Cloning, expression and purification of Ppl-1, a kappa-chain binding protein, based upon protein L from Peptostreptococcus magnus.

Protein L is a multi-domain, cell wall constituent of certain strains of Peptostreptococcus magnus, which binds to the variable domain of the L-chains of Ig. A gene fragment which codes for a single Ig-binding domain of protein L (Ppl-1) was cloned into a modified pKK223-3 vector and over-expressed in E. coli JM103.

Cerebral emboli detected during bypass surgery are associated with clamp removal.

Background And Purpose: Transcranial Doppler ultrasonography detects embolic signals during coronary artery bypass surgery. The relationship between embolization and specific events of bypass surgery is unclear.

Methods: With this technique, 20 patients undergoing bypass surgery were continuously monitored from inception to discontinuation of bypass.

Clinical results following revision tibial nerve release.

The results following revision tarsal tunnel release in 12 patients (13 feet), including three men and nine women aged 28 to 66 years, are presented. The indication for surgery was incapacitating focal pain, associated with paresthesias and hyperesthesias, refractory to nonoperative treatment modalities. Electrodiagnostic studies were abnormal in nine and normal in four cases.

The association of age, race, and sex with the location of proximal femoral fractures in the elderly.

A retrospective study of the data on 27,370 hospital discharges of patients who had been admitted to non-federal Maryland hospitals from 1979 through 1988 for a fracture of the proximal part of the femur and who had been at least sixty-five years old at the time of the fracture showed that the ratio of trochanteric fractures to fractures of the femoral neck increased linearly with age in white and black women. For men, this ratio was stable across age-intervals, being slightly more than one in white men and less than one in black men. Black patients who had a fracture of the hip were more likely than white patients to have a subtrochanteric, open, or femoral neck fracture.

Economic analysis of a mastitis monitoring and control program in four dairy herds.

Mastitis monitoring and control programs were instituted in 4 Illinois dairy herds for 12 months. Two herds had high mean monthly bulk tank somatic cell counts (> 490,000 cells/ml) and 2 had low mean monthly bulk tank somatic cell counts (< 260,000 cells/ml) at the start of the study. The mastitis monitoring and control programs included mandatory mastitis control measures, as well as individualized control measures that were based on results of bacterial cultures of milk, bulk tank milk analyses, milking machine and milking procedure evaluations, and environmental inspections in each herd.

Effect of dietary consistency on matrix synthesis and composition in the rat condylar cartilage.

Little is known of how the matrix of the condylar cartilage of the mandible changes in response to an alteration in local biomechanical circumstances, although this has been a habitual focus of studies of articular cartilage in the orthopedic literature. This study was formulated to investigate (1) whether matrix changes would occur in the condylar cartilage of rats fed a diet of soft consistency, a circumstance which would presumably reduce articular forces at the mandibular joint; (2) whether these changes, once established, could be reversed by restoring a diet of hard rat pellets, and (3) if these changes were localized to a particular region(s) of the cartilage. In the first experiment, male Sprague-Dawley rats were provisioned with either a soft, mushy diet or hard rat pellets beginning at weaning and subsequently sacrificed at 44 days of age.

A biomechanical analysis of solvent-dehydrated and freeze-dried human fascia lata allografts. A preliminary report.

Unlabelled: This study compares the basic mechanical properties of two groups of commercially available fascia lata allografts processed by different means (solvent-dehydrated and sterilized via gamma radiation, and freeze-dried without secondary sterilization). The results reveal significantly (P less than 0.05) higher stiffness, higher maximum load to failure, and higher maximum load per unit width of graft with the solvent-dried as opposed to the freeze-dried fascia lata.

Alterations in rat condylar cartilage following discectomy.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of unilateral extirpation of the articular disc of the temporomandibular joint on selected metabolic and compositional characteristics of the condylar cartilage. Unilateral discectomy was performed in one group of growing (28-day-old) rats, while another group received only unilateral arthrotomy. The effect of the discectomy procedure was assessed by comparison of ratios of the operated to unoperated sides in the discectomy and arthrotomy groups.

Amplified expression and large-scale purification of protein G'.

PCR was used to isolate the gene fragment coding for Protein G' (SpG'), a truncated bacterial cell surface protein from Streptococcus G148 which binds to the Fc region of IgG and expressed in E. coli [Goward et al. (1990) Biochem.

