CO2 and water vapour exchange in four alpine herbs at two altitudes and under varying light and temperature conditions

CO₂ and water vapour exchange rates of four alpine herbs namely: Rheum emodi, R. moorcroftianum, Megacarpaea polyandra and Rumex nepalensis were studied under field conditions at 3600 m (natural habitat) and 550 m altitudes. The effect of light and temperature on CO₂ and water vapour exchange was studied in the plants grown at lower altitude. In R. moorcroftianum and R. nepalensis, the average photosynthesis rates were found to be about three times higher at 550 m as compared to that under their natural habitat. However, in M. polyandra, the CO₂ exchange rates were two times higher at 3600 m than at 550 m but in R. emodi, there were virtually no differences at the two altitudes. These results indicate the variations in the CO₂ exchange rates are species specific. The change in growth altitude does not affect this process uniformly.The transpiration rates in R. emodi and M. polyandra were found to be very high at 3600 m compared to 550 m and are attributed to overall higher stomatal conductance in plants of these species, grown at higher altitude. The mid-day closure of stomata and therefore, restriction of transpirational losses of water were observed in all the species at 550 m altitude. In addition to the effect of temperature and relative humidity, the data also indicate some endogenous rhythmic control of stomatal conductance.The temperature optima for photosynthesis was close to 30°C in M. polyandra and around 20°C in the rest of the three species. High temperature and high light intensity, as well as low temperature and high light intensity, adversely affect the net rate of photosynthesis in these species.Both light compensation point and dark respiration rate increased with increasing temperature.The effect of light was more prominent on photosynthesis than the effect of temperature, however, on transpiration the effect of temperature was more prominent than the effect of light intensity.No definite trends were found in stomatal conductance with respect to light and temperature. Generally, the stomatal conductance was highest at 20°C.The study reveals that all these species can easily be cultivated at relatively lower altitudes. However, proper agronomical methodology will need to be developed for better yields.     

Use of the Golden Section search method to estimate the parameters of the Monod model employing spread-sheets

An alternative procedure to obtain the parameters of Monod's growth model in batch culture is presented. It is based on the integral kinetic analysis methodology, employs a one-dimensional Golden Section search optimization method and is implemented on a spread-sheet programme. The procedure is discussed in detail and is illustrated by analysis of batch substrate consumption data by an aerobic bacterial consortium.     

9种针阔叶幼树的蒸腾速率、叶水势与环境因子关系的研究

应用QK-1气孔仪和压力室测定了樟子松、青杨等9种针阔叶幼树的蒸腾速率与其叶水势及与环境因子的关系。采用多元线性回归和逐步回归对观测值的统计分析结果表明:在土壤供水良好的条件下,其蒸腾速率主要受气象因子的影响,与其叶水势的相关性不显著。控水试验结果表明:在水分胁迫条件下其蒸腾速率与其叶水势和土壤含水量的相关性最显著。     

猕猴输精管注射高分子聚合物HFMC的抗生育试验初报

本文介绍一种高分子聚合物HFMC注入输精管,遇体液即合成有孔隙（孔径2-16 μ）的固态聚合物,附着管壁并缓慢释放适度的H[+],以改变精子存活环境,从而达到狒猴非阻断性的输精管避孕。在狒猴配对试验中证明,输精管注入HFMC 30 mg×2（n=2）,在注射后47-50天精液品质即逐渐恢复,已有致孕能力;输精管注入HFMC 60 mg×2（n=4）,在300天后,有些个体精液品质才逐渐恢复,注后348-353天之间已有50%的雄猴配对致孕;另有50%的雄猴在注入854天时精液品质仍处于不育水平。实验结果还表明：HFMC对精子具有致死,致畸率高及使精子活力显著下降,这种作用随HFMC剂量的增大而加强,这种影响也随时间的后移而逐渐减弱;HFMC对输精管具有可通性及可复性。今后如能在注入剂量,自溶稳定性方面再改进,HFMC有可能成为男性节育较为理想的一种新型避孕剂。     

Numerical simulation of thermal bone necrosis during cementation of femoral prostheses

The implant of a femoral prosthesis is a critical process because of the relatively high temperature values reached at the bone/cement interface during the cementation of the infibulum. In fact, the cement is actually a polymer that polymerizes in situ generating heat. Moreover, the conversion of monomer into polymer is never 100%; this is dangerous because of the toxicity of the monomer. In this paper, we present a 3-D axisymmetric mathematical model capable of taking into account both the geometry of the implant and the chemical/physical properties of the cement. This model, together with its numerical simulation, thus represents a useful tool to set up the optimal conditions for the new materials developed in this orthopaedic field. The real complex geometry is assumed to be a bone/cement/metallic system having cylindrical symmetry, thus allowing the model to be reduced to two space variables. The cementation process is described by the Fourier heat equation coupled with a suitable polymerization kinetics. The numerical approximation is accomplished by semi-implicit finite differences in time and finite elements in space with numerical quadrature. The full discrete scheme amounts to solve linear positive definite symmetric systems preceded by an elementwise algebraic computation. We present various numerical simulations which confirm some critical aspects of this orthopaedic fixing technique such as thermal bone necrosis and the presence of unreacted residual monomer.This work was partially supported by MURST (Fondi per la Ricerca Scientifica 40%) and CNR (IAN, Contract 880032601, and Progetto Finalizzato Sistemi Informatici e Calcolo Parallelo, Sottoprogetto Calcolo Scientifico per Grandi Sistemi) of Italy     

