Orthonectida's life cycle

Analysis of original and literary data permits to conclude that the life cycle in Orthonectida may be characterized as a monohost--monoxenous one, including regular interchange of three generations: asexual and parthenogenetic ones, which are represented by parasitic plasmodiums, and sexual generation, represented by free living and non-feeding males and females or, rarely, hermaphrodites. The sexual individuals are bilaterial, while the parasitic ones are anaxonic. The life cycle of Orthonectida includes the agamic reproduction, apomictic parthenogenesis and sexual reproduction regularly following one another. The life cycle of Orthonectida can be considered as a combination of metagenesis and heterogony. So far, such combination has not been described in any group of metazoan parasites.     

A bilateral maxillofacial trunk in man: an extraordinary anomaly of the carotid system of arteries.

In a Caucasian male, the maxillary artery (M) bilaterally arose with the facial artery anteromedially from the external carotid artery. On the right side, the M entered the infratemporal fossa between the neck of the mandible and the medial pterygoid muscle, whereas the left M pierced the medial pterygoid muscle, first being covered by the muscle and the angle of the mandible. On both sides, the M ran deep to the inferior head of the lateral pterygoid muscle and the buccal nerve. The right M lay deep to the inferior alveolar, but superficial to the lingual nerve, whereas the left inferior alveolar and lingual nerves had formed two roots, thus encircling the left M. The ascending palatine artery was replaced on both sides by palatine branches of the ascending pharyngeal artery. Since a bilaterial maxillofacial trunk with topographical relations as described herein has not been previously reported in man, the embryology and comparative anatomy of this variation are discussed.     

Biopsies testiculaires percutanees dans l’exploration des infertilites masculines

Between February 1989 and March 1991, eight patients (mean age 32 years) presenting with azoospermia or severe oligozoospermia underwent a testicular biopsy to investigate their secretory or excretory origin. A bilaterial testicular biopsy was performed percutaneously using an automatic biopsy gun with a Tru-cut 14 gauge needle. General anaesthesia was used for seven patients although one man had a painless biopsy following spermatic cord anaesthesia. Satisfactory specimens were obtained in seven patients (more than 30 spermatogenic tubules visible in each biopsy), and the differential diagnosis of excretory (three cases) or secretory origin (four cases) of the infertility was possible. In six patients a testicular ultrasonographic examination was performed after the biopsy. Results were normal in five men while the sixth showed a haematocoele, although the fluid was removed percutaneously. In 7/8 patients no haemorrhagic or infectious complications were noted. To investigate possible immediate complications of this type of procedure, 25 patients presenting with prostatic carcinoma underwent percutaneous testicular biopsy just before their orchidectomy. In all patients a haematic infiltration of the testicular parenchyma along the needle’s path was observed. Among these 25 men, eight biopsies were performed under local spermatic cord anaesthesia: the procedure was painless in six cases but slightly painful in two. Consequently, percunateous testicular biopsy using an automatic gun is an interesting option compared to the traditional open surgical approach used to investigate spermatogenesis in certain types of male sterility. Furthermore, this procedure can be performed under local anaesthesia in the consulting room, making this altermative approach even more attractive     

On the monomyarian, Acostaea rivoli and evolution in the family Etheriidae (Bivalvia: Unionacea)

Acostaea rivoli (Desh.) is an etheriid bivalve which occurs, cemented to the substrate, in the basin of the River Magdalena in Colombia. The animal, apart from the shell, is here first described and compared with the two closely related species, the similarly monomyarian Pseudomulleria dalyi (Smith) from Mysore, India and the dimyarian Etheria elliptica Lam. widely distributed in tropical Africa. Attaching at an unusually late stage and by either valve, all three pass from initial bilaterial symmetry to a state of extreme bilateral and– apart from Etheria –also antero-posterior asymmetry. In Acostaea (and Pseudomulleria ) this involves exclusively posterior and, because settlement is anterior end downward in a depression, topographically upward growth with a change of around 90 in the disposition of the valves as these flatten out over the substrate. This necessitates formation of a new hinge between the anterior spur which is composed of the earlier growth of both valves, and the horizontal extent of the upper valve. With loss of the anterior adductor, the monomyarian condition is achieved in a unique manner. Evidence indicates that the family Etheriidae arose from edentulous Unionidae with the adoption of a pleurothetic cemented habit, this permitting exploitation of a hard substrate often, although not invariably, in rushing water.     

