Urban Philippine healers and their contrasting clienteles

This paper is concerned with medical pluralism in a Philippine setting. It reports on results of a study of four indigenous healers and their patients in Cebu City. The city is a modern medical center in the Philippines, with more than 500 practicing physicians. But its indigenous healers also treat numerous patients, and many patients utilize both physicians and healers during the course of an illness. Of the four healers discussed in this paper, two had the largest followings of any healers in the city at the time of the study, the other two had very modest practices. Significant social and medical contrasts between the clienteles of these healers are described in the paper, and the implications of these differences are discussed with respect to decisions people make about their health care in an area with diverse medical resourses.     

POLLEN MORPHOLOGY OF HAPLOPAPPUS AND RELATED GENERA (COMPOSITAE—ASTEREAE)

Pollen grains of Haplopappus and related genera in the subtribe Solidaginae from North and South America were examined by light and scanning electron microscopy. The grains are consistently tricolporate and echinate. Some genera can be distinguished by pollen size, spine length, and number of spine rows between colpi. Based on these characters, the divergence of Benitoa from other members of the subtribe, as indicated by its morphology and secondary chemistry, is supported. Additionally, the recently suggested absence of a close relationship between Pyrrocoma and Oonopsis is indicated by their contrasting pollen types. This study demonstrates the potential of pollen studies in distinguishing some taxonomic groups in the Astereae.     

Physical and genetical characterisation of a second sex factor, SCP2, for Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)

Summary Covalently closed circular (ccc) DNA of uniform monomer size (c. 18×10⁶ daltons) and restriction endonuclease cleavage pattern was isolated from strains of S. coelicolor A3(2) of differing constitution in respect of the SCP1 sex factor: SCP1⁺, SCP1, SCP1^- and NF (integrated SCP1). No such ccc DNA was found in strains of S. lividans 66 or S. parvulus ATCC 12434 whether or not they contained SCP1. These results confirmed that the 18×10⁶ dalton plasmid is not, and does not include, SCP1, which has not so far been isolated by any of a variety of methods.Genetic data served to identify a second sex factor, SCP2, postulated to be present in SCP2⁺ state in the starting strains and to be capable of mutation to a variant form, SCP2^*, with enhanced sex factor activity. From SCP2^* strains, SCP2^- cultures were isolated, at an average spontaneous frequency of about 0.8%. Crosses of pairs of SCP1^- SCP2^- strains were almost, but not completely, sterile; thus SCP1 and SCP2 probably contribute nearly all the fertility naturally occurring in the A3(2) strain. The two sex factors share the property of exerting an effect that may be comparable with lethal zygosis caused by F in E. coli: it is shown by SCP1-carrying strains against SCP1^-, or SCP2^* (but not SCP2⁺) strains against SCP2^- and is revealed as a narrow zone of growth inhibition surrounding the plasmid-carrying culture on a background of the appropriate plasmid-negative strain.Genetically defined SCP^2- strains lacked the ccc DNA found in SCP2⁺ and SCP2^* strains. Thus this DNA apparently represents the SCP2 sex factor. A preliminary restriction endonuclease cleavage map of SCP2 was constructed, with single sites for EcoRI and HindIII, four sites for SalPI (=PstI) and more than 20 sites for SalGI (SalI).     

Surgical Management of Epilepsy

Therapy with anticonvulsant drugs reduces the frequency and severity of seizures in many but not all epileptic patients. Unfortunately, in a significant number control remains poor even when maximal doses of multiple anticonvulsant drugs are given. Some of these patients are candidates for surgical treatment of epilepsy. The operative management of convulsive disorders is a well-established technique and is available in some centers. In selected cases, such operations are both safe and effective, with good longterm improvement or complete control in 76 percent of patients. We have summarized the 24-year experience with surgical operation for epilepsy at the University of Washington Medical Center.     

