Phytoremediation removal rates of benzene, toluene, and chlorobenzene.

Phytoremediation is a sustainable remedial approach, although performance efficacy is rarely reported. In this study, we assessed a phytoremediation plot treating benzene, toluene, and chlorobenzene. A comparison of the calculated phytoremediation removal rate with estimates of onsite contaminant mass was used to forecast cleanup periods.

Polychromasia capsulare: Determining the cause of multicolored iridescence of the anterior lens capsule.

Unlabelled: Polychromasia capsulare is a rare condition in which the anterior lens capsule exhibits an extraordinary array of colors during biomicroscopy that change with the incident angle of direct illumination consistent with iridescence. We present the case of a 59-year-old man with bilateral polychromasia capsulare who had successful cataract surgery. Routine light microscopy of the patient's capsulorhexis specimen was normal; however, transmission electron microscopy showed an unusual pattern of polygonal profiles with a periodicity estimated to be approximately 400 to 500 nm.

Remodeling of the rat distal colon in diabetes: function and ultrastructure.

This study seeks to define and explain remodeling of the distal colon in the streptozotocin (STZ)-treated rat model of diabetes through analysis of resting and active length dependence of force production, chemical composition, and ultrastructure. Compared with untreated controls, the passive stiffness on extension of the diabetic muscle is high, and active force produced at short muscle lengths is amplified but is limited by an internal resistance to shortening. The latter are accounted for by a significant increase in collagen type 1, with no changes in types 3 and 4.

The pathway for force transmission in the rat anococcygeus muscle: a tale of two tendons.

Smooth muscles forming the wall of tissues having conduit and reservoir functions (including blood vessels, intestinal tract, and stomach, gall bladder, urinary bladder, respectively) are organized into sheets or layers. The pathway for force transmission emanates from myosin interaction with actin filaments attached to intracellular dense bodies linked by the cytoskeleton to plasma membrane dense bodies which are adhesion sites for the extracellular matrix. The extracellular matrix is continuous throughout and between muscle layers, facilitating their coordinated function.

Structural limits on force production and shortening of smooth muscle.

This study determined the factors that limit force production and shortening in two smooth muscles having very different relationships between active and passive force as a function of muscle length. The rat anococcygeus muscle develops active force over the range of lengths 0.2-2.