Egg Thiamine Status of Lake Ontario Salmonines 1995–2004 with Emphasis on Lake Trout

Alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus), the major prey fish for Lake Ontario, contain thiaminase. They are associated with development of a thiamine deficiency in salmonines which greatly increases the potential for developing an early mortality syndrome (EMS). To assess the possible effects of thiamine deficiency on salmonine reproduction we measured egg thiamine concentrations for five species of Lake Ontario salmonines. From this we estimated the proportion of families susceptible to EMS based on whether they were below the ED20, the egg thiamine concentration associated with 20% mortality due to EMS. The ED20s were 1.52, 2.63, and 2.99 nmol/g egg for Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush), and coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), respectively. Based on the proportion of fish having egg thiamine concentrations falling below the ED20, the risk of developing EMS in Lake Ontario was highest for lake trout, followed by coho (O. kisutch), and Chinook salmon, with the least risk for rainbow trout (O. mykiss). For lake trout from western Lake Ontario, mean egg thiamine concentration showed significant annual variability during 1994 to 2003, when the proportion of lake trout at risk of developing EMS based on ED20 ranged between 77 and 100%. Variation in the annual mean egg thiamine concentration for western Lake Ontario lake trout was positively related (p < 0.001, r² = 0.94) with indices of annual adult alewife biomass. While suggesting the possible involvement of density-dependent changes in alewives, the changes are small relative to egg thiamine concentrations when alewife are not part of the diet and are of insufficient magnitude to allow for natural reproduction by lake trout.     

Growth and characterization of GaAs films deposited on Ge/Si composite substrates by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

We report the results of studies which have been made on heteroepitaxial layers of GaAs and AlGaAs grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition on composite substrates that consist of four different types of heteroepitaxial layered structures of Ge and Ge-Si grown by molecular beam epitaxy on (100)-oriented Si substrates. It is found that of the four structures studied, the preferred composite substrate is a single layer of Ge ∼1 μm thick grown directly on a Si buffer layer. The double-crystal X-ray rocking curves of 2 μm thick GaAs films grown on such substrates have FWHM values as small as 168 arc sec. Transmission electron micrographs of these Ge/Si composite substrates has shown that the number of dislocations in the Ge heteroepitaxial layer can be greatly reduced by an anneal at about 750° C for 30 min which is simultaneously carried out during the growth of the GaAs layer. The quality of the GaAs layers grown on these composite substrates can be greatly improved by the use of a five-period GaAs-GaAsP strained-layer superlattice (SLS). Using the results of these studies, low-threshold optically pumped AlGaAs-GaAs DH laser structures have been grown by MOCVD on MBE Ge/Si composite substrates.     

Effects of sex and MK-801 on auditory-processing deficits associated with developmental microgyric lesions in rats

Neonatally induced microgyric lesions produce defects in rapid auditory processing in adult male rats. Given that females across species are less susceptible to the deleterious effects of neural injury and that treatment with neuroprotective agents at the time of injury can reduce neural damage, the authors tested the effects of sex and neuroprotectant exposure on the behavioral consequences of microgyric lesions in rats. Results showed that sham but not microgyric males were able to perform the task at the fastest rate of stimulus presentation. Microgyric females, in contrast, discriminated at all stimulus conditions and did not differ from female shams. Microgyric males treated with MK-801 had reduced cortical damage and performed the discrimination at the fastest condition. Results suggest that females are less susceptible to the behavioral effects of neocortical microgyria and that MK-801 may ameliorate the behavioral consequences of these lesions in male rats.     

