Applications of supercritical fluid extraction and chromatography in forensic science.

Supercritical fluid technology is a rapidly expanding analytical technique. Here we give a brief insight into the background of supercritical fluid technology and how supercritical fluid extraction and supercritical fluid chromatography work in analysis. The applications of these two techniques in forensic science are known to be important.

Platelet paroxetine binding in post-traumatic stress disorder.

Sixty-two subjects, 45 with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and 17 healthy control subjects, were examined in a study of serotonin function measured by [3H]paroxetine binding to platelet membranes. Subjects were selected from male combat exposed veterans. The mean (+/- S.

Determination of nefazodone and its pharmacologically active metabolites in human blood plasma and breast milk by high-performance liquid chromatography.

A method is described for the determination of nefazodone and its active metabolites hydroxynefazodone, the dione BMS-180492 and m-chlorophenylpiperazine in blood plasma and expressed human milk based on reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Measurements were performed on drug-free plasma and expressed human milk spiked with nefazodone and metabolites to prepare and validate standard curves and specimens collected from nursing mothers. Parent drug and metabolites were separated from the biological matrices by solid-phase extraction using CERTIFY columns.

Antidepressant efficacy and tolerability of the selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor reboxetine: a review.

Reboxetine is a unique selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (NRI) with proven antidepressant efficacy in pharmacologic and biochemical tests predictive of antidepressant properties. Comprehensive clinical trials, including 8 placebo-controlled and/or active treatment-controlled studies, plus 4 open studies, have assessed the short-term and long-term efficacy and tolerability of reboxetine in patients with major depressive disorders and dysthymia. Results from a total of 690 patients who entered 5 open or placebo-controlled studies are summarized in this paper.

Panic in australia.

Panic disorder is widespread in Australia, often in combination with other psychiatric conditions such as agoraphobia or major depression. Pharmacotherapy for panic disorder in Australia commenced with benzodiazepines, and later progressed to tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). More recently, treatment has moved towards use of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which are effective and better tolerated.

The effect of atenolol, a beta1-adrenergic antagonist, on nocturnal plasma melatonin secretion: evidence for a dose-response relationship in humans.

Pineal beta1-adrenergic receptors are involved in the regulation of melatonin secretion. The involvement of beta1-adrenergic receptors has been demonstrated by the ability of acute administration of beta-antagonists to suppress the nocturnal rise of circulating melatonin and its urinary metabolite 6-sulphatoxymelatonin (aMT6s). The present study was undertaken to examine the relationship between increasing doses of atenolol and nocturnal plasma melatonin concentrations.

Aggressive behaviour and platelet 3H-paroxetine binding in schizophrenia.

Forty schizophrenic patients were included in a study of the relationship between serotonin function as measured by 3H-paroxetine binding to platelet membranes and aggressive behaviour. Patients classified as either aggressive or non-aggressive were paired by age, sex and duration of illness. 3H-Paroxetine binding variations were avoided by taking samples for each pair between 09:00 and 11:00 h, within 4 days of each other, and by assaying pair of samples together.

Reconstruction of the lower extremity after ablative resection for cancer.

Limb-sparing surgery for cancer of the lower extremity has ushered the development of composite, one-stage reconstructions that employ a combination of autologous tissues, bone allografts, and endoprosthetic devices. The success of these efforts in preserving limb function has been generally good, yet the ultimate level of function is less than normal. Microsurgery has assumed a progressively greater role in the reconstruction of composite defects and allows much latitude in the surgical planning and in the management of delayed complications.

A survey of the adequacy of video display terminal/unit equipment in 7 local authorities in the Midlands.

In order to assess the adequacy of equipment in the run-up to the full implementation of the Display Screen Equipment Regulations, several local authorities agreed to take part in a pilot survey of their own video display terminals. The instrument was a self-reporting questionnaire based on the new regulations. A number of the questionnaires were also completed in parallel by EHOs in order to assess the objectivity with which questionnaires were completed.

Swelling of the knee joint: effects of exercise on quadriceps muscle strength.

Objective: To investigate the effects of excessive fluid in the knee joint on the performance of the quadriceps muscles and to determine whether quadriceps muscle performance can be altered by exercising the swollen joint.

Design And Setting: A before-after trial design was used, and the procedures were performed in a laboratory setting.

Subjects: A random sample of 27 adult men with no musculoskeletal problems was divided into intervention and control groups.

The effect of ketorolac on microvascular thrombosis in an experimental rabbit model.

This study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of ketorolac (Toradol), a potent cyclooxygenase inhibitor used for postoperative pain, on microvascular thrombosis in an established thrombosis model. Bilateral 3-mm arterial inversion grafts (n = 66) were constructed in the femoral arteries of New Zealand White rabbits. ALZET (ALZA Corporation, Palo Alto, Calif.

