Predictors of blood lead levels in agricultural villages practicing wastewater irrigation in Central Mexico.

To investigate whether the agricultural use of untreated wastewater (i.e. crop irrigation) was associated with elevated blood lead levels in a farming population in the Mezquital Valley and which risk factors, other than exposure to untreated wastewater, were associated with elevated blood lead levels, lead levels were measured in venous blood obtained from 735 individuals.

Hydrogen exchange monitored by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry for rapid characterization of the stability and conformation of proteins.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has been used to monitor hydrogen exchange on entire proteins. Two alternative methods have been used to carry out the hydrogen exchange studies, exchanging deuteron (H to D experiments) or proton (D to H experiments). In the former case, the use of a deuterated matrix has made possible to overcome back-exchange problems and attain reproducible results.

INNER NO OUTER regulates abaxial- adaxial patterning in Arabidopsis ovules.

The Arabidopsis INNER NO OUTER (INO) gene is essential for formation and asymmetric growth of the ovule outer integument. INO encodes a member of the newly described YABBY family of putative transcription factors that contain apparent Cys(2)-Cys(2) zinc-finger domains and regions of similarity to the high mobility group (HMG) transcription factors. In wild-type plants, INO is expressed specifically on one side of the central region of each ovule primordium in the cells that give rise to the outer integument.

Expression of testosterone-dependent enzyme, carbonic anhydrase III, and oxidative stress in experimental alcoholic liver disease.

We studied the sequential immunohistochemical appearance of androgen-dependent carbonic anhydrase (CA III) during the development of ethanol-induced liver injury using liver samples from castrated and noncastrated male micropigs. In castrated micropigs, the baseline expression of CA III was either low or absent, while distinct positive immunoreactions were found in zone 3 hepatocytes at 5 and 12 months after the initiation of the ethanol diet. The CA III enzyme and protein adducts of lipid peroxidation-derived aldehydic products, malondialdehyde and 4-hydroxynonenal, appeared together in the perivenous region, suggesting that the enzyme functions in an oxidative environment.

Induction of cytochrome P450 enzymes and generation of protein-aldehyde adducts are associated with sex-dependent sensitivity to alcohol-induced liver disease in micropigs.

To assess possible links between ethanol-induced oxidant stress, expression of hepatic cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, and sex steroid status, we used immunohistochemical methods to compare the generation of protein adducts of acetaldehyde (AA), malondialdehyde (MDA), and 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) with the amounts of CYP2E1, CYP2A, and CYP3A in the livers of castrated and noncastrated male micropigs fed ethanol for 12 months. In castrated micropigs, ethanol feeding resulted in accumulation of fat, hepatocellular necrosis, inflammation, and centrilobular fibrosis, whereas only minimal histopathology was observed in their noncastrated counterparts. CYP2A and CYP3A were more prominent in the castrated animals than in the noncastrated micropigs.

Etiology, clinical features and outcome of splenic microabscesses in HIV-infected patients with prolonged fever.

A prospective study was conducted to determine the etiology, clinical features, and outcome in a series of 32 consecutively enrolled HIV-infected patients with prolonged fever in whom high resolution (7.5 Mhz) sonography revealed multiple splenic microabscesses. Conventional (3.

Murine typhus as a common cause of fever of intermediate duration: a 17-year study in the south of Spain.

Background: Fever of intermediate duration (FID), characterized by a febrile syndrome lasting from 7 to 28 days, is a frequent condition in clinical practice, but its epidemiological and etiologic features are not well described. Murine typhus (MT) is a worldwide illness; nevertheless, to our knowledge, no studies describing its epidemiological and clinical characteristics have been performed in the south of Spain. Also, its significance as a cause of FID is unknown.

Identification and properties of the genes encoding microcin E492 and its immunity protein.

The gene coding for the immunity protein (mceB) and the structural gene of microcin E492 (mceA), a low-molecular-weight channel-forming bacteriocin produced by a strain of Klebsiella pneumoniae, have been characterized. The microcin gene codes for a precursor protein of either 99 or 103 amino acids. Protein sequencing of the N-terminal region of microcin E492 unequivocally identified this gene as the microcin structural gene and indicated that this microcin is synthesized as a precursor protein that is cleaved at either amino acid 15 or 19, at a site resembling the double-glycine motif.

Characterization of the wound-induced metallocarboxypeptidase inhibitor from potato. cDNA sequence, induction of gene expression, subcellular immunolocalization and potential roles of the C-terminal propeptide.

A partial cDNA clone for the potato wound-inducible metallocarboxypeptidase inhibitor (PCI) was isolated from a cDNA library constructed from mRNA of abscisic acid (ABA)-treated potato leaves. The full 5' region of the cDNA was obtained through a RACE-PCR protocol. PCI mRNA encodes a precursor polypeptide which comprises a 29 residue N-terminal signal peptide, a 27 residue N-terminal pro-region, the 39 residue mature PCI protein, and a 7 residue C-terminal extension.

[Somatosensory trigeminal evoked potentials after gingival stimulation of the mental nerve. Normal values].

Objective: Somatosensory evoked potentials were recorded following unilateral stimulation of the mental nerve in the gum of 100 healthy volunteers aged between 17 and 22 years.

