Cooperative non-specific binding of the cyclic adenosine 3'--5'-monophosphate receptor protein (CRP) from Escherichia coli to double-stranded thymus and lambda pgal DNA]

Either free or combined with cAMP, CRP binds cooperatively to double-stranded thymus and lambda pgal DNA. The affinity of CRP for both DNAs in these non-specific interactions is increased by cAMP without noticeable change in the degree of cooperativity. Values of the intrinsic association constant, cooperativity parameter, and site size of DNA were determined from ultracentrifugal investigations under near-physiological ionic conditions.     

Cultivation of arterial endothelial cells from human umbilical cord

We have developed a simple method for the isolation of endothelial cells from human umbilical artery. The method provides a sufficient number of cells to be of experimental value. The presence of factor VIII antigen specific for endothelium has been demonstrated by immunofluorescence as well as by the peroxidase-antiperoxidase immune complex method.     

The ontogenetic development of the c-wave in the chick ERG

Zusammenfassung Elektroretinographische Untersuchungen wurden in situ während des Wachstums von Küken ohne Narkose ausgeführt. Die c-Welle des ERG trat direkt vor der Ausbrüte und bei frisch geschlüpften Küken in Erscheinung.     

Effect of pulsing electromagnetic fields on DNA synthesis in mammalian cells in culture

Summary DNA synthesis in Chinese hamster V79 cells was significantly enhanced when they were exposed to weak, pulsing electromagnetic fields generated by specific combinations of the pulse width (25s), frequency (10, 100 Hz) and magnetic intensity (2×10^–5 8×10^–5T). Conversely the DNA synthesis of cells in the fields at 4×10^–4 T was repressed to 80% of that in controls not exposed to the fields.This work was supported by Kaken Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Tokyo, Japan, and in part by a Grant-in-Aid from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture of Japan and from the Foundation for Life Science Promotion Tokyo, Japan to I.K.     

Soft Chemical Synthesis of Novel Oxide Electrode Materials for Lithium-ion Batteries

1 Results Low-temperature synthetic techniques called “chimie douce“ have resulted in major developments in the field of solid state chemistry of transition metal oxides. The systematic study of oxide bronzes in the period 1950-1980 paved the way to further advances in the solid state chemistry of oxides, including the alkali metal intercalation(deintercalation chemistry by soft chemical and/or electrochemical methods. These techniques also gave access to new metastable compounds such as several new f...     

Deficiency of kallikrein-like enzyme activities in cerebral tissue of patients with Alzheimer's disease.

We examined the changes in the intracerebral activities, at the time of postmortem autopsy, in patients with Alzheimer's disease. When compared with the control group, the activity of kallikrein-like enzyme was significantly decreased, while prolyl endopeptidase activity increased, in the patients group. Aprotinin inhibited 50% of the activity of the former enzyme at 2 x 10(-7) M. Taken together with the results of a multivariate study, the above findings may indicate that intracerebral kallikrein deficiency plays an important role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease.     

Juvenile hormone I is the principal juvenile hormone in a hemipteran insect,Riptortus clavatus

Juvenile hormone I (JH I) was identified by combined gas chromatography/mass spectrometry as the predominant JH in the hemolymph of female adults of the bean bug,Riptortus clavatus (Thunberg) (Hemiptera: Alydidae). Among JH I, II, and III, JH I was the most effective hormone for inducing the synthesis of yolk proteins in diapause adults.     

DISC1-dependent switch from progenitor proliferation to migration in the developing cortex

Regulatory mechanisms governing the sequence from progenitor cell proliferation to neuronal migration during corticogenesis are poorly understood. Here we report that phosphorylation of DISC1, a major susceptibility factor for several mental disorders, acts as a molecular switch from maintaining proliferation of mitotic progenitor cells to activating migration of postmitotic neurons in mice. Unphosphorylated DISC1 regulates canonical Wnt signalling via an interaction with GSK3β, whereas specific phosphorylation at serine 710 (S710) triggers the recruitment of Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) proteins to the centrosome. In support of this model, loss of BBS1 leads to defects in migration, but not proliferation, whereas DISC1 knockdown leads to deficits in both. A phospho-dead mutant can only rescue proliferation, whereas a phospho-mimic mutant rescues exclusively migration defects. These data highlight a dual role for DISC1 in corticogenesis and indicate that phosphorylation of this protein at S710 activates a key developmental switch.     

Permanent El Niño during the Pliocene warm period not supported by coral evidence

The El Ni?o/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) system during the Pliocene warm period (PWP; 3-5 million years ago) may have existed in a permanent El Ni?o state with a sharply reduced zonal sea surface temperature (SST) gradient in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. This suggests that during the PWP, when global mean temperatures and atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations were similar to those projected for near-term climate change, ENSO variability--and related global climate teleconnections-could have been radically different from that today. Yet, owing to a lack of observational evidence on seasonal and interannual SST variability from crucial low-latitude sites, this fundamental climate characteristic of the PWP remains controversial. Here we show that permanent El Ni?o conditions did not exist during the PWP. Our spectral analysis of the δ(18)O SST and salinity proxy, extracted from two 35-year, monthly resolved PWP Porites corals in the Philippines, reveals variability that is similar to present ENSO variation. Although our fossil corals cannot be directly compared with modern ENSO records, two lines of evidence suggest that Philippine corals are appropriate ENSO proxies. First, δ(18)O anomalies from a nearby live Porites coral are correlated with modern records of ENSO variability. Second, negative-δ(18)O events in the fossil corals closely resemble the decreases in δ(18)O seen in the live coral during El Ni?o events. Prior research advocating a permanent El Ni?o state may have been limited by the coarse resolution of many SST proxies, whereas our coral-based analysis identifies climate variability at the temporal scale required to resolve ENSO structure firmly.