Concanavalin A-binding by cells of the early chick embryo.

The surfaces of cells from the early embryo of the chick were examined using electron microscope techniques for the visualization of concanavalin A-binding sites. Horseradish peroxidase and Ferritin labelled concanavalin A were used to determine the distribution of the binding sites. All surfaces of the epiblast and hypoblast layers which were accessible to concanavalin A showed the presence of binding sites in stage 1 embryos. The ventral surface of the epiblast showed a high lectin affinity which may reflect the development of a basal lamina on this surface. The individual hypoblast cells at this stage showed a non-uniform distribution of binding sites, having a greater affinity on the dorsal surface than the ventral. By the time of primitive streak formation (stage 4-5) the dorsal surface of the epiblast displayed increased binding sites, while the frequency of sites on the ventral surface of the endoblast was reduced. The latter may reflect a change from one cell population to another, which occurs in the lower layer of the embryo at this time. No consistent correlation could be drawn between changes in motility of cells actually invaginating through the primitive streak and changes in affinity for concanavalin A. An overall increase in affinity of the dorsal surface of the epiblast was revealed by Ferritin and may reflect the changes in surface structure occurring in readiness for the morphogenetic migrations of gastrulation.


Alteration of membrane electrical activity in rat myocardial cells following selective laser microbeam irradiation.

Laser microirradiation of neonatal rat (1 to 2-day-old) ventricular cells in tissue culture results in overt changes in contractility. The intracellular study of their ongoing electrical activity prior to, during, and after laser microirradiation demonstrates that definite membrane alteration occurs concomitantly with induced contractile responses. Although all ventricular cells are depolarized by laser microirradiation, the ultimate response elicited seems to differ according to the type of myocardial cell impaled. Typical fibrillation potentials were induced mainly in pacemaker cells.


Scanning electron microscopy of the third ventricular floor of the rat.

By utilizing a horizontal dissection technique the entire floor of the third ventricle has been examined. When viewed in toto the ventricular floor was seen to have an hourglass shape with the supraoptic and infundibular recesses equalling the widened portions. Consistent regional differnces were also noted. The rostral half of the floor was densely ciliated while the caudal portion, containing ependymal elements of the underlying median emience, possessed few cilia. The ciliated cells ended in an abrupt transition zone located about halfway along the floor. The rostral portion of the infundibular recess had many more apical blebs and microvilli than did the caudal areas. Supraepen dymal cells of both the phagocyte-like and neuron-like variety were observed in all of the animals examined. In some animals, complex, branching, interconnecting networks of fine calibered fibers interconnected neuron-like cells that occurred singly and occasionally in clusters. Female rats examined at all phases of the estrus cycle demonstrated no cyclic alterations of the ependymal surface.


Wheat germ agglutinin inhibits basal- and stimulated-adenylate cyclase activity as well as the binding of [3H] caerulein to rat pancreatic plasma membranes.

Wheat germ agglutinin, but not concanavalin A or soybean lectin, inhibited the basal-and stimulated-adenylate cyclase activity which was present in a plasma membrane preparation from the rat pancreas. The inhibition by wheat germ agglutinin was rapid and sustained. It was of the non-competitive type and never exceeded 20% for Gpp (NH) p- and NaF-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity. The inhibition of secretin-stimulated activity was also non-competitive but more pronounced (57% inhibition at a wheat germ agglutinin concentration of 20 microgram/ml). For the C-terminal octapeptide of cholecystokinin-pancreozymin (OC-PZ)-stimulated cyclase, the inhibition amounted to 68% and was of a mixed type (both competitive and non-competitive). This last observation might be explained by the competitive inhibition exerted by wheat germ agglutinin on the binding of peptides of the OC-PZ family to their membrane specific receptors. The various inhibitory effects of wheat germ agglutinin were completely suppressed by incubating the membranes in the presence of ovomucoid, a N-acetyl-D-glucosamine rich glycoprotein. The possible functional implication of these results is discussed.


Survival of mouse embryos after freezing in medium containing dimethylsulphoxide and yolk extract.

The ability of the cryoprotective solution containing dimethylsulphoxide in combination with yolk extract (DYG 550) to protect mouse embryos at ultra low temperatures is reported. Of the embryos of 46.1% frozen to -196 C at various rates formed blastocysts in vitro compared to 41.2% and 23.2% survivals protected by 1M dimethylsulphoxide and 1M glycerol.


Detection of antibody to rubella virus by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Titers of antibody to rubella virus in 68 human sera were compared by hemagglutination inhibition and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). In general, the titers measured by ELISA were higher than those found by hemagglutination inhibition. Although the titers differed, the two methods showed parallel trends. Use of purified rubella virus and addition of 1% bovine serum albumin to the test wash solution aided in reducing false-positive titers in ELISA.


Detection of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBS Ag) with use of alkaline phosphatase-labeled antibody to HBS Ag.

An enzyme-labeled "sandwich" assay was developed for the detection of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBS Ag) with use of calf intestinal alkaline phosphatase and horse antibody to HBS Ag. It involved a total incubation time of 2.5 hr in three steps and was approximately equivalent in sensitivity to one of the commercially available radioimunoassays. The confirmatory test was of the neutralization type and required an additional 30-min incubation step. The enzyme-labeled antibody solution and the solid-phase antibody were extremely stable. They withstood storage at 2 C-8 C for longer than one year with virtually no decrease in activity. Accelerated tests of stability in storage at room temperature (20 C-24 C) showed only a small loss of potency over a one-year period. Three specimens were encountered that were confirmably positive by enzyme-labeled immunoassay but negative by radioimmunoassay.


Microfilament and microtubule function in human monocytes.

The functions of microfilaments and microtubules in human monocytes were examined by exposing peripheral blood monocytes to cytochalasin B, a microfilament inhibitor, and to colchicine, an antitubulin. Cytochalasin B, 10 microgram/ml, inhibited all monocyte functions tested: chemotaxis was reduced by 96% of control levels (p less than 0.01), random mobility by 88% (p less than 0.01), candidacidal activity by 57% (p less than 0.01), and phagocytosis by 34% (p less than 0.01). Monocyte adherence was also significantly reduced (by 65%). Colchicine, 10 microgram/ml, significantly reduced monocyte chemotaxis by 39% (p less than 0.01) and random mobility by 59% (p less than 0.01), but phagocytosis and candidacidal activity were not diminished at 0.1 to 100 microgram/ml. Monocyte adherence was modestly decreased (46%) by 10 microgram/ml of colchicine. Thus, cytochalasin B, a microfilament inhibitor, reduced all five functions tested. In contrast, colchicine, an antitubulin, inhibited only chemotaxis, random mobility, and adherence. These data suggest that in monocytes (1) microfilaments are the structural element of cell membrane and cytoplasm required for most cellular functions and (2) microtubules facilitate membrane surface interaction in chemotaxis, random mobility, and adherence.


Regulation of hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA reductase in rat leukocytes.

Methods were developed for the assay of hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA reductase (NADPH) activity in microsomes from rat leukocytes. The activity in freshly isolated leukocytes is low compared to rat liver but can be assayed reliably. The patterns of response of leukocyte reductase in the assay to variation in substrate concentration, protein concentration, and time mimic those of rat liver reductase. Reductase activity in leukocyte microsomes, as in liver microsomes, is depressed by dietary cholesterol and by fasting and is elevated by dietary cholestyramine. Unlike liver reductase, leukocyte reductase activity does not exhibit a detectable diurnal rhythm. We conclude that the assay of reductase in freshly isolated leukocytes holds promise as a technique for detecting the effects of various factors on cholesterol synthesis in vivo.


Tensiometric studies of cytokinesis in cleaving sand dollar eggs.

Tensions exerted by cleavage furrows of Echinarachnius parma were measured by means of calibrated, flexible glass needles. The tensions exerted by the first and second furrows in isometric contraction were, respectively, 1.58 X 10(-3) dyne (S.D. 0.41 X 10(-3) dyne) and 1.43 X 10(-3) dyne (S.D. 0.44 X 10(-3) dyne). The difference between the two means is not significant. The tensions exerted by the same cleavage furrow at two different lengths, of which the shorter was about 66% the length of the longer, were not significantly different. When the progress of a second cleavage furrow was mechanically blocked, it continued to exert maximum tension up to 9 minutes after its companion blastomere, which served as a time control, completed cleavage.


Synthesis of RNA by male pronuclei of fertilized sea urchin eggs.

Experiments have been conducted in an effort to determine when the paternally derived genome of sea urchin embryos becomes active in RNA synthesis. Participation of the paternal genome in RNA transcription as early as fertilization has been indicated by the following: (1) polyspermic zygotes consistently demonstrate greater levels of incorporation of labelled precursor (3H-uridine) into RNA when compared to monospermic eggs. (2) Monospermic and polyspermic eggs treated with actinomycin D show the same levels of incorporation of label into RNA. (3) Analysis of autoradiographs demonstrates the incorporation of 3H-uridine into male and female pronuclei.


Mitosis in beating cardiac myoblasts treated with cytochalasin-B.

Time-lapse pictures of isolated chick cardiac myoblasts grown in a medium with cytochalasin-B reveal that normal mitotic chromosomal separation and muscle contraction can take place simultaneously. These observations indicate that the contractile stimulation for the cells' myogibrils does not affect the movement of the chromosomes and that the cell can regulate two different motile systems inside one cell.


Release of acetylcholinesterase by cultured spinal cord cells.

The release of acetylcholinesterase from neurons was studied using cultured chick-embryo spinal-cord cells. Cells dissociated from 12-day-old chick-embryo spinal cords were grown in culture for 10-12 days. Numerous well differentiated spinal neurons were found after 7-10 days in culture. Acetylcholinesterase activity per dish increased by 60-fold from days 2-12. Acetylcholinesterase was released into the surrounding media by the cells when they were incubated either in the standard culture medium or the serum-free medium. Acetylcholinesterase release was significantly reduced when protein synthesis and microtubules were disrupted by cycloheximide and colchicine, respectively. Histochemical localization of acetylcholinesterase indicated that the synthesis and relase of acetylcholinesterase are attributable to neurons. Cultured chick-embryo brain and neuroblastoma cells also released acetylcholinesterase into the media. These results are discussed with regard to possible physiological roles for acetylcholinesterase secretion from neurons.


Amino acid absorption along the intestinal tract of chicks fed heated and raw soybean meal.

