Cerebral radionuclide scintigraphy in the stroke syndrome

The cerebral scans of 365 patients with the stroke syndrome were reviewed retrospectively over a 30-month period. Positive static studies occurred in 140 patients )38%), of which 73 (52%) had an associated reduction of flow to the affected hemisphere on the dynamic study. Positive dynamic studies alone accurred in 69 patients (19%), increasing the positive yield by 50%. Dynamic studies also differentiate extracranial (carotid) occlusion from intracranial vascular occlusion, and may contribute to prognosis and management. Infarction in the middle cerebral artery territory is five times as common as infarction in any other arterial territory. An unexpected finding was the high incidence (5%) of watershed infarctions. These are more common than posterior cerebral artery strokes (4%), and anterior cerebral artery strokes (1%). When patients with vertebrobasilar and lacunar strokes, and those scanned within one week or after six weeks from the onset of symptoms are excluded, the positive yield was 54% for static studies, and 67% over all.

In vivo effect of colchicine on hepatic protein synthesis and on the conversion of proalbumin to serum albumin

Treatment of rats with 0.5-25 mumol/100 g body weight of colchicine for 1 h or more caused an inhibition of hepatic protein synthesis. This effect was not seen if animals were exposed to colchicine for less than 1 h. The delayed inhibition of protein synthesis affected both secretory and nonsecretory proteins. Treatment with colchicine (15 mumol/100 g) for 1 h or more caused the RNA content of membrane-bound polysomes to fall but did not change the polysomal profile of this fraction. By contrast, the total RNA content in the free polysome cell fraction was increased, and this was due to the presence of more ribosomal monomers and dimers. Electron microscope examination of the livers from rats treated for 3 h with colchicine showed an accumulation of secretory vesicles within the hepatocytes and a general distention of the endoplasmic reticulum. Administration of radioactive L-leucine to the rats led to an incorporation of radioactivity into two forms of intracellular albumin which were precipitable with antiserum to rat serum albumin but which were separable by diethylaminoethyl-cellulose chromatography. One form has arginine at the amino-terminal position and is proalbumin, and the other form, which more closely resembles serum albumin chromatographically, has glutamic acid at its amino terminus. Only proalbumin was found in rough and smooth endoplasmic reticulum fractions and in a Golgi cell fraction wich corresponds morphologically to mostly empty and partially filled secretory vesicles. However, in other Golgi cell fractions which were filled with secretory products, both radioactive proalbumin and serum albumin were found. This indicates that proalbumin is converted to serum albumin in these secretory vesicles just before exocytosis. Colchicine delayed the discharge of radioactive albumin from these filled secretory vesicles and caused an accumulation of both proalbumin and serum albumin within these cell fractions.

Rat liver nuclear skeleton and small molecular weight RNA species

Small molecular weight RNA species (smwRNAs) were studied in rat liver nuclei with and without chromatin as well as with and without nuclear envelope and nucleoplasm. From all the species identified, only two, N5 and 5Sb, were related to ribosomes. The others were localized exclusively in the nuclear skeleton or the spongelike network that was described in the preceding communication. This network or protein matrix contains a less abundant but exclusive set of molecules designated 5Sa, N1, and 4.5S, as well as other more abundant molecules which also exist in rat liver endoplasmic reticulum but not in polysomes or postribosomal RNP complexes. The smwRNAs behave like HnRNA; they remain located in the nuclear skeleton when nuclei are deprived of nucleoplasm and chromatin. With the information presently available, it is not possible to know whetherer both species are in the same or different RNP complexes and whether some of the smwRNAs contribute to the architecture of the nuclear skeleton. Distinct from any other nuclear RNA species, smwRNAs have two unique properties: facility of extraction, and resistance to nuclear ribonuclease digestion.

