Proton conduction in phosphatidylethanolamine

The dc conductivity of polycrystalline phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) was measured in the temperature range 60-120 degrees C. Since no conclusive evidence had so far been obtained for the presence of proteon conduction in this phospholipid, hydrogen gas was shown in the present experiment to evolve during the electrolysis in its premelted state between 91 and 124 degrees C. In this temperature range molecules assume rotation around the molecular axes and proton conduction of the Grotthus type takes place possibly along two chains of intermolecular hydrogen bonds running in parallel. Zwitter-ions behave cooperatively as proton donors and acceptors in transferring proton from molecule and molecule via the hydrogen bond networks. This efficient push-pull way of proton transferring seems to account for the fact that no polarization was observed in the dc conduction experiments. The amount of devolved gas appears to be not exactly in accordance with Faraday's law and discussions are made on possible causes for this slight deviation.

[Total gastrectomy in patients over 70 years old. Postoperative complications and prognosis]

In the cases of gastric cancer in patients over 70 years old we were not able to find a noticeable difference of survival time between the cases of palliative total gastrectomy and those where no resection or no operation was undertaken. From these results and the high frequency of complications after total gastrectomy in patients over 70 years old, we cannot see the therapeutic significance of palliative total gastrectomy. On the other hand the results of postoperative examinations in the cases without cancer recurrence were favorable, and they live a relatively comfortable life for their age. If the preoperative risk of patients can be judged exactly and if cure can be expected, total gastrectomy must be considered even in the patients over 70 years old.

Serum haptoglobin type and liver cirrhosis

Haptoglobin phenotypes were studied by a polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis on 200 blood donors and 105 patients with liver cirrhosis, of which 79% belonged to non-alcoholic etiology. Though no difference of haptoglobin types could be found between blood donors with positive and negative hepatitis B antigen, the cirrhois patients had an excess haptoglobin gene 1. The patients with haptoglobin gene 1 were associated with severe liver dysfunction. Since the family pedigrees of the patients with type 1--1 excluded individuals with type 2--2, the phenotypes seemed to be stable in the cirrhotic process. The possibility that the haptoglobin 2 gene offered resistence to the non-alcoholic cirrhosis was discussed.