Net absorption of individual amino acids along the intestinal tract was determined in chicks fed heated soybean meal (HS) and raw soybean meal (RS) using 91Y as a reference substance. In the duodenum of chicks fed either diet, the absorption of the amino acids varied. In chicks fed the RS diet, the differences were greater than in chicks fed the HS diet, and most of the values were negative. Methionine was the most rapidly absorbed amino acid. No cystine was found in the upper parts of the intestinal tract of chicks fed either diet. A linear relationship was obtained between the amino acid absorption values in the duodenum of chicks fed either diet. The differences recorded seem to be due to nitrogen secretion, which is enhanced in RS-fed chicks. The differences between individual amino acid absorption decreased gradually in the other segments and attained in the lower ileum an average cumulative value of 90% and 70% in chicks fed on HS and RS respectively. The 20% difference was probably a result of the inhibited digestion in the intestine (duodenum excluded) of chicks fed RS. The results indicate that the absorption process can proceed even when the digestion is inhibited.


Effects of geophagia (kaolin ingestion) on the maternal blood and embryonic development in the pregnant rat.

Geophagia, in the form of clay-eating, is often observed during pregnancy in the human population. The intent of this study was to determine the effects of kaolin (clay) ingestion on the maternal blood and embryonic development of the pregnant rat. Thirty-six Sprague-dawley female rats were divided into three groups: control diet, 20% kaolin diet, and iron-supplemented 20% kaolin diet. The diets were fed 37 to 68 days, 69 to 95 days, and 96 to 117 days prior to fertilization, and the same diets were fed for the duration of the gestation period. The rats fed the kaolin diet exhibited significant reductions in hemoglobin, hematocrit, and red blood cell levels, thus indicating maternal anemia. There was also a significant reduction in the birth weight of the pups born to kaolin fed rats. The kaolin fed rats receiving an iron supplement maintained hematocrit, hemoglobin, red blood cell levels, and pup weight within the normal range.


Vinyl chloride: its impact on occupational medicine practice in Iran.

Upon the establishment of a positive relationship between occupational exposure to VCM and angiosarcoma of the liver, strict precautionary measures for the protection of VCM exposed employees in the Abadan Petrochemical Company have been instituted. All such workers have been required to have pre-employment and annual medical examinations with emphasis on liver functions. Among 43 such employees who have undergone regular medical evaluation in the past three years, no instance of liver dysfunction of angiosarcoma has been discovered. The Iranian Standards Institute reviewing occupational health data and local conditions provisionally set in 1976 a TLV of VCM of 25 ppm TWA for 8 hours with revision foreseen for 1977. It is believed that such precautionary measures should be revised and improved according to available data and knowledge and that variations in other environmental and local factors which may well play an important role in the potential pathogenicity of the exposure should be carefully considered in determining the extent of the precautionary measures and standards in each locality.


Hepatitis and pregnancy.

The maternal and fetal outcomes of 50 pregnancies complicated by acute viral hepatitis were examined. Twenty (40%) cases were due to type B hepatitis virus. The clinical course of the maternal hepatitis was unaffected by the pregnant state. Maternal hepatitis (type B or nontype B) had no effect on the incidence of congenital malformations, stillbirths, abortions, or intrauterine malnutrition; it did increase the incidence of prematurity (type B 31.6%; nontype B 25%; overall 27.6%) over that seen in the general delivery population (10 to 11%). Eight mothers acquired acute type B hepatitis during the third trimester; two of their infants (25%) were found to be chronic asymptomatic carriers of hepatitis B surface antigen and to have mild, persistent elevations of SGOT for up to 45 months.


Congenital skin defects and fetus papyraceus.

Two unrelated infants with congenital skin defects (aplasia cutis congenita) involving the trunk and limbs, each with an associated monozygotic twin fetus papyraceus, are described. Evidence from these two cases and a review of the literature indicate that congenital skin defects of other body areas, as represented by these two children, is a specific pattern of malformation distinct from isolated small congenital skin defects involving the vertex of the scalp. The frequent occurrence of fetus papyraceus in patients with congenital skin defects of other body areas suggests a common etiology for these two phenomena.


Clinical evaluation and preliminary studies on the use of an artificial pancreatic beta cell in juvenile diabetes mellitus.

A newly developed artificial pancreatic beta cell is described and its use in five children with diabetes mellitus is evaluated. This device can be programmed to bring the blood glucose concentration rapidly to a preselected level and normalize glucose tolerance in juvenile diabetic patients with markedly different insulin requirements. It is portable, can be operated by one person, and has been used to regulate the blood glucose concentration before, during, and after surgery requiring general anesthesia. The potential value of the device as an investigational tool is shown by demonstrating that regulation of the blood glucose concentration with insulin for seven to 24 hours does not alter circulating glucagon concentrations in the juvenile diabetic patients studied.


Radioimmunoassay of minoxidil in human serum.

A simple, sensitive, and specific radioimmunoassay for determining minoxidil was developed. Antiserums to two minoxidil haptens were compared for cross-reactivity and assay levels on human serums. One antiserum had little cross-reactivity with minoxidil metabolites. The radioimmunoassay is specific for determining minoxidil directly in serum without extraction. Human serum minoxidil levels were determined from a single oral dose.


A comparison of thalidomide and pentobarbital - new methods for identifying novel hypnotic drugs.

We have compared the sleep-producing effects of thalidomide and pentobarbital. In a dose range that did not produce ataxia, thalidomide increased slow wave sleep and rapid eye movement sleep in cats (2-8 mg/kg p.o.) and rats (16 mg/kg p.o.). Pentobarbital had hypnotic activity in the same dose range but produced ataxia also at these doses. Thalidomide reduced spontaneous activity of both mice and rats. This occurred over a dose range of 8 to 1000 mg/kg p.o., but plateaued at a level of activity well above the complete inactivity of anesthesia that occurred with pentobarbital at well above the complete inactivity of anesthesia that occurred with pentobarbital at doses (greater than or equal to 32 mg/kg p.o.) above the hypnotic range. Several simple screens for thalidomide-like activity have been described which, together, could facilitate the search for thalidomide-like hypnotics. Pentobarbital, at doses 3 to 10 times the hypnotic range, prevented audiogenic seizures in physically dependent rats withdrawn from sodium barbital but thalidomide did not substitute for barbiturates even at doses 30 times those that increased sleep. Thalidomide, but not pentobarbital, enhanced the sleep-producing effect of electrical stimulation of basal forebrain in cats. The latter two findings suggest that thalidomide probably has a mechanism of action different from that of pentobarbital and that this may involve the activation of a sleep center in the forebrain.


The effects of 6-hydroxydopamine on tolerance to and dependence on ethanol.

The intraventricular administration of 6-hydroxydopamine before chronic ethanol exposure prevented the development of tolerance to the hypnotic and hypothermic effects of ethanol as well as cross-tolerance to barbiturates. The injection of 6-hydroxydopamine depleted brain norepinephrine but had little effect on levels of dopamine and serotonin. Although mice pretreated with 6-hydroxydopamine did not develop tolerance to ethanol, they exhibited signs of physical dependence after chronic treatment with ethanol. If 6-hydroxydopamine was administered after tolerance to ethanol was established, the destruction of noradrenergic neurons had little effect in disrupting the tolerance. Noradrenergic systems may be necessary for the "consolidation" but not the expression of tolerance.


Synthesis and preliminary pharmacological activity of aminoalkoxy isosteres of glycolate ester anticholinergics.

A sides of 2-(N-substituted amino)alkoxy-1,1-diphenylethanols was synthesized and evaluated for anticholinergic activity. The compounds differ structurally from the glycolate ester-type anticholinergic compounds by the bioisosteric substitution of a methylene group for the ester carbonyl moiety. The ethers which result from this change have increased lipophilicity compared to their ability to inhibit perphenazine-induced catatonia in rats. Structure-activity relationships of the compounds are discussed.


Quinazolines and 1,4-benzodiazepines. 82.1 5-Pyrimidyl-and 5-pyrazinylbenzodiazepines.

Analogues of bromazepam [7-bromo-1,3-dihydro-5(2-pyridyl)-2H-1,4-benzodiazepin-2-one, A], which is a clinically useful minor tranquilizer, have been prepared by replacing the 2-pyridyl group at position 5 with 4-pyrimidyl (5), 2-pyrazinyl (8), 2,5-dimethylpyrazin-3-yl (10), and 2-pyrimidyl (12) groups. Low to moderate CNS activities in both mice and cat were found for all the new compounds. For the screening procedures used, the 2-pyrimidyl-substituted derivatives were found to be the most active new analogues although none of the activities exceeded those observed for bromazepam.


Synthesis and determination of antiviral activity of the 2'(3')-O-methyl derivatives of ribavirin (1-beta-D-ribofuranosyl-1,2,4-triazole-3-carboxamide).

Diazomethane treatment of ribavirin (1-beta-D-ribofuranosyl-1,2,4-triazole-3-carboxamide) in the presence of SnCl2 as catalyst led to quantitative formation of the 2'-O-methyl and 3'-O-methyl derivatives of the parent compound. The products were successfully fractionated on a basic ion-exchange column and isolated in crystalline form. Indentification was based on the elution sequence from the column and on 1H NMR spectroscopy. Both derivatives were found to be inactive, relative to the parent compound, against several virus types in cell culture. Unlike ribavirin itself, the 2'(3')-O-methyl derivatives did not suppress cellular DNA synthesis. NMR data showed that the loss of biologic activity upon 2'(3')-O-methylation was not due to a change of conformation of the nucleoside sugar moiety.


Structural and spectroscopic characteristics of bacteriorhodopsin in air-water interface films.

A suspension of purple membrane fragments in a solution of soya phosphatidyl-choline in hexane is spread at an air-water interface. Surface pressure and surface potential measurements indicate that the membrane fragments and lipids organize at the interface as an insoluble film. Electron microscopy of shadow-cast replicas of the film reveal that in the bacteriorhodopsin to soya PC weight ratio range of 2:1 to 10:1, these films consist of nonoverlapping membrane fragments which occupy approximately 35% of the surface area and are separated by a lipid monolayer. Furthermore, the membrane fragments are oriented with their intracellular surface towards the aqueous subphase. Nearly all the bacteriorhodopsin molecules at the interface are spectroscopically intact and exhibit visible spectral characteristics identical to those in aqueous suspensions of purple membrane and in intact bacteria. In addition, bacteriorhodopsin in air-dried interface films show spectral changes upon dark-adaptation and upon flash illumination similar to those observed in aqueous suspensions of purple membrane, but with slower kinetics. The kinetics of the spectral changes in interface films can be made nearly the same as in aqueous suspension by immersing the films in water.