Stabilities of hydroxyl radical spin adducts of PBN-type spin traps.

The stability of the hydroxyl spin adduct of nine different PBN-type spin traps has been examined in phosphate buffer solutions of various pH. The hydroxyl adduct is produced by short illumination of hydrogen peroxide with UV light in the presence of spin trap and the decay of its EPR signal followed. The stability measured by the half life of the first-order decay is strongly dependent on the pH of the solution and the structure of the aromatic ring used in the trap.

Histologic examination of the temporomandibular joint after mandibular advancement with and without rigid fixation: an experimental investigation in adult Macaca mulatta.

This study evaluated the histologic response of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) following mandibular advancement using rigid and nonrigid fixation in monkeys. Twelve adult female rhesus monkeys underwent sagittal ramus osteotomies with advancement. Six of them were placed into maxillomandibular fixation (MMF); six underwent bicortical bone-screw fixation without MMF.

Immunotoxicity of tri-n-butyltin oxide (TBTO) and tri-n-butyltin chloride (TBTC) in the rat.

In a 1-month feeding trial, pure and commercial tri-n-butyltin oxide (TBTO) and tri-n-butyltin chloride (TBTC) were fed to rats at concentrations of 5 ppm and 25 ppm. At all times, the mean body weight gain and the food consumption was significantly less in rats treated with 25 ppm pure TBTO or pure TBTC as compared to control rats or rats receiving commercial TBTO. Histological examination of the thymus of rats treated for 7 days with TBTO showed atrophy with severe lymphocytic depletion in the cortex.

Jaw protruder muscles and condylar cartilage growth in the rat.

Many studies have explored the role of the protrusive musculature in promoting growth at the condylar cartilage and the overall lengthening of the lower jaw, with emphasis on the lateral pterygoid muscle (LPM). The largely anteroposterior orientation of the superficial part of the masseter muscle (SM) in the rat suggests that it may also function as a protruder of the lower jaw. Accordingly, it is possible that the action of the SM may play a part in the regulation of growth of the condylar cartilage and the lower jaw.

Evidence for and possible mechanisms of non-genotoxic carcinogenesis in rodent liver.

Doses of chemicals which induce hepatocellular necrosis usually induce hepatic tumours if the dosing is frequent and is maintained for long periods. Such necrosis is usually evident within 48 h of the first administration. Similarly, chemicals that lead to marked proliferation of peroxisomes in the liver also usually induce hepatic tumours on pretracked regular dosing.

Myotomy of the lateral pterygoid muscle and condylar cartilage growth.

The influence of lateral pterygoid muscle activity on growth of the condylar cartilage of the mandible remains controversial. As a case in point, two recent studies involving total resection (myectomy) and sectioning (myotomy) of this muscle have come to contradictory conclusions. In the study reported here, it was found that young growing rats in which the lateral pterygoid muscle was bilaterally cut experienced significantly retarded mitotic activity and bone formation relative to their sham-operated counterparts.

Hepatic nuclear and cytoplasmic effects following intermittent feeding of rats with di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate.

The effects on rats of intermittent feeding with the peroxisome proliferator and hepatocarcinogen di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) have been examined. Male Wistar rats were fed for alternate 7-day periods diets containing 20,000 ppm DEHP or the control diet. The rats were examined 3 days after the start or recommencement of administration of the DEHP-containing diet or after 7 days on the control diet.

Clomiphene treatment for women with unexplained infertility: placebo-controlled study of hormonal responses and conception rates.

One hundred and eighteen patients with unexplained infertility were treated with clomiphene (Clomid, Merrell) in a randomized placebo-controlled cross-over study lasting up to 3 months with each preparation. Compared with placebo, clomiphene led overall to a 66% increase in mid-luteal serum progesterone levels (from mean 43 nmol/l to 71 nmol/l, p less than 0.001) and a 53% rise in the 3-month cumulative conception rate (from 14.

Sensory impairment in the hands secondary to spondylotic compression of the cervical spinal cord.

In a 5-year period, 11 patients with spondylotic compression of the cervical spinal cord presented with a clinical picture dominated by glove-distribution sensory loss in the hands. Compressive lesions in each case were documented by myelography. The hand sensory loss was often global, and in some patients the involvement extended proximally as far as the elbows.