USE OF A PETHIDINE AND MIDAZOLAM COMBINATION FOR THE REVERSIBLE SEDATION OF CRABEATER SEALS (LOBODON CARCINOPHAGUS)

Between October and December of 1996–1999, off eastern Antarctica (60°-150°E), we darted 31 crabeater seals with midazolam and pethidine at estimated dose rates of 0.15–0.4 mg/kg and 1–3 mg/kg, respectively. Maximum sedation was reached at 23 ± 9 min (n = 18) and first signs of recovery were noted at 54 ± 24 min (n = 4). Seals greater than 250 kg body-mass were sedated by administration of approximately 90–100 mg midazolam and 600 mg pethidine, but the degree of sedation was unpredictable and did not permit invasive procedures in some cases. Behavior of the seal and adjacent conspecifics affected the success of procedures and our ability to monitor vital signs. Naloxone and flumazenil reversed sedation, making this combination attractive for use in animals adjacent to water. Additional ketamine was administered to two seals, resulting in improved restraint.     

The use of NMR chemical shifts to analyse the MD trajectories: simulation of bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor dynamics in water as a test case for solvent influences.

In this paper the NMR secondary chemical shifts, that are estimated from a set of 3D-structures, are compared with the observed ones to appraise the behaviour of a known x-ray diffraction structure (of the bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor protein) when various molecular dynamics are applied. The results of a 200 ps molecular dynamics under various conditions are analysed and different ways to modify the molecular dynamics are considered. With the purpose of avoiding the time-consuming explicit representation of the solvent (water) molecules, an attempt was made to understand the role of the solvent and to develop an implicit representation, which may be refined. A simulation of hydrophobic effects in an aqueous environment is also proposed which seems to provide a better approximation of the observed solution structure of the protein.     

Simplified methods for monitoring petroleum‐contaminated ground water and soil vapor

Portable meters and simplified gas Chromatographic (GC) techniques were investigated for monitoring volatile hydrocarbon (HC), CO₂, and O₂, concentrations in groundwater, exhaust gases, and soil vapor during in situ remediation using soil vapor extraction (SVE) and air sparging (AS). Results of groundwater samples analyzed in‐house using a headspace technique compared well to split samples analyzed by a certified analytical laboratory (r² = 0.94). SVE exhaust gas HC and CO₂ concentrations measured using a GT201 portable HC/O₂ meter and a RA‐411A meter (GasTech), respectively, were highly correlated with in‐house laboratory GC analyses (r² = 0.91). O₂ concentrations fell in a small range and meter analyses were not well correlated with laboratory analyses. Results of soil gas monitoring were not as well correlated as those for exhaust gases for HC, CO₂, or O₂, perhaps due to environmental conditions such as changes in relative humidity or the wider range of soil gas values. Overall, the meters were good indicators of vapor contamination, they greatly simplified estimates of total HC mass removal, and they allowed estimates of the biological contribution to contaminant removal during the remediation process.     

静电作用与修饰铜锌超氧化物歧化酶的稳定性

铜锌超氧化物歧化酶(Cu, Zn-SOD)表面的赖氨酸经化学修饰后, 酶的稳定性显著提高. 赖氨酸被修饰后, 酶的电荷结构遂发生变化, 从而影响到酶分子电场. 使用FDPB方法(有限差分法求解Poission-Boltzman方程)计算了酶修饰前后的静电场变化, 以及对维持酶的结构稳定起重要作用的Cu, Zn配位结构的影响.结果表明, Cu, Zn配位体的两级离解常数在酶修饰后分别约下降10³, 10⁶.     

