Clinical chemistry education in the United States.

Entrance into a clinical chemistry career in the US can be obtained through a variety of avenues, ranging from very formal to no formal training requirements. A frequent starting point is through a formal medical technology program at the baccalaureate level. Nonphysicians, interested in an advanced career, have also the option to choose their point of entrance through a formal graduate or postdoctoral program.

Serum cortisol and cerebrospinal fluid beta-endorphins in status epilepticus. Their possible relation to prognosis.

Objective: To determine if blood cortisol and cerebrospinal fluid beta-endorphin levels correlate with prognosis following status epilepticus.

Design: Twenty-seven adult patients with status epilepticus had blood cortisol and cerebrospinal fluid beta-endorphin levels measured within 12 hours after the cessation of clinical seizures.

Setting: Patients with status epilepticus as well as patients with non-status epilepticus seizures came from the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program at the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond.

Identification of a 58-kDa antigen with increased immunoreactivity in the cerebella of multiple sclerosis patients.

An increase in immunoreactivity associated with a 58-kDa antigen was found in a majority of MS cerebellar homogenates examined by Western blot analysis using antisera obtained by selective immunization of rabbits with autopsy cerebella. Two-dimensional immunoblotting demonstrated that the majority of the increased immunoreactivity observed in MS cerebella was associated with the highest apparent pI of three immunoreactive species at 58 kDa. Immuno-crossreaction with rat cerebellar homogenates demonstrated that the 58-kDa antigen was developmentally regulated, showing the greatest immunoreactivity at embryonic day 15.