多孔n-HA/PA66支架复合rhBMP-2修复兔桡骨缺损的实验研究

目的 ：研究多孔纳米羟基磷灰石/聚酰胺66（nHA/PA66）骨修复材料作为骨组织工程支架复合基因重组人骨形态发生蛋白2（rhBMP2）后的成骨能力的变化,探讨加速nHA/PA66人工骨与受体骨愈合的方法。方法：选用新西兰大白兔双侧桡骨制作骨缺损模型,将nHA/PA66/rhBMP2复合材料植入左侧骨缺损处,右侧骨缺损以nHA/PA66植入作为实验对照,另做不植入任何材料的骨缺损空白对照。在1、2、4、8、12周各时相点分别进行大体观察、X线照片、组织学切片、免疫组化原位杂交进行检测图象分析。结果：nHA/PA66/BMP2与nHA/PA66组骨缺损均完全修复,而空白对照组骨缺损未见修复;2周时nHA/PA66与nHA/PA66/rhBMP2两组间原位杂交阳性细胞表达有统计学意义（ P<0.05）, 4周时nHA/PA66与nHA/PA66/rhBMP2两组间原位杂交阳性细胞表达无统计学意义（ P>0.05）,2周及4周实验和实验对照两组分别与空白对照组比较均无统计学意义（ P>0.05）,nHA/PA66/rhBMP2组较nHA/PA66组可加速人工骨/植入体/受体界面骨愈合。 结论：多孔nHA/PA66作为骨组织工程支架复合具有诱导成骨活性的rhBMP2后,增强了早期成骨能力,加速了其与受体骨的愈合。     

Radiobiological problems in space

Summary An overview is presented on radiation problems in space, with emphasis on aspects of major interest for manned space exploration. A classification of the radiation hazards is presented and strategies for their evaluation are discussed. Space radiation problems are compared with characteristic aspects of radiation research in other disciplines, in order to provide further insight into those aspects that are unique to space.The research described in this paper was carried out while the author was a NASA VisitingThe research described in this paper was carried out while the author was a NASA VisitingThe research described in this paper was carried out while the author was a NASA VisitingThe research described in this paper was carried out while the author was a NASA Visiting     

Blockage of the channel to heme by the E87 side chain in the GAF domain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis DosS confers the unique sensitivity of DosS to oxygen

Two sensor kinases, DosS and DosT, are responsible for recognition of hypoxia in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Both proteins are structurally similar to each other, but DosS is a redox sensor while DosT binds oxygen. The primary difference between the two proteins is the channel to the heme present in their GAF domains. DosS has a channel that is blocked by E87 while DosT has an open channel. Absorption spectra of DosS mutants with an open channel show that they bind oxygen as DosT does when they are exposed to air, while DosT G85E mutant is oxidized similarly to DosS without formation of an oxy-ferrous form. This suggests that oxygen accessibility to heme is the primary factor governing the oxygen-binding properties of these proteins.     

Finger dermatoglyphics of the Rarhi Brahmins of Bengal

The finger prints of 138 individuals belonging to the sub-caste Rarhi Brahmin have been analyzed. In males whorls are more frequent in the right hand than the left, while it is just the reverse in case of loops and arches. Females, however, show higher frequency of loops and lesser frequency of whorls in the right hand than the left, while the arches are more frequent on the left hand of females than the right. Arches are found to be more frequent on the thumb in males, while among females it is found mostly in the second finger. The bimanual difference is statistically significant in both sexes. Right hands are found to be more monomorphic than left hands. Monomorphic hands are less frequent among females than males. In the digitwise occurrence of symmetrical combinations of different patterns, the trend is III>IV>V>I>II in males, and V>IV>III>I>II in females. Males show higher ridge counts in all fingers than do females. Ridge counts are usually found to be higher in the right hand than the left. The sex difference for mean total ridge counts is significant (t = 1.99, 0.05>P > 0.02, d.f. = 136). The bimanual difference is statistically significant for thumbs in both sexes, while the difference for the other digits is not significant.     

