Health in China. From Mao to market reform.

After the Liberation by Mao Ze Dong''s Communist army in 1949, China experienced massive social and economic change. The dramatic reductions in mortality and morbidity of the next two decades were brought about through improvements in socioeconomic conditions, an emphasis on prevention, and almost universal access to basic health care. The economic mismanagement of the Great Leap Forward brought about a temporary reversal in these positive trends. During the Cultural Revolution there was a sustained attack on the privileged position of the medical profession. Most city doctors were sent to work in the countryside, where they trained over a million barefoot doctors. Deng Xiao Ping''s radical economic reforms of the late 1970s replaced the socialist system with a market economy. Although average incomes have increased, the gap between rich and poor has widened.     

C to T and/or G to A transitions are responsible for loss of a MspI restriction site at the 5′-end of the human apolipoprotein AI gene

We detected the loss of a MspI restriction site by a C to T transition at +83 bp and a G to A transition at +84 bp of the 5-end non-coding region of the human apolipoprotein AI gene. This base change occurred at the hot spot (CCGG) for methylation, which may be important in the regulation of gene expression. The population frequency for the loss of the MspI site is 6.1%.     

Discrete differences between strains of different Rhizobium spp. for competitive nodule occupancy on beans

Rhizobium etli strain TAL182 and R. leguminosarum bv phaseoli strain 8002, both of which produce melanin pigment, were tested for their nodulation competitiveness on beans by paired inoculation with two strains which do not produce melanin: R. tropici strain CIAT899 and Rhizobium sp. strain TAL1145. An assay was developed to distinguish nodules formed by the melanin-producing and non-producing strains. Strain TAL182 had discrete competitive superiority over CIAT899 and TAL1145 for nodulation of beans. Nodulation competitiveness was not correlated with the ability to produce melanin pigment or the host range of the Rhizobium strains tested.The authors are with the Department of Plant Molecular Physiology, University of Hawaii, 3050 Maile Way, Gillmore 402, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA     

Transforming growth factor type beta 1 (TGF-beta 1) down-regulates interleukin-2 production and up-regulates interleukin-2 receptor expression in a thymoma cell line

Transforming growth factor type beta 1 (TGB-beta 1) belongs to a family of polypeptides with regulatory effects on growth and differentiation of a variety of cell types. TGB-beta 1 plays an important role in regulation of immune response by acting as a negative control signal for T cell proliferation through still unknown mechanisms. In this study we have analysed the effects of TGB-beta 1 on EL 4-6.1, a variant of the murine EL 4 thymoma, which can be induced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and/or interleukin 1 (IL-1) to secrete interleukin 2 (IL-2) and express IL-2 receptors (IL-2R). Using this defined model system, we show that TGB-beta 1 simultaneously down-regulates IL-2 expression and up-regulates the number of both high and low affinity IL-2R. These changes correlate with changes at the mRNA level, suggesting an effect at the pre-translational level. The specificity of both TGF-beta 1 effects was demonstrated using a neutralizing antiserum to TGF-beta 1. Our data also suggest that TGF-beta 1 does not interfere with early activation signals of PMA and/or IL-1. This model might be useful for elucidating the complex role of TGF-beta 1 in the regulation of T cell responses.     

IFN-alpha induces autocrine production of IL-6 in myeloma cell lines.

IL-6 is a major tumor growth factor in human multiple myeloma. Myeloma cell lines, which have the same phenotypic characteristics and Ig gene rearrangements as the original fresh myeloma cells and whose growth is strictly dependent on exogenous IL-6 similar to fresh myeloma cells, have been reproducibly established. We show here that IFN-alpha stimulated the growth of five of six of these human myeloma cell lines by inducing an autocrine production of IL-6 in myeloma cells. Indeed, IFN-alpha induced IL-6 mRNA accumulation and IL-6 production in myeloma cells and the IFN-alpha-induced growth of these cells was inhibited by anti-IL-6 mAb. Moreover, IFN-alpha made possible the rapid emergence of autonomously growing myeloma cell sublines, which produced IL-6 as an autocrine growth factor. As IFN-alpha has a potential therapeutical interest for multiple myeloma, the present study opens up new directions for studying its effects on the myeloma clone in vivo.     

