Date Palm DNA Mini-Preparation without Liquid Nitrogen

We have developed a new mini-procedure for isolation of total cellular DNA from date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.). The procedure, which does not use liquid nitrogen, has proved useful due to temporary disruptions in supplies of liquid nitrogen that occur in countries where date palm trees are cultivated. DNA suitable for RFLP and PCR analyses is obtained.     

A tracer method to study unidirectional fluxes of lithium: Application to frog skin

We describe a new tracer method to measure unidirectional fluxes of Li⁺, despite the lack of any utilizable radioisotope of lithium. This method uses the purified stable isotopes, ⁶Li and ⁷Li, detected with an ion-probe microanalyser. The accuracy is comparable to that obtained for other ions (e.g., Na⁺) with radiotracers.The method has been applied to frog skin with both faces bathed in a 20% lithium/80% sodium medium. Sodium and lithium unidirectional fluxes have been measured simultaneously. The results are consistent with lithium being actively pumped, the outflux of lithium being, however, much larger than that of sodium.     

Ultrastructural demonstration of NAD-pyrophosphorylase activity in mouse liver nuclei.

Ultrastructural demonstration of NAD-pyrophosphorylase activity (E.C.2.7.7.1) in isolated mouse liver nuclei was investigated with the use of an electronhistochemical procedure based on the precipitation of pyrophosphate ions with lead ions under conditions permitting simultaneous ATPase inhibition by formaldehyde/ethanol prefixation. In isolated mouse liver nuclei activity of NAD-pyrophosphorylase was found in nucleoli, in interchromatin granules, coiled bodies and strand-like structures in nucleoplasm.     

Ostracoden von Hawaii,insbesondere aus dem marinen Interstitial

The present paper deals with ostracods collected by H. Kunz during October and November 1979 on the Hawaiian Islands (Big Island, Maui and Kauai). 26 species were found, nine species are described, two were already known to science, 15 remain in open nomenclature. Although some of the new species are represented only by a single specimen, the morphologic characters permit to distinguish them from other species of the genus. The ostracods of the Hawaiian Islands are very imperfectly known.      

Amyloidogenicity of beta A4 and beta A4-bearing amyloid protein precursor fragments by metal-catalyzed oxidation.

Previously we have shown that the COOH-terminal 100 residues (A4CT) of the amyloid protein precursor (APP), which carry the sequence of the amyloid beta A4 protein of Alzheimer's disease at N-terminal position, form highly insoluble aggregates if expressed in the rabbit reticulocyte lysate and analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (Dyrks, T., Weidemann, A., Multhaup, G., Salbaum, J.M., Lemaire, H.-G., Kang, J., Müller-Hill, B., Masters, C. L., and Beyreuther, K. (1988) EMBO J. 7, 949-957). Here we report that aggregation of this COOH-terminal APP fragment A4CT and also of beta A4 itself depends on additional factors. In contrast to the reticulocyte expression system, expression of A4CT and beta A4 in the wheat germ expression system resulted in only monomeric forms. We have identified the factors which are capable of transforming both soluble A4CT and beta A4 into insoluble and aggregating molecules. Monomeric A4CT or beta A4 expressed in the wheat germ lysate could be transformed into aggregating molecules by the addition of metal-catalyzed oxidation systems. The addition of radical scavengers such as ascorbic acid, trolox, and amino acids prevented the aggregation process induced by the radical initiators. Thus, the aggregation of amyloidogenic APP fragments if analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis requires amino acid oxidation and protein cross-linking induced by radical generation systems.