Aminotransferase study ofNeurospora crassa ser-3 versus wild type ST4A

Summary TheNeurospora crassa serine auxotrophser-3 and the wild type ST4A were compared with respect to their phosphoserine and serine aminotransferase activities. The results obtained indicate no deficiency of either of these enzymes in the mutant strain.This work was supported in part by a grant to D.G. from the California Foundation for Biochemical Research. The authors also wish to thank Dr Robert G. Wolcott, formerly of the Department of Chemistry, California State University, Northridge, for his valuable advice and for the use of his department's liquid scintillation counting system. We acknowledge with appreciation the skilled technical assistance of Mr Tom Harper.     

12-Hydroxy-E-γ-bisabolene,a new sesquiterpene alcohol from a Caribbean sea whip of the genusPseudopterogorgia (Gorgonacea,Cnidaria)

Summary A new sesquiterpene alcohol, 12-hydroxy-E--bisabolene, is reported from an undescribed Caribbean sea whip of the genusPseudopterogorgia. The structure of this new alcohol was established based upon spectral analyses and through chemical interconversions.Acknowledgment. This research was supported by NOAA, Office of Sea Grant, Department of Commerce, under grant NA80AA-D-00120, and in part by the California State Resources Agency, project R/MP-22. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints. We wish to acknowledge the mass spectral support provided by the Bioorganic Biomedical Mass Spectrometry Resource Center, University of California, San Francisco (A.L. Burlingame, Director) which is supported through NIH grant RR00719.     

Fluid fluxes in the ferret trachea

Summary A net reabsorption of fluid was observed in isolated ferret trachea under control conditions. Cholinergic stimulation resulted in net secretion of fluid while atropine blocked this response without any effect on the basal process of fluid reabsorption.Supported by research grants from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the University of Florida (GML) and by a Pediatric Pulmonary Center award (A 2018) from the Division of Maternal and Child Health of the Department of Health and Human Services and Whitehall Foundation grant (No. 78-156 ck-1).     

Xanthumin and 8-epi-xanthatin as insect development inhibitors fromXanthium canadense Mill.

Summary Two insect development inhibitors againstDrosophila melanogaster have been isolated from the leaves ofX. canadense and identified as xanthumin and 8-epi-xanthatin.Search for Insect Development Inhibitors in Plants, IV. Part III, Heterocycles10, 117 (1978).This investigation was supported in part by grants (No. 056141 and No. 376065) from the Ministry of Education of Japan. The authors express their sincere thanks to Prof. Junkichi Iwasa of this department for his encouragement and to Dr Kenji Uneyama, Department of Industrial Chemistry of this University, for¹³C-NMR measurements.     

Methylmercury sexual dimorphism in the mouse

Summary 5–8 days after a single nontoxic dose of radioactive methylmercury chloride adult male mouse kidneys contain twice as much radioactive mercury per unit wet wt as do kidneys of similarly dosed adult females.This investigation was supported in part by NSF (RANN) grants (GI-30097 and AEN75-14889), by Program Project grant (ES-01248) and Center grant (ES-01247) from the NIEHS, and in part by the US Department of Energy at the University of Rochester Department of Radiation Biology and Biophysics and has been assigned Report No. UR-3490-1308.     

Characterization of the host-specific toxins produced byHelminthosporium sacchari,the causal organism of eyespot disease of sugarcane

Summary Investigation of the host-specific toxin complex fromH. sacchari has led to the isolation of 3 isomeric glycosidic components C₃₉H₆₄O₂₂, each active at 2×10^–11 moles. The 3 isomers consist of 4 galactose units linked to an aglycone residue C₁₅H₂₄O₂.Acknowledgments. The Boyce Thompson-Cornell group thanks J.F. Rissler, University of Maryland, A.K. Bose, Stevens Institute of Technology, R. Barker and A. Serriani, Cornell University, and C. Grinnalds and J. Golay, Boyce Thompson Institute for help with various aspects of this work. Supported in part by a grant to V.M. from the US Department of Agriculture (8100720). The Zürich group thanks Dr G.A. Strobel, Department of Botany and Microbiology, Montana State University, Bozeman, for supplying a potent toxin-producing strain (M 36), a susceptible clone of sugarcane (51 NG 97), and a reference sample of helminthosporoside, Dr. K. Hostettmann and Mme M. Hostettmann-Kaldas, Pharmazeutisches Institut ETH Zürich, for assistance in developing the DCC separation and Sandoz A.G., Basel, for financial support.     

Isolation of chrysotalunin,a red pigment from a New Zealand soil

Summary Benzene extraction of Te Kopuru sand, a podzol located in the subtropical region of New Zealand, yielded a high melting pigment. Spectroscopic data showed it to be the bianthraquinone chrysotalunin. This is the first report of its occurrence in the Southern hemisphere soil.Acknowledgment. The authors wish to thank Dr B. K. G. Theng, Soil Bureau, D.S.I.R., Lower Hutt, for the sample of the Te Kopuru sand podzol humus B horizon and Dr D. J. Wright of the Chemistry Department, University of Canterbury, for the high resolution mass spectral data.     

