The Food of Elders, the "Ration" of Women: Brewing, Gender, and Domestic Processes among the Samburu of Northern Kenya

In recent years, many Samburu women have begun to brew beer and liquor for sale to elders—including their own husbands. Drawing on "cooperative conflict" approaches to domestic processes, the essay examines brewing in reference to the economic and cultural position of men and women within Samburu households and society at large. Focusing in particular on the issues posed to each gender by the differential control of key resources by the other—food by women and cash by men—the essay views brewing as a negotiated structure through which men and women address the particular gender-based problems they encounter in daily life. [ gender, family, brewing, Africa ]     

Offering cystic fibrosis carrier screening to an HMO population: factors associated with utilization.

We offered cystic fibrosis (CF) carrier testing to reproductive-age enrollees in an HMO, in order to determine factors associated with test utilization in a primarily nonpregnant population. Male and female enrollees either were mailed an invitation to have the test after attending an educational session (N = 2,713) or were approached in waiting rooms at the HMO sites and given the opportunity to have the test without making an additional visit (N = 608). Uptake was considerably higher when testing could be obtained without making an additional visit (23.5%) than when attendance at an educational session was required as a prerequisite for having the test (3.7%). Utilization was higher among respondents who were planning children. Caucasians, and those with higher educational attainment. Among respondents planning to have children, individuals with higher tolerance for test uncertainty, lower fear of stigma, and higher perceived risk of being a carrier were significantly more likely to have the test. Testing decisions were not associated with the perceived burden of a child with CF or with the likelihood of aborting for CF. Although utilization of CF carrier testing is relatively low among nonpregnant individuals, uptake is significantly higher when testing can be obtained with minimal effort. Factors associated with the decision to be tested had more to do with implications of being a carrier per se than with the concerns of having a child with CF.     

Suppression of appetitive behavior in the rat by naloxone: lack of effect of prior morphine dependence

Naloxone (0.3–10 mg/kg) produced a dose-related suppression of eating and drinking in rats that had been deprived of food for 48 hr or water for 24 hr. The suppression of water intake by naloxone was unaltered in rats that had been physically dependent upon morphine one week earlier and which were tolerant to the analgesic effect of morphine at the time naloxone was tested. These results confirm the ability of naloxone to suppress appetitive behavior in the rat but do not resolve the issue of whether or not this effect of naloxone is the consequence of an interaction with an endogenous opioid system.     

Binding of antibodies to acetylcholine receptors in Electrophorus and Torpedo electroplax membranes

Antisera against purified acetylcholine receptors from the electric tissues of Torpedo californica and of Electrophorus electricus were raised in rabbits. The antisera contain antibodies which bind to both autologous and heterologous receptors in solution as shown by an immunoprecipitation assay. Antibodies in both types of antisera bind specifically to the postjunctional membrane on the innervated surface of the intact electroplax from Electrophorus electric tissue as demonstrated by an indirect immunohistochemical procedure using horseradish peroxidase conjugated to anti-rabbit IgG. Only anti-Electrophorus receptor antisera, however, cause inhibition of the receptor-mediated depolarization of the intact Electrophorus electroplax. The lack of inhibition by anti-Torpedo receptor antibodies, which do bind, suggests that the receptor does not undergo extensive movement during activity. The binding of anti-Torpedo antibodies to receptor-rich vesicles prepared by subcellular fractionation of Torpedo electric tissue was demonstrated by both direct and indirect immunohistochemical methods using ferritin conjugates. These vesicles can be conveniently collected and prepared for electron microscopy on Millipore filters, a procedure requiring only 25 micrograms of membrane protein per filter. In addition, it was possible to visualize the binding of anti-Torpedo receptor antibodies directly, without ferritin. These anti-Torpedo receptor antibodies, however, do not inhibit the binding of acetylcholine or of alpha-neurotoxin to receptor in Torpedo microsacs but do inhibit binding of alpha-neurotoxin to Torpedo receptor in Triton X-100 solution. It is likely that the principal antigenic determinants on receptor are at sites other than the acetylcholine-binding sites and that inhibition of receptor function, when it occurs, may be due to a stabilization by antibody binding of an inactive conformational state.     

Morphology, phylogeny and biology of Gliocephalis hyalina, a biotrophic contact mycoparasite of Fusarium species

Gliocephalis hyalina, a rarely seen microfungus with a morphology similar to the hyphomycete genus Aspergillus but with slimy conidia was found in a mixed microbial culture from soybean roots. This species has been reported sporadically since 1899, each time in association with other fungi or bacteria. Gliocephalis hyalina has not been maintained in monoxenic culture and requires other fungi to grow. Light and scanning electron microcope studies indicate that it is a biotrophic contact parasite of Fusarium species. The fungus may penetrate the cells but has no apparent deleterious effect on the growth or plant pathogenicity of its host. Phylogenetic analyses of partial nuclear small subunit rDNA sequences place G. hyalina near the Laboulbeniales, an order of obligate insect parasitic microfungi, and the related mycelial genus Pyxidiophora. Gliocephalis hyalina is mycoparasitic along with many Pyxidiophora species. These discoveries suggest that some "unculturable" microorganisms or "cryptic DNA" recovered from environmental DNA samples might represent obligate biotrophs that could be cultured and studied with simple techniques.     

