Insulin propeptides in conditions associated with insulin resistance in humans and their relevance to insulin measurements

Routine insulin assays measure not only biologically active insulin but also the relatively inactive propeptides, proinsulin and desdipeptide proinsulin. Such measurements may be misleading if insulin propeptide levels are increased, as has been reported in patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). Inferences regarding insulin resistance, based on hyperinsulinemia, could thus be invalidated where routine insulin assays have been used. We have measured plasma insulin levels using a routine assay, together with measurements of the major circulating insulin propeptides, intact proinsulin and des 31,32proinsulin, in various clinical situations associated with apparently increased insulin levels and insulin resistance. Major increases of insulin propeptide levels relative to insulin levels were not seen in obese subjects or in patients taking oral contraceptives or danazol, or in obese subjects compared with non-obese controls. Although the insulinemic responses observed with routine radioimmunoassay in these situations associated with insulin resistance are not confounded by major changes in the proportion of circulating insulin propeptides, further studies will be necessary to validate investigations in other insulin-resistant states.     

Continuity and change: past experience as adaptive repertoire in occupational adaptation

Narratives are gaining recognition as important ways occupational therapists and other clinicians can think about the life stories of clients. The purpose of this article is to examine a conceptualization of how changes from one chapter to another occur in life stories, using the metaphor of an adaptive repertoire, and to consider how this notion can be useful in helping clients maintain continuity and a coherent life story in times of change. Three premises based on the concept of adaptation address (a) configurations of occupational forms embedded in particular local worlds, (b) cumulative development of an adaptive repertoire that allows one to perform both competently and appropriately, and (c) adaptive transitions and application of one's repertoire to new circumstances. Implications for research and clinical practice in occupational therapy also are examined.     

Immunoexpression of epidermal growth factor in odontogenesis of the offspring of alcoholic mice

Several forms of cell perturbation have been associated with ethanol ingestion. Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) as well as diminished maxillofacial development and inhibition of cell regeneration in vitro and in vivo have been described. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) stimulates maxillofacial growth, DNA synthesis, and it is a potent mitogen for a number of various cell types. EGF exerts its effects on cells through binding to a specific cell surface receptor which leads to activation of a thyrosine kinase in the intracellular part of the receptor. The inhibitory effect of alcohol on EGF in the mouse dental follicle was studied in the offspring of alcoholic mothers using immunocytochemistry. Adult female mice were given 22% alcohol in their drinking water and fed a pelleted diet before and during pregnancy. Maternal blood alcohol levels were 262 +/- 1.3 mg/100 ml on gestation day 12.5. The offspring of the alcoholic and control mice were sacrificed on postnatal day 1.5, their mandibles were dissected, weighed and processed by routine immunocytochemistry with the following results. 1) Significant differences were found in mandible weight p < 0.01 after parturition. 2) The tooth germs in the offspring of ethanol treated mice were morphometrically smaller than those of control littermates. 3) Immunoexpression of EGF in the mandibular first molar of the control group was strong and homogeneous while in the experimental group the expression was light and heterogeneous. It is concluded that maternal alcoholism reduces EGF in the offspring.     

beta Recombinase catalyzes inversion and resolution between two inversely oriented six sites on a supercoiled DNA substrate and only inversion on relaxed or linear substrates

The beta recombinase, in the presence of a chromatin-associated protein such as Hbsu, catalyzes DNA resolution or DNA inversion on supercoiled substrates containing two directly or inversely oriented six sites. Hbsu stabilizes the formation of the recombination complex (Alonso, J. C., Weise, F., and Rojo, F. (1995) J. Biol. Chem. 270, 2938-2945). In this study we show that resolution by beta recombinase strictly requires supercoiled DNA, but inversion does not. On a substrate with two inversely oriented six sites, beta recombinase catalyzed both resolution and inversion if the DNA was supercoiled but only inversion if the substrate was relaxed or linear. Hbsu was critical for the formation of synaptic complexes; its concentration relative to that of the supercoiled DNA substrate determined whether resolution or inversion products were preferentially formed. The results suggest that the beta recombinase forms unproductive short-lived synaptic complexes between two juxtaposed inversely oriented six sites; the presence of 3 to 13 Hbsu dimers per supercoiled DNA molecule would stabilize a synaptic complex with a relative geometry of the six sites allowing beta recombinase preferentially to achieve resolution. Supercoiling probably helps to overcome an energetic barrier, since resolution does not occur in relaxed DNA. The presence of >30 Hbsu dimers per DNA molecule probably favors the formation of a recombination complex with a different geometry since the reaction is directed preferentially toward DNA inversion.     

