Comparison of two analytical procedures for the determination of free urinary catecholamines under the demands of shiftwork experiments

Summary A typical shiftwork experiment was chosen to prove the validity of an automated procedure for the analysis of free noradrenaline and adrenaline in urine. The method consists of a column switching technique with an adsorption/elution clean-up and a reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography followed by chemical reaction detection based on the trihydroxyindole method. The analysis of variance was performed using a second data set obtained by a semi-automated procedure for which the accuracy had already been confirmed. The analysis of covariance showed that for field studies, as well as for laboratory experiments in which the variances contributed by the experiments themselves are greater than 10% rel., the data sets of the two methods provide the same information.Dedicated to Prof. H. Hartkamp, University of Wuppertal, on the occasion of his 60th birthday     

良性小脑出血13例分析

笔者对13例良性小脑出血的患者,从起病、临床表现进行了具体分析.总结出中老年良性小脑出血的6个特点,供临床工作者参考.     

一阶导数高速脉冲极谱法用于盐酸普鲁卡因的定量分析

研究了一阶导数高速脉冲极谱法,并运用于盐酸普鲁卡因及其注射制剂的定量分析。在-0.04 V(对 Ag/AgCl)处出现的良好导数峰,于1.0～6.0×10~(-4)mol/L 范围内,导数峰电流与浓度呈线性关系。检测限为3.0×10~(-8)mol/L。操作简便、快速、灵敏,结果准确。     

Comparison of local and general anesthesia in tension-free (Lichtenstein) hernioplasty: a prospective randomized trial

To compare pulmonary effects, postoperative pain and fatigue, morbidity, patient satisfaction, and cost of different anesthetic techniques for inguinal hernia repair, 50 patients were randomized to local and general anesthesia groups (LA and GA). All patients received the same premedications and the same postoperative analgesic regimen. The standardized postoperative analgesic, intramuscular pyroxicam 20 mg, was given to all patients in the recovery room and an additional 20 mg on the same day was given as requested by each patient. Pulmonary function studies and arterial blood gas analysis were performed 1 h prior to the operation and at the postoperative 8th and 24th hours. All patients underwent Lichtenstein's tension-free hernioplasty. Postoperative pain and fatigue were registered 8 h and 24 h after the operation. A questionnaire was filled out by the patients, and they were asked to give grades for the general comfort of the anesthesia and the surgical procedure (1=worst, 10=best). Postoperative pulmonary function tests were significantly poorer in the GA group both on 8th- and 24th-hour measurements (P<0.05). Patients who underwent LA had significantly lower PCO₂ and higher PO₂ at the postoperative 8th hour (P<0.05). Mean postoperative pain and fatigue scores revealed a significant difference in favor of local anesthesia at only the 8th hour (P<0.05). There were two complications, one in each group (a hematoma in LA and a urinary retention in GA). Patient satisfaction grades were not different in the two groups. We conclude that LA in inguinal hernia repair does not adversely affect pulmonary functions, patients feel less pain, and patient satisfaction is comparable to that with GA. Electronic Publication     

Developing a model for clinical and basic science teaching skills

This report describes a model for identifying sets of teaching abilities considered to be effective for medical school teaching staff, based on roles teachers assume and functions they are expected to perform as instructors. The specification of these teaching abilities was the first step in the development of a comprehensive course on Medical Instruction at the Basic Institute of Medical and Agricultural Biology of the State University of Sao Paulo, Botucatu, Brazil, where the senior author is employed. The work was based on the assumption that medical school teachers are expected to assume a variety of teaching roles and that identification and specification of the abilities that define their roles can result in more effective and efficient teaching.     

Folding and function of the myelin proteins from primary sequence data.

