Immunological characterization of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfotransferase from human liver and adrenal.

Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfotransferase (DHEA-ST), a steroid sulfotransferase (ST), has recently been purified from human liver cytosol and partially characterized. DHEA-ST has a subunit molecular mass of 35 kDa and is responsible for the majority of the sulfation of steroids and bile acids in the liver. For these studies, polyclonal antibodies to human liver DHEA-ST were raised in rabbits. The anti-human liver DHEA-ST antibodies were used to characterize the immunoreactivity of DHEA-ST in human liver and to study the relationship of human adrenal DHEA-ST to the liver form of the enzyme. Immunoblot analysis of several different human liver cytosol samples with the rabbit anti-human liver DHEA-ST antiserum detected only a single 35-kDa protein in each liver. Anti-human liver DHEA-ST antibodies also did not react with either form of phenol sulfotransferase (PST), P-PST or M-PST, present in human liver cytosol. DHEA-ST activity was purified from the 100,000 x g supernatant fraction of human adrenal tissue by DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B chromatography and 3',5'-diphosphoadenosine-agarose affinity chromatography. Human adrenal DHEA-ST was shown to have a molecular mass of 35 kDa, by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Immunoblot analysis of human adrenal cytosol revealed that the anti-human liver DHEA-ST antibodies reacted specifically with the 35-kDa subunit of DHEA-ST. The apparent Km values for DHEA and 3'-phosphodenosine-5'-phosphosulfate obtained with human adrenal DHEA-ST were 1.0 microM and 1.6 microM, respectively. Adrenal DHEA-ST demonstrated the same pattern of reactivity towards different steroid substrates as did human liver DHEA-ST, and neither form of DHEA-ST was found to sulfate cortisol. The results of this study suggest that DHEA-ST is the major steroid ST present in human liver and adrenal tissue and that the physical, biochemical, and kinetic properties of adrenal DHEA-ST are similar if not identical to those of the liver form of the enzyme.     

Escape responses following elimination of the giant interneuron pathway in the cockroach, Periplaneta americana

The entire set of giant interneurons (GIs) in the nerve cord of the cockroach, Periplaneta americana, was ablated using either electrolytic or surgical techniques. All animals with these lesions were capable of turning and running away from standard wind puffs. However, all animals responded much less frequently to standard wind stimuli following lesion, and the latency of their responses was significantly increased. These results are discussed in terms of a GI role in extremely short latency escape responses, and the idea that non-GI pathways, perhaps associated with head sensory structures, need to be considered in the normal control of escape in the cockroach.     

Evaluating clinical educators: an employer's perspective

An Australian school of nursing's attempt to introduce an evaluation process required by management for clinical educators involved in undergraduate preregistration education is discussed Reliance on student feedback and clinical agencies' perceptions of the quality of teaching were seen as inadequate mechanisms for evaluation The evaluation process adopted incorporated observation of the educators together with self-reflection on their performance We conclude that post-briefings were poorly used and generally not reflective Educators relied heavily on their clinical skills and used a limited range of teaching strategies Whilst evaluation of clinical educators was time consuming and therefore costly, it is argued that it is essential to the integrity of the course The evaluation process has provided direction for support and development of clinical educators within the context of the curriculum     

The implications of Project 2000 and the formation of links with higher education for the professional and academic needs of nurse teachers in the United Kingdom

A national study was conducted between 1991 and 1994 to explore and describe the changing role of the nurse teacher following the introduction of Project 2000 pre-registration nursing courses. Multiple methods were used to collect data from a wide variety of respondents (nurse teachers, midwife teachers, clinical nurses, health service managers and higher education lecturers). This paper presents the findings relating to the impact of Project 2000 and the move into higher education on the continuing educational needs of nurse teachers. Views on college strategies for staff development, the changing nature of teachers'academic and professional development needs and the problems of the conflicting demands experienced are reported. The research highlights the need for clinical credibility to be clearly defined in relation to nurse teachers and for educational institutions to place more emphasis on teachers'clinical development if the rhetoric of policy is to become a reality.     

Effects of long working hours and the night shift on severe sleepiness among workers with 12‐hour shift systems for 5 to 7 consecutive days in the automobile factories of Korea

We investigated the effects of 12‐hour shift work for five to seven consecutive days and overtime on the prevalence of severe sleepiness in the automobile industry in Korea. [Correction added after online publication 28 Nov: Opening sentence of the summary has been rephrased for better clarity.] A total of 288 randomly selected male workers from two automobile factories were selected and investigated using questionnaires and sleep‐wake diaries in South Korea. The prevalence of severe sleepiness at work [i.e. Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS) score of 7 or higher] was modeled using marginal logistic regression and included theoretical risk factors related to working hours and potential confounding factors related to socio‐economic status, work demands, and health behaviors. Factors related to working hours increased the risk for severe sleepiness at the end of the shift in the following order: the night shift [odds ratio (OR): 4.7; 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.6–6.0)], daily overtime (OR: 2.2; 95% CI: 1.7–2.9), weekly overtime (OR: 1.6; 95% CI: 1.0–2.6), and night overtime (OR: 1.6; 95% CI: 0.8–3.0). Long working hours and shift work had a significant interactive effect for severe sleepiness at work. Night shift workers who worked for 12 h or more a day were exposed to a risk of severe sleepiness that was 7.5 times greater than day shift workers who worked less than 11 h. Night shifts and long working hours were the main risk factors for severe sleepiness among automobile factory workers in Korea. Night shifts and long working hours have a high degree of interactive effects resulting in severe sleepiness at work, which highlight the need for immediate measures to address these characteristics among South Korean labor force patterns.     

An unusual clinical presentation of bilateral schizencephaly

Summary We present a case with a characteristic magnetic resonance image (MRI) of bilateral open-lipped schizencephaly and atypical clinical presentation. The patient is still alive and in good health in her forties, she has never presented seizures, and although the motor dysfunction is well correlated with cerebral lobe involvement, neurobehavioral dysfunction is not proportional to the MR image of the cerebral malformation.

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Un cas inhabituel de schizencéphalie bilatérale

Résumé Nous présentons un cas de schizencéphalie bilatérale ouverte caractérisé par une présentation clinique atypique et une imagerie par résonance magnétique nucléaire caractéristique. La patiente est encore vivante, en bonne santé, à plus de 40 ans, elle n'a jamais présenté de crise comitiale et, bien que les troubles moteurs soient bien corrélés aux altérations cérébrales, les troubles neuro-comportementaux ne sont pas proportionnels aux images IRM de cette malformation cérébrale.