Computed tomographic analysis of gallbladder stones: correlation with chemical composition and in vitro shock-wave lithotripsy

The recent advent of nonsurgical treatment for gallstones requires accurate in vivo analysis of their chemical composition in order to select the best candidates. As a preliminary work, we undertook an in vitro CT examination of 53 surgically removed gallstones and compared their CT patterns with their chemical composition. Those results were correlated with in vitro lithotripsy of the gallstones. The CT appearances were classified as follows: laminated (43%), dense (32%), rimmed (11%), isodense (8%) and faint (6%). The dense pattern contained a high calcium content. As the CT density increased, the calcium content increased, but the cholesterol content decreased proportionally. The number of shock waves needed to break down a gallstone less than 2 mm in size increased with stone volume and the cholesterol content increased but did not have any correlation with the calcium content level. As a result we found the CT examination to be a very sensitive method in detecting small amounts of calcium content in gallstones and the CT pattern and density of the gallstones were well correlated with their chemical composition, therefore in vivo CT examinations for ESWL candidates are desirable.

Acinar cell carcinoma of the pancreas. Ultrasonography and computed tomography findings

The radiologic findings in two cases of acinar cell carcinoma of the pancreas are described. Sonographic findings were a midrange echogenic mass with heterogeneity, containing some small- and medium-sized low echogenic areas suggesting necrosis. Ultrasonic through-transmission was good. Computed tomography findings were a well-defined, hypodense, large mass having an enhancing, thin capsule. There were multiple small- and medium-sized irregular low-density areas suggesting necrosis. Small punctate calcific foci were present in one case. With these characteristics, acinar cell carcinoma can be distinguished from the locally invasive common adenocarcinoma of the pancreas, but the differentiation from some other less common pancreatic tumors remains difficult.

[A study on the nurse's response for the clinical application of nursing diagnosis]

Although the usefulness and importance of clinical application of nursing diagnosis are well recognized by the academic circle, it is not yet generally practiced. In order to provide data for establishing a policy for clinical nursing diagnosis; a study was made at a seminar, sponsored by the Department of nursing, Severance Hospital, with participation of 190 nurses from 33 hospitals. The objective of the study was to find out: 1) if the nurses agree with the academic community in recognizing the benefits and problems of clinical application of nursing diagnosis; 2) how the nurses evaluate their ability to carry out nursing diagnosis; and 3) if educational programs would help enhance ability of nursing diagnosis among nurses. The summary of findings by the study is as follows: 1. While all nurses responded positively on the question of benefits improving science and quality of nursing, thus elevating credibility and position of nurses, some expressed concern on the practicality of the system in setting up nursing objectiveness, confirming the nursing problems and utilizing patient information. For the 20 questions and the scale of 1-5, the lowest average score was 3.223 and the highest 4.066. 2. The study attempted to find out the opinion of the nurses on the problems that would make difficult to adopt the nursing diagnosis in clinics. The result of the study indicates the nurses believe the major problems are the fact that the subject of nursing diagnosis are not well defined and that the form sheets do not match with the ones that are currently being used. However, comparing it with the result of the previous study on the same question (inadequate manpower and insufficient time allocated for the job were two major problems pointed out then). It can be said that the opinion of the nurses studied this time was much more positive and it suggests that they believe the system can be adopted without increasing manpower and only by giving additional training and by adjusting the format of nursing record sheets. It suggests that the future for adopting a clinical nursing diagnosis is very bright. 3. As the most urgent problem to be solved for adopting clinical nursing diagnosis, 38. 5% responded that it was "education of nurses", and 34.2% responded that it was "staffing adequate number of nurses". 4. For the 10 questions asked for self-evaluation of ability to adopt the system, with the scale of 1-5, average score was lower than 3.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Blood cadmium levels in the populations of Masan, Korea, and Miyagi, Japan: an inter-regional comparison

Blood samples were collected from factory workers (with no occupational exposure to metals including cadmium) in Masan (167 subjects), Korea, in 1986, and Miyagi prefecture (270 subjects) Japan, in 1987. The samples were analyzed for cadmium in a single laboratory by flameless atomic absorption spectrophotometry under strict quality control. The effect of aging was detected in Masan and possibly also in Miyagi. The effect of smoking was evident among male smokers in Miyagi. Comparison with findings in a sister study on blood cadmium levels in China (taking the effects of smoking and aging into account) showed regional differences: the levels were lower in China, higher in Korea and probably highest in Japan. The smoking-associated increase in blood cadmium level per cigarette was 2-3 times higher in China than in Japan. The blood cadmium levels in the study regions appeared to be associated with the cadmium content of local rice as well as with local rice-eating habits.

Hepatitis B virus infection among women in a shoe factory in Korea

One hundred and sixty five Korean women in a shoe factory in Masan, Korea were evaluated on hepatitis B virus infection by solid-phase radioimmunoassay in 1986. The participants were women of child-bearing ages, mostly in 20's and 30's. About two thirds (105/165) of the subjects had serological evidence of past or present hepatitis B virus infection, and 17% (28/165) were HBsAg-positive. In view of possible risk of vertical transmission of hepatitis B virus, further epidemiological study was considered necessary to establish preventive measures.

