Preferential cleavage at aspartyl-prolyl peptide bonds in dilute acid*

A simple, rapid technique is presented for preferential cleavage at aspartyl-prolyl peptide bonds. The method is based upon the fact that these peptide bonds are 8–20-fold more labile in 0.015 n HCl at 100–110° than other aspartyl-X or X-aspartyl peptide bonds. The method has proven effective in the cleavage of several peptides from pig kidney fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase and should facilitate sequence analysis of proteins that contain aspartyl-prolyl linkages.     

Alcohol consumption and related problems among primary health care patients: WHO Collaborative Project on Early Detection of Persons with Harmful Alcohol Consumption—I

This WHO collaborative project is the first phase of a programme of work aimed at developing techniques for early identification and treatment of persons with hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of hazardous and harmful alcohol use among patients attending primary health care facilities in several countries, and to examine the correlates of drinking behaviour and alcohol-related problems in these culturally diverse populations. The broader purpose was to determine whether there was justification for developing alcohol screening instruments for cross-national use. One thousand, eight hundred and eighty-eight subjects in Australia, Bulgaria, Kenya, Mexico, Norway and the USA underwent a comprehensive assessment of their medical history, alcohol intake, drinking practices, and any physical or psychosocial problems related to alcohol. After non-drinkers and known alcoholics had been excluded, 18% of subjects had a hazardous level of alcohol intake and 23% had experienced at least one alcohol-related problem in the previous year. Intrascale reliability coefficients were uniformly high for the drinking behaviour (dependence) and adverse psychological reactions scales, and moderately high for the alcohol-related problems scales. There were strong correlations between the various alcohol-specific scales, and between these scales and measures of alcohol intake. Although the prevalence of hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption varied from country to country, there was a high degree of commonality in the structure and correlates of drinking behaviour and alcohol-related problems. These findings strengthen the case for developing international screening instruments for hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption.     

The hospital-sponsored ambulatory dental services program, part I: an evaluation of patient access

This article describes patient access to the Hospital-Sponsored Ambulatory Dental Services Program (HSADSP), a 4-year effort initiated in 1979 by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. A major goal of the program was to provide comprehensive general dental care to underserved populations. Independent samples of 2,600 patients each, in 13 of the hospitals (200 patients per institution), were assessed at the beginning and end of the program to ascertain changes in dental care resulting from the expansion of the dental facilities and the support of general practice residents. According to data compiled by the evaluation team, patient volume increased by more than 15% from the first year of the program (baseline sample) to the period preceding the fourth year (final sample). Although the proportion of underserved patients accessing the program was high in both periods, the percentages of “special” patients, minority members, and the poor all decreased slightly during the study. At the same time, the proportion of episodic patients increased by 15% and the number of patients with private dental insurance increased at a lower rate than the national average. Counter to prior expectations, only about 20% to 35% of new patients accessing the dental clinics used the sponsoring hospital as a source of medical care, either inpatient or outpatient. The gains made in patient access to the HSADSP were lower than anticipated. There is little evidence that many of these hospital-based general practices and residency programs would be able to sustain economic viability without innovative financing techniques or direct subsidy.     

Role of alpha-adrenoceptors for adipocyte size in man

Catecholamines have dual effects on lipid mobilization in man. Lipolysis is stimulated via beta-adrenoceptors and inhibited via alpha 2-adrenoceptors. The relationship between fat-cell size and catecholamine-induced lipolysis (expressed per cell surface area) was investigated in vitro in subcutaneous adipocytes of thirty-five non-obese subjects between 1 month and 45 years of age. Fat-cell volume showed a positive correlation with noradrenaline-induced lipolysis (r = 0.7). Furthermore, fat-cell size showed a negative correlation with the alpha 2-effect of noradrenaline (r = 0.8) but no correlation with the beta-effect of the hormone (r less than 0.1). Although age showed a positive correlation with noradrenaline-induced rate of lipolysis (r = 0.6) it did not contribute to the relationship between cell size and the catecholamine effect. There was no relationship between adipocyte size and the basal (unstimulated) rate of lipolysis (r less than 0.1). In conclusion, ageing in non-obese subjects is associated with enlargement of fat-cell size and enhancement of the lipolytic effect of catecholamines. The latter is due to diminished alpha 2-anti-lipolytic effect of the hormones. This modulation of the alpha 2-adrenoceptor activity may be of importance for the regulation of adipocyte size in man.