Roots and above-ground parts (tops) of maize plants, comprising cuticles, leaves and stems, have been exposed separately to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by means of air-tight bicameral exposure devices. Maize roots and tops of plants directly accumulate PAHs from aqueous solutions and from air in proportion to exposure levels. Root and leaf concentration factors (log RCF and log LCF) are log-linear functions of log-based octanol-water partition coefficient (log Kow) and log-based octanol-air partition coefficient (log Koa). The PAHs' concentrations among cuticles, leaves and stems display good correlations with each other. PAH concentrations in each part of the plant tested correlated positively with atmospheric PAHs' concentrations. Comparisons between PAHs' concentrations of root epidermis and root tissue showed similar correlations. Bulk concentrations of contaminants in various plant tissues differed greatly, but these differences disappeared after normalization to lipid contents suggesting lipid-based partitioning of PAHs among maize tissues.

OBJECTIVE

This study tested the hypothesis of electroencephalographic reactivity (EEG-R) as a reliable tool for the prognostic evaluation of consciousness recovery in post-acute brain injury.

METHODS

EEG was recorded in 50 unconscious patients. All patients had a GCS ≤8 and LCF score ≤2. They suffered from traumatic brain injury, cerebrovascular disease or anoxia. EEG was classified according to Synek classification (1988) as benign, malignant and 'uncertain significance'. EEG-R to painful stimuli was tested.

RESULTS

Twenty per cent of patients fulfilled the criteria for benign prognosis, 38% for malignant prognosis, while 42% of them were included in the 'uncertain' category, preventing them from stating a prognosis. EEG-R was detected in 48% of patients classified 'uncertain' and 92% of them recovered consciousness within 5 months from EEG recording. Multivariable analysis indicates that an unconscious patient admitted to the Rehabilitation Unit within 2 months from brain injury, with a LCF score equal to 2 and the presence of EEG-R has a probability of recovery of consciousness higher than 97%.

CONCLUSIONS

EEG-R is a good positive factor for the prognosis of recovery of consciousness in the post-acute phase of brain injury, with a high specificity (88.9%). Nevertheless, its absence is not invariably associated with a poor prognosis.

The development and function of eosinophils are regulated by a number of cytokines. Three cytokines have major effects on eosinophilopoiesis. Both granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interleukin-3 stimulate the development of eosinophils as well as other leukocytes. Interleukin-5 promotes eosinophil development and terminal differentiation. These three cytokines also effect the functions of mature eosinophils and can prolong their longevity in in vitro culture, enhance their capacity for release of leukotriene C4 (LTC4), augment their capacity for helminthotoxicity and degranulation, and render them less dense ("hypodense") than normal, unactivated eosinophils. GM-CSF can also induce the expression of HLA-DR on mature eosinophils, which can enable eosinophils to serve as antigen-presenting cells in stimulating T-cell responses. A T-cell-derived cytokine, lymphocyte chemoattractant factor (LCF), which stimulates the migration and function of CD4+ lymphocytes and eosinophils, also utilizes CD4 expressed on human eosinophils as its receptor. LCF stimulates eosinophil migration but not degranulation, leukotriene C4 release, or respiratory burst activity. Interleukin-2 is also a potent chemoattractant for eosinophils. Thus, cytokines are involved in both increased production of eosinophils as well as regulation of the functions of mature eosinophils. These functions of mature eosinophils include effector functions and collaborative interactions with lymphocytes and other tissue cellular elements.

OBJECTIVE

To compare the low-cycle fatigue (LCF) behaviour of some commercial NiTi instruments subjected to rotational bending, a deformation mode similar to an engine-file rotating in a curved root canal, using a strain-life analysis, in water.

METHODS

A total of 286 NiTi rotary instruments from four manufacturers were constrained into a curvature by three rigid, stainless steel pins whilst rotating at a rate of 250 rpm in deionized water until broken. The number of revolutions was recorded using an optical counter and an electronic break-detection circuit. The surface strain amplitude, calculated from the curvature (from a photograph) and diameter of the fracture cross-section (from a scanning electron micrograph), was plotted against the number of cycles to fracture for each instrument. A regression line was fitted to the LCF lives for each brand; the value was compared with that of others using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The number of crack origins observed on the fractographic view was examined with chi-square for differences amongst various groups.

