[The isolation hospital on Katten in Bergen].

In 1864 the Board of Health in Bergen, Norway, feared that an epidemic of smallpox might break out in the city. A house on the bastion Katten (Norwegian for "the cat") on the Fredriksberg fortress was adapted and made a provisional smallpox hospital. Later on it also served as a cholera hospital during a minor cholera epidemic in 1873, and as an isolation hospital for patients suffering from scarlet fever.

[Hospital records from the cholera epidemic in Bergen 1848-1849].

During the great cholera epidemic in Bergen in 1848-49, three cholera hospitals were established. Records from the three hospitals have been found and studied. Of the 1,024 cholera patients in the city, 707 were hospitalized, and of these 430 (60.

[Cholera hospitals in Bergen].

As early as 1831 premises for a cholera hospital were discussed in Bergen, but no decision was taken. On the same day that Bergen was declared to be cholera-infected, i.e.

[The Board of Health and its activities during the cholera epidemic in Bergen in 1848-49].

In Norway temporary regulations were issued for control of cholera. An important provision was that Municipal Boards of Health should be appointed. The author describes the duties of the Board of Health, and how it functioned during the cholera epidemic in Bergen in 1848-49.

[Cholera in Bergen in 1848-1849--what caused the epidemic?].

In December 1848, a big cholera epidemic broke out in Bergen. It lasted until April 1849, by which time 605 victims had died. The cholera spread by contact from person to person.

[Some cholera graveyards in western Norway].

The Norwegian provisional regulations from 1832 for the control of cholera included detailed directions for the burial of cholera victims. How these directions for graveyards were followed up has been studied in the context of the cholera epidemic in Western Norway in 1848-49. In Bergen an ordinary graveyard was used for burying cholera victims at the beginning of the epidemic, while all later burials took place in a graveyard for cholera victims only.

Regulation of vasopressin expression in cultured diencephalic neurons by glucocorticoids.

Glucocorticoids have long been recognized as playing a major role in the regulation of vasopressin synthesis. However, the factors determining cellular specificity and molecular mechanisms of glucocorticoid action on the vasopressin gene are not understood. In the present investigation, we used primary cell cultures derived from 14-day-old fetal rat diencephalon to investigate the regulation of vasopressin expression under controlled conditions.

[Cholera in Drammen 1832--the first time in Norway].

Cholera came to Norway for the first time in autumn 1832. The outbreak was limited to the city of Drammen and some densely populated areas on the Drammen fjord. Mortality was low compared with later Norwegian epidemics.

[The black death in Norway].

The old Icelandic annals tell that the Black Death came to Bergen, Norway, in 1349 with a ship from England. This was probably at the beginning of September. From Bergen the plague spread rapidly northwards and southwards along the coast and over land to Eastern Norway.

[The medical situation in Bergen during the late medieval period described in the diary of Absalon Pederssøn in 1552-1572].

First-hand information on Norwegian medical matters in the late Middle Ages is very scarce. Occasional brief information of medical interest may be found in private letters and in more systematic general records. However, a unique and particularly interesting document from this period is Master Absalon Pederssøn's diary.

[Absalon Pederssøn's report on the plague in Bergen during 1565-1567].

The plague in Bergen 1565-67 was reported by Absalon Pederssøn, a citizen of Bergen, in his diary. The diary describes the onset of the epidemic and reports the deaths from day to day. The plague was brought to Bergen on about 10th August 1565 by a ship from Danzig.

[Plague epidemics in Bergen and population crises].

Ten epidemics of plague are known to have occurred in Bergen, Norway, from the Black Death in 1349 to the last epidemic in 1637. Seven of them took place after 1530, and the primary sources of only three are known from the first 180 years of the plague period. Therefore, additional epidemics have probably occurred of which we have no knowledge.

Antibodies to staphylococcal peptidoglycan and its peptide epitopes, teichoic acid, and lipoteichoic acid in sera from blood donors and patients with staphylococcal infections.

Antibodies to the staphylococcal antigens peptidoglycan, beta-ribitol teichoic acid, and lipoteichoic acid, as well as to the peptidoglycan epitopes L-Lys-D-Ala-D-Ala, L-Lys-D-Ala, and pentaglycine, were found over a wide range of concentrations in sera from both blood donors and patients with verified or suspected staphylococcal infections. The patient group was heterogeneous with regard to both age and type of staphylococcal infections, being representative for sera sent to our laboratory. In single-antigen assays antibodies to pentaglycine had the highest predictive positive value (67%), although only 32% of the patients had elevated levels of such antibodies.

Antibodies to Yersinia enterocolitica in a healthy population in Tanzania.

A micro-agglutination technique was used for the detection of antibodies to Yersinia enterocolitica serogroups 03, 08 and 09 in sera from healthy individuals in Dar es Salaam, including 38 school children and 81 adults. Antibody titres greater than or equal to 128 to serogroup 03 were found in 2.6% of the children and 0.

Antibodies to Staphylococcus aureus peptidoglycan and lipoteichoic acid in sera from blood donors and patients with staphylococcal infections.

An enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) was used to detect antibodies in human sera to Staphylococcus aureus peptidoglycan (PG) and lipoteichoic acid (LTA). All the sera from the blood donors contained IgG antibodies to both substances. Among the sera from 34 patients with bacteriologically verified, serious S.

Comparison of four methods for differentiation of Staphylococcus aureus from other Micrococcaceae in the routine laboratory.

Four methods for the identification of Staphylococcus aureus (tube coagulase test, thermostable nuclease test, indirect agglutination of fibrinogen coated erythrocytes and a commercial latex kit: SeroSTAT Staphylococcus Test) have been compared. Clinical isolates (698) and 40 reference strains of Micrococcaceae were included in the study together with control organisms. The coagulase test gave no false positive results but 39/406 clinical isolates of S.

Detection of Yersinia enterocolitica O-antigens by double diffusion in agar and chemical characterization of lipopolysaccharides.

Double diffusion in agar showed that yersinia enterocolitica O-serotypes 3, 7, 8 and 9 each contained a type-specific precipitinogen. Serotype 6 contained several specific precipitinogens and was heterogeneous. The type-specific precipitinogens were shown to be lipopolysaccharides (LPS).

Immunochemical analysis of the teichoic acid from Staphylococcus simulans.

The wall teichoic acid of Staphylococcus simulans has been characterized as a glycerol phosphate polymer with glycosidically linked N-acetylglucosamine. Susceptibility to beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase and serological similarity to poly C beta from Staphylococcus saprophyticus, showed that the amino sugar is in the beta-configuration.

Immunochemical analysis of the teichoic acid from Staphylococcus hyicus.

The wall teichoic acid of Staphylococcus hyicus has been isolated and characterized. The teichoic acid is a glycerol phosphate polymer with glycosidically linked N-acetylglucosamine. Interaction with concanavalin A and susceptibility to alpha- but not to beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase showed that the sugar is in the alpha-configuration.

Immunochemical studies on the specific agglutinogens of Staphylococcus aureus. I. Isolation and characterization of antigen h1.

The specific Staphylococcus aureus agglutinogen h1 has been purified and shown to be a protein with a molecular weight of about 95,000. Chemical analysis revealed all the common amino acids, except tyrosine and the sulphur-containing ones. The purified h1 antigen was strongly immunogenic in rabbits.