Juvenile gastrointestinal polyposis

Two cases of juvenile gastrointestinal polyposis are described and the literature is reviewed. Despite the benign nature of the individual polyps, the disease has a poor prognosis. Of 13 reported patients, 4 had macrocephaly, and one of the authors' 2 patients had large peripheral intracranial cysts. This appears to be the first reported documentation of the etiology of macrocephaly associated with juvenile polyposis. Major clinical problems are related to severe loss of blood and protein from the gastrointestinal tract.     

In vitro studies on the way in which the activation of factor VIII is affected in mixtures of plasma with hemophilia A plasma

Factor VIII exchange test experiments with hemophilia A plasmas were performed to find out how the results were affected by submitting plasmas and plasma mixtures to different incubation periods at 37 degrees C, heat precipitation, and ether extraction. The experiments led to the following results: 1. In plasma mixtures, frequently higher factor VIII activities are found than can be expected from the single activities of the used plasmas. Activity increases are factor-specific. 2. The component to be activated is in the hemophilic plasma; the activity-increasing agent is in the normal plasma. These results lead to the hypothesis that hemophilia A patients have sufficient quantities of inactive factor VIII, but it stays inactive for lack of the necessary activator. In normal plasma the activator is in balance or surplus to the inactive factor. By adding normal plasma, thus supplying free activator, the inactive factor VIII of hemophilia A plasma can, under suitable conditions, be developed into active factor VIII.     

Racial difference in incidence of ABO hemolytic disease

In this review of 7,464 consecutive infants born at North Carolina Memorial Hospital, hemolytic disease from ABO incompatibility was found to be two to three times as common in black infants as in white infants. The statistical significance of the difference remained high as more restrictive criteria for ABO hemolytic disease were applied. ABO disease, serious enough to cause an indirect serum bilirubin of 15 mg/100ml or higher, had an incidence in black newborns as great as the incidence of Rh hemolytic disease in whites. In contrast, the general prevalence and severity of hyperbilirubinemia was not found to be higher in black newborns than in white infants. The difference cannot be attributed to differences in the prevalence of ABO blood groups between the two races. Policies of early discharge of newborns could be affected by the finding that ABO erythroblastosis is two to three times as common in black infants as in white infants.     

Multiple congenital defects associated with trisomy for long arm of No. 4

The most prevalent microorganisms isolated from urine specimens of dogs (385) and cats (132) with clinical signs of urinary tract infections were Escherichia coli, Proteus spp., and Staphylococcus aureus. The results of quantitative urine-culturing methods showed 48.6% of the canine and 12.1% of the feline specimens had more than 10(5) organisms per ml of urine. The bacteria isolated appear to have a greater resistance to antibacterial agents than previously reported.     

Potential difference across subcellular particle membranes. II. Compensation method of measurement

"Zero-loop" of the molecular potential transformer of submitochondrial particles (SMP) is separated from the remaining electron transfer chain by rotenone, and its e.m.f. ET=0,003+RT/2F in [NADP X H] [NAD+]/[NADP+] [NAD X H] volts is used in the compensative method of measurement of the potential difference across the SMP membrane (delta USMP). The phospholipid membrane, measuring the concentration of the penetrating anions in the solution contained SMP, is used as "zero-indicators". This concentration drops monotonically with increase in delta USMP. Delta USMP is equal to ET when the addition of substrates of transhydrogenase reaction with definite ET does not change the potential across phospholipid membrane.     

Prevention of hepatitis type B with specific immune serum globulin

In order to evaluate the preventive value of specific immune serum globulin against hepatitis type B, we have used this immune globulin in required doses in 12 patients (10 with AU antigen negative and 2 with AU antigen positive) with chronic renal failure who required maintenance hemodialysis for a period of 15 months, and we were able to prevent hepatitis type B in our dialysis patients.     

Lactate metabolism in the dog during shock from hemorrhage, cardiac tamponade or endotoxin

Serum IgE concentrations of patients with paragonimiasis were determined by a radioimmunosorbent test. The mean concentration was 3,462.3 IU/ml in a group of 13 cases of paragonimiasis miyazakii in which patients showed clinical symptoms and/or positive immunological diagnostic tests, and 1,026.6 IU/ml in a control group of 13 individuals who had eaten uncooked freshwater crabs, Potamon dehaani, but had been found to be free from the infection. Moreover, the IgE level of the pleural exudates obtained from four patients with paragonimiasis miyazakii on the day of bleeding or within several days after was significantly higher than that of their sera, ranging between 4,200 IU/ml and 10,000 IU/ml. This was true also in a case of paragonimiasis westermani. Sera and pleural exudates of patients with both forms of paragonimiasis were applied to immunosorbent columns of Sepharose 4B beads coupled with saline extracts of Paragonimus miyazakii, P. weetermani, or P. ohirai. IgE eluted from the corresponding column was considered to be specific, being around 5% to 10% of the total IgE.     

Molecular studies to identify the Fusarium species responsible for HT-2 and T-2 mycotoxins in UK oats

High levels of Fusarium mycotoxins HT-2 and T-2 have been detected in UK oats since surveys started in 2002. Fusarium langsethiae and the closely related species F. sporotrichioides have previously been associated with the contamination of cereals with type A trichothecenes HT-2 and T-2 in Nordic countries. Preliminary microbiological analysis of UK oat samples with high concentrations of HT-2 and T-2 detected and isolated F. langsethiae and F. poae but not the other type A trichothecene producing species F. sporotrichioides, F. sibiricum and F. armeniacum. Two hundred and forty oat flour samples with a known mycotoxin profile were selected from a previous four year study (2002-2005) to cover the full concentration range from below the limit of quantification (<20 μg/kg) to 9,990 μg/kg HT-2+T-2 combined. All samples were analysed for the DNA of F. langsethiae, F. poae and F. sporotrichioides based on previously published PCR assays. F. langsethiae was detectable in nearly all samples; F. poae was detected in 90% of samples whereas F. sporotrichioides was not detected in any sample. A real-time PCR assay was developed to quantify F. langsethiae DNA in plant material. The assay could quantify as low as 10(-4)ngF. langsethiae DNA/μl. Based on this assay and a previously published assay for F. poae, both species were quantified in the oat flour samples with known HT-2+T-2 content. Results showed a good regression (P<0.001, r(2)=0.60) between F. langsethiae DNA and HT-2+T-2 concentration. F. poae DNA concentration was not correlated to HT2+T2 concentration (P=0.448) but was weakly correlated to nivalenol concentration (P<0.001, r(2)=0.09). Multiple regression with F. langsethiae and F. poae DNA as explanatory variates identified that both F. langsethiae and F. poae DNA were highly significant (P<0.001) but F. poae DNA only accounted for an additional 4% of the variance and the estimate was negative, indicating that higher concentrations of F. poae DNA were correlated with slightly lower concentrations of HT2+T2 detected. A stronger regression (P<0.001, r(2)=0.77) between F. langsethiae DNA and HT-2+T-2 was obtained after extraction and quantification of DNA and mycotoxins from individual oat grains. The results from this study provide strong evidence that F. langsethiae is the primary, if not sole, fungus responsible for high HT-2 and T-2 in UK oats.