Studies on Delayed Hypersensitivity of Antigens Isolated from Mycoplasma pneumoniae Cells

Cells of Mycoplasma pneumoniae Mac strain were fractionated into acetone-soluble and insoluble fractions. Acetone-insoluble fractions were digested with pronase and further purified by chromatography on Sephadex G-75, yielding three water-soluble fractions which were free from lipid and consisted mainly of polysaccharide-protein complex. All these water-soluble fractions possessed eliciting antigenicity to delayed hypersensitivity for M. pneumoniae as measured by skin reactions and macrophage migration inhibition tests, but not to complement-fixing antibodies. In contrast, the acetone-soluble fraction was reactive with the complement-fixing antibodies but not for the delayed hypersensitivity.     

Field surveys on cooling effects of vegetation in an urban area

1. 1. Three kinds of field survey on different scales were carried out in Fukuoka City in summer to examine the relationship between the quantity of vegetation and air temperature.

2. 2. The field of the largerst scale measurement is across the city.

3. 3. Several parks and shrines of various sizes in the city were selected as other measurement areas.

4. 4. The most detailed measurements are carried out in a park with an area of 1.25 ha located in a down town area of the city.

5. 5. Though the amount of vegetation is expressed in a unique way in each survey, it is clearly found that the greener it is, the lower is the air temperature.

Tetramethylthiuram disulfide or dimethyldithiocarbamate induces the synthesis of cadystins, heavy metal chelating peptides, in Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

Tetramethylthiuram disulfide (TMTD) or dimethyldithiocarbamate (DMDTC) induces the synthesis of cadystins, a family of heavy metal chelating isopeptides with the formula (gamma-Glu-Cys)n-Gly (n = 2,3,4,...), in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Amount of cadystins synthesized in TMTD or DMDTC treated cells is less than that synthesized in CdCl2 treated cells but much more than that synthesized in ZnCl2 or CuSO4 treated cells.     

Determination of acetylcholine in human blood

Acetylcholine levels of whole blood from 80 healthy subjects were determined by pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass fragmentography. Acetylcholine was extracted from 1.2 ml of venous blood in the presence of eserine, demethylated by pyrolysis, and assayed by selected ion-current monitoring using butyrylcholine as an internal standard. Inhibition of blood cholinesterase activity by eserine was essential to accurate measurement. The overall recovery of acetylcholine was 45%. The blood acetylcholine levels of healthy subjects varied over a wide range with a geometric mean of 0.49 mumole/liter, 90% of the levels falling into the range of 0.20 to 1.31 mumole/liter. There was no correlation between the blood acetylcholine level and age or sex.     

11C-methionine positron emission tomography for target delineation of recurrent glioblastoma in re-irradiation planning

Aim

To define the optimal margin on MRI scans in the re-radiation planning of recurrent glioblastoma using methionine positron emission tomography (MET-PET).

Treatment outcomes and late toxicities of intensity-modulated radiation therapy for 1091 Japanese patients with localized prostate cancer

Aim

This study aimed to evaluate the treatment result of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) in a large number of Japanese patients with prostate cancer.

Feedback from Lateral Organs Controls Shoot Apical Meristem Growth by Modulating Auxin Transport

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Combined use of two defensive traits in pupae of Scymnus posticalis ladybirds

Coccinellid pupae have various defensive traits, such as keeping their final‐instar larval exuviae and secreting droplets containing defensive chemicals at the tips of glandular hairs. Although each of these traits has been described separately in different species, it is unclear how each defensive trait functions when more than one trait coexists. We found that pupae of the ladybird Scymnus posticalis have two different types of traits; they were partially covered with their own final‐instar larval exuviae, with thick wax structures, and had many glandular hairs secreting transparent droplets on the exposed parts of the body without waxy exuviae (head and medial parts of thoracic and abdominal dorsum). In this study, the defensive effects of these two traits were evaluated against two ant species, Tetramorium tsushimae and Lasius japonicus, which are potential predators. When encountering a pupa, neither ant species were able to make frequent physical contact with the exposed parts of the pupa because of the presence of the waxy exuviae. When touching the exposed body part that was covered with droplets, both ant species immediately stepped backward and then swept their antennae. The droplets suppressed ant feeding when mixed with sucrose solution, suggesting that the droplets contain repellent chemicals. These results indicate that the two traits of S. posticalis pupae (the larval waxy exuviae and the droplets) effectively play defensive roles against ants, functioning as a physical obstruction and a chemical repellent, respectively.