Profile of the Billings Ovulation Method acceptors and use-effectiveness of the method in Korea

Data from a survey of 200 Billings Ovulation Method acceptors in Korea were used to describe a profile of these natural family planning acceptors, and to calculate use effectiveness rates for twelve months of use among women using the method for avoiding an unplanned pregnancy. The majority of acceptors were women of proven fertility who wanted to limit their family size, and many of them (79%) had previously used a family planning method. Fifty-six percent were Catholics, and those study subjects were above middle income group by Korean annual household income estimates. The mean number of living children the NFP acceptors had was 2.3 +/- 1.4 and the number of children they desired to have was 2.4 +/- 1.4. The cumulative life table rate for unplanned pregnancies at the end of 12 months of use was 7 (+/- 2.5 S.E.) per 100 women, and women ever attending the learning sessions as couples experienced relatively less unplanned pregnancies compared to those women attending the sessions alone.

Bovine brain cytosol contains three immunologically distinct forms of inositolphospholipid-specific phospholipase C

We previously reported that cytosolic fractions of bovine brain contain two immunologically distinct forms of phospholipase C (PLC), PLC-I and PLC-II. We now report the purification of another form of inositolphospholipid-specific phospholipase C from bovine brain cytosol, designated PLC-III, and the comparison of the catalytic properties of the three isozymes. Approximately 450 micrograms of pure PLC-III was obtained from 36 bovine brains, and it had a final specific activity of 30-40 mumol of phosphatidylinositol hydrolyzed per min per mg of enzyme in the presence of 0.1% deoxycholate. PLC-III exhibited an apparent Mr of 85,000 in NaDodSO4/PAGE, which is considerably smaller than the Mr of 150,000 for PLC-I and 145,000 for PLC-II. Neither of the two mixtures of monoclonal antibodies nor the rabbit polyclonal antibodies directed against either PLC-I or PLC-II cross-reacted with PLC-III. The catalytic properties of the three isozymes were studied by using small unilamellar vesicles prepared from either phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) or phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PtdInsP2) as substrates. Hydrolysis of both PtdIns and PtdInsP2 by the three enzymes was dependent on Ca2+. However, at low Ca2+ concentration, PtdInsP2 was the preferred substrate for all three enzymes. When PtdIns was the substrate, the three enzymes exhibited similar specific activities at their optimum pH, which was 4.8 for PLC-I, 5.0 for PLC-II, and 5.5 for PLC-III. But at neutral pH, the order of specific activity was PLC-III greater than PLC-II greater than PLC-I. In contrast, the order of specific activity was PLC-I greater than PLC-III greater than PLC-II for PtdInsP2 hydrolysis, which means that PLC-I is the most specific for PtdInsP2. The three enzymes were affected differently by bovine serum albumin: inhibition of PLC-I and activation of PLC-III were observed, whereas PLC-II was unaffected. This observation suggests that any putative protein effectors for PLC should be critically scrutinized.

Purification and characterization of two immunologically distinct phosphoinositide-specific phospholipases C from bovine brain

We previously reported (Ryu, S. H., Cho, K. S., Lee, K. Y., Suh, P. G., and Rhee, S. G. (1986) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 141, 137-144) that cytosolic fractions of bovine brain contain two phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C (PLC), PLC-I and PLC-II. In this paper purification procedures and properties of these two forms of enzyme are presented. The two enzymes exhibit similar substrate specificity. Both PLC-I and PLC-II catalyze the hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate (PIP), and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2). Yet, they respond differently to activators such as Ca2+ and nucleotides and to inhibitory divalent metal ions such as Hg2+ and Cd2+. In addition, they are immunologically distinct as evidenced by the fact that monoclonal antibodies directed against either enzyme do not cross-react with the other. Their activities are Ca2+ concentration-dependent. PIP and PIP2 are better substrates than PI for both PLC-I and PLC-II when the concentration of Ca2+ is in the micromolar range. Study of the effect of nucleotides, such as GTP, guanosine 5'-(3-O-thio)triphosphate, guanyl-5'-yl imidodiphosphate, and ATP, on the activities of both isozymes with PIP2 as substrate revealed that (i) in the absence of Ca2+, PLC-I activity is enhanced by 400% by either GTP or ATP. In the presence of Ca2+ (a condition in which PLC-I exhibits much higher activity), the activation factor by nucleotides is diminished to approximately 140%. (ii) without Ca2+, PLC-II activity is too low to measure with or without added nucleotides. The effect of nucleotides on PLC-II activity is trivial in the presence of Ca2+. In addition, studies on the effect of metal ions on PI hydrolysis showed that the activities of both PLC-I and PLC-II are not affected by 50 microM of Mg2+, Mn2+, Ca2+, or Ni2+. However, Hg2+, Zn2+, and Cu2+ inhibited both PLC-I and PLC-II, with PLC-II exhibiting much higher sensitivity to these metal ions than PLC-I. For example, the value of I0.5 for Hg2+ inhibition is 0.2 microM for PLC-II and 1 microM for PLC-I. Cd2+ selectively inhibits PLC-II with a I0.5 value of 5 microM. Most of these metal ions' inhibition can be overcome by either dithiothreitol or EDTA.

