Ethanol effects on voltage-dependent membrane conductances: comparative sensitivity of channel populations inAplysia neurons

The study of ethanol (EtOH) action is interesting because of its clinical relevance and for the insights it provides into structure-function relationships of excitable membranes. This paper describes the concentration dependencies of various parameters of four currents in Aplysia cells. ICa is the most sensitive of the currents studied. There was a significant reduction of ICa at concentrations of 50 mM EtOH. At low concentrations, the reduction of amplitude was the primary effect of ethanol, with the kinetics and voltage dependency of activation not affected. INa and IA were also affected, but at EtOH levels higher than those which altered ICa. The primary effect of EtOH on INa was a reduction in its amplitude, although the time to peak current flow was increased by EtOH. The effects of EtOH on IA were cell specific and, for the purposes of this paper, we examined the giant metacerebral cell (MCC). In MCC, the primary effect of EtOH on IA was an increase in the time course of inactivation. The time to peak IA was also increased by high concentrations of EtOH, but its amplitude was unaffected even at high concentrations. The delayed rectifier current, IK, was the most EtOH resistant of the currents examined. High EtOH concentrations augmented the amplitude of IK, although even at 600 mM concentrations, the percentage change was only 30%. Our results indicate that the calcium channel is very susceptible to the influence of ethanol and is a serious candidate to be the primary target of EtOH action in the nervous system. The differential sensitivity of voltage-dependent currents and individual components of a given current suggests further experiments to probe the relationship between membrane structure and channel function in excitable membranes.     

Androgen-induced alterations in vocalizations of femaleXenopus laevis: modifiability and constraints

Summary We examined effects of exogenous androgen (testosterone and dihydrotestosterone) on vocalizations of ovariectomized, adult female South African clawed frogs,Xenopus laevis. When paired with sexually active males, all ovariectomized females exhibited ticking, the unreceptive or release call. Ticking consists of low amplitude, regularly spaced clicks with a mean interclick interval of 154 ms. When androgen-treated and paired with sexually active males, these ovariectomized females also exhibited an aberrant call (atypical ticking) in which click multiples replaced the single clicks of ticking. Mean ICI's for atypical ticking were 37 ms for click doublets and 22 ms for click quadruplets. Androgen treatment decreased the total time spent vocalizing (typical and atypical ticking) by ovariectomized females.All androgen-treated females were then tested repeatedly with sexually receptive females in an attempt to elicit the male-typical vocalization, mate calling. Six of 17 females did not vocalize at all, even when gonadotropin injected. Eight females gave rapid (mean ICI, 36 ms) trains of clicks in an irregular temporal pattern (tick-like calls). Three females gave brief trills with alternating fast and slow components. Comparison of mate calllike vocalizations of androgen-treated females to mate calling of males reveals that calls in females are considerably shorter in duration (female: 0.32 min versus male: 45 min) and slower in tempo (ICI's; fast trill, female: 21 ms, male: 14 ms; slow trill, female: 36 ms, male: 28 ms). Incomplete masculinization of the vocal pattern of females by androgen treatment in adulthood may be due to developmental constraints on the modifiability of the neurons and muscles responsible for calling.Abbreviations C cholesterol - DHT dihydrotestosterone - HCG human chorionic gonadotropin - IBI interburst interval - ICI interclick interval - ovx ovariectomized - T testosterone     

Plasmids and Bacteriocins in Caulobacter Species

A survey of wild-type Caulobacter strains revealed naturally occurring plasmids in three species. Further analysis showed instances of naturally occurring antibiotic resistance and bacteriocin production.     

The biochemical and ultrastructural effects of tunicamycin and D-glucosamine in L1210 leukemic cells

Tunicamycin was found to specifically inhibit the incorporation of a number of sugars into L1210 leukemia cell glycoproteins. This inhibition of glyco-protein biosynthesis led to a cessation of cell growth which was reversible in a dose-dependent and time-dependent manner. After removal of the antibiotic from L1210 cell cultures resumption of sugar incorporation preceded that of thymidine incorporation and the recovery of cell growth. The treatment of cells with tunicamycin resulted in a significant increase in the intracellular pool of UDP-N-acetylglucosamine which occurred concurrently with alterations in cell ultrastructure including distentions of the endoplasmic reticulum and nuclear membranes. Similar ultrastructural changes and increases in the intracellular pools of UDP-sugars were observed in L1210 cells exposed to 5 mM D-glucosamine, which suggested that the antiproliferative effects of tunicamycin may be related to the accumulation in the endoplasmic reticulum of one or more nucleotide sugar precursors of asparagine-linked glycoprotein biosynthesis. However, the biological effects of tunicamycin could be distinguished from those caused by D-glucosamine. Exposure of L1210 cells to tunicamycin resulted in specific alterations in the biochemical composition of the plasma membrane and in the inhibition of cellular agglutination by wheat germ agglutinin which were not apparent following exposure to equitoxic concentrations of the aminosugar. These studies, together with those which demonstrated that recovery of the cellular capacity to synthesize glycoproteins was obligatory for the recovery of cellular proliferation in tunicamycin-treated cells, suggested that inhibition of the synthesis of glycoproteins was the major factor limiting L1210 leukemic cell proliferation.     

Glycosyl acceptors in intact and permeabilized normal and cystic fibrosis fibroblasts

Using cell permeabilization, a technique which allows addition of exogenously supplied radiolabeled sugar nucleotides to serve as direct glycosyl donors, oligosaccharide biosynthesis was examined in fibroblasts obtained from normal and cystic fibrosis (CF) subjects. Incubation of logarithmically growing cells with either radiolabeled leucine or xylose has indicated that there was a difference in the synthetic rate between the cell types. Protein synthesis in normal cells made permeable with 50 m?g/ml lysolecithin (LL) was demonstrated to be absent, and could not be induced to take place by adding exogenous components, including energy sources and amino acids, normally required for protein synthesis. Thus radiolabeled sugars were being added to peptide acceptors which were already present at the time of LL addition. Both permeable and intact fibroblasts were exposed to labeled UDP-xylose, UDP-galactose, and UDP-glucuronic acid, all donors of mucopolysaccharide precursors. The uptake of xylose into protein was the same for both normal and CF cells, but permeable CF fibroblasts incorporated statistically greater amounts of sugar from UDP-galactose and UDP-glucuronic acid. Intact CF cells were also labeled using these two sugar nucleotides. Trypan blue exclusion indicated CF and normal fibroblasts were equally intact. This and the fact that preincubation of CF cells with the appropriate cold sugar nucleotide eliminated the differences in incorporation between the normal and CF cells suggested that CF fibroblasts had more cell surface acceptor than the normal cells.     

The Changing Alaskan Experience—Health Care Services and Cultural Identity

Before Western contact, Alaskan Native populations were self-sufficient in their health practices. Slowly, the Native health care system was replaced by a Western one which was highly effective in treating infectious diseases. As infectious diseases were brought under control by the Indian Health Service, the emergent leading health problems were related to violence, attributed in part to cultural disintegration. New types of Native health providers and new Native-controlled institutions evolved to provide culturally appropriate health and mental health services and to promote a stronger cultural identity.