Hormonal regulation of thyroid peroxidase in normal and transformed rat thyroid cells

The hormonal induction of thyroid peroxidase (TPO) mRNA is studied in the functional rat thyroid cell line FRTL-5 and compared to the induction of thyroglobulin (TG) mRNA and I- uptake. TPO and TG mRNAs are regulated by TSH and by insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and/or insulin. However, while TPO is more sensitive to TSH regulation (5- to 6-fold increase vs. 2- to 3-fold increase by IGF-I), TSH and IGF-I are equally potent in increasing TG mRNA levels (3- to 4-fold). Regulation of I- uptake appears to be different: thus TSH greatly (15-fold) increases I- uptake, while IGF-I or insulin are completely ineffective. TPO and TG mRNAs and I- transport display different sensitivity to transformation of rat thyroid cells. Thus, when another differentiated rat thyroid cell line, the PC cells, are transformed by human c-myc (PC myc), TPO and TG mRNAs are both present at normal levels, while I- uptake is slightly decreased; in the PC cells transformed by polyomavirus middle-T-antigen (PC PyMLV) TPO mRNA is undetectable and I- uptake is greatly decreased, while TG mRNA is present at normal levels. All three differentiated functions are switched off in PC cells transformed by the cooperation of c-myc and polyomavirus middle-T-antigen (PC myc + PyMLV).     

灰胸薮鹛消化系统形态的初步研究

对灰胸薮鹛（Liocichla omeiensis）消化系统的形态学作了初步观察,结果表明,灰胸薮鹛舌前端有刺毛状结构,后端有一排尖端后指的栉状突,且中间小两边大;雄鸟在舌前端正中央还有一“v”形的凹缺,深约2．5mm;雌鸟食道颈段长为13．2mm,雄鸟为17．5mm;嗉囊雌鸟长7．5mm,雄鸟长8．4mm;食道胸段雌鸟长15．5mm,雄鸟长14．7mm;肌胃发达,具角质膜,腺胃乳突短而小;肠道长与体长基本相等,小肠较发达,雌鸟长153．7mm,占肠道总长92．6％,雄鸟为133mm和95％,具有双侧盲肠,占肠道总长的3．3％,大肠短,雌鸟仅占肠道7．5％,雄鸟仅占4．75％;肝为体内最大的消化腺,分左右两叶;胰位于十二指肠袢内,细长形,分三小叶。     

Studies on the morphology of the gills and gill arches with reference to the blood supply in Notopterus motopterus and Colisa fasciatus.

The morphology of the gills, with their blood supply have been described in Notopterus notopterus and Colisa fasciatus in some detail. Gills are curved and perforated on the dorsolateral and ventrolateral wall of the pharynx. The gills consist of 2 rows of filaments which are stacked one above the other to form a space. The gill filaments are smaller on both the ends and larger in middle. The gill filaments are of pink colour as they are supplied with blood. Gill rakers are large in size in Notopterus notopterus while they are small in Colisa fasciatus. 3 pairs of basibranchials are present in Notopterus notopterus which are covered by median membranous bony plate while 2 basibranchials are present in Colisa fasciatus. 3 pairs of hypobranchials are present in both fishes. 5 pairs of ceratobranchials are present in which Vth ceratobranchial bears teeth. 4 pairs of epibranchials are present. 3 pairs of pharyngobranchials are present in which the tip of the IVth pharyngobranchial bears minute teeth in Notopterus notopterus while in Colisa fasciatus IInd and IIIrd pharyngobranchial bear minute ones. One afferent branchial vessel is present in Notopterus notopterus and Colisa fasciatus in each gill like in other teleostean fishes. One efferent branchial vessel is present in each gill of Notopterus notopterus while in Colisa fasciatus 2 efferent are represented in each gill.     

Estimation of a common effect parameter from sparse follow-up data

Breslow (1981, Biometrika 68, 73-84) has shown that the Mantel-Haenszel odds ratio is a consistent estimator of a common odds ratio in sparse stratifications. For cohort studies, however, estimation of a common risk ratio or risk difference can be of greater interest. Under a binomial sparse-data model, the Mantel-Haenszel risk ratio and risk difference estimators are consistent in sparse stratifications, while the maximum likelihood and weighted least squares estimators are biased. Under Poisson sparse-data models, the Mantel-Haenszel and maximum likelihood rate ratio estimators have equal asymptotic variances under the null hypothesis and are consistent, while the weighted least squares estimators are again biased; similarly, of the common rate difference estimators the weighted least squares estimators are biased, while the estimator employing "Mantel-Haenszel" weights is consistent in sparse data. Variance estimators that are consistent in both sparse data and large strata can be derived for all the Mantel-Haenszel estimators.     