Knee joint effusion and proprioception.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of excessive fluid in the knee joint on proprioception. Twenty healthy subjects with no knee pathology participated in this study. Subjects were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups.

Platelet [3H]paroxetine binding in panic disorder.

Platelet [3H]paroxetine binding was measured in 20 patients (14 females, six males) with panic disorder and 20 normal controls (14 females, six males). For patients with panic disorder, Bmax was 1987 +/- 1135 fmol/mg protein (mean +/- SD) compared with control Bmax values of 1626 +/- 611 fmol/mg protein. The mean Kd value for the patients was 0.

Knee effusion and quadriceps muscle strength.

Ten healthy subjects with no musculoskeletal problems were tested using a computerized exercise dynamometer. Quadriceps femoris concentric performance was examined during maximal effort isokinetic knee extension at joint angular velocities of 2.09 and 4.

Development and evaluation of the Active Treatment Client Rights Checklist.

The role of active treatment has been recognized as vital to the habilitation of persons with mental retardation; however, evaluating the provision of active treatment has been difficult. This study describes the development of the Active Treatment Client Rights checklist (ATCR), which was designed to facilitate the assessment, monitoring, and implementation of readily observable client active treatment services. This investigation provides an explanation of item content, initial reliability data (Phase I), and the results of implementation of the ATCR over a 2-year period in an ICF/MR facility with 29 living units serving nearly 500 clients (Phase II).

Significant correlation between 14C-5-HT uptake by and 3H-paroxetine binding to platelets from healthy volunteers.

The lack of correlation between 5-HT uptake by platelets and the ability of platelet membrane to bind antidepressant drugs, particularly imipramine, has been reported. However, more recently it has been suggested that 3H-paroxetine could be a better drug with which to study the platelet 5-HT uptake mechanism in disease states. We have therefore compared the ability of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) from normal individuals to take up 5-HT with the ability of platelet membranes to bind paroxetine.

Acute and chronic effects of hypoglycemia on cognitive and psychomotor performance.

The acute and chronic effects of hypoglycemia on cognitive and psychomotor performance are reviewed. Studies involving pediatric and adult subjects, both with and without diabetes were evaluated. The preponderance of studies suggest that hypoglycemia can be an unintended yet frequent result of treatment of patients with IDDM.

Specialized treatment for behavior problems of institutionalized persons with mental retardation.

The extent of use and effectiveness of special treatment options (in-house behavior shaping units, specialized outside referral agencies, and mobile intensive treatment teams) in dealing with behavior problems of persons with mental retardation was determined. A survey was completed by 144 institutions throughout the United States; 86% of all facilities recognized a need for special treatment options to deal with clients who had severe behavior problems. Sixty-eight percent of the institutions had presently or in the recent past used at least one of the three treatment options.

Interactions between adenovirus E1A and members of the AP-1 family of cellular transcription factors.

We have studied interactions between bacterially produced E1A linked to Sepharose and the various DNA-binding proteins present in HeLa cell nuclear extracts (NE). DNA-binding activities and cross-reactive polypeptides recognizing the cAMP-responsive element (CRE) and the activator protein 1 (AP1) sites were bound to the E1A column, whereas nuclear factor 1 (NF1) and the activator protein 2 (AP2) DNA-binding activities were not retained by E1A. The binding activities that were retained belonged to the CRE and JUN protein family, as judged by Western blot analysis.

Eliminating ill-founded eliminations in handwriting comparison cases.

Document examiners sometimes eliminate writers on the basis of differences which are given too much weight. This article is an attempt to explain some conditions whereby differences in the writing of one individual are misinterpreted as significant differences, when they are actually caused by conditions which are unknown to the examiner.

Direct interaction between adenovirus E1A protein and the TATA box binding transcription factor IID.

Adenovirus E1A has long been known to activate/repress cellular and viral transcription. The transcriptional activity of nuclear extracts was depleted after chromatography on immobilized E1A protein columns that specifically retained the transcription factor (TF) IID. Stronger direct interactions between E1A and human TFIID than between E1A and yeast TFIID suggest that the unique sequences of the human protein may be involved.

Plasma cortisol and 11-deoxycortisol activity in depressed patients and normal volunteers.

Plasma cortisol and 11-deoxycortisol were measured in 30 depressed patients and 110 normal volunteers before and after a 1.0 mg dexamethasone suppression test (DST). Post-dexamethasone plasma cortisol, 11-deoxycortisol and the cortisol/11-deoxycortisol ratio were significantly higher in the depressives compared to the controls, even when age and sex were taken into account.