Proton transport by bacteriorhodopsin through an interface film.

Interface films of purple membrane and lipid containing spectroscopically intact and oriented bacteriorhodopsin have been used as a model system to study the function of this protein. Small positive charges in surface potential (less than 1 mV) are detected upon illumination of these films at the air-water interface. These photopotentials are not affected by overlaying the interface film with a thin layer (0.3 mm) of decane. However, they are dramatically increased when lipid soluble proton carriers FCCP or DNP are added to the decane. The polarity of the photopotential indicates that, in the light, positive charges are transported through the interface from the aqueous to the organic phase. The action spectrum of the photopotential is identical to the absorption spectrum of bacteriorhodopsin. Since bacteriorhodopsin molecules are oriented with their intracellular surface towards the aqueous subphase, the characteristics of the photopotential indicate that in the light bacteriorhodopsin translocates protons from its intracellular to its extracellular surface. The kinetics of the photopotential reveal that the rate and extent of proton transport are proportional both to the fraction of bacteriorhodopsin molecules excited and to the concentration of proton acceptor. The photopotentials result from changes in the ionic distribution across the decane-water interface and can be cancelled by lipid soluble anions.


Esophageal cancer studies in the Caspian littoral of Iran: results of population studies--a prodrome. Joint Iran-International Agency for Research on Cancer Study Group.

Epidemiologic studies were undertaken on the Caspian littoral of Iran to investigate the geographic distribution of factors that might underlie the signal differences in incidence of cancer of the esophagus. In zones of contrasting incidence and sex ratio, information was obtained on food intake, smoking and drinking patterns (including tea), other personal habits, occupation, economic and agricultural practices, and methods of food storage preservation, and preparation. The diet in the highest incidence area was markedly restricted to bread and tea. The poor quality of the diet itself was thought to have a role in the increased risk of developing esophageal cancer. The use of opium and sesame oil, consumption of sheep's milk and yogurt, the chewing of nass (confined to men), and the use of dyes (confined to women) were also more prevalent in the high incidence areas. Typical dietary items were analyzed for the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile nitrosamines, aflatoxins, nitrates, and nitrites. The results showed no unusual levels of any of the carcinogens tested or geographic differences.


Kinetics of nornicotine and anabasine nitrosation in relation to N'-nitrosonornicotine occurrence in tobacco and to tobacco-induced cancer.

The kinetics of nornicotine and anabasine nitrosation, studied in aqueous solution, obeyed equations typical for the nitrosation of aliphatic secondary amines, with third-order stoichiometric rate constants of 1.15 (nornicotine) and 0.86 (anabasine) M-2 sec-1. The similarity of the two rate constants suggested that the nitrosonornicotine occurring in tobacco arises from nicotine rather than nornicotine, because tobacco contains anabasine but apparently does not contain nitrosoanabasine. The high rate constants suggested that in vivo nitrosation of these secondary amines may constitute a hazard to tobacco smokers and chewers, in addition to that presented by preformed nitrosonornicotine.


Altered intracellular transport of exogenous DNA by murine mammary tumor cell lines.

The uptake of exogenous DNA by a series of murine mammary tumor cell lines was compared with DNA uptake by normal cells and other types of transformed cells. The mammary tumor cell lines all exhibited a decreased efficiency in the transport of DNase-resistant exogenous DNA into the nuclear fraction. None of the DNA facilitators tested were able to surmount this transport defect. Normal mouse mammary gland cells, mouse embryo cells, and normal kidney cells from various species efficiently transported exogenous DNA into the nucleus. Similarly, the transport defect was not exhibited by a series of transformed cell lines, including those of mouse origin and those transformed by C-type oncornaviruses. The only exception was a murine leukemia virus-producing mouse line that displayed decreased nuclear uptake of the DNA. The nature of the exogenous DNA was apparently not a factor, since identical results were obtained with simian virus 40 and mammalian cell DNA's. The inducing agents of the mammary tumor cells also did not appear to be a factor, since cell lines derived from tumors induced spontaneously or by viral, hormonal, or chemical carcinogens all behaved similarly.


Influence of dietary fat on the induction of mammary tumors by N-nitrosomethylurea: associated hormone changes and differences between Sprague-Dawley and F344 rats.

A single iv dose of N-nitrosomethylurea (NMU, 50 mg/kg) given to 50-day-old F344 and Sprague-Dawley rats was sufficient to induce mammary adenocarcinomas. The Sprague-Dawley rats were more sensitive to the carcinogenic action of NMU than were the F344 rats. Moreover, regardless of strain, tumors developed in greater numbers and with a shorter latent period in animals fed a high-fat (HF) diet compared with animals fed a low-fat (LF) diet. The tumor-enhancing effect of HF diet was not related to body weight, since the mean body weight of the rats on the two diets was similar. In addition, no correlation was found between body weight and tumor incidence in individual rats under either dietary regimen. Since the most pronounced difference in tumor incidence between groups fed HF and LF diets was exhibited by the F344 rats, hormone analyses were performed on this group. At termination of the experiment, prolactin levels in the group fed an HF diet were significantly higher than those in the group fed an LF diet. Total estrogen levels were also significantly higher in the group fed an HF diet, compared with the group fed an LF diet, but this difference was seen only at the metestrus-diestrus stage. Regardless of diet or estrous cycle, when animals with tumors were compared with those without tumors, the former exhibited higher prolactin-estrogen (P/E) ratios. The results suggested a relationship between the ingestion of high levels of dietary fat, a high P/E ratio, and increased mammary tumor incidence.


Superiority of adriamycin-14-octanoate over adriamycin in reducing viability of methotrexate-resistant L5178Y cells: brief communication.

Adriamycin-14-octanoate (ADR-OCT) was superior to adriamycin (ADR) in reducing the viability of L5178Y cells resistant to methotrexate (MTX). This effect was seen in logarithmically growing and plateau-phase cultures and increased both with dose and duration of exposure. Both ADR-OCT and ADR were effective inhibitors of the exogenous Escherichia coli DNA-dependent RNA polymerases in vitro and of the endogenous polymerase in mammalian cultured cells. Drug concentrations required for approximately 50% enzyme inhibition in both systems were comparable for both agents, being of the order of 10(-5) M. These experimental studies suggested that ADR-OCT may be a valuable agent for treating neoplasms resistant to MTX.


Angiosarcoma of the liver: an epidemiologic survey.

Diagnosed from 1970 through 1975, the annual incidence rate for angiosarcoma of the liver among residents of New York State (excluding New York City) was 0.25 per million. A case-control study indicated that direct exposure to arsenic, vinyl chloride (VC), and thorium dioxide was a significantly important factor in the etiology of this disorder (P less than 0.02). Direct exposure to these chemicals could not be demonstrated for 19 (73%) of the 26 study patients. The fact that 5 of these patients lived nearer to VC fabrication or polymerization plants than did their matched controls lent some support to the hypothesis that indirect modes of exposure, not specifically related to occupation, might be important in the etiology of this disorder.


Virulence factors of influenza A viruses: WSN virus neuraminidase required for plaque production in MDBK cells.

The genetic basis for the distinctive capacity of influenza A/WSN/33 (H0N1) virus (WSN virus) to produce plaques on bovine kidney (MDBK) cells was found to be related to virus neuraminidase. Recombinant viruses that derived only the neuraminidase of WSN virus were capable of producing plaques, whereas recombinant viruses identical to WSN except for neuraminidase did not produce plaques. With viruses that do not contain WSN neuraminidase, infectivity of virus yields from MDBK cells was increased approximately 1,000-fold after in vitro treatment with trypsin. In contrast, no significant increase in infectivity was observed after trypsin treatment of viruses containing WSN neuraminidase. In addition, polyacrylamide gel analysis of proteins of WSN virus obtained after infection of MDBK cells demonstrated that hemagglutinin was present in the cleaved form (HA1 + HA2), whereas only uncleaved hemagglutinin was obtained with a recombinant virus that derived all of its genes from WSN virus except its neuraminidase. These data are in accord with the hypothesis that neuraminidase may facilitate production of infectious particles by removing sialic acid residues and exposing appropriate cleavage sites on hemagglutinin.


Macromolecular synthesis in cells infected by frog virus 3. VII. Transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of virus gene expression.

We have used improved techniques for separating individual species of RNA and protein to study the mechanisms that control gene expression by frog virus 3, a eucaryotic DNA virus. Forty-seven species of viral RNA and 35 viral polypeptide species were resolved by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The relative molar ratios of virus-specific polypeptides synthesized at various times after infection were determined by computer planimetry and were compared with the molar ratios of appropriate-sized viral RNAs to code for each polypeptide. Viral polypeptides were classified according to the time during the growth cycle at which their maximal rate of synthesis occurred - early, 2 to 2.5 h; intermediate, 4 to 4.5 h; and late, 6 to 6.5 h. The viral RNAs, which were assumed to be mRNA's, could not be classified according to time of maximum synthesis; once their synthesis had begun, most of the RNAs continued to be synthesized at the same or higher rates. However, only 10 of the 47 viral RNA bands were plainly visible after electrophoresis of extracts from cells labeled from 1 to 1.5 h after infection; these 10 RNAs were designated "early" RNA. The early pattern of both RNA and polypeptide synthesis was maintained for at least 6 h in the presence of the amino acid analog fluorophenylalanine, which indicates that a functional viral polypeptide was required for "late" transcription and translation. The presumptive mRNA's for late polypeptides did not appear until 2 h after infection, but two of these "late" RNAs became the major products of transcription by 4 h into the infectious cycle. In contrast to the declining rate of synthesis of the early proteins, corresponding early RNA species continued to be synthesized at the same or higher rates throughout the replicative cycle. Although the synthesis of late virus-specific proteins appeared to be regulated at the level of transcription, our results suggest that the synthesis of both early and intermediate proteins was regulated at the post-transcriptional level.


Two-stage urethroplasty for urethral stricture disease.

Of 97 patients who underwent first-stage urethroplasty 23 per cent required at least 1 revision. Sixty-seven patients underwent second-stage reconstruction with a 90 per cent success rate. The various factors influencing the outcome of 2-stage urethroplasty procedures are analyzed critically.