The effects of antibiotics on hemolytic behavior of red cells

Human blood was sheared between rotating polyethylene disks and plasma hemoglobin measured at intervals to produce kinetic hemolysis curves (KHC), plotted as free hemoglobin concentration vs time. The KHC produced by blood samples incubated in the presence of penicillin, streptomycin, gentamicin, and amikacin lie always below those for control samples, indicating a reduction in hemolysis; this reduction was greater as the drug concentration was increased. Explanations in terms of alterations in red cell structure were sought by several characterization tests of amikacin-loaded blood samples. Drug-localization studies demonstrated that significant fractions of the total dosage were associated with the red-cell membrane. Resistive pulse spectroscopy was used to show how amikacin affected cell size, deformability, and osmotic fragility; results were sensitive to storage age of the blood. In all cases, the effect of shearing was to reduce cell size, deformability, and osmotic fragility. Mechanisms for hemolytic protection by drugs are proposed.     

Carbonic acid as the host signal for the development of parasitic stages of nematodes

Petronijevic T., Rogers W. P. and Sommerville R. I. 1985. Carbonic acid as the host signal for the development of parasitic stages of nematodes. International Journal for Parasitology15: 661–667. This paper gives results on which may be based an identification of the component of the system CO₂ + H₂O ai H₂CO₃ ai H⁺ HCO₃^? which acts as the stimulus from the animal host for some nematodes. Using infective juveniles of Nematospiroides dubius and Haemonchus contortus, the effects on exsheathment of (1) low pCO₂ values, (2) the presence of carbonic anhydrase in the stimulating medium, and (3) the inhibition of carbonic anhydrase within the juveniles have been examined. The results lead to the suggestion that it is the “readily available” undissociated H₂CO₃, or H₂CO₃ + HCO₃^? which is the critical factor in the stimulus for development. The wide range of [H⁺]s over which “readily available” H₂CO₃ is present in physiological environments suggests that this host signal may be important for infection with many species.     

Various proteinase inhibitors decrease prolactin and growth hormone release by anterior pituitary cells

Proteinase inhibitors were tested for their ability to inhibit prolactin (PRL) and growth hormone (GH) release by cultured anterior pituitary cells of the rat. Inhibitors of microbial origin (chymostatin, elastatinal, leupeptin) had either no or a moderate effect on hormone release while some tripeptide aldehydes, especially those with lysine at their C terminus, inhibited markedly PRL and to a lesser extent GH release. Boc-DPhe-Phe-lysinal was the most effective on lactotrophs inhibiting PRL release more than 50% at 10(-4) M. The site(s) of action of tripeptide aldehydes remain to be elucidated.     

Deficiency of immunoreactive somatostatin in the median eminence of Snell dwarf mice

Snell dwarf mice (dw/dw) are characterized by a genetically determined, congenital lack of pituitary GH, TSH and prolactin. Given that hypothalamic somatostatin is involved in the regulation of pituitary GH and TSH release, it was decided to investigate the content of immunoreactive somatostatin (IRS) in the median eminence of dw/dw and phenotypically normal mice of the same strain. The content of IRS in the pyloric antrum and pineal gland of these animals was also examined. The effects of ovariectomy and of hyperprolactinemia (induced by a pituitary graft under the kidney capsule) on the median eminence content of IRS were also studied in both normal and dwarf mice. Median eminence IRS content was significantly lower in the dw/dw (23.6 +/- 1.8 ng) than in normal mice (57.4 +/- 7.1 ng); no difference was found in the pyloric IRS content of dw/dw (16.9 +/- 1.6 ng/mg of protein) and normal animals (13.8 +/- 1.9 ng/mg of protein), nor in the pineal content of IRS (639.4 +/- 64.4 pg/gland in the dw/dw; 732 +/- 265 pg/gland in normals). Neither ovariectomy nor hyperprolactinemia were found to affect the IRS content in the tissues studied in normal or dwarf mice. Treatment of an additional group of 9 dwarf mice with L-thyroxine (L-T4 2 micrograms/48 h. s.c. for 2 weeks) significantly increased the animals weight (10.2 +/- 0.4 g versus 7.4 +/- 0.3 g) and produced maturation of facial features; however, it did not change the IRS content in any of the tissues studied. It is concluded that the content of IRS in the median eminence of mice with a congenital lack of GH, TSH and prolactin is significantly reduced and that this is unlikely to be related to the deficiency of thyroid hormones in these animals.