Preliminary note on anti-insulin antibody formation in diabetics treated with porcine insulin

In the present study, we have tested the sera of sixty five diabetic patients treated with insulin, researching the action of some physiologic and therapeutic factors (sex, age, insulin dose and time of treatment), to production of anti-insulin antibodies. Our results have shown that an important percentage of diabetic patients treated by porcine insulin produce antibodies: 72% of studied patients, concerning chiefly all the women and patients under-fourty years old. However our results have not pointed out any relation between the administered insulin dose versus the anti-insulin antibodies production, in spite of the early production of these antibodies in a great part of the patients.     

Parasitic effect of Opius concolor (Spzl) (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) on an intermediate host Ceratitis capitata Wied (Diptera, Trypetidae)

The parasitic incidence of Opius concolor (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) on a replacement host, Ceratitis capitata (Diptera, Trypetidae) was studied using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and immunoelectrophoresis methods. A noticeable modification of C. capitata proteins was observed when parasited by O. concolor. But the most important phenomenon is the finding of common antigens between the host and the parasite. These results are discussed with regard to trophic and parasitic behaviour of the parasite.     

Description of Labidocera farrani sp. nov., a pontellid copepod known from eastern and northern Australian waters, (Crustacea, Copepoda)

Both sexes of a form previously recorded from Australian watersare described, and the species is named after its original discoverer.Features of the new species and of related species from thesuper-species detruncata, are tabulated and discussed.     

Studies on the effect of reagent and protein charges on reactivity of the β93 sulfhydryl group of human hemoglobin using selected mutations

The reactivity of the β93 sulfhydryl (SH) group of human oxyhemoglobins with the negatively charged 5,5′-dithiobis(2,2′-nitrobenzoate) and the uncharged 2,2′-dithiodipyridine was determined as a function of pH. Selected mutant hemoglobins having increased oxygen affinity and having residue substitutions altering charge near the SH group (Wood, Malmö, Yakima, Kempsey, Andrew-Minneapolis, Osler, and Chesapeake) were compared to hemoglobin (Hb) A. Although both reagents reacted with GSH at the same rate and with the same enthalpies of activation, the rates with Hb were different and the difference showed a pronounced pH dependence. The charged reagent was sensitive to charges near the SH group; a positive charge increased the rate and a negative one decreased the rate. The uncharged reagent which reacted with Hb A with activation enthalpies similar to those for GSH was insensitive to neighboring charges, but was sensitive to tertiary and quaternary structural changes. The rates obtained with the latter reagent did not correlate with oxygen affinity. The evolutionary aspects of the β93 cysteine in relation to structure and function are reviewed.     

Synthesis of norbornanepentols: analogues of inositols

The synthesis of endo-5,6-exo-2,3-syn-7-norbornanepentol (5), endo-5-exo-2,3,6-syn-7-norbornanepentol (14), and 7-exo-2,3,5,6-norbornanepentol (16) are described. cis-Hydroxylation of 7-tert-butoxynorbornadiene (1) gave the exo-diol 2, endo-diol 3, and tetrol 4. The latter was deprotected to give pentol 5. Oxidation of alkene 6 afforded diacid 7 and two minor products: the exo-diol 8 and alpha-hydroxyketone 9. cis-Hydroxylation of 6 gave the endo- and exo-diols 10 and 8. Acetalation of 8 furnished the bis(dioxolane) 11. Reduction of ketone 9 gave the trans-diol 12. Deblocking of 8 and 12 led the tetrol 15 or pentols 16 and 14. The structure of tetrol 4 was confirmed by X-ray diffraction. Compounds 4, 5 and 16 were devoid of antitumor or antiviral activity.     

Seasonal cycles of plasma testosterone and cortisol in the wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus algirus Loche) of Zembra Island, studied in its natural biotope and in captivity

Annual variations in plasma testosterone and cortisol levels were determined in male wild rabbits caught monthly in their natural biotope (Zembra island). For comparison, a group of warrens was hold in semi-captivity close to Tunis. In both conditions plasma testosterone concentrations were low from January to September and peak values were observed in October. Captive warrens exhibited a clear cut annual rhythm in plasma cortisol levels also and ether stress resulted in a very large increase of cortisolemia. In rabbits caught in ther habitat however, cortisol concentrations were always extremely high throughout the year, probably due to stressing conditions. Interestingly, wild rabbits of Zembra island appear to subsist from a very remote past without any contact with other strains. As to Zembra, it is a hardly get-at-able, uninhabited island which is a part of a strictly protected natural reserve and constitutes a fairly useful and valuable ecosystem.     

The molecular machinery of germ line specification

Germ cells occupy a unique position in animal reproduction, development, and evolution. In sexually reproducing animals, only they can produce gametes and contribute genetically to subsequent generations. Nonetheless, germ line specification during embryogenesis is conceptually the same as the specification of any somatic cell type: germ cells must activate a specific gene regulatory network in order to differentiate and go through gametogenesis. While many genes with critical roles in the germ line have been characterized with respect to expression pattern and genetic interactions, it is the molecular interactions of the relevant gene products that are ultimately responsible for germ cell differentiation. This review summarizes the current state of knowledge on the molecular functions and biochemical connections between germ line gene products. We find that homologous genes often interact physically with the same conserved molecular partners across the metazoans. We also point out cases of nonhomologous genes from different species whose gene products play analogous biological roles in the germ line. We suggest a preliminary molecular definition of an ancestral “pluripotency module” that could have been modified during metazoan evolution to become specific to the germ line. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 77: 3–18, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.