Withdrawal from Fixed-Dose Injection of Methamphetamine Decreases Cerebral Levels of 3-Methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol and Induces the Expression of Anxiety-Related Behavior in Mice

A variety of drug treatment regimens have been proposed to model the dysphoric state observed during methamphetamine (METH) withdrawal in rats, but little has been established in experiments using mice. In male ICR mice, a fixed-dose injection regimen of METH (1.0 or 2.5 mg/kg, i.p., twice daily for 10 consecutive days) induced a significant decrease in the time spent in open arms in an elevated plus maze after 5 days of drug abstinence. Under an escalating-dose injection regimen (0.2–2.0 mg/kg, i.p., 3 times daily for 4 days, total: 15 mg/kg/animal) or continuous subcutaneous administration with osmotic mini-pumps (15 or 76 mg/kg of METH for 2 weeks), no significant behavioral change was observed after 5 days of drug abstinence, compared with control animals. Reduced gains in body weight were observed during repeated treatment with METH in the fixed-dose injection and mini-pump treatment regimens, but not the escalating-dose injection regimen. HPLC analysis revealed significant decreases in the level of cerebral 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol, a norepinephrine metabolite, and norepinephrine turnover, which may be attributed to the expression of anxiety-related behavior in the elevated plus maze. These observations suggest that the mice treated with a fixed-dose of METH may model the anxiety-related behavior observed in the dysphoric state induced by METH withdrawal in humans.     

The short-term effects of various oral care methods in dependent elderly: comparison between toothbrushing, tongue cleaning with sponge brush and wiping on oral mucous membrane by chlorhexidine

doi: 10.1111/j.1741‐2358.2011.00577.x The short‐term effects of various oral care methods in dependent elderly: comparison between toothbrushing, tongue cleaning with sponge brush and wiping on oral mucous membrane by chlorhexidine Objectives: To explore the short‐term effects from toothbrushing, tongue cleaning with sponge brush and wiping on oral mucous membrane by chlorhexidine. Background: Numerous reports have been seen in recent years proving the effectiveness of mouth cleaning with a toothbrush for the prevention of respiratory infections among the dependent elderly. However, the short‐term effects from each oral care method have not yet been clarified. Hence, an investigation was conducted by having each subject independently perform various oral care methods for five consecutive days. Materials and Methods: The subjects consisted of 12 assistance‐dependent elderly who have difficulties with tooth brushing by themselves, have 10 or more residual teeth and are not yet using plate dentures. After the pre‐intervention examination, each of the following oral care methods were performed on the same subject on an approximately three week basis: 1) Tooth brushing 2)Tongue cleaning with sponge brush 3)Wiping on oral mucous with sponge brush by chlorhexidine. Each method was performed independently, once a day for 5 consecutive days and the subjects were reexamined on the sixth day for comparative verification. Results: Consequently, toothbrushing decreased the plaque index and gingival index significantly and an improvement of oral malodour was also acknowledged (p < 0.01). Tongue cleaning with a sponge brush decreased the tongue coat score significantly (p < 0.05) and oral malodour was also improved (p < 0.01). Wiping on oral mucous with a sponge brush soaked in chlorhexidine significantly decreased opportunistic infections in the pharynx region (p < 0.05). Conclusions: It was suggested that the use of not only a toothbrush but also chlorhexidine gluconate may be indicated for dependent elderly people in whom pathogens of opportunistic infection are detected.     

AGR,an Agravitropic Locus of Arabidopsis thaliana, Encodes a Novel Membrane-Protein Family Member

Mutations in the Agr locus of Arabidopsis thaliana impair theroot gravitropic response. Root growth of agr mutants is moderatelyresistant to ethylene and to an auxin transport inhibitor. Verticallyplaced agr roots grow into agar medium containing IAA or naphthalene-1-aceticacid, but not into medium containing 2,4-D. Positional cloningshowed that AGR encodes a root-specific member of a novel membrane-proteinfamily with limited homology to bacterial transporters. (Received September 4, 1998; Accepted September 21, 1998)     

Gene cloning of the maoA gene and overproduction of a soluble monoamine oxidase from Klebsiella aerogenes

Summary We cloned the structural gene for monoamine oxidase (maoA) from Klebsiella aerogenes into a pKI212 vector in an maoA mutant strain of K. aerogenes. Deletion analysis and complementation tests of the recombinant plasmid showed that the maoA gene was located entirely within a 4.1-kb segment. In an maoA mutant strain harbouring the cloned maoA gene, synthesis of monoamine oxidase was induced by addition of tyramine and related compounds. Transfer of a plasmid containing the maoA gene into a monoamine oxidase-producing strain of K. aerogenes W70 resulted in about a 30- to 40-fold increase in total production of the enzyme. When cells of K. aerogenes carrying the plasmid containing the maoA gene were grown with tyramine, more than 85% of the monoamine oxidase was produced in soluble form, whereas the parent strain W70 produced most monoamine oxidase as the membrane-bound form. Offprint requests to: Y. Murooka     

Isolation of Drosophila flightless mutants which affect myofibrillar proteins of indirect flight muscle

Summary A large number of dominant flightless mutants of Drosophila were chemically induced, and their thorax proteins were examined by means of two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (O'Farrell 1975). Among them, 26 lines were found to have deficiency or reduction of some of myofibrillar proteins in indirect flight muscle (IFM). The gel patterns of the mutants could be classified into eleven groups. In general, more than a few polypeptides were either absent or reduced in each mutant line. Although the mutations affect myofibrillar proteins in apparently complex and diverse ways, logical correlations were found among the changes. There are pairs of proteins which always change together when a number of mutants are compared. There are also many pairs in which presence of one protein is necessary, but not sufficient for presence of the other. This suggests that absence of one component leads to disappearance or reduction of others which are either spatially or functionally related to the former. The correlation is possibly due to a hierarchy of the proteins in the myofibrillar assembly processes.Chromosomal loci of eleven typical mutants were examined, and it was found that most of them are located in two small regions of the second and the third chromosomes. IFM myofibrils of these mutants are either abnormal or absent in homozygotes as well as in heterozygotes.