Metabolic abnormalities in children of non-insulin dependent diabetics.

Non-insulin dependent diabetes appears to be an inherited condition. A study of young offspring of non-insulin dependent diabetics was conducted to determine whether metabolic abnormalities could be found at a young age before clinical diabetes developed. Thirteen patients with non-insulin dependent diabetes were selected who fulfilled the following criteria: they had a sibling who also had non-insulin dependent diabetes, their spouse was non-diabetic, and the offspring were aged between 12 and 45 years, not diabetic, and available for study. All 32 offspring had a 75 g oral glucose tolerance test, and results in 13 of them, one randomly selected from each family, were compared with 13 controls of similar age, sex, and weight. The offspring had significantly higher fasting concentrations of glucose, higher proportions of haemoglobin A1, and higher concentrations of insulin, C peptide, and glucagon. After glucose challenge the increases in both glucose and C peptide concentrations were significantly greater in the offspring. These differences were maintained in all 32 offspring when compared with 18 controls of similar age, sex, and weight; seven of the 32 offspring had impaired glucose tolerance. These results indicate that young offspring of selected non-insulin dependent diabetics can show extensive metabolic changes including impaired glucose tolerance. These changes are associated with hyperinsulinaemia and hyperglucagonaemia.     

Membranes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

A crude small particle pellet, obtained from postmitochondrial supernatant fractions of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, contains about half the ergosterol and phospholipid of crude cell homogenates. Most of the phospholipid of this pellet is in a “heavy” fraction which, with the aid of electron microscopy, shows membranous elements in addition to discrete particles. The “heavy” fraction, upon treatment with deoxycholate, can be freed of membranes, or, with ribonuclease treatment, ribosomes can be removed, leaving relatively clean membranes. The “heavy” fraction resembles the microsomes of animal cells, but contains considerably less lipids, including phospholipids, thus suggesting a less well-developed intracellular membrane system.     

Serological Studies of Clostridium botulinum Type E and Related Organisms

Clostridium botulinum type E antigens prepared from washed cells by either Formalin treatment or heating at 100 C were used for immunizing rabbits. Agglutination tests showed that high levels of antibody were produced by both types of preparations. Flagellar antigens were highly strain-specific, whereas the somatic antigens were sufficiently similar to produce complete cross-agglutination. One toxigenic strain produced toxigenic and nontoxigenic progeny which were physiologically and antigenically identical in all other respects. Other nontoxigenic strains whose growth, physiological, and morphological characters were identical to type E and strains which had some physiological differences completely cross-agglutinated with type E strains via the somatic antigen. Neither type of antiserum agglutinated other clostridia against which they were tested except for C. acetobutylicum. This reaction seems to be due to a nonspecific anamnestic response and does not appear to be related to the immunizing strains. The nontoxigenic strains studied seem to have no greater antigenic differences from type E strains than the type E strains have from each other.     

The preparation and properties of ficin chemically attached to carboxymethylcellulose

1. Purified ficin has been coupled to four CM-celluloses by reaction with their acid azide derivatives. Insoluble products containing 1.8-4.7mg. of ficin/100mg. of product and retaining 8.0-12.0% of the free enzyme's esterase activity have been obtained. 2. The amount of bound ficin in these preparations is dependent on the degree of carboxymethyl substitution of the CM-cellulose to which the ficin is attached. 3. A shift of the alkaline limb of the pH-activity curve of ficin when chemically attached to CM-cellulose has been shown. 4. Only a small loss has been observed in the enzymic activity of these products when stored at 2 degrees for 4 months. They are more resistant than free enzyme to heat denaturation. 5. Columns of CM-cellulose-ficin have been packed. The degree of hydrolysis of perfused substrate has been measured for different flow rates through the column. 6. The properties of these derivatives have been discussed.     

Soil P resources,plant growth and rooting characteristics in nutrient poor upland grasslands

A field study was undertaken to establish the demand for P by mixed herbage, manipulated by cutting regimes, and the extent to which orthophosphate alone in soil solution could meet this demand from three cambisols derived from different parent materials. Differences in soil types were sufficient to produce significantly different rooting patterns at each site. Yields for 7-and 10-cm treatments generally exceeded those for swards cut to 2-and 4-cm. The highest yields were from plots cut once at the end of the season, or when herbage was cut in June and October only. Yields fell in the second season by an average of 30%. Two cuts in the season resulted in almost twice the P uptake compared with other treatments, leading to the view that a silage cut stimulated root growth. Rooting was deepest in Tarves Association soil (Dystric cambisol), densest in Insch Association soil (Eutric cambisol) and intermediate in Foudland Association soil (Dystric cambisol) but herbage yield at each site was similar. Whole season mean P and N content in roots ranged from 1.0 to 3.4 and from 8.1 to 27.9 mg g^–1 dry weight, respectively. The lowest values were in once cut herbage and were half those in herbage cut in June and October only. Data for the total P resources of the soils, extractable P, and shoot and root P at each site are presented together with data for P in soil solution (principally organic) from an associated soil solution study. There was a disparity between daily uptake and orthophosphate in soil solution. These findings suggested that it was probable that soluble organic forms of P are important for P nutrition in these nutrient poor soils, and could account for the excess of observed P uptake (from soils low in P) over that predicted by mechanistic mathematical models.     

Use of comparative reasoning tools for evaluation of the effect of sterilization conditions on fermentations to produce acidic fibroblast growth factor

The effects of various medium sterilization conditions on fermentations of a recombinant, acidic fibroblast growth factor (aFGF) producing Escherichia coli have been studied. Changes in the medium resulting from sterilization were monitored by pH and absorption spectra. This simple experiment provided excellent data for the demonstration of the usefulness of comparative reasoning tools in order to evaluate the effect of sterilization on fermentation performance. The time profiles of the main parameters (e.g., carbon dioxide evolution rate, dissolved oxygen, pH, and aFGF productivity) were simplified into piecewise contiguous linear segments, each of which was sequentially numbered. The length, position, and slope of each tine were then characterized. Application of the comparative reasoning tools confirmed that separate sterilization of the glucose was necessary for the success of the process, despite adding to the cost and complexity. The comparative data analysis also showed that scaleup with longer sterilization holding and cooling times would not be detrimental to aFGF production. (c) 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.