The Surgeon General's warnings in outdoor cigarette advertising. Are they readable?

Outdoor advertising media represent a major vehicle by which cigarette companies promote their products. We investigated the readability of the Surgeon General's warning in cigarette advertisements (ads) in two outdoor media: billboards and taxicab ads. In an experiment in metropolitan Atlanta under typical driving conditions, observers were able to read the entire health warning on 18 (46%) of 39 street billboards but on only two (5%) of 39 highway billboards. In contrast, the content of the ads (ie, brand name, other wording, and notable imagery) could be recognized under the same conditions on more than 95% of the billboards. In a similar study of 100 taxicab cigarette ads in New York City, observers were unable to read the health warning in any of the ads but were able to identify the brand name in all ads and notable imagery in 95% of the ads. Significant differences between the readability of the warning and identification of the advertising content persisted even when partially read warnings were considered to have been read. We conclude that the Surgeon General's warning is not readable in its current form in the vast majority of billboard and taxicab ads. Factors contributing to unreadability include the small size of the letters, the excessive length of the warnings, the distance between the viewers and the ads, and movement between the viewers and the ads.     

Recovery and probable persistence of cytomegalovirus in human inner ear fluid without cochlear damage

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) was recovered from a 5-month-old infant with probable congenital infection. In life, no hearing impairment had been observed. Auditory brain stem evoked responses were bilaterally intact. At necropsy, both temporal bones were morphologically normal, as demonstrated by light and electron microscopy. Sensory hair cells of the organ of Corti appeared intact. Cytomegalovirus was recovered from a mixture of perilymph and endolymph, but not the brain, CSF, or vitreous humor. This appears to be the first report of an individual with an inner ear CMV infection in which neither structural nor functional alterations of the inner ear were apparent. This case also suggests that CMV can persist within the inner ear for prolonged periods following congenital infection.     

The relation of high density lipoprotein cholesterol and its subfractions to apolipoprotein A-I and fasting triglycerides: the role of environmental factors. The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study.

Cross-sectional analysis of four general representative populations of middle-aged adults in the United States in 1986-1989 provides estimates of the close relation of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL cholesterol) to its major structural apolipoprotein (apolipoprotein A-I) and to fasting plasma triglyceride levels. HDL cholesterol differences of approximately 0.4 mg were associated with 1-mg differences in apolipoprotein A-I; differences of 20% in HDL cholesterol (reductions) were associated with triglyceride doublings. Variation in apolipoprotein A-I and triglyceride concentration together accounted for 66% of the population variance in HDL cholesterol. The uniformity of this pattern in the four race-sex groups studied suggests an important role of triglyceride-cholesterol transfer as a determinant of HDL cholesterol. The fundamental relations observed among HDL cholesterol, apolipoprotein A-I, and triglycerides were unaltered by levels of factors under personal volition. The volitional factors appeared to influence HDL cholesterol indirectly: Obesity and physical activity were affected primarily through their associations with triglycerides, and alcohol use and smoking through associations with apolipoprotein A-I. The association of alcohol use with elevated HDL cholesterol was attenuated in persons with greater body mass.     

Behavioral management of psychogenic cough: alternative to the "bedsheet" and other aversive techniques

The treatment of persistent psychogenic cough, a potentially debilitating condition among pediatric patients, can pose diagnostic and treatment dilemmas. Its treatment by the use of a procedure called reinforced suggestion technique was described previously. The use of an alternative procedure relying upon parental and self-monitoring of coughing and either social or material rewards for decreasing rates of coughing is presented.     

Action of three ectopeptidases on corticotropin-releasing factor: metabolism and functional aspects.

Using purified enzyme preparations, we investigated the actions of angiotensin-converting enzyme, aminopeptidase N, and endopeptidase 24.11 on corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF). The effects of inhibition of these enzymes on CRF action in rat anterior pituitary cultures were also determined. Finally, specific inhibitors were used to evaluate ectopeptidase action on the regional brain metabolism of CRF. K(m) values for CRF were 165, 90, and 42 microM for angiotensin-converting enzyme, aminopeptidase N, and endopeptidase 24.11, respectively. A CRF metabolite profile for each enzyme was determined. In pituitary cultures, inhibition of endopeptidase 24.11 and aminopeptidase N potentiated CRF-stimulated release of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). In rat pituitary and hypothalamus membrane preparations, specific inhibitor experiments indicated that CRF hydrolysis involved members of the neutral endopeptidase and aminopeptidase enzyme families. In cortex membranes, similar peptidase inhibition was without effect. These data support the hypothesis that ectopeptidases play a major role in CRF metabolism and biological function.     

Loss of Heterozygosity at the α-Inhibin Locus on Chromosome 2q Is Not a Feature of Human Granulosa Cell Tumors

The α-inhibin gene has been shown in knockout mouse models to be a suppressor of granulosa tumorigenesis in the mouse. To determine if α-inhibin has the same function in humans, we have assessed the frequency of loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of the α-inhibin gene locus on chromosome 2q in 17 human granulosa cell tumors and 36 epithelial ovarian cancers. LOH was detected in 12 of 36 (33.3%) epithelial tumors but in only 1 of 17 (6%) granulosa cell tumors. These data suggest that in contrast to the suggestions from the mouse model α-inhibin does not function as a granulosa cell tumor suppressor gene in the human. Furthermore, analysis of the TP53 gene in the granulosa cell tumors failed to detect either LOH or point mutations, indicating that they have a developmental pathway distinct from that of epithelial ovarian tumors.