Control of early seedling growth in varietal lines of hexaploid wheat (Triticum aestivum), durum wheat (Triticum durum), and barley (Hordeum vulgare) in response to the phthalimide growth regulant,AC 94,377

AC 94,377 caused elongation of seedlings of Triticum aestivum, Triticum durum, and Hordeum vulgare when applied to the soil, or the soil plus seed at planting. Affected were the leaf sheathes and the coleoptiles, and at high compound rates there was premature elongation of the stem internodes. As exemplified by the response of T. aestivum var. Fidel, the influence on coleoptile elongation was greatest under conditions whereby the coleoptile was naturally stimulated to elongate, i.e., when growth was in the dark and temperatures were cool (15°C). All of the stem internodes were capable of elongation except the one below the coleoptile node. The effect on leaf sheath elongation was prolonged when compared to activity of gibberellic acid.Several varieties of the three cereal species were examined in the greenhouse for sensitivity to AC 94,377 in order to evaluate the extent of the response. All of the barley varieties examined were sensitive to AC 94,377, elongating regardless of the planting conditions. Two such conditions were established, including incubation under warm (28/20°C) conditions following planting the grains 1 cm deep, and incubation under cool (22/16°C) conditions following planting the grains 6 cm deep. Wheat varieties distributed into two general categories, those which were sensitive and those which were not. The insensitivity correlated well to the presence of the reduced height (Rht) and GA-insensitive (Gai) genes in Triticum aestivum and Triticum durum, respectively. Thus, AC 94,377 can be used conveniently to evaluate varietal lines for the presence of this phenotype. This correlation also lends support to the notion that the Rht/Gai mutations in wheat are either at the level of a gibberellin receptor or at a step in the signal transduction pathway.     

Characterization of a human cervical carcinoma-associated antigen by lectin binding and immuno-electron microscopy

Summary The specific binding and nature of the epitope recognized by monoclonal antibody (Mab) 1H10, which binds an antigen expressed on human cervical tumors, was characterized by enzyme digestion, lectin competition assay and immuno-electron microscopy. Membrane homogenates of CaSki cervical carcinoma cells were digested with various enzymes, then analysed by SDS-PAGE and immunoblotting. Cells grown on coverslips were treated with various enzymes and in situ binding of Mab 1H10 to cells was analysed by electron microscopy. The ability of lectin-conjugates to block Mab 1H10 binding to CaSki cells was also examined. Treatment of samples with sodium periodate abrogated antigen recognition by Mab 1H10. Neuraminidase and hyaluronidase digestion decreased but did not eliminate Mab 1H10 binding to cells in situ. Chondroitinase ABC digestion, in contrast, removed Mab 1H10 binding sites both in vitro and in situ. Trypsin and chymotrypsin digestion of cell membrane homogenates decreased the molecular weight of the Mab 1H10 antigen but did not decrease the binding intensity. Wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) strongly bound to CaSki cells and partially blocked Mab 1H10 binding, indicating that the antigen contains N-acetyl-galactosamine residues at or near the epitope recognized by Mab 1H10. Ricinus communis agglutinin (RCA) exhibited a similar binding pattern to WGA. However, concanavalin A bound only weakly to CaSki cells and was ineffective at blocking Mab 1H10 binding. The tumor-associated antigen recognized by Mab 1H10 is concluded to be a chondroitin sulphate glycoprotein or proteoglycan rather than a mucopolysaccharide or lipoprotein.     

高原低氧对机体无氧代谢阈值的影响

为了探讨高原低氧对机体无氧代谢阈值(AT)的影响,本研究采用Wasserman无创性方法,分别测定了11名新兵在平原(四川淮口,海拔500m)和经空运进驻高原 (西藏错那,海拔4370m)后的第3、5、7和14天的AT。结果表明:新兵进驻高原后AT由平原的813.6±147.4kg·m/min降低到395.5±194.5 kg·m/min(P<0.01);高原低氧引起AT的降低幅度与受试者平原AT的高低呈正相关(r=0.933,P<0.01);进驻高原后第3、5、7天AT维持在较低水平,随后呈上升趋势。但移居高原1年战士的AT仍低于平原水平(P<0.05)。提示,高原低氧能够显著地降低机体的AT,并且AT越高的个体进驻高原后受低氧环境的影响程度越大。     

Regulation of proliferation and differentiation of respiratory tract epithelial cells by TGFβ

In this paper we examined the effects of transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) on the proliferation and differentiation of rabbit tracheal epithelial cells in primary culture. Treatment of these cells with TGFβ inhibits cell proliferation in a time- and dose-dependent manner; concentrations as low as 1 pM are able to inhibit cell growth. Concomitantly, TGFβ causes cells to accumulate in the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle and a sharp reduction in the ability of the cells to form colonies after subculture at clonal density. These results indicate that TGFβ induces terminal cell division in these cells. The inhibition of cell growth is accompanied by changes in cell morphology and a stimulation of the formation of cross-linked envelopes. TGFβ enhances the levels of transglutaminase activity and cholesterol sulfate, two markers of squamous differentiation. Our results indicate that TGFβ induces terminal squamous cell differentiation in rabbit tracheal epithelial cells. Retinoic acid (RA) does not affect the commitment to terminal cell division induced by TGFβ, but inhibits the expression of the squamous phenotype. Growth of normal human bronchial epithelial cells was affected by TGFβ in a way similar to that of rabbit tracheal epithelial cells. Several carcinoma cell lines tested were quite resistant to TGFβ, whereas growth of one carcinoma cell line was stimulated by TGFβ. These results indicate that a modified response to TGFβ could be one mechanism involved in the aberrant growth control of malignant cells.     

甜菜坏死黄脉病毒的分离提纯及其生物化学特性的研究

本研究工作中,建立了一个有效的甜菜坏死黄脉病毒的分离提纯程序,解决了该病毒粒体易于聚集难以提纯的问题,其操作要点是,(1)通过Sepharose 2B柱层析代替超离心,有效地除去一些小分子量核酸杂质;(2)经PEG再次沉淀浓缩后,调整pH至酸牲(pH3.0),使病毒充分悬浮以减少凝聚;(3)在病毒等电点(pH4.8～4.9)条件下,进一步沉淀以纯化病毒。根据病毒提取物的OD260/OD280比值,算出核酸含量约4.5％。核酸电泳出现4条带,分子量分别为:2.25×10~(?),1.8×10~(?),1.05×10~(?),0.75×10~(?)道尔顿。病毒提取物经超速离心出现4个界面,沉淀系数分别为,200.8S,165S,125.8S,100S。说明甜菜坏死黄脉病毒可能是4组分病毒粒体。病毒粒体含一蛋白亚基,分子量约为2.05±0.05×10~4道尔顿,由16种共199个氨基酸组成。     

Behavioral treatment of irritable bowel syndrome: A 1-year follow-up study

Sixteen clients afflicted with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) were reassessed 1 year following completion of a multicomponent treatment package incorporating progressive muscle relaxation, thermal biofeedback, cognitive therapy, and IBS education. For the 14 patients who kept a 2-week symptom diary, significant reductions in ratings of abdominal pain and tenderness, diarrhea, and flatulence were obtained comparing pretreatment and follow-up symptom-diary ratings. Eleven of 14 clients were improved over pretreatment levels, 57% met the criteria for clinical improvement of at least a 50% reduction in major symptom scores, and all but 1 of 16 rated themselves as subjectively improved.