Heterogeneous effects of G-CSF and GM-CSF on cell growth and ara-C cytotoxicity in childhood leukemias which express myeloid markers

It is uncertain if acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) cells expressing myeloid makers can respond to granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). We investigated the effects of G-CSF (0.01 microgram/ml) and GM-CSF (0.01 microgram/ml) on [3H]thymidine (TdR) uptake, and the cytotoxicity of 1-beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine (ara-C) in leukemia cells from 17 pediatric patients. ALL cells without myeloid markers did not respond to G-CSF or GM-CSF. On the other hand, these cytokines enhanced the [3H]TdR uptake and cell growth, not only of AML cells but also of ALL cells expressing myeloid antigens. However, G-CSF and GM-CSF did not always enhance the growth inhibitory effect of the cell cycle specific drug ara-C when the cells were co-cultured with the drug. There was no relationship between cell growth and the amount of [3H]TdR incorporation or the intracellular ara-CTP level. These results indicate the heterogeneous effects of G-CSF and GM-CSF on cell growth and ara-C sensitivity in childhood leukemia cells.     

Oxidative degradation of polyolefins. I. Thermal oxidative degradation of atactic polypropylene in solution

Atactic polypropylene was oxidized in solution with radical initiator in the absence and presence of metal catalyst to considerably high conversion over the temperature range of 70° to 125°C, and oxidation products and the change in molecular weight distribution were measured. The unoxidized polypropylene had no ultraviolet absorption at 253.7 nm, whereas the oxidized polypropylene showed distinct absorption over a wide range of molecular weights. It was found that oxygen was incorporated into the polymer chain as hydroperoxide, acid, carbonyl, and hydroxy groups. Much of the absorbed oxygen was found to be involved in smaller fraction of low molecular weight products. Although the average molecular weight of the oxidized polypropylene decreased significantly, the formation of low-boiling products was quite small.     

Intergroup competition for public goods: Effects of unequal resources and relative group size.

Studied single-stage intergroup competition for public goods in small groups with total resources of equal size and binary contributions. In Experiment 1, the two competing groups were of equal size, but the individual resources (endowments) within each group differed from one member to another. The main finding was a negative relation between the endowment size and the likelihood of contribution. In Experiment 2, the ratio of public good to endowment was the same for all members of both groups, but sizes of the groups were unequal. We found no effect of group size per se on level of contribution. Theoretical and methodological implication of the findings are briefly discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personal supercomputing by using transputer and Intel 80860 in plasma engineering

Transputer (T800) and 64-bit RISC Intel 80860 (i860) added on a personal computer can be used as an accelerator. When 32-bit T800s in a parallel system or 64-bit i860s are used, scientific calculations are carried out several ten times as fast as in the case of commonly used 32-bit personal computers or UNIX workstations. Benchmark tests and examples of physical simulations using T800s and i860 are reported.     

Neutronic optimization for a blanket of the laser fusion reactor,SENRI-I

Neutronic calculations were performed to optimize the SENRI blanket in terms of energy multiplication as well as tritium breeding ratio. The blanket employs a thick ( 64-cm) Li layer as breeder/coolant. Three approaches were taken here to achieve the goal: (1) reduction of⁶Li in the lithium, (ii) replacement of the Li layer by a molten-salt (flibe) layer, and (iii) shipment of excess tritium to a nonbreeding blanket. It was found that the excess tritium produced in the SENRI blanket could be used effectively to obtain additional power by fueling a nonbreeding D-T reactor.     

Risk attitude in small timesaving decisions.

Four experiments are presented that explore situations in which a decision maker has to rely on personal experience in an attempt to minimize delays. Experiment 1 shows that risk-attitude in these timesaving decisions is similar to risk-attitude in money-related decisions from experience: A risky prospect is more attractive than a safer prospect with the same expected value only when it leads to a better outcome most of the time. Experiment 2 highlights a boundary condition: It suggests that a difficulty in ranking the relevant delays moves behavior toward random choice. Experiments 3 and 4 show that when actions must be taken during the delay (thereby helping compare delays), this increases the similarity of timesaving decisions to money-related decisions. In these settings the results reflect an increase in risk aversion with experience. The relationship of the results to the study of non-human time-related decisions, human money-related decisions and human time perception is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Multilocular thymic cysts associated with thymoma. A case report

The association of multilocular thymic cysts (MTC) with thymoma is exceedingly rare, and the pathogenesis of this combination is controversial. We describe the case of a 42-year-old man with an anterior mediastinal mass found to contain MTC and thymoma. A multilocular cystic mass, measuring 13 x 6.5 x 2 cm, was found in the right lobe of the thymus, and contained a 4.7 x 2 cm thymoma in its center. Microscopic thymomas, lipomatously involuted remaining thymic tissue, and lymphoid follicles with germinal centers were found in the walls of MTC as well as in the left thymic lobe. Non-specific chronic inflammation was also present in the walls. In addition, microcysts, which were only found at the periphery of the thymoma and covered with epithelium, might have been formed secondarily by dilatation of the perivascular spaces and of Hassall's corpuscles. These findings suggest that a chronic inflammatory process was responsible for the early formation and enlargement of this patient's MTC, and that while the cavities of the MTC expanded to various degrees, the thymoma, which originated from one of the microscopic thymomas in the walls of MTC, increased in size, and grew to involve the remaining thymic tissue.     

Heterogeneous distributions of histamine H3, dopamine D1 and D2 receptors in rat brain

The changes of the histamine H3 and dopamine D1 or D2 receptor binding sites induced by quinolinic acid treatment were studied in order to discriminate the comparative distribution. This treatment resulted in similar decreases in histamine H3 and dopamine D1 receptor binding sites in the striatum and ipsilateral substantia nigra. Dopamine D2 receptor binding sites were relatively well conserved, whereas H3 receptors decreased considerably. These results suggest that histamine H3 and dopamine D1 receptor binding sites are localized on the striatonigral projection neurones which are together sensitive to quinolinic acid, and that the distributional compartment of dopamine D2 receptor binding sites is quite different from those of histamine H3 and dopamine D1 receptors.     

Characterization of almond alpha-mannosidase and its application for structure analysis of sugar chain

Almond alpha-mannosidase was purified by separation on columns of DEAE-Sephadex A50 and hydroxyapatite, and characterized. Its optimum pH was approximately 3.8. It was also shown to be stable from pH 6 to 8. Its activity was stable up to 60 degrees C. The thermostability of almond alpha-mannosidase at 73 degrees C appeared to be superior to that of jack bean a-mannosidase. We examined the substrate specificity of the former toward high-mannose-type N-glycan Man9GlcNAc2, and showed that the deduced trimming pathway was more diverse than that of the latter. We could use almond alpha-mannosidase as well as jack bean alpha-mannosidase for analysis of sugar chain structures.     

NUMERICAL CALCULATIONS FOR COMBINED CONDUCTION AND RADIATION TRANSIENT HEAT TRANSFER IN A SEMITRANSPARENT MEDIUM

A numerical computer code was developed for calculating the combined conduction and radiation transient heat transfer in cylindrical, semitransparent materials that have temperature-dependent thermal properties. The radiative component is combined with the equation of conduction heat transfer by adding it as a heat source. The finite element method (FEM) was used for calculating the radiative component and for solving the temperature field in the medium. Very good agreement was observed between results obtained by using our code and those that exist in the literature for several steady-state cases. The advantage of the code is due to the fact that it incorporates temperature-dependent properties; thus it leads to more realistic and accurate results. The code was applied to calculate the cooling path of a large cylindrical sapphire boule while using varying, transient, temperature-dependent, combined heat transfer coefficients.