Rat liver nuclear skeleton and ribonucleoprotein complexes containing HnRNA

Rat liver nuclei deprived of chromatin and nucleoplasm show a spongelike network which preserves its connection with nucleoli, the inner membrane of the nuclear envelope, and nuclear pore complexes. It contains all of the HnRNA, provided the endogenous proteolytic activity is inhibited by a proteolytic inhibitor such as phenylmethyl sulfonyl chloride (PMSC) or the fluoride form (PMSF). In the absence of these proteolytic inhibitors, HnRNA is dissociated from the spongelike network and sediments in a sucrose gradient as polydispersed ribonucleoprotein complexes. Furthermore, purified HnRNA as well as rRNA do not bind to the spongelike network when added to these nuclei. These observations demonstrate that the association of HnRNA to the nuclear skeleton is not an artifact. RNase treatment of the spongelike network digests the majority of the rapidly labeled RNA but does not alter the morphological aspect nor the architecture of this network. EDTA and heparin treatments affect neither the attachment of HnRNA nor the structural organization of this network. Electron microscope studies of the network reveal a characteristic flexuous configuration. Its relationship with diffused and condensed chromatin is discussed.

Antigenic sites related to human serum proteins in HBsAg: isolation from normal human serum of a high-molecular-weight glycoprotein reacting with antialbumin

A novel minor constituent was isolated from normal human serum by affinity chromatography on columns of insolubilized concanavalin A and antibodies to albumin, followed by rate zonal centrifugation. This component has the following properties: a sedimentation coefficient of approximately 31; a diameter of 14--22 nm, and a buoyant density of 1.302 gm/cu cm. It contains about 1% neutral sugars and is electrophoretically heterogeneous, since two populations of particles with isoelectric points of pH 4.95 and 5.75 were separated by isoelectric focusing. It contains a single major glycopeptide with an apparent molecular weight of 72,000 daltons. Its amino acid composition is distinct from that of albumin. It elicited the formation of antibodies that also reacted with HBsAg.

Properties of delipidated hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and preparation of its proteolytic cleavage fragments carrying HBsAg-specific antigenic determinants

Treatment of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) with either chloroform-methanol (2:1, v/v) or 50% 1,1',3,3'-tetramethylurea did not affect the morphological integrity of the particles (about 20 nm in diameter), although the major portion of lipids was released as indicated by their increased buoyant density in CsCl (1.27 g/cm3 as compared with 1.20 g/cm3 for intact HBsAg). The antigenicity and polypeptide composition of HBsAg was not altered by delipidation. The carbohydrate chains of HBsAg contain penultimate beta-D-galactosyl residues. HBsAg was cleaved by chymotrypsin into fragments which were smaller than intact HBsAg by two orders of magnitude and which contained both the a and d determinants.

Tetrabenazine in the treatment of Huntington's chorea

The effectiveness of tetrabenazine in controlling choreic movement in Huntington's chorea has been confirmed in a long-term study. Side effects noted included postural hypotension, dysphagia and pneumonia. Careful supervision of patients taking this effective agent is urged.

The sympathetic nervous system in alcoholic neuropathy. A clinical and pathological study

Tests of autonomic function were performed on 12 subjects with alcoholic neuropathy. Abnormal sweat patterns occurred in 8/8 (100 per cent) and an abnormal Valsalva ratio in 2/9 (22 per cent). Postural hypotension and denervation hypersensitivity were absent in all patients examined. A quantitative assessment of baroreceptor function was made. The resting heart period, heart period range and mean gain of alcoholics were within the control range. Quantitative histological studies were performed on the greater splanchnic nerves removed at autopsy in 4 alcoholic subjects. The myelinated fibre density fell within the control range. The absence of significant disturbance of blood pressure control correlates well with the absence of pathology in the greater splanchnic nerve.

