Extraction, quantification, and biological availability of fumonisin B1 incorporated into the Oregon test diet and fed to rainbow trout

The purpose of this study was (i) to determine whether pure fumonisin B1 could be incorporated into, recovered, and detected by high-pressure liquid chromatographic analysis from the semipurified Oregon test diet (OTD) used in rainbow trout feeding studies, and (ii) to determine if the incorporated fumonisin B1 was biologically available using the change in free sphingoid bases in liver, kidney, and serum as a mechanism-based biomarker. The results indicate that fumonisin is not easily quantified in the OTD. Recoveries ranged from 12 to 81% of the calculated concentrations based on the fumonisin B1 added to the OTD. However, the fumonisin B1 in the OTD was readily absorbed and biologically active as evidenced by marked increases in free sphinganine in liver, kidney, and serum. The magnitude of the increase in free sphinganine at 100 ppm in the OTD was comparable to that known to be associated with liver toxicity in rats, pigs, and ponies.     

Further evidence for an imprinted gene for neonatal diabetes localised to chromosome 6q22-q23

Transient neonatal diabetes mellitus (TNDM) is a rare form of childhood diabetes which usually resolves in the first 6 months of life but which predisposes to type 2 diabetes of adult onset. We recently reported paternal uniparental isodisomy of chromosome 6 (UPD6) in two children with TNDM and proposed that there may be an imprinted gene important in the aetiology of diabetes on chromosome 6. We now describe two unrelated families which independently suggest that the gene is imprinted, is paternally expressed and maps to 6q22-q23. One family has a duplication while the other, with familial TNDM, shows linkage to a marker in this region.     

Effect of intraocular lens design on neodymium:YAG laser capsulotomy rates

The activity of alkaline phosphatase (AP) was studied in adults of highly active (HA) and low active (LA) Drosophila melanogaster strains and their F1 hybrids, both under normal conditions and after a heat shock (38 degrees C). Under normal conditions, the HA strain expressed a higher AP activity compared to that in the wild-type strain Canton-S and dominated in respect to this character. The AP activity showed a sexual dimorphism, as it was higher in females of both strains. Heat shock (38 degrees C) induced no alterations in the AP activity of D. melanogaster.     

Evolution of fuel nitrogen in coal devolatilization

The distribution of fuel nitrogen in the devolatilization products of a lignite and 12 bituminous coals has been observed experimentally. For these coals under isothermal conditions (300 < T < 1000 °Cand 5 < t < 80 s) the behaviour of the nitrogen evolution was found to be similar. Nitrogen which is initially released is contained almost entirely in the tar. The chemical composition, ¹³C-n.m.r. spectra and infrared spectra of the tars and parent coals are strikingly similar and it is reasonable to suspect that the tar nitrogen occurs in the same structures as in the parent coal. Secondary release of nitrogen into nontar volatiles occurs only at high temperature. Results can be described with first-order kinetics using the same rate constant for all the coals studied. Initial nitrogen release is described by the tar release rate constant, k = 81 exp (−5800/T) (s⁻¹), which is similar to the rate constant for initial nitrogen release measured by Pohl and Sarofim. Secondary release of nitrogen is described with a rate constant which is similar to the results measured by Blair, Wendt and Bartok. This rate is smaller than that measured for the decomposition of nitrogen-ring compounds such as pyridines or pyrroles. The results suggest that coal nitrogen is contained almost entirely in tightly bound rings which are released without breakage in the tar during the initial stage of devolatilization; the remainder is released at higher temperatures when rings are ruptured.     

Thyroxine-induced activation of hypothalamo-hypophysial axis in neotenic salamander larvae

Thyroxine injected into the hypothalamus of neotenic Ambystoma tigrinum induces metamorphosis by activating hypothalamo-hypophysial stimulatory control of thyroid activity, thereby removing the hypothalamic block to metamorphosis.     

Locating emergency medical rescue vehicles under conditions of urgency

This article describes how a fire department's information system was utilized to solve a pressing emergency medical rescue vehicle location problem. The existing information system was augmented by a manual data system to provide the needed information in a very short time. The result of the problem analysis further provided feedback regarding the deficiencies of the information system for emergency medical rescue purposes.     

Personality and emotional performance: Extraversion, neuroticism, and self-monitoring.

Using an experimental design, the authors linked personality to performance on two emotional regulation tasks requiring the expression of either anger or enthusiasm. Across tasks, self-monitoring was associated with effective emotional performance. High self-monitors reported less stress and more deep acting than low self-monitors and did not experience elevated heart rate during emotional performance. The authors also examined affective traits, positing that emotional regulation would be less stressful for individuals who were asked to perform personality congruent emotions. As expected, individuals high on extraversion experienced elevated heart rates when asked to express personality incongruent emotions (i.e., anger). However, the association between extraversion and emotional performance was not significantly different for the two types of emotional regulation (anger and enthusiasm). Neuroticism was associated with increased heart rate and poor performance in both tasks. Overall, these data provide partial support for our personality congruency hypotheses and suggest that personality plays an important role in effective emotional performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Robust dimensions of anxiety sensitivity: Development and initial validation of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3.

Accumulating evidence suggests that anxiety sensitivity (fear of arousal-related sensations) plays an important role in many clinical conditions, particularly anxiety disorders. Research has increasingly focused on how the basic dimensions of anxiety sensitivity are related to various forms of psychopathology. Such work has been hampered because the original measure--the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI)--was not designed to be multidimensional. Subsequently developed multidimensional measures have unstable factor structures or measure only a subset of the most widely replicated factors. Therefore, the authors developed, via factor analysis of responses from U.S. and Canadian nonclinical participants (n = 2,361), an 18-item measure, the ASI-3, which assesses the 3 factors best replicated in previous research: Physical, Cognitive, and Social Concerns. Factorial validity of the ASI-3 was supported by confirmatory factor analyses of 6 replication samples, including nonclinical samples from the United States and Canada, France, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Spain (n = 4,494) and a clinical sample from the United States and Canada (n = 390). The ASI-3 displayed generally good performance on other indices of reliability and validity, along with evidence of improved psychometric properties over the original ASI. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)