Impairment of energy metabolism and excitotoxic cell death in Huntington disease

The gene for Huntington's disease is widely expressed in brain and yet the illness is characterized pathologically by a distinct regional pattern of cell death. Various theories for this selective vulnerability have been offered but the most compelling remains that of abnormal energy metabolism. These issues are reviewed.     

2 cm long monolithic multisection laser for active modelocking at 2.2 GHz

A 2 cm long three-contact multisection laser has been fabricated for modelocking at very low repetition rates. Active modelocking yields 8.0-12.3 ps pulses at 2.2, 4.3 and 6.5 GHz corresponding to the fundamental, first, and second harmonics of the cavity resonance frequency. This device demonstrates the feasibility of fabricating monolithic pulse sources operating at rates as low as the OC-48 Sonet transmission rate (2.488 Gbit/s).<>     

Nickel- and copper-coated carbon fibre reinforced tin-lead alloy composites

Nickel and copper were deposited over brominated, surface treated, and pristine P-100 carbon fibres using cementation and electroplating techniques. The fibres were brominated by bromine vapour for 48 h and then desorbed at 200 °C in air for 12 h. The anodic oxidation treatment of the fibres involved electrochemical etching in a dilute sodium hydroxide electrolyte for 3 min. Electroplated coated fibres showed better tensile properties than cementation coated fibres. In addition, nickel coating exhibited better bonding with the carbon fibres compared to copper coating. The effect of bromination and surface treatment was improved adhesion between coating and fibres. Nickel- and copper-coated fibres, which were brominated, anodically oxidized, and pristine, reinforced tin-lead alloy composites were fabricated by squeeze casting. The composites containing coated treated carbon fibres had higher tensile and shear strength than the ones containing coated pristine carbon fibres. Moreover, the composite with coated brominated carbon fibres had better tensile strength and shear strength than the surface treatment. The results also showed the composites containing nickel-coated fibres had higher tensile and shear strength than the ones containing copper-coated fibres.     

Effect of quinidine on the interconversion kinetics between haloperidol and reduced haloperidol in humans: implications for the involvement of cytochrome P450IID6

Unequal metabolic responses to trauma by women and men have been suggested, but an explicit investigation demonstrating this conjecture has not been made. The responses of resting energy expenditure (REE) and nitrogen balance for 3 days before and 7 days after skeletal trauma were determined for female and male rats. Food intake and body weight were recorded daily, and 24-h urine samples were collected. Baseline REE and nitrogen balance were obtained for 3 consecutive days before induction of trauma. Then rats were divided into female trauma (n = 8), male trauma (n = 7), female control (n = 8), and male control (n = 7) groups. Trauma was produced by bilateral femoral fracture to anesthetized rats. Control rats were anesthetized without skeletal trauma. Traumatized rats were fed ad libitum for 7 days, and control rats were pair fed with the traumatized rats. The results showed that REE increased and nitrogen balance decreased in traumatized male rats relative to their controls. Traumatized female rats had increased REE and unchanged nitrogen balance compared with their controls. Traumatized female rats had a larger percentage increase in REE on days 5 through 7 than did traumatized male rats. These findings demonstrate a difference between female and male rats in response to trauma. Female rats use more energy and lose less nitrogen after trauma than do male rats. The results suggest that recommendations for increased energy and protein needs after trauma should consider the sex of the subject intended to be fed.     

The role of mineralocorticoid receptors in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis regulation in humans

In rodents, two types of glucocorticoid receptors, the mineralocorticoid (MR; type I) and the glucocorticoid (type II) receptors, have been demonstrated to play a role in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis regulation. Because MR shows a very high affinity for cortisol, it has been suggested that MR plays an important role in restraint of CRH and ACTH secretion during the nadir of the circadian rhythm. Although a number of studies have established the importance of MR in rodents, the functional role of MR in humans has not been determined. These studies evaluated whether spironolactone, an MR antagonist, had a detectable effect on HPA axis regulation in humans, and whether the effect was greatest during the evening, when plasma cortisol concentrations are in the MR range. Compared to the placebo day, after a single dose of spironolactone at either 0800 or 1600 h, there is a significant increase in plasma cortisol, which is preceded by a rise in ACTH and beta-endorphin. A significant effect of spironolactone on cortisol secretion was demonstrated with no differences between the morning and evening. Because the effect of spironolactone on cortisol was short lived, a second experiment was conducted using two doses of spironolactone, again sampling in the morning and evening. After two doses of spironolactone, plasma cortisol levels showed a significant and sustained spironolactone-induced elevation for the entire sampling period. However, neither plasma beta-endorphin nor ACTH was increased compared to levels on the placebo day. These data suggest that MR appear to play a clear role in HPA axis regulation during the time of the circadian peak as well as the trough. Furthermore, MR blockade may affect the sensitivity of the adrenal to ACTH.     

Polarisation insensitive semiconductor optical amplifier withintegrated electroabsorption modulators

The authors demonstrate a 1.55 μm wavelength multiquantum well semiconductor optical amplifier, integrated with bulk layer electroabsorption modulators and passive waveguide beam expanders at the input and output ports. The device has a fibre to fibre gain of 9 dB, an extinction ratio of 15 dB per modulator, a spectral range >35 nm, and polarisation sensitivity <1 dB