APPLYING THE FOUR‐PRINCIPLE APPROACH

The four‐principle approach to biomedical ethics is used worldwide by practitioners and researchers alike but it is rather unclear what exactly people do when they apply this approach. Ranking, specification, and balancing vary greatly among different people regarding a particular case. Thus, a sound and coherent applicability of principlism seems somewhat mysterious. What are principlists doing? The article examines the methodological strengths and weaknesses of the applicability of this approach. The most important result is that a sound and comprehensible application of the four principles is additionally ensured by making use of the organizing meta‐principle of common morality, which is the starting point and constraining framework of moral reasoning.     

Schellackia occidentalis n.sp., a Blood-inhabiting Coccidian Found in Lizards in Southern California

SUMMARY. Schellackia occidentalis n. sp., is described from the following lizards from southern California: Sceloporus occidentalis becki, S. o. biseriatus , and Uta stansburiana hesperis. Evidence is presented to show that lizards become infected by ingestion of the lizard mite Geckobiella texana. The mite acts as a passive vector by swallowing infected erythrocytes. After ingestion of the mites carrying parasitized red cells, the lizard is infected by migration of the sporozoites into the lizard's intestinal epithelial cells. Schizogony and sporogony occur in the intestinal wall of the lizard. Sporozoites appear in the peripheral blood from 30 to 45 days after ingestion of infected mites. This is the first species of the genus Schellackia to be described in the Western Hemisphere.     

The Effect of Chlorflurenol on Geosensitivity and Light Inhibition of Cress Roots

Gravity-induced directional growth of cress seedling roots isabolished by methyl-2-chloro-9-hydroxyfluorene-9-carboxylate(chlorflurenol) at a concentration (0·75 //M) which doesnot prevent longitudinal growth. The characteristic distortedgrowth of horizontally orientated cress roots when exposed tolight is also abolished in the presence of chlorflurenol, whichinduces straight growth as occurs when the root is orientatedvertically or grown horizontally in the dark. This effect ofchlorflurenol supports the view that the light inhibition ofhorizontally growing roots is a consequence of a heightenedgeosensitivity.     

Comparisons of the Respiratory Effluxes of Nodules and Roots in Six Temperate Legumes

The specific respiration rates of nodulated root systems, ofnodules and of roots were determined during active nitrogenfixation in soya bean, navy bean, pea, lucerne, red clover andwhite clover, by measurements on whole plants before and afterthe removal of nodule populations. Similar measurements weremade on comparable populations of the six legumes, lacking nodulesbut receiving abundant nitrate-nitrogen, to determine the specificrespiration of their roots. All plants were grown in a controlled-environmentclimate which fostered rapid growth. The specific respiration rates of nodulated root systems ofthe three grain and three forage legumes during a 7–14-dayperiod of vegetative growth varied between 10 and 17 mg CO₂g^–1 (dry weight) h^–1. This mean value consistedof two components: a specific root respiration rate of 6–9mg CO₂ g^–1 h^–1 and a specific nodule respirationrate of 22–46 mg CO₂ g^–1 h^–1. Nodule respirationaccounted for 42–70 per cent of nodulated root respiration;nodule weight accounted for 12–40 per cent of nodulatedroot weight. The specific respiration rates of roots lackingnodules and utilizing nitrate nitrogen were generally 20–30per cent greater than the equivalent rates of roots from nodulatedplants. The measured respiratory effluxes are discussed in thecontext of nitrogen nitrogen fixation, nitrate assimilation. Glycine max, Phaseolus vulgaris, Pisum sativum, Medicago sativa, Trifolium pratense, Trifolium repens, soya bean, navy bean, pea, lucerne, red clover, white clover, nodule respiration, root respiration, fixation, nitrate assimilation