To explain how the myelin proteins are involved in the organization and function of the myelin sheath requires knowing their molecular structures. Except for P2 basic protein of PNS myelin, however, their structures are not yet known. As an aid to predicting their molecular folding and possible functions, we have developed a FORTRAN program to analyze the primary sequence data for proteins, and have applied this to the myelin proteins in particular. In this program, propensities for the secondary structure conformations as well as physical-chemical parameters are assigned to the amino acids and the pattern of these parameters is examined by calculating their average values, autocorrelation functions and Fourier transforms. To compare two proteins, their sequences are aligned using a unitary scoring matrix, and homologies are searched by plotting a two-dimensional map of the correlation coefficients. Comparison of the corresponding myelin basic proteins (MBP) and P0 glycoproteins (P0) for rodent and shark showed that the conserved residues included most of the amino acids which were predicted to form the alpha or beta conformations, while the altered residues were mainly in the hydrophilic and turn or coil regions. In both rodent and shark the putative extracellular domain of P0 glycoprotein displayed consecutive peaks of beta propensity similar to that for the immunoglobulins, while the cytoplasmic domain showed alpha-beta-alpha folding. To trace the immunoglobulin fold along the P0 sequence, we compared the beta propensity curve of P0 with that of the immunoglobulin M603, whose three-dimensional structure has been determined. We propose that the flat beta-sheets of P0 are orientated parallel to the membrane surface to facilitate their homotypic interaction in the extracellular space. An extra beta-fold in the extracellular domain of shark P0 compared with rodent P0 was found, and this may result in a greater attraction between the apposed extracellular surfaces and may account for a smaller extracellular space as measured by x-ray diffraction. A computer search of the myelin protein sequences for functional motifs revealed sites for N-glycosylation, phosphorylation, nucleotide binding, and certain enzyme activities. We note especially that there are potential nucleotide binding sites in proteolipid protein (PLP), MBP and 2',3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphodiesterase (CNP). This is consistent with the experimental observations that PLP acts like an ionophore or proton channel when reconstituted into planar lipid bilayers, MBP binds GTP, and CNP catalyzes in vitro the hydrolysis of 2',3'-nucleotides into corresponding 2'-nucleotides.     

Active production of anti-human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) IgM antibody in HTLV-I-associated myelopathy

We investigated the presence of anti-human T-lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) IgM in sera and cerebrospinal fluid from patients with HTLV-I-associated myelopathy (HAM) by Western blot analysis. Analyses of 36 serum samples revealed that most patients (31/36; 86.1%) had anti-HTLV-I IgM, whereas only four of 23 (17.4%) HTLV-I carriers had it. In studies of cerebrospinal fluid, anti-HTLV-I IgM was detected in 24 of 36 (66.7%) HAM patients, whereas none was detected in nine HTLV-I carriers. The differences were statistically significant (p less than 0.01). These results suggest that persistent active replication of HTLV-I occurs in the central nervous system as well as in the peripheral blood of HAM patients, and may contribute to the development of HAM.     

Sources of stress in Australian adolescents: factor structure and stability over time

Adolescent stress is an emerging area of importance in considerations of the health of young people. Exposure to stress predicts a range of both physical and mental health problems in adolescents and relates, as well, to the initiation of important health risk behaviours. Yet the measurement of stress in adolescents has been as fraught with methodological difficulty as it has been for adults. This paper examines the Adolescent Stress Questionnaire (ASQ) which was developed specifically to address the domain of stressors specific to adolescent experience and looks at three cohorts of responses to this questionnaire over time (1995, 1998 and 2001). It assesses the stability of the original 7‐factor structure of the ASQ over time, and while confirmatory factor analysis indicates that stability to be acceptable, it also suggests that either adolescent stressors themselves, or the language by which they are reported, vary sufficiently over time to warrant the refinement of the instrument. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

一种有效去除脂血对血清多种生化指标测定干扰的方法

目的 :探讨一种去除脂血对血清生化项目测定干扰的方法。方法 :沉淀、离心沉淀去除血清中过量的乳糜微粒。结果 :该法简便去脂效果彻底 ,不影响测定结果。结论 :获得了一种满意的去脂方法