Metabolism of ferulic acid to vanillin. A bacterial gene of the enoyl-SCoA hydratase/isomerase superfamily encodes an enzyme for the hydration and cleavage of a hydroxycinnamic acid SCoA thioester.

A gene encoding a novel enoyl-SCoA hydratase/lyase enzyme for the hydration and nonoxidative cleavage of feruloyl-SCoA to vanillin and acetyl-SCoA was isolated and characterized from a strain of Pseudomonas fluorescens. Feruloyl-SCoA is the CoASH thioester of ferulic acid (4-hydroxy-3-methoxy-trans-cinnamic acid), an abundant constituent of plant cell walls and a degradation product of lignin. The gene was isolated by a combination of mutant complementation and biochemical approaches, and its function was demonstrated by heterologous expression in Escherichia coli under the control of a T7 RNA polymerase promoter.

The AmMYB308 and AmMYB330 transcription factors from antirrhinum regulate phenylpropanoid and lignin biosynthesis in transgenic tobacco.

MYB-related transcription factors are known to regulate different branches of flavonoid metabolism in plants and are believed to play wider roles in the regulation of phenylpropanoid metabolism in general. Here, we demonstrate that overexpression of two MYB genes from Antirrhinum represses phenolic acid metabolism and lignin biosynthesis in transgenic tobacco plants. The inhibition of this branch of phenylpropanoid metabolism appears to be specific to AmMYB308 and AmMYB330, suggesting that they recognize their normal target genes in these transgenic plants.

Motor recovery after stroke depends on intact sustained attention: a 2-year follow-up study.

The functional recovery of 47 right-brain-damaged stroke patients was studied over a 2-year period. The researchers hypothesized that sustained attention capacity should predict the degree of motor and functional recovery over this period because of a proposed privileged role of sustained attention in learning-based recovery of function. As predicted, significant correlations were found between sustained attention capacity at 2 months and functional status (including the Barthel Index) at 2 years.

Structure-function relations of variant and fragment nisins studied with model membrane systems.

Nisin, a 34 residue lantibiotic produced by strains of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, exerts antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive bacteria at the cytoplasmic membrane. The structural aspects of nisin which facilitate membrane interaction and permeabilization have been investigated in planar lipid bilayers and liposomes with proteolytic fragments and site-directed variants.

A novel quantitative immunoassay system for p53 using antibodies selected for optimum designation of p53 status.

Aim: To develop a highly sensitive and specific enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) system for analysis of p53 protein in cancer lysates.

Methods: The anti-p53 monoclonal antibodies DO7, 1801, BP53.12, and 421, and anti-p53 polyclonal antiserum CM1 were assessed by immunohistochemistry and western blot analysis to identify those most suitable for determining p53 status of cancer cells.

125I aqueous waste volume reduction at a pharmaceutical research laboratory.

A wide variety of radioactive waste is generated by pharmaceutical research. One particularly high volume low specific activity waste stream produced by a research and development facility is aqueous 125I waste. This waste is generally held for decay and released to the sanitary sewer when the activity is low enough to ensure that concentrations are well below the appropriate regulatory limits.

Effect of chronic maternal ethanol administration on nitric oxide synthase activity in the hippocampus of the mature fetal guinea pig.

Nitric oxide is a novel messenger that is involved in neuronal cell-cell communication and seems to play a neurotrophic role in normal brain development. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure can produce central nervous system (CNS) teratogenesis, in which one of the target sites is the hippocampus. The main objective of our study was to test the following hypothesis: chronic maternal administration of an ethanol dosage regimen that produces CNS teratogenesis decreases nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity in the fetal hippocampus.

National Institute of Standards and Technology high-accuracy cryogenic radiometer.

A high-accuracy cryogenic radiometer has been developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology to serve as a primary standard for optical power measurements. This instrument is an electrical-substitution radiometer that can be operated at cryogenic temperatures to achieve a relative standard uncertainty of 0.021% at an optical power level of 0.

OCT embedded sections of pathological specimens as a source of high quality RNA for reverse transcriptase/polymerase chain reaction.

