Management of early-instar Japanese beetle (Coleoptera: Searabaeidae) in field-grown nursery crops.

Numerous field studies were conducted in commercial nurseries in Tennessee from 1996 through 1999 to evaluate chemical and biological treatments, application timing and rates, and method of application for control of early instars of Japanese beetle, Popillia japonica Newman. Insecticide treatments included bifenthrin, bendiocarb, chlorpyrifos, carbaryl, fipronil, halofenozide, imidacloprid, permethrin, tefluthrin, thiamethoxam, and trichlorfon. Biological treatments included entomopathogenic nematodes (Heterorhabditis bacteriophora HP88 or H. marelatus, Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner subspecies japonensis Buibui strain, and Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin. All treatments were applied on the soil surface or injected into the soil around the base of each tree. Tree type and size varied among and within tests, however, the sampling unit (61-cm-diameter root ball) remained the same throughout all tests. The biological treatments provided poor-to-moderate control (0-75%) of Japanese beetle larvae. Imidacloprid was the most frequently evaluated insecticide and achieved 91-100, 87-100, 83-100, and 41-100% control with applications in May, June, July, and August, respectively. Halofenozide treatments were not significantly different from imidacloprid treatments with one exception. Halofenozide provided 60-87, 85-100, and 82-92 control with applications made in June, July, and August, respectively. Fipronil and thiamethoxam were evaluated to a lesser extent but both performed similarly to imidacloprid. Most other insecticide treatments were less successful in reducing numbers of Japanese beetle larvae and with few exceptions achieved <50% control.     

On the distribution of axonal terminals containing spheroidal and flattened synaptic vesicles in the hippocampus and dentate gyrus of the rat and cat

Summary A quantitative analysis has been made of the distribution of presynaptic profiles containing round (or spheroidal) and flattened (or ellipsoidal) synaptic vesicles in the apical and basal dendritic zones and in the layer of pyramidal cell somata of fields CA₁ and CA₃ of the hippocampus, and in the molecular and granular layers of the dentate gyrus of the rat and cat.In the apical and basal dendritic zones of fields CA₁ and CA₃ the overwhelming majority of the synapses are of the asymmetrical variety, the axon terminals ending principally upon dendritic spines, and to a lesser extent upon the shafts and secondary or tertiary branches of the dendrites. Between 1 and 8% of the axon terminals in these zones contained flattened vesicles: all of these formed symmetrical contacts upon medium-sized or large dendritic shafts. In the molecular layer of the dentate gyrus a slightly higher percentage of flattened vesicle containing profiles was observed (10%); again these formed symmetrical contacts upon dendritic shafts. In the stratum pyramidale of the hippocampal fields and the stratum granulosum of the dentate gyrus of the rat, flattened vesicle containing synapses are two or three times more numerous than those with spheroidal vesicles. In the cat hippocampus the axosomatic synapses are about equally distributed between those containing round, and those with flattened vesicles.The finding that at the focus of post-synaptic inhibition, at the level of the pyramidal cell somata, the majority of the axon terminals contains flattened synaptic vesicles, whereas in the region of termination of the extrinsic, commissural and long association pathways (all of which are excitatory) virtually all the synapses contain round vesicles, strongly supports the view that endings containing flattened vesicles mediate post-synaptic inhibition in the hippocampal formation.Supported in part by Grant EY-00599 from the National Eye Institute.We should like to thank Mr. Paul Myers and Mr. Milburn W. Rhoades for their technical assistance, and Mrs. Doris Stevenson for secretarial help.     

Treatment of acute myeloblastic leukemia in adults: remission induction with a combination of cyclophosphamide,cytarabine and vincristine

A regimen of intravenous cyclophosphamide, cytarabine and vincristine, given over a four-day period and repeated every two to three weeks, was used to treat 33 patients with acute myeloblastic leukemia. Of the 30 evaluable patients 9/18 previously untreated patients achieved complete remission and two others marked improvement, and 4/12 previously treated patients achieved complete remission. Twelve of 16 patients under the median age of 38 responded while only 3/14 patients over this age responded. There was no difference in response between those with elevated muramidase levels and those with normal levels. Three patients developed a previously unrecognized syndorme of fever, malaise, rash and orbital suffusion. Cytarabine was probably responsible.At least four courses of treatment are required before abandoning this regimen of therapy. Patients who achieve a complete remission and live for more than 150 days spend about 25% of their total survival time from diagnosis in hospital.     

A chaperone with a hydrophilic surface.

The folding of native tubulin involves at least seven different chaperone proteins: prefoldin, the cytosolic chaperonin CCT and five tubulin-specific chaperone proteins named cofactors A-E. The structure of the yeast homolog of cofactor A, Rbl2p, shows it to be a dimer with largely hydrophilic surfaces, reflecting the fact that it interacts with quasi-native, not unfolded, beta-tubulin.     

Administration of recombinant human stem cell factor (rhSCF) and granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) to maternal and fetal rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta).

Studies with recombinant human stem cell factor (rhSCF) and granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) have suggested significant clinical utility although little is known regarding the effect of these cytokines when administered during pregnancy. rhSCF (25 microg/kg/day)+/-rhG-CSF (50 microg/kg/day) were administered chronically to gravid rhesus monkeys ( n =12) or directly to the rhesus fetus ( n=2) during the second and third trimesters. Maternal/fetal blood samples were collected to assess circulating SCF/G-CSF levels and complete blood counts compared to non-treated animals (n=40). Fetal endogenous SCF levels were four-fold greater than the dam (fetus approximately 2500 pg/ml, dam approximately 500 pg/ml), whereas circulating G-CSF was similar in the fetal/maternal compartments ( approximately 50-100 pg/ml). There were no adverse effects detected in the fetus or dam as a result of SCF+/-G-CSF administration. Although high levels of SCF and G-CSF were achieved in the maternal circulation with maternal administration (SCF: 7000-15 000 pg/ml; G-CSF: 7000-54 000 pg/ml), there was little evidence of placental transport or effects on fetal haematopoiesis. In contrast, direct fetal administration of SCF+G-CSF resulted in a rapid rise in fetal neutrophil counts. These studies have shown the monkey to be an excellent model for studying haematopoietic interventions during gestation, and suggest the best approach for achieving haematopoietic changes in the fetus and newborn is by direct in utero administration.