The sympathetic nervous system in diabetic neuropathy. A clinical and pathological study

Tests of autonomic function were performed on 16 subjects with diabetic neuropathy. Abnormal sweating occurred in 10/10 (100 per cent), postural hypotension in 7/16 (44 per cent), an abnormal Valsalva ratio in 7/11 (64 per cent), and denervation hypersensitivity to phenylephrine in 2/8 (25 per cent) of patients tested. A quantitative assessment of baroreceptor function was made. In diabetics, there was a reduced resting heart period, heart period range and mean gain. Quantitative histological studies were performed on the greater splanchnic nerves removed at autopsy from 9 control subjects and from 8 subjects with diabetic neuropathy. The fibre density was significantly reduced in the greater splanchnic nerve of diabetics. The predominant pathology on teased fibre preparations was that of demyelination. Disordered blood pressure control in diabetes correlated with the pathological abnormalities in the sympathetic nervous system. Light and electronmicroscopic studies were performed on the sural nerves of 2 diabetic subjects with autonomic dysfunction. The predominant change was active axonal degeneration affecting mainly unmyelinated and small myelinated fibres.

Limitation of acetylene reduction (nitrogen fixation) by photosynthesis in soybean having low water potentials

The role of photosynthesis and transpiration in the desiccation-induced inhibition of acetylene reduction (nitrogen fixation) was investigated in soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr. var. Beeson) using an apparatus that permitted simultaneous measurements of acetylene reduction, net photosynthesis, and transpiration. The inhibition of acetylene reduction caused by low water potentials and their aftereffects could be reproduced by depriving shoots of atmospheric CO(2) even though the soil remained at water potentials that should have favored rapid acetylene reduction. The inhibition of acetylene reduction at low water potentials could be partially reversed by exposing the shoots to high CO(2) concentrations. When transpiration was varied independently of photosynthesis and dark respiration in plants having high water potentials, no effects on acetylene reduction could be observed. There was no correlation between transpiration and acetylene reduction in the CO(2) experiments. Therefore, the correlation that was observed between transpiration and acetylene reduction during desiccation was fortuitous. We conclude that the inhibition of shoot photosynthesis accounted for the inhibition of nodule acetylene reduction at low water potentials.

Acetylene reduction (nitrogen fixation) and metabolic activities of soybean having various leaf and nodule water potentials

An apparatus was designed that permitted acetylene reduction (N(2) fixation) by root nodules to be measured in situ simultaneously with net photosynthesis, dark respiration, and transpiration of the shoot in soybean plants (Glycine max [L.] Merr. var. Beeson). Tests showed that acetylene reduction was linear with time for at least 5 hours, except for the first 30 to 60 minutes. Endogenous ethylene production did not affect the measurements. Successive determinations of acetylene reduction could be made without apparent aftereffects on the plant.This apparatus was used to investigate the effects of soil flooding and desiccation on acetylene reduction under conditions where soil, nodule, and leaf water potentials could be measured. No acetylene reduction was detectable in flooded soil or in soil desiccated to a water potential of -19.5 bars. Between these extremes, acetylene reduction displayed a sharp optimum. Removing the soil eliminated the inhibitory effects of flooding, suggesting that rates of gas exchange were restricted between the nodules and the atnosphere at soil water potentials above -2 bars.As the soil desiccated further, acetylene reduction decreased, and the decrease was correlated with decreases in photosynthesis and transpiration. Although dark respiration was inhibited, it was not affected to the extent that acetylene reduction, photosynthesis, or transpiration were. Consequently, it was concluded that photosynthesis, transpiration, or some direct effect on the nodules other than that caused by respiration were most likely to account for the inhibition of acetylene reduction at soil water potentials below -2 bars.

Diurnal variation in algal acetylene reduction (nitrogen fixation) in situ

Diurnal variation in algal nitrogen fixation was studied in Lake Mendota, Wisconsin, during the summers of 1971 to 1973. Approximately two-thirds of the daily acetylene reduction in the surface decimeter occurred before noon. The decline in acetylene reduction (nmoles/liter.hr) near midday was partially because the algae relocated themselves at greater depths. However, acetylene reducing activity (nmoles per A(663) unit chlorophyll a per hour) also decreased as midday approached. Occasionally algae would resurface near the end of the day. On average, acetylene reduction (nmoles per liter per hour) was maximum at about 0900 Central standard time in the top decimeter, and acetylene reduction between 0830 and 0930 Central standard time represented 13% of the total daily acetylene reduction. Furthermore, acetylene reduction in the top decimeter, on average, represented 3.6% of the total acetylene reduction in the column. Calculation of the contribution by nitrogen fixation to a lake's fixed nitrogen budget is discussed.

