Differential effects of lipids on the osmotic fragility of lysosomes.

The effect of a wide range of concentrations of oleic acid, oleyl alcohol and oleic acid methyl ester on lysosomal stability has been studied under both hypotonic and isoosmotic medium conditions. Both oleic acid and oleyl alcohol exhibited a biphasic interaction pattern with lysosomes; stabilizing at low concentrations and labilizing at high concentrations. Lysosome labilization by the ester required an initial lag period.     

Morphine suppression of ethanol withdrawal in mice

Summary The acute administration of morphine, alcohol or dopamine results in a pronounced suppression of the convulsions produced by alcohol in mice. The suppressive action of morphine on alcohol withdrawal in the mouse apparently is not a product of morphine intoxication, but rather to some other specific interaction between alcohol and morphine in the central nervous system. The conclusion suggest that dopamine may play a significant role as a modulator in convulsions produced during alcohol withdrawal.Dr.Kenneth Blum is Associate Professor in Pharmacology at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and a Career Teacher in Drug Abuse and Alcoholism under a grant number 1-TO1-DA00290-01 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.Acknowledgments. Our thanks are due toB. Wiggins, R. Marin andS. Elston for their excellent technical assistance. Research funded in part by Air Force Grant No. AFOSR-71-2075.     

Umwandlung von Cysteinylserin in Lanthionin

Summary N-Benzyloxycarbonyl-S-benzoyl-l-cysteinyl-O-benzoyl-L-serine methyl ester is transformed to N-benzyloxycarbonyl derivatives of cyclo-l-lanthionyl methyl ester and of cyclo-meso-lanthionyl methyl ester.     

Bildung eines ascorbigenähnlichen Produktes ausp-Hydroxybenzylalkohol und L-Ascorbinsäure

Summary l-Ascorbic acid reacts withp-hydroxybenzyl alcohol in a similar way as with 3-hydroxymethyl indole in the formation of ascorbigen (bound ascorbic acid). The crystalline reaction product was identified as a 2-C-(p-hydroxybenzyl)-3-keto-hexulosonic acid lactone.

---

Bildung eines ascorbigenähnlichen Produktes ausp-Hydroxybenzylalkohol und L-Ascorbinsäure

     

Gauss's geodesy and the axiom of parallels

It is a myth that Gauss measured a certain large triangle specifically to determine its angle sum; he did so in order to link his triangulation of Hanover with contiguous ones. The sum of the angles differed from 180° by less than two thirds of a second; he is known to have mentioned in conversation that this constituted an approximate verification of the axiom of parallels (which he regarded as an empirical matter because his studies of hyperbolic trigonometry had led him to recognize the possibility of logical alternatives to Kant and Euclid). However, he never doubted Euclidean geometry in his geodetic work. On the contrary, he continually used 180° angle sums as a powerful check for observational errors, which helped him to achieve standards of precision equivalent to today's. Nor did he ever plan an empirical investigation of the geometrical structure of space.     

On de Movire's solutions of the problem of duration of play 1708–1718

Summary I attempt to solve the enigma of how de Moivre derived his recursion formulae and the formulae for the probability of a duration of exactly n games. I believe that he obtained the latter probability by differencing Nicholas Bernoulli's formula for the probability of ruin and that he obtained the recursion formulae by a simple algebraic method and induction.     

Effect of alcohol ingestion on the epithelial cell population in rat small intestine

Summary Chronic administration of alcohol to well-nourished rats led to striking changes in the small intestinal cell population. The present experiments corroborate the view that alcohol is directly toxic to the small intestine.The authors wish to thank Mr.P. R. Gaspar for the technical assistance.     

Der Einfluss von 4-Benzylhydroxy-3,5-dijodbenzoesäure auf die oxydative Phosphorylierung von Leber- und Tumormitochondrien

Summary The effects of 4-benzylhydroxy-3,5-diiodobenzoic acid on isolated mitochondria ofWalker carcinosarcoma 256 and liver tissue of the same animals were compared. It was shown that, by the same concentrations of the uncoupling halo-phenol, the oxidative phosphorylation of tumor mitochondria was impaired in a higher degree than that of liver mitochondria.     