Response of the nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) to gonadotropins and steroids.

Adult male and female, nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) were treated with exogenous gonadotropins and steroids to induce mating in captivity. Gonadotropin treatment induced follicular development and ovulation in the female but failed to enhance semen quality in the male. The number of ovarian follicles increased as the dosage of pregnant mare serum gonadotropin increased; ovulation rate appeared to be inversely related to dose. Mating behavior was not detected in any of the trials, but a pattern of cyclic cytological changes in urogenital smears, which could be used to detect the follicular phase of the estrous cycle, was observed. The modal duration of the estrous cycle was found to be 4 days.


Plasma membrane vesiculation: correlation between macrophage spreading and the shedding of cell surface vesicles.

The data presented in this paper establish a correlation between the extent of macrophage spreading and the ability of macrophages to shed plasma membrane vesicles following incubation in a membrane vesiculant. Maximal macrophage spreading was observed following incubation in buffers containing Mn2+ or dithiothreitol. Scanning electron microscopy showed that such macrophages have a uniformly flat surface morphology. Exposure of these macrophage monolayers to a vesiculant containing 25 mM formaldehyde-2 mM dithiothreitol induced plasma membrane vesiculation. Scanning electron microscopy further demonstrated that vesicles were formed and released randomly over the cell surface and that vesicles varied in size from 1 to 15 micrometer. diameter. A variety of chemicals that share the common ability to bind to free sulfhydryl groups have been shown to act as membrane vesiculants as a result of their apparent ability to induce a unique form of cell injury which results in the shedding of cell surface vesicles. The differential effect of vesiculants on cells grown in suspension and as monolayer is interpreted to suggest that reorganization of the cellular cytoskeleton associated with cell spreading may underlie the ability of membrane vesiculants to induce plasma membrane vesiculation in highly spread and adherent macrophage monolayers.


[Effect of long-term hypokinesia on the course of acute aseptic inflammation].

White rats were kept under hypokinetic conditions for 15, 28 and 60 days. By physiological, microbiological and morphological methods it was demonstrated that hypokinesia had an adverse effect on the clinical development of aseptic inflammation. This effect included a more marked edema and its delayed resorption, an increased temperature of the inflammatory focus, an increased number of infectious complications, involving necrotic foci and ulcerations, enhanced alteration processes, inhibited formation of the demarcation zone, generalized inflammation, etc. Resistance to phlogogenic stimulation fell down to a minimum during the first two hypokinetic weeks; afterwards it gradually returned to normal but did not recover entirely even after 60 days of hypokinesia. Following 15- and 28-day hypokinetic experiments resistance to phlogogenic agents reached the pretest level within 7 days of the recovery period.


A dog bite wound infected with Pasteurella pneumotropica.

A case is described of a dog bite of a finger which was infected with Pasteurella pneumotropica; it was successfully treated with amoxycillin.


[Growth of epiphytic and soil yeasts on wheat seedlings].

Colonization of wheat seedlings by epiphytic (Rhodotorula glutinis) and soil (Lipomyces starkeyi) yeasts was studied by scanning electron microscopy. Epiphytic yeast cells dominated on the plant surface. Soil yeast cells were randomly distributed among both the zones of a seedling and the particles of an inorganic substrate. It has been found that epiphytic yeast strains can readily grow on the surface of a plant.


[The 18p-syndrome (author's transl)].

Mental retardation, short stature, microcephaly, hypertelorism, epicanthus, ptosis, short, broadbased nose, carp mouth, abnormalities of teeth, microretrognathy, big, protruding and low set ears, short neck, pterygium colli, broad chest, incurved fifth fingers, muscular hypotonia and low birth wieght establish a clinical diagnosis of the 18p-syndrome in many instances even before the result of chromosomal analyis is known.


Banding pattern analysis of initial structural chromosome alterations induced by n-methyl-n'-nitro-n-nitrosoguanidine in Syrian hamster cells.

Cultured secondary Syrian hamster embryo cells exposed to 0.5 N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) microgram/ml medium exhibited chromatid type of aberrations consisting of gaps, breaks and exchanges. Although no specific chromosome or chromosome segment was preferentially affected, chromosomes belonging to the larger groups tended to more often involved. G-band analysis demonstrated that 80% of the lesions occurred in negative bands, 9% involved the centromere, 3% were on non-banded heterochromatin, and approximately 8% of the lesions could not be definitely categorized by G-band analysis. Whether the lesions occur at positive bands or at the interface between negative and positive bands is difficult to discern by the G-band resolution. The Y chromosome compared to autosomes of similar size rarely had lesions. X chromosome damage was found in both the euchromatic and heterochromatic arms. However, both sex chromosomes, as well as an autosome (E20) which is heterochromatic on its long arm, were not found joined to the chromatids of other chromosomes, further emphasizing that chromosomes with large heterochromatic areas are isolated in terms of chromatid exchange events. The analysis of MNNG induced chromosome damage indicates that the negative bands are the primary site of damage and points of exchange.


Insulin receptors in the newborn. Increase in receptor affinity and number.

Insulin hs been implicated as a growth factor in fetal life. To clarify the role of insulin in the fetus, we studied insulin receptors on mononuclear leukocytes in placental-cord blood from 12 normal newborns. Eight healthy young adults served as controls. Specific binding (mean +/- S.E.M.) in the absence of unlabeled insulin per 10(7) monocytes was, respectively, 24.3+/-3.5 and 4.7+/-0.9 per cent in newborns and adults. This increase in binding is due to a rise in number of receptor sites per cell (newborns, 44,600, and adults, 7100) as well as an increase in receptor affinity (Ke for newborns = 5.9 X 10(8) M(-1), and that for adults = 2.9 X 10(8) M(-1). This finding of markedly high concentrations of high-affinity receptors for insulin on fetal cells supports the importance of insulin in intrauterine growth and development.


The neurologist as a health resource. Facts, estimates, and aspirations for the supply of neurologists.

In recent years, three thorough analyses have documented the present status of the availability of neurologists and estimated future needs and availability. The productivity of ongoing training programs would appear to be able to meet the minimal needs for neurologic services by 1985. Pending federal legislation may regulate the total number of residencies available in the future. The American Academy of Neurology has a role in maintaining a data base and analyzing the issues of quality maintenance, utilization of resources, and distribution of personnel.


Cerebral blood flow, oxygen utilization, and blood volume in dementia.

Patients with dementia had significant decreases in cerebral blood flow and cerebral oxygen utilization and a mild, but not significant, increase in cerebral blood volume. These studies were not useful in distinguishing patients with cerebral atrophy from patients with normal pressure hydrocephalus, as similar changes in cerebral circulation and metabolism were seen in both groups. Changes in cerebral blood flow after acute decrease in the intracranial pressure also were not helpful differentiating patients with normal pressure hydrocephalus from patients with cerebral atrophy.


Postural hypotension: adrenergic responsivity and levodopa therapy.

Four subjects with orthostatic hypotension were given intravenous infusions of methoxamine and isoproterenol. Methoxamine caused an elevation in systolic blood pressure. Isoproterenol resulted in a fall in blood pressure in three of the subjects. The heart rate decreased with methoxamine, but increased with isoproterenol. The responsivity in orthostatic hypotension was compatible with denervation supersensitivity. These effects were compared with the responsivity to methoxamine and isoproterenol of five labile hypertensives. Two patients with severe orthostatic hypotension were treated with regimens including levodopa. Levodopa alone would further aggravate postural hypotension. But in one subject given levodopa, ephedrine, and fludrocortisone and in the other managed on levodopa, tranylcypromine, and fludrocortisone, symptomatic orthostatic hypotension was successfully eliminated. These results support the usefulness of levodopa, in combination with adrenergic agents, as a therapeutic measure for advanced forms of orthostatic hypotension.


Adrenoleukodystrophy. Accumulation of cholesterol esters with very long chain fatty acids.

An accumulation of fatty acids having chain lengths of C22 to C26 was demonstrated in the cholesterol ester fraction of white matter from two boys with adrenoleukodystrophy. A similar accumulation of very long chain fatty acids was also shown in gangliosides and cerebrosides. A disorder of the one-carbon degradation system responsible for the metabolism of some of the very long chain fatty acids may be the basic enzymatic defect in this condition.


Metachromatic leukodystrophy: comparison of early-and late-onset forms.

Comparative study of peripheral nerve biopsies and cultured skin fibroblasts from patients with late infantile and early adult-onset forms of metachromatic leukodystrophy revealed similar pathologic changes in the early stages of nerve degeneration. However, the peripheral nerves in the adult-onset cases eventually reached a more chronically demyelinated fibrotic state than did nerves in the infantile cases. Cultured skin fibroblasts from the adult-onset patients, although clearly abnormal, were able to catabolize sulfatide significantly more effectively than the cultured skin fibroblasts from late infantile patients.


Spinal myoclonus.

The focal involuntary muscular contractions of spinal myoclonus have been associated with neoplastic, infectious, traumatic, and degenerative lesions of the spinal cord. Four patients are described here. In two, the myoclonus is associated with severe cervical spondylitis. One patient had herpes zoster. In the fourth, a segment of thoracic spinal cord is narrow and probably atrophic. Both tetrabenazine and clonazepam were therapeutically effective.


Discrimination and evocation of affectively intoned speech in patients with right parietal disease.

Patients with right parietal disease have disturbed comprehension of affective speech. Ability to discriminate affective speech (make same/different discriminations) and ability to repeat emotionally bland sentences with affective tones were tested in three groups of subjects--patients with right parietal dysfunction and neglect, conduction aphasics with left hemispheric lesions, and patients without intracranial disease. Patients with right parietal dysfunction performed significantly poorer than did aphasic controls on both a recognition and discrimination task. Patients with right parietal dysfunction also scored poorer on the evocative task than the nonaphasic controls.


The seizures of frontal lobe epilepsy. A study of clinical manifestations.

We describe ictal clinical manifestations of frontal lobe epileptic seizures in 22 patients. After examination of all ictal clinical data, 14 catergories of signs and symptoms were established. The validity of the ictal clinical data used was confirmed on the basis of 99 frontal lobe seizures recorded by tele-electroencephalogram or tele-stereo-electroencephalogram. The main conclusion is that the frontal lobe appears to be partially connected with motor acitivity.


Methyl bromide intoxication: neurologic features, including simulation of Reye syndrome.

