The use of SIT and ELISA to detect serum sperm antibodies in infertile patients

The existence of natural sperm antibodies in fertile subjects requires the application of additional methods in certain cases of significant, but near to the borderline agglutinating titers, in order to distinguish between pathological and natural sperm antibodies. We applied the sperm immobilization test (SIT) of Isojima and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with sera from infertile patients (n = 66) that have been positive in at least one of the agglutination methods of Kibrick and Friberg. The data were compared with the results for a control group of blood donors (n = 50). It was demonstrated that the positive, but low-titer sera in the test of Friberg were often highly positive in ELISA, while the high-titer sera displayed lower OD values. No such correlation was established by SIT. Probably, it would be practical to use ELISA in cases, where no convincing laboratory data exists for immunity against spermatozoa--relevant, but low agglutinating titers, which can be found in fertile subjects. Besides, SIT and ELISA can recognize antigen-antibody systems different from those identified by the agglutinating tests.     

Polymorphism of drugs in powders and tablets. 6. X-ray diffractometric studies of polymorphic modifications of tolbutamide

The modifications and spray dried products of tolbutamide published in a former article, are investigated furthermore by X-Ray diffraction. The indication of the reflexes in X-Ray diffraction patterns of 2 modifications is performed. Transformations of modification are provable in consequence of thermal stress.     

The polymorphism of drugs in powders and tablets. 1. The preparation and characterization of polymorphic modifications of phenobarbital

The characterisation of three phenobarbital modifications by thermic examination procedures (DSC, DTA) is being described. Modification I was obtained by thermic treatment of the brands (modification II) from Hungary and the GDR. The spray product prepared, consisting of very fine hollow spheres, was identified as modification III. Besides the particle size distribution the form of the particle was determined by scanning electron microscopy (REM). The best results regarding saturation solubility and speed of dissolution were found for the spray product.     

“Below average” self-assessed school performance and Alzheimer's disease in the Aging,Demographics, and Memory Study

BackgroundA low level of formal education is becoming accepted as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Although increasing attention has been paid to differences in educational quality, no previous studies addressed participants' own characterizations of their overall performance in school. We examined whether self-assessed school performance is associated with AD beyond the effects of educational level alone.MethodsParticipants were drawn from the population-representative Aging, Demographics, and Memory Study (ADAMS, 2000-2002). The ADAMS participants were asked about their performance in school. Possible response options included “above average,” “average,” or “below average.” The ADAMS participants also underwent a full neuropsychological battery, and received a research diagnosis of possible or probable AD.ResultsThe 725 participants (mean age, 81.8 years; 59% female; 16% African-American) varied in self-assessed educational performance: 29% reported “above average,” 64% reported “average,” and 7% reported “below average” school performance. Participants with a lower self-assessed school performance had higher proportions of AD: 11% of participants with “above average” self-assessed performance had AD, as opposed to 12% of participants with “average” performance and 26% of participants with “below average” performance (P < 0.001). After controlling for subjects' years in school, a literacy test score (Wide-Range Achievement Test), age, sex, race/ethnicity, apolipoprotein E-?4 status, socioeconomic status, and self-reported comorbidities, respondents with “below average” self-assessed school performance were four times more likely to have AD compared with those of “average” performance (odds ratio, 4.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.2–14). “Above average” and “average” self-assessed school performance did not increase or decrease the odds of having AD (odds ratio, 0.9; 95% confidence interval, 0.5–1.7).ConclusionsWe suggest an association between “below average” self-assessed school performance and AD beyond the known association with formal education. Efforts to increase cognitive reserve through better school performance, in addition to increasing the number of years of formal education in early life, may be important in reducing vulnerability throughout the life course.     

Bronchial artery embolization: monitoring with somatosensory evoked potentials. Work in progress

Surgery remains the treatment of choice for massive and recurrent hemoptysis. In some instances, however, immediate surgical intervention is contraindicated. In these situations, bronchial artery embolization (BAE) has proved to be a successful definitive treatment for non-surgical candidates and a palliative therapy in patients requiring hemodynamic stabilization prior to surgery. The most serious complication of BAE is spinal cord ischemia. This relates directly to the potential anastomotic connections between the bronchial circulation and the anterior spinal artery. Somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEPs) have been used in the past to monitor spinal cord ischemia during procedures that threaten the vascularity of the spinal cord. The authors report two cases in which SSEPs were employed to monitor spinal cord ischemia during bronchial artery embolization.     

The crystallography behavior of carbamazepine under compression pressure

In the present paper the crystallographic behavior of the carbamazepine modifications I, II and III were studied under various conditions by means of X-ray powder diffraction, IR-spectroscopy and differential-scanning-calorimetry. It was found that the crystal lattice of the carbamazepine modification I is relative stable to the applied pressure forms, whereas modification II under similar conditions undergoes a polymorphic transformation into carbamazepine modification III, the extent of which depends on compression pressure and storage time of the tablets. In the compression samples of carbamazepine modification III neither IR-spectroscopically nor X-ray-diffractionally an influence of the pressure could be found on growing up of the enantiotrophic modification I.