RESULTS

A linear strain-life relationship, on logarithmic scales, was obtained for the LCF region with an apparent fatigue-ductility exponent ranging from -0.40 to -0.56. The number of crack-initiation sites, as observed on the fracture cross-section, differed between brands (chi(2), P < 0.05), but not LCF life (one-way ANOVA, P>> 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The LCF life of NiTi instruments declines with an inverse power function dependence on surface strain amplitude, but is not affected by the cross-sectional shape of the instrument.

OBJECTIVE

Evaluation of the effects of intrathecal baclofen therapy (ITB) delivered by a pump implanted at a very early stage in acquired brain injury (ABI).

METHODS

This investigation was a longitudinal prospective observational study, including a series of 13 ABI implanted within 6 months of the acute events.

METHODS

The Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) and Spasms Frequency Score (SFS) have been used as a primary outcome measure. The Disability Rating Scale (DRS) and Level of Cognitive Functioning (LCF) scores have been computed in order to verify possible interferences of baclofen therapy at an early stage on a global outcome. An intrathecal bolus test was not performed. Drug tolerability was tested by oral administration of baclofen 100 mg.

RESULTS

Reduction of spasticity and spasms frequency were measured 3 months after patients received the implant and at the 1-year follow-up. There was no difference found for global outcome measure between the group of patients who received the implant earlier (within 3 months) compared to the group who received it later (between 3-6 months).

CONCLUSIONS

ITB therapy in ABI should be considered as early as possible. The implants are safe and effective in reducing spasticity. An intrathecal bolus test was not compulsory in ABI.

To study the effects of late open reduction of lateral condyle fracture (LCF) on avascular necrosis (AVN), amount of displacement, and improvement, the records of 11 children with an open capitellar physis and a malunion or a nonunion treated >3 weeks after injury were reviewed. Preoperative and postoperative displacement amounts were recorded. Radiographs were reviewed for AVN, lateral overgrowth, or fishtail deformity. There were no cases of AVN. Three patients had occasional pain. Four patients had displacement of >10 mm before surgery. In fractures with >1 cm of displacement, fragment position was minimally improved surgically, but final alignment and range of motion were good. These fractures showed more radiographic deformities at the time of late open reduction. The risk of AVN with late open reduction of LCF at >3 weeks is reduced if no tissue is stripped off the fracture fragment posteriorly. Even children without anatomic reduction had functional arms with little or no pain.

In order to the neuroprotective effect of Lycium chinense fruit (LCF), the present study examined the effects of Lycium chinense fruit on learning and memory in Morris water maze task and the choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) of rats with trimethyltin (TMT)-induced neuronal and cognitive impairments. The rats were randomly divided into the following groups: naïve rat (Normal), TMT injection+saline administered rat (control) and TMT injection+LCF administered rat (LCF). Rats were administered with saline or LCF (100 mg/kg, p.o.) daily for 2 weeks, followed by their training to the tasks. In the water maze test, the animals were trained to find a platform in a fixed position during 6d and then received 60s probe trial on the 7(th) day following removal of platform from the pool. Rats with TMT injection showed impaired learning and memory of the tasks and treatment with LCF (p<0.01) produced a significant improvement in escape latency to find the platform in the Morris water maze at the 2(nd) day. Consistent with behavioral data, treatment with LCF also slightly reduced the loss of ChAT and cAMP in the hippocampus compared to the control group. These results demonstrated that LCF has a protective effect against TMT-induced neuronal and cognitive impairments. The present study suggests that LCF might be useful in the treatment of TMT-induced learning and memory deficit.