Three family members intoxicated with methyl bromide presented with a variety of neuropsychiatric manifestations including coma, severe status epilepticus, hyporeflexia, and acute psychosis. The simulation of Reye syndrome in the child emphasizes the need for careful toxicologic screening of all children presenting with this syndrome. The initial diagnostic difficulty encountered in these cases emphasizes the need for heightened awareness of the toxic chemicals used in local industries and the clinical manifestations of their intoxication.


Ophthalmoplegia as a sign of metabolic disease in the newborn.

Fluctuating ophthalmoplegia in the neonatal period is unusual. We report two infants, one with branched-chain keto-aminoaciduria, the other with nonketotic hyperglycinemia, who demonstrated varying degrees of ophthalmoplegia. In one, the abnormalities of extraocular motility best correlated with elevations of serum leucine. In the other case, increased CSF glycine was implicated. Varying ophthalmoplegia during the neonatal period should alert the clinician to consider an underlying metabolic disorder.


Neonatal ophthalmoplegia with microfibers: a reversible myopathy?

An infant born with marked hypotonia showed prompt regression of skeletal muscle weakness, but by 7 weeks of age had total external ophthalmoplegia. Biopsy of the gluteus muscle at 14 days showed marked variation in fiber size with a large proportion of very small fibers (less than 3 mu). By 10 months of age, biopsy of the vastus was virtually normal. The inferior oblique muscle was replaced by fibrous tissue containing a few remaining degenerating fibers. The child was normal at 2 years of age except for mild facial weakness and ophthalmoplegia. This syndrome may be the result of a reversible intrauterine process.


Assessment of muscle strength in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Muscle strength in 23 patients with Duchenne dystrophy was tested against gravity and manual resistance during an 8-year period. The data show striking linearity in rate of loss of strength with age for any given patient. The tempo does not appear altered during growth spurts, bracing, or loss of ambulation. Variability in disease severity was documented clearly by 7 years of age and appears to be related to earlier age at onset of symptoms. This long ignored method of muscle strength assessment provides a precise measure of disease progression and, since the technique is widely used by physical therapists, it should be incorporated in clinical studies and therapeutic trials.


Chronic meningitis caused by Sporotrichum schenckii.

The fungus Sporotrichum schenckii caused chronic meningitis in a 48-year-old man. Only three other firmly diagnosed cases were reported previously.


Hypoliquorreic headache and pneumocephalus caused by thoraco-subarachnoid fistula.

One month after having a right upper lobectomy to remove a squamous cell carcinoma, a 43-year-old man presented with a 4-day history of postural headache, worsened by standing and relieved by lying. Skull films showed prominent ventricular pneumocephalus. Iophendylate myelography was unrewarding, but isotope cisternography revealed a CSF fistula at the T4 level, extending into the thoracic cavity. Thoracoplastic removal of the first four ribs successfully prevented air passage and the patient had a rapid uneventful recovery.


[Behavior of the somatotropic hormone during neonatal exchange transfusion].

Plasma growth hormone values in newborns subjected to exsanguinotransfusion for haemolytic disease were compared with those in a sample group of neonates with physiological icterus. Basal HGH values in infants with EF were significantly higher than those noted in the controls, whereas blood sugar values were within the limits of normal. These results suggest that enhanced HGH secretion attributable to the stress of exsanguinotransfusion is accompanied by direct stimulation of hypothalamic cells producing GH releasing factor on the part of bilirubin.


Human umbilical arterial and venous progesterone concentrations: effect of fetal sex, weight, and mode of delivery.

Umbilical venous and umbilical arterial progesterone concentrations were determined in 99 pregnancies by radioimmunoassay. The mean +/- SE plasma progesterone in the umbilical vein was 1295 +/- 73 ng/ml, and in the umbilical artery it was 520 +/- 38 ng/ml with an arterio-venous difference of 775 +/- 58 ng/ml and a vein:artery progesterone ratio of 3.6 +/- 0.3. The secretion rate of progesterone into the fetal compartment was calculated to be 84 mg/24 hr. There was no significant difference in these parameters between male and female fetuses, fetal weight, mode of delivery, Apgar score, and duration of labor. It was therefore concluded that the fetal genotype and stress on the fetus did not appear to significantly affect fetal extraction and utilization of progesterone.


[Effect of aminopterin on pre-implantation rat embryos cultivated outside the body].

The rat embryos at the stage of 8 blastomeres were explanted in the Biggers' medium with 20% of blood serum from the rats obtained different doses of aminopterin. The marked delay of cleavage rate, morphological anomalies of blastocysts, selective damaging effect of aminopterin upon the inner cells mass (embryoblast) and high resistance of trophectoderm cells against this drug were observed. The role of dihydrololate reductase at the preimplantation developmental stages, the resistance against aminopterin of the early rat embryos within the maternal organism and high sensitivity to this drug of the embryos in vitro are discussed. A conclusion is drawn on the presence of the barrier function of oviducts with respect to aminopterin.


[Testosterone-7alpha-3H uptake by the anlage of organs related to reproduction in female rate embryos in experiments in vivo and in vitro].

The dynamics of testosterone-7alpha-3H (T-3H) uptake by the developing genital system organs, as well as by the suprarenals, brain cortex and muscles was studied in vivo experiments with the 14-20 days old female rat embryos. Besides, the T3H uptake by the reproductive tract tissues and muscles just after the isolation of embryos from the uterus and after 2 days cultivation in the diffusion chambers implanted in the abdominal cavity of the adult castrated rats was studied in in vitro experiments. Moreover, the T3H uptake by the embryonic tissues was determined in the absence of ovaries. The specific uptake was noted in all the tissues at all developmental stages under all experimental conditions. The selective T3H uptake was noted during the periods corresponding to the rudiments' morphogenesis carachteristic for males. In the absence of ovaries, the T3H uptake by the reproductive tract tissues in vitro experiments decreased, but after 2 days cultivation in the diffusion chambers increased. The possible participation of ovaries in the female sex differentiation and the bisexual nature of rudiments determined by the presence of receptors both to estro- and androgens are discussed.


[Induction of oocyte maturation at stages of incomplete vitellogenesis in toads and the starred sturgeon].

The intracellular injection of cytoplasm from the maturing oocytes of X. laevis and A. stellatus in oocytes of the same species which did not complete the vitellogenesis and are not able to mature under the effect of progesterone resulted in the disintegration of the germinal vesicle membrane in the oocytes of all sizes under study. In X. laevis the ability to mature under the effect of progesterone appears in the oocytes with the diameter over 1.1 mm. Cycloheximide inhibits the germinal vesicle membrane disintegration in the X. laevis oocytes, but not in those of A. stellatus. Cycloheximide inhibits the pseudogastrulation which was observed in the X. laevis oocytes with the diameter from 0.8 to 1.4 mm.


[Invariance of asymmetric cleavage during structural changes in Pulmonata zygotes].

The zygotes of Lymnaea stagnalis L. were centrifuged and, as a result, normal and small size zygotes were obtained. The small zygotes either contained the major part of heavy yolk granules and were characterized by complete cortical polarity, or were devoid of heavy yolk and significant part of vegetal cortex. Following the trypsinization of zygotes, the reciprocal rotation of sister blastomers around the spindle axis was observed during the first cleavage division. The direction of rotation did not depend on zygote size, cytoplasm and cortex composition, or the direction of cleavage furrow with respect to the axis of stratification of the zygote content and was always dexiotropic (as in the control zygotes). The dexiotropic rotations of blastomeres were also observed during the division of the trypsinized zygotes with the tripolar mitotic apparatus. The data obtained are considered in favour of the hypothesis of spiral contractile ring which accounts for hereditary dissymmetry of early cleavage in mollusces.


Goldenhar's syndrome, oculo-auricular malformation, in a Bantu girl.

The first case of Goldenhar's syndrome, oculo-auricular dysplasia, found in Bantu, is described. Besides the usual eye and ear manifestations a facial paresis at both sides was found. There were no signs of vertebral anomalies on X-rays. The use of a hearing aid showed that the apparent mental retardation was of a secondary nature, due to the hearing loss. The mother had not been ill in the first trimester of pregnancy and had not used any medicine.


Viral lesions of the respiratory tract compared to iatrogenic trauma.

A comparison between the mucosal pathology of the respiratory tract in cases of viral infections and of iatrogenic trauma after bronchoscopy and tantalum bronchography indicates that the respiratory mucosa has a very high degree of resistance against infection after trauma and is capable of rapid regeneration as long as the production of mucus continues and the surface remains moist. Viral infection might primarily inhibit mucus production and open the road to secondary infection.


Cluster formation in human nasal polyps. A light- and electron-microscopic investigation.

There is evidence from many functional studies, that lymphocytes and macrophages can cooperate during the immune response. In human nasal polyps, cell clusters were demonstrated which consisted mainly of macrophages and lymphoid cells. Within the clusters, the cells showed intimate physical contacts which were performed by microvilli of varying lenth suggesting cellular cooperation. These cell clusters resemble morphologically those found in vitro and in vivo in the course of immunisation processes.


The effect of an expectorant on the tracheal mucosa. A scanning-electron microscopic study.

The effect of an intravenous expectorant agent, i.e. Bisolvon, on the secretory activity of the tracheal mucosa of the dog was studied with the scanning electron microscope. A marked increase in the production of tracheal secretion was observed 15 and 30 min following the injection. Both the goblet cells in the epithelium and the seromucinous glands in the tunica propria contributed to the formation of the secretion. 60 min after the injection, the submucosal glands were shrunken or empty. The rapid secretory response to the expectorant, Bisolvon, confirmed the active and important role of the tracheal mucociliary clearance mechanism for the protection of the lower respiratory tract.


Influence on flow resistance in translaryngeal tubes and tracheostomy tubes by bronchofiberscope.

The use of flexible bronchofiberscopy through endotracheal tubes is limited by the respiratory obstruction it causes in the tube. In the present investigation, airflow resistance was determined in translaryngeal and tracheostomy tubes with and without a flexible bronchofiberscope with an outer diameter of 5.4 mm. In tubes with a bore diameter exceeding 8.0 mm, the resistance increase by the bronchofiberscope was found to be so small, that endoscopy could be carried out with any precautions in most cases. In tubes with a bore diameter less than 8.0 mm, the bronchofiberscope caused high resistance to flow. Measures that reduce the risks of bronchofiberscopy at increased flow resistance are discussed.