Kynurenine localization in the egg ofDrosophila melanogaster

Zusammenfassung Papierchromatographische und fluoreszensmikroskopische Untesuchungen von Ovarien der Wildtypen und der Vermilion- und Cinnabar-Mutanten vonDrosophila zeigen, dass sich Kynurenin (der Hauptbestandteil der fluoreszierenden Komponente des Eies) in den proteinhaltigen Dotterschollen des reifenden und des reifen Eies befindet.

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Supported in part by NIH grant No. GM 14891 and a grant from the Research Foundation of the State University of New York.     

Oenocytes of poultry liceLipeurus lawrensis tropicalis Peters (Phthiraptera: Ischnocera)

Summary Oenocytes ofLipeurus lawrensis tropicalis Peters, an ischnoceran Mallophaga (Sens. Lat. Phthiraptera) occur either singly or in clusters of 2–6, and do not exhibit any changes in the different stages of nymphs and adults of the 2 sexes.Acknowledgment. Thanks are due to Head of the Zoology Department Banaras Hindu University, for laboratory facilities and to State Council of Science and Technology, U.P. for financial assistance under the grant No.SCST/4779/BHU (43)/77     

Photoreceptor properties of an ectopic eye in the fleshfly,Sarcophaga bullata

Summary Ectopic eyes were produced on the fleshfly,Sarcophaga bullata by transplantation of imaginal eye discs. Electrophysiological and histological observations of these supernumerary eyes indicate the absence of synaptic connections between retinular cells and higher order neurons.Supported by an University of New Brunswick research grant to P.S. and NSF grant BNS-76-11921 and NIH grant 1-R01-EY-02487-01A1 to W.S.S.We would like to thank Dr I.A. Meinertzhagen for suggestions and Mary Johnson for technical assistance.     

Nautilus pompilius: Branchial circulation enhanced by an auxiliary pumping mechanism

Summary Blood pressure recordings from the vena cava, afferent branchial and efferent branchial veins inNautilus showed that a significant increase in pressure of the gill circulation was achieved by the rhythmic contractions of the renal appendages and pericardial glands.We thank the Wilson Vailoces family and the other kind people of Bindoy, Negros Oriental, The Philippines for their unlimited generosity. This research was supported by NSF grant OCE 74-02888 to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and BMS 75-01149 to Iowa State University, J. R. Redmond, principal investigator.     

Dynamics of estrogen binding by uterine cells in vivo

Summary The dynamics of the in vivo binding and release of tritiated estradiol in different uterine cell types are described. The very early binding of estrogens by the cytosol-nuclear and the eosinophil receptor systems is in accordance with the hypothesis that some estrogenic effects are mediated by these receptor systems.Acknowledgments. This work was supported in part by grant 2015 from the Servicio Técnico de Desarrollo Científico y Creación Artística of the University of Chile to the Laboratory of Experimental Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Morphology, University of Chile Medical School, by a Population Council Fellowship to Dr A. Tchernitchin from 1970 to 1972, by a Rockefeller Foundation grant to the Laboratories of Reproductive Biology, University of North Carolina Medical School, and by USPHS grant HD00371 to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. We wish to thank Drs W. E. Stumpf (Laboratories of Reproductive Biology, University of North Carolina Medical School) and A. M. Bongiovanni (Children's Hospital of Philadelphia) for the facilities available.     

(±)9, 10-dihydroxy-Δ 6a(10a)-tetrahydrocanabinol and (±)8, 9-dihydroxy-Δ 6a(10a)-tetrahydrocannabinol: 2 new cannabinoids fromCannabis sativa L.

Summary The structures of 2 new polyhydroxylated cannabinoids, (±)9, 10-dihydroxy- ^6a(10a)-tetrahydorcannabinol and (±)8, 9-dihydroxy- ^6a(10a)-tetrahydrocannabinol, obtained from a hexane extract of an IndianCannabis variant were determined by spectral means and correlation with cannabinol.Acknowledgments. Supported by contract No. HSM-42-70-109 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi. The authors are grateful to Mrs Glenda Lewis (Research Institute) for running the gas chromatographic analyses and to Mr C. Versluis (Analytical Chemistry Laboratory, University Of Utrecht, The Netherlands) for recording an element list of both compounds.Cannabis Herbarium specimens are stored in the herbarium, Department of Pharmacology, School of Pharmacy, University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA.     