OCT embedded cryostat sections of stored pathological specimens of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma were used to provide RNA. After reverse transcription to produce cDNA, the polymerase chain reaction was performed with primers for standard and variant forms of the CD44 molecule. Using Southern transfer and hybridisation with a probe specific for exon 4 of the CD44 gene, both standard and variant forms were visualised by autoradiography.

The NIST Detector-Based Luminous Intensity Scale.

The Système International des Unités (SI) base unit for photometry, the candela, has been realized by using absolute detectors rather than absolute sources. This change in method permits luminous intensity calibrations of standard lamps to be carried out with a relative expanded uncertainty (coverage factor = 2, and thus a 2 standard deviation estimate) of 0.46 %, almost a factor-of-two improvement.

Determination of the prognostic value of cyclin D1 overexpression in breast cancer.

Cyclin D1 plays a critical role in the timing of the initiation of DNA synthesis in the normal cell cycle of mammalian cells. Deregulated expression of this protein has been seen in a variety of tumours either as a result of gene amplification or chromosomal translocation, in breast cancer and B cell malignancies respectively. In order to determine the role this putative oncoprotein plays in breast cancer, we have applied a new monoclonal antibody, recently produced in our laboratory, in an immunohistochemical study of 93 primary breast carcinomas.

Nitric oxide synthase activity in the hippocampus, frontal cerebral cortex, and cerebellum of the guinea pig: ontogeny and in vitro ethanol exposure.

Decreased nitric oxide (NO) formation, resulting from inhibition of NO synthase (NOS), may be important in the pathogenesis of ethanol central nervous system teratogenesis. The objectives of this study were to determine the ontogeny of NOS activity in the hippocampus, frontal cerebral cortex, and cerebellum of the developing guinea pig, and to test the hypothesis that direct exposure to ethanol inhibits NOS activity in these brain regions at selected developmental ages. NOS activity was quantitated by an optimized radiometric assay.

Assessment of hepatitis B "e" antigen and "e" antibody status--tests of status or status of tests?

Forty-seven sera that gave positive results in tests for hepatitis B surface antigen and core antibody were examined for the presence of "e" antigen and "e" antibody by various commercially available assays. Considerable discordance was observed between results of tests performed on the same sample in different assays. Examination of the sera for the presence of hepatitis B DNA failed to resolve the discrepancies.

The efficacy of the neo-liberal individual choice model for encouraging post-disaster change: developments in the East Cape region of New Zealand following Cyclone Bola (March 1988).

The government of New Zealand instituted a new policy of disaster response in an attempt to bring about change and development in the relatively remote agricultural region which was struck by a severe cyclone in March 1988. The new policy involved a change from payment for restoration to compensation for loss. This new policy was based on the neo-liberal position that individual choice should prevail in decision making and that significant change will result from this adherence to an individual decision making approach.

Rayleigh scattering limits for low-level bidirectional reflectance distribution function measurements.

The objective is to estimate the Rayleigh limit in bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) measurements caused by air in the laboratory, the wavelength, and the path length of light in the receiver field of view. Moreover, we intend to show the trend for the reduction of this limit by introducing a medium with small refractive index and by using a longer wavelength. Although the BRDF typically describes the angular distribution of scattered light from surfaces, the expression describing the equivalent BRDF caused by the optical scattering from gas molecules in the optical path is derived through the use of the Rayleigh scattering theory.

Cryogenic Blackbody Calibrations at the National Institute of Standards and Technology Low Background Infrared Calibration Facility.

The Low Background Infrared Calibration Facility (LBIR) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology has been in operation for calibration measurements of the radiant power emitted from infrared radiation (IR) sources, such as cryogenic blackbodies, for more than 2 years. The IR sources are sent to NIST by customers from industry, government, and university laboratories. An absolute cryogenic radiometer is used as the standard detector to measure the total radiant power at its aperture.

Tropane alkaloid production in transformed root cultures of brugmansia Candida.

Transformed root cultures of BRUGMANSIA CANDIDA were established by infection with AGROBACTERIUM RHIZOGENES LBA 9402. Several clones with different growth index and tropane alkaloid pattern and content were obtained and two were examined in depth. The alkaloid content and pattern changed during the time course.