In the auditory system, sounds are processed in parallel frequency-tuned circuits, beginning in the cochlea. Auditory nerve fibers reflect this tonotopy and encode temporal properties of acoustic stimuli by "locking" discharges to a particular stimulus phase. However, physiological constraints on phase-locking depend on stimulus frequency. Interestingly, low characteristic frequency (LCF) neurons in the cochlear nucleus improve phase-locking precision relative to their auditory nerve inputs. This is proposed to arise through synaptic integration, but the postsynaptic membrane's selectivity for varying levels of synaptic convergence is poorly understood. The chick cochlear nucleus, nucleus magnocellularis (NM), exhibits tonotopic distribution of both input and membrane properties. LCF neurons receive many small inputs and have low input thresholds, whereas high characteristic frequency (HCF) neurons receive few, large synapses and require larger currents to spike. NM therefore presents an opportunity to study how small membrane variations interact with a systematic topographic gradient of synaptic inputs. We investigated membrane input selectivity and observed that HCF neurons preferentially select faster input than their LCF counterparts, and that this preference is tolerant of changes to membrane voltage. We then used computational models to probe which properties are crucial to phase-locking. The model predicted that the optimal arrangement of synaptic and membrane properties for phase-locking is specific to stimulus frequency and that the tonotopic distribution of input number and membrane excitability in NM closely tracks a stimulus-defined optimum. These findings were then confirmed physiologically with dynamic-clamp simulations of inputs to NM neurons.

One way that neurons represent temporal information is by phase-locking, which is discharging in response to a particular phase of the stimulus waveform. In the auditory system, central neurons are optimized to retain or improve phase-locking precision compared with input from the auditory nerve. However, the difficulty of this computation varies systematically with stimulus frequency. We examined properties that contribute to temporal processing both physiologically and in a computational model. Neurons processing low-frequency input benefit from integration of many weak inputs, whereas those processing higher frequencies progressively lose precision by integration of multiple inputs. Here, we reveal general features of input-output optimization that apply to all neurons that process time varying input.

Selective sequential extractions (SSE) and, more recently, X-ray absorption fine-structure IXAFS) spectroscopy have been used to characterize the speciation of metal contaminants in soils and sediments. However, both methods have specific limitations when multiple metal species coexist in soils and sediments. In this study, we tested a combined approach, in which XAFS spectra were collected after each of 6 SSE steps, and then analyzed by multishell fitting, principal component analysis (PCA) and linear combination fits (LCF), to determine the Zn speciation in a smelter-contaminated, strongly acidic soil. In the topsoil, Zn was predominately found in the smelter-emitted minerals franklinite (60%) and sphalerite (30%) and as aqueous or outer-sphere Zn2+ (10%). In the subsoil, aqueous or outer-sphere Zn2+ prevailed (55%), but 45% of Zn was incorporated by hydroxy-Al interlayers of phyllosilicates. Formation of such Zn-bearing hydroxy-interlayers, which has been observed here for the first time, may be an important mechanism to reduce the solubility of Zn in those soils, which are too acidic to retain Zn by formation of inner-sphere sorption complexes, layered double hydroxides or phyllosilicates. The stepwise removal of Zn fractions by SSE significantly improved the identification of species by XAFS and PCA and their subsequent quantification by LCF. While SSE alone provided excellent estimates of the amount of mobile Zn species, it failed to identify and quantify Zn associated with mineral phases because of nonspecific dissolution and the precipitation of Zn oxalate. The systematic combination of chemical extraction, spectroscopy, and advanced statistical analysis allowed us to identify and quantify both mobile and recalcitrant species with high reliability and precision.

Full-term infants fed formula without dietary long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCF) exhibit significantly lower plasma LCP values than breast-fed infants. We studied prospectively two groups of healthy full-term infants fed conventional infant formula without LCP (F, n = 10) or the same formula enriched with both omega-6 and omega-3 LCP (LCP-F, n = 12). Anthropometric data were obtained and fatty acid (FA) compositions of plasma phospholipids, triglycerides and sterol esters as well as plasma retinol and alpha-tocopherol concentrations were determined at 5 days and 1, 2, 3 and 4 months of age. Gains in weight, length and head circumference did not differ between the two groups throughout the study period. Plasma FA values did not differ at 5 days of age. Between 1 and 4 months of age, plasma phospholipids of infants fed LCP-F consistently had significantly (p < 0.05) higher percentages of arachidonic acid (1 month: 9.7 (0.8) versus 7.0 (1.3) %wt/wt, 4 months: 8.7 (0.5) versus 6.6 (1.0) %wt/wt, median (interquartile range), LCP-F versus F) and docosahexaenoic acid (1 month: 2.9 (0.5) versus 1.6 (0.3) %wt/wt; 4 months: 2.9 (0.4) versus 0.9 (0.3) %wt/wt). Plasma retinol and alpha-tocopherol concentrations did not differ between the two groups throughout the study. We conclude that this form of LCP enrichment of formula for full-term infants effectively enhances plasma LCP contents without detectable adverse effects. The potential effects on functional outcome need to be studied carefully in prospective clinical trials.

