The conversion of 4-hydroxypyrazolo-[3,4-d]pyrimidine (allopurinol) into 4,6-dihydroxypyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine (oxipurinol) in vivo in the absence of xanthine–oxygen oxidoreductase

1. A patient with congenital deficiency of xanthine oxidase (EC 1.2.3.2) (xanthinuria) excreted the xanthine isomer 4,6-dihydroxypyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine (oxipurinol) in his urine when the hypoxanthine isomer 4-hydroxypyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine (allopurinol) was given by mouth. 2. The identity of the oxipurinol that the patient excreted was established by mass spectrometry. 3. The mass spectra and infrared spectra of allopurinol, oxipurinol, hypoxanthine and xanthine are compared. 4. A mechanism for the fragmentation of these compounds that occurs during their mass-spectrometric investigation is proposed. 5. A possible metabolic pathway for the oxidation of allopurinol to oxipurinol in the absence of xanthine oxidase is discussed.     

Stomata and transpiration of droopy potatoes

A diploid potato (Solanum tuberosum) mutant called droopy wilts easily. Excised leaves of the mutant lost weight, and hence water, more rapidly and had many more open stomata than leaves of a normal sibling. Further, the stomata of abnormal plants remained open in wilted leaves. When the stomata of the abnormal mutant were closed by a chemical spray, its excised leaves lost water no more rapidly than normal. Thus, the wilting of the mutant must be caused by wide stomata. The wilting of the abnormal leaves and the small dry weight of the plants indicate the advantage of the stomatal hydrostat in the normal plants.     

Discontinuous sequence change of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 env sequences in plasma viral and lymphocyte-associated proviral populations in vivo: implications for models of HIV pathogenesis.

Sequence change in different hypervariable regions of the external membrane glycoprotein (gp120) of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) was studied. Viral RNA associated with cell-free virus particles circulating in plasma and proviral DNA present in HIV-infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were extracted from blood samples of two currently asymptomatic hemophiliac patients over a 5-year period. HIV sequences were amplified by polymerase chain reaction to allow analysis in the V3, V4, and V5 hypervariable regions of gp120. Rapid sequence change, consisting of regular replacements by a succession of distinct viral populations, was found in both plasma virus and PBMC provirus populations. Significant differences between the frequencies of sequence variants in DNA and RNA populations within the same sample were observed, indicating that at any one time point, the predominant plasma virus variants were antigenically distinct from viruses encoded by HIV DNA sequences in PBMCs. How these findings contribute to current models of HIV pathogenesis is discussed.     

An in vitro investigation of barium meals.

A technique is described for the in vitro study of the interaction of barium sulphate suspensions, used as radiopaques, with rat ileum. The technique, which allows close approximation to the in vivo situation with accurate control of the experimental conditions, was shown to give reproducible results. The thickness of the radiopaque retained at the gut surface was related to the concentration of the suspension, but was not significantly affected by the pH of the suspension. Less viscous suspensions gave better coating of the gut surface. The nature of the stabilizing agent or the surface charge carried by the particles does not affect the adhesion of the particles to the ileal mucus.