Two forms of phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C from bovine brain

Two immunologically distinct forms of phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C were purified to near homogeneity from bovine brain. Their molecular weights determined by SDS-PAGE are 150,000 (enzyme I) and 145,000 (enzyme II), respectively. Under a nondenaturing condition, purified enzyme I exists mainly in dimeric form and as tetramer to a small extent, while enzyme II is predominantly in monomer, to a small extent as dimer and to a very small extent as trimer. Multiple forms of phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C in brain tissue described in the literature might be, therefore attributed to the oligomerization of the two independent forms.

The changes of serum-ACE, plasma renin activity and aldosterone in the diabetics with hypertension

It is well known that the serum-ACE levels are elevated in sarcoidosis, Gaucher’s disease, and some granulomatous diseases. Recently, the serum-ACE level was also found to be elevated in diabetes mellitus. To confirm the possible role of plasma renin activity and aldosterone in the pathogenesis of hypertension and to assess the relationship of serum ACE to the plasma renin activity and aldosterone profiles in diabetics, we measured the levels of serum ACE, plasma renin activity, aldosterone and blood pressure in 38 diabetic patients who were admitted to Kyung Hee University Hospital from June 1981 to September, 1982. The results were as follows: The S-ACE activity was significantly elevated in 38 patients with diabetes mellitus (9.42±6.60 Unit) as compared with that in the healthy controls (2.53±1.54 Unit) (p<0.005) (p<0.005). The S-ACE activity was significantly elevated in 15 hypertensive diabetics (14.29± 7.10 Unit) as compared with that in 23 normotensive diabetics (6.24±3.68 Unit) (p<0.005). The S-ACE activity was elevated in 15 diabetic patients with retinopathy (10.6±4.7 Unit) as compared with the levels in 17 diabetic patients without retinopathy (6.7±4.8 U) (p<0.05). The S-ACE activity was directly correlated to the mean arterial pressure (r=0.54) (p<0.005). The plasma renin activity and aldosternone concentrations in diabetics were not different from the normal controls and had no correlationship to the S-ACE activity. After 2 weeks of insulin therapy in 15 diabetics, the S-ACE activity was not changed.

Effect of beta-endorphin and cortisol on the PHA stimulated lymphoblastogenesis

The mechanism of immune suppression in a severely stressful condition is not known. Since the demonstration of β-endorphin receptor on the surface of the circulating lymphocyte, it was reported that β-endorphin could suppress PHA stimulated lymphoblastogenesis. Because the concentration of β-endorphin was supraphysiologically high, it is doubtful that β-endorphin can suppress the lymphoblastogenesis directly in vivo. We investigated the suppression of PHA stimulated lymphoblastogenesis by β-endorphin in vitro and the effect of β-endorphin in some conditions where β-endorphin increases in vivo. PHA induced lymphoblastogenesis of T lymphocyte was maximal at the concentration of 5 μg/ml. β-endorphin could not suppress the blastogenesis even at the highest concentration. In the five healthy men who received metyrapone the previous night, PHA stimulated blastogeneses were not significantly suppressed. In a patient with Nelson’s syndrome, the lymphoblastogenesis was suppressed at all concentrations of PHA. Cortisol significant suppressed the blastogenesis even at the concentration of 10 μg/dl and its suppressive effect was shown in dose dependant manner. Our results suggested that β-endorphin could not suppress the lymphoblastogenesis directly in vivo.

Uptake of lysolecithin and other lysins by rat erythrocytes

Lysis of rat erythrocytes by lysolecithin, palmitoyl carnitine and palmitoyl choline is inhibited by albumin and by certain lipids. Albumin rapidly forms a complex with the lysins thereby decreasing their reactivity with erythrocytes. Lecithin and cholesterol are lysis inhibitors that do not prevent the uptake of lysins but decrease their interactions with structural elements of the red cell membrane.

Occupational health hazards of mine workers

Mining has always been among the most hazardous of occupations, and with the increasing demand for coal and minerals safety in mines assumes even greater importance. This article describes the present situation with regard to conditions in mines, the diseases and disabilities resulting from them, and measures that can be taken to prevent or treat them. The hazards covered are: accidents, dust (including poisoning by certain ores), high temperature and humidity, noise and vibration, toxic gases, and miscellaneous other hazards.

Studies on the biosynthesis of acylphosphatidylglycerol in Escherichia coli B and B/r

The present study has demonstrated that one molecule of acylphosphatidylglycerol was synthesized from two molecules of phosphatidylgycerol by the transacylation reaction in which phosphatidylglycerol acted both as an acyl donor and an acceptor. Phosphatidylethanolamine was identified as an another acyl donor, participating in acylphosphatidylglycerol formation. These results are discussed in terms of a new pathway for the turnover of phosphatidylglycerol in Escherichia coli.

Dominant preaxial brachydactyly with hallux varus and thumb abduction

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