Comparison of the Concentration Profiles of 12 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons from Different Sources with Monitoring Data from Prague Using a Similarity Measure

A method not used yet for detection of similarity between polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) profiles was applied to selected air samples taken in three localities of Prague. Dissimilarities between PAHs profiles in the Prague atmosphere, solid fuel (coal or wood) combustion, vehicle exhaust, and vehicle exhaust in a traffic tunnel atmosphere indicates that there are other sources of PAHs in the atmosphere of Prague.     

The use micro-polarization in spinal cord lesions

Transdermal micropolarization of the spinal cord was made in patients with consequences of the spinal cord injury or tuberculous spondylitis. Changes in clinical and electrophysiologic status were evaluated. It was found that local direct current through dermal electrodes promotes an improvement of both motor and autonomic functions in such patients. This corresponded to a positive dynamics both of the spinal cord state and cardiac activity. Possible mechanisms of influence of the direct current on the spinal cord as well as perspectives of application of micropolarization in spinal cord's damage are outlined.     

Characteristics of strains of Citrobacter 037 (5396/38) isolated from guinea pigs in a gnotobiologic experiment

No changes in the principal biochemical properties characteristic of the given genus occurred in a gnotobiological experiment of passing Citrobacter bacteria through microbe free and exmicrobe-free animals. Of 28 strains of this genus isolated in the course of investigation two strains lost their arginine-decarboxylase activity. In the cultures studied the quantitative content of the Vi-antigen had a tendency to reduction in comparison with the initial culture used for the association. some of the strains studied had one more common antigen with typhoid bacilli (strain Ty2-4446) along with theknown cross by the Vi-antigen. Bacteria of the Enterobacter and Excherichia genus isolated after the conventionalization had common antigens with typhoid bacilli (Ty2-4446).     

Effect of climatic-weather conditions on the incidence of miscarriage

Two new methods for serological grouping of beta-hemolytic streptococci, the nitrous acid extraction procedure of El Kholy et al. and the slide agglutination method of Christensen et al., were compared with the Lancefield hot-hydrochloric acid extraction method in classifying 92 strains of groups A, B, C, and G. The nitrous acid extraction method was easily performed, specific, and sensitive when highly potent antisera were used. For the Christensen method these highly potent antisera had to be diluted to avoid cross-reactions between groups A and C and groups B and G, respectively. A few strains, most of them group B, could not be grouped by the latter method. Using these three grouping methods, two sets of commercial sera were compared with the more potent sera supplied by R. C. Lancefield. The low antibody content of these commercial sera, especially anti-group B and G sera, contributed to the inferior results obtained in some of the grouping reactions.     

Degradation of cardiac troponin I: implication for reliable immunodetection

We have analyzed by different immunological methods the proteolytic degradation of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in human necrotic tissue and in serum. cTnI is susceptible to proteolysis, and its degradation leads to the appearance of a wide diversity of proteolytic peptides with different stabilities. N- and C-terminal regions were rapidly cleaved by proteases, whereas the fragment located between residues 30 and 110 demonstrated substantially higher stability, possibly because of its protection by TnC. We conclude that antibodies selected for cTnI sandwich immunoassays should preferentially recognize epitopes located in the region resistant to proteolysis. Such an approach can be helpful for a much needed standardization of cTnI immunoassays and can improve the sensitivity and reproducibility of cTnI assays.     

Induced variability of Streptomyces galbus

A-factor, a regulating substance is an obligatory participant of streptomycin biosynthesis by Str. griseus. Str. galbus also synthesizes streptomycin but without participation of A-factor. Mutant with various morphological properties were obtained under the effect of ethylenimine. No correlation between spore formation and streptomycin synthesis was found in the mutants of Str. galbus unlike Str. griseus. Correlation between a decrease in the capacity for production of a dark brown pigment and an increase in the level of streptomycin biosynthesis was shown: the mutants with the dark brown pigment did not synthesize streptomycin, while the mutants without the pigment synthesized streptomycin in the amounts 10-14 times higher than those in the initial strain. The same as the initial strain, the mutants of Str. galbus had no A-factor and did not respond to its addition into the medium by changing their properties and streptomycin synthesis.