‘Chromatoid body’ in the spermatogenesis of scorpions

Zusammenfassung Die von früheren Autoren als «Chromatoidkörper» bezeichnete Struktur der Spermatozoiden von Skorpionen,Palamnaeus bengalensis, ist kein wirklicher «Chromatoidkörper», sondern ein Hilfskörper lipoprotonischer Natur ohne jegliche RNA.     

‘Holding’ and ‘endorsing’ claims in the course of scientific activities

My principal aims are to show that holding, adopting and endorsing (definitions of which I provide) are distinct cognitive attitudes that may be taken towards claims at different moments of scientific activities, and that none of them are reducible to acceptance (as defined by Jonathan Cohen); to explore in detail the differences between holding and accepting, using the controversies about GMOs to provide illustrations; and to draw some implications pertinent to democratic decision-making concerning public policies about science and technology, and to the responsibilities that scientists thereby incur.     

On factors involved in the mechanism of ‘Taste-blindness’

Zusammenfassung Der genetisch kontrollierte, hohe Geschmacksschwellenwert — Geschmacksblindheit — gegenüber Phenylthioharnstoff (PTC) und anderen bitteren, strukturell ähnlichen Anti-Schilddrüsensubstanzen, scheint durch die Qualität und Quantität des löslichen Speichel-Enzym-Systems Tyrosiniodinase bedingt zu sein.PTC-Geschmacksblinde sind «Alles-Esser», PTC-Schmecker hingegen weisen eine erhöhte kulinarische Selektivität auf. Diese Tatsache ist um so interessanter, als der Schwellenwert der beiden Gruppen gegenüber den klassischen Geschmacksqualitäten — süss, salzig, sauer und bitter — derselbe ist.     

Histochemistry of the so-called ‘golgi complex’ in the mammalian spermatid

Résumé L'examen histochimique des spermatides du bouc et du buffle montre que le «complexe de Golgi» des auteurs comprend l'idiosome constitué par des protéides et des lipidoprotéides, les bâtonnets et granules constitués par des phospholipides et peut-être des protéides et enfin les vacuoles.     

Entropy measures of signal in the presence of noise: evidence for ‘byte’ versus ‘bit’ processing in the nervous system

Summary A method for detecting signal in the presence of noise in a highly specific was is described. Using action potential interval data from 12 neurons in rat cerebellum, we have demonstrated that the sequential ordering of spike intervals contains both noise and signal. We have identified and quantified the magnitude of relative entropy (uncertainty) for specified sets of interval patterns, ranging in length from 3–5 successive intervals. Some of these sets have exceptionally low entropy and thus seem to be especially meaningful as a set (word) to the brain.     

Transplantation and ‘cross-transplantation’ of free muscle grafts in the rat

Zusammenfassung Nachweis, dass ein frei transplantierter Rattenmuskel besser regeneriert, wenn er 14 Tage vor der Transplantation denerviert wurde.

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Work performed during an exchange between the Czechoslovak and US Academies of Sciences and supported in part by a grant from the MDAA.     

Spectrin and calpain: a ‘target’ and a ‘sniper’ in the pathology of neuronal cells

It is well documented that activation of calpain, a calcium-sensitive cysteine protease, marks the pathology of naturally and experimentally occuring neurodegenerative conditions. Calpain-mediated proteolysis of major membrane-skeletal protein, αII-spectrin, results in the appearance of two unique and highly stable breakdown products, which is an early event in neural cell pathology. This review focuses on spectrin degradation by calpain within neurons induced by diverse conditions, emphasizing a current picture of multi-pattern neuronal death and a recent success in the development of spectrin-based biomarkers. The issue is presented in the context of the major structural and functional properties of the two proteins.Received 7 March 2005; received after revision 22 April 2005; accepted 13 May 2005     

Natural selection and the ‘antiquity of man’: Intellectual impacts in the Australian colonies

Two months before the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859), Scottish geologist Charles Lyell announced a consensus on ‘the antiquity of man.’ Although stemming from separate intellectual traditions, human antiquity and natural selection had such a powerful influence on nineteenth century science that the former is often thought to be an inevitable conceptual and chronological consequence of the latter. Various scholars have argued it was in fact the acceptance of human antiquity that provided a foundation for the intelligibility and eventual acceptance of evolution by natural selection. This article investigates how these two interwoven theories affected understandings of human antiquity in Australia; itself an under-examined topic in Australian scholarship. Indeed, most historians maintain Australia's human antiquity was not ‘discovered’ or broadly understood until the advent of radiocarbon dating and professional archaeology in the 1960s. This over-simplified narrative has only recently begun to be reassessed. To contribute to this reassessment, and to the broader reclamation of human antiquity as a historical subject, this article focuses on the early decades of human antiquity's dissemination in Australia, examines its complex relationship with natural selection, and ultimately challenges narratives of its ‘recent’ discovery.     

Studies on the hypoglycemic effect of ‘Vincamin’

Zusammenfassung Nach Verabreichung von Vincamin sinkt bei akuten Versuchen an Ratten der Blutzuckerspiegel. Die nach Dextroseverfütterung verursachte Hyperglykämie wird durch Vincamin verhindert, der Blutzuckeranstieg jedoch bleibt nach Adrenalin unbeeinflusst.     

Observations on the neuropathology of ‘reeler’, a neurological mutation in mice

Zusammenfassung Eine genetisch bedingte Bewegungsstörung in der Hausmaus «reeler» wurde untersucht. Der Erbgang der «reeler»-Mutation ist einfach rezessiv. In homozygotem Zustand führt das Gen zu Gleichgewichtsstörungen und leichtem Zittern.Das Studium der Morphologie des Gehirns der «reeler»-Mäuse ergab, dass die Cytoarchitektonik des Kleinhirns in dieser Mutante verändert und teilweise zerstört ist.

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Supported by Grant No. B-1716 from USPHS National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Blindness.     

Application of the ‘low-temperature plasma ashing method for biological tissues’ to studies in the field of virology

Summary It was found that the behavior of a virus in host plant is reflected in the pattern of crystalline inorganic components of the host plant by the technique of the low-temperature plasma ashing method for biological tissues.     

Temperature-induced reversal of dominance of variegation in ‘Ornamental kale’

Résumé La transmission de l'albinisme panaché deBrassica oleracea L. ne dépend que d'un seul facteur. Chez les hétérozygotes ce caractère apparaît à basse température (7°C), mais pas à haute température (21°C). Chez les homozygotes le caractère se manifeste probablement toujours, tout en restant peu prononcé à des températures plus élevées. Ainsi il y a une inversion du caractère dominant avec changement de température.     

Hepatic α-tocopherol binding protein in the rat: Absence of an effect of selenium deficiency on binding activity

Summary Selenium deficiency produces no effect on either the total content of or the binding properties of rat liver -tocopherol binding protein.     

Striated inclusions and defective mitochondria in the restricted form of the ‘amycelial’ mutant ofNeurospora crassa

Summary The cytoplasm of the restrictive form of the amycelial mutant ofNeurospora crassa, growing on sucrosemedium, contains paracrystalline, microfilamentous inclusions and mitochondria with internal membranous whorls lacking in acetate-grown cultures.The support of the Fonds national suisse de la recherche scientifique is gratefully acknowledged.     

Quantitative investigation of the P and N loss in the rat liver when using various media in the ‘freeze-substitution’ technique

Résumé Les auteurs ont examiné les possibilités de diminution du contenu en azote et phosphore et de la masse sèche au cours de la congelation-dissolution des tissus. La diminution la plus marquée a été observée après l'usage de méthanol. Tandis qu'avec l'acétone elle est insignifiante.