Changes in glycosylated haemoglobin after poor control in insulin-dependent diabetics.

Glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1) was measured in seven insulin-dependent diabetic patients before, during, and after a seven-day period of monitored poor control. There was considerable individual variation in the pattern and degree of change in HbA1 concentration induced by poor control and the time when it occurred. Greater increases in HbA1 were seen during the period of metabolic derangement than in the subsequent two months. More information is required before HbA1 estimations are widely used clinically to monitor control in individual diabetics.     

The influence of cell surface properties of thermophilic streptococci on attachment to stainlesssteel

The quality of milk products is threatened by the formation of biofilms of thermophilicstreptococci on the internal surfaces of plate heat exchangers used in milk processing. Althoughattachment to stainless steel surfaces is one of the first stages in the development of a biofilm, themechanisms involved in attachment have not been reported. The cell surface properties of 12strains of thermophilic streptococci were examined to determine their importance in attachment tostainless steel surfaces. Hydrophobicity, extracellular polysaccharide production and cell surfacecharge varied between the different strains but could not be related to numbers attaching. Treatingthe cells with sodium metaperiodate, lysozyme or trichloroacetic acid to disrupt cell surfacepolysaccharide had no effect on attachment. Treatment with trypsin or sodium dodecyl sulphate toremove cell surface proteins resulted in a 100-fold reduction in the number of bacteria attaching.This result suggests that the surface proteins of the thermophilic streptococci are important intheir attachment to stainless steel.     

Attitudes Toward Weight Gain in Pregnancy

Recently, there has been increased interest in the influence of maternal prenatal nutrition on the course and outcome of pregnancy. Evidence has accumulated that a woman''s weight before pregnancy and the weight gained during pregnancy directly affect infant birth weight, incidence of neonatal mortality, and growth and development of the infant during the first year of life. Although recent recommendations for weight gain in pregnancy have been liberalized, a survey of 195 pregnant women who had prenatal visits in both clinic and private offices showed deficiencies in their understanding of the subject. Some 37 percent of women believed they should gain 20 pounds (9 kg) or less during pregnancy. Eight percent admitted to dieting before at least one antenatal visit and 54 percent thought their doctor would not be concerned about too little weight gained during pregnancy. This suggests that many women and some doctors are still ignorant of current concepts of proper nutrition during pregnancy. Apparently, increased lay and professional educational efforts are needed.     

Cytokinetic basis for the impaired activation of lymphocytes from patients with primary intracranial tumors

Patients with malignant brain tumors have a variety of immunologic abnormalities, including the impaired responsiveness of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) to mitogens and alloantigens. We further investigated this impairment of lymphocyte reactivity by employing the techniques of limiting dilution analysis and cytokinetic analysis. PBL preparations from patients have approximately six times fewer phytohemagglutinin (PHA)-responsive cells than PBL from normal subjects. Similar results were obtained with purified T cell preparations. Cytokinetic analysis of PHA-induced [3H]thymidine incorporation employing colchicine blocking of mitosis demonstrated that the number of first generation cells entering the S-phase of mitosis for each 24-hr period was less for PBL from patients than for PBL from normal individuals. First generation responding cells from patients and normal subjects entered DNA synthesis at the same time (48 to 72 hr). Cytokinetic analysis over a period of 168 hr demonstrated that whereas PBL from normal individuals demonstrated second generation responding cells, PBL from the majority of patients did not, thus indicating a defect in their ability to undergo clonal expansion. Measurement of interleukin 2 (IL 2) activity in culture fluids from PHA-activated PBL from normal subjects and patients revealed significantly lower IL 2 levels in culture fluids from PBL from patients. The addition of various concentrations of lectin-free IL 2 to PBL from patients stimulated with PHA did not restore responsiveness to normal values. There was no difference between the levels of interleukin 1 (IL 1) produced by lipopolysaccharide-activated monocytes from normal subjects and patients. Overall, these results suggest that an intrinsic defect exists in T cells obtained from brain tumor patients that renders them unable to enter into normal mitogen-induced blastogenesis.