Resumption of mitosis during post-thaw culture: a key parameter in selecting the right embryos for transfer

A new oxidative pathway for the degradation of caffeine(1,3,7-Trimethylxanthine, I) by a mixed culture consisting of strains belonging to the genera Klebsiella and Rhodococcus is presented. The mixed culture does not initiate degradation by N-demethylation either complete or partial, but instead carries out oxidation at the C-8 position resulting in the formation of 1,3,7-trimethyluric acid (TMU, II) which further gets degraded to 3,6,8-trimethylallantoin (TMA, III). Both TMU and TMA are hitherto not shown to be formed in the microbial system. Further degradation of TMA (III) by caffeine grown cells yields dimethylurea (VII) as one of the metabolites. Oxygen uptake studies indicated that caffeine(I) grown cells oxidized TMU(II), TMA (III), glyoxalic acid (VI), dimethylurea(VII), and monomethylurea(V), but not monomethyl and dimethyluric acids. The mixed culture does not accept theophylline(1,3-dimethylxanthine), theobromine(3,7-dimethylxanthine), and paraxanthine(1,7-dimethylxanthine) as the carbon source.     

THERMODYNAMICS OF ASPHALTENE PRECIPITATION AND DISSOLUTION INVESTIGATION OF TEMPERATURE AND SOLVENT EFFECTS

Petroleum asphaltenes have been precipitated in solvent mixtures of n-heptane and toluene at various temperatures, likewise n-heptane asphaltenes have been dissolved in under similar conditions. This give added evidence to apparent hysteresis phenomenon between the two processes. The Asphaltenes have been characterized showing that although data is scattered convergence to certain structural parameters as incipient flocculation is approached. The asphaltenes are seen to consist of an associating and a non-associating part. The solubility of asphaltenes has been correlated/modelled using the Flory-Huggins equation using two different terms for the Flory parameter. A process for evaluation of best choice of solubility parameter and molar volume for the asphaltenes is proposed. Dissolution processes are seen to be best fitted by the equations. Based on these findings the asphaltenes are proposed to be formed by a colloidal and a true solution part.     

IL-4- and IL-5-secreting lymphocyte populations are preferentially stimulated by parasite-derived antigens in human tissue invasive nematode infections

Helminth infections in humans and animals are associated with strong T helper 2 (Th2) responses. To determine whether parasite-derived Ag preferentially expand a Th2-like cell population, a filter immunoplaque assay was used to enumerate the frequencies (F0) of PBMC and CD4(+)-enriched PBMC from individuals with helminth infections secreting selected cytokines in response to parasite-derived (PAg) and nonparasite antigens (NPAg). In 20 individuals with lymphatic filariasis, frequency analysis of PBMC secreting IL-4 and IFN-gamma indicated that the F0 of PAg-specific IL-4-secreting cells (geometric mean F0 (GM): 1/12,100) was 57-fold higher than the corresponding F0 of NPAg-reactive cells (GM: 1/692,000; p < 0.02). In marked contrast, the F0 of IFN-gamma-secreting cells responding to PAg (GM: 1/2,700) did not differ from those of cells specific for NAPg (GM: 1/3,400; p = 0.83). In another group of helminth-infected individuals, the F0 of highly enriched CD4+ cells secreting IL-4 and IL-5 in response to PAg (GMs: 1/2,600 and 1/5,600 CD4+ cells, respectively) were also found to be significantly higher than those specific for NPAg (GMs: 1/291,000 and 1/303,000 CD4+; p < 0.05 and p < 0.01, respectively), whereas the corresponding F0 of IFN-gamma- and granulocyte-macrophage-CSF-secreting cells were equivalent for PAg and NPag. Furthermore, the proportion of PAg-specific IL-4- and IL-5-secreting CD4+ cells relative to all cells secreting the given cytokine were approximately 29-fold higher than the proportion of NPAg-specific cells secreting these cytokines. Again, the corresponding proportions of Ag-specific IFN-gamma-and GM-CSF-secreting CD4+ cells were equivalent for PAg and NPAg. Thus, in this ex vivo system, a circulating population of IL-4- and IL-5-secreting (Th2-like) cells has been shown to exist in humans; PAg appears to expand these cells preferentially.     

Tuning of MST neurons to spiral motions

Cells in the dorsal division of the medial superior temporal area (MSTd) have large receptive fields and respond to expansion/contraction, rotation, and translation motions. These same motions are generated as we move through the environment, leading investigators to suggest that area MSTd analyzes the optical flow. One influential idea suggests that navigation is achieved by decomposing the optical flow into the separate and discrete channels mentioned above, that is, expansion/contraction, rotation, and translation. We directly tested whether MSTd neurons perform such a decomposition by examining whether there are cells that are preferentially tuned to intermediate spiral motions, which combine both expansion/contraction and rotation components. The finding that many cells in MSTd are preferentially selective for spiral motions indicates that this simple three-channel decomposition hypothesis for MSTd does not appear to be correct. Instead, there is a continuum of patterns to which MSTd cells are selective. In addition, we find that MSTd cells maintain their selectivity when stimuli are moved to different locations in their large receptive fields. This position invariance indicates that MSTd cells selective for expansion cannot give precise information about the retinal location of the focus of expansion. Thus, individual MSTd neurons cannot code, in a precise fashion, the direction of heading by using the location of the focus of expansion. The only way this navigational information could be accurately derived from MSTd is through the use of a coarse, population encoding. Positional invariance and selectivity for a wide array of stimuli suggest that MSTd neurons encode patterns of motion per se, regardless of whether these motions are generated by moving objects or by motion induced by observer locomotion.     

