A Capitated Model for a Cross-Section of Severely Mentally Ill Clients: Employment Outcomes

Employment outcomes are examined in a three year controlled study of two Integrated Service Agencies (ISAs) for a cross-section of severely mentally ill clients. At each site significantly more ISA members than comparison clients obtained some paid employment. At the urban site the difference was dramatic: 73 vs 15 percent worked during the study period, and 29 percent of the ISA clients worked competitively. The significant but still limited ISA results argue for increased employment opportunities for all seriously mentally ill clients.     

Quaternary heterocyclylamino beta-lactams. V. L-640,876 treatment of induced enterotoxigenic colibacillosis (scours) in calves and piglets

A new semisynthetic cephalosporin antibiotic designated L-640,876, 7-beta-(1-benzylpyridinium-4-yl)amino-3-[( (1-methyl-1H-tetrazol-5-yl)thio] methyl)ceph-3-em-4-carboxylate, was highly active in vitro against 110 enteropathogenic strains of Escherichia coli and Salmonella species of animal origin. The MIC90 was 0.125 microgram/ml for the E. coli strains, 2 micrograms/ml for the S. choleraesuis strains and 4 micrograms/ml for the S. typhimurium strains. In colostrum-fed calves infected with E. coli strain B44, L-640,876 administered by gavage at 30 mg/calf (0.67 mg/kg) twice a day for 3 days, starting at 20-hour post-inoculation, eliminated the diarrhea and reduced the mortality from 82% in the infected, nonmedicated calves to 11% in the infected, medicated calves (P less than 0.05). In colostrum-fed piglets infected with E. coli strain P155, L-640,876 administered by gavage at 12.5 or 20 mg/piglet (10 or 16 mg/kg) twice a day for 3 days, starting at 6-hour post-inoculation, eliminated the diarrhea and reduced the mortality from 79% in the infected, nonmedicated to 25% in the infected, medicated piglets (P less than 0.05). Thus, L-640,876 was highly effective in restoring the calves and piglets to good health by eliminating diarrhea and reducing mortality.     

Anticatabolic properties of melanocortin-4 receptor antagonists

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Health problems related to weight regulation are increasingly common in the USA and around the world. Although obesity and associated complications garner the most attention in the media, clinical problems at the opposite end of the spectrum, such as involuntary disease-associated weight loss or cachexia, are equally devastating. This review focuses on the role of the central melanocortin system in body weight regulation, and specifically on the anticatabolic properties of antagonists of the melanocortin-4 receptor. RECENT FINDINGS: Over the past several years, the central melanocortin system has emerged as a major contributor to the body weight regulatory system in both animals and humans. In particular, the melanocortin-4 receptor, its endogenous agonist alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone, and its endogenous antagonist agouti-related protein have been shown to be vital to the maintenance of normal body weight in both genetic and physiologic experiments. This system is now the target of multiple drug discovery endeavors, as the search continues for effective treatments for both obesity and cachexia. Several investigators have recently shown that selective synthetic antagonists of the melanocortin-4 receptor can prevent or attenuate the development of cachexia in animal models of acute and chronic disease. SUMMARY: An understanding of the biology of weight regulation, including both appetite regulation and energy metabolism, is vital if we are to unravel the etiology of and develop effective treatment for obesity and cachexia. The data reviewed here supporting a role for melanocortin-4 receptor antagonists in the treatment of catabolism represent an important advance in this field.     

Haematological responses of acute nitrite exposure in walleye (Sander vitreus)

Nitrite (NO2-) is a toxic intermediary of the bacterial oxidation of nitrogenous wastes (e.g. ammonia) in an aquatic environment. It becomes most lethal when oxygen becomes limited due to high fish densities or in the presence of high bacterial activity due to waste build-up-both situations commonly found in intensive aquaculture. To date however, little is known about how this toxin affects the physiology of walleye, an intended culture species, particularly in intensive re-circulating systems. This study aims to define threshold concentrations of nitrite that affect haemoglobin-oxygen affinity and carrying capacity in walleye. During in vivo tests, fish (N=20) were subjected to a medium effective concentration (EC50) of nitrite (0.9 mmol L(-1)) for 48 h while the effects of nitrite accumulation on blood properties were measured. The effects of oxygenation state on red blood cell (RBC) nitrite uptake and metHb formation was further investigated by in vitro tonometry. In vitro nitrite exposure to 3 mmol L(-1) resulted in a significantly higher methaemoglobin formation in 50% air saturated than 100% air saturated RBCs. Both cell water content and haematocrit decreased with time in 50% air saturated treatments, whereas total Hb remained constant, suggesting a reduction in RBC volume. Similar effects were observed during 48 h in vivo and in vitro nitrite exposure tests, indicating the reduction in RBC volume likely was not the result of a catecholamine response. Walleye were found to be tolerant to an accumulation of blood-NO2- levels similar to common carp, a highly Mean Cellular Volume (MCV) tolerant species, before succumbing to methaemoglobinemia. The elevated tolerance to nitrite of walleye is a beneficial characteristic for successful rearing in a culture setting, where reduced oxygen and elevated MCV levels are prevalent. The findings from this study may be used in developing guidelines for species-specific management of nitrogenous wastes in aquaculture.     

Cognitive structure and behavioral regulation in alcoholics.

Compared with nonalcoholics, alcoholics were less able to focus on relevant cues (i.e., they had weaker cognitive control) and less able to recall pertinent ideas or events and possible consequences (i.e., their internal scanning was narrower).