Tubal function in chronic secretory otitis media in children.

In 100 children (150 ears) with chronic secretory otitis media the function of the Eustachian tube during treatment with grommet was investigated by air equalisation methods. Tubal function proved poor in the great majority at the beginning of the treatment, but towards its completion there was some improvement. After extrusion of the grommet, tubal function was investigated on the same material by tympanometry. 34% had normal middle-ear pressure initially, and 43% 12-18 months after closure of the perforation. There was no relation between tubal function shown by air equalisation methods and by tympanometry, and the air equalisation methods proved of less value than tympanometry in assessing the course and prognosis of secretory otitis. The pathogenetic theories - the ex vacuo and the secretory theory - are discussed in relation to the chronic tubal dysfunction found to be the most common direct cause of the disease.


Stapedectomy and fatal meningitis. A human temporal bone study.

Temporal bone histopathology is reported on a case of acute suppurative otitis media, acute suppurative labyrinthitis, and meningitis with death of the patient 20 days after stapes surgery. Purulent exudate invaded the vestibule by the oval window through a displaced footplate. The main pathway of infection to the menings was extension along the branches of the vesticular nerve to the internal auditory meatus and to the subarachnoid space.


Epidemiological aspects of melanoma: a review.

The principal factors in the incidence of melanoma are racial susceptibility, skin pigmentation and latitude of domicile. Celts, Norwegians and Swedes all have higher incidences of melanoma than people of similar skin colour living in the same latitude. Skin pigment protects but the pigmented races have higher incidences of melanoma in the less pigmented regions such as the sole of the foot and the various squamous mucosae. There is a direct relationship with latitude of residence and its duration, melanoma incidence being higher with proximity to the equator. Apart from these racial and environmental factors, there seem also to be endogenous factors responsible for familial melanoma and for the development of melanoma in young persons. Multiplicity of primary growths is a feature in familial cases.


Recent advances in clinical immunology.

In this brief presentation I have attempted to summarize some of the major advances in basic and clinical immunology which have had an impact on clinical medicine. These have ranged from the prevention of Rh hemolytic disease to the discovery of secretory IgA and IgE and the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) in man to the recent knowledge of specialization, differentiation and regulation of lymphocyte populations and their application in immunotherapy of malignant disease. Further investigation in immunology should provide exciting prospects to find the solutions to diseases which heretofore had been diagnostic and therapeutic orphans.


Effect of cow's milk on the gastrointestinal tract: a persistent dilemma for the pediatrician.

The confusing area of cow's milk intolerance is explored in an attempt to define the various mechanisms whereby milk affects gastrointestinal function, resulting in clinical symptoms (diarrhea, vomiting, gastrointestinal bleeding, etc.). The adverse reaction of infants to cow's milk ingestion may relate to lactose intolerance (enzymatic), a direct toxic reaction to the mucosal surface resulting in epithelial damage, or it may be immunologically mediated. Factors such as increased intestinal permeability to milk proteins during the newborn period may also contribute to susceptibility of young infants to milk sensitivity. The relative roles of systemic (milk agglutinins) and local immunity (SIgA antibodies) in milk intolerance are discussed and differential immunologic responses (IgE versus IgA/IgM) considered in the pathogenesis. It was concluded that new techniques such as organ culture of intestinal biopsy specimens are needed to establish the diagnosis of hypersensitivity and to begin to provide ways of adequately treating the condition.


[Structure of ova and larvae of Diplozoon megan (Monogenoidea: Diplozoidae)].

Data are given on the structure of eggs and larvae of Diplozoon megan from the gills of the ide. The occurrence of local stock of these fishes in the Kurish Gulf is suggested.


An inexpensive unit for demonstrations of the phi and autokinetic phenomena.

This paper describes a small apparatus for demonstrating the phi phenomenon and the autokinetic effect and provides circuit diagrams whereby the apparatus may be constructed.


Infectious causes of infertility/abortion of cattle in Malawi.

A survey to demonstrate the presence or absence in Malawi of Vibriosis, Brucellosis, Trichomoniasis and Rift Valley Fever was carried out during 1974-1976. 4,876 serum samples were collected from Zebu cattle from 231 dip tanks throughout the country and 145 serum samples were taken from exotic cattle at 14 estates. Sheath washings were collected from 295 bulls representing indigenous Zebus and 54 bulls representing exotic cattle from all parts of Malawi. 245 vaginal mucus samples were taken from exotic breeds and 106 from Malawi Zebus. Vibriosis was found in 34 indigenous bulls and in 6 exotic bulls, 11,5 pct. and 11.1 pct. respectively. 33 vaginal mucus samples from exotic cattle of 13.4 of the samples examined were positive, corresponding to 53.8 pct. of the herds examined. From Malawi Zebus 16 vaginal samples or 15.1 pct. of the samples examined were positive. 5 of the Malawi Zebus tested for Brucellosis using S.A.T. contained a minimum of 100 IU/ml.


A nucleosome-like structure containing DNA and the arginine-rich histones H3 and H4.

The low-angle X-ray diffraction pattern from fibres of reconstituted H3/H4/DNA complexes is very similar to that of chromatin and has well defined maxima at 10.6, 5.4, 3.4 and 2.6 nm. Staphyloccal nuclease digestion of reconstituted H3/H4/DNA yields DNA fragments of length 49, 69, 100, 128, 193 and 255 b.p. as principal components. Comparison of the relative amounts of DNA fragments shows that the larger components (100 and 128 b.p.) increase with respect to the smaller (49 and 69 b.p.) as the histone to DNA ratio increases. A structural unit containing intergral of 65 b.p. of DNA and tetrameric (H3/H4)2 is proposed such that longer DNA fragments result from multiples of this unit. The principal nucleo-protein particle resulting from nuclease digestion contains 128/139 b.p. of DNA and has electrophoretic mobility very close to that of 'core' nucleosome. It probably represents a dimer of the basic structural unit.


Specific interactions of distamycin A and its analogs with (A-T) rich and (G-C) rich duplex regions of DNA and deoxypolynucleotides.

The specific interaction of distamycin A and analogs with DNA's and synthetic deoxypolynucleotide duplexes were studied in detail by means of circular dichroism and the data were analyzed together with viscosity results of several natural DNA's. At low ligand to nucleotide ratio the previously reported specific binding to (A-T) pairs of DNA is verified by a highly favoured interaction with (A-T)-enriched segments of distamycins containing four and five methylpyrrole carboxamide units. At higher distamycin concentration a second specific binding to (G-C) pairs most probably through hydrogen bonding is established. Viscometric results suggest a distamycin-induced local bending of the helix and could support the idea of a preferential alignment of the ligand molecule along only one strand in the groove which differs from the netropsin interaction mechanism. The possibility of an overlapping binding of the oligopeptides in the small groove is discussed.


Antibodies specific to two deoxyribotrinucleotide sequences.

Antibodies to the deoxyribotrinucleotides dpApTpA and dpApApT were prepared by injecting the bovine serum albumin conjugates of the respective haptens in rabbits. The specificities of the antibodies were determined by estimating the inhibition of the binding of the tritiated haptens to the immunoglobulins by various nonradioactive mono- and oligonucleotides, using nitrocellulose membrane binding assay. Anti-dpApTpA and anti-dpApApT antisera were found to contain antibodies which were highly specific to the respective hapten sequence.


Preferential binding of S-phase proteins to temporally-characteristic units of replication in Physarum polycephalum.

Synchronous plasmodia of Physarum polycephalum were pulse-labeled with 3H-thymidine in early or late portions of the S-phase, and the binding capacity of the replicated DNA for isochronous S-phase plasmodial proteins assessed by nitrocellulose filter binding assay. Replication units replicating during the first one-third of the S-phase preferentially bind cytosol proteins present in plasmodia engaged in early S DNA replication, while late S replicating DNA exhibits a corresponding preferential binding of plasmodial proteins present only in late S plasmodia. Temporally-characteristic nascent replication units were isolated by Hydroxylapatite column chromatography and were found to contain binding sites for isochronous proteins.


The structure of the chromatin core particle in solution.

The shape and size of the nucleosomal core particle from chromatin has been examined by analysis of neutron and X-ray scattering data from dilute solutions. Calculations of scattering for many different models have been made and only one model was able to account for both the X-ray and neutron profiles. This model is an oblate structure with height about 50A and diameter 110A. The DNA is mainly confined to two annuli located at the top and bottom respectively of the core particle positioned on the outside of a compact protein core which has a height of about 40A and diameter about 73A.


Similarity of satilite DNA properties in the order Rodentia.

We have characterized satellite DNAs from 9 species of kangaroo rat (Dipodomys) and have shown that the HS-alpha and HS-beta satellites, where present, are nearly identical in all species as to melting transition midpoint (Tm), and density in neutral CsCl, alkaline CsCl, and Cs(2)SO(4)-Ag(+) gradients. However, the MS satellites exist in two internally similar classes. The satellite DNAs from three other rodents were characterized (densities listed are in neutral CsCl). The pocket gopher, Thomomysbottae, contains Th-alpha (1.713 g/ml) and Th-beta (1.703 g/ml). The guinea pig (Caviaporcellus) contains Ca-alpha, Ca-beta and Ca-gamma at densities of 1.706 g/ml, 1.704 g/ml and 1.704 g/ml, respectively. The antelope ground squirrel (Ammospermophilusharrisi) contains Am-alpha, 1.708 g/ml, Am-beta, 1.717 g/ml, and Am-gamma, 1.707 g/ml. The physical and chemical properties of the alpha-satellites from the above four rodents representing four different families in two suborders of Rodentia were compared. They show nearly identical Tm, nucleoside composition of single strands, and single strand densities in alkaline CsCl. Similar comparisons on the second or third satellite DNAs from these rodents also indicate a close relationship to each other. Thus the high degree of similarity of satellite sequences found in such a diverse group of rodents suggests a cellular function that is subject to natural selection, and implies that these sequences have been conserved over a considerable span of evolutionary time since the divergence of these rodents about 50 million years ago.


[Dynamics of free, total and antibody-bound insulin in diabetes mellitus patients in the process of treatment with swine insulin].

Active free, total and antibody-bound insulin was studied in patients with diabetes mellitus treated with swine and bovine insulin. A tendency to increase in the blood serum of active free insulin was noted in the patients given swine insulin. Free insulin decreased in the patients treated with bovine insulin preparations, or its amount remained unchanged. No regular changes in the antibody-bound insulin were noted.