Extracellular matrix (mesoglea) of Hydra vulgaris. II. Influence of collagen and proteoglycan components on head regeneration.

Hydra are characterized by having their body wall organized as an epithelial bilayer with an intervening acellular layer termed the mesoglea. As an extension of the previous study which indicated that mesoglea is a primitive basement membrane which has retained some characteristics of interstitial extracellular matrix, the present study was undertaken to analyze the role of mesoglea components during head regeneration in Hydra vulgaris. Studies were conducted that utilized drugs that affect collagen processing or secondary collagen structure (beta-aminoproprionitrile; 2,2'-dipydridyl; and cis-4-hydroxy-L-proline) and a drug that inhibits addition of glycosaminoglycan chains to proteoglycan core proteins (p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-xylopyranoside). These studies indicated that alterations in the structure of collagens or proteoglycans caused blockage of head regeneration in Hydra as monitored over a 48-hr period. Blockage of head regeneration was reversible once the drugs were removed, indicating that the drugs were not having a general toxic effect on the organism. Radiotracer studies also indicated that blockage of head regeneration was not simply due to a general depression of protein synthesis by the drugs. Various controls indicated that each drug was affecting mesoglea components under the conditions utilized in these studies. These observations indicate that preservation of normal mesoglea structure is required for Hydra head regeneration to proceed.     

Inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate phosphatase activity in membranes isolated from amphibian skeletal muscle [corrected

The hydrolysis of [3H]inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate by a soluble fraction and by isolated transverse tubule and sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes from frog skeletal muscle was studied. Transverse tubule membranes displayed rates of hydrolysis several-fold higher than those of sacroplasmic reticulum and soluble fraction; Km and Vmax were 25.2 microM and 44.1 nmol/mg/min, respectively. Transverse tubule membranes sequentially hydrolyzed inositol trisphosphate to inositol bisphosphate, inositol 1-phosphate and inositol, indicating that these membranes have inositol bis- and monophosphatases in addition to inositol trisphosphatase.     

A spin label study of immobilized enzyme spectral subpopulations

Electron spin resonance (ESR) spin label studies have been carried out to examine the active site conformation of alpha-chymotrypsin before and after immobilization on two types of organic polymer supports: Amberlite XAD-8 and XAD-2. alpha-Chymotryspin was first chemically modified by reaction with methyl-4-phenylbutyrimidate and then inhibited by the active site spin label 4-(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperdine-1-oxyl)-m-flurosulfonylbenzamide. In general, the ESR spectra of the active site lable revealed no significant changes in conformation for most of the enzyme before or after derivatization. On the other hand, two spectral subpopulations (A and B) of spin-labeled enzyme were characterized on the basis of their ESR spectra after immobilization on Amberlite XAD-8. Spectral subpopulation A (distinguished by a highly restrained spectrum) appeared to retain its active site structure and conformation and represented a large majority of the labeled chymotrypsin on the beads. Its presence correlated with the high activity and stability of phenylbutyramidinated chymotryspin on the Amberlite XAD-8 beads. Spectral subpopulation B (distinguished by a very weakly constrained spectrum) appeared to reflect loosely bound or denatured enzyme which was removable upon washing with 40% (v/v) ethylene glycol. Two methods for examining solvent accessibility to the active site lable of the kinetics of ascorbate reduction suggested that both spectral subpopulations had identical accessibilities to the bulk solvent. Paramagnetic broadening of the signal by K(3)Fe(CN)(6) revealed differences in the spin-spin broadening of the A and B components but is deemed and inappropriate indicator of solvent accessibility.     

Lack of in vivo transcription of Acetabularia mediterranea 1175 bp ctDNA fragment homologous to the Drosophila per locus.

The period (per) locus of Drosophila melanogaster has a fundamental role in the expression of biological rhythms. A DNA sequence homologous to a short region of the Drosophila per locus was detected in the chloroplast of Acetabularia mediterranea. A 1175 bp DNA fragment containing the sequence was used as a probe in 'Northern' hybridization experiments. It was found that this DNA was not transcribed or only marginally transcribed in A. mediterranea, at least at the developmental stage just prior to cap formation. It seems that the 1175 bp ctDNA fragment is not involved in the Acetabularia biological rhythm mechanism.