The relationship of phosphodiesterase and cyclic AMP to the process of fluid secretion in the salivary glands of the ixodid tickAmblyomma americanum

Summary Phosphodiesterase (PDE) activity in the salivary glands of the female.Amblyomma americanum decreased as the tick progressed from a slow to a rapid phase of feeding, while the rate of fluid secretion increased, when glands were stimulated with cyclic AMP and theophylline Dopamine stimulated PDE activity and an inhibitory factor was found in glands obtained from rapidly engorging ticks which decreased PDE activity. These findings are discussed as they relate to the process of fluid secretion by salivary glands of feeding ixodid ticks.Journal article No. 3360 of Agricultural Experiment Station, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma. This research was supported in part of NSF grant PCM-24140A02 from the National Science Foundation.     

Effect of testosterone on the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis of pinealectomized and pineal-intact male rats

Summary Previous studies indicate that steroid hormones alter pineal biochemistry, and it has been suggested that at least part of the negative feedback effect of steroid hormones on pituitary gonadotropin release may be mediated by the pineal gland. In this study, pinealectomy did not alter the inhibitory effect of testosterone on neuroendocrine-gonadal activity in the male rat, suggesting that the pineal gland does not mediate the response of the rat hypothalamic-pituitary axis to testosterone.We wish to thank Susan H. Losee, Brigitte G. Mann and John Georgeson for excellent technical assistance. This investigation was supported by NSF grant SER 77-03836 and a grant from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Committee on Research to E.P.W. and by NIH grant HD-09885 and NSF grant PCM 76-09955 to F.W.T.     

Acyl fluorides as reactive mimics of aldehyde pheromones: hyperactivation and aphrodisiac inHeliothis virescens

Summary Substitution of fluorine for the aldehydic hydrogen provides behaviorally active, chemically reactive pheromone mimics. In male moths of the tobacco budwormHeliothis virescens, Z9–14:Acf and Z11–16:Acf cause hyperactivity and irreversible extension of the genitalia in over 80% of treated moths. In addition, a combination of the two components leads to 10–50% of the pairs involving one treated partner becoming locked in copula.Supported by NSF grant PCM-8112755 and DMB-8316931, by a Fellowship from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (1981–85), and by Teacher-Scholar Grant from the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation (1981–86) to G.D.P. Address correspondence to G.D.P.     

The phylogenetic status of phyllomedusine frogs (hylidae) as evidenced from immunological studies of their serum albumins

Summary Based on immunological comparisons of the serum albumins of phyllomedusine frogs with both hyline and bufonid species, it is suggested that phyllomedusine frogs be erected to familial status within the superfamily Bufonoidea.This study was initiated in the Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Berkeley. Part of this work was supported by NSF grant No. DEB75-23543The author gratefully acknowledges the helpful advice and discussion ofA. C. Wilson. Thanks are also due toD. Wake, H. Cogger, W. Duellman andR. Heyer for generously supplying frog samples.     

Effect of hydrocortisone on the ultrastructure of the small,granule-containing cells in the superior cervical ganglion of the newborn rat

Zusammenfassung Hydrocortison-Injektionen führen bei neugeborenen Ratten zu einer Vermehrung der kleinen granulahaltigen Zellen im Ganglion cervicale craniale und zu einer Vermehrung der granulären Vesikeln im Zytoplasma dieser Zellen.

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University of Melbourne Senior Research Fellow September 1971–August 1972. Present address: Department of Anatomy, University of Helsinki, Siltavuorenpenger, Helsinki, Finland 00170.

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In receipt of a grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia.

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Sunshine Foundation and Rowden White Overseas Research Fellow September 1971–August 1972. Present address: Department of Anatomy, University of Helsinki, Siltavuorenpenger, Helsinki, Finland 00170.     

Drug modification of silver-induced sodium transport across toad skin

Summary Stimulation of active Na⁺ transport in the toad skin by antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and p-chloromecuribenzoate (P-CMB) was blunted by the presence of silver (Ag⁺). Amiloride inhibited active Na⁺ transport, equivalently, whether Ag⁺ was present or not.This work was supported by the Nephrology Training grant from the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Diseases (1-TO1-AM-05697-02 and –03) and by Whitehall Foundation grant No. 78-156 ck-1 DSR.     

Naphthoquinone derivatives from the fungusHendersonula toruloidea

Summary 2 yellow naphthoquinone derivatives were isolated from several pathogenic strains ofHendersonula toruloidea Nattrass. They were identified as 2,7-dimethoxy-6-ethyl-5-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone and 2,7-dimethoxy-5-hydroxy-6-(1-acetoxyethyl)-1,4-naphthoquinone by means of physico-chemical methods.Thanks are due to Mr A.J.M. van Beijnen, Laboratory for Organic Chemistry, State University of Utrecht, for optical rotation measurements.The authors are indebted to Mr C. Versluys, Analytical Laboratory, State University of Utrecht, for measuring the mass spectra.We thank Mr J. W. Marsman, Institute for Organic Chemistry TNO, Utrecht, for the PMR-spectra.