Methods And Results: Responses were recorded until 100 ms with electrodes placed over the scalp (C5/C6) referenced to central frontal (Fz). In 10 subjects, simultaneous recordings were made in masticatory and facial muscles to detect possible muscle artefacts.

Membrane and tissue distribution of folate binding protein in pig.

Folate binding protein may participate in folate homeostasis by regulating monoglutamyl folate transport across relevant cell membranes. We compared the activity, immunoreactivity, and transcripts of folate binding protein in pig liver, kidney, and jejunal mucosa and their relevant cell membranes. Binding of [3H]folic acid was sixfold greater to pig liver plasma membranes than to kidney brush-border membranes, whereas there was no binding to jejunal brush-border membranes.

Arabidopsis TSO1 regulates directional processes in cells during floral organogenesis.

Flowers of the previously described Arabidopsis tso1-1 mutant had aberrant, highly reduced organs in place of petals, stamens, and carpels. Cells of tso1-1 flowers had division defects, including failure in cytokinesis, partial cell wall formation, and elevated nuclear DNA content. We describe here two new tso1 alleles (tso1-3 and tso1-4), which caused defects in ovule development, but had little effect on gross floral morphology.

Folylpoly-gamma-glutamate carboxypeptidase from pig jejunum. Molecular characterization and relation to glutamate carboxypeptidase II.

Jejunal folylpoly-gamma-glutamate carboxypeptidase hydrolyzes dietary folates prior to their intestinal absorption. The complete folylpoly-gamma-glutamate carboxypeptidase cDNA was isolated from a pig jejunal cDNA library using an amplified homologous probe incorporating primer sequences from prostate-specific membrane antigen, a protein capable of folate hydrolysis. The cDNA encodes a 751-amino acid polypeptide homologous to prostate-specific membrane antigen and rat brain N-acetylated alpha-linked acidic dipeptidase.

[Endocarditis in parenteral drug addicts. Right-sided endocarditis. Influence of HIV infection].

Infective endocarditis is a life-threatening infective complication in parenteral drug abusers. The tricuspid valve is the structure most frequently affected and Staphylococcus aureus the predominant microorganism. Fever, multiple pulmonary emboli and sustained bacteremia by S.

[Tables of normal values of average and long latency auditory potentials].

Introduction And Objective: In view of the disparity of data and methodology concerning medium (MAEP) and long latency (LAEP) acoustic evoked potentials, we have obtained tables of normal values using a reliable method and statistical study of these potentials in 30 healthy persons, in order to serve as a basis for clinical reference and for possible further studies.

Material And Methods: In the MAEP we used the two types of stimuli most commonly employed, first a click and then a rising-plateau-falling tone (2-6-2). We observed that this did not affect the latency or amplitude of the different waves, although the best defined waves are obtained with tones.

The expression of drug resistance gene products during the progression of human prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer progresses from a localized disease to a widely disseminated malignancy. Each step along this progression pathway involves multiple genetic alterations that impart a survival advantage to the tumor cell over its normal counterparts and may confer resistance to therapy. Because metastatic prostate cancer is one of the most therapy-resistant human neoplasms, we studied the expression of certain molecular determinants of drug resistance in the context of tumor progression.

CD30 expression identifies a functional alloreactive human T-lymphocyte subset.

Background: CD30 is a member of the tumor necrosis factor/nerve growth factor receptor family and has been proposed as a marker of specific cytokine-producing subsets in humans. Previous studies have examined the expression of CD30 on established T helper type 1 and T helper type 2 cell clones and the function of CD30+ cells after mitogenic stimulation. In this study, we examined the development and function of CD30+ T cells generated in response to alloantigen.

CD8+ cells are not necessary for allograft rejection or the induction of apoptosis in an experimental model of small intestinal transplantation.

Allospecific CTL can function as cellular effectors of solid organ graft rejection; however, the specific mechanisms of cell damage remain undetermined. In this study we examined the role of CD8+ T cells in apoptosis and rejection of small intestinal allografts. ACI rat intestinal grafts transplanted into Lewis rat recipients showed apoptosis of epithelial crypt cells on day 3 posttransplant as determined by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick end labeling staining.

[Central lipoma of the mandible. A new case].

Lipomas are benign neoplasms affecting many organs of the body with adipose tissue. As a bone central lesion they represent less than 1% of all lipomas. In the literature lipomas are reported in different bones: calcaneum, ribs, fibula, phalanges, ulna, frontal and parietal bone.

Human hepatocytes produce an isoform of FAS that inhibits apoptosis.

Background: Fas (Apo-1/CD95), a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor family, can mediate apoptosis when engaged by its ligand or by anti-Fas antibody. Fas is expressed by cells of the immune system and by some nonlymphoid tissues. Numerous studies have suggested that the Fas pathway may play a role in the rejection of allografts.

Pneumocystis carinii meningoradiculitis in a patient with AIDS.

Pneumocystis carinii is a common opportunistic pathogen in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia is common, while extrapulmonary infections with Pneumocystis carinii have been reported sparingly. The clinical features are frequently nonspecific.