Development of a vibratory white finger prevention program for shipyard workers: an exploratory study

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of thevetoside (TS), a cardiac glycoside, and an inhibitor of Na+, K(+)-ATPase, on tumor cells cultured in vitro. METHODS: The cytotoxic effects of TS on tumor cells were determined by trypan blue dye exclusion, neutral red vital staining and clonogenic assay. The time-effect relationship and growth inhibition of tumor cells by TS were assayed with trypan blue exclusion method. RESULTS: TS at low doses (0.005-0.1 mg.L-1), with dose dependence, was able to kill SMMC-7721, SGC-7901 and HeLa cells. IC50 values for SMMC-7721, SGC-7901 and HeLa cells were 0.007, 0.011 and 0.018 mg.L-1 by trypan blue dye exclusion test and 0.016, 0.055 and 0.078 mg.L-1 by neutral red vital staining test. TS inhibited the clonal forming rate of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 significantly with IC50 values of 0.021 and 0.036 mg.L-1, respectively. Only when the cells were continuously treated with TS for more than 8 hours, the drug-induced cell lethality could be displayed and strengthened quickly. The growth of tumor cells was notably inhibited after they were exposed to 0.1 microgram/ml of TS for 12 hours. All the experimental results of antitumor activity in vitro showed that SMMC-7721 was most sensitive to TS among the three kinds of tumor cells. CONCLUSIONS: TS has cytotoxic action on tumor cells cultured in vitro and this lethal effect must have an action process, in which tumor cells are not dead but suffer from deadly injury and lost the capability of unlimited proliferation.     

Loss of substance of the lateral region of the face

The cardiovascular effects of a partially purified extract of fish oil, enriched in the n-3 series fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), were studied in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR-SP) fed with high- and low-sodium diets during 5 weeks. Addition of salt to the low-salt control diet at a level commonly found in human food items (6% NaCl of the dry weight of the diet) produced a remarkable rise in blood pressure, an increase in left ventricular weight-to-body weight ratio (LVH-index) and an increase in kidney weight-to-body weight ratio (RH-index). Fish oil (20% of the dry weight of the diet) did not significantly influence the blood pressure or LVH-index or RH-index during the low-salt control diet. However, fish oil completely prevented the remarkable rise in blood pressure and clearly antagonized the rise of both LVH- and RH-indices, induced by the high-salt diet. The fish oil supplementation increased the levels of the polyunsaturated fatty acids of the n-3 series and decreased those of the n-6 series in plasma and kidney, irrespective of the salt content of the diet. Fish oil lowered serum thromboxane B2 concentration by approximately 75%. During the high-salt diet, fish oil markedly decreased water intake and urine volume, and increased urinary sodium concentration by about 60%. Our findings show that, in addition to an antihypertensive effect, fish oil also decreases LVH and RH. These effects appear to be due to an improved ability to excrete sodium and could be explained by the observed changes in the fatty acid composition and metabolism.     

Optimization of the properties obtained by quenching in martensitic stainless steels X30-40Cr13 and X40-60CrMoV14

An experimental study of the effects produced by different parameters of the heat-quenching cycle permitted the optimization of the properties typical of these martensitic stainless steels: hardness and corrosion resistance. The results obtained demonstrate that the heating temperatures currently used in industrial quenching treatment of these steels should be modified.