The amino acid sequences of plastocyanin from Mercurialis perennis and Capsella bursa-pastoris

The amino acid sequences of the plastocyanins from Mercurialis perennis and Capsella bursa-pastoris have been determined. The amides at positions 64 and 68 in the Mercurialis sequence were positioned by ‘homology’ Both proteins are single polypeptide chains of 99 residues and are closely related to other higher plant plastocyanins.     

A stochastic model of a temperature-dependent population

The theoretical basis is developed for a population model which allows the use of constant temperature experimental data in predicting the size of an insect population for any variable temperature environment. The model is based on a stochastic analysis of an insect's mortality, development, and reproduction response to temperature. The key concept in the model is the utilization of a physiological time scale. Different temperatures affect the population by increasing an individual's physiological age by differing rates. Conditions for the temperature response properties are given which establish the validity of the model for variable temperature regimes. These conditions refer to the relationship between chronological and physiological age. Reasonable agreement between the model and field populations demonstrates the practicality of this approach.     

Paraquat ingestion and pulmonary injury.

Ventricular aneurysm is usually a complication of acute transmural myocardial infarction. The development of cardiac aneurysm represents a process of continued thinning and fibrosis of the necrotic tissue of the ventricular wall. Survival allows the development of a solid fibrous scar which of itself does not affect global ventricular function substantially. Hence, ventricular aneurysms can be present for up to 18 years without production of serious symptoms. The cases were reviewed of 45 patients in whom aneurysmectomy and myocardial revascularization were carried out. Surgical mortality was low (6.6 percent, 30 days); survival one year after operation was 76 percent, but at three years had fallen to 47 percent. Cause of late death was dominantly cardiac. In 19 patients post-operative study was done; although graft patency was observed in 98 percent, substantive improvement in ventricular performance was seen in a minority of patients. The outcome in patients with ventricular aneurysm is primarily related to the status of the residual myocardium and to the status of the vessels which supply it. The mechanism of clinical improvement after aneurysmectomy has not been clarified. However, the long-term results appear to be similar to those in patients with extensive myocardial infarction.     

Bovine fetal anoxia observed in pregnant beef heifers experimentally inoculated with Anaplasma marginale

Six heifers in the third trimester of gestation were inoculated with Anaplasma marginale carrier blood. Laparohysterotomies were performed under local anesthesia at varying stages of anemia induced by anaplasmosis and the placental blood gas exchange was examined. Laparohysterotomies were similarly performed on three uninoculated control heifers and the placental blood gas exchange compared to the fetuses recovered from anemic (inoculated) heifers. Blood samples from the dam and fetus were recovered at the time of surgery and arterial blood gases and pH determined. A decline in fetal oxygen tension accompanied the maternal anemia. The evidence suggests that third trimester fetal death in heifers experimentally inoculated with Anaplasma marginale is due to fetal anoxia.     

Purification and characterization of peptic fragments derived from the carboxyl-terminal half of human albumin

Utilizing a combination of conventional and affinity-chromatographic procedures, we have purified four fragments of human albumin that were generated by controlled limited proteolysis with pepsin [0.3 mM albumin; 37°C; 10 min; pH 3.51; 4.2 mM octanoate; pepsin/albumin, 1:1000 (w/w)]. These fragments have a molecular weight range of 9200-17,000 Da. Amino acid compositions, N- and C-terminal sequences, molecular weights, and other internal markers were used to determine the location of these fragments within the parent molecule. All of the fragments were shown to be derived from the C-terminal half of human albumin. The presence of multiple pepsin-sensitive bonds near the C terminus of each fragment complicated the assignment of specific residue numbers to each fragment. Two pairs of similar peptides were identified: (A) those corresponding to a single-loop structure (residues 309–380 and 309–387) and (B) those containing multiple loops and intraloop cleavages [residues 309–(491–495) with 408–423 deleted]. Purification of these fragments without disulfide bond reduction confirms portions of the loop structure of human albumin and demonstrates increased susceptibility of two specific regions of the C-terminal half of the molecule to peptic digestion.