Effect of sodium acid pyrophosphate on ranitidine bioavailability and gastrointestinal transit time.

During development of a ranitidine effervescent oral solution dosage form, a marked decrease was observed in the extent of ranitidine absorption relative to the conventional oral tablet. Two studies were conducted in healthy volunteers to confirm the involvement of an excipient, SAPP (sodium acid pyrophosphate), and the mechanism of interaction, altered gastrointestinal transit. The first study (n = 12) involved single-dose crossover comparisons of (A) 150 mg ranitidine with 1132 mg SAPP versus (B) 150 mg ranitidine and (C) 150 mg ranitidine with all the effervescent tablet excipients except SAPP versus (D) a 150-mg ranitidine effervescent tablet, all administered as oral solutions.

National Institute of Standards and Technology detector-based photometric scale.

The Système International base unit for photometry, the candela, has been realized by using absolute detectors rather than absolute sources. This change in method permits luminous intensity calibrations of standard lamps with an expanded uncertainty of 0.46%, almost a factor-of-2 improvement.

Delineation of translocation t(15; 17) in acute promyelocytic leukemia by chromosomal in situ suppression hybridization.

In this study we demonstrate the feasibility of chromosomal in situ suppression (CISS) hybridization to detect the translocation t(15; 17) in metaphase spreads of patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia. Using DNA libraries from sorted human chromosomes 15 and 17 the translocation t(15; 17) can be unequivocally identified even if the spread and the morphology of the chromosomes are poor. The sensitivity of CISS hybridization is compared with the sensitivity of conventional G-banded karyotypes.

A retrospective study of the use of total parenteral nutrition in dogs and cats.

The records of all dogs and cats receiving total parenteral nutrition (TPN) over a 43-month period were examined retrospectively. Dextrose, amino acids, lipids, electrolytes, and vitamins were administered by central venous catheter according to published nutrient recommendations; 72 dogs and 12 cats were studied, accounting for 380 patient days of TPN. Duration of TPN administration was 1-14 days with a mean of 4.

Characterization of an absolute cryogenic radiometer as a standard detector for radiant-power measurements.

An active cavity radiometer of the electrical substitution type with a cone receiver that operates at 2-4 K has been developed for measuring radiant fluxes in the dynamic range of 20 nW to 100 microW within an uncertainty of +/-1% (2sigmalevel). It is a broadband absolute detector with a flat overall absorption efficiency that is >99% for radiation from the visible to long-wavelength IR. The system is designed based on thermal modeling and experimental measurements of concepts.

Alternative metabolic fates of hygrine in transformed root cultures of Nicandra physaloides.

Alkaloid production by several Agrobacterium rhizogenes-transformed root lines of Nicandra physaloides was studied. Early in the culture cycle all lines contained predominantly hygrine, which has previously been reported to be the major alkaloid in roots of this plant. A number of other hygrine-derived alkaloids were identified, and these generally increased in importance as the cultures matured.

Strategies for the genetic manipulation of alkaloid-producing pathways in plants.

Increasingly, as a result of recent biochemical work, there exists a realistic possibility of taking a molecular genetic approach to the manipulation of alkaloid-producing pathways in plant tissue cultures. In the pathways forming indole alkaloids in CATHARANTHUS ROSEUS, tropane alkaloids in DATURA and HYOSCYAMUS species, and nicotine in NICOTIANA species, recent studies have identified a number of key enzymes and at least some of the factors that regulate their levels of activity. Such knowledge contributes the basis upon which it has become feasible to design a strategy by which the flux in these pathways may be enhanced at the genomic level.

Dual-isotope imaging of neutron-activated erbium-171 and samarium-153 and the in vivo evaluation of a dual-labeled bilayer tablet by gamma scintigraphy.

The feasibility of dual-label scintigraphic studies which use the neutron-activated isotopes erbium-171 and samarium-153 is described. Experimental details are provided to correct and minimize the compton scatter contribution of 171Er into the lower-energy 153Sm window. The results from this study demonstrate that this dual-label procedure is sensitive enough to monitor simultaneously the behavior of two discrete regions of the same unit dose in the gastrointestinal tract of man.