Two color flow cytometry of lymphocytes from patients with adult T-cell leukemia

Lymphocytes from eight patients with adult T-cell leukemia were analyzed by two color flow cytometry. Monoclonal antibodies (Leu 3 a, Leu 8, Leu 2 a and Leu 15) labelled with fluorescein isothiocyanate or phycoerythrin were used. The purpose was to identify the subsets of the lymphocytes as helper, suppressor/inducer, suppressor or cytotoxic by the surface marker of the cells. All eight patients had antibodies for ATLA. Proviral DNA in the lymphocytes was found in six patients. Summarising the results, OKT4-positive ATL cells were all of the helper T-cell subset, not the inducer subset. OKT8-positive ATL cells were also positive for OKT4 and were all of the cytotoxic T cell subset, not the suppressor subset. In two patients, some ATL cells had both OKT4 and OKT8 on the same cells, especially in the lymph nodes. In our study, ATL cells from eight cases of ATL had all of the helper T subset. These results suggest that the target cells of the human T cell leukemia/lymphoma virus type will be helper T cells.     

Comparison of the autoSCAN-W/A rapid bacterial identification system and the Vitek AutoMicrobic system for identification of gram-negative bacilli

The autoSCAN-W/A (W/A; Baxter MicroScan, West Sacramento, Calif.) with the new fluorometric Rapid Neg Combo 1 (RNC) panel is a fully automated fluorometric system for identification of both enteric and nonenteric gram-negative bacilli within 2 h. We compared the W/A with the Vitek AutoMicrobic System (Vitek AMS; Vitek Systems, Inc., Hazelwood, Mo.) for identification of 383 clinical isolates of gram-negative bacilli. The API 20E (Analytab Products, Plainview, N.Y.) and conventional biochemical testing were used as the reference systems. The W/A correctly identified 336 isolates (87.7%) to the species level and classified an additional 29 isolates (7.6%) as correct with low probability (overall identification = 95.3%); the Vitek AMS correctly identified 355 isolates (92.7%) to the species level and classified an additional 8 isolates (2.1%) as correct with low probability (overall identification = 94.8%). A common set of 134 isolates of gram-negative bacilli was tested in both participating laboratories as a means of assessing interlaboratory agreement with both the W/A and the Vitek AMS. The overall agreements between the two laboratories were 86% with the W/A and 92% with the Vitek AMS. The W/A performed comparably to the Vitek AMS for identification of most gram-negative bacilli, actually exceeding the Vitek AMS for identification of nonenteric bacilli. Rapid time to identification and a high level of automation make the W/A an attractive system for clinical microbiology laboratories.     

Microscopic carcinoma of the breast--report of a case

Microscopic cancer is extremely rare even among "occult breast cancers". We treated a 70 year old woman with complaints of serosanguineous nipple discharge which yielded cytologically Class V cancer cells. Microdochectomy was performed and intraductal carcinoma was verified histologically in serially cut sections. Following a simple mastectomy, she has been well with no evidence of recurrence or metastasis, at this time.     

Indigenous Culture-as-Health: A Systematized Literature Review

Journal of Prevention - This paper has two goals regarding cultural rigor, defined as privileging cultural ways of knowing and being as a means to achieving health and well-being for future...     

一氧化氮合酶在小鼠耳蜗的表达

目的：本实验用亲合免疫组织化学技术,研究了小鼠耳蜗内nNOS与eNOS的表达。方法：4％多聚甲醛心脏灌注固定后,取耳蜗、经脱钙,作10μm厚冰冻切片,进行nNOS和eNOS免疫组织化学染色,结果：小鼠耳蜗内、外毛细胸、内外柱细胞、螺旋神经节细胞nNOS、eNOS的表达呈强阳性。血管纹的基底和中间细胞、螺旋突起、螺旋韧带细胞处有阳性nNOS、eNOS的表达,耳蜗小球的内皮细胞无nNOS与的表达,但eNOS的表达呈阳性。结论：由nNOS和eNOS合成的NO在维持耳蜗正常神经传导及耳蜗正常血液供应中起着重要作用。     

Optimum dose of epidural morphine for postsurgical analgesia

To determine the optimum dose of epidural morphine for postoperative pain control, 0.5–4.0mg of morphine was administered to 198 patients who had undergone operations on lower abdomen or lower extremities under continuous epidural anesthesia. Analgesic effect of morphine and incidence of nausea or vomiting were studied using linear discriminant analysis. As explanatory variables, age and dose of morphine were statistically significant in discriminating analgesic effect of morphine. Among indices for physique of patients, height was the most useful for predicting the analgesic effect. The dose which made the discriminant function zero corresponded to the minimum effective dose (MED) of morphine and it was expressed as follows; MED (mg·meter^–1) = –0.0107 × age + 1.85. Predicting the incidence of nausea or vomiting in relation to the dose of morphine did not reach a level of statistical significance.(Ochi G, Yamane C, Arai T: Optimum dose of epidural morphine for postsurgical analgesia. J Anesth 4: 35–39, 1990)     

A preliminary study of microcapsule suspension for hemolysis evaluation of artificial organs

