A minority of 46,XX true hermaphrodites are positive for the Y-DNA sequence including SRY

Summary A total of 30 cases of 46,XX true hermaphroditism was analysed for Y-DNA sequences including the recently cloned gene for male testis-determination SRY. In 3 cases, a portion of the Y chromosome including SRY was present and, in 2 cases, was localised, to Xp22 by in situ hybridisation. Since previous studies have shown that the majority of XX males are generated by an X-Y chromosomal interchange, the Xp22 position of the Yp material suggests that certain cases of hermaphroditism can arise by the same meiotic event. The phenotype in the 3 SRY-positive cases may be caused by X-inactivation resulting in somatic mosaicism of testis-determining factor expression giving rise to both testicular and ovarian tissues. Autosomal or X-linked mutation(s) elsewhere in the sex-determining pathway may explain the phenotype observed in the remaining 27 SRY-negative cases.     

Gene expression in nematode-infected plant roots

Summary A major pathogen of potato plants (Solanum tuberosum) is the potato cyst nematode (Globodera spp.), which induces localized redifferentiation of a limited number of host cells to form a specialized feeding-site termed the syncytium. A novel strategy utilizing the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was employed to construct a cDNA library from dissected potato roots highly enriched in syncytial material. The library was differentially screened with cDNA probes derived from the infected root tissue from a compatible interaction and from healthy root tissue. Characterization of one gene identified by the library screen indicated an expression pattern that correlated with events in the immediate vicinity of the pathogen after syncytial establishment. The strategy for library construction and screening could be applicable to the study of gene expression in any plant-pathogen interaction in which the limited supply of cells at the interface of the two organisms precludes a more traditional approach.     

Idioms of distress: Somatic responses to distress in everyday life

In-depth interviews were conducted among 50 subjects residing in the industrial town of Newcastle, Australia. Half of these subjects were from the general population and half were currently seeking counselling for personal/family problems. None of the subjects were receiving any medical care at the time of interview, though seven had done so during the episode of distress they were discussing. The study shows that while the subjects psychologized their problems, members of both groups tended to somatize at a rate proportional to the level of distress. Subjects were unaware of any relationship between the distress they were experiencing and their physical complaints. The results of this study support previous research which argues that those experiencing distress and those who tend to introspect are also those who are likely to amplify somatic symptoms. At the same time these results depart from findings in the United States which suggest that in the West, people learn to express social and personal distress in psychological terms,, thereby reducing the level of somatization. Though not representative of the population as a whole, the findings raised questions warranting further study.     

Affinity of corticosteroids for mineralocorticoid and glucocorticoid receptors of the rabbit kidney: effect of steroid substitution

Corticosteroid derivatives coupled in the C3, C7 or C17 position with a long aliphatic chain were synthesized in order to select a suitable ligand for the preparation of a biospecific affinity adsorbent for mineralocorticoid receptor purification. The affinity of these derivatives for mineralocorticoid receptors (MR) and glucocorticoid receptors (GR) was explored in rabbit kidney cytosol. In this model, aldosterone bound to a single class of receptors with high affinity (Kd 1 nM) and mineralocorticoid specificity. RU26988, a highly specific ligand for GR, did not compete for these sites. The C7 and C17 positions were found to be of crucial importance in the steroid's interaction with the mineralocorticoid receptors, since the linkage of a long side chain in these positions induced complete loss of affinity. Hence, deoxycorticosterone no longer bound to MR after 17 beta substitution with a 9-carbon aliphatic chain. This loss of affinity was not observed for glucocorticoids. The 17 beta nonylamide derivative of dexamethasone still competed for GR. Increasing the length of the C7 side of the spirolactone SC26304 suppressed its affinity for MR. Finally, C3 was an appropriate position for steroid substitution. The 3-nonylamide of carboxymethyloxime deoxycorticosterone bound to MR but not to GR, and therefore constitutes a suitable ligand for the preparation of a mineralocorticoid adsorbent.     

Vicilin genes ofPisum

Summary We describe four genomic clones of pea 7S storage protein gene, one of which corresponds to convicilin, and the others to vicilin. Hybridization studies exploiting these clones, and previously identified cDNA clones, have enabled us to define six different loci. Three of these loci have been mapped to positions on chromosome 7.     

Heterogeneity of the glutathione transferase genes encoding enzymes responsible for insecticide degradation in the housefly

One of the four glutathione-S-transferases (GST) that is overproduced in the insecticide-resistant Cornell-R strain of the housefly (Musca domestica) produces an activity that degrades the insecticide dimethyl parathion and conjugates glutathione to lindane. In earlier work, it was shown that the resistant Cornell-R carries an amplification, probably a duplication, of one or more of its GST loci and that this amplification is directly related to resistance. Using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification with genomic DNA, multiple copies of the gene encoding the parathion-degrading activity (called MdGst-3) were subcloned from both the ancestral, insecticide-susceptible strain BPM and from the insecticide-resistant Cornell-R. In BPM, three different MdGst-3 genes were identified while in Cornell-R, 12 different MdGst-3 sequences were found that, though closely related to ancestral genes, had diverged by a few nucleotides. This diversity in MdGst-3 genomic sequences in Cornell-R is reflected in the expressed sequences, as sampled through a cDNA bank. Population heterozygosity cannot account for these multiple GST genes. We suggest that selection for resistance to insecticides has resulted in not only amplification of the MdGst-3 genes but also in the divergence of sequence between the amplified copies. Received: 22 November 1995 / Accepted: 23 February 1996     

Gender specialization and distyly in hoary puccoon,LITHOSPERMUM CROCEUM (Boraginaceae)

This 2-yr study of gender and its relation to the sizes of pin and thrum plants in Lithospermum croceum was performed in central Michigan. The population was composed of 51-52% thrums, 42-43% pins, and ≈6% homostyles in 1988 and 1989. Pins produced more flowers and fruits than thrums, and a greater proportion of their ovaries produced more than one nutlet. However, the number of fruits produced by pins and thrums in 1988 did not differ when plant size is a covariate in ANCOVA. The number of seeds produced by plants in 1989 is also unaffected by floral morph when size is a covariate. Instead, plant size is the most important predictor of fecundity in both years. The average percent fruit sets (fruits/ovaries) of the morphs did not differ in either year. Herbivory was more common in 1988 than in 1989, but there was no difference in the frequency with which pins and thrums were attacked. Furthermore, the effect of herbivory on fecundity did not differ for the morphs. The fecundity of neither morph was limited by pollen in 1989. Apparent gender specialization was a consequence of subtle differences in the vegetative sizes of the morphs.