Using an Activity to Simulate the Dangers of Multitasking with Technology while Walking

People are increasingly trying to multitask while walking. Text messaging while walking is a significant area for concern. The number of text messages sent is expected to be more than 8 trillion in 2012. Texting is becoming so commonplace that people use this technology while engaged in other activities. The dangers of multitasking have hit the streets as people are becoming involved in more accidents while walking as they text on mobile phones. This simulation activity measures a student's ability to multitask by texting and walking. The activity simulates walking in the real world and is best suited for middle school students. Additional activities, after completing the simulation, will challenge middle school students to learn more about multitasking globally through scientific inquiry researched on the Internet. The students will use language arts skills to generate a report or presentation to share with classmates. Their findings will give the entire class a cultural perspective on accident statistical comparisons between different countries.     

The effects of glucose on protein synthesis and thermosensitivity in Chinese hamster ovary cells

Glucose deprivation induces the major glucose regulated proteins (GRPs) in Chinese hamster ovary cells. When these cells are then returned to a glucose containing environment, GRP synthesis is repressed while concurrently other proteins, identified as heat shock proteins, are induced. The induction of the GRPs is found to mark precisely the onset of a decline in the cell's ability to survive a thermal stress while the expression of heat shock proteins, when glucose is restored, is paralleled by significant increases in survival protection or thermotolerance.     

Thermal denaturation and gelation of rubisco: effects of pH and ions

In order to understand the mechanism of thermal gelation of rubisco, its native and heat denatured states were characterized by absorbance, fluorescence and circular dichroïsm spectroscopies as well as by differential scanning calorimetry in the presence of various salts. It appears that during the denaturation process, divalent anions are released while divalent cations are fixed by the protein, while it is disorganized and while the environment of its aromatic chromophores becomes more hydrophilic. The pH transition of gelation is shifted 1–2 pH units higher than the transition of denaturation temperature which occurs near the isoelectric point of the native molecule. This shift probably corresponds to the breaking of saline bridges within the protein molecule. Finally, a large effect of divalent cations on the phase diagram indicates that a particular denatured state is attained when these cations are in the denaturation medium.     

Three small,cryptic plasmids from Aeromonas salmonicida subsp. salmonicida A449

The nucleotide sequences of three small (5.2-5.6 kb) plasmids from Aeromonas salmonicida subsp. salmonicida A449 are described. Two of the plasmids (pAsa1 and pAsa3) use a ColE2-type replication mechanism while the third (pAsa2) is a ColE1-type replicon. Insertions in the Rep protein and oriV region of the ColE2-type plasmids provide subtle differences that allow them to be maintained compatibly. All three plasmids carry genes for mobilization (mobABCD), but transfer genes are absent and are presumably provided in trans. Two of the plasmids, pAsa1 and pAsa3, carry toxin-antitoxin gene pairs, most probably to ensure plasmid stability. One open reading frame (ORF), orf1, is conserved in all three plasmids, while other ORFs are plasmid-specific. A survey of A. salmonicida strains indicates that pAsa1 and pAsa2 are present in all 12 strains investigated, while pAsa3 is present in 11 and a fourth plasmid, pAsal1, is present in 7.     

Testing weak nulls in matched observational studies

We develop sensitivity analyses for the sample average treatment effect in matched observational studies while allowing unit-level treatment effects to vary. The methods may be applied to studies using any optimal without-replacement matching algorithm. In contrast to randomized experiments and to paired observational studies, we show for general matched designs that over a large class of test statistics, any procedure bounding the worst-case expectation while allowing for arbitrary effect heterogeneity must be unnecessarily conservative if treatment effects are actually constant across individuals. We present a sensitivity analysis which bounds the worst-case expectation while allowing for effect heterogeneity, and illustrate why it is generally conservative if effects are constant. An alternative procedure is presented that is asymptotically sharp if treatment effects are constant, and that is valid for testing the sample average effect under additional restrictions which may be deemed benign by practitioners. Simulations demonstrate that this alternative procedure results in a valid sensitivity analysis for the weak null hypothesis under a host of reasonable data-generating processes. The procedures allow practitioners to assess robustness of estimated sample average treatment effects to hidden bias while allowing for effect heterogeneity in matched observational studies.