Automated information-diagnostic system for hereditary diseases in childhood]

This article describes computer-based information-and-diagnostic system dealing with child hereditary diseases which makes in possible to organize automated consultative service on a wide range of monogene and chromosome syndromes. The system is oriented for sorting out a narrow differential-and-diagnostic row from 1200 of genetically determined diseases at the stage of pre-laboratory child examination. The choice of diagnoses in the system is based on the analysis of the likeness of phenotypical manifestation of the syndromes described in literature with the case under analysis. The system envisages information exchange with a physician in a dialogue using the natural language. The system is based on IBM-370 computer and can be operated from remote video device in the data TV transmitting mode.     

Romanowsky staining,the Romanowsky effect and thoughts on the question of scientific priority

I give an historical account and analysis of the scientific priority of the discovery of the polychrome staining of microscopic biological preparations provided by mixtures of eosin plus methylene blue and its derivatives, especially azure B. I maintain that both the formal priority for the discovery of the polychrome staining phenomenon and credit for initiating the development of a technique of polychrome staining properly belong to D. L. Romanowsky. His scientific work demonstrated the possibility of using a simple technique to stain hematological preparations selectively to give good contrast, high resolution and the ability to identify malaria parasites. Romanowsky’s approach constituted the starting point for the development of a family of polychrome stains for microscopic investigation of hematological preparations by a number of his contemporaries.     

The behavior of plutonium in the body of rats after its intragastric administration as its tributyl phosphate complex in a mixture of organic diluents

Dilution of tribytylphosphate with normal paraffin, hexachlorbutadiene and trichlorobenzene does not change the pattern of plutonium distribution, but introduces some peculiarities in its dynamics. The lowest resorption of the radio element from the gastrointestinal tract was noted in the case of normal paraffins which, together with their low toxicity, makes this diluent preferable.     

The Role of Aromatic–Aromatic Interactions in Strand–Strand Stabilization of β-Sheets

Aromatic–aromatic interactions have long been believed to play key roles in protein structure, folding, and binding functions. However, we still lack full understanding of the contributions of aromatic–aromatic interactions to protein stability and the timing of their formation during folding. Here, using an aromatic ladder in the β-barrel protein, cellular retinoic acid-binding protein 1 (CRABP1), as a case study, we find that aromatic π stacking plays a greater role in the Phe65–Phe71 cross-strand pair, while in another pair, Phe50–Phe65, hydrophobic interactions are dominant. The Phe65–Phe71 pair spans β-strands 4 and 5 in the β-barrel, which lack interstrand hydrogen bonding, and we speculate that it compensates energetically for the absence of strand–strand backbone interactions. Using perturbation analysis, we find that both aromatic–aromatic pairs form after the transition state for folding of CRABP1, thus playing a role in the final stabilization of the β-sheet rather than in its nucleation as had been earlier proposed. The aromatic interaction between strands 4 and 5 in CRABP1 is highly conserved in the intracellular lipid-binding protein (iLBP) family, and several lines of evidence combine to support a model wherein it acts to maintain barrel structure while allowing the dynamic opening that is necessary for ligand entry. Lastly, we carried out a bioinformatics analysis and found 51 examples of aromatic–aromatic interactions across non-hydrogen-bonded β-strands outside the iLBPs, arguing for the generality of the role played by this structural motif.     

The Carboxy-Terminal Modulator Protein (CTMP) Regulates Mitochondrial Dynamics

Background

Mitochondria are central to the metabolism of cells and participate in many regulatory and signaling events. They are looked upon as dynamic tubular networks. We showed recently that the Carboxy-Terminal Modulator Protein (CTMP) is a mitochondrial protein that may be released into the cytosol under apoptotic conditions.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Here we report an unexpected function of CTMP in mitochondrial homeostasis. In this study, both full length CTMP, and a CTMP mutant refractory to N-terminal cleavage and leading to an immature protein promote clustering of spherical mitochondria, suggesting a role for CTMP in the fission process. Indeed, cellular depletion of CTMP led to accumulation of swollen and interconnected mitochondria, without affecting the mitochondrial fusion process. Importantly, in vivo results support the relevance of these findings, as mitochondria from livers of adult CTMP knockout mice had a similar phenotype to cells depleted of CTMP.

Conclusions/Significance

Together, these results lead us to propose that CTMP has a major function in mitochondrial dynamics and could be involved in the regulation of mitochondrial functions.     

New Devonian Palliocerida (Cephalopoda, Astrovioidea)

Eight new species of Ostreioceratidae are described from the Lower and Upper Devonian of Novaya Zemlya, Lower Devonian of the Pechora River basin, North Ural Mountains, and the Zeravshan Range: Ostreioceras admotum, O. simile, O. abruptum, O. sobolevi, Plagiostomoceras kuzmini, P. adumbratum, P.? acerbum, and P. vinogradovi. A new family Bogoslovskyidae is established in the order Palliocerida.