Intracellular and intercellular potentials in the early amphibian embryo

1. Membrane constants of the closer muscle of the ghost crab, Ocypoda cursor, were determined before and after treatment in hypertonic glycerol solution and return to an artificial sea-water (A.S.W.) solution.2. Muscle contraction was abolished after return of the muscle to A.S.W.3. The membrane capacitance was reduced from 29.0 muF/cm(2) to 10.5 muF/cm(2).4. Other passive properties of the muscle membrane, not dependent on capacitance, were not changed.5. The presynaptic nerve, transmitter release, post-synaptic sensitivity to transmitter and ionic mechanisms of synaptic action were unaffected by glycerol treatment.6. More than 60% of the membrane capacitance/unit area is contributed by the complex tubular system.7. The tubular system in crustacea is necessary for excitation-contraction coupling.     

Biplane regional wall motion analysis: Optimal method for identification of left ventricular akinesis/dyskinesis with quantitative cineangiography in man

Computer-assisted biplane regional wall motion analysis of left ventriculography has been shown to allow accurate, reproducible identification of normal vs abnormal patients. Recently, however, it has become evident that further quantitation of the degree of regional wall motion abnormality is necessary for optimal clinical evaluation, particularly in assessing the results of “Intervention Ventriculography”. Six commonly utilized methods adapted for ease in desk-top computer analysis were tested on 58 patients with healed myocardial infarctions undergoing biplane left ventriculography. A method utilizing radial chords constructed at 30° intervals from an origin at the centre of the end diastolic long axis proved most successful in both localizing regional wall motion abnormalities and quantifying the degree of abnormality.     

Wheat-germ agglutination of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. A laboratory investigation.

Wheat-germ agglutination (WGA) was used to identify 168 strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and 105 strains of other Neisseria species in a routine laboratory. About one-third of the meningococci reacted with the lectin and titres with some organisms varied on repeat testing. The technique is regarded as unreliable for the identification of Neisseria species.     

The survival rate of men with carcinoma of the breast.

The Cancer Register for the South-West Region of England has been used to examine the survival rate of men with carcinoma of the breast, and a comparison has been made with carcinoma of the breast in women. For all men with carcinoma of the breast the prognosis is worse than for all women, but comparing the prognosis by clinical stage, the difference between men and women is small. However, the survival rate in men under 65 years of age is appreciably better than for men over 65, and for older men the survival rate is considerably less than for women over 65.