Methyl bromide inhibits ripening and ethylene production in tomato (lycopersicon esculentum mill.) fruit

Tomato fruit ripening and ethylene production were inhibited following treatment with methyl bromide (MB). Methyl bromide significantly delayed ripening initiation in mature-green (MG) fruit and retarded the rate of ripening of turning (T) fruit as measured by color development and flesh softening. Treatment with MB caused an initial transient burst of ethylene production, but the subsequent ripening-associated increase in ethylene was delayed. Ethylene treatment partially overcame MB inhibition in MG fruit but had no affect on T fruit. The inhibition of ethylene production by MB appears to be due to lack of formation of 1-aminocycloprone-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) in MG fruit, whereas in T fruit lack of conversion of ACC to ethylene is indicated. A key feature of MB inhibition of ripening in tomato appears to be reduced sensitivity to ethylene.     

Bladder cancer diagnosis by computer image analysis of cells in the sediment of voided urine using a video scanning system

A video-based computerized semiautomated image analysis system was applied to the diagnostic evaluation of 119 sediments of voided urine: 103 from patients with a broad variety of neoplastic and nonneoplastic disorders of the lower urinary tract and 16 normal controls. Each specimen was presented to the machine as a single cytocentrifuge preparation, preserved in 2% Carbowax in 50% ethanol and stained-by the Papanicolaou method. Five hundred sequential "objects" were scanned within an area of 9 sq mm on each slide. "Objects" of no diagnostic value, such as dirt, debris, inflammatory cells, cell clusters, poorly preserved cells, etc., were eliminated from the final diagnostic analysis by a computer-based hierarchic triage system. The final specimen classifier was based on the cell images identified by the computer as well-preserved normal (NEG), atypical (ATY I), suspicious (ATY II) and malignant (POS) cells. For specimen classification by computer, the four categories of "abnormal," "inadequate," "acellular" and "negative" were defined. For high-grade tumors, the performance of the specimen classifier was generally comparable to the visual diagnosis. The specimen classifier unexpectedly identified twice as many low-grade papillary urothelial tumors as abnormal than did the visual analysis. Several false "alarms" were recorded by computer in patients with benign prostatic hypertrophy and prostatic carcinoma, some of whom had atypical urothelium. One of the 16 negative controls was misdiagnosed by the computer as abnormal. The possibility that the video system recognizes nuclear abnormalities not perceived by the human eye is being investigated further. The details of the computer analysis are reported, and the value of the system is discussed. The system appears to be promising as a future laboratory instrument, although it requires further extensive testing.     

Studies on metatherian sex chromosomes. XII. Sex-linked inheritance and probable paternal X-inactivation of alpha-galactosidase A in Australian marsupials

An investigation of genetic variation in the electrophoretic mobility of the enzyme alpha-galactosidase A (EC 3.2.1.22) has been carried out for 33 species of Australian metatherian (marsupial) mammals. The results are compatible with the enzyme being sex-linked in macropodids (kangaroos and wallabies) and probably in dasyurids (marsupial 'mice', etc.), as it is in eutherian (placental) mammals. The results also suggest that the mode of dosage compensation for this locus is the same as for other sex-linked loci in kangaroos, i.e. paternal X inactivation, rather than the random X inactivation system of eutherian mammals. The bearing of the enzyme mobility data on phylogenetic relationships among macropodid species is discussed.     

Effect of iron deficiency and iron restoration on ultrastructure of Anacystis nidulans.

The effects of iron deficiency and iron reconstitution on the ultrastructure of the unicellular cyanobacterium Anacystis nidulans R2 were studied by electron microscopy. Low-iron cells, grown with different amounts of aeration, were analyzed at 6, 12, and 24 h after the addition of iron. Low-iron cells had a decrease in the quantities of membranes, phycobilisomes, and carboxysomes and a large increase in glycogen storage granules. In cells aerated with gentle shaking, the addition of iron caused the number of carboxysomes to increase rapidly within 6 h. This was paralleled by a decrease in the quantity of glycogen storage granules. Carboxysomes were associated with the nucleoplasmic face of the inner photosynthetic membrane in normal, but not low-iron, cells; they once more contacted the membrane by 6 h after iron addition. Phycobilisome assembly was apparent by 6 h, and the number of phycobilisomes increased throughout reconstitution. Membrane restoration was accomplished in two stages: (i) components were added to preexisting membranes until about 12 h, and (ii) new membranes were synthesized beginning at 12 to 18 h. Low-iron cells grown by bubbling with air had only one to two concentric layers of membrane per cell. The addition of iron led to a pattern of reconstitution that was similar to that described above with two important exceptions. Under these conditions, the number of carboxysomes remained low and the carboxysomes rarely contacted the photosynthetic membranes. New membranes were not synthesized until the culture had reached the late-logarithmic growth phase and after all other morphological features had returned to normal.     

