Notes on Technic: Pkotargol: Old and New

Stocks of protargol of foreign origin are becoming exhausted, and since such protargol is no longer available, the American-made product must be used for histologic staining. Some of the earlier domestic protargol seems not to have given satisfaction in neurohistology; therefore it seemed desirable to compare the staining qualities of the pre-war material with several lots furnished recently by Winthrop-Stearns, Inc., New York City.     

Notes on Technic: Pkotargol: Old and New

Stocks of protargol of foreign origin are becoming exhausted, and since such protargol is no longer available, the American-made product must be used for histologic staining. Some of the earlier domestic protargol seems not to have given satisfaction in neurohistology; therefore it seemed desirable to compare the staining qualities of the pre-war material with several lots furnished recently by Winthrop-Stearns, Inc., New York City.     

ERRs and cancers: effects on metabolism and on proliferation and migration capacities

ERRs are orphan members of the nuclear receptor superfamily which, at least for ERRα and ERRγ display important roles in the control of various metabolic processes. On other hand, correlations have been found between the expression of ERRα and γ and diverse parameters of tumor progression in human cancers. Whereas it is tempting to speculate that ERR receptors act in tumors through the regulation of metabolism, recent data have suggested that they also may directly regulate tumor proliferation and progression independently of their effects on metabolism. The two aspects of tumoral functions of ERR receptors are the purpose of the present review.     

Editorial: Symposium on Genomics and Society

Critics of the new genetics argue that contemporary understandings of health and illness are becoming increasingly ‘geneticized’. Salient implications of this critique are explored here within the context of Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD), a life‐threatening genetic disease that causes fluid‐filled cysts in the kidneys and progressive loss of renal function. Although PKD is very common, public awareness of the disease remains low and there is little clinical emphasis on hereditary aspects. Drawing upon qualitative interviews with 16 healthcare providers, 13 patients and 15 family members, this paper examines the social construction and clinical management of PKD. In particular, interviewees' perceptions of the role of genetics in PKD and views on presymptomatic testing are considered. Finding little impetus toward early diagnosis and/or presymptomatic identification of mutation carriers, we conclude that careful empirical study of PKD (or other neglected hereditary conditions) contributes new insight into factors mitigating geneticization.     

Development aid: on ontogeny and ethics

Human development is a matter of complex interactions between nutritional regimes, genes, educational regimes and other diverse developmental resources. I argue that there is no ethically salient difference between the contributions made to development by genes and the contributions made by these other resources. Since we think nutrition and schooling should be included in the calculus of distributive justice, we should include at least some genes in this calculus too. What is more, under the right circumstances genetic engineering may become a useful tool for the distribution of developmental resources. This said, attention to the parity of genetic and environmental causation can also help to articulate the legitimate suspicions many groups have of genetic engineering.     

Immunology on chip: Promises and opportunities

Microfluidics has facilitated immunological studies by enhancing speed, efficiency and sensitivity of current analysis methods. It offers miniaturization of current laboratory equipment, and enables analysis of clinical samples without the need for sophisticated infrastructure. More importantly, microfluidics offers unique capabilities; including conducting multiple serial or parallel tasks as well as providing complex and precisely controlled environmental conditions that are not achievable using conventional laboratory equipment. Microfluidics is a promising technology for fundamental and applied immunological studies, allowing generation of high throughput, robust and portable platforms, opening a new area of automation in immunology.