Preovulatory dynamics of ovarian steroid hormones in two mouse strains differing in the rate of meiotic maturation

Immature females of two inbred strains, KE and CBA, differing in the rate of meiotic maturation, were used in this study. On the 26th day they were treated with 5 IU PMSG (0 h) and 48 h later with 5 IU hCG. Groups of females were killed at 2 h intervals starting with 46 h and ovaries were then dissected for steroid analysis by appropriate RIAs. In both strains hCG injection resulted in a sharp increase in ovarian progesterone content with a simultaneous fall in androgen and oestradiol concentrations. However, in the CBA strain, progesterone concentration started to rise earlier while androgen concentration decreased later than in the KE strain. This subtle difference could be one of the factors contributing to the different maturation rate of KE and CBA strains.     

A clinical study in the treatment of acute bacterial infections with fleroxacin

The purpose of this clinical trial is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of fleroxacin and to compare with those of lomefloxacin. A randomized controlled study was carried out to treat sixty patients with urinary tract and respiratory tract bacterial infections, thirty in each group with one of the two drugs, and fifty cases were treated with fleroxacin in an open trial. Altogether there were one hundred and ten cases. Both fleroxacin and lomefloxacin were given orally, the dosage was 200 mg every 12 hours or 400 mg every 24 hours for 7-14 days. The clinical efficacy rate was 93.3%; the culturing rate in the fleroxacin group was 83.3%; the bacterial clearance rate was 92.3%, the incidence of adverse reactions was 9.4%, while in the lomefloxacin group they were 90.0%, 80.0%, 87.5% and 6.7% respectively, with no statistically significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05). In the open and randomized trials, fleroxacin cured eighty cases of bacterial infections, the overall clinical efficacy rate was 90.0%, the culturing rate in the flero-xacin group was 83.8%, the bacterial clearance rate was 88.2% and the incidence of adverse reactions was 9.6%. It is shown that fleroxacin is an antibiotic of broad-spectrum, high efficacy and safety.     

Acidity near eroding polylactide-polyglycolide in vitro and in vivo in rabbit tibial bone chambers

Eroding poly(DL-lactide-co-glycolide)(PDLLG) washers were observed chronically in vitro and in vivo following loading in a bone chamber tibial implant (BCI). Images were recorded using intravital microscopy of the implanted rabbit and direct pH measurements were obtained of the tissue in the bone chamber using a combination probe-reference microelectrode. While statistically significant pH differences were found between the control (unloaded) and experimental (PDLLG-bearing) BCIs, they were only of the order of 0.2 pH units. This value proved to be physiologically insignificant as no statistically significant difference in bone defect healing, as indicated by angiogenesis, was detected. It was shown that the measured small pH changes during PDLLG washers erosion would result whether the buffer was phosphate-buffered saline replaced weekly or interstitial fluid subject to vascular exchanges.     

Fanconi anemia complementation group E: clinical and cytogenetic data of the first patient

The clinical and cytogenetic data of the first patient proven to belong to the fifth Fanconi anemia complementation group are described. The Turkish boy presented with psychomotoric retardation, growth retardation, retarded bone age, brachycephaly, hypotelorism, epicanthus, syndactyly, brachydactyly, renal dystopia, and cryptorchism. In addition, an asymmetrical skeletal anomaly was seen with a double distal phalanx of the left thumb and hypoplasia of the right thumb. Typical hematological features of the disorder developed, at the age of 2.5 years, about 1 year after diagnosis. Cytogenetic studies confirmed the clinical diagnosis and revealed a spontaneous chromosomal instability and hypersensitivity to the cross-linking agents diepoxybutane and Trenimon. The findings in the patient, who is considered to be the standard for the fifth Fanconi anemia complementation group, are compared with data reported for other patients affected with Fanconi anemia.     

Food intake after gastrectomy for gastric carcinoma: the role of a gastric reservoir

Patients with carcinoma of the stomach who underwent curative resection were randomized to total gastrectomy (n = 49), total gastrectomy and an S-shaped gastric substitute (n = 28) or subtotal gastrectomy (n = 12); all had a Roux-en-Y reconstruction. The gastric substitute and gastric remnant allowed a volume of 400-500 ml to be installed without increments in basal pressures. The corresponding volume in the Roux limb was 100 ml. Energy intake was approximately 120 kJ/kg preoperative weight per day 3 months after operation, and then remained constant. Patients who had subtotal gastrectomy ate less (91.7 kJ/kg preoperative weight) 3 months after operation, but thereafter increased their intake. Patients allocated to have a gastric pouch or subtotal gastrectomy complained more frequently of adverse postprandial symptoms (P < 0.03) as a major cause of reduced calorie intake. The construction of a gastric reservoir did not improve nutritional adaptation after surgery for gastric carcinoma.     

Fabrication of a heterodyne receiver OEIC with optimized integration process using three MOVPE growth steps only

An optimized integration process is reported requiring only three epitaxial growth steps for the fabrication of an OEIC encompassing a single-mode laser, a waveguide element, and fast photodiodes. The process was applied to the fabrication of a heterodyne receiver including a semi-insulating buried heterostructure (SIBH)-DFB-laser with an output power of 14 mW and a side-mode suppression ratio greater than 40 dB, a 3-dB coupler, and high-speed balanced photodiodes with a bandwidth of 9 GHz. The laser can also be used as a transmitter laser exhibiting a modulation bandwidth of 11 GHz.     

Long fiber reinforced polyamide and polycarbonate composites. II: Fatigue behavior and morphological property

Fatigue behavior and morphology of long glass fiber reinforced semicrystalline polyamide (nylon 6,6) and amorphous polycarbonate (PC) composites were investigated. The fiber length distribution in the molded samples was calculated by image analyzer. The tension-tension fatigue loading tests at various levels of stress amplitudes were studied. The two-parameter Weibull distribution function were applied to obtain the statistical probability distribution of experimental data. A good correlation existed between the experimental data and the Weibull distribution curves. Straight line S? N curves of long glass fiber reinforced semicrystalline polyamide and amorphous polycarbonate composites at various probabilities were established. The stiffness of the composite under tension-tension fatigue loading was measured. The thermal stress history was also investigated by thermo-imaging techniques during fatigue life testing. Further, failure morphology was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results showed that the fracture behavior of the ductile damage in polyamide is different from the brittle damage in polycarbonate.