Interrelation between the blood neutrophil damage test and the passive hemagglutination reaction in detecting antibodies

Statistical analysis of the results of examinations of vaccinees against plague has revealed that the values of the neutrophil damage index (NDI) and antibody titers as determined in the passive hemagglutination (PHA) test qualitatively (but not quantitatively) correlate. The statistical series for the PHA test and NDI belong to different variations, i. e. they describe different functions of antibodies with respect to the same antigen. Besides, the determination of NDI permits the detection of antibodies in 95% of cases with probability equal to 0.06, while the PHA test determines antibodies in 67% of the vaccinees with probability equal to 0.30. The determination of NDI, used as an alternative qualitative method for antibody detection, is particularly effective in the evaluation of faintly immunogenic antigens, as well as at the early and late periods of immune state.     

Isolation of yeast nuclei and characteristics of their lipid composition

Intact nuclei of a high purity degree were isolated from Candida utilis protoplasts, and their lipid content and composition were determined.     

Measurement of resuspended aerosol in the Chernobyl area

Results of measurements of the resuspended radioactive aerosols in the Chernobyl area are presented which were obtained soon after the Chernobyl reactor accident and in a European project in 1992–1993. The measurements were carried out with the intention of obtaining a data base for dose assessment of resuspended radioactive particles. Potential significant dose contributions may result from inhalation and secondary contamination due to resuspended radionuclides. In this first article of a series of three papers, the instrumentation and the measurement uncertainties are discussed. An effort was made to sample quantitatively giant aerosol particles (particles larger than 10 μm aerodynamic diameter) as well. The comparison of the samplers shows, in general, an agreement of concentration measurements of ¹³⁷Cs and ⁷Be within a factor of two. One sampler was identified with larger discrepancies and needs additional investigation of its sampling characteristics; for another device, the recalibration of the analysing system is recommended. Ordinary integrating samplers have a loss of about 30% in ¹³⁷Cs activity compared to an isokinetic sampler collecting giant particles as well. The mean ratio of ¹³⁷Cs activity concentration between an instrument sampling only particles larger than 10 μm and an ordinary integrating sampler is 0.39 ± 0.15 during anthropogenic-enhanced resuspension. These findings demonstrate the significant contribution of giant particles to resuspended airborne radioactivity. The results of this study concerning integral measurements during wind-driven resuspension proved to be in good agreement with previously published data on resuspension. Received: 15 May 1997 / Accepted: 4 August 1997     

Compartmentalization of metabolism of spatially-delimiting amino acid pools of yeast cells

The spatially different amino acid pools (i.e. cytoplasmic, vacuolar and mitochondrial) of yeast cells are metabolically compartmentalized. The accumulation of amino acids in these pools occurs at different rates; the highest rates are observed for glutamate and alanine. The former is predominantly accumulated in the cytoplasm, the latter--in the vacuoles. The renewal rates of the amino acid pools are also different. Each of them contains at least two subpools, readily convertible and relatively stable ones. The readily convertible subpools of the cytoplasmic and mitochondrial pools predominantly contain glutamate, aspartate, valine and alanine; that of the vacuolar pool--alanine. The bulk of the readily convertible alanine subpool (67%) is localized in the vacuoles, that of glutamate and aspartate (85 and 68%, respectively)--in the cytoplasm.