A study of sugar beet growers' pest control decisions

The results of a survey of sugar beet growers are reported which provide subjective information on farmer perceptions of the hazard from pests and diseases on sugar beet, the control methods available and used, farmers' estimates of the costs and effect of controls, their objectives for pest control, and their attitudes to advice. In addition, objective information from research and field observations on losses and control methods is provided. The basis of pest control decisions and implications from comparisons of subjective and objective perceptions of the various problems and solutions are discussed.     

Clinical adaptation of a high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the assay of pyridoxal 5′-phosphate in human plasma

Vitamin B6, measured as pyridoxal 5′-phosphate (PLP), is a co-enzyme in the transsulfuration pathway of homocysteine metabolism. Since depletion of PLP has been suggested as an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease, PLP is frequently measured to guide patient care. By a change and utilization of an Aquasil C18 column and the addition of an acetonitrile clean-up gradient to the potassium phosphate, with sodium perchlorate and bisulfite buffer between samples we report the modification of a previously described method for analysis of PLP. The result is a more practical, efficient, reliable and robust method for daily clinical use. We also determined and report that it is critical to protect freshly prepared standard PLP samples from light exposure during assay preparation.     

Enzyme distributions in subcellular fractions of BHK cells infected with Semliki forest virus: evidence for a major fraction of sphingomyelin synthase in the trans-golgi network.

BHK cells either untreated or infected with Semliki Forest virus have been fractionated on sucrose density gradients. Virus infection caused an increase in density of a membrane fraction enriched in sphingomyelin (SM), cholesterol, SM synthase and sialyltransferase activity. This increase in density was related to incorporation of viral proteins into this fraction, which is likely to contain trans-Golgi network (TGN) membranes. In contrast, glucosylceramide synthase and galactosyltransferase activities (markers for cis/medial and trans-Golgi respectively) underwent no density shift and alkaline phosphodiesterase, a plasma membrane marker, was only slightly density-shifted in infected cells. When cells were incubated with NBD-ceramide to enable them to synthesise NBD-SM and then washed with albumin to remove surface label, fluorescence in untreated cells was concentrated in a single juxtanuclear spot but in infected cells this region of bright fluorescence was larger and extended around the nucleus. After fractionation of these cells, NBD-SM (but only a small proportion of the NBD-ceramide) was found to be shifted into the higher density fraction in infected cells. This work provides further evidence that SM synthase is not mainly localised in the early Golgi cisternae as previously thought, but is associated more with a cholesterol-rich compartment which could be the TGN.     

The participation of the striatum in the central regulation of gonadal hormonal function]

Intrastriatal corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) was shown to induce a decrease in the plasma tectosterone concentration. Besides, the 6-OHDA pre-treatment completely prevented the suppression of plasma testosterone in response to intrastriatal CRH administration. The findings suggest that the striatum is involved in the extrahypothalamic regulation of the gonadal endocrine function.     

Growth and shaping of the fin and limb buds

The development of the fin and limb buds involves a balance of centrifugal (active) and centripetal (passive) mechanical forces, the first of which acts to move the walls of these structures away from each other and the second of which holds them together. When the volume of the mesodermal core increases, the generated force meets with the resistance of the basal membrane, and as a result, the limb bud has a tendency to acquire a cylindrical shape. Collagen fibers, individual mesenchymal cells, and their groups hold together the dorsal and the ventral wall of the limb bud, prevent the movement of these walls away from each other, and in this way direct bud growth along the proximodistal and the anteroposterior axes. The balance of the forces which stretch the ectodermal layer and those which constrain it has also been observed in the development of other body parts.     

Expression of a lipocalin in prokaryote and eukaryote cells: quantification and structural characterization of recombinant bovine beta-lactoglobulin.

In this paper we quantify and characterize the expression of recombinant beta-lactoglobulin (rBLG) in prokaryote and eukaryote cells. In Escherichia coli we used the pET26 vector, which permits the secretion of rBLG in periplasm. We studied the expression of rBLG in COS-7 cells and in vivo in mouse tibialis muscle. The expression of rBLG was measured by two immunoassays specific, respectively, for BLG in its native and denatured conformation. We observed that rBLG was essentially expressed in a denatured form in E. coli even in the periplasm, whereas rBLG in eukaryote cells was found in its native conformation.     

Morphological variation in intergrade pupfish populations from the Pecos River, Texas, U.S.A.

In the early 1980s, sheepshead minnow Cyprinodon variegates was introduced into the Pecos River, Texas, U.S.A. where it hybridized with the endemic Pecos pupfish C. pecosensis . By 1985, pupfish populations throughout approximately 300 km of the river consisted exclusively of individuals of hybrid origin (intergrades). There was significant ( P <0·05) geographic variation in most morphological characters; the general pattern of variation was of a bidirectional cline centred near Pecos, Texas. At that site, morphology of intergrade populations resembled mostly that of the introduced species. Upstream and downstream from Pecos, morphology shifted progressively toward that typical of the native form. Intergrade populations were morphologically intermediate to the parental forms, showed a rapid approach to random assortment of characters, and generally exhibited greater morphological variability than occurred in either parent species. These observations and the consistent lack of bimodality in frequency distributions of a morphological hybrid index support the contention that intergrade populations comprise panmictic admixtures of C. variegates and C. pecosensis .     

Im-trityl protection of histidine.

A rational attempt to prepare FmocHis(piTrt)OH regiospecifically gave in fact the well-known tau-trityl isomer, and experiments with model systems indicate that the prospects for access to pi-trityl histidine derivatives, which would be of great value for the racemization-free synthesis of histidine-containing peptides, are poor.