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether a low-lactose formula (LLF, <5% lactose) would ameliorate feeding intolerance in premature infants.

METHODS

Prospective, randomized, controlled trial involving 306 infants <36 weeks' gestation and weighing <1800 g who received either lactose-containing formula (LCF) 24 kcal/oz or a specially prepared LLF, which was comparable to the LCF except for the functional replacement of lactose with maltose. We examined outcome variables of feeding intolerance and cases of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and suspected NEC.

RESULTS

One hundred forty-nine infants were assigned to receive LCF, of which 99 infants received LCF only. One hundred fifty infants were assigned to receive LLF, of which 102 infants received LLF only. The remaining infants received LCF or LLF plus some quantity of human milk or human milk alone. Infants receiving LLF had improved enteral caloric intake and weight gain, reached full feeds faster, had less gastric residual, spent less time without oral intake, and had fewer feedings stopped than the LCF group. The number of cases of NEC and suspected NEC was similar in both groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Low-lactose premature infant formula improved feeding tolerance. There was no evidence that LLF altered the incidence of NEC, but the incidence of NEC in this study was too low to draw conclusions.

Nopal (Opuntia ficus-indica) cladodes are recommended for their therapeutic properties; their maturity stage may affect their biological properties. Cladodes of three maturity stages, from the same crop and location, were dehydrated and evaluated for some of their physicochemical and nutritional characteristics and antidiabetic properties. The flours of small and medium cladodes (SCF and MCF, respectively) had higher contents of dietary fiber, water absorption, swelling, and viscosity compared to those of the large cladode flour (LCF). Streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats, treated with MCF and SCF (doses of 50 mg/kg body weight), showed reduction of postprandial blood glucose on 46.0 and 23.6%, respectively (p < 0.05), in relation to the control; and LCF had no significant effect. In vitro, glucose diffusion tests showed similar ranking by the two former samples, whereas the latter was close to the control. Cladode maturity stages showed different fiber content and produced suspensions with differences in viscosity, which may affect in vitro and in vivo glucose responses.

OBJECTIVE

Aerobic exercise is known to acutely improve cognitive functions, such as executive function (EF) and memory function (MF). Additionally, consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa has been reported to acutely improve cognitive function. The aim of this study was to determine whether high cocoa flavanol (CF; HCF) consumption would enhance exercise-induced improvement in cognitive function. To test this hypothesis, we examined the combined effects of HCF consumption and moderate-intensity exercise on EF and MF during postexercise recovery.

METHODS

Ten healthy young men received either an HCF (563 mg of CF) or energy-matched low CF (LCF; 38 mg of CF) beverage 70 min before exercise in a single-blind counterbalanced manner. The men then performed moderate-intensity cycling exercise at 60% of peak oxygen uptake for 30 min. The participants performed a color-word Stroop task and face-name matching task to evaluate EF and MF, respectively, during six time periods throughout the experimental session.

RESULTS

EF significantly improved immediately after exercise compared with before exercise in both conditions. However, EF was higher after HCF consumption than after LCF consumption during all time periods because HCF consumption improved EF before exercise. In contrast, HCF consumption and moderate-intensity exercise did not improve MF throughout the experiment.

CONCLUSIONS

The present findings demonstrated that HCF consumption before moderate-intensity exercise could enhance exercise-induced improvement in EF, but not in MF. Therefore, we suggest that the combination of HCF consumption and aerobic exercise may be beneficial for improving EF.

OBJECTIVE

To report results of lens capsular flap transplantation (LCFT) and autologous whole blood application in refractory macular hole (MH) treatment.

