Effects of the Ionic Composition and Water Potential of Aqueous Solution on the Activity and Survival of Orrina phyllobia

The activity and survival of Orrina phyllobia fourth-stage juveniles (J4) were examined in aqueous solutions representing 96 combinations of eight predominant soil solution ions at total concentrations of 100, 200, and 1,000 meq/liter. Various water potentials were imposed by the addition of mannitol or polyethylene glycol to ionic solutions. Nematode longevity increased as water potential was decreased. Longevity was approximately doubled at a water potential of -23 × 10⁵ Pa and more than tripled at -60 × 10⁵ Pa. No combination oflons at 200 meq/liter was lethal after a 6-day exposure. Several ion combinations significantly increased longevity at -10 and -23 × 10⁵ Pa. Single cation Na⁺ solutions consistently inhibited activity and more than doubled nematode longevity.     

Hysterectomy and sexual wellbeing: prospective observational study of vaginal hysterectomy,subtotal abdominal hysterectomy,and total abdominal hysterectomy

Objectives To compare the effects of vaginal hysterectomy, subtotal abdominal hysterectomy, and total abdominal hysterectomy on sexual wellbeing.Design Prospective observational study over six months.Setting 13 teaching and non-teaching hospitals in the Netherlands.Participants 413 women who underwent hysterectomy for benign disease other than symptomatic prolapse of the uterus and endometriosis.Main outcome measures Reported sexual pleasure, sexual activity, and bothersome sexual problems.Results Sexual pleasure significantly improved in all patients, independent of the type of hysterectomy. The prevalence of one or more bothersome sexual problems six months after vaginal hysterectomy, subtotal abdominal hysterectomy, and total abdominal hysterectomy was 43% (38/89), 41% (31/76), and 39% (57/145), respectively (χ² test, P = 0.88).Conclusion Sexual pleasure improves after vaginal hysterectomy, subtotal abdominal hysterectomy, and total abdominal hysterectomy. The persistence and development of bothersome problems during sexual activity were similar for all three techniques.     

The identity and nuclear uptake of a cytosolic binding protein for 3-methylcholanthrene

The ability of 3-methylcholanthrene to interact noncovalently with rat liver cytosolic proteins was studied using Sephadex G200 chromatography. A specific 3-methylcholanthrene binding fraction from Sephadex G200 chromatography, termed peak B, when incubated with rat liver nuclei was able to translocate 3-methylcholanthrene into the nucleus. This translocation occurred faster and was quantitatively greater than the binding of 3-methylcholanthrene in buffer to nuclei. In addition, the nuclear uptake of peak B was increased by prewarming, suggesting that a heat-sensitive activation step may occur prior to the translocation process. However, no evidence was found on sucrose gradients for any conformational change in the protein fraction studied here. The translocation to the nucleus was temperature and time dependent. An examination of the characteristics of this 3-methylcholanthrene binding protein using Sephacryl S200 column chromatography showed a small number of high-affinity, saturable, binding sites to be present. These had an apparent dissociation constant, K_d, of 2.8 nm and a binding capacity of 770 fmol/mg of cytosolic protein. The selectivity of this protein was examined by competition studies and, in general, polycyclic hydrocarbons competed for the binding site, except for anthracene and phenanthrene. Of the inducers studied, 5,6-benzoflavone was a strong competitor. No competition was found with 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate, 2,6-ditertbutyl-p-cresol, β-retinyl acetate, or a number of steroids, except for 17β-estradiol which exhibited moderate binding. Peak B had a sedimentation coefficient of 4.2 S when analyzed on a linear sucrose gradient. Chromatography of peak B on a calibrated Sephacryl S200 column gave a molecular weight corresponding to 44,600 ± 4000.