Interaction between sugars and amino acids in intestinal absorption by rat,in vivo

Summary The inhibitory action ofl-leucine on the intestinal absorption ofd-glucose andd-galactose, as well as the inhibitory action ofd-galactose on the absorption ofl-leucine at various concentrations by rat small intestine has been studied. The further effect was more clearly evidenced when the medium was perfunded through the intestine in a closed circuit system using a peristaltic pump.     

Arginine-vasopressin,lysine-vasopressin,and oxytocin,C14-labeled in the glycine residue

Zusammenfassung Die Synthese von Arginin-Vasopressin, Lysin-Vasopressin und Oxytocin, deren Glycinrest eine¹⁴C-Markierung trägt, wird mit Hilfe der Festkörpermethode nachMerrifield beschrieben.

---

---

Supported by National Institutes of Health grants No. AM-13567 and No. AM-10080 and the Atomic Energy Commission.

---

Abbreviations follow the rules of the IUPAC-IUB Commission on Biochemical Nomenclature in Biochemistry5, 2485 (1966). All optically-active amino acids are ofl-configuration. The following additional abbreviations were used: N-hydroxysuccinimide ester (OSu), ethanol (EtOH), methanol (MeOH), acetic acid (AcOH),n-butanol (n-BuOH), pyridine (Pyr) and N,N-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCI). Protected peptides and hormones were visualized on thinlayer plates according to the procedure byH. Zahn andE. Rexroth, Z. analyt. Chem.148, 181 (1955). The biological activities of the hormones were measured against the U.S.P. Posterior Pituitary Reference Standard; the four-point design was used for these bioassays and standard errors were calculated according to the method ofC. I. Bliss,The Statistics of Bioassay (Academic Press, New York, N.Y. 1952).

---

Acknowledgments. The authors wish to thank Mr.D. Schlesinger for some of the amino acid derivatives used, and MissM. Wahrenburg and Mrs.A. Silverman for bioassays.     

Peptolide

Summary A summary is given on the occurrence, isolation, biological activity and structural details of peptolides, a special group of the heteromere peptides. The structure is generally evaluated by identification of the amino- and hydroxyacids, isolated after total acid hydrolysis, and by isolation of the hydroxyacylaminoacids to be found after partial alkaline hydrolysis.In addition, the methods known for the synthesis of these compounds are described. For the building up of the ester bond between amino- and hydroxyacid, the methods via benzenesulfonyl chloride, mixed anhydrides, and carbonyldiimidazol are well to the fore. Activated esters, the azide method or, in the case of O-protected hydroxyacid, the acid chloride method are described for the building up of the amide bond between hydroxy- and aminoacid. The further synthesis of peptolides is chiefly ensued originating from the aminoacyl-hydroxyacid type according to the usual methods of the peptide synthesis. The possible combination of protecting groups for the blocking of the amino and carboxyl function is discussed. The synthesis of higher compounds is explained with the assistance of two reaction schemes. A cyclization and hence the synthesis of the natural material can be done according to the acid chloride or mixed anhydride method.

---

---

Hauptlaboratorium derSchering AG, Berlin-West (Dentschland). Für Anregungen, wertvolle Diskussionen und das rege Interesse an unserer Arbeit sind wir Herrn Dr.H. Gibian zu Dank verpflichtet.     

Suppression of ethanol withdrawal by dopamine

Summary An ethanol-inhalation technique was used to determine a potential relationship between dopamine and central nervous effects produced by alcohol. Bothl-DOPA and intracranially injected dopamine resulted in attenuation of ethanol-induced withdrawal convulsion scores, whereas, haloperidol, a known dopaminergic blocker was found to significantly increase convulsion scores.We thankB. Wiggins, S. Elston andRaul Marin for technical help. The work was supported gy NIH, Air Force Office of Scientific Research and Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Grants. Dr.Blum is also a recipient of the Career Teacher Award, Grant No. 1-T01-D100290-01.     