The inhibition of soybean metabolism by cadmium and lead

Lead (300 mum) and cadmium (18 mum) inhibit pod fresh weight in soybeans (Glycine max L.) by 35%. Eighteen micromolar cadmium caused a 30% decline in nitrogenase activity by day 52 (the day on which maximum activity was measured) and a 71% inhibition by day 59. The heavy metals depressed photosynthetic rates; when photosynthesis was depressed by 60%, as measured on the day of peak photosynthesis activity, carbohydrate did not accumulate in the nodules. The reduction of pod fresh weight correlated with the effect of lead and cadmium on several other aspects of plant metabolism (shoot, root, leaf, and nodule dry weight; nodule ammonia, protein and carbohydrate content).

Epsilon-adenylylated glutamine synthetase: an internal fluorescence probe for enzyme conformation

A fluorescent derivative of ATP, epsilon-ATP, was used to adenylylate glutamine synthetase (EC 6.3.1.2) from Escherichia coli enzymatically. The epsilon-adenylylated enzyme exhibits similar catalytic properties and inhibitor susceptibility to those of the naturally adenylylated enzyme. The fluorescence properties of the epsilon-adenosine and of tryptophan residues of the enzyme were used to study ligand-induced conformational changes involving alterations of the tryptophan regions and the adenylylation site of the protein. Binding of Mn(2+) to the epsilon-adenylylated enzyme is accompanied by a decrease of epsilon-adenosine fluorescence as compared to the effect observed for the Mg(2+) binding. An ADP binding study shows that at low ADP concentration, ADP causes enhancement of the tryptophan fluorescence only, reflecting the binding to unadenylylated subunits; and at high ADP concentration, ADP causes not only enhancement of the fluorescence, but also a quenching of the fluorescence of enzyme-bound epsilon-AMP, reflecting binding to the adenylylated subunits. Dissociation constants calculated from these fluorescence changes agree well with those determined from binding studies of ADP to adenylylated and unadenylylated enzymes. Binding of the feedback inhibitor, alanine, to Mn(2+)-dependent glutamine synthetase causes enhancement of the epsilon-AMP fluorescence, from which a dissociation constant of 1.5 mM was calculated for the inhibitor. The fluorescence changes observed due to ligands binding suggest that Mg(2+) and Mn(2+) stabilize different conformational states of the enzyme.

Rates of GDP-induced and GTP-induced depolymerization of glutamate dehydrogenase: a possible factor in metabolic regulation

The rate of the depolymerization of beef liver glutamate dehydrogenase induced by coenzyme and the purine nucleotides guanosine 5'-diphosphate and guanosine 5'-triphosphate, which are potent inhibitors of enzymatic activity, has been measured by rapid light scattering techniques and by absorbancy changes with stop flow. It is shown that the rate constant for this process may vary from several milliseconds to several seconds depending upon the nucleotides used. The widely varying rate constants for the nucleotide-induced depolymerization may serve a role in determining the nature of the regulation of enzyme activity by nucleotides. Depolymerization induced by guanosine 5'-diphosphate in the presence of diphosphopyridine nucleotide is slower than in the presence of triphosphopyridine nucleotide as coenzyme, and this difference is apparently due to the isomerization of the enzyme as a result of diphosphopyridine nucleotide binding to a second, nonactive site. This binding, as well as binding of the coenzyme to the active site, may be conveniently measured by a purine nucleotide-induced spectral shift in the coenzyme absorption spectrum. It is also shown that complete depolymerization of the enzyme in the presence of guanosine 5'-triphosphate is accomplished by about half saturation of the coenzyme active sites (6-8 active "monomer").