Juror competence in civil trials: Effects of preinstruction and evidence technicality.

48 jury-eligible adults heard 1 of 4 versions of a tort trial. The design combined high and moderate levels of evidence technicality and the placement of substantive judicial instructions either before or after evidence presentation. Jurors given instructions before hearing the evidence for liability and before the evidence for compensation made clear distinctions among 4 differentially worthy plaintiffs, whereas jurors instructed after evidence presentation were not able to distinguish among the plaintiffs. Preinstructions enabled jurors to devise a causal model, as measured by both verbal representation of the evidence and recognition tests, that contained more probative evidence and less nonprobative and evaluative information than the models constructed by jurors who were postinstructed. Preinstructed jurors were better able than postinstructed jurors to correctly reject recognition items not part of the trial text and to correctly identify items from the trial. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of the vascular endothelium on norepinephrine-induced contractions in uterine radial arteries from the nonpregnant and pregnant human uterus

OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to investigate the role of the endothelium in the human uterine arterial response to norepinephrine in the nonpregnant and pregnant states. STUDY DESIGN: Tissue was obtained from six pregnant and six nonpregnant women undergoing cesarean section or hysterectomy. Uterine radial arteries were isolated and subjected to norepinephrine dose-response curves with and without intact endothelium. RESULTS: Responses were obtained over a dose range of 10(-8) to 10(-4) norepinephrine. Initially there was no difference between vessels from pregnant and nonpregnant patients, but removal of the endothelium significantly increased the response in vessels from pregnant women. Addition of nitro-L-arginine methyl ester when the endothelium was intact did not alter the dose-response curves. CONCLUSIONS: In pregnancy human uterine radial arteries are more sensitive to norepinephrine than during the nonpregnant state. This increase is countered by an endothelium-derived relaxing factor. The factor is unlikely to be nitric oxide.     

Frontiers of current research: Section introduction.

This article introduces the special section in the current issue of the American Psychologist. The articles in this section appear in two groups. The first is titled "Developmental Perspectives"; the second is titled "Learning and Teaching." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A broadly cross-protective monoclonal antibody binding to Escherichia coli and Salmonella lipopolysaccharides

During the last decade, episodes of sepsis have increased and Escherichia coli has remained the most frequent clinical isolate. Lipopolysaccharides (LPS; endotoxin) are the major toxic and antigenic components of gram-negative bacteria and qualify as targets for therapeutic interventions. Molecules that neutralize the toxic effects of LPS are actively investigated. In this paper, we describe a murine monoclonal antibody (MAb; WN1 222-5), broadly cross-reactive and cross-protective for smooth (S)-form and rough (R)-form LPS. As shown in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the passive hemolysis assay, WN1 222-5 binds to the five known E. coli core chemotypes, to Salmonella core, and to S-form LPS having these core structures. In immunoblots, it is shown to react with both the nonsubstituted core LPS and with LPS carrying O-side chains, indicating the exposure of the epitope in both S-form and R-form LPS. This MAb of the immunoglobulin G2a class is not lipid A reactive but binds to E. coli J5, an RcP+ mutant which carries an inner core structure common to many members of the family Enterobacteriaceae. Phosphate groups present in the inner core contribute to the epitope but are not essential for the binding of WN1 222-5 to complete core LPS. Cross-reactivity for clinical bacterial isolates is broad. WN1 222-5 binds to all E. coli clinical isolates tested so far (79 blood isolates, 80 urinary isolates, and 21 fecal isolates) and to some Citrobacter, Enterobacter, and Klebsiella isolates. This pattern of reactivity indicates that its binding epitope is widespread among members of the Enterobacteriaceae. WN1 222-5 exhibits biologically relevant activities. In vitro, it inhibits the Limulus amoebocyte lysate assay activity of S-form and R-form LPS in a dose-dependent manner and it neutralizes the LPS-induced release of clinically relevant monokines (interleukin 6 and tumor necrosis factor). In vivo, WN1 222-5 blocks endotoxin-induced pyrogenicity in rabbits and lethality in galactosamine-sensitized mice. The discovery of WN1 222-5 settles the long-lasting controversy over the existence of anti-core LPS MAbs with both cross-reactive and cross-protective activity, opening new possibilities for the immunotherapy of sepsis caused by gram-negative bacteria.     

Metabolic responses to preexercise meals containing various carbohydrates and fat

Renal function was examined after unilateral release, bilateral release or unilateral release and contralateral nephrectomy in three groups of rats following 24 h of bilateral ureteral obstruction (BUO). Excretion of water, sodium and urea was significantly greater in rats with unilateral release of BUO than in a single kidney of rats with bilateral release of BUO, in spite of similar levels of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and effective renal plasma flow. Rats with unilateral release of obstruction and contralateral nephrectomy had a significantly lower GFR than the other two groups. These rats also responded with greater increases in fractional sodium and water excretion to the administration of exogenous atrial peptide. The results demonstrate a marked compensatory increase in sodium and water excretion in rats with unilateral release of the obstruction which serves to maintain homeostasis of fluid and salt. They also suggest a possible influence of the continuously obstructed kidney on the function of the postreleased kidney. The results also provide experimental support for a greater recovery of renal excretory function after bilateral release of obstruction.     

Synthesis and cytotoxicity of potential tumor-inhibitory analogues of trimelamol (2,4,6-tris[(hydroxymethyl)methylamino]-1,3,5-triazine) having electron-withdrawing groups in place of methyl

In exploring the structural features which determine the antitumor activity of 2,4,6-tris-[(hydroxymethyl)methylamino]-1,3,5-triazine (trimelamol, 1), we have synthesized analogues in which the methyl groups have been replaced by the electron-withdrawing substituents 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl (5), propargyl (13), and cyanomethyl (15) via the respective tris(alkylamino)triazines 3, 12, and 14. Three mono[(hydroxymethyl)amino]triazines (4, 7, and 10) were also prepared. All the new tris(hydroxymethyl) derivatives showed cytotoxicities toward a variety of experimental rodent and human ovarian tumor cell lines similar to those shown by 1, the cyanomethyl analogue (15) having the most favorable profile. Mono(hydroxymethyl) derivatives (4 and 7) were ca. one-third as toxic. The new tris(hydroxymethyl) analogues were more stable to aqueous hydrolysis than was 1. Half-life (pH 7.5) values were, for 1, 120 min, for 5, 690 min, for 13, 450 min, and for 15, 275 min, but at pH 2.0, 15 (t1/2 350 min) was the most stable. This cyanomethyl analogue was also the most water-soluble, being comparable to 1 whereas 5 and 13 were poorly soluble.