Induction of allergic encephalomyelitis in rhesus monkeys treated with anti monkey thymocyte sera

Treatment with rabbit anti-moneky thymus cell sera whether limited (3 days) or extensive (15 days), did not alter the development of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) in rhesus monkeys challenged with myelin basic protein or central nervous system tissue (CNS) when compared to similarly challenged control monkeys treated with normal rabbit serum. No consistent difference in disease incidence or intensity as measured by incubation period, neurologic signs or CNS pathology was observed between experimental and control monkeys. This finding is in contrast to previous reports on the efficacy of ATS treatment in prevention of EAE in rodents.

Nosocomial meningitis and bacteremia due to contaminated amphotericin B

Nosocomial Gram-negative bacillary meningitis and bacteremia occurred in a patient who was receiving intrathecal and intravenous amphotericin B. An epidemiologic investigation found the amphotericin B to be contaminated with Enterobacter agglomerans, Pseudomonas fluorescens, and P aeruginosa. These contaminants were traced to a lot ot sodium phosphate buffer that was added to all intrathecal and intravenous amphotericin B preparations. The phosphate buffer underwent prolonged storage at room temperature and was not subject to terminal sterilization nor sterility testing. This parenteral admixture prepared in the hospital is now steam autoclaved and sterility tested before use.

A comparative study of co-trimoxazole and amoxycillin in the treatment of acute bronchitis in general practice: a multicentre study

One hundred and five patients with acute bronchitis were treated with co-trimoxazole, and amoxycillin, in a single-blind trial. The present study confirms that co-trimoxazole and amoxycillin are effective, and well tolerated agents, both suitable for the management of acute bronchitis.

Premature chromosome condensation and cell cycle analysis

The application of the phenomenon of premature chromosome condensation for cell cycle analysis in HeLa and CHO cells has been examined. Random populations of HeLa and CHO cells pulse labelled with H3-TdR were separately fused with mitotic HeLa cells using U.V. inactivated Sendai virus. The resulting prematurely condensed chromosomes (PCC) were scored and classified into G1, S and G2-PCC on the basis of both morphological and autoradiographic data, The results of this study indicated that the G1, S and G2 phase cells are equally susceptible to virus-induced fusion with mitotic cells and subsequent induction into PCC. Hence the PCC method for cell cycle analysis is both practical and accurate. This study also revealed that the process of chromosome decondensation initiated during the telophase of mitosis continues throughout the G1 period reaching an ultimate state of decondensation by the end of G1, at which point the fusion of such cells with those in mitosis yield PCC with the most diffused morphology instead of the discrete single stranded structures characteristic of early G1-PCC. Thus, the decondensation of chromatin during G1 appears to be a prerequisite for the subsequent initiation of DNA synthesis.

Casein-induced murine amyloidosis: amyloid and immunoglobulin production and proliferative capacity of splenocytes

We have examined some aspects of lymphocyte and macrophage function in experimental murine amyloidosis. Casein-induced murine amyloidosis is a good model for studying secondary human amyloidosis while myeloma-associated murine amyloidosis is a poor model for human myeloma-associated amyloidosis. The amyloid of casein-induced and myeloma-associated murine amyloidosis cross-reacted immunologically. Neither form of amyloidosis was associated with L chain fragments or excess L chain production. Cellular immunologic reactivity of casein-induced amyloidotic mice, as assessed by lymphocyte transformation with mitogens, was abnormal using spleen lymphocytes but completely normal when thymus and peripheral blood lymphocytes were examined. The depressed activity could be attributed to splenic amyloid deposits. Intracellular amyloid was detected in the spleens of casein-injected mice prior to extracellular amyloid deposits. Amyloid containing cells could also be cultured from the spleen in a much higher proportion than that found in vivo. These cells may represent a subpopulation committed to amyloid synthesis.

Fractionation of nuclei and analysis of nuclear proteins of rat liver and Morris hepatoma 7777

The contributions of nuclear populations to the total profile of nuclear proteins in a tissue were examined in normal rat liver and Morris hepatoma 7777. Comparison by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of phenol-soluble nuclear proteins from tumor and control liver revealed additional proteins of molecular weight 60,000, 100,00, and 135,000 and the loss of proteins of about 45,000 and 55,000 in the tumor. Subfractionation of liver nuclei on a 30 to 50% sucrose gradient yielded three nuclear classes with nearly identical complements of the phenol-soluble proteins. Similar fractionation performed on the hepatoma nuclei also produced three nuclear populations. In the hepatoma nuclei, several differences in the phenol-soluble proteins were found between the minor, slowly sedimenting nuclear fraction, and the two major fractions, while the two latter fractions were very similar in their protein composition. Histones derived from both tissues were also compared electrophoretically, indicating a decrease in the concentration of histone H1(0)in all nuclear classes derived from the tumor.

Experimental murine amyloidosis: a model system for studying amyloid formation

Myeloma-associated and casein-induced murine amyloidosis were used as models to study the role of lymphocytes and macrophages in amyloid formation. Amyloidosis occurred rarely and in small amounts in Balb/C mice with immunoglobulin (Ig)-producing myeloma tumours but large amounts could be induced by injections of casein. Fluorescent staining of both forms of amyloid deposits by means of anti-casein- and anti-myeloma-amyloid antibodies indicated that they either crossreacted or coexisted. Nor abnormality of Ig biosynthesis was detected in amyloidosis, suggesting that abnormal degradation was responsible for production of the Ig form of amyloid. Although spleen lymphocytes of casein-injected mice with amyloidosis demonstrated diminished cellular immunologic responses, this did not indicate generalized immunologic incompetence. The non-Ig form of amyloid in casein-injected mice was shown to be produced by macrophages, and a technique was developed for increasing the yield of amyloid-containing cells.

Immunoglobulin biosynthesis in myeloma-associated and casein- and endotoxin-induced murine amyloidosis

Amyloidosis was induced in C57BL mice by daily injections of casein and in BALB/c mice by daily injections of endotoxin. There was no obvious disorder of immunoglobulin biosynthesis by spleen lymphocytes in these mice either before, during the development of, or in the amyloidotic stage. The pattern of immunoglobulin synthesis, assembly, and secretion was unaltered, the relative amount of heavy and light chains produced was normal, and there was an absence of immunoglobulin polypeptide chain fragments. Small amounts of amyloid were present in only 1 of 19 BALB/c and C3H mice (the IgG2a producing MOPC 173 tumor) bearing immunoglobulin-producing myeloma tumors and variants of these tumors. There was no relationship between excess light chain production by tumor plasma cells or spleen lymphocytes and the development of amyloidosis and there were no light chain fragments demonstrable. Antiserum prepared against casein-induced amyloid cross-reacted by immunofluorescence with the amyloid present in the MOPC 173 tumor-bearing mice, indicating the presence of common antigenic determinants in these two forms of amyloid. Attempts to study the biosynthesis of amyloid with incorporation of radioactively labeled amino acids were unsucessful.

The Conversion of Oxygen in Compounds to Water for Isotopic Analysis by a Density Technique

A method is described which enables oxygen in numerous compounds to be isolated in the form of water as a preliminary step to the determination of the isotopic composition of the oxygen by a density technique. The oxygen in the compound is converted to carbon monoxide or dioxide. These gases are reduced by hydrogen in the presence of a pure nickel catalyst to yield water and hydrocarbons. A small memory effect is shown, but this is eliminated by the first sample put through the process. The process is carried out on a scale such that 1 mmole of water is produced for each reduction. The time involved is about 2 hr per sample.