Evidence for several fold more activity of NAD+-dependent uterine prostaglandin 15-hydroxydehydrogenase in transsexual than in non-transsexual women

The activity of NAD+-dependent PGDH was measured in the cytosolic fractions (100,000 x g) of uterine tissues obtained from transsexual, pregnant and non-pregnant women. The specific activity (mean +/- SD) of the enzyme at maximum velocity of the enzyme reaction in these three groups of women was 5.5 +/- 2.30, 0.53 +/- 0.27 and 0.54 +/- 0.25 mU/mg protein respectively using PGE2 as substrate, and with PGF2 alpha as substrate the respective values were 5.48 +/- 2.80, 0.49 +/- 0.41 and 0.51 +/- 0.30 mU/mg protein. These data suggest that, with either substrate, the uterine enzyme activity in the transsexuals was about 10-fold greater than in pregnant and non-pregnant women (p less than 0.001). However, the Km values of the enzyme for both PGE2 and PGF2 alpha were similar in all three groups, indicating the presence of same enzyme in the uterus of transsexual, pregnant and non-pregnant women. We speculate that PGDH activity was raised in the uterus of transsexual women because of the prolonged androgen therapy they received for the management of female-to-male transsexualism.     

A Stochastic Model for Coupled Enzyme System

The molecular biology of transformed cancer cells singles out key enzymes as sensitive targets of anti-cancer drugs. Here we use one substrate–one intermediate–one final product model for a coupled enzyme system. The transfer rates for the mechanism are taken as continuous but subject to random fluctuations. Explicit formulae for the first moments of the distribution of the process are obtained. These formulae allow us to take into account not only the variability between the subjects, but also the variability of the process for a single subject. The present results allow us also to build the prediction interval for a particular time period given the observations for some preceding moments.     

Utility of phyllosphere N2-fixing micro-organisms in the improvement of crop growth

Summary The beneficial effect of spraying some highly active phyllosphere N₂-fixing microorganisms on high and low yielding cultivars of rice plants as compared with that of urea applied at different doses are described. The dry weight, N-content, 1000 grain weight, and yield were remarkably increased in all cases with the application of phyllosphere microorganisms. The performance of two isolates KUP₄ and KUPBR₂ with IR-8 and IR-26 rice, was better than that of 52 kg urea-N per hectare. IR-579 rice leaves in association with some phyllosphere bacteria reduced acetylene at the rate of 664–816 nmoles/g leaf/h. In IR-26 rice the effect of application of bacterial suspension at three phases of plant growth corresponded very well with that of urea application in three split doses under identical conditions. Recommended fertilizer rates produced the same yield as the half dose plus bacterial spray in the cultivars Pankaj and Rupsail. Fertilizer application in Pankaj and Rupsail rice reduced nitrogenase activity and the beneficial effects of phyllosphere N₂-fixation was reduced by 40–55%.