Ultrastructure of neutrophilic granulopoiesis in the bone marrow of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). A morphometric study with special emphasis on azurophil (primary) and specific (secondary) granules

In seven patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and ultrastructural and morphometric study was performed on neutrophilic granulopoiesis in bone marrow trephine biopsies. Bone marrow specimens from five patients without hematological abnormalities served as controls. In stable phases of CML, abnormalities of the maturing granulocytic lineage were most conspicuously expressed by an infrequently occurring nuclear disfiguration (blebs and disturbed bridging of segments). Morphometric evaluation included the numbers of azurphil (primary) and specific (secondary) granules, the cisternal length of the endoplasmic reticulum and the area of the mitochondrial profiles. These variables could be determined in early and late myeloblasts, promyelocytes, metamyelocytes, band cells and mature polymorphonuclear granulocytes. Statistical analysis with regard to control specimens demonstrated no significant differences in the total amount of neutrophil granules or of the other cell organelles.     

The synthesis of some polyether bridged diphosphines and their reaction with Rh(COD)acac

The polyether bridged diphosphines,

(n = 1,2) have been prepared in 60–70% yield by reduction of the corresponding diphosphinedioxides with Si₂Cl₆ or (i-Bu)₂AlH. These diphosphinedioxides have been prepared in 75–90% yield by reaction of two equivalents of the appropriate

with one equivalent of di- and triethylene glycol ditosylate.In general, reaction between the diphosphines, Rh(COD)acac and HClO₄ gives a mixture of species, cis-[Rh(COD)($\text{PP}$)] [ClO₄] being the main complex. This complex reacts with CO to η³-trans- [$\text{Rh(CO)(}\text{PO}$$\text{P}$)] [ClO₄].     

Butanol recovery from fermentations by liquid-liquid extraction and membrane solvent extraction

Extraction can successfully be used for in-situ alcohol recovery in butanol fermentations to increase the substrate conversion. An advantage of extraction over other recovery methods may be the high capacity of the solvent and the high selectivity of the alcohol/water separation. Extraction, however, is a comprehensive operation, and the design of an extraction apparatus can be complex. The aim of this study is to assess the practical applicability of liquid-liquid extraction and membrane solvent extraction in butanol fermentations. In this view various aspects of extraction processes were investigated.Thirty-six chemicals were tested for the distribution coefficient for butanol, the selectivity of alcohol/water separation and the toxicity towards Clostridia. Convenient extractants were found in the group of esters with high molar mass.Liquid-liquid extraction was carried out in a stirred fermenter and a spray column. The formation of emulsions and the fouling of the solvent in a fermentation broth causes problems with the operation of this type of equipment. With membrane solvent extraction, in which the solvent is separated from the broth by a membrane, a dispersion-free extraction is possible, leading to an easy operation of the equipment. In this case the mass transfer in the membrane becomes important.With membrane solvent extraction the development of a process is emphasized in which the extraction characteristics of the solvent are combined with the property of silicone rubber membranes to separate butanol from water. In the case of apolar solvents with a high molar mass, the characteristics of the membrane process are determined completely by the solvent. In the case of polar solvents (e.g. ethylene glycol), the permselectivity of the membrane can profitably be used. This concept leads to a novel type of extraction process in which alcohol is extracted with a water-soluble solvent via a hydrophobic semipermeable membrane. This extraction process has been investigated for the recovery of butanol and ethanol from water. A major drawback in all processes with membrane solvent extraction was the permeation of part of the solvent to the aqueous phase.The extraction processes were coupled to batch, fed batch and continuous butanol fermentations to affirm the applicability of the recovery techniques in the actual process. In the batch and fed batch fermentations a three-fold increase in the substrate consumption could be achieved, in the continuous fermentation about 30% increase.     

Phylogeny of Greya (Lepidoptera: Prodoxidae), based on nucleotide sequence variation in mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I and II: congruence with morphological data

The phylogeny of Greya Busck (Lepidoptera: Prodoxidae) was inferred from nucleotide sequence variation across a 765-bp region in the cytochrome oxidase I and II genes of the mitochondrial genome. Most parsimonious relationships of 25 haplotypes from 16 Greya species and two outgroup genera (Tetragma and Prodoxus) showed substantial congruence with the species relationships indicated by morphological variation. Differences between mitochondrial and morphological trees were found primarily in the positions of two species, G. variabilis and G. pectinifera, and in the branching order of the three major species groups in the genus. Conflicts between the data sets were examined by comparing levels of homoplasy in characters supporting alternative hypotheses. The phylogeny of Greya species suggests that host-plant association at the family level and larval feeding mode are conservative characters. Transition/transversion ratios estimated by reconstruction of nucleotide substitutions on the phylogeny had a range of 2.0-9.3, when different subsets of the phylogeny were used. The decline of this ratio with the increase in maximum sequence divergence among taxa indicates that transitions are masked by transversions along deeper internodes or long branches of the phylogeny. Among transitions, substitutions of A-->G and T-->C outnumbered their reciprocal substitutions by 2-6 times, presumably because of the approximately 4:1 (77%) A+T-bias in nucleotide base composition. Of all transversions, 73%-80% were A<-->T substitutions, 85% of which occurred at third positions of codons; these estimates did not decrease with an increase in maximum sequence divergence of taxa included in the analysis. The high frequency of A<-->T substitutions is either a reflection or an explanation of the 92% A+T bias at third codon positions.