[Cortisol 6beta-hydroxylation pathway in the early neonatal period].

The method of thin-layer chromatography was applied to the study of renal excretion of 6beta-hydroxycortisol in 56 healthy neonates whose mothers were sufferin from late toxemia and in  9 women with 39-40 weeks of gestation. The proportional of 6beta-hydroxycortisol in the sum total of cortisol metabolites excreted in neonates the first week after birth was found to constitute 23.5-26.9%. However, as in adults the predominant route of cortisol metabolism was formation of tetrahydroderivatives whose proportion in the sum total of the excreted compounds constituted 47.7-55.0%. A high 6beta-hydroxycortisol excretion level was noted at the end of pregnancy. Equal amounts of 6beta-hydroxycortisol were excreted in healthy neonates and in children whose mothers were suffering from late toxemia of pregnancy. 6beta-hydroxycortisol formation is the usual independent route of cortisol metabolism in neonates the first week after birth.


Behavioral effects of low level neonatal lead exposure.

Rats exposed to lead via maternal milk were tested at various stages of development on a number of behavioral tasks. Beginning at paturition, the dams were given either tap water, 0.02%, or 0.10% lead acetate in the drinking water. Pups from all three groups were weaned to normal chow and tap water at 21 days of age. The mean lead concentration of the dam's blood and of neonatal (20 days of age) brain and blood were all below 50 microgram/100 ml. No significant differences were found between the high lead-exposed group and controls in general as measured by wheel running over a 21 day period beginning at 30 days of age. However, there was a significant difference in wheel running behavior during the first three hr of testing. Both lead-exposed groups were found to display significantly less aggressive behavior as measured by the shock-elicited aggression test. Low level lead exposure had no discernable effect on the acquisition and subsequent reversal of a successive brightness discrimination task. Lead exposure under these conditions appears to affect some aspects of emotional behavior, while having little effect on general activity or cognitive function.


Oral intake of morphine in selectively bred rats.

Oral intake of morphine was investigated in selectively bred strains of rats. It was possible to induce all the five genetic lines to consume morphine in distilled water. Withdrawal of morphine resulted in significant decrease in the body weights of all the genetic lines in both the experiments. Significant drug-preference behavior was found only in three genetic lines with a common characteristic of relatively high emotional reactivity as compared to the two lines not showing such a behavior.


[Biogenic amines in the epiphysis and hypothalamus under normal conditions and following ovariectomy].

Melatonin content in the epiphysis, serotonin, noradrenaline, dopamine-in the hypothalamus, gonadotropins--in the hypophysis of rats was studied under normal conditions and following ovariectomy; regularly of the estral cycle phases was studied as well. Two series of experiments were conducted on 120 rats with regular estral cycles. The animals were divided into groups according to the estral cycle phase. Melatonin concentration in the epiphysis, serotonin, noradrenaline, dopamine--in the hypothalamus was subject to variations coinciding with the estral cycle phases. Serotonin, noradrenaline, and dopamine content decreased in the hypophysis of ovariectomized rats in comparison with control; melatonin content rose in the epiphysis. There was no complete extinction of the estral cycle in the course of investigation (20 days). The action of castration on the sexual cycle depended on the phase at which the rats were subjected to ovariectomy. A reverse relationship existed between the melatonin content in the epiphysis and serotonin content in the hypothalamus, this serving as one of the important factors in the regulation of the sexual function.


Effect of lysine vasopressin on pentylenetetrazol-induced retrograde amnesia in rats.

Lysine vasopressin (1 microgram/rat SC) administered 1 hr prior to either the acquisition trial or 24 hr retention trial facilitated passive avoidance retention. Amnesia was produced when a single 50 mg/kg (IP) injection of pentylenetetrazol was given immediately following the passive avoidance acquisition trial. A single injection of lysine vasopressin (1 microgram/rat SC) administered 1 hr prior to either the acquisition trial or 24 hr retention trial antagonized the amnesia.


Failure of signs of physical dependence to develop in hamsters after prolonged consumption of large doses of ethanol.

Male Golden Hamsters drank large amounts of ethanol with food and water freely available, when ethanol was presented in water at concentrations of 10-40% (w/v). Although the hamsters consumed an average of 13.8 g/kg/day of ethanol for 3 months, no withdrawal signs were observed during 4 days without ethanol, nor were withdrawal signs observed during withdrawal after 4 more months of ethanol consumption. Although the Golden Hamster consumes large amounts of ethanol without the need for food or water deprivation, the Golden Hamsters may have limited usefulness as a model of physical dependence.


Antagonism of behavioral effects of cocaine by lithium.

Ten rats, serving as their own controls, were tested for hyperactivity (HyA) (by number of turns of an activity wheel cage) and stereotyped behavior (SB). The animals were given one week each of acclimation to the cages, saline, cocaine (19 mg/kg in 1 cc/kg saline), rest, two weeks on LiCl, and a week on LiCl plus the same dose of cocaine. LiCl produced a nonsignificant decrease of HyA and significantly decreased cocaine SB. The same procedure was duplicated using two different doses of cocaine in five animals each with identical results. The author concludes that Li seems to inhibit cocaine effects in animals and suggests a potential area of research for the use of Li in humans.


Opposed effects of locus coeruleus and substantia nigra lesions on  social behavior in rat colonies.

Rats were observed in enriched colony environments following radio-frequency lesions of the locus coeruleus (LC), zona compacta of substantia nigra (SN, or control operations. LC-lesioned animals were initially inactive, stayed in the burrows, and fell when climbing ropes and ramps. SN-lesioned rats were opposite to LC animals in many ways. They were hyperactive, had minimal motor disturbances, and were hyperaggressive. SN animals self-isolated and were not social-groomers, whereas LC rats socially-groomed and mounted other animals more than controls. These results provide evidence that the dopaminergic nigrostriatal pathway and the noradrenergic fibers innervating the cerebral cortex and limbic forebrain exert opposed effects upon behavior.


Proton NMR relaxation times in the peripheral blood of cancer patients.

The proton spin lattice relaxation time (T1) of serum and leucocytes of cancer patients and normal volunteers was measured using pulsed NMR techniques. There was no statistically significant difference in the serum T1 values of cancer patients relative to normal. An increase in T1 relative to normal values was detected in the white blood cells of patients with active leukaemia. In these patients T1 fell to normal levels after the initiation of treatment. The variation of leucocyte T1 with the course of the disease for five patients having leukaemia is presented.


Significance of androgen levels in the aetiology and treatment of homosexuality.

Serum total androgens were estimated by radioimmunoassay on blood samples of treatment-seeking homosexuals and heterosexual controls. There was no significant difference in androgen levels between the homosexual and control group, nor was there any relationship between androgen levels and response to treatment. These results suggest that androgen levels have no aetiological significance in treatment-seeking homosexuals and have no relevance as indicators of treatment outcome.


Failure of exogenous LH to prevent PGF2alpha-induced luteolysis in beef cows.

Henderson and McNatty (Prostaglandins 9:779, 1975) proposed that LH from the preovulatory LH surge attached to receptors on luteal cells and that this attachment might protect the early corpus luteum from PGF2alpha induced luteolysis. To test this hypothesis, experiments were performed on heifers at day 10-12 of the cycle. Both jugular veins were catheterized and infusions of either saline (0.64 ml/min) or LH-NIH-B9 (10 microgram/min; 0.64 ml/min) were given. Saline infusions were from 0-12 h; LH infusions were for 10 h and were preceded by a 2 h saline infusion. All animals were given 25 mg PGF2alpha im at 6 h (6 h into the saline infusion and 4 h into the LH infusion). Blood samples were taken at 0.5 h, 1 h and 4 h intervals from 0-12h, 13-18 h and 12-42 h respectively. Serum was assayed for LH and progesterone by radioimmunoassay methods. Two animals received saline and two received LH in each experiment. Each treatment was replicated 6 times. LH infusion resulted in a mean serum LH of 75 ng/ml compared to 0.90 ng/ml in saline infused animals. This elevation of LH did not alter PGF2alpha induced luteolysis as indicated by decline in serum progesterone. This experiment does not support the hypothesis that the newly formed corpus luteum is resistant to PGF2alpha because of protection afforded by the proestrus LH surge.


On the analysis of platelet survival curves and the calculation of platelet production and destruction.

Platelet survival, platelet production and megakaryocyte quantifications were studied in control subjects and in patients with idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) and primary thrombocythaemia (PT). A platelet death probability function (DPF), which gives the expected probability of a randomly chosen platelet to be destroyed within the nextcoming short time interval, was constructed on the basis of the present knowledge of platelet function and the factors that influence its survival. Starting from this function platelet age and life span distributions and the function for the survival curve were derived. Platelet mean life span (MLS) was in controls 6.9d, in PT 5.2Dd and in ITP 0.44d. Determinations of platelet life span and platelet age distributions revealed a considerable variation in platelet life spans about these means and a great difference in platelet age compositions between the 3 groups of subjects studied. The function for the platelet survival curve, derived from the DPF, was employed in the calculation of platelet production and there was a highly significant relationship between platelet production and megakaryocyte volume per microliter bone marrow giving mutual confirmation to the 2 determinations and to the correctness of the death probability function.


College women's attitudes and expectations concerning menstrual-related changes.

The present study examined college women's expectations, attitudes, and knowledge about menstrual-related changes in order to provide a more complete picture of how women perceive the experience of menstruation and to explore the interrelationships of these variables. The women responded to the Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire as if they were premenstrual and as if they were intermenstrual in order to examine expectations about symptom changes for themselves. They also responded to a series of agree/disagree items, which yielded five dimensions of attitudes or styles of coping with menstruation. In general, the results suggested that these college women accepted menstruation rather routinely and did not perceive it as overly disruptive. Furthermore, it appears that beliefs about menstruation are more complex than previously thought, involving differential perceptions of physical versus psychological symptoms and a variety of dimensions of menstrual-related attitudes.


[Scocial deviance and drug consumption (author's transl)].