中药金樱子的研究应用概况

本文就国内外对中药金樱子的化学成分及其提取分离方法、药理学研究和临麻应用作了综述,为金樱子的综合开发提供依据。     

红穗醋栗色素理化性质的研究

本试验研究了红穗醋栗色素的理化性质,结果表明:红穗醋栗色素热稳定性很好,而光照对其有一定的降解作用。pH值对该色素影响明显,宜在酸性食品中应用。几种金属离子Na~ 、Ca~(2 )、Al~(3 )、Zn~(2 )。Cu~(2 )对该色素的色泽没有影响;而Fe~(3 )、Sn~(2 )则有不良影响。食品中常含的几种添加物葡萄糖、蔗糖、淀粉和抗坏血酸对该色素无不良影响。红穗醋栗色素对Na_2SO_3的还原性耐性较强,对H_2O_2的耐氧化性很差。防腐剂苯甲酸钠对该色素也有一定的不良影响。     

Distribution of various nickel compounds in rat organs after oral administration

In this study, eight kinds of nickel (Ni) compounds were orally administered to Wistar male rats and the distribution of each compound was investigated 24 h after the administration. The Ni compounds used in this experiment were nickel metal [Ni−M], nickel oxide (green) [NiO(G)], nickel oxide (black) [NiO(B)], nickel subsulfide [Ni₃S₂], nickel sulfide [NiS], nickel sulfate [NiSO₄], nickel chloride [NiCl₂], and nickel nitrate [Ni(NO₃)₂]. The solubilities of the nickel compounds in saline solution were in the following order; [Ni(NO₃)₂>NiCl₂>NiSO₄]≫[NiS>Ni₃S₂]>[NiO(B)>Ni−M>NiO(G)]. The Ni level in the visceral organs was higher in the rats given soluble Ni compounds; Ni(NO₃)₂, NiCl₂, NiSO₄, than that in the rats receiving other compounds. In the rats to which soluble Ni compounds were administered, 80–90% of the recovered Ni amounts in the examined organs was detected in the kidneys. On the other hand, the Ni concentration in organs administered scarcely soluble Ni compounds; NiO(B), NiO(G), and Ni−M were very low. The estimated absorbed fraction of each Ni compounds was increased with the increase of the solubility. These results suggest that the kinetic behavior of Ni compounds administered orally is closely related with the solubility of Ni compounds, and that the solubility of Ni compounds is one of the important factors for determining the health effect of Ni compounds.     

Drought stress of apple trees alters leaf emissions of volatile compounds

Actively growing potted apple trees ( Malus domestica [L.] Borkh. ev. Delicious) unacclimated to drought stress were subjected to drought to determine changes in emissions of leaf volatile compounds. Drought stress was imposed over a 2-week period by weighing pots every 2 or 3 days and adding water hack to an arbitrary and decreasing traction of the original pot weight. Stem water potential was -2.7. -2.0 and -0.8 MPa for the severely stressed, moderately stressed and control trees, respectively. 13 days alter watering treatments were begun. Water use the last 4 days of the experiment was about one-half for the moderately and severely stressed trees compared to that of the controls Twenty-nine volatile compounds were identified by using gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy. Emission rates of hexanal, (E)-2-hexenal, (E)-2-hexen-1-ol, 1-hexenol, hexyl acetate and (E)-2-hexenyl acetate were 5 to 310 times higher for severely stressed trees compared to those of the controls with the moderately stressed trees intermediate. The large increases in hexanal. (E)-2-hexenal and l-hexanol may be related. In enhanced lipoxygenase activity. Volatile compounds are products of metabolism and measurement of their changes after biotic or abiotic stresses will increase understanding of the relationship of changes in plant metabolism by those stresses.     

Environmental and macroinvertebrate dynamics in the Lower Rhône River and a lateral dike field: a study matching two functioning descriptors

Environmental variables and macroinvertebrate communities are studied in two sites of the Lower Rhône River, the main channel and a lateral, occasionally connected dike field. Environmental variables and faunistic communities allow discrimination the two compartments. The environmental and faunistic differences the two sites change over time. The physical and chemical differences are significantly correlated with water discharge of the main channel. The faunistic ones are significantly correlated with the temperature of the dike field water. The connections between the main channel and the dike field could be very important to maintain a high heterogeneity of the habitat, and for recolonization of the main channel after a perturbation.