The life and times of Ferruccio Ritossa

Ferruccio Ritossa wrote these lines only a few months before he died, as a preface to a book he wanted to write and that, unfortunately, we will never be able to read. It was to be the story of his life, an amazing story indeed. With this article, we want to take a picture of Ferruccio’s life, a mosaic of events, facts, ideas, hopes, and memories linked in a way that they will not go away, even after “a stroll in our brain.”     

The life and times of ivermectin - a success story

Since its introduction more than 20 years ago, ivermectin has proved to be one of the most successful therapeutic drugs in veterinary medicine, as well as the basis of one of the most successful public-health programmes of the past century. The drug arose from a unique international collaboration between the public and private sectors. The development process also incorporated the world's first and largest drug-donation programme and involved a unique association between governments, non-governmental organizations and industry. The drug is now being used, free of charge, in two global disease-elimination programmes that are benefiting millions of the world's poorest people.     

The haemoglobins of Labeo umbratus (Smith) and Labeo capensis (Smith)

The haemoglobins of both L. umbratus and L. capensis separated into four components on polyacrylamide electrophoresis. The isoelectric points of these fractions were found to be 9.35, 6.89, 6.63 and 6.40. Organic nucleotide triphosphate concentration in the blood of L. capensis was found to be 56.72 ± 18.01 mg% and 58.72 ± 17.9 mg% in the case of L. umbratus . It is not possible to distinguish between L. umbratus and L. capensis purely on the basis of the haemoglobin electropherogram.     

The plasma proteins of Labeo umbratus (Smith) and Labeo capensis (Smith)

The plasma proteins of L. umbratus and L. capensis have been investigated by means of cellulose-acetate and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Characteristic patterns were obtained for each specie although variations occur within a certain basic framework. Certain fractions were further isolated and approximate average molecular weights were found to vary between 55 000 and above 120 000 and isoelectric points between 5.78 and 4.2. Certain fractions were found to exist in dimeric form. It is concluded that the application of the human nomenclature to fish plasma protein fractions is of dubious value and that the fish fractions can only be classified after thorough biochemical investigation.