Xanthine dehydrogenase accumulation in developing Drosophila eyes

Xanthine dehydrogenase activity is assayed by following the oxidation of pterin to isoxanthopterin by spectrofluorometry at the reaction's wavelength peaks: excitation, 344 nm; emission, 412 nm. The method is sensitive to less than 0·1 μU of activity (0·1 pmol/min) and allows the assay of Drosophila imaginal disk homogenates.While the larval eye disk contains less than 0·1 per cent of the individual's XDH, the developing eye becomes a major store, with 30 per cent of the individual's activity by the time of eye pigmentation. The data suggest a basis for the well-known non-autonomous action of the gene rosy, the structural gene for XDH: the enzyme is synthesized in an organ of primary gene expression, and transported through the haemolymph to the eye of the pupa and pharate adult.     

Energy metabolism in developing Ascaris lumbricoides eggs. I. The glycolytic enzymes.

The changes in the activities of the glycolytic enzymes were followed during the development of Ascaris lumbricoides eggs. The maximum catalytic capacities of the major catabolic pathways were estimated from the maximum activities of the nonequilibrium enzymes, and the results are compared with the changes in metabolic rate and the changes in carbohydrate and lipid utilization which occur during development. Although the onset of carbohydrate and lipid utilization was accompanied by an increase in the catalytic capacities of the corresponding pathways, there was no drop in the catalytic capacities of the pathways when the eggs became dormant, nor was there any change when the dormant egg was activited.     

Hyaluronic acid salt — a mechanoelectrical transducer

Hyaluronic acid transduces a very gentle pressure into an electrical potential. Such pressure, depending on its direction, changes the optical rotary dispersion properties of the salt, either increasing the rotation in the direction already shown by the unpressured salt or changing and increasing the rotation in the opposite direction. These findings have implications for understanding the funtion of the cochlear and vestibular fluids, renal function, and the approximation to frictionless motion of normal joints.     

Hospital pharmacy committees in England: Their structure,function, and development.

A total of 150 chief and group chief pharmacists in England took part in a survey of the structure and role of pharmacy committees in hospitals. Just over half of the hospitals had such a committee. About two-thirds of these dealt only with pharmacy matters and one-third dealt also with other matters. The number of new committees set up increased slowly until 1967 and then showed a sharp rise. Their terms of reference, membership, and manner of appointment varied greatly. Among subjects dealt with the cost of drugs and the introduction of new prescribing sheets were prominent. Many of the respondents believed that the work of the committees, often with the help of smaller, more specialized groups, had significantly improved various aspects of the local supply and use of drugs.