following conclusions were reached: 1. nifedipine has no significant electrophysiological effect on the human heart; 2. the electrophysiological effects observed are probably indirect and related to the vasodilating effect of the drug; 3. the absence of direct cardiac electrophysiological actions may be useful in patients suffering from coronary artery disease and presenting disturbances in the formation and/or conduction of the cardiac impulse.


Effect of spironolactone treatment on the renin-aldosterone system during pregnancy.

Ten pregnant patients were treated with spironolactone (100 mg daily) for two weeks. The patients were on a continuous long-term saluretic therapy for pregnancy edema. In addition, a potassium supplementation (30 mmol/day) was given until the beginning of spironolactone treatment. The patients thus treated had a mean urinary aldosterone excretion (dU-Aldo) of more than ten-fold in comparison to that of non pregnant state. Canrenone, the effective conversion product of spironolactone in plasma, reached its steady state level in three days as in non-pregnant subjects. dU-Aldo decreased in two weeks during the spironolactone by 36% (p less than 0.05). The inhibition of aldosterone secretion is thus evident also after a low clinical dose of spironolactone. Urinary potassium excretion (dU-K) decreased during the 1st day (p less than 0.05) and continued to decrease during one week of spironolactone therapy by a total of 21% (p less than 0.001). The decrease in dU-K reflects the cessation of potassium supplements in the beginning of the study. No changes in urinary sodium excretion were found. Plasma renin activity (PRA) increased in one week by 79 per cent and the changes of PRA and dU-Aldo showed inverse correlation (p less than 0.001). In our study natriuresis, cannot explain the increase of PRA. Our study suggests another feedback effect of aldosterone.