Embryonic and neonatal development of the vomeronasal and olfactory systems in garter snakes (Thamnophis spp.)

Newborn, unfed garter snakes (Thamnophis spp.) respond preferentially to aqueous extracts of natural prey items, and these responses are mediated by the vomeronasal system (VNS). Since the VNS, and possibly the olfactory system (OS), are functional at birth, we examined the ontogeny of VNS and OS structures in four embryonic stages and two postnatal ages in garter snakes. The results of this study show 1) significant changes in thickness of the receptor epithelia for both systems; 2) temporal differences in the innervation of the telencephalon for each system; and 3) concurrent development of primary and secondary projection sites in both systems. Possible interactions between different cell populations and their significance for morphogenesis are discussed.     

Cerebrospinal Fluid Levels of Amyloid Precursor Protein Are Associated with Ventricular Size in Post-Hemorrhagic Hydrocephalus of Prematurity

Background

Neurological outcomes of preterm infants with post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus (PHH) remain among the worst in infancy, yet there remain few instruments to inform the treatment of PHH. We previously observed PHH-associated elevations in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) amyloid precursor protein (APP), neural cell adhesion molecule-L1 (L1CAM), neural cell adhesion molecule-1 (NCAM-1), and other protein mediators of neurodevelopment.

Objective

The objective of this study was to examine the association of CSF APP, L1CAM, and NCAM-1 with ventricular size as an early step toward developing CSF markers of PHH.

Methods

CSF levels of APP, L1CAM, NCAM-1, and total protein (TP) were measured in 12 preterm infants undergoing PHH treatment. Ventricular size was determined using cranial ultrasounds. The relationships between CSF APP, L1CAM, and NCAM-1, occipitofrontal circumference (OFC), volume of CSF removed, and ventricular size were examined using correlation and regression analyses.

Results

CSF levels of APP, L1CAM, and NCAM-1 but not TP paralleled treatment-related changes in ventricular size. CSF APP demonstrated the strongest association with ventricular size, estimated by frontal-occipital horn ratio (FOR) (Pearson R = 0.76, p = 0.004), followed by NCAM-1 (R = 0.66, p = 0.02) and L1CAM (R = 0.57,p = 0.055). TP was not correlated with FOR (R = 0.02, p = 0.95).

Conclusions

Herein, we report the novel observation that CSF APP shows a robust association with ventricular size in preterm infants treated for PHH. The results from this study suggest that CSF APP and related proteins at once hold promise as biomarkers of PHH and provide insight into the neurological consequences of PHH in the preterm infant.     

Genome-Wide Association Study of CSF Levels of 59 Alzheimer's Disease Candidate Proteins: Significant Associations with Proteins Involved in Amyloid Processing and Inflammation

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) 42 amino acid species of amyloid beta (Aβ42) and tau levels are strongly correlated with the presence of Alzheimer''s disease (AD) neuropathology including amyloid plaques and neurodegeneration and have been successfully used as endophenotypes for genetic studies of AD. Additional CSF analytes may also serve as useful endophenotypes that capture other aspects of AD pathophysiology. Here we have conducted a genome-wide association study of CSF levels of 59 AD-related analytes. All analytes were measured using the Rules Based Medicine Human DiscoveryMAP Panel, which includes analytes relevant to several disease-related processes. Data from two independently collected and measured datasets, the Knight Alzheimer''s Disease Research Center (ADRC) and Alzheimer''s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), were analyzed separately, and combined results were obtained using meta-analysis. We identified genetic associations with CSF levels of 5 proteins (Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (CCL2), Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 4 (CCL4), Interleukin 6 receptor (IL6R) and Matrix metalloproteinase-3 (MMP3)) with study-wide significant p-values (p<1.46×10⁻¹⁰) and significant, consistent evidence for association in both the Knight ADRC and the ADNI samples. These proteins are involved in amyloid processing and pro-inflammatory signaling. SNPs associated with ACE, IL6R and MMP3 protein levels are located within the coding regions of the corresponding structural gene. The SNPs associated with CSF levels of CCL4 and CCL2 are located in known chemokine binding proteins. The genetic associations reported here are novel and suggest mechanisms for genetic control of CSF and plasma levels of these disease-related proteins. Significant SNPs in ACE and MMP3 also showed association with AD risk. Our findings suggest that these proteins/pathways may be valuable therapeutic targets for AD. Robust associations in cognitively normal individuals suggest that these SNPs also influence regulation of these proteins more generally and may therefore be relevant to other diseases.