METHODS

Seven phakic and three aphakic eyes with persistent MH after standard surgery with internal limiting membrane peeling were studied. Lens capsule flap was acquired from the same eye in eight cases (seven phakic and one aphakic). The fellow eye was used in two aphakic eyes without sufficient lens capsule. The fellow eye underwent simultaneous phacoemulsification. All eyes underwent complete vitrectomy, LCFT into the MH, whole blood application, and 15% perfluoropropane (C3F8) tamponade. The patients were instructed to maintain a face-down or prone position for two weeks postoperatively. Structural and functional changes were evaluated.

RESULTS

The mean preoperative MH diameter was 1,472.78 ± 736.88 μm. The MH was completely closed in nine eyes: eight eyes receiving same-eye LCFT and one receiving fellow-eye LCFT. In the other fellow-eye LCFT recipient, the MH was partially closed. Visual acuity improved from 1.84 ± 0.49 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (median Snellen acuity: 20/1,750, range: 20/4,000-20/125) preoperatively to 1.34 ± 0.59 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (median Snellen acuity: 20/450, range: 20/4,000-20/63) postoperatively (P = 0.009).

CONCLUSIONS

Lens capsular flap transplantation and autologous whole blood application may improve anatomical and visual outcomes in refractory MH cases. The lens equator and fellow eye may be promising sources of LCF.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to detect the incidence of estrogen receptors in human hip joint capsule and ligamentum teres.

METHODS

The study included biopsies of the ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) and hip joint capsule from 15 patients undergoing hip surgery for developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) and from the control hips of 15 cases of intrauterine fetal death. Mean age was 10.3 (range: 6 to 18) months at the time of surgery. Full-thickness 1x1 cm anterior capsule and LCF portions were taken as biopsy specimens. An immunohistochemical study using monoclonal antibody against estrogen receptors was performed to identify the rate of target estrogen cells in the hip joint capsule and LCF.

RESULTS

Estrogen receptor (ER) staining rates were 1.6±0.2% for the LCF and 1.3±0.2% for the hip joint capsule in the control groups, and 2.5±0.3% for the LCF and 2.0±0.3% for the hip joint capsule in the DDH groups. Estrogen receptor staining rates in the LCF and hip joint capsule control groups were significantly lower than that in the DDH groups (p<0.001). In both groups, ER rates were significantly lower in the hip joint capsule than in the LCF (p<0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

The high rate of ERs in the LCF and hip joint capsule appears to support the effect of estrogen in the etiology of the DDH.

The effect of hot water extracts of LYCIUM CHINENSE fruits (LCF) on the β-hexosaminidase (β-hexo) release by IgE sensitized BSA stimulated rat basophilic leukemia (RBL-2H3) cells was investigated. The ethylacetate (EtOAc) layer of the extract has shown an inhibitory effect on β-hexo release from RBL-2H3 cells at the antigen antibody binding stage. The water (H₂O) fraction (EFW) of the chloroform (CHCl₃) extract from the EtOAc layer also inhibited β-hexo release at the same stage in a dose-dependent manner. With column chromatography preparation, proton and carbon nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H and ¹³C NMR) spectra, electron ionization mass spectrometer (EI-MS) spectra, and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis, the active component was determined to be 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural (5-HMF). Thus, the 5-HMF showed an inhibitory effect on β-hexo release at the antigen-antibody binding stage and the antibody-receptor binding stage. Furthermore, 5-HMF suppressed [Ca²+] I influx in the IgE-sensitized BSA-stimulated RBL-2H3 cells. Our results show that 5-HMF may be useful for the treatment or prevention of type I allergic diseases.

We aimed to determine if there are mechanoreceptors in the hip joint capsule and ligamentum capitis femoris (LCF) of patients with developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). We took capsule and LCF biopsies from 20 hips of 20 patients who were operated on because of DDH. The mean age was 10.2 months (range 6-20 months) at the time of surgery. There were 12 girls and eight boys. Teratologic and secondary hip dislocations were not included in this study. Full thickness, 0.5 x 0.5 cm anterior capsule and LCF portions were taken for biopsy specimen. Specimens were stained with hemotoxylin eosin and examined immunohistochemically using monoclonal antibody against S-100 protein. In both analyses no mechanoreceptor was found in any samples of capsule or LCF. In this preliminary study we could not find mechanoreceptors in the local anterior joint capsule and LCF of the hip in children with DDH. We think that additional studies are necessary in order to understand the mechanoreceptor characteristics of the hip joint in children not only with DDH but also in children with healthy hips.