Scanning electron microscope-analysis of the protrusions (knobs) present on the surface of Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes

The nature of the surface deformations of erythrocytes infected with the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy at two stages of the 48-h parasite maturation cycle. Infected cells bearing trophozoite-stage parasites (24-36 h) had small protrusions (knobs), with diameters varying from 160 to 110 nm, and a density ranging from 10 to 35 knobs X micron-2. When parasites were fully mature (schizont stage, 40-44 h), knob size decreased (100-70 nm), whereas density increased (45-70 knobs X micron-2). Size and density of the knobs varied inversely, suggesting that knob production (a) occurred throughout intraerythrocytic parasite development from trophozoite to schizont and (b) was related to dynamic changes of the erythrocyte membrane. Variation in the distribution of the knobs over the red cell surface was observed during parasite maturation. At the early trophozoite stage of parasite development, knobs appeared to be formed in particular domains of the cell surface. As the density of knobs increased and they covered the entire cell surface, their lateral distribution was dispersive (more-than-random); this was particularly evident at the schizont stage. Regional surface patterns of knobs (rows, circles) were seen throughout parasite development. The nature of the dynamic changes that occurred at the red cell surface during knob formation, as well as the nonrandom distribution of knobs, suggested that the red cell cytoskeleton may have played a key role in knob formation and patterning.     

Recognition of influenza-infected cells by cytolytic T lymphocyte clones: determinant selection by class I restriction elements

The fine specificity of virus recognition by influenza A/PR8/34(H1N1)-specific cytolytic T lymphocyte (CTL) clones was analyzed with the use of a panel of syngeneic target cells infected with five heterologous influenza A strain viruses. Forty-five H-2 D-end-restricted CTL clones from B10.A(5R) responders (Dd,Ld) demonstrated 14 different patterns of recognition. Many of these clonotypes were able to distinguish between closely related viruses of the same subtype. Such discriminatory capacity, however, was often accompanied by cross-reactivity against a distantly related viral subtype. This supports the contention that virus-specific CTL see different structures than do virus-specific antibodies. A similar analysis of the fine specificity of 60 Db-restricted clones from C57BL/6 responders was performed. The vast majority of this response was composed of clonotypes not observed in the B10.A(5R) response. In addition, the hierarchy of relatedness between the virus strain used for immunization and the various heterologous viruses was different in C57BL/6 and B10.A(5R). In contrast, the D-end-restricted response of Balb/c (Dd,Ld) demonstrated clonotypes similar to those found in B10.A(5R). These data suggest that determinant recognition in an anti-viral CTL response is a function of the H-2 restricting elements, and this is discussed in the context of determinant selection by class I molecules.     

Glutathione S-transferase in human organs

Glutathione S-transferase (GSH-T) distribution has been investigated in human tissues. The relative contribution of each species to total enzyme activity of the various tissues has been compared. "Cationic" (pI greater than 7.5) "neutral" (pI 6-6.5) and "anionic" (pI less than 5.4) species of GSH-T were separated by isoelectric focusing. "Cationic" GSH-Ts (ligandin) quantitated by radioimmunoassay were present in all tissues studied. Highest concentrations were in liver, kidney, duodenum, testis and adrenal. "Neutral" and "anionic" GSH-Ts were not present in every tissue or in every specimen of some tissues studied. Marked inter-organ and inter-individual variation in the relative concentration of the 3 GSH-T species may explain individual and organ susceptibility to drugs and toxins and underlines the need for future studies to examine individual enzymes rather than total activity.