Sexual functioning among breast cancer, gynecologic cancer, and healthy women.

Determined the specific type of sexual functioning deficits and the relationship between global sexual satisfaction and adjustment in 2 related life areas (marital relationship and body image) for 2 groups of cancer patients at high risk for sexual difficulties. The 2 groups included 16 27–67 yr old females with Stage 2 breast cancer and 16 31–65 yr old females with gynecologic cancer. These Ss were compared to 16 healthy female outpatients (controls). Measures included the Sexual Activities scale from the Derogatis Sexual Functioning Inventory, a modified version of the Dyadic Assessment Scale (marital adjustment), a global sexual evaluation, and a body-image scale. Analyses revealed that the aspects of sexual functioning for breast-cancer and gynecologic-cancer Ss that differed from those of controls were the frequency of sexual behaviors and the level of sexual arousal. Whereas Ss' evaluations of their current sexual life had no relationship to their marital-adjustment ratings, analyses suggested that body-image disruption may be a prevalent problem for gynecologic cancer patients. Data suggest that cancer diagnosis and treatment are instrumental in producing reductions in sexual activity and arousability. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Artefactual cleavage of E coli H-NS by OmpT

In the bacterium Escherichia coli, H-NS-(H1, H1a) is a heat-stable protein with a molecular mass of 15.5 kDa involved in nucleoid organisation and gene regulation linked to certain signal transduction pathways. We have shown that, following addition of preparations of everted inner membrane vesicles, heat-stable cleavage products of approximately 10 kDa of H-NS are formed in vitro from newly synthesised, radio-labelled H-NS and from purified H-NS. The 15.5 kDa protein and its cleavage products were also recovered from a minicell system. These results raised the possibility that cleavage of H-NS is physiologically significant. However, the cleavage of H-NS observed appears to occur during cell breakage and to depend on the method of protein extraction and the presence of the outer membrane protease, OmpT. Nevertheless, the results indicate that H-NS may contain at least two separate domains with cleavage occurring between these domains at a preferred OmpT site. Failure to take account of H-NS cleavage in sample preparation and analysis can lead to serious underestimation of H-NS levels.     

Abnormal behavioral responses to fenfluramine in patients with affective and personality disorders. Correlation with increased serotonergic responsivity

Serotonergic responsivity was assessed in 20 psychiatric patients by the prolactin response to a fenfluramine challenge test. During the fenfluramine challenge 6 of 20 patients (30%) spontaneously reported psychopathologic reactions that included: increased anxiety/agitation, psychotic symptoms, illusions, mood elevation, and anergia. The time of peak behavioral symptoms (2.5 +/- 0.8 hrs) corresponded closely to the time of peak increase in prolactin levels (3.0 +/- 1.1 hr). Abnormal behavioral responders had statistically significant greater increases in prolactin 1 to 4 hr after fenfluramine when compared to normal responders. Patients who developed an abnormal psychopathologic response to fenfluramine were characterized by higher levels of anxiety and agitation at the time of admission to the hospital but otherwise were not distinguishable on the basis of severity of other psychiatric symptoms. This study suggests that increased serotonergic transmission may trigger anxiety, psychosis, and mood elevation in specific vulnerable individuals, whereas other patients with similar psychiatric illnesses are not affected.     

Selective activation by bryostatin-1 demonstrates unique roles for PKC epsilon in neurite extension and tau phosphorylation

The purpose of this study was to contrast the discharge patterns of the same motor units during movements and during isometric contractions that were produced with comparable torque-time characteristics. Subjects performed elbow flexion and extension movements with predetermined acceleration characteristics. The average acceleration and deceleration profiles for the movements were reproduced in the isometric setting by presenting the kinematic profiles as templates for torque production. Trained subjects were able to match the first agonist (AG1) and antagonist (ANT) electromyographic (EMG) bursts, but tended to produce a smaller second agonist burst (AG2) in the isometric contraction. Twenty-five motor units from triceps brachii were studied. The same motor units (with one exception) were recruited and subsequently discharged in a similar fashion in both the isometric and movement tasks in the AG1 and ANT EMG bursts, with fewer motor unit discharges in the AG2 burst in the isometric contraction. The central control mechanisms appear to be the same for the acceleration phase of movement and isometric contraction, but differ during the deceleration phase.     

Exclusion of BMP6 as a candidate gene for cleidocranial dysplasia

Cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD) is an autosomal dominant, generalized skeletal dysplasia in humans that has been mapped to the short arm of chromosome 6. We report linkage of a CCD mutation to 6p21 in a large family and exclude the bone morphogenetic protein 6 gene (BMP6) as a candidate for the disease by cytogenetic localization and genetic recombination. CCD was linked with a maximal two-point LOD score of 7.22 with marker D6S452 at theta = 0. One relative with a recombination between D6S451 and D6S459 and another individual with a recombination between D6S465 and CCD places the mutation within a 7 cM region between D6S451 and D6S465 at 6p21. A phage P1 genomic clone spanning most of the BMP6 gene hybridized to chromosome 6 in band region p23-p24 using FISH analysis, placing this gene cytogenetically more distal than the region of linkage for CCD. We derived a new polymorphic marker from this same P1 clone and found recombinations between the marker and CCD in this family. The results confirm the map position of CCD on 6p21, further refine the CCD genetic interval by identifying a recombination between D6S451 and D6S459, and exclude BMP6 as a candidate gene.