BACKGROUND

The increased survival after a severe acquired brain injury (sABI) raise the problem of making most effective the treatments in Intensive Care Unit (ICU)/Neurointensive Care Unit (NICU), also integrating rehabilitation care. Despite previous studies reported that early mobilization in ICU was effective in preventing complications and reducing hospital stay, few studies addressed the rehabilitative management of sABI patients in ICU/NICU.

OBJECTIVE

To collect clinical and functional data about the early rehabilitative management of sABI patients during ICU/NICU stay.

METHODS

Prospective, observational, multicenter study.

METHODS

Fourteen facilities supplied by intensive neurorehabilitation units and ICU/NICUs.

METHODS

Consecutive sABI patients admitted to ICU/NICU.

METHODS

Patients were evaluated at admission and then every 3-5 days. Clinical, functional and rehabilitative data, including Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), Disability Rating Scale (DRS), The Rancho Los Amigos Levels of Cognitive Functioning Scale (LCF), Early Rehabilitation Barthel Index (ERBI), Glasgow Outcome scale (GOS) and Functional Independence Measure (FIM) were collected.

RESULTS

One hundred and two patients (F/M 44/58) were enrolled. The mean duration of ICU stay was 24.7±13.9 days and the first rehabilitative evaluation occurred after 8.7±8.8 days. Regular postural changes and multijoint mobilization were prescribed in 63.7% and 64.7% cases, respectively. The mean session duration was 38±11.5 minutes. Swallowing evaluation was performed in 14.7% patients, psychological support was provided to 12.7% of patients' caregivers, while 17.6% received a psycho-educational intervention, and 28.4% were involved in interdisciplinary team meetings. The main discharge destinations were Severe Acquired Brain Injury rehabilitation units for 43.7%, intensive neurorehabilitation units for 20.7%.

CONCLUSIONS

Data showed that early rehabilitation was not diffusely performed in sABI subjects in ICU/NICU and rehabilitative interventions were variable; one-third of subjects were not referred to dedicated rehabilitation unit at discharge.

CONCLUSIONS

The study stresses the need to spread and implement a rehabilitative culture also for critical ill patients due to neurological diseases.

This prospective, observational fMRI study examined changes over time in blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) response to high- and low-calorie foods (HCF and LCF) in bariatric surgery candidates and weight-stable controls.

Twenty-two Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) participants, 18 vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) participants, and 19 weight-stable controls with severe obesity underwent fMRI before and 6 months after surgery/baseline. BOLD signal change in response to images of HCF vs. LCF was examined in a priori regions of interest.

RYGB and VSG participants lost 23.6% and 21.1% of initial weight, respectively, at 6 months, and controls gained 1.0%. Liking ratings for HCF decreased significantly in the RYGB and VSG groups but remained stable in the control group. BOLD response in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) to HCF (vs. LCF) declined significantly more at 6 months in RYGB compared to control participants but not in VSG participants. Changes in fasting ghrelin correlated positively with changes in VTA BOLD signal in both RYGB and VSG but not in control participants.

Results implicate the VTA as a critical site for modulating postsurgical changes in liking of highly palatable foods and suggest ghrelin as a potential substrate requiring further investigation.

Standard procedures for one-dimensional discontinuous sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and silver staining were modified to give more effective separation and an improved resolution of human skeletal muscle proteins. In this system, an electrophoresis buffer composed of 100 mM L-isoleucine, 25 mM Tris base, and 0.1% SDS was used. The separating gel consisted of 16% acrylamide with N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide as a crosslinker (1:23), 0.4% SDS, 1.5 M Tris-HCl, pH 8.8. By the present procedure, the slow and the fast forms of myosin light chains (LCs, LCf) and other contractile proteins from human muscle could be better separated. The silver stain is based on a combination of methods previously described. The modified method requires a small fragment of a single fiber to observe as few as 10 ng of myofibrillar muscle proteins. The described simplifications made it possible to assay and compare up to 40 single fibers in the same electrophoretic run. Improved separation of other proteins migrating at basic pH could be achieved by a similar approach.