On the basis of epidemiological and psychometric studies we have persued the question how social deviation and drug-consumption could cohere. According to our research the danger of a social deviation (drop out) is the greater the earlier the juveniles begin to take drugs, the more deranged are their original surroundings and the further advanced towards polytoxicomania is their drug abuse. The frequency of drug-consumption corresponds with the number of personal (especially interpersonal) conflicts. In an examination of 4082 20-year-old Swiss men (recruits) 80.2% of the drug-users admitted to have personal difficulties compared to 48.1% of those who take no drgus. 61.2% of the drug-consumers complained about psychic and somatic ailments compared to 33.8% of the drug-abstainers. Youngest and single children consumed drugs significantly more often than elder and eldest brothers and sisters (p less than 0.01). Socio- and psychodynamic backgrounds of the social deviation of drug-consumers are discussed.


[Child as a victim of abuse and negligence. Plea for a pluridisciplinary approach and for public education].

The phenomenon of child abuse and neglect is universal and involves all population groups or classes. It is more the expression of a socio-affective deficiency than of economic poverty. Cultural factors are more important in its pathogenesis than traditional alienating factors such as schizophrenia and alcoholism. The victims are pre-school children and infants. The most common lesions are multiple hematomas, sometimes associated with fractures and epiphyseal wrenching. Subdural hematomas and bursting of abdominal viscera represent acute threats to the child's life. Risk factors are now better known and alarm signals of predictive value can be identified, which allow preventive steps to be taken. These alarm signals are to be observed during pregnancy, during delivery and in the neonatal period. They emanate from the mother but also from the married couple as a functional unit. After the fact, intervention in the form of control is only effective by the fear it produces. It is not therapeutic, because denial and lack of motivation for psychotherapy are prevalent. Effective therapy can only be prophylactic; hence the importance of identifying the risk. Primary prevention in the authors' opinion, must begin with adolescents, who must be informed and educated while still at school and before they are faced with the problems leading to this interpersonal disorder.


Nutritional outputs and energy inputs in seafoods.

Energy used by U.S. ships in harvesting seafoods can vary by a factor of more than 100 when the seafoods are compared on the basis of their content of edible protein or line weight. This energy difference bears no relationship to the nutritive value in the food. When protein yield is compared, the energy to harvest some seafoods is in the same range as that needed to grow field crops. There is a large increase in energy consumption after processing, partly because of the small percent of the live weight used for human food.


Beef production options and requirements for fossil fuel.

A large percentage of the feed resources used in beef production cannot be used by man or most other animals. These noncompetitive feeds could be used in different ways to increase beef production, but fossil fuel consumption by the beef industry would not be greatly reduced.


Diazepam maintenance of alcohol preference during alcohol withdrawal.

After forced intragastric intubation of alcohol, rats will show a greatly increased tendency to self-administer alcohol in a free-choice situation. Diazepam (Valium) dosage (5 milligrams per kilogram of body weight) during the period ow withdrawal serves to maintain undiminished such alcohol self-administration. Without such diazepam dosage the tendency to self-administer alcohol returns to control levels.


Hyperalgesia induced by naloxone follows diurnal rhythm in responsivity to painful stimuli.

A diurnal rhythm was observed in the responsiveness of mice to nociceptive stimuli and in the hyperalgesic activity of endogenous opioid peptides and may partly account for previous controversy over the direct action of naloxone in opiate-naive animals.


Splenoportography--a valuable diagnostic technic, revisited.

The value of splenoportography in evaluating patients with portal hypertension was assessed. The technic was found to be useful in estimating portal-venous pressure, ruling out portal vein thrombosis, evaluating the superior mesenteric and portal veins as to their suitability for shunt procedures, and defining anatomy and collateral pathways. Splenoportography is a relatively simple procedure which provides excellent visualization of the portal venous system. Other methods may require special expertise and may not yield sufficient diagnostic information.


The use of nutritional tests for the differentiation of dermatophytes.

One hundred and forty-seven isolates distributed among 22 species of dermatophytes were tested for ability to assimilate 23 carbon sources and 4 nitrogen sources, and to hydrolyse casein, tyrosine, gelatine, starch and urea. Differences were found among species in the rate of growth on 11 of the carbon sources, 2 of the nitrogen sources and the time taken to hydrolyse urea. Based on these findings, a practical scheme allowing differentiation of the 22 species investigated is presented. Since the differences in assimilation pattern did not correlate with morphological divisions, this scheme may prove useful in situations where conventional morphological techniques fail to provide an adequate identification of an unknown isolate.


[Sterilization of plastic culture boxes by formaldehyde vapour (author's transl)].

Various experiments showed that plastic culture boxes may be sterilized by formaldehyde vapour in an exsiccator. Detectable quanties of formaldehyde were no longer found to be present when the dishes had been stored at room temperature for 24 hours after sterilization. A striking fature in these experiments consisted in the fact that colonies failed to grow on those agar plates, the surfaces of which had been in contact with formaldehyde vapour. The dishes used should be meticulously cleaned as studies showed that complete sterilization was not achieved when bacteria were present in or on agar. When Petri dishes cleansed in alcohol and then sterilized were used in assessing aerobic bacterial counts in minced meat by the mixed plate technique, significantly higher average numbers of colonies were recorded than was the case when commercially available sterilized Petri dishes were used. When the streak plate method was adopted, however, no significant differences were observed. When all the required manoeuvres are performed with meticulous care, the method is a practicable one ensuring that plastic culture boxes may be used again several times.


Analysis of tissue progesterone residues by gas chromatography - mass spectral and radioimmunological detection methods.

Methods for the extraction, isolation and analysis of tissue concentrations of progesterone suitable for studying residue levels from livestock treated with this steroid for the control and synchronization of estrus are presented. The system employs biphasic partitioning for the extraction and silica gel chromatography for the isolation and demonstrates 80 to 90% recovery of 14C-labeled progesterone added as an internal standard. Residue analysis of fat, kidney, liver and muscle tissue samples from ovariectomized non-treated and progesterone treated ewes are compared employing a competitive inhibition radioimmunoassay system which appears to be less specific for progesterone than the gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method employing selective ion monitoring detection.


Carcinoma of the oesophagus in the Sudan.

The histopathological reports of 135 specimens of carcinoma of the oesophagus received in the Central Research Laboratory in Khartoum during the period 1965 to 1974 and the clinical data of 14 cases treated at the University Department of Surgery in the period 1970 to 1974 are analysed. The incidence in the Sudan is 1.4% of all malignant tumours. The disease affected both sexes equally; is most common at the age of 50-69 and is commoner in patients from the North. Of the different aetiological factors mentioned in the literature the habit of placing tobacco under the tongue or in the labiodental groove seems to be associated with a high incidence of oral cancer and possibly also of oesophageal cancer in much the same way as in Russia. The low resectability rate of 16.3% is due to the high surgical risk of the patients and the lack of supportive measures. Radiotherapy and palliation by indwelling tubes are commonly used with the objective of enabling the patient to swallow.


The effect of natural exposure to Anaplasma and Babesia infections on native calves in an endemic area of Colombia.

The age at which native calves first became infected with Anaplasma marginale and Babesia bigemina and the effect of the infections as characterised by anaemia was determined by the biweekly examination of newly born calves on four ranches located in an endemic area of anaplasmosis and babesiosis on the north coast of Colombia. All of the calves examined became infected with A. marginale at 4-24 weeks of age and with B. bigemina at 2-34 weeks of age. The mean age at first infection with both haemoparasites was 11 weeks. A  significant decrease occurred in the mean packed cell volumes of the calves following infection. However, the packed cell volumes returned to preinfection levels with 4 weeks following infection and most calves recovered from their first natural infections without apparent serious consequences. The mild clinical response and rapid recovery indicated that the protection of native calves through immunisation or other procedures prior to natural exposure would be of questionable value.


The planning and construction of veterinary investigation laboratories in tropical and sub-tropical countries. IV. Ancillary buildings and carcass disposal.

Suggestions are made for the siting and construction of a post mortem unit, animal accommodation and other ancillary buildings for veterinary investigation laboratories in tropical and sub-tropical countries. The disposal of carcasses and other waste is also considered.


[Relationship between environmental pollution and genetic monitoring of human populations].

The basis of genetic monitoring is the knowledge of laws of the spontaneous mutation process. These laws are determined for human chromosome and genome mutations by cytogenetic examination of newborns, infants with congenital defects, and the material of spontaneous abortions. Confidence intervals and all the necessary sample sizes were calculated when registering the mutagenic effects of different intensity in the general population as well as to the groups of closer contact with mutagens. Such calculations were made for controlling the spontaneous mutation process in lymphocytes of human peripheral blood on the basis of registering chromosome aberrations.


A new technique for simultaneous urethrocystometry including measurements of the urethral pressure profile.

A new standardized technique for continuous recording of the urethral pressure profile simultaneously with intravesical pressure has been developed. The pressure are recorded using two microtransducers enclosed in a thin Dacron catheter. The catheter is moved at a constant speed through the urethra with the aid of a specially designed withdrawal instrument. Using electronic subtraction the closure pressure can easily be measured simultaneously with the intravesical and intraurethral pressure. About 900 investigations have been performed with this technique. It has been testified that very detailed information about normal micturition as well as stress and urgency incontinence can be obtained. The functional as well as the absolute length of the urethra can be estimated within half a millimeter.


Treatment of stress incontinence with estrogen in postmenopausal women.

41 female patients with a stress incontinence of grade II or III were treated with 2 mg estriol daily over a period of 2-4 months. The function of the bladder was objectively evaluated by urethrocystotonometry. A significant rise of the urethral pressure profile could be demonstrated in 95% (39/41) of patients. An improvement of the stress incontinence by one clinical grade could be shown, but in no case a completely continent bladder sphincter.


Diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of urge urinary incontinence in women.

Under standardized conditions, simultaneous urethrocystometry and recording of urethral pressure profile were performed in 10 healthy volunteers and 20 patients suffering from urge incontinence. In the normal subjects, desire to void occurred at a bladder volume of about 300 cm3. At maximum bladder capacity (approximately 500 cm3), variations in intraurethral pressure were recorded at a time when the intravesical pressure remained stable. Immediately before voiding, there was a marked reduction in intraurethral pressure and then the intravesical pressure increased. In 10 of the patients with symptoms of urge incontinence, the findings did not differ from those in the normal subjects. In the other 10 patients, urgency was reported at bladder volumes between 125 and 150 cm3, and the maximum bladder capacity did not exceed 200 cm3. In 8 of them, marked variations in intraurethral pressure were recorded when urge was experienced, whereas the bladder pressure remained stable. In 2 of the patients, variations in intraurethral and intravesical pressure occurred simultaneously. The role of the urethra in urge incontinence is discussed.