The conceptual import of Carnot's theorem to the discovery of the entropy

Summary Among many other things, Carnot stated a principle and proved a theorem. In 1850, Clausius corrected Carnot's theory, modifying it according to Joule's principle. He might have considered a corollary of the theorem as the mathematical formulation of Carnot's principle. We challenge the corollary: it is based on hidden assumptions, nor is it true for all cycles. Clausius realized the corollary's lack of generality, but on different grounds. In 1854, he generalized the theorem, and gave an (other) expression to Carnot's principle. We analyze Clapeyron's account of Carnot's theory, Thomson's account of 1849 and some of Clausius belated comments on his 1850 paper, as well Clausius' paper of 1854. We hope that they shed light on the corollary's tacit hypotheses and on the meaning of Carnot's principle. It is our contention: Clausius took seriously a contemporary meaning of the principle, and looked for a condition of integrability that could express recovery of the initial conditions of the reservoirs. Furthermore, he seems to have had some prior knowledge of the form the expression of the principle should take. Actually, this was the theory's natural candidate.     

Hormonal rupture of larval diapause in the tickRhipicephalus sanguineus (Lat.)

Zusammenfassung Die Diapause von Larven der ZeckeRhipicephalus sanguineus (Lat.) wird durch- and-Ecdyson beendet.

---

---

We would like to thank Dr.J. B. Siddal for generously providing-ecdysone, Dr.T. Takemoto for-ecdysone and Dr.N. Krishnan for the juvenile hormone analogue,trans, trans-10, 11-epoxy faresenic acid methyl ester.     

Rapporto fra “metodo” e “contenuti matematici” in P. Gesualdo Melacrinò da Reggio Calabria

Summary Father Gesualdo Melacrinò (1725–1803), from Reggio Calabria (Italy), is an unknown Capuchin philosopher and theologian, who produced several works at the time he was teaching (only five years, from 1748–53); these works contained an original approach to the foundations and philosophy of mathematics. His main purpose was to reconciliate the classical traditions with the reality of his time. For him, this included a critical examination of the scholastic curriculum and a new orientation towards the methodological relevance of mathematics for all other sciences, especially for philosophy. Concerning mathematics, he emphasized the necessity of a basic revision and logical reconstruction of its foundations. This paper provides a comparative examination of Melacrinò's work with reference to its cultural and historical environment.     

Effets d'analogues du chloramphénicol sur la différenciation de l'∄uf de l'oursinParacentrotus lividus

Summary The effects ofl-threo-chloramphenicol and thiophenicol on the differentiation of sea-urchin eggs are compared with those exerted byd-threo-chloramphenicol. Onlyd-threo-chloramphenicol caused vegetalization;l-threo-chloramphenicol inhibited development. These effects resemble those of nitrobenzene. Thiophenicol, differing fromd-threo-chloramphenicol by replacing the nitro group with a methylsulphonyl group, slows down development at high concentrations. The effects of chloramphenicol on oxidative phosphorylation and synthesis of proteins are discussed. It is suggested that both the steric configuration typed-threo of the side chain and the presence of a nitro group are necessary for the vegetalizing activity.     

Kompensation der teratogenen Wirkung eines Thalidomid-Metaboliten durchl-Glutaminsäure

Summary Skeletal defects were observed in the off-spring of SWS-mice following i.p. administration of phthaloyl-l-glutamic acid, a metabolite of thalidomide. The fetuses of animals which receivedl-glutamic acid in addition to the teratogenic drug, did not show any malformations, whereas concurrent i.p. administration of thed-isomer of glutamic acid failed to reverse teratogenicity induced by phthaloyl-l-glutamic acid.     

Solacasine,a new steroidal alkaloid fromSolanum pseudocapsicum possessing antimicrobial activity

Summary Systematic fractionation of alcohol extracts ofSolanum pseudocapsicum. showed that solacasine is the main antibacterial constituent. Based on physiochemical studies, a structure is proposed.The authors are grateful to Dr.R. Foltz, Battelle's Columbus Laboratories, and Mr.E. Fairchild of our laboratories for the mass spectral data, to Mr.Ruey-Ping Leu for the microbiological data, and to the NIH for grant No. AI-09846 in partial support of this work.     

Über den Einfluss desd,l-Methioninsulfoximins auf den Eiweißstoffwechsel bei Erbsen

Summary The influence of thed,l-Methioninesulphoximine on the nitrogen metabolism of germinating seeds has been studied on peas. It has been shown thatd,l-Methioninesulphoximine, even at low concentrations, inhibited the germination of seeds and produced a decrease of growth of the roots. The inhibited germinating seeds contained less non-protein-nitrogen and less asparagine than the control plants. On the basis of the experimental results,d,l-Methioninesulphoximine could be considered as an inhibitor of proteolysis.