This document specifies the current recommendations for quality assurance for hyperthermia administration with interstitial techniques as specified by the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG). The document begins by providing a brief description of the physical principles behind the use of the three most commonly used methods of interstitial hyperthermia: radiofrequency (RF-LCF), microwave antennas, and ferromagnetic seeds. Emphasis is placed on features that effect quality assurance. Specific recommendations are provided for: a) Pretreatment planning and equipment performance checks, b) Implant considerations and documentation, c) Thermometry, and d) Safety procedures. Specific details regarding quality assurance issues that are common to all local and regional hyperthermia methods are outlined in previous documents sponsored by the RTOG. It is anticipated that technological advances may lead to future modifications of this document.

Emerging contaminants in wastewater and sewage sludge spread on agricultural soil can be transferred to the human food web directly by uptake into food crops or indirectly following uptake into forage crops. This study determined uptake and translocation of the organophosphates tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP) (log Kow 2.59), triethyl-chloro-phosphate (TCEP) (log Kow 1.44), tributyl phosphate (TBP) (log Kow 4.0), the insect repellent N,N-diethyl toluamide (DEET) (log Kow 2.18) and the plasticiser N-butyl benzenesulfonamide (NBBS) (log Kow 2.31) in barley, wheat, oilseed rape, meadow fescue and four cultivars of carrot. All species were grown in pots of agricultural soil, freshly amended contaminants in the range of 0.6-1.0 mg/kg dry weight, in the greenhouse. The bioconcentration factors for root (RCF), leaf (LCF) and seed (SCF) were calculated as plant concentration in root, leaf or seed over measured initial soil concentration, both in dry weight. The chlorinated flame retardants (TCEP and TCPP) displayed the highest bioconcentration factors for leaf and seed but did not show the same pattern for all crop species tested. For TCEP, which has been phased out due to toxicity but is still found in sewage sludge and wastewater, LCF was 3.9 in meadow fescue and 42.3 in carrot. For TCPP, which has replaced TCEP in many products and also occurs in higher residual levels in sewage sludge and wastewater, LCF was high for meadow fescue and carrot (25.9 and 17.5, respectively). For the four cultivars of carrot tested, the RCF range for TCPP and TCEP was 10-20 and 1.7-4.6, respectively. TCPP was detected in all three types of seeds tested (SCF, 0.015-0.110). Despite that DEET and NBBS have log Kow in same range as TCPP and TCEP, generally lower bioconcentration factors were measured. Based on the high translocation of TCPP and TCEP to leaves, especially TCPP, into meadow fescue (a forage crop for livestock animals), ongoing risk assessments should be conducted to investigate the potential effects of these compounds in the food web.

Milk is the source of beta-casomorphins--biologically active peptides with opioid activity--which are suspected to play various roles in the human body. The local influence of exogenous opioid peptides on gastrointestinal functions has been widely reported. After passing the gut barrier, beta-casomorphins may affect the functions of immunological system, as well as dopaminergic, serotoninergic and GABA-ergic systems in brain, regulate the opioid receptor development and elicit behavioral effects. However, possibilities and mechanisms of the intestinal transport of beta-casomorphins in human body in vivo have not been reported so far. In our research, the transepithelial transport of micro-opioid receptor agonists--human beta-casomorphin-5 and 7(BCM5, BCM7) and antagonist--lactoferroxin A (LCF A) have been investigated using Caco-2 monolayer. In order to determine the pathway of investigated peptide transport across Caco-2 monolayer, two directions of the transport (apical to basolateral and basolateral to apical) have been studied. All investigated peptides were transported across the human intestinal cell line Caco-2 and the curves of cumulative amount of transported peptides in time were linear in each case. In addition, the hydrolysis of beta-casomorphins during 60 min of experiment by dipeptidyl peptidase IV was observed. The data suggest the possibility of transport of opioid peptides derived from food across human intestinal mucosa.