Glycosaminoglycan composition of human amniotic fluid

The glycosaminoglycan composition of human amniotic fluid between 12–21 weeks gestation has been studied by Dowex column chromatography coupled with enzymatic analyses of the specific glycosaminoglycan in each column fraction. The total uronic acid recovered from the columns consisted of “glycopeptides” (7%), hyaluronic acid (34%), nonsulfated chondroitin (14%), chondroitin-4-sulfate (13%), chondroitin-6-sulfate (20%), dermatan sulfate (5%), and heparan sulfate (6%). Based on these studies a simple screening procedure was devised to detect increased quantities of heparan sulfate and dermatan sulfate in 5–10-ml samples of amniotic fluid and tested in the antenatal diagnosis of Hurler and Hunter's syndrome. A false negative result was recorded in a Hunter fluid obtained early gestation and a false positive result recorded in a normal fluid obtained at weeks. These data suggest that the time in gestation when amniotic fluid is sampled for chemical analysis is an important variable affecting glycosaminoglycan composition in both normal and pathological pregnancies.     

On the morphology,behaviour and systematic status of the assam macaque (Macaca assamensis McClelland, 1839)

Studies on a living and freshly dead male ofM. assamensis at Y.R.P.R.C. supplemented by notes on a living pair and their male offspring observed at the Z.S.L., enable us to supplement existing data on the somatology, craniology, dental anatomy and behavioural features of the species. Collectively the new data necessitate taxonomic revision of the status of the species, viz: its removal from immediate association withM. mulatta (subgenusMaimon) and alignment within the subgenusZati. Zoogeographical discontinuity in this subgenus is compared with that of the subgenusSilenus.     

Ultrastructure of Human labial salivary glands

Summary Human labial salivary glands, obtained by biopsy from 32 subjects, were studied by light and electron microscopy. Intranuclear inclusions, unrelated to nucleoli, were present in many of the acinar nuclei in glands from 16 of the 32 donors. More than one inclusion was sometimes observed within a single nucleus. They measured about 1 in diameter, and were stainable in a variety of ways. They were eosinophilic, some were stained by Nile blue sulphate, some were PAS-positive, and all were Feulgen-negative. They were bounded by a single membrane, which never exhibited continuity with the nuclear envelope, and they showed considerable morphological variation. The more complex inclusions consisted of alternating shells of light and dark material with tiny dense granules embedded in the latter. The intranuclear inclusions, which apparently were non-viral in origin, were in some way related to the secretory cycle of the mucous cells, since they were found only in immature cells, and never in cells in which secretory products were abundant.This work was supported in part by grants from the Henry Spenadel Trust and the Max C. Fleischmann Foundation of Nevada, by grant CA-08748 from the National Cancer Institute, by grant 5 SO1 FR 05335-07 from the National Institutes of Health, by a grant from the National Cystic Fibrosis Research Foundation, and by an Institutional Grant to the School of Dental and Oral Surgery, Columbia University, from the National Institutes of Health.The authors are indebted to Dr.Louis Mandel for performing the biopsies used in this study. The expert technical assistance of Mrs.Mona Seggio is acknowledged.     

Alterations in the lipids of bone caused by hypervitaminosis A and D

1. The total lipid, phospholipid, total and free fatty acid, free and esterified cholesterol contents of the long bones of normal, hypervitaminotic A, D and A plus D rats were determined. 2. Toxic amounts of vitamin A decreased the total fatty content, whereas toxic amounts of vitamin D increased triglycerides, esterified cholesterol and in particular the phospholipids of bone. 3. An interaction occurred between toxic amounts of vitamins A and D, which prevented, to a large extent, the alterations in bone lipids that occur in hypervitaminosis D. 4. The studies suggest an involvement of vitamin D in lipid metabolism and tend to support the idea that lipids are involved in ossification.     

Vanadate-stimulated oxidation of NAD(P)H

Vanadate stimulates the oxidation of NAD(P)H by biological membranes because such membranes contain NAD(P)H oxidases which are capable of reducing dioxygen to O₂⁻ and because vanadate catalyzes the oxidation of NAD(P)H by O₂⁻, by a free radical chain mechanism. Dihydropyridines, such as reduced nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMNH), which are not substrates for membrane-associated NAD(P)H oxidases, are not oxidized by membranes plus vanadate unless NAD(P)H is present to serve as a source of O₂⁻. When [NMNH] greatly exceeds [NAD(P)H], in such reaction mixtures, one can observe the oxidation of many molecules of NMNH per NAD(P)H consumed. This reflects the chain length of the free radical chain mechanism. We have discussed the mechanism and significance of this process and have tried to clarify the pertinent but confusing literature.