A microcapsule suspension, a substitute for animal blood in hemolysis tests, has been developed for evaluation of the absolute hemolytic properties of circulatory artificial organs. The microcapsule suspension was made by dispersing microcapsule slurry into an ethylene glycol sodium chloride solution. The microcapsule slurry was composed of a leuco dye solution and polyurethane membrane made by the reaction between aliphatic poly-isocyanate and polyamine by interfacial polycondensation. The microcapsule was a small particle containing dye inside. The microcapsule suspension was white; the diameter of the microcapsules was from 5 to 100 microns. The specific gravity of the suspension was 1.024, and the membrane was elastic. The fluid showed Newtonian characteristics, different from animal blood, and its viscosity was approximately 5.8 mPa.s. After the microcapsules were destroyed, the leuco dye was extracted with n-hexane from the suspension and was measured by spectroscopy after being colored with acid ethanol. Hemolysis can be regarded as a fatigue fracture of cell membranes rather than a static fracture. The destruction of microcapsules by a Potter type tissue grinder was observed at a low stroke number region and was compared to rat blood. Moreover, hemolysis tests of a commercially available centrifugal blood pump and the prototype of our centrifugal pump for mechanism checks were carried out with bovine blood. The hemolysis level of the prototype pump increased with time while the hemolysis level of the commercial blood pump did not change as much as that of the control when both pumps were tested with the microcapsule suspension. These results are similar to tests utilizing bovine blood. Therefore, hemolysis tests of circulatory artificial organs completed with microcapsule suspension are expected to provide results similar to tests with animal blood.     

Triggers of hair cell regeneration in the avian inner ear

We performed an in vitro study in order to determine possible triggers of hair cell regeneration in the chick basilar papilla following degeneration. We compared the response of sensory epithelium damaged by collagenase treatment with that damaged by acoustic trauma. The former exhibited no proliferative activity, but the latter did. The basilar papillae damaged by acoustic trauma could have proliferating activity in medium containing fetal bovine serum (FBS) or epidermal growth factor (EGF) but not in the medium without FBS or EGF. These findings indicate that regeneration of basilar papillae depends on the manner of cell death and that FBS or EGF is required for regeneration.     

Simultaneous removal of organic matter and nitrogen compounds by partitioned aeration in a 226 L-scale microbial fuel cell

Although microbial fuel cells (MFCs) have been widely studied as wastewater treatment technologies that convert organic matter to electricity, there are few reports of large-scale MFCs that treat both organic matter and nitrogen compounds. In this study, a 226 L reactor equipped with 27 MFC units was partially aerated at 10% of its total volume. The MFC unit consists of a cylindrical air core covered with a carbon-based air cathode, an anion exchange membrane, and a graphite non-woven fabric anode. The air-cathode MFC with 13 L min⁻¹ aeration rate produced a current density of 0.0012–0.15 A m⁻² with 40 to >93% biological oxygen demand (BOD) removal to have an effluent BOD of <5–36 mg L⁻¹ at a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 12–47 h. Meanwhile, 55 ± 17% of the total nitrogen (TN) was removed, resulting in 9.7 ± 3.8 mg L⁻¹ TN in the effluent, although the TN removal was limited at ≥20 °C. The mono-exponential regression for BOD and TN (≥20 °C) estimated that an HRT of 21 h could meet the Japanese effluent quality standards of BOD and TN. Calculation of the total energy recovered via current generation and energy consumed by aeration suggested an energy consumption of 0.22 kW h m⁻³. Decreasing the aeration rate and HRT in the reactor would further reduce energy consumption and increase energy production.

Partial aeration simultaneously removed organic matters and nitrogen compounds in a 226 L reactor equipped with 27 microbial fuel cells.     

Brain G protein gamma subunits contain an all-trans-geranylgeranylcysteine methyl ester at their carboxyl termini.

We have shown previously that guanine nucleotide-binding protein (G protein) beta gamma complexes purified from bovine brain membranes are methyl esterified on a C-terminal cysteine residue of the gamma polypeptide. In the present study, 3H-methylated G beta gamma complexes cleaved to their constituent amino acids by exhaustive proteolysis were shown to contain radiolabeled material that coeluted with geranylgeranylcysteine methyl ester on reversed-phase HPLC and two TLC systems. Further treatment by performic acid oxidation yielded radiolabeled material that coeluted with L-cysteic acid methyl ester, verifying that the prenyl modification occurs on a C-terminal cysteine residue. Analysis by gas chromatography-coupled mass spectrometry of material released from purified G beta gamma by treatment with Raney nickel positively identified the covalently bound lipid as an all-trans-geranylgeranyl (C20) isoprenoid moiety. To delineate the distribution of this modification among gamma subunits, purified G beta gamma complexes were separated into 5-kDa (gamma 5) and 6-kDa (gamma 6) forms of the gamma polypeptide by reversed-phase HPLC. Gas chromatography-coupled mass spectrometry analyses of Raney nickel-treated purified gamma 5 and gamma 6 subunits showed that both polypeptides were modified by geranylgeranylation. These results demonstrate that at least two forms of brain gamma subunit are posttranslationally modified by geranylgeranylation and carboxyl methylation. These modifications may be important for targeting G beta gamma complexes to membranes.