Phase II trial of paclitaxel and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in patients with pancreatic carcinoma: a Southwest Oncology Group study

PURPOSE: Pancreatic cancer is difficult to treat, with most patients surgically unresectable at the time of diagnosis. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy can offer palliation, but more effective therapy is needed. This trial evaluated the effects of an aggressive schedule of paclitaxel given with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) to patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All patients were required to have a histologic diagnosis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma with measurable disease and no prior chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Patients had to have performance status of 0 to 2, pretreatment absolute granulocyte count > or = 1,500/microL, and platelet count greater than or equal to the institutional lower limit of normal. Following pretreatment with dexamethasone, diphenhydramine, and cimetidine, patients received paclitaxel at a dose of 250 mg/m2 by 24-hour infusion on day 1, repeated every 21 days. G-CSF was given at a dose of 5 microg/kg/d on days 3 to 18 or until two consecutive absolute neutrophil counts (ANCs) > or = 10,000/microL were obtained. Doses of paclitaxel were modified depending on nadir counts. RESULTS: Forty-five patients were entered onto this study, with six ineligible. For the 39 eligible patients, there was one complete response (CR) and two partial responses (PRs), five stable/no responses, 23 increasing disease, two early deaths, and six patients whose assessment was inadequate to determine response. The response rate was therefore three of 39 or 8% (95% confidence interval [CI], 2% to 21%). The median survival time for the 39 eligible patients was 5 months. The most common toxicities were anemia, leukopenia/granulocytopenia, malaise/fatigue, nausea/vomiting, alopecia, thrombocytopenia, paresthesias, and liver function abnormalities. There was one death due to sepsis. CONCLUSION: Single-agent paclitaxel in this dose and schedule has minimal activity in pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients.     

Quantitative estimation: From the real world to the psychology lab.

Banaji and Crowder (see record 1990-00387-001) contend "that the movement to develop an ecologically valid psychology of memory has proven itself largely bankrupt" (p. 1185). The authors have two primary concerns. First, they believe that it is rare for studies of real-world cognition to support conclusions that generalize broadly. Second, they are concerned that such studies may be inherently incapable of making significant theoretical or methodological contributions. The research program outlined here can be viewed as a response (in the form of a case study) to the Banaji and Crowder position. Specifically, this project has adopted both theoretical and methodology perspectives from the study of real-world memory to address a long-standing issue in the mainstream memory literature. The project itself was designed to characterize the strategies used to estimate event frequency and the conditions that foster the use of these strategies. A valid model of the estimation process is necessary in order to understand the encoding and representation of event frequency. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transesophageal echocardiography: implications for the critical care nurse

TEE is an exciting and useful diagnostic tool that is rapidly gaining widespread acceptance in both teaching centers and community hospitals. Because of the semi-invasive nature of the procedure, nursing expertise is essential to ensure patient safety and comfort during the TEE examination.     

A new family of yeast genes implicated in ergosterol synthesis is related to the human oxysterol binding protein

We have identified three yeast genes, KES1, HES1 and OSH1, whose products show homology to the human oxysterol binding protein (OSBP). Mutations in these genes resulted in pleiotropic sterol-related phenotypes. These include tryptophan-transport defects and nystatin resistance, shown by double and triple mutants. In addition, mutant combinations showed small but apparently cumulative reductions in membrane ergosterol levels. The three yeast genes are also functionally related as overexpression of HES1 or KES1 alleviated the tryptophan-transport defect in kes1Δ or osh1Δ mutants, respectively. Our study implicates this new yeast gene family in ergosterol synthesis and provides comparative evidence of a role for human OSBP in cholesterol synthesis.     

Isotherm analyses for single component and multi-component metal sorption onto lignite

The adsorption of the three metal ions, copper, cadmium and zinc in single component and multi-component mixtures in aqueous solutions by lignite is reported. A comparison is made between the single component saturation uptake and the multi-component uptakes. The isotherms indicate a competitive uptake with copper being preferentially absorbed by the lignite in multi-component solutions. The isotherms are plotted to obtain the Langmuir constants, the Freundlich constants and the Redlich–Peterson constants. Lignite is shown to possess an affinity for the metal ions which make its